Scripture Matthew 16:15
“Who do you say that I am?”
Comment
If Jesus was not just a mortal prophet, a great and powerful man then who was He?
This is the central question of the Gospel? And it is asked by none other than Jesus himself, who turned to His disciples and said: “Who do you say I am?”
There are really only 5 possibilities and they all start with the letter L
Legend
Liar
Lunatic
Light and fluffy new ager
Lord
Legend
The problem with calling Jesus a “legend” is that no reputable historian in the world would say Jesus never existed. Most of the New Testament was written when the eyewitnesses to the events of Jesus life, death and resurrection were still alive. If the apostles were enthusiast who just got a bit excited and mistook their rabbi for God, then why do the Gospel accounts show the disciples to be slow to understand His message and put their faith in Him?
Liar
Maybe the apostles told what they believed to be true. Isn’t it still possible that Jesus was the deceiver here, bent on selling Himself to the crowd for the usual reasons of power and money?
The problem is Jesus does not do the things that a deceiver or opportunist would do. He flees into the desert when people try to make Him king (John 6:15). Then He makes speeches (John 6:25-60) that are guaranteed to offend all but the most die-hard grassroots supporters. He repeatedly conceals His miracles (Mark 5:43, 7:36, Luke 5:14) etc. Such “political” blunders characterised His entire career. If He was after worldly power, He had a strange way of showing it.
Lunatic
Perhaps Jesus was just insane and merely believed He was God. This explanation doesn’t work. Consider the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew ch’s 5-7). Does this look to you like the ravings of a lunatic? Read again His deft answer to the people who wanted to catch Him in His words (Mark 12:13-17). Observe His brilliance and subtlety of His answer to those who wanted to stone the woman taken in adultery. (John 8:1-11). This kind of savvy is hardly evidence of madness.
Light and Fluffy New Ager
Some say that Jesus did claim to be God, but He meant it in an Eastern or ”New Age” way. He was merely asserting His “God” conscienceness in an attempt to awaken this same conscienceness in us. He was, in short, a guru to the Jewish people. It is an interesting thought but its not what Jesus said. On the contrary, He affirms that God is Lord of heaven and earth, not that He is heaven and earth. He does not speak of God as identical with creation. Far from asserting that He’s OK and we’re OK, he frequently tells us we are evil, but He is without sin; we are from below, but He is from above (John 8:1-11; 23) He insists that the way to life is not by discovering our divinity but by putting our faith exclusively in Him.
Jesus is the Lord
As we consider all the evidence, there is only one possibility that truly satisfies: Jesus is who He says He is.
He is God in the flesh.
He is the eternal Son of God, the Messiah, sent to save the world from it’s sins.
He indeed is the Lord of the universe, who came to give us eternal life.
He really and truly shed His blood for us on the cross and
He really and truly rose from the dead and ascended into heaven.
Now He offers us all the riches of His love, mercy, forgiveness, joy, power, and peace by the gift of the Holy Spirit, and eternal life with His Father through the sacraments of His Church, which is His body.
That’s what we find when we really “seek the truth”.
Source: The Da Vinci Deception by Mark Shea and Edward Sri
"[T]o the Church beloved and enlightened after the love of Jesus Christ, our God, by the will of him that has willed everything which is"
Source: Ignatius of Antioch – who knew the Apostle John - Letter to the Romans 1 [A.D. 110].
Showing posts with label '4 Dr Edward Sri. Show all posts
Showing posts with label '4 Dr Edward Sri. Show all posts
Monday, June 27, 2011
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Gospel of St John - THE HOUR
Gospel of St John - THE HOUR
Mary only speaks twice in Johns Gospel.
Mary appears in the most pivotal moments in Christ’s ministry.
In fact, she appears at the very beginning of His public ministry the wedding feast of Cana and she appears at the very end of His public ministry – His climax at Calvary.
She appears when Jesus performs His first miracle at Cana and when He performs His greatest miracle as He conquers sin and death rising from the dead.
In both of these scenes Mary is mentioned three times.
At Cana she is mentioned three times and at Calvary she is mentioned three times.
There are many parallels in these two scenes.
At Cana we first hear about Jesus ‘Hour’ and it is here that Jesus refers to (his mother) Mary as ‘Woman’ and at the Cross we see what the ‘Hour’ is all about. Just before He dies on the Cross, in the midst of all this excruciating pain of the crucifixion Jesus asks the beloved disciple John to take care of His mother, and it is here where He turns to His mother and calls her ‘Woman’!
Join me as we explore the theme of The Hour
Do you remember in the wedding feast at Cana where we encountered Jesus talking about His hour?
There at Cana Jesus said to Mary in John 2:4 , “My hour has not yet come”.
And for many chapters afterwards this theme of “the hour” will recur over and over again. Jesus is going to constantly say ‘my hour has not yet come’.
Let me give you a few examples:
John 4:21-23 Jesus says"... the hour is coming, …, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth...”
In John 5:25 Jesus says “… the hour is coming, …, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God….”
So we are hearing about this hour, Jesus says ‘my hour has not yet come’ and then ‘my hour is coming’ and then when we turn to John 7:30, some of the leaders of the Jews in Jerusalem tried to arrest Jesus, but the text tells us Jesus escaped through their midst because quote “his hour had not yet come”. So He escaped from their plans to kill him because His hour had not yet come. In John 8:20 they tried to arrest Jesus once again and once again Jesus escapes because quote “his hour had not yet come. “
Over and over we get to hear about ‘the hour is coming’ in Johns Gospel and by the time we get to chapter 12, we finally have a chance to hear about the hour arriving. As readers we are relieved because we are longing to find out what the Hour is all about.
So lets turn to John 12:20 to see for ourselves what is this “hour” and how it is coming to fulfilment.
John 12:20-33
[20] Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.
[21] So these came to Philip, who was from Beth-sa'ida in Galilee, and said to him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."
[22] Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew went with Philip and they told Jesus.
[23] And Jesus answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified.
Now as Jesus is about to enter Jerusalem to die, these Greeks these gentiles come to Him and want to meet Him, foreshadowing how through Jesus death and resurrection He is going to bring about redemption and salvation not just for the Jews but for all humanity, even these pagan Greeks.
Well, Jesus at this moment, says ‘now the hour has come’.
The “hour” has finally come.
Notice in the text what the hour is all about.
The Hour is the hour of His glory (as we see in verse 23 above).
What is the “glory” of Jesus in the Gospel of John?
Take a look at how Jesus describes the moment of His glory in subsequent verses 24 and 25.
[24] Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
[25] He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
So Jesus is talking about how His hour has finally come and it’s the hour of His glory where He will be glorified.
Then He talks about this grain of wheat falling into the earth and dying and then He talks about losing your life in order to keep it.
What does verse 24 and 25 tell us about Jesus’ “hour of glory”?
He will lose His life like the grain of wheat and go down into the ground, into the tomb and then on Easter Sunday He will be raised up and bear much fruit – the fruit of salvation for all humanity.
The glory of Christ is not about worldly glory.
This is not the moment where He comes in worldly splendour and all these dignitaries and heads of state are going to bow down before Him.
Quite the opposite.
From a human perspective Jesus death on the Cross is the moment in which He is defeated, it seems, from an earthly perspective.
He is defeated by His enemies.
He is defeated by the Romans.
But yet John’s Gospel is trying to get us to look at this not just from a human perspective but a heavenly or spiritual perspective where we see that Jesus’ crucifixion at the hands of the Romans plotted through the Jewish leaders is actually Jesus’ moment of triumph because He is coming to bring about a spiritual redemption of all humanity.
John’s Gospel tells us a little bit more about this “hour” and what’s going to happen in this hour in John 12 verse 31 to 33.
So pay attention to what Jesus says will happen in His hour of glory.
[31] Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast out;
[32] and I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself."
[33] He said this to show by what death he was to die.
Notice in Verse 32 Jesus speaks of being lifted up from the earth and will draw all men to himself which refers to being raised up on the Cross and through His death all men are going to be drawn to Him to be saved.
But what is going to happen when Jesus is lifted up and He goes to His death on the Cross?
Verse 31 tells us what is going to happen.
The ruler of this world will be cast out.
Who is the ruler of this world? (see Luke 4:6, Matt 4:9)
The ruler is the devil – satan – the ancient serpent. (see Revelation 12:9)
Notice the hour of Jesus, the hour of His glory that is the hour or the moment in which the devil will be defeated.
It is the moment when Genesis 3:15 will be fulfilled, when the devil is defeated, when the serpent will finally be crushed.
(different translations of Genesis 3:15 say either crushed, bruised or strike the head)
So think about this, the hour on the Cross, when we turn to John 19 and the scene where Jesus is with Mary and the beloved disciple, this is the moment of Jesus hour.
The Hour is the hour His glory but that is also the hour when the devil is defeated - when the ruler of this world is cast out.
That is the hour when Genesis 3:15 is fulfilled and in that context of Genesis 3:15 being fulfilled and the hour of Jesus glory on Calvary, Jesus turns to His mother at that moment (John 19:26) and calls His mother, “Woman”.
What woman do you think Jesus has in mind?
Eve.
The woman of Genesis.
The woman that God spoke of in Genesis 3:15 about how a woman will have a son that will crush the head of the serpent and there in the hour where the ruler of the world is cast out here Mary is present with her son. She is the Woman and through her son, the death of her son crushes the head of the serpent.
Source: Dr Edward Sri Bible Study
Mary only speaks twice in Johns Gospel.
Mary appears in the most pivotal moments in Christ’s ministry.
In fact, she appears at the very beginning of His public ministry the wedding feast of Cana and she appears at the very end of His public ministry – His climax at Calvary.
She appears when Jesus performs His first miracle at Cana and when He performs His greatest miracle as He conquers sin and death rising from the dead.
In both of these scenes Mary is mentioned three times.
At Cana she is mentioned three times and at Calvary she is mentioned three times.
There are many parallels in these two scenes.
At Cana we first hear about Jesus ‘Hour’ and it is here that Jesus refers to (his mother) Mary as ‘Woman’ and at the Cross we see what the ‘Hour’ is all about. Just before He dies on the Cross, in the midst of all this excruciating pain of the crucifixion Jesus asks the beloved disciple John to take care of His mother, and it is here where He turns to His mother and calls her ‘Woman’!
Join me as we explore the theme of The Hour
Do you remember in the wedding feast at Cana where we encountered Jesus talking about His hour?
There at Cana Jesus said to Mary in John 2:4 , “My hour has not yet come”.
And for many chapters afterwards this theme of “the hour” will recur over and over again. Jesus is going to constantly say ‘my hour has not yet come’.
Let me give you a few examples:
John 4:21-23 Jesus says"... the hour is coming, …, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth...”
In John 5:25 Jesus says “… the hour is coming, …, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God….”
So we are hearing about this hour, Jesus says ‘my hour has not yet come’ and then ‘my hour is coming’ and then when we turn to John 7:30, some of the leaders of the Jews in Jerusalem tried to arrest Jesus, but the text tells us Jesus escaped through their midst because quote “his hour had not yet come”. So He escaped from their plans to kill him because His hour had not yet come. In John 8:20 they tried to arrest Jesus once again and once again Jesus escapes because quote “his hour had not yet come. “
Over and over we get to hear about ‘the hour is coming’ in Johns Gospel and by the time we get to chapter 12, we finally have a chance to hear about the hour arriving. As readers we are relieved because we are longing to find out what the Hour is all about.
So lets turn to John 12:20 to see for ourselves what is this “hour” and how it is coming to fulfilment.
John 12:20-33
[20] Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.
[21] So these came to Philip, who was from Beth-sa'ida in Galilee, and said to him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."
[22] Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew went with Philip and they told Jesus.
[23] And Jesus answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified.
Now as Jesus is about to enter Jerusalem to die, these Greeks these gentiles come to Him and want to meet Him, foreshadowing how through Jesus death and resurrection He is going to bring about redemption and salvation not just for the Jews but for all humanity, even these pagan Greeks.
Well, Jesus at this moment, says ‘now the hour has come’.
The “hour” has finally come.
Notice in the text what the hour is all about.
The Hour is the hour of His glory (as we see in verse 23 above).
What is the “glory” of Jesus in the Gospel of John?
Take a look at how Jesus describes the moment of His glory in subsequent verses 24 and 25.
[24] Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
[25] He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
So Jesus is talking about how His hour has finally come and it’s the hour of His glory where He will be glorified.
Then He talks about this grain of wheat falling into the earth and dying and then He talks about losing your life in order to keep it.
What does verse 24 and 25 tell us about Jesus’ “hour of glory”?
He will lose His life like the grain of wheat and go down into the ground, into the tomb and then on Easter Sunday He will be raised up and bear much fruit – the fruit of salvation for all humanity.
The glory of Christ is not about worldly glory.
This is not the moment where He comes in worldly splendour and all these dignitaries and heads of state are going to bow down before Him.
Quite the opposite.
From a human perspective Jesus death on the Cross is the moment in which He is defeated, it seems, from an earthly perspective.
He is defeated by His enemies.
He is defeated by the Romans.
But yet John’s Gospel is trying to get us to look at this not just from a human perspective but a heavenly or spiritual perspective where we see that Jesus’ crucifixion at the hands of the Romans plotted through the Jewish leaders is actually Jesus’ moment of triumph because He is coming to bring about a spiritual redemption of all humanity.
John’s Gospel tells us a little bit more about this “hour” and what’s going to happen in this hour in John 12 verse 31 to 33.
So pay attention to what Jesus says will happen in His hour of glory.
[31] Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast out;
[32] and I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself."
[33] He said this to show by what death he was to die.
Notice in Verse 32 Jesus speaks of being lifted up from the earth and will draw all men to himself which refers to being raised up on the Cross and through His death all men are going to be drawn to Him to be saved.
But what is going to happen when Jesus is lifted up and He goes to His death on the Cross?
Verse 31 tells us what is going to happen.
The ruler of this world will be cast out.
Who is the ruler of this world? (see Luke 4:6, Matt 4:9)
The ruler is the devil – satan – the ancient serpent. (see Revelation 12:9)
Notice the hour of Jesus, the hour of His glory that is the hour or the moment in which the devil will be defeated.
It is the moment when Genesis 3:15 will be fulfilled, when the devil is defeated, when the serpent will finally be crushed.
(different translations of Genesis 3:15 say either crushed, bruised or strike the head)
So think about this, the hour on the Cross, when we turn to John 19 and the scene where Jesus is with Mary and the beloved disciple, this is the moment of Jesus hour.
The Hour is the hour His glory but that is also the hour when the devil is defeated - when the ruler of this world is cast out.
That is the hour when Genesis 3:15 is fulfilled and in that context of Genesis 3:15 being fulfilled and the hour of Jesus glory on Calvary, Jesus turns to His mother at that moment (John 19:26) and calls His mother, “Woman”.
What woman do you think Jesus has in mind?
Eve.
The woman of Genesis.
The woman that God spoke of in Genesis 3:15 about how a woman will have a son that will crush the head of the serpent and there in the hour where the ruler of the world is cast out here Mary is present with her son. She is the Woman and through her son, the death of her son crushes the head of the serpent.
Source: Dr Edward Sri Bible Study
Luke 1: 41-42 Blessed are you among women
Luke 1: 41-42 Blessed are you among women
[41] And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit
[42] and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
Comment - “Blessed are you among women”
There are phrases in the Bible which, when you see how they have been applied elsewhere, may give you extra insight as to what is possibly being said here.
This phrase (blessed among women – most blessed of women – blessed … above all women on earth) is found only in two other places in the Bible.
Judges 5:24,26
[24] "Most blessed of women be Ja'el, the wife of Heber the Ken'ite, of tent-dwelling women most blessed.
[26] She put her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workmen's mallet; she struck Sis'era a blow, she crushed his head, she shattered and pierced his temple.
Judith 13:18
[18] And Uzziah said to her, "O daughter, you are blessed by the Most High God above all women on earth; and blessed be the Lord God, who created the heavens and the earth, who has guided you to strike the head of the leader of our enemies.
In Luke, this saying “Blessed are you among women” was exclaimed by Elizabeth immediately after being filled with the Holy Spirit
It brings to mind the above Old Testament events where warrior like women crush or cut off the head off pagan enemies and because of their action these women are described as ‘blessed among women’.
They were ordinary women who didn’t have any official leadership position and yet God raised them up and they do these very powerful things.
Source: Dr Edward Sri Bible Study - Knowing Mary Through The Bible
[41] And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit
[42] and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
Comment - “Blessed are you among women”
There are phrases in the Bible which, when you see how they have been applied elsewhere, may give you extra insight as to what is possibly being said here.
This phrase (blessed among women – most blessed of women – blessed … above all women on earth) is found only in two other places in the Bible.
Judges 5:24,26
[24] "Most blessed of women be Ja'el, the wife of Heber the Ken'ite, of tent-dwelling women most blessed.
[26] She put her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workmen's mallet; she struck Sis'era a blow, she crushed his head, she shattered and pierced his temple.
Judith 13:18
[18] And Uzziah said to her, "O daughter, you are blessed by the Most High God above all women on earth; and blessed be the Lord God, who created the heavens and the earth, who has guided you to strike the head of the leader of our enemies.
In Luke, this saying “Blessed are you among women” was exclaimed by Elizabeth immediately after being filled with the Holy Spirit
It brings to mind the above Old Testament events where warrior like women crush or cut off the head off pagan enemies and because of their action these women are described as ‘blessed among women’.
They were ordinary women who didn’t have any official leadership position and yet God raised them up and they do these very powerful things.
Source: Dr Edward Sri Bible Study - Knowing Mary Through The Bible
Genesis 3:14-15 – Eat Dust and Crushing Underfoot
Genesis 3:14-15 – Eat Dust and Crushing Underfoot
[14] The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
[15] I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
Comment
My theme this week continues to explore the above verses.
Recently I was watching a Bible Study and the following little insights came to light.
The commentary below was taken from this Bible study.
*****
These verses are not about snakes. The word used for serpent is nahash.
Nahash is also translated in Isaiah 27:1 and also in Rev 12:9 where it specifically identifies the ancient serpent is the devil.
In verse 14, God is speaking to the serpent and not to Adam nor Eve.
And so verse 14 is a curse by God, so it is bad news for the serpent.
Verse 15 represents the first prophetic announcement of the Messiah and His victory over sin and over the devil.
Right after Adam and Eve sin, God doesn’t abandon them. He gives them hope. He tells them there will eventually be someone who will come and defeat the devil..
There are phrases in the Bible which when you see how they have been applied elsewhere may give you extra insight as to what is possibly being said here.
(Two such phrase are below)
Eat dust
Gen 3:14
The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
“Eat the dust” imagery is found elsewhere in the Old Testament and helps us understand what God is saying here.
Psalm 72:9-11 describes how the kind, the Davidic king will have his enemies bow down before him and they will eat or lick the dust.
It describes the defeat of the kings enemies.
May his foes bow down before him, and his enemies lick the dust! May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles render him tribute, may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!
Crushing under foot
Genesis 3:15
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
Bruising or crushing the head of the serpent is one way of saying the serpent is ‘under the feet’
(different translations of Genesis 3:15 say either crushed, bruised or strike the head)
“under feet” imagery is found elsewhere in the Old Testament and helps us understand what God is saying here.
Psalm 110:1 describes how the Davidic kings defeat their enemies by placing the enemies as a footstool – underneath the feet.
The LORD says to my lord: "Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool."
2 Samuel 22:37-43 describes how David’s enemies are crushed and trampled under foot.
[37] Thou didst give a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip;
[38] I pursued my enemies and destroyed them, and did not turn back until they were consumed.
[39] I consumed them; I thrust them through, so that they did not rise; they fell under my feet.
[40] For thou didst gird me with strength for the battle; thou didst make my assailants sink under me.
[41] Thou didst make my enemies turn their backs to me, those who hated me, and I destroyed them.
[42] They looked, but there was none to save; they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.
[43] I beat them fine as the dust of the earth, I crushed them and stamped them down like the mire of the streets.
So when you hear this idea about being under foot, crushed under foot that brings to mind a defeat, a king defeating the enemy.
When you read about the serpent being crushed by this child of a woman, crushing the head of the serpent,
it foreshadows that one day the woman will have a royal son, a Davidic son, a new king who will come and crush the serpent and defeat the devil.
Source: Dr Edward Sri - KNOWING MARY THROUGH THE BIBLE
[14] The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
[15] I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
Comment
My theme this week continues to explore the above verses.
Recently I was watching a Bible Study and the following little insights came to light.
The commentary below was taken from this Bible study.
*****
These verses are not about snakes. The word used for serpent is nahash.
Nahash is also translated in Isaiah 27:1 and also in Rev 12:9 where it specifically identifies the ancient serpent is the devil.
In verse 14, God is speaking to the serpent and not to Adam nor Eve.
And so verse 14 is a curse by God, so it is bad news for the serpent.
Verse 15 represents the first prophetic announcement of the Messiah and His victory over sin and over the devil.
Right after Adam and Eve sin, God doesn’t abandon them. He gives them hope. He tells them there will eventually be someone who will come and defeat the devil..
There are phrases in the Bible which when you see how they have been applied elsewhere may give you extra insight as to what is possibly being said here.
(Two such phrase are below)
Eat dust
Gen 3:14
The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
“Eat the dust” imagery is found elsewhere in the Old Testament and helps us understand what God is saying here.
Psalm 72:9-11 describes how the kind, the Davidic king will have his enemies bow down before him and they will eat or lick the dust.
It describes the defeat of the kings enemies.
May his foes bow down before him, and his enemies lick the dust! May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles render him tribute, may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!
Crushing under foot
Genesis 3:15
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
Bruising or crushing the head of the serpent is one way of saying the serpent is ‘under the feet’
(different translations of Genesis 3:15 say either crushed, bruised or strike the head)
“under feet” imagery is found elsewhere in the Old Testament and helps us understand what God is saying here.
Psalm 110:1 describes how the Davidic kings defeat their enemies by placing the enemies as a footstool – underneath the feet.
The LORD says to my lord: "Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool."
2 Samuel 22:37-43 describes how David’s enemies are crushed and trampled under foot.
[37] Thou didst give a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip;
[38] I pursued my enemies and destroyed them, and did not turn back until they were consumed.
[39] I consumed them; I thrust them through, so that they did not rise; they fell under my feet.
[40] For thou didst gird me with strength for the battle; thou didst make my assailants sink under me.
[41] Thou didst make my enemies turn their backs to me, those who hated me, and I destroyed them.
[42] They looked, but there was none to save; they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.
[43] I beat them fine as the dust of the earth, I crushed them and stamped them down like the mire of the streets.
So when you hear this idea about being under foot, crushed under foot that brings to mind a defeat, a king defeating the enemy.
When you read about the serpent being crushed by this child of a woman, crushing the head of the serpent,
it foreshadows that one day the woman will have a royal son, a Davidic son, a new king who will come and crush the serpent and defeat the devil.
Source: Dr Edward Sri - KNOWING MARY THROUGH THE BIBLE
Monday, December 28, 2009
Matthew 1 - Dawn of the Messiah
Matthew 1:1, 6, 11 The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
[1] The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
[6] and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uri'ah,
[11] and Josi'ah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
Comment
“The Son of David”
While many names are mentioned in the genealogy, David and Solomon stand out together as one of the highest points in this family tree. A first-century Jew reading about “David the king” and his son Solomon certainly would recall the glory days of the kingdom of Israel. These men were the royal heroes of old who brought Israel to its greatest moment in history. In the time of David and Solomon, three important symbols of Israel’s national identity—the land, the king and the temple—shined most brightly.
The Land
The Promised Land was more than a place for God’s people to dwell. It was like a new Eden, the home for the covenant family of God. It was the place where Yahweh would bestow blessings on his people and where he one day would regather the pagan nations to himself. Israel first entered the Promised Land in the days of Joshua but the nation struggled against foreign invaders for several generations. Through David’s military victories, the people of Israel found rest from all their enemies (see 2 Samuel 7:1) and finally were able to dwell securely in the land for the first time in several centuries.
The King
The Davidic kingdom, however, was much more than a political and military entity leading the Israelite people. The kingdom was based on a covenant God made with David’s family, and it had a universal scope. God promised David and his descendants an everlasting dynasty. And the Scriptures foretold that this kingdom would extend to the ends of the earth. In fact, a glimpse of the kingdom’s international influence already can be seen in the time of David and Solomon. At that time foreign nations became servants of Israel, made covenants with Israel and even came to the Israelite king to learn of the wisdom God had given to him (see 2 Samuel 8; 2 Samuel 10:14; 1 Kings 9–10; Psalms 72, 89 and 132).
The Temple
For the ancient Israelites, the temple in Jerusalem was not just a place of worship; it was the center of the universe. The Jews believed that the one true God who created the entire cosmos dwelt in a unique way with the Jewish people in this sacred spot. God’s presence first came to Israel in the form of a cloud in the time of Moses. The glory-cloud of the Lord hovered over the ark of the covenant, which was kept in the portable sanctuary known as the tabernacle or “tent of meeting.” When David became king, he brought the ark to the capital city of Jerusalem.
There he wanted to build a permanent sanctuary—a magnificent temple—to house the ark and God’s presence. David’s son Solomon carried out these plans. He had the ark brought into the innermost chamber of the temple, known as “the Holy of Holies”. When Solomon dedicated the temple, God’s glory-cloud filled the sanctuary, signifying that the God of the universe dwelt in a special way among the Jews in Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 8:1-13). All this—Israel’s land, the Davidic kingdom and God’s presence in the temple—were associated with the two foundational kings mentioned in verse 6, David and Solomon.
The Downfall of Israel
However, the genealogy in Matthew 1 does not stop with David and Solomon. The subsequent verses introduce their many wicked successors, who led the kingdom to its downfall: Rehoboam, Abijah and so forth (see Matthew 1:7-10). The painful memories of these unfaithful Jewish rulers reach their lowest point in verse 11, which says that Josiah was “the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.”
This line represents the most somber note in the genealogy, recalling the tragic events of 586 B.C. Matthew does not mention “the time of deportation to Babylon” simply as a chronological marker. Rather, this verse brings to mind all that the Jews lost when Babylon invaded Jerusalem and carried the people away into exile.
This was the moment when Israel lost the three great symbols of their national identity: the land, the king and the temple.
First, the exile represented the loss of the land. The Jews were driven off the Promised Land and sent to Babylon, where they became slaves among the pagans. In Jesus’ day the oppressive conditions continued, as the Romans controlled the land that once had been the prized possession of God’s people.
Second, the events of 586 B.C. marked the end of the Davidic kingdom. When Babylon invaded Jerusalem, the troops targeted the royal family, capturing the king and his sons. Before plucking out the king’s eyes and carrying him off into exile, the Babylonians gave him one last sight: that of his own sons being slain before him (see 2 Kings 25:6-7). No son of David ruled on the throne in Jerusalem for the next six centuries, up to the time of Christ. Thus the everlasting dynasty appeared to come to an abrupt halt with Babylon’s destruction of Jerusalem.
Third, one could argue that the destruction of the temple represented the most devastating blow to the Jewish people. Babylon destroyed the temple, desecrating God’s holy house and carrying away many of the sacred vessels used for liturgical worship. Israel’s most important treasure—the ark of the covenant—was spared when, just before the Babylonians invaded Jerusalem, the prophet Jeremiah brought it out of the temple and hid it in a mountain (see 2 Maccabees 2:4-8). However, God’s presence left the temple, and the ark was never found again. The Jews returned to Jerusalem to rebuild their temple in 515 B.C., yet the new house of God was missing its most revered vessel—the ark of the covenant, which carried God’s presence. Although the temple still represented the holiest spot on the face of the earth, the Jews were longing for God’s presence to return to Jerusalem and to be with his people again, as it did in the days before the exile.
All this was lost in 586 B.C.—the land, the king and the temple—and Israel was still suffering the consequences at the time of Jesus’ birth. A Jew reading about “the deportation to Babylon” in verse 11 could not help but bring this to mind. The Jews still did not have control over their land. They still did not have a son of David to rule them. And they still were longing for God’s presence to be with them again in the temple.
Matthew 1:12, 13, 16, 21, 23 - The Return of The King
[12] And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoni'ah was the father of She-al'ti-el, and She-al'ti-el the father of Zerub'babel,
[13] and Zerub'babel the father of Abi'ud, and Abi'ud the father of Eli'akim, and Eli'akim the father of Azor,
16] and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
[21] she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
[23] "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).
Comment
The Hope of Zerubbabel
Nevertheless, God offered the Jewish people hope in the midst of their sufferings. Through the prophets he announced that one day he would send a new royal descendant of David, a new anointed king called “the Messiah” (meaning “anointed one”). This Messiah-King would usher in a new era in which the Jews would regain the land, the kingdom would be restored to its former glory, and God’s presence would return to Israel (see Ezekiel 43:2-5; 44:4).
Matthew’s Gospel calls upon those hopes when it introduces a man named Zerubbabel, who stands as a turning point in the genealogy. As one of the leaders in the rebuilding of Jerusalem in 515 B.C., Zerubbabel represents the last Davidic descendant in Matthew’s genealogy for which there is any public record in the Jewish Scriptures. What happened to the sons of David from this period all the way up to the time of Jesus remained somewhat of a mystery, for the Old Testament offered little genealogical record for the royal line of David after Zerubbabel.
This is what would make verses 13-16 so exciting to the original hearers of Matthew’s Gospel: The royal line has continued for many generations after Zerubbabel! With each new name—Abiud, Eliakim, Azor and so on—Matthew’s genealogy introduces another Davidic descendant previously unknown in the Hebrew Scriptures. The genealogy thus picks up momentum in these verses, building hope that at the end of this family tree we might find that ultimate son of David whom the prophets foretold would return Israel to its former glory.
The Return of the King
Finally the genealogy’s rushing crescendo reaches its peak in verse 16, which resounds with the joyful presentation of “Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.” Here the royal line culminates with the child who will bring Israel’s history to its ultimate destination.
The significance of this child can be seen in the three titles he receives in this opening chapter of Matthew’s Gospel: Jesus, Christ and Emmanuel.
Perhaps one could see in these three names hope that the three Jewish symbols that were shattered in the exile now would be restored: the land, the king and God’s presence in the temple.
First, in Hebrew the name Jesus itself means “Yahweh saves.” And Matthew highlights that the child is given this name for a specific reason: “for he will save his people from their sins” (1:21). This is significant because, according to the Jewish Scriptures, it was Israel’s sin that led to their losing the Promised Land. Sin led to the exile. Hence, the deepest problem that Israel faced was not exile from the land but exile from God. Matthew 1:21 underscores the fact that this child Jesus has come primarily to save Israel not from the Roman forces occupying their land but from a much deeper form of oppression: “He will save the people from their sins.”
It is also significant that the child’s name, “Jesus,” is a shortened form of the name “Joshua.” This might recall the famous Old Testament Joshua, Moses’ successor who brought the Exodus story to its climax by guiding the people into the Promised Land. Just as the Joshua of old led Israel out of the desert wilderness and into the land, so now Jesus—the new Joshua—will lead the people out of their spiritual exile from God and into the true Promised Land of heaven.
The word Jesus is the Latin form of the Greek Iesous, which in turn is the transliteration of the Hebrew Jeshua, or Joshua, or again Jehoshua, meaning "Jehovah is salvation." (Source: Newadvent.org)
Second, Jesus is given the royal title “Christ” (1:16). In the New Testament the Greek word christos commonly translated the Hebrew word messiah (“anointed one”). This was the title for the future son of David, whom the prophets said would restore the dynasty and bring to fulfillment the promises about a worldwide, everlasting kingdom. Matthew’s genealogy joyfully proclaims that Jesus is that Messiah-King—the first Davidic Son to reign in over five centuries and the one who would restore the kingdom to Israel.
Finally, perhaps the most profound title given to Jesus comes at the end of Matthew’s opening chapter. In Matthew 1:23 Jesus is called “Emmanuel,” which means “God with us.” We cannot overestimate how much this title would have meant for the first-century Jewish people. Recall how God’s visible presence had not dwelt in the temple for more than five hundred years. Without a king, without control of their land and especially without the glory of the Lord dwelling among them, the Jews in the first century might have felt somewhat abandoned. After six centuries of foreign oppression, many would have been wondering what had happened to God’s commitment to Israel and all the great promises he had made to their ancestors. They certainly would have been longing for God to be with them again. In the midst of this uncertainty, Matthew announces that the child at the end of this genealogy is “Emmanuel, which means God with us.” In other words, God is with his people again! What is most astonishing, however, is that God is with his people in a way like never before. In ages past, God manifested his presence in the form of a cloud in the temple. Now the God of the universe actually dwells among them in the person of Jesus Christ.
Source: Dawn of the Messiah - The Coming of Christ in Scripture - Dr Edward Sri
[1] The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
[6] and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uri'ah,
[11] and Josi'ah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
Comment
“The Son of David”
While many names are mentioned in the genealogy, David and Solomon stand out together as one of the highest points in this family tree. A first-century Jew reading about “David the king” and his son Solomon certainly would recall the glory days of the kingdom of Israel. These men were the royal heroes of old who brought Israel to its greatest moment in history. In the time of David and Solomon, three important symbols of Israel’s national identity—the land, the king and the temple—shined most brightly.
The Land
The Promised Land was more than a place for God’s people to dwell. It was like a new Eden, the home for the covenant family of God. It was the place where Yahweh would bestow blessings on his people and where he one day would regather the pagan nations to himself. Israel first entered the Promised Land in the days of Joshua but the nation struggled against foreign invaders for several generations. Through David’s military victories, the people of Israel found rest from all their enemies (see 2 Samuel 7:1) and finally were able to dwell securely in the land for the first time in several centuries.
The King
The Davidic kingdom, however, was much more than a political and military entity leading the Israelite people. The kingdom was based on a covenant God made with David’s family, and it had a universal scope. God promised David and his descendants an everlasting dynasty. And the Scriptures foretold that this kingdom would extend to the ends of the earth. In fact, a glimpse of the kingdom’s international influence already can be seen in the time of David and Solomon. At that time foreign nations became servants of Israel, made covenants with Israel and even came to the Israelite king to learn of the wisdom God had given to him (see 2 Samuel 8; 2 Samuel 10:14; 1 Kings 9–10; Psalms 72, 89 and 132).
The Temple
For the ancient Israelites, the temple in Jerusalem was not just a place of worship; it was the center of the universe. The Jews believed that the one true God who created the entire cosmos dwelt in a unique way with the Jewish people in this sacred spot. God’s presence first came to Israel in the form of a cloud in the time of Moses. The glory-cloud of the Lord hovered over the ark of the covenant, which was kept in the portable sanctuary known as the tabernacle or “tent of meeting.” When David became king, he brought the ark to the capital city of Jerusalem.
There he wanted to build a permanent sanctuary—a magnificent temple—to house the ark and God’s presence. David’s son Solomon carried out these plans. He had the ark brought into the innermost chamber of the temple, known as “the Holy of Holies”. When Solomon dedicated the temple, God’s glory-cloud filled the sanctuary, signifying that the God of the universe dwelt in a special way among the Jews in Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 8:1-13). All this—Israel’s land, the Davidic kingdom and God’s presence in the temple—were associated with the two foundational kings mentioned in verse 6, David and Solomon.
The Downfall of Israel
However, the genealogy in Matthew 1 does not stop with David and Solomon. The subsequent verses introduce their many wicked successors, who led the kingdom to its downfall: Rehoboam, Abijah and so forth (see Matthew 1:7-10). The painful memories of these unfaithful Jewish rulers reach their lowest point in verse 11, which says that Josiah was “the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.”
This line represents the most somber note in the genealogy, recalling the tragic events of 586 B.C. Matthew does not mention “the time of deportation to Babylon” simply as a chronological marker. Rather, this verse brings to mind all that the Jews lost when Babylon invaded Jerusalem and carried the people away into exile.
This was the moment when Israel lost the three great symbols of their national identity: the land, the king and the temple.
First, the exile represented the loss of the land. The Jews were driven off the Promised Land and sent to Babylon, where they became slaves among the pagans. In Jesus’ day the oppressive conditions continued, as the Romans controlled the land that once had been the prized possession of God’s people.
Second, the events of 586 B.C. marked the end of the Davidic kingdom. When Babylon invaded Jerusalem, the troops targeted the royal family, capturing the king and his sons. Before plucking out the king’s eyes and carrying him off into exile, the Babylonians gave him one last sight: that of his own sons being slain before him (see 2 Kings 25:6-7). No son of David ruled on the throne in Jerusalem for the next six centuries, up to the time of Christ. Thus the everlasting dynasty appeared to come to an abrupt halt with Babylon’s destruction of Jerusalem.
Third, one could argue that the destruction of the temple represented the most devastating blow to the Jewish people. Babylon destroyed the temple, desecrating God’s holy house and carrying away many of the sacred vessels used for liturgical worship. Israel’s most important treasure—the ark of the covenant—was spared when, just before the Babylonians invaded Jerusalem, the prophet Jeremiah brought it out of the temple and hid it in a mountain (see 2 Maccabees 2:4-8). However, God’s presence left the temple, and the ark was never found again. The Jews returned to Jerusalem to rebuild their temple in 515 B.C., yet the new house of God was missing its most revered vessel—the ark of the covenant, which carried God’s presence. Although the temple still represented the holiest spot on the face of the earth, the Jews were longing for God’s presence to return to Jerusalem and to be with his people again, as it did in the days before the exile.
All this was lost in 586 B.C.—the land, the king and the temple—and Israel was still suffering the consequences at the time of Jesus’ birth. A Jew reading about “the deportation to Babylon” in verse 11 could not help but bring this to mind. The Jews still did not have control over their land. They still did not have a son of David to rule them. And they still were longing for God’s presence to be with them again in the temple.
Matthew 1:12, 13, 16, 21, 23 - The Return of The King
[12] And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoni'ah was the father of She-al'ti-el, and She-al'ti-el the father of Zerub'babel,
[13] and Zerub'babel the father of Abi'ud, and Abi'ud the father of Eli'akim, and Eli'akim the father of Azor,
16] and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
[21] she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
[23] "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).
Comment
The Hope of Zerubbabel
Nevertheless, God offered the Jewish people hope in the midst of their sufferings. Through the prophets he announced that one day he would send a new royal descendant of David, a new anointed king called “the Messiah” (meaning “anointed one”). This Messiah-King would usher in a new era in which the Jews would regain the land, the kingdom would be restored to its former glory, and God’s presence would return to Israel (see Ezekiel 43:2-5; 44:4).
Matthew’s Gospel calls upon those hopes when it introduces a man named Zerubbabel, who stands as a turning point in the genealogy. As one of the leaders in the rebuilding of Jerusalem in 515 B.C., Zerubbabel represents the last Davidic descendant in Matthew’s genealogy for which there is any public record in the Jewish Scriptures. What happened to the sons of David from this period all the way up to the time of Jesus remained somewhat of a mystery, for the Old Testament offered little genealogical record for the royal line of David after Zerubbabel.
This is what would make verses 13-16 so exciting to the original hearers of Matthew’s Gospel: The royal line has continued for many generations after Zerubbabel! With each new name—Abiud, Eliakim, Azor and so on—Matthew’s genealogy introduces another Davidic descendant previously unknown in the Hebrew Scriptures. The genealogy thus picks up momentum in these verses, building hope that at the end of this family tree we might find that ultimate son of David whom the prophets foretold would return Israel to its former glory.
The Return of the King
Finally the genealogy’s rushing crescendo reaches its peak in verse 16, which resounds with the joyful presentation of “Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.” Here the royal line culminates with the child who will bring Israel’s history to its ultimate destination.
The significance of this child can be seen in the three titles he receives in this opening chapter of Matthew’s Gospel: Jesus, Christ and Emmanuel.
Perhaps one could see in these three names hope that the three Jewish symbols that were shattered in the exile now would be restored: the land, the king and God’s presence in the temple.
First, in Hebrew the name Jesus itself means “Yahweh saves.” And Matthew highlights that the child is given this name for a specific reason: “for he will save his people from their sins” (1:21). This is significant because, according to the Jewish Scriptures, it was Israel’s sin that led to their losing the Promised Land. Sin led to the exile. Hence, the deepest problem that Israel faced was not exile from the land but exile from God. Matthew 1:21 underscores the fact that this child Jesus has come primarily to save Israel not from the Roman forces occupying their land but from a much deeper form of oppression: “He will save the people from their sins.”
It is also significant that the child’s name, “Jesus,” is a shortened form of the name “Joshua.” This might recall the famous Old Testament Joshua, Moses’ successor who brought the Exodus story to its climax by guiding the people into the Promised Land. Just as the Joshua of old led Israel out of the desert wilderness and into the land, so now Jesus—the new Joshua—will lead the people out of their spiritual exile from God and into the true Promised Land of heaven.
The word Jesus is the Latin form of the Greek Iesous, which in turn is the transliteration of the Hebrew Jeshua, or Joshua, or again Jehoshua, meaning "Jehovah is salvation." (Source: Newadvent.org)
Second, Jesus is given the royal title “Christ” (1:16). In the New Testament the Greek word christos commonly translated the Hebrew word messiah (“anointed one”). This was the title for the future son of David, whom the prophets said would restore the dynasty and bring to fulfillment the promises about a worldwide, everlasting kingdom. Matthew’s genealogy joyfully proclaims that Jesus is that Messiah-King—the first Davidic Son to reign in over five centuries and the one who would restore the kingdom to Israel.
Finally, perhaps the most profound title given to Jesus comes at the end of Matthew’s opening chapter. In Matthew 1:23 Jesus is called “Emmanuel,” which means “God with us.” We cannot overestimate how much this title would have meant for the first-century Jewish people. Recall how God’s visible presence had not dwelt in the temple for more than five hundred years. Without a king, without control of their land and especially without the glory of the Lord dwelling among them, the Jews in the first century might have felt somewhat abandoned. After six centuries of foreign oppression, many would have been wondering what had happened to God’s commitment to Israel and all the great promises he had made to their ancestors. They certainly would have been longing for God to be with them again. In the midst of this uncertainty, Matthew announces that the child at the end of this genealogy is “Emmanuel, which means God with us.” In other words, God is with his people again! What is most astonishing, however, is that God is with his people in a way like never before. In ages past, God manifested his presence in the form of a cloud in the temple. Now the God of the universe actually dwells among them in the person of Jesus Christ.
Source: Dawn of the Messiah - The Coming of Christ in Scripture - Dr Edward Sri
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