Mat 28:1

“Mat 28 commences as the sabbath concludes. The RSV states: ‘Now after the sabbath, towards the dawn of the first day of the week.’ Thus it is Saturday, 17th Abib. Jerusalem was in an uproar because of the events of the passover. The disciples were in a confusion, not understanding the circumstances of their Master’s death. So two women went to the sepulchre to attend to the body of the Lord: v 1. Then came a startling experience. There is a ‘great earthquake,’ the second earthquake of the weekend. The first was at the time of death; this second is at the time of resurrection. The two earthquakes typify the two earthquakes yet to occur at the return of the Lord Jesus. The angels looked with delight on the work of redemption. Thus: (1) Earthquake and resurrection: vv 1-4. So the record reveals on the next day, Sunday, 18th Abib: (2) The women are told that Christ is risen: vv 5-8. (3) The first meeting with Christ: vv 9,10. (4) The watch enters the city: vv 11-15. (5) At Galilee: vv 16,17. (6) In Jerusalem: vv 18-20. What a thrilling record, and a powerful conclusion to the gospel of Matthew. The atoning work of Yahweh in His Son has been achieved, and we can benefit by identifying with a newness of life, after the example of our Master” (GEM).

As soon as the Sabbath restrictions were past, ie after sunset on Saturday — the 3 women (close companions of Christ in life) prepare to give their last token of love to their Lord in his death. Early on Sunday morning, at first light in the east, they set out for the tomb.

THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK: Lit, “day one of the seven”. The beginning of a new creation week! Cp Gen 1: a new creation, “day one”! God had said, “Let there be light”, and now there was! Cp Col 1:15-18: Jesus the beginning of the new creation! To the disciples, this day (when they understood it later) would mark the beginning of their new lives. This new “Sun” of the morning was to drive away the dark shadows of lost hope, and create a new spirit within the disciples (Isa 9:1,2; 2Co 4:6).

Difficulties with reconciling all accounts. There are poss 2 separate visits by the women: (1) One on Saturday evening, Salome not present (Mat 28:1). (By Heb reckoning, Sunday would begin at sunset Saturday; cp usage of “dawn” in Luk 23:54.) (2) Another on Sunday morning, just at sunrise (Luk 24:1; John 20:1; Mar 16:1,2), Salome is present.

Mat 28:2

Possibly the angel rolled the stone some distance away, laid it flat, and sat upon it. It would now be impossible to replace without a lot of time and effort. He thus “sealed” it open (ct Mat 27:66)!

If one angel’s descent caused a great earthquake, what will the earthquake be like when all the angels return? (Mat 25:31). Cp Psa 104:4.

A VIOLENT EARTHQUAKE: The earth, which trembled with horror at the death of Christ, now leaps for joy at his resurrection.

ROLLED BACK THE STONE: KJV adds “from the door”, but other mss omit this. Cp Luk 24:2: it was rolled some distance “from the tomb”, and laid flat. In itself, this could have looked like a miracle, for it was a very large stone! Cp also John 20:1.

AND SAT ON IT: Probably after laying it flat. This would preclude its being easily replaced, even after the angel departed (Dobson 82). This would also account for the ready acceptance of the soldiers’ story by the authorities (Dobson 88).

Was ever a mountain so “large” as the great stone which sealed Christ’s tomb? Truly, as miracles go, no miracle has been or could be so great as the one that caused this “very large” stone to be removed, and thus proclaimed Christ’s tomb to be open… forevermore.

Jesus had told his followers, “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him’ ” (Mar 11:23). Of course, we have trouble with moving literal mountains, even as we have trouble explaining this passage.

But seen from a spiritual perspective, isn’t the greatest “mountain” of difficulty — which no man can move — death and the grave? Engineers with bulldozers and explosives can move even literal mountains. But who among them can move the mountainous “stone” that covers the grave? Not a one!

And even the disciples of Jesus could not move such a stone from the mouth of his sepulcher… not at that time; they were weeping in sorrow, and hiding in fear. It was the faith of Jesus alone — though he was dead and unconscious in the tomb — that moved the hand of the angels of God, and rolled back the stone. It may be said that the greatest miracle that Jesus ever performed was this: the blood of this wholly righteous man cried out from the depths of the earth, and the Father heard!

Do WE, today, have faith to move mountains? The answer, I believe, is really another question: ‘Do WE have faith that the greatest “mountain” has already been moved?’ “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” (Mar 11:24). Our faith may be — not a prospective — but a retrospective faith: we look backward, and ask, ‘Do I really believe that the “mountain” has been moved?’ If we truly believe that, then — it is absolutely sure and certain — ALL THINGS are possible for us!

Mat 28:4

THE GUARDS WERE SO AFRAID OF HIM THAT THEY SHOOK AND BECAME LIKE DEAD MEN: The appearance of the angel was more frightening than the great earthquake!

The soldiers, assigned to guard the dead, became as dead men themselves. Paralyzed with terror, they cowered on the ground, and then crept away at their first chance.

How many Roman soldiers were at the tomb? No definite number is given, but in the other instance where a Roman guard is described, it consists of 16 soldiers (Acts 12:4). One writer has this to say: “A Roman guard was usually made up of 16 members of the Roman legion — the finest fighting force of its day… The Roman guard normally placed four men immediately in front of what they were to protect. The other 12 slept in watches in a semi-circle in front of these, with their heads pointing inward. To steal what they were protecting, thieves would first have had to walk over those asleep. By the time they got there, the thieves would have been surrounded by soldiers. Every four hours, another four men were awakened to begin their watch” — and thus the soldiers slept and watched alternately throughout the day and night.

Mat 28:6

Possibly the risen Christ had passed through the sealed stone; the barrier would have made no difference to him. The stone is removed so that all the world might know what had already happened!

Mat 28:8

AFRAID YET FILLED WITH JOY: A telling phrase: fear mingled with joy. An answer to the old question: should we be motivated by fear or by love? Both!

Mat 28:9

KJV has “And as they went to tell his disciples…” — which is omitted in many other versions.

GREETINGS: Gr “chairo”: to be cheerful, to rejoice.

THEY CAME TO HIM, CLASPED HIS FEET: At Jesus’ feet, the place of: rest (Luk 8:35); pardon (Luk 7:38); healing (Luk 17:16); teaching (Luk 10:39); comfort (Joh 11:32); intercession (Mar 7:25); and worship (Mat 28:9).

WORSHIPED HIM: See Lesson, Worship of Christ?

Mat 28:10

TELL MY BROTHERS: “Fellowship is a wonderful means of communication, partnership and sharing with the members of a family whose Head is God, the Father, and whose Son is the Lord Jesus. Several times during his ministry he identified his followers as his brethren, and after his resurrection he said to the women who were on their way to tell the disciples of the empty tomb: ‘Go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me.’ By reason of this fact that we belong to a divine family we ought to be the more careful what we say and do in relation to our brethren (or sisters) who should come first in our responsibilities. And if what we have to say in writing an essay for a Bible class, or in speaking from a platform is likely to offend, then we ought not to write or say it, and if our message is one of a critical, yet exhortative nature, then it ought to come from the Scripture and not from personal feelings” (TNL 163,164).

GALILEE: They would meet Jesus, not in Judaistic Jerusalem, but in Galilee of the GENTILES!

Mat 28:11

Vv 11-15: The guards, awed and bewildered, were reporting their stories in the palace of the High Priest. Thus these rulers, who had repeatedly come to Jesus demanding a sign from heaven, were now given a sign from “hell” (the grave) also, which they could not deny!

Although the “chief priests” begin to devise a plan to “explain” all this, we are not told that the other priests even doubted the miracles reported. Did many of them begin to believe (Acts 6:7)?

Mat 28:12

Vv 12-14: “It is very difficult to believe that the soldiers of Pilate would admit falling asleep (v 13): that would be tantamount to suicide. But the temple police could more easily be bribed, even though it took ‘a large sum of money’ (v 12), and could more easily be protected from Pilate’s anger. The plan devised (cp Mat 12:14; 27:1) by the chief priests and elders (v 12; cp Mat 21:23) proves to Matthew that their pious promises to believe if Jesus would only come down from the cross (Mat 27:42) were empty. Once again the instinctive concern of the Jewish leaders relates to expedience and the people’s reaction, not to the truth. The story they concoct shows how desperate they are for an explanation, for if the guards were asleep, they could not know of the alleged theft; and if one of them awoke, why was not an alarm sounded and the disciples arrested? Molesting graves was a serious offense in the ancient world, subject at times to the death penalty. The famous ‘Nazareth Inscription,’ recording an ordinance of Caesar to this effect, confirms this, though the relation of this inscription to Jesus’ death and burial is uncertain [see “Nazareth Decree”: FE Mitchell, Tes 48:318,319]… It is equally improbable that the timid and fearful disciples could have mustered up the courage to open Jesus’ tomb and run the risk of a capital indictment, or that the Jewish authorities would have failed to prosecute the disciples if they had possessed a scrap of evidence pointing to the disciples’ guilt. Nor was the ‘large sum of money’ an adequate measure of how far the Jewish leaders would go, for to ‘satisfy’ the governor may well have involved further bribery” (EBC).

Mat 28:13

Thus these leaders and the nation deceived themselves with lies. They closed their eyes to the truth, and their ears became dull of hearing. The story became true of them, even if untrue of the Roman soldiers: they lost their Messiah through being fast asleep!

Mat 28:14

IF THIS REPORT GETS TO THE GOVERNOR: Why would the Roman governor be interested at all, unless these were Roman soldiers (deputed to the High Priest for the time being, ie prob for the feast)?

WE WILL SATISFY HIM: By another sizable bribe, of course!

Mat 28:16

Vv 16,17: Instances of Jesus withdrawing into a mountain, apart — sometimes for privacy and prayer, and sometimes to instruct his followers: Mat 5:1; 8:1; 14:23; 15:29; 17:1; 24:3; 28:16; Mark 3:13; 6:46; 9:2; 13:3; Luke 6:12; 9:28; 22:39; John 6:3,15; 8:1.

Were there about 500 disciples here (1Co 15:6)?

Mat 28:17

THEY WORSHIPED HIM: See Lesson, Worship of Christ?

Mat 28:18

CAME: Or “came near”. When they saw only at a distance (v 17), some doubted; but when Jesus came near to them, they believed!

ALL AUTHORITY… GIVEN: Why? Phi 2:5-11.

Mat 28:19

THEREFORE: Because Jesus has all authority everywhere (v 18), THEREFORE go and preach everywhere (v 19)! ‘I am king of the whole world; go and tell them!’ (Cp idea, Dan 7:14).

OF ALL NATIONS: In ct to earlier, limited commission (Mat 10:5,6).

BAPTIZING THEM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: Baptism is essential to salvation: Mar 16:15,16. Commanded by Jesus: Joh 3:3-5. Salvation based on obedience to commandments of Christ: Mat 7:21; Joh 15:13,14. Obeyed by those who believed: ie, Jews on day of Pentecost: Acts 2:37,38.

Cp Acts 2:38; 4:12. Now, a baptism into the death of Christ, and thus into the fulness of the “Name”: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Not 3 names, but one, in all its manifestations. Only in death and resurrection could the Son truly manifest the Father and show forth the power of the Holy Spirit. Thus, and finally, God’s name (authority: v 18) IS Christ’s name (authority)!

IN THE NAME: Should be “into” the Name!

Mat 28:20

I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS: Encouragement, Christ’s perpetual presence with believers (cp Mat 18:20; Act 18:9,10).

More generally, God’s presence with His people, in: (1) Suffering: Joseph (Gen 39:21), the 3 captives (Dan 3:25), (2) Service: David (1Sa 18:12-14), Paul (2Ti 4:17), and (3) Testimony: Moses (Exo 3:12,13), Jeremiah (Jer 1:7,8).

“Unto the End”: “I am with you unto the end”: Mat 28:20. ”He loved them unto the end”: John 13:1. “Who shall confirm you unto the end”: 1Co 1:8. “The rejoicing of hope firm unto the end”: Heb 3:6. “Beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end”: Heb 3:14. “Full assurance of hope unto the end”: Heb 6:11. “Keepeth my works unto the end”: Rev 2:26.

According to most NT scholars, this is the earliest of the four gospels. The Gospel of Mark portrays the person of Jesus more by his actions, and portrays him particularly as a servant.

The Gospel of Mark is evidently written for Gentiles, and for Romans in particular. Mark translates Aramaic and Hebrew phrases (Mar 3:17; 5:41; 7:34; 14:36); he transliterates familiar Latin expressions into Greek, for example, “legion” (Mar 5:9), “quadrans” (“kodrantes”: NIV mg) (Mar 12:42), “praetorium” (Mar 15:16), and “centurion” (Mar 15:39). Moreover, Mark presents Romans in a neutral (Mar 12:17; 15:1-10), and sometimes a favorable (Mar 15:39), light.

Mark begins his gospel with the statement, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mar 1:1); and the last human to speak in the gospel is the centurion who confesses at the cross, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!” (Mar 15:39).   Like the Gospel of Matthew, the Gospel of Mark does not mention the name of its author.

One of the first people to identify the author was Papias (AD 60-130), a bishop of Hierapolis in Asia Minor (Turkey). Papias then noted that Mark had not followed Jesus during his lifetime, but later had written down Peter’s recollections accurately, although not always in their proper order. This will account for the problem of sequential differences between the Gospels of Matthew & Mark.

The Mark believed to have written this gospel is John Mark. He was a native of Jerusalem (Act 12:12), and later became an associate of both Peter (1Pe 5:13) and Paul (2Ti 4:11). The gospel has many characteristics of an eyewitness account, for which Peter would have been responsible (Mar 1:29-31).   It may be that as a youth Mark was present at the arrest of Jesus and that he has left an “anonymous signature” in the story of the young man who eluded arrest and fled away naked (Mar 14:51,52).   Main themes

One of the unique points about this Gospel is what some term the “messianic secret.” Mark records how, often following a miracle, Jesus would command persons healed, onlookers, disciples, and even those healed of demons to be silent about his great works (Mar 1:34; 1:44; 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26; 8:30; 9:9). It has long puzzled readers why Jesus, who came into the world to make himself known, would work at cross-purposes with his mission by trying to remain hidden.

A fair explanation is that Jesus’ command to silence was intended to protect himself from false expectations of the Messiah that were current at that time. It seemed most saw the “messiah” or “anointed one” as a military hero who would come to overthrow the Roman rule of Palestine; such was the crowd’s attitude at Christ’s “triumphant” entry into Jerusalem. Jesus had no intention to play the part of a great warrior; rather, he took upon himself the attitude of a servant.

Outline

1. Mar 1:1 – 13: The Prologue

a) Mar 1:1 – 11: John the Baptist and Jesus’ baptism b) Mar 1:12 – 13: Jesus’ temptation

2. Mar 1:14 – 10:52: The Ministry

a) Mar 1:14 – 20: The disciples called b) Mar 1:21 – 3:12: In the synagogue; teaching and healing c) Mar 3:13 – 35: Twelve chosen d) Mar 4:1 – 34: Parables e) Mar 4:35 – 5:43: Stilling the storm and other miracles f) Mar 6:1 – 13: Further teaching g) Mar 6:14 – 29: The death of John the Baptist h) Mar 6:30 – 10:52: More teaching

3. Mar 11:1 – 16:20: The Crucifixion and Resurrection

a) Mar 11:1 – 26: Entering Jerusalem b) Mar 11:27 – 13:37: Questions and answers c) Mar 14:1 – 72: The approaching suffering d) Mar 15:1 – 47: The trial and the crucifixion e) Mar 16:1 – 20: The resurrection and ascension

Mar 1:1

See Article, Genealogies of Jesus.

In v 1: (1) Humanity, (2) Purpose, and (3) Divinity.

Mark’s gospel of the servant emphasizes: Christ’s fatigue (Mar 4:38; 11:12; 14:36), his sympathy and compassion (Mar 6:34; 8:12), love (Mar 10:21); seeking of solitude (Mar 1:35; 6:30-32); his grief (Mar 3:5); and his sighing (Mar 7:34; 8:12).

No birth data; few teaching materials; works and miracles emphasized.

Note: the beginning and end points of Mark’s gospel are defined by Peter: “Beginning from the baptism of John unto the same day that he was taken up from us” (Act 1:22) — emphasizing the earthly Christ, a servant among men.

Mark was a servant (Act 12:12).

Hidden Messiahship (Mar 1:44; 4:12,40; 6:1,52).

Vv 1-8: Jesus is announced by 4 voices: Mark, Isaiah, John, and God.

THE BEGINNING: Joh 1:1n.

GOSPEL: “Evangelion” = good tidings: Isa 52:1,7-10; 61:1,2.

THE SON OF GOD: Luk 1:32,35; Gal 4:4; Mat 1:20. “The Gospel of Mark opens with the words: ‘The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.’ We do not notice the concentrated wonder of the last three words, for we have heard them too often. Why does it not strike us as astounding that God should have a Son? It did those who first heard it. For the disciples of Jesus, it was the supreme confession of faith — ‘Thou art the Son of God, Thou are the King of Israel’, as another Gospel records from an early disciple; for His enemies, it was the culminating blasphemy, ‘and they all condemned him to be worthy of death.’ The whole Book vibrates with high excitement, supreme hope, crashing despair, and sudden restoration. There is deep-rooted loyalty, black treachery, stirring devotion, and revolting murder. We must recapture the ability to respond to these movements if we would read the Bible as it is. We cannot close our hearts. We must try to live in the events through which we move” (NRB 21,22).

Mar 1:2

AHEAD OF YOU: “Before thy face” (AV). Not in Mal 3:1. Ref to Angel of Covenant going before Israel in the wilderness (Exo 23:20).

WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY: Cp Mal 3:1: “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me.” Malachi’s “my” and “me” becomes Mark’s “you”: Christ as the manifestation of God, assuming the role of his Father.

Mar 1:3

PREPARE THE WAY FOR THE LORD: How? By preaching, and by being taken out of the way (Mat 4:12).

LORD: “Yahweh” of Isa 40:3 becomes “Kyrios” here.

Mar 1:4

JOHN CAME: Cp Joh 1:6: John, “a man sent”.

DESERT REGION: “Wilderness” (AV), both natural and spiritual.

AND PREACHING: First principles in John’s preaching: See Lesson, John the Baptist, gospel of. Elijah was last seen at the river Jordan (2Ki 2:11); John the Baptist first appeared to Israel at the same place (v 6).

Mar 1:5

THE JORDAN: Elijah was last seen here (2Ki 2:8). John Bapt was first seen here.

Mar 1:6

A man of the wilderness, bold, uncivilized, fearless. “This is Elijah” (cp 1Ki 17:1-7). Sudden appearance. Note vivid denunciations: Mat 3:7,10-12; Luke 3:7-9.

CAMEL’S HAIR: Garments of grief (Gen 37:34; Jer 4:8; Mat 11:21). Worn by a priest, despite being unclean (Lev 11:4).

LOCUSTS: The food of the very poor, but despised by the wealthy (LB 419).

Mar 1:8

First water, then spirit. First natural, then spiritual. First cleansing, then forgiveness. First purifying, then raising to new life. (Note “fire” of judgment is omitted.)

Mar 1:9

7 steps in the consecrated life: (1) Decision — here; (2) Acceptance — v 10; (3) Anointing — v 10; (4) Assurance — v 11; (5) Impelling — v 12; (6) Testing — v 13; (7) Testifying — v 14.

Why was Jesus baptized (Mat 3:13-17; Mar 1:8-11; Luk 3:21-23)? The most obvious answer is the Scriptural one: in the words of Jesus himself, “to fulfill all righteousness”. This calls to mind Mat 5:17: “I am not come to destroy [the law], but to fulfill.” The work of Jesus, in all its aspects, was to fulfill, or complete, the righteousness of the law of Moses. The law of Moses was a “shadow” (Heb 10:1), pointing forward to the substance, the reality, which was Jesus. As Moses washed Aaron (Exo 30:20,21; 40:12), to sanctify and cleanse him for his mediatorial work, so John washed Jesus. If Aaron had entered the Most Holy without washing, he would have failed; if Jesus had offered himself as a sacrifice with no public baptism (signifying the denial of the flesh), he would likewise have failed. Jesus was absolutely without personal sin. The necessity of his baptism shows how far even sinful flesh alone separates man from God.

Vv 9-12: The anointing of the King. Apparently, the only meeting between John and Jesus. “He had no life of sin to leave behind in the waters of Jordan, but there he did bring to an end the home life of Nazareth, the quiet, peaceful years of preparation, and did accept as the ‘righteous will of God’ the storm and strain and sacrifice of the work which he had come to do” (Mat, Erdman, 36).

NAZARETH IN GALILEE: A great light out of a despised land: “But in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan– The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death [or, land of darkness] a light has dawned” (Isa 9:1,2).

IN THE JORDAN: “In” = eis, into. A very strong proof for total immersion. See v 10: “up out of the water”.

Mar 1:10

“If you wish the heavens to open above you, present yourself to God.”

HEAVEN BEING TORN OPEN: A violent rending: “Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down” (Isa 64:1; cp Eze 1:1).

DESCENDING ON HIM LIKE A DOVE: See Psa 91:4. The Spirit “brooding” on the surface of the waters (Gen 1:2). “The beginning of the new creation!”

DOVE: Only sacrificial animal to be feathered (Luk 2:24; Lev 1:14,15; 5:7). The dove, with keen eyesight, returned to the safety of Noah’s ark, in peace, bringing an olive branch of new creation. The dove is gentle (Mat 10:16), clean (Song 6:9), particular in its choice of food (Gen 8), swift (Psa 55:6), beautiful (Psa 68:13), constant in love (Song 5:12).

Mar 1:11

A VOICE CAME FROM HEAVEN: Sounding, perhaps, like thunder to the bystanders (Joh 12:29). Understood only by Jesus and John. The voice from heaven identifies Jesus as the “prophet like unto Moses” (Deu 18:15-19).

WITH YOU I AM WELL PLEASED: “On whom my pleasure rests.” Cp Isa 42:1: “From this day on Jesus walked in the shadow of the cross” (WGos 66).

Mar 1:12

Cp with Rom 8:14. “To learn obedience by the things which he suffered” (Heb 5:8). It was not for Christ to bask in the glories of the Father’s bestowal of the Spirit; with a new blessing comes a new test.

As Adam and Eve were driven out of paradise.

Mar 1:13

HE WAS WITH THE WILD ANIMALS: The sin-cursed earth, to be the home of the second Adam. “The shadow of Eden.” Cp Psa 91:13; Gen 1:28; Psa 8:6,7.

BEING TEMPTED BY SATAN: More detail in Mat 4:1-11 and Luk 4:1-13. Who is the tempter/devil/Satan? Possibly a representative from the Sanhedrin who came to check Jesus’ credentials, much as the “credentials” of John Baptist were checked. Cp John 1:19: “Now this was John’s testimony when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was.” This could have led, directly, to their need to “examine” the would-be “Messiah” — to whom John pointed (John 1:23-29).

All other refs to tempters in the gospels are to external tempters: Mat 16:1; 19:3; 22:15-18; 26:59-63; John 8:6; Luk 11:15,16.

Mar 1:14

THE GOOD NEWS OF GOD: “For the Apostles the important thing about Jesus was that he is ‘the Christ the Son of the living God’, and that in his sufferings, death and resurrection the believer has present comfort in the forgiveness of sins, a motive, or even a ‘motivation’ for living, and a hope of personal resurrection and a part in the coming kingdom. For early Christadelphians it was through the proclamation of the Kingdom as a literal kingdom that substance was added to their hope. They had, in the words of a teenager looking in vain for a message in the religious teaching in his school, ‘something to look forward to, something to come’. The connection between the Gospel of the Kingdom and the national hope of the people of God comes out clearly in our early writings and was the basis for all their preaching of the Gospel” (RDO 68,69).

Mar 1:15

A divine deferment of God’s plan, due to Jewish unbelief?: “Had the nation continued to obey the Lord’s voice and keep the covenant, and when Christ came receive him as King on the proclamation of the gospel, they would doubtless have been in Canaan until now; and he might have come ere this, and be now reigning in Jerusalem as king of Jews and Lord of nations” (Elp 112).

THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS NEAR (AT HAND: AV): The kingdom HAD come… but not for everyone, only for those who would repent. Jesus consciously uses the same language as John had: identifying himself with the forerunner. “In what way had the kingdom come near? To the eastern mind a kingdom is not a kind of constitutional pyramid with a king at its decorative apex; the kingdom emanates from the king, it is the extension of his kingly power” (SMk 21). “Until he come whose right it is” (Eze 21:27). “BORN king of the Jews” (Mat 2:2).

BELIEVE THE GOOD NEWS: “Believe IN the gospel” (RSV).

Mar 1:16

Background: John Bapt had been recently imprisoned (Mar 1:14). Now Jesus calls John’s former followers to follow him (Jesus) instead.

Mar 1:17

FOLLOW ME: They could no longer follow John (v 14). Not merely an offer, but a summons! These men were already disciples of Jesus (ie Joh 1); now they receive a call to permanent, full-time discipleship.

FISHERS OF MEN: “How do you account for the fact that so many of the apostles were chosen from this class of fishermen? It could not have been accidental. There was, no doubt, an adaptation, a fitness in the occupation of these men to develop just those attitudes of character most needed in the apostolic office. There are various modes of fishing, and each calculated to cultivate and strengthen some particular moral quality of great importance in their mission. Thus angling requires patience, and great perseverance and caution…. Fishing with the hand net… requires a keen eye, an active frame, and great skill in throwing the net. Such a fisherman , too, must be patient, watchful, wide awake, and prompt to seize the exact moment to throw. Then there is the great dragnet, the working of which teaches the value of united effort. No one occupation of humble life — not even that of the shepherd — calls into exercise and develops so many of the elements necessary for… a religious teacher as this of fishing” (LB 401-403).

Mar 1:18

About this time Jesus establishes his right to be a teacher of “fishers of men” by the miraculous draught of fish (Luk 5:1-11).

AT ONCE…: “When they heard the call of Jesus, Simon and Andrew obeyed at once without demur. If we would always, punctually and with resolute zeal, put in practice what we hear upon the spot, or at the first fit occasion, our attendance… and our reading… could not fail to enrich us spiritually. He will not lose his loaf who has taken care at once to eat it, neither can he be deprived of the benefit of the doctrine who has already acted upon it. Most readers and hearers become moved so far as to purpose to amend; but, alas! the proposal is a blossom which has not been knit, and therefore no fruit comes of it; they wait, they waver, and then they forget, till, like the ponds in nights of frost, when the sun shines by day, they are only thawed in time to be frozen again. That fatal tomorrow is blood-red with the murder of fair resolutions” (CHS).

Mar 1:19

PREPARING THEIR NETS: “Mending” (AV). The nets had been broken in the miraculous haul of fish (Luk 5:6).

Mar 1:20

WITH THE HIRED MEN: Suggesting some wealth. Zebedee’s family was quite prosperous, having a house in Jerusalem.

Mar 1:21

THE SYNAGOGUE: The gift of the centurion (Mat 8: 5-13; Luk 7:2-10). Prob the only one in Capernaum (note “the”).

BEGAN TO TEACH: More than once (Luk 4:31).

Mar 1:22

AMAZED AT HIS TEACHING: They had a form of godliness, but denied the power thereof.

NOT AS THE TEACHERS OF THE LAW: The Pharisees got their interpretations of the Law from a majority vote of the council.

Mar 1:24

US… US: The other people in synagogue, not a “legion” of demons! That is, ‘you will be like the other pseudo-messiahs, bringing the wrath of Rome down upon us.’

Mar 1:25

“The first open contest with the power he was ultimately to destroy.” Sym: Jesus rebuked and silenced the “demon” in the “synagogue”!

BE QUIET: A very abrupt command. Lit “be muzzled!” Allusion to Deu 25:4: here was an “ox” damaging the “corn”.

Mar 1:27

The first open contest with the power he was to destroy! This mastery of the unseen powers of darkness (Phi 2:10) was more than they had even expected of the Messiah.

GIVES ORDERS: “Seems always to describe a DIVINE command” (WGos 121).

Mar 1:29

HOME OF SIMON AND ANDREW: Was Bethsaida (Joh 1:44) a “suburb” of Capernaum? (WGos 122).

Mar 1:30

Peter was married (1Co 9:5).

A FEVER: “A great fever” (Luk 4:38n). Typhus? (WGos 122) Or malaria?

THEY TOLD JESUS ABOUT HER: Intercession for the weak and needy.

Mar 1:31

1. Personal contact.
2. Uplifting power.
3. Immediate cure.

The effect on Peter’s family: “It is no light thing to take a man from his home and wife and family and livelihood to become a… preacher… This healing of Peter’s mother-in-law guaranteed enthusiastic support. From this day forward, Peter need never look over his shoulder wondering how his wandering life… was regarded by the folks at home” (WGos 123).

AND HELPED HER UP: “Lifted her up” (RSV). The first “raising up” by Jesus — type of others to come.

SHE BEGAN TO WAIT ON THEM: No “halfway cure”. The saved shall serve!

Mar 1:32

AFTER SUNSET: The official end of the Sabbath.

Mar 1:33

Capernaum was well physically, but not so spiritually (Mat 11:20,23,24).

Mar 1:34

See Lesson, Demons, what are? Here is cited Isa 53:4 (Mat 8:16,17): “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows.”

AND JESUS HEALED MANY: So Capernaum became “well” physically, but not so spiritually (Mat 11:20,23,24)!

BUT HE WOULD NOT LET THE DEMONS SPEAK: Silence was his settled policy for most of his ministry (Mat 9:30; 17:9; 12:16; Mar 1:34; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26; Luk 5:14), with one notable exception (Mar 5:19 — Legion with his family). But in last days of ministry, a change of course (Mat 21:1-11; Joh 7:37; 9:3; 11:4).

BECAUSE THEY KNEW WHO HE WAS: That is, they knew by personal experience his healing power.

Mar 1:35

Jesus needs solitude for thought and prayer (cp Isa 50;4; Psa 119:147,148). A list of “solitude passages”: Mar 1:35-37; 3:7,9,20,21; 4:35-38; 6:31; 7:17,18,24; 8:10,11,27; 9:30; 10:32; 14:32.

Other night prayers: Psa 119:62; Lam 2:19; Luk 11:5; Mat 26:39-46; Act 16:25.

Mar 1:37

A hint of reproach in their words?

Mar 1:38

LET US: “Us”: they must accompany him!

LET US GO: He will not stay to accept their adulation. This sort of affair could hinder his preaching.

Mar 1:39

PREACHING IN THEIR SYNAGOGUES: This was a religious, not merely a political, undertaking.

Mar 1:40

The leper came: (1) earnestly; (2) humbly; and (3) believingly.

A MAN WITH LEPROSY: Officially such a man would be banned from the city. This was a measure of the determination he had, that he was able to penetrate to the very presence of Jesus.

LEPROSY: “Full of leprosy” (Luk 5:12). Saturated, from within, incurable.

CAME TO HIM AND BEGGED HIM ON HIS KNEES: The leper should not have been so close — he should have cried “Unclean!” and dwelt alone. That he came close — not mark of disregard, but of his confidence in Christ. Christ accepted this without embarrassment, and touched him without suffering any harm.

IF YOU ARE WILLING: He had more faith in Jesus’ power than in his own goodness.

Mar 1:41

FILLED WITH COMPASSION: The man was “filled” with leprosy; Jesus was “filled” with compassion! A High Priest touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Heb 4:15). “Jesus wept” (Joh 11:35).

JESUS REACHED OUT HIS HAND: The heart moves the hand!

AND TOUCHED THE MAN: “Whatever touches any of the flesh [of the sin offering] will become holy” (Lev 6:27). But both Elijah and Elisha contracted “defilement” by touching dead (1Ki 17:21; 2Ki 4:34). A High Priest “touched” with feelings of our infirmities (Heb 4:15). “Whatever touches any of the flesh [of the sin-offering] will become holy” (Lev 6:27).

“Jesus heals all who come, and casts out none. It is worthy of devout notice that Jesus touched the leper. This unclean person had broken through the regulations of the ceremonial law and pressed into the house, but Jesus so far from chiding him broke through the law himself in order to meet him. He made an interchange with the leper, for while he cleansed him, he contracted by that touch a Levitical defilement. Even so Jesus Christ was made sin for us, although in himself he knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him [2Co 5:21]. O that poor sinners would go to Jesus… and they would soon learn the power of His gracious touch. That hand which multiplied the loaves, which saved sinking Peter, which upholds afflicted saints, which crowns believers, that same hand will touch every seeking sinner, and in a moment make him clean. The love of Jesus is the source of salvation. He loves, He looks, He touches us, WE LIVE” (CHS).

All the occasions of Jesus touching, or being touched, in the context of healing (notice that not one of them is in John’s gospel): Mat 8:3,15; 9:20,21,29; 14:36; 17:7; 20:34; Mark 1:41; 3:10; 5:27,28,30,31; 6:56; 7:33; 8:22; 10:13; Luk 5:13; 6:19; 7:14,39; 8:44-47; 18:15; 22:51.

Mar 1:44

Christ did not despise or disregard the law he came to fulfill.

DON’T TELL THIS TO ANYONE: Silence was his settled policy for most of his ministry (Mat 9:30; 17:9; 12:16; Mar 1:34; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26; Luk 5:14), with one notable exception (Mar 5:19 — Legion with his family). But in last days of ministry, a change of course (Mat 21:1-11; Joh 7:37; 9:3; 11:4).

SHOW YOURSELF TO THE PRIEST: Christ did not despise the Law he came to fulfill.

AS A TESTIMONY TO THEM: That which the priests could never do, Christ did! Christ’s power was greater than Moses’ (Num 12:13).

Mar 1:45

SPREADING THE NEWS: Here is the reason Christ so often asked for silence. Too much publicity hindered his quiet work of preaching! See Psa 66:13-20.

IN LONELY PLACES: How often Jesus avoided fame and notoriety.

Mat 24:1

Vv 1-3: “And now he and his disciples had departed from the temple. Once more they lingered in sweet retirement on the mount of Olives. The purple light on the mountains of Moab was fast fading out. Across the city the sinking sun cast a rich glow over the pillared cloisters of the temple, and over the silent courts as they rose terrace upon terrace. From where they stood they could see over the closed Beautiful Gate, and right to the entrance of the holy place, which now glittered with gold; while the eastern hills and the deep valley below were thrown into a solemn shadow, creeping, as the orb sunk lower, further and further towards the summit of Olivet, irradiated with one parting gleam of roseate light, after all below was sunk in obscurity. Then it was and there that the disciples, looking down upon the temple, pointed out to the Master: ‘What manner of stones and what buildings are here!’ The view from that site must have rendered belief in the Master’s prediction even more difficult and more sad. A few years more and it was all literally fulfilled” (Temple 59,60).

JESUS LEFT THE TEMPLE: The Glory of God departs from the city via the mountain on the east: Eze 11:23 (cp Acts 1:11: his final departure).

TO CALL HIS ATTENTION TO ITS BUILDINGS: Both (a) how massive were the stones (Mar 13:1) and (b) and how beautiful (Luk 21:5). According to Josephus, huge stones, 70 ft long, 10 ft wide, 8 ft tall, in walls. 40-ft high white marble pillars — “whited sepulchres”. Titus, etc, caused “Zion to be plowed as a field” (Mic 3:12).

Mat 24:2

Cp Mat 21:21: “Mt removed and cast into sea”.

NOT ONE STONE HERE WILL BE LEFT ON ANOTHER: Certain stones were even pried apart in order to collect the gold leaf that melted from the roof when the temple burned. Excavations in 1968 discovered many such stones thrown down into the valley.

True of temple building itself, but not true (as yet?) of the great foundation stones of the Temple mount.

Mat 24:3

AS JESUS WAS SITTING ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES: Instances of Jesus withdrawing into a mountain, apart — sometimes for privacy and prayer, and sometimes to instruct his followers: Mat 5:1; 8:1; 14:23; 15:29; 17:1; 24:3; 28:16; Mark 3:13; 6:46; 9:2; 13:3; Luke 6:12; 9:28; 22:39; John 6:3,15; 8:1.

THE DISCIPLES: Peter, James, John, Andrew (Mar 13:3).

WHEN WILL THIS HAPPEN…?: The disciples, of course, expected that Christ would “come” as King, with a royal presence, and to remove the Romans and thrown down the corrupt temple, all at the same time and soon!

COMING: Gr “parousia”: a literal, visible coming — not some invisible or spiritual aura: see sw, 1Co 16:17; 2Co 7:6; 10:10; Phi 1:26; 2:12. See Lesson, “Parousia”.

Mat 24:4

Vv 4-22: “The view usually held of the Olivet prophecy is that it requires to be considered in two sections: vv 4-22 foretelling the troubles connected with the fall of Jerusalem; v 29 onwards concerning the return of Christ. This is broadly true, but there is more to it than that.

“There is good reason for believing that the first section of Mat 24:4-22 will also find further fulfilment in the day of the Lord’s return:

•         1. ‘Let him that is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes’ (Mat 24:17,18). Jesus used almost identical words concerning ‘the days of the Son of man’ (Luk 17:31).
•         2. ‘For then shall be great tribulation such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be’ (Mat 24:21). Yet OT prophets had already made the same portentous declaration regarding the Last Days: ‘a time of trouble such as never was’ (Dan 12:1; Joel 2:2; Jer 30:7). This evidence almost seems to require the conclusion that the real fulfilment of Mat 24:21 has not happened yet!
•         3. ‘He that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved’ (Mat 24:13) has been interpreted in more than one way: (a) he who keeps the faith till the temple is destroyed? (b) he who keeps the faith to the end of his life? (but this is a truism valid for every disciple in every age); (c) he who clings to the faith in the Last Days in spite of extreme discouragement? This presents least difficulty.
•         4. ‘Immediately after the tribulation of those days…’ (Mat 24:29) ceases to be a problem if the preceding section also has an application to the end of the present age.
•         5. ‘Then let them which be in Judaea flee to the mountains (Mat 24:16). In Luke 17:28,29,32 Jesus pointed to an emphatic parallel between the Last Days and the deliverance of Lot. These words also echo Lot’s experience (Gen 19:17).
•         6. ‘And the gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness to all the nations; and then shall the end come’ (Mat 24:14). These words seem to require a further, more complete, fulfilment beyond that already suggested with reference to the First Century.
•         7. In Daniel ‘the abomination of desolation’ is apparently given reference to the Last Days as well as to the overthrow of Jerusalem (Dan 9:27; 8:13; 12:11). Jer 25:18 reinforces this view.
•         8. The warning against false Christs and false prophets (Mat 24:23-26) comes also in Luke 17:20-22 with reference to the coming of the Lord.
•         9. ‘Jerusalem trodden down of the Gentiles’ (Luke 21:24) is quoted from Zec 12:3 LXX, a Scripture that has every appearance of ‘Last Day’ application.
•         10. There is a remarkable set of similarities between the first part of the Olivet prophecy and Zec 14: (a) Jerusalem compassed with armies. All nations against Jerusalem to battle. (b) The desolation thereof. The city taken. (c) Flee to the mountains. Ye shall! flee to the valley of the mountains. (d) Great distress in the land. Houses rifled, women ravished. (e) Led away captive into all nations. Half the city go forth into captivity. (f) The Son of man coming in a cloud. His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives” (WRev).

Mat 24:5

False Messiahs: “(1) Josephus says (War, b.ii.c.13) that there were many who, pretending to Divine inspiration, deceived the people, leading out numbers of them to the desert, pretending that God would there show them the signs of liberty, meaning redemption from the Roman power: and that an Egyptian false prophet led 30,000 men into the desert, who were almost all cut off by Felix. See Acts 21:38. It was a just judgment for God to deliver up that people into the hands of false Christs who had rejected the true one. Soon after our Lord’s crucifixion, Simon Magus appeared, and persuaded the people of Samaria that he was the great power of God, Acts 8:9,10; and boasted among the Jews that he was the son of God. (2) Of the same stamp and character was also Dositheus, the Samaritan, who pretended that he was the Christ foretold by Moses. (3) About twelve years after the death of our Lord, when Cuspius Fadus was procurator of Judea, arose an impostor of the name of Theudas, who said he was a prophet, and persuaded a great multitude to follow him with their best effects to the river Jordan, which he promised to divide for their passage; and saying these things, says Josephus, he deceived many: almost the very words of our Lord. (4) A few years afterwards, under the reign of Nero, while Felix was procurator of Judea, impostors of this stamp were so frequent that some were taken and killed almost every day: Jos Ant b.xx.c.4,7” (Clarke).

Mat 24:7

EARTHQUAKES: The May 1984 National Geographic shows through color photos and drawings the swift and terrible destruction that wiped out the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in AD 79. The explosion of Mount Vesuvius was so sudden, the residents were killed while in their routine: men and women were at the market, the rich in their luxurious baths, slaves at toil. They died amid volcanic ash and superheated gases. Even family pets suffered the same quick and final fate. It takes little imagination to picture the panic of that terrible day. The saddest part is that these people did not have to die.

Scientists confirm what ancient Roman writers record — weeks of rumblings and shakings preceded the actual explosion. Even an ominous plume of smoke was clearly visible from the mountain days before the eruption. If only they had been able to read and respond to Vesuvius’ warning!

There are similar “rumblings” in our world: warfare, earthquakes, the nuclear threat, economic woes, breakdown of the family and moral standards. While not exactly new, these things do point to a coming Day of Judgment. People need not be caught unprepared. God warns and provides an escape to those who will heed the rumblings.

Mat 24:9

Act 4:1-22: Apostles at Jerusalem. Act 5:17-42: Apostles at Jerusalem. Act 6:11 — 7:60: Stephen at Jerusalem. Act 12:11: James and Peter before Herod Agrippa. Act 16:19-40: Paul and Silas at Philippi. Act 17:5-9: Jason and others at Thessalonica. Act 18:12-17: Paul before Gallio at Corinth. Act 19:29-41: Gaius and Aristarchus at Ephesus. Act 21:27–23:11: Paul in Jerusalem. Act 24:1-21: Paul before Felix in Caesarea. Act 25:6-12: Paul before Festus. Act 26:1-32: Paul before Agrippa.

Death of the apostles:

•         Matthew suffered martyrdom by being slain with a sword at a distant city of Ethiopia.
•         Mark expired at Alexandria, after being cruelly dragged through the streets of that city.
•         Luke was hanged upon an olive tree in Greece.
•         John was put in a caldron of boiling oil, but escaped death in a miraculous manner, and was afterward banished to Patmos.
•         Peter was crucified at Rome with his head downward.
•         James, the Greater, was beheaded at Jerusalem.
•         James, the Less, was thrown from a lofty pinnacle of the temple, and then beaten to death with a fuller’s club.
•         Bartholomew was flayed alive.
•         Andrew was bound to a cross, whence he preached to his persecutors until he died.
•         Thomas was run through the body with a lance at Coromandel in the East Indies.
•         Jude was shot to death with arrows.
•         Matthias was first stoned and then beheaded.
•         Barnabas was stoned to death at Salonica.
•         Paul, after various tortures and persecutions, was at length beheaded at Rome by the Emperor Nero.

Mat 24:10

The Jewish plot: to wreck the developing ecclesias from within: 2Pe 2:1; 1Jo 4:1; 2Co 11:26.

Mat 24:12

THE LOVE OF MOST WILL GROW COLD: “It is much easier to sell looseness and downhillness and let’s-blur-the-edges-ness and compromise-ness, than it is to sell steadfastness and holiness and firmness of purpose and faithfulness to exclusive Truth. It’s easy to become both popular and powerful and draw the crowds, if that is our stock in trade. But let us not be discouraged if what we have to sell does not have the common appeal of the broadly popular goods. The Truth of God is a narrow, exclusive, flesh-crucifying, demanding, high-standard thing. It is not designed for the masses, and it has never appealed to the masses, or the shallowly unthinking. It appeals only to the thoughtful, and the wholly dedicated, and those whom the masses call ‘extremists.’ The Truth is indeed a total, all-consuming, all-demanding ‘extreme’ thing” (GVG).

Mat 24:13

Cp Rev 2:10; Heb 10:36,39.

Mat 24:14

TO THE WHOLE WORLD: Now, for the first time in the world’s history, there is the possibility — due to technical advancements of communication, travel, etc — of the gospel truly being taken to all the world.

WORLD: Gr “oikoumene” = the habitable. Perhaps in the first century, this would have been restricted to the Roman empire: the known, or civilized world of the Middle East.

Mat 24:15

THE ABOMINATION THAT CAUSES DESOLATION: The // passage in Luk 21:20 has: “Jerusalem being surrounded by armies”! Based on the desecration of the temple by Antiochus Ephiphanes: see Dan 11:31, notes.

Mat 24:16

LET THOSE WHO ARE IN JUDEA FLEE TO THE MOUNTAINS: To Pella (Tes 48:25,26). Cp days of Lot (Gen 19:17). The situation in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus is being likened to the state in Sodom. Rather like the way in which Isaiah (Isa 1:10) speaks of the leaders in Jerusalem in his day.

“To advise anyone to flee from a city already encircled by a besieging army sounds the height of absurdity; nevertheless this was the instruction, which the saints of those days received from their Lord. Nor was there any absurdity, for throughout the siege Titus, the Roman general, seems to have been actuated by an earnest desire to keep destruction of both life and property to a minimum — so much so that, according to Josephus, in the early days of the siege there were several opportunities for flight. At one time, for example, the siege of Jerusalem was as good as raised for a period of four days, so casual was the watch maintained by the Roman army. In another place Josephus writes (2.20.1): After the first attack upon the city many of the most considerable of the Jewish folk forsook it as men do a sinking ship. Eusebius, the Christian historian, has this similar narrative: ‘The whole body of the church at Jerusalem, having been commanded by a divine Revelation given to men of approved piety there, before the war removed from the city, and dwelt in a certain town beyond Jordan, called Pella; there those that believed in Christ having removed from Jerusalem, as if holy men had entirely abandoned the royal city itself, and the whole land of Judaea, the divine justice for their crimes against Christ and his Apostles finally overtook them, totally destroying the whole generation of those evil-doers from the earth’ (Eccl Hist 3.5)” (WRev).

Mat 24:17

Do not worry about material things.

LET NO ONE ON THE ROOF… GO DOWN TO TAKE ANYTHING OUT OF THE HOUSE: But rather descend stairs on outside of house — ie in extreme haste (LB 43).

Mat 24:20

IN WINTER: When the wadis would be swollen with floods.

ON THE SABBATH: When the city gates were closed (Neh 13:17), and Jewish prejudice would be aroused.

Mat 24:21

DISTRESS, UNEQUALED FROM THE BEGINNING: “A time of trouble such as never was” (Dan 12:1; cp Joe 2:2; Jer 30:7; Amo 8:8; Zech 14:4; Isa 2:21).

At the end of the 19th century two French writers went to visit the well-known French scientist, Pierre Berthelot. Berthelot was a kind of scientific prophet. He forecast some of the weapons of mass destruction which would appear in the next century. He said to the writers, “We have only begun to list the alphabet of destruction.”

Silence fell over the meeting. Then the elder of the two writers said quietly, “I think before that time comes, God will come like a great gatekeeper with his keys dangling at his waist and say, ‘Gentlemen, it’s closing time.’ “

Mat 24:22

IF THOSE DAYS HAD NOT BEEN CUT SHORT: The civil wars of Jewish factions inside the city shortened considerably its siege and suffering. The city fell in only 5 months.

Mat 24:26

THE DESERT: (1) Abode of John the Baptist; (2) Asceticism; (3) Mohammed, and Islam: the desert religion.

INNER ROOMS: “Secret chambers” (AV): (1) the Holy Place of the Temple; (2) the “mystery” religions and cults of the first century; (3) Roman Catholicism: the “mystery” system; (4) the “invisible presence” of the “Jehovah’s Witnesses”.

Mat 24:27

// Mat 16:17; 2Th 1:7,8.

FROM THE EAST… IN THE WEST: That is, from Mt Olivet to Jerusalem (Eze 43:2-4; Zech 14:4).

COMING: See Lesson, “Parousia”.

Mat 24:28

CARCASS: Destroyed Jerusalem, as well as a warning of rejection at the return of Christ.

VULTURES: Roman legions.

Mat 24:29

SUN… MOON… STARS: Sym Israel in Jer 31:35,36. Or more literal: 2Pe 3:7,10; Isa 24:18. Also see Gen 37:9,10; 15:5; 22:17; Amo 8:8-10; Mic 3:6; Song 6:10; Isa 24:23; Jer 33:20-26; Joe 2:10,30-32; Act 2:20; Rev 6:12; 8:12; 12:1.

Mat 24:30

THE SIGN OF THE SON OF MAN WILL APPEAR IN THE SKY: Cp the first sign of Christ, appearing in the heavens: the “star” or Shekinah-Glory that led the wise men to where he lay (Mat 2:9).

Perhaps, in future, a strange day of miraculous darkness and light: Zech 14:4,6,7; Joel 2:2; Zeph 1:14,15.

AND ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH WILL MOURN: Or “all the tribes of the Land”: national repentance of Israel: Zech 12:10,12; Rev 1:7.

THE CLOUDS: The Divine glory revealed in Israel as cloud (Exo 13:21,22; 14:19,20,24; 16:10; 19:16-19; 20:18; 24:15-19; 33:18-21 with Exo 34:4-7; 40:34-38; Num 10:34; 12:5,10; 14:9,10,14,21,22; Deu 31:14,15; Psa 105:39; 1Co 10:1,2). The same Shekinah glory appeared to Abraham (Gen 15:17; Act 7:2), David (Psa 18:6-15), Ezekiel (Eze 1:4; 10:4); Elijah (1Ki 19:11-13), Job (Job 38:1), apostles (Luk 9:34,35). Judgments of God in last days are manifest in this cloud (Dan 7:13; Joe 2:2; Zep 1:15; Eze 30:3; Isa 19:1; 25:5). Jesus will so come from heaven (Act 1:9,11; Luk 21:27; Mat 26:64).

Mat 24:31

A LOUD TRUMPET: Connected with the resurrection: 1Th 4:16; 1Co 15:52.

Mat 24:32

FIG TREE: Luk 21:29 has “fig tree and all the trees”: “Fig tree” = unsatisfactory covering: Gen 3. Fig sym Israel: Mar 11:13-21; Luk 13:6,7; Jer 24; Hos 9:10; Mic 7:1. “All trees”: Intense national pride; proliferation of nations in Middle East: Psalm 83 lists 10 nations — giving their ancient names — which will join together in their determination to destroy Israel as a nation in the Last Days. Likewise, recent Mideast history has seen ten Arab nations, occupying generally the same territory as the nations of Psa 83, gain their independence during the same generation (1922 — 1971) that saw the rebirth of the nation of Israel in 1948. There are currently, in the area occupied by the old Roman Empire, exactly 10 such independent Arab nations. This scenario even allows for the infamous eleventh “horn” of Dan 7, which arises after the others and acts as a catalyst in the defeat and persecution of Israel — the incipient “nation” of Palestine. Not yet independent, will this be the eleventh horn which comes up among, and after, the former ten?: 1. Egypt (1922) 2. Saudi Arabia (1932) 3. Iraq (1932) 4. Lebanon (1943) 5. Syria (1946) 6. Jordan (1949) 7. Kuwait (1963) 8. Bahrain (1971) 9. Qatar (1971) 10. United Arab Emirates (1971) and 11. Palestine (?)

TENDER: In ct to the previous fig tree (Mar 11:13), cursed by Christ, this tree puts forth tender branches (the first sign of fruit).

Mat 24:34

THIS GENERATION: “This is generation of them that seek your face” (Psa 24:6 and context). “Genera”, in general, a race (NIV mg; the Jewish race: Luk 21:28,29), but sometimes a single generation. Possibly, “this present evil order of things”, which continues until Christ returns.

Mat 24:36

NOR THE SON: Notice that Jesus had Daniel to read. Thus, Daniel alone is not enough to predict the time of the Kingdom accurately! “If Jesus could not use the book of Daniel to know the precise time of the end, what hope for anyone else?” (HAW, LD 15).

Mat 24:37

Vv 37-42: Jesus is stressing the interventionist nature of his return. With respect to the flood and the destruction of Sodom, life seemed to be going on quite normally… UNTIL the final catastrophic intervention of Yahweh. The same will be true at the time that Jesus returns.

COMING: See Lesson, “Parousia”.

Mat 24:38

EATING AND DRINKING, MARRYING AND GIVING IN MARRIAGE: Nothing wrong with these activities in and of themselves, but only as an obsession with materialism and self-indulgence. We do well to remember that such activities are the mere “scaffolding” of a life, but not the life itself. They are all destined to come to an end with the return of Christ.

Mat 24:39

AND TOOK THEM ALL AWAY: “Universal was the doom, neither rich nor poor escaped: the learned and the illiterate, the admired and the abhorred, the religious and the profane, the old and the young, all sank in one common ruin. Some had doubtless ridiculed the patriarch — where now their merry jests? Others had threatened him for his zeal which they counted madness — where now their boastings and hard speeches? The critic who judged the old man’s work is drowned in the same sea which covers his sneering companions. Those who spoke patronizingly of the good man’s fidelity to his convictions, but shared not in them, have sunk to rise no more, and the workers who for pay helped to build the wondrous ark, are all lost also. The flood swept them all away, and made no single exception” (CHS).

One hundred different varieties of evil and indifference and neglect were all swept away by the waters of the flood — unique though each form of life was at the time, they were at last all together in a common death. The only ones who were saved were those who actually sought places in the ark of safety.

COMING: See Lesson, “Parousia”.

Mat 24:42

KEEP WATCH: Implies keeping awake and alert, like a watchman: Mat 25:13.

Mat 24:43

IF THE OWNER OF THE HOUSE HAD KNOWN AT WHAT TIME OF NIGHT THE THIEF WAS COMING: Christ is portrayed often — he even portrays himself — as a “thief” in the New Testament, in connection with his Second Coming (Mat 24:42-44; Luk 12:39,40; 1Th 5:2,4,6; 2Pe 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15). This may seem extraordinary, since stealing is a sin, and a “thief” therefore must be a sinner — and how could Christ be a sinner? (A similar question might be asked: how could Christ compare himself to a serpent: John 3:14; Num 21:7-9? But that’s another story!) However, there is one instance when a “thief” is not committing a crime, and that is when he is simply reclaiming (by stealth or surprise) what is rightfully his (cp David and his men, who followed the Amalekites and retrieved their kidnapped families and stolen goods: 1Sa 30!). And that seems to be exactly the point in these NT instances also: Christ when he returns will be merely taking back what is rightfully his! The true “thieves” will be seen to be those servants who ate his bread and drank his wine and enjoyed themselves in leisurely consuming that which belonged to their Master (see the parable in Mat 24:48-51 and Luk 12:45-47). Their mistake — and it was a crucial one — was in forgetting they were mere stewards or caretakers, and instead supposing that all their Master’s properties belonged to them, and acting accordingly! So, if we are to be sure that Christ does not come as a “thief” to us, we must not act as “thieves” ourselves now, stealing from him what is rightfully his. We must remember that all we possess really belongs to the One who is our true Lord and Master; that we merely hold it all in trust, to be used to serve him.

Mat 24:45

FAITHFUL: Like the servants who were faithful in Mat 25:21.

WISE: Like the wise virgins in Mat 25:2.

GIVE THEM FOOD: Like the brethren in Mat 25:36. Ref not just to ecclesial leaders, but to all brothers and sisters: Mat 20:27; John 13:12-14.

Mat 24:46

DOING SO: Not by happenstance, but because it is the fixed object and routine of his life.

Mat 24:49

TO BEAT HIS FELLOW SERVANTS: They do not serve God truly, and abuse those who attempt to do so.

EAT AND DRINK WITH DRUNKARDS: Enjoying the worst fellowship of the world.

Mat 24:51

HE WILL CUT HIM TO PIECES: “And shall cut him asunder” (AV): The Greek is “dikotomesi” (cp Engl “dichotomy”) lit to cut in two. The “Lord” upon his return will, by the “sword” of his judgment, separate the real man from the actor, revealing him for a hypocrite. Or, possibly, cutting in two, as is done with the covenant-victim — to make him a sacrifice! See Lesson, Covenant-victim, the.

WEEPING AND GNASHING OF TEETH: Mat 8:12; 13:42,50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30.

Mat 25:1

Mat 25: “The Lord’s ministry is drawing to its dramatic conclusion. He gave his last public statement to the nation in Mat 23 — a contrast to his first (Mat 5-7) in which he outlined blessings, in the Eight Beatitudes. Now his last declaration was a series of Eight Judgments (‘Woes’). Then he gave his apostles his last prophecy in Mat 24 as he gathered with a group on the Mount of Olives and looked down the corridor of time to the events which would overtake the city of Jerusalem. Now, in Mat 25, he concludes his parabolic utterances with developing parables of the virgins (vv 1-13), the tradesmen (vv 14-30), and the flock (vv 31-46). It was to be his last exposition before he shared with them the passover memorials (Mat 26). The parable of the virgins taught the need for personal preparation; that of the tradesmen the need for personal effort, and that of the flock the need to prepare for the judgment. It was a very important discussion, and one very appropriate for the believers in the last days. We need to develop more oil than is provided in the lamp of Truth: a reserve of oil that will last us into the kingdom. We need to labour for the Truth, and to be faithful in all our commitments, so that the talent of time, energy, and opportunity might be expended for the future. We need to recognise the basis of judgment: that of displaying the principles of God manifestation to our brethren: of upholding the divine elements, and of manifesting the characteristics of Yahweh to those we might be privileged to assist. Then we will hear the glad tidings at the judgment seat of the King: ‘Inasmuch as ye did it to one of the least, ye did it to me.’ What a great moment of destiny awaits us!” (GEM).

AT THAT TIME: Meaning, this is a commentary upon the Mt Olivet prophecy.

Mat 25:4

“My son, keep your father’s commands and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. Bind them upon your heart forever; fasten them around your neck. When you walk, they will guide you; when you SLEEP, they will watch over you; when you AWAKE, they will speak to you. For these commands are a LAMP, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life” (Pro 6:20-23).

Mat 25:5

THEY ALL BECAME DROWSY AND FELL ASLEEP: “With the best intentions in the world, even the most dedicated of Christ’s servants will be caught unawares by the event itself (1Th 5:6,10)” (WGos 620).

Mat 25:6

// Mat 24:31; 1Th 4:16,17.

HERE’S THE BRIDEGROOM: “Behold, the bridegroom cometh” (AV).

“Hark! a cry is made, what means that sound I hear? Quickly again ’tis echoed upon my listening ear: ‘The Bridegroom comes!’ Oh Joyful! Is he come at last? Is the morning truly here? Is the night for ever past?

Shall we now be ever with him? Shall he raise us to his throne? Shall he change these mortal bodies: Make them like unto his own? Shall we see his glorious presence? Hear his greatly longed-for voice? Oh, quickly spread the tidings! Let all his saints rejoice!

Yes, the groaning of his people he hath heard from ev’ry land, And now he comes to free them, in power to make them stand. They that with him have borne his cross, shall share with him his crown. For now he’ll reign whose right it is, the ancient thrones cast down.

The Bridegroom near approaches; he’s even at the door: Haste, let your glad hosannahs our glorious Head adore. The time long promised has arrived, when earth again shall bloom, Again shall yield her richest fruits: again for joy make room.

Lo! art thou he we long have loved, though ne’er till now have seen? Thy love to us, most wonderful, the source of ours has been. How gloriously fair thou art! Thy beauty all divine! Can it be so, that such as we, made like to thee, shall shine?

Oh, had we known but half thy worth, but half thy beauty seen, The treasures of thy love and power had oftener been our theme, Whilst travelling through the wilderness: thou say’st we’ve borne for thee; Ah! thou did’st suffer for us, even death upon the tree.

We’ve sojourned long as strangers within a foreign land; The world around disowned us, by thee we took our stand. They know not thee, they knew not us and no abiding place We knew, but this we knew, that soon we’d see thee face to face.

And now thou art come to us, how greatly we rejoice! Like those of old, we now can say, we hear the Bridegroom’s voice. Throughout the world the cry shall run, with gladness all shall fill: ‘Glory to God! and peace on earth, towards mankind goodwill!’ (Jane Roberts).

MEET: “Eis apantesin”: see 1Th 4:17n.

“There is a wedding coming in our family. It is all very exciting. Our family, and friends are all thinking and talking about it. The bridegroom is not here; he is coming for the wedding but at the present he is on the east coast. Although he is out of sight, he is certainly not out of mind for all the plans are being made with him in mind.

“One store we visited which caters to weddings had a sign which said, ‘If there is no bridegroom, there is no wedding.’ It is certainly true. Right now it seems that there are a thousand and one things to do and everyone is busy attending to all the details which are so important so that all will be in readiness. All of this preparation causes our minds to be drawn to the absent bridegroom who is coming to receive his bride at the marriage supper of the Lamb. It is so important that we should all be busily engaged in our preparation for that great day.

“Naturally, the bride is anxiously awaiting the arrival of the bridegroom, and all her thoughts are centered on preparing to meet him when he arrives. Since Christ is our bridegroom, how excited and anxious we should be as we contemplate his coming to make us his own. How are we spending our time while he is away? Are we engrossed in other things, or are we getting ready for him? Normally, it is inconceivable that the bride could forget that the one she loves is coming soon.

“What a glorious day is coming for us! Imagine the thrill that awaits us, to attend the marriage supper of the Lamb as the very bride of Christ! This is what we have to look forward to. To think that we are to be the bride of Christ! What an exalted position! How could we forget to prepare? Jeremiah asks the question, ‘Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire?’ You can be sure what our bride will wear is very much in her thoughts. It is unthinkable that a bride could forget, yet God continues by saying ‘yet my people have forgotten me days without number.’ [Jer 2:32] Have we forgotten? Is our coming marriage on our minds? Are we getting ready for the wedding? Our bridegroom is temporarily away but he is due back at any moment. Is ‘out of sight, out of mind,’ true for us?

“We know that our bridegroom loves us and he has assured us that he will be faithful to us. He has said, ‘I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.’ We know he is coming and when he comes we will never be separated from him again. The one we love is coming and if we really love him, we are busy preparing for his arrival. If we have allowed anything else to distract our attention away from him, it will then be evident that our love was less than it should have been, and when he comes he will not want to marry us and take us for his own.

“Now is the time to prepare. Jesus told us a story about ten virgins and he warned us that five of them were foolish. They professed a love for the bridegroom but while he was away they did not get ready for him. How terribly foolish! When the bridegroom came they wanted to go to the marriage but they were refused. Right now is the time to be getting ready for the wedding. We should be preparing as a bride adorned for her husband. ‘The Spirit and the bride say, Come, and let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely… Even so, come, Lord Jesus’ {Rev 22:17,20]” (MM).

Mat 25:8

But after resurrection and before judgment, there will be no mediator, and no means of further preparation.

Mat 25:9

A practical knowledge of the word of God (ie, character!) is not transferable. In this, “no man can redeem his brother” (Psa 49:7). Lesson: personal accountability (cp Gal 6:2,5).

Mat 25:10

Open doors: for restored communion (2Ch 29:3); deliverance from prison (Act 5:19); surrender (Rev 3:20); service (1Co 16:9); and opportunity (Rev 3:8). Shut doors: for safety (Gen 7:16); privacy and communion (Mat 6:6); faith and prayer (2Ki 4:5,21,33); self-sufficiency (Rev 3:20); and separation and rejection (Mat 25:10).

AND THE DOOR WAS SHUT: Explained in vv 24-30; Mat 24:37: “as it was in the days of Noah”.

Mat 25:14

The man = Christ. This, an indication that his stay in heaven (the “far country” of AV) is only temporary: v 19; Acts 3:20,21.

Mat 25:15

TALENTS: In this case, sig opportunities and not abilities. That is, although abilities may differ, God gives every man opportunity to use what abilities he has.

Mat 25:16

AND PUT HIS MONEY TO WORK: We must take risks. Taking “risks” when serving God is the only prudent thing to do!

Mat 25:18

Ct Mat 24:48: “My master is staying away a long time…”

Mat 25:19

THE MASTER OF THOSE SERVANTS RETURNED: Christ is now at the Father’s right hand (Heb 10:12,13), but he will return (Joh 14:3,28; Rev 22:12,20).

SETTLED ACCOUNTS: Financial term, an “audit” — sw in this usage only recently discovered in non-Biblical instances.

Mat 25:21

WELL DONE, GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT: Cp 2Ki 12:15; 1Co 4:2.

YOUR MASTER’S HAPPINESS: See Isa 53:11; Heb 12:2.

Mat 25:24

I KNEW YOU ARE A HARD MAN…: ‘You are a powerful man, and will get your due, whether I help you or not.’

“In the final day of judgment we shall not be able to excuse sterility in these essentials by reference to our strenuous labours to produce fruit for which Christ never asked. If any such excuses came to mind we should surely think of the unfaithful servant in the parable and become dumb. We have not a hard master who will demand fruit where he has never planted, who will require a personal rectitude of super-refined separation which he never commanded; but we have a just Master who will require the performance of those essential duties that he so patiently explained. If we give bread and water, either natural or spiritual, to servants of Christ who hunger and thirst, we give to the Lord himself. If we neglect our opportunities to give, we neglect Christ… Assuredly if we cut off those whom he approves we cut off Christ” (PrPr 21).

Mat 25:25

I WAS AFRAID: What? Afraid that he would do the work, and his master would reap the profit!

AND HID YOUR TALENT IN THE GROUND: Lit, “buried” in the earth! This is exactly what the Jewish leaders did to Christ.

SEE, HERE IS WHAT BELONGS TO YOU: And so it would belong to HIM too: the servant’s portion would be “in the earth”, and his reward to be “buried”!

Mat 25:26

THOU WICKED, LAZY SERVANT: Notice how wickedness and laziness are equated! There is an awful warning in that equation.

Mat 25:27

INTEREST: Gr “tokos”, from same root as “tikto”: seed, or offspring!

Mat 25:29

WHAT HE HAS: Or “what he SEEMS to have”, or “what he THINKS he has” (Luk 8:18).

Mat 25:30

“Nothing we have ever experienced in this life will be one thousandth as terrible as rejection at the judgment seat of Christ. And that rejection is a looming possibility if we do not have the wisdom to give ourselves entirely to God in this present brief period of opportunity and probation. It’s not so much what we accomplish, but rather the totality of our love and dedication and effort to obey Him and please Him. For the rejected, there will be physical suffering, certainly, but — however severe — that will be but a minor aspect. Many can accept physical suffering with joy in the enthusiasm of a good cause. The real and dreadful depths of the suffering will be mental — the awful, gnawing, unremitting bitterness of hopeless remorse and regret and self-condemnation for the utter stupidity of playing and self-pleasing when God lovingly asks us to work full time in the Vineyard, and become an eternal part in His glorious Purpose. How mockingly meaningless will then seem the juvenile things we waste our time and interest on today while precious time slips away! What vain, anguished poundings then on the forever shut door of Joy and Hope! God loved us, and abundantly manifested that love, and sought the totality of ours in small return. Like a spoiled child, we accepted the benefits of His love, but did not reciprocate it in the fulness of devotion that true love must of its very nature bring forth. Our ‘love’ went not beyond self-interest, and now we reap as we have sown. Mercifully, this dreadful, hopeless anguish will sooner or later end in the then sought-for and at last welcomed relief of eternal death. The secret of total happiness and total contentment is total love of God. This is the whole meaning and purpose of life. This is that for which we were created and are divinely destined. This solves all problems and assuages all sorrows. This is peace” (GVG).

WEEPING AND GNASHING OF TEETH: Mat 8:12; 13:42,50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30.

Mat 25:31

THRONE: “Thronos”, used of the Judgment Seat in Rev 20:4,11; 21:5.

HEAVENLY: No Gr word corresponds to this!

Mat 25:32

ALL THE NATIONS: Similar passages (in NT) where “all nations/peoples” plainly means “individuals OUT OF all nations/peoples”: Mat 24:9,30; 28:19; Mar 13:10; Luk 24:47; Act 2:17; Rom 16:26; Gal 3:8; Rev 1:7; 14:8; 15:4; 18:3,23; Rev 19:18. Esp see Act 2:17 and Rev 19:18, where “all people” very specifically means “all (kinds of) people”, ie men and women, young and old, or free and slave, small and great.

GATHERED: “Sunago”, used of gathering individuals to judgment: wheat / chaff in Mat 3:12 and Luk 3:17; wheat / tares in Mat 13:30; good fish / bad fish in Mat 13:47; wedding guests in Mat 22:10. Also see, generally (not sw), wise and foolish virgins in Mat 25:1-13.

SHEEP… GOATS: From a judgment parable in Eze 34:17-22.

GOATS: “The godly are like sheep — innocent, mild, patient, useful: the wicked are like goats, a baser kind of animal, unsavoury and unruly. The sheep and goats are here feeding all day in the same pasture, but will be kept at night in different folds. Being thus divided, he will set the sheep on his right hand, and the goats on his left, Mt 25:33” (Henry). “Goats are here employed to represent the evil class of men, because goats have to be driven while sheep follow the shepherd” (McG). “As the shepherd separates… A common figure in Palestine. The sheep are usually white and the goats black… The goats devastate a field of all herbage. ‘Indeed they have extirpated many species of trees which once covered the hills’ (Tristram, Natural History of the Bible 89,90). The shepherd stands at the gate and taps the sheep to go to the right and the goats to the left” (RWP).

See Lesson, Judgment seat at Jerusalem.

Mat 25:34

BLESSED: A reference to the Abrahamic covenant: Gen 22:18; Acts 3:25,26; Gal 3:8,9.

Mat 25:35

Stalker’s • Comment on Mat 25:35-46: “Thus may all life at the last prove far more high and solemn than we now imagine.”

I WAS HUNGRY AND YOU GAVE ME SOMETHING TO EAT: Eze 18:5,7.

I WAS THIRSTY AND YOU GAVE ME SOMETHING TO DRINK: “If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink” (Pro 25:21).

I WAS A STRANGER AND YOU INVITED ME IN: As done by Abraham (Gen 18:2) and Lot (Gen 19:1).

Mat 25:36

I NEEDED CLOTHES AND YOU CLOTHED ME: “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?” (Jam 2:15,16).

I WAS SICK AND YOU LOOKED AFTER ME, I WAS IN PRISON AND YOU CAME TO VISIT ME: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress” (Jam 1:27).

Mat 25:37

Vv 37-39: “When?” It is a point in their favor that they were not keeping score!

Mat 25:40

WHATEVER YOU DID FOR ONE OF THE LEAST OF THESE BROTHERS OF MINE, YOU DID FOR ME: “Help the old and sick as much as you possibly can: especially those whom you think deserve it least, for they are likely to be the ones everyone neglects. Christ’s command to do it is not because of their merit, but because it is the will of our Lord and a test of our love and obedience to Him. Helping those who are in need of help is far more important to Christ than catering to our own comforts and desires, though somehow the latter seems quite important to us at the moment. The flesh is very self-centered, and serving the flesh will never give us life. We shall be asked about this matter at the judgment seat. It may be rather a sticky question, and it would pay to have a good answer ready. Better yet: to have a good record ready” (GVG).

THESE BROTHERS OF MINE: They were all “one” in Christ: John 17:20; Gal 3:27-29; Heb 2:11.

YOU DID FOR ME: The Messiah whom they longed for was with them all along! Cp Mat 18:5,20: “And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me… For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.”

Mat 25:41

Vv 41-45: One of Christ’s parables was most explicit as to the grounds of rejection at his judgment. It is enlightening to note that the wicked were not rejected for holding some false doctrine. They were not rejected for failing to preach the Truth. They were not even rejected for neglecting to attend a specified number of ecclesial meetings. They were rejected because they ignored the simple, material needs of their brethren, and thereby they ignored Christ (Mat 25:41-45)!

ETERNAL FIRE: Eternal? Cp Jud 1:7 with Luk 17:29. The fire that destroyed Sodom was “eternal” in its effect, but not in its working. Cp also Mat 13:42; Mar 9:43-49.

The punishment for the wicked is death: Rom 5:12; 6:23; Rev 20:14. But the righteous will never truly die: Luk 20:36; Hos 13:14; Rev 21:4; Rom 6:9; Isa 25:8.

ANGELS: Not immortal “fallen angels” of God, but mortal “messengers” of the wicked one — whoever that might be — a slanderer and false accuser.

Mat 25:42

Vv 42,43: “I was hungry, and you formed a humanities group to discuss my hunger.

“I was imprisoned, and you crept off to your chapel and prayed for my release.

“I was naked, and in your mind you debate the morality of my appearance.

“I was sick, and you knelt and thanked God for your health.

“I was homeless, and you preached to me of the spiritual shelter of the love of God.

“I was lonely, and you left me alone to pray for me.

“You seem so holy, so close to God… but I am still very hungry — and lonely — and cold” (Anonymous).

Mat 25:44

Cp Saul’s confident answer to Samuel: “I have carried out the LORD’s instructions” (1Sa 15:13). Cp also Mat 7:22: “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ “

Mat 25:46

ETERNAL: Eternal? Cp Jud 1:7 with Luk 17:29. The fire that destroyed Sodom was “eternal” in its effect, but not in its working. Cp also Mat 13:42; Mar 9:43-49.

The punishment for the wicked is death: Rom 5:12; 6:23; Rev 20:14. But the righteous will never truly die: Luk 20:36; Hos 13:14; Rev 21:4; Rom 6:9; Isa 25:8.

PUNISHMENT: “Kolasis” = to curtail, to prune back, as a plant. Cp idea: Psa 37:9; Mal 4:1,3.

Mat 23:3

YOU MUST OBEY THEM AND DO EVERYTHING THEY TELL YOU: “Act according to the law they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left” (Deu 17:11).

Mat 23:4

All their efforts are bent toward making their brethren’s burdens heavier… but… they will make no effort to ease the burden, once it is imposed.

Ct Moses, who held up both his hands all day, to ease the burden of his people Israel (Exo 17:12).

Mat 23:5

THEY MAKE THEIR PHYLACTERIES WIDE: Cp Exo 13:3-16; Deu 6:4-9; 11:13-31.

Mat 23:13

Vv 13-31: 8 curses, here; 8 blessings: Mat 5:3-10. Cp Ebal and Gerizim: Deu 27:12,13.

Mat 23:15

CONVERT: “Proselyte” in KJV.

HELL: “Gehenna”.

Mat 23:19

Once placed upon the altar, the sacrifice was holy and could not be removed and rendered common again, even if discovered to be blemished.

Mat 23:23

YOU GIVE A TENTH OF YOUR SPICES: Tractate Maaseroth opens with a ruling on what is liable to the tithe, “all that which is food”, and then defines when that food is liable — not in its early stage but in its later stage (1:1). The determinations become more detailed in the eight mishnot that follow: “figs” (1:2); “carabs” (1:3); “greens — cucumbers, gourds, melons…” (1:4); etc. The attention given every plant reflects the rabbinic concern to legislate on every detail of life, to leave nothing unaddressed. The Lord condemns the scribes and Pharisees as “hypocrites” because they tithed “mint, dill, and cummin” but neglected the “more important requirements of the law.”

Maaseroth 4:5 gives instruction on dill and seed. In the Law of Moses none of these are listed for tithing, but evidently because these were herbs and seed used as seasoning in food they were considered tithable. It may be that the rabbis went beyond the intent of the law with such concern for detail, but it was not their meticulous observance of tithing that Jesus condemned but their lack of equal or greater attention to “justice and mercy and faithfulness.” In Maaseroth 5:7 the exact rulings reach the absurd with legislation regarding ant-holes alongside a heap of corn. “The corn inside of them is also liable” to be tithed.

YOU HAVE NEGLECTED THE MORE IMPORTANT MATTERS OF THE LAW — JUSTICE, MERCY AND FAITHFULNESS: “The Pharisees were deliberately blind when it came to ritual. They appear completely ignorant and insensitive to the clear-sighted criticism of the Lord, who saw through the façade of their deception and was moved to great indignation by their legalistic approach to the worship of Yahweh. While they behaved correctly and were scrupulous in their meticulous keeping of the Law in its smallest details, Christ was more interested in testing their inward motives rather than merely observing their outward performance.

“Sometimes we can put on a show, pretending good behaviour for a while, but sadly the danger is that it can become an habitual, ritualistic lifestyle without us even realising. We may regularly support our ecclesia, assist weaker brethren and sisters, dress appropriately, partake of the emblems each Sunday and be diligent in our attendance of study nights and special events. Our level of service to god can be based on an evaluation of works and deeds that we have done, so that we become so proud of our ‘voluntary humility’ that we defend ourselves against any criticism concerning our lack of spiritual attitude. Unless an outward expression of the responsive development of a progressive relationship with God, the ‘rite becomes wrong!’

“How thankful we should be that the weekly memorial meeting is an opportunity to examine the heart and analyse our inward motives to see if we are truly demonstrating a love for God — or is ours simply a desire to impress others? Ecc 10:2 says, ‘A wise man’s heart is at his right hand; but a fool’s heart at his left.’ In this unusual expression (because, in fact, the heart is positioned slightly to the left in the human body) is demonstrated that the heart, emotion and intellect of a spiritually-minded individual has an ‘unnatural’ inclination! It is centrally positioned with harmonious desire to give pleasure to Yahweh, rather than at a left-handed inclination to please self. Let us have the courage to thoroughly examine our true motives so that our service to Yahweh may not be ‘rite’ by ‘right’!” (SJ Mansfield).

“After all that the prophets had said, Christ needed to explain the law of justice again. His contemporaries were zealous for their traditions but they neglected the weightier matters of the law of God, justice, faith and love. They were eager to lade men with heavy and unnecessary burdens but they could not apply the just balance and just measure to the affairs of spiritual life. So has it been in later days. There has often been a passionate zeal for rectitude in little matters of form and expression, resulting in bitter criticism and often injustice to fellow labourers. We have a strong conviction that when the Just One passes final judgment, some well-meaning but self-centred men will be reproved because they have rigorously enforced so many rules of their own and have been neglectful of justice, mercy, faith and the love of God” (PrPr 186). See Lesson, Weightier matters.

THE MORE IMPORTANT MATTERS: “The weightier matters”. Herbs have a weight, although it is very little. Principles have no “weight”, literally, at all! Nevertheless, they are far more “weighty” than herbs! Cp Mic 6:7,8.

Mat 23:24

YOU STRAIN OUT A GNAT: The KJV has “strain AT a gnat” — a printer’s error that crept in after 1611, and remained!

Mat 23:25

INSIDE THEY ARE FULL OF GREED AND SELF-INDULGENCE: That is, the food and drink put therein were obtained by greed and self-indulgence, and in turn are enjoyed in more greed and self-indulgence.

Mat 23:27

WHITEWASHED TOMBS: “During the month of Adar, just before Passover, it was customary to whitewash with lime graves or grave-sites that might not be instantly identified as such, in order to warn pilgrims to steer clear of the area and avoid ritual uncleanness from contact with corpses. Such uncleanness would prevent participation in the Passover” (EBC).

Thus the Pharisaical traditions, like the whitewash, showed them up for what they were — sites of uncleanness. They might have a superficial appearance of cleanness — like the whitewash — but inside they were a very different story!

By contrast, in Luk 11:44, Jesus uses the same basic idea, and applies it again to the Pharisees, but this time he compares them to UNMARKED graves, “which men walk over without knowing it.”

Mat 23:29

Vv 29-31: Cp Luk 11:47,48: “How? Why? Might not the Pharisees have replied that, by honoring their remains and their memory, they condemned their murderers? The greatest sin of Israel and of the world was and is, apostasy from the true God and His worship by idolatry; and the most prevalent mode of this apostasy is sacrilegious reverence for dead men’s tombs and bones… Now, it was for rebuking this and other kinds of idolatry, that ‘the fathers killed the prophets’; and those who built their tombs would, in like manner, kill anyone who condemned their idolatrous reverence for these very sepulchers. Thus the Pharisees, by the very act of building those tombs of the prophets, and ‘honoring’ them as they did, showed plainly that they were activated by the same spirit that led their fathers to kill them; and, to make this matter self-evident, they very soon proceeded to crucify the Lord of the prophets because of his faithful rebukes. Nor has this spirit changed in the least during the subsequent eighteen hundred years. Now, here, in Jerusalem, should the Savior reappear, and condemn with the same severity our modern Pharisees, they would kill him upon his own reputed tomb. I say this not with a faltering perhaps, but with a painful certainty. Alas! how many thousands of God’s people have been slaughtered because of their earnest and steadfast protest against pilgrimages, idolatrous worship of saints, tombs, bones, images, and pictures! And whenever I see people particularly zealous in building, repairing, or serving those shrines, I know them to be the ones who allow the deeds of those who killed the prophets, and who would do the same under like circumstances” (LB 639,640).

Do we “build up” the “tombs” of our Christadelphian “prophets”? If so, is there any danger in doing so?

Are dead “prophets” less threatening than living ones? Seems to me that dead “prophets” (and I use the term loosely here — whether referring to Isaiah and Jeremiah, or John Thomas and Robert Roberts) can be shut up in books, closed between the covers, and “controlled”… whereas living “prophets” go walking around sticking their noses into our business when we least like it, encouraging us more directly by word or deed to DO something when we would rather do nothing, and generally kicking us out of our “comfort zones”. They can’t be as easily “shut up” or “put on a shelf”. Maybe that’s why we don’t care for the living “prophets”. Maybe that’s why we sometimes hasten their demise! Jesus also said, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor” (Mar 6:4).

Mat 23:32

THE MEASURE OF THE SIN: Cp the ephah of Zec 5:6, filled with wickedness.

Mat 23:33

YOU BROOD OF VIPERS: “Brood” = “seed”, pointing to Gen 3:15: the seed of the serpent. The same figure used by John the Baptist in Mat 3:7; cp Mat 12:34.

Mat 23:35

ABEL… ZECHARIAH: For Zechariah, see 2Ch 24:20,21. Thus the first and last martyrdoms in OT. (By Jewish reckoning, Chronicles is the last book of the Scriptures.)

This is probably Zechariah the son of Jehoiada (2Ch 24:20-22). His murder took place in the courtyard of the temple and is related toward the end of what was probably the last book in the Hebrew canon. The sweep runs (to use Christian terms) “from Genesis to Revelation.” The problem is the name of his father. There is a possible solution — that Jehoiada was the grandfather (not father) of the Zechariah of 2Ch 24 — a suggestion that Jehoiada’s living to be 130 years old (2Ch 24:15) makes more plausible, since Zechariah’s ministry immediately followed Jehoiada’s death. An otherwise unknown Berekiah would therefore have had time to sire Zechariah, live to a good age, and die before the death of his own father gave him opportunity to serve as chief priest. That would allow time for a father named Berekiah. But we cannot know for sure.

Mat 23:37

YOU WHO KILL THE PROPHETS AND STONE THOSE SENT TO YOU: Isa 49:5; Acts 7:59.

AS A HEN GATHERS HER CHICKS UNDER HER WINGS: Cp thought, Isa 31:5: God “passing over” and sheltering Jerusalem.

Mat 23:38

YOUR HOUSE: Previously called “My Father’s house” (Luk 2:49; John 2:16), but no more!

DESOLATE: “But if you do not obey these commands, declares the LORD, I swear by myself that this palace will become a ruin” (Jer 22:5). As at Passover, when Egypt was left desolate of its firstborn. Now Jerusalem is pictured as God’s firstborn, but unsprinkled with the blood of Christ the lamb of God. So, when the avenging Roman “angel” comes, he will not spare her! Cp Eze 10:19; 11:23; Psa 69:22,25.

Mat 23:39

The blindness of israel will be the rule until the time of Christ’s return: Rom 11:25-27; Zec 12:10. A set time for Israel’s punishment: Psa 102:13.

UNTIL: See Lesson, AN, Conditional deferment.

Mat 16:1

Cp Jer 5:21-29; Eze 12:1-20: the prophets dealing with a stubborn and rebellious people.

Mat 16: “The drama of the work of the Messiah, took a dramatic turn in this chapter. The understanding of the apostles concerning the work and ministry of Yahshua was to be enhanced by a most remarkable occurrence. The narrative commences at the shores of Galilee, at a place called Magdala. So the record outlines: (1) Opposed at Magdala: vv 1-4. The Lord faced an evil alliance of the Pharisees and Sadducees, who opposed the doers of good. By resting on their understanding of typical sacrifices, the Pharisees denied the need of Christ’s first advent. In the teaching of the Sadducees, there was a denial of the resurrection and therefore the Lord’s second advent. (2) Discussion in the boat: vv 5-12. (3) The great confession: vv 13-16. Peter reveals the importance of Yahshua, as the unique Son of the Deity. This statement was later to condemn the Lord to crucifixion in the court of the Jews. (4) The ecclesial rock: vv 17-20. The Master outlines the purpose of his mission, and the foundation of the ecclesial work. (5) The first key: vv 21-23. The Lord reveals the nature of the first key to unlocking the Gospel message: that of personal sacrifice and identification with the crucifixion of the Lord. (6) How to apply the keys: vv 24-28. The measure of the cross is the means to the glory.

“Notice the important statement in v 20, and cp it with Mat 17:9. It is between these two scriptural pylons that the revelation of the kingdom keys is found. The first key speaks of sacrifice; the second key (Mat 17:1-9) is that of glory. Both elements are vital and fundamental to an understanding of the Truth (Heb 12:2)” (GEM).

AND TESTED HIM: Cp Mat 4 (the temptation in the wilderness) with Mat 16:4,8,16,23-25.

A SIGN FROM HEAVEN: There were signs from heaven, but none so explicit as to compel belief from the willfully disobedient. The ones who received “signs” were those with some degree of faith already, ie those who followed Christ for 3 days. As for the others (ie the Pharisees), no sign but Jonah (the resurrection). One day, they would have their sign: Mat 24:30; 26:64.

Or again, how blind they were! for Christ WAS the “sign from heaven”, the bread from heaven (Joh 6:35…), who multiplied the loaves and warned against the false leaven of the Pharisees.

Mat 16:3

In early winter in Palestine the air is still full of summer dust. The buildup of rain clouds promotes this phenomenon (Geog 49).

Mat 16:4

A WICKED AND ADULTEROUS GENERATION: “Adulterous”, like their “king” Herod (Mar 8:13)!

NONE WILL BE GIVEN: That is, no other sign except Christ himself, since they had rejected him. The same Shekinah glory they were now demanding had been nothing but darkness to the Egyptians. And these men were “Egyptians”! (Spiritually speaking, the Jews needed to follow their Saviour into the “wilderness” before they would see “signs” of deliverance! If they remained in “Egypt”, in their minds, there would be no miraculous signs but their own deaths!)

EXCEPT THE SIGN OF JONAH: Gospel preached to Gentiles, after the “resurrection” of the prophet.

JESUS THEN LEFT THEM AND WENT AWAY: He never performs miracles merely to satisfy men’s curiosity. Now begins his emphasis on the ecclesia: vv 16-19.

Mat 16:5

THE DISCIPLES FORGOT TO TAKE BREAD: “Except for one loaf” (Mar 8:14). Perhaps, subconsciously, they were not concerned any more with provisions. (One loaf was sufficient for Jesus to multiply.)

Mat 16:6

THE YEAST (LEAVEN) OF THE PHARISEES: Their leaven: doubt, continual seeking for more signs (v 12). Mar 8:15 adds “and that of Herod”: Herod also sought a sign (Luk 23:8). In Luk 12:1, “leaven” also = hypocrisy. They would not believe, even if they saw other signs.

And they were so scrupulous in all the non-essentials, so much so that this in itself became a kind of “leaven” or “corruption” in their spiritual service: resulting in pride, self-righteousness, and judgmentalism.

Mat 16:7

IT IS BECAUSE WE DIDN’T BRING ANY BREAD: ‘He thinks we are just like the crowds, and all we are looking for is another miracle.’ Maybe they were right!

See VL, Disciples, slow comprehension. “Do you really think literal bread is a problem?”

Mat 16:8

‘Open your eyes, open your ears, and stop thinking about things of the flesh.’ Sometimes we do not recognize the power of God right away; this was the disciples’ problem.

YOU OF LITTLE FAITH: Ct with the Gentile woman: “Woman, you have great faith!” (Mat 15:28).

Mat 16:9

V 9: feeding the Jews (Mat 14:17,21); v 10: feeding the Gentiles (Mat 15:34).

BASKETFULS: “Kophinos” = small basket, in ct “spuris” (large basket) of Mat 15:37; Mar 8:8.

Mat 16:11

I WAS NOT TALKING TO YOU ABOUT BREAD: Natural bread is of secondary importance. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Mat 6:33).

Mat 16:12

THE YEAST… OF THE PHARISEES AND SADDUCEES: The “leaven” of hypocrisy: Luk 12:1.

Mat 16:13

CAESAREA PHILIPPI: The furthest possible point from the temple ritual.

SON OF MAN: Cp Gal 4:4. Same nature: Rom 8:3; Heb 2:14,17.

Mat 16:14

Follow the religious notions of the crowd, and you are almost certain to be wrong. (Notice that popular sentiment did not proclaim Jesus as Messiah any more; very evidently, this man did not WANT to be king!)

Mat 16:15

Six questions in Matthew: (1) “Who do you say I am?” (Mat 16:15); (2) “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Mat 8:26); (3) “You of little faith… why did you doubt?” (Mat 14:31); “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mat 20:32); “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” (Mat 9:28); “How many loaves do you have?” (Mat 15:34).

Mat 16:16

God revealed this to Peter: v 17. Jesus, “My beloved Son”: Mat 3:17; Mark 9:7; Luke 3:22; Mat 17:5.

THE LIVING GOD: That is, the God of the living creatures: 1Sa 17:26; 2Ki 19:4,16; Ps 42:2; 84:2; Hos 1:10; 2Co 3:3; 6:16; Heb 3:12; 9:14; Rev 7:2.

Mat 16:17

SON OF JONAH: An implied contrast between Jonah (Simon’s earthly father) and God, Christ’s heavenly father. Also, sig “son of the dove”, with poss ref to Mat 3:16!

THIS WAS NOT REVEALED TO YOU BY MAN, BUT BY THE FATHER IN HEAVEN: How did Peter know? Luk 4:41; John 17:8.

“Note here that Peter was asked for his opinion, and he gave it as his opinion. Yet Jesus calls it a revelation from God — inspired, without anyone knowing it as such except Jesus! The explanation that this revelation was through the instruction already given by Jesus is clearly an expedient. Why should he say ‘My Father’ when referring to what he himself had done? The other eleven disciples and multitudes of others similarly instructed, could have made the same confession, but didn’t. The obvious simple conclusion is that here God was at work on the mind of Peter, unperceived by all except Jesus” (HAW).

Mat 16:18

PETER: “Petros” = a loose, rolling stone: v 23; Luk 22:31.

ON THIS ROCK: By contrast, “petra” = the great, immovable rock! That rock is not Peter, but Peter’s confession: 1Co 3:11; Eph 2:20; Mat 7:24,25; 1Pe 2:6,8. Peter was certainly not the supreme authority of the early church: see Act 11:1-3; 8:14; Gal 2:11.

Peter’s fallibility: there is no evidence of any authority passed on by him to successors, either.

Christ is the ROCK, not Peter! See Mat 21:42; Acts 4:11; 1Co 10:4; Eph 2:20; 1Pe 2:6-8. There can be no other foundation but Christ: 1Co 3:11.

Likewise, God Himself is the “Rock” of Israel: Isa 44:8; Deu 32:4.

Mat 16:19

The power of the “keys” was committed to all the apostles, not just to Peter: Mat 18:18; Joh 20:23; Rev 21:14. (Christ speaks of all equally: Mat 18:1; Luk 22:25-30; Mar 9:34.)

“Power to bind” = power to preach gospel by which men and women may be bound to Christ. “Loose”, then, = not preaching!

Or, perhaps, power to judge (as Ananias and Sapphira: Acts 5:1-10; 13:9-12) or to heal (as Aeneas: Acts 9:32-35; or Acts 5:12-16).

Mat 16:21

FROM THAT TIME ON: Now, a new emphasis: dealing with the ecclesia.

Cp Elijah, rejected by Ahab and Jezebel, but “raised” from despondency (1Ki 19:2-8).

Disciples’ ignorance of Christ’s impending death, and their desire for the kingdom to come immediately: Mat 17:4; 19:27; 20:20-23.

Mat 16:22

PETER… BEGAN TO REBUKE HIM: The echo of Eden: “You will not surely die” (Gen 3:4)! Peter was acting the serpent’s part.

Mat 16:23

Jesus turned to: to the following multitude (Luk 14:25), the backsliding disciple (Luk 22:61), the impulsive disciple (Mat 16:23; Mar 8:33), and the trembling believer (Mar 5:30).

GET BEHIND ME: How quick a transition Peter made from Mat 16:18 / Mar 8:29 to Mat 16:23 / Mar 8:33! Peter was standing in front of Jesus, as though to stop him from going further. What Peter did not see was that, with all his good intentions, he was nevertheless attempting to destroy the mission of his Savior. Christ says, ‘Don’t hinder me; help me. Get behind me — follow me… to Jerusalem!’ And he does: “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps” (1Pe 2:21).

SATAN: Refers to Peter, not the personal fallen-angel devil of popular belief. Meaning one who opposes (2Co 12:7).

STUMBLING BLOCK: A loose rock, the only function of which is to cause someone to stumble! Contrast with v 18!

Mat 16:24

Vv 24-26: An overview of the four “parts” of the “transaction” of redemption (see Lesson, Redemption) demonstrates that… Christ gave himself for himself: he was at the same time three of the four “parties”: he was the buyer, the price paid, and that which was purchased! In this he was the first and preeminent example of his own words here. He redeemed, or bought, himself from the power of sin and the world because he gave himself up, utterly and wholeheartedly, to do the will of his Father. He lost his life to save his life, and — not incidentally — to save the lives of all who in faith follow his example.

AND TAKE UP HIS CROSS: Each individual disciple’s particular burden. (But Christ helps each of us to carry it: Mat 11:28-30.)

AND FOLLOW ME: “Of the three things enjoined, the last is a vital thing: to follow. The other two are utterly essential because through the essential you achieve that which is vital. The reason is this. You can approve, and not follow. You can applaud and not follow. You can understand and preach, without following. You can defend the Truth pugnaciously, without following. You can tire yourself out on busy works — without following… The central thing is the denial of self. It is utterly radical. Denial of self is the inward thing. Taking up the cross daily is the external manifestation of the inward condition. To talk of it is not to realize it. To write about it is not to achieve it. The use of the word ‘daily’ emphasizes that it is not just a theory but something that is real and practical; facing squarely every new circumstance; confronting bravely every impediment; grasping joyfully every new opportunity. In practice it means giving unhindered access to the Master into every chamber and esp into every dark corner. To think of that possibility might make us feel ashamed but at the same time it may do us good” (GD).

“The sentiment that Christ’s righteousness alone is to be the basis of our acceptance, is one of the countless and pernicious corruptions of clerical theology. It doubtless originated in the misapplication of a certain element of apostolic truth, namely that which informs us that all are under sin, and that our salvation is not of works; but through the righteousness of faith that is in Christ. Men have long ceased to perceive that this principle applies only to unjustified sinners, and not to those who have been placed in a justified or forgiven position, through the obedience of faith. Christ is righteousness for sinners in this sense, that God offers to forgive them for Christ’s sake, and to grant them a coheirship with Christ, of what Christ, as a manifestation of God, has achieved for himself. But when sinners become saints, they come into relation to a new principle. They are responsible to him as servants to a master, and he will judge them according to their works” (SC 164).

“The cross is the symbol of death. It stands for the abrupt, violent end of the human being. The man in Roman times who took up his cross and started down the road had already said goodbye to his friends. He was not coming back. He was not going out to have his life redirected. He was going out to have it ended. The cross made no compromise, modified nothing, spared nothing. It slew all of the man completely and for good. It did not try to keep on good terms with its victim. it struck swift and hard and when it had finished its work the man was no more. That evangelism which draws friendly parallels between the ways of God and the ways of man is false to the Bible and cruel to the soul of the hearers. The faith of Christ does not parallel the world. It intersects it. In coming to Christ we do not bring our life up on to a higher plane. We leave it at a cross. The grain of wheat must fall into the ground and die. That is the beginning of the gospel” (AWT).

“To give my life for Christ appears glorious. To pour myself out for others… to pay the ultimate price of martyrdom — ‘I’ll do it. I’m ready, Lord, to go out in a blaze of glory.’

“We think giving our all to the Lord is like taking a $1,000 bill and laying it on the table — ‘Here’s my life, Lord. I’m giving it all.’ But the reality for most of us is that he sends us to the bank and has us cash in the $1,000 for quarters. We go through life putting out 25 cents here and 50 cents there. Listen to the neighbor kid’s troubles instead of saying, ‘Get lost.’ Go to a committee meeting. Give a cup of water to a shaky old man in a nursing home.

“Usually giving our life to Christ isn’t glorious. It’s done in all those little acts of love, 25 cents at a time. It would be easy to go out in a flash of glory; it’s harder to live the Christian life little by little over the long haul” (F Craddock).

I think it wouldn’t be going too far to say that there IS a discernible reason for every commandment which we are given… and that that reason leads, without too much delay or detour, right back to the Atonement.

Christ’s sacrifice is not just about blood, and sweat, and tears… and it is not just about the cross on that dreadful, but wonderful, day.

It is — and we all know this! — about the life he lived every day, every hour, before he arrived, finally, at that cross. Because it was his own unique life, built up day by day, with the building blocks of a thousand moments of ten thousand days, that made his cross meaningful.

Thousands of Jewish men died on thousands of Roman crosses across the length and breadth of Israel. But only one man died a sacrificial, atoning death on a cross. Because he was the perfect sacrifice, without spot or blemish.

So Christ’s sacrifice is really about a life of many choices, each one in one way or another a choice to deny himself, and his own will, and to serve his Father, and his Father’s will.

A lifetime of choices made the final choice — of the cross itself — a choice of cosmic significance… a choice which resonates to this day, and echoes in our lives.

The essence of sacrifice is denial of self. And if we choose Christ and his cross, then we are also choosing denial of self… as a way of life. It is the hardest choice we can make, but it is the most rewarding. Allowed to work in our lives, that commitment and that choice will change us.

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his life? Or what can a man give in exchange for his life?’ ” (Mat 16:24-26).

We could run down a list of Christ’s commandments, and the commandments passed along by the apostles as well, and ask: ‘How does this relate to the Atonement?’ And in every case, I venture to suggest, we shall find the answer — and the meaningful example for us, of HOW to keep the commandment, and WHY we should keep it — in the “living sacrifice” of Christ.

Do we wonder why we are commanded this, for example?: “Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you” (Mat 5:39-42). Well, of course, reason enough to do this — or (let’s be honest) to try very, very hard — is that Christ has commanded it. But was it just an otherwise pointless requirement plucked out of the air: ‘Let’s test them with this one, while we are at it’? Of course not. We are told not to resist evil because Christ did not resist evil. And Christ did not resist evil because he had committed himself, wholeheartedly, to his Father who would ultimately judge rightly (1Pe 2:23). If we believe that that final judgment of our Father is sure and certain and righteous, then what does it matter if evil ones misuse us today, or tomorrow, or all the rest of our lives? God will set it right. What does it matter if we lose our coat, or our time, or our creature comforts — the loss of those things which we might hold dear will only reinforce to our minds the one thing that we MUST hold MOST dear — which no thief or bully or evil circumstance can take away from us: “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?… Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?” (Rom 8:31,32,35).

And suppose the “cross” we are called to bear at this very moment is not the loss of property, or health, or loved ones… the terrible losses that Job, for example, bore? Suppose the “cross” we are called to bear at this very moment is… simply… the harsh word spoken to us, or the little slight we experience, or the brief delay because some driver cut us off in traffic, or the tiny barb that pricks our pride?

Maybe the “cross” that we are called to bear, right now, is not the great mountain of difficulty that looms in front of us… but the little grain of sand in our shoe!

How do we respond? Do we give harsh word for harsh word, little grumble for silly slight, little whispered curse for minor inconvenience? Do we recoil at the least threat to our pride, or the least questioning of our intelligence, or our strength, or our goodness, or our wisdom?

Or… do we recall that “even Christ did not please himself” (Rom 15:3)? And do we therefore “turn the other cheek” to the little slap, the little needle, the little attack — even if, and especially if, it comes from a brother or sister?

If we do, and when we do, then we are “living the atonement” in our lives.

Through fits and starts, and stops and blind alleys, sometimes failing but sometimes succeeding, we are learning to be, even in the small things of our lives, “living sacrifices” (Rom 12:1,2).

But the trouble with “living sacrifices” is that — as one writer put it — “they keep crawling down off the altar”.

Lord, help me to hold on to your altar, and “die a little bit” every day, so that I might show forth your death until you return.

Mat 16:25

“Life” in v 25 and “soul” in v 26 are sw: Gr “psyche” = the natural life. All our possessions, wealth and earthly treasures, would be valueless if it meant the giving up of our future life.

Mat 16:27

AND THEN: That is, after his sufferings of the cross (v 21).

Mat 16:28

BEFORE: See Lesson, AN, Conditional deferment.

Mat 17:1

See 2Pe 1:15-18: Peter and the others were eyewitnesses of Christ’s majesty (cp also Jam 2:1; Joh 1:14; 1Jo 3:2).

SIX DAYS: Cp Mar 9:2; given as 8 days in Luk 9:28. Perhaps Luke counted beginning and ending days, whereas Matthew and Mark did not (WS 243).

A MOUNTAIN: Climbing the mountain: a parable of our journey to the Kingdom. Poss site: Mt Nebo, where Moses died (Deu 34:1-5) and Elijah ascended (2Ki 2:5,8,11).

Instances of Jesus withdrawing into a mountain, apart — sometimes for privacy and prayer, and sometimes to instruct his followers: Mat 5:1; 8:1; 14:23; 15:29; 17:1; 24:3; 28:16; Mark 3:13; 6:46; 9:2; 13:3; Luke 6:12; 9:28; 22:39; John 6:3,15; 8:1.

Mat 17:3

TALKING WITH JESUS: About his “exodus” (Luk 9:31).

Mat 17:4

SHELTERS: “Booths” (RSV); “tabernacles” (KJV).

Mat 17:5

A BRIGHT CLOUD: Like the Shekinah Glory of the Presence of God in the wilderness.

THIS IS MY SON: God’s Son: Mat 3:17; Mark 9:7; Luk 3:22. He came from God: Joh 8:42; 13:3; 16:27,28. God speaks through His Son: Joh 3:34; 12:49,50; Heb 1:1,2; 2:3.

Mat 17:7

JESUS CAME AND TOUCHED THEM: All the occasions of Jesus touching, or being touched, in the context of healing (notice that not one of them is in John’s gospel): Mat 8:3,15; 9:20,21,29; 14:36; 17:7; 20:34; Mark 1:41; 3:10; 5:27,28,30,31; 6:56; 7:33; 8:22; 10:13; Luk 5:13; 6:19; 7:14,39; 8:44-47; 18:15; 22:51.

Mat 17:9

DON’T TELL ANYONE: Silence was his settled policy for most of his ministry (Mat 9:30; 17:9; 12:16; Mar 1:34; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26; Luk 5:14), with one notable exception (Mar 5:19 — Legion with his family). But in last days of ministry, a change of course (Mat 21:1-11; Joh 7:37; 9:3; 11:4).

Mat 17:12

BUT HAVE DONE WITH HIM EVERYTHING THEY WISHED: Ref the scribes of v 10, who plotted with Herodias to kill John the Baptist.

Mat 17:14

Vv 14-21: Power of faith and intercession of others: Mat 8:13; 9:32; 15:28; 17:14-18; Luk 8:50; Joh 4:49; Jos 6:17; Gen 7:1; 18:32; 19:12; Act 27:24.

Mat 17:15

“Demoniacs” suffered from: blindness, dumbness (Mat 12:22; Luk 11:14), insanity, schizophrenia (Mar 3:21; 5:1-5; Joh 10:20), epilepsy (Mar 9:17-27), and arthritis (Luk 13:11-17).

Mat 17:16

Cp 2Ki 4:29-37: a child is healed by the prophets, but his disciples (ie Gehazi) are impotent.

Mat 17:17

O UNBELIEVING AND PERVERSE GENERATION: Christ speaks to the whole nation, represented by this one man.

Mat 17:20

Cp with Luk 1:37: Nothing is impossible with God.

“Faith is trust in God, and this implies knowledge of God’s will. A faith to achieve what is not in the will of God is both fruitless and futile. But living faith, in harmony with God’s will, is, Jesus teaches, charged with power of accomplishment. Jesus gave the same illustration of faith’s power when the disciples had expressed surprise that the fig tree had withered away (Mat 21:21). On another occasion (Luk 17:7) he used the rooting up of a sycamore tree instead of moving a mountain, as a figure of difficulty. He had been speaking of forgiveness to an unlimited number of occasions on repentance; and as the disciples regarded this as difficult to perform, they begged of him, ‘Lord, increase our faith.’ This was answered by the reference to faith as a grain of mustard seed. A living seed has power — that power is the expression of its life and is comparable to the power of faith in man. The spirit that forgives is the expression of the living faith of the disciples of Christ” (PM 124,125).

FAITH AS SMALL AS A MUSTARD SEED: A woman who was known for her deep trust and calmness of soul was asked by a person who wanted to learn her secret, “Are you the woman with the great faith?” “No,” she replied, “I am the woman with the little faith in the great God!”

YOU CAN SAY TO THIS MOUNTAIN, ‘MOVE…’: Here, I think, the “all things” needs to be limited to “all things which are in accordance with the will of the Father”, or “all things which are for your ultimate benefit”. We are like little children; if we somehow were given ‘carte blanche’ to have anything and everything WE want, then there would be no end to the damage we could do to ourselves and others. We need to be protected from ourselves. A loving Father would never give us the keys to the “candy store”, and then leave us alone to gorge ourselves.

But… “all things” which work together for our ultimate salvation? Yes, of course, He will give us that. Consider Rom 8: “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us ALL THINGS? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died — more than that, who was raised to life — is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword… No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

This passage puts the same point both positively and negatively: firstly, God will give us “all things” that will help us, to the utmost of His power, to attain to lasting faith, true forgiveness of sins, and a place in His kingdom. And thus we are assured that “nothing” (not even death itself, or terrible persecutions or trials) will keep us from the love of God in Christ, and a place in that Kingdom.

Having said that, I might add — yes, in fact, even the greatest “mountain” will be moved, if we ask it. First of all, the asking ought to be in keeping with the will of God. And secondly, Jesus didn’t state limitations as to TIME! One day, when Christ returns, the whole world will be “torn down” and “rebuilt” in a new and glorious “creation”, and every “mountain” (all the kingdoms, creations, wealth, and power of sinful man) will be brought low! It WILL happen. And we will be there to see it if we have faith as a grain of mustard seed, and if we pray for that day to come.

I’m looking forward to seeing all the “mountains” moved (Rev 6:14)! Maybe I’ll move a few myself… if Christ asks me to do so!

Is it possible that the greatest “mountain” is (and was) the “great stone” which sealed shut the tomb of Jesus (Mat 28:2-4; Mar 16:4; Luk 24:2; Joh 20:1)? And this mountain has already been moved!

Or, alternatively, “this mountain” = the Mount of Transfiguration, and “there” = Jerusalem; thus, ‘the Glory of the Father, in me, will yet be seen in the Temple” — ie, the Kingdom of God will come (WEnj 130)

V 21: PRAYER AND FASTING: Fasting gets a kind of negative “press”, I think, because (1) we don’t care too much about doing it, generally, and (2) it was one of the evidences of great zeal and righteousness, with which the Pharisees preened themselves — and we don’t want to appear self-righteous, do we?

The Jews fasted and “afflicted their souls” when they were engaged in special prayers, for themselves and the nation, on the Day of Atonement. It would appear, therefore, that fasting was intended to help the mind focus, and thus enhance the effect of prayer. So it sounds like Jesus is saying, “This was an especially difficult case, and you needed to concentrate especially hard on your prayers for this healing.”

Mat 17:24

THE TEMPLE TAX: Cp Exo 30:11-16. What else came out of the fish? Jonah: the sign of the third day (v 23). The token of the Atonement.

Mat 17:27

OPEN ITS MOUTH AND YOU WILL FIND A FOUR-DRACHMA COIN: Redemption comes out of the mouth of the great fish! Jonah (Mat 16:4; 17:23).

MY TAX AND YOURS: Christ is also in need of redemption.

MY TAX: Nevertheless, a great difference in perception between Jesus and the others.

Mat 18:1

WHO IS THE GREATEST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN?: Cp 2Ki 5:22,26: the disciple Gehazi seeks “greatness” and wealth. Don’t many of our little ecclesial disputes have their roots in this question? This dispute did not cease altogether until Christ’s death (Mar 10:35; Luk 22:24-30).

Suggestion: the special three at the Transfiguration (Mat 17:1) arouse envy in others.

Mat 18:2

HE CALLED A LITTLE CHILD: When Jesus called, he came!

Mat 18:3

UNLESS YOU CHANGE: Jesus is telling BELIEVERS to be converted! — to change their outlooks from selfishness to humility. (Cp the pride and boasting of the disciples: Mat 20:20.)

Mat 18:4

Astounding! The smallest child = Christ, and Christ = God!

HUMBLES HIMSELF LIKE THIS CHILD: A free and natural recognition of inferiority. Cp 1Pe 2:2; 1Co 14:20. Cp also Mark 10:14 with Mark 10:24.

Mat 18:5

“I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Mat 25:40).

Mat 18:6

CAUSES… TO SIN: “Skandalon” = to cause to stumble, or sin. “Offend” in AV. Sw Mar 9:43,45. Related Engl “scandal”.

A LARGE MILLSTONE: “Mulos onikos” = lit, a millstone of a donkey, ie one turned by a donkey: cp sw Luk 17:2; Rev 18:21,22. For putting a small stone in another’s path, he shall have a LARGE stone tied about his neck! A Greek and Roman punishment of prisoners: cp Rev 18:21.

Mat 18:8

The body parts represent those acts which they may perform.

Mat 18:9

HELL: “Gehenna”.

Mat 18:10

“Personal” angels are mentioned or alluded to in Heb 1:13,14; Psa 34:7; Dan 10:12; and Zec 3:7. It would appear that even (or especially!) the little children have THEIR angels! Thus there is angelic and providential care even before baptism. Apart from its spiritual significance to the “little ones” who are believers, who should be “like” little children, Jesus seems to be saying that even small children — themselves unbaptized — may such care: “Unnumbered comforts to my soul Thy tender care bestowed, Before my infant heart conceived From whom those blessings flowed.”

And the words of the Psalmist in Psa 22:9,10 suggest the same: “Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust [or ‘kept me in safety’: AV mg; RSV] in you even at my mother’s breast. From birth I was cast upon you; from my mother’s womb you have been my God.”

“The face of my Father” suggests Jacob in Gen 28:17-19; 32:30: first realizing that he was in the “house of God” (Beth-el), and then later seeing the “face of God” (Peniel) after wrestling through the long night. We may see a “Beth-el” wherever a child is found!

Mat 18:12

WILL HE NOT LEAVE THE NINETY-NINE…?: It is not necessary to assume that he left them unattended; they could have put in the care of another shepherd temporarily.

Mat 18:13

HE IS HAPPIER ABOUT THAT ONE SHEEP…: If Christ and his Father be so, then we should be the same!

Mat 18:15

See Lesson, Mat 18:15-17.

Vv 15-17: “We have, therefore, to accept it as an obligation from Christ that if we have done wrongfully to a brother, the recollection of his grievance against us should be a barrier to our approaches to God till the matter has been put right by reconciliation. There is, of course, such a thing as unjust accusation. The remedy in that case is in Mat 18:15, unless we prefer the other course, of silently and patiently taking wrong, which in some cases is the preferable one” (SC 249).

Mat 18:17

THE CHURCH: Why does Jesus refer to the “ecclesia” when there is no ecclesia at that time? Two reasonable possibilities, either or both of which may apply: (1) Jesus knew that his words would have effect during all the time after churches or ecclesias would be established… so he used the word “ecclesia” in something like a prophetic sense. (2) In the immediate context, “ecclesia” could refer to the “assembly” at the local synagogue. “In the Jewish synagogue there was a bench of elders, before whom trials of this kind were brought” (Barnes). That this command of Jesus has a Jewish context in the first place may also be inferred from the use of “pagan” and “tax collector” later in verse — ideas that Jews might typically think of.

TREAT HIM AS YOU WOULD A PAGAN OR A TAX COLLECTOR: “Oh what trouble these words have wrought down through the ages.. and what trouble might have been stifled if brethren had only followed the spirit of the words as they are found in context here from vv 12-17. How much strife might have been avoided if only men [and women too] had kept their thoughts about the sins of others between the parties involved, instead of trying out those juicy gossipy bits on others first. And to ‘count one as a heathen man and a publican’? Why… are not ‘heathen men and publicans’ the very candidates for conversion that Jesus spent so much time with? The message here must surely be that we individually need to redouble our efforts and help effect that desired conversion which often comes long after the baptism has taken place” (CY).

Mat 18:20

Jesus in the midst of: (1) thieves: Joh 19:18; (2) his disciples: Joh 20:19; (3) the teachers of the Law: Luk 2:46; (4) two or three: Mat 18:20; (5) the lampstands: Rev 1:13; (6) the throne: Rev 5:6.

WHERE TWO OR THREE COME TOGETHER: Cp context, Deu 19:15-18: two or three witnesses seeking the truth — in unity and love — by resolving differences and settling wrongs.

Mat 18:21

Only adults bear grudges and seek revenge.

SEVEN TIMES: The rabbis said, only three!

It is essentially wrong ever to count the times of forgiveness, for in counting we are remembering — not forgetting!

Mat 18:22

SEVENTY-SEVEN TIMES: Cp the 77 times of vengeance of Lamech in Gen 4:24. Or, if 70 times 7, then cp Dan 9:24: 70 sevens “to put an end to transgression / sin / wickedness”!

Mat 18:25

Selling into slavery, or indentured service, so as to satisfy debts: Exo 21:2; Lev 25:39.

Mat 18:28

The difference is between perhaps $1,000 (v 28) — more than just “small change”, but certainly payable — and many millions of dollars (v 24)!

Mat 18:33

SHOULDN’T YOU HAVE HAD: “Was it not BINDING on you to have…?” Cp Mat 16:19; 18:18.

Mat 18:35

HEAVENLY FATHER: Our heavenly calling (Heb 3:1), by a heavenly Father (Mat 18:35), through a heavenly word (Joh 3:12), presents to us a heavenly status (Eph 2:6), as we await a heavenly image (1Co 15:48,49), to be a heavenly Jerusalem (Heb 12:22), in a heavenly country (Heb 11:16), within a heavenly kingdom (2Ti 4:18). All this constitutes Christ’s brethren as a heavenly people of God!

Mat 21:1

The triumphal entry to Jerusalem: A “dress rehearsal” for the Second Coming.

BETHPHAGE: “House of figs”, natural Israel.

ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES: “On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem” (Zec 14:4).

Mat 21:2

COLT: Colt of an ass, humble — used by kings rather than the horse. Peaceful burden-bearer.

Mat 21:3

Silence was his settled policy for most of his ministry (Mat 9:30; 17:9; 12:16; Mar 1:34; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26; Luk 5:14), with one notable exception (Mar 5:19 — Legion with his family). But in last days of ministry, a change of course (Mat 21:1-11; Joh 7:37; 9:3; 11:4).

Mat 21:5

GENTLE: See Lesson, Gentleness.

“Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy. The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say to Jerusalem, ‘Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.’ The sorrows for the appointed feasts I will remove from you; they are a burden and a reproach to you” (Zep 3:14-18).

Mat 21:7

“An unusual sympathy between rider and mount for an unbroken colt to walk quietly in the midst of a shouting crowd” (SMk 152).

THREW THEIR CLOAKS ON THEM: Sig Christ the burden-bearer (Mat 11:28-30).

Mat 21:8

Let us lay the garments of our glory in the dust at Jesus’ feet.

BRANCHES: Palm branches (Joh 12:13).

Mat 21:9

Psa 118:19-26: a familiar psa sung at Passover and Pentecost, including: “open the gates… rejected stone… blessed is he that comes… bind sacrifice to the horns of the altar…” (Cit by Christ himself as applicable to the Messiah: Mat 21:42.)

HOSANNA: “Save, pray”, from Psa 118:25: “Save, now, we beseech thee, O Lord.”

“This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor!” (Est 6:6,9).

Mat 21:11

GALILEE: Galilee of the GENTILES (Mat 4:15).

Mat 21:12

The purging of the leaven from the house of God (Exo 12:19). “The action of the Lord in cleansing the temple is often quoted as an example of righteous indignation. Yet in all the four records (Mat 21, Mar 11, Luk 19, Joh 2) it is nowhere stated that the Lord was angry. Certainly it was not righteous indignation which drove back those soldiers, ordered to arrest him (Joh 7:46); nor was it righteous indignation which made armed men retreat and fall to the ground in Gethsemane (Joh 18:6). Was not the same power at work in the temple incident? But even if we concede that the Lord might have been expressing righteous indignation, what right have we unrighteous ones to claim that we can also show righteous indignation? It is more likely that we are confusing righteous indignation with wrathful feelings of revenge, personal provocation, and wounded pride. Certainly the Lord never lost his temper. Every word and action was under complete control” (Bilton, Xd 114:218).

The tables of moneychangers, overturned by Jesus, while the coins fall on the floor (Mar 11:15; Luk 19:45; Joh 2:14). Cp this with Judas throwing the 30 pieces of silver into the temple. Imagine the coins clattering and clanking along the floor, while the priests scurried here and there to gather up and hide the evidence. In both cases, this was money paid for “sacrifices”!

Jesus cast out the moneychangers, and then GAVE AWAY his blessings (v 14)!

// Mark 11:15-19 / Luk 19:45: Here is the second temple cleansing (cp Psa 69:9). The other sacrifices are driven away; Christ is soon to become the one true sacrifice… and so “the zeal for your house has consumed me” (as though he were an offering on the altar).

Mat 21:13

“IT IS WRITTEN,” HE SAID TO THEM, “MY HOUSE WILL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER”: Jesus cites Isaiah, where the context reads: “And foreigners who bind themselves to the LORD to serve him, to love the name of the LORD, and to worship him, all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it and who hold fast to my covenant — these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Isa 56:6,7).

Here is a symbolic indication that the court of the Gentiles was henceforth to be holy also (Gal 3:28). This scene took place in the court of the Gentiles. By using this area for moneychangers, the leaders had forgotten their delegated role of witnessing to the Gentiles (Zec 9:8).

God’s temple is not just a house where prayer is offered by people of all nations — which is true enough — but also a “house” (a spiritual house) built up by and consisting of prayers offered by many individuals, of many nations. With our prayers, wherever we might be physically, we “build” the “house” in which God dwells.

“BUT YOU ARE MAKING IT A ‘DEN OF THIEVES’ “: Jesus is blending a quotation from Jeremiah (Jer 7:11) in with the Isaiah quotation. The two citations take us from the pinnacle — what God’s house at its best might be — to the very lowest depth — what God’s house at its worst had become! And so God’s house — filled with a sort of spiritual leprosy — was now in dire need of cleansing by God’s true priest.

Mat 21:14

THE BLIND AND THE LAME CAME TO HIM AT THE TEMPLE: That is, those who might have been previously and customarily excluded from the worship there. Having condemned the profane use of the temple, Jesus now shows the proper use of it. It is a house of prayer (Isa 56:7) for all nations, not just the Jews. It is in that place where Jesus manifest His Father’s goodness and power in giving sight to the [spiritually] blind, and feet to the lame.

Mat 21:15

THEY WERE INDIGNANT: Hence Christ, already thinking of Psa 118 (ark coming to Zion: Psa 118:24-26), now quotes Psa 118:22,23 (in Mat 21:42).

“As Jesus rode into Jerusalem, there were many who saw him as their king. They believed he was the One they were looking for. They saw in him a King, they saw him fulfilling scripture, healing the sick, lame, blind and deaf, and feeding the hungry. To those people, for now, he was their man. They had lined the streets shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ and, ‘Hosanna in the highest!’

“But at the same time there were others for whom Jesus didn’t fit in their mould as Messiah. Jesus kept criticizing the religious leaders, he hadn’t led a revolt against the Romans, and it seemed as if everywhere he went he caused trouble. They were the ones that put him down at every opportunity, ridiculed him, and tried to kill him.

“Jesus was the same person to both those groups of people, but the big difference was in what they expected him to be like and what they thought he should do. When it came for the time for Jesus to be crucified and to die, no one expected it to happen because it did not fit into anyone’s picture of the Messiah, even though the prophets had spoken about it.

“Jesus will return again. As it was prophesied about his life, so it is prophesied about his return. Will he be the one that we look for? Are we familiar enough with what is written to expect and recognize our Messiah when he comes?” (RP).

Mat 21:16

FROM THE LIPS OF CHILDREN…: Cit Psa 8:2. Jesus also, himself a young man, not educated as the priests and teachers. Not yet 50 years old, yet he taught with authority (Joh 8:48,57). (The Psa 8 quote continues with: “…because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger”.)

Mat 21:19

A FIG TREE: Sym Israel as a nation: Mic 7:1; Hos 9:10,16,17; Isa 5:24; Psa 37:35,36; Eze 17:24.

NOTHING ON IT EXCEPT LEAVES: It was not harvest time for figs; but yet some early fruit should have been there (Xd 121:336; LB 349). First-ripe figs are usually formed before the leaves. Green figs are edible too. See Luk 13:7. Outward pretense, show, but no substance. As in Eden, it represents a vain attempt to cover “nakedness”.

MAY YOU NEVER BEAR FRUIT AGAIN: The cursing of the priesthood of Israel: Leaves = healing (Rev 22:2), but the priests (and Israel’s other leaders) could not heal (Jer 6:14; 8:11,13,15,22; ct Mat 21:14).

IMMEDIATELY THE TREE WITHERED: That is, immediately, upon Christ’s saying these words, its sap was dried up, it lost its verdure; its leaves were shriveled and shrunk up, and dropped off, and the whole was blasted. This tree was an emblem of the Jews: Christ being hungry, and very desirous of the salvation of men, came first to them, from whom, on account of their large profession of religion, and great pretensions to holiness, and the many advantages they enjoyed, humanly speaking, much fruit of righteousness might have been expected; but, alas! He found nothing but mere words, empty boasts, an outward show of religion, an external profession, and a bare performance of trifling ceremonies, and oral traditions; wherefore Christ rejected them, and in a little time after, the Gospel, was taken away from them, and their temple, city, and nation, entirely destroyed (v 43). Are we then, bringing forth “fruits meet for repentance” in our lives, or will we suffer the same de-creating blast that Christ afforded this sad fig tree nearly 2,000 years ago?

Mat 21:20

WHEN THE DISCIPLES SAW THIS: The next morning (Mar 11:20).

Mat 21:21

IF YOU HAVE FAITH AND DO NOT DOUBT: “Never worry. Worry has sent more people to the asylums and hospitals than anything else. Worry is stupid, juvenile, faithless, non-productive, round-and-round-in-a-circle thinking. If something calls for concern, be concerned. But be concerned in a constructive, productive way. Think in a straight line — from problem to solution. Or if there is no solution, to acceptance. If there is no solution, there is always prayer: though that should be the first resort, not the last. God can make anything happen or not happen. If He doesn’t choose to, then it is not to be; or we have not prayed long enough, or sincerely enough. Or we have something to learn that denying our prayers helps to teach us. Everything related to God’s affairs and God’s people has a good purpose. Folly frets and worries and rebels. Wisdom knows there is a reason, and accepts, and adjusts, and is thankful, whether God gives, or takes away” (GVG).

THIS MOUNTAIN: The mount of Israel: cast out among other nations. Or, more specifically, the Temple mount (sym law), to be removed in AD 70. Cp Mic 7:19 (sins cast into sea); Luk 17:6 (tree cast into sea).

Is it possible that the greatest “mountain” is (and was) the “great stone” which sealed shut the tomb of Jesus (Mat 28:2-4; Mar 16:4; Luk 24:2; Joh 20:1)? And this mountain has already been moved!

GO, THROW YOURSELF INTO THE SEA: “You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea” (Mic 7:19).

Mat 21:22

JESUS ENTERED THE TEMPLE COURTS: Jesus was policing the temple: a follow-up to vv 12-14.

Mar 11:24 has “Believe that you have received it.” Past tense, not present tense (as in AV): “Believe that God has blessed you in times past, and — because of your faith — He will bless you again.” Cp Deu 7:17,18; 1Sa 17:37; Psa 22:4; 34:6,7; 2Co 1:9-11.

“BY WHAT AUTHORITY ARE YOU DOING THESE THINGS” THEY ASKED. “AND WHO GAVE YOU THIS AUTHORITY?”: Three years before, Nicodemus had come as a delegate of the Sanhedrin. What had they done with his report? (Christ was not a Levite or a priest, or in any way accredited by some rabbi. As a wandering “holy man”, he was of course free to speak, but not with the voice of authority, in the temple, or at any official function or activity.)

Mat 21:23

JESUS ENTERED THE TEMPLE COURTS: Christ was policing the Temple. A follow-up on the cleansing of the Temple (Mat 21:12-17; Mar 11:15-19; Luk 19:45-48).

BY WHAT AUTHORITY: Christ was not a Levite, a priest, nor in any way accredited by some rabbi. Wandering “holy men” were allowed to speak freely — but not with voice of authority, in Temple, etc. (Three years before, Nicodemus had come to Jesus as a delegate of Sanhedrin: Joh 3. What had they done with his report?)

Mat 21:25

JOHN’S BAPTISM — WHERE DID IT COME FROM? WAS IT FROM HEAVEN, OR FROM MEN?: Of course, this WAS his answer: Jesus was accredited by John the Baptist. If they had tested John’s claim (Deu 18:21,22), they would have been prepared to accept Jesus.

“They had just challenged Christ, and asked who gave Him the authority to interfere with their worship arrangements, when he cleansed their Temple. So when Christ here asks, whether ‘John’s baptism was from heaven, or of men’, his meaning is, whether this new institution of baptism was of divine origin, and that John acted by divine authority, and commission; or whether it was a human device of his own, or of other men, and that he took the office of preaching and baptizing upon himself of his own head, or by some human appointment. To this Jesus requires a direct answer, as is said in Mark, ‘Answer me’; whether it was from the one, or from the other. And they reasoned with themselves… ‘in their own minds’, as the Syriac; or they took some little time and privately conferred together, what answer they should return. When they had argued the point among themselves, they reasoned ‘saying, if we shall say from heaven’; that is, if we shall return for answer, that the baptism and ministry of John were of divine appointment, and that he acted by a divine authority, ‘he will say unto us, why did ye not believe him?’ Meaning, why did not you believe the doctrine that he preached? and receive the testimony that he gave concerning the Messiah? and why were you not baptised by him? why did you reject the counsel of God against yourselves? They saw plainly, that if they owned the divine authority of John’s baptism and ministry, they must allow Jesus to be the true Messiah, that John bore witness to; and consequently, that it was by a divine authority He did what He did in cleansing the Temple; and that then was an end of the question, and is the very thing that Christ had in view. Oh how I love the way that our Lord and Saviour can so tie men in knots of their own making! And He has had 2,000 years of Divine experience to hone this craft, so that every man who stands before Him shortly will be without excuse” (CY).

Mat 21:27

NEITHER WILL I TELL YOU…: The evidence was already there. Their reasoning and understanding was based on flesh and on their own personal preferences — regardless of truth. They openly denied obvious truth: “By Beelzebub” (Mar 3:22,23,28).

Notice: they answer, “We don’t know” — which really means, “We won’t tell you.” Thus Jesus reciprocates in his answer: not “I don’t know”, but instead, “Neither will I tell you!”

Mat 21:30

HE ANSWERED, “I WILL, SIR,” BUT HE DID NOT GO: “We will do everything the LORD has said” (Exo 19:8). But of course they did not!

Mat 21:31

AHEAD OF YOU: AV “before you”, or “in your presence”.

Mat 21:32

“He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (Joh 1:11.)

Mat 21:33

Cp parable with the work of Uzziah: 2Ch 26. Also cp with the song of the vineyard: Isa 5.

WATCHTOWER: The name of the LORD is a strong tower” (Pro 18:10).

WENT AWAY ON A JOURNEY: That is, ceased personal communication with these men.

Mat 21:34

HE SENT HIS SERVANTS: The prophets, sent to Israel: 2Ch 36:14-16.

Mat 21:35

// Mat 23:37; Acts 7:51-53.

Mat 21:37

HIS SON: Many servants, but only one son!

Mat 21:39

// Isa 5:1-7.

When we cast the “true vine” (John 15) out of our vineyard, we will have no fruit!

OUT OF THE VINEYARD: “Outside the camp” (Heb 13:10-14). Note order: (1) took out of camp; and then (2) killed.

Mat 21:41

HE: God working through men. This is the wrath of God for the rejection of His Son. (In the parable, the son is already dead!)

Mat 21:42

THE STONE: Cited from Psa 118:22; cp Eph 2:20. (See context: Psa 118:14,15,19,20,22-27.)

Mat 21:44

FALLS ON… BE BROKEN: Could mean: “fall on” as in seeking for aid, and “be broken” as being humbled and made subservient to Christ (cp the ass: vv 2,7).

Those who attack the Stone will be thwarted, and those who turn away will be broken in pieces.

…WILL BE CRUSHED: Condemnation.

Mat 21:46

TO ARREST HIM: Trying to fulfill prophecy (Mat 21:39; Mar 12:8; Luk 20:15), but time was not yet right.

The parables of Christ, when perceived, only brought their wickedness to the fore, and increased their hatred of him. They convicted themselves.