Bible Study on Matthew 20, verses 1 to 19, everlasting life

 

Matthew 20:1 ¶  For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. 2  And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3  And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4  And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. 5  Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. 6  And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? 7  They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive. 8  So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. 9  And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. 10  But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny. 11  And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, 12  Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. 13  But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? 14  Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. 15  Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? 16  So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

 

Continuing with the thought from the last chapters Jesus goes on to teach by way of a parable that God offers everlasting life to all and whether it is received early in life or on one’s death bed the reward is the same, life everlasting. It is God’s free gift that is His to tender as He sees fit.

 

Some are called in youth and some at various stages of life but all are called, and few will receive Christ and everlasting life. Those who will are chosen. God’s foreknowledge knows everyone that will accept Christ as their Saviour and God chooses those who will. On one side of heaven’s metaphorical door it could say, “whosoever will” and on the other side, “Chosen from the foundation of the world.”

 

Matthew 20:17 ¶  And Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and said unto them, 18  Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, 19  And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again.

 

Jesus foretells His betrayal, His trial, His execution, and His resurrection. Here is a prophecy on the other side of the Cross. See how He did this in Matthew 16:21. Christ reinforces to His disciples what is to be, the foundation of Christianity without which there is no salvation for mankind.

A Psalm for Sunday, Psalm 69, verses 22 to 29, the book of the living

 

Psalm 69:22 ¶  Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap. 23  Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not; and make their loins continually to shake. 24  Pour out thine indignation upon them, and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them. 25  Let their habitation be desolate; and let none dwell in their tents. 26  For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten; and they talk to the grief of those whom thou hast wounded. 27  Add iniquity unto their iniquity: and let them not come into thy righteousness. 28  Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous. 29  But I am poor and sorrowful: let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high.

 

Paul refers to the first verse in this passage.

 

Romans 11:9  And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them:

 

That which should have been for the benefit of David’s enemies, he prays that it go against them. By Paul’s allusion to the verse we see that trap is a recompence by word substitution as I have previously explained. The Holy Spirit uses this method in quoting Old Testament verses in the New to show us the intent of the passage.

 

Paul follows on with an allusion or free reference to the next verse.

 

Romans 11:10  Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway.

 

See how the Holy Spirit directs us through fluid meanings as a contrast with bow down their back always and make their loins continually to shake.

 

For verse 24 see a similar sentiment in Psalms.

 

Psalms 79:6 ¶  Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name.

 

Verse 25 can be also applied to Judas, the betrayer of Christ.

 

Acts 1:20  For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.

 

From verse 26 we can see a reference to the Messiah, the torment of the Lord Jesus Christ. For 27 note this verse in a future Psalm

 

Psalms 81:12  So I gave them up unto their own hearts’ lust: and they walked in their own counsels.

I should think that prophetically the book of the living and the book of life are synonymous in a clear double-reference to the end times with the immediate context being David wanting his enemies to die. In Revelation 3:5 Christ promises not to blot a person’s name out of the Book of Life. All human beings’ names are in the book when their soul was created but based on God’s foreknowledge and if we reject Him our name is removed.

Exodus 32:32  Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin — ; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. 33  And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.

Philippians 4:3  And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of life.

Revelation 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Revelation 17:8  The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Revelation 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works…15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:27  And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Revelation 22:19  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

When we are saved we are said to be sealed and the Holy Spirit is given to us as a deposit, earnest money, so to speak.

2Corinthians 1:22  Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.

Ephesians 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

Ephesians 4:30  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

So, it is consistent to believe that God’s Book of Life contains all our names and when we die physically the name is either left there or taken out based on what we have done regarding Christ…

Hebrews 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

If that is not the case then your salvation is not sure, that is, if you can have your name put in and then taken out.

For verse 29 consider;

 

 Psalms 40:17  But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God.

 

Psalms 109:22  For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

 

Remember for us what we are told in the New Testament.

¹ Peter 5:6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: ⁷ Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Bible Study on Matthew 19, verses 23 to 30, the eye of a needle

 

Matthew 19:23 ¶  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. 24  And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 25  When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? 26  But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. 27  Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29  And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 30  But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

 

Please note Jesus’ comment to the young, rich man in the previous passage. Jesus says here to His disciples that it is easier for a camel to pass through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. This has often been distorted in evangelical circles to refer to some kind of door in the gate of a city that a camel would have to get down on its knees to pass through, being unburdened of its load. Unfortunately, there is no proof that the first century Jews called any door a, “needle’s eye,” and this fantasy is based on a 15^th century, or maybe 9^th century, myth about this door.

 

The fact is that a camel cannot pass through the eye of a needle. It is an absurdity. Jesus makes a very important point here. While that is impossible, nothing is impossible with God. The lesson taught here is that wealthy people tend to rely on their wealth and not God. They are not likely to give up their comforts to follow Christ and will typically make excuses that they can have their wealth and be good Christians at the same time. What Jesus is saying here is that nothing can be more important than God or you cannot enter into God’s kingdom, which makes it of a much smaller population than we would normally think.

 

It is Peter then that makes the statement that unlike the young man in the last passage, a wealthy person, he and the disciples have left all to follow Jesus. Jesus’ final statement is that these disciples who have forsaken all they had in the world will receive abundant reward and have everlasting life to enjoy. This can only be referring to the people who were listening to Christ speak rather than to us as to apply this to the church would be a contradiction to the standards for our treatment of our families that the Holy Spirit has given us.

 

1Timothy 5:8  But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

 

Certainly, then, this is not a warrant for a new Christian to abandon his or her responsibilities to their family and justify it by their new-found faith. Jesus is talking to a select few disciples who are to follow Him to see His death on the Cross and to witness the aftermath of His Resurrection from the Empty Tomb and even to suffer martyrdom themselves.

 

He tells Peter and the other Apostles that they will be judging the twelve tribes of Israel which gives us a hint as to who some of the following people are.

 

Revelation 4:4  And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

 

What does it mean to inherit everlasting life? We are granted this inheritance by virtue of God making a gift of it to us as we trust and believe in the righteousness of Christ, His deity, and in His resurrection.

 

Those who are first in this world will typically be last in the world to come. The beggar who belongs to Christ is far better off than the rich man who has rejected Him.

Bible Study on Isaiah 1, verses 16 to 20, let us reason together

 

Isaiah 1:16 ¶  Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; 17  Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. 18  Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. 19  If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20  But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

Here is a metaphor for taking a bath in cleansing oneself from wickedness, not a reference to baptism as a saving act in itself. He admonishes the Jews of Judah to stop doing evil in front of God, to stop doing the evil they have been doing, to cease from it.

Isaiah then goes on speaking for God as he tells them in verse 17 to perform the acts of true religion as defined later by James.

James 1:27  Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Connect these verses to Micah.

Micah 6:8  He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

And we are called to this as Christians.

Ephesians 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Verse 18 is a remarkable verse that stands out in our minds even if we haven’t memorized it. Notice the contrast is between the blood scarlet of our sins and the whiteness of snow representing purity. Racists on the right and race communists on the Left have sometimes tried to make this about black and white but it has nothing to do with their political ideology but all mankind’s rebellion against a holy God. Please read Psalm 51

Psalm 51:1 ¶  «To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.» Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. 2  Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 3  For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. 4  Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. 5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6  Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

    7 ¶  Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8  Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. 9  Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. 10  Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 11  Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 12  Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. 13  Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.

 

    14 ¶  Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. 15  O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. 16  For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. 17  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. 18  Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem. 19  Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.

Clearly the context in verse 19 suggests obedience to God’s word and that is how the Jews of Christ’s time would understand it as a Targum actually adds, “to my word.” Isaiah, speaking for God, gives a blessing and a warning. Obey and enjoy the fruits of the promised land or disobey and die.

Brief comments on 2Kings 7

 

2Kings 7:1 ¶  Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. 2  Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

Elisha announces that the end of the siege and famine is imminent and an advisor to the king expresses disbelief. However, this word is from God. Elisha’s rebuke is that this advisor will not eat of the bounty that is coming.

2Kings 7:3 ¶  And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate: and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die? 4  If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. 5  And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there. 6  For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host: and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. 7  Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. 8  And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it. 9  Then they said one to another, We do not well: this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry till the morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king’s household. 10  So they came and called unto the porter of the city: and they told them, saying, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, and asses tied, and the tents as they were. 11  And he called the porters; and they told it to the king’s house within.

Leviticus 13:46  All the days wherein the plague shall be in him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be.

These lepers, nobodies, the lowest of the low, are courageous out of desperation and intend to throw themselves on the mercy of the Syrians. It is unlikely that they would be shown any. But when they witness that the Syrians have fled due to a psy-op perpetuated by God which they, of course, don’t know about, they realize that they must tell the good news to the inhabitants of the city. A porter is a gatekeeper or doorkeeper.

2Kings 7:12 ¶  And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants, I will now shew you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we be hungry; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city. 13  And one of his servants answered and said, Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city, (behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in it: behold, I say, they are even as all the multitude of the Israelites that are consumed:) and let us send and see. 14  They took therefore two chariot horses; and the king sent after the host of the Syrians, saying, Go and see. 15  And they went after them unto Jordan: and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned, and told the king. 16  And the people went out, and spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD. 17  And the king appointed the lord on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate: and the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died, as the man of God had said, who spake when the king came down to him. 18  And it came to pass as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be to morrow about this time in the gate of Samaria: 19  And that lord answered the man of God, and said, Now, behold, if the LORD should make windows in heaven, might such a thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof. 20  And so it fell out unto him: for the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died.

The king suspects a trap, an ambush. But the miracle is true and the Syrians are gone. There is an abundant wealth of food and goods to end the famine that has plagued them. Finally, the scoffer who doubted what Elisha said died and did not enjoy the bounty as Elisha prophesied in verse 2.

Bible Study on Matthew 19, verses 13 to 22, what good thing shall I do

 

Matthew 19:13 ¶  Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. 14  But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 15  And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.

 

Here it is worthwhile to go back to chapter 18 and read the chapter and my comments. I suggest again that one possibility for this emphasis on children is that we will all be children in Heaven. It makes a lot of sense as in not being given in marriage and some of the statements in Matthew in particular.

 

Notice how suffer is used by contrasting it with forbid them not? It means to allow, to permit.

 

Matthew 19:16 ¶  And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17  And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18  He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19  Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 20  The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 21  Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. 22  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

 

Verse 16 underscores that there was an understanding that eternal life, life after death, was a possibility but had to be received somehow. Clearly not a Sadducee who did not believe in eternal life he used the phrase Good Master which John Gill said was much used when speaking to teachers, called Rabbis.

 

Jesus quotes back at him from what I think may be 1Samuel 2:2;

 

1Samuel 2:2  There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.

 

He then tells the person that he should keep the commandments if he wants to inherit eternal life.

 

Deuteronomy 6:25  And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.

 

This teaches us that while eternal life might not be specifically promised in the Old Testament, under the Law given to Moses, it was implied as understood by the Jews. I’ve already gone over how frequently the resurrection from the dead was mentioned in the Old Testament.

 

See this verse on a physical resurrection from Job, written between 1500 to 2000BC.

 

Job 19:25  For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 26  And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: 27  Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.

 

And a thousand years later see this verse on a physical resurrection from Isaiah.

 

Isaiah 26:19  Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.

 

And then, a few hundred years later, as Daniel writes under the reigns of the last Babylonian emperors and the first Persian.

 

Daniel 12:2  And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

 

Jesus then restates some commandments, teaching us that the following is a reference to murder of an innocent person not killing in self-defense.

 

Exodus 20:13  Thou shalt not kill.

 

The young man swears that he has been fastidious in observing those principles. However, Jesus tells him to go one step further and to give all that he has to the poor. This was specifically said because the young man had great wealth. This isn’t saying that every Christian must make himself impoverished and be a beggar to follow Christ. This is a statement about how the wealthy love their wealth and will do almost anything to keep from parting with it. Follow along as Jesus continues and explains to His disciples what was just stated to the wealthy man.

Bible Study on Genesis 49, verses 5 to 7, Jacob addresses Simeon and Levi

 

Genesis 49:5 ¶  Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations. 6  O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall. 7  Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

Simeon and Levi are the ones who, through deception, slaughtered the inhabitants of Hamor the Hivite’s city in revenge for Hamor’s son, Shechem’s rape of Dinah. Jacob lamented their actions.

Genesis 34:25 ¶  And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males…30  And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.

Again, the prophecy for these tribes is not a positive thing based on the character of their originators. As all mankind suffers from their inheritance of a rebellious, sin nature against God from our first ancestor, Adam, so shall these tribes suffer with the rebelliousness of their progenitors.

Here we also have an example of how this Bible defines words. Anger’s quality is fierce and wrath’s quality is cruel. Our anger burns hot and our wrath is malicious and hateful. Wrath is thought of typically as vehement anger. But, still they have a like quality in their use making them somewhat synonymous from a Biblical point of view.

Psalm 37:8  Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

Proverbs 15:1  A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.

Proverbs 27:4  Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?

Paul warns Christians;

Ephesians 4:31  Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

Colossians 3:8  But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.

Anger should not be allowed to turn into bitter wrath for a Christian. Don’t dwell on it.

Ephesians 4:26  Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:

Jacob speaks to his soul in verse 6 warning himself not to take counsel with these two as their way is violent and vengeful. There are similar warnings in different contexts in both Old and New Testaments.

Amos 3:3  Can two walk together, except they be agreed?

2Corinthian 6:14  Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

Proverbs 16:29  A violent man enticeth his neighbour, and leadeth him into the way that is not good.

Whatever you think or your culture demands regarding vengeance the vengeance of Simeon and Levi, more concerned with their own honor than an assault on their sister’s person, was not approved, even though allowed, as most despicable and ungodly acts of mankind are.

Here we have the picture developing not only of the Hebrews but of a person in general. In these two prophecies for these three men we see someone who is unstable in his ways, lacking in moral control of his sexual impulses, violent and vengeful, murderous even. It is not a pretty picture of humanity that is being presented, much less of the Hebrews. And it continues.