Bible Study on Matthew 16, verses 24 to 28, they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom

 

Matthew 16:24 ¶  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 25  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. 26  For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 27  For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. 28  Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

 

Christ then lays out, after rebuking Peter, the most basic demands made on His disciples. They were clearly looking at things from too temporal and too worldly a perspective. The true Christian must deny himself; his sin, his ungodliness, his worldliness, even his own righteousness.

 

1John 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

 

The Christian must not seek worldly wealth but focus on treasure in heaven.

 

Matthew 6:19 ¶  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

 

The Encyclopedia Britannica online notes that crucifixion, the reference to the cross, was not used first by the Romans. But the Persians, the Carthaginians, and the Seleucids also used that horrific form of execution.[1] The point here is that the suffering and persecution Christ’s followers faced was something they should embrace as a badge of their obedience to Him, following their rejection of the demands that Self makes or rather putting God first over Self. The third step after denying one’s self and taking up one’s cross of persecution and suffering, is to openly follow Christ.

 

If a man or a woman tries to save themselves by pursuit of the approval of mankind, the pursuit of sin, the pursuit of worldliness, the exaltation of their self apart from God they will lose that life they hold most precious in eternity. But whomever dies in the service of Christ will ensure their life everlasting with Him in eternity.

 

Remember Matthew 10:38,39 as the disciples were sent out on a perilous mission?

 

Matthew 10:38  And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 39  He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

 

Consider this in Revelation.

 

Revelation 12:11  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

 

What good would it do us get everything this world had to offer; pleasure, success, wealth, and power and then lose our souls in eternity? What is something so valuable in this world, in this finite life that is receding from you every moment that is worth your eternal soul?

 

Verse 27 is one of those verses that gives a broad explanation of something that is described elsewhere in more detail. Notice how the following in Revelation depicts the end of history in general terms while the rest of Revelation is more specific as to events.

 

Revelation 11:18  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

 

Now notice these references later in Matthew;

 

Matthew 24:30  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

 

Matthew 25:31 ¶  When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

 

Matthew 26:64  Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

 

Verse 27 speaks of Christ’s return in the glory of God the Father with His angels. Verse 28, though, speaks of those standing with Him who will see Him coming in His kingdom, which is clearly a reference to what happens in chapter 17. He says that He will return with His angels to judge the world and that, truthfully, there are disciples standing there who will see Him in His glorified state.

 

So, in chapter 16, Jesus begins at Caesarea Philippi with a question for His disciples. Who do men say that I, the Messiah, am? Then He expounds on His coming Crucifixion and Resurrection, which Peter objects to, and which requires a rebuke from Christ. Christ then goes on to explain the level of commitment a disciple of His will need in the coming years. He reveals His inevitable return to judge the world and then says that selected disciples will see Him as He is in His kingdom. This will happen next.

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[1] Encyclopedia Britannica online, “crucifixion; capital punishment,” https://www.britannica.com/topic/cross-religious-symbol (accessed 4.24.2023).

Bible Study on Genesis 47, verses 13 to 26, part two, government in place of God

 

It is a truth that humans will generally prefer security to liberty, however. The Hebrews will eventually want a king and, therefore, a government like the heathen around them. God will tell Samuel, who objects to their cry;

1Samuel 8:4 ¶  Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, 5  And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. 6  But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD. 7  And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.

Then, gave them this prophetic warning of the evils and expectations of human government.

8  According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. 9  Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them. 10  And Samuel told all the words of the LORD unto the people that asked of him a king. 11  And he said, This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots. 12  And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots. 13  And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers. 14  And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants. 15  And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants. 16  And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work. 17  He will take the tenth of your sheep: and ye shall be his servants. 18  And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day. 19  Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us; 20  That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles. 21  And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the LORD. 22  And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his city.

The Bible gives us a detailed treatise on human government if we regard the entire book and not just Romans 13 as an excuse for tyranny. Pray for your leaders. They are typically not good men. There is a famous quote in recent history that pertains to the men who have led people in government and war by the Englishman John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton, known as Lord Acton.

“Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority; still more when you superadd the tendency of the certainty of corruption by authority.”

The Holy Spirit reports through the Bible writers that God has placed over humans as rulers the worst sort of men…

Daniel 4:17  This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.

…and the governments of the world are under Satan’s authority.

Luke 4:5  And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6  And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it.

The lacking of men to rule generally in the right way is based on one major lacking even if they call themselves Christians.

2Samuel 23:3  The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.

Now, it must be said that even though a chief executive other than God Himself was not His direct will for Israel it fell under His permissive will, His permission, and He did bless kings and Israel when they were obedient or repentant, seeking forgiveness, for their lack of obedience. Do not make the mistake, though, that brought Western Civilization to World War One where most of the warring countries thought they were God’s chosen people and God’s chosen government each fighting evil personified in their opponents. Do not make the mistake of believing that what God allows mankind to do is what His good, and acceptable, and perfect will is rather than the lusts of our own hearts. In the end all the machinations of mankind cannot thwart God’s eventual plan for humanity nor do they help mankind escape the judgment that is being brought down.

Your government, whether it be the United States, China, Russia, England, or even Namibia is the enemy of your liberty in the Lord because you have rejected His leadership. This fact is part of His judgment.

Bible Study on Matthew 16, verses 21 to 23, Get thee behind me, Satan

 

Matthew 16:21 ¶  From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. 22  Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. 23  But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

 

This shows how the Fundamentalist doctrine that in the Old Testament the Jews were looking forward to the Cross is wrong. Actually, they did not understand Isaiah 53. Their confusion persisted until an eleventh century rabbi nicknamed Rashi developed the idea that rather than being about a singular man the chapters in Isaiah about the Messiah were actually about the suffering Jewish people as a group thereby totally confusing the Jews with regard to Christ.

We must keep in mind that the Bible says explicitly that the passage in Isaiah was talking about Christ.

Acts 8:26 ¶  And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. 27  And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, 28  Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. 29  Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. 30  And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? 31  And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. 32  The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: 33  In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. 34  And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? 35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

 

Jesus’ Jewish followers literally had no clue what He was talking about when He referred to His impending agony on the Cross or understood anything about His Resurrection.

Mark 9:9  And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead. 10  And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean…31  For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. 32 

But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.

 

Luke 18:31 ¶  Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. 32  For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: 33  And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 34  And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

 

John 20:9  For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.

 

Jesus rebukes Peter for wishing what Satan did back in chapter 4 that He should not go to the Cross. Satan offered Him a crown to subvert His mission while Peter says this out of his love and respect for his rabbi.

 

Matthew 4:8  Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9  And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 10  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

 

An offence is a stumbling block, something in the way.

 

1 Peter 2:8  And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

Bible Study on Genesis 47, verses 13 to 26, Joseph and the fifth part

 

Genesis 47:13 ¶  And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very sore, so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine. 14  And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. 15  And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth. 16  And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail. 17  And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses: and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year. 18  When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands: 19  Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate. 20  And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh’s. 21  And as for the people, he removed them to cities from one end of the borders of Egypt even to the other end thereof. 22  Only the land of the priests bought he not; for the priests had a portion assigned them of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion which Pharaoh gave them: wherefore they sold not their lands. 23  Then Joseph said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land. 24  And it shall come to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones. 25  And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants. 26  And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests only, which became not Pharaoh’s.

Egypt and Canaan were both severely stricken by this famine. The people of Egypt, and foreigners we have seen, put a lot of money in the government of Egypt’s coffers to buy the grain they needed so badly to survive. Finally, the money ran out so Joseph took property in the form of cattle and horses and asses for a year after that. Then, when the government owned the livestock he took the land removed the former residents to cities around Egypt. Only the powerful priests were exempt from this acquisition. The people still farmed the land and Joseph gave them seed to plant but it belonged to the government now. As tenants they had to pay 20% of their crop output as a tax to the Egyptian government. The people were happy with this for they and their families could survive even though this goes beyond the famine they are enduring now and carries with it great consequences for their future.

The issue of government and government’s place in the scheme of things comes into play here. We are forced to consider it. This passage states a rather negative truth about taxation. The ability to demand a portion of the people’s living is like ownership. Taxation can be considered in one respect a type of slavery. You are forced to spend part of your working life working for the government. Joseph says in verse 23 that he has bought them for Pharaoh.

Under the New Testament after Christ’s resurrection the Christian is told to yield to the heathen governments of the time, none of them based on any Christian principle, in their function of punishing evil and protecting the innocent.

Romans 13:3  For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: 4  For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. 5  Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. 6  For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God’s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.

Jesus Himself said we are to pay taxes to keep from offering offense and performed it supernaturally.

Matthew 17:27  Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

Once a people starts using government issued currency rather than, as in much of the Old Testament, simply a valuable metal by weight as a medium of exchange, you become ensnared in the scheme of government to own its population and control its economic activity.

Matthew 22:15 ¶  Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. 16  And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. 17  Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? 18  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? 19  Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. 20  And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? 21  They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s. 22  When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.

2Kings, chapter 6, comments

 

2Kings 6:1 ¶  And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. 2  Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye. 3  And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. 4  So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. 5  But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed. 6  And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim. 7 Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it.

Notice two things that stand out to me here. One is the honesty of this poor disciple of Elisha, concerned about the axe head he feared was lost because it did not belong to him. Secondly, notice how again Elisha uses a non-miraculous object with no power in itself to perform a miracle. We have seen this before in Elijah’s ministry. Think of how he used a dousing in the Jordan to heal Naaman when the river had no magical power of its own. God did these things through Elijah as we understand it.

2Kings 6:8 ¶  Then the king of Syria warred against Israel, and took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp. 9  And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are come down. 10  And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself there, not once nor twice. 11  Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king of Israel? 12  And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber.

The King of Israel keeps escaping confrontations set in place by the King of Syria. The King of Syria is worried that he has a traitor in his midst but his counselors tell him that Elisha knows all of his secrets and nothing the Syrian king does is hid from him, even his most secret thoughts expressed in his very bedchamber.

2Kings 6:13 ¶  And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan. 14  Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about. 15  And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do? 16  And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. 17  And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. 18  And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. 19  And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria. 20  And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 21  And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them, My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them? 22  And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master. 23  And he prepared great provision for them: and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. So the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.

There are several things to note here that are amazing. All around us are spiritual beings, too numerous to mention, in my mind probably as many as the stars in the universe, maybe even seventy sextillion as theoretical scientists calculate the number of stars. Who can say? Including in this number of spiritual beings, invisible to us, are animals, in this case, horses. Our finite flesh and blood bodies are the only thing in the way of our experiencing this spiritual world and although suicide is forbidden to us, it is fascinating to think, to imagine, what existing in that world must be like.

Yes, there are animal beings in heavenly realms. I suspect that the sweet savour of the animal sacrifices we’ve been told about lead us to consider that these creatures’ souls and spirits go on existing in this unseen world. Again, though, we must remember that self-murder, suicide, is forbidden to us as much as killing another. We should just consider the possibilities the Bible presents to us.

Animals are not mere biological machines whose death meant absolutely nothing and were of no consequence. Let us remember God’s view of them rather than our sin-corrupted historical-cultural bias. Many times animal sacrifices are called a sweet savour to God.

 

Numbers 29:36  But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish:

 

The heavenly prototypes for all animals play a prominent role in the spiritual world.

 

Ezekiel 1:10  As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle… 10:14  And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle. 15  And the cherubims were lifted up. This is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar.

 

Animals exist in the heavenly realm, the world of the spirit as here 2Kings reveals.

 

 

At least some types of them have souls and spirits, as tripartite beings like man.

 

Numbers 31:28  And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep…

 

Job 12:10  In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.

 

Ecclesiastes 3:21  Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

 

They can have potential abilities of speech that are restrained, obviously for a reason, perhaps because of the judgment on the earth because of man. They also have memory of past things.

 

Numbers 22:28  And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times? 29  And Balaam said unto the ass, Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill thee. 30  And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? And he said, Nay.

 

And although they are allowed to be sacrificed and even killed and eaten by man abuse of them is condemned…

 

Proverbs 12:10  A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.

 

An army is blinded and does not know where they are. The prophet, when he delivers them to a place where they could be slaughtered in their defenseless condition, forbids it. I was blind to the truth of the Gospel and was led to it through the strange land of my ignorant youth. My eyes were opened and although, I deserved to be killed on many occasions for my sin, I was delivered alive and blessed by nourishment from my Creator. There are many great sermon possibilities from this passage and I cannot even scratch the surface.

The King of Syria will stop trying to ambush the King of Israel or kidnap the prophet. There will be no more half measures but a full scale invasion now.

2Kings 6:24 ¶  And it came to pass after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. 25  And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver. 26  And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king. 27  And he said, If the LORD do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress? 28  And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow. 29  So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son. 30  And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. 31  Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day. 32  But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door: is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him? 33  And while he yet talked with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of the LORD; what should I wait for the LORD any longer?

The King of Syria has his forces lay siege to Samaria. The result is a great famine where women will eat their own children in desperation. As in many sieges in history it is a hideous and depraved time of desperation and pain. Elisha is blamed and targeted for execution. Elisha acknowledges that like all reality, evil or good, only God is in control. Elisha declares there is no hope since this is God’s doing.

This was predicted in the prophecy in Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 28:53  And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:

Bible Study on Matthew 16, verses 13 to 20, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am

 

Matthew 16:13 ¶  When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14  And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15  He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 18  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19  And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 20  Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.

 

Peter makes the acknowledgment that Christ is the Son of God, which is God walking in the flesh on the earth. Jesus also uses the phrase Son of man. Jesus, the Messiah, is fully God and fully man. The Son of man is a reference to His being the Messiah.

 

As I said before the phrase Son of man links Christ to Daniel 7:13.

 

Daniel 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

 

It is the Messiah in His human form as fully man just as He is fully God as the Son of God.

 

Jesus Christ is the only time that God has come to earth to live in human flesh. This is the importance of the phrase the only begotten Son of God.

 

John 1:18  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

 

John 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

 

Remember that Adam was the son of God, lowercase ‘s’.

 

Luke 3:38  Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.

 

Remember that when a song says, “God’s one and only son.” Alexander the Great had himself declared the son of God or the gods in Egypt and Augustus Caesar, nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar signed his documents Deus Fide, the son of god or a god. They were fakes. Jesus was the only begotten of the Father in His humanity.

 

The son of a king came in the name of the king and had, in effect, the authority of the king. What you did to the son you did to the king and how you obeyed the son was how you obeyed his father.

 

As I said in my commentary on Genesis about the ancient world, “that the son, due to his position in the family, represented the father and, in fact, was regarded in authority and importance the same as the father if even in fact he did not have the actual legal power of the father or if at that time could dispose of his family’s goods as the father could, that is, until the father’s death at which time the son took the father’s place.”

 

Christ’s church is built on this declaration, that He is the Son of the living God. It is not built on Peter even though there is an interplay between the meaning of Peter’s name both from the Greek (Petros) and Aramaic (Cephas) words meaning rock. This is a clever play on words that the Holy Spirit uses to refer to Peter’s confession of faith.

 

In any event, Christ is the Rock, not Peter. Read Deuteronomy, chapter 32 for several instances of Rock, uppercase R.

 

Deuteronomy 32:4  He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.

 

Then, see what Paul said;

 

1 Corinthians 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

In Genesis, Lot sat in the gate indicating that he had become a judge in Sodom to judge disputes and help manage the city’s affairs. Sitting in the gate as a position of judgment is defined in the Bible. It was a place to meet with the elders of a city.

Deuteronomy 21:19  Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place;

It was a place of the king’s authority.

2Samuel 15:2  And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate: and it was so, that when any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.

2Samuel 19:8  Then the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying, Behold, the king doth sit in the gate. And all the people came before the king: for Israel had fled every man to his tent.

1Kings 22:10  And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in a void place in the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.

The mention of the gate is equivalent to the deciding of judgment.

Amos 5:15  Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the LORD God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

The gates of hell then is a reference to the judgments of Hell not some huge set of physical doors.

 

Verse 19 is a problem for a lot of people but it would be clearer if we accepted that we do not direct heaven or change God’s orders like some kind of pagan Egyptian priest who would cajole or even threaten their gods. What the apostles will do is ordained in Heaven.

 

Let’s start with the keys of the kingdom of heaven. In Luke 11 knowledge is likened to a key.

 

Luke 11:52  Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.

 

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the key to the kingdom of Heaven as John Gill declared. The apostles and disciples of Christ were entrusted with that key. That entry to the kingdom of Heaven is based on one’s acceptance of the gospel, and belief in it. Peter is not the doorkeeper to Heaven, who determines who gets in as in popular mythology. What is loosed is doctrine, not sins. The context of John 20:23 shows that the apostles then have received the Holy Ghost. The interpretation of the Scripture, the expression of the gospel, of Christian doctrine is given to these people to spread the faith of Christ.

 

Then, Jesus charged them that they tell no one that He is the Messiah. John Gill noted that Jesus’ ministry and miracles must be sufficient proof that Jesus is the Messiah and that it would not be useful to provoke the scribes and Pharisees or the Roman authorities before the appointed time.

Bible Study on Genesis 47, verses 1 to 12, in the land of Rameses

 

Genesis 47:1 ¶  Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen. 2  And he took some of his brethren, even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh. 3  And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers. 4  They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen. 5  And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying, Thy father and thy brethren are come unto thee: 6  The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle. 7  And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8  And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou? 9  And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage. 10  And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh. 11  And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12  And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father’s household, with bread, according to their families.

Remember, every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians but this Pharaoh was very welcoming and confirmed Joseph’s grant to his family to dwell in the land of Goshen. Note in this passage how evil is defined in the context of a long, wearisome and difficult life. Jacob laments that not only have his days been full of trouble but that he has not lived as long as his father and grandfather.

Here, we also see, by way of comparison between verses 6 and 11 with the land of Goshen and the land of Rameses being linked synonymously. Scholars locate these areas, as well as the Hyksos capital of Egypt, in the northeastern part of Egypt and the new capital of the Egyptian so-named 19^th dynasty (by us, not them), what is called Lower Egypt in the area of the eastern Nile delta. Again, whether this is correct or not we will never know in this life most likely. But it is an educated guess based on what evidence has been found. This will become more important in our study of Exodus and the actual location of the crossing of the Red Sea. If scholars are correct then the branch of the Red Sea that the Hebrews are near to would be what we call today the Gulf of Suez.

Joseph supplied his family with the means they would need to survive and the Pharaoh made whomever Joseph thought competent, made them herdsmen over his own cattle.

In verse 9 I like the use of the word pilgrimage to describe our sojourn on the earth in a physical body. Physical life since the fall of man is relatively short and contains an inordinate amount of pain especially, for people who don’t die suddenly, when we die. Although that is not always the case it certainly is in many cases. Our life here is a pilgrimage and we must not forget that. It is a journey with a beginning and an end, then, if the person believes the testimony of Jesus Christ, there is a spiritual life with God that goes on for eternity.

The Greek poet Homer used Aeon to refer to a life or a lifespan. This is unlike Plato who used it to refer to the spiritual world behind the one we see. In some cases, like in Matthew 12:32 aeon is used to refer to the world as it is set up today, the world or period of time or age between the fall of man and eternity. But, here, in this passage the Hebrew word mawgur is used for pilgrimage whereas elsewhere it is used for a dwelling place or to sojourn or to be a stranger. 

We are strangers here, passing through. Our lifetimes are an age, a period of time, and a journey. It is something to think about.