Bible Study on Matthew 11, verses 1 to 6, are you the Messiah?

 

Matthew 11:1 ¶  And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities. 2  Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, 3  And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? 4  Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 5  The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6  And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

 

Verse 3 reveals a blatant deception in a modern Bible version. I have studiously avoided this kind of controversy as it doesn’t help move the narrative along. However, this is so egregious I just felt I had to comment.

 

3  And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?

 

See how this verse is published in the so-called New King James Bible.

 

Matthew 11:3 (NKJV) “and said to Him, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?”

 

There is something odd about this rendering. The New King James Version was published in its entirety in 1982. In the late 1940s a Satanist named Alice Bailey who, of course, is considered a “New Age” writer rather than a Satanist by Satanists who wish to downplay the truth although the Lucis Trust published her works, wrote a booklet entitled The Reappearance of the Christ. Bailey espoused a doctrine of The Coming One, an avatar that would come periodically to teach and enlighten mankind as the Christ simply because the spirit of Christ never left the earth and has always been here in some form. She considered herself a Thesophist which links her to Satanist of the 19^th century, Madame Blavatsky, who in her late 1800s work, The Secret Doctrine, basically said Lucifer and Christ were the same person. This, too, is interesting as the New International Version seems to agree comparing Isaiah 14:12 and Revelation 22:16 in that version.

 

John is in prison and has been for some time. He wants a final assurance from his cousin that Jesus is the Messiah, that there is no other to come. Remember, there were several stories floating around including that there were two Messiahs. Here are my comments from Luke;

 

“John is seeking confirmation that there is no one to come after Jesus. This seems rather odd for us as John the Baptist is the one who announced Jesus first to the people. However, I read in a book entitled A History of Messianic Speculation in Israel from the First through the Seventeenth Centuries by Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver that there was an expectation of two messiahs at times, one; Messiah ben Joseph and, two; Messiah ben David. One is a conqueror and one suffers for the people of Israel and dies fighting the enemies of God and Israel. Jewish tradition also refers to, “The Four Craftsmen.”  Whether these rabbinic teachings of multiple messiahs are later interpolations or not it is clear that John is wondering if all of the prophecies will be fulfilled in one man; Jesus Christ. The Dead Sea Scrolls also speak of something like a war-messiah from the tribe of Ephraim dated to the first century before Christ, a suffering Messiah, and a priestly Messiah figure.”

 

Jesus replies with a “see for yourself” statement. When John acknowledges that the requirements are met for the Messiah he must realize that it is, indeed, Christ. The Holy Spirit gives us;

 

Psalm 146:8  The LORD openeth the eyes of the blind: the LORD raiseth them that are bowed down: the LORD loveth the righteous:

 

Isaiah 35:5 ¶  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6  Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.

 

For verse 6 keep in mind that offended can mean to make to stumble or fall short like a hapless runner who fails to reach the finish line. Many stumble at the word of God due to their wicked hearts and many will stumble and fall because they do not accept Christ.

 

It is a person’s own hard heart that would prevent them from seeing that He is the Messiah, God walking on earth in the flesh, the Redeemer of all mankind. It is your own sinful nature that prevents you from receiving Christ as your Saviour, to be offended in Him.

 

Isaiah 8:13  Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 14  And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15  And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.

 

1Peter 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 42, verses 1 to 6, desperate for food in a famine

 

Genesis 42:1 ¶  Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another? 2  And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that we may live, and not die. 3  And Joseph’s ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt. 4  But Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest peradventure mischief befall him. 5  And the sons of Israel came to buy corn among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Canaan. 6  And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.

Here is an interesting idiomatic expression. “What are you looking at each other for? Get down to Egypt and get some grain!” I remember a boss at a job down in Georgia saying to me when they wanted me to do something right away, “Don’t look at me like a cow looks at a new gate! Get moving.” Or, if you’re more uppity and want to quote Shakespeare you might respond to a blank stare with, “There is a tide,” from Julius Caesar, to stop someone from spinning their wheels, to take action.

Jacob wants his sons to take action so they don’t just sit there and starve to death. All of them except for Jacob’s favorite, his baby boy Benjamin, go down to Egypt to buy grain. Just in case something bad happens Benjamin will be safe. This doesn’t say much for Jacob’s concern for the rest, does it.

Bowing oneself to the earth is one of the postures of reverence and worship.

Sometimes people bow their head to worship God.

Genesis 24:26  And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD.

Sometimes to the earth.

Genesis 24:52  And it came to pass, that, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth.

Even falling down and grabbing the feet of the person worshipped.

Matthew 28:9  And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.

Sometimes they kneeled.

Psalm 95:6  O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.

So, it is that there are different postures of acknowledging someone as superior. We Americans are taught to bow to no one as superior so we have a hard time acknowledging God’s power over our lives in a real, tangible way. Americans lack the awe for anything other than something like a fireworks display or a huge bomb going off. Our shallowness of culture does get in the way of our understanding of who God is and of His power over our lives. The weakness of other cultures was that for centuries they acknowledged a king, tsar, or emperor as being God’s agent on earth and were in fear and awe of him but still not seeing, because of the propaganda their government controlled them with, that it was God who controlled every heartbeat and breath and God, not their king, who could save or destroy in an instant. Only God is worthy of our awe and reverence, our worship.

Psalm 33:8  Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

Hebrews 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

The brothers come to this Egyptian official, mightiest in the land under the Pharaoh himself, to plead for food to buy. They are showing their inferior position and his power over their lives. This is a beautiful image of how we should come to Christ. Let Him lift us up.

James 4:10  Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

1Peter 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 10, verses 16 to 42, Fear not men, but fear God

 

Matthew 10:16 ¶  Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. 17  But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; 18  And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. 19  But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. 20  For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. 21  And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. 22  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. 23  But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come. 24  The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. 25  It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? 26  Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. 27  What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. 28  And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29  Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. 30  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31  Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. 32  Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. 33  But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. 34  Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35  For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36  And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. 37  He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 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. 40  He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. 41  He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 42  And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

 

Jesus uses three types of animals here, focusing on the commonly held mythologies of their characters. The Apostles are going out physically helpless in a world that has many in it who would do them harm, as sheep among wolves.

 

John 16:2  They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.

 

But they and we, by extension, are to be wise as the proverbial serpent, thought to be clever, plotting, and careful but harmless as doves. We should not be naïve or unaware of the devices of the enemy and so easily taken advantage of but at the same time we should pose no physical threat to others.

 

They are not to be overawed by rulers and kings but God will give them the words to say when the time comes for them to give a defense of the gospel. See how later Paul himself will be commissioned to preach to kings which he does in the latter part of Acts.

 

Acts 9:15  But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:

 

Verse 21 shows that this preaching among the Jews caused division and many families would turn in on themselves giving up their own loved ones to the authorities for upsetting the established order. But Jesus tells the Apostles to stay steady in their mission until it is finished and they shall be protected. His Crucifixion and Resurrection will take place before every city in Israel being visited.

 

Jesus refers to how some have likened Him to the Devil as we would see in Mark 3:22 and later here in Matthew, chapter 12. He states that if He has been likened to the Devil how much more so will His servants receive that condemnation. But don’t worry, guys, be faithful and say what I have told you to say. You are in the Father’s hands. Even the most insignificant creature is in God’s hands and Jesus says that these Apostles are worth more than many of them. Even the very hairs of their head are numbered. Their time on earth is set by God, not by those who hate them.

 

These passages bring up some very important doctrinal points for us to consider. Fear God not man.

 

Isaiah 8:12  Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid. 13  Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.

 

There are many verses that refer to the importance of fearing God.

 

Job 28:28  And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.

 

Psalm 111:10  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.

 

Proverbs 1:7  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

 

Proverbs 9:10  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

 

Proverbs 15:33  The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.

 

Isaiah 11:2  And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

 

Isaiah 33:6  And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.

 

It is not just dread but also an overwhelming awe and reverence.

 

Psalm 33:8  Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

 

Hebrews 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

 

And that even the death of the most seemingly insignificant creature is in God’s control.

 

29  Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.

 

Our days on earth are determined by God.

 

Job 7:1  Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are not his days also like the days of an hireling?

 

From verses 32 to 39 we see the social disruption and conflict the Apostles faced. They are called to confess Christ before men and women and to face family and society’s rejection for their faith. Their own family was not to be above Christ in their hearts. Theirs was an uphill battle and a very dangerous mission in that world. The world in which they live will hate them because that world, as ours, hates Christ. They must be ready to expect the worst but have faith in God’s protection and blessing on their ministry.

 

Whosoever receives these Apostles receives the one who sent them. Even the smallest act of kindness that is done to one of them will be as if it was done to Christ Himself.

 

Bible Study on Genesis 41, verses 46 to 57, And all the countries came into Egypt to Joseph

 

Genesis 41:46 ¶  And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt. 47  And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. 48  And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. 49  And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for it was without number. 50  And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him. 51  And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house. 52  And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction. 53  And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, were ended. 54  And the seven years of dearth began to come, according as Joseph had said: and the dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. 55  And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph; what he saith to you, do. 56  And the famine was over all the face of the earth: And Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. 57  And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.

Note that Joseph is thirty years old when he stood before the Pharaoh. Young Hebrew Levite men began their service to God at thirty years of age (Numbers 4:3). David was thirty years old when he began to reign (see 2Samuel 5:4). Jesus Christ began His ministry on earth at that age, as well when He, the Holy Ghost, and God the Father were all three present together at His baptism (Luke 3:21-23).

Joseph toured Egypt as Pharaoh’s representative, carrying with him the power of Pharaoh over the Egyptians. For seven years harvests were plentiful and there was no end to the amount that Joseph could store up for the coming dearth. Obviously, all the food doesn’t mean he left the Egyptians with no food, now, does it but that he gathered all of the food from the 20% of the land that the government took. Countries in crisis, like England in WWII, did things similar to this in their control of food output for war purposes. His wife, Asenath, gave him two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, the meaning of their names found in the text with Manasseh having to do with forgetting and Ephraim being fruitful. The seven years of famine came and in Egypt there was plenty of bread. Finally, when Egyptians began to feel the bite of the dearth they sought for help from the government. Wisely, Pharaoh directed them to Joseph.

This brings us to an important point about reading the Bible. The modern fundamentalist reads it like the owner’s manual for his car and sees And the famine was over all the face of the earth and says there was famine in South America, in the Pacific islands, and in China then, too. But, that is not what this means. The earth, in many places in the Bible, has only to do with the area under concern, the lands of the Near East, what we call the Middle East unless explanatory descriptions like uttermost part of the earth or the four corners of the earth are referring to the entire earth as we know it. This modernistic view of the Bible where we make it mean what we want it to mean and leave no room for question has caused much confusion over the past century, at least. Just remember that when the Bible says;

Luke 2:1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.

…it most certainly does not mean that a Roman Emperor had the power to tax the Kalahari bushman of southern Africa or the Olmec kingdom of Mexico. Use some common sense. When you say, “I want everyone to come to my party,” you most certainly don’t mean the entire world without exception.

Thanks to God’s use of Joseph Egypt is now the source of food for the countries around it. All are drawn to it for food as all were supposed to be drawn to Israel for the food that is the word of God had they been obedient. The Old Testament model for evangelism was Israel as a place where men were drawn to know about God as it shall be in the millennial reign of Christ.

Zechariah 8:23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

While under the New Testament model for the Christian the role of evangelism is to go out in the world as we have no abiding earthly country. Jesus told the early Jewish Christians so. Notice in the following how the meaning is to go beyond the boundaries of what the Jew considered his homeland and the command is to go to the uttermost part of the earth.

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.