NTiR: Luke 7, the most wondrous chapter in the Bible

Thank you for coming back to read more of this series, The New Testament in Review.

If I could only read one chapter in the entire Bible, it would be Luke 7. Words fail me when I try to describe the beauty of this chapter. Forgiveness and love are brought to life. Faith and redemption intermingle and flow off the pages of the book. This chapter by itself is a masterpiece. Please, please take the time to read Luke 7. You won’t regret it.

Chapter 7
There are chapters and verses in the Bible that give a person hope and faith and a sense of love so real that it is overwhelming. The are the parts of the Bible that can convert someone to believe in Christ and his teachings and to become a follower. Luke 7 is all of that and more. I cannot begin to describe how wondrous this chapter is, but I can at least give you an idea of the events.

Jesus heads back to Capernaum (what is it about that town that draws Christ there so often?) and bumps into a centurion. Unlike Luke, we don’t find out his name. His story is almost universally known, however. The centurion’s servant is dying, so the centurion has other servants seeks out Jesus to see if Jesus can heal the servant. Jesus starts on his way to the centurion’s house, but is met by the centurion’s friend. The relay the centurion’s message: “I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. That’s why I didn’t presume to come to you. But just say the word, and let my servant be healed.” Jesus is amazed at the centurion’s faith (“I tell you, not even in Israel have I found this kind of faith!”) and heals the servant.

Luke adds more texture to these stories, as I’ve come to expect. A crowd followed Jesus to Nain. They stumble upon a funeral procession and a devastated mother. She is a widow, and he was her only son. Jesus is moved by the woman’s grief, tells the boy to get up. So the boy sits up in his coffin and lives once more. The crowd does what you’d expect: They start running around in fear! That’s another nice touch by Luke.

This is also where John the Baptist sends messengers to find Jesus. John wants to know if Jesus is the Christ, or if John should continue to search to find the messiah. And who can blame John? I am sure that he wanted to get out of the wilderness, find clothes that weren’t made out of camel hair, take a nice, long bath and then have a filling meal. As with the other gospels, Jesus doesn’t answer the question directly, but instead tells the messengers to describe everything they’ve heard and seen Jesus do, and let John make up his own mind.

Jesus then goes on to talk about John the Baptist. This is something that I don’t remember from the other gospels. He asks the people what they expected the Baptist to look and be like, then extols him: “Really, what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and even more than a prophet! […] I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John.” And I would expect the two to have a close bond: their mothers knew each other, they were about the same age (John is six months older), and they lived in the same general area. There should be a mutual fondness between the two.

Luke takes a second to editorialize here: “the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s plan for themselves.” Then he recounts Jesus singing a children’s song to mock the Pharisees:

A wedding song we played for you,
the dance you did but scorn.
A woeful dirge we chanted, too,
but then you did not mourn.

Jesus then points out a major difference between the Baptist and himself: John doesn’t drink, but Jesus has been known to like his wine. (“The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, Look, a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!”

I seriously think that Jesus would be fun to hang out with. He has a sense of humor, likes to drink wine and tells great stories.

There’s one more story in Luke. It’s in the other Gospels, too. But the other Gospels just mention that Jesus forgave the sins of a woman who touched him. In Luke, the story is mangified, clarified and brought to life.

A Pharisee invites Jesus for dinner, and Jesus actually goes to the Pharisee’s home. A towns woman – and notorious sinner – learns that Jesus is on his way, and she meets him there. She washes “his feet with her tears and dry them with her hair. Then she kissed his feet over and over again.” The Pharisee is shocked, of course, but also tries to use the fact that Jesus is allowing this behavior as proof that Jesus isn’t a prophet. (One note here: this is one of many times that those near Jesus refer to him as a prophet. I don’t remember Jesus ever correcting them.)

Jesus has an answer for Simon (Luke does name the Pharisee, after all). In parable form, of course: two men owe a loan shark money, one owes $500, and one owes $50. Who will be more grateful if the loan shark forgives their debts?

Simon gives the easy answer, then Jesus explains the parable to Simon. The woman’s sins were high, so she was the most grateful to have them forgiven. She showed Jesus love and kindness in thanks. Simon had very few sins to be forgiven, but as such he did not show any kindness. Jesus then turns to the woman and says “Your faith had saved you. Go in peace.”

I am moved, truly moved.

Chapter 8
First off, I was completely wrong about the story of Simon and the sinner. That is a completely different tale than the woman who reached out through the crowd and touched Jesus’s arm. That story is here in Chapter 8. As is the casting out of Legion, and the parable of the sower. Mary Magdalene is also mentioned by name here, but only to say that she was with the crowd of Jesus’s followers.

Chapter 9
There’s not much new in Chapter 9. There are some small changes, details given, bits explained (for example, Herod doesn’t think that Jesus is the Baptist reincarnated. But he does want to meet Jesus.) Most of Chapter 9 can be skipped as extraneous.

Oh, one funny line: after the disciples see Moses and Elijah, Matthew asks if he should set up tents. To which, Luke parenthetically adds: “Peter didn’t know what he was saying.” For some reason, this gave me the giggles.

One last bit before we move on: Jesus has started to prophesy his death. The disciples don’t understand (it is hinted that god keeps them from understanding), but Christ is foreshadowing his end.

Chapter 10
Jesus adds 70 new disciples to his group. Wait, what was that? Why have I not heard of these 70 disciples before? I am pretty sure I haven’t, anyway. All I remember are the 12. This is the reason I am re-reading the New Testament. There’s so much in here that I don’t remember at all. And Luke’s Gospel appears to be chock full of stuff I can’t recall ever hearing.

Jesus sends the 70 out into neighboring towns. They are charged with seeing if the towns believe and are practicing Jesus’s teachings. These are all towns where Jesus went to, taught and performed miracles in, including Bethsaida, Chorazin and Capernaum. (Not a surprise there: Capernaum is one of the two cities that actually threw Jesus out of town.) Jesus also gets a little mythical on us here. Jesus says that he saw Satan “fall from heaven like lightning.”

After this, an “expert in the law” asked Jesus what must be done to gain eternal life? Jesus turned the question back on the questioner (as Christ was wont to do) by asking what the law (scriptures) says. The man answered that a person must love God and love your neighbor. Jesus said this was correct, but then the man asked a question which made Jesus stop and think for a bit. This is one of the first time’s that Luke has shown Jesus as anything less than perfect. That intrigues me.

Oh, the question is: “Who is my neighbor?” After pondering this for a while, Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. Then Jesus asks which of the three would be the attacked man’s neighbor: the priest who walked by without stopping, the Levite who crossed to the opposite side of the street, or the Samaritan who stopped, tended to the man’s wounds and took him to an Inn to heal.

At the end of the chapter, Jesus visits the home of Martha. Martha’s sister Mary sat with Jesus and listened to everything he had to say. Could this have been Mary Magdalene? This isn’t specifically stated, but Jesus says that “there’s only one thing you need. Mary has chosen what is better, and it is not to be taken away from her.” Is it safe to say that the better something that Mary has chosen is Christ’s love?

Chapter 11
Chapter 11 starts out with the Lord’s Prayer, and then leads right into a charming parable. I’ll type it out here instead of pasting, because it is impossible to keep track of which “he” is being referred to. Someone needed to tell Luke to watch out for pronoun confusion!

Suppose that one of your friends knocks on your door at midnight, and asks for some bread. The friend says that they have unexpected guests, and have nothing to feed the guests. You are tired and grumpy, so you say “Hey, it’s after midnight, everyone is asleep and our doors are locked. Go over to King Soopers or something and leave me alone.”

If your friend stays at your door knocking instead of going away, you would probably get tired of the knocking and give your friend the bread, just so you could get back to sleep. Jesus equates this to praying. You may not get what you ask for immediately, but if you keep at it, persistently praying and asking God, you will get what you want.

Need I point out that Jesus is suggesting that we act like a two year old who wants something that their parents won’t give them?

Chapter 11 is full of famous quotes that are commonly used – almost always out of context – today. An example of some of them:

Every kingdom divided against itself is devastated, and a divided household collapses. (In context: Satan cannot be used to drive out other demons)
The person who isn’t with me is against me, and the person who doesn’t gather with me scatters. (In context: have faith in Christ to guard you from evil)

Chapter 12
I am noticing a trend here: Jesus ends up in a bad mood anytime he’s had to deal with the Pharisees. Jesus is in a very bad mood in chapter 12, warning everyone that there will be blood! All secrets will be revealed, God has the power kill you and throw you into hell, there’s no redemption for those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, etc. Jesus again gives his fun little bon mot: “Do you think that I came to bring peace on earth? Not at all, I tell you”.

There are some glimpses of light in Chapter 12, but not many.

Oh, one interesting note: Luke 12:28 has the ” o ye of little faith” line. Like most of the other Biblical quotes that have become embedded into our popular culture, it is taken out of context. The full quote is: “Now if that’s the way God clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and thrown into an oven tomorrow, how much more will he clothe youyou who have little faith?” It’s not an admonition but a rebuke.

Up next: Jesus sings a rebuke to Jerusalem.

New installments of The New Testament In Review will be posted each Monday and Thursday. The new posts will always be on my blog, http://biffster.org. The entire series is accessible via http://biffster.org/ntir. If you are one of my Facebook friends, you can get an advance preview on my Facebook page. You can also follow me (@biffster) on Twitter to be alerted to new posts.

The New Testament in Review: The Gospel of Luke 1-6

Thank you for coming back to read more of this series, The New Testament in Review.

The Gospel of Luke

I am a little surprised at how hard it is to keep up this pace. I am pretty sure I am going to start spreading out the post dates for these posts. I might go from twice a week to once a week. The downside is it would take the equivalent of a month to get through some of the longer chapters in the New Testament (e.g. Matthew). What say you?

We are up to the Gospel of Luke. I have good feelings about this one.Two things I notice about Luke’s gospel that may or may not hold: 1) Luke is a lot more complete. He seems to give details of who is around Jesus, and other events that are happening. 2) Luke sounds a lot more like an Old Testament writer. NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: Luke also turns out to be one hell of a writer, and his gospel quickly becomes my favorite book in the Bible. It is masterful. My review below does not do it justice.

Chapter 1
The worst opening line ever written: “Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us”

WTF?

Seriously, WTF? If you are one of those who swear by the King James Version, even after reading that I just have to assume that you are masochists. Or that you haven’t read that verse (or the many like it). Seriously, step out of the 17th century already!

My translation of choice (as you may have noticed) is the International Standard Version, which renders a much more logical “Since many people have attempted to write an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us.” Sounds much better.

Luke has written this Gospel for Theophilus. I had to look it up too. No one apparently knows who Theophilus was. His name is recorded, but otherwise Theophilus has been lost to history.

Anyway, that is besides the point. Luke starts ahead of the beginning of the story, taking us 6 months into the past. Luke wants to introduce us to Zechariah – a priest of the order of Abijah, and his wife Elizabeth. Elizabeth was barren, which will play into the story in a bit. One day at the temple, The Angel of the Lord (in this case, Gabriel) appears to Zechariah, tells him that Elizabeth is going to get pregnant and to name the baby John. Zechariah is a bit doubtful, so the angel strikes him mute until the child is born.

Interestingly enough, after reading that Zechariah couldn’t talk to anyone, I wondered why he couldn’t just write down what he wanted to say. Turns out I was reading ahead a little without even realizing it. He’s a smart one, that Zech. He just needs to learn how to speak reverently with an angel. Gabriel doesn’t have a sense of humor about this kind of stuff.

Elizabeth gets pregnant, and about 6 months in, her friend Mary turns up pregnant. Mary is, of course, pregnant by the Holy Spirit (or by Joseph, depending on your point of view) with Jesus. Elizabeth, it turns out, is pregnant with John the Baptist. No wonder why they grow up to be such friends!

Chapter 2
Oh, wait, this is still Chapter 1. This may be the longest chapter in the Bible. Luke goes on for 80 verses before moving on to Chapter Two. And while a lot of those verses are very nice, I have to repeat: 80 friggin’ verses! I thought that I can be verbose? sheesh!

A lot of those verses are taken up by psalms. The first is one that every Catholic in the world knows by hear: “blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” (v. 42) But there is a great song from Mary to the Lord (v. 46-55) and from Zecheriah (v. 68-79) Both are good, Mary’s is very good:

From now on, all generations will call me blessed
because the Almighty has done great things for me.
His name is holy.

Chapter 2 (really)
My god, 52 verses. I’ll tell you one thing about Luke: he isn’t into brevity. But I have to say, I am really liking Luke. He is adding a lot of context and subtly to his story that Matt and Mark were sorely lacking. He is also anchoring the setting of his story, both in location and history. Matthew and Mark sat down to write reports on what happened, while Luke decided to write a novel.

As you can guess by its length, a lot happens in chapter 2. In the first half, Caesar Augustus orders a census. Quirinius, Governor of Syria, demanded all Jews return to their hometowns to be counted. The names and historical events help ground the story, and help future generations consult ancient records and find when and where the story took place. I love this!

We know the story from here: all of the inns in Bethlehem (the city of David, since Joseph is from the house of David) were full, so they had to stay in a stable. The baby was born, wrapped in strips of cloth and laid in a manger. Gabriel commanded that the baby’s name would be Jesus (I didn’t realize Gabriel named Jesus). Angels appeared to nearby shepherds and proclaimed the baby Christ, the shepherds traveled to see the child, they left after 8 days and the poor child was circumcised.

Of course, Luke writes this in a more eloquent style, and adds some amazing subtext. Like this small bit from v. 18-19: “All who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them, but Mary continued to treasure in her heart all these things and to ponder them.” Mary is painted as a real woman, a real mother. You can feel her love for her new baby. To her it doesn’t matter whether or not he is the son of God. He is her son; that is what is important.

Jesus grows up in chapter two, and we see some of it. As a baby, he keeps getting labeled as someone holy, normally by priests or elders at the temple. One man (Simeon) dies in peace because he has finally seen the Christ. Luke likes psalms and songs, so Simeon of course has to give one before he dies. I like it, so I’ll quote it in full:

Master, now you are allowing your servant to leave in peace according to your word.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you prepared for all people to see
a light that will reveal salvation to the Gentiles and bring glory to your people Israel.

One day, when Jesus was 12, the family made the journey from Nazareth to the temple in Jerusalem. On their way back, Mary and Joseph realized they had no idea where Jesus was. After three days of frantic searching and retracting their steps, they finally found Jesus learning from teachers at the temple.

Mary reacts exactly like you’d expect a mother to react: “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been worried sick looking for you!” Luke doesn’t mention it, but I am certain that Jesus ended up being grounded after that stunt.

One last line, to show just how well Luke understood Mary: “His mother continued to treasure all these things in her heart.” No matter what Jesus did, whether it was to be respectful or to scare the living hell out of her, Mary loved him with all of her heart.

Chapter 3
I don’t know if I mentioned this already or not, but Luke’s Gospel could be made into a musical. Everyone breaks into song, including Mary, Zecheriah, Simeon, and now John the Baptist. Who actually becomes a Baptist here; before this he was just John. John is a very strict, stern tearcher: he warns the people that they are damned unless they are baptized. And who would be foolish enough not to be baptized after hearing that?

There’s a bit of a time discrepancy here: in Matthew and Mark, John baptizes Jesus long before John is arrested on Herod’s orders. In Luke, John is arrested very early. In verse order, John is arrested (v. 20) and then Jesus is baptized (v. 21). On this timeline, John didn’t baptize Jesus. Some unnamed someone did. Which, in the grand scheme of things doesn’t mean much: Jesus was baptized, it doesn’t matter by who. But that’s definitely an inconsistency in the Bible.

Oh, there’s one more Biblical inconsistency in the next verse. In Mattew and Mark, when heaven opens up God speaks to everyone in the area, saying “this is my son.” In Luke, when heaven opens up, God speaks directly to Jesus, saying “You are my son, whom I love.” It’s a small discrepancy, but contextually it is much bigger. In Matt and Mark, since God tells those listening that Jesus is his son, I assume that Jesus already knows. In Luke, since God is telling Jesus, I assume that Jesus either doesn’t know, or doesn’t really believe.

Chapter 4
This chapter is kinda dull. since Jesus is already in the wilderness, he goes out and is tempted by the devil. The only difference of note is that the devil is planning to tempt Jesus again (“he left him until another time”). When was that time?

Jesus heads back to the temple to do some more teaching, and he’s a little cocky about it. He reads a long excerpt from Isaiah, then tells the temple-goers “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” This is in Nazareth, by the way, and the Nazarenes are shocked that Jesus is actually teaching with this kind of authority. But then something unexpected happens: Jesus rebukes them. And he does it in song! (Well, maybe not in song. But it would be awesome if he did.)

Jesus tells everyone listening that he will not perform the miracles and healings that he did in Capernaum, because “a prophet is not accepted in his hometown.” Jesus then goes on to compare the people of his hometown to widows and, in a brilliantly-worded insult, to “many lepers in Israel in the prophet Elisha’s time, yet not one of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

The people listening to this paused for a second, then erupted with anger. A crowd formed around Jesus, and they forced him out of the city, and up to the edge of a hill. They stopped there, trying to get up the courage to toss Christ over the side. Instead, Jesus just walked through the crowd and shook the dust of the town off his sandals.

Okay, I must say, that was an awesome story. I take back some of the things I said about this chapter.

Chapter 5
Luke must’ve been a fisherman, because he knows a whole lot about fishing. Enough to go into some detail. In Matthew and Mark, Christ’s recruitment of the fishermen Simon Peter, John and James is given a mere sentence or two. In Luke, they are given a whole paragraph, v. 4-11. Jesus escapes being crushed to death by hopping on board Simon Peter’s boat and having Simon row him out to sea. In thanks, Jesus allows such a big catch of fish that one boat cannot hold it. It’s a small thing, but Luke’s detail really enhances the story.

Interesting: In Luke, Matthew is referred to as Levi. Christ calls upon Levi to follow; Levi leaves everything behind to follow. It’s standard stuff, but I just found it interesting that Matthew refers to himself by name, but Luke calls him Levi. There’s probably good explanation for this, right?

Chapter 6
We are six chapters in, and Luke finally decides he should capture some of Jesus’s major teachings word-for-word. He records Jesus’s speech on the hillside. I’ve mentioned before how much I love this part. I found another line in that speech that I don’t remember but love just as much: “One blind person can’t lead another blind person, can he? Both will fall into a ditch, won’t they?”

Up next: The most loving, most forgiving, most uplifting chapter in the entire bible

New Testament in Review: Mark 9-16

Thank you for coming back to read more of this series, The New Testament in Review.

So we’ve seen some of Jesus’s humanity coming through. He’s made mistakes, not known things that one would assume God would know. And he is getting crabby. Damned crabby. And it isn’t just with the Pharisees, which is who we would expect. Jesus is getting very crabby with his Disciples, too, which always makes for enjoyable reading.

In my previous entry, we found that Mark really isn’t all that interested in chronicling what Jesus said. Instead, he is focusing – sometimes in scary detail – the miracles that Jesus performed. Mark is very much a fan of “Show it, don’t tell it.” So we have a Jesus who doesn’t speak very much and gets crabby with his disciples while putting on a brave face and healing the wounded and possessed.

Chapter 9
Apparently Matthew and Mark were smoking the same dope that made them see Moses and Elijah chatting with a glowing, dazzling white Jesus. Do all the gospels have this same story? Is it possible this was a group hypnosis-type deal? Or that someone said “hey, you’ll never believe what I saw!” and the Gospel authors just picked up on it? It’s odd, because I don’t remember anything in the Old Testament that said Moses nor Eligja would be raised from the dead. Did I miss it? Jesus says that John the Baptist was Elijah reincarnated, or something like that. I say: “Damn, that was some awesome grass y’all were smoking. Do you have some left over?”

Jesus continues to get crabbier and crabbier. In verse 19, Jesus starts slagging on the gathered followers: “You unbelieving generation! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you?” Jesus said this in response to another miracle: the Disciples weren’t able to drive out an unclean spirit from a young boy, so the father asked if Jesus could. The “unclean spirit” actually sounds like epilepsy: “Whenever it brings on a seizure, it throws him to the ground. Then he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes stiff.” (v. 18) Which isn’t a slight: curing epilepsy is still pretty damned impressive.

Chapter 10
Jesus continues to be snippy with most everyone. He rebukes the Pharisees (no big surprise there), but also his Disciples (“Jesus saw this, he became furious and told them, ‘Let the little children come to me, and stop keeping them away.'”) At least the children still made Jesus happy, and brought out the sweetness in Jesus again as he gently blessed the children.

Jesus packs up and leads a caravan – including his Disciples and those who follow Christ’s teachings – and head towards Jerusalem. On the way, Jesus tells his Disciples the fate awaiting him. James and John say that they will join him, if they can sit at his left and right hands in heaven. In Matthew, it is the mother of James and John who makes this request. Interesting that it is J&J directly here… Either way, there’s definitely a power struggle going on with the Disciples.

Chapter 11
The caravan is close to Jerusalem now, but Jesus wants to ride instead of walk into the city. I think this was to fulfill a prophecy. You know, I gave Matthew a lot of grief for trying to shoehorn Jesus’s life into the existing prophecies. But Chris has been doing a lot of that himself. He could have walked into the city, but he chose to ride to fulfill the prophecy. That seems to be cheating a bit. Or maybe I am being too cynical. Again.

On the road into Jerusalem, Jesus got very hungry. He went up to a fig tree, but there were no figs on it. It wasn’t fig season, so one normally wouldn’t expect there to be figs. But this angered Jesus, and he cursed the fig tree. The tree withered and died. All for not having fruit in the time of the year that it isn’t supposed to have fruit. Jesus definitely had his unreasonable moments.

The fig tree was unreasonable, but also showed Jesus’s mood. At this point, Jesus is so filled with anger that he cannot hold it in anymore. The fig tree felt his wrath. As did those in the temple who were selling and buying (we all know that story). In his Gospel, Matthew explained why Jesus had gotten to this point. In Mark, Jesus has only said that he will be betrayed and killed. Mark has not shown the grief nor emotional turmoil Jesus has gone through. This is a huge difference in what the author’s of each gospel are trying to convey. Matthew wanted to paint Christ as human, with all of the emotions and fears and worries that come with being human. Mark wanted to show a Christ who is otherworldly, who is above normal humans and is annoyed by human frailty. Matthew’s Jesus is soft and caring, Mark’s is hard and cold, almost uncaring (except towards children).

Chapter 12
In Mark, the Pharisees also played a slightly different role. Chapter 12 shows the same attempts to trap Jesus as are shown in Matthew. However, in this chapter the Pharisees are not necessarily unified, and need help from Herodians as well as Sadducees. One of the scribes present actually commends Jesus, saying:

Well said, Teacher! You have told the truth that ‘God is one, and there is no other besides him.’ To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.

Chapter 13
Jesus continues to be cranky. One of the disciples comment on how beautiful the buildings in Jerusalem were. Christ’s answer: “Do you see these large buildings? Not one stone here will be left on another that will not be torn down.” Mark doesn’t record it, but I am sure the disciple said something along the lines of, “well, okay Mr. Crabby Pants.”

Jesus then describes what the end of the earth and his return will be like. This is much the same as in Matthew. He also gives a warning about what the disciples will be soon to suffer, including “you will be beaten in their synagogues. You will stand before governors and kings to testify to them because of me.” However, the disciples needn’t worry what to say, because “it won’t be you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.” Sounds like a good idea to me!

Chapter 14
It’s Passover time, which means the end is nigh. Events here are pretty much exactly like in Matthew, with very minor exceptions. And one very weird exception. It’s just two verses (51-52), so I’ll quote it here in full: “A certain young man was following Jesus. He was wearing nothing but a linen sheet. They grabbed him, but he left the linen sheet behind and ran away naked.”

Odd, no?

Chapter 15
This is Mark’s view of the trial, verdict, death sentence and crucifiction. Mark also give a slightly-emotionless recount of what happened, but since the rest of Mark’s gospel is also slightly-emotionless, this seems right. Pilate goes out of his way to try and save Jesus, which is especially hard because Christ won’t speak a word in his own defense, and the Pharisees have whipped the crowd into a blood-thirsty mob. An example of Pilate’s attempt to save Jesus is when Pilate implores Jesus, “Don’t you have any answer? Look how many accusations they’re bringing against you!”

The torture of Jesus is pretty much exactly like in Matthew. Mark is rather detail-oriented: Jesus was crucified at 9:00 in the morning, the sky was darkened at noon (was there an eclipse then? Or just some poetic license?). The darkness lasted ’til 3:00pm, which is also when Jesus gave his last cry, then died.

Matthew seemed to completely ignore Mary Magdalene. Jealousy? Mark calls her by name as one of the people there when Jesus died, and when his body was laid in the tomb. I haven’t read ahead yet, but I’ll bet you a dollar that she is one of the first to see Jesus when Jesus is resurrected. I am thinking that Jesus and Mary were a bit more than friends – I have no problems accepting the idea that they were man and wife, actually. That’d definitely explain why Mary was there right up util the very end.

Chapter 16
First thing’s first: You owe me a dollar. Mary Magdalene is definitely at the tomb when Jesus is resurrected. Well, within a few minutes of him being resurrected. When she gets there, Jesus has gone somewhere else, but an angel tells Mary that Jesus is back. He sends her to find the 11 (since Judas killed himself), but especially Peter, for some reason. Why exactly did Jesus like Peter so much? I think there must’ve been something else that I missed.

Oh, here’s something I didn’t know, though I am a moron for not making the connection: Jesus rose on the first day of the week! Hence Easter Sunday. But now either I am miscounting, or something is out-of-whack. If Christ died on a Friday afternoon and came back from the dead three days later, wouldn’t that be Monday? My brain hurts trying to figure this out. I mean literally hurts. I must have a headache…

Anyway, the first person that Jesus seeks out once he is physically back is Mary Magdalene. Which strongly hints at the very least that she Mary is Jesus’s favorite follower. If I were raised from the dead, my wife is the very first person I would want to say. I’m just saying.

Mary tells the 11 that Christ is risen, and they immediately disbelieve her. And really, how could that not be expected? Back in the early A.D.’s, women were looked down upon. They had no place in the temple, and no place among the disciples. When Jesus finally appears to the disciples, he basically tells them “Hey, listen to Mary next time, you fools!” Then he sends the disciples on to preach and heal in his name. And that is his last work on earth; Christ then ascends into the heavens.

Up next: If I have the energy and resolve, I’ll move on to whatever Gospel is after Mark

The New Testament in Review: The Gospel of Mark 1-8

Bible and magnifying glass Yes, I actually decided to come back for the Gospel of Mark. And how could I not? Mark is about half as long as Matthew, so it seemed like an easy read. Plus I am kinda into this project, and into reading the New Testament again. This time around I want to focus on the differences in the gospels, try and pinpoint what each author was trying to get across. Every writer has their own view on things, and a message they are trying to convey in their works. Why should the gospel writers be any different?

We can see a little bit of this in how Mary Magdalene is treated between the gospels of Matthew and Mark, for example. What other differences will we run in to? Only one way to find out:

The Gospel of Mark

Chapter 1

Wow, Mark manages to condense the first four chapters of Matthew into one single chapter! Of course, one of the ways that Mark does this is by completely skipping the events of the birth of Christ. Mark instead focuses on John the Baptist getting people prepared for the coming of Jesus. John wears an outfit made of camel’s hair. There’s no real reason to point this out, except that I find it amusing.

We are still in Chapter 1, and still in fast forward. Jesus’s baptism and God’s approval: check. Jesus’s temptation by Satan in the wilderness: check. Jesus rounding up a bunch of fishermen: check. Jesus walking into a temple and starting to teach: check. Jesus healing people and casting out demons: check.

: John the Baptist baptizing Christ
Image via Wikipedia

An interesting note here: Jesus would not let any of the demons speak, “because they knew who he was.” This is a bit of a theme in Chapter 1. Jesus is trying to keep his true identity hidden, to the point that Jesus tells a man he cures: “See to it that you don’t say anything to anyone.” Of course, if a man cures your leprosy with just a word, you have to tell at least some of your friends. Word spreads out amongst people in all the neighboring towns, of course, and the paparazzi start flocking Jesus, to the point that “Jesus could no longer enter a town openly.”

Chapter 2

More distilling of Matthew’s gospel. Jesus forgives someone’s sins and the Pharisees proclaim blasphemy. The disciples gather grain from a field, the Pharisees charge that the disciples are not honoring the Sabbath. The disciples and Jesus sup with tax collectors and sinners, the Pharisees ask why he would do this. Bemused, Jesus answers: “Healthy people don’t need a physician, but sick ones do. I did not come to call righteous people, but sinners.”

Chapter 3

We are still in the time-condensed version of events. Jesus is getting more and more depressed by our natural tendency to not help others, “Jesus looked around at them with anger, for he was deeply hurt because of their hardness of heart.” (v. 5). Jesus heals a man on the Sabbath, giving the Pharisees and Herodians (who?) an excuse to try to kill Jesus.

Jesus gets out of Dodge, and who can blame him? Why stay in the city where the religious leaders are trying to find a way to justify your murder? Unfortunately, the crowd of worshipers continues to follow Jesus everywhere, practically trampling him in their rush to be healed. Which seems counter-productive to me, but whatever. Jesus keeps telling people and demons not to say that he is the Son Of God, but everyone knows a demon can’t keep a secret.

Chapter 4

Jesus starts teaching to the crowds in parables (the sower of the seeds, the lamp, scatterer of the seeds, the mustard seed). “He did not tell them anything without using a parable, though he explained everything to his disciples in private.” I still hear people say that the Parables were meant to hide the truth from others, but I still don’t see it. The Parables meanings are up-front; the unwashed masses would be able to more easily understand what Jesus was teaching them.

: Image by More Good Foundation via Flickr

Chapter 5

One of the biggest differences between Mark and Matthew is the detailed paid to Jesus’s miracles. Chapter 5 deals in-depth with three. In the first, Jesus casts Legion (a demon composed of numerous demons. Because demons can apparently come together like a Transformer) out into a herd of swine. The pigs grow insane because of the demons and fling themselves off a cliff. Which kinda sucks for Legion, when you think about it.

This takes place in “the territory of the Gerasenes.” The Gerasenes are the first peoples that the Bible mentions as being a bit weirded out by all of these demons that are cast out and left to roam in their city. They actually kick Jesus out of town (v.17: “So they began to beg Jesus to leave their territory.”)

The second miracle is Jesus bringing a child back from the dead. This gets only a passing mention in Matthew (Jesus brought “an official’s” daughter back to life. In Mark, we find that the “official” is a synagogue leader named Jairus. His daughter – not named – is 12 years old. Jesus tells her “‘Talitha koum,’ which means, ‘Little girl, I tell you, get up!'” She gets up, of course. Jesus tells those gathered to feed the girl, and orders everyone to tell no one. Yeah, right, like anyone could watch someone be raised from the dead and not tell others.

As an aside: Mark shows a Jesus who is rather out of touch with human nature. Jesus is angered and saddened that people won’t help strangers. He expects people not to talk about miracles. He is surprised when crowds practically mob him. He cannot believe that a woman would reach out and touch him without asking, so she could be healed. Mark’s Jesus seems a little bit alien, or at least very naive when it comes to how people think and behave.

The other miracle is the woman who reaches out and touches Jesus. Jesus is on his way to raise Jairus’s daughter from the dead. This woman – unnamed, as most women in the Bible are – has lost everything as she tries to battle a chronic illness. (Sounds like our current medical system.) She has nothing to lose, so she stealthily makes her way through the crowd and sneakily touches his robe. She is healed, but “Jesus became aware that power had gone out of him.” Jesus asked who had done this, and to the woman’s credit, she accepted responsibility. Jesus was pleasantly surprised by this, and kindly told her “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace and be healed from your illness.”

Much has been said about Jesus, from his loving nature to his ability to grow angry, to his calmness. I don’t know many people who have mentioned his sweetness. He was incredibly sweet to reassure the woman, both that he wasn’t angry with her, and that she was healed.

Chapter 6

Jesus goes back home. And discovers that no one believes he can do the things that people say he can. Which is pretty much standard: when you watch someone grow up and then they leave, you expect them to be the same person when they come back home. Jesus apparently found this amusing, too: “A prophet is without honor only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own home.” (v. 4)

Jesus realizes that there are just too many people needing healing or exorcism for one man to handle. So he has the disciples go out, in groups of two, and gives them authority to do these things. People are apparently happy that they do this, though no further mention is made.

Next up is John the Baptist’s beheading, which is written here exactly as it is in Matthew, so i’ll skip over that bit. What is interesting here is that Mark’s Jesus doesn’t seem that devastated at the news. In Matthew’s telling, Jesus is so distraught that he isolates himself on a hill to grieve. In Mark, Jesus doesn’t seem to register that news at all. Instead, he has the disciples go out to a deserted place where they could rest.

Once they get back, Jesus performs the miracle on the mount. In this telling, the Disciples actually tell Jesus to send away the crowds, and make the people in the crowd buy their own food. Jesus hushes them and turns a few loaves of bread and two fish into enough food to feed thousands. We’ve heard this story before, but it is interesting to hear that the Disciples are growing weary of the crowds, but Jesus still welcomes them.

Chapter 7

Mark realizes that he hasn’t been writing much about what Jesus was actually teaching, so he decides to get back on track. But he only records Jesus’s teaching about eating without washing one’s hands. Mark’s recount of this speech is a touch different from Matthew’s. In Mark, Jesus is very annoyed and a bit defensive. He starts out with an out-and-out diatribe against the Pharisees (who asked this question): “(v. 6,8) Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites. […] You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.” That is actually the calm part of his rant! All told, Mark 7:6-13 is one long tirade against the Pharisees, in front of a crowd of people. If you were one of the Pharisees, would you be happy after this?

Jesus tries to regain control as he turns back to the crowd. He tells the crowd that nothing from the outside can make someone unclean, only what is on the inside. Seems straight-forward, but when the crowd departs, the Disciples ask Jesus what that meant. Jesus is still ticked off about what had happened earlier, and takes a little bit of that frustration out on the disciples: “Are you so ignorant? Don’t you know that nothing that goes into a person from the outside can make him unclean?”

Jesus decides to leave and wander around a bit. Of course, more people found him. Because when you are crabby and just want to be left alone, isn’t that when everyone needs something from you? Imagine that happening, but with hundreds of people trying to get to you instead of just two or three.

Chapter 8

The second miracle of the bread and fish. I don’t know why it was thrown in here, other than to throw it in here.

Jesus is getting more and more annoyed with his Disciples. I think it’s the way that family can sometimes get snippy and crabby with each other. But his patience with them has grown thin. The Disciples are worried because they have nothing to eat. Jesus snips, “Why are you discussing the fact that you don’t have any bread? Don’t you understand or perceive yet? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see? Do you have ears but fail to hear? Don’t you remember?” (v. 17-18)

One more miracle, which Mark again tells in detail. I’ll give the short story: a blind man comes to Jesus, Jesus spit on the man’s eyes and the man was able to see. For some reason, in Mark, a few of Jesus’s miracles revolve around Jesus spitting, either directly on the person he is going to cure, or onto the ground and then taking the mud made by his spit and putting that on the person to cure. That seems very, very odd to me.

It still sounds like Jesus is grumpy. Mark definitely wants to highlight the more assertive, moodier side of Jesus. Chapter 8 ends with Jesus warning everyone that his followers will need to give up everything they have. The last line of Chapter 8 is a great example of Christ’s crabbiness : “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes with the holy angels in his Father’s glory.”

Up next: Jesus gets VERY crabby.

The New Testament in Review: Matthew 24 – 28

Thank you for coming back to read more of this series, The New Testament in Review. We’ve reached the end of the Gospel of Matthew already. That was a lot of ground to over in two weeks! The end section of all of the Gospels are a major downer. The death of Jesus Christ was gut-wrenching, violent and cruel. Even when one of the Gospel authors try to soften the end, or to add glory and honor to it, it is still hard to read. Many say that the resurrection makes his death worthwhile, and depending on your religious views, it was. But that doesn’t negate the fact that Jesus’s torture and death are among the most gruesome events ever recorded. And reading about it is very difficult.

Chapter 24
This is Jesus’s description of what the end of the world will be like. And it won’t be pretty:

¹⁹ How terrible it will be for women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days!
²⁰ Pray that it may not be in winter or on a Sabbath when you flee.
²¹ For at that time there will be great suffering, the kind that has not happened from the beginning of the world until now and certainly will never happen again.
²² If those days had not been limited, no life would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be limited.

Most of the sane descriptions of the Apocalypse that exist in our culture come from Matt 24. Wars, famines, earthquakes, persecution of Christians, false prophets, solar and lunar eclipse, Christ returning riding clouds in the sky. It’s all here. As is Christ’s warning that no one knows the day or the hour when this will happen. Christ says that even he doesn’t know, only the Father does. Which raises a question for Unitarians, but not for me.

Interesting note: Christ again hints that the second coming is not far away. “Truly I tell you, this generation will not disappear until these things happen.” (Matt 24:34)

Chapter 25
Jesus is approaching the end of his ministry, and he wants to make sure that his followers hear and understand everything that they need. He starts out with a parable of the 10 bridesmaids: the five wise women take extra oil for their lamps, so they are ready for the groom when he finally gets there.

Verses 14-30 tell a parable I remember, but don’t remember it ending as it does. Or maybe I am just not getting the point. In the parable, a man gives his servants money to keep while he is away. One servant gets $5, invests it and turns it into $10. One servant gets $2, invests it and turns it into $4. The last servant buries the $1 he gets. When the man gets back, he praises the two who invested the money, but calls the servant who didn’t make money worthless and has him thrown into the darkness.

So since when does Jesus condone those with more over those with less? Or those with nothing?

The chapter ends with Jesus sounding more like himself. He says that when you feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, clothe the naked and care for the sick, you are doing this for Jesus, also.

Chapter 26
Grief, treachery, betrayal, injustice. Chapter 26 has all of it and more. It’s no wonder that every book and movie made about the death of Christ focus so much on the details of this chapter. It is riveting and heart-breaking at the same time.

Most tellings of this story have Jesus going into this ordeal in a brave, determined manner. Yet – in Matthew’s gospel, at least – he doesn’t seem that at all. He seems dejected and fatalistic. He actually asks for the ordeal to end if possible. Jesus knows what is going to happen to him, and knows that it has to happen, but wants nothing more than to run away.

The chapter starts with Jesus’s final Passover celebration. In a touching scene, a woman (Mary?) anoints Jesus with perfume. Jesus likes this – defending her against his disciples, but his gloominess still comes out (“she was preparing me for burial”). During the Passover meal itself, Jesus warns the disciples that they will all end up fleeing, one will betray him, and one will deny him. Judas of course is the one who will betray Jesus – for the sum of 30 pieces of silver. Peter will deny he is a follower of Jesus three times.

After the feast, Jesus takes his three favorite disciples up to Mount Olive. Jesus’s depression has finally gotten to a point that he can no longer handle. He tells the men with him “My soul is deeply grieved, even to the point of death. Wait here and stay awake with me.” Jesus then leaves them to pray by himself. His prayers are heartbreaking pleas to God that he not have to do this. “O my Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me.”

Of course, Jesus also says he will submit to God’s plan. He and the disciples come down from Mount Olive just in time to bump into an armed guard. Judas completes his betrayal with a kiss, and Jesus is arrested.

And finally, the Pharisees are able to spring their trap. They are able to get Jesus arrested on a false charge of heresy. When asked if he is the Son of God, Jesus answers “you have said so.” And if he’d left it at that… well, the Pharisees still would’ve found some way to have him killed. But Jesus finished his answer saying “you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” That pretty much cemented a Guilty verdict.

Jesus was arrested, had his robes torn, and was openly mocked and abused. What a pleasant way to end a chapter.

Chapter 27
Matthew 27 is weird because it is emotionless. It reads more like a newspaper article than a Gospel. The events of Jesus’s death are layed out, almost in a list: The Pharisees turn Jesus over to Pontius Pilate (the Roman governor). Pilate cannot find any good reason to punish Jesus, so he tries to get Jesus to say something – anything – that will allow Pilate to release Jesus. Jesus is hanging on to his right to silence, however. Pilate tries again, this time pleasing to the mob of people who’ve gathered around the palace. Unfortunately, the people all either followed the Pharisees or were easily deceived, and unanimously demand that Jesus be crucified. Pilate washes his hands of the whole ordeal and says “Do as you will, but his blood will be on your hands.”

Here’s a confusing part: Pilate washed his hands of this and turned what happened over to the Pharisees and the crowd. Yet the Roman soldiers were the ones who bound and tortured and ultimately crucified Jesus. How does that work? Back in this time, were Roman soldiers allowed to serve the religious or local governments too? Were they able to moonlight, like police officers will sometimes moonlight as security details nowadays? It just seems to me that Pilate’s hands weren’t clean if he ordered his troops to do as the Pharisees wanted.

Anyway, Matthew continues in his detached, non-emotional recount. The Roman soldiers strip Jesus, put him in a scarlet robe and make a crown out of thorns so they could mockingly bow to him. Then they stripped Jesus and led him to Golgotha – stopping along the way so Simon could help Jesus carry the cross. Jesus was crucified with two others by him. (Note: in a later Gospel, more information is given about the other two. In Matthew, it is just noted that there are two others with him.) Jesus is crucified, mocked some more, gives himself over to grief and despair, shouting “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And then he dies.

Looking back on this, I think I understand why Matthew’s recount was so emotionless: it’s the only way that Matthew could get through writing it. The whole story is horrifying and heartbreaking to read, it had to be a thousand times worse to witness in person. And then to have to try and write about what you had just seen? Some people can write about loss and grief in a very emotional manner. Some people can’t, and can only recite the facts of an event. I think Matthew is in the latter category.

Way back in the early chapters of this article, I suggested that Matthew could’ve had access to mind-altering substances. In Matthew 27:52-53, Matthew describes something that might be an acid trip. In these verses, Matthew says that bodies of dead saints rise up and walk around the city. Which is just weird.

Anyway, the chapter ends with the Pharisees (with a Roman security force guarding them) sealing Jesus’s tomb.

Chapter 28
The Gospel of Matthew ends with the resurrection of Jesus. An angel of the lord (as opposed to THE Angel of the Lord, apparently) meets Mary Magdelene and Jesus’s mother Mary at the tomb. The Marys were afraid (how could they not be: the angel had just rolled the stone away from the tomb) and the Roman guards were terrified. The angel tells the Marys “Jesus has risen! Go tell the disciples!” And then, for some reason, adds “Remember, I have told you!” Almost like an informant telling their handler “Remember to tell Joe that the information came from me!” But once again, I digress.� Jesus met the Marys along the way, and again tells them to find the Disciples and get them ready.

Verses 11-15 are an aside: the guards who saw all of this happened ran into the city, where they told the Pharisees what they had seen. The Pharisees then bribed the guards to say that Jesus didn’t rise, but his disciples actually stole the body so followers would think Jesus had risen. And then there’s a distinct dig made right at Jews who don’t believe Jesus is the Son of God: “This story has been spread among the Jews to this day.” Talk about being harsh! Anyone doubt that this was tacked on a few years after the fact?

Jesus arises and comes to see his Disciples, giving them a charge to spread his teachings, and promising them that he will be with them always.

Conclusion:
Matthew is the first Gospel, so I don’t have anything to compare it against. On its own, it is a bit uneven. There are some amazing sections (e.g. The Sermon On the Mount), some boring sections (e.g. Chapter 10), and some agonizing, horrible but powerful sections (all of Chapter 26). I don’t like the mysticism that Matthew tries to bring into the story, but I do love that a lot of his Gospel focuses on what Jesus said, as opposed to second-hand accounts.

Up next: The Gospel of Mark. Or, as I like to say it, the Gospel of “Thank God It Is Only 16 Chapters!”

The New Testament in Review: Matthew 16 – 23

Bible and magnifying glass Welcome again to The New Testament In Review. I hope that you’ve been following along with previous posts in this series, and that you are enjoying what I’ve posted so far. If you haven’t had a chance to read my other entries, go ahead and do so now. We’ll wait for you to catch up. [grin]

Okay, are you up to speed? Good, because we are rolling into the second half of the Gospel of Matthew. And either Matthew’s writing has gotten better along the way, or I am getting more in tune with him. It’s probably that Matthew dedicates huge chunks of the following chapters to recording Jesus’s words. If you have a bible that prints Jesus’s words in red type, then most of your pages in these chapters are going to be blocks of red text with black text sprinkled here and there.

Chapter 16

WTF? The start of Chapter 16 is a basic retelling of the events in Chapter 12. The Pharisees ask for a sign, and Jesus tells them “no sign for you, read the book of Jonah!” What’s going on here? Can the same thing be happening to the same group of people twice, with them seeming not to remember it happened before?

Oh, wait, I didn’t read ahead far enough. Jesus clarifies the situation: it is two separate events, and the Disciples memories suck: “Don’t you remember the five loaves for the 5,000 and how many baskets you collected, or the seven loaves for the 4,000?” (Matt 16:9-10)

Chapter 16 is one of those chapters where a lot happens. Jesus warns his disciples not to listen to the teachings of the Pharisees. He asks the disciples who others think he is (either the Baptist or one of the prophets reincarnated) and who they think he is (the son of god). He tells them that the Pharisees are going to torture him and kill him, but that he’ll rise from the dead on the third day. Jesus first tells Peter that Jesus will build his church on the truth that Peter has said, but then calls Peter “Satan.” Ayup, Jesus was definitely starting to feel the pressure by this point.

One interesting note: Jesus and the Disciples thought that judgement day would occur within a few decades. Jesus basically says so himself: “Truly I tell you, some people standing here will not experience death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” (Matt 16:28) So either Jesus thought some of his Disciples were going to live for thousands of years, or he thought the day of his return would be within a lifetime.

: Jesus drives out a demon
Image via Wikipedia

Chapter 17

Wow. The first part of Chapter 17 sounds a bit like a really lucid dream. Matthew dips deep into the supernatural world, telling the story of Elijah and Moses coming to talk with Jesus. It’s really trippy, especially since I don’t remember any walking-after-death elements from the stories of Elijah and Moses? Maybe I missed them… anyway, this LSD trip ends with God again saying that Jesus is his son, and Jesus is good. Oh, and apparently John the Baptist is Elijah reincarnated? I dunno…

Jesus then expels a demon that the disciples cannot (proving that Jesus is still the master and the disciples the students) and warns the disciples that Jesus is going to be betrayed and murdered. The disciples were saddened by this, and so immediately walked back to Capernaum (the city that is going to suffer a fate worse than Sodom’s). Apparently just so Jesus could have a fish spit out a coin, which Peter gave to the tax collector.

Don’t ask me, I dunno. This has gotta be either a lucid dream or a weird trip.

Chapter 18

Here’s a discussion about who gets into heaven, and when to forgive your brother. The short answers: those who can become childlike, and 77 times. Oh, and forgive your brother, and anyone else who would do you harm. And act toward others as you would have others act towards you. Chapter 18 is kind of a mish mash, actually.

Chapter 19

The chapter starts off with a discussion about divorce between the Pharisees, the disciples and Jesus. The jist of it is: Moses only allowed a decree of divorce because of the hardness of people’s hearts. Jesus points out scripture states that marriage creates one flesh, and that what God joined, man must not separate. Except in the case of adultery (“sexual immorality”). The disciples don’t like this very much, and ask who in their right minds would marry then? Jesus ends the discussion by saying that not everyone will accept this. And I wonder why Matthew couldn’t have found a less boring discussion for this part of his Gospel.

: Chinese depiction of Jesus and the rich man
Image via Wikipedia

Jesus proceeds to list the commandments he thinks a person must follow: “don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t give false testimony (lie), honor your parents and love your neighbor. (Matt 19:18-19) Which I guess means it’s okay to have other gods, make idols, take the Lord’s name in vain, and not keep the sabbath? (Jesus has proven that he doesn’t care a flip about the Sabbath, but for the others…)

Matthew 19 has to be the chapter that rich people wish weren’t in the Bible. The last section of chapter 19 is all about how hard it is for someone who is rich to get into heaven. It is not that being rich is necesarrily bad (which every wealthy person uses to give them hope through this chapter). It is that those who are rich tend to like money and wealth. And as stated in an earlier chapter, a man cannot serve two masters. Jesus knows this well, and warns “it is easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into the kingdom of God.” (Matt 19:24)

Chapter 20

More parables! I truly love Jesus’s parables. They are well told and make a lot of sense. It always surprises me when some Christian sects say that Jesus spoke in parables to hide the truth from his listeners. The parables are very clear, even without Christ explaining them. They are like Daoist meditation verses, meant to be dwelled on, not necessarily solved.

This chapter’s parable is one I don’t recall reading before: A landowner hires workers for his vineyard every three hours. Those hired first end up working a 10-hour day, those hired last end up with a one hour day. The landowner pays everyone the same wage at the end of the day, which annoys those hired first. They complain, but the landowner simply says “you and I agreed to this amount for the day’s work, and that is what you get. You don’t have any right to complain to me what I pay to others.”

Jesus again warns his disciples that he is about to be tortured, mocked and killed. The mother of two of his disciples asks that her kids be given special consideration. The other 10 aren’t happy about this, apparently either forgetting or ignoring the parable that Jesus just told them. Oy vey! Jesus mildly rebukes them: “That’s not the way it should be among you. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave.” (Matt 20:26)

Chapter 21

By this point in his life, you can feel the anger and weariness that is torturing Jesus. His life is a a constant struggle between his followers who adore him and are constantly asking him for blessings and miracles, and the Pharisees and their followers whose hatred for Christ grows by the minute. How could Jesus not be bitter by now? All of this comes out in this chapter.

As these chapters progress, they get harder to read. Jesus’s life rapidly spiraled into hell the last year or so of his life, and these chapters recount that. It’s uncomfortable hearing that kind of story. Which is one of the reasons that the Bible is such an amazing literary work. It forces a reader down this path, whether the reader wants to go there or not.

Jesus’s descent and subsequent death is mostly the fault of the Pharisees. But both Jesus and Jesus’s followers played a part, too, as they continued to stir the fire underneath the Pharisees. By this point, Jesus’s followers are publicly pronouncing Jesus as one of the great prophets, and singing his praises (“Hosanna to the Son of David.”) From the Pharisees point of view, Jesus is stealing away their followers. There’s one thing that people in power don’t like, and that is to lose power. The Pharisees could see their power slipping away as more people turned towards Christ’s teachings.

Christ helped this process along as he openly challenged the Pharisees, and plainly told everyone who would listen that the Pharisees were hypocrites who had no claim to power. There is an interesting power play in Matt 21:23-27. The Pharisees ask Jesus where his authority comes from. Jesus says “I’ll tell you if you answer one question: where did John the Baptist’s authority to baptize people come from, heaven or humans?” The Pharisees wanted to avoid being trapped, so they said “We don’t know.” To which Christ mockingly replies, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” Double BURN!!!!

Christ decides he isn’t through provoking and humiliating the Pharisees, though. This time, he decides to do so in parable. First, the parable of the landowner who builds a vineyard and turns the vineyards care over to farmers. When the land owner prepares to return, he sends his servants to check on the status of the vineyard. The farmers wanted to keep the riches of the vineyard, however, so they killed the servants. The landowner finally sent his son, and the farmers killed the son, too. Jesus asked the Pharisees what they thought the landowner would do to the farmers?” The Pharisees were wise enough to realize that Jesus was out-and-out threatening them with divine retribution!

Chapter 22

: Image via truthbook.com

Jesus is on a roll with bitter parables, so he continues with another. This one regards a king who is giving a wedding banquet. His invited guests all refuse to come, some actually killing the servants sent to fetch the guests. Maybe they were turned off by the idea of having ox for dinner? Anyway, the king says “to hell with this” and sends his army out to slaugher the murderers. And to destroy their city. (I tell ya, Christ was very bitter by the time he tells this parable.) The king then has his servants go and round up people from the highway to join him for the wedding banquet. Everyone accepts – who could say no to roast ox? But one of the men is not wearing appropriate clothing, so the king has his servants tie the mans hands and feet and throw the man out into the darkness.

Any doubt as to who Christ was talking about in this parable? Didn’t think so.

The Pharisees finally decide that, if Christ is goin to mock them openly, they’ll start trying to trap him openly. First they try to trick him into saying people don’t need to pay taxes to the Romans. Jesus flicks this aside with the famous “give back to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (I actually really, really like that line, from Matt 22:21.)

Next up are the Sadducees, who make the mistake of trying to go toe-to-toe about scripture with Jesus. It’s like Forrest Gump trying to outsmart Will Hunting. The Sadducees want to know in heaven which of 7 dead brothers would be married to their shared wife. Christ answers that in heaven people are not married, nor given in marriage, but are like angels. And then Christ decides to do a little more teaching, this time in regards to resurrection. On this point, I actually agree with the Sadducees, but that is totally besides the point.

The Pharisees try to trip him up with commandments, but Jesus also avoids that trap, stating that the law and the prophets depend on two commandments: love the lord your god with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself.

: Image via Unknown

Chapter 23

“How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites!” This is Christ’s mantra throughout chapter 23. It cements the Pharisees hatred of Christ, and pretty much signs Christ’s death sentence. But at this point, Jesus doesn’t care. Chapter 23 is a rant, plain and simple, against the Pharisees.

Christ repeats the “How terrible it will be” mantra seven times, laying a different charge with each repetition. Closing the door to heaven in people’s faces, corrupting converts, swearing oaths to money, neglecting justice, mercy and faithfulness, being full of greed and self-indulgence, being lawless hypocrites, being descendants of those who murdered ancient prophets.

Needless to say, the rest of the Gospel of Matthew is not going to be a fun read. The battle lines are clearly drawn here: Christ and the Pharisees are mortal enemies by this point, and the battle looms.

Up next: Matthew turns stone cold, the Roman power structure confuses me, and Christ suffers more misery than anyone should have to deal with.