progressive involvement

Epiphany 5 ::: Matthew 5: 13-20

¹³“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. ¹⁴“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. ¹⁵No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

¹⁷“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. ¹⁹Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.²⁰For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Translation:  You are the salt of the land, but if the salt had lost its taste, in what will it become salty?  It is good for nothing, except to be thrown out to be tread down by human beings.  You are the light of the world.  A city setting upon a mountain is not able to be concealed, neither do they light a candle and set it under the bushel, but upon the candlestick, and it beams brightly to all the ones in the house.  So let your light shine radiantly before the people that they might see your good works and might give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Do not suppose that I came to loosen the law or the prophets.  I have not come to loosen, but to make full.  For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot will pass away from the law until all might be accomplished.  Therefore, if anyone might loosen one of the least of these commandments, and might teach the people so, that one will be called least in the kingdom of heaven.  But whoever might do and teach, that one will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  For I say to you that if your justice does not abound more than the scribes and pharisees, you may surely not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Background and situation:  The passage appears in the Sermon on the Mount as the first remarks of Jesus after the Beatitudes.  The Beatitudes are the soaring overture.  We now move into the speech itself.

Matthew was writing for an audience of Jewish Christians who were under threat from two sides:  (1)  Paul, who said that Torah was now obsolete and "jewishness" didn't matter, and (2) traditionalist Jews, mostly pharisees, who, in this period, were organizing the heavy refugee population of northern Israel and Syria.

Matthew disagrees with Paul.  He will never say that Torah doesn't matter.  Such an idea would have been anathema.  Rather, Jesus "fulfills" Torah, and, until "all things are accomplished," Torah is still intact.  As for the pharisees, Matthew spends a whole chapter (23) chewing them out.

Matthew seems to have composed this section from several locations.  Part of verse 13 has a parallel in Mark 9: 50.  The "city on the hill" passage (5:14) appears also in the Gospel of Thomas (32)--and the Oxyrhynchus papyri!--as does the lamp hid under a bushel (33), also paralleled in Mark 4:21 and Luke 8:16 and 11:33.  Verse 18--"not one letter"--has a parallel in Luke 16:17.  

The rest appears to be Special Matthew.  That would include both "you are" passages, i.e. salt and light, the exhortation to "let your light shine" in v. 16, possibly v. 19, and the entirety of v. 20.  

Salt and Light:  Jesus begins on a high if somewhat mystifying note.  He announces to his disciples and the crowd that they are the "salt of the land."  

Salt has been used at least since 6000 BC.  It was so important that it was sometimes used as a medium of exchange.  Our word "salary" is derived from "salt."  If one traded salt for a poorly-performing slave, one might say the slave was "not worth his salt."

Most commentators will tell you that salt never loses its taste, but that is not quite true.  The chemical impurities of salt from the Dead Sea, the likely source for most salt in Galilee, could cause it to decompose and, indeed, "lose its taste" (5:13).

Jesus does not, you'll notice, state this in future tense.  It's not that the followers of Jesus will some day become the "salt of the land."  They are already that right now.  As such, their words and deeds have import.  They matter.  Like salt, the followers of Jesus do not necessarily draw attention to themselves so much as they spice up everything around them.

"You are the light of the world."  Matthew had previously cited the prophet Isaiah to say that "the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light" (4:16).  This clearly referred to Jesus himself.  

Now Jesus says that his listeners are the "light of the world."  His mission is now their mission.  His words and deeds are their words and deeds.  Jesus has not yet gone into detail about the specifics of this mission, but the Sermon on the Mount goes from here until 7:28 and he will have ample opportunity to do so.  

This mission is public--it happens in the open, like a city set on a hill--and it benefits everyone.  Even its candlelight "beams brightly" to all in a house.  In fact, the only thing that can really mess it up is the active attempt to snuff it out.  Or, to put it a different way, the light can be extinguished only by ignoring the needs of others for "light" and insisting on one's own preference that everyone sit in the dark.  

In the time of Jesus, and before, the Torah was sometimes seen as "salt" for Israel.  Also, the rabbis and religious authorities were, themselves, sometimes referred to as the "lights" of Israel.  Now, Matthew tells us, via Jesus, the followers of Jesus are "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world."  For the Torah-minded Matthew, this is a stunning statement.

Relationship to the Law:  Despite all that, the law is stalwart.  Jesus does not negate the law.  It remains intact.  Nevertheless, J. P. Meier notes that the word "fulfill" is usually used by Matthew in reference to the prophets.  Says Meier:

That Mt viewed even the Law's relation to Christ in terms of prophetic fulfillment (my emphasis) is clear from Mt's reworking of a Q-saying in 11:13:  "For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John...Mt is turning the Jewish canon of Law and prophets on its head.  The touchstone becomes prophesy, and the Law must be interpreted in analogy with prophecy. (p. 46) 

The law points to Jesus, just as the prophets did, says Matthew.  As Jesus "fulfills" (plerosai) prophesy, he also "fulfills" the law.  Fulfillment means that the cup is not only full but "over-flows".  The law and prophets are not only completed, but the Jesus event exceeds them.

"Not one iota" of the law is abrogated--an "iota" refers to the smallest Greek letter (which, technically speaking, is pronounced YO-ta).  "Not one stroke of a letter"--the "stroke" is the smallest part of a letter that distinguishes it from another letter.  Early rabbis said that not a "stroke" of the Torah could be changed.  Matthew is in full agreement.

There are two "until" clauses here--"until heaven and earth pass away," and "until all might be accomplished."  Eos ("until") marks the time of an action up to the time of another action.  Something is in effect until something else takes effect.  The law is sacrosanct, in other words, but also limited.

That "new action" that "until" points toward will happen when "all is accomplished", or, to put it another way, when "all (panta) has "come to be" (genetai).  Genetai is associated with creation.  It has the sense of beginning, or, in this case, new beginning.  In other words, the law is in full force until the Christ event is completed.  That is when "all has come to be."  Law, prophets, and all things are fulfilled.  

See the Lukan parallel in 16:17.  Matthew has clearly added the phrase "until all has come to be".  His point seems to be that the end of the world--heaven and earth passing away--is not necessarily a bad thing.  The key eschatological event, which re-arranges the entire cosmos, is the death and resurrection of Jesus.  That fulfills "all."  Heaven and earth passing away means that the deck is cleared for the New Creation.

Jesus then shifts emphasis from himself as teacher to human teachers.  Any of your teachers who slack on the law, even the least of it, is "least" in the kingdom of heaven.  Conversely, those who do teach all of the law will be called "great."  (Paul, take note.)

Whether you are "least" or "great," you're still in.  What can toss you out?  "For I say to you that if your justice does not abound more than the scribes and pharisees, you may surely not enter into the kingdom of heaven."  

The word is dikaios.  In almost every case, dikaios should be translated as "justice" and not "righteousness."  It's not that it's wrong;  it's that it misleads.  For Matthew, and the Greek language, justice and righteousness are the same thing.  In our world, however, righteousness is usually associated with something else, quite often outward piety, which Matthew directly condemns. 

This does not mean ratcheting up our piety to a pitch higher than that of the pharisees.  It is justice that must abound, and more than the scribes and pharisees are able to muster.  Since the scribes and pharisees are grossly unjust, fortunately, this is not that difficult.  Matthew devotes a whole chapter (23) to condemning both scribes and pharisees, and gets regular digs at both throughout his book.

Image:  Light of the World, Barbara Mitchell 

 

¹³“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. ¹⁴“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. ¹⁵No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

¹⁷“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. ¹⁹Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.²⁰For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Translation:  You are the salt of the land, but if the salt had lost its taste, in what will it become salty?  It is good for nothing, except to be thrown out to be tread down by human beings.  You are the light of the world.  A city setting upon a mountain is not able to be concealed, neither do they light a candle and set it under the bushel, but upon the candlestick, and it beams brightly to all the ones in the house.  So let your light shine radiantly before the people that they might see your good works and might give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Do not suppose that I came to loosen the law or the prophets.  I have not come to loosen, but to make full.  For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot will pass away from the law until all might be accomplished.  Therefore, if anyone might loosen one of the least of these commandments, and might teach the people so, that one will be called least in the kingdom of heaven.  But whoever might do and teach, that one will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  For I say to you that if your justice does not abound more than the scribes and pharisees, you may surely not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Background and situation:  The passage appears in the Sermon on the Mount as the first remarks of Jesus after the Beatitudes.  The Beatitudes are the soaring overture.  We now move into the speech itself.

Matthew was writing for an audience of Jewish Christians who were under threat from two sides:  (1)  Paul, who said that Torah was now obsolete and "jewishness" didn't matter, and (2) traditionalist Jews, mostly pharisees, who, in this period, were organizing the heavy refugee population of northern Israel and Syria.

Matthew disagrees with Paul.  He will never say that Torah doesn't matter.  Such an idea would have been anathema.  Rather, Jesus "fulfills" Torah, and, until "all things are accomplished," Torah is still intact.  As for the pharisees, Matthew spends a whole chapter (23) chewing them out.

Matthew seems to have composed this section from several locations.  Part of verse 13 has a parallel in Mark 9: 50.  The "city on the hill" passage (5:14) appears also in the Gospel of Thomas (32)--and the Oxyrhynchus papyri!--as does the lamp hid under a bushel (33), also paralleled in Mark 4:21 and Luke 8:16 and 11:33.  Verse 18--"not one letter"--has a parallel in Luke 16:17.  

The rest appears to be Special Matthew.  That would include both "you are" passages, i.e. salt and light, the exhortation to "let your light shine" in v. 16, possibly v. 19, and the entirety of v. 20.  

Salt and Light:  Jesus begins on a high if somewhat mystifying note.  He announces to his disciples and the crowd that they are the "salt of the land."  

Salt has been used at least since 6000 BC.  It was so important that it was sometimes used as a medium of exchange.  Our word "salary" is derived from "salt."  If one traded salt for a poorly-performing slave, one might say the slave was "not worth his salt."

Most commentators will tell you that salt never loses its taste, but that is not quite true.  The chemical impurities of salt from the Dead Sea, the likely source for most salt in Galilee, could cause it to decompose and, indeed, "lose its taste" (5:13).

Jesus does not, you'll notice, state this in future tense.  It's not that the followers of Jesus will some day become the "salt of the land."  They are already that right now.  As such, their words and deeds have import.  They matter.  Like salt, the followers of Jesus do not necessarily draw attention to themselves so much as they spice up everything around them.

"You are the light of the world."  Matthew had previously cited the prophet Isaiah to say that "the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light" (4:16).  This clearly referred to Jesus himself.  

Now Jesus says that his listeners are the "light of the world."  His mission is now their mission.  His words and deeds are their words and deeds.  Jesus has not yet gone into detail about the specifics of this mission, but the Sermon on the Mount goes from here until 7:28 and he will have ample opportunity to do so.  

This mission is public--it happens in the open, like a city set on a hill--and it benefits everyone.  Even its candlelight "beams brightly" to all in a house.  In fact, the only thing that can really mess it up is the active attempt to snuff it out.  Or, to put it a different way, the light can be extinguished only by ignoring the needs of others for "light" and insisting on one's own preference that everyone sit in the dark.  

In the time of Jesus, and before, the Torah was sometimes seen as "salt" for Israel.  Also, the rabbis and religious authorities were, themselves, sometimes referred to as the "lights" of Israel.  Now, Matthew tells us, via Jesus, the followers of Jesus are "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world."  For the Torah-minded Matthew, this is a stunning statement.

Relationship to the Law:  Despite all that, the law is stalwart.  Jesus does not negate the law.  It remains intact.  Nevertheless, J. P. Meier notes that the word "fulfill" is usually used by Matthew in reference to the prophets.  Says Meier:

That Mt viewed even the Law's relation to Christ in terms of prophetic fulfillment (my emphasis) is clear from Mt's reworking of a Q-saying in 11:13:  "For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John...Mt is turning the Jewish canon of Law and prophets on its head.  The touchstone becomes prophesy, and the Law must be interpreted in analogy with prophecy. (p. 46) 

The law points to Jesus, just as the prophets did, says Matthew.  As Jesus "fulfills" (plerosai) prophesy, he also "fulfills" the law.  Fulfillment means that the cup is not only full but "over-flows".  The law and prophets are not only completed, but the Jesus event exceeds them.

"Not one iota" of the law is abrogated--an "iota" refers to the smallest Greek letter (which, technically speaking, is pronounced YO-ta).  "Not one stroke of a letter"--the "stroke" is the smallest part of a letter that distinguishes it from another letter.  Early rabbis said that not a "stroke" of the Torah could be changed.  Matthew is in full agreement.

There are two "until" clauses here--"until heaven and earth pass away," and "until all might be accomplished."  Eos ("until") marks the time of an action up to the time of another action.  Something is in effect until something else takes effect.  The law is sacrosanct, in other words, but also limited.

That "new action" that "until" points toward will happen when "all is accomplished", or, to put it another way, when "all (panta) has "come to be" (genetai).  Genetai is associated with creation.  It has the sense of beginning, or, in this case, new beginning.  In other words, the law is in full force until the Christ event is completed.  That is when "all has come to be."  Law, prophets, and all things are fulfilled.  

See the Lukan parallel in 16:17.  Matthew has clearly added the phrase "until all has come to be".  His point seems to be that the end of the world--heaven and earth passing away--is not necessarily a bad thing.  The key eschatological event, which re-arranges the entire cosmos, is the death and resurrection of Jesus.  That fulfills "all."  Heaven and earth passing away means that the deck is cleared for the New Creation.

Jesus then shifts emphasis from himself as teacher to human teachers.  Any of your teachers who slack on the law, even the least of it, is "least" in the kingdom of heaven.  Conversely, those who do teach all of the law will be called "great."  (Paul, take note.)

Whether you are "least" or "great," you're still in.  What can toss you out?  "For I say to you that if your justice does not abound more than the scribes and pharisees, you may surely not enter into the kingdom of heaven."  

The word is dikaios.  In almost every case, dikaios should be translated as "justice" and not "righteousness."  It's not that it's wrong;  it's that it misleads.  For Matthew, and the Greek language, justice and righteousness are the same thing.  In our world, however, righteousness is usually associated with something else, quite often outward piety, which Matthew directly condemns. 

This does not mean ratcheting up our piety to a pitch higher than that of the pharisees.  It is justice that must abound, and more than the scribes and pharisees are able to muster.  Since the scribes and pharisees are grossly unjust, fortunately, this is not that difficult.  Matthew devotes a whole chapter (23) to condemning both scribes and pharisees, and gets regular digs at both throughout his book.

Image:  Light of the World, Barbara Mitchell 

¹³“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. ¹⁴“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. ¹⁵No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

¹⁷“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. ¹⁹Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.²⁰For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Translation:  You are the salt of the land, but if the salt had lost its taste, in what will it become salty?  It is good for nothing, except to be thrown out to be tread down by human beings.  You are the light of the world.  A city setting upon a mountain is not able to be concealed, neither do they light a candle and set it under the bushel, but upon the candlestick, and it beams brightly to all the ones in the house.  So let your light shine radiantly before the people that they might see your good works and might give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Do not suppose that I came to loosen the law or the prophets.  I have not come to loosen, but to make full.  For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot will pass away from the law until all might be accomplished.  Therefore, if anyone might loosen one of the least of these commandments, and might teach the people so, that one will be called least in the kingdom of heaven.  But whoever might do and teach, that one will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  For I say to you that if your justice does not abound more than the scribes and pharisees, you may surely not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Background and situation:  The passage appears in the Sermon on the Mount as the first remarks of Jesus after the Beatitudes.  The Beatitudes are the soaring overture.  We now move into the speech itself.

Matthew was writing for an audience of Jewish Christians who were under threat from two sides:  (1)  Paul, who said that Torah was now obsolete and "jewishness" didn't matter, and (2) traditionalist Jews, mostly pharisees, who, in this period, were organizing the heavy refugee population of northern Israel and Syria.

Matthew disagrees with Paul.  He will never say that Torah doesn't matter.  Such an idea would have been anathema.  Rather, Jesus "fulfills" Torah, and, until "all things are accomplished," Torah is still intact.  As for the pharisees, Matthew spends a whole chapter (23) chewing them out.

Matthew seems to have composed this section from several locations.  Part of verse 13 has a parallel in Mark 9: 50.  The "city on the hill" passage (5:14) appears also in the Gospel of Thomas (32)--and the Oxyrhynchus papyri!--as does the lamp hid under a bushel (33), also paralleled in Mark 4:21 and Luke 8:16 and 11:33.  Verse 18--"not one letter"--has a parallel in Luke 16:17.  

The rest appears to be Special Matthew.  That would include both "you are" passages, i.e. salt and light, the exhortation to "let your light shine" in v. 16, possibly v. 19, and the entirety of v. 20.  

Salt and Light:  Jesus begins on a high if somewhat mystifying note.  He announces to his disciples and the crowd that they are the "salt of the land."  

Salt has been used at least since 6000 BC.  It was so important that it was sometimes used as a medium of exchange.  Our word "salary" is derived from "salt."  If one traded salt for a poorly-performing slave, one might say the slave was "not worth his salt."

Most commentators will tell you that salt never loses its taste, but that is not quite true.  The chemical impurities of salt from the Dead Sea, the likely source for most salt in Galilee, could cause it to decompose and, indeed, "lose its taste" (5:13).

Jesus does not, you'll notice, state this in future tense.  It's not that the followers of Jesus will some day become the "salt of the land."  They are already that right now.  As such, their words and deeds have import.  They matter.  Like salt, the followers of Jesus do not necessarily draw attention to themselves so much as they spice up everything around them.

"You are the light of the world."  Matthew had previously cited the prophet Isaiah to say that "the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light" (4:16).  This clearly referred to Jesus himself.  

Now Jesus says that his listeners are the "light of the world."  His mission is now their mission.  His words and deeds are their words and deeds.  Jesus has not yet gone into detail about the specifics of this mission, but the Sermon on the Mount goes from here until 7:28 and he will have ample opportunity to do so.  

This mission is public--it happens in the open, like a city set on a hill--and it benefits everyone.  Even its candlelight "beams brightly" to all in a house.  In fact, the only thing that can really mess it up is the active attempt to snuff it out.  Or, to put it a different way, the light can be extinguished only by ignoring the needs of others for "light" and insisting on one's own preference that everyone sit in the dark.  

In the time of Jesus, and before, the Torah was sometimes seen as "salt" for Israel.  Also, the rabbis and religious authorities were, themselves, sometimes referred to as the "lights" of Israel.  Now, Matthew tells us, via Jesus, the followers of Jesus are "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world."  For the Torah-minded Matthew, this is a stunning statement.

Relationship to the Law:  Despite all that, the law is stalwart.  Jesus does not negate the law.  It remains intact.  Nevertheless, J. P. Meier notes that the word "fulfill" is usually used by Matthew in reference to the prophets.  Says Meier:

That Mt viewed even the Law's relation to Christ in terms of prophetic fulfillment (my emphasis) is clear from Mt's reworking of a Q-saying in 11:13:  "For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John...Mt is turning the Jewish canon of Law and prophets on its head.  The touchstone becomes prophesy, and the Law must be interpreted in analogy with prophecy. (p. 46) 

The law points to Jesus, just as the prophets did, says Matthew.  As Jesus "fulfills" (plerosai) prophesy, he also "fulfills" the law.  Fulfillment means that the cup is not only full but "over-flows".  The law and prophets are not only completed, but the Jesus event exceeds them.

"Not one iota" of the law is abrogated--an "iota" refers to the smallest Greek letter (which, technically speaking, is pronounced YO-ta).  "Not one stroke of a letter"--the "stroke" is the smallest part of a letter that distinguishes it from another letter.  Early rabbis said that not a "stroke" of the Torah could be changed.  Matthew is in full agreement.

There are two "until" clauses here--"until heaven and earth pass away," and "until all might be accomplished."  Eos ("until") marks the time of an action up to the time of another action.  Something is in effect until something else takes effect.  The law is sacrosanct, in other words, but also limited.

That "new action" that "until" points toward will happen when "all is accomplished", or, to put it another way, when "all (panta) has "come to be" (genetai).  Genetai is associated with creation.  It has the sense of beginning, or, in this case, new beginning.  In other words, the law is in full force until the Christ event is completed.  That is when "all has come to be."  Law, prophets, and all things are fulfilled.  

See the Lukan parallel in 16:17.  Matthew has clearly added the phrase "until all has come to be".  His point seems to be that the end of the world--heaven and earth passing away--is not necessarily a bad thing.  The key eschatological event, which re-arranges the entire cosmos, is the death and resurrection of Jesus.  That fulfills "all."  Heaven and earth passing away means that the deck is cleared for the New Creation.

Jesus then shifts emphasis from himself as teacher to human teachers.  Any of your teachers who slack on the law, even the least of it, is "least" in the kingdom of heaven.  Conversely, those who do teach all of the law will be called "great."  (Paul, take note.)

Whether you are "least" or "great," you're still in.  What can toss you out?  "For I say to you that if your justice does not abound more than the scribes and pharisees, you may surely not enter into the kingdom of heaven."  

The word is dikaios.  In almost every case, dikaios should be translated as "justice" and not "righteousness."  It's not that it's wrong;  it's that it misleads.  For Matthew, and the Greek language, justice and righteousness are the same thing.  In our world, however, righteousness is usually associated with something else, quite often outward piety, which Matthew directly condemns. 

This does not mean ratcheting up our piety to a pitch higher than that of the pharisees.  It is justice that must abound, and more than the scribes and pharisees are able to muster.  Since the scribes and pharisees are grossly unjust, fortunately, this is not that difficult.  Matthew devotes a whole chapter (23) to condemning both scribes and pharisees, and gets regular digs at both throughout his book.

Image:  Light of the World, Barbara Mitchell 

Epiphany 4 ::: Matthew 5: 1-12

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  

‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  

‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  

‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  

‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  

‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  

‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  

‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  

‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Translation:  Seeing the crowds, he went up into the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.  And opening his mouth, he taught them, saying, "Blessed (are) the poor of spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed (are) those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed (are) the gentle of spirit, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed (are) the ones who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be filled.  Blessed (are) the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed (are) the pure of heart, for they will see God.  Blessed (are) the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed (are) the ones being persecuted for the cause of justice, for of them is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed (are) you when they revile you and persecute you and say every evil toward you falsely on account of me.  Rejoice and be exceedingly glad for your reward is great in the heavens, for in this manner they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Background and situation:  The text--the Beatitudes--are Matthew's overture to the Sermon on the Mount, the first major speech, out of five, in Matthew's gospel.  (See the parallel in Luke 6, where, for his own purposes, Luke places the sermon on level ground.).

Our text follows immediately upon a summary statement of Jesus' ministry in chapter 4:  "And (Jesus) was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people." (4:23)  This unabashed good news is called the gospel.  

The Beatitudes which follow are not, themselves, the gospel.  In Lutheran terms, they are "law."  They tell us what we ought to do.  Matthew intends this sequence:  The gospel is announced, and its effects demonstrated (4:23).  Then, Jesus instructs his followers, or would-be followers, on how to live in its light.  The gospel comes first.  All of the Sermon on the Mount is response.

Setting the stage:  Note the formality of the language.  Jesus "saw" the crowds, and goes up "into" the mountain.  Mountains are places of special events and proclamations in Matthew's gospel.  The mention of the mountain is a signal that something special is about to happen.

Jesus then sat down.  Today, speakers stand up when they have something to say.  In the time of Jesus, they sat down.  

His disciples "came to him," says Matthew.  Imagine this as theater.  Jesus went up to the place of special revelation.  He sat down.  His disciples "came to him" and arrayed themselves around him.  There is a tableau of formality to this description.  The stage has been set for special proclamation.

To whom was Jesus making this special proclamation?  In 5: 1, we are told that Jesus saw the crowds.  At the close of the sermon on the mount, which the Beatitudes introduce, "the crowds were astonished at his teaching" (7: 28).  

On the other hand, when the disciples "came to him," Jesus "opened his mouth and taught them."  It appears, therefore, that Jesus was primarily instructing the disciples, but doing so within ear-shot of the crowds.

From one perspective, the disciples are the in-crowd.  They get the front row seats while everyone else is on the outside looking in.  Another way to look at it is this:  The crowd hears the same teaching the disciples do and are in a good position to hold the disciples accountable for it.  From the first perspective, the disciples could say, "You hear that?  You'd better get on board!"  To which the crowd could respond:  "If you followers of his would get with the program, maybe we would." 

The reign of God:  Jesus is teaching about the "reign of God," which is not, incidentally, solely about life in heaven.  The "reign of God" is meant for the here-and-now as well as in heaven.  This is what we pray for in the Lord's Prayer:  "...thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven...."  

My seminary advisor used to say, "The Beatitudes are there for the purpose of being done."  (Luther said the Beatitudes were there to remind us of our hopelessness of fulfilling the law and its impossible demands, which is true enough, but Luther tended to say that about everything.)

Beatitudes were not a new thing in the world of Jesus.  Usually, they were common sense sayings that expressed what everyone already knew.  They were pithy expressions of the conventional wisdom, you might say, as in:  "Blessed are those on a low-fat diet, for they will have healthy arteries" or "Blessed are dogs who love peanut butter, for they will always be occupied."

As he will do often in Matthew's gospel, Jesus turns conventional wisdom upside down.  In the Beatitudes, blessings are conferred upon the poor and lost.  Nobody would have associated blessings with hunger or grief, then or now.  In the reign of God, however, God's favor is upon those who have been left behind--the little, the lone, the least, and the lost. 

These marginalized ones--the poor, lost, and bereft--constituted the major constituency of Jesus.  He addressed his message primarily to them.  They found his message of God's favor to be empowering and uplifting.

"Blessed"?:  The Greek word we translate as "blessed" is makarioi.  Makarioi refers to God's favor.  It could also be translated as "honored."  "Happy," as some translations have it, doesn't work.  The original French translation of the Jerusalem Bible had debonair, which, while it does have a certain appeal, doesn't really work either.  Debonair are the poor in spirit?

There are nine beatitudes in Matthew--two groups of four, followed by a final one.  The first four beatitudes speak to the victims of injustice, those in poverty, grief, the meek, and those with a deep desire for justice.

Greek has two words for "poor"--penes and ptochos.  Penes means "working poor."  (Penes would be contrasted with plousios, people with land who don't work.)  Ptochos, on the other hand, means being destitute.  To put it another way:  Penes means having to work.  Ptochos means having to beg. 

Luke 6 has "Blessed are you poor."  Matthew makes this "poor in spirit," which, unfortunately, tends to spiritualize the text for modern readers and takes the accent off ptochos.  Who isn't "poor in spirit" at least some of the time?  That might preach, and not inappropriately so, but Matthew's emphasis seems more to be on those who understand themselves as being in solidarity with the ptochos.  Such people would likely have constituted an overwhelming majority of the listening crowds. 

People in the time of Jesus were regularly forced off their land, and many--perhaps as many as 10-15% of the population--would have been destitute.  They lived in the hills or in shadows, and got by, after a fashion, by foraging off the land or robbing.  Falling into the ranks of the ptochos was a very real fear for the great majority of people.  In addition to the large homeless population, another 60-70% of the people stood in real danger of being forced to join them.

The second "makarism"--"blessed are those who mourn"--dove-tails with and follows from the first.  One way to become destitute in the first century was to lose one's place in their family.  Family identity was exceptionally important in the ancient world.  People were known as the "son of" or "daughter of" their father and mother. 

One could be reduced to ptochos--begging--through loss of land or loss of family.  Family could be lost through the death of one's parents--hence, "blessed are those who mourn"--or through being cast out of the family.  (This would be especially applicable to early Christians, c. AD 80, who had been tossed out of their family because they were followers of Jesus.)

Loss of land and loss of family would make a person "meek."  Either one represented loss of status.  This was especially important in a society where status revolved around honor and shame.  Loss of land and/or family could move a person from an honored place in society to a shameful one--from high social standing within the context of one's village to social ostracism.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn and those who are meek.  Blessed are those, in other words, who are down-and-out, rejected, destitute, without a home.  They have honor with God.  They are not despised and rejected.  They are lifted up, held in high esteem, blessed by God.  This is called "preferential option for the poor."   

These first three "makarisms" are underlined by the fourth:  "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice"--dikaiosunane.  Matthew chose the words "hunger" and "thirst" with a purpose--they recall those who genuinely did hunger and thirst--and then turned these words in the direction not only of food and drink, but also justice.  Blessed are those who yearn--who hunger--for a world where all are honored and none are shamed.

If the first four "makarisms" are for those who lack justice, the next four "makarisms" are for those who work for justice.  They promise reward at the end of time for those who live into the reign of God now--the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, and (again) the persecuted.  

Mercy has a wide range of meaning, everything from forgiving sins to healing the sick.  "Active compassion" would be another way to put it.  The merciful are not only sorry at the suffering of others, but actively try to alleviate it.  

The followers of Jesus are able to show mercy not because of their inherent goodness, but rather because they have been shown mercy.  Mercy is an attitude of God, which God's people reflect into the world.    

"Pure in heart" is about the center of a person being "cleansed" from the old way of living.  Katharoi is where we get our modern-day psychiatric term "catharsis."  Catharsis is about purging the old to make way for the new.  The "pure in heart" are "cleaned up," in other words, from hierarchy and support of what Walter Wink calls "the domination system."  Their paradigm gets shifted, their worldview reset. 

The "peacemakers" are those who bring God's shalom into expression in the world.  This is in marked contrast to the supposed "peacemakers" of the day, the Roman Army.  As J.D. Crossan has argued, Rome believed in "peace through victory."  Rome brought peace to the world by defeating her enemies.  When Octavian defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra, he ended the Roman Civil War and was acclaimed a "peacemaker."  The early Christians, however, believed in "peace through justice"--peace through righting wrongs and treating all people, particularly the bereft, with dignity.

The eighth beatitude closes this second pair of four with the same promise extended to the "poor in spirit" in the first beatitude.  Those who are persecuted for the cause of justice, like the "poor in spirit," receive the kingdom of heaven.  The verb is a perfect participle which indicates a past action with ongoing effects in the present.  The cause of justice has been and is going on.

This eighth beatitude, with its theme of persecution, transitions to the ninth.  Here, though, Jesus shifts from the third person to the second person--not "blessed are they" this time, but "blessed are you."  This word is at least partly for the people of Matthew's church who had, indeed, suffered at least some persecution for following Jesus.  (Luke has persecuted "on account of the son of man."  Matthew changes this to persecuted "on my account," thus underlining the close link between Jesus and the disciple.)

Those who suffer for the cause of Jesus are to "rejoice and be exceedingly glad" for their reward is great in heaven.  They are the unfortunate victims of persecution, yes, but they are in a line with the great prophets of the past as well as John the Baptist and Jesus himself.

Image:  Gloglo gospel, Paul Sika.  Glôglô Gospel is a photograph shot in Abidjan.  Inspired by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, the Christic figure enters a deep state of contemplation, becoming a model for others. 

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  

‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  

‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  

‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  

‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  

‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  

‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  

‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  

‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Translation:  Seeing the crowds, he went up into the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.  And opening his mouth, he taught them, saying, "Blessed (are) the poor of spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed (are) those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed (are) the gentle of spirit, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed (are) the ones who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be filled.  Blessed (are) the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed (are) the pure of heart, for they will see God.  Blessed (are) the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed (are) the ones being persecuted for the cause of justice, for of them is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed (are) you when they revile you and persecute you and say every evil toward you falsely on account of me.  Rejoice and be exceedingly glad for your reward is great in the heavens, for in this manner they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Background and situation:  The text--the Beatitudes--are Matthew's overture to the Sermon on the Mount, the first major speech, out of five, in Matthew's gospel.  (See the parallel in Luke 6, where, for his own purposes, Luke places the sermon on level ground.).

Our text follows immediately upon a summary statement of Jesus' ministry in chapter 4:  "And (Jesus) was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people." (4:23)  This unabashed good news is called the gospel.  

The Beatitudes which follow are not, themselves, the gospel.  In Lutheran terms, they are "law."  They tell us what we ought to do.  Matthew intends this sequence:  The gospel is announced, and its effects demonstrated (4:23).  Then, Jesus instructs his followers, or would-be followers, on how to live in its light.  The gospel comes first.  All of the Sermon on the Mount is response.

Setting the stage:  Note the formality of the language.  Jesus "saw" the crowds, and goes up "into" the mountain.  Mountains are places of special events and proclamations in Matthew's gospel.  The mention of the mountain is a signal that something special is about to happen.

Jesus then sat down.  Today, speakers stand up when they have something to say.  In the time of Jesus, they sat down.  

His disciples "came to him," says Matthew.  Imagine this as theater.  Jesus went up to the place of special revelation.  He sat down.  His disciples "came to him" and arrayed themselves around him.  There is a tableau of formality to this description.  The stage has been set for special proclamation.

To whom was Jesus making this special proclamation?  In 5: 1, we are told that Jesus saw the crowds.  At the close of the sermon on the mount, which the Beatitudes introduce, "the crowds were astonished at his teaching" (7: 28).  

On the other hand, when the disciples "came to him," Jesus "opened his mouth and taught them."  It appears, therefore, that Jesus was primarily instructing the disciples, but doing so within ear-shot of the crowds.

From one perspective, the disciples are the in-crowd.  They get the front row seats while everyone else is on the outside looking in.  Another way to look at it is this:  The crowd hears the same teaching the disciples do and are in a good position to hold the disciples accountable for it.  From the first perspective, the disciples could say, "You hear that?  You'd better get on board!"  To which the crowd could respond:  "If you followers of his would get with the program, maybe we would." 

The reign of God:  Jesus is teaching about the "reign of God," which is not, incidentally, solely about life in heaven.  The "reign of God" is meant for the here-and-now as well as in heaven.  This is what we pray for in the Lord's Prayer:  "...thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven...."  

My seminary advisor used to say, "The Beatitudes are there for the purpose of being done."  (Luther said the Beatitudes were there to remind us of our hopelessness of fulfilling the law and its impossible demands, which is true enough, but Luther tended to say that about everything.)

Beatitudes were not a new thing in the world of Jesus.  Usually, they were common sense sayings that expressed what everyone already knew.  They were pithy expressions of the conventional wisdom, you might say, as in:  "Blessed are those on a low-fat diet, for they will have healthy arteries" or "Blessed are dogs who love peanut butter, for they will always be occupied."

As he will do often in Matthew's gospel, Jesus turns conventional wisdom upside down.  In the Beatitudes, blessings are conferred upon the poor and lost.  Nobody would have associated blessings with hunger or grief, then or now.  In the reign of God, however, God's favor is upon those who have been left behind--the little, the lone, the least, and the lost. 

These marginalized ones--the poor, lost, and bereft--constituted the major constituency of Jesus.  He addressed his message primarily to them.  They found his message of God's favor to be empowering and uplifting.

"Blessed"?:  The Greek word we translate as "blessed" is makarioi.  Makarioi refers to God's favor.  It could also be translated as "honored."  "Happy," as some translations have it, doesn't work.  The original French translation of the Jerusalem Bible had debonair, which, while it does have a certain appeal, doesn't really work either.  Debonair are the poor in spirit?

There are nine beatitudes in Matthew--two groups of four, followed by a final one.  The first four beatitudes speak to the victims of injustice, those in poverty, grief, the meek, and those with a deep desire for justice.

Greek has two words for "poor"--penes and ptochos.  Penes means "working poor."  (Penes would be contrasted with plousios, people with land who don't work.)  Ptochos, on the other hand, means being destitute.  To put it another way:  Penes means having to work.  Ptochos means having to beg. 

Luke 6 has "Blessed are you poor."  Matthew makes this "poor in spirit," which, unfortunately, tends to spiritualize the text for modern readers and takes the accent off ptochos.  Who isn't "poor in spirit" at least some of the time?  That might preach, and not inappropriately so, but Matthew's emphasis seems more to be on those who understand themselves as being in solidarity with the ptochos.  Such people would likely have constituted an overwhelming majority of the listening crowds. 

People in the time of Jesus were regularly forced off their land, and many--perhaps as many as 10-15% of the population--would have been destitute.  They lived in the hills or in shadows, and got by, after a fashion, by foraging off the land or robbing.  Falling into the ranks of the ptochos was a very real fear for the great majority of people.  In addition to the large homeless population, another 60-70% of the people stood in real danger of being forced to join them.

The second "makarism"--"blessed are those who mourn"--dove-tails with and follows from the first.  One way to become destitute in the first century was to lose one's place in their family.  Family identity was exceptionally important in the ancient world.  People were known as the "son of" or "daughter of" their father and mother. 

One could be reduced to ptochos--begging--through loss of land or loss of family.  Family could be lost through the death of one's parents--hence, "blessed are those who mourn"--or through being cast out of the family.  (This would be especially applicable to early Christians, c. AD 80, who had been tossed out of their family because they were followers of Jesus.)

Loss of land and loss of family would make a person "meek."  Either one represented loss of status.  This was especially important in a society where status revolved around honor and shame.  Loss of land and/or family could move a person from an honored place in society to a shameful one--from high social standing within the context of one's village to social ostracism.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn and those who are meek.  Blessed are those, in other words, who are down-and-out, rejected, destitute, without a home.  They have honor with God.  They are not despised and rejected.  They are lifted up, held in high esteem, blessed by God.  This is called "preferential option for the poor."   

These first three "makarisms" are underlined by the fourth:  "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice"--dikaiosunane.  Matthew chose the words "hunger" and "thirst" with a purpose--they recall those who genuinely did hunger and thirst--and then turned these words in the direction not only of food and drink, but also justice.  Blessed are those who yearn--who hunger--for a world where all are honored and none are shamed.

If the first four "makarisms" are for those who lack justice, the next four "makarisms" are for those who work for justice.  They promise reward at the end of time for those who live into the reign of God now--the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, and (again) the persecuted.  

Mercy has a wide range of meaning, everything from forgiving sins to healing the sick.  "Active compassion" would be another way to put it.  The merciful are not only sorry at the suffering of others, but actively try to alleviate it.  

The followers of Jesus are able to show mercy not because of their inherent goodness, but rather because they have been shown mercy.  Mercy is an attitude of God, which God's people reflect into the world.    

"Pure in heart" is about the center of a person being "cleansed" from the old way of living.  Katharoi is where we get our modern-day psychiatric term "catharsis."  Catharsis is about purging the old to make way for the new.  The "pure in heart" are "cleaned up," in other words, from hierarchy and support of what Walter Wink calls "the domination system."  Their paradigm gets shifted, their worldview reset. 

The "peacemakers" are those who bring God's shalom into expression in the world.  This is in marked contrast to the supposed "peacemakers" of the day, the Roman Army.  As J.D. Crossan has argued, Rome believed in "peace through victory."  Rome brought peace to the world by defeating her enemies.  When Octavian defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra, he ended the Roman Civil War and was acclaimed a "peacemaker."  The early Christians, however, believed in "peace through justice"--peace through righting wrongs and treating all people, particularly the bereft, with dignity.

The eighth beatitude closes this second pair of four with the same promise extended to the "poor in spirit" in the first beatitude.  Those who are persecuted for the cause of justice, like the "poor in spirit," receive the kingdom of heaven.  The verb is a perfect participle which indicates a past action with ongoing effects in the present.  The cause of justice has been and is going on.

This eighth beatitude, with its theme of persecution, transitions to the ninth.  Here, though, Jesus shifts from the third person to the second person--not "blessed are they" this time, but "blessed are you."  This word is at least partly for the people of Matthew's church who had, indeed, suffered at least some persecution for following Jesus.  (Luke has persecuted "on account of the son of man."  Matthew changes this to persecuted "on my account," thus underlining the close link between Jesus and the disciple.)

Those who suffer for the cause of Jesus are to "rejoice and be exceedingly glad" for their reward is great in heaven.  They are the unfortunate victims of persecution, yes, but they are in a line with the great prophets of the past as well as John the Baptist and Jesus himself.

Image:  Gloglo gospel, Paul Sika.  Glôglô Gospel is a photograph shot in Abidjan.  Inspired by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, the Christic figure enters a deep state of contemplation, becoming a model for others. 

Epiphany 3 ::: Matthew 4: 12-23

²Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. ¹³He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, ¹⁴so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ¹⁵“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— ¹⁶the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”¹⁷From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

¹⁸As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. ¹⁹And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” ²⁰Immediately they left their nets and followed him.²¹As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. ²²Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

²³Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Translation:  But hearing that John had been delivered over, he returned into Galilee.  And leaving Nazareth, he came (and) dwelled in Capernaum by the sea, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali so that it might be fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah, saying, "Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, a way of sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:  the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and to the ones sitting in the region and shadow of death, to them a light has dawned."  From that time, Jesus began to proclaim, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

But walking alongside the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, the one called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people."  And immediately, they left the nets, they followed him.  Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  And immediate they left the boat and their father, (and) followed him.

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

Background and situation:  Mark is the primary source.  (The parallel is Mark 1: 14-20.)  Matthew makes a significant addition to Mark, however, when he follows the report of John's arrest with Jesus moving from Nazareth to Capernaum, along with a citation from the prophet Isaiah.

Matthew also shortens Mark in 4:17.  Mark has:  "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent, and believe the good news."  Matthew eliminates the reference to time (kairos), and has simply:  "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."  (Matthew repeatedly has "kingdom of heaven" where Mark has "kingdom of God."  Nobody knows why.)

In Mark, James and John left their father in the boat "with the hired servants."  Matthew leaves out the reference to "hired servants", which gives the impression that the Zebedee's were perhaps slightly less well-off than might be supposed from reading Mark.

As in Mark, the lection is preceded by Jesus' encounter with Satan in the wilderness.  As soon as he comes out of his time of spiritual testing, Jesus hears that John the Baptist has been arrested.  We know how John's arrest will end.  As in Herod's slaughter of the innocents in chapter two, our thoughts are drawn to official state-sanctioned violence.

Taking up the reins of the movement:  With John in jail, Jesus returns to Galilee.  The NRSV translates anachoresin has "withdrew."  "Returned" would be more accurate and would make more sense.  To say that Jesus "withdrew" into Galilee gives the impression that he is hiding out under the threat of violence.

Just the opposite is true.  Keep in mind:  Going to Galilee means he is moving into the territory governed by Herod Antipas, the very ruler who arrested John.  He is not hiding out.  Quite the contrary.  He's going into the lion's lair!  He is "returning" to the area to take up the reins of the peasant resistance movement in light of the imprisonment of John.

"Leaving Nazareth," Jesus "came to dwell" in Capernaum.  Capernaum was the largest town on the Sea of Galilee, and had the largest harbor.  Boats came and went regularly, plying their trade--and also spreading news throughout the region.  It would have been an excellent "communications center."  Word could travel swiftly from Capernaum throughout the entire region.

Jesus moves from Nazareth, which is south west of the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, which is on the northwest shore--the territory of Naphtali, but not Zebulon.  Matthew knew this perfectly well.  In citing the prophet Isaiah regarding Naphtali and Zebulon, Matthew's purpose is not to say that the Isaiah passage literally prophesies the future.  (If he is, his prophecy is off.)  

One of the things Matthew is doing here is giving a hint of Jesus' later mission to the gentiles.  For the present, Jesus sees his mission as being "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (15:35)  After his encounter with the Canaanite woman in chapter 15, that mission will broaden.  Matthew gives a hint of that here.  The light will indeed come to "Galilee of the gentiles."

Secondly, Matthew also changes the Isaiah text.  The "toward the sea" in Isaiah 9:1-2 refers to the Meditteranean Sea.  Matthew means "by the sea" to be the Sea of Galilee.

In Capernaum, Jesus proclaims, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."  John had said these exact words in "the wilderness of Judea."  Here, Jesus says them in "Galilee of the gentiles."  Not only are John and Jesus in continuity, but the "kingdom of heaven movement" is spreading throughout the region.

"For they were fishermen": 

But walking alongside the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, the one called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people."  And immediately, they left the nets, they followed him.  Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  And immediate they left the boat and their father, (and) followed him.

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

The Sea of Galilee is a large freshwater lake, about 7 miles wide and 13 miles "long."  The shore is dotted with villages connected with the local fishing industry, among which Capernaum was foremost. 

Fishermen of that day did not operate in a "free market" economy.  The fishing industry was state-regulated for the benefit of the urban elite.  These urban elites were Greeks or Romans who had settled in the land of Israel following their military conquests, or they were Jews well-connected with King Herod and his sons.  Everybody else was poor.

Caesar and Herod benefited from the fishing trade in a variety of ways.  For one thing, they sold the fishing leases which entitled local groups to fish in the sea.  Fishing rights generally were awarded not to individuals, but to local "coops" based in kinship--like, for example, the brothers Simon and Andrew, and the Zebedee family.  

In addition, there were taxes on both the fish product and on the processing, as well as tolls on shipping and land transport.  Fisherman were at the bottom of a very detailed economic heirarchy, the main beneficiaries of which were Caesar, then Herod, then major tax collectors. 

Jesus made a strong appeal to local fishermen.  In fact, the known harbors of the Sea of Galilee in the first century strongly correlate with locations where Jesus either lived or traveled--Bethsaida, Capernaum, Gennesar, Magdala, Gadara and Gergasa.  (The original name of Magdala, hometown of Jesus' girlfriend, was Tarichaeae, which means "processed fish-ville."  It was only a few miles south of Capernaum.) 

In addition to collecting taxes, the local tax collector (Matthew?) probably also sold fishing rights, and may have even supplied capital for certain fishermen to build nets or boats.  Naturally, he would charge interest for this service.  It's not for nothing that the subject of "debt" pops up all through the four gospels.

Were fishermen Jesus' base of political support?  Put another way, were fishermen particularly responsive to Jesus' message because of the rigid state-control of their livelihood, and the economic oppression of high taxation?

Forming the new community:  Jesus has just come out of the wilderness.  He has heard the news about John, and deliberately steps into the leadership void caused by John's arrest.  Before he articulates his own message in his signature speech, however, one thing remains to be done:  the formation of a community--the "new community."  

This "new community" is not based on family or economic ties--quite the contrary, in fact;  its first four members left their families and their boat.  The new community is the one based in Jesus.  It will make a formal witness to Jesus' new vision for the world in the upcoming Sermon on the Mount (5:1).  Subsequently, that "new community"--the ones living in communion with Jesus and each other--will be the face of that vision in the world.

Gospel:

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

This summary statement is about the proclamation of the gospel--"the good news of the kingdom"--to which is linked an outbreak of peace, health, and shalom.  This proclamation of the gospel sets the stage for Jesus' first major speech in Matthew, the Sermon on the Mount, which expresses Jesus' "new law" of how to live out that gospel.  Matthew presents Jesus as "the new Moses" through his gospel.  Jesus is about to speak his "new law" from the mountaintop just as Moses had brought God's law down from a mountaintop in the Torah.

Image:  The Calling of Peter and Andrew, Duccio di Buoninsegna 1308-11, National Gallery of Art, Washington.

 

²Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. ¹³He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, ¹⁴so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ¹⁵“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— ¹⁶the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”¹⁷From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

¹⁸As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. ¹⁹And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” ²⁰Immediately they left their nets and followed him.²¹As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. ²²Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

²³Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Translation:  But hearing that John had been delivered over, he returned into Galilee.  And leaving Nazareth, he came (and) dwelled in Capernaum by the sea, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali so that it might be fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah, saying, "Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, a way of sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:  the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and to the ones sitting in the region and shadow of death, to them a light has dawned."  From that time, Jesus began to proclaim, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

But walking alongside the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, the one called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people."  And immediately, they left the nets, they followed him.  Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  And immediate they left the boat and their father, (and) followed him.

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

Background and situation:  Mark is the primary source.  (The parallel is Mark 1: 14-20.)  Matthew makes a significant addition to Mark, however, when he follows the report of John's arrest with Jesus moving from Nazareth to Capernaum, along with a citation from the prophet Isaiah.

Matthew also shortens Mark in 4:17.  Mark has:  "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent, and believe the good news."  Matthew eliminates the reference to time (kairos), and has simply:  "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."  (Matthew repeatedly has "kingdom of heaven" where Mark has "kingdom of God."  Nobody knows why.)

In Mark, James and John left their father in the boat "with the hired servants."  Matthew leaves out the reference to "hired servants", which gives the impression that the Zebedee's were perhaps slightly less well-off than might be supposed from reading Mark.

As in Mark, the lection is preceded by Jesus' encounter with Satan in the wilderness.  As soon as he comes out of his time of spiritual testing, Jesus hears that John the Baptist has been arrested.  We know how John's arrest will end.  As in Herod's slaughter of the innocents in chapter two, our thoughts are drawn to official state-sanctioned violence.

Taking up the reins of the movement:  With John in jail, Jesus returns to Galilee.  The NRSV translates anachoresin has "withdrew."  "Returned" would be more accurate and would make more sense.  To say that Jesus "withdrew" into Galilee gives the impression that he is hiding out under the threat of violence.

Just the opposite is true.  Keep in mind:  Going to Galilee means he is moving into the territory governed by Herod Antipas, the very ruler who arrested John.  He is not hiding out.  Quite the contrary.  He's going into the lion's lair!  He is "returning" to the area to take up the reins of the peasant resistance movement in light of the imprisonment of John.

"Leaving Nazareth," Jesus "came to dwell" in Capernaum.  Capernaum was the largest town on the Sea of Galilee, and had the largest harbor.  Boats came and went regularly, plying their trade--and also spreading news throughout the region.  It would have been an excellent "communications center."  Word could travel swiftly from Capernaum throughout the entire region.

Jesus moves from Nazareth, which is south west of the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, which is on the northwest shore--the territory of Naphtali, but not Zebulon.  Matthew knew this perfectly well.  In citing the prophet Isaiah regarding Naphtali and Zebulon, Matthew's purpose is not to say that the Isaiah passage literally prophesies the future.  (If he is, his prophecy is off.)  

One of the things Matthew is doing here is giving a hint of Jesus' later mission to the gentiles.  For the present, Jesus sees his mission as being "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (15:35)  After his encounter with the Canaanite woman in chapter 15, that mission will broaden.  Matthew gives a hint of that here.  The light will indeed come to "Galilee of the gentiles."

Secondly, Matthew also changes the Isaiah text.  The "toward the sea" in Isaiah 9:1-2 refers to the Meditteranean Sea.  Matthew means "by the sea" to be the Sea of Galilee.

In Capernaum, Jesus proclaims, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."  John had said these exact words in "the wilderness of Judea."  Here, Jesus says them in "Galilee of the gentiles."  Not only are John and Jesus in continuity, but the "kingdom of heaven movement" is spreading throughout the region.

"For they were fishermen": 

But walking alongside the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, the one called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people."  And immediately, they left the nets, they followed him.  Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  And immediate they left the boat and their father, (and) followed him.

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

The Sea of Galilee is a large freshwater lake, about 7 miles wide and 13 miles "long."  The shore is dotted with villages connected with the local fishing industry, among which Capernaum was foremost. 

Fishermen of that day did not operate in a "free market" economy.  The fishing industry was state-regulated for the benefit of the urban elite.  These urban elites were Greeks or Romans who had settled in the land of Israel following their military conquests, or they were Jews well-connected with King Herod and his sons.  Everybody else was poor.

Caesar and Herod benefited from the fishing trade in a variety of ways.  For one thing, they sold the fishing leases which entitled local groups to fish in the sea.  Fishing rights generally were awarded not to individuals, but to local "coops" based in kinship--like, for example, the brothers Simon and Andrew, and the Zebedee family.  

In addition, there were taxes on both the fish product and on the processing, as well as tolls on shipping and land transport.  Fisherman were at the bottom of a very detailed economic heirarchy, the main beneficiaries of which were Caesar, then Herod, then major tax collectors. 

Jesus made a strong appeal to local fishermen.  In fact, the known harbors of the Sea of Galilee in the first century strongly correlate with locations where Jesus either lived or traveled--Bethsaida, Capernaum, Gennesar, Magdala, Gadara and Gergasa.  (The original name of Magdala, hometown of Jesus' girlfriend, was Tarichaeae, which means "processed fish-ville."  It was only a few miles south of Capernaum.) 

In addition to collecting taxes, the local tax collector (Matthew?) probably also sold fishing rights, and may have even supplied capital for certain fishermen to build nets or boats.  Naturally, he would charge interest for this service.  It's not for nothing that the subject of "debt" pops up all through the four gospels.

Were fishermen Jesus' base of political support?  Put another way, were fishermen particularly responsive to Jesus' message because of the rigid state-control of their livelihood, and the economic oppression of high taxation?

Forming the new community:  Jesus has just come out of the wilderness.  He has heard the news about John, and deliberately steps into the leadership void caused by John's arrest.  Before he articulates his own message in his signature speech, however, one thing remains to be done:  the formation of a community--the "new community."  

This "new community" is not based on family or economic ties--quite the contrary, in fact;  its first four members left their families and their boat.  The new community is the one based in Jesus.  It will make a formal witness to Jesus' new vision for the world in the upcoming Sermon on the Mount (5:1).  Subsequently, that "new community"--the ones living in communion with Jesus and each other--will be the face of that vision in the world.

Gospel:

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

This summary statement is about the proclamation of the gospel--"the good news of the kingdom"--to which is linked an outbreak of peace, health, and shalom.  This proclamation of the gospel sets the stage for Jesus' first major speech in Matthew, the Sermon on the Mount, which expresses Jesus' "new law" of how to live out that gospel.  Matthew presents Jesus as "the new Moses" through his gospel.  Jesus is about to speak his "new law" from the mountaintop just as Moses had brought God's law down from a mountaintop in the Torah.

Image:  The Calling of Peter and Andrew, Duccio di Buoninsegna 1308-11, National Gallery of Art, Washington.

²Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. ¹³He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, ¹⁴so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ¹⁵“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— ¹⁶the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”¹⁷From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

¹⁸As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. ¹⁹And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” ²⁰Immediately they left their nets and followed him.²¹As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. ²²Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

²³Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Translation:  But hearing that John had been delivered over, he returned into Galilee.  And leaving Nazareth, he came (and) dwelled in Capernaum by the sea, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali so that it might be fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah, saying, "Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, a way of sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:  the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and to the ones sitting in the region and shadow of death, to them a light has dawned."  From that time, Jesus began to proclaim, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

But walking alongside the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, the one called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people."  And immediately, they left the nets, they followed him.  Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  And immediate they left the boat and their father, (and) followed him.

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

Background and situation:  Mark is the primary source.  (The parallel is Mark 1: 14-20.)  Matthew makes a significant addition to Mark, however, when he follows the report of John's arrest with Jesus moving from Nazareth to Capernaum, along with a citation from the prophet Isaiah.

Matthew also shortens Mark in 4:17.  Mark has:  "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent, and believe the good news."  Matthew eliminates the reference to time (kairos), and has simply:  "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."  (Matthew repeatedly has "kingdom of heaven" where Mark has "kingdom of God."  Nobody knows why.)

In Mark, James and John left their father in the boat "with the hired servants."  Matthew leaves out the reference to "hired servants", which gives the impression that the Zebedee's were perhaps slightly less well-off than might be supposed from reading Mark.

As in Mark, the lection is preceded by Jesus' encounter with Satan in the wilderness.  As soon as he comes out of his time of spiritual testing, Jesus hears that John the Baptist has been arrested.  We know how John's arrest will end.  As in Herod's slaughter of the innocents in chapter two, our thoughts are drawn to official state-sanctioned violence.

Taking up the reins of the movement:  With John in jail, Jesus returns to Galilee.  The NRSV translates anachoresin has "withdrew."  "Returned" would be more accurate and would make more sense.  To say that Jesus "withdrew" into Galilee gives the impression that he is hiding out under the threat of violence.

Just the opposite is true.  Keep in mind:  Going to Galilee means he is moving into the territory governed by Herod Antipas, the very ruler who arrested John.  He is not hiding out.  Quite the contrary.  He's going into the lion's lair!  He is "returning" to the area to take up the reins of the peasant resistance movement in light of the imprisonment of John.

"Leaving Nazareth," Jesus "came to dwell" in Capernaum.  Capernaum was the largest town on the Sea of Galilee, and had the largest harbor.  Boats came and went regularly, plying their trade--and also spreading news throughout the region.  It would have been an excellent "communications center."  Word could travel swiftly from Capernaum throughout the entire region.

Jesus moves from Nazareth, which is south west of the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, which is on the northwest shore--the territory of Naphtali, but not Zebulon.  Matthew knew this perfectly well.  In citing the prophet Isaiah regarding Naphtali and Zebulon, Matthew's purpose is not to say that the Isaiah passage literally prophesies the future.  (If he is, his prophecy is off.)  

One of the things Matthew is doing here is giving a hint of Jesus' later mission to the gentiles.  For the present, Jesus sees his mission as being "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (15:35)  After his encounter with the Canaanite woman in chapter 15, that mission will broaden.  Matthew gives a hint of that here.  The light will indeed come to "Galilee of the gentiles."

Secondly, Matthew also changes the Isaiah text.  The "toward the sea" in Isaiah 9:1-2 refers to the Meditteranean Sea.  Matthew means "by the sea" to be the Sea of Galilee.

In Capernaum, Jesus proclaims, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."  John had said these exact words in "the wilderness of Judea."  Here, Jesus says them in "Galilee of the gentiles."  Not only are John and Jesus in continuity, but the "kingdom of heaven movement" is spreading throughout the region.

"For they were fishermen": 

But walking alongside the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, the one called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people."  And immediately, they left the nets, they followed him.  Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  And immediate they left the boat and their father, (and) followed him.

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

The Sea of Galilee is a large freshwater lake, about 7 miles wide and 13 miles "long."  The shore is dotted with villages connected with the local fishing industry, among which Capernaum was foremost. 

Fishermen of that day did not operate in a "free market" economy.  The fishing industry was state-regulated for the benefit of the urban elite.  These urban elites were Greeks or Romans who had settled in the land of Israel following their military conquests, or they were Jews well-connected with King Herod and his sons.  Everybody else was poor.

Caesar and Herod benefited from the fishing trade in a variety of ways.  For one thing, they sold the fishing leases which entitled local groups to fish in the sea.  Fishing rights generally were awarded not to individuals, but to local "coops" based in kinship--like, for example, the brothers Simon and Andrew, and the Zebedee family.  

In addition, there were taxes on both the fish product and on the processing, as well as tolls on shipping and land transport.  Fisherman were at the bottom of a very detailed economic heirarchy, the main beneficiaries of which were Caesar, then Herod, then major tax collectors. 

Jesus made a strong appeal to local fishermen.  In fact, the known harbors of the Sea of Galilee in the first century strongly correlate with locations where Jesus either lived or traveled--Bethsaida, Capernaum, Gennesar, Magdala, Gadara and Gergasa.  (The original name of Magdala, hometown of Jesus' girlfriend, was Tarichaeae, which means "processed fish-ville."  It was only a few miles south of Capernaum.) 

In addition to collecting taxes, the local tax collector (Matthew?) probably also sold fishing rights, and may have even supplied capital for certain fishermen to build nets or boats.  Naturally, he would charge interest for this service.  It's not for nothing that the subject of "debt" pops up all through the four gospels.

Were fishermen Jesus' base of political support?  Put another way, were fishermen particularly responsive to Jesus' message because of the rigid state-control of their livelihood, and the economic oppression of high taxation?

Forming the new community:  Jesus has just come out of the wilderness.  He has heard the news about John, and deliberately steps into the leadership void caused by John's arrest.  Before he articulates his own message in his signature speech, however, one thing remains to be done:  the formation of a community--the "new community."  

This "new community" is not based on family or economic ties--quite the contrary, in fact;  its first four members left their families and their boat.  The new community is the one based in Jesus.  It will make a formal witness to Jesus' new vision for the world in the upcoming Sermon on the Mount (5:1).  Subsequently, that "new community"--the ones living in communion with Jesus and each other--will be the face of that vision in the world.

Gospel:

And he was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing all disease and all sickness in the people.

This summary statement is about the proclamation of the gospel--"the good news of the kingdom"--to which is linked an outbreak of peace, health, and shalom.  This proclamation of the gospel sets the stage for Jesus' first major speech in Matthew, the Sermon on the Mount, which expresses Jesus' "new law" of how to live out that gospel.  Matthew presents Jesus as "the new Moses" through his gospel.  Jesus is about to speak his "new law" from the mountaintop just as Moses had brought God's law down from a mountaintop in the Torah.

Image:  The Calling of Peter and Andrew, Duccio di Buoninsegna 1308-11, National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Epiphany 2 ::: John 1: 29-42

²⁹The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ³¹I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” ³²And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. ³³I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”
³⁵The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!”

³⁷The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. ³⁸When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?” ³⁹He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o”clock in the afternoon. ⁴⁰One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed). ⁴²He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

Translation:  The next day he sees Jesus coming to him and said, "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who is before me for he was before me.'  I did not know him, but so that he might be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing in water."  And John witnessed, saying, "I have seen the spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it remained upon him.  I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize in water, that one said to me, 'Upon whom you might see the spirit descend and remain on him, this one is the one baptizing in the Holy Spirit.'  I have seen and I have witnessed that this is the son of God."  

The next day, again John was standing, and two of his disciples.  And he looked to Jesus.  Walking around, he said, "Behold the lamb of God."  The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.  Jesus turned and saw them following.  He said to them, "What are you seeking?"  They said to him, "Rabbi, (which is being interpreted, teacher), where are you abiding?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  Then, they came and saw where he dwelt, and alongside him they remained that day.  It was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.  He finds first his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is interpreted, Christ).  He brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked upon him (and) said, "You are Simon, the son of John.  You will be called Cephas" (which is interpreted Petros).

Background and situation:  We are in the fourth gospel.  The lection is preceded by the opening prologue (1:1-18).  Then, in 19-28, John the Baptist says he is not the Messiah (nor Elijah, nor a prophet).  All four gospels insist that John is a subordinate figure to Jesus, but the fourth gospel may take the strongest position of all.  Six verses into the prologue--right off the bat!--we had already been pointedly told that John "himself was not the light," which John himself affirms.

Immediately following, in today's lection, John (again) testifies to the higher "rank" of Jesus.  He was "before me," John says, perhaps another reference to Jesus' pre-existence already stated in verse one:  "In the beginning was the Word."

Lamb of God:  John is lauded as a "witness" (1:7), which is high praise in the fourth gospel.  To what does John "witness"?  "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."  Israel had already heard of the "suffering servant" (Isaiah 53) who would "bear the sins of many."  In the fourth gospel, the Lamb takes away the sin of the world.

The "paschal lamb" is the sacrifice mandated by Torah at passover.  Later in the fourth gospel, Jesus will be condemned to death at noon on the day before passover, the precise time when passover lambs were slain in the Temple.  (Ray Brown says that the hyssop Jesus was offered on the cross (19:29) is also the hyssop that was smeared with the blood of the paschal lamb which was then applied to the doorposts of the Israelites (Ex 12:22).  The fourth gospel likes passover themes.)

The Lamb of God takes away the sin of the world--note the singular.  Here, sin is viewed as something of a cosmic power, a view which also appears in Paul.  The Lamb defeats the enslaving power of sin.  It's about cosmic victory, in other words, and not about the snarky remark you made to Aunt Freda about her new hat.  Note, too, that there is no sacrificial language here, which Ray Brown also notes and, good Catholic that he is, doesn't like.

John's witness:  This is the fourth gospel's narrative of the baptism of Jesus.  But, no baptism!  Why not?  Mark says that John's baptism was a "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."  In my view, the author of the fourth gospel knew Mark, but rejects his language, and, indeed, the entire baptism.  For the fourth gospel, it is only the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

In Mark, the heavens were torn apart and the Spirit "descended like a dove" on Jesus.  In the fourth gospel, the Spirit descended "out of heaven"--ek ouranou--and "abided"--emeinen--on Jesus.  The root word menein--abiding, remaining--is a major concept in the fourth gospel.  Jesus "abides" with his people, and his people "abide" in him.

Unlike the synoptics, there is no voice from heaven.  Rather, John is a witness, as stated earlier in verse 8:  "he came to testify to the light."  Here he "witnesses"--martureo--that “he on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” 

Wes Howard-Brock notes that the Johannine community was trying to "establish its credibility" with the "emerging apostolic Christian authority" represented by people such as Peter and Paul, both of whom "saw" Jesus.  The author of the fourth gospel is also a "disciple-witness," and his (or her) witness is trustworthy.  "This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true (21:24)."  Believing on the basis of witness is highly prized in the fourth gospel (20:29).

What are you seeking?:

The next day, again John was standing, and two of his disciples.  And he looked to Jesus.  Walking around, he said, "Behold the lamb of God."  The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.  Jesus turned and saw them following.  He said to them, "What are you seeking?"  They said to him, "Rabbi, (which is being interpreted, teacher), where are you abiding?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  Then, they came and saw where he dwelt, and alongside him they remained that day.  It was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.  He finds first his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is interpreted, Christ).  He brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked upon him (and) said, "You are Simon, the son of John.  You will be called Cephas" (which is interpreted Petros).

Based on John's witness, two of John's own disciples follow Jesus.  One is identified as Andrew, the other is unidentified.  Some say this person is actually the Beloved Disciple and author of the book.  In any case, the movement is away from John and toward Jesus.  As John will later say, "He must increase, I must decrease" (3:30). 

Jesus "turns" to them--in the fourth gospel, a sign of deepening relationship (20:16).  He asks what they are "seeking"--zeteite.  The word is used 23 times in the fourth gospel.  Some seek the way of God, and some seek to advance their own position (7:18).  Jesus asks a direct question that speaks to the heart of the human experience--"What are you seeking?"--and is not unlike God's first utterance to human beings in the book of Genesis:  "Where are you?"

The two disciples call Jesus "rabbi," a term that likely was not used before the destruction of the Temple in AD 70.  Nevertheless, the fourth gospel tells us that "rabbi" means "teacher."  The two disciples acknowledge Jesus as a spiritual leader, but want to know where he is "abiding, dwelling, staying"--menein, again.  How committed is he, and in what cause? 

Jesus tells them to "come and see."  "Seeing" has a lot of resonance in the fourth gospel.  To "see" is to trust and to follow.  (See the story of the man born blind in chapter 9.)  What do these two disciples "see" in this case?  They "see" where Jesus is "staying"--menein--and they "stay"--menein--with him. 

We are not told "where" this was.  Reading the text, you look for some identifiable place, some aspect of geography.  We are not given a "where," but rather a "when"--not a spatial reference, but a temporal one:  "It was about the tenth hour."  Odd.  Jesus is already co-mingling essential categories and he's just getting started!

Andrew and Simon Peter:  The first disciple in the fourth gospel--Andrew--is identified by his relationship to his more famous brother, Simon Peter.  (I like to think of the orthodox church in Delta, Colorado, the formal name of which is "The Orthodox Church of Saint Andrew, the First-Called Apostle.") 

Andrew refers to Jesus as "Messiah," with a helpful translation for non-Hebrew readers--"Christ".  This is now the third title for Jesus in this brief lection--"Lamb of God," "rabbi," and now "Messiah"--all of them Israel-centric and none of which are spoken by Jesus himself.  (Jesus will make his own self-referential identification later.)  Taken together, these titles "witness" to the total fulfillment of God's covenant with Israel in Jesus.

Simon Peter is referred to five times in just two verses.  He is identified, first, as Andrew's brother with the name Simon Peter.  Next, "Simon Peter" is reduced to the elemental "Simon."  After Jesus "looked upon him," Jesus calls him "Simon, son of John," who is then called "Cephas," then "Peter."  Jesus refers to him first in terms of his familial association, that most basic old world connection, then refers to him in terms of his new name, Cephas, symbolic of his being made a new person.  

Taken as a whole, we are given a complete identification of Peter.  We are told who he is both in this world and the world to come.  We should not be surprised.  As the fourth gospel had said in the beginning, "The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world (1:9)." 

Image:  Het lam Gods, Paul Werner

 

²⁹The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ³¹I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” ³²And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. ³³I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”
³⁵The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!”

³⁷The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. ³⁸When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?” ³⁹He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o”clock in the afternoon. ⁴⁰One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed). ⁴²He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

Translation:  The next day he sees Jesus coming to him and said, "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who is before me for he was before me.'  I did not know him, but so that he might be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing in water."  And John witnessed, saying, "I have seen the spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it remained upon him.  I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize in water, that one said to me, 'Upon whom you might see the spirit descend and remain on him, this one is the one baptizing in the Holy Spirit.'  I have seen and I have witnessed that this is the son of God."  

The next day, again John was standing, and two of his disciples.  And he looked to Jesus.  Walking around, he said, "Behold the lamb of God."  The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.  Jesus turned and saw them following.  He said to them, "What are you seeking?"  They said to him, "Rabbi, (which is being interpreted, teacher), where are you abiding?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  Then, they came and saw where he dwelt, and alongside him they remained that day.  It was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.  He finds first his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is interpreted, Christ).  He brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked upon him (and) said, "You are Simon, the son of John.  You will be called Cephas" (which is interpreted Petros).

Background and situation:  We are in the fourth gospel.  The lection is preceded by the opening prologue (1:1-18).  Then, in 19-28, John the Baptist says he is not the Messiah (nor Elijah, nor a prophet).  All four gospels insist that John is a subordinate figure to Jesus, but the fourth gospel may take the strongest position of all.  Six verses into the prologue--right off the bat!--we had already been pointedly told that John "himself was not the light," which John himself affirms.

Immediately following, in today's lection, John (again) testifies to the higher "rank" of Jesus.  He was "before me," John says, perhaps another reference to Jesus' pre-existence already stated in verse one:  "In the beginning was the Word."

Lamb of God:  John is lauded as a "witness" (1:7), which is high praise in the fourth gospel.  To what does John "witness"?  "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."  Israel had already heard of the "suffering servant" (Isaiah 53) who would "bear the sins of many."  In the fourth gospel, the Lamb takes away the sin of the world.

The "paschal lamb" is the sacrifice mandated by Torah at passover.  Later in the fourth gospel, Jesus will be condemned to death at noon on the day before passover, the precise time when passover lambs were slain in the Temple.  (Ray Brown says that the hyssop Jesus was offered on the cross (19:29) is also the hyssop that was smeared with the blood of the paschal lamb which was then applied to the doorposts of the Israelites (Ex 12:22).  The fourth gospel likes passover themes.)

The Lamb of God takes away the sin of the world--note the singular.  Here, sin is viewed as something of a cosmic power, a view which also appears in Paul.  The Lamb defeats the enslaving power of sin.  It's about cosmic victory, in other words, and not about the snarky remark you made to Aunt Freda about her new hat.  Note, too, that there is no sacrificial language here, which Ray Brown also notes and, good Catholic that he is, doesn't like.

John's witness:  This is the fourth gospel's narrative of the baptism of Jesus.  But, no baptism!  Why not?  Mark says that John's baptism was a "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."  In my view, the author of the fourth gospel knew Mark, but rejects his language, and, indeed, the entire baptism.  For the fourth gospel, it is only the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

In Mark, the heavens were torn apart and the Spirit "descended like a dove" on Jesus.  In the fourth gospel, the Spirit descended "out of heaven"--ek ouranou--and "abided"--emeinen--on Jesus.  The root word menein--abiding, remaining--is a major concept in the fourth gospel.  Jesus "abides" with his people, and his people "abide" in him.

Unlike the synoptics, there is no voice from heaven.  Rather, John is a witness, as stated earlier in verse 8:  "he came to testify to the light."  Here he "witnesses"--martureo--that “he on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” 

Wes Howard-Brock notes that the Johannine community was trying to "establish its credibility" with the "emerging apostolic Christian authority" represented by people such as Peter and Paul, both of whom "saw" Jesus.  The author of the fourth gospel is also a "disciple-witness," and his (or her) witness is trustworthy.  "This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true (21:24)."  Believing on the basis of witness is highly prized in the fourth gospel (20:29).

What are you seeking?:

The next day, again John was standing, and two of his disciples.  And he looked to Jesus.  Walking around, he said, "Behold the lamb of God."  The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.  Jesus turned and saw them following.  He said to them, "What are you seeking?"  They said to him, "Rabbi, (which is being interpreted, teacher), where are you abiding?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  Then, they came and saw where he dwelt, and alongside him they remained that day.  It was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.  He finds first his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is interpreted, Christ).  He brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked upon him (and) said, "You are Simon, the son of John.  You will be called Cephas" (which is interpreted Petros).

Based on John's witness, two of John's own disciples follow Jesus.  One is identified as Andrew, the other is unidentified.  Some say this person is actually the Beloved Disciple and author of the book.  In any case, the movement is away from John and toward Jesus.  As John will later say, "He must increase, I must decrease" (3:30). 

Jesus "turns" to them--in the fourth gospel, a sign of deepening relationship (20:16).  He asks what they are "seeking"--zeteite.  The word is used 23 times in the fourth gospel.  Some seek the way of God, and some seek to advance their own position (7:18).  Jesus asks a direct question that speaks to the heart of the human experience--"What are you seeking?"--and is not unlike God's first utterance to human beings in the book of Genesis:  "Where are you?"

The two disciples call Jesus "rabbi," a term that likely was not used before the destruction of the Temple in AD 70.  Nevertheless, the fourth gospel tells us that "rabbi" means "teacher."  The two disciples acknowledge Jesus as a spiritual leader, but want to know where he is "abiding, dwelling, staying"--menein, again.  How committed is he, and in what cause? 

Jesus tells them to "come and see."  "Seeing" has a lot of resonance in the fourth gospel.  To "see" is to trust and to follow.  (See the story of the man born blind in chapter 9.)  What do these two disciples "see" in this case?  They "see" where Jesus is "staying"--menein--and they "stay"--menein--with him. 

We are not told "where" this was.  Reading the text, you look for some identifiable place, some aspect of geography.  We are not given a "where," but rather a "when"--not a spatial reference, but a temporal one:  "It was about the tenth hour."  Odd.  Jesus is already co-mingling essential categories and he's just getting started!

Andrew and Simon Peter:  The first disciple in the fourth gospel--Andrew--is identified by his relationship to his more famous brother, Simon Peter.  (I like to think of the orthodox church in Delta, Colorado, the formal name of which is "The Orthodox Church of Saint Andrew, the First-Called Apostle.") 

Andrew refers to Jesus as "Messiah," with a helpful translation for non-Hebrew readers--"Christ".  This is now the third title for Jesus in this brief lection--"Lamb of God," "rabbi," and now "Messiah"--all of them Israel-centric and none of which are spoken by Jesus himself.  (Jesus will make his own self-referential identification later.)  Taken together, these titles "witness" to the total fulfillment of God's covenant with Israel in Jesus.

Simon Peter is referred to five times in just two verses.  He is identified, first, as Andrew's brother with the name Simon Peter.  Next, "Simon Peter" is reduced to the elemental "Simon."  After Jesus "looked upon him," Jesus calls him "Simon, son of John," who is then called "Cephas," then "Peter."  Jesus refers to him first in terms of his familial association, that most basic old world connection, then refers to him in terms of his new name, Cephas, symbolic of his being made a new person.  

Taken as a whole, we are given a complete identification of Peter.  We are told who he is both in this world and the world to come.  We should not be surprised.  As the fourth gospel had said in the beginning, "The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world (1:9)." 

Image:  Het lam Gods, Paul Werner

²⁹The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ³¹I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” ³²And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. ³³I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”
³⁵The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!”

³⁷The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. ³⁸When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?” ³⁹He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o”clock in the afternoon. ⁴⁰One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed). ⁴²He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

Translation:  The next day he sees Jesus coming to him and said, "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who is before me for he was before me.'  I did not know him, but so that he might be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing in water."  And John witnessed, saying, "I have seen the spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it remained upon him.  I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize in water, that one said to me, 'Upon whom you might see the spirit descend and remain on him, this one is the one baptizing in the Holy Spirit.'  I have seen and I have witnessed that this is the son of God."  

The next day, again John was standing, and two of his disciples.  And he looked to Jesus.  Walking around, he said, "Behold the lamb of God."  The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.  Jesus turned and saw them following.  He said to them, "What are you seeking?"  They said to him, "Rabbi, (which is being interpreted, teacher), where are you abiding?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  Then, they came and saw where he dwelt, and alongside him they remained that day.  It was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.  He finds first his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is interpreted, Christ).  He brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked upon him (and) said, "You are Simon, the son of John.  You will be called Cephas" (which is interpreted Petros).

Background and situation:  We are in the fourth gospel.  The lection is preceded by the opening prologue (1:1-18).  Then, in 19-28, John the Baptist says he is not the Messiah (nor Elijah, nor a prophet).  All four gospels insist that John is a subordinate figure to Jesus, but the fourth gospel may take the strongest position of all.  Six verses into the prologue--right off the bat!--we had already been pointedly told that John "himself was not the light," which John himself affirms.

Immediately following, in today's lection, John (again) testifies to the higher "rank" of Jesus.  He was "before me," John says, perhaps another reference to Jesus' pre-existence already stated in verse one:  "In the beginning was the Word."

Lamb of God:  John is lauded as a "witness" (1:7), which is high praise in the fourth gospel.  To what does John "witness"?  "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."  Israel had already heard of the "suffering servant" (Isaiah 53) who would "bear the sins of many."  In the fourth gospel, the Lamb takes away the sin of the world.

The "paschal lamb" is the sacrifice mandated by Torah at passover.  Later in the fourth gospel, Jesus will be condemned to death at noon on the day before passover, the precise time when passover lambs were slain in the Temple.  (Ray Brown says that the hyssop Jesus was offered on the cross (19:29) is also the hyssop that was smeared with the blood of the paschal lamb which was then applied to the doorposts of the Israelites (Ex 12:22).  The fourth gospel likes passover themes.)

The Lamb of God takes away the sin of the world--note the singular.  Here, sin is viewed as something of a cosmic power, a view which also appears in Paul.  The Lamb defeats the enslaving power of sin.  It's about cosmic victory, in other words, and not about the snarky remark you made to Aunt Freda about her new hat.  Note, too, that there is no sacrificial language here, which Ray Brown also notes and, good Catholic that he is, doesn't like.

John's witness:  This is the fourth gospel's narrative of the baptism of Jesus.  But, no baptism!  Why not?  Mark says that John's baptism was a "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."  In my view, the author of the fourth gospel knew Mark, but rejects his language, and, indeed, the entire baptism.  For the fourth gospel, it is only the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

In Mark, the heavens were torn apart and the Spirit "descended like a dove" on Jesus.  In the fourth gospel, the Spirit descended "out of heaven"--ek ouranou--and "abided"--emeinen--on Jesus.  The root word menein--abiding, remaining--is a major concept in the fourth gospel.  Jesus "abides" with his people, and his people "abide" in him.

Unlike the synoptics, there is no voice from heaven.  Rather, John is a witness, as stated earlier in verse 8:  "he came to testify to the light."  Here he "witnesses"--martureo--that “he on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” 

Wes Howard-Brock notes that the Johannine community was trying to "establish its credibility" with the "emerging apostolic Christian authority" represented by people such as Peter and Paul, both of whom "saw" Jesus.  The author of the fourth gospel is also a "disciple-witness," and his (or her) witness is trustworthy.  "This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true (21:24)."  Believing on the basis of witness is highly prized in the fourth gospel (20:29).

What are you seeking?:

The next day, again John was standing, and two of his disciples.  And he looked to Jesus.  Walking around, he said, "Behold the lamb of God."  The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.  Jesus turned and saw them following.  He said to them, "What are you seeking?"  They said to him, "Rabbi, (which is being interpreted, teacher), where are you abiding?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  Then, they came and saw where he dwelt, and alongside him they remained that day.  It was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.  He finds first his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is interpreted, Christ).  He brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked upon him (and) said, "You are Simon, the son of John.  You will be called Cephas" (which is interpreted Petros).

Based on John's witness, two of John's own disciples follow Jesus.  One is identified as Andrew, the other is unidentified.  Some say this person is actually the Beloved Disciple and author of the book.  In any case, the movement is away from John and toward Jesus.  As John will later say, "He must increase, I must decrease" (3:30). 

Jesus "turns" to them--in the fourth gospel, a sign of deepening relationship (20:16).  He asks what they are "seeking"--zeteite.  The word is used 23 times in the fourth gospel.  Some seek the way of God, and some seek to advance their own position (7:18).  Jesus asks a direct question that speaks to the heart of the human experience--"What are you seeking?"--and is not unlike God's first utterance to human beings in the book of Genesis:  "Where are you?"

The two disciples call Jesus "rabbi," a term that likely was not used before the destruction of the Temple in AD 70.  Nevertheless, the fourth gospel tells us that "rabbi" means "teacher."  The two disciples acknowledge Jesus as a spiritual leader, but want to know where he is "abiding, dwelling, staying"--menein, again.  How committed is he, and in what cause? 

Jesus tells them to "come and see."  "Seeing" has a lot of resonance in the fourth gospel.  To "see" is to trust and to follow.  (See the story of the man born blind in chapter 9.)  What do these two disciples "see" in this case?  They "see" where Jesus is "staying"--menein--and they "stay"--menein--with him. 

We are not told "where" this was.  Reading the text, you look for some identifiable place, some aspect of geography.  We are not given a "where," but rather a "when"--not a spatial reference, but a temporal one:  "It was about the tenth hour."  Odd.  Jesus is already co-mingling essential categories and he's just getting started!

Andrew and Simon Peter:  The first disciple in the fourth gospel--Andrew--is identified by his relationship to his more famous brother, Simon Peter.  (I like to think of the orthodox church in Delta, Colorado, the formal name of which is "The Orthodox Church of Saint Andrew, the First-Called Apostle.") 

Andrew refers to Jesus as "Messiah," with a helpful translation for non-Hebrew readers--"Christ".  This is now the third title for Jesus in this brief lection--"Lamb of God," "rabbi," and now "Messiah"--all of them Israel-centric and none of which are spoken by Jesus himself.  (Jesus will make his own self-referential identification later.)  Taken together, these titles "witness" to the total fulfillment of God's covenant with Israel in Jesus.

Simon Peter is referred to five times in just two verses.  He is identified, first, as Andrew's brother with the name Simon Peter.  Next, "Simon Peter" is reduced to the elemental "Simon."  After Jesus "looked upon him," Jesus calls him "Simon, son of John," who is then called "Cephas," then "Peter."  Jesus refers to him first in terms of his familial association, that most basic old world connection, then refers to him in terms of his new name, Cephas, symbolic of his being made a new person.  

Taken as a whole, we are given a complete identification of Peter.  We are told who he is both in this world and the world to come.  We should not be surprised.  As the fourth gospel had said in the beginning, "The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world (1:9)." 

Image:  Het lam Gods, Paul Werner

Baptism of Our Lord ::: Matthew 3: 13-17

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’¹⁵But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.’ Then he consented.

¹⁶And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. ¹⁷And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’

Translation:  Then comes Jesus from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized under him, but he forbade him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Let it be so for now, for in this manner it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he let it be.

And, having been baptized, Jesus immediately was raised from the water, and behold! the heavens were opened and he saw the spirit of God coming down like a dove, coming upon him.  And behold! a voice out of heaven says, "This one is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased."

Background and situation:  Our lection contains the first utterance of Jesus in Matthew's gospel.  First remarks are telling in all four gospels. 

In Mark, Jesus' first words are, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near.  Repent, and believe in the good news."  Put another way:  "The kairotic moment is now, God's reign is here, turn around your lives, trust the gospel"--all major themes of Mark's gospel. 

In Luke, Jesus first words are to read from the prophet Isaiah: 

‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
   because he has anointed me
     to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
   and recovery of sight to the blind,
     to let the oppressed go free, 
¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’

This fits well with Lukan themes such as an emphasis on the Holy Spirit, the prophetic mission of Jesus, help for the poor, healing as a sign of the kingdom, freedom from political oppression, and the connection of Jesus to the Jubilee year.  (The Jubilee year--"the year of the Lord's favor"--was to be marked by the cancellation of debt and return of property to its original owner.  In his version of the Lord's Prayer, Luke has "debts," and he means money.)

In the fourth gospel, Jesus' first words are addressed to two disciples who were following him.  He says, "What are you looking for?"  This is evocative of the first words of God--"Where are you?"--spoken to Adam and Eve in Genesis.  There are several such connections with Genesis in John's gospel.  The soaring introduction (1: 1-14) recalls the beginning of Genesis, as does Jesus' resurrection in a garden.

Matthew's agenda is different.  The first words of Jesus in Matthew are:  "Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness."  The first phrase is aphes arti.  Aphes, of course, is also translated as "release" or "forgive."  (Aphes will be used a lot in Matthew's gospel.)

The issue of the Baptist:  The "for now" part is how Matthew handles the issue of John the Baptist.  The baptism of Jesus by John was a bit of an issue in the early church.  You can tell by the squeamishness with which the story is told in all four gospels.  Mark relates the actual baptism in the passive voice, and puts the focus squarely on the voice from heaven, as does Matthew. 

Matthew adds to Mark the dialog in which John tries to talk Jesus out of being baptized by him.  Luke says only that Jesus was baptized, but doesn't mention that it was John who did the baptism.  (In the verse just prior to the baptism in Luke's gospel, John is in prison!)  The fourth gospel doesn't mention the baptism at all, only that the Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove.

John's baptism implied a hierarchical relationship.  The baptizer is senior to the baptizee.  John himself recognizes this in Matthew's gospel, and says that Jesus should instead baptize him.  He should be subordinate to Jesus.  Matthew drums this in with his use of the imperfect:  "John kept preventing him."  (Thus, we have somewhat of a theological Alphonse and Gaston routine:  "You first."  "No, you first.")

John is right, of course.  Baptism was for sinners (3:6).  If that's so, what's Jesus doing here?  What John needs is to be baptized by Jesus--"with the Holy Spirit and with fire" (3:11)--not for Jesus to baptized, "confessing (his) sins." 

John is right about that, but misunderstands the nature of God's mission.  God's reign will not be about John's fiery images of judgment for sinners, but rather God's "full immersion" into the trials and tribulations of his people.  

The baptism of Jesus:  Jesus' entry into the river recalls the Hebrew peoples' entrance into the Promised Land.  In solidarity with them, Jesus stands in line with sinners.  Jesus' mission will not be punishment of sinners, but identification with sinners.

This should be considered:  John's request that Jesus baptize him would have been to affirm hierarchical relationships, the senior partner initiating the junior one.  Hierarchical relationships are all upended in the new reign of God.  "The last shall be first," after all, "and the first shall be last" (20:16).  Jesus' solidarity with sinners is, in God's upside-down way, the superior position.   

But release it, Jesus says.  "Let it go for now."  (John then "let it go"--aphes, again.)  Why?  Because "it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness."  (Note the "for us."  Jesus sees John as a partner in this enterprise, neither a superior nor an inferior.) 

Righteousness is a key theme throughout Matthew's gospel.  In Jesus' first quoted utterance, Matthew puts the word right on Jesus' lips--"fulfill all righteousness."  "Fulfill"--pleroma--is a word Matthew often associates with the prophets.  "All righteousness"--the totality of it--is Jesus' solidarity with sinners, and in service to them.  As Jesus will explain later (20:28):

‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. ²⁶It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; ²⁸just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’

The actual baptism of Jesus is described briefly and, as in Mark, in the passive voice.  "Having been baptized, Jesus immediately ascended from the water," recalling both resurrection and the creation of the world.  He is the "new creation."

Then follow two "behold" statements--idou--unfortunately not translated in the New Revised Standard Version, which translates idou with the rather lame "see."  (Which is better?  The emphatic "Behold!  I bring you good tidings of great joy!"  Or, "See, I bring you good tidings of great joy.") 

Matthew uses idou to announce something important.  "Behold!  The heavens were opened."  This is a moment of special revelation.  The abyss between heaven and earth is traversed.  "And the spirit of God descended like a dove on him." 

Said the prophet Isaiah, "Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down" (64:1)  In continuity with the vision of Isaiah, God does come down, all the way down into the muck and mire of human existance.  Moreover, God comes down not with John's fire, but as a dove, with peace.

Then another "Behold!"  "A voice out of heaven saying, 'This one is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased."  God is saying that Jesus is the expression--the earthly issue--of God's very self.  God is not saying anything about trinitarian theology, a subject which, if we go by the scriptures, does not interest God all that much.  God is putting the imprimatur on Jesus.  In the way of Jesus, in his service on behalf of sinners, in his identification with sinners, we see the expressed desire of God himself.

Image:  The River, John August Swanson

 

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’¹⁵But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.’ Then he consented.

¹⁶And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. ¹⁷And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’

Translation:  Then comes Jesus from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized under him, but he forbade him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Let it be so for now, for in this manner it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he let it be.

And, having been baptized, Jesus immediately was raised from the water, and behold! the heavens were opened and he saw the spirit of God coming down like a dove, coming upon him.  And behold! a voice out of heaven says, "This one is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased."

Background and situation:  Our lection contains the first utterance of Jesus in Matthew's gospel.  First remarks are telling in all four gospels. 

In Mark, Jesus' first words are, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near.  Repent, and believe in the good news."  Put another way:  "The kairotic moment is now, God's reign is here, turn around your lives, trust the gospel"--all major themes of Mark's gospel. 

In Luke, Jesus first words are to read from the prophet Isaiah: 

‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
   because he has anointed me
     to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
   and recovery of sight to the blind,
     to let the oppressed go free, 
¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’

This fits well with Lukan themes such as an emphasis on the Holy Spirit, the prophetic mission of Jesus, help for the poor, healing as a sign of the kingdom, freedom from political oppression, and the connection of Jesus to the Jubilee year.  (The Jubilee year--"the year of the Lord's favor"--was to be marked by the cancellation of debt and return of property to its original owner.  In his version of the Lord's Prayer, Luke has "debts," and he means money.)

In the fourth gospel, Jesus' first words are addressed to two disciples who were following him.  He says, "What are you looking for?"  This is evocative of the first words of God--"Where are you?"--spoken to Adam and Eve in Genesis.  There are several such connections with Genesis in John's gospel.  The soaring introduction (1: 1-14) recalls the beginning of Genesis, as does Jesus' resurrection in a garden.

Matthew's agenda is different.  The first words of Jesus in Matthew are:  "Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness."  The first phrase is aphes arti.  Aphes, of course, is also translated as "release" or "forgive."  (Aphes will be used a lot in Matthew's gospel.)

The issue of the Baptist:  The "for now" part is how Matthew handles the issue of John the Baptist.  The baptism of Jesus by John was a bit of an issue in the early church.  You can tell by the squeamishness with which the story is told in all four gospels.  Mark relates the actual baptism in the passive voice, and puts the focus squarely on the voice from heaven, as does Matthew. 

Matthew adds to Mark the dialog in which John tries to talk Jesus out of being baptized by him.  Luke says only that Jesus was baptized, but doesn't mention that it was John who did the baptism.  (In the verse just prior to the baptism in Luke's gospel, John is in prison!)  The fourth gospel doesn't mention the baptism at all, only that the Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove.

John's baptism implied a hierarchical relationship.  The baptizer is senior to the baptizee.  John himself recognizes this in Matthew's gospel, and says that Jesus should instead baptize him.  He should be subordinate to Jesus.  Matthew drums this in with his use of the imperfect:  "John kept preventing him."  (Thus, we have somewhat of a theological Alphonse and Gaston routine:  "You first."  "No, you first.")

John is right, of course.  Baptism was for sinners (3:6).  If that's so, what's Jesus doing here?  What John needs is to be baptized by Jesus--"with the Holy Spirit and with fire" (3:11)--not for Jesus to baptized, "confessing (his) sins." 

John is right about that, but misunderstands the nature of God's mission.  God's reign will not be about John's fiery images of judgment for sinners, but rather God's "full immersion" into the trials and tribulations of his people.  

The baptism of Jesus:  Jesus' entry into the river recalls the Hebrew peoples' entrance into the Promised Land.  In solidarity with them, Jesus stands in line with sinners.  Jesus' mission will not be punishment of sinners, but identification with sinners.

This should be considered:  John's request that Jesus baptize him would have been to affirm hierarchical relationships, the senior partner initiating the junior one.  Hierarchical relationships are all upended in the new reign of God.  "The last shall be first," after all, "and the first shall be last" (20:16).  Jesus' solidarity with sinners is, in God's upside-down way, the superior position.   

But release it, Jesus says.  "Let it go for now."  (John then "let it go"--aphes, again.)  Why?  Because "it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness."  (Note the "for us."  Jesus sees John as a partner in this enterprise, neither a superior nor an inferior.) 

Righteousness is a key theme throughout Matthew's gospel.  In Jesus' first quoted utterance, Matthew puts the word right on Jesus' lips--"fulfill all righteousness."  "Fulfill"--pleroma--is a word Matthew often associates with the prophets.  "All righteousness"--the totality of it--is Jesus' solidarity with sinners, and in service to them.  As Jesus will explain later (20:28):

‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. ²⁶It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; ²⁸just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’

The actual baptism of Jesus is described briefly and, as in Mark, in the passive voice.  "Having been baptized, Jesus immediately ascended from the water," recalling both resurrection and the creation of the world.  He is the "new creation."

Then follow two "behold" statements--idou--unfortunately not translated in the New Revised Standard Version, which translates idou with the rather lame "see."  (Which is better?  The emphatic "Behold!  I bring you good tidings of great joy!"  Or, "See, I bring you good tidings of great joy.") 

Matthew uses idou to announce something important.  "Behold!  The heavens were opened."  This is a moment of special revelation.  The abyss between heaven and earth is traversed.  "And the spirit of God descended like a dove on him." 

Said the prophet Isaiah, "Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down" (64:1)  In continuity with the vision of Isaiah, God does come down, all the way down into the muck and mire of human existance.  Moreover, God comes down not with John's fire, but as a dove, with peace.

Then another "Behold!"  "A voice out of heaven saying, 'This one is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased."  God is saying that Jesus is the expression--the earthly issue--of God's very self.  God is not saying anything about trinitarian theology, a subject which, if we go by the scriptures, does not interest God all that much.  God is putting the imprimatur on Jesus.  In the way of Jesus, in his service on behalf of sinners, in his identification with sinners, we see the expressed desire of God himself.

Image:  The River, John August Swanson

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’¹⁵But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.’ Then he consented.

¹⁶And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. ¹⁷And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’

Translation:  Then comes Jesus from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized under him, but he forbade him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Let it be so for now, for in this manner it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he let it be.

And, having been baptized, Jesus immediately was raised from the water, and behold! the heavens were opened and he saw the spirit of God coming down like a dove, coming upon him.  And behold! a voice out of heaven says, "This one is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased."

Background and situation:  Our lection contains the first utterance of Jesus in Matthew's gospel.  First remarks are telling in all four gospels. 

In Mark, Jesus' first words are, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near.  Repent, and believe in the good news."  Put another way:  "The kairotic moment is now, God's reign is here, turn around your lives, trust the gospel"--all major themes of Mark's gospel. 

In Luke, Jesus first words are to read from the prophet Isaiah: 

‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
   because he has anointed me
     to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
   and recovery of sight to the blind,
     to let the oppressed go free, 
¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’

This fits well with Lukan themes such as an emphasis on the Holy Spirit, the prophetic mission of Jesus, help for the poor, healing as a sign of the kingdom, freedom from political oppression, and the connection of Jesus to the Jubilee year.  (The Jubilee year--"the year of the Lord's favor"--was to be marked by the cancellation of debt and return of property to its original owner.  In his version of the Lord's Prayer, Luke has "debts," and he means money.)

In the fourth gospel, Jesus' first words are addressed to two disciples who were following him.  He says, "What are you looking for?"  This is evocative of the first words of God--"Where are you?"--spoken to Adam and Eve in Genesis.  There are several such connections with Genesis in John's gospel.  The soaring introduction (1: 1-14) recalls the beginning of Genesis, as does Jesus' resurrection in a garden.

Matthew's agenda is different.  The first words of Jesus in Matthew are:  "Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness."  The first phrase is aphes arti.  Aphes, of course, is also translated as "release" or "forgive."  (Aphes will be used a lot in Matthew's gospel.)

The issue of the Baptist:  The "for now" part is how Matthew handles the issue of John the Baptist.  The baptism of Jesus by John was a bit of an issue in the early church.  You can tell by the squeamishness with which the story is told in all four gospels.  Mark relates the actual baptism in the passive voice, and puts the focus squarely on the voice from heaven, as does Matthew. 

Matthew adds to Mark the dialog in which John tries to talk Jesus out of being baptized by him.  Luke says only that Jesus was baptized, but doesn't mention that it was John who did the baptism.  (In the verse just prior to the baptism in Luke's gospel, John is in prison!)  The fourth gospel doesn't mention the baptism at all, only that the Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove.

John's baptism implied a hierarchical relationship.  The baptizer is senior to the baptizee.  John himself recognizes this in Matthew's gospel, and says that Jesus should instead baptize him.  He should be subordinate to Jesus.  Matthew drums this in with his use of the imperfect:  "John kept preventing him."  (Thus, we have somewhat of a theological Alphonse and Gaston routine:  "You first."  "No, you first.")

John is right, of course.  Baptism was for sinners (3:6).  If that's so, what's Jesus doing here?  What John needs is to be baptized by Jesus--"with the Holy Spirit and with fire" (3:11)--not for Jesus to baptized, "confessing (his) sins." 

John is right about that, but misunderstands the nature of God's mission.  God's reign will not be about John's fiery images of judgment for sinners, but rather God's "full immersion" into the trials and tribulations of his people.  

The baptism of Jesus:  Jesus' entry into the river recalls the Hebrew peoples' entrance into the Promised Land.  In solidarity with them, Jesus stands in line with sinners.  Jesus' mission will not be punishment of sinners, but identification with sinners.

This should be considered:  John's request that Jesus baptize him would have been to affirm hierarchical relationships, the senior partner initiating the junior one.  Hierarchical relationships are all upended in the new reign of God.  "The last shall be first," after all, "and the first shall be last" (20:16).  Jesus' solidarity with sinners is, in God's upside-down way, the superior position.   

But release it, Jesus says.  "Let it go for now."  (John then "let it go"--aphes, again.)  Why?  Because "it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness."  (Note the "for us."  Jesus sees John as a partner in this enterprise, neither a superior nor an inferior.) 

Righteousness is a key theme throughout Matthew's gospel.  In Jesus' first quoted utterance, Matthew puts the word right on Jesus' lips--"fulfill all righteousness."  "Fulfill"--pleroma--is a word Matthew often associates with the prophets.  "All righteousness"--the totality of it--is Jesus' solidarity with sinners, and in service to them.  As Jesus will explain later (20:28):

‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. ²⁶It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; ²⁸just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’

The actual baptism of Jesus is described briefly and, as in Mark, in the passive voice.  "Having been baptized, Jesus immediately ascended from the water," recalling both resurrection and the creation of the world.  He is the "new creation."

Then follow two "behold" statements--idou--unfortunately not translated in the New Revised Standard Version, which translates idou with the rather lame "see."  (Which is better?  The emphatic "Behold!  I bring you good tidings of great joy!"  Or, "See, I bring you good tidings of great joy.") 

Matthew uses idou to announce something important.  "Behold!  The heavens were opened."  This is a moment of special revelation.  The abyss between heaven and earth is traversed.  "And the spirit of God descended like a dove on him." 

Said the prophet Isaiah, "Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down" (64:1)  In continuity with the vision of Isaiah, God does come down, all the way down into the muck and mire of human existance.  Moreover, God comes down not with John's fire, but as a dove, with peace.

Then another "Behold!"  "A voice out of heaven saying, 'This one is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased."  God is saying that Jesus is the expression--the earthly issue--of God's very self.  God is not saying anything about trinitarian theology, a subject which, if we go by the scriptures, does not interest God all that much.  God is putting the imprimatur on Jesus.  In the way of Jesus, in his service on behalf of sinners, in his identification with sinners, we see the expressed desire of God himself.

Image:  The River, John August Swanson

Christmas 2 ::: John 1: 1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

Translation:  In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and God was the Word.  This (Word) was in the beginning with God.  All came into being through him, and apart from him nothing happened in that which begins.  In him was life and the life was the light of humanity.  And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it.

It happened, a man named John sent from alongside God.  This man came to witness in order that he might witness concerning the light so that all might trust through him.  He was not that light, but in order that he might witness concerning the light.  The true light which enlightens all humanity was coming into the universe.  He was in the universe, and the universe became through him, but the universe did not perceive him.  He came into his own, and his own did not receive him.  But as many as received him, he gave them power to become children of God, the ones trusting into his name, who were born not of bloodshed nor out of flesh-will, nor out of man-will, but out of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived in us and we have beheld his glory, glory as only-born from alongside the Father, full of grace and truth.  John witnessed about him and he cried out, saying, "This is he whom I said the one coming after me happened before me because he was first of me."  For out of his plentitude we all have received, grace against grace, for the law through Moses was given, the grace and the truth came to be through Jesus Christ.  No one has ever seen God, only-begotten God, the one into the bosom of the father, he has translated.

Background and situation:  The text reverberates with well-known Johannine themes--Word (logos), light, life, witness--and also some that are less well-known, such as "cosmos," "faithing," "all humanity," and the Greek word ginomai, in its various forms, a word whose fundamental meaning is "to bring into being," and which can be legitimately translated in a variety of ways.

This is not surprising, of course, considering that the fourth gospel has many affinities with the book of Genesis and the original story of creation.  One of the more obvious of these is the opener:  "In the beginning."  In the beginning, the Word--logos--was fully equal with God.  In fact, the creation itself came into being through the Word.  This is indeed the highest of high Christologies, and the basis for much of the trinitarian theology which would later be formulated in the third and fourth centuries.  

Compare the various New Testament writers on this question:  When and how was Jesus the Son of God?  Paul, the earliest New Testament writer, seems not terribly interested in this question, but sometimes gives the impression that it was in his resurrection that Jesus became Son of God (Rm 1).  Mark, writing about twenty years after Paul, seems to say that Jesus became Son of God at his baptism.  Matthew and Luke, writing about ten to fifteen years after Mark, roll this back to the birth of Jesus.  

Just after Matthew and Luke, the later Pauline writings--Ephesians, Colossians--accent the cosmic sweep of God's work in Christ, just as does the fourth gospel.  The fourth gospel goes them one better though.  Where, for Colossians, Christ the "first-born of all creation," he is not born at all in the fourth gospel.  The Word was always with God even before creation began.

The logos:  "In the beginning was the logos."  Logos varies in meaning depending on what period in history it is being used.  The original meaning of the word was "to gather."  It later came to refer to human reason. 

By the time of Jesus, logos had come to mean the creative power of God and the kingship of God over all things.  Philo, a first century philosopher, saw logos as flowing from God himself, and as the mechanism through which God created the universe.

Logos translates the Hebrew dabar, a word which also has a rich wealth of meaning, but most commonly refers to God's self-communication, or the relating of God, who is unseen, to the created world.  Logos combines the concepts of thought, deed, and power.  For the author of the fourth gospel, logos is an expression of God's innermost nature which is present in the world.

After relating the creation of the world, the fourth gospel asserts:  "In him was life and the life was the light of humanity.  And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it."  Life, light, and humanity all appear at once.  Then, the "darkness" is acknowledged, though not defined.  Yet, no matter what, the darkness cannot "overcome" or "over-power" the light.  Nor, it should be said, does the light "over-power" the darkness either.  The darkness cannot "win," but the victory of the light is yet to be established.

Witness:  It might seem surprising that the figure of John makes an appearance so early in the fourth gospel.  He is identified as "sent" by God.  Interesting:  The verb form--apestalmenos, "sent"--is used frequently in the fourth gospel, but the noun form--"apostle"--is never used.  For the fourth gospel, the gospel is not a static thing, but something that is being done.  Moreover, John is sent para God--from alongside of God.  This is high praise indeed.

John's purpose is to "witness" to the light, a strong theme in the fourth gospel.  The author quickly asserts that John is not the light himself, lest anyone get any ideas.  (The community around John the Baptist continued even after his death and was likely still around at the time of the writing of the fourth gospel.)  The fourth gospel is clear that John witnesses to Christ.  He is sent from God, yes, but for the purpose of pointing to Christ.

The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world--a striking statement of universality, especially considering that the "cosmos" (mentioned four times in two verses) was created through this light, but that very "cosmos" also rejected the light.  Even "his own" did not "receive" him.

How children of God are made:  For those who did "receive" him, however, "he gave them power--exousian--to become children of God."  Becoming "children of God" is all about "trusting into his name"--a name which, as yet, we do not know!  (The word translated as "believe" is pisteuein.  Unfortunately, "believe" is not quite the meaning of pisteuein, which really means "radical trust," an orientation of one's entire self, and not just the intellect as the word "believe" would imply.) 

The status of "children of God" has completely to do with trust, and is certainly "not of bloods."  The word aimaton is actually in its plural form, and, according to Wes Howard-Brook, the word is a Hebrew idiom for "bloodshed" or violence.  Children of God do not attain their status through violence and war.

Nor are children of God born out of "flesh-will"--not, in other words, through the established ways of the world.  Wes Howard-Brook again:  "('Flesh-will') is the manner of behavior that is focused on superficial satisfaction, the culturally acceptable, the easy and comfortable."

Nor are children of God formed "out of man-will."  The fourth gospel has heretofore used the broadly inclusive word anthropos to refer to human beings in general.  Here, the author picks a word that specifically relates to men, andros.  One of the primary characteristics of the Johannine community was egalitarianism and gender equality.  This will become more and more clear as the gospel unfolds.  Male headship--"man-will"--does not create children of God.  Only God does.

Word become flesh:  Then comes the famous line:  "And the Word became flesh."  God's self-expression enters into actual human flesh.  This is yet another instance of the word ginomai.  (I count ten uses in eighteen verses.)  The word has to do with creation, origin, "happening."  Here, you might say, the source of all being enters into the realm of becoming.  The essential enters into the existential.

The Word "dwelt" or "tented" with us.  This recalls the days of ancient Israel when YHWH "tented" with his people.  This dwelling, or "tenting," is "in us"--en hamin.  No, this is nothing about Jesus "living in your heart."  It's about the mutual indwelling between Christ and his followers, a resounding theme all through the fourth gospel.  Not only does Christ indwell his followers, but he indwells God.  Likewise, God indwells Christ, and Christ's followers indwell him. 

The text is not, in other words, about individual salvation.  There is none of that here.  The fourth gospel is all about the community indwelling with each other and with God.  It is not about the individual's appropriation of Jesus, but rather God's appropriation of humanity through Christ and how God lives in the greatest intimacy with his followers.  All through the gospel the words are plural, not singular.

The word "glory" is introduced and then emphasized--"glory as only-born (monogenous) from alongside (para) the Father."  This Word is "full of grace and truth."  The Greek words here translate the Hebrew chesed v'emet, i.e. "lovingkindness."  (Jose Miranda) 

John makes another appearance, asserting yet again the pre-eminence of Christ over himself, and, following that, fullness and grace words resound again.  It seems that whenever John speaks, his words are preceded and followed by words like light, life, grace, and glory.  Charis--"grace"--appears three times. 

The fourth gospel then asserts that, yes, the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth come through Jesus Christ.  For the first time, the name of Christ is mentioned, as if the entire prologue were oriented toward this climactic moment.  This is the name in whom his followers trust:  "Jesus Christ."

"No one has ever seen God"--not Moses, in other words--but the "only-son"--monogenous again--who is from the very bosom of God has "translated" God to us.  The word is exegesato, from where we get our word "exegesis."  It does not mean "interpretation" so much, but rather "translation," the transformation of thought into another language--in this case, the "translation," and the articulation, of God into "flesh." 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

Translation:  In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and God was the Word.  This (Word) was in the beginning with God.  All came into being through him, and apart from him nothing happened in that which begins.  In him was life and the life was the light of humanity.  And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it.

It happened, a man named John sent from alongside God.  This man came to witness in order that he might witness concerning the light so that all might trust through him.  He was not that light, but in order that he might witness concerning the light.  The true light which enlightens all humanity was coming into the universe.  He was in the universe, and the universe became through him, but the universe did not perceive him.  He came into his own, and his own did not receive him.  But as many as received him, he gave them power to become children of God, the ones trusting into his name, who were born not of bloodshed nor out of flesh-will, nor out of man-will, but out of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived in us and we have beheld his glory, glory as only-born from alongside the Father, full of grace and truth.  John witnessed about him and he cried out, saying, "This is he whom I said the one coming after me happened before me because he was first of me."  For out of his plentitude we all have received, grace against grace, for the law through Moses was given, the grace and the truth came to be through Jesus Christ.  No one has ever seen God, only-begotten God, the one into the bosom of the father, he has translated.

Background and situation:  The text reverberates with well-known Johannine themes--Word (logos), light, life, witness--and also some that are less well-known, such as "cosmos," "faithing," "all humanity," and the Greek word ginomai, in its various forms, a word whose fundamental meaning is "to bring into being," and which can be legitimately translated in a variety of ways.

This is not surprising, of course, considering that the fourth gospel has many affinities with the book of Genesis and the original story of creation.  One of the more obvious of these is the opener:  "In the beginning."  In the beginning, the Word--logos--was fully equal with God.  In fact, the creation itself came into being through the Word.  This is indeed the highest of high Christologies, and the basis for much of the trinitarian theology which would later be formulated in the third and fourth centuries.  

Compare the various New Testament writers on this question:  When and how was Jesus the Son of God?  Paul, the earliest New Testament writer, seems not terribly interested in this question, but sometimes gives the impression that it was in his resurrection that Jesus became Son of God (Rm 1).  Mark, writing about twenty years after Paul, seems to say that Jesus became Son of God at his baptism.  Matthew and Luke, writing about ten to fifteen years after Mark, roll this back to the birth of Jesus.  

Just after Matthew and Luke, the later Pauline writings--Ephesians, Colossians--accent the cosmic sweep of God's work in Christ, just as does the fourth gospel.  The fourth gospel goes them one better though.  Where, for Colossians, Christ the "first-born of all creation," he is not born at all in the fourth gospel.  The Word was always with God even before creation began.

The logos:  "In the beginning was the logos."  Logos varies in meaning depending on what period in history it is being used.  The original meaning of the word was "to gather."  It later came to refer to human reason. 

By the time of Jesus, logos had come to mean the creative power of God and the kingship of God over all things.  Philo, a first century philosopher, saw logos as flowing from God himself, and as the mechanism through which God created the universe.

Logos translates the Hebrew dabar, a word which also has a rich wealth of meaning, but most commonly refers to God's self-communication, or the relating of God, who is unseen, to the created world.  Logos combines the concepts of thought, deed, and power.  For the author of the fourth gospel, logos is an expression of God's innermost nature which is present in the world.

After relating the creation of the world, the fourth gospel asserts:  "In him was life and the life was the light of humanity.  And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it."  Life, light, and humanity all appear at once.  Then, the "darkness" is acknowledged, though not defined.  Yet, no matter what, the darkness cannot "overcome" or "over-power" the light.  Nor, it should be said, does the light "over-power" the darkness either.  The darkness cannot "win," but the victory of the light is yet to be established.

Witness:  It might seem surprising that the figure of John makes an appearance so early in the fourth gospel.  He is identified as "sent" by God.  Interesting:  The verb form--apestalmenos, "sent"--is used frequently in the fourth gospel, but the noun form--"apostle"--is never used.  For the fourth gospel, the gospel is not a static thing, but something that is being done.  Moreover, John is sent para God--from alongside of God.  This is high praise indeed.

John's purpose is to "witness" to the light, a strong theme in the fourth gospel.  The author quickly asserts that John is not the light himself, lest anyone get any ideas.  (The community around John the Baptist continued even after his death and was likely still around at the time of the writing of the fourth gospel.)  The fourth gospel is clear that John witnesses to Christ.  He is sent from God, yes, but for the purpose of pointing to Christ.

The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world--a striking statement of universality, especially considering that the "cosmos" (mentioned four times in two verses) was created through this light, but that very "cosmos" also rejected the light.  Even "his own" did not "receive" him.

How children of God are made:  For those who did "receive" him, however, "he gave them power--exousian--to become children of God."  Becoming "children of God" is all about "trusting into his name"--a name which, as yet, we do not know!  (The word translated as "believe" is pisteuein.  Unfortunately, "believe" is not quite the meaning of pisteuein, which really means "radical trust," an orientation of one's entire self, and not just the intellect as the word "believe" would imply.) 

The status of "children of God" has completely to do with trust, and is certainly "not of bloods."  The word aimaton is actually in its plural form, and, according to Wes Howard-Brook, the word is a Hebrew idiom for "bloodshed" or violence.  Children of God do not attain their status through violence and war.

Nor are children of God born out of "flesh-will"--not, in other words, through the established ways of the world.  Wes Howard-Brook again:  "('Flesh-will') is the manner of behavior that is focused on superficial satisfaction, the culturally acceptable, the easy and comfortable."

Nor are children of God formed "out of man-will."  The fourth gospel has heretofore used the broadly inclusive word anthropos to refer to human beings in general.  Here, the author picks a word that specifically relates to men, andros.  One of the primary characteristics of the Johannine community was egalitarianism and gender equality.  This will become more and more clear as the gospel unfolds.  Male headship--"man-will"--does not create children of God.  Only God does.

Word become flesh:  Then comes the famous line:  "And the Word became flesh."  God's self-expression enters into actual human flesh.  This is yet another instance of the word ginomai.  (I count ten uses in eighteen verses.)  The word has to do with creation, origin, "happening."  Here, you might say, the source of all being enters into the realm of becoming.  The essential enters into the existential.

The Word "dwelt" or "tented" with us.  This recalls the days of ancient Israel when YHWH "tented" with his people.  This dwelling, or "tenting," is "in us"--en hamin.  No, this is nothing about Jesus "living in your heart."  It's about the mutual indwelling between Christ and his followers, a resounding theme all through the fourth gospel.  Not only does Christ indwell his followers, but he indwells God.  Likewise, God indwells Christ, and Christ's followers indwell him. 

The text is not, in other words, about individual salvation.  There is none of that here.  The fourth gospel is all about the community indwelling with each other and with God.  It is not about the individual's appropriation of Jesus, but rather God's appropriation of humanity through Christ and how God lives in the greatest intimacy with his followers.  All through the gospel the words are plural, not singular.

The word "glory" is introduced and then emphasized--"glory as only-born (monogenous) from alongside (para) the Father."  This Word is "full of grace and truth."  The Greek words here translate the Hebrew chesed v'emet, i.e. "lovingkindness."  (Jose Miranda) 

John makes another appearance, asserting yet again the pre-eminence of Christ over himself, and, following that, fullness and grace words resound again.  It seems that whenever John speaks, his words are preceded and followed by words like light, life, grace, and glory.  Charis--"grace"--appears three times. 

The fourth gospel then asserts that, yes, the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth come through Jesus Christ.  For the first time, the name of Christ is mentioned, as if the entire prologue were oriented toward this climactic moment.  This is the name in whom his followers trust:  "Jesus Christ."

"No one has ever seen God"--not Moses, in other words--but the "only-son"--monogenous again--who is from the very bosom of God has "translated" God to us.  The word is exegesato, from where we get our word "exegesis."  It does not mean "interpretation" so much, but rather "translation," the transformation of thought into another language--in this case, the "translation," and the articulation, of God into "flesh." 

Christmas Eve ::: Luke 2: 1-20

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. ²This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³All went to their own towns to be registered. ⁴Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. ⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.¹⁰But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah,^* the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host,^* praising God and saying, 
¹⁴ ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
   and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’^*

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ ¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Translation:  And it happened in those days, an ordinance from Caesar Augustus went out (that) all the inhabited world be taxed--this taxing happened first when Cyrenius was governor of Syria--and all were going to be taxed, each one into their own city.  And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, into a city of David which is called Bethlehem because he is out of the house and lineage of David, to be taxed with Mary who was engaged to him (and) being pregnant.

And it happened, while they were there, the days of her bringing forth were fulfilled, and she brought forth her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no place for them in the guest room.  And there were shepherds in that region, abiding in the field and keeping watch over their flock by night, and an angel of the Lord came to them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were struck with a great fear.  And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold! I bring a joyful message to you, a great gladness, which will be to all the people, for to you, today, in the city of David, is brought forth a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this is the sign to you:  you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger."  

And suddenly it happened, with the angel a multitude of the hosts of heaven, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to people of gracious purpose."  And it happened, as the angels went from them into heaven, the shepherds were saying to one another, "Let us go even to Bethlehem and see this word which has come to be, which the Lord has made known to us."  And they came quickly and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger.  And seeing, they made known concerning the word, the one spoken to them concerning this child, and all the ones who heard were amazed concerning what had been spoken to them by the shepherds.  But Mary was keeping together all these words, bringing them together in her heart.  And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they heard and seen, just as it was told them.

Background and situation:  Caesar Augustus was the winner of the long Roman civil war.  He was Octavian, the nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar.  Upon the assassination of Julius Caesar (44 BC), Octavian formed an alliance with Mark Antony, and they defeated the anti-Caesar faction headed by Brutus and Cassius at the Battle of Philippi (42 BC).

Octavian and his ally, Mark Antony, had their inevitable falling out, and soon went to war against each other.  Octavian's skillful use of propaganda--he said Antony's head had been turned by the foreign hussy, Cleopatra--turned the tide of Roman opinion against Antony.  Antony's unsuccessful campaign against Parthia dimmed his luster as a military commander.  

Antony likewise played his propaganda cards, asserting that Cleopatra's son by Julius Caesar, Caesarion, was the legitimate heir to Roman power.  Octavian, an adopted son, recognized the threat. 

Octavian defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC.  (Octavian was not much of a warrior or military strategist.  The true victor was his commander, Marcus Agrippa.)  Thus ended the Roman Civil War.  Octavian--now Caesar Augustus--was given credit for ending thirteen years of chaos.  He was lauded throughout the Empire.  Many called him "the savior of the world." 

A Great Gladness:  There is no evidence of an empire-wide census at the time of Jesus' birth.  Caesar Augustus conducted three censuses during his long reign--the one closest to the birth of Jesus was in 8 BC.  All three of Augustus' censuses, however, were limited to Roman citizens and wouldn't have applied to Joseph. 

When Quirinius (Cyrenius in Latin) was governor of Syria, there was a local census in the year AD 6, though this census wouldn't have applied to Joseph either since Joseph was a Galilean and Galilee was not in Quirinius' jurisdiction.  (Herod died in 4 BC.  His son, Herod Archelaus, succeeded him, but was replaced by Quirinius in AD 6.)

Luke was not writing history.  He was writing theology in narrative form; he writes truth, not fact.  He starts off by noting the big wheels of the world and how they like to jerk people around.  Roman power makes Joseph dance to its tune, sending him across the country to get "counted" so that Rome could get more efficient at taking his money for taxes.  (This may not be a particular fact in the life of Joseph, but it is certainly true in regard to Roman power.)

Whenever Caesar, or local governors like Quirinius, ran censuses, there would be uprisings and revolts, as, indeed, there was at the announcement of the Quirinius census.  The tax burden was already excessive, and people lived in a grinding poverty, under the bootheel of Rome, that was getting worse, and not better.  Some historians trace the emergence of the zealots to the uprisings against the census of Quirinius.  (Before Jesus, the most famous Galilean would have been Judas the Galilean, leader of the revolt.)  The zealots, in turn, were part of a chain of events that led to the disastrous Roman-Jewish War of AD 66-70.

Luke is writing about the true "savior of the world," one from the line of the great King David.  He looks to Bethlehem, the city of David, and not to Rome, the city of Caesar.  All the synoptics take this point of view. 

In verses 6-7, Luke uses strong language to assert the birth of Jesus--literally, "But it happened, in the existence of them, there the days are fulfilled of her bringing forth."  It doesn't read very smoothly in English, but notice how Luke underlines the birth with three key words:    It happened (egeneto) in the happening (einai), the bringing forth (tipto).

Jesus is identified as Mary's "first born son."  The word is prototokos.  It will pop up again in Colossians 1 where Jesus is described as "the first born of all creation."  (Did the author of Colossians know Luke's gospel?  Was the author of Colossians, with his notable cosmic vision and high christology, expanding on Mary's "first born son" and proclaiming him the "first born of all creation"?) 

There was no room for Joseph and Mary in the kataluma.  The word refers to the upper room of a house, the guest room--not, in other words, some wayside hotel, barn, or cave.  In the case of Joseph and Mary, the guest room was already taken--Uncle Zechariah from Wichita had already claimed it--and they had to stay in the other "room" which, at night, would be home for animals, but during the day would be cleaned up and used by the family. 

Joseph and Mary were not alone in the dark of night somewhere.  Mary had the baby in a home, surrounded by family.   (As an aside, notice also that Luke says nothing at all of any paternity issue.  Unlike Matthew, Luke says nothing about Joseph being troubled by the pregnancy and wanting to divorce Mary.)

The birth is announced to shepherds in the field, and not to the powerful in rich palaces.  The scandal of the virgin birth is not so much that Mary was a virgin. Lots of famous people were said to have been conceived by various gods, including Caesar Augustus himself.  The scandal was that Jesus--a poor kid from a jerkwater town--was born of a virgin.  (The image of the shepherd also is a reminder that King David, soon to be mentioned yet again, was also a shepherd.)

Whenever the word "angel" appears in scripture, we should think:  "window into heaven."  Angels tell what is happening from the perspective of God.  The shepherds are bathed in light (perilampo)--the glory (doxa) of the Lord!  The shepherds were absolutely terrified--the word phobos is used twice.

The angel announces "good news (euangelion) of great joy for all the people"--or, in my translation, "...a joyful message to you, a great gladness, which will be to all the people."

Luke didn't invent the word euangelion.  It was a word that was commonly applied to Caesar, and often associated with military victory.  "Euangelion!  Good news!  Caesar is victorious in Gaul!"  In the case of Jesus, the "good news of great joy" is for "all the people (panti to lao)"--not just the powerful, as was commonly the case.

Somewhat surprisingly, the word "savior" (sotare) appears only twice in the synoptics--Luke 1, Luke 2.  It was a politically-charged term since, after all, everyone already knew that Caesar Augustus was "the savior of the world."  He had brought order to the world after a thirteen year long war.  Great poets, historians, and politicians lauded the peace of Augustus. 

Luke's announcement of Jesus as "savior" is a way of saying, "Jesus is the true savior, and Caesar is not."  Moreover, this "savior" comes from the house of David, Israel's most royal house.  He is not only "lord," but "messiah."

The angels go into heaven, and the shepherds spoke "to one another (allelous)."  All the shepherds are involved in the discussion.  (Discussion in the New Community is egalitarian, not top down.)  They go immediately to Bethlehem and see (idomen) "this thing that has happened (gegonos) which the Lord has made known (ginosko) to us."

The shepherds share what they have learned.  Jesus has just been born, and, already, we signs of the mutuality and reciprocity which is characteristic of the kingdom of God.  The shepherds share with each other, and with Joseph and Mary--no privileged information here.  The words of the shepherds stir "all" who hear them.  They return praising God.

Meanwhile, "Mary was keeping together (suntare) all these words, bringing them together (sumballos) in her heart."  Just as the shepherds experience mutuality and, one might say, "wholeness" with each other, Mary also experiences this "wholeness" in her heart.  Sunetare has the sense of integration, taking into oneself.  Sumballos has the sense of bringing together.

Thus is born the true savior of the world--not Caesar Augustus, the oppressor, false savior of the world, protector of those with power and privilege, but Christ the Lord, whose birth is "good news of great joy for all the people."

Image:  Giovannia Bellini, Madonna and child, 1480-1490

 

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. ²This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³All went to their own towns to be registered. ⁴Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. ⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.¹⁰But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah,^* the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host,^* praising God and saying, 
¹⁴ ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
   and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’^*

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ ¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Translation:  And it happened in those days, an ordinance from Caesar Augustus went out (that) all the inhabited world be taxed--this taxing happened first when Cyrenius was governor of Syria--and all were going to be taxed, each one into their own city.  And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, into a city of David which is called Bethlehem because he is out of the house and lineage of David, to be taxed with Mary who was engaged to him (and) being pregnant.

And it happened, while they were there, the days of her bringing forth were fulfilled, and she brought forth her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no place for them in the guest room.  And there were shepherds in that region, abiding in the field and keeping watch over their flock by night, and an angel of the Lord came to them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were struck with a great fear.  And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold! I bring a joyful message to you, a great gladness, which will be to all the people, for to you, today, in the city of David, is brought forth a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this is the sign to you:  you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger."  

And suddenly it happened, with the angel a multitude of the hosts of heaven, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to people of gracious purpose."  And it happened, as the angels went from them into heaven, the shepherds were saying to one another, "Let us go even to Bethlehem and see this word which has come to be, which the Lord has made known to us."  And they came quickly and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger.  And seeing, they made known concerning the word, the one spoken to them concerning this child, and all the ones who heard were amazed concerning what had been spoken to them by the shepherds.  But Mary was keeping together all these words, bringing them together in her heart.  And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they heard and seen, just as it was told them.

Background and situation:  Caesar Augustus was the winner of the long Roman civil war.  He was Octavian, the nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar.  Upon the assassination of Julius Caesar (44 BC), Octavian formed an alliance with Mark Antony, and they defeated the anti-Caesar faction headed by Brutus and Cassius at the Battle of Philippi (42 BC).

Octavian and his ally, Mark Antony, had their inevitable falling out, and soon went to war against each other.  Octavian's skillful use of propaganda--he said Antony's head had been turned by the foreign hussy, Cleopatra--turned the tide of Roman opinion against Antony.  Antony's unsuccessful campaign against Parthia dimmed his luster as a military commander.  

Antony likewise played his propaganda cards, asserting that Cleopatra's son by Julius Caesar, Caesarion, was the legitimate heir to Roman power.  Octavian, an adopted son, recognized the threat. 

Octavian defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC.  (Octavian was not much of a warrior or military strategist.  The true victor was his commander, Marcus Agrippa.)  Thus ended the Roman Civil War.  Octavian--now Caesar Augustus--was given credit for ending thirteen years of chaos.  He was lauded throughout the Empire.  Many called him "the savior of the world." 

A Great Gladness:  There is no evidence of an empire-wide census at the time of Jesus' birth.  Caesar Augustus conducted three censuses during his long reign--the one closest to the birth of Jesus was in 8 BC.  All three of Augustus' censuses, however, were limited to Roman citizens and wouldn't have applied to Joseph. 

When Quirinius (Cyrenius in Latin) was governor of Syria, there was a local census in the year AD 6, though this census wouldn't have applied to Joseph either since Joseph was a Galilean and Galilee was not in Quirinius' jurisdiction.  (Herod died in 4 BC.  His son, Herod Archelaus, succeeded him, but was replaced by Quirinius in AD 6.)

Luke was not writing history.  He was writing theology in narrative form; he writes truth, not fact.  He starts off by noting the big wheels of the world and how they like to jerk people around.  Roman power makes Joseph dance to its tune, sending him across the country to get "counted" so that Rome could get more efficient at taking his money for taxes.  (This may not be a particular fact in the life of Joseph, but it is certainly true in regard to Roman power.)

Whenever Caesar, or local governors like Quirinius, ran censuses, there would be uprisings and revolts, as, indeed, there was at the announcement of the Quirinius census.  The tax burden was already excessive, and people lived in a grinding poverty, under the bootheel of Rome, that was getting worse, and not better.  Some historians trace the emergence of the zealots to the uprisings against the census of Quirinius.  (Before Jesus, the most famous Galilean would have been Judas the Galilean, leader of the revolt.)  The zealots, in turn, were part of a chain of events that led to the disastrous Roman-Jewish War of AD 66-70.

Luke is writing about the true "savior of the world," one from the line of the great King David.  He looks to Bethlehem, the city of David, and not to Rome, the city of Caesar.  All the synoptics take this point of view. 

In verses 6-7, Luke uses strong language to assert the birth of Jesus--literally, "But it happened, in the existence of them, there the days are fulfilled of her bringing forth."  It doesn't read very smoothly in English, but notice how Luke underlines the birth with three key words:    It happened (egeneto) in the happening (einai), the bringing forth (tipto).

Jesus is identified as Mary's "first born son."  The word is prototokos.  It will pop up again in Colossians 1 where Jesus is described as "the first born of all creation."  (Did the author of Colossians know Luke's gospel?  Was the author of Colossians, with his notable cosmic vision and high christology, expanding on Mary's "first born son" and proclaiming him the "first born of all creation"?) 

There was no room for Joseph and Mary in the kataluma.  The word refers to the upper room of a house, the guest room--not, in other words, some wayside hotel, barn, or cave.  In the case of Joseph and Mary, the guest room was already taken--Uncle Zechariah from Wichita had already claimed it--and they had to stay in the other "room" which, at night, would be home for animals, but during the day would be cleaned up and used by the family. 

Joseph and Mary were not alone in the dark of night somewhere.  Mary had the baby in a home, surrounded by family.   (As an aside, notice also that Luke says nothing at all of any paternity issue.  Unlike Matthew, Luke says nothing about Joseph being troubled by the pregnancy and wanting to divorce Mary.)

The birth is announced to shepherds in the field, and not to the powerful in rich palaces.  The scandal of the virgin birth is not so much that Mary was a virgin. Lots of famous people were said to have been conceived by various gods, including Caesar Augustus himself.  The scandal was that Jesus--a poor kid from a jerkwater town--was born of a virgin.  (The image of the shepherd also is a reminder that King David, soon to be mentioned yet again, was also a shepherd.)

Whenever the word "angel" appears in scripture, we should think:  "window into heaven."  Angels tell what is happening from the perspective of God.  The shepherds are bathed in light (perilampo)--the glory (doxa) of the Lord!  The shepherds were absolutely terrified--the word phobos is used twice.

The angel announces "good news (euangelion) of great joy for all the people"--or, in my translation, "...a joyful message to you, a great gladness, which will be to all the people."

Luke didn't invent the word euangelion.  It was a word that was commonly applied to Caesar, and often associated with military victory.  "Euangelion!  Good news!  Caesar is victorious in Gaul!"  In the case of Jesus, the "good news of great joy" is for "all the people (panti to lao)"--not just the powerful, as was commonly the case.

Somewhat surprisingly, the word "savior" (sotare) appears only twice in the synoptics--Luke 1, Luke 2.  It was a politically-charged term since, after all, everyone already knew that Caesar Augustus was "the savior of the world."  He had brought order to the world after a thirteen year long war.  Great poets, historians, and politicians lauded the peace of Augustus. 

Luke's announcement of Jesus as "savior" is a way of saying, "Jesus is the true savior, and Caesar is not."  Moreover, this "savior" comes from the house of David, Israel's most royal house.  He is not only "lord," but "messiah."

The angels go into heaven, and the shepherds spoke "to one another (allelous)."  All the shepherds are involved in the discussion.  (Discussion in the New Community is egalitarian, not top down.)  They go immediately to Bethlehem and see (idomen) "this thing that has happened (gegonos) which the Lord has made known (ginosko) to us."

The shepherds share what they have learned.  Jesus has just been born, and, already, we signs of the mutuality and reciprocity which is characteristic of the kingdom of God.  The shepherds share with each other, and with Joseph and Mary--no privileged information here.  The words of the shepherds stir "all" who hear them.  They return praising God.

Meanwhile, "Mary was keeping together (suntare) all these words, bringing them together (sumballos) in her heart."  Just as the shepherds experience mutuality and, one might say, "wholeness" with each other, Mary also experiences this "wholeness" in her heart.  Sunetare has the sense of integration, taking into oneself.  Sumballos has the sense of bringing together.

Thus is born the true savior of the world--not Caesar Augustus, the oppressor, false savior of the world, protector of those with power and privilege, but Christ the Lord, whose birth is "good news of great joy for all the people."

Image:  Giovannia Bellini, Madonna and child, 1480-1490

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. ²This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³All went to their own towns to be registered. ⁴Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. ⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.¹⁰But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah,^* the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host,^* praising God and saying, 
¹⁴ ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
   and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’^*

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ ¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Translation:  And it happened in those days, an ordinance from Caesar Augustus went out (that) all the inhabited world be taxed--this taxing happened first when Cyrenius was governor of Syria--and all were going to be taxed, each one into their own city.  And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, into a city of David which is called Bethlehem because he is out of the house and lineage of David, to be taxed with Mary who was engaged to him (and) being pregnant.

And it happened, while they were there, the days of her bringing forth were fulfilled, and she brought forth her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no place for them in the guest room.  And there were shepherds in that region, abiding in the field and keeping watch over their flock by night, and an angel of the Lord came to them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were struck with a great fear.  And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold! I bring a joyful message to you, a great gladness, which will be to all the people, for to you, today, in the city of David, is brought forth a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this is the sign to you:  you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger."  

And suddenly it happened, with the angel a multitude of the hosts of heaven, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to people of gracious purpose."  And it happened, as the angels went from them into heaven, the shepherds were saying to one another, "Let us go even to Bethlehem and see this word which has come to be, which the Lord has made known to us."  And they came quickly and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger.  And seeing, they made known concerning the word, the one spoken to them concerning this child, and all the ones who heard were amazed concerning what had been spoken to them by the shepherds.  But Mary was keeping together all these words, bringing them together in her heart.  And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they heard and seen, just as it was told them.

Background and situation:  Caesar Augustus was the winner of the long Roman civil war.  He was Octavian, the nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar.  Upon the assassination of Julius Caesar (44 BC), Octavian formed an alliance with Mark Antony, and they defeated the anti-Caesar faction headed by Brutus and Cassius at the Battle of Philippi (42 BC).

Octavian and his ally, Mark Antony, had their inevitable falling out, and soon went to war against each other.  Octavian's skillful use of propaganda--he said Antony's head had been turned by the foreign hussy, Cleopatra--turned the tide of Roman opinion against Antony.  Antony's unsuccessful campaign against Parthia dimmed his luster as a military commander.  

Antony likewise played his propaganda cards, asserting that Cleopatra's son by Julius Caesar, Caesarion, was the legitimate heir to Roman power.  Octavian, an adopted son, recognized the threat. 

Octavian defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC.  (Octavian was not much of a warrior or military strategist.  The true victor was his commander, Marcus Agrippa.)  Thus ended the Roman Civil War.  Octavian--now Caesar Augustus--was given credit for ending thirteen years of chaos.  He was lauded throughout the Empire.  Many called him "the savior of the world." 

A Great Gladness:  There is no evidence of an empire-wide census at the time of Jesus' birth.  Caesar Augustus conducted three censuses during his long reign--the one closest to the birth of Jesus was in 8 BC.  All three of Augustus' censuses, however, were limited to Roman citizens and wouldn't have applied to Joseph. 

When Quirinius (Cyrenius in Latin) was governor of Syria, there was a local census in the year AD 6, though this census wouldn't have applied to Joseph either since Joseph was a Galilean and Galilee was not in Quirinius' jurisdiction.  (Herod died in 4 BC.  His son, Herod Archelaus, succeeded him, but was replaced by Quirinius in AD 6.)

Luke was not writing history.  He was writing theology in narrative form; he writes truth, not fact.  He starts off by noting the big wheels of the world and how they like to jerk people around.  Roman power makes Joseph dance to its tune, sending him across the country to get "counted" so that Rome could get more efficient at taking his money for taxes.  (This may not be a particular fact in the life of Joseph, but it is certainly true in regard to Roman power.)

Whenever Caesar, or local governors like Quirinius, ran censuses, there would be uprisings and revolts, as, indeed, there was at the announcement of the Quirinius census.  The tax burden was already excessive, and people lived in a grinding poverty, under the bootheel of Rome, that was getting worse, and not better.  Some historians trace the emergence of the zealots to the uprisings against the census of Quirinius.  (Before Jesus, the most famous Galilean would have been Judas the Galilean, leader of the revolt.)  The zealots, in turn, were part of a chain of events that led to the disastrous Roman-Jewish War of AD 66-70.

Luke is writing about the true "savior of the world," one from the line of the great King David.  He looks to Bethlehem, the city of David, and not to Rome, the city of Caesar.  All the synoptics take this point of view. 

In verses 6-7, Luke uses strong language to assert the birth of Jesus--literally, "But it happened, in the existence of them, there the days are fulfilled of her bringing forth."  It doesn't read very smoothly in English, but notice how Luke underlines the birth with three key words:    It happened (egeneto) in the happening (einai), the bringing forth (tipto).

Jesus is identified as Mary's "first born son."  The word is prototokos.  It will pop up again in Colossians 1 where Jesus is described as "the first born of all creation."  (Did the author of Colossians know Luke's gospel?  Was the author of Colossians, with his notable cosmic vision and high christology, expanding on Mary's "first born son" and proclaiming him the "first born of all creation"?) 

There was no room for Joseph and Mary in the kataluma.  The word refers to the upper room of a house, the guest room--not, in other words, some wayside hotel, barn, or cave.  In the case of Joseph and Mary, the guest room was already taken--Uncle Zechariah from Wichita had already claimed it--and they had to stay in the other "room" which, at night, would be home for animals, but during the day would be cleaned up and used by the family. 

Joseph and Mary were not alone in the dark of night somewhere.  Mary had the baby in a home, surrounded by family.   (As an aside, notice also that Luke says nothing at all of any paternity issue.  Unlike Matthew, Luke says nothing about Joseph being troubled by the pregnancy and wanting to divorce Mary.)

The birth is announced to shepherds in the field, and not to the powerful in rich palaces.  The scandal of the virgin birth is not so much that Mary was a virgin. Lots of famous people were said to have been conceived by various gods, including Caesar Augustus himself.  The scandal was that Jesus--a poor kid from a jerkwater town--was born of a virgin.  (The image of the shepherd also is a reminder that King David, soon to be mentioned yet again, was also a shepherd.)

Whenever the word "angel" appears in scripture, we should think:  "window into heaven."  Angels tell what is happening from the perspective of God.  The shepherds are bathed in light (perilampo)--the glory (doxa) of the Lord!  The shepherds were absolutely terrified--the word phobos is used twice.

The angel announces "good news (euangelion) of great joy for all the people"--or, in my translation, "...a joyful message to you, a great gladness, which will be to all the people."

Luke didn't invent the word euangelion.  It was a word that was commonly applied to Caesar, and often associated with military victory.  "Euangelion!  Good news!  Caesar is victorious in Gaul!"  In the case of Jesus, the "good news of great joy" is for "all the people (panti to lao)"--not just the powerful, as was commonly the case.

Somewhat surprisingly, the word "savior" (sotare) appears only twice in the synoptics--Luke 1, Luke 2.  It was a politically-charged term since, after all, everyone already knew that Caesar Augustus was "the savior of the world."  He had brought order to the world after a thirteen year long war.  Great poets, historians, and politicians lauded the peace of Augustus. 

Luke's announcement of Jesus as "savior" is a way of saying, "Jesus is the true savior, and Caesar is not."  Moreover, this "savior" comes from the house of David, Israel's most royal house.  He is not only "lord," but "messiah."

The angels go into heaven, and the shepherds spoke "to one another (allelous)."  All the shepherds are involved in the discussion.  (Discussion in the New Community is egalitarian, not top down.)  They go immediately to Bethlehem and see (idomen) "this thing that has happened (gegonos) which the Lord has made known (ginosko) to us."

The shepherds share what they have learned.  Jesus has just been born, and, already, we signs of the mutuality and reciprocity which is characteristic of the kingdom of God.  The shepherds share with each other, and with Joseph and Mary--no privileged information here.  The words of the shepherds stir "all" who hear them.  They return praising God.

Meanwhile, "Mary was keeping together (suntare) all these words, bringing them together (sumballos) in her heart."  Just as the shepherds experience mutuality and, one might say, "wholeness" with each other, Mary also experiences this "wholeness" in her heart.  Sunetare has the sense of integration, taking into oneself.  Sumballos has the sense of bringing together.

Thus is born the true savior of the world--not Caesar Augustus, the oppressor, false savior of the world, protector of those with power and privilege, but Christ the Lord, whose birth is "good news of great joy for all the people."

Image:  Giovannia Bellini, Madonna and child, 1480-1490

Christmas 1 ::: Matthew 2: 13-23

Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ ¹⁴Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, ¹⁵and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’

16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. ¹⁷Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 
¹⁸‘A voice was heard in Ramah,
   wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
   she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’

19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ²⁰‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.’ ²¹Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. ²²But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. ²³There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, ‘He will be called a Nazorean.’

Translation:  But when they had departed, behold! an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Rise, take the child and his mother and flee into Egypt and be there until I might answer you, for Herod will seek the child, to destroy him."  And he rose (and) took the child and his mother by night and he went to Egypt and he was there until the death of Herod so that it might be fulfilled what had been said by the Lord through the prophet, "Out of Egypt I have called my son."

Then Herod, seeing that he had been mocked by the magi, became exceedingly enraged, and he sent forth (and) killed all the children that were in Bethlehem and in all its borders, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the magi.  Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice in Rama was heard, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and was not willing to be comforted, for they are no more."

But when Herod died, behold! an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the child and his mother into the land of Israel, for the ones seeking the life of the child have died.  And he arose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus ruled in the Judeans instead of his father Herod he was struck with fear to go there.  But after being called in a dream, he departed into the region of Galilee.  And he came (and) lived in a town called Nazareth so that it might be fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he will called a Nazarene.

Background and situation:  As John Dominic Crossan and Marcus Borg note, chapters 1-2 of Matthew--Matthew's Christmas story--might be compared to a symphonic prelude.  The symphonic prelude sets the stage for the whole work, and introduces themes which will be explored in the rest of the work.  

One major theme of Matthew is to present Jesus is the "new Moses."  As one proceeds through Matthew, thematic elements from the life of Moses will be "replayed" in the life of Jesus.  For example, Matthew likes groupings of five.  The number five is symbolic of the five books of Moses.  There are 5 "books" in Matthew, each introduced by a major speech of Jesus.

In Matthew's Christmas story (chapters 1-2), there are five dreams.  Three of them are in this week's text.  In the third dream, an angel of the Lord "appeared."  The word is phanetai, which means "brought forth into light."  (It is the root that forms the word for "epiphany.") 

Meet the new pharoah;  same as the old pharoah:  Joseph is instructed to take the family and flee to Egypt, which is a traditional place of refuge.  (Uriah fled to Egypt in Jeremiah 26: 21.)  They must flee to Egypt because Herod wants to "destroy" Jesus.  This recalls Pharoah, "who sought to slay Moses" (Ex 2: 15). 

There are also five Old Testament citations in Matthew 1-2.  Again, three of them are in this text.  "Out of Egypt I have called my son" is from Hosea.  It is not a prediction of Jesus, but rather a commentary on the Exodus.  (Hosea 11: 1-4)  Matthew is making creative use of it to point to Jesus, who would, as Moses did, liberate his people.

Just as Pharoah commanded the murder of male children in the day of Moses, so Herod commands the murder of male children in the day of Jesus.  In his history of the period, Josephus says nothing about Herod slaughtering young children, although Herod was certainly capable of this kind of thing.  When he came to power, appointed by rare agreement between Octavian and Mark Antony in 37 BC, Herod murdered the entire Sanhedrin.  Herod also murdered two of his own sons, which prompted Caesar Augustus himself to say, "It is safer to be a pig in a parent's household than to be a son in Herod's court."  (Caesar is making a play on two Latin words which doesn't come through as well in English.)

In light of Herod's known character, underlined by Matthew yet again, one wonders about the translation of verse 16.  Herod was exceptionally enraged because he had been "tricked" or "mocked" by the magi.  He ordered the death of the male children after he had "diligently inquired" (KJV) the time of his birth from the magi.  The word translated as "diligently inquired" is akribao.  Did Herod torture the magi?

Herod knew that he would not be mourned when he died so he ordered that dozens of executions take place right before his death so that there would at least be mourners in the city.  The order, fortunately for three hundred or so of Jerusalem's citizens, was not carried out.  Matthew's purpose is to lift up this truth about Herod, that he was a power-mad murderer, and associate him in peoples' minds with Pharoah.

Herod wanted to kill all the male babies "in and around Bethlehem."  Bethlehem itself was a relatively small town.  There would be only a few male babies there.  If you include "in and around Bethlehem," however, then we may be talking about Jerusalem as well since it is only about five miles from Bethlehem.  The idea of killing all the male children under two years of age, in the whole region, is a way of saying that human escape from the situation was not possible.

Incidentally, this episode ought to give pause to those people who argue that Jesus' main purpose was to die on the cross.  If all Jesus was here for was to die, then it wouldn't have mattered if Herod had, in fact, killed him as an infant.  If all he's here for is to die, what difference does it make how old he was when it happened?

The Old Testament citation--"a voice was heard in Ramah"--is from Jeremiah 31:15 and it has to do with the Exile into Babylon c. 600 BC.  Rachel--the mother of Israel--is weeping because her children are being deported.  (Ramah is where the Israelites gathered for their forced march to Babylon.) 

Notice that, unlike other Old Testament citations in Matthew, the murders of the children do not fulfill God's intention.  (Matthew lacks the "in order that" clause which he normally uses in these cases.)  The murders affirm what had already been spoken by the prophets, but do not have God's endorsement.

Nazorean?:  Herod died in 4 BC.  His son, Archelaus, inherited his rule of Judea, Samaria, and Idumea, and lasted until AD 6 when the Romans threw Archelaus overboard and installed Quirinius.  (His father's son, Archelaus promptedly killed 3000 Jewish leaders when he came to power.) 

An angels appears again in a dream and instructs Joseph to go back to the land of Israel.  As to the dream itself, Matthew most likely has in mind Exodus 4: 19 where God instructs Moses to go back to Egypt "for all those who are seeking your life are dead" (Ex 4:19).  Matthew 2:20 is phrased similarly. 

Under the circumstances, however, it is hard to see how Galilee would be a lot safer for Jesus even though Herod had died.  Considering that Herod Antipas, Herod's son and, later, the slayer of John the Baptist, was now the ruler of Galilee, Jesus' level of safety has not risen a great deal.

Matthew vaguely cites "the prophets" as saying that "he will be called a Nazarene."  He couldn't specify a particular prophet since none had ever spoken of Nazareth.  In fact, the word "Nazareth" does not appear in the Old Testament at all.  

Either Matthew made this one up because, somehow, he had to get Jesus to Nazareth since everybody knew that Jesus was, in fact, from Nazareth, or this may be a hint that Jesus had taken the "nazarite vow", i.e. that he had taken a vow, as Samson and perhaps John the Baptist had, to avoid strong drink and not cut his hair.  

Matthew presents the birth of Jesus as a recapitulation of the history of Israel.  He survives assassination, as did Moses.  He goes to Egypt, as his people once did, and comes out again, as his people also did.  He is afflicted by Herod, as Moses was afflicted by Pharoah.  Rachel, the mother of the nation, is his mother too. 

Thus, he is a fitting "Messiah," one who encapsulates the history of his people, and one who will lead them into a new relationship with God, with each other, and even with their enemies. 

Image:  Massacre of the Innocents, Nicolas Poussin

Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ ¹⁴Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, ¹⁵and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’

16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. ¹⁷Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 
¹⁸‘A voice was heard in Ramah,
   wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
   she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’

19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ²⁰‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.’ ²¹Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. ²²But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. ²³There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, ‘He will be called a Nazorean.’

Translation:  But when they had departed, behold! an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Rise, take the child and his mother and flee into Egypt and be there until I might answer you, for Herod will seek the child, to destroy him."  And he rose (and) took the child and his mother by night and he went to Egypt and he was there until the death of Herod so that it might be fulfilled what had been said by the Lord through the prophet, "Out of Egypt I have called my son."

Then Herod, seeing that he had been mocked by the magi, became exceedingly enraged, and he sent forth (and) killed all the children that were in Bethlehem and in all its borders, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the magi.  Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice in Rama was heard, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and was not willing to be comforted, for they are no more."

But when Herod died, behold! an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the child and his mother into the land of Israel, for the ones seeking the life of the child have died.  And he arose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus ruled in the Judeans instead of his father Herod he was struck with fear to go there.  But after being called in a dream, he departed into the region of Galilee.  And he came (and) lived in a town called Nazareth so that it might be fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he will called a Nazarene.

Background and situation:  As John Dominic Crossan and Marcus Borg note, chapters 1-2 of Matthew--Matthew's Christmas story--might be compared to a symphonic prelude.  The symphonic prelude sets the stage for the whole work, and introduces themes which will be explored in the rest of the work.  

One major theme of Matthew is to present Jesus is the "new Moses."  As one proceeds through Matthew, thematic elements from the life of Moses will be "replayed" in the life of Jesus.  For example, Matthew likes groupings of five.  The number five is symbolic of the five books of Moses.  There are 5 "books" in Matthew, each introduced by a major speech of Jesus.

In Matthew's Christmas story (chapters 1-2), there are five dreams.  Three of them are in this week's text.  In the third dream, an angel of the Lord "appeared."  The word is phanetai, which means "brought forth into light."  (It is the root that forms the word for "epiphany.") 

Meet the new pharoah;  same as the old pharoah:  Joseph is instructed to take the family and flee to Egypt, which is a traditional place of refuge.  (Uriah fled to Egypt in Jeremiah 26: 21.)  They must flee to Egypt because Herod wants to "destroy" Jesus.  This recalls Pharoah, "who sought to slay Moses" (Ex 2: 15). 

There are also five Old Testament citations in Matthew 1-2.  Again, three of them are in this text.  "Out of Egypt I have called my son" is from Hosea.  It is not a prediction of Jesus, but rather a commentary on the Exodus.  (Hosea 11: 1-4)  Matthew is making creative use of it to point to Jesus, who would, as Moses did, liberate his people.

Just as Pharoah commanded the murder of male children in the day of Moses, so Herod commands the murder of male children in the day of Jesus.  In his history of the period, Josephus says nothing about Herod slaughtering young children, although Herod was certainly capable of this kind of thing.  When he came to power, appointed by rare agreement between Octavian and Mark Antony in 37 BC, Herod murdered the entire Sanhedrin.  Herod also murdered two of his own sons, which prompted Caesar Augustus himself to say, "It is safer to be a pig in a parent's household than to be a son in Herod's court."  (Caesar is making a play on two Latin words which doesn't come through as well in English.)

In light of Herod's known character, underlined by Matthew yet again, one wonders about the translation of verse 16.  Herod was exceptionally enraged because he had been "tricked" or "mocked" by the magi.  He ordered the death of the male children after he had "diligently inquired" (KJV) the time of his birth from the magi.  The word translated as "diligently inquired" is akribao.  Did Herod torture the magi?

Herod knew that he would not be mourned when he died so he ordered that dozens of executions take place right before his death so that there would at least be mourners in the city.  The order, fortunately for three hundred or so of Jerusalem's citizens, was not carried out.  Matthew's purpose is to lift up this truth about Herod, that he was a power-mad murderer, and associate him in peoples' minds with Pharoah.

Herod wanted to kill all the male babies "in and around Bethlehem."  Bethlehem itself was a relatively small town.  There would be only a few male babies there.  If you include "in and around Bethlehem," however, then we may be talking about Jerusalem as well since it is only about five miles from Bethlehem.  The idea of killing all the male children under two years of age, in the whole region, is a way of saying that human escape from the situation was not possible.

Incidentally, this episode ought to give pause to those people who argue that Jesus' main purpose was to die on the cross.  If all Jesus was here for was to die, then it wouldn't have mattered if Herod had, in fact, killed him as an infant.  If all he's here for is to die, what difference does it make how old he was when it happened?

The Old Testament citation--"a voice was heard in Ramah"--is from Jeremiah 31:15 and it has to do with the Exile into Babylon c. 600 BC.  Rachel--the mother of Israel--is weeping because her children are being deported.  (Ramah is where the Israelites gathered for their forced march to Babylon.) 

Notice that, unlike other Old Testament citations in Matthew, the murders of the children do not fulfill God's intention.  (Matthew lacks the "in order that" clause which he normally uses in these cases.)  The murders affirm what had already been spoken by the prophets, but do not have God's endorsement.

Nazorean?:  Herod died in 4 BC.  His son, Archelaus, inherited his rule of Judea, Samaria, and Idumea, and lasted until AD 6 when the Romans threw Archelaus overboard and installed Quirinius.  (His father's son, Archelaus promptedly killed 3000 Jewish leaders when he came to power.) 

An angels appears again in a dream and instructs Joseph to go back to the land of Israel.  As to the dream itself, Matthew most likely has in mind Exodus 4: 19 where God instructs Moses to go back to Egypt "for all those who are seeking your life are dead" (Ex 4:19).  Matthew 2:20 is phrased similarly. 

Under the circumstances, however, it is hard to see how Galilee would be a lot safer for Jesus even though Herod had died.  Considering that Herod Antipas, Herod's son and, later, the slayer of John the Baptist, was now the ruler of Galilee, Jesus' level of safety has not risen a great deal.

Matthew vaguely cites "the prophets" as saying that "he will be called a Nazarene."  He couldn't specify a particular prophet since none had ever spoken of Nazareth.  In fact, the word "Nazareth" does not appear in the Old Testament at all.  

Either Matthew made this one up because, somehow, he had to get Jesus to Nazareth since everybody knew that Jesus was, in fact, from Nazareth, or this may be a hint that Jesus had taken the "nazarite vow", i.e. that he had taken a vow, as Samson and perhaps John the Baptist had, to avoid strong drink and not cut his hair.  

Matthew presents the birth of Jesus as a recapitulation of the history of Israel.  He survives assassination, as did Moses.  He goes to Egypt, as his people once did, and comes out again, as his people also did.  He is afflicted by Herod, as Moses was afflicted by Pharoah.  Rachel, the mother of the nation, is his mother too. 

Thus, he is a fitting "Messiah," one who encapsulates the history of his people, and one who will lead them into a new relationship with God, with each other, and even with their enemies. 

Image:  Massacre of the Innocents, Nicolas Poussin

Advent 4 ::: Matthew 1: 18-25

18 Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. ²⁰But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ ²²All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 
²³ ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
   and they shall name him Emmanuel’,which means, ‘God is with us.’ ²⁴When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, ²⁵but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.

Translation:  But the origin of Jesus Christ was this:  When his mother Mary was asked in marriage to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child out of the Holy Spirit.  But Joseph, her husband, being just and not wanting to make her a public example, had decided to release her secretly.  But when he considered these things, behold!, and angel of the Lord was made manifest to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which has been brought forth in her is out of the Holy Spirit.  And she will bring forth a son, and you will call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."  But all this had come to be so that what had been spoken of the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, "Behold, a virgin will be with child and will bring forth a son and they will call his name Emmanuel," which, translated, is, "God with us."  And Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and he took his wife, and he did not know her until of her was brought forth a son and he called his name Jesus.

Background and situation:  Matthew's opens his gospel with Jesus' "genealogy."  This is not Jesus' real personal history, but rather a theological statement in the form of one.  Matthew lists 42 generations, which is six blocks of seven names.  For Matthew, the 7th "age"--the one of completion and wholeness--is about to begin.

Secondly, the list of names in Matthew's genealogy includes the names of five women.  Matthew likes to do things in "fives."  There are five sections of Matthew's gospel, for example, symbolic of the five books of Moses.  In Matthew's Christmas story, there are five Old Testament citations, five dreams, five scriptural fulfillments, and five uses of the word "Messiah." 

Including women in a genealogy was unusual.  Yet, Matthew's list includes Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, "the wife of Uriah" (Bathsheba), and Mary.  It is a checkered lot.  Tamar played at being a prostitute, and Rahab was one;  Ruth was a seductress, and Bathsheba an adulteress.  Rahab and Ruth were also foreigners.  For a genealogy in first century Israel, this is a very strange one.

The text has no parallels, and is, therefore, Special Matthew.

The genesis of Jesus:

But the origin of Jesus Christ  was this:  When his mother Mary was asked in marriage to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child out of the Holy Spirit.  But Joseph, her husband, being just and not wanting to make her a public example, had decided to release her secretly.  But when he considered these things, behold!, and angel of the Lord was made manifest to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which has been brought forth in her is out of the Holy Spirit.  And she will bring forth a son, and you will call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

Literally, the first line reads:  "The genesis of Jesus Christ was this."  Matthew is drawing on the name of Moses' first book, drawing a link between the "genesis" of the creation, and the "genesis" of Christ, the new creation.

Engagement in those days was, you might say, "virtual marriage."  The couple would be considered to be married, but were not yet living together.  The length of this engagement would be influenced by the amount of dowry to be paid to the family for the wife, and also by the length of time it took the groom to make suitable living arrangements for he and his wife.

Mary turns up pregnant, which creates a crisis in their relationship.  Who is the father?  One could wonder why Matthew chose to tell us that part.  Luke tells his entire Christmas story without mentioning the questionable paternity of Jesus.  Was Matthew dealing with an early rumor, one that asserted Mary was raped by a Roman soldier?  (The Roman writer, Celsus, later asserted this c. AD 150, and used Matthew's gospel as a source.)

Roman soldiers had likely swept through Nazareth upon the death of Herod in 4 BC.  When Herod died, there were uprisings all through the land of Israel.  Rome had to bring three Legions from Syria to suppress all the revolts.  This would have involved about 20,000 soldiers.  (The soldiers were stationed in Syria to counter a major empire to the east, Parthia.)  One of the revolts was in Sepphoris, only a few miles from Nazareth.  The Roman Army destroyed the city. 

Joseph the Just:  Matthew presents Joseph as a "just" (dikaios) man.  This is a tremendous accolade, coming from Matthew, for whom dikaios is a major category (3:15, 5:6, 6:33, 9:13, 10:41, 21:32, 25:37).  Joseph did not want to expose Mary to public ridicule and "decided to release her (apolusai) secretly." 

One wonders about this.  Apolusai may mean divorce, but it seems unlikely that such a thing could be done "secretly" in a small town.  It could mean that Joseph was sending Mary away to have the baby.  Even that, however, wouldn't have really solved the problem.  In any case, the sense of the text seems to be that Joseph was trying to handle the situation with minimal damage to anyone's reputation--his, and Mary's as well.   

This represents a new idea of "just."  Joseph is not wanting Mary to be held up as a public example (deigmatisai).  Technically speaking, Mary could have been stoned to death, as could the father of the child, if known.  Strict adherence to the law was, in some peoples' minds, the very definition of "justice."  Strictly speaking, under the law, Mary dies.

But Joseph is portrayed as elevating compassion--concern about disgrace for Mary--above strict adherence to the law.  This pre-figures the "new justice"--compassion over "religion"--that will be taught by Jesus himself later in Matthew.  Jesus will quote Hosea twice in Matthew, both times the same citation:  "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice" (9:13, 12:7).  I desire compassion, in other words, and not the religious act.

In verse 19, the NRSV has:  "...just when he (Joseph) had resolved to do this..."  An alternate translation of the word enthumethentos would read this way:  "...as he was deliberating about this..."  In other words, his mind was not "resolved" at all.  He was pondering, reflecting, thinking, mulling over this difficult situation.

Joseph's pondering is in verse 19.  His deliberations are framed by two mentions of the Holy Spirit, one in verse 18, another in verse 20.  These mentions of the Spirit frame Joseph's muddled situation described in verse 19.  Might we say that, even in his doubts and ponderings, Joseph is held in the Spirit?

The angel intervenes by addressing Joseph as "Son of David."  This is the sixth mention of "David" in Matthew's gospel, and we've only gone 20 verses!  David was the "messiah" figure par excellance.  He was the great king who had defeated Israel's enemies, and ushered in a great "golden age."  For Matthew, not only is Jesus the "new Moses."  He is also the "new David." 

The angel encourages Joseph not to be afraid.  Mary "will bear (texatai) a son."  The root word is tipto, a word whose primary meaning is to bring forth fruit from a seed.  The idea of "bearing fruit" is of major importance throughout Matthew's gospel.  "Beware of false prophets," Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount (7: 16).  How will you know if they are a false prophet?  "By their fruits"--by what they do, by what they bring forth.  Here, Mary brings forth the fruit of Jesus.

The angel tells Joseph that the child is to be named "Jesus"--"Yeshua" actually, which is "Joshua," which means "he will save."  The name recalls the great leader, Joshua, who had led the people across the Jordan into the Promised Land. 

This new Joshua will save "his people" from their sins.  A major theme of Matthew is the problem of unbelief in Israel, the main subject, in fact, of Matthew's third major section of his gospel.  Nevertheless, despite their sins, Jesus will save "his people."  Matthew follows with the first of five Old Testament citations:

But all this had come to be so that what had been spoken of the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, "Behold, a virgin will be with child and will bring forth a son and they will call his name Emmanuel," which, translated, is, "God with us."

Matthew must have been using the Septuagint--the Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures.  (The Septuagint version of Isaiah 7: 14 uses "virgin," but the original Hebrew does not.)  Isaiah was referring to a "young woman" who was already pregnant during the reign of King Ahaz, who was, at the time, dealing with a twin threat from Aram and Remaliah. 

"Behold, the young woman is with child," says Isaiah.  By the time this child is old enough to know the difference between right and wrong, Isaiah continues, the land in front of the two enemies of Ahaz will be deserted.  Isaiah was not predicting the future, in other words, but speaking to the immediate situation facing King Ahaz in the 8th century BC. 

In verse 23, we are given another name the child--"Emmanuel" is added to "Joshua."  The latter will be the child's personal name, and the former might be thought of as his ruling title:  "God with us."  When the book of Matthew closes, Jesus will say, "I am with you always" (28:20). 

In fact, the phrase in 28:20 is ego meth hemone eimi.  Note that the "with you" (meth hemone) is placed between ego and eimi.  Ego eimi is the divine name (in Greek) and would normally be held together.  That Matthew breaks apart the divine name in order to insert "with you" in the middle is a way of saying that God's people are held intimately within the very life and identity of God.

And Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and he took his wife, and he did not know her until of her was brought forth a son and he called his name Jesus.

As mentioned, this is the first of five dreams in Matthew's Christmas story.  In the case of Joseph, it also recalls that earlier dreamer, Joseph, son of Jacob, who interpreted dreams for Pharoah in Egypt.  Joseph, the "just" man, does as he was told, married Mary, and named the new baby Jesus.  In those days, it was the father's prerogative to name the child.  In naming Jesus, Joseph is "owning" the child and accepting responsibility for him.

Image:  St. Joseph the Worker, Museum of the San Fernando Valley

 

18 Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. ²⁰But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ ²²All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 
²³ ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
   and they shall name him Emmanuel’,which means, ‘God is with us.’ ²⁴When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, ²⁵but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.

Translation:  But the origin of Jesus Christ was this:  When his mother Mary was asked in marriage to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child out of the Holy Spirit.  But Joseph, her husband, being just and not wanting to make her a public example, had decided to release her secretly.  But when he considered these things, behold!, and angel of the Lord was made manifest to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which has been brought forth in her is out of the Holy Spirit.  And she will bring forth a son, and you will call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."  But all this had come to be so that what had been spoken of the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, "Behold, a virgin will be with child and will bring forth a son and they will call his name Emmanuel," which, translated, is, "God with us."  And Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and he took his wife, and he did not know her until of her was brought forth a son and he called his name Jesus.

Background and situation:  Matthew's opens his gospel with Jesus' "genealogy."  This is not Jesus' real personal history, but rather a theological statement in the form of one.  Matthew lists 42 generations, which is six blocks of seven names.  For Matthew, the 7th "age"--the one of completion and wholeness--is about to begin.

Secondly, the list of names in Matthew's genealogy includes the names of five women.  Matthew likes to do things in "fives."  There are five sections of Matthew's gospel, for example, symbolic of the five books of Moses.  In Matthew's Christmas story, there are five Old Testament citations, five dreams, five scriptural fulfillments, and five uses of the word "Messiah." 

Including women in a genealogy was unusual.  Yet, Matthew's list includes Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, "the wife of Uriah" (Bathsheba), and Mary.  It is a checkered lot.  Tamar played at being a prostitute, and Rahab was one;  Ruth was a seductress, and Bathsheba an adulteress.  Rahab and Ruth were also foreigners.  For a genealogy in first century Israel, this is a very strange one.

The text has no parallels, and is, therefore, Special Matthew.

The genesis of Jesus:

But the origin of Jesus Christ  was this:  When his mother Mary was asked in marriage to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child out of the Holy Spirit.  But Joseph, her husband, being just and not wanting to make her a public example, had decided to release her secretly.  But when he considered these things, behold!, and angel of the Lord was made manifest to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which has been brought forth in her is out of the Holy Spirit.  And she will bring forth a son, and you will call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

Literally, the first line reads:  "The genesis of Jesus Christ was this."  Matthew is drawing on the name of Moses' first book, drawing a link between the "genesis" of the creation, and the "genesis" of Christ, the new creation.

Engagement in those days was, you might say, "virtual marriage."  The couple would be considered to be married, but were not yet living together.  The length of this engagement would be influenced by the amount of dowry to be paid to the family for the wife, and also by the length of time it took the groom to make suitable living arrangements for he and his wife.

Mary turns up pregnant, which creates a crisis in their relationship.  Who is the father?  One could wonder why Matthew chose to tell us that part.  Luke tells his entire Christmas story without mentioning the questionable paternity of Jesus.  Was Matthew dealing with an early rumor, one that asserted Mary was raped by a Roman soldier?  (The Roman writer, Celsus, later asserted this c. AD 150, and used Matthew's gospel as a source.)

Roman soldiers had likely swept through Nazareth upon the death of Herod in 4 BC.  When Herod died, there were uprisings all through the land of Israel.  Rome had to bring three Legions from Syria to suppress all the revolts.  This would have involved about 20,000 soldiers.  (The soldiers were stationed in Syria to counter a major empire to the east, Parthia.)  One of the revolts was in Sepphoris, only a few miles from Nazareth.  The Roman Army destroyed the city. 

Joseph the Just:  Matthew presents Joseph as a "just" (dikaios) man.  This is a tremendous accolade, coming from Matthew, for whom dikaios is a major category (3:15, 5:6, 6:33, 9:13, 10:41, 21:32, 25:37).  Joseph did not want to expose Mary to public ridicule and "decided to release her (apolusai) secretly." 

One wonders about this.  Apolusai may mean divorce, but it seems unlikely that such a thing could be done "secretly" in a small town.  It could mean that Joseph was sending Mary away to have the baby.  Even that, however, wouldn't have really solved the problem.  In any case, the sense of the text seems to be that Joseph was trying to handle the situation with minimal damage to anyone's reputation--his, and Mary's as well.   

This represents a new idea of "just."  Joseph is not wanting Mary to be held up as a public example (deigmatisai).  Technically speaking, Mary could have been stoned to death, as could the father of the child, if known.  Strict adherence to the law was, in some peoples' minds, the very definition of "justice."  Strictly speaking, under the law, Mary dies.

But Joseph is portrayed as elevating compassion--concern about disgrace for Mary--above strict adherence to the law.  This pre-figures the "new justice"--compassion over "religion"--that will be taught by Jesus himself later in Matthew.  Jesus will quote Hosea twice in Matthew, both times the same citation:  "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice" (9:13, 12:7).  I desire compassion, in other words, and not the religious act.

In verse 19, the NRSV has:  "...just when he (Joseph) had resolved to do this..."  An alternate translation of the word enthumethentos would read this way:  "...as he was deliberating about this..."  In other words, his mind was not "resolved" at all.  He was pondering, reflecting, thinking, mulling over this difficult situation.

Joseph's pondering is in verse 19.  His deliberations are framed by two mentions of the Holy Spirit, one in verse 18, another in verse 20.  These mentions of the Spirit frame Joseph's muddled situation described in verse 19.  Might we say that, even in his doubts and ponderings, Joseph is held in the Spirit?

The angel intervenes by addressing Joseph as "Son of David."  This is the sixth mention of "David" in Matthew's gospel, and we've only gone 20 verses!  David was the "messiah" figure par excellance.  He was the great king who had defeated Israel's enemies, and ushered in a great "golden age."  For Matthew, not only is Jesus the "new Moses."  He is also the "new David." 

The angel encourages Joseph not to be afraid.  Mary "will bear (texatai) a son."  The root word is tipto, a word whose primary meaning is to bring forth fruit from a seed.  The idea of "bearing fruit" is of major importance throughout Matthew's gospel.  "Beware of false prophets," Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount (7: 16).  How will you know if they are a false prophet?  "By their fruits"--by what they do, by what they bring forth.  Here, Mary brings forth the fruit of Jesus.

The angel tells Joseph that the child is to be named "Jesus"--"Yeshua" actually, which is "Joshua," which means "he will save."  The name recalls the great leader, Joshua, who had led the people across the Jordan into the Promised Land. 

This new Joshua will save "his people" from their sins.  A major theme of Matthew is the problem of unbelief in Israel, the main subject, in fact, of Matthew's third major section of his gospel.  Nevertheless, despite their sins, Jesus will save "his people."  Matthew follows with the first of five Old Testament citations:

But all this had come to be so that what had been spoken of the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, "Behold, a virgin will be with child and will bring forth a son and they will call his name Emmanuel," which, translated, is, "God with us."

Matthew must have been using the Septuagint--the Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures.  (The Septuagint version of Isaiah 7: 14 uses "virgin," but the original Hebrew does not.)  Isaiah was referring to a "young woman" who was already pregnant during the reign of King Ahaz, who was, at the time, dealing with a twin threat from Aram and Remaliah. 

"Behold, the young woman is with child," says Isaiah.  By the time this child is old enough to know the difference between right and wrong, Isaiah continues, the land in front of the two enemies of Ahaz will be deserted.  Isaiah was not predicting the future, in other words, but speaking to the immediate situation facing King Ahaz in the 8th century BC. 

In verse 23, we are given another name the child--"Emmanuel" is added to "Joshua."  The latter will be the child's personal name, and the former might be thought of as his ruling title:  "God with us."  When the book of Matthew closes, Jesus will say, "I am with you always" (28:20). 

In fact, the phrase in 28:20 is ego meth hemone eimi.  Note that the "with you" (meth hemone) is placed between ego and eimi.  Ego eimi is the divine name (in Greek) and would normally be held together.  That Matthew breaks apart the divine name in order to insert "with you" in the middle is a way of saying that God's people are held intimately within the very life and identity of God.

And Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and he took his wife, and he did not know her until of her was brought forth a son and he called his name Jesus.

As mentioned, this is the first of five dreams in Matthew's Christmas story.  In the case of Joseph, it also recalls that earlier dreamer, Joseph, son of Jacob, who interpreted dreams for Pharoah in Egypt.  Joseph, the "just" man, does as he was told, married Mary, and named the new baby Jesus.  In those days, it was the father's prerogative to name the child.  In naming Jesus, Joseph is "owning" the child and accepting responsibility for him.

Image:  St. Joseph the Worker, Museum of the San Fernando Valley

Advent 3 ::: Matthew 11: 2-11

²When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples ³and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” ⁴Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. ⁶And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

⁷As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? ⁸What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. ⁹What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ ¹¹Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Translation:  Now when John heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent, through his disciples, and said to him, "Are you the coming one, or should we look for another?"  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Go tell John what you here and see:  the blind ones look up, the lame ones walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf ones hear, and the dead ones are raised, and the destitute ones are brought a joyful message, and blessed is anyone not scandalized by me."

But as they were going away, Jesus began to say to the crowds concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by wind?  But what did you go out to perceive?  Someone dressed in soft clothing?  Behold, the ones wearing soft clothing (are) in the houses of kings.  For what did you go out?  To see a prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is the one about whom it has been written, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you.'  Truly I say to you, in those born of women, there has not been raised a greater than John the Baptist, but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."

 

Background and situation:  For Matthew, Jesus is the "new Moses."  Reflecting this theme, the gospel of Matthew contains five sections--five "books", you might say--which correspond to the five books of Moses.  Our text marks the beginning of the third book (11:2-13:54), the major theme of which is the problem of unbelief.

Matthew introduces this new section by telling his readers that John is now in prison.  The free-wheeling Baptist, once in the wilderness, is now bound up, most likely in an underground prison, and now lives in the darkness.

The major theme of book three is the problem of trust and belief among Jesus' people.  Not only do Bethsaida, Chorazin, Capernaum face a day of judgment (11:20-23), not only do the pharisees oppose him (12:1-6), and get the law all wrong, not only is the synagogue a place of disability (12:9-14), even John the Baptist has doubts!  What a stunning introduction to the problem of unbelief in Israel.

Jesus and John:  John has heard of the "works of Christ" (erga tou Christou), and wonders if Jesus is really "the one who is to come."  The text deals with the question of identity--first, that of Jesus (2-6), then that of John (7-11). 

As noted in the post on Matthew 3, the early church was nervous about the figure of John the Baptist.  All four gospels mention him, and all four of them are clear that John is to be considered subordinate to Jesus.  (In 9:14, John's disciples even say that they are like the pharisees in that they fast, whereas the disciples of Jesus do not.  For Matthew, and for all the synoptics, it is not a good idea to be allied with the pharisees.)

At the same time, all four gospels also affirm a link between Jesus and John.  Matthew says that Herod thought Jesus was John the Baptist come back from the dead (14:2), as did some of "the people" (16:14). 

During the early part of passion week, when Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he invokes the name of the well-remembered and still-popular John, in a sense wrapping the mantle of John around himself, as he goes toe-to-toe with Temple authorities in front of the people (21:32).  (What a nifty political move that was.)

For Matthew, Jesus is a Messiah who is different from the one that had been expected in the fevered political climate of that time.  In the popular mind of Jews in the first century, the model for the "messiah" was more along lines represented by Judas Maccabeas, the leader of the Maccabean revolt, c. 160 BC., whose program was militaristic.  Some at the time even called Maccabeus "the messiah."

Not only is Jesus different from popular expectation, he's also different from John's expectation.  Jesus has not taken an ax to any trees, and has not burned any "chaff" with "unquenchable fire." (3:12)  He has not led a revolt, nor caused any prison walls to fall.  John might well wonder, "Are you the coming one, or should we look for another?"

Jesus the prophet:

And Jesus answered and said to them, "Go tell John what you hear and see:  the blind ones look up, the lame ones walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf ones hear, and the dead ones are raised, and the destitute ones are brought a joyful message, and blessed is anyone not scandalized by me." 

Jesus explains his role by invocations of the prophet Isaiah--29:18, "the deaf shall hear"; 35:5-6, "then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy"; 42:17, "and you that are blind, look up and see"; 26:19, "your dead shall live"; 61:1, "bring good news to the oppressed". 

Yes, Matthew portrays Jesus as a law-giver--indeed, a new Moses--and will continue to do so.  Here, however, Matthew is firmly placing Jesus on the prophetic side of "law and prophets." 

"Blind people recover sight," Jesus says, which he had done in 9: 27-28 for two blind men who trusted that Jesus was able to do it.  "Lame people walk," which Jesus had done (9: 2-8) because of "their faith."  "The leprous are made clean," which Jesus had done (8: 2-4) in response to a leper who trusted Jesus to be able to do it.  "The dead are raised," which Jesus had done in 9:18-25.  "The poor receive good news," which Jesus has been doing all along. 

In Matthew's gospel, however, Jesus has not yet made a deaf person to hear, although he has made a mute person speak, and given his disciples "authority...to cure every disease and every sickness" (10:1).

The prophetic vision of Isaiah--and Elijah, Jeremiah, and prophets in general (16:14)--is being fulfilled in the ministry of Jesus, a ministry marked by healing, acceptance, new community, good news, hospitality, clarity of vision, compassion (9:36), a "new thing" (Isaiah 43:19; Matthew 9:33), and intervention on behalf of the poor and "little ones" (10:42).

Jesus final comment to John's disciples is to offer John a beatitude, one reminiscent of the beatitudes in Matthew 5.  "Blessed is anyone who is not scandalized by me," a gentle and somewhat self-effacing appeal not "to look for another."

Who is John?:

But as they were going away, Jesus began to say to the crowds concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by wind?  But what did you go out to perceive?  Someone dressed in soft clothing?  Behold, the ones wearing soft clothing (are) in the houses of kings.  For what did you go out?  To see a prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is the one about whom it has been written, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you.'  Truly I say to you, in those born of women, there has not been raised a greater than John the Baptist, but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."

Jesus' identify clarified, John's disciples go away.  Jesus now turns to the question of John's identity.  He is no shrinking violet--not a mere "reed shaken by the wind."  Jesus takes a slap at the Temple elite by also noting that John was not one to "wear soft clothing...in houses of kings," subtly reminding the people that John is in prison at the hands of those who do.

John is a "prophet"--even "over and above a prophet."  Quoting a prophet--Malachi, this time (3:1)--John is the "messenger" who prepares the way for the Messiah.  Yet, there is that ambivalence again.  There is none greater--none has "arisen" (egegertai)--greater than John, yet even the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John.

Is John in the kingdom of heaven?  The question remains unanswered.  The reason is perhaps because the text introduces a major section of Matthew, the theme of which is the resistance of Israel to its Messiah.  What better introduction than to present John the Baptist himself--one who, in so many ways, "gets it"--as struggling with that very issue?  Unbelief is so serious that Matthew will not resolve it yet, even for the Baptist.

Matthew is, of course, dealing partly with issues of his own church.  In AD 80--roughly the time of Matthew's writing--the faith was doing better among gentiles than it was in Israel.  This would have been thirty years into Paul's gentile mission.  Gentile inclusion was no longer an issue.  Now the issue was whether or not Jesus would continue to have Jewish followers as well. 

Also, relations between "Christians" and Jews after the Roman-Jewish War (AD 66-70) had deteriorated.  Previously, relations had been amicable, but, after the war, each tended to blame the other for the destruction of Jerusalem.  The split between Christians and Jews had hardened and widened. 

Matthew is making an evangelical appeal to the Jews of his day to reconsider the teachings and deeds of Jesus, teachings and deeds which exceed even those of Moses and complete the vision of the prophets.  As Matthew argues repeatedly, both law and prophets--the twin pillars of Israel--find their fulfillment in Jesus.

Image:  John the Baptist, 12th century, Ayasofha Muzesi, Istanbul, Turkey.

²When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples ³and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” ⁴Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. ⁶And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

⁷As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? ⁸What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. ⁹What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ ¹¹Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Translation:  Now when John heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent, through his disciples, and said to him, "Are you the coming one, or should we look for another?"  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Go tell John what you here and see:  the blind ones look up, the lame ones walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf ones hear, and the dead ones are raised, and the destitute ones are brought a joyful message, and blessed is anyone not scandalized by me."

But as they were going away, Jesus began to say to the crowds concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by wind?  But what did you go out to perceive?  Someone dressed in soft clothing?  Behold, the ones wearing soft clothing (are) in the houses of kings.  For what did you go out?  To see a prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is the one about whom it has been written, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you.'  Truly I say to you, in those born of women, there has not been raised a greater than John the Baptist, but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."

 

Background and situation:  For Matthew, Jesus is the "new Moses."  Reflecting this theme, the gospel of Matthew contains five sections--five "books", you might say--which correspond to the five books of Moses.  Our text marks the beginning of the third book (11:2-13:54), the major theme of which is the problem of unbelief.

Matthew introduces this new section by telling his readers that John is now in prison.  The free-wheeling Baptist, once in the wilderness, is now bound up, most likely in an underground prison, and now lives in the darkness.

The major theme of book three is the problem of trust and belief among Jesus' people.  Not only do Bethsaida, Chorazin, Capernaum face a day of judgment (11:20-23), not only do the pharisees oppose him (12:1-6), and get the law all wrong, not only is the synagogue a place of disability (12:9-14), even John the Baptist has doubts!  What a stunning introduction to the problem of unbelief in Israel.

Jesus and John:  John has heard of the "works of Christ" (erga tou Christou), and wonders if Jesus is really "the one who is to come."  The text deals with the question of identity--first, that of Jesus (2-6), then that of John (7-11). 

As noted in the post on Matthew 3, the early church was nervous about the figure of John the Baptist.  All four gospels mention him, and all four of them are clear that John is to be considered subordinate to Jesus.  (In 9:14, John's disciples even say that they are like the pharisees in that they fast, whereas the disciples of Jesus do not.  For Matthew, and for all the synoptics, it is not a good idea to be allied with the pharisees.)

At the same time, all four gospels also affirm a link between Jesus and John.  Matthew says that Herod thought Jesus was John the Baptist come back from the dead (14:2), as did some of "the people" (16:14). 

During the early part of passion week, when Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he invokes the name of the well-remembered and still-popular John, in a sense wrapping the mantle of John around himself, as he goes toe-to-toe with Temple authorities in front of the people (21:32).  (What a nifty political move that was.)

For Matthew, Jesus is a Messiah who is different from the one that had been expected in the fevered political climate of that time.  In the popular mind of Jews in the first century, the model for the "messiah" was more along lines represented by Judas Maccabeas, the leader of the Maccabean revolt, c. 160 BC., whose program was militaristic.  Some at the time even called Maccabeus "the messiah."

Not only is Jesus different from popular expectation, he's also different from John's expectation.  Jesus has not taken an ax to any trees, and has not burned any "chaff" with "unquenchable fire." (3:12)  He has not led a revolt, nor caused any prison walls to fall.  John might well wonder, "Are you the coming one, or should we look for another?"

Jesus the prophet:

And Jesus answered and said to them, "Go tell John what you hear and see:  the blind ones look up, the lame ones walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf ones hear, and the dead ones are raised, and the destitute ones are brought a joyful message, and blessed is anyone not scandalized by me." 

Jesus explains his role by invocations of the prophet Isaiah--29:18, "the deaf shall hear"; 35:5-6, "then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy"; 42:17, "and you that are blind, look up and see"; 26:19, "your dead shall live"; 61:1, "bring good news to the oppressed". 

Yes, Matthew portrays Jesus as a law-giver--indeed, a new Moses--and will continue to do so.  Here, however, Matthew is firmly placing Jesus on the prophetic side of "law and prophets." 

"Blind people recover sight," Jesus says, which he had done in 9: 27-28 for two blind men who trusted that Jesus was able to do it.  "Lame people walk," which Jesus had done (9: 2-8) because of "their faith."  "The leprous are made clean," which Jesus had done (8: 2-4) in response to a leper who trusted Jesus to be able to do it.  "The dead are raised," which Jesus had done in 9:18-25.  "The poor receive good news," which Jesus has been doing all along. 

In Matthew's gospel, however, Jesus has not yet made a deaf person to hear, although he has made a mute person speak, and given his disciples "authority...to cure every disease and every sickness" (10:1).

The prophetic vision of Isaiah--and Elijah, Jeremiah, and prophets in general (16:14)--is being fulfilled in the ministry of Jesus, a ministry marked by healing, acceptance, new community, good news, hospitality, clarity of vision, compassion (9:36), a "new thing" (Isaiah 43:19; Matthew 9:33), and intervention on behalf of the poor and "little ones" (10:42).

Jesus final comment to John's disciples is to offer John a beatitude, one reminiscent of the beatitudes in Matthew 5.  "Blessed is anyone who is not scandalized by me," a gentle and somewhat self-effacing appeal not "to look for another."

Who is John?:

But as they were going away, Jesus began to say to the crowds concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by wind?  But what did you go out to perceive?  Someone dressed in soft clothing?  Behold, the ones wearing soft clothing (are) in the houses of kings.  For what did you go out?  To see a prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is the one about whom it has been written, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you.'  Truly I say to you, in those born of women, there has not been raised a greater than John the Baptist, but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."

Jesus' identify clarified, John's disciples go away.  Jesus now turns to the question of John's identity.  He is no shrinking violet--not a mere "reed shaken by the wind."  Jesus takes a slap at the Temple elite by also noting that John was not one to "wear soft clothing...in houses of kings," subtly reminding the people that John is in prison at the hands of those who do.

John is a "prophet"--even "over and above a prophet."  Quoting a prophet--Malachi, this time (3:1)--John is the "messenger" who prepares the way for the Messiah.  Yet, there is that ambivalence again.  There is none greater--none has "arisen" (egegertai)--greater than John, yet even the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John.

Is John in the kingdom of heaven?  The question remains unanswered.  The reason is perhaps because the text introduces a major section of Matthew, the theme of which is the resistance of Israel to its Messiah.  What better introduction than to present John the Baptist himself--one who, in so many ways, "gets it"--as struggling with that very issue?  Unbelief is so serious that Matthew will not resolve it yet, even for the Baptist.

Matthew is, of course, dealing partly with issues of his own church.  In AD 80--roughly the time of Matthew's writing--the faith was doing better among gentiles than it was in Israel.  This would have been thirty years into Paul's gentile mission.  Gentile inclusion was no longer an issue.  Now the issue was whether or not Jesus would continue to have Jewish followers as well. 

Also, relations between "Christians" and Jews after the Roman-Jewish War (AD 66-70) had deteriorated.  Previously, relations had been amicable, but, after the war, each tended to blame the other for the destruction of Jerusalem.  The split between Christians and Jews had hardened and widened. 

Matthew is making an evangelical appeal to the Jews of his day to reconsider the teachings and deeds of Jesus, teachings and deeds which exceed even those of Moses and complete the vision of the prophets.  As Matthew argues repeatedly, both law and prophets--the twin pillars of Israel--find their fulfillment in Jesus.

Image:  John the Baptist, 12th century, Ayasofha Muzesi, Istanbul, Turkey.