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Judas: The Son of Perdition

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Jesus calls Judas Iscariot “the son of destruction/perdition” in John 17:12. John uses the Greek word apóleia, which means “destruction, loss”. 

We learn in Matthew 27:3 that Judas was remorseful about or regretted his betrayal of Jesus, and he even returned the 30 pieces of silver paid to him for his part in Jesus’s condemnation. Why didn’t this save him? The Greek word used for regret in Matthew 27:3 is metamelomai, meaning “repent, regret, changed mind (for the different/good option)”. Although salvation begins with repentance, it requires more than feeling regret or what we might call ‘worldly sorrow’ (see 2 Corinthians 7:10). Unfortunately, Judas stopped at feeling bad and thinking he should have made a better choice; he chose ‘worldly sorrow’. There is a different word used for the kind of repentance that is leads to salvation or life (Acts 11:18). The Greek word used for repent is metanoeó and it means to “repent” but this repentance includes feeling remorse, thinking differently about your sin, turning from the sin and turning to God for salvation from your sin.

The repentance that leads to salvation is the work of God (2 Timothy 2:25), more specifically the Holy Spirit, which He accomplishes through conviction of sin (John 16:8). With this repentance, the saving faith that is a gift from God (see Ephesians 2:8-9) is granted. This God-gifted faith, which is also called trust, allows you to have complete trust in Jesus, as Savior from the sin that you repent of (John 6:40; Romans 10:9-11 ; Galatians 2:20). When you have this faith, you receive the seal or pledge of the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30) there is no doubt in you, for you know you are a child of God (John 1:12) and destined to eternal life (Revelation 21-22).

Nothing in the Bible says that Judas turned towards God and had any faith at all in Christ as the Messiah. Here’s another clue into the situation: Judas was trying to fix his sin himself by giving back the money, as atonement. This is an excellent object lesson: we cannot fix our own sin. We cannot atone enough for breaking the laws of God. Only Jesus can fix that kind of mess. See Matthew 27:3-10 and Acts 1:18-19 for Judas’s fate in the aftermath of his betrayal of Christ. 

 

What the Steps Towards Salvation Looks Like

– You agree with God that you are not good and not one single thing about you is right. You hate your rottenness and your sins and you are honest about it. You stop making excuses or justifying yourself.

– You realize that you need Jesus to make you right by forgiving your sins, removing your sins from you, and reconciling you with God. You trust Jesus to make this atonement on your behalf and you turn away from a life of sin and of relying on your own judgment and will, and now you take up God’s ways, will, and life through Jesus.

– Not only do you trust Jesus for this atonement, but you are also grateful, you love Him more than yourself, more than anyone or anything in your life, even more than that old identity that you clung to, and you rejoice in shedding the ugly, old ways/sins you participated in before.

– The new you is at peace and filled with joy in God’s love, in His law and ways. You can trust Him, you trust in His promises and His Word, in every and all situations in your life.

Please note this does not mean your life is perfect (Matthew 6:34), that you are wealthy (James 2:1-6) you are happy all the time (the book of Job; John 11:35; 2 Corinthians 11:23-27; 12:7-10 ), or that you will never sin again (Romans 7:14-25). This also doesn’t mean Jesus fixed everything about you that you don’t like about yourself or wiped away all of your hurtful memories/made bad things that happened in the past not hurt anymore. Those experiences, memories, and hurts help to shape us, making us the person we are: this is how God uses us! God uses those bad things to make us useful for His purposes (see Genesis 50:20). 

The Resurrection of Jesus: Part Three

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Scripture Used to Create the Splice Series “The Resurrection of Jesus”

Matthew 28:1-20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Matthew 28:1)

 Mark 16:1-20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Mark 16:1)

Luke 24:1-53 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Luke 24:1)

John 20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with John 20:1)

John 21 (Greek Text Analysis starting with John 21:1)

Acts 1:1-14 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Acts 1:1)

 

Need to catch up first? To read the Splice “The Resurrection of Jesus: Part Two”, click here.

 

Ephesians 1:20-21
20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

 

THE SPLICE

 

The 1 eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee to 2 the mountain which Jesus had designated. After these things Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but 3 some were doubtful. And He manifested Himself in this way. Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee (James and John), and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, 4 “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will also come with you.” They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing. But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; 5 yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. So Jesus said to them, “Children, you do not have any fish, do you?” They answered Him, “No.” And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch.” So they cast, and then they were not able to haul the net in because of the great number of fish. Therefore the 6 disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land, but about one hundred yards away, dragging the net full of fish. So when they got out on the land, they saw a charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have now caught.”
Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples ventured to question Him, “Who are You?” knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and the fish likewise. This is now the 7 third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead.

So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My lambs.”  He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.” Now this He said, 8 signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!” Peter, turning around saw the disciple whom Jesus loved 9 following them; 10 the one who also had 11 leaned back on His bosom at the supper and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” So Peter seeing him said to Jesus, “Lord, and what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!” Therefore this saying went out among the brethren that that disciple would not die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?” This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things, and 12 we know that his testimony is true.

Gathering the disciples together, Jesus led them out as far as 13 Bethany and  they (the disciples) were asking Him, saying, “14 Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the 15 Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be 16 baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” And He said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.  Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. And make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe all that I commanded you;  He who has believed and has been 17 baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.  18 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name  they will cast out 19 demons, they will be speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover. Go therefore and lo, I am with you always, even to the  end of the age.” And after He had said these things, He lifted up His hands and blessed them. While He was 20 blessing them, He parted from them. Jesus was lifted up while they were looking on and was carried up and received into heaven; a 21 cloud received Him out of their sight and He sat down at the right hand of God. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.” And they, after worshipping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they went up to the 22 upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers; and they were continually in the temple praising God. Recorded in the book The Acts of The Apostles, written by Luke, are the results of these things: they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed and Jesus Himself sent out through them from east to west the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.

And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, 23 John supposed in his Gospel account that even the world itself would not contain the books that would be written.

We also know this happened after the Resurrection, but have no other information regarding this supernatural event:

Matthew 27:52-53

52 The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53and after His resurrection they entered the holy city and 24 appeared to many.

 

NOTES

 

1 eleven disciples: Eventually, the eleven will become twelve once again with the addition of Matthias, as described in Acts 1:23-26. Matthias and Justus/Joseph/Barsabbas are named as traveling with Jesus during His ministry in Acts 1:21-22, more proof that it wasn’t just the Twelve disciples that were involved with Jesus and following Him. (Back)

2 the mountain: We don’t know exactly which mountain in Galilee the disciples were directed to. There are websites that speculate, but the Bible does not name the mountain. (Back)

3 some were doubtful: We don’t know who was doubtful at Galilee (Matthew 28:16-17 ). It is likely that more than just the eleven disciples were in attendance at Galilee, as they had other people with them in Jerusalem, such as Mary Magdalene and Joanna (see Luke 24:9-10). We know Thomas had been doubtful of Jesus’s resurrection while the disciples were still in Jerusalem, but his doubt had been removed (John 20:24-29).  All of the other disciples seemed to believe Jesus while in Galilee and Jerusalem, except when they saw Him for the very first time, due to their joy and amazement (Luke 24:41). Jesus did rebuke the disciples, however, for doubting the people who had reported His resurrection to them before they saw Him for themselves (Mark 16:14). (Back)

4 I am going fishing: I’ve heard one pastor say that Peter went fishing because he lost faith in Jesus’s return to Galilee. It’s never ok to make the Bible say what it doesn’t say or to omit things that the Bible does say. I think it’s best to just take this sentence as it is presented. Peter went fishing, and six of the other disciples went with him. See John 21:3.  (Back)

5 yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus: Jesus manifested Himself in a form unrecognizable to the people that knew Him more than once (see John 20:14 and Luke 24:16). (Back)

6 disciple whom Jesus loved: This disciple would be John the apostle and writer of the gospel of John, the epistles 1 John, 2 John, and 3 John and the book Revelation. (Back)

7 third time that Jesus was manifested: John 21:14. The Greek word used here for manifest is phaneroó and it means “to make visible, make clear”. The first manifestation to the disciples was on Sunday night (John 20:19) when Cleopas and his traveling buddy saw Jesus and then went back to Jerusalem to tell the disciples about it (Luke 24:33-36). Jesus appeared to ten of the disciples that night, as Thomas had left at some point (John 20:24) and Judas was no longer apart of the fellowship. The second manifestation was talked about specifically in John 20:24-29, but also in Mark 16:14. That manifestation was 8 days later, when Thomas was present. The third manifestation was at the Sea of Galilee, which is also known as the Sea of Tiberias (see John 6:1). The third manifestation is talked about in Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:15-19, and John 21:1-14 . We don’t know how long after the second sighting of Jesus that the third happened. We only know that Jesus “presented Himself alive after His suffering” over a time span of 40 days (Acts 1:3). (Back)

8 signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God: From John 21:19. We don’t know for sure how Peter is martyred, just that he was martyred because of what Jesus had just said to him. Peter himself mentions his own death decades later saying that Jesus made his death known to him (see 2 Peter 1:14). It is possible that when John wrote his gospel account at the end of the 1st century, Peter had already been martyred; it does seem that John is writing on the other side of the event. As for the other apostles’ deaths, we know that James was murdered by the sword because of Acts 12:2. We don’t know anything about the other disciples’ deaths. There are many traditions floating around as to the “how, when and where”, but these cannot be proven and must be taken as possible events and not as facts. (Back)

9 following them: After breakfast, it seems that they were not sitting down around the fire anymore, but that they were walking. (Back)

10 the one: John the disciple. (Back)

11 leaned back on His bosom: This memory that John recalls is recorded in John 13:23-25. (Back)

12 we know that his testimony is true: This is a strangely worded phrase from John 21:24. It gives the feeling that John had written his book, and then others had circulated it or distributed it, and they themselves added this part, assuring the reader that John did write the book and they were sure of it to be true. It could be that John is reassuring the reader that his testimony is true, but if so, it is not written in standard first person singular. The Greek word for the phrase we know in John 21:24 is eidó, written in the first person plural, oidamen. (Back)

13 Bethany: The story may have made a bit of a jump in time. Either Jesus had walked back with the disciples towards Jerusalem from Galilee, which was far away but something they had done before, or they had already been back to Jerusalem and walked out to Bethany, which was not far away (John 11:18). (Back)

14 Lord, is it at this time: There are many portions of the Old Testament talking about the establishment of the kingdom that will be eternal, granted by God, such as Daniel 2:44, and also the return and restoration of the kingdom of Israel being referred to, such as Ezekiel 36. The disciples were living during the Roman occupation of Israel, and they were probably anxious, like many Jews, to have Rome out of their land. This is probably why they brought up the subject. (Back)

15 Holy Spirit: This gift was fully manifested during Pentecost. To read about Jesus’s promise concerning the Holy Spirit, see John 14:16-18, 16:5-14, 20:22. See Acts 2:1-13 to read about the day of Pentecost and the fulfillment of this promise. (Back)

16 baptized with the Holy Spirit: This baptism occurred on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13), also known as the Feast of Weeks, which occurs on the fiftieth day after Passover. The word “Pentecost” or pentékosté in the Greek, means “fiftieth”.
To see a list in timeline form of the Jewish feasts, click here. (Back)

17 baptized shall be saved: Jesus is speaking of baptism by the Holy Spirit, which each and every believer is gifted with, and not a water baptism. He just spoke about baptism by the Holy Spirit…He is continuing the thought. Scripture is very clear that no ritual, work, or action, such as a water baptism, can save you from eternal destruction.  Only the grace of God in giving you the gift of faith in Jesus, and the gift of recognizing and repenting from sin, trusting that Jesus can forgive and remove the sin and reconcile you to God, equals salvation (Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:5, among other verses). This is done through the work of the Holy Spirit, and this is His baptism (for examples, see Ezekiel 36:27; John 16:8-13; Romans 5:5; Titus 3:5-7). The fruit, or result, of this baptism by the Holy Spirit is listed in Galatians 5:22-23. (Back)

18 These signs: The signs listed here were manifested in order to give people the proof that God was present and that the things talked about by the apostles were from Him (2 Corinthians 12:12). These signs were starting to phase out when Timothy was sick (see 1 Timothy 5:23) Otherwise, wouldn’t he most certainly have been miraculously healed? Wouldn’t have Paul’s ailment of the eyes been taken care of, as well (Galatians 4:13-15)? Or (a common argument) were Timothy and Paul “in sin” or was it that they “didn’t have enough faith”? God does not perform miracles based on our sinfulness or faith (see Jesus’s many healing miracles). Otherwise, our works make a difference and clearly our “works” are not even a factor in our salvation (see Romans 3:21-28). We do not need these signs or miracles anymore, because we have the Bible; the Holy Spirit is our proof (John 16:8-13). This is not to say that a miracle could not happen, just that they are most certainly not common, aren’t used as proof of God’s presence and not widely visible.  (Back)

19 demons: There seems to be confusion about what demons actually are. They are fallen angels that were holy angels. Angels were created by God (Colossians 1:16), just like all things. The Bible is silent on angel creation timelines and how God created them. Some angels, for reasons unknown, decided to believe in and side with Satan (who is a fallen angel himself) instead of God and consequently were removed from Heaven, along with Satan (Revelation 12:7-9). Demons and Satan are nothing to fear for those of us held by Christ. God has all power and control over all things, every second of every day, from and to eternity infinity, even for those people who choose to defy Him. If someone has been possessed by demons (no actual elect of God can be possessed by demons because the Holy Spirit dwells within them, see Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 3:16), God allowed that (1 Samuel 16:14-15). It is God, not Satan, demons or any human being, that is to be feared (Matthew 10:28). (Back)

20 blessing them: What does it mean to “bless” someone? The Greek word for bless is eulogeó and it means “ to speak well of, praise”. When used to describe blessing from God, it is to “to consecrate a thing with solemn prayers” and “to cause to prosper, to make happy, to bestow blessings on”. (Back)

21 cloud: The Bible does not describe the appearance of the cloud. Jesus Himself mentions the clouds in Matthew 24:30, referencing Daniel 7:13, saying that He will return with or on (Greek word epi has several words that could be used here) the clouds of the sky/heaven. Although Jesus doesn’t say that the clouds of the sky ushering in His return are different in any way, it is possible that the cloud/clouds are supernatural in structure and design, the same way that the cloud recorded in Exodus 13:21-22 is supernatural. (Back)

22 upper room: Was this upper room the same one from the Thursday night where the Last Supper was held? It is very possible, because that one was large (Luke 22:12) and it needed to hold 11 people, at the very least. Could this also be the upper room mentioned in Acts 1:13 ? That, too, could be from the Last Supper. We can’t know for sure. If it is the same, it seems that the owner might have been a believer in Jesus because of the wording of Matthew 26:18, Mark 14:14, Luke 22:11; but again, we can’t know for sure.  If the owner of the house was a believer in Jesus, it would make sense that the apostles and crew would keep staying there, rather than just because of its spaciousness. In any case, by the end of the 50 days, there were about 120 people gathering in that upper room (Acts 1:12-15). (Back)

23 John supposed: See John 21:25. (Back)

24 appeared to many: Paul gives us more information on those whom Jesus appeared to in 1 Corinthians 15:5-8.(back)

NASB References to Messianic Mentions in the Law/Moses, Prophets and Psalms

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Luke 24:27

NASB: 27 Then beginning with a Moses and with all the b prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

Parallel Greek: καὶ ἀρξάμενος ἀπὸ Μωϋσέως καὶ ἀπὸ πάντων τῶν προφητῶν διερμήνευσεν αὐτοῖς ἐν πάσαις ταῖς γραφαῖς τὰ περὶ ἑαυτοῦ.

Transliteral Greek: And having begun from Moses and from all the Prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.

Cross References

a Gen 3:15; 12:3; Num 21:9 [John 3:14]; Deut 18:15 [John 1:45]; John 4:46

Genesis 3:15  And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.”

Genesis 12:3  And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

Numbers 21:9  And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.

John 3:14   “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up;

Deuteronomy 18:15  “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him.

John 1:45  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

John 4:46  Therefore He came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a royal official whose son was sick at Capernaum.

b 2 Sam 7:12-16; Is 7:14 [Mt 1:23]; Is 9:1f [Mt 4:15f]; Is 42:1 [Mt 12:18ff]; Is 53:4 [Mt 8:17; Lk 22:37]; Dan 7:13 [Mt 24:30]; Mic 5:2 [Mt 2:6]; Zech 9:9 [Mt 21:5]; Acts 13:27

2 Samuel 7:12-16  12 “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, 15 but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.”

Isaiah 7:14  “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sing: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

Matthew 1:23  “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”

Isaiah 9:1,2  1 But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish; in earlier times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on He shall make it glorious, by the way of the sea, on the other side of Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them.

Matthew 4:15, 16 15 “THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI, BY THE WAY OF THE SEA, BEYOND THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE GENTILES—16 THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT, AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH, UPON HTEM A LIGHT DAWNED.”

Isaiah 42:1 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring froth justice to the nations.

Matthew 12:18-21 18 “BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL IS WELL-PLEASED; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES. 19 HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS. 20 A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF, AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT, UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY. 21 AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE.” 

Isaiah 53:4 4 Surely our griefs (or sickness) He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. (I added verse 5 to finish the idea)

Matthew 8:17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “HE HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES.”

Luke 22:37  “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH TRANSGRESSORS’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.”

Daniel 7:13 13 “I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. 14 And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.  (I added verse 14 to finish the idea)

Matthew 24:30  30 “And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. 31 And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET AND THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. (I added verse 31 to finish the idea)

Micah 5:2  2 “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity. 3 Therefore He will give them up until the time when she who is in labor has borne a child. The remainder of His brethren will return to the sons of Israel. 4 And He will arise and shepherd His flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD His God. And they will remain, because at that time He will be great to the ends of the earth 5 This One will be our peace. (I added verse 3-5 to finish the idea)

Matthew 2:6  ‘AND YOU BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH, ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH; FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.’”

Zechariah 9:9  9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, humble, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the hose from Jerusalem; and the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; and His dominion will be from sea to sea, and from the River (the Euphrates) to the ends of the earth. (I added verse 10 to finish the idea)

Matthew 21:5 “SAY TO THE DAUGHTER OF ZION, ‘BEHOLD YOUR KING IS COMING TO YOU, GENTLE, AND MOUNTED ON A DONKEY, EVEN ON A COLT, THE FOAL OF A BEAST OF BURDEN.’ “

Acts 13:27  “For those who live in Jerusalem, and their rulers, recognizing neither Him nor the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled these by condemning Him.

Luke 24:44

NASB: 44 Now He said to them, “a These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the b Law of Moses and the Prophets and c the Psalms must be fulfilled.”

Parallel Greek:  Εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς αὐτούς “Οὗτοι οἱ λόγοι μου οὓς ἐλάλησα πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἔτι ὢν σὺν ὑμῖν, ὅτι δεῖ πληρωθῆναι πάντα τὰ γεγραμμένα ἐν τῷ νόμῳ Μωϋσέως καὶ τοῖς προφήταις καὶ ψαλμοῖς περὶ ἐμοῦ.”

Transliteral Greek: He said now unto to them, These [are] the words of Me, which I spoke to you still being with you, that it behooves to be fulfilled all things – having been written in the law of Moses, and the Prophets and [the] Psalms concerning Me.

Cross References

a Luke 9:22, 44f; 18:31-34; 22:37

Luke 9:22  saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day.”

Luke 9:44, 45  44 “Let these words sink into your ears; for the Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. 45 But they did not  understand this statement, and it was concealed from them so that they would not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this statement.

Luke 18:31-34 31 Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. 32 For He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and  mistreated and spit upon, 33 and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him; and the third day He will rise again.” 34 But the disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them and they did not comprehend the things that were said.

Luke 22:37 “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH TRANSGRESSORS’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.”

b Luke 24:27

Luke 24:27 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

c Ps 2:7ff [Acts 13:33]; Ps 16:10 [Acts 2:27]; Ps 22:1-18 [Mt 27:34-46]; Ps 69:1-21 [Jn 19:28ff]; Ps 72; 110:1 [Mt 22:43f]; Ps 118:22f [Mt 21:42]

Psalm 2:7-9 7 “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You. 8 Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”

Acts 13:33 that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, ‘YOU ARE MY SON; TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU.’

Psalm 16:10  For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. (or, decay can also be corruption)

Acts 2:27 BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT ABANDON MY SOUL TO HADES, NOR ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY.

Psalm 22:1-18 1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. 2 O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; and by night, but I have no rest. 3 Yet You are holy, O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel. 4 In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them. 5 To You they cried out and were delivered; In You they trusted and were not disappointed. 6But I am a worm and not a man, a reproach of men and despised by the people. 7All who see me sneer at me; they separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying, 8 “Commit yourself to the LORD; let Him deliver him.” 9 Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb; You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts. 10 Upon You I was cast from birth; You have been my God from my mother’s womb. 11 Be not far from me, for trouble is near; for there is none to help. 12 Many bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. 13 They open wide their mouth at me, as a ravening and a roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue cleaves to my jaws; and You lay me in the dust of death. 16 For dogs have surrounded me; a band of evildoers has encompassed me; they pierced my hands and my feet. 17 I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; 18 They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.

Matthew 27:33-46  33 And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means Place of a Skull, 34 they have Him wine to drink mixed with gall; and after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink. 35 And when they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots. 36 And sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there. 37 And above His head they put up the charge against Him which read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.” 38 At that time two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and one on the left. 39 And those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their head 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You re the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, 42 “He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. 43 “HE TRUSTS IN GOD; LET GOD RESCUE Him now, IF HE DELIGHTS IN HIM; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 The robbers who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him with the same words. 45 Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour. 46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?”

Psalm 69:1-21  1 Save me, O God, for the waters have threatened my life. 2 I have sunk in deep mire, and there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and a flood overflows me. 3 I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched; my eyes fail while I wait for my God. 4 Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; those who would destroy me are powerful, being wrongfully my enemies; what I did not steal, I then have to restore. 5 O God, it is You who knows my folly, and my wrongs are not hidden from You. 6 May those who wait for You not be ashamed through me, O Lord GOD of hosts; May those who seek You not be dishonored through me, O God of Israel, 7 because for Your sake I have borne reproach; dishonor has covered mt face. 8 I have become estranged from my brothers and an alien to my mother’s sons. 9 For zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me. 10 When I wept in my soul with fasting, it became my reproach. 11 When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them. 12 Those who sit in the gate talk about me, and I am the song of drunkards. 13 But as for me, my prayer is to You, O LORD, at an acceptable time; O God , in the greatness of Your loving kindness, answer me with Your saving truth. 14 Deliver me from the mire and do not let me sink; may I be delivered from my foes and from the deep waters. 15 May the flood of water not overflow me nor the deep swallow me up, nor the pit shut its mouth on me. 16 Answer me, O LORD, for Your lovingkindness is good; according to the greatness of Your compassion, turn to me, 17 and do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress; answer me quickly. 18 Oh draw near to my soul and redeem it; ransom me because of my enemies! 19 You know my reproach and my shame and my dishonor; all  my adversaries are before You. 20 Reproach has broken my heart and I am so sick. And I looked for sympathy, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none. 21 They also gave me gall for my food and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

John 19:28-30 28 After this, Jesus, knowing that al things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. 30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

Psalm 72  1 Give the king Your judgments, O God, and Your righteousness to the king’s son. 2 May he judge Your people with righteousness and Your afflicted with justice. 3 Let the mountains bring peace to the people, and the hills, in righteousness. 4 May he vindicate the afflicted of the people, save the children of the needy and crush the oppressor. 5 Let them fear You while the sun endures, and as long as the moon, throughout all generations. 6 May he come down like rain upon the mown grass, like showers that water the earth. 7 In his days may the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace till the moon is no more. 8 May he also rule from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. 9 Let the nomads of the desert bow before him, and his enemies lick the dust. 10 Let the kings of Tarshish and of the islands bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts. 11 And let all kings bow down before him, all nations serve him. 12 For he will deliver the needy when he cries for help, the afflicted also, and him who has no helper. 13 He will have compassion on the poor and needy, and the lives of the needy he will save. 14 He will rescue their life from oppression and violence, and their blood will be precious in his sight; 15 So may he live, and may the gold of Sheba be given to him; and let them pray for him continually; let them bless him all day long. 16 May there be abundance of grain in the earth on top of the mountains; its fruit will wave like the cedars of Lebanon; and may those from the city flourish like vegetation of the earth. 17 May his name endure forever; may his name increase as long as the sun shines; and let men bless themselves by him; let all nations call him blessed. 18 Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone works wonders. 19 And blessed be His glorious name forever; and may the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen, and Amen. 20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

Psalm 110:1 The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

Matthew 22:43, 44  43 He said to them, “Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying, 44 ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET” ‘?

Psalm 118:22, 23  22 The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner stone. 23 This is the LORD’S doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.

Matthew 21:42 Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’?

 

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org

The Resurrection of Jesus: Part One

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Scripture Used to Create “The Resurrection of Jesus” Splice Series

 

Matthew 28:1-20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Matthew 28:1)

Mark 16:1-20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Mark 16:1)

Luke 24:1-53 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Luke 24:1)

John 20 (Greek Text Analysis starting with John 20:1)

John 21 (Greek Text Analysis starting with John 21:1)

Acts 1:1-14 (Greek Text Analysis starting with Acts 1:1)

 

Need to catch up first? To read the Splice “The Burial of Jesus”, click here.

 

Acts 17:31
“…because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

 

THE SPLICE

 

Now on the 1 first day of the week, when the Sabbath was over, while it was still 2 dark, as it began to dawn before sunrise, Mary Magdalene and 3 Mary the mother of James, and 4 Salome5 bought spices, and brought the spices that 6 they had prepared to the tomb, so that they might come and anoint Jesus and they also wanted to look at the grave. Before the women arrived at the tomb, 7 a severe earthquake had occurred, because an angel of the Lord descended from Heaven and came and rolled away the stone. He then sat down upon the stone. And8 this angel’s appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was as white as pure snow. 9 The guards were so afraid of the angel, that they were shaking and then they became like they were dead men.

As the women were walking to the tomb, 10 they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” When they got there, they were looking up towards it, and they saw that the stone had already been rolled away and taken away from the tomb, although the stone was extremely large. Entering the tomb, the women did not find the body of the Lord Jesus and were perplexed about this. Two men suddenly stood near them, with one wearing a white robe, and both in 11 dazzling clothing; one of them, a  12 young man wearing the white robe, then was sitting at the right. The women were amazed; and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how 13 He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” And the women remembered Jesus’s words. The specific words of the angel sitting to the right in the white robe were, “Do not be amazed; Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. But go quickly, tell His disciples and Peter that He has risen from the dead and behold, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee; there you will see Him, 14 just as He told you. Behold, I have told you.”’ Then, Mary Magdalene, with the other women, ran and returned from the tomb to the place where the disciples were gathered and came to Simon Peter and to the 15 other disciple whom Jesus loved, and reported all these things to the 16 eleven and to all the rest. And Mary Magdalene said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” The women told everyone in attendance that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. Now the women were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also 17 the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. But these words appeared to the disciples and others as nonsense, and they would not believe the women. But Peter got up and with 18 the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand 19 the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to their 20 own homes, Peter marveling at what had happened. It was after this that Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene (she was the first one He appeared to), from whom He had cast out seven demons. Here’s how His appearance to Mary happened: After Peter and John had left, Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping (we do not know where the other women were at the time); and as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”  When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and 21 I will take Him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’” At some point after this, the other women joined Mary, and together, they left the tomb quickly, trembling and fleeing in fear, astonishment and great joy and 22 they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid to tell anyone. And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.” Mary Magdalene went and reported this message. She announced to the disciples, the people who had been with Jesus during His ministry, while they were all mourning and weeping, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her. When they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.

Now while the women had run to tell everyone that Jesus was risen and seen by them, some of the guard that had been at the tomb came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, and said, “you are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ And if this should come to the governor’s ears, 23 we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.” And the guards took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews for at least 50 years (and even today, 2000 years later, it is still spread around as a “theory” by those who claim that the Gospel is false or that God does not exist).

When Jesus had died on the cross, the earth had shook and the rocks were split, as well as some tombs were opened. And many of His saints that had died had been buried in these opened tombs. Now that Jesus had been resurrected, those saints who had fallen asleep were also raised and were coming of out the tombs after His resurrection. 24 These raised saints went into Jerusalem, the holy city, and appeared to many.

 

Want to continue reading? To read the Splice “The Resurrection of Jesus: Part Two”, click here.

 

NOTES

 

1 first day of the week: The first day of the week is Sunday.  This particular Sunday would be Nissan/Abib 16. Both Nissan (Nisan) and Abib are correct names for the first month of the year. (Back)

2 dark, as it began to dawn before sunrise: Dawn and sunrise are not the same things. Sunrises happen at an exact moment, such as 5:42am. Dawn happens before sunrise and is a gradual event, taking around 15-20 minutes, ending at the moment of sunrise. April sunrises in Jerusalem, Israel occur at approximately 6:30am, give or take a few minutes. Since it is still dark and at early dawn when the women go to the tomb, it is fair to think that the ladies were setting out at around 6am, but we cannot know that for certain. These surmises on the timing assume that April sunrises were exactly the same 2,000 years ago as they are today. (Back)

3 Mary the mother of James: From Mark 16:1. She is possibly the same Mary who was the mother of both James the Less and Joseph/Joses (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40), but the Bible doesn’t say that. (Back)

4 Salome: Some Bible scholars insist that Salome is Zebedee’s wife (Zebedee is the father of James and John, the apostles, see Matthew 4:21; Mark 10:35). The Bible never mentions any children/husband for Salome. Salome is only mentioned twice in the Bible, both times in Mark (see Mark 15:40 and 16:1). Zebedee’s wife’s name is never mentioned, nor is John and James the disciples’ mother’s name given to us. The mother of John and James is also only mentioned twice in the Bible, both times in Matthew (see Matthew 2o:20-21 and 27:56). Salome could very well be Zebedee’s wife.  It’s also possible that Salome is not Zebedee’s wife. We have no idea who Zebedee’s wife is and to insist that Salome is Zebedee’s wife is making the Bible say something that it doesn’t say. It is incredibly important that we do not “help” God by filling in what we consider to be blank spaces or to take a “logical jump” in the Bible and state it as truth. It’s ok to add our logical jumps for pondering’s sake, as long as we are clear that we are giving our own opinion and not stating something found in the Bible. Besides, our logical jumps are no match for God (Isaiah 55:8-9). (Back)

5 bought spices, and brought the spices: Mark 16:1 tells us that Mary Mags, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices after the Sabbath. Luke 23:55-56 tells us that the women who had come with Jesus out of Galilee returned (presumably to where they were staying for the Passover week) and prepared spices and perfumes and on the Sabbath they rested. The simplest explanation is that the women had prepared some spices on Friday, and then for reasons unstated, bought some spices after the Sabbath ended. (Back)

6 they: The women already mentioned, plus Joanna and some other unnamed women, because of Luke 24:10.  (Back)

7 severe earthquake had occurred:  The earthquake happened before the ladies got to the tomb because of Luke 24:2.  It’s possible that the angel removed the stone in accordance with the earthquake (Matthew 28:2) as soon as Jesus was resurrected, but the Bible does not mention this as a truth. I believe the removal of the stone was not done to let Jesus out of the tomb because I believe that Jesus was instantly resurrected and vanished from the tomb, like He vanished from sight in Luke 24:31 or how He instantly appeared as in John 20:19, 26 or as John says, “revealed” Himself (Greek word phaneroó) in 21:1, 14. I think that the reason that the tomb stone was removed from the entrance of the tomb was to show that Jesus was no longer there in the tomb; to let people come in and see that He was risen. No Roman seal or Roman guards’ lies would put a stop to that (Matthew 27:62-66, 28:11-15). (Back)

8 his appearance: From Matthew 28:3. The Greek word used for appearance is idea meaning “form, countenance, appearance”. It is from the Greek word eido meaning “to perceive”. The Greek word used for lightning is astrapé and means “a flash of lightning, brightness, luster”. The Greek word for white is leukos and means “white, bright, brilliant”. I believe that the brightness and lightning, and the brilliant white are supernatural-looking, like Jesus’s appearance as described in Revelation 1:14-15. The writers of the books of the Bible only have human languages to describe things, but I believe these supernatural sights are supernatural indeed, and do not consist of “normal” lightning or “normal” whiteness, because of Mark 9:3. (Back)

9 The guards: The guards that were present at the tomb on Sunday are only mentioned in Matthew 28:4 and in Matthew 28:11-15. They could be a completely different set of guards from the ones mentioned in Matthew 27:65-66, but we don’t know. We don’t know when the guards stopped being like “dead men”. We know that they went into the city of Jerusalem to report to the chief priests while the women were on their way back to the disciples (Matthew 28:11). We don’t know if the women had any interactions with the guards. We do know that the women were not at the tomb when the angel rolled away the stone in front of the guards because of Mark 16:4. (Back)

10 They were saying to one another: I believe they held this conversation during the walk to the tomb somewhere along the line because of Mark 16:4. (Back)

11 dazzling clothing: Luke uses this descriptor in Luke 24:4. It is the same Greek word that Matthew uses in Matthew 28:3, astraptó, and means “to lighten, to flash, I flash (with lightning, like lightning), am lustrous”. (Back)

12 young man wearing the white robe: This is probably the same angel that removed the stone from the tomb, as Matthew 28:2-7 tells it. Matthew 28:2-7, Mark 16:5-7, Luke 24:4-7, and John 20:12-13 tell us about the angels and their conversations with the women. The Greek word used here for robe is stolé and the word is used to describe a long, flowing robe that was used for the wealthy/elite classes. The angels were dressed rather nicely.  (Back)

13 He spoke to you: Jesus told His disciples many times that He was to be crucified, see Matthew 10:38, 16:21; 20:17-19, 26:1-2, 12 and Mark 10:32-34. (Back)

14 just as He told you: Jesus tells the disciples that He will go ahead of them to Galilee when He has been resurrected in Matthew 26:32. (Back)

15 other disciple whom Jesus loved: This would be John, the Gospel writer, as well as the writer of 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Revelation. We know that the “disciple whom Jesus loved” is John because he is introduced as this disciple in John 21:24 after the conversation and then rumor of John 21:20-23. (Back)

16 eleven and to all the rest: From Luke 24:9. It is not clear whom “all the rest” is. We know that the eleven had other people with them because of Luke 24:33, however the wording is different for the two verses. Luke 24:9 says “…to all the rest” in the Greek, and Luke 24:33 says “…those with them”. There is a difference and it does matter. “All the rest” could mean that the women not only told the disciples at the place where they were staying, but that they also went to other believers’ homes/saw them on the street and told them the news. It isn’t even clear that the eleven were all staying in the same place. It seems they were gathering together some of the time at the very least, because of Mark 16:10 and Luke 24:33.
In John 20:10, the transliteral Greek says this: “Went away therefore again to their the disciples.” The Greek word for their is hautou and means “her own, his own, their own, themselves, they”. It could mean that the disciples all returned back to the place where they were all staying together, or it could mean that they returned to different places to stay. (Back)

17 the other women: Luke 24:10 says that there were “other women” there with Mary Mags: Mary the mother of James, and Joanna. Joanna (if this is the same person; it seems very likely) is mentioned in Luke 8:3 as being the wife of Herod’s steward. One of the other women that could have gone with to tell the disciples could be Salome, who was there at the start of the trip to the tomb (Mark 16:1). It could also be “the other Mary” (we don’t know which “Mary” Matthew is referring to in Matthew 28:1).  In short, we don’t really know how many women ran back to tell the group about Jesus’s “missing” body. (Back)

18 the other disciple: John is the other disciple, because of John 20:2. It is mentioned in John 20:3 that Peter is running with “the other disciple”. (Back)

19 the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead: Jesus told the disciples many times that He would be killed and then raised on the third day, see Note 13. The Old Testament Scripture reference that describes that Jesus would have to die could have been from Isaiah 53. (Back)

20 own homes: Not back to Galilee, but to where the disciples were staying for the Sabbath/Passover. Because of Luke 24:33, and John 20:19, they were meeting together for at least part of the time, possibly in the Jerusalem upper room from Thursday (see Matthew 26:17-19, Mark 14:13-16,Luke 22:7-13) because it was large and would hold many people (Mark 14:15).  Where they were actually staying and sleeping is debatable. (Back)

21 I will take Him away: I’m not sure how strong women were back in those days, but how does Mary plan to drag/carry a body of literal dead weight back to a tomb? In her grief, she doesn’t seem to care about that. The good news (for us all) is she wouldn’t have to figure it out. (Back)

22 they said nothing to anyone: From Mark 16:8. This phrasing is a little ambiguous. It could mean that they had planned on not saying anything to anyone, including the disciples, and then changed their minds when they met Jesus on the road or it could mean that they told no one that they saw on the road on their way back to the disciples. We do know that the women did tell the disciples, because Mark says so himself in Mark 16:10. (Back)

23 we will win him over and keep you out of trouble: These chief priests had already proven that they could get Pontius Pilate to do whatever they wanted, with enough pressure (see Matthew 27:20-24), but still, the guards are taking a large risk in spreading around a report that they fell asleep on the job. (Back)

24 These raised saints: This part of the account of events surrounding Jesus’s resurrection was told in Matthew 27:51-53. (Back)

 

James and James The Less

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The cross references, along with chapters and verse numbers were not a part of the original manuscripts of the Bible. Also, the Bible wasn’t originally written in English, nor was it written in 21st century language and meaning. The Bible itself is infallible, as the writers were under the inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16). The English interpretations of the Greek, Aramaic or Hebrew could be muddy or “off” when there are several meanings to a word. Also,the cross references could be fallible; they were added by people who were not necessarily inspired by the Holy Spirit. Thus, sometimes the cross references are truncated/incomplete, possibly even wrong and therefore not perfect. This doesn’t mean we should throw out our English-interpreted Bibles or ignore the cross references. This means, as always, we shouldn’t try to make the Bible say anything that it doesn’t say (such as Salome is actually James’s and John’s mother, and therefore the wife of Zebedee).

There were many people named “James” back in the days of Jesus. There were even lots of people named “Jesus”. The Greek word for Jesus is Iésous and Iésous is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Yehoshua or Jehoshua. When Jehoshua is shortened, we get the name Joshua. Unless there is a specific identifier to the person the writers of the gospels and epistles are referring to, we cannot know for sure who is being referenced.

There is one other Jesus mentioned in the New Testament and that is in Colossians 4:11, but it is clarified in that verse that this is “Jesus, who is called Justus” and not Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.

A Multitude of Men Called “James”

James the Less

Mark 15:40 “There were also some women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the Less and Joses, and Salome.”

Cross references for Mark 15:40

There is only a cross reference on “the Less”, not on “James”, and the reference is to Luke 19:3 which doesn’t mention any James at all, just Zaccheus and his “small” stature; therefore, the cross reference is for the word “small”. The Greek word for “small” in Luke 19:3 and Mark 15:40 is “mikros” and means “small, little, less, least”. According to Strong’s, this means small or little in size and this is it’s primary meaning. But it also could mean lesser in dignity, quantity, or number. However, we are given a little hint in the Bible verse, because James the Less is mentioned before his brother. This order-in-mention has a strong possibility to mean James the Less is the older of the two brothers. With all of this information, I interpret “the Less” to mean that James is a little guy in size and not a younger brother.

 

Another James?

Mark 16:1  “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him.”

Cross references for Mark 16:1

There are no cross references pertaining to James in this verse. There is no attachment to Luke 24:10 nor to Mark 15:40. It is very possible that there were more than one “Mary, the mother of James” in the group of women (after all, almost every one is named “Mary” in that group and they could have easily all had sons named James). But Mark had just mentioned “James” and his mother and brother, Joses, in Mark 15:40. It is highly probable that Mark means the same Mary and son,  James the Less from 15:40. We don’t know for sure.

 

And Another James?

Luke 24:10 “Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles.”

Cross references for Luke 24:10

There are no cross references pertaining to James in this verse. It does not connect to Mark 15:40 or 16:1. It would be easy to link this verse to Mark 16:1 and subsequently Mark 15:40, making this James the Less, but we don’t know for sure.

James, the Half Brother of Jesus

Matthew 13:55 “Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?

Cross References for Matthew 13:55

There are no cross references for the name James.

Mark 6:3  “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him.”

Cross References for Mark 6:3

There are no cross references to James here. The only idea that I take away from here, is that Mark is the one who uses Mary, James and Joses in the same breath out of all of the gospel writers (Mark 15:40 and Mark 6:3) and Mark addresses James as “James the Less”.

Galatians 1:19 “But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother”

Cross References for Galatians 1:19

The cross references on James  from Galatians 1:19 are Matthew 12:46 and Acts 12:17.

Just for reference, Matthew 12:46 says “While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His mother and brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him.”

Acts 12:17 “But motioning them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” Then he left and went to another place”.  Just to be clear here, James, son of Zebedee, has already been murdered in Acts 12:2 – this isn’t him.

Cross References on Acts 12:17

The cross references for the word “James” here are Mark 6:3; Acts 15:13; 21:18; 1 Cor 15:7; Gal 1:19; 2:9, 12.  These references are stating that the James in Acts 12:17 and all referenced verses, would be the James that is Jesus’s half-brother. I want to know why the James referenced Acts 12:17, 15:13; 21:18, Gal 2:9 and 12 and even James 1:1 isn’t James, one of the Twelve, the son of Alphaeus? It would make more sense to me if it were. Why couldn’t it be a mix of James, son of Alphaeus and James, the half-brother of Jesus? Could it be someone different from the two previously mentioned?

Acts 15:13 “After they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, “Brethren, listen to me.”

Cross References for Acts 15:13

The reference for James is Acts 12:17.

Acts 21:18 “And the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.”

Cross References for Acts 21:18

Reference for James is Acts 12:17

1 Corinthians 15:7 “then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;”

Cross References for 1 Corinthians 15:7

Reference for James is Acts 12:17

side note the Greek word “apostle” is “apostolos”, and means “ messenger, one sent on a mission, an apostle”. This word is not “special” and can be applied to anyone, not just the Twelve chosen, inner-circle disciples. The word Greek word for “disciple” is “mathétés” and means “a learner, disciple or pupil” and also could be applied to anyone.

Galatians 2:9  “and recognizing the grace that had been given to me, James and Cephas and John, who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship so that we might go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.” This seems to me to be referencing Acts 15:2-35 and James son of Z is already murdered.

Cross References for Galatians 2:9

References for James is Acts 12:17 and Galatians 2:12.

Galatians 2:12 “For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof, fearing the party of the circumcision.”

Cross References for Galatians 2:12

References for James is Acts 12:17 and Galatians 2:9.

James 1:1 “James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.” This James is possibly in Israel.

Cross References for James 1:1

The word “James” is cross referenced with Acts 12:17.

James the son of Alphaeus, which identifies him as one of the Twelve

Matthew 10:3  “Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;”

Cross References for Matthew 10:3

James is referenced back to John 15:40. This would make James, the son of Alphaeus,  James the Less.

Mark 3:1 “and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot;”

Cross References for Mark 3:1

There is no reference for the word “James” in this verse.

Luke 6:15 “and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot;”

Cross References for Luke 6:15

There is no reference for the word “James” in this verse.

Acts 1:13 “When they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.”

Cross References for Acts 1:13

There is no reference for the word “James” in this verse.

James, the brother of Jude

Jude 1 “Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James,”

Cross references for Jude 1

There is no cross reference for the word “James”. However, the other cross references for Jude 1 cites Matthew 13:55 ,Mark 6:3, (both of which mention Jude/Judas as Jesus’s half-brother) Luke 6:16 (which states that Judas/Jude is the son of James and doesn’t mention his brother), John 14:22, Acts 1:13 (which would make this Jude/Judas one of the Twelve). The cross references seem to be associating this Jude/Judas as the brother of Jesus. Therefore, the connecting verses are saying that Jude/Judas, the brother of James, is not only one of the Twelve, but also Jesus’s half-brother. Jude is the son of James, and Jesus’s half-brother, as well as one of the Twelve? It could be possible. After Joseph passed away (we can only assume he is dead), Mary could have remarried someone named James. However, we could say that Joseph is alive when Jesus is twelve (see Luke 2:41-52 for the story referenced), but Luke only states that Jesus’s “parents” and “father” are present (along with Mary) and never says “Joseph” explicitly. I do think that Luke does mean Joseph, however. For some reason, I just think if Mary had been remarried, she would have just asked Jesus why He worried her alone, and not mentioned a father. Another problem would be that if Mary is remarried to someone named “James” and Joseph is still alive when Jesus is twelve, even assuming that Joseph died the year Jesus was twelve, we should assume then that the oldest that Jude can be when Jesus begins His ministry is 17, giving a year for an immediate marriage and pregnancy, since Jesus is about 30 at the time of His ministry (Luke 3:23). 

Greek word for parent is goneus and means “parent” “father” “begetter”.

Greek word for father is patér and means “father” “ancestor” “elder” “senior”

Jude 1, Mark 6:3, Matthew 13:55, Galatians 1:19 all use the same word for “brother” which is “adelphos” and means “a brother” and can also mean a fellow Christian.

Therefore, we can only assume that Jude 1 means that Jude is James’s actual brother, and he is not calling him his brother “in Christ”.

The Greek word for Jude is Ioudas which means Judas, Jude, Judah.

The Greek word for James is Iakóbos and only means James. It does not mean “Jospeh”.

The Greek word for Joseph is Ióséph and only means Joseph.

The Greek word for Joses is Iósés and means Joses only. However, the transliteral Greek uses the word “Joseph” and not Joses, but corresponds to Iósés. Berean Greek New Testament 2016 does not use Joseph at all, but Iósés, in Greek: Ἰωσῆτος . It is possible that Joses is another person entirely, and therefore the Jospeh and Joses listed as Jesus’s half brothers are two different people. Perhaps they used Joses and Joseph to separate out 2 boys with the same name. Mary, Jesus’s mother had a sister named Mary, so it doesn’t seem uncommon (see John 19:25), especially if there are half-siblings involved. Perhaps not. We just don’t know.