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| Chapter 12 |
| Bible Text | Notes and Thoughts |
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1 ¶ In the meantime, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trod one upon another, He began to say unto His disciples first of all, "Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 For there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, neither hid that shall not be known. 3 Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. 4 "And I say unto you, My friends, be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear Him that, after He hath killed, hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, fear Him! 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows. 8 "Also I say unto you, whosoever shall confess Me before men, him shall the Son of Man also confess before the angels of God. 9 But he that denieth Me before men shall be denied before the angels of God. 10 And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven. 11 "And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say. 12 For the Holy Spirit shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say." 13 ¶ And one of the company said unto Him, "Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me." 14 And He said unto him, "Man, who made Me a judge or a divider over you?" 15 And He said unto them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth." 16 And He spoke a parable unto them, saying, "The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ’What shall I do, because I have no room to store my fruits?’ 18 And he said, ’This will I do. I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there will I store all my fruits and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years. Take thine ease; eat, drink, and be merry.’ 20 But God said unto him, ’Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee. Then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?’ 21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God." 22 ¶ And He said unto His disciples, "Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. 23 The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. 24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap, they neither have storehouse nor barn, and God feedeth them. How much more are ye better than the fowls? 25 And which of you by taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? 26 If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is today in the field and tomorrow is cast into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O ye of little faith? 29 "And seek ye not what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubting mind. 30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 31 But rather seek ye the Kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you. 32 "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. 33 Sell what ye have, and give alms. Provide yourselves purses which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 35 "Let your loins be girded about and your lights burning; 36 and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord when he will return from the wedding, that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when he cometh, shall find watching. Verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. 38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch and find them so, blessed are those servants. 39 And this know, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not have suffered his house to be broken into. 40 Be ye therefore ready also, for the Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not." 41 ¶ Then Peter said unto Him, "Lord, speakest Thou this parable unto us, or even to all?" 42 And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his Lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his Lord, when he cometh, shall find so doing. 44 In truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath. 45 But if that servant say in his heart, ’My Lord delayeth his coming,’ and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink and be drunken, 46 the Lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him asunder and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. 47 And that servant, who knew his Lord’s will and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he that knew not and committed things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more. 49 "I am come to send fire on the earth, and what will I, if it be already kindled? 50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how I am straitened till it be accomplished! 51 Suppose ye that I have come to give peace on earth? I tell you, nay, but rather division. 52 For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided: three against two, and two against three. 53 The father shall be divided against the son and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter and the daughter against the mother; the mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law." 54 ¶ And He said also to the people, "When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, ’There cometh a shower’; and so it is. 55 And when ye see the south wind blow, ye say, ’There will be heat’; and it cometh to pass. 56 Ye hypocrites! Ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it that ye do not discern this time? 57 "Yea, and why even for yourselves judge ye not what is right? 58 When thou goest with thine adversary to the magistrate, as thou art on the way, be diligent that thou mayest be delivered from him, lest he hale thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and the officer cast thee into prison. 59 I tell thee, thou shall not depart thence till thou hast paid the very last mite." |
Evil of the Pharisees. Compare Mark 8:13-21. Jesus is speaking to the disciples but because of the size of the crowd many others would have heard these words. Jesus issues a warning against the Pharisees. Jesus now issues warnings against the effect of people rejecting His message, beware of any Jew who chose to ignore Him, the resultant judgement by God on the nation in the near future and on the future Day of Judgement. Leaven was a mixture of fine flour and a microscopic single-celled plant called yeast today, it had the ability to change any sugar present into alcohol and a gas, it grows and multiplies, spreading though the material. Leaven was used in bread making to make it rise, a small amount was mixed with the bread dough, left in a warm area which allowed the yeast to operate. Use of leaven during Passover was not permitted to remind the Jews of their hurried departure from Egypt, not having time to even prepare bread. Leaven is often used to show how evil operates, starting out small and spreading though the heart and life of the person. v1-3 Jesus is warning of the evil teaching and behaviour of the Pharisees spreading through the nation, it was all play acting, hypocrisy. All the secret hidden actions will one day be revealed. Closets were small inner room or store-room of an Eastern house, only the master of the house or special people would have had access to the room. Any words spoken in that room would not normally be heard by anyone else. Against this, all would be able to hear if the words were shouted from the roof of the house, a public announcement. v4,5 Jesus told them not to fear, just respect those who could kill the physical body, it was the destruction of the heart and mind of a person that was the danger. Though Satan could help a person become evil, it was God who ultimately controlled the result of a persons action, it is Him we should fear. Hell, or as translated from the Hebrew Gehenna, the rubbish pit on the southwest of old Jerusalem. Fires were kept continually burning there to destroy the rubbish. A picture of the fate of the lost soul. v6 See Matt 10:29 where Jesus quoted the value of sparrows, they were so cheap that an extra one was thrown in for nothing if you bought four, yet God cared and is concerned for each one. v7 Each one of us is far more valuable, even each hair on your head is known about by God. This fact should make us full of love for God. v8 Jesus is encouraging His follows to show the world who they love, it would bring great joy to Him. Jesus would be very pleased to witness in heaven that you are His. v9 Jesus is disowning the person, refusing to have anything to do with the person, He has the authority to accept or reject anyone before God. v10 A very serious warning, slander, saying untruth, harmful words, lies against or about the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, for example, attributing the power of Jesus to Satan, Luke 11:17-20; Acts 5:1-11. This action can only cause a complete separation from the Holy power, God’s messenger to men, who has the power to change a persons life. This is the power used by believers to reveal God to them. v11,12 Let God control the situation when being persecuted. v13-34 Material Possessions. v13-15 The people would often consider and respect Jesus as a Rabbi, a teacher or master, expecting Him to have the answer to their problem. The man approaches Jesus to sort out his family arguments of an inheritance, the man was only interested in financial gain, not what was justice, the man did not ask Jesus to examine the facts of the case. Jesus refuses to make a decision, to make a judgement for this man’s personal gain. Jesus would have been able to read the mind of the man, the desire to have more may have been his motive for approaching Jesus. The Lord reminds the crowd that material possessions are not the answer to life. v16 The rich fool. As an example of Jesus now tells a story about a very successful farmer, he has a very large harvest and has to consider what to do. He could have given away the excess to help others, but decides instead to build bigger stores to keep it for himself for his future life on earth, he was ready to retire from work. v20 "This night you soul shall be required of you." The man had not considered that he was to be called into the presence of God that night, all his riches would not be of help or benefit to him. v21-24 Jesus is telling to make sure all "wealth" and treasures should be for heavenly use, all "investment" should be aimed at our future heavenly life. In this statement Jesus is not encouraging us to take no care of our body, He is saying that food and clothing should not become the main desire and aim in life. What a person is, is more important than what they have. We need to look at the animal world, they do not sow , reap, store their food, but God supplies enough for them to live. We are far more important to God than the birds. v25,26 The rich man’s problem was not his height, but how long he had to enjoy his riches. Though Jesus was asking if any of us could make ourselves grow by eighteen inches (a Cubit), He was also saying that none of us has any real power over our physical life, height or duration. v27 Lilies or anemones were found everywhere in Galilee, they were usually red or purple, royal colours. "Solomon in all his glory," is referring to what Solomon would look like dressed in all his court costumes and jewels, and he does not appear as splendid as these wild flowers. v28,29 The fields of grass, which have very short life and only ends up in the fire, are also looked after by God, remember, He has much more concern for a each one of us who has an eternal future. v30-34 The world is only looking for material possessions, but Jesus said our Father in heaven knows what material needs we require, so if we concentrate on serving God, He will supply all our needs, Jesus has told the believers what is the priority in their life, God first, lay up our treasures in heaven, that is where your heart and desires will be, then put yourself last. v35 The Eastern dress was long and flowing, therefore if the person needed to be able to run or do hard physical work the loose clothes had to be tucked or inserted into a belt around the waist. The only way to light a lamp was from another lamp or fire, matches and lighters were not available, if a light goes out it could be hard to relight. v36-38 In an Eastern wedding, the bridegroom, after a supper meal with his friends, would go with the friends to the house of his bride, to claim her. This would take place anytime late at night, the servants of the bridegroom and bride would need to be ready with lights and waiting, dressed ready for work. This wedding was very symbolic of the return of the Lord for His Bride the Church, we must be ready what ever time He comes. v39,41 The change from saying it will be like bridegroom to thief gives special importance on the unexpected time of appearance of the bridegroom. The believer must be ready and watching for the return of the Lord. 1 Thess 5:1-4. The parable was used by Jesus to give information and teaching by the use of illustrations, a story or example which helps explain the teaching. It was easier to remember a story, and often easier to understand the teaching and draw out the religious truth. Peter asks Jesus who the parable was for, the disciples or the crowd? To answer the question Jesus used another parable. v43 A servant was often a slave who had been put in charge of the possessions of the owner or household master. The master is apparently away and the servant left in charge. Jesus goes on to say that when the master returned he finds the servant looking after his possessions as well as possible, then he will reward the servant. However, if the master is delayed in returning and the servant does not do his job properly, treating the workers under his control badly, then he must expect the master to be very angry on his return. This parable reminds us that believers can question the belief of the return of Jesus, have doubts that He will return, and live a life as if he will not return. v46-48 The Roman masters had the power of life and death over their slaves, for a slave to fail to look after or misuse the masters possessions could result in punishment by death for the slave. The Lord Jesus also has the power to reward or punish His servants, the believers. The words used by Jesus suggest various levels of punishment,v48. We must be ready for His return. v49-53 Jesus is saying that His mission would create divisions and problems, "I am come to send fire on the earth," He knew that His death on the cross would cause many arguments, family splits, each person would have to make a decision, for or against Him. The real reason for His presents on earth was for Him to die on the cross, "I have a baptism to be baptized with," but until that event His power was restricted. See Mark 10:38; John 12:32. v54-59 Jesus turns to the crowd and said "each of you can look at the sky, and tell if it is about to rain, or tell if the wind will bring heat or cold, yet you do not see the warnings of His coming, or the effect and result of this event." He continues, "to understand these signs you do not have to be clever, use your sense to see the signs just as you would if you were about to take someone to court, it would be far more sensible instead to sorting out the problem before it came before the magistrate, for then the decision is left to the court and the judge. The judge might send you to prison and make you pay very dearly It would have been better to have thought clearly and made a sensible decision earlier." |
Easy English Translation
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