Seven Warnings of Calamity

Notes for the Ekklesia Meeting
Sundays @ 10:00 a.m. Info: (651) 283-0568 Discipleship Training Ministries, Inc www.dtminc.org Today’s Date: March 26, 2006

Seven Warnings of Calamity
by Dan Trygg

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees" Matthew 23:15

If the scribes and Pharisees were getting offended and uncomfortable by what Jesus was saying to the crowd and His followers, they probably were not at all prepared for the blistering attack which the Lord now leveled at them. Remember, they had started this interchange, challenging Jesus’ authority and then attempting to entrap Him through trickery. They didn’t realize that they were arousing the Lion of Judah (Gen. 49:8,9; Rev. 5:5), but they were about to find out what they were up against. Like a lion playing with a mouse, He was going to pin them to the ground, and they were helpless before His assault. They had no response. They initiated the confrontation, but He was going to finish it. He had already dealt with their objections and tricks, and had turned the tables so that He had asked them a question that they could not answer (21:23-22:45). They were already in retreat, and no longer dared to ask Him any more questions (22:46). Then, as they were still standing there, He spoke to the crowd, speaking of the self-promotion, hypocrisy and pretension which they exhibit. Now, He turns up the intensity of the offensive by directly and publicly rebuking them. He totally obliterated any credibility they had, and calls them on the carpet for their inconsistencies. At the same time, however, He is strongly warning them of the disaster awaiting them if they continue in their ways.

It would be important to talk for a moment about what the word, "woe", means, since Jesus uses it repeatedly. It is actually a transliteration of the Greek word, meaning that our word, "woe" comes directly from the Greek. Basically, it is what Jesus actually uttered. The word is an interjection or exclamation, like "Wow!" or "Oh!", but it is strongly negative. It means "Disaster!", "Calamity!", "Horror!". Our words, "woe" or "alas", are strong emotional words that would be our response to experiencing trouble, disaster, or calamity, but these words no longer have any clear tie back to the original idea of calamity or disaster. In other words, we miss the fact that Jesus is calling disaster, calamity or judgment down upon the heads of these people. He was actually saying, "Calamity to you!" "Disaster on you!" "Horror on you!" That is a much more direct and pungent declaration than simply "woe" or "alas". Jesus was coming on like gangbusters, and He was not pulling any punches. Since Matthew’s audience was Jewish, he chose to record seven of these declarations of judgment, a number representative of fullness or completion. (The text used to translate the King James Version includes verse 14, which is not in the earliest manuscripts, and is sometimes found added before verse 13 in some later manuscripts, and after vs. 13 in other manuscripts. It is an obvious scribal gloss, a carryover from Mark 12:40.) With each declaration, Jesus provided an explanation describing what they have done to call down destruction and wrath upon themselves.

Note, too, that Jesus used the word, "hypocrite" in all but the third of these declarative statements. A hypocrite was a play actor, someone who put on a persona or appearance to play a part. This was not who they really were, just a mask that they wore, or a role they played while "on stage". They were pretenders. As Jesus had said in vs. 5, they did their works in order to be seen by people.

(1.) Calamity on them, because they shut up the kingdom of God before people. They don’t enter into the will of God for themselves, and they do not allow those who are entering to do so. They block people from clearly seeing and doing God’s will. The picture is of slamming the door in the face of those trying to enter into God’s reign, keeping the seekers outside with themselves, since they themselves are unwilling to enter by yielding to God in obedience. In an interesting parallel in Lk. 11:52, Jesus pronounces disaster on the scribes because they took the key of experiential knowledge of God. They did not enter into that knowledge of God, and hindered others who were seeking it. There are many pastors and religious people who block those who are seeking to know and do God’s will, either by their poor example, or by distorted and false theology.

(2.) Disaster on them, because they travel land and sea to make one follower, but if one responds, their training and example develops an even worse religious person than they have been. They had a zeal for making followers, but their methods produced even worse hypocrites and spiritual guides than they had been. This is a commonly observed principle. What happens is that often the first generation of those who grow up in a religious culture, but who do not have an experience with God for themselves, will remain somewhat close to their spiritual roots, as far as behavior and theology is concerned. Because the foundation is eroded away, however, the thinking and behavior of the next generation tends to move farther away from the true faith’s original moorings. Religious thinking and practices grow in number and extremity. Legalism becomes more codified and focused on minutia. Disbelief in and disregard of the reality of God or of the authority of scripture produces more extreme expressions of humanistic thinking and political maneuvering.

(3.) Horrors to them, because they are blind guides, not able to sort out truth from superstition, but leading others in their foolishness. Jesus had called them blind guides before (15:14). When blind people follow blind guides, they will fall into a pit together.

(4.) Destruction to them, because they scrupulously keep very minute applications of the law, but miss the most important, weightier matters of the law, such as justice, mercy and faith. The attraction of religious legalism is that you can seemingly "do your duty" of religious performance in one compartment of your life, but remain essentially unchanged in your heart. You could go to church, Bible studies, religious meetings, spend extensive time in prayer, sing songs, pay tithes or give offerings, but still be a crab, a cheat, and a liar. Such a faith is worthless (e.g., Jas. 1:26,27). Both the OT and the NT indicate that those who follow God should become champions of justice, helping and lifting up the poor and needy, and people who become trustworthy. They should become gracious and forgiving, people who are known for being loving, kind and blessing others. There is a question regarding what Jesus meant by the word "faith". The Greek word can mean both trust in God, or reliability and trustworthiness of character. Probably He meant to imply both aspects. His last comment about straining at a gnat but swallowing a camel is a powerful picture. Both the insect and the mammal are unclean according to the law, but these religionists are so busy focusing on avoiding the gnat that they unknowingly swallow a camel (if that were possible)! The hyperbole would be even more memorable in the Aramaic of Jesus’ words, since they would be straining out a galma (gnat) to swallow a gamla (camel).

(5.) Trouble to them, because they were focused only on externals, focusing on religious rituals of cleansing, but inwardly being filled with violent greed and lack of self-control. The word translated as "robbery" or "violent greed" indicates a person who is at least very opportunistic, always looking for what they can get for themselves. It can also refer to extortion or taking things by force or manipulation. The word translated as "self-indulgence" or "lack of self-control" is a negated form for the word which means "inner strength". In other words, such people want what they want when they want it, and are not strong on delaying gratification or saying no to themselves. Furthermore, they are not above manipulating, threatening or even taking things from others, if they want something. By contrast, "self-control" is one aspect of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22,23), and is an important ingredient in spiritual growth which we have to add to our faith (II Pet. 1:6). The Pharisees and scribes were big on outward rituals, but were very self-centered in character. They were like someone who would ritually wash the outside of the cup, but not check to see that the inside was dirty. Jesus’ counsel was to clean the inside first, then cleaning the outside would make some sense.

(6.) Tribulation to them, because they are like whitewashed tombs. These tombs appear clean and beautiful on the outside, but inside they were full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. It was customary, especially at feast times, to paint tombs and grave markers with limestone dust, so that they would be easily seen by travelers. This was so that they could avoid the seven-day defilement that would be associated with touching a grave (Num. 19:16). To be unclean for a week would cause the person to miss out on the festivities. He could not come into the city or the temple. He would have traveled all that way for nothing. This image would be very fresh in the minds of the travelers, who had seen many whitewashed sepulchers on their journey. The comparison was that, like the whitewashed tombs, the scribes and Pharisees outwardly appear beautiful and clean, but inwardly they were full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. It is interesting that Jesus would mention lawlessness, because keeping the law was the focus of what their disciplined lives were all about. Again, however, even though they appeared to be keeping the law on the outside, their hearts were full of rebellion and wickedness.

(7.) Judgment on them, because they are like their forefathers, who murdered the prophets. Jesus says that He will send them prophets, wise men and scribes, which they will scourge, persecute and kill. They are snakes, the offspring of vipers. They may not think they are like their fathers, but they are, and will do as they did. The judgment for the blood of all the righteous people from the time of Abel to the end of the OT will come upon their generation.

Finally, turning His focus away from the scribes and Pharisees, He directs His attention to the city at large, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen her chicks, but you were not willing. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!" He closed by saying that they would no longer see Him until they cry, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." This is a quote from Psa. 118:26, where the stone which the builders had rejected had now, by God’s doing, become the chief corner stone. Unbeknownst to His listeners, this was also a prophetic reference to the resurrection, exaltation and return of Christ as the Messianic Son of Man (Dan. 7:13,14).

Who Not To Follow

Notes for the Ekklesia Meeting
Sundays @ 10:00 a.m. Info: (651) 283-0568 Discipleship Training Ministries, Inc www.dtminc.org

Today’s Date: March 19, 2006

Who Not To Follow
by Dan Trygg

"Upon the chair of Moses the scribes and the Pharisees sat. 3 Therefore do and be-keeping whatever they tell you, but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice. 4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. 5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, 6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues 7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. 8 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. 10 Neither be called leaders, for you have one leader, the Christ. 11 The greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Matthew 23:2-12

Once again, the subject of leadership comes up in Matthew’s gospel. Do you think he is trying to get a point across? We have seen Jesus address this issue on several occasions because of the behavior and attitudes of the disciples (18:1f; 19:13-14; 20:20-28). They had been raised in a religious and social environment with models of leadership that were hierarchical and domineering. Leaders demanded respect, honor, privilege and obedience based upon position and social status, not upon character or wisdom. The Lord had tried to show them that leadership in the kingdom of God was not at all like what they had been taught to expect. Having just weathered repeated attacks from the scribes and Pharisees, He took this opportunity to use their very visible and well-known example to point out to the crowds, and His disciples, what to avoid in leadership. Then He restated and reaffirmed the essential nature of He expected of leaders and leadership among those who would follow Him.

The first verse of the chapter clearly ties Jesus’ teaching to same context as the previous chapter. The word "then" is an adverb of time, meaning "at that time", so Jesus’ comments here follow up His verbal repulsion of the attacks of His opponents, and His embarrassing riddle which sent them in retreat (22:41-46). Now, He is on the offensive, …and He does not mince words. His attack actually goes down through verse 36, but we are only going to consider the first portion, …before He really lets them have it.

He begins by saying that the scribes and Pharisees "sat" in the "chair of Moses". In other words, they have placed themselves in the place that Moses had. They claimed to only be interpreting the Law which God gave to Israel through Moses. (In reality, however, they actually added a multitude of their own customs which came from their interpretations, and formed a secondary law based upon their opinions and traditions. Jesus addressed that later on in the passage.) The "chair of Moses" would be akin to a professor’s chair at a university campus. It was a position of respected authority from which teaching and interpretations were made. It was not a literal seat or throne, rather a figure of speech used to describe the function and position which Moses had, i.e., he was the Lawgiver. Notice that Jesus says that they "sat" in that position. He does not see them as having been appointed by God. They were self-designated leaders, but they brought nothing fresh to their generation. They took it upon themselves to fulfill a Moses-like role, by interpreting the Prophet’s words. Their authority was an inherited, or stolen, authority. They built upon the work of others, rather than establish something fresh from God (Matt. 7:28f; Rom. 15:18-20).

Jesus’ next point was that His disciples ought to respect and follow what the scribes and Pharisees taught that accurately conveyed the meaning of Moses’ commandments. Jesus’ language is actually "do" and "keep-and-be-keeping" what they say. There was truth there, …and truth ought to be carried out and ongoingly observed. He warned them, however, not to do according to their deeds. Why? Because they do not practice what they preach. They do not do what they themselves teach. Jesus was not a fan of the "Do as I say, not as I do" philosophy, but He did acknowledge that we must respond to the truth, even if those who teach us are poor examples. The scribes and Pharisees were poor role models, except when it came to study of the Law. They were experts in what the Law said, and should be respected in that arena.

When they taught the Law, however, they added heavy burdens to people’s spiritual load. Instead of helping people with any practical counsel, they loaded them down with more and more minute examples of obligation. Their interpretation focused on ritual purity, legalistic duties and minutia of the Law, while missing the broader picture of God’s heart to protect, bless and provide wisdom to His people (Deut. 4:5,6; 5:29). They loved to expound on hundreds of ways to apply the principles of the Law, but gave no counsel to help people carry out what they taught. They did not come alongside to comfort, help and encourage those who wished to obey. Instead, they simply added to the burden and pretended to be superior in the performance of their religious duties.

This leads into Jesus’ next criticism. They performed their religious duties and good deeds to be seen by people. Their righteousness was primarily for the public eye. They did not do good deeds for others, unless there was some praise and recognition to be gained. Jesus spoke of this in Matthew 6. He taught His followers to keep their deeds and giving out of the public eye (vss. 1-6,16-18). The true heart of a person will be revealed by what he or she does when they believe no one else will know. The scribes and Pharisees put on a religious mask in public, but could be something else entirely when out of the public view.

Following this general statement, Jesus gives several examples where this tendency to seek public recognition were quite evident. They dressed to impress, wearing very noticeable religious clothing. They purposely enlarged their religious apparel and paraphernalia to be seen by others. (It is important to state that their motive was the issue, not the size of what they were wearing.) Secondly, they loved seats of honor at feasts, and at the synagogue. They loved to be displayed as important before others. Thirdly, they loved being publicly greeted with titles of importance. They loved the recognition of their person and their accomplishments, for it made them feel important and powerful. They were name droppers and social climbers, and nothing was more satisfying than being acknowledged as a significant and honored person in the presence of others.

At this point (vs. 8), Jesus briefly shifts direction away from pointing out the flaws of the scribes and Pharisees to comment on this latter point. It is a good rule of thumb to notice what the Lord considered important enough to repeat, or to specifically emphasize. "But y’all do not be called, ‘Rabbi’." The structure of the Greek is emphatic, "But you (yourselves)…" Jesus is clearly chiding His disciples not to do as the scribes and Pharisees did, especially in this area. "Do not be called…" The verb here does not indicate that we must police what others may say (for we do not have control over that), but that we ought not to insist or suggest that people use special titles for us. The word, "Rabbi", comes from the Aramaic word, "Rab", which means "great one". A "rabbi" was a title of respect and deference given to a teacher of the Law. Jesus wanted to remove the tendency to exalt some people above others, because it engendered pride for those who are lifted up, and also minimized or marginalized those who were not being recognized. Jesus said, "Do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers." It is enough that God is our Teacher. We are all to be learning from Him. We are all on the same level. We are all brothers and sisters. Sure, some of us may know more than others, but that does not make us "better" than they are. We should want to share what we have learned that may be helpful to others to benefit them, not use our knowledge to exalt ourselves.

"Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven." Note that the focus changes from "don’t be called…" to "don’t call anyone…". This is about our practice of addressing others. Jesus does not mean that we should not call our male parent by this title. The whole point of the title comes from the normal, natural relationship of respect which we develop toward our fathers as we grow up. If we didn’t even call our dads "father", then the title would soon become meaningless. So Jesus is not commanding us to stop referring to our dads in this way. What He wanted to put a stop to was the practice of calling other people, religious and political leaders, by this term. At the time of the NT, this was a term of respect and endearment for rabbis and honored men of the past. Certainly, to apply this title to religious leaders today would be wrong. Jesus said that we should reserve this title for God, and not apply it to other men on earth.

"Neither be called leaders, for you have one Leader, the Christ." The Greek word for "leader" is kathagetes, and only occurs in this verse. It refers to one who is both a teacher and a guide, and therefore a "master" to his followers. Jesus said that we should not be called "master", "guide" or "leader" in this way, because He is the One we are to be following, not some human being.

The fact that Jesus took the time to speak about titles in this way indicates that this is an important issue. Apparently we can easily attribute too much to a person, or even believe too much about ourselves, if we get used to titles like these. We can give, or take, too much power by the use of titles. This distracts or confuses us, and takes our focus off of where it should be, …centered on God alone.

Jesus finishes this brief interlude by reminding His disciples once again that the greatest among them will be the servant. Furthermore, those who would exalt themselves will be humiliated, but he who humbles himself will be lifted up. This principle is on the lips of Jesus on several occasions, recorded so that we would not miss the lesson (Matt. 18:4; Lk. 14:11; 18:14). We are not to be self-seeking, as the Pharisees and scribes were. Rather, we are to be like our true Master, who was willing to give up power and privilege in order to seek, save and serve the lost and the hurting (Phil. 2:1-11; Mk. 10:43-45).

Old Testament Exposition

Notes for the Ekklesia Meeting
Sundays @ 10:00 a.m. Info: (651) 283-0568 Discipleship Training Ministries, Inc www.dtminc.org

Today’s Date: March 5, 2006

Old Testament Exposition
by Dan Trygg

"‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?’ 37 And He said to Him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.’ 41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, ‘What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?’ They said to Him, ‘The son of David.’ 43 He said to them, ‘How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying, 44 ‘"The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet"’? 45 If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?’ 46 And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask Him any more questions." Matthew 22:36-46

When Jesus dealt so easily with the Sadducees’ riddle, the Pharisees could not help but be pleased that their opponents had been publicly humiliated. One of them spoke up, "Teacher, You have spoken well" (Lk. 20:39). Caught up somewhat in astonishment at His answer, one of the scribes asked Him for His understanding of "What is the great commandment?", or as Mark records it, "Which commandment is first of all?" (Mk. 12:28).
Jesus brought their attention to the Shema, the portion of scripture which was often recited by the Jews (Deut. 6:4-9). It was the portion placed upon the doorposts of their houses, and one of the passages placed within the phylactery boxes which were placed on the forehead or left arm of devout Jewish men, who wore them as a reminder to keep the Law. The Shema begins with a strong declaration of the monotheistic nature of God, "Hear, O Israel, Yahweh is our God, Yahweh is one." That was the rallying cry and definitive mark of Judaism in the first century. Most other peoples believed in a pantheon of gods. The Jews, however, had become strongly monotheistic, as a result of the revelation from Yahweh through Moses, and their covenant with Him. Unfortunately, too often the focus had come to rest on this theological difference, and not enough emphasis was given to the next verse, which Jesus cited to His hearers in the temple, "You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, [with all your mind, (Mk. 12:30)] and with all your strength."

The word for "love" is agapao, a verb that means to "have preference for" or "esteem highly" or "consider the interests and serve the welfare of" another. It flows primarily from the will, not the feelings, and is therefore expressed in action. To love God with the heart implies with all one’s inner being, …actually from the very center of one’s being. The Hebrews regarded the heart as like an inner fountain from which all of one’s life flowed (Prov. 4:23). The "soul", both in Hebrew and in Greek, referred to one’s inner self, your individual personhood. To love with one’s soul meant to put your entire self into that choice to prefer, honor and seek the benefit and interests of God. The word translated as "mind" in Mark 12:30 means "perception, thought, attitude and purpose", so to prefer God in all your perceptions and thought processes is a very specific and measurable idea. It means to view reality from God’s perspective, and with an attitude of honoring Him in your thinking and attitudes. To love Him with your strength means to apply your ability, might, energy and life force to honoring and serving Him. If our orientation were there, we would soon discover and apply ourselves to everything that honored and pleased God.

After citing the Deuteronomy verses, Jesus added, "This is the great and first commandment. A second is like it, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." The word translated as "like" here means it is of the same or similar nature. How that applies here is that agape love is the focal point again. Love is the essence of this command, just as it had been in the previous one. The object is different, but the verb is the same. There is an important difference, however. In the first commandment, all of our being, orientation and energy are to be directed to honor and esteem God. That is not required of us in regard to our neighbor. No human being should be on the same level as our focus upon God. He is to be the utmost, the highest value to our hearts. There is a bench mark for our love in Jesus’ statement, however. We are called to love our neighbor "as" or "like" we love ourselves. Jesus used a different word for "as" here. It is a word of comparison, but does not carry that connotation of "sameness" that the earlier word did. This is important because we are not all the same, so it would not necessarily be loving to treat others exactly the same as we treat ourselves. Some of what we might like would not be pleasing or beneficial to others. The important point to see is that we are to esteem God with all of our being, and we are to esteem all humans (including ourselves) equally, …to value everyone as we value ourselves. If we truly esteem ourselves and others, and consider and act on what would be for their (and our) genuine welfare, then we will be doing what Jesus describes here. Of course, if we esteem and value God above all else, then our perception of what would be for the benefit and good of ourselves and others will be conditioned by God’s perspective and desire for them. Furthermore, if we would choose to value and prefer others, we will listen or observe to discover what is meaningful or helpful to them. Love will guide us to express our actions of good will in ways that are appropriate to them in their situation. We will be considerate and kind in our expressions of love.

Jesus concluded this commentary on this subject by saying, "On these two commandments are hung the entire Law and the Prophets." Jesus was indicating that everything in the remainder of the OT, both the content of the Law and the preaching of the prophets, can be traced back to these two principles. They are consistent with love for God and love for people. Everything is meant to honor God, and to benefit people (cf. Dt. 6:24).
Mark’s gospel records the response of the scribe who had asked the question. He agreed with Jesus’ answer, even saying that to love God with your whole being was "more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices" (12:33). When Jesus saw that he answered intelligently (lit., "having perception"), He said to the man, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." The scribe was beginning to see that God did not just want outward religious performance. Having the devotion of the heart was more important to God than keeping a multitude of religious rituals. Performing religious practices without truly valuing and esteeming God, and doing His will in other areas of life, was a sham and mockery in God’s eyes (Isa. 1:11-17; Amos 5:21-24). It is hypocrisy. Such behavior is not truly loving God. It is attempting to manipulate Him. It is trying to "buy Him off" with some religious performance, so that He will not punish you for your sin, while continuing to disregard Him and His will by your ongoing rebellion. God is not fooled by such deception. He will not be mocked (Gal. 6:7). He will punish those who do wrong. He will bring their behavior down upon their heads. But, as this scribe was beginning to understand, someone who truly loves and honors God in his or her heart, will eventually want to comply with what is important to the One he or she loves. God will graciously accept such a person. Religious performance was less important to God than the devotion and commitment of the heart. If a person’s heart was truly devoted to Him, their life will come into agreement with His will (I Jn. 2:4,5).

Before this group of Pharisees moved on, Jesus asked them a question, "What do you think about the Messiah, whose son is He?" They replied, "The son of David." Then Jesus asked, "Then why did David, inspired by the Holy Spirit, call Him ‘Lord’?" Jesus went on to quote from the first verse of Psalm 110, where the underlying Hebrew indicates that David said, "Yahweh says to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.’" It is clear that Yahweh is doing the talking. But who is He speaking to? He is addressing David’s Lord or Master. If David wrote the Psalm, and the text says he did, then who was greater than he was? After all, he was the God-appointed king of Israel. In that society, the father was always thought to be greater than the son. The notion that the Messiah, or Christ, would be "the son of David" came from II Samuel 7. There, God had promised that He would raise up a descendant of David to sit upon his throne. God would establish his kingdom forever (vss. 12,13). So, it became popularly understood that the Messiah would be a son of David. This was confirmed by Psalm 132:11, "Yahweh has sworn to David, a truth from which He will not turn back; ‘Of the fruit of your body I will set upon your throne.’" Now Jesus asks, "If David then calls him ‘Lord’, how is He his son?" That was evidently a question they had never thought about, because it left them speechless.

Jesus was trying to push them to think outside the box of their narrowly-defined preconceptions regarding how God would do things. (Good lesson to observe. We can fall into this same trap. Don’t assume you know. Let the Scriptures challenge you. Don’t try to force them to fit what you think.) They did not have a good answer for His question because who could have imagined that God Himself would come to be born as a human being, …to actually be born of a virgin descended from David’s line. Who would have thought that God would actually become "Immanuel" (God with us), in such a literal way? It was incomprehensible, unimaginable. God actually became a man. He actually became a son of David, and, being God in human flesh, was therefore literally David’s Lord and Master, though descended from his loins.

Mark’s account adds the notation that the crowd enjoyed listening to Him. The members of the Sanhedrin, the disciples of the Pharisees, the Herodians, the Sadducees, and the Pharisees had all come to attempt to get Him to stop teaching the crowds, or to manipulate Him into saying something that would anger the crowds, or get Him in trouble with the Romans. Everything they had tried had failed miserably. He had turned each exchange to His advantage. They had succeeded only in increasing His popularity with the multitudes. Consequently, from that day on, no one dared to ask Him another question (Matt. 22:46).