MAX KLEIN BIBLE MINISTRIES
The Seven Baptisms
Written by: Max Klein
Baptism means identification or association:
Introduction:
1. This meaning began in Homer's time. Homer wrote of the one-eyed giant, Cyclops who had trapped Ulysses and his men in a cave and was eating them one at a time. The ingenious Ulysses devised a plan. He had his men sharpen a large log and together they rammed this log into the eye of the one-eyed Cyclops rendering him blind. They identified (baptized) the sharpened log with Cyclops’ eye which changed Cyclops from a seeing giant to a blind giant. Having blinded the Cyclops, they were able to maneuver their way out of the cave. Another example by Homer: Homer's Odyssey, book 9, used baptism for hot metal identified (baptized) with water when a smith dipped a piece of hot iron into water. This is how a blacksmith would temper swords in the ancient world. After this identification, the sword was made stronger and so less likely to bend.
2. Xenophon said that the Spartan military recruits after finishing infantry training would identify (baptize) their spears with pig’s blood. They would run by a barrel of pig’s blood and thrust their spears into this blood. This ritual, identified their spears with killing and the soldier’s readiness for combat with the enemy.
3. Euripides used the word for a ship identified with the bottom of the sea when it sank. Before sinking, the ship was valuable; after sinking it had no value at all.
4. So "baptize" in the classical Greek meant to identify one thing with another so that the characteristics of the original thing were altered. Therefore, the interpretation of the word "baptism" is identification with something that brings about a change.
5. There are a number of cognates related to this Greek word such as bapto, baptizo, baptisma, baptismos, baptistes, and embapto. A few examples follow:
6. John 13:26, “Jesus then answered, ‘That is the one for whom, I shall dip [the future of the Greek word bapto] the morsel and give it to him. So, when he had dipped [the aorist participle of bapto; the sop now takes on a new meaning that of honor] the sop [the morsel], He took and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.”
To give someone a sop [a special bit of food usually a piece of bread or meat with a tasty sauce] was the highest honor of a banquet. At a banquet a special piece of bread or meat was prepared along with a special sauce for the guest of honor who would then honor someone by giving it to that person. Jesus as the guest of honor took this sop and dipped it into a special sauce and gave it to Judas. In this way, the Lord Jesus Christ honored Judas as a member of the family of God, and for his ministry as an apostle to the Lost Sheep of Israel. This honor should have given Judas second thoughts regarding his plan to betray Jesus to the Sanhedrin.
7. Matthew 3:7, “but when he [John the Baptizer] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism [identification: the Greek word baptisma], he said to them, “You brood of vipers [poisonous snakes], who warned you to flee from the wrath to come [Baptism of Fire: identification with the fire of Torments and then the Lake of Fire]?”
8. Hebrews 6:1-2, “Therefore, leaving behind the elementary teaching about Christ, let us advance to maturity, not laying again the foundation [of the basics such as]: a change of thinking about dead works [just as an unbeliever must have a change of mind about Christ to obtain salvation, so the believer must have a change of mind about legalism (dead works) in order to obtain the spiritual life], and of faith toward God [Faith-Rest Drill], (2) doctrine of baptisms [the Greek word baptismos; a reference to the seven types of baptism as found in Scripture] as well as the laying on of hands [ritual rebound in the age of Israel], and of resurrection from the dead, and of eternal judgment [the Great White Throne Judgment].
9. Matthew 3:1, “In those days John the Baptizer [the Greek word baptistes; when John baptized someone into the Jordan River, the converts were identified with the plan of God and his kingdom.] came proclaiming [as a herald] in the desert of Judea.”
There are two categories of identification in Scripture namely an actual identification or a real baptism and a representative identification or a ritual baptism which uses water.
The four real or actual identifications with something that has significance.
1. The Baptism of Moses: 1 Corinthians 10:1-2 presents the baptism of Moses, "For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; (2) and all were baptized [the Greek word baptizo] into Moses in the cloud [the Lord] and in the sea." This was a real identification in which Moses was identified with the Lord and the open path through the Red Sea and the Jews were identified with Moses. By the way, none of the Jews got wet, only Egyptian unbelievers who were immersed in the water as a means of death.
2. The Baptism of the Cross is found in Matthew 20:22, “But Jesus answered [Salome by addressing her sons] and said, “You [plural: a reference to James and John] do not know what you [James and John] ask. Are you [James and John] able to drink of the cup [bear the punishment of all the sins of the world] that I am about to drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism [the sins of the world identified with Christ followed by the Father judging them] that I am baptized with [identified with]?” They [James and John] said to Him, “We are able. [the dumbest statement that James and John ever made]” [I selected the longer text as did Jerome.]
3. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit (Retroactive Positional Truth and Current Positional Truth) occurs at salvation for Church Age believers only.
Colossians 2:12. Having been buried [aorist participle] with Him [Jesus Christ] by means of the baptism [God the Holy Spirit identified us with the burial of Jesus Christ as part of our salvation] by means of which [Baptism] you have been raised up [main verb] with Him [in union with Jesus Christ seated at the right hand of the Father] through faith [at the point of salvation] in the operational power from the source of God who has raised Him [the humanity of Christ was given a resurrection body] out from the dead [physical death].
Romans 6:3-9:
Romans 6:3: Or do you not know that all of us who [a correlative] have been baptized into [identified with] Christ Jesus [Current Positional Sanctification: we are in union with Christ in his life in heaven], have been baptized into His death [Retroactive Positional Truth and so identified with his substitutionary spiritual death on the cross]?
Positionally, (in union with Christ) we share His righteousness, heirship, priesthood, destiny, election, eternal life, royalty, sonship etc. All these making us a new spiritual species in Christ Jesus. The plural correlative hosoi (ὅσοι) means that if we were identified with Christ in heaven and we were, then also we have been identified with Christ in his substitutionary spiritual death in which he removed the power of sin nature. Thus, the sin nature should not have power over our lives.
A few more points will be noted:
1. Note that the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation enters the believer into union with Christ at the right hand of God the Father which union is called current positional truth.
2. This verse also mentions identification with Christ in His spiritual death on the cross which identification theologians call retroactive positional truth. Retroactive positional truth also includes identification with Christ in His physical death and burial as well.
3. Identification with Christ in His death, then, has a two-fold connotation namely all personal sins were judged at the cross and since that is the case, God the Father is free to provide in grace, the Recovery Procedure. The second connotation is that good and evil were rejected by Jesus on the cross since good and evil are a part of Satan’s policy and plan. On the cross, Jesus relied on the proto-type spiritual life which operated under the two power options namely God’s power system.
4. So, the old sin nature’s ruling power over the Christian has been broken since all sins were judged on the cross and the Recovery Procedure has been provided. So, Retroactive Positional Truth has destroyed the sovereignty of the old sin nature over the life of the Christian.
5. Also, since Jesus rejected the good and evil policy of Satan so should the believer reject Satan’s policy of good and evil as the believer applies Retroactive Positional Truth.
Romans 6:4: Therefore, we have been buried together with Him through the identification [Baptism of the Spirit] into His death [physical], in order that just as Christ has been raised up from the dead [on Resurrection Sunday], through the glory of the Father [through the Father’s power], [So also we, the dead in Christ, will be raised from the dead by the power of the Father, and those alive at the Rapture, by the power of the Holy Spirit.] in this manner we also might walk in newness of life [Experiential sanctification should reflect our future ultimate sanctification.].
Christ had to die physically “and Jesus having shouted clearly with a loud voice said, Father, into your hands I deposit my [human] spirit, and having said this, he exhaled” (Luke 23:46). This last exhale caused His soul and spirit to depart from his mortal body resulting in physical death. Just as Christ had to die physically in order to obtain his resurrection body, so we must depart from our body of corruption, or mortality in order to receive our eternal body called our resurrection body.
The Newness of Life:
1. The newness of life provided through the baptism of the Spirit includes positional freedom from producing good and evil. Not only are we free from the tyranny of good and evil but we are also free from having to produce good and evil.
2. The believer has no obligation to improve the devil’s world through social action, socialism, welfare state, communism, environmentalism, or any social gospel, social action, getting involved, etc.
3. The human race is protected from Satan’s policy of good and evil through the laws of divine establishment which promote freedom instead of improvement at the cost of freedom.
4. In addition to the Laws of Divine Establishment the believer is insulated from good and evil positionally through the baptism of the Spirit.
5. Divorced from the Old Sin Nature positionally and its useless activity of human good and the function of evil, the life of the believer can be devoted to glorifying the Lord Jesus Christ through maximum knowledge and application of Bible doctrine.
Romans 6:5: For if we have become united with Him [Christ, the new husband] in the likeness of His death [the substitutionary spiritual death of Christ on the cross], and we have, and not only this, but also, we shall be [united in the likeness] of His resurrection [Current Positional Truth: in union with the resurrected Christ].
Romans 6:6: Be knowing this [through Retroactive Positional Truth], that our old man [our former husband, the sin nature dates back to the Garden] has been crucified together [with Him], in order that the [human] body, with reference to its sin nature, [the sin nature located in the body] might be rendered powerless [when we use Recovery Procedure and the two power options], that we should no longer be slaves to the sin nature.
“Our old man has been crucified with Him” meaning that the power of the sin nature has been broken on the cross. Since the power of the sin nature was broken by the work of the cross, we as believers have no excuse for not executing the spiritual life. We will not be able to say to Christ at our evaluation that our sin nature was too powerful for us to execute the spiritual life.
A few points for further clarification:
1. Retroactive positional truth is that phase of the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation which identifies the believer with Christ in His spiritual death, physical death and his burial.
2. In the substitutionary spiritual death of Christ on the cross all the personal sins in human history were imputed to Christ, but at the same time the other two trends of the old sin nature were not imputed for judgment.
3. Good and evil is the policy of Satan as the ruler of this world and the function of the old sin nature as the sovereign of human life. In fact, the sin nature functions as the agent of Satan.
4. Good and evil were not imputed for judgment on the cross. Hence, in the spiritual death of Christ on the cross they were rejected to remain an issue in the angelic conflict, rejected to be perpetuated in human history as an issue every believer must face, and either overcome through the intake of doctrine or be entrapped by ignorance of doctrine and therefore lose out in glorifying God in time.
5. We are identified with Christ in His spiritual death, which means that we must understand that our sins have been judged and that good and evil has been rejected.
6. It all adds up to the fact that the sovereignty of the old sin nature over human life has been made powerless through retroactive positional truth.
7. The imputation of all personal sins of the human race to Christ on the cross means that the believer through the rebound technique is instantly forgiven sins, cleansed from all wrong doing which includes Satanic good and evil, restored to fellowship and filled with the Spirit.
Romans 6:7: For we who have died [the Christian is identified with the substitutionary spiritual death of Christ: theologically called Retroactive Positional Truth] have been acquitted [positional deliverance] from [the power of] the sin nature.
A few points for further clarification:
1. A dead person is discharged from the obligations of his former sphere of life. This is why the word “death” is used in this context. It is not a literal, physical death we are discussing but identification with Christ in His death.
2. As unbelievers we were under the authority of Satan as the ruler of this world, and under the authority of the old sin nature as the sovereign of human life.
3. Both the power of Satan and the old sin nature have been abrogated through the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation.
4. This passage, then, emphasizes the annulling of the power and the authority of the old sin nature as the sovereign of human life.
5. Positionally, the power of the sin nature has been broken. Experientially, the old sin nature controls to the extent that we fail to understand and utilize the provision and support of logistical grace.
Romans 6:8: Now if we have died with Christ, and we have [retroactive positional truth], we also believe that we shall live in association with Him [the instrumental of association; a reference to Current Positional Truth].
In this verse, the 1st Class conditional sentence shows the relationship between Retroactive Positional Truth with Current Positional Truth. The protasis, the ‘if’ clause states the reality of Retroactive Positional Truth and the apodosis, the concluding clause states the doctrinal inference and the reality of Current Positional Truth. While Retroactive Positional Truth presents positional rejection and separation from good and evil as the policy of Satan and the function of the old sin nature, Current Positional Truth relates the believer to the function of the royal family of God. In other words, they have separate functions.
Romans 6:9: Knowing that because Christ has been raised from the dead [He received a resurrection body], no longer can He die; [physical] death is no longer a master over Him.
Analysis:
1. Retroactive positional truth destroys the sovereign authority of the old sin nature over human life. Current positional truth, on the other hand, destroys the limited authority of physical death in human life.
2. Instead of being ruled by the old sin nature located in the cells of the human body and influencing our souls toward sin, good and evil, we now have a new sovereign, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are identified with Him in His deaths, in His burial, resurrection, ascension and session.
3. Before salvation and the baptism of the Holy Spirit our lives were under the absolute rule of Satan who is the ruler of this world and under the rule of the old sin nature which is the ruler of life, and under the limited rule of physical death. All of that, of course, has been changed since salvation.
4. Now both retroactive and current positional truth have abrogated the authority and power of these former rulers. The power of Satan over our lives has been broken through identification with the rejection of good and evil namely Satan’s policy and plan and through our position in union with Christ. The power of the old sin nature is broken through retroactive positional truth and the power of physical death is broken through current positional truth.
5. Therefore, having studied these things by principle and by implication we are now ready for application, verses 12 & 13 specifically.
6. Having been positionally liberated from the sovereignty of the old sin nature as an absolute ruler, and the authority of physical death, we must recognise and apply doctrine for the experiential victory commanded in verses 11-13.
Galatians 3:25-28, “But now that faith has come, we are no longer under the authority of [have need of] a school bus. (26) For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. (27) For all of you who were baptized into Christ [identified with Christ through union with Him] have clothed yourselves with Christ. (28) There is neither Jew nor Greek [no racial distinction], there is neither slave nor free man [no social or economic distinction], there is neither male nor female [no gender distinction]; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. [All Christians have the same privileges and opportunities to execute the spiritual life.]”
Current Positional Truth, Elaborated:
In the Church Age, Current Positional Truth establishes our relationship with Christ as opposed to religion. It refers to the Church Age believer in union with Christ and is the key to understanding the Church Age and how the royal family came into being. Therefore, it is the basis for distinguishing between Christianity and religion. Christianity is a relationship with God without merit whereas religion is a system of works to gain the approbation of God. Never shall the twain meet!
The mechanics of Current Positional Truth is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, whereby the Spirit enters us into union with Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:13, “For also by agency of the one Spirit we are all baptized [identification resulting in becoming a new spiritual species] into one body [in union with Christ], whether Jews or Greeks [racial distinctions are removed], whether slave or free [class and economic distinctions are removed], even all were made to drink [the aorist passive, the voice of grace] the one Spirit [The Holy Spirit did not ask us whether we wanted to be put into union with Christ or not.].” Ephesians 4:5, “One Lord [becomes our Lord positionally at Salvation]), one faith [faith alone in Christ alone; Acts 16:31], one baptism [Baptism of the Holy Spirit takes place at salvation].”
Current Positional truth guarantees that there will be no judgment for believers in eternity, Romans 8:1, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Thus, the condemnation which occurred at the first birth was removed at the 2nd birth. As a result of being born with the sin nature and the imputation of Adam’s Original Sin, we were condemned to the Lake of Fire for all eternity, but now that has been removed. Romans 5:12, “For this reason just as through one man [Adam] the sin [nature] entered into the world [procreation], and so spiritual death through the sin [the imputation of Adam’s Original Sin to the sin nature], and so spiritual death spread to all mankind, because all sinned when Adam sinned [since we were all genetically in Adam when he sinned, we will receive Adam’s Original Sin].” However, at our spiritual birth, the 2nd birth, our pre-salvation sins were all forgiven including Adam’s Original Sin. After which, the Spirit entered us into union with Christ where there is now no condemnation (Romans 8:1).
Current Positional truth qualifies the believer to live with God forever. To live with God forever, the believer must have eternal life and God’s perfect righteousness, 1 John 5:11-12, “And this is the deposition [testimony] that the God [the Father] has given to us, eternal life, and this life is in his son [Since we are in union with Christ, we share this life.]. (12) and he who has the son [a relationship with the Son] has the life [eternal life] and the one who does not have the son of God [relationship with the Son] does not have the life [eternal life].” 2 Corinthians 5:21, “And He [the Father] made Him who knew no sin [perfection] to be a sin offering [imputation of sins on the cross] as a substitute for us so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him [current positional truth].” To live with God forever means you must have His life, and you must be as righteous as He is.
Positional truth guarantees the believer’s eternal security, Romans 8:38-39, “For I am persuaded that neither death [nothing in death] nor life [nothing in life] nor angels nor principalities [ruling angels] nor powers [human organizations] nor things present nor things to come (39) nor height [nothing in heaven] nor depth [nothing in Hades] nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Eternal life in Christ is for all eternity!
Positional truth belongs to all categories of believers whether they be apostate, mature, immature, spiritually adult, or carnal. Since Current Positional Truth occurs at the point of salvation before experience in the Christian life begins, it doesn’t depend on that experience. 1 Corinthians 1:2, “to the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus [at salvation], called saints together with all who call upon the person of Our Lord Jesus Christ, their [Lord] and ours.” So, even though you may be carnal or in reversionism, you still have positional truth. Being in union with Christ has nothing to do with what you do [experiential righteousness], or don’t do [failure to execute God’s plan]. Current Positional sanctification is completely the work of God the Holy Spirit and so is not based upon our volition, but on the sovereign decision of God. We make the decision to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, but we don’t make the decision to enter into union with Christ “all were made to drink the one Spirit” as per 1 Corinthians 12:13. God the Holy Spirit graciously did that for us and so it cannot be undone.
Current Positional truth creates a new spiritual species in Christ as per 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ and he is, he is a new spiritual species. The old things have lost their power; behold, new things have come to pass.” You become a new spiritual species at salvation by being put into union with Christ. It is what God does for you, and therefore it is grace. It is not what you do after salvation, such as the self-righteous works of legalism. The “old things” have to do with spiritual death and those things related to that death; the “new things” refer to things you receive at salvation such as the 40 assets and the unique spiritual life.
Positional truth should motivate the production of divine good and a pattern of life compatible with royalty as per Ephesians 2:10, “For we are his creation, having been created in Christ Jesus [a new spiritual species with many assets] for the purpose of divine good production [via experiential sanctification] which the God [the Father] has prepared in advance [in eternity past, God the Father provided election and predestination as part of our Portfolio of Invisible Assets], that we in the sphere of them [election and predestination] may pattern our lives.”
Even though a Christian may die the Sin on to Death, he will not lose his position in union with Christ (1 John 5:18-20), and so cannot lose his salvation. In order for a believer to lose his position in Christ, he would have to sin in that status, but since the believer cannot sin in union with Christ, he cannot lose his position in Christ and so cannot lose his salvation. Thus, it is comforting and reassuring to a believer to know that even though a loved one may have died the ‘sin on to death’, he has not lost his salvation.
Because we are in union with Christ, we share His:
1. Eternal life, 1 John 5:11, “And this is the deposition [testimony] that the God [the Father] has given to us, eternal life [At salvation, God the Father imputes this life to the human spirit], and this life is in his son [The Christian also shares the life of Christ through union with Him]. (12) and he who has the son [a relationship with the Son] has the life [eternal life] and the one who does not have the son of God [relationship with the Son] does not have the life [eternal life].”
John 14:6, “Jesus said to him [Thomas], ‘I am the way, the truth and the life [eternal life]; no person [in human history] comes face to face with the Father [having an eternal relationship with the Father] except through Me.’”
2. Perfect righteousness, 2 Corinthians 5:21, “And he (God the Father) made him [Jesus] who knew no sin (perfection) to be a sin offering as a substitute for us so that we might become the righteousness of God in him [positional truth]. Sharing the righteousness of Christ, we become the objects of God the Father’s love as per Romans 8:39.
3. Election, Ephesians 1:4, “just as He [the Father] has elected us for Himself in Him [Jesus Christ] before the creation of the world [in eternity past], that we may be set apart [experiential sanctification] and blameless [ultimate sanctification] in the presence of Him [Father].”
4. Destiny, Ephesians 1:5, “By means of love, He has predestined us for the purpose of adoption as adult sons to Himself through Christ Jesus our Lord according to the grace purpose of His will.”
5. Sonship, Galatians 3:26, “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”
6. Heirship, Romans 8:16-17, “The Spirit Himself testifies together [bears witness] with our [human] spirit, that we are the children of God. (17) Now, if we are children and we are, also heirs, on the one hand heirs of God [the Father], and joint heirs with Christ. If indeed [if it is true that], we suffer with Him [pass all three stages of undeserved suffering], that also we might be glorified with Christ.”
7. Sanctification, 1 Corinthians 1:2, “to the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints together with all who call upon the person of Our Lord Jesus Christ, their [Lord] and ours.”
8. Priesthood, Hebrews 7:12-19, “For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change in the Law also. (13) For the One [the Lord Jesus Christ] concerning whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe [the tribe of Judah] from which no one has officiated at the altar. (14) For it is evident that our Lord has descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke nothing concerning priests, (15) and this is clearer still, if another priest arises similar to Melchizedek, and there has, (16) who has become a priest not on the basis of physical requirement [a reference to the Levitical Priesthood] but on the basis of indestructible life [the Lord’s priesthood is forever]. (17) For this reason, it is witnessed, ‘You are a priest forever similar to the order of Melchizedek.’” [We are in union with Christ. Therefore, we are royalty and priests forever. We represent ourselves before God as royal priests.] (18) For, on the one hand, there is a rescinding of the former commandment [the Mosaic Law that authorized the Levitical priesthood] because of its weakness and uselessness (19) (for the Law brought nothing to completion), but on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope [the second door of hope for the Church Age believer—a personal sense of destiny—by which we enter the adult spiritual life] through which we draw near to God.”
Hebrews 7:26-28, “For it is fitting that we should have such a high priest, impeccable integrity, the One who cannot do evil, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; (27) Who does not need daily, like those Levitical priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for their own sins, and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He [Jesus] offered up Himself. (28) For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of His [God the Father’s] oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, who has become perfect forever [Jesus Christ is a perfect high priest].”
9. Royalty, 1 Peter 2:9, “ But you and only you are an elect [elect by God the Father] race [as a new spiritual species], a royal priesthood [since Jesus is a king-priest], a holy nation [God’s entity: a nation of priests: every Christian is a priest], a people for God’s own possession [a protected people], so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him [Christ] who has called [in eternity past] you out of darkness [spiritual death and the Cosmic Systems] into His amazing light [his plan];”
10. New Spiritual Species, 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ and he is, he is a new spiritual species. The old things have lost their power [Old Covenant]; behold, new things have come to pass [This would include the New Covenant to the Church.].”
Current Positional Truth changes our relationship with Angels.
1. Through current positional truth the believer is higher than angels positionally.
2. Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father, and so superior to all angels. By virtue of being in union with Christ, every believer is now positionally superior to angels.
3. Positional truth has fulfilled the believer’s triumph with Christ in the angelic conflict. We are victorious with Him already.
4. Furthermore, positional truth demands compatibility with experiential righteousness. Therefore, the believer’s walk on this earth must be compatible with positional truth since we have perfect security in Christ, we have the freedom to choose for Jesus Christ, to love Jesus Christ, to respond to His love, and to fulfill our purpose on this earth.
What positional truth is not?
1. It is not an experience, emotions or ecstasies.
2. It is not progressive; it cannot be improved in time or eternity.
3. It is not related to human merit or ability.
4. It cannot be changed by God, man or angels. It is eternal in nature.
5. It is not obtained gradually as you grow in grace, but in toto at salvation.
6. It is not known apart from the metabolization of doctrine.
7. From understanding the doctrine of positional truth, we progress in our spiritual life, but we cannot improve it since it is perfect at salvation.
8. We are not in Christ because of what we do (execution of the spiritual life) or fail to do (fail to execute the spiritual life), but because of what God has done.
A few points of explanation:
1. The conclusion from positional truth, whether retroactive or current, is that the Christian must apply these doctrines to his spiritual life.
2. In Romans 7:1-4 where we have an illustration of a woman whose first husband has died freeing her to marry another. This is what actually happens to us as believers at salvation. The old sin nature is the husband up to the point of salvation, but at the moment we believe in Jesus Christ positionally the sin nature is dead, as it were, the first husband has died and we have a new husband through union with Christ. Retroactive Positional Truth removes our first husband, the sin nature whereas Current Positional Truth enters us into union with Christ, our new husband.
3. The old sin nature-husband is still around, still seeking to regain his control over his former wife, the believer. But union with the second husband, the Lord Jesus Christ, has broken the first husband’s authority over the former wife.
4. The Baptism of Fire:
Matthew 3:11, “On the one hand I [John the Baptizer] baptize you [believers] by means of water because of a change of thinking [about Christ], but the one coming after me is mightier than I whose sandals I am not worthy to lace [loosen, remove]. He himself will baptize by means of the Holy Spirit [a reference to the Baptism of the Holy Spirit in the Church Age] and by means of fire [a reference to the Baptism of Fire at the 2nd Advent].”
Baptism of Fire: The baptism of fire (identification with fire) is defined as the judgment of unbelievers both Jew and gentile at the Second Advent. They will be removed from the earth and placed in fire for 1000 years until the Last Judgment, Luke 3:16-17; Mathew 25:31, 33. The analogy to the Baptism of Fire is found in Matthew 24:36-41. The one left in the field is the mature believer; the one taken is the unbeliever.
Parables of the Baptism of Fire:
1. The wheat and the tares (the unbelievers), Matthew 13:24-30, 36-40.
2. The good and bad fish (unbelievers), Matthew 13:47-50.
3. The ten virgins: five wise, five foolish (the unbelievers), Matthew 25:1-13.
4. The sheep and the goats (the unbelievers), Mathew 25:31-46.
5. The talent test, Matthew 25:14-30. The one talent man represents the unbeliever.
If Jesus Christ had not been rejected by the Jewish people, then the age of Israel would have continued until its completion (the Tribulation completes the age of Israel). (However, they did reject Jesus Christ as Savior and Messiah and so the client nation was destroyed, and the Church age was intercalated that is inserted before the age of Israel was complete.) After the completion of the age of Israel at the end of the Tribulation, comes the wrath of God namely the Baptism of Fire when the Lord removes both Jewish and gentile unbelievers from the earth and identifies them with fire forever. After which, the Millennial reign begins.
The Three Ritual Baptisms. None are extant at the present time. They are representative identifications in which water is used as a training aid to represent some principle of doctrine.
1. The Baptism of John is found in Matthew 3:2-6, “Saying, ‘Change your thinking [regarding Christ] for the kingdom of heaven is near.’ [The future king was already on the earth] (3) For this is what was communicated through Isaiah, the prophet saying, ‘The voice of one [John the Baptizer] proclaiming loudly in the desert [of Judea]. Prepare [the aorist tense is a one time-decision] the way of the Lord [an idiomatic expression for salvation]. Keep on making upright [the use of the Recovery Procedure followed by the development of experiential righteousness] His paths!’ (Isaiah 40:3) (4) Now, John himself kept on having a garment of camel’s hair [very uncomfortable] and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. (5) Then [after John went where God wanted him to be] Jerusalem kept on going out to him [face to face] and all Judea and all the districts around the Jordan. (6) and they were being baptized [identified with the kingdom] by him [under John’s authority] in the Jordan River [where Israel crossed when they entered the land], and they kept on confessing their sins [post-salvation confession of sins].”
MAX KLEIN BIBLE MINISTRIES
The Gospel of Matthew: Chapter Twenty-Six
A verse-by-verse commentary by Max Klein
John 4:24, “God is a spirit; those who worship him, must worship by agency of the Spirit and by means of truth.”
Matthew 26:1
And it came to pass when Jesus finished all messages [the Temple Discourse chapters 21-23 and the Olivet Discourse Matthew 24, 25], He said to His disciples,
Καὶ ἐγένετο ὅτε ἐτέλεσεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς πάντας τοὺς λόγους τούτους, εἶπεν τοῖς µαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ,
Historical review: On Palm Sunday, Jesus began the Temple Discourse (Matthew 21:7-17) and on the next day completed the Temple Discourse (Matthew 21:23-23:39), then sometime Monday afternoon before sunset he gave the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:3-25:46). He and his disciples then return to Bethany to the home of Simon the Leper where they remained until it was time to go to Jerusalem for the Last Supper.
Matthew 26:2 You know [refreshing their memories] that after two days [it is presently Monday evening, sometime before 6 P.M.] the Passover will occur [Jewish Passover Meal and Last Supper shortly after 6 P.M., the beginning of the Jewish Wednesday], and the Son of Man will be betrayed [after the Last Supper, He along with some of His disciples went to the Garden of Gethsemane for prayer in which place He was betrayed early Wednesday Judean time] to be crucified.
Οἴδατε ὅτι µετὰ δύο ἡµέρας τὸ πάσχα γίνεται, καὶ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδίδοται εἰς τὸ σταυρωθῆναι.
Matthew 26:3 Then the chief priests, scribes, and the elders of the people [mostly Herodians], assembled together in the courtyard [around the palace] of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas [18-36 AD].
Τότε συνήχθησαν οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ οἱ πρεσβύτεροι τοῦ λαοῦ εἰς τὴν αὐλὴν τοῦ ἀρχιερέως τοῦ λεγοµένου Καϊάφα,
It was customary to do ones plotting outside. Caiaphas was finally deposed by Vitellus, the Roman Procurator who had replaced Pontius Pilate.
Matthew 26:4
And they consulted so that they might take Jesus by guile [by fraud, deceit] and kill Him [by stoning Him to death].
καὶ συνεβουλεύσαντο ἵνα τὸν Ἰησοῦν δόλῳ κρατήσωσιν καὶ ἀποκτείνωσιν·
Matthew 26:5
But they said, “Not on the feast day [Is was considered sacrilege to stone anyone on the Passover: Passover through the Feast of Unleavened Bread.], lest there be an uproar among the people.”
ἔλεγον δέ, Μὴ ἐν τῇ ἑορτῇ, ἵνα µὴ θόρυβος γένηται ἐν τῷ λαῷ.
The Jews were not allowed to stone anyone to death during the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. So, they wanted him betrayed and tried after the Holy Week. Unfortunately for them, Jesus at the Last Supper ruined their schedule when he told Judas to do what he needed to do.
Matthew 26:6
And when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,
Τοῦ δὲ Ἰησοῦ γενοµένου ἐν Βηθανίᾳ ἐν οἰκίᾳ Σίµωνος τοῦ λεπροῦ,
Historical background: John 12:1-9, “Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. (2) So. they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving; but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. (3) Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. (4) But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, (5) “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?” (6) Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it. (7) Therefore, Jesus said, “Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial. (8) “For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.” (9) The large crowd of the Jews then learned that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He raised from the dead.”
Matthew 26:7
A woman [Mary, the sister of Lazarus also known as Mary of Bethany] came to Him, having an alabaster vial of very precious ointment [as a tax collector Matthew knew], and poured it on His head as He reclined.
προσῆλθεν αὐτῷ γυνὴ ἔχουσα ἀλάβαστρον µύρου βαρυτίµου καὶ κατέχεεν ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ ἀνακειµένου.
Regarding Martha and Mary, quoted from ‘The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary’ pages 1127, 1129, 1130 by Merrill F. Unger.
“The incident narrated by Luke (10:38–42) shows that Jesus was intimate with the family and was at home in their house. It also brings out the contrary dispositions of the two sisters. Martha hastens to provide suitable entertainment for their friend and His followers, while Mary sits at His feet listening to His gracious discourse. The busy, anxious Martha, annoyed at the inactivity of Mary, complains impatiently to Jesus, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” This brought from the Master the often-quoted reply, “Only a few things are necessary, … for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” At the death of Lazarus their respective characters are portrayed: Martha active, Mary meditative; Martha reproachful and objecting, Mary silent but immediately obedient to the summons of Jesus; Martha accepting Jesus as the Christ and sharing in the belief of a resurrection but not believing, as Mary did, in Jesus as “the life.” All that is recorded of Martha in addition is that at a supper given to Jesus and His disciples at Bethany, at which Lazarus was present, she, as usual, busied herself with serving.”
“Mary, Sister of Lazarus. The facts about her are few. She and her sister Martha appear in Luke 10:38–42 receiving Christ in their house. Mary sat listening eagerly for every word from the divine Teacher and was commended by Jesus as having “chosen the good part,” the one thing necessary, while “Martha was distracted with all her preparations.” The next mention of Mary is in connection with the raising of Lazarus (John 11:1–45). She sat still in the house until Martha came to her secretly and said, “The Teacher is here, and is calling for you.” She arose hastily to go to meet Him. At first, she gave way to complaint: “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” But her great joy and love revived upon her brother’s return to life, and found expression in the anointing at the last feast of Bethany (Matt. 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9; John 12:1–8).”
Matthew 26:8
But when [ten of] His disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “To what purpose is this dead loss?
ἰδόντες δὲ οἱ µαθηταὶ ἠγανάκτησαν λέγοντες, Εἰς τί ἡ ἀπώλεια αὕτη;
Matthew apparently was one of the last ones to see this. Furthermore, Matthew was not a self-righteous and stuffy person. According to John, it was Judas who started the criticism. Only two stayed away from this criticism, John and Matthew.
Matthew 26:9
For this ointment might have been sold for very much and given to the poor.
ἐδύνατο γὰρ τοῦτο πραθῆναι πολλοῦ καὶ δοθῆναι πτωχοῖς.
According to John 12:3, it cost 300 denarii which was about a year’s wage. Mary was doing something right with her own money; it was no one else’s business. Jesus has just taught about his death, and Mary understood so anointed him.
Matthew 26:10
When Jesus understood it [their criticism and intent], He said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a good work for Me.”
γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, Τί κόπους παρέχετε τῇ γυναικί; ἔργον γὰρ καλὸν ἠργάσατο εἰς ἐµέ·
Matthew 26:11
For you have the poor with you always, but you do not always have Me.
πάντοτε γὰρ τοὺς πτωχοὺς ἔχετε µεθí ἑαυτῶν, ἐµὲ δὲ οὐ πάντοτε ἔχετε·
Matthew 26:12
For in putting ointment on My body [sometime after 6 P.M. Tuesday Roman time; early Monday based on Jewish time], she did it for My burial.
βαλοῦσα γὰρ αὕτη τὸ µύρον τοῦτο ἐπὶ τοῦ σώµατός µου πρὸς τὸ ἐνταφιάσαι µε ἐποίησεν.
Matthew 26:13
Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel shall be proclaimed in the whole world, that which this woman has done shall be spoken of also, for a memorial to her.”
ἀµὴν λέγω ὑµῖν, ὅπου ἐὰν κηρυχθῇ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦτο ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ κόσµῳ, λαληθήσεται καὶ ὃ ἐποίησεν αὕτη εἰς µνηµόσυνον αὐτῆς.
Matthew 26:14
Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests [who he knew hated Jesus].
Τότε πορευθεὶς εἷς τῶν δώδεκα, ὁ λεγόµενος Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης, πρὸς τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς
Matthew 26:15
And he said to them, what do you desire to give me, and I will betray Him to you? And they bargained with him for thirty pieces of silver.
εἶπεν, Τί θέλετέ µοι δοῦναι κἀγὼ ὑµῖν παραδώσω αὐτόν; οἱ δὲ ἔστησαν αὐτῷ τριάκοντα ἀργύρια.
They haggled over the price. The religious priests didn’t want to pay any more than they had to. Thirty pieces of silver is the price for the freedom of a slave.
Matthew 26:16
And from that time, he sought opportunity to betray Him.
καὶ ἀπὸ τότε ἐζήτει εὐκαιρίαν ἵνα αὐτὸν παραδῷ.
His opportunity came at the last Passover, early Wednesday Jewish time. So, after 6 P.M. namely Wednesday, Jesus celebrated the Passover with His disciples. After which He went to Gethsemane and was betrayed over to the chief priests. Even though Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, it does not follow that he was an unbeliever. After all, most Christians betray Christ.
Judas Iscariot: Believer or Unbeliever?
The spiritual status of Judas Iscariot must be understood since he was one of the apostles appointed during the three-year-ministry of Our Lord. Even though elevated to this high position, many astute students of the Word of God think that Judas was an unbeliever since it appears that he was possessed by Satan (John 13:27). However, doesn’t it seem a bit odd that Jesus Christ would have selected an unbeliever to evangelize the ‘Lost Sheep of Israel’ and to have allowed him to remain in that position for three long years? To answer this question let us examine the pertinent facts and passages that we might determine Judas’ true status whether he was an unbeliever masquerading as an apostle or a believer residing in the dark abyss of apostasy.
1. Jesus Christ prayed fervently for guidance in the selection of the 12 apostles.
“It was at that time that he went off to the mountain to pray, and he spent the whole night in prayer to God [the Father]. (13) And when day came, he called his disciples [perhaps thousands] to him and chose twelve from them whom he also commissioned as apostles. (14) Simon whom he also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; (15) and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alpheus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; (16) Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor.” (Luke 6:12-16)
Jesus Christ understood that one man could not properly administer thousands of disciples. So, he decided to select twelve men to assist him. In order to ensure that he would select the right twelve men he prayed to God the Father for guidance, and since Jesus never failed in prayer, the twelve men he selected were the twelve that God the Father also chose. Would they choose an unbeliever for the dissemination of the gospel to the “Lost Sheep of Israel”?
2. Judas, a disciple of Christ was chosen as an apostle with much authority and power.
“And when He had called to himself His twelve disciples, He gave them [including Judas] authority over unclean spirits [demons], to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. (2) And the names of the twelve apostles are these: First, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James, the sons of Zebedee and John his brother; (3) Philip and Bartholomew [also called Nathaniel]; Thomas and Matthew the tax-collector; James, the son of Alpheus, and Thaddeus; (4) Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. (5) Jesus sent out these twelve, commanding them, saying, “Do not go into the way of the gentiles, and do not enter into any city of the Samaritans. (6) But rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. (7) And as you [a command to the twelve Judas included] go, proclaim, saying, “The kingdom of Heaven is at hand [their message is to emphasize that the Savior in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ is here].” (8) “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead [resuscitation], cast out demons [Judas had the authority to cast out demons by means of God’s power]. You have received freely [Judas and the other eleven were recipients of grace], freely give [be gracious to others].” (Matthew 10:1-8)
The two designations; namely, disciple and apostle can hardly be applied to an unbeliever yet Judas was first a disciple learning the spiritual life and then became an apostle to the Lost Sheep of the house of Israel, a spiritual rank of the highest magnitude. As an apostle, Judas was given great authority and power from Christ: for example, the authority and power to cast out demons and then to evangelize those freed of the demons. This authority and power executed would be detrimental to Satan’s cause since Satan utilized the many cases of demon possession in Judea to enhance his power and influence and to prevent those demon-possessed from believing in Christ. Judas as an apostle to Israel functioned in the gospel ministry for nearly three years. Have you ever seen an unbeliever witness for Christ even once much less for nearly three years!
3. Jesus at the Passover Feast honors Judas Iscariot:
“Jesus answered, ‘That is the one for whom I shall dip this sop and give it to him.’ So, having dipped the sop, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.” (John 13:26)
ἀποκρίνεται Ἰησοῦς, Ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν ᾧ ἐγὼ βάψω τὸ ψωµίον καὶ δώσω αὐτῷ. βάψας οὖν τὸ ψωµίον [λαµβάνει καὶ] δίδωσιν Ἰούδᾳ Σίµωνος Ἰσκαριώτου.
To present someone with the sop [somion in the Greek was a special bit of food usually a piece of bread or meat dipped into a tasty sauce] was the highest honor received at a banquet. In this passage, Jesus, the host took the sop and dipped it into a special sauce and gave it to Judas. In doing so, it appears that he was honoring Judas as a member of the family of God and as one of his chosen apostles to Israel and at the same time challenging him to reconsider the betrayal which he was about to enter into. Furthermore, offering the ‘sop’ to Judas and not to one of the other apostles was neither a violation of protocol nor discourteous, for the other eleven would receive a much greater honor, that is they would be promoted to the rank of Apostles to the Church.
There was possibly even a greater reason why the Lord offered the sop to Judas. It may have been a gracious attempt to blast through the hardness of Judas’ heart. (The longer the believer stays out of fellowship, the more scar tissue is formed in his soul (Ephesians 4:17, 18)). Judas having spent three years out of fellowship was severely scarred and hardened. This offering of the sop must have caused Judas to reflect upon his decision to betray Christ. Should he get back into fellowship and start living the spiritual life, or remain out of fellowship and accept the sop under the pretense that he was virtuous? He of course chose the latter and so the last piece of scar tissue was formed – Judas’ soul was now in an irrecoverable state.
4. The use of the Greek words louo, nipto pous and katharos in John 13:4-11
The Greek word louo means to be bathed. In the metaphor of this passage, it refers to the forgiveness of all pre-salvation sins at the point of salvation. The passive voice means that the believer receives the bathing (metaphorically) by God the Father, that is, the Father forgives all pre-salvation sins at the point of salvation. Of course, after salvation we continue to sin which is analogous to our feet becoming filthy. Washing the feet (nipto pous) is analogous to the believer naming his sins to God the Father. This results in our being ‘purified’ or ‘cleansed,’ the Greek word ‘katharos,’ a cognate of ‘katharizo’ which is found in 1 John 1:9.
“He rose up from the supper and laid aside His outer garments. And taking a towel he girded Himself. (5) After that He poured water into a basin and began to wash [nipto: to wash a portion of the body] the disciples' feet [all twelve disciples: implying that Judas was a believer who needed his post-salvation sins forgiven; unbelievers are never forgiven of their sins], and to wipe them [washed and wiped analogous to forgiveness of post-salvation-sins and the purification of all wrong doing] with the towel with which He was girded.” (John 13:4, 5)
ἐγείρεται ἐκ τοῦ δείπνου καὶ τίθησιν τὰ ἱµάτια, καὶ λαβὼν λέντιον διέζωσεν ἑαυτόν. 5 εἶτα βάλλει ὕδωρ εἰς τὸν νιπτῆρα καὶ ἤρξατο νίπτειν τοὺς πόδας τῶν µαθητῶν καὶ ἐκµάσσειν τῷ λεντίῳ ᾧ ἦν διεζωσµένος.
These disciples had committed a terrible breach of etiquette because they had not washed the excrement off of their feet before entering the banquet hall for the Passover Feast. Since there wasn’t a servant to do the washing, and since they would not wash each other’s feet due to an argument over who was the greatest (Luke 22:24), they just came in and reclined Roman style on a couch with their feet practically on the table. The stink of the human sewage on their feet must have been unbearable. Without criticizing them, Jesus decided to clean their feet not only to solve the immediate problem of their filthy feet, but primarily to teach by analogy that his work on the cross would be the basis for the confession and forgiveness of sins.
1. All twelve disciples would have bathed before departing from Bethany and coming to Jerusalem where the Last Supper would take place. This cleansing of the whole body is analogous to their salvation with emphasis on the forgiveness of pre-salvation-sins.
2. On the way to the location where the Last Supper would take place, they had to walk through a number of filthy streets for at that time they did not have plumbing as we do now, and so the people would just throw their daily bowls of excrement onto the street. So, as was the custom, the apostles should have washed their feet before entering the home where the supper would take place. Washing the filth (representing sins) from their feet would be analogous to the confession and forgiveness of their post-salvation-sins.
3. Dining at the table was fellowship with the Lord (Revelation 3:20). The believer cannot have fellowship with the Lord with filth on his feet (by analogy in a state of sin and carnality).
4. The feet are analogous to service (Isaiah 52:7). One cannot serve the Lord with filthy feet (while in carnality).
5. Christ washed the disciples’ feet to teach the doctrine that forgiveness of sins would be based on his work on the cross. “In whom we have redemption [the primary accusative as object of the verb: the work of redemption took place on the cross] resulting in the forgiveness [the secondary accusative of result] of sins.” (Colossians 1:14)
“Then He came to Simon Peter [on the couch]. And Peter said to Him, Lord, do you yourself wash my feet? [At that moment Peter probably withdrew his feet backward] (7) Jesus answered and said to him, “You do not understand what I do now [Peter didn’t understand the doctrinal significance of Jesus wanting to wash his feet], but you shall know hereafter [later Peter would realize that this was an illustration of the forgiveness of sins]. (8) Peter said to Him, ‘You shall never ever wash my feet’. Jesus answered him, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no part with Me’ [two meanings: first, if you don’t wash your filthy feet, you cannot sit with me at the table; second, by analogy, if you don’t confess your sins, you cannot have fellowship with God]. (9) Simon Peter [in using Peter’s full name, John, the writer seems a little exasperated with Peter’s next statement] said to Him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and head [Peter still did not comprehend the analogy].” (John 13:6-9)
ἔρχεται οὖν πρὸς Σίµωνα Πέτρον. λέγει αὐτῷ, Κύριε, σύ µου νίπτεις τοὺς πόδας; 7 ἀπεκρίθη Ἰησοῦς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ὃ ἐγὼ ποιῶ σὺ οὐκ οἶδας ἄρτι, γνώσῃ δὲ µετὰ ταῦτα. 8 λέγει αὐτῷ Πέτρος, Οὐ µὴ νίψῃς µου τοὺς πόδας εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. ἀπεκρίθη Ἰησοῦς αὐτῷ, Ἐὰν µὴ νίψω σε, οὐκ ἔχεις µέρος µετ’ ἐµοῦ. 9 λέγει αὐτῷ Σίµων Πέτρος, Κύριε, µὴ τοὺς πόδας µου µόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς χεῖρας καὶ τὴν κεφαλήν.
Rituals and analogies are meaningless unless one understands the doctrine related to them. Christ taught the necessity of confession of sins as a prerequisite for fellowship with God. This he did by analogy through the custom of washing one’s feet before entering a home.
“Jesus said to him, He who is bathed [louo: analogous to salvation and the forgiveness of pre-salvation sins: all twelve had bathed before arriving at the house] has no need [to bathe again, to be saved again] except to wash [nipto: to wash the extremities] his feet [analogous to Rebound], apart from that [washing his feet] he is completely clean [katharos: in fellowship: the cognate verb katharizo is used in 1 John 1:9:]. And you are clean [katharos: eleven disciples were in fellowship], but not all [for Judas was out of fellowship]. (11) For He knew who would betray Him [betrayal in the mentality motivated by avarice means that Judas was out of fellowship]. Therefore, He said, ‘You are not all clean’ [not all are in fellowship: the Greek word katharos is a cognate of katharizo: “to purify from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)]. (12a). So, when He had washed their [all twelve] feet [The ritual regarding the forgiveness of the post-salvation sins of the believer]” (John 13:10, 11, 12a)
λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Ὁ λελουµένος οὐκ ἔχει χρείαν εἰ µὴ τοὺς πόδας νίψασθαι, ἀλλ’ ἔστιν καθαρὸς ὅλος· καὶ ὑµεῖς καθαροί ἐστε, ἀλλ’ οὐχὶ πάντες. 11 ᾔδει γὰρ τὸν παραδιδόντα αὐτόν· διὰ τοῦτο εἶπεν ὅτι Οὐχὶ πάντες καθαροί ἐστε. 12a Ὅτε οὖν ἔνιψεν τοὺς πόδας αὐτῶν
Jesus Christ makes it quite clear that there was no need for any of the apostles to bathe since all twelve had already bathed (analogous to salvation). Judas was saved, but he wasn’t katharos, he wasn’t in fellowship. He wasn’t in fellowship because he had decided to commit the sin of betrayal as stated in the passage above.
5. Did Satan indwell the body of Judas Iscariot?
Hypothetically, was it even necessary for Satan to indwell Judas since he was already completely under the influence of avarice?
Jesus called Judas the devil (John 6:70, 71). Now, he obviously wasn’t the devil, but had become an agent of Satan through demonic influence. Even Peter was called Satan by the Lord (Matthew 16:23). Obviously, Peter was not Satan nor was he indwelt by Satan, but demonstrated some demonic influence in his attempt to hinder the cross. When a believer stays out of fellowship with God for a long period of time, Satan’s desires and thinking enter that believer’s soul. We call this demon influence which is illustrated in 2 Timothy 2:26.
“And they [believers] should come to their senses [ananepho: in the sense of naming their sins] and escape from the devil’s snare [Satan influencing the souls of believers], having been held captive by him [Satan] with reference to his [Satan’s] will [believers can do the will of Satan just as Judas was motivated by monetary lust to do Satan’s will].”
καὶ ἀνανήψωσιν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου παγίδος, ἐζωγρηµένοι ὑπ’ αὐτοῦ εἰς
τὸ ἐκείνου θέληµα.
The Greek verb ananepho was used in classical Greek for recovering from a very heavy night of imbibing. When an Athenian drank too much wine the night before, the next day he would need to recover his ability to think and concentrate. Because Judas stayed out of fellowship over a long period of time, he became intoxicated with the thinking and desires of Satan. Money became the most important possession in his life (John 12:4-6: “who was intending to betray Him [two days before the Passover meal].” Rather than recovering from his intoxication, getting back into fellowship and learning the Word of God, he continued to drink from Satan’s cosmic system and so remained inebriated and easily manipulated by Satan (entrapped to do Satan’s will).
“During supper [the Passover meal], the devil already had thrust into the heart [the soul] of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon to betray Him” (John 13:2)
καὶ δείπνου γινοµένου, τοῦ διαβόλου ἤδη βεβληκότος εἰς τὴν καρδίαν ἵνα παραδοῖ αὐτὸν Ἰούδας Σίµωνος Ἰσκαριώτου,
Judas’ betrayal is related to demon influence, not satanic possession. The perfect active participle refers to an action which began in the past, namely, Judas got out of fellowship with God shortly after his salvation and remained so for nearly three years. The intensive perfect emphasizes the existing results of those three years of being out of fellowship. Judas’ motivation was now completely dominated by avarice; his thinking is to do the will of Satan, “the devil had thrust into the soul of Judas” the idea of betrayal. Since Satan did not thrust himself into Judas, but the idea to betray Jesus, the concept of betrayal is inextricably and undeniably united to demon influence, not possession. The following two verses must be interpreted in harmony with John 13:2.
“After the sop [by accepting the sop, his soul had become completely scarred, hardened], Satan [Satan’s desire to betray Jesus to the Sanhedrin, not to the Romans] then entered into him [into Judas’s soul controlled by avarice as per John 13:2, and now completely hardened]. Therefore, Jesus said to him, what you [addressing Judas; not Satan since there was no indwelling] intend to do [betrayal], do quickly.” (John 13:27)
καὶ µετὰ τὸ ψωµίον τότε εἰσῆλθεν εἰς ἐκεῖνον ὁ Σατανᾶς. λέγει οὖν αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.
“Satan [Satan’s desire to turn Jesus over to the Sanhedrin] entered into Judas the one called Iscariot being numbered among the twelve. And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them.” (Luke 22:3, 4)
The Greek word eiserchomai has many meanings including a figurative one. Figuratively, it has the meaning of a desire entering someone. This is the meaning here. Because of Judas Iscariot’s insatiable lust to add thirty pieces of silver to his income, this desire of Satan entered his soul as a result of three years of being demon influence via black out and scar tissue of the soul (Ephesians 4:17-19). Both John 13:27 and Luke 22:3-4 relate ‘betrayal’ to ‘entering,’ and since the concept of ‘entering’ has already been related to demon influence in John 13:2, these other two verses mentioned above cannot logically be related to satanic possession.
6. No reason for the super genius-Satan to indwell Judas:
As the supreme leader of all fallen angels, Satan would never lower himself to the point of indwelling an animal or human body unless it was absolutely necessary. One such necessity existed in the past and one will occur in the future. In the beginning of human history, he indwelt the serpent in the garden in order to mastermind the fall of man, and will indwell the dictator of the Revived Roman Empire that he might take personal control over the matters of world politics (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12). Two important missions requiring genius, but why would he need to indwell Judas? Judas is not going to be making any brilliant decisions; all he is going to do is lead a Roman cohort and a security-detachment from the high priests and Pharisees to Jesus, and then to kiss Jesus on the cheek. This hardly requires genius-ability!
We must assume that Satan, a super-genius, would instead choose to remain in the presence of Jesus that he might gain important information. So, rather than indwelling the body of Judas which would have removed him from the presence of Jesus Christ, he remained with Jesus to listen to the Upper Room Discourse, the Gethsemane Discourse and the Lord’s prayer as found in John 17.
7. If Satan had indwelt Judas, the betrayal would not have taken place on the Passover.
Until the Passover meal, Judas Iscariot was not completely full of scar tissue. So, he was not yet ready to betray Jesus. The offering of the sop was a grace challenge to Judas’ volition to recover fellowship and to return to the spiritual life. His failure to do so, completed his scar tissue and locked-in his decision to betray Jesus.
And after the sop [Judas had now become completely scarred over], then Satan entered into him [a soul full of scar tissue locked-in the decision to betray Christ]. Then Jesus said to him, “What you are about to do, do it more swiftly” [Judas still had some control over his volition and complete control over his own body unlike a person demon or Satan possessed]. (John 13:27)
Jesus commanded Judas to act more swiftly than he had planned to act. Judas had planned on celebrating the Passover with the Lord, but when the Lord had commanded him to act more swiftly, he obeyed and left. This completely messed up Satan’s timing. Satan wanted Christ to die either before or after the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread, but definitely not on Passover fulfilling the very purpose of that Feast. Furthermore, Satan’s plan did not call for Jesus to be hung on a Roman cross, but to be murdered by the Sanhedrin under a pile of rock which would take only a few minutes. In those few minutes, God the Father would not have had sufficient time to punish Jesus Christ for all the sins of human history. We know that supernatural darkness covered the cross from 12 to 3, exactly three hours, the shortest time in which God the Father could judge Jesus for all the sins of humanity. However, because Jesus was betrayed on the Passover (Jewish calendar) and since the Jews were forbidden to stone anyone during the Passover and the Feast of the Unleavened Bread (April 14-21), and since their hatred and murder lust was so overpowering, they could not wait for this holy week to end, and so they turned Jesus over to the Romans for a swift sentencing and judgment. At this point, the devil must have felt very frustrated since he knew that it had been prophesied that Christ would die on the wood.
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law having become a curse for us for it is written [Deuteronomy 21:23: Satan knew well] “Cursed [judged] is everyone who hangs on the wood [in this case the Roman cross].”” (Galatians 3:13)
8. Matthew 26:24 misunderstood:
Matthew 26:24,"The Son of Man goes [to the cross], as it has been written concerning Him [the Old Testament declares the cross], but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man [Judas Iscariot] if he had not been born, [gennao: not been born spiritually: if he had not been a believer], but he was born [This answer is implied since this is a contrary to fact conditional clause].
ὁ µὲν υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὑπάγει καθὼς γέγραπται περὶ αὐτοῦ, οὐαὶ δὲ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ἐκείνῳ δι’ οὗ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδίδοται· καλὸν ἦν αὐτῷ εἰ οὐκ ἐγεννήθη ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖνος.
The Greek word gennao is used both for physical birth and spiritual birth (John 3:3-6) and in the above verse it is referring to spiritual birth.
If Judas had been an unbeliever, and if this verse were talking about physical birth, it would make no sense. Why would Jesus say that it would have been better for an unbeliever who still had an opportunity to believe in Jesus Christ never to have been born (to have become a human being)? If Judas had been an unbeliever at the time of the betrayal, the solution would have been very simple, namely believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as did some of the soldiers who had nailed Christ to the cross (Matthew 27:54) and then advance to spiritual maturity. On the other hand, if Judas had been a believer during those three years with Christ and during the betrayal, his options as a believer with maximum black-out and scar tissue would have been limited to either suffering the sin unto death or suicide and so no hope of advancing to spiritual maturity.
Judas as an unbeliever:
1. He would have never been an apostle.
2. He could not have rejected the spiritual life from which came much scar tissue.
3. After the betrayal, he could have simply believed in Christ.
4. As a new believer he could have advanced all the way to spiritual maturity.
Judas as a believer:
1. He became a disciple and then an apostle.
2. As a believer he rejected the spiritual life and accumulated much black-out and scar tissue of the soul.
3. When he accepted the sop at the Last Supper, it built up more scar tissue on the existing scar tissue with the result that his soul became completely hardened with scar tissue.
4. A believer with maximum black-out and scar tissue of the soul and under emotional revolt of the soul seeks an emotional solution: great remorse and suicide. Because of his scar tissue which meant rejection of any divine solution, he was unable to use the recovery procedure of 1 John 1:9 in order to recover his spiritual life.
5. Thus, he had only two choices namely ‘die the sin unto death’ or commit suicide.
9. A Second Look at John 6:64; 66-71:
John 6:64: “But there are some from among you who do not believe [These will depart. Judas was not one of those who departed.]” For Jesus knew from the beginning [in eternity past] those who did believe [The manuscript evidence suggests that the negative should not be in this sentence.], and a certain one [from this group] would betray Him [The plural form of the Greek word “tis” is followed by the singular form of “tis.” Thus, Judas was part of the group that did believe].
ἀλλ’ εἰσὶν ἐξ ὑµῶν τινες οἳ οὐ πιστεύουσιν. ᾔδει γὰρ
ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὁ Ἰησοῦς τίνες εἰσὶν οἱ [µὴ] πιστεύοντες καὶ τίς ἐστιν ὁ παραδώσων αὐτόν.
There are two Greek negatives in this verse, but there should be only one. Of the three greatest uncial manuscripts namely Codex A (Alexandrinus), Codex Aleph (Sinaiticus) and Codex B (Vaticanus), Codex A does not even have this text in its manuscript. Though Codex B includes the Greek “me,” Codex Aleph excludes it. Since most Christians lean toward Judas Iscariot as being an unbeliever, it appears that a scribe added the negative to Codex B.
John 6:66: As a result of this [message] many of His disciples departed and were no longer walking with Him. [This does not apply to Judas Iscariot since he remained with Christ.]
Ἐκ τούτου [οὖν] πολλοὶ ἐκ τῶν µαθητῶν αὐτοῦ ἀπῆλθον εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω καὶ οὐκέτι µετ’ αὐτοῦ περιεπάτουν.
John 6:67: So, [after many disciples left] Jesus said to the twelve [including Judas Iscariot], “You do not want to depart also, do you?” [Since this question was introduced by the negative “me” the Lord expects them to stay. If Christ had introduced this question with the Greek negative “ou,” it would be translated, “You also want to depart, don’t you?]
εἶπεν οὖν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τοῖς δώδεκα, Μὴ καὶ ὑµεῖς θέλετε ὑπάγειν;
John 6:68 Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord [deity], to whom shall we go to [and find salvation]? You have the words of eternal life.
ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ Σίµων Πέτρος, Κύριε, πρὸς τίνα ἀπελευσόµεθα; ῥήµατα ζωῆς αἰωνίου ἔχεις,
John 6:69 “We [Peter speaking on behalf of the Twelve] have believed [Perfect tense: believed in the past with the result that all twelve were eternally saved] and have come to know that You are the set a part One of God [the Father].”
καὶ ἡµεῖς πεπιστεύκαµεν καὶ ἐγνώκαµεν ὅτι σὺ εἶ ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ.
Peter is certain that all twelve of the disciples were believers with some knowledge of the Lord. In other words, Peter declared that Judas was a believer with some understanding of the God-Man. It seems reasonable that Judas had made it quite clear to Peter that he was indeed a believer with some doctrine. How else does a believer like Peter have confidence in another person’s salvation and doctrinal understanding except through declaration?
John 6:70 Jesus answered them, “Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?” [Judas was demon influenced through blackout and scar tissue of the soul (Ephesians 4:17, 18). Therefore, living several years under the lust pattern of his sin nature, he had Satanic thinking in his soul.]
ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Οὐκ ἐγὼ ὑµᾶς τοὺς δώδεκα ἐξελεξάµην, καὶ ἐξ ὑµῶν εἷς διάβολός ἐστιν;
Jesus did not declare Peter’s statement to be false. Just as the Lord would call Peter, Satan [Matthew 16:23] so, here he called Judas the devil. In the future Peter would have the thinking of Satan for a short time just as Judas through blackout and scar tissue of the soul, acquired the thinking of Satan.
John 6:71 Now, He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him.
ἔλεγεν δὲ τὸν Ἰούδαν Σίµωνος Ἰσκαριώτου· οὗτος γὰρ ἔµελλεν παραδιδόναι αὐτόν, εἷς [ὢν] ἐκ τῶν δώδεκα.
10. Judas did not intend to send Jesus to his death.
Matthew 27:3, “Then when Judas, who had betrayed him began to see [the unintended consequences] that He [Jesus] had been condemned [Judas attended the trials], he was filled with remorse and regret [a strong word for emotion] and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priest and elders,”
The Greek word horao an ingressive aorist should be translated began to see. He began to realize the consequences of his betrayal, that Jesus would be sentenced to death. When Judas agreed to betray Jesus, he was not thinking about the consequences of his sin. He certainly did not wish for Jesus to be sentenced to death, but was merely concentrating on satisfying his insatiable lust for that money. This is true of most people when they are functioning under lust. They only concentrate on the object of their lust; they don’t think about how their sin will hurt others. After Judas became aware of the consequences of his betrayal, he was overwhelmed by his emotions.
In this emotional state, he confessed his sins to a group of religious Jewish unbelievers. This was emotional nonsense since they were not able to forgive him nor restore him to fellowship. He needed to bring his emotions under control (but impossible since he was operating under emotional revolt of the soul so long) and then to speak to God the Father about his sin, not to people.
Matthew 27:4, 5 “Saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us [What do we care]?” See to it yourself [That’s your problem]. And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed then, he went away and hung himself.”
Once a believer becomes emotional about his sins, he becomes preoccupied with himself. Preoccupation with oneself regarding one’s failures leads to depression and depression can lead to suicide. Peter wept bitterly after denying Christ, but then he put aside his emotion and named his sins to God the Father, recovered his spiritual life and advanced toward spiritual maturity. So, even though Peter’s sin and failure was similar to that of Judas Iscariot’s, he used thought (Bible doctrine) to solve his problem while Judas compounded his problem with emotional remorse. They both had the temporary rank of Apostle which they held for nearly three years. Peter would live to be promoted to the permanent rank of apostleship in the Church Age; while on the contrary Judas would commit suicide under the influence of sinful emotions.
11. Acts 1:16, 17, 25 explained:
Acts 1:16. Men, brethren, [includes the ladies] this Scripture must have been fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit by the mouth of David spoke before concerning Judas who was a guide to those who seized Jesus.
Ἄνδρες ἀδελφοί, ἔδει πληρωθῆναι τὴν γραφὴν ἣν προεῖπεν τὸ πνεῦµα τὸ ἅγιον διὰ στόµατος ∆αυὶδ περὶ Ἰούδα τοῦ γενοµένου ὁδηγοῦ τοῖς συλλαβοῦσιν Ἰησοῦν,
Acts 1:17. For he [Judas] was numbered with us [one of the twelve] and had obtained a portion of this ministry [only a believer can participate in a ministry].
ὅτι κατηριθµηµένος ἦν ἐν ἡµῖν καὶ ἔλαχεν τὸν κλῆρον
τῆς διακονίας ταύτης.
Acts 1:25. That he [a replacement for Judas] may take the place of this ministry even apostleship from which position Judas by transgression fell [betrayal of Christ followed by suicide] to go to his very own place [the Greek expression: (ton topon ton idion) this intimate expression is not the type of expression which would be used for Torments and the Lake of Fire].
λαβεῖν τὸν τόπον τῆς διακονίας ταύτης καὶ ἀποστολῆς, ἀφ’ ἧς παρέβη Ἰούδας πορευθῆναι εἰς τὸν τόπον τὸν ἴδιον.
Judas lost his apostleship not because he was an unbeliever, but “by transgression.”
12. Judas was destroyed (απωλετο: apoleto) by his apostasy (the 8 stages of reversionism).
John 17:12, 14, “While I kept on being with them [remained with the twelve for three years], I kept on guarding them by your name [taught the twelve the Word of God the Father] which you have given me [the twelve believers to function as apostles to Israel], and I guarded them [to guard against a known enemy, namely Satan and his demons] and not one of them was destroyed [the Greek verb ἀπώλετο: apoleto from the verb form of apollumi, cognate with the noun apoleia: The Lord protected their spiritual lives as well as protecting them from physical harm] except the Son of Destruction [a designation for Judas Iscariot], so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.”
ὅτε ἤµην µετ’ αὐτῶν ἐγὼ ἐτήρουν αὐτοὺς ἐν τῷ ὀνόµατί σου ᾧ δέδωκάς µοι, καὶ ἐφύλαξα, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀπώλετο εἰ µὴ ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας, ἵνα ἡ γραφὴ πληρωθῇ.
John 17:14. “I have given them Your word [Jesus taught the 12], and the world has hated them because they [the 12 apostles] are not of the world [none of the Twelve were unbelievers], even as I am not of the world.”
ἐγὼ δέδωκα αὐτοῖς τὸν λόγον σου, καὶ ὁ κόσµος ἐµίσησεν αὐτούς, ὅτι οὐκ εἰσὶν ἐκ τοῦ κόσµου καθὼς ἐγὼ οὐκ εἰµὶ ἐκ τοῦ κόσµου.
Many Christians live in a state of apostasy and go through all 8 stages of reversionism which completely destroys the capacity of their souls via black out and scar tissue. (Though not recorded in Scripture, they too are in effect Sons of Destruction.) Some of them are just as evil if not worse than Judas, and if the Lord were on the earth today, he might call them, “The Sons of Destruction.” Ultimately, the Lord will execute all Christians who fail to execute the spiritual life under maximum discipline called ‘The Sin Leading to Death’ (1 John 5:16). Paul brings these two concepts (the destruction of soul-capacity and the sin unto death which the Lord administers or suicide which the individual administers) together under the phrase “whose end is destruction”.
“For many [believers] keep walking concerning whom I have told you many times, and now even weeping I tell you that they are the enemies of the Cross of Christ [believers who fail like Judas], (19) whose end [of their life] is destruction [Greek word: απωλεια: apoleia: after the believer destroys the capacity of his soul through the eight stages of reversionism, the Lord administers the sin unto death unless the believer commits suicide first] whose god is their emotion [believers who live by their emotions as did Judas], and whose glory [pseudo glory in time] is their shame [they will experience shame when the Lord evaluates them after the Rapture], who keep thinking about earthly things [having false values and priorities like Judas who made money the most important possession in his life].” (Philippians 3:18, 19)
“The Son of Destruction [destruction: apoleia the same Greek word that Paul uses in Philippians 3:18].” Only one other person in history will be given this same designation namely, the future dictator of the Revived Roman Empire who will also be called the ‘The Son of Destruction” [2 Thessalonians 2:3]. Judas was a believer who completely destroyed his life via black-out and scar tissue; the dictator of the Revived Roman Empire will be an unbeliever who will completely destroy his life. One was a terrible failure in his spiritual life and under demon influence; the other will become extremely evil and Satan-possessed.
13. Conclusion
What is the obvious conclusion from our examination of these passages of Scripture? Judas Iscariot was and is a believer in our Lord Jesus Christ. (R. B. Thieme Jr. stated the following in lesson 1559 of the Spiritual Dynamics series, “I am going to tell you about one who did not recover. His name is Judas Iscariot. He was a born-again believer.”) As a believer he functioned as an apostle to Israel, was honored at the Last Supper and betrayed Christ quite similar to Peter’s denial of Christ.
It is important to understand that Judas was a believer, for in doing so, we see scripture revealing yet again that believers can commit any sin that an unbeliever can commit, and can be just as evil as any unbeliever.
Matthew 26:17
And on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus [sometime Tuesday afternoon], saying to Him, where do You desire that we prepare for You to eat the Passover?
Τῇ δὲ πρώτῃ τῶν ἀζύµων προσῆλθον οἱ µαθηταὶ τῷ Ἰησοῦ λέγοντες, Ποῦ θέλεις ἑτοιµάσωµέν σοι φαγεῖν τὸ πάσχα;
On Roman time, the Passover feast was celebrated Tuesday evening sometime after 6 PM which would be Wednesday Jewish time. Jesus would go to the cross on Wednesday both Roman and Jewish time.
The first Passover was celebrated the night before they departed from Egypt. In preparation for this meal, they had killed a lamb representing the “lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” The blood from the slain lamb was sprinkled on the tops and the sides of their door post.
Matthew 26:18
And He said, go into the city [Jerusalem] to an unknown man, and say to him, The Master said, ‘My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples.’
ὁ δὲ εἶπεν, Ὑπάγετε εἰς τὴν πόλιν πρὸς τὸν δεῖνα καὶ εἴπατε αὐτῷ, Ὁ διδάσκαλος λέγει, Ὁ καιρός µου ἐγγύς ἐστιν· πρὸς σὲ ποιῶ τὸ πάσχα µετὰ τῶν µαθητῶν µου.
In Luke 22, we know that it was a man carrying a pitcher of water on his head. Usually, in the ancient world only women carried water on their heads for they were the ones who went to the wells to get the water. If a man had to haul water, he would do so with a mule. So, to see a man carrying water on his head would be very unusual and easy to spot.
Luke 22:10-12, “And He said to them, ‘When you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house that he enters. (11) And you shall say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, ‘Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples? (12) And he will show you a large, furnished upper room; prepare it there.”
Matthew 26:19
And the disciples did as Jesus had commanded them. And they made the Passover ready.
καὶ ἐποίησαν οἱ µαθηταὶ ὡς συνέταξεν αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς, καὶ ἡτοίµασαν τὸ πάσχα.
They did as the Lord had commanded even though it seemed a little unusual, and all came to pass as the Lord had instructed.
Matthew 26:20
And when evening had come [after sundown, after 6 PM: Jewish Wednesday], He reclined [Roman style on a couch] with the Twelve.
Ὀψίας δὲ γενοµένης ἀνέκειτο µετὰ τῶν δώδεκα.
The Passover was a formal affair and formal dining was done in Roman style.
Verses 21-25 the Lord announces his betrayal:
Matthew 26:21
And as they were eating [the Passover meal], He said, Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me.
καὶ ἐσθιόντων αὐτῶν εἶπεν, Ἀµὴν λέγω ὑµῖν ὅτι εἷς ἐξ ὑµῶν παραδώσει µε.
Eating of the Passover meal was a ritual. They ate of the unleavened bread and the lamb. The bread spoke of the perfect person of Christ whereas the lamb spoke of His work on the cross, the perfect humanity of Christ dying for the sins of the human race “the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Eating of this food represents faith in Jesus Christ.
Matthew 26:22
And grieving sorrowfully, each one began to say, Lord, is it I [with uncertainty]?
καὶ λυπούµενοι σφόδρα ἤρξαντο λέγειν αὐτῷ εἷς ἕκαστος, Μήτι ἐγώ εἰµι, κύριε;
They all got rather emotional about this. Already that night the disciples were charging themselves with emotion which will not carry them through the upcoming pressure. While they fall apart under emotion, Jesus will be using all the doctrine He has accumulated to handle the tremendous pressure of the Trials and the six hours on the cross. Examples of opposites!
Matthew 26:23
Then, He answered and said, He who dips his hand with Me in the sauce bowl the same is the one who shall betray Me.
ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν, Ὁ ἐµβάψας µετí ἐµοῦ τὴν χεῖρα ἐν τῷ τρυβλίῳ οὗτός µε παραδώσει.
While the Lord was talking, Judas already was moving a piece of lamb toward the sauce bowl and simultaneously the Lord also put a piece of lamb in the bowl about the same time. Apparently, when the Lord said that one would betray him, it made Judas very nervous. So, he just grabbed a piece of meat and pushed it into the bowl. Then while the Lord was explaining this, he followed Judas in dipping his piece as well. Judas was trying to cover up his quilt by action. In this way Judas betrayed himself. On the other hand, the innocent ones were saying “Is it I.” We don’t know if Judas ate the lamb or not, but we do know that he left for he was not present for the Eucharist.
Matthew 26:24
The Son of Man goes [to the cross], as it has been written concerning Him [the Old Testament declares the cross], but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born [spiritually].
ὁ µὲν υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὑπάγει καθὼς γέγραπται περὶ αὐτοῦ, οὐαὶ δὲ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ἐκείνῳ διí οὗ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδίδοται· καλὸν ἦν αὐτῷ εἰ οὐκ ἐγεννήθη ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖνος.
‘The Son of Man’ is a title of his humanity. The Greek verb hupago (goes) is in the present tense to emphasize this dramatic moment. The plan of God moves on regardless of the perfidy of Judas. If Judas had been an unbeliever and if this verse was talking about physical birth, it would be theologically inaccurate. Why would Jesus say that it would be better for an unbeliever who still had an opportunity to believe not to have been born? However, if Judas were a believer and the Lord was saying that it would have been better for him not to have been a believer, then it makes sense. If Judas had been an unbeliever who had delivered Jesus over to the Chief Priest, the offense is only what one would expect and the solution would have been quite simple: believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
As a religious Jewish unbeliever, he would have merely turned Jesus Christ over to other religious Jewish unbelievers. What is so unnatural about that? Then later upon recognizing that Jesus was the savior, he could have believed. What would have been so bad about that?
Matthew 26:25
Then Judas, the one betraying him answered and said, Master [recognizing the Lord’s authority], ‘Is it I?’ He answered him, ‘Yes’ [an idiom: You said it; you made a correct statement].
ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ Ἰούδας ὁ παραδιδοὺς αὐτὸν εἶπεν, Μήτι ἐγώ εἰµι, ῥαββί; λέγει αὐτῷ, Σὺ εἶπας.
He said this belatedly. He has to cover somehow since the Lord’s hand reached the sauce bowl at the same time as his. Since he knows that he is betraying Christ, he is not able to call Jesus, Lord which would indicate that already, his conscience is beginning to bother him. Even so, he goes ahead with the betrayal for he is out of fellowship and lusts for that money. His deceit is not unnatural since all believers functioning under lust are deceitful.
Matthew 26:26
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed it, and broke it [picture of Jesus Christ bearing our sins], and gave it to the [eleven] disciples, and said, Take, eat [analogy to faith], this represents My body.
Ἐσθιόντων δὲ αὐτῶν λαβὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἄρτον καὶ εὐλογήσας ἔκλασεν καὶ δοὺς τοῖς µαθηταῖς εἶπεν, Λάβετε φάγετε, τοῦτό ἐστιν τὸ σῶµά µου.
Between verses 25 and 26 Judas Iscariot departs to go out to make contact with those in the plot. After which, Jesus Christ institutes the Eucharist. He replaces the Passover Feast with the Communion Service, in memory of His person and work on the cross.
Eating of the bread is a change from eating the lamb. The cup was used in the Passover Feast; it is used also in the Communion service. The Lord is instituting the communion memorial service, converting the Passover Feast to the Eucharist. The cross is going to occur the next day, Roman time, the same day Jewish time. The Passover looked forward to the cross; the Eucharist looks back unto the cross. In the Old Testament there is anticipation; in the New Testament there is retrospection.
Jesus Christ blessed the bread in the middle of their dinner; he already blessed the Passover meal at the beginning. Now he is blessing a new meal, the Eucharist. Jesus is announcing a new dispensation with a new ordinance.
Matthew 26:27
And He took the cup [representing His work on the cross] and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink, all of it.
καὶ λαβὼν ποτήριον καὶ εὐχαριστήσας ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς λέγων, Πίετε ἐξ αὐτοῦ πάντες,
On the first Passover, the Jews sprinkled blood on the top and sides of their doors. On the following Passovers and for many years after that the Jews did not have doors. So instead of the use of blood, they would boil some wine which was unfermented and so non-alcoholic. They could not use fermented wine since the fermentation process is brought about via leaven and leaven represents sin.
The contents of the cup are the sins of the world poured out on Christ at the Cross. Matthew 20:22, “But Jesus answered and said, “You [plural: a reference to James and John] do not know what you [James and John] ask. Are you [James and John] able to drink of the cup [all the sins of the world] that I am about to drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism [the sins of the world identified with Christ followed by the Father judging them] that I am baptized with [identified with]? They [James and John] said to Him, ‘We are able.’”
Matthew 26:39, 42, “And He went a little further and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup [the sins of the world] pass from Me [indicates his tremendous pressure]. Yet not as I will, but as You will [he must go to the cross].” (42) He went away again the second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me unless I drink it, your will shall come to pass [passive imperative].”
The cup is also used for the remembrance of the cross, 1 Corinthians 11:25-27, “In the same manner, [He took] the cup also after supper saying, “This cup is the new covenant (a new spiritual life for Church Age believers explained in the epistles) [signed] in my blood (redemption, propitiation, and reconciliation); keep on doing this as often as you drink in remembrance of me. (26) For as often as you eat this bread or drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. [The Christian is commanded to celebrate in the Eucharist the substitutive atonement of Jesus Christ until the Church Age comes to a close at the Rapture.] (27). Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, [out of fellowship] shall be guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord.” [The body of the Lord represents his perfect humanity and his blood represents his perfect work on the cross. When the believer participates in the Communion Service out of fellowship, he sins against both the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross.]
Hezekiah was under the sin unto death [2 Kings 20:1] for sending a surrender letter to the Assyrians as per 2 Kings 18:13-16. After Hezekiah recovered fellowship with the Lord, his Sin unto Death was removed (2 Kings 20:5). For this reason, Hezekiah wrote a hymn in which he mentions the cup. (Psalm 116)
Psalm 116:1-3, 12-13, “I love Jehovah because he hears my voice [used the Recovery Procedure] and my prayers (2) because he has bowed down his ear to me. Therefore, I will call upon him as long as I live [he was given 14 more years]. (3) The sorrows of death [dying from the sin unto death] hemmed me in; the terror of Sheol came upon me [He would be going to Abraham’s Bosom in a disgraceful manner]. I found distress and sorrow [from the suffering experienced from the sin unto death] . . . (12) What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits toward me? (13) I shall lift up the cup [the unfermented wine used on the Passover] of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord.
Matthew 26:28
For this represents [the present tense: the perpetuation of the ritual] My blood [connecting the animal sacrifices to the saving work of Christ on the cross via propitiation, reconciliation and redemption] of the new covenant, which is shed [carrying out the analogy] on behalf of the many [those who appropriate the work of the cross by believing in Christ] because of the forgiveness of sins [the judgment of all the sins of mankind is the basis for the forgiveness of sins].
τοῦτο γάρ ἐστιν τὸ αἷµά µου τῆς διαθήκης τὸ περὶ πολλῶν ἐκχυννόµενον εἰς ἄφεσιν ἁµαρτιῶν.
Introducing the New Covenant of the Church.
The book of Hebrews was addressed to Jewish believers of the Church Age. It teaches about the future of their ancestors and progeny after the Church Age, but it also teaches that God has something far better for Jews who believe in Christ during the Church Age. Hebrews 7:22, “Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant [the spiritual life as found in the New Testament epistles which supersedes the Mosaic Law]. We know that the better covenant refers to the New Covenant to the Church as per Luke 22:19-20, “And when He [Jesus now instituting the Eucharist for the Church Age believers] had taken some bread and had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them saying, this represents my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me. (20) And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten [the Passover Meal] saying, this cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant by My blood.”
Hebrews 8:6-7, “But now He [Jesus Christ in Hypostatic Union] has obtained a more excellent ministry by so much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant which has been enacted on the basis of better promises [than in the Mosaic Law]. (7) For if the first covenant [Mosaic Law] had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second.”
Hebrews 8:13, “When He said, ‘A new covenant,’ He made the first [the Mosaic Law] obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.” [The New Covenant to the Church is based on the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross during the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union.]
Hebrews 9:14-16, “How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit [the omnipotence of the Holy Spirit and the power of metabolized doctrine in His soul sustained Jesus on the cross] offered Himself without blemish [He remained impeccable] to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works [false norms and standards of legalism] to serve the living God? (15) And for this reason, He is the mediator of a new covenant [to the Church superseding, setting aside as inferior, the Mosaic Law], in order that since a death [substitutionary spiritual death] has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant [Mosaic Law], those who have been called may receive the promise of eternal inheritance. (16) For where a covenant is there must of necessity be the death of the one who made it [a reference to the substitutionary spiritual death of Jesus].”
Definition of the New Covenant to the Church.
1. In the study of the doctrine of the priesthood in Hebrews there are two new covenants: the new covenant to Israel and the new covenant to the Church. A covenant is a contract between two parties. Party of the first part is God. Party of the second part are certain categories of mankind.
2. In biblical covenants, party of the first part (God) makes a favorable disposition to party of the second part (mankind). In the book of Hebrews, there is a new covenant to born again Israel in the millennium and a new covenant to the Church.
3. You cannot have a new covenant to the Church or a new covenant to Israel without a mediator. The new covenant to the Church is made to all Church Age believers. The new covenant to Israel is made to all Jewish believers of the millennium. In order to make a covenant to all believers we have to have a priesthood. The Jewish believers in the millennium will take their priests from the line of Aaron and we have the royal priesthood based on the High Priesthood of Christ.
4. Jesus Christ is the mediator of the new covenant to the Church. 1 Timothy 2:3-6, “This is good and acceptable in the sight of our savior, God who desires all mankind to be saved and come to a metabolized knowledge [epignosis] of the truth. For God [the Son] [is] one [in essence], and one [person is] a mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom substitute for all mankind, a statement brought out in testimony at the proper time.”
a. A mediator is an intermediator between two parties to effect reconciliation and to provide special benefits to the ones (believers) being reconciled. Our Lord is an intermediary between two parties to effect reconciliation and to provide special benefits [your portfolio of invisible assets] to the ones being reconciled. Jesus Christ has reconciled us to God the Father by removing the barrier between God and man.
b. The mediator must be equal to both parties in the mediation. To be equal with mankind, our Lord had to be equal with Adam before he sinned. Jesus had to be impeccable before He would be qualified to go to the cross. While our Lord was bearing our sins on the Cross, He was functioning as our mediator, reconciling the world to Himself. There is no reconciliation to God without the mediatorship of Christ.
c. Jesus Christ had to be a mediator before He could be a savior. Our Lord was born a mediator and had to demonstrate that in His perfect body He would not fall into the same trap as Adam and commit a personal sin. Our Lord became a mediator at the point of His virgin birth. He became our savior on the Cross. Because He is the only mediator, He is the only savior. Christ was qualified as our mediator by remaining impeccable for thirty-three years before He could go to the cross to be our savior. In His work as savior, He as mediator had to provide the work of reconciliation on the cross which He did.
d. Our Lord in eternity past made a decision to become true humanity and for that humanity to be united to undiminished deity in one person forever. This decision required going to the cross in order to provide the work of reconciliation. However, this work also requires a high priest.
e. Our Lord had to be a high priest in order to be a mediator and offer Himself as a sacrifice to God the Father. No one has the right to offer a sacrifice unless he is a priest. A priest represents mankind to God. Jesus Christ not only had to be a mediator, but He also had to be a priest. In eternity past God the Father appointed Jesus Christ a high priest, Psalm 110:1.
Summary:
a. We have better things than have ever existed in human history, Hebrews 8:6, “But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by so much that He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on the basis of better promises.” The better covenant is the New Covenant to the Church.
b. A covenant is defined as God’s gracious promises and provision for a new spiritual species. There is only one new spiritual species in history and that is the Church Age believer. This spiritual species is born of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. A covenant is a disposition made by one party (God) in favor of another party (man) after salvation.
c. For a covenant to become operational four categories must be effective: God as party of the first part, the Church as party of the second part, a mediator to reconcile both parties, and a priest to perform an efficacious sacrifice by which reconciliation with God is made.
d. The Mosaic Law was a covenant of shadows (building, priesthood, sacrifices) because the Mediator had not come in the flesh. Therefore, the function of the Mosaic Law in the Age of Israel was legitimate but not efficacious. The old covenant to Israel was rescinded when Jesus Christ sat down in heaven as the High Priest of a new covenant. This is why the Holy of Holies in Jerusalem was without an Ark of the Covenant after 586 B.C. The Holy of Holies of the restored Temple in Jerusalem in the millennium will also be empty. The real Temple during the Church Age is your body, which is indwelt by the High Priest as the Shekinah Glory. This emphasizes the uniqueness of the Church Age and our far greater blessings.
e. A new covenant must exist with historic reality (the First Advent of Christ made Him the mediator and qualified Him to be our Savior) and there must be an efficacious sacrifice. The Mosaic Law didn’t authorize any efficacious sacrifices, they simply pointed to the efficacious sacrifice.
f. The coming reality (First Advent) and fulfillment of the shadows by the efficacious sacrifice on the cross demands a new covenant. In fact, it demands two new covenants: one to the Church and one to Israel. The Mosaic Law is set aside, which leaves Israel hanging in the millennium. So, there must be a new covenant to Israel as well.
g. This new covenant to the Church is a spiritual legacy to the royal family of God and authorizes the royal priesthood. The new covenant applies only to those who are born again. Hence, the new covenant is God’s grace disposition to the royal family in time and eternity.
h. The new covenant is the reality in contrast to the shadows of the old covenant, the Levitical code. Hence, the new covenant is the legacy of the royal priesthood with God the Father as the ratifier and God the Son as the mediator.
Matthew 26:29
But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine [he does not call it wine] from now on, until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom [Millennial Kingdom].
λέγω δὲ ὑµῖν, οὐ µὴ πίω ἀπí ἄρτι ἐκ τούτου τοῦ γενήµατος τῆς ἀµπέλου ἕως τῆς ἡµέρας ἐκείνης ὅταν αὐτὸ πίνω µεθí ὑµῶν καινὸν ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ πατρός µου.
They would not enjoy a glass of wine together again until the Millennial Kingdom.
Matthew 26:30
And having sung a hymn [Psalm 118], they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Καὶ ὑµνήσαντες ἐξῆλθον εἰς τὸ Ὄρος τῶν Ἐλαιῶν.
Did singing this hymn prepare the apostles for the crisis? The lyrics appeal to the mind; the melody appeals to the emotions. In retrospection, it was obvious that the disciples were not able to apply the lyrics of Psalm 118 and the melody did not carry them in the crisis which was about to unfold.
The steps in Peter’s fall: 31-35:
Matthew 26:31
Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of Me this night. For it is written, “I will smite the Shepherd [the cross], and the sheep of the flock [disciples] shall be scattered [run in all directions].” (This quote is taken from Zechariah 13:7)
Τότε λέγει αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Πάντες ὑµεῖς σκανδαλισθήσεσθε ἐν ἐµοὶ ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ ταύτῃ, γέγραπται γάρ, Πατάξω τὸν ποιµένα, καὶ διασκορπισθήσονται τὰ πρόβατα τῆς ποίµνης·
Matthew 26:32
But after I have risen again [resurrection], I will go before you into Galilee [Jesus first goes and then the disciples meet him there].”
µετὰ δὲ τὸ ἐγερθῆναί µε προάξω ὑµᾶς εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν.
The 17 resurrection appearances of the Lord
1. The first appearance of the resurrected Christ was to Mary Magdalene, John 20:11-17, “But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; (12) 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. (13) 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. (14) When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. (15) 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 I will take Him away. (16) Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). (17) 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.’”
2. The second appearance was to the other women, Matthew 28:5-9, “And the angel answered and said to the women, “Stop fearing, for I know that you seek Jesus [His humanity] who was crucified. (6) He is not here, for He has risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. (7) And go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead, and behold, He goes before you into Galilee. There you shall see Him. Lo, I have told you [I have followed my orders]. (8). And they quickly departed from the tomb with awe [occupied with Christ] and great joy [sharing God’s happiness] and ran [in good condition] to report it to His disciples. (9) But as they were going to report to His disciples, behold, Jesus also met them [2nd appearance], saying, “Hail [greetings]! And they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him.”
3. The third appearance was to Peter. He appeared on Sunday afternoon, according to Luke 24:34, “saying, ‘The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon.’” 1 Corinthians 15:5, “And that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve [the group was called the “twelve” though it now excluded Judas Iscariot].”
4. The fourth appearance was to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, Luke 24:13-31, “Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. (14) They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. (15) As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; (16) but they were kept from recognizing him. (17) He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still; their faces downcast. (18) One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” (19) “What things?” he asked. “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. (20) The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; (21) but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. (22) In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning (23) but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. (24) Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus. (25) He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! (26) Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory? (27) And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. (28) As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. (29) But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So, he went in to stay with them. (30) When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. (31) Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.”
5. The fifth appearance was to the ten disciples (Thomas was not there, nor Judas Iscariot), John 20:19, 24, “So when it was evening on that day [on resurrection day], the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Prosperity be with you.” (24) But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.” Also found in Mark 16:14 and Luke 24:36-43.
6. The sixth appearance was to the eleven disciples including Thomas. How he acquired the name ‘Doubting Thomas’ is found in John 20:25, “So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” At the sixth appearance, Thomas was present. John 20:26, “After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Prosperity be with you.”
7. The seventh appearance was to the seven disciples by the Sea of Galilee, John 21:1-23. These first seven appearances might be classified as personal resurrection appearances to friends and associates.
8. The eighth appearance was to more than five hundred believers, 1 Corinthians 15:6, “After that, He appeared to more than five hundred at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep.”
9. The ninth appearance was to James, his stepbrother. 1 Corinthians 15:7, “Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles.”
10. The tenth appearance was again to the eleven disciples on the Mountain in Galilee, Matthew 28:16-17, “And the eleven disciples went into Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had assigned to them [before his death] (17) And when they saw Him, they [the eleven disciples] worshiped Him, but some [other Jewish people in Jerusalem believed the report of the guards] doubted.
11. The eleventh appearance had great historical and doctrinal significance. This appearance was at His ascension. Acts 1:9, “And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.”
The rest of the resurrection appearances were post-ascension where our Lord would leave the right hand of the Father and make an appearance under special conditions. All these appearances ceased after the completion of the book of Revelation.
12. The twelfth appearance was to Stephen, the first and most famous of the martyrs in Acts 7:55, “But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God [the Father] and Jesus standing at the right hand of God [the Father].”
13. The thirteenth appearance had great significance, the appearance to Paul on the road to Damascus, the basis for his conversion. This story is told in three different passages in Acts namely Acts 9:3-6; 22:6-11; 26:13-18.
14. The fourteenth appearance of the resurrected Christ was to Paul in Arabia for the purpose of teaching him the spiritual life of the Church Age. Galatians 1:12,17, “For I neither received it [the spiritual life] from man, nor was I taught it [the spiritual life] from man, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ [in Arabia]. (17) nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me [for an explanation regarding the spiritual life], but I went straight away to Arabia [to be taught by Christ] and returned once more to Damascus.”
15. The fifteenth appearance was to Paul in the Temple in Jerusalem. Acts 22:17-18, “It happened when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple that I fell into a trance, (18) and I saw Him saying to me, ‘Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly because they will not accept your testimony about Me.”
16. The sixteenth appearance was to Paul in the Roman barracks. Acts 23:11, “But on the night immediately following [a Jewish mob trying to kill Paul], the Lord stood at his [Paul’s] side and said, ‘Take courage for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem so you must witness at Rome also.”
17. The seventeenth and final one was the appearance to John on the Island of Patmos, Revelation 1:12-20.
Matthew 26:33
Peter answered and said to Him, “Even though all shall fall away because of You, yet I will never fall away.”
ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ ὁ Πέτρος εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Εἰ πάντες σκανδαλισθήσονται ἐν σοί, ἐγὼ οὐδέποτε σκανδαλισθήσοµαι.
Peter ignores the Word of God, the prophecy of Zechariah 13:7. Peter is still operating on emotion aroused from the melody of Psalm 118 and didn’t pay a bit of attention to the words namely how Christ would die on the cross. When a person begins to live by his emotions, he tends to distort reality.
Matthew 26:34
Jesus said to him, ‘Truly I say to you that this night [Roman time: Tuesday night; Jewish time: Wednesday], before the cock crows, you shall deny Me three times.’
ἔφη αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Ἀµὴν λέγω σοι ὅτι ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ νυκτὶ πρὶν ἀλέκτορα φωνῆσαι τρὶς ἀπαρνήσῃ µε.
Matthew 26:35
Peter said to Him, ‘though I should die with You, yet I will not deny You.’ All the disciples also said the same [but they all will fail].
λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Πέτρος, Κἂν δέῃ µε σὺν σοὶ ἀποθανεῖν, οὐ µή σε ἀπαρνήσοµαι. ὁµοίως καὶ πάντες οἱ µαθηταὶ εἶπαν.
Doctrine in the soul, not sincerity is true strength. Peter is sincere, but sincerity doesn’t get the job done. He did demonstrate quite a bit of courage when we obtained a sword and used it on the temple guard. He definitely intends to die with the Lord. However, the problem with Peter was that he was unstable and so, no matter how good his intentions were, he didn’t have the spiritual strength to carry them out. In fact, he gets in the way of the Father’s plan and so, it was obvious that he needed more doctrine so that he could have been better oriented to the situation.
Matthew 26:36
Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane [a secluded spot for private prayer]. And He said to the disciples [eight, the other three will go with Jesus], “Sit here while I go and pray there.”
Τότε ἔρχεται µετí αὐτῶν ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἰς χωρίον λεγόµενον Γεθσηµανί, καὶ λέγει τοῖς µαθηταῖς, Καθίσατε αὐτοῦ ἕως ἂν ἀπελθὼν ἐκεῖ προσεύξωµαι.
Gethsemane, an olive grove and possibly included a flower garden either at or near the foot of the Mount of Olives, to which Jesus was accustomed to spend time in prayer (Luke 22:39) with His disciples and which was the scene of His tremendous pressure and prayer (Mark 14:32; Luke 22:39–40; John 18:1).
Jesus is going to an isolated place that he may enter into private prayer undisturbed.
Matthew 26:37
And He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee with Him [part of the way], and He himself began [when he was alone] to be sorrowful [infinitive of result of having contemplated the cross] and was under extreme pressure to the point of being distressed.
καὶ παραλαβὼν τὸν Πέτρον καὶ τοὺς δύο υἱοὺς Ζεβεδαίου ἤρξατο λυπεῖσθαι καὶ ἀδηµονεῖν.
Matthew 26:38
Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even until death [until he dies physically since his substitutionary spiritual death is going to be the worst possible mental and physical pain]. Remain, here [Jesus will go further into the garden] and keep watch [give Jesus some prayer support] with Me [Peter, James and John were to offer prayer support].”
τότε λέγει αὐτοῖς, Περίλυπός ἐστιν ἡ ψυχή µου ἕως θανάτου· µείνατε ὧδε καὶ γρηγορεῖτε µετí ἐµοῦ.
Matthew 26:39
And He went a little further and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, and it is [This possibility does not represent the reality of the situation], let this cup [the sins of the world] pass from Me [this prayer reveals his tremendous pressure]. Yet, not as I will, but as You will [He must go to the cross. That is the reality of the situation. Prayer is not a problem-solving device, and so it could not prevent his suffering on the cross.].”
καὶ προελθὼν µικρὸν ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ προσευχόµενος καὶ λέγων, Πάτερ µου, εἰ δυνατόν ἐστιν, παρελθάτω ἀπí ἐµοῦ τὸ ποτήριον τοῦτο· πλὴν οὐχ ὡς ἐγὼ θέλω ἀλλí ὡς σύ.
Christians use prayer many times as a problem-solving device as a substitute for using the actual Problem-Solving Devices. There are many reasons for this. The most obvious reason is that they are ignorant of the Problem-Solving Devices. Also, Christians like simple solutions and praying for a miracle to solve their problems is a simple solution. Praying to remove a problem for them is much better than having to face the reality of the situation. Although Jesus prayed to remove the suffering he was about to face on the cross, he did so only to reveal to us the tremendous pressure He was facing. This is why He immediately said, “not as I will, but as you will.”
Matthew 26:40
And He [after one hour in prayer] came to the disciples [Peter, James, John] and found them asleep [no prayer support]. And He said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour [Jesus had been praying for an hour]?
καὶ ἔρχεται πρὸς τοὺς µαθητὰς καὶ εὑρίσκει αὐτοὺς καθεύδοντας, καὶ λέγει τῷ Πέτρῳ, Οὕτως οὐκ ἰσχύσατε µίαν ὥραν γρηγορῆσαι µετí ἐµοῦ;
Matthew 26:41
Watch and pray [still talking to Peter, but applied to all three] that you may not enter into temptation [now they are in danger of falling into temptation]. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak [because he did not have the spiritual strength to handle the situation].”
γρηγορεῖτε καὶ προσεύχεσθε, ἵνα µὴ εἰσέλθητε εἰς πειρασµόν· τὸ µὲν πνεῦµα πρόθυµον ἡ δὲ σὰρξ ἀσθενής.
At this time, Jesus is not soliciting prayer on his own behalf. Rather, he wants Peter to pray for himself that he should not fail. However, Peter will fail in prayer and also in denying Christ three times “the flesh [because of the sin nature] is weak.”
Matthew 26:42
He went away again the second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me and it cannot [1st Class Conditional Sentence] unless I drink it [The 3rd Class Conditional Clause brings out His free will], let your will, come to pass [the free will of Jesus will execute the Father’s will: passive imperative].”
πάλιν ἐκ δευτέρου ἀπελθὼν προσηύξατο λέγων, Πάτερ µου, εἰ οὐ δύναται τοῦτο παρελθεῖν ἐὰν µὴ αὐτὸ πίω, γενηθήτω τὸ θέληµά σου.
Matthew 26:43
And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy [apathy].
καὶ ἐλθὼν πάλιν εὗρεν αὐτοὺς καθεύδοντας, ἦσαν γὰρ αὐτῶν οἱ ὀφθαλµοὶ βεβαρηµένοι.
We need to prepare for the pressures and disasters of life before they occur. Life is filled with periods of inactivity and then suddenly a lot of action, then inactivity and then a lot of action. The periods of inactivity are very important because they determine how we handle the action namely the pressures of life. During those periods when there is no particular problem or difficulty or tragedy on the horizon, we have the opportunity to prepare ourselves, and then the action, then the pressure, and then the determining factors namely did we during the periods of preparation get the doctrine, are we now oriented to the plan of God and to the grace of God?
Matthew 26:44
And He left them and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.
καὶ ἀφεὶς αὐτοὺς πάλιν ἀπελθὼν προσηύξατο ἐκ τρίτου τὸν αὐτὸν λόγον εἰπὼν πάλιν.
Matthew 26:45
Then He came to His disciples and said to them, “Sleep on now and take your rest. Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners [the religious people].
τότε ἔρχεται πρὸς τοὺς µαθητὰς καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς, Καθεύδετε τὸ λοιπὸν καὶ ἀναπαύεσθε; ἰδοὺ ἤγγικεν ἡ ὥρα καὶ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδίδοται εἰς χεῖρας ἁµαρτωλῶν.
Judas’ act of betrayal: verses 46-50.
Matthew 26:46
Rise, let us be going; behold, he [Judas] who is betraying Me is at hand.
ἐγείρεσθε, ἄγωµεν· ἰδοὺ ἤγγικεν ὁ παραδιδούς µε.
Matthew 26:47
And as He was yet speaking, behold, Judas came, one of the Twelve. And with him came a great crowd [Jewish guard, apparently some Romans and a mob with weapons] with swords and clubs, being sent from the chief priests and elders of the people.
Καὶ ἔτι αὐτοῦ λαλοῦντος ἰδοὺ Ἰούδας εἷς τῶν δώδεκα ἦλθεν καὶ µετí αὐτοῦ ὄχλος πολὺς µετὰ µαχαιρῶν καὶ ξύλων ἀπὸ τῶν ἀρχιερέων καὶ πρεσβυτέρων τοῦ λαοῦ.
Jesus is very strong and the Jewish Sanhedrin is afraid that He might get away. So, they send a large force to apprehend him.
Matthew 26:48
And he who betrayed Him gave them a sign, saying, “Whomever I shall kiss, He is the one, hold Him fast [Judas knew that Jesus was very strong].”
ὁ δὲ παραδιδοὺς αὐτὸν ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς σηµεῖον λέγων, Ὃν ἂν φιλήσω αὐτός ἐστιν· κρατήσατε αὐτόν.
Matthew 26:49
And coming up to Jesus immediately, he said, “Hail, Master [academic title]!” And he kissed Him.
καὶ εὐθέως προσελθὼν τῷ Ἰησοῦ εἶπεν, Χαῖρε, ῥαββί· καὶ κατεφίλησεν αὐτόν.
Matthew 26:50
And Jesus said to him, “Companion, do for which you have come.” Then they came and laid hands-on Jesus and seized Him.
ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ἑταῖρε, ἐφí ὃ πάρει. τότε προσελθόντες ἐπέβαλον τὰς χεῖρας ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰησοῦν καὶ ἐκράτησαν αὐτόν.
Jesus did not say to Judas, I don’t know you. Rather, he called him a companion for they spent nearly 3 years together.
Matthew 26:51
And, behold, one [Peter] of those who were with Jesus [namely Peter] stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and having struck a servant of the high priest [temple guard] he cut-off his ear.
καὶ ἰδοὺ εἷς τῶν µετὰ Ἰησοῦ ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα ἀπέσπασεν τὴν µάχαιραν αὐτοῦ καὶ πατάξας τὸν δοῦλον τοῦ ἀρχιερέως ἀφεῖλεν αὐτοῦ τὸ ὠτίον.
Matthew wrote this is 68 AD when Peter was still alive so, he doesn’t mention who did it. However, John wrote in 96 AD and so tells us exactly who did it. John 18:10, “ Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear.” (The servant’s name was Malchus.)
Matthew 26:52
Then Jesus said to him, “Put up your sword again into its place; for all who take up the sword [in criminality] shall perish with a sword.
τότε λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Ἀπόστρεψον τὴν µάχαιράν σου εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτῆς, πάντες γὰρ οἱ λαβόντες µάχαιραν ἐν µαχαίρῃ ἀπολοῦνται.
This is a reference to crime and capital punishment.
John 18:11, “Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?” Peter must learn to think before he acts. Jesus must go to the cross in order to bear the sins of the world yet Peter is doing his best to prevent the cross.
Matthew 26:53
Do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve legions of angels?
ἢ δοκεῖς ὅτι οὐ δύναµαι παρακαλέσαι τὸν πατέρα µου, καὶ παραστήσει µοι ἄρτι πλείω δώδεκα λεγιῶνας ἀγγέλων;
Matthew 26:54
How then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled [if you keep trying to prevent my going to the cross], which say that it [the cross] must happen in this way?”
πῶς οὖν πληρωθῶσιν αἱ γραφαὶ ὅτι οὕτως δεῖ γενέσθαι;
Matthew 26:55
In that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out in order to take Me with swords and clubs, as against an armed and dangerous person? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me then.”
Ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ὥρᾳ εἶπεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τοῖς ὄχλοις, Ὡς ἐπὶ λῃστὴν ἐξήλθατε µετὰ µαχαιρῶν καὶ ξύλων συλλαβεῖν µε; καθí ἡµέραν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ ἐκαθεζόµην διδάσκων καὶ οὐκ ἐκρατήσατέ µε.
A mob is always irrational, and this mob is no different. They came with swords and clubs to apprehend an unarmed and non-violent person.
Matthew 26:56
But all this happened that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then, all the disciples fled, forsaking Him.
τοῦτο δὲ ὅλον γέγονεν ἵνα πληρωθῶσιν αἱ γραφαὶ τῶν προφητῶν. Τότε οἱ µαθηταὶ πάντες ἀφέντες αὐτὸν ἔφυγον.
Matthew 26:57
And they who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had assembled [the Sanhedrin is fully assembled].
Οἱ δὲ κρατήσαντες τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἀπήγαγον πρὸς Καϊάφαν τὸν ἀρχιερέα, ὅπου οἱ γραµµατεῖς καὶ οἱ πρεσβύτεροι συνήχθησαν.
This is the second trial. The first trial was held before Annas (Ananus) since he was the political boss of Jerusalem and the father-in-law of Caiaphas. Annas was the former high priest and still had much power.
The 6 Trials:
1. Before Annas: John 18:12-14, “Then the detachment of soldiers with its commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. They bound him (13) and brought him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. (14) Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jewish leaders that it would be good if one man died for the people.” [No indictment; no testimony; no defense attorney; at night] John 18:19-24, “Meanwhile, the high priest [Ananus retained his title: from 6 to 15 A.D. was the High Priest] questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. (20) I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus replied. “I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret [not involved in any conspiracy]. (21) Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely, they know what I said [summoned your witnesses]. (22) When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby slapped him [illegal procedure] in the face. “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” he demanded. (23) If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. [where is your evidence] But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?” (24) Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.”
2. Before Caiaphas: Matthew 26:57-68, our passage; conducted at night.
3. Before Caiaphas: Luke 22:66-71, “When it was day, the Council of elders of the people assembled, both chief priest and scribes, and they led Him away to their council chamber, saying, (67) “If you are the Christ [the Messiah], tell us, but He said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, (68) and if I ask a question, you will not answer. (69) But from now on the Son of Man [a title of humanity] will be seated at the right hand of the power of God [the Father].” (70) And they said, “Are you the Son of God [a title of deity], then?” And He said to them, “Yes, I am.” (71) And they said, “What further need do we have of testimony? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth.” Matthew 27:1, “Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together [under the authority of Caiaphas, the high priest] against Jesus to put Him to death.”
4. Before Pilate: John 18:28-38, “Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace, because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. (29) So, Pilate came out to them and asked, ‘What charges are you bringing against this man?’(30) ‘If he were not a criminal,’ they replied, ‘we would not have handed him over to you.’(31) Pilate said, ‘Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.’ ‘But we have no right to execute anyone [during the Holy Week: the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread],’ they objected. (32) This took place to fulfil what Jesus had said about the kind of death he was going to die. (33) Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’(34) ‘Is that your own idea,’ Jesus asked, ‘or did others talk to you about me?’ (35) ‘Am I a Jew?’ Pilate replied. ‘Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?’ (36) Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.’ (37) ‘You are a king, then!’ said Pilate. Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.’ (38) ‘What is truth?’ retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, ‘I find no basis for a charge against him.”
Luke 23:1-8, “Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. (2)And they began to accuse him, saying, "We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king."(3) So Pilate asked Jesus, "Are you the king of the Jews?" "You have said so," Jesus replied. (4) Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, "I find no basis for a charge against this man." (5) But they insisted, "He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here." (6) On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. (8) When he learned that Jesus was under Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.”
5. Before Herod the Fox: Luke 23:8-12, “When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign [a miracle] of some sort. (9) He questioned Him at great length, but Jesus gave him no answer. (10) The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. (11) Then, Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him [since He would not perform any miracles for him]. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. (12) That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.”
6. Before Pilate: John 18:39-19:16, “But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release 'the king of the Jews'?" (40) They shouted back, "No, not him! Give us Barabbas!" Now Barabbas had taken part in an uprising. 19:1 Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. (2) The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe (3) and went up to him again and again, saying, "Hail, king of the Jews!" And they slapped him in the face. (4) Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews gathered there, "Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him." (5) When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, "Here is the man!" (6) As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, "Crucify! Crucify!" But Pilate answered, "You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him." (7) The Jewish leaders insisted, "We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God." (8) When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, (9) and he went back inside the palace. "Where do you come from?" he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer. (10) "Do you refuse to speak to me?" Pilate said. "Don't you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you [not really since he already stated that He was innocent]?" (11) Jesus answered, "You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above [from God to governmental authorities]. Therefore, the one [Caiaphas, the high priest] who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin [than the sin of Pontius Pilate]." (12) From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar." (13) When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge's seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). (14) It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about the sixth hour. "Here is your king," Pilate said to the Jews. (15) But they shouted, "Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!" "Shall I crucify your king?" Pilate asked. "We have no king but Caesar," the chief priests answered. (16) Finally, Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified. So, the soldiers took charge of Jesus.”
Luke 23:11-25, Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. (12) That day Herod and Pilate became friends-before this they had been enemies. (13) Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, (14) and said to them, "You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. (15) Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. (16) Therefore, I will punish him and then release him. (18) But the whole crowd shouted, "Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!" (19) (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.) (20)Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. (21) But they kept shouting, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" (22) For the third time he spoke to them: "Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore, I will have him punished and then release him." (23) But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed.(24) So, Pilate decided to grant their demand. (25) He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.”
Matthew 26:58
But Peter followed Him afar off to the high priest's court, and he went and sat with the servants to see the end [to Peter it is hopeless].
ὁ δὲ Πέτρος ἠκολούθει αὐτῷ ἀπὸ µακρόθεν ἕως τῆς αὐλῆς τοῦ ἀρχιερέως, καὶ εἰσελθὼν ἔσω ἐκάθητο µετὰ τῶν ὑπηρετῶν ἰδεῖν τὸ τέλος.
Matthew 26:59
Now the chief priests and the entire Sanhedrin kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, in order that they might put Him to death;
οἱ δὲ ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ τὸ συνέδριον ὅλον ἐζήτουν ψευδοµαρτυρίαν κατὰ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ὅπως αὐτὸν θανατώσωσιν,
Matthew 26:60
And they did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later-on, two came forward,
καὶ οὐχ εὗρον πολλῶν προσελθόντων ψευδοµαρτύρων. ὕστερον δὲ προσελθόντες δύο
Matthew 26:61
And said, `This man stated, "I am able to destroy the temple of God [the death on the cross] and to rebuild it in three days [a reference to His resurrection].”
εἶπαν, Οὗτος ἔφη, ∆ύναµαι καταλῦσαι τὸν ναὸν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ διὰ τριῶν ἡµερῶν οἰκοδοµῆσαι.
Matthew 26:62
Then the high priest [Caiaphas] stood up and said to Him, `Do You make no answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?'
καὶ ἀναστὰς ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Οὐδὲν ἀποκρίνῃ; τί οὗτοί σου καταµαρτυροῦσιν;
Matthew 26:63
But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest [Caiaphas] said to Him, `I charge You under oath by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.'
ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς ἐσιώπα. καὶ ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ἐξορκίζω σε κατὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος ἵνα ἡµῖν εἴπῃς εἰ σὺ εἶ ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ.
Matthew 26:64
Jesus said to him, `You said it yourself [affirmative]; nevertheless, I tell you, from now on you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power [session at the right hand of the omnipotence of the Father], and coming on the clouds of heaven [2nd Advent].'
λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Σὺ εἶπας· πλὴν λέγω ὑµῖν, ἀπí ἄρτι ὄψεσθε τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου καθήµενον ἐκ δεξιῶν τῆς δυνάµεως καὶ ἐρχόµενον ἐπὶ τῶν νεφελῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ.
Matthew 26:65
Then the high priest [Caiaphas] tore his robes [lost his temper], saying, `He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy [truth is called blasphemy];
τότε ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς διέρρηξεν τὰ ἱµάτια αὐτοῦ λέγων, Ἐβλασφήµησεν· τί ἔτι χρείαν ἔχοµεν µαρτύρων; ἴδε νῦν ἠκούσατε τὴν βλασφηµίαν·
Matthew 26:66
What do you think?' They [the chief priests, scribes and elders] answered and said, `He is deserving of death!'"
τί ὑµῖν δοκεῖ; οἱ δὲ ἀποκριθέντες εἶπαν, Ἔνοχος θανάτου ἐστίν.
Our Lord was arraigned before the Sanhedrin on the charge of blasphemy. It is unlawful for a judge to have someone incriminate himself. As far as they are concerned Jesus incriminated himself.
Trial:
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Two trials held at night which is illegal.
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No consul for the defense
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Illegal procedure in seeking false witnesses
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Forced him to incriminate himself (according to their viewpoint)
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They were prejudiced and motivated to kill Him.
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Passed a sentence without a proper trial
Matthew 26:67
Then they spat in His face and beat Him with the fist. And others struck Him with the palms of their hands [all this was illegal procedure],
Τότε ἐνέπτυσαν εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐκολάφισαν αὐτόν, οἱ δὲ ἐράπισαν
Matthew 26:68
Saying, Prophesy to us, Christ; who is the one who struck you?
λέγοντες, Προφήτευσον ἡµῖν, Χριστέ, τίς ἐστιν ὁ παίσας σε;
Matthew 26:69
And Peter sat outside in the court. And a girl came to him, saying, “You also were with Jesus of Galilee.
Ὁ δὲ Πέτρος ἐκάθητο ἔξω ἐν τῇ αὐλῇ· καὶ προσῆλθεν αὐτῷ µία παιδίσκη λέγουσα, Καὶ σὺ ἦσθα µετὰ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Γαλιλαίου.
Matthew 26:70
But he denied all before them, saying, I do not know what you say.
ὁ δὲ ἠρνήσατο ἔµπροσθεν πάντων λέγων, Οὐκ οἶδα τί λέγεις.
Matthew 26:71
And when he had gone out into the porch [moved away from the little girl], another saw him and said to those there, “This one was also with Jesus of Nazareth.”
ἐξελθόντα δὲ εἰς τὸν πυλῶνα εἶδεν αὐτὸν ἄλλη καὶ λέγει τοῖς ἐκεῖ, Οὗτος ἦν µετὰ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Ναζωραίου.
Matthew 26:72
And again he denied under an oath, “I do not know the man.”
καὶ πάλιν ἠρνήσατο µετὰ ὅρκου ὅτι Οὐκ οἶδα τὸν ἄνθρωπον.
Matthew 26:73
And after a little while those who stood by came and said to Peter, “Surely you also are one of them, for your [Galilean] speech betrays you.
µετὰ µικρὸν δὲ προσελθόντες οἱ ἑστῶτες εἶπον τῷ Πέτρῳ, Ἀληθῶς καὶ σὺ ἐξ αὐτῶν εἶ, καὶ γὰρ ἡ λαλιά σου δῆλόν σε ποιεῖ.
Matthew 26:74
Then he began to curse and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the cock crowed.
τότε ἤρξατο καταθεµατίζειν καὶ ὀµνύειν ὅτι Οὐκ οἶδα τὸν ἄνθρωπον. καὶ εὐθέως ἀλέκτωρ ἐφώνησεν.
Matthew 26:75
And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, who said to him, “Before the cock crows, you shall deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
καὶ ἐµνήσθη ὁ Πέτρος τοῦ ῥήµατος Ἰησοῦ εἰρηκότος ὅτι Πρὶν ἀλέκτορα φωνῆσαι τρὶς ἀπαρνήσῃ µε· καὶ ἐξελθὼν ἔξω ἔκλαυσεν πικρῶς.
Failure will generally not destroy a believer if he is willing to use the Recovery Procedure and to continue his advance in the spiritual life. Peter did use this wonderful grace procedure and went on to spiritual greatness.
