Category Archives: Passover to Pentecost

The Bride of the Lamb

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I hitched the Bride of the Lamb to Daughter Zion and Eve in my last post, and I noticed something about the parables that Jesus told about weddings. This is unusual for me to do; I am going to list the references. The parables are the same in Mark, Luke, and Matthew, so I will list just Matthew.

  • Matthew 22
  • Matthew 25
  • John 3:29
  • 2 Corinthians 11:2 
  • Revelations 19:6-9
  • Revelations 21:2 and 9
  • Revelations 22:17

In Matthew, the parables are part of what I call the Sermons on Two Mounts. Matthew 22 is on the Temple Mount and is in response to the Pharisees and Sadducees challenging Jesus’ authority. They knew these parables were about them and they were trying to arrest Him. This wedding banquet parable talks about burning the city. That happened with the Babylonians and would happen again with the Romans. (It is a legend that those two destructions happened on the same day.) 22:11-14 is a passage that intrigues me. The leaders challenged Jesus again with a question about marriage, they did not like His answer.

Matthew 25 is on the Mount of Olives and is told to just His disciples. I believe this one has more to do with the Church/Bride that is about to be born on Pentecost. This parable also has a group of people who were not ready for the coming of the bridegroom.

These two parables come after Palm Sunday. This ride into the city mirrors David’s ride into Jerusalem after the death of Absolom. In the big picture of Jesus’ mission, this was when He came to pay the brides-price for us (His death on the cross). The actions of the King/Father and those of the bridegroom are what are highlighted. Yes, the Virgins had to be ready for the coming of the groom. This reflects the wedding practices of the Hebrews at that time. It should also speak to us now. The father and the bridegroom controlled the wedding, and the bride had to make herself ready. John 3:29 is John the Baptist speaking to another aspect of the bride and groom relationship and how his “Elijah relationship” worked with Jesus.

Okay. This study has surprised me with the strange fact the Bride of Christ and the Bride of the Lamb are not in any major translation (well at least I could not find them). It is a given that we belong to Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2) and He is the bridegroom, and the Church will be His bride, Revelations 19:6-9 makes that connection clear. The other references in Revelations bring us back to a Daughter Zion picture with the New Jerusalem being cast as the bride and being shown off as such. The lavish gates of heaven and the gemstone foundations speak very much to a Hebrew bride being dressed in her jewels and riches. Please do not forget the righteous deeds we are to put on so we can be ready to meet Him.

The fact that the angels use “the Lamb” instead of Christ or Messiah has my attention. It seems that I do not think enough about Jesus being the Lamb.  

Why would the parables in the Gospels focus more on the bridegroom and his actions than on the bride?

Numbers 9:11

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This Bible 911 is from Numbers and is about the second Passover the Israelites were to celebrate in the Exodus. Our verse shows how important it was to God that all of His children remember their personal and corporate exodus out of Egypt. A problem had come up because some of the people were unclean during the first month and could not join the community in the observance. Exodus 12 has the story and the rules for the very first Passover.

11 The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. (KJV) bold added

If you missed the first month you had to observe Passover during the second month of the year. The rules were the same; verse twelve stresses not leaving any of the lamb until morning, and breaking no bones of the lamb. The lamb was killed on the fourteenth and eaten overnight on the fifteenth. Remember their day starts in the evening.

Jesus was our Passover Lamb and He was killed before twilight and buried before the morning. His legs were not broken because He was already dead. All of this was not wasted on the centurion, that is why he said that Jesus was the Son of God (Matthew 27:54).

Extra: I have no doubt that Passover was celebrated it just is not mentioned that often in Scripture. Find all the times it is recorded that Passover was observed.

The Sermons on the Mounts-War and Rumors

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In Matthew 24 Jesus has finished His sermons on the Temple Mount, for the leaders and the crowds, and is going to the Mount of Olives. The disciples comment about the stones of the Second Temple, built by Herod, and Jesus predicts they are coming down. (Rome accomplished this in 70 A.D.) Back on the Mount of Olives, the disciples ask when the end will come, this is the start of several lessons about the end times and the kingdom of God. Jesus, in Matthew 24:6, uses the phrase, “wars and rumors of war”. Mark 13:7 and Luke 21:9 also are references, Luke has the term revolutions.

War or Battle

We do not tend to think of these as the same thing, but in the Greek (Strong’s 4171) they are the same word or from the same root word-polemos. There are a few times polemos is translated as the word fight. The occurrence of this word/idea is rare in the Gospels but not in the Epistles. (Mounce Reverse Interlinear NT) The above verses account for most times it is translated as war with Luke 14:31 being the other time, it talks about a king planning a war.

I find it interesting that Paul and the other Epistle writers talk about war, battles, and fighting more than Jesus did.

Rumor

Akoe (Strong’s G 189) is the Greek word for a rumor. This is a root for many words that deal with hearing or reports.

In studying the idea of rumors, I found two Old Testament verses that cover rumors very well. These are from the NIV.

Jeremiah 51:46 tells us to not lose heart because a new rumor shows up every year.

Ezekiel 7:26-Calamity upon calamity will come, and rumor upon rumor.

The major difference between then and now is these reports can appear in minutes instead of months.

Fight

To introduce the difference between fight and battle and not talk a little about it now, did not seem right. In the New Testament, several words (5 to 8) are translated as the word fight. They indicate levels of conflict and possible places. One is strictly about fighting over words.

On the Mounts

 For those that want to think Jesus just walked about saying love, love; I will point to these sermons before His death. These interactions should be classified as fighting and the whole morning in the Temple as battle after battle, or a war.

The types and shadows of these days started with Abraham leading Isaac to the mount to be sacrificed, Joshua’s journey into the Promised Land, David’s return after the death of Absalom, and Elisha’s trip to Mt Carmel.

Jesus cleansed the Temple and ended the curse of fig leaf acts started by Adam and Eve. He silenced the religious leaders and prophesied the end of the Second Temple. Jesus’ sorties from the east bank included raising a dead man, healing blind eyes, and bringing a sinner back to the Father. He cried over Jerusalem and announced His death, then still did a victory ride into the city to fulfill the words of Zechariah 9:9.

Yes, there have been wars and reports of wars, how could we expect anything else. Come, Lord Jesus!

God Raised

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The phrase “God raised” is used in both Testaments, with different emphases. That phrase graciously travels from Hebrew to Greek into Olde English, and to us. God raised up enemies for Solomon (1 Kings 11:23,14:7) when he was disobedient. Here the phrase means to strengthen someone that compares to our thoughts about Jesus coming back to life. (No, I have not done a complete word study.) God raised-Theos is God. Raised is egeiro. Strong: G1453       

This is for free. 1. A very general statement about the word “arise”. In our Old Testament, man says that the Lord should arise. In the New Testament, the Lord says that man needs to arise. (Very general statement.) 2. Joseph Prince in his devotional book for 3/23 thinks God raised Jesus because He was pleased with Him and the debt was satisfied and paid in full. Sounds good to me.   

Like my post “Jesus Knew”, I want this to be a reference work. My keywords were – resurrect, raised, and baptism. There are many stories that shadow the redemption story. Here are a few:

  • Moses’ bronze snake.
  • Jonah giving his life for the sailors and then being freed from the whale.

God gave Samson the strength to pull Baal’s temple down.

  • Isaac being freed from the rock of sacrifice.
  • Hosea redeeming his wayward wife.
  • Abel died because of his righteous obedience.
  • Passing through the Red Sea. (Going in death. Coming out new life.)
  • Passing through the Jordan River. 

Jesus Said – In John 11:25 Jesus told Martha that He was the: 1. I Am 2. The Resurrection 3. Life. When He talked about resurrection, it was frequently with Heaven and Marriage. He also said things would be repaid then. One teaching on the Resurrection was a reply to the Sadducees during His teaching on the Temple Mount during Holy Week. It was about Heaven and Marriage and the power of I AM (Matthew 22: 23-33).

References in Psalms that are worth noting are 80:17, 89:48, 16:10, 119:153, and 49:9. 

The next sections are my meager attempt to group verses.

Witness –  

  • Acts 2:31,32 – Peter to the crowd at Pentecost. He quotes David from Psalm 16:10.
  • Acts 3:15 – Peter and John after the healing of the cripple.
  • Acts 4:33 – The Apostles testified to the resurrection, and they had great power.
  • Acts 10:40 – How He died, and that He was afterwards. 
  • Acts 13:30 – God raised Him, and people saw Him.

Why God did it for Jesus –

  • Acts 2:24 – to free Jesus from the agony of death, because it could not hold Him.
  • Acts 13:34 + 37 – So, He would not see decay and receive the blessings of David.
  • Romans 6:4 – That we may have a new life.
  • Acts 2:32 – Jesus received the promised Holy Spirit and poured it on us.
  • 1 Peter 1:21 – To glorify Jesus, to have our faith and hope in God.

Benefits for us –

  • Acts 3:10 – To bless us by turning us from our wicked ways.
  • Acts 4:10 – Healing in His name.
  • Acts 5:30 – Jesus is at the right hand of God so Israel can repent and be forgiven.
  • Romans 4:24 – Believing that God raised Jesus is credited to us as righteousness. 
  • Romans 7:4 – That we may bear fruit for God.
  • Romans 8:21 – Creation will be freed from decay and brought into glory.
  • Romans 8:34 – Because Jesus is at the right hand of God, He is interceding for us.
  • Romans 10:9 – If we declare Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised Him from the dead, we will be saved.
  • 1 Corinthians 6:14 – God raised Jesus, He will raise us.
  • 1 Corinthians 15:15 – If Christ was not raised, then no one can be raised from the dead. Vs 12 -58 is Paul’s treatise on the resurrection.
  • Ephesians 2:6 – We are seated with Jesus in heavenly realms.
  • 1 Peter 1:3 – We have a new birth and a living hope.

Baptism 

  • Colossians 2:12 and 3:1.
  • Romans 6:4
  • 1 Peter 3:21 and 1:21

The message of the cross (God raised Jesus) should be what we are preaching if we want to see demonstrations of the Spirit’s power. 1 Corinthians 1:18 + 2:4

Jesus Knew and Told the Disciples 

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Jesus knew He was to be sacrificed and told His disciples about it frequently. If you want to do your own study, I used search words like: reject, suffer, third day, decay, raised, resurrect, crucify (ide), deliver, and lifted up. These are NIV words, so KJV and other translations may be different. After much thought, I am going to list references and clues of the verses from the different writers. Yes, there will be an overlap in the stories or settings, but I hope this is the best way to make a reference work. A separate post on “God Raised” is in the works and will follow very soon.

Christians, writers, and moviemakers all seem to have an opinion about the disciples and how they act at Jesus’ last Passover. I will say this the matter of His crucifixion was not a hidden topic, Jesus taught them. He also said several times that the disciples were to go to Galilee and the mountain after He was killed. It took them a while to act on that also; even after two personal visits from our risen Lord. To be fair, I am not sure I would have been any better.

Matthew  

  • 16:21 – This is the tell all of the predication verses. They are in Caesarea Philippi (north of Lake Galilee) and Jesus ask the disciples who He is? Jesus clearly states He will be killed by the Sanhedrin and three days later He will rise to life again. The group travels to the “mountain of transfiguration”.  
  • 17:9 – Jesus, Peter, James, and John are in the presence of Moses and Elijah during the transfiguration. They were coming down and the disciples were told not to speak of this until He has been raised from the dead. 
  • 17:22,23 – There may have been some R and R because they come together in Galilee and Jesus adds that He will be betrayed (delivered), killed, and rise in three days. They are going to the East Bank to prepare for the trip into Jerusalem and Passover.
  • 20:18,19 – On the East Bank, Jesus teaches about the kingdom and adds that He will be handed over to the Gentiles (Romans) mocked, beaten, and crucified before being dead three days and coming back to life.
  • 21:42 – Jesus quotes Psalm 118 in His silencing of the leaders. On the Temple Mount, who were challenging His authority. This is about the stone being rejected but it was needed to build the Temple. 
  • 26:2 – This is the same day, Tuesday of Holy Week, and Jesus and the disciples are on the Mount of Olives. He has given them a series of parables on the kingdom and the end times. He tells them His death will be in two days. 
  • 27:64 – Even the Sanhedrin knew Jesus had prophesied that He would be killed and raised to life in three days. The leaders were talking to Pilate. 

Mark

  • 8:31 – This is the same as Matthew 16.
  • 9:12 – The same as Matthew 17:9.
  • 9:31 –   The same as Matthew 17:22,23.
  • 10:33,34 – The same as Matthew 20:18,19.
  • 12:10 – The same as Matthew 21:42.

Luke 

  • 9:22 – The same as Matthew 16. SEE PSALM 88 + 89.
  • 9:44 – The same as Matthew 17:9. Luke changes or adds that Jesus told all of the disciples after the boy was healed, but the meaning was hidden from them.
  • 13:32 – No one else has this story. Jesus has been told that Herod (the fox) is looking for Him. The reply is that He will reach His goal on the third day.
  • 17:25 – This is with several teachings about the kingdom and end times. Jesus uses Noah and Lot as comparisons to how it will be.
  • 18:32,33 – The same as Matthew 20:18,19 or at least set on the east bank or Mount of Olives.
  • 20:17 – The same as Matthew 21:42.
  • 24:7 and 24:46 are given after the fact. 24:46 says that He opened their minds to understand what happened.

John 

In keeping with John’s mission to show Jesus as the Son of God many of his references are out of the above timeline. He also likes the phrase “lifted up” because it identifies with Moses.

  • 2:22 – This is more about the disciples believing the scriptures about Jesus’ death.
  • 3:14 – Jesus talking to Nicodemus about Moses’ bronze serpent.
  • 8:28 – Jesus is talking to Pharisees and says He will be lifted up then they will know the father spoke to Him.
  • 12:32 + 34 – A voice from heaven had spoken and said He would die and bring people to Him. The crowd then questions why the Messiah would die.

Some of the Scriptures that are about Jesus’ suffering, death, and rising to new life.

  • Psalm 16:10
  • Psalm 49:9
  • Psalm 22:24
  • Psalm 42:10
  • Psalm 55:3
  • Psalm 88:15
  • Psalm 119: 50 + 107 +153
  • Then there are the types and shadows of Jonah, Joseph, and Isaac.