Jesus's Triumphal Entry and Final Discourse with the People

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:

(John 12:1) Then six days before the Passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead whom He raised from the dead, (2) There they made Him a supper and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.

At the end of the last chapter, Jesus had left Bethany and went out into the country to steer clear of the Jews who wanted to kill Him.  As the Passover was near, Jesus went back to Bethany to have supper with Lazarus, Martha, and Mary.  Lazarus sat with Jesus at the table with others who had been invited, and Martha served.

(3) Then Mary took a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment.

Mary took a pound of an ointment of spikenard, which was a very costly and fragrant oil, and anointed Jesus's feet with it and then wiped His feet with her hair.  The house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment.

(4) Then said one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, (5) "Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred pence and given to the poor?"

One of Jesus's disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, saw what Mary did and considered it wasteful.  He asked why the ointment hadn't been instead sold with the proceeds going to the poor.

(6) This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief and had the bag and lifted what was put in it.

It's not that Judas really cared for the poor, but he was actually a thief.  He held the money bag for Jesus and the disciples and often stole from it for himself.  He desired for himself that three hundred pence the ointment could have brought.

(7) Then Jesus said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burying."

Jesus told Judas to leave Mary alone.  She had saved that ointment for the purpose of anointing Jesus before His death and burial.  Of course, Mary did not know that Jesus was soon to die, but by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit she had chosen this time to anoint Jesus with it.

(8) "For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."

Jesus went on to say that there would always be poor to be helped, but He Himself would not always be there.  Therefore the time to anoint Him was right then, as there would be soon no more chance to do so.  It's not that Jesus did not believe in giving to the poor; He taught that we should (Matthew 25:35-36, Mark 10:21, Luke 14:13-14).  However, I believe Jesus was teaching a proper order of things.  If two good duties are in competition with each other, then it makes sense to do the one that needs to be done immediately as there may be no chance to do it later.  Additionally, God and Jesus come first in our lives.  It's always right to do the things of God over other things we may perceive as good.  I can't help but think of some of the extreme environmental things like ones that are done to save a toad that harm God's people.  God gave His people dominion over the animals (Genesis 1:26-28).  That does not mean that we should torture and kill animals for no good reason.  However, when it comes to the needs of animals versus the needs of humans, humans come first.

(9) Many people of the Jews therefore knew that He was there, and they came, not for Jesus's sake only, but that they might see Lazarus also, whom He had raised from the dead.

Many of the Jews knew that Jesus was there and came, not just to see Jesus, but also to see Lazarus as he had been raised from the dead.

(10) But the chief priests deliberated that they might put Lazarus to death also, (11) Because on account of him, many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.

However, the chief priests discussed how they should also put Lazarus to death; because of what had been done for him, many of the Jews were deserting them and turning to Jesus.

(12) On the next day many people who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, (13) Took branches of palm trees and went forth to meet Him, and cried, "Hosanna! Blessed the King of Israel who comes in the name of the Lord!"

The next day, many people who had arrived early for the Passover Feast, when they heard Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took palm tree branches and went out to meet Jesus, crying, "Hosanna!" which was an exclamation of adoration that meant "Oh save!"  Then they quoted Psalm 118:26, "Blessed He who comes in the name of the Lord..."  The palm tree branches signified victory and triumph.

(14) And Jesus, when He had found a young ass, sat on it; as it is written, (15) "Fear not, daughter of Zion, behold your King comes sitting on an ass's colt."

The other gospel writers told us that Jesus directed two of His disciples to go into the village and there they would find the colt of a donkey and they were to bring it back to Jesus.  Jesus sat upon the young donkey, and that fulfilled prophecy from Zechariah 9:9 which said, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey."

(16) These things His disciples did not understand at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written of Him, and they had done these things to Him.

At that time, Jesus's disciples did not understand what Jesus was doing and saying, but after His ascension, they remembered the things said about Him in the Old Testament prophecies and they fully comprehended the fulfillment of that prophecy at that time.  They remembered the things the people had done to and for Him, the taking of palm tree branches and crying "Hosanna," putting Jesus on the donkey's colt, and then as the other gospels told us, laying their clothes and branches under Him and before Him, paving His way into Jerusalem.

(17) The people therefore who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his grave and raised him from the dead, bore record.

The Jews who had gone from Jerusalem to Bethany to comfort Lazarus's sisters, had been there to witness Jesus calling Lazarus out of the grave and raising him from the dead.  Therefore, they were able to bear witness of Jesus to the others in Jerusalem.

(18) For this reason the people also met Him, for they had heard that He had done this miracle.

That is why the people in Jerusalem met Jesus as He was coming into the city, because they had heard about what He had done for Lazarus.

(19) The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, "Do you perceive how you prevail nothing? Behold, the world has gone after Him."

However, the Pharisees were greatly dismayed at what they saw, and discussed among themselves how they had so far accomplished nothing to stop the people from believing in Jesus.  In fact, it looked to them like the whole world had gone after Him.

(20) And there were certain Greeks among them who came up to worship at the feast.

There were some Greeks who had come to worship at the Passover Feast.  They may have been Jews who had been living in Greece, or perhaps converts to the Jewish religion, or it's even possible they were Gentiles who came to worship in the outer court of the temple that was called the court of the Gentiles.

(21) The same came therefore to Philip, who was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired of Him, saying, "Sir, we want to see Jesus."

Those Greeks went to Philip and asked if they could see Jesus.  The reason they may have gone to Philip is probably answered in the fact that John told us Philip was of Bethsaida in Galilee.  They could have been from the Greeks who dwelt on the borders of Tyre and Sidon, which was not far from Bethsaida.  Perhaps they had had occasion to see or know Philip.  Additionally, as Philip is a Greek given name, some have thought it plausible that Philip's parents may have been from the Jews living in Greece.  They had apparently heard the fame of Jesus and wished to see Him and thought Philip could help.

(22) Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn, Philip and Andrew told Jesus.

Philip went and told Andrew of the Greeks' request, probably because Andrew was from the same place and may have known of the Greeks, also.  Then they both went and told Jesus.

(23) And Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour is come that the Son of man should be glorified."

The scripture does not say whether or not the Greeks were with them when they asked Jesus, nor whether or not He directly acknowledged and agreed to their request, but the fact that John mentioned it, must mean Jesus spoke in the presence of them.  He told all within His hearing that the hour had come for Him to be glorified, which of course, we understand to mean His ascension into heaven after His death and resurrection.

(24) "Verily, verily, I say to you, except a corn of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it brings forth much fruit."

Jesus likened His life on earth to a kernel or grain of wheat.  It's just a lonely grain of wheat unless it falls to the ground and dies and then shoots forward with much fruit.  So although Jesus was just one Man, when He died, He would bring forth a huge harvest of Christians.

(25) "He who loves his life shall lose it, and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal."

Jesus's point was that whoever loved his temporal life so much that they did everything in their power to preserve it, would ultimately lose it.  The one who hated his temporal life in the world, realizing he was only passing through to true life in Christ, who did nothing to preserve his life, but lived it for God and for heaven, he would have eternal life.

(26) "If any man serves Me, let him follow Me, and where I am, there shall also My servant be. If any man serves Me, him My Father will honor."

Perhaps Jesus was saying this for the benefit of the Greeks.  Even though they may not have been Jews who could fully partake of the Passover, if they followed Him, imitating Him, following His Word, then they would also be with Him where He went, to heaven.  His Father God in heaven would honor them, as well.

(27) "Now is My soul troubled and what shall I say? 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this cause, I came to this hour."

Jesus admitted He was troubled in His human soul about what was about to happen to Him.  However, could He really ask His Father to save Him from it?  After all, that was His purpose in coming into the world, to suffer and die for our sins, and be resurrected again for the salvation of the world.

(28) "Father, glorify your name." Then came a voice from heaven, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."

Jesus asked His Father to glorify His own name.  A voice came from heaven saying that He had already glorified it, obviously in the life and work of Jesus up to that point, and that He would glorify it again in Jesus's resurrection and ascension.

(29) The people therefore who stood by and heard, said that it thundered; others said, "An angel spoke to Him."

Some of the people who stood by and heard the voice misunderstood it as thunder, as it probably did come forth in thunder.  Others heard the voice and assumed that an angel had spoken to Jesus.  They may have understood it as the word of God, but they may have assumed He spoke through angels.

(30) Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sakes."

Jesus answered the people's confusion and confirmed it was a voice and it had not come in answer to His prayer, at least not chiefly, as it was not necessary, for Jesus knew the mind of His Father and vice versa.  The voice had come for their sakes, that they might know that He was indeed the Messiah, the Son of God.  I can't help but think about what an honor and a privilege it was to the Greeks, Gentiles, to hear all this.  They not only saw Jesus but heard from God confirming just who He was.  What a beautiful picture of how Jesus is for all of us, no matter what our background or religion.

(31) "Now is the judgment of this world; now shall the prince of this world be cast out."

Jesus went on to say that that particular time was the judgment of the world, and that the prince of the world would be cast out.  He said, "Now," because He knew His death was very near.  The original word translated as "judgment" is "krisis."  How similar it is to our "crisis."  And this would certainly be a crisis point in the lives of the people.  It would be a turning point.  On one hand, Jesus will have defeated death and Satan, the prince of the world.  No longer would people have to die in their sins.  However, Satan would still be around for those who would not receive Jesus's gift of salvation.  One of the definitions of "krisis" is "justice."  There would be justice for the world when Jesus saved it from death and Satan was cast out.

(32) "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all to Me."

Jesus's meaning was more likely just His death lifting Him out of the earth.  However, He would of course, be lifted up into the heavens in His resurrection and ascension.  If He was killed, which He knew He would be, He would draw all people to Him.  He would have power over death and would save those who came to Him through His drawing.

(33) This He said, signifying what death He would die.

John explained that Jesus was describing what type of death He would die by what He said.  Being lifted up on a cross, He would draw all people to Himself.  We do look up to the cross to be saved, just "as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness" (John 3:14), and all who looked up to it were saved from the deadly bites of the fiery serpents, "even so must the Son of man be lifted up" (John 3:14 cont.) and those who look to Him will be saved.

(34) The people answered Him, "We have heard out of the law that Christ abides forever, and how do You say, 'The Son of man must be lifted up.'? Who is this Son of man?"

The people answered Jesus saying that they knew from the law that Christ abides forever, so how was it that Jesus said the Son of man must be lifted up from the earth, meaning He must die?  They asked Him who was the Son of man.

(35) Then Jesus said to them, "Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while you have light lest darkness come upon you, for he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going."

Jesus did not answer their question directly, but called Himself the light, the Light of the world, and urged the people to walk with that Light and learn from Him while they had the Light because it would only be with them a little while longer.  Once the Light was extinguished, darkness would come upon them, and they would not see the pits and snares that awaited them and would eventually destroy them.

(36) "While you have Light, believe in the Light, that you may be the children of Light." These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and hid Himself from them.

Jesus finally urged the people to believe in that Light while they had it, that they might become the children of Light and knowledge.  He then left and hid Himself away from them.

(37) But though He had done so many miracles before them, yet they did not believe in Him.

John tells us that even though Jesus had done so many miracles in the presence of these people, they still did not believe in Him.

(38) That the saying of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke, "Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"

John went on to say that this fulfilled a prophecy of Isaiah in Isaiah 53:1, "Who has believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?"  Who believed Jesus's words and the miracles and works He did by the arm of the Lord?

(39) Therefore they could not believe because Isaiah said again, (40) "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart that they should not see with eyes nor understand with heart, and be converted and I should heal them."

Because they refused to see the truth no matter how many things they had heard and seen, God left them in their blindness and hardness of hearts, and they could not believe Jesus.  Again John quoted prophecy in Isaiah 6:9-10, "And He said, Go, and tell this people, hear you indeed, but understand not; and see you indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed."  Because they would not listen to the Lord and see His great works, God would leave them with their hard and stupid hearts, ears, and eyes, and they would not be able to be converted and saved as they could have been if they had only listened and opened their hearts to what they saw.

(41) These things Isaiah said when He saw His glory and spoke of Him.

John explained that Isaiah had spoken those things when he had seen a vision of the Messiah in the temple (Isaiah 6:1-13).

(42) Nevertheless, among the chief rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess, lest they should be put out of the synagogue, (43) For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

However, there were those (it says many, in fact) among the chief rulers who did believe in Jesus, but they would not publicly admit it for fear the Pharisees would put them out of the synagogue.  At first I wondered if that was always a bad thing.  You certainly never reject Jesus if confronted, but do you always broadcast your belief, if by not doing so, you could do more good in the synagogue to open people's eyes to the truth?  However, that objection was put to rest by the next verse that stated those men loved the praise of men more than they loved God's praises.  God knows the truth of one's heart and His Holy Spirit will guide Christ's follower in what he should do.

(44) Jesus cried and said, "He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me!"

Verse 36 said that Jesus had left and hid Himself from the people, so either this was said at another time, or as He was, by what follows, still talking about the Light, perhaps He cried out as He left the unbelievers, or perhaps He had even said the words before He actually left.  Jesus cried out that anyone who believed in Him as Jesus the man, was actually believing in the One who sent Him, God Himself, who came down to earth in the human form of Jesus to save the world.

(45) "And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me."

Jesus said more directly that anyone who saw Him was seeing the One who sent Him, God Himself in heaven.  It was perhaps a difficult concept to grasp, but at the very least, they should have faith that He was one with God.

(46) "I am come a light into the world that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness."

Jesus explained that He was the Light that came into the world that whoever believed in Him would not stay in their darkness of sin and unbelief.

(47) "And if any man hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him, for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world."

Jesus said that if anyone heard Him and did not believe in Him, He was not there to judge them.  They had actually already been judged and condemned; He had come to save them and the entire world from that condemnation.

(48) "He who rejects Me and does not receive My words has one that judges him; the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day."

However, those who do not believe in Jesus and reject Him and will not receive His word, that Word of God spoken by Jesus will be the judgment against him in the great Judgment Day.  That is the truth that the one who rejected Christ will come to know was true all along.  In the end, every knee will bow and every tongue shall confess, everyone will know the truth (Isaiah 45:23, Romans 14:11, Philippians 2:10-11), and those who rejected Christ will be judged by that truth that they will know themselves.

(49) "For I have not spoken of Myself, but the Father who sent Me gave Me a commandment, what I should say and what I should speak."

Jesus did not speak on His own human accord, but God who sent Him told Him what He was to say.  Actually, as Jesus was God come down to the world, He spoke the words of God.  It was God and His very Word that people who rejected Christ were rejecting.

(50) "And I know that His commandment is life everlasting; whatever I speak therefore, just as the Father said to Me, so I speak."

That commandment or commission that God gave Jesus was the path to everlasting life, and everything God had purposed in sending Jesus was for that end, that all be saved.  As Jesus was God, He spoke God's words and was there to fulfill God's purpose in saving all people from their sin and from Satan and his workers of iniquity.

The Biblical commentators that I study tell me that this was the end of Jesus's public ministry.  From this point on, He would spend His time teaching His disciples.  What a beautiful summation Jesus gave to the people.  Jesus cried it out to them!  Believe in Him because He said and did the very works of God; He was the very mind of God.  He was God!  In the end, all would know it, and those who had rejected Him rejected God's gift of salvation and would be judged by what they would know was true. 

Jesus Feeds 5000 and Then Walks on Water

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:

(John 6:1) After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee which is the Sea of Tiberius.

In the last chapter, Jesus had healed the man at the pool of Bethesda, and then vindicated Himself against the Jews who questioned His authority to allow the healed man to take up his mat on the Sabbath.  Gleaned from the other Gospel writers and commentators that I study, it seems it was quite a while after those things had happened that Jesus now went across the Sea of Galilee which is also called the Sea of Tiberius.

(2) And a great multitude followed Him because they saw His miracles which He did on those who were diseased.

A large crowd of people who had witnessed His miracles of healing followed Jesus.

(3) And Jesus went up in a mountain and there He sat with His disciples. (4) And the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near.

Jesus went up into a mountain and sat there with His disciples.  It seems the Passover was nearing again so it had been over ten months since the incident at the pool of Bethesda.

(5) When Jesus then lifted up and saw a great company coming to Him, He said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread that these may eat?"

When Jesus looked up and saw the multitude of people coming toward Him, He asked Philip where they should buy bread to feed all the people.  It may have been that Philip was in charge of providing such victuals, or perhaps he was of this area and might best know where they could buy bread.

(6) And this He did to prove him for He Himself knew what He would do.

Actually, we see Jesus's reason for asking Philip was to test his faith.  After all, Philip had been with Jesus from the beginning and had seen Him turn water into wine.  Would he not realize that Jesus could just as easily provide bread for all these people?  Jesus already knew what He planned to do.

(7) Philip answered Him, "Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them that every one of them may take a little."

It seems Philip failed the test.  He answered in a secular manner attempting to show how impractical it was for them to pay two hundred pennyworth for bread, which may have been all they had, to only give each person a little bit.

(8) One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, (9) "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?"

Andrew, hearing Jesus's question to Philip, told Jesus that there was a boy there who had five loaves of barley bread and two small fish, but then added that that was way too inadequate to feed so many people.

(10) And Jesus said, "Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number, about five thousand.

Jesus instructed the disciples to have the people sit down on the plenteous green grass that was at the foot of the mountain.  The people did as they were told and the men numbered about five thousand.  The account in Matthew added that that didn't include women and children who were among the ones asked to sit down.

(11) And Jesus took the loaves and when He had given thanks, he distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those who were sat down, and likewise of the fish as much as they wanted.

Jesus took the loaves of bread and gave thanks and blessed them and then distributed them to the disciples who in turn, passed bread out to the people.  He did the same with the two fish, and the people were able to get as much food as they wanted.

(12) When they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain that nothing is lost."

When all the people had eaten their fill, Jesus told His disciples to gather up all the leftover scraps so that no food was wasted.

(13) Therefore they gathered together and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which remained over and above to them who had eaten.

The disciples gathered the leftovers and filled twelve baskets with them, what started as one basket with five loaves and two small fish.  And of course, that was what was left after all the people had eaten their fill.

(14) Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, "This is truly that Prophet who should come into the world."

When the people realized what a miracle Jesus had done in feeding them, they remarked that He was surely the great Prophet who was to come into the world of whom Moses had spoken, their long-awaited Messiah.

(15) When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take Him by force to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain Himself alone.

Jesus began to perceive that the people might try to take Him to make Him their King, so He slipped away back up into a mountain by Himself.

(16) And when evening was come, His disciples went down to the sea,

While Jesus stayed for a little rest and solitude and probably prayer, His disciples went down to the sea.  According to the accounts in Matthew and Mark, Jesus directed them to go ahead before Him to the other side of the sea.

(17) And entered into a ship and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was now dark and Jesus had not come to them.

The disciples boarded a boat and sailed across the sea toward Capernaum.  It had become dark and Jesus had not yet caught up to them.

(18) And the sea arose because of a great wind that blew.

While they were in the middle of the sea in the dark a storm arose with a great wind and caused the sea to swell up and lift up great waves.

(19) So when they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty furlongs, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the ship, and they were afraid.

The disciples had rowed about three and a half miles when they saw Jesus walking on the water of the sea.  He was coming toward them and they were afraid.  The account in Matthew said they thought it was a spirit they saw.

(20) But He said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." (21) Then they willingly received Him into the ship, and immediately the ship was at the land where they went.

Jesus called out to the disciples that it was He and they should not be afraid.  It was at this point, the account in Matthew tells us that Jesus called Peter to Him and Peter walked on water toward Jesus until he became afraid and sank.  It was after that when Jesus got into the boat.  John added something none of the other gospel accounts mentioned.  Once Jesus was onboard, the ship immediately was onshore at their destination.  The account in Mark said only that as Jesus got into the boat, the wind ceased.  Perhaps John did not mean that the boat was miraculously and instantaneously on the land at their destination but that it very quickly arrived, but John did seem to suggest an extraordinary sudden arrival.

(22) The day following, when the people who stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there except that one in which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not gone with His disciples into the boat, but His disciples had gone away alone, 

The next day the people whom Jesus had fed back on the other side of the sea saw that there were no boats there other than the one they had seen His disciples leave in, and they knew Jesus had not gone with them.  Therefore, they would assume Jesus was still on that side of the sea.

(23) (However, there came other boats from Tiberius near to the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks)

John made a parenthetical statement that although there were no other boats at first, there then came other boats from Tiberius to the place where they had eaten the food Jesus had provided for them the evening before.

(24) When the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, neither His disciples, they also took shipping and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

When the people saw that Jesus was not still on their side of the sea and neither were His disciples, they got into the boats that were arriving from Tiberius and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

(25) And when they had found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?"

The people indeed found Jesus on the other side of the sea at Capernaum and asked Him when He had come there as they knew He had not gone with His disciples in the only boat they had seen.  His answer will be in the next post.  Although this makes for a rather short post, this chapter is very long and this seems the best stopping place for now, as the rest of the chapter is of Jesus's words to the people.

Jesus Calls His First Few Disciples

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels: 

(John 1:19) And this is the record of John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

In verses 6 and 7 in the last post, the evangelist John had told us that John the Baptist had been sent by God to bear witness of Jesus.  He now began to tell about John and just how he bore that witness.

(20) And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ."

It seems that at least some of the priests and Levites who came to him must have thought he was the Christ, but John told them freely and truthfully that he was not Christ, the Messiah.

(21) And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" And he said, "I am not." "Are you that prophet?" And he answered, "No."

If he wasn't the Christ, they wanted to know just who he was.  They asked if he was Elijah, and he said he was not.  From the accounts in Matthew and Luke we learned that they had also asked if he was the prophet Jeremiah or one of the other prophets risen from the dead.  So whichever prophet they were asking John about in this verse, he answered he was not that prophet.

(22) Then they said to him, "Who are you? That we may give an answer to them who sent us. What do you say of yourself?"

Then who was he?  They wanted to know so that they could tell the people who sent them to find out.  They asked what he had to say for himself.

(23) He said, "I am 'the voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord,"' as the prophet Isaiah said."

Quoting Isaiah 40:3, John told them he was the one Isaiah spoke of when he spoke about the voice of one crying in the wilderness to make straight the way of the Lord.

(24) And they who were sent were of the Pharisees.

Those who were questioning John were Pharisees who were a very legalistic sect zealous for the traditions of the elders.  They were knowledgeable of the scriptures and were anticipating their coming Messiah.

(25) And they asked him and said to him, "Why then do you baptize if you are not that Christ, nor Elijah, nor that prophet?"

There were baptisms done before John came on the scene, but they were for pagans who had converted to Judaism and ordered by the Sanhedrin.  They never baptized Jews so they wondered by whose authority he was doing it now, if he was not Christ, Elijah, or some other important prophet.

(26) John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water, but there stands one among you whom you do not know."

John answered that he did indeed baptize with water.  The account in Matthew 3:11 said a good bit more about this.  He baptized with water for repentance of sins, but there was one among them whom they did not yet know who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.

(27) "He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's strap I am not worthy to unloose."

John explained that the one among them they did not yet know was the one coming after him who was preferred before him, so great in fact that he was not worthy to even loosen His sandal strap.

(28) These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan where John was baptizing.

This conversation between John and the Pharisees took place at a place called Bethabara where John was baptizing.  "Bethabara" literally means "house of the ford" or "house of passage," and was thought to be the place where the Israelites passed over the Jordan River under Joshua.  There could be symbology in this that this is where an opening was made for people to pass through to the Gospel of Jesus, and ultimately to be able to pass through to the kingdom of heaven.

(29) The next day John saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

The day after John had been conversing with the Pharisees, Jesus came to John and John accurately and prophetically declared Him to be the Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world, that ultimate Lamb sacrifice that would atone for all sin when He was crucified.

(30) "This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.'"

John went on to say that Jesus was the one he had been talking about when he said that one would come after him who was preferred above him because He had been there before him in time and was before him as the foremost superior One.

(31) "And I did not know Him, but that He should be made manifest to Israel, therefore I come baptizing with water."

Although Jesus and John were cousins (Luke 1:36), it appears that John had not known Jesus previous to His baptism and the beginning of His ministry.  John had spent his time in the hill country in solitude and Jesus had been in Nazareth.  John explained that his purpose had been to proclaim Jesus's coming and make Him known to Israel, preparing the way for Jesus.

(32) And John bore record, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove and it dwelt on Him."

John gave testimony that he had seen the Holy Spirit descending from heaven in the form of a dove that rested on Jesus.

(33) "And I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water, the same said to me, 'Upon whom you shall see the Spirit descending and remaining on Him, the same is He who baptizes with the Holy Ghost.'"

John again said that he had not known Jesus before His baptism, but God who had sent him to baptize with water had told him that when he saw the Spirit descending from heaven and resting on Jesus, he would know that He was the one who would baptize with the Holy Spirit.

(34) "And I saw and bore record that this is the Son of God."

John had been a witness to the Spirit descending like a dove onto Jesus and remaining there, so he had therefore heard the voice from heaven declaring that Jesus was His beloved Son (Matthew 3:17), so he knew and testified that Jesus was the Son of God.

(35) Again the next day after, John stood and two of his disciples.

The day after John had seen Jesus and had revealed Him as the Son of God, he was standing with two of his disciples.

(36) And looking upon Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God!"

When John saw Jesus walking, he directed his disciples to see the Lamb of God.

(37) And the two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.

Upon hearing John's declaration, his two disciples followed Jesus.

(38) Then Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, "What do you seek?" They said to Him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, being interpreted, Master), "Where do You dwell?"

When Jesus turned and saw the two disciples following Him, He asked them what they were looking for.  They referred to Him as Rabbi which the evangelist John interpreted for his readers telling them it meant Master.  A Master among the Jews was a title for a learned teacher.  The disciples then asked where Jesus dwelt, as if asking where they might go to learn from Him.

(39) He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where He dwelt and stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.

Jesus invited the two disciples to come with Him to see where He dwelt, which they did.  The Jewish clock began at dawn, at 6:00 in the morning, so the tenth hour would have been 4:00 in the afternoon.  The disciples wound up spending most of the day with Jesus.

(40) One of the two who heard John and followed Him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.

One of the two disciples of John who had followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.  This was apparently before Jesus officially called the two brothers to be fishers of men (Matthew 4:19).

(41) He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah," which is, being interpreted, the Christ.

It seems the first person Andrew wanted to tell was his brother Simon.  He found him and told him that they had found the Messiah.  Once again, the evangelist John seems to be translating for his readers.  He wrote that the Messiah was the same as the Christ.  The Hebrew word "Messiah" was interpreted in Greek by the word "Christ" and both words mean "Anointed."

(42) And he brought him to Jesus.  And when Jesus beheld him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah; you shall be called Cephas," which is by interpretation, a stone. 

Andrew brought his brother Simon to Jesus.  When Jesus looked at Simon, he declared his name to be Simon, the son of Jonah, Simon Bar-Jonah as Jesus called him in Matthew 16:17.  However, He told him he would be called Cephas, which was the Hebrew word for "rock" or "stone" as John interpreted it.  The Greek word John used for "stone" was "Petros" or "Peter" as Anglicized.

(43) The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee and find Philip and say to him, "Follow Me." 

The day after Peter's introduction to Jesus, as Jesus was going to Galilee he found Philip and told him to follow Him.

(44) Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.

Philip was from Bethsaida which was where Andrew and Peter were from.  John Gill, in his Exposition of the Bible pointed out that there were three apostles of Jesus called out of Bethsaida, which Jesus later lamented and declared woe upon because it was a wicked place that rejected the word, miracles, and person of Jesus (Matthew 11:21), proving, as he would say, that a man's native place did not honor him, but a man honors his place, and having three apostles of Jesus coming from Bethsaida was no small honor for it.  I just love how God always seems to use flawed people and lowly places!  It gives hope and encouragement to all people from wherever they might hail!

(45) Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."

Nathanael is probably the same person Bartholomew.  "Bartholomew" means "son of Tolmai," "Bar-Tolmai," like Jesus called Peter Simon Bar-Jonah in Matthew 16:17.  Therefore, it is likely that Bartholomew had another name.  The three previous gospels mention Bartholomew and John does not.  John mentions Nathanael and the other three do not.  Additionally, the three previous gospels name Bartholomew directly following Philip, and John names Nathanael following Philip.  So it does seem reasonable to assume that Nathanael and Bartholomew are two different names for the same person.  In a later passage in the gospel of John, Nathanael is listed among the disciples whom Jesus appeared to after His resurrection.  Although Jesus had many more disciples than just His chosen twelve, the 21st chapter of John does seem to concern only those of His chosen twelve.

After Jesus told Philip to follow Him, Philip went and found Nathanael and told him they had found Jesus of Nazareth about whom Moses and the prophets had foretold.

(46) And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."

Nathanael questioned how anything good could come out of Nazareth as it was a wicked place in his mind.  Additionally, he surely knew the Messiah was to come from Bethlehem as prophesied in Micah 5:2, not Nazareth.  The prophesy had stated that Jesus would come out of Bethlehem even though she was little among the thousands of Judah.  Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but He grew up in Nazareth, a place so miserable that Nathanael could not imagine anything good coming from there.  Once again we have God using the lowliest places to bring forth something magnificent!  Philip only answered Nathanael's doubt by telling him to come and see for himself.

(47) Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him and said of him, "Behold an Israelite indeed in whom is no guile!"

When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, He said of Nathanael in the hearing of Nathanael himself and all who were present that he was indeed an Israelite, not only by birth, but worthy of the name.  He found no deceit or fraud in him; he was what he professed to be, and probably didn't tolerate fraud in anyone else, which might be why Jesus may have been giving him a small zinger because he had doubted that anything good could come from Nazareth.

(48) Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."

Nathanael asked Jesus how He knew anything about him.  Jesus answered that even before Philip had summoned him, He had seen him under a fig tree.  Of course, He did not mean that He was bodily present to see Nathanael, and Nathanael obviously realized that:

(49) Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"

Realizing that Jesus could not possibly have seen him under the fig tree unless He was the Son of God, he declared him so and also to be the King of Israel.  He called Him Rabbi, which meant Master, and that title belonged to no one else but Christ, as Jesus said in Matthew 23:10.

(50) Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' you believe? You will see greater things than this."

It's as if Jesus said to Nathanael, "You believe I am the Son of God just because I saw you under the fig tree? You haven't seen anything yet!"  Indeed, Jesus told him he would see much greater things.

(51) And He said to him, "Most assuredly I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man."

Jesus told Nathanael he would see heaven open up and see angels descending upon Him and ascending back to heaven.  Whereas it would literally happen at His baptism, this was probably meant to be in a spiritual sense.  Through Jesus, the secrets of heaven would be made known to His disciples and it would be evident that He had the full favor of God in heaven and His ministering angels.  With Jesus's sacrifice, there would be an open channel to God and His angels for His believers.  There would certainly be no doubt that Jesus was their promised Messiah! 

The Teachings of Jesus

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:

(Luke 6:1) And it came to pass that on the second Sabbath after the first, that He went through the corn fields, and His disciples plucked the ears of corn and ate, rubbing them in their hands.

By the end of the last chapter, Jesus had called His first disciples, Simon Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Matthew.  It came to pass that on a Sabbath Day, He and His disciples went through a corn field.  There is much long discussion among commentators about what is meant by the second Sabbath after the first.  I don't think it is necessary to know for certain that detail.  Apparently, the Jews counted their Sabbaths from the Passover to the Pentecost.  This may have been the second Sabbath after the Passover, or perhaps it was the second Sabbath during Passover.  Luke may have mentioned it to intimate that it was a special Sabbath, or perhaps to denote the time of year when the corn was nearly ripe.  Whenever it was, Jesus and His disciples walked through the corn fields and His disciples plucked ears of corn, rubbed them in their hands, and ate the kernels.

(2) And certain of the Pharisees said to them, "Why do you do that which is unlawful to do on the Sabbath days?"

There were some Pharisees who observed them.  The accounts in Matthew and Mark state that the Pharisees asked the question to Jesus Himself, but it's quite reasonable to assume they had asked both Jesus and His disciples.  They demanded to know why they did what was unlawful to do on the Sabbath, gathering ears of corn and eating them.

(3) And Jesus answering them, said, "Have you not read so much as this, what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him?"

Jesus posed a question back to the Pharisees, asking if they had read in scripture about the time when David and those with him were hungry, and what they did.

(4) "How he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave to them who were with him, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone?"

Jesus continued telling them what David had done, how he went into the temple and he and those with him ate the showbread that had been before the Lord (1 Samuel 21:6).  According to the law, it was unlawful for them to have done that, as that bread was for the priests only.

(5) And He said to them, "That the Son of man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

As David, a man after God's own heart (1 Samuel 13:14), was not condemned for having eaten holy bread, Jesus, as Lord of the Sabbath, was not guilty of any wrongdoing.  Jesus, as God then in human form, had created the Sabbath and knew the heart of the law of the Sabbath.  In the account in Mark, Jesus had added that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.  The Sabbath was intended to help people, not burden them.  Under the law, the people were commanded to take a full day of rest from their labor on the Sabbath.  Plucking an ear of corn to satisfy hunger was not harvesting the corn as the Pharisees had made it in their strict interpretation of the law.

(6) And it came to pass also on another Sabbath, that He entered into the synagogue and taught; and there was a man whose right hand was withered.

Then on another Sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and a man with a withered right hand was there.

(7) And the scribes and Pharisees watched Him, whether He would heal on the Sabbath day, that they might find an accusation against Him.

The scribes and the Pharisees watched to see what Jesus would do, whether or not He would heal the man with the withered hand.  They had so twisted the law to include healing as work and forbidden on the Sabbath.  Imagine if no doctor could treat a patient on the Sabbath!  But the scribes and Pharisees wanted to catch Jesus doing something unlawful of which they could accuse Him.

(8) But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Rise up and stand forth in the midst." And he arose and stood there.

Jesus knew what the scribes and Pharisees were thinking, even though they had not spoken it.  He told the man with the withered hand to get up and stand in the midst of the congregation, which the man did.

(9) Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing; is it lawful on the Sabbath days to do good or to do evil? To save life or to destroy it?"

Jesus then spoke to the scribes and Pharisees and asked them if it was lawful to do good on the Sabbath, or to do evil.  Of course, His point was that it would be evil to not heal the man when it was in His power to do so, and He should therefore do good on the Sabbath, and they, too, should desire that.  Would it be lawful to save a life or to not save it, thereby destroying it?

(10) And looking round about upon them all, He said to the man, "Stretch forth your hand." And he did so and his hand was restored whole as the other.

Jesus, looking around at all of them, then told the man to stretch forth his hand.  When he did, his right hand was restored and as good as his other hand.

(11) And they were filled with madness and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

Despite Jesus's question to them about doing good on the Sabbath, the scribes and Pharisees were filled with rage that He had healed the man and they discussed among themselves what they should do about Jesus.

(12) And it came to pass in those days that He went out on a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

Jesus then went out to a mountain to pray.  He spent the entire night in prayer to God, as He routinely sought communion with God, but probably also seeking divine wisdom and guidance in the decision He would make the next day.

(13) And when it was day, He called His disciples, and from them He chose twelve, whom He also named apostles.

The next day Jesus called all His disciples to Himself, that is, all His followers.  From them He chose twelve disciples to be His apostles.  An apostle was one sent forth with a mission who had the authority of Jesus.  An apostle was a disciple also, but not all disciples were apostles; at this point there were only Jesus's chosen twelve.

(14) Simon (whom He also named Peter), and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, (15) Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot, (16) And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who also was the traitor.

Jesus had already called Simon Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Matthew.  In addition to them He called Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Simon the Zealot, and James, the son of Alphaeus, sometimes called James the Less, or "little" James to distinguish him from James the brother of John.  Little James's brother was Judas or Thaddeus as he was also called, and Jesus chose him also.  And finally, He chose Judas Iscariot, who of course, was the one to betray Him.

(17) And He came down with them and stood in the plain, and the company of His disciples and a great multitude of people out of all Judea and Jerusalem and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases.

Jesus came down from the mountain with His apostles and stood in a plain, accompanied by His other followers and a great multitude of people from Jerusalem, all Judea, and the seacoasts of Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear Him and to be healed by Him.

(18) And they who were vexed with unclean spirits; and they were healed.

Also among the multitude were those who had unclean spirits, and as this was a continuation of verse 17, we can correctly assume that all people were healed by him, those with diseases and those with demons.

(19) And the whole multitude sought to touch Him for there went power out of Him and healed them all.

It seems the entire multitude sought to touch Jesus, not just the sick and possessed.  There was a spiritual power that went out of Jesus that everyone wanted to touch.  We can assuredly know that that power spiritually healed those who did not even know they were sick.  The verse says Jesus healed them all!

(20) And He lifted up His eyes on His disciples and said, "Blessed you poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven."

Jesus lifted up His eyes on all His disciples as He began what is known as the Beatitudes.  Luke paraphrased the first one as blessed are the poor, whereas Matthew had said the poor in spirit.  Both are true; those who were poor, having given up all for the Lord, or those who were poor but still glorified God, would see the kingdom of heaven, as well as the poor in spirit, those humble in spirit, realizing they have no righteousness in and of themselves but looked to God as Savior.

(21) "Blessed you who hunger now, for you shall be filled. Blessed you who weep now, for you shall laugh."

Luke said those who hungered would be filled, but in Matthew's account, he said that those who hungered and thirsted after righteousness would be filled.  Again, both are true.  Obviously, those hungering and thirsting after righteousness would be filled, but those who were physically hungry would be filled, as well.  If not with immediate food, they would be filled with something far more precious and life-sustaining.  Those who wept or mourned as Matthew stated it, would not only be comforted, as Matthew said, but would laugh!  They would be filled with spiritual joy in spite of physical afflictions and pressures of life.

(22) Blessed are you when men shall hate you and when they shall exclude you and shall revile you and cast out your name as evil for the Son of man's sake."

Jesus said to count it as blessing when men hated them, excluded them, reviled them, called their names as evil, generally persecuted them, as the account in Matthew stated, because they were His followers.

(23) "Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For behold, your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets."

As Matthew had stated also, Jesus said to rejoice and count it as joy if they were so persecuted as they were in great company with the prophets before them who had also been persecuted by the fathers of those who persecuted them now, and their reward in heaven would be great.

(24) "But woe to you who are rich for you have received your consolation."

In Luke's retelling of the Beatitudes, he added something that Matthew did not, sort of opposite woes to the blessings of the Beatitudes.  Jesus proclaimed woe to the rich because they had already received their reward, meaning if that is what they solely sought in life and achieved it, then that was their reward, their riches.  They had no other reward in heaven to look forward to.

(25) "Woe to you who are full! For you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now! For you shall mourn and weep."

Jesus proclaimed woe to those who were full, that is, those who were filled and satisfied with all the material things in life, for they would one day hunger for Jesus and His salvation, for nothing on earth can fill the empty soul but Jesus.  In the same sense, woe to those who were happy with material things and the filling of their lustful desires, for they would one day mourn when it was not enough to save their eternal souls.

(26) "Woe to you when all men shall speak well of you! For so did their fathers to the false prophets."

Woe to those whom all men like and speak well of.  If you are shallow and sit on the fence, trying to please all, then you are really good for nothing.  Jesus compared that kind of people to false prophets, those who told people what they wanted to hear, rather than the truth.  In 2 Timothy 4:3-4, Paul condemned those who looked for teachers who would tell them good things they wanted to hear and turned from the truth.  In Revelation 3:16, God said He wanted to spew the lukewarm, those who were neither hot nor cold, who stood for nothing, out of His mouth!

(27) "But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to them who hate you."

Jesus went on to tell His disciples and the multitude with them, to all who had ears to hear and understand, that they should love their enemies and do good to those who hated them.  When you think of your enemy as a poor lost soul who is trying to fill his life with all the wrong things and will ultimately burn eternally in hell, it becomes easy to pity him and love him.

(28) "Bless those who curse you and pray for those who spitefully use you."

In the same way, love and pray for those who curse you and use you, for as St. Paul would later explain to us, "we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."  These people are being led by demonic spirits, and Satan himself, and for that reason, we should pity them and love them and pray for them.

(29) "And to him who strikes you on the cheek offer also the other, and to him who takes away your cloak do not forbid your coat also."

Jesus said if someone struck you on the cheek, you should offer your other cheek as well, rather than react in kind.  With this example, He taught us patience in bearing attacks and injuries, not to seek private revenge nor to indulge a hot temper.  In like manner, if someone takes something from you, don't respond in anger and revenge, but rather do good to them and offer them something else they might need.

(30) "Give to every man who asks of you, and of him who takes away your goods do not ask them back."

Jesus instructed us to give to everyone who asked of us and not to ask for it or anything they took back.  I'm sure there are limits to this.  I can't imagine Jesus intended to have us let someone take advantage and constantly take from us and our needs.  However, it is for God to judge the heart.  The point is we must be willing to do good and to give within our power to do so, even to our enemies, and should never ask anything in return.  Give graciously and generously, expecting nothing in return.

(31) "And as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise."

If only we always followed that one simple rule!  If we merely treated others as we wished to be treated in similar circumstances, that could cure almost every problem in the world today!

(32) "For if you love those who love you, what good is that? For sinners also love those who love them."

Loving people who love you is a given, even among sinners, so that is nothing worthy of notice or reward.

(33) "And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit have you? For sinners also do the same."

Likewise, doing good to those people who do good to you is easy and of no particular merit, for everyone, including sinners, can easily do that.

(34) "And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit have you? For sinners also lend to sinners to receive as much again."

Lending or giving to someone from whom you expect to get something in return is of no special credit, for all people, including sinners, will give if they know they will get back.

(35) "But love your enemies and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return, and your reward shall be great and you shall be the children of the Highest for He is kind to the unthankful and the evil."

Jesus summarized all His previous examples of doing good by saying that we are to love our enemies and do good to them and lend or give to them, expecting nothing in return.  That is true giving and worthy of reward from God and we will show the world we belong to Him, the Most High, and He is a loving God who gives to all.

(36) "Therefore be merciful as your Father also is merciful."

Jesus instructed us to be merciful to others just as He is merciful to us.  How much have we received that we did not deserve?  As Christians, we should seek to be Christ-like and merciful to all whether they "deserve" it or not.

(37) "Judge not and you shall not be judged; condemn not and you shall not be condemned; forgive and you shall be forgiven."

Jesus told us not to judge others and we wouldn't be likewise judged.  He was not talking about judgment according to the law.  If a man kills another, we can certainly judge that as wrong.  However, we cannot judge the motives of another.  The old adage about not judging until you have walked in the same shoes truly applies here.  It's easy to judge outward signs as not right according to how we think they should be, and therefore equally easy for us to be therefore judged as hypocrites for none of us is perfect.  However, that is not to say that we don't have the right to judge policies that are anti-God, but we should be careful not to judge the person who may follow some of those policies, not knowing their hearts and why they think the way they do.  People judge for themselves based on their life experiences and what they see and hear.  And some of those judgments may be morally wrong, but it is not up to us to judge another's heart and motives.  An action may be deemed wrong and I believe can be lovingly discussed, but we must always be careful not to judge a person's motives for why they think the way they do.  A perfect personal lived example of this was when people said the only reason I could not support Barack Obama was because he was black.  They would judge me racist and that was not true in the slightest way.  I didn't support him, just as I don't support Joe Biden, a white man, or Hillary Clinton, a white woman, and that is because of their Godless policies alone.  I fully support Justice Clarence Thomas and Dr. Ben Carson and Colonel Allen West.  I voted for Allen West in the Texas governor's Republican primary against a very popular incumbent.  I feel like I have achieved Martin Luther King's dream of man being judged by the content of his character and not by the color of his skin.  I'm afraid it's because of the racism of those judging me that they are only seeing color.  But that is a topic for another time.

Jesus also said not to condemn others.  That would be to take judgment to another level, not merely judging a person's actions, but totally condemning the whole person prejudicedly based on their actions, self-righteously dismissing others because they don't measure up to our standards.  We can so likely be condemned by others for the exact same reasons.  Finally, we are to forgive others and we shall be forgiven.  We are forgiven!  By our heavenly Father, although we don't deserve it in the slightest, so we must be willing to forgive others even if we think they don't "deserve" it.  Elsewhere, when teaching us how to pray, Jesus said in Matthew 6:15 that if you don't forgive others, your heavenly Father will not forgive you.  God so loved us that even when we were sinners against Him, He sent Christ to die for us (Romans 5:8).  Likewise, we are to love those who sinned against us and forgive them.  If we have no love for our brother, we cannot know God, for God is love (1 John 4:8).

(38) "Give and it shall be given to you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom.  For with the same measure that you use it shall be measured back to you."

Jesus said to give liberally and you would receive back so much blessing that if it were something to be measured that you were holding, it would be pressed down and shaken to allow more, and it would be running over into your lap.  He said the same either generous or stingy measure by which we used to give, that is how it would be measured back to us.  Therefore, give liberally!

(39) And He spoke a parable to them, "Can the blind lead the blind? Shall they not both fall into the ditch?"

Jesus then spoke a proverb or saying, called a parable, asking if the blind could truly lead the blind.  Wouldn't they both fall into the ditch, He reasoned.  He meant that one could not teach what he himself did not know.  One who was not guided by the Holy Spirit and the wisdom of God certainly could not judge another in spiritual matters.  One in spiritual darkness himself would only lead both himself and the one he judged and sought to counsel into further darkness, endangering both souls with eternal damnation.  

(40) "The disciple is not above his master, but everyone who is perfect will be as his master."

Jesus's point was that no student was more knowledgeable than his teacher.  If his teacher was ignorant, then the student would learn those same ignorant ways.  Everyone who was a perfect student would be as his teacher was.  The spiritually blind teacher would lead the spiritually blind student into further spiritual darkness, eventually falling into the ditch of hell.

(41) "And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the beam that is in your own eye?"

Jesus asked why it was that we, all His listeners and even His readers today, are so quick to spot the small sin in another, but so blind to our own big sins.  

(42) "Or how can you say to your brother, "Brother, let me pull out the speck that is in your eye," when you yourself do not see the beam that is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First cast the beam out of your own eye and then you will see clearly to pull out the speck that is in your brother's eye."

How can we possibly see clearly enough to correct someone's small sin when we ourselves are so clouded by our own huge sins?  Jesus called us hypocrites who do that.  We must first reform ourselves before we can see clearly to ever help others.  While all sins are equal in that they all separate us from God, there are some sins that are worse than others in God's eyes, and one of the worst is pride, as we read in many places in scripture.  Proverbs 16:5 says, "Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord," but there are many others.  Enter pride and proud into a search of the Bible and you'll come up with about a hundred such verses.  Pride in ourselves to think we know the spiritual answers in order to judge the sins of another is a perfect example of a log in our eyes trying to remove the speck in others'.

(43) "For a good tree does not bring forth corrupt fruit, neither does a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit."

As a good tree will not bring forth rotten fruit, so a righteous man will not bring forth fruit of judgment, gossip, and censure of the faults of others.  A bad tree cannot bring forth good fruit just as the blind cannot lead the blind and a corrupt man cannot righteously lead another.

(44) "For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush."

A tree is known by its fruits.  When one sees a healthy tree with lots of apples, he knows right away it's an apple tree, not so much when he sees an unhealthy one with no fruit.  When he sees a tree full of thorns, he does not expect to find good apples.

(45) "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth that which is evil; for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks."

As a tree is known by its fruits, so a man will be known by his.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart will bring forth good things and an evil man out of what is in his heart will bring forth evil.  A man's mouth will speak what is in his heart.

(46) "And why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do the things which I say?"

However, people might use empty words; Jesus asked why they would call Him Lord but not do what He taught.  God judges the heart and the fruit or actions of a person, not just his words.

(47) "Whoever comes to Me and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like. (48) He is like a man who built a house and dug deep and laid the foundation on a rock; and when the flood arose the stream beat vehemently on that house and could not shake it for it was founded on a rock."

Jesus compared a person who came to Him, listened to Him, and did what He said, to a person who built his home with a deep foundation in rock.  When a flood came and rushing water beat against his house, it could not shake it because of its foundation in rock.  That person who took the time to dig deep into Christ's word and to plant it deep in his heart, doing what He said, would be providing a firm foundation that would withstand the flood of evil that might come his way.

(49) "But he who hears and does not do is like a man who without a foundation built a house on the earth, against which the stream beat vehemently and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great."

On the other hand, one who heard Christ's word but did not do what He said was like a man who built his house on the dirt with no foundation.  When the flood came upon that house, it immediately fell and was completely destroyed.  When there is no strong foundation in Christ, the flood of evil that will surely come will destroy us.  Standing firm on the rock Jesus Christ, we will be able to ride out every storm of evil that comes our way and find refuge, rest, and peace in Jesus.

Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:

(Mark 13:1) And as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, "Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!"

At the end of the last chapter, Jesus had been teaching in the temple.  He now left the temple and one of His disciples remarked to Him about the magnificence of the temple and its stones.  It was indeed a beautiful building with stones of enormous size.  The historian Josephus said that the massive stones were white and fifty feet long, twenty-four wide, and sixteen thick.  The disciple marveled at the beauty of the white buildings and the enormous size of the stones.

(2) And Jesus, answering, said to him, "See these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down."

Jesus told the disciple to behold how beautiful and strong the buildings were.  The disciple surely thought the buildings were of such grandeur and especially strength that they would likely stand for generations to come.  However, Jesus told him it would be destroyed and there wouldn't be left one stone upon another that won't have been thrown down.

(3) And as He sat upon the Mount of Olives across from the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew, asked Him privately, (4) "Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?"

Jesus then sat upon the Mount of Olives which was directly east of the temple where He had a good view of the temple.  Peter, Andrew, James, and John came to Him privately away from the rest of the disciples and asked Him when the things He spoke of would happen and what would be the sign of its coming.

(5) And Jesus, answering them, began to say, "Take heed, lest any man deceive you."

Jesus began His answer with a warning that they should watch out that no one deceived them.

(6) "For many shall come in My name, saying, 'I am Christ,' and shall deceive many."

Jesus warned that there would come many false Christs claiming to be the Messiah.  The Jews, having rejected the true Messiah, would perhaps be more susceptible to believing a false Christ.

(7) "And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be troubled, for these things must be, but the end won't be yet."

Jesus told them they would hear of wars and rumors of wars, but they were not to be troubled by those.  They would happen, but it did not mean the end of the state of Israel at that time.

(8) "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in diverse places, and there shall be famines and troubles; these are the beginnings of sorrows."

Nations and kingdoms would indeed rise up against one another.  There would be earthquakes in different places, as well as famines and other troubles, and those would be the beginning of the sorrows to come to Israel.

(9) "But take heed to yourselves, for they shall deliver you up to councils, and in the synagogues you will be beaten, and you will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony against them."

Jesus told them to watch out for themselves as they would be delivered up to councils and they would be beaten.  They would be brought before rulers and kings for Christ's sake, for professing Him and preaching His gospel, and that would, of course, be a testimony against those who rejected their message of Christ.

(10) "And the gospel must first be proclaimed among all nations."

Jesus said that before the destruction of Jerusalem would come, the gospel must first be proclaimed to all the nations, at least all the ones in their part of the world which was all they knew.

(11) "But when they lead and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand about what you will speak, nor premeditate, but whatever is given you in that hour, speak that, for it is not you who speaks, but the Holy Ghost."

Jesus told the disciples that when they were indeed delivered up to councils, rulers, and kings, they were not to be anxious and concern themselves with what to say, but the Holy Spirit would give them the words to speak, and they were to speak those boldly and with confidence.

(12) "Now brother will betray brother to death, and father, his son, and children will rise up against parents, and will cause them to be put to death."

There would be such a rage against Christ and His gospel, that even close relations would have their close relatives put to death because of Him.

(13) "And you will be hated of all for My name's sake, but he who endures to the end shall be saved."

Jesus warned that they would be hated by all men because of Jesus and His gospel, but He gave them encouragement, saying that whoever endured all the afflictions and persevered in the faith of Christ would be saved with an everlasting salvation.

(14) "But when you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judaea flee to the mountains."

The Jews had been rebelling against the Romans, as well as persecuting Christians, and Jesus warned that when they saw the abomination of desolation, the abomination of Roman soldiers plowing through their holy city bringing desolation, they were to flee to the mountains.  This had been prophesied by the prophet Daniel in Daniel 9:27.  When they saw this unfold, those who were in Judaea should run for the hills and mountains.  "Let the reader understand" appears to be a parenthetical statement made by Mark, rather than the words of Jesus.  However, Matthew said something similar when relating his account of this warning by Jesus, so perhaps Jesus did say it, but His usual words were "He who has ears, let him hear."  It doesn't seem right that He would say that a reader understand, unless He was speaking of understanding the prophecy of Daniel, which would make sense.  Since two Gospel writers wrote it, it does begin to make sense that Jesus said it about the prophecy of Daniel, as it wasn't a completely direct and clear prophecy:

"And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week, and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease; and for the overspreading of abominations, he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate." - Daniel 9:27

(15) "And let him who is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter to take anything out of his house."

Jesus had just warned that all in Judaea should flee to the mountains.  He added further that they should not take the time to go back into their houses to take anything with them.

(16) "And let him who is in the field not turn back again to take up his garment."

Furthermore, if any person was working in the field, he should not take even what little time it would be to grab any outerwear.

(17) "But woe to those who are with child and to those who are nursing in those days."

Jesus lamented the situation of pregnant and nursing mothers in those days because it would be difficult for them to flee in haste, making it more likely they would fall into the hands of the enemy.

(18) "And pray that your flight be not in the winter."

Having to flee in the winter would be very difficult, too, in inclement weather on bad roads.

(19) "For in those days shall be affliction such as has not been from the beginning of the creation which God created until this time, neither shall be."

Jesus warned that in those days there would be so much affliction and misery the likes of which had not been seen since the beginning of time and would not be seen again. 

(20) "And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake whom He has chosen, He has shortened the days."

Jesus said that unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be able to survive.  However, for His chosen elect, the Lord would shorten those days.  Note that Jesus spoke in the past tense.  The Lord had already shortened the days for His elect.  This destruction was already a done deal, but the Lord shortened it to save His remnant, as He always does.  He never entirely destroys or allows His chosen people to be completely destroyed.

(21) "And then if any man says to you, 'Lo, here is Christ,' or 'Lo, there,' do not believe him. (22) For false Christs and false prophets shall rise and will show signs and wonders to seduce, if possible, even the elect."

Jesus warned that there would arise men claiming to be Christ and prophets declaring the Messiah was there to deliver them from their distress.  They would even show signs and wonders to seduce the people to believe them, some of them so convincing, that if it were possible, they might even deceive the elect.  Scripture says it is not possible to those who are truly saved:

"My sheep hear My voice and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone pluck them out of My hand. My Father who gave them to Me is greater than all, and no one is able to pluck them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are One." - John 10:27-30

"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Jesus Christ our Lord." - Romans 8:38-39

(23) "But take heed; behold, I have foretold you all things."

Jesus warned His disciples to give careful attention to the things He had told them so that they might be prepared when they saw the signs and be on guard against every deception and temptation.  Jesus told them He had told them all things regarding their question about when the destruction of the temple would be.

(24) "But in those days after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light."

This is where Jesus seemed to take a turn and begin talking about His second coming.  He had indeed made a point to tell them He had foretold all things, as if that was the end of that one discussion, and now He began another topic.  He spoke of the days after that tribulation which could very logically mean a long time afterward at the end of the world.  However, the same account in Matthew said that Jesus said, "Immediately after the tribulation of those days..."  

That is the reason I really loved my chronological Bible study because it would include all these accounts together.  However, I was challenged to read the gospel accounts to "see what Jesus said..." about certain things in our culture.  Reading just Mark's account would surely lead one to believe Jesus had to be talking about His second coming and the end of the world.  However, combined with Matthew's "Immediately," one might have a different take.

In my study of Matthew, I could see how the dust and smoke of complete destruction could black out the sun and moon.  However, John Gill, in his Exposition of the Bible, wrote that this and the following few verses were meant to be symbolic.  After the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple of God, the Shekinah glory of the Lord, represented by the sun, was gone.  All symbols of the Lord's divine presence were destroyed.  The moon would not give her light.  That light that shone in darkness, that light of the world, that goodness and knowledge of truth and life that was visible in the light, was now extinguished.

(25) "And the stars of heaven shall fall and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken."

Very reasonably, one can follow Gill's logic that this was symbolic and see that the stars of heaven might be the rabbis and teachers of God's Word, and that the powers that were present in that Word of truth would be shaken to the core.

(26) "And then they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. (27) And then He will send His angels and will gather together His elect from the four winds from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven."

Then would the Son of Man come with great power and glory, but not in a physical visible form, but as the Word that He has always been from the beginning.  This time it would not be for the Jews, God's chosen people, but He would send His messengers out to the four corners of the world, to the Gentiles, to the uttermost regions under heaven, to build His kingdom on earth, the Christian church.

Although Jesus's words clearly seem to be about the destruction of the Jewish state, that is not to say they can't also be about the second coming of Christ at the end.  In Mark's account, the disciples had asked when the falling of the temple that Jesus spoke about would occur and "...what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?"  However, in the account in Matthew, they had asked a bit more specifically than that, and asked, "...what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the world?"  I believe that, as often occurs in prophecy, it can refer to both the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world.  Often Jesus quoted as prophecy something that was fulfilled at that time it was originally quoted, but also referred to what was happening in His time.

(28) "Now learn a parable of the fig tree; when her branch is yet tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. (29) So you, in like manner, when you see these things come to pass, know that it is near, at the doors."

Jesus told His disciples that just as they recognized the signs when summer was near, when they saw the things He had spoken of, they would know that the destruction was near.

(30) "Verily, I say to you that this generation shall not pass till all these things be done."

Jesus did give them a window of time when the things He had spoken of would occur; the present generation of men would not completely pass away before those things would happen.

(31) "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away."

Jesus's prophetic words were so completely true that even as heaven and earth might pass away, His words never would.  The things He spoke of were absolutely sure to happen.

(32) "But of that day and hour no man knows, no, not the angels who are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father."

Although Jesus gave them a 40 year window of when those things would happen, He said that no one knew exactly when it would happen, not even Jesus at that time, but only His Father in heaven knew.  As God the Son in heaven, Jesus surely knew when they would happen, but as the Son of man on earth, He had not been granted that particular knowledge at that time.

(33) "Take heed, watch and pray, for you do not know when the time is."

Because they did not know when total destruction would happen, Jesus warned His disciples to be careful, watch for the signs, and pray.

(34) "It is as a man taking a far journey who left his house and left authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch."

Just as a man might take a far journey and leave his house under the authority of his servants, and left everyone to their work, and a doorkeeper to watch, so it would be when Jesus left them to carry on His ministry.

(35) "Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, in the evening, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning, (36) Lest coming suddenly, he finds you sleeping."

Jesus exhorted them to watch and be ready at all times of the day or night, lest they be found surprised and unprepared.

(37) "And what I say to you, I say to all, 'Watch!'"

I love this powerful end statement by Jesus.  What He had told those four disciples, He would tell everyone.  It was meant for even us today reading that message; we should always be mindful of the signs, and always be ready for Jesus.  The parable of the master of the house sounds like Jesus gone away and returning, finding people not ready for His return.  It doesn't have to be at Jesus's second coming; no one knows if he might meet Jesus when he dies unexpectedly.  We should always be ready for Jesus!  One of my favorite songs is this one by Casting Crowns, and it says it beautifully:

While You Were Sleeping

Oh, little town of Bethlehem, looks like another silent night. Above your deep and dreamless sleep, a giant star lights up the sky. And while you're lying in the dark, there shines an everlasting light, for the King has left His throne and is sleeping in a manger tonight, tonight. Oh, Bethlehem, what you have missed while you were sleeping, for God became a man and stepped into your world today. Oh, Bethlehem, you will go down in history as a city with no room for its King, while you were sleeping, while you were sleeping.

Oh, little town of Jerusalem, looks like another silent night. The Father gave His only Son. The way, the truth, the life had come, but there was no room for Him in the world He came to save. Jerusalem, what you have missed while you were sleeping. The Savior of the world is dying on your cross today. Jerusalem, you will go down in history as a city with no room for its King, while you were sleeping, while you were sleeping.

United States of America, looks like another silent night, as we're sung to sleep by philosophies that save the trees and kill the children. And while we're lying in the dark, there's a shout heard 'cross the eastern sky, for the Bridegroom has returned and has carried His bride away in the night, in the night. America, what will we miss while we are sleeping? Will Jesus come again and leave us slumbering where we lay? America, will we go down in history as a nation with no room for its King? Will we be sleeping? Will we be sleeping? United States of America, looks like another silent night.

Jesus's Twelve Apostles and His True Brothers and Sisters

Continuing a Bible study of the gospels:

(Mark 3:1) And He entered again into the synagogue, and there was a man there who had a withered hand.

In the last chapter of Mark, Jesus had come back into the city of Capernaum after a short stay in the wilderness, and He now went back into the synagogue there.  There was a man there who had a withered hand.

(2) And they watched Him, whether He would heal him on the sabbath day, that they might accuse Him.

The scribes and Pharisees who had been accusing Jesus's disciples of "work" on the Sabbath at the end of the last chapter, now watched Jesus closely to see if He would heal a man on the sabbath day.

(3) And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Stand forth."

Surely knowing what the scribes and Pharisees were thinking in their hearts, Jesus told the man with the withered hand to stand before them.

(4) And He said to them, "Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? To save life or to kill? But they held their peace.

Jesus asked the scribes and Pharisees whether it was lawful to do good on the sabbath days or to do evil.  Was it lawful to save a life or to kill?  They did not answer Him.

(5) And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch forth your hand." And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored whole as the other.

Jesus looked around at the scribes and Pharisees about Him, angry and distressed at them because they were so heartless they would not want to see a man healed just because it was on the Sabbath.  He then told the man with the withered hand to stretch it forth, and when he did, the hand was restored whole just as his other hand.

(6) And the Pharisees went forth, and immediately counseled with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.

The Pharisees who were supposed to be the oracles of the church, went out of the synagogue and met and counseled with the Herodians, who were supporters of the government.  Even though these two groups were usually at odds with each other, they found common ground in their desire to get rid of Jesus, and that is what they plotted together to do.

(7) But Jesus withdrew Himself with His disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea, (8) And from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and beyond Jordan, and those around Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things He did, came to Him.

Jesus, surely knowing the plotting against Him, withdrew from the city of Capernaum, and He and His disciples went to the seashore of the Sea of Galilee.  A great multitude of people followed Him from Galilee, from Jerusalem and Judea, from Idumea, which was Edom, and beyond the Jordan River, and from as far west as Tyre and Sidon.  When these people had heard what great things Jesus did, they came from far and wide to Him.

(9) And He spoke to His disciples that a small boat should wait on Him because of the multitude, lest they crowd Him.

Jesus told His disciples to get a small boat ready for Him in case the crowd of people began to press in too hard on Him.

(10) For He had healed many, so that they pressed upon Him to touch Him, as many as had plagues.

Because Jesus had healed many people, crowds of people with plagues or diseases pressed upon Him just to touch Him in hopes they would be healed by just His touch.

(11) And unclean spirits, when they saw Him, fell down before Him, and cried, saying, "You are the Son of God!"

The unclean spirits that possessed people in the crowd recognized Him, and the bodies they possessed fell before Him when they saw Him, crying out that He was the Son of God.  Evil spirits cannot stand in the presence of God; they are in complete subjection to Him.

(12) And He sternly charged them that they should not make Him known.

The spirits could not help but fall before Jesus, but He once again silenced them so that they would not make Him known to the people.  Evil spirits were certainly not the best preachers!

(13) And He went up in a mountain and called whom He wanted, and they came to Him. (14) And He ordained twelve that they should be with Him, and that He might send them forth to preach. (15) And to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out devils.

The account in Luke states Jesus went to the mountain to pray and stayed there all night.  When it was day, He called His disciples to Him, which were probably many followers in the beginning, and He chose among them twelve to be His righthand men, so to speak, men He could send out to preach, to heal, and to cast out devils.  Note He chose twelve to have that power; they wouldn't have naturally had the power to do such things without Jesus giving it to them.  Of course, the significance of the number twelve can't be overstated.  It was obviously the number of the twelve tribes of Israel.

(16) And Simon He surnamed Peter.

The first of the twelve disciples was Simon whom Jesus surnamed Peter; He was called Simon Peter, but most often just Peter.

(17) And James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James, and He surnamed them Boanerges, which is "Sons of Thunder."

Then Jesus called James and John and gave them the surname of Boanerges which meant "Sons of Thunder."

(18) And Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddeus, and Simon the Canaanite.

Jesus also called Andrew, who was Peter's brother, and Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, to distinguish him from James the brother of John.  Jesus also called Thaddeus and Simon the Canaanite, again an addition to distinguish him from Simon Peter.  He was also called Simon the Zealot.

(19) And Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. And they went into a house.

Lastly, Jesus chose Judas Iscariot, who, of course, would betray Him.  Certainly Jesus knew that when He chose Him, even though Judas could not have known it at that point, but He chose him to fulfill the purposes of God.  Jesus and the twelve disciples then went into a house, probably the house of Peter and Andrew which seems to be the place Jesus stayed when He was in Capernaum.

(20) And the multitude came together again so that they could not so much as eat bread.

When Jesus came back into town into the house, a crowd of people came together again to the house, so as He and His disciples could not even eat.

(21) And when His friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is beside Himself."

The word that was translated as "friends" meant a closer relationship than just a friend.  It meant those who were of Him, so either very close friends or more likely family and relatives, heard about what was going on with Jesus and went to get Him, for they said He must have been out of sorts, or out of His wits, as the word "existemi" more accurately meant.  Jesus's closest friends and relatives did not understand who He was at this point.

(22) And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils, He casts out devils."

The scribes from Jerusalem declared that Jesus had the spirit of Satan, and it was by his power that He was able to cast out demons.  That is the very reason that Jesus always made the evil spirits possessing people to be silent so as not to engender this belief, that they listened to Him because He was of them.  These last two verses illustrate what Jesus's own people thought of Him, that He was insane or possessed by demons.  John stated in John 1:11 that Jesus came into the world to His own, but they did not receive Him.

(23) And He called them and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan?"

To the scribes who said that Jesus cast out devils by the power of Beelzebub, He asked in parables, or metaphorically with illustrations, how it was that Satan could cast out himself.

(24) "And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand."

Jesus continued with His illustration of that fact by comparing it to a kingdom that was divided against itself that could then not stand.

(25) "And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand."

Likewise, Jesus told them a house divided against itself could not stand.

(26) "And if Satan rises up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end."

Jesus showed them the logical conclusion to their absurd argument that He cast out devils by the devil.  If the prince of the devils fought against his devils, and his kingdom was divided, he could not stand and would be soon destroyed.

(27) "No man can enter into a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house."

Having proven the point that He could not be casting out demons by the power of the prince of the demons because Satan would be undoing his own work, He went on to say that no man could enter into a strong man's house with the intention of seizing his goods without first binding the strong man.  The point was that Jesus could not use the strong man's own power to plunder the strong man (Satan); He must bind the strong man in order to free the one possessed by him.

(28) "Verily, I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men and whatever blasphemies with which they shall blaspheme."

Jesus said that all sins and even blasphemies against God would be forgiven a man, obviously being after he repented of those things and brought Jesus into his heart.

(29) "But he who blasphemes against the Holy Ghost never has forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation," (30) Because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

Because the scribes had said that Jesus had an unclean spirit, He sternly warned them.  He said any sin against Him, even blasphemies against Him and Father God, could be forgiven, but they could never be forgiven for blaspheming the Holy Spirit.  I believe to blaspheme the Holy Spirit one has to know the Holy Spirit.  For instance, I believe a sinner could utter blasphemies against God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, railing against them all because he "knows not what he does" (Luke 23:34).  I certainly don't want to speak for Jesus something that is not true, but in my heart I truly believe this to be the case.  The reason Jesus was warning the scribes was that they were supposed to know the Holy Spirit of God.  Once a person has accepted Jesus into his heart and has the gift of the Holy Spirit, he intimately knows the Spirit, and at that point knows what he does when he blasphemes the Spirit of God.  Although the scribes did not yet have Jesus, they supposedly knew God and His word, and should have known the Spirit of God; therefore Jesus sternly warned them not to blaspheme the Spirit they should know and recognize in Him.

(31) There came then His brothers and His mother, and standing outside, sent to Him, calling Him.

It appears that at this point Jesus was still in Peter's house.  His mother and His brothers came to the house and from outside, they sent word calling Him to them.  Whether these were His blood brothers, or half-brothers as they could only be as sons of Mary and Joseph, or just relatives, they were certainly family accompanying His mother.  In verse 21 we were told Jesus's family was trying to take hold of Him because they thought He was "beside Himself," and that might have been the intention of His brothers at this point.

(32) And the multitude sat around Him, and they said to Him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers outside are seeking You."

A multitude of people sat around Jesus listening to Him preach and teach.  The message came through that Jesus's mother and brothers were outside the house looking for Him.

(33) And He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" 

Jesus answered those who had sent Him the message asking the question just who were His mother and His brothers?

(34) And He looked around at them who sat around Him, and said, "Behold My mother and My brothers! (35) For whoever shall do the will of God is My brother, and My sister, and mother."

After He posed the question, Jesus looked around at the people sitting around Him, and declared that they were His mother and brothers, for whoever did the will of His Father in heaven were His brother, sister, or mother.  They were certainly His spiritual brothers and sisters, Christian brothers and sisters.  In declaring this, Jesus indicated that His true spiritual disciples were closer brothers and sisters than His fleshly family.  Furthermore, if it was His fleshly family's intention to take Him away at that point, they certainly were not doing the will of God.  I don't believe Jesus was being disrespectful to His mother, but was rather showering respect on His disciples and followers.  His mother did become a believer and follower, and therefore a spiritual sister, as well; but if she hadn't, Jesus had made it clear before that anyone who loved family more than Him (Matthew 10:37) was not worthy of Him.  Likewise, those who loved Him more than family who might oppose Him, were worthy to be called His true brothers and sisters.