Monday, August 17, 2009

MkITN XIV, Verses 43 - 72

43. Even as He was saying these words, Judas appeared, accompanied by a huge crowd armed with swords and clubs. It was an unnecessarily large crowd, considering that they had come to arrest just one man. They were commissioned by the religious leaders, chief priests, teachers of the law, and the elders.

44. Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with the crowd. He had said to them "The one that I kiss is the man you want...arrest Him and lead Him away under guard."

45. So, walking right up to Jesus, Judas said, "Rabbi!"...and with these words he kissed Him.

46. Immediately the plan went into action. The men seized Jesus and arrested Him right on the spot.

47. As some of them grabbed Him and began to shove Him around, roughing Him up a bit, one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

48. "Seriously? This is the way it's going to be?" asked Jesus. "Am I leading a rebellion so dangerous that you think you have to come out with swords and clubs to capture Me?

49. I was with and among you every day...completely accessible...teaching in the temple courts. Why didn't you arrest me then? I'll tell you why...it's because none of this even makes sense unless you define it by what is written in the Scriptures, and the Scriptures must be fulfilled."

50. At these words everyone who was with Jesus, namely, His disciples, deserted him and fled.

51. A young man, wearing nothing but a sheet-like linen garment, was following Jesus, and somehow in all the chaos they seized him, as well.

52. But they inadvertently pulled the garment off of him, and he ran away, naked, leaving them holding the sheet.
53. Then they took Jesus straight to the High Priest, and all the chief priests, elders, and religious leaders came together for an impromptu trial.

54. Peter followed along after Him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the High Priest, where he sat with the guards and warmed himself by the fire.

55. The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were scrambling to find some credible evidence against Jesus so that they could put Him to death, but there was just none to be found.

56. Many people stepped up to testify falsely against Him, but their statements could not be corroborated.

57. Others, trying to get in on the action, stood up and gave this false testimony against Him:

58. "We heard Him say, 'I will personally destroy this Temple made with human hands, but in three days I will build another one that is not made with hands.' "

59. But even their stories did not match up.

60. Seeing that entertaining these bogus testimonies was getting them nowhere, the High Priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, directly, "Aren't You going to answer? What do You have to say to the accusations that these people are bringing up against You?"

61. But Jesus remained silent...detached...giving no answer, and appearing as though He was only there, physically. Again the High Priest addressed Him, asking, "Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?"

62. At this Jesus seemed to come back from wherever He had been, mentally, and said, "I am...and you will see the Son of Man sitting in the place of authority...the seat of the Mighty One...coming on the clouds of the heavenly realm."

63. And at this statement, the High Priest tore his clothes in reaction and protest to what he perceived to be blasphemy. "I think it's obvious that we don't need to hear any more witnesses", he declared.

64. "You have heard the obscenity for yourself...what do you think should be done?"
They unanimously decided that He was worthy of death.

65. And then a kind of frenzy set in among them. Some began to spit on him, and they blindfolded him, and began to violently pummel Him with their fists. All the while they were saying "Prophesy!" . Then the guards took Him away, and started another round of beatings.
66. Meanwhile, while Peter was down below in the courtyard, one of the High Priest's serving maids walked outside to where he was sitting.

67. And when she saw him warming himself, she just stopped in her tracks and stared at him. Unable to take her eyes off Him, she said, "Hey...you were with Jesus of Nazareth, too."

68. But he completely denied it, saying, "Lady, I don't even know what you're talking about." And getting up from there, he went outside the courtyard and walked into the vestibule. Just as he entered, he heard a rooster crow.

69. The girl spotted him again, and began to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them...one of Jesus' close followers!"

70. But again he denied it, insisting that he didn't know Him, and had never even met Him. After a short while, the bystanders began to say to Peter, "Come on, man...admit it...you really are one of them...you are a Galilean...your dialect shows it!"

71. Then he sharply retorted, "May I be damned if I'm not telling the truth! And you're all a bunch of damn liars! I'm telling you I don't know the son of a...I mean the man...I swear I don't know the man you're talking about!"

72. And as these harsh words were still lingering in the air, a rooster crowed for a second time. When he heard it, Peter instantly remembered how Jesus said to him, "Before the rooster crows twice, you will utterly deny Me...you will deny any connection to Me three times." And when the realization of what he had just said came crashing in on him, Peter broke down and cried loud and hard.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love the way that verse forty nine is penned here.

To understand that it was not God that was submitted to here but man is very important. The garden prayer had been answered, not so much to Jesus the man's satisfaction. But the same Jesus was carrying out the mission of being the surrogate for a Holy God who can not be comprehended. The implication here is that Jesus was bound by the words of the prophets who had spoken the understanding of their own imaginings in connection with what they could relate to from what their human spirit heard from the Holy Spirit at the time.

Each of the gospels fully addresses what was spoken of by earlier truth seekers who had reached a oneness , in thought at least with the Creator, concerning the communication of the Creator's love for creation. Had those prophets imagined it differently and so spoken differently then Jesus would have followed through on that different avenue of thought.

You have done an outstanding job in this and the other gospels in telling the most important part of the love story of Creator for created. The gospel of Luke has much to offer your excellent mind on these matters and will be a marvelous read for anyone who loves the Creator when you complete it. What you have done with these first three though should be enough for anyone wanting to know God through scripture to be blessed over and over again with each reading. Of course they will indeed need to be of the mind to truly love the matter of the Creator's creation.

You are moving the gospel forward in step with the understanding of modern humanity.

be blessed

Donald said...

Ah yes, Mark chapter 14.
Contained within its body is the first documented account of streaking.
And the folks in the '70s thought they were on to something new.
But seriously, the excellence continues.

SCRIBE said...

Such an incredible illustration and depiction of how the scriptures were played out and ultimately fulfilled. For had things not gone the way that Jesus expected,then there would have been disparity in that which was written and what actually took place.

Where many may see the floggers, assaulter, mockers as the enemies at work, they were simply carrying out the plan and purpose for which they were meant. Had they hesitated in doing that which they had a mind and plan to do, and that which was simply in their nature, then what we read in the text of the Bible today would very well tell a different story.

So, in all these things, we must arise and get to the place where we are comfortable and accepting of the plans of God and whomever HE desires to use to facilitate HIS Divine Will in our lives. We may not like it, and neither may it feel good, and certainly unjust on so many levels. Yet, in travailing from Glory to Deeper Dimensions of Glory, our story / destiny as well has already been written in advance, even though we have not read the story. However, when and as we are plugged into the proper frequencies and channels of the Holy Spirit so that the downloads of Wisdom and Direction is properly received and processed in our spirit man and conveyed to us on levels of practicality which we may comprehend and execute, Our Steps are Ordered, our Destiny is Fixed, and ultimately WE WIN through the overcoming.

In essence, those who act out as the enemies of our soul, when we rightly perceive it for what it is and begin to recognize and accept that it is indeed their part in the script (our script) that was written beforehand,we can arrive to a place of peace and declare "I AM STRONG, ALL IS WELL WITH ME, and Because it has already been written, IT IS INDEED FINISHED! Therefore, celebrate the haters and rejoice with and in Gladness that Supernatural Progress is made through these gruesome processes...

Hallelujah for Graduating With Grace!!! Yes, Lord, not my will, but YOUR WILL be done in, of, and through Me according to your Purpose for me and Your Greater Good! Amen.

Erik said...

I like the part ----

"Seriously? This is the way it's going to be?" asked Jesus. "Am I leading a rebellion so dangerous that you think you have to come out with swords and clubs to capture Me?

----------------
Paradigm shifts effect the foundation. Swords , clubs, guns, tanks, dollars & doughnuts are wall paint, that shudders , cracks , and peels when the foundations shift , as occurs as a matter of design. Line upon line, laid from the moving cornerstone, as The Wind/Word blows/moves within us. Lady Wisdom & God laid a fluid foundation intentionally. Swords to doughnuts respond with no effect on shift.

--- Then the part –

A young man, wearing nothing but a sheet-like linen garment, was following Jesus, and somehow in all the chaos they seized him, as well.

But they inadvertently pulled the garment off of him, and he ran away, naked, leaving them holding the sheet.
---------------------
Here, ‘they’ (ourselves , the paradigm people choose at some point in time of fear, doubt) grabbed the ‘man’ (each of us) in the chaos, the continual shifting in the fluid foundation, where the wind blows. However, in Grace and Mercy, our clothes (covering of shame and doubt are pulled off by our paradigm of doubt) and we are free to live in the paradigm of trust, righteousness, peace, and joy. In light, and light yoke is where we live Now.

We love Ourselves, We love God, We edify , We forgive, We energize, We know Peace, We touch, We know, We enter in, We receive and pour out, We Believe. We have long been free of those grave clothes, and Mark showed us this confirmation.

It was finished before The Cross -- The Cross a manifestation of that Foundation expressed before, now, and tomorrow.

Erik said...

What is expressed so exquisitely in The Bible, The Qur’an, Upanishads, is that We have all been free since the foundation. The grace, peace, love, connection expressed there and in other expressions is The Ground Floor, the Basic pieces of who We are.

We are energized to build upon that Love, Peace, Joy, Righteousness, Insight, Wisdom, to see God in Ourselves, everyone, and everything, while also our individual selves. To have identity, interact, love, connect, and commune while individualizing simultaneously each experience.

It has long been finished. The basic building blocks are what is expressed in Our Holy Tomes, they are the basic concepts to use as building blocks. They are means, not the end.

Love, Believe, Trust, Give, Receive, -- Create as The Creator creates.

Unknown said...

All I can see is the pummelling right now.

Amazing picture find, Bishop.

Anonymous said...

49. ...it's because none of this even makes sense unless you define it by what is written in the Scriptures, and the Scriptures must be fulfilled."

Unless you can accept the absurd you will never believe....

51. A young man, wearing nothing but a sheet-like linen garment, was following Jesus

What the heck is that about???

71. Then he sharply retorted, "May I be damned if I'm not telling the truth! And you're all a bunch of damn liars! I'm telling you I don't know the son of a...I mean the man...I swear I don't know the man you're talking about!"

At first I was shocked when I read this...then I did not like it and thought you had gone a little over the line even with paraphrasing....but now that I have thought about it a while I think it is quite appropriate in the context and considering the historical setting being restated in todays common way of thinking and speaking.

Peace,
Dennis

Unknown said...

Pastor Dennis, V.71, from what I know of sailors, this sounds pretty tame--smile! But then, the self-imposed correction could also be the first indication of a renewed mind wanting to be like his teacher, but not there yet.

Bold Bishop ...and real.

Bishop Jim Swilley said...

Thanks, everyone, for the beautiful and encouraging feedback...I really appreciate it...

P. Dennis, I've never understood why the writer thought it was necessary to include the story of the naked guy...I guess if I meditated on it I could come up with some revelation concerning it...maybe something to do with the Last Adam covering the first Adam's nakedness...

As far as the language used by Peter goes, I thought a lot about how I wanted to write it...I didn't want it to be too severe, but I didn't want it to sound too tame, either...part of the purpose of paraphrasing, for me, at least, is to reveal more of the earthiness of the story than we usually hear...

I think there are things that we just don't believe, or find hard to believe...it's hard to believe that Jesus really was tempted in all points...hard to accept that He could use a racial slur and call a woman a dog...hard to fathom why He nearly always sounded disrespectful to His mother when He addressed her...hard to believe that He actually had to learn obedience through the things He suffered...hard to believe that Peter, the water-walker, actually cursed and swore in his denial of Jesus...

As I always say, the humanity of the story is equally important as is the divinity of it...

And yet my knees still bow and my tongue still confesses to the glory of God that Jesus Christ is Lord...

Erik said...

I see the naked guy in here as the signal that once the 'letter' had hold of The Son of Man, who was about to transform the entirety of the letter, man was free from the shame and doubt that we cloaked ourselves in at the time we first perceived shame.

The 'letter' no longer had hold of us, then or retroactively. The Son of Man had hold of the 'letter'. We are naked and confidently righteous, as God seen us all along.

The King's Cup said...

Bishop, Sunday my heart heard your heart and I understand! My heart also heard our FATHER'S HEART and I rejoiced! Thank you for yeilding to HIS HEART and giving to us Bread to eat and Wine to drink! Know we all always keep you close in prayer!

Anonymous said...

I do love the realness of this and it is much easier for real people to relate to than the story book version of Peter without the profanity that is natural to both a man of his place in society and a man under pressure to convince others he is not associated with a rabbi.

This makes the reading of this gospel have the organic attraction that is right where we live.

Rock on

Izumi/JOY said...

I love v.43's imagery - how the huge crowd, armed with swords and clubs fulfilled Isaiah 41:7; vigilantes sent to seize the Dayspring. Especially riveting, because He was just one man (with a many membered body).

Reading v. 47, I can imagine the literal melee, and the symbolism of a sharp word cutting off the servant's ability to receive good news.

v.51 & 52 - what they did to the young man, they did to Jesus and His body; separated Him from His earth suit.

v.61 - love how this is written: ..."and appearing as though He was only there physically."

v.62 - where was His Spirit? On the mountain, hidden in glory?

Hearing Peter's heart racing like a chariot?

Communing with or crying for His friends?

Listening for the rooster's cue?

v.65 - He already prophesied to them, but their hatred was so intense, they projected their own blindness onto Him. (the Lamb which takes away the sin...)

v.66 - Wow... a disciple of the Most High encountered a maid of a high priest, and he denied His Master.

v.71 - It's partially true. Peter didn't REALLY know the son of Alpha; not in His fullness, anyway.

Sanctuary much, Bish.

Donald said...

I'm not one to rant and rave and "cuss a blue streak" all the time, but I'm also not as docile as some folks may believe, and I'm certainly not as reserved as I was raised to be. When I was a kid, we would get our tails whipped for saying dern.
But I work in the construction industry and I must confess that I have been known to "blow some folks hair back" a few times when things didn't go as planned.
When reading the exchange between Peter and those who confronted him about his relationship to Jesus, I couldn't help but believe that if it was written verbatim, there would have to be a "vulgar language" warning on the front of everyone's Bible.
Believe me, you couldn't put the words in there that were actually used that night. Well, you could, but it probably wouldn't be worth all the flack you would get.

Erik said...

Donald,

I have often found a bit of amusement in The Bible which is full of X rated and R rated stuff, that the language did not match the hypocrisy, deception, vilifying, fear mongering, violence, mental illness, etc.

Within all of that, beauty , ugliness, heroism, grace and mercy exist. The language does not match the extremes of experience described, it is like watching a great movie with writing that doesn't match. Cuffs don't match the collar.

Anonymous said...

I agree much of the "original" biblical language has been dressed up in religious clothing before brought out in public. maybe the young man was a picture of this bearing our real selves in the new order about to come into place as has been mentioned above. like I said after thinking about how this story would fit in modern setting with these same personalities playing each part I think MkITN in this section is right on. I can even see myself in my earlier walk with the Lord after leaving a similar arena of companions and characteristics saying the same thing here with Peter or something quite similar or worse.

This reminds me of what I hear in my mind every time I read Paul's statement in the popular translations saying "I consider all things rubbish or dung compared to knowing Christ" what I here after looking into the original language is a little stronger than that. something like Paul saying "apart from knowing Christ everything els is a bunch of sh*t" I really think that is what he would say if he were here today. Although brought up in religious circles; Paul was a pretty ruff character if you study his life.

Peace,
Dennis