05-28-2022, 03:51 PM
When you read the parallel passages between Matthew, Mark and Luke, you get a small conflict about where Jesus is on the map about this time. Matthew and Mark are thinking in Hebrew terms, so they mention that Jesus is leaving the old Jericho of ancient days. Luke is writing for a Roman sponsor, so he refers to Jesus approaching the new Jericho Herod had built as a winter palace, and had become a center of Roman activity in that area.
Between the two sites along the main road we discover a pair of blind men, one of them named Bartimaeus. Jesus healed them. While certainly a whole lot better than alms in a bowl, it was small change for the Kingdom when the real treasure was two souls who truly believed in the Messiah. However noisy was the crowd that got their attention in the first place, it now became a raucous celebration of His power as they joined the march.
Toward the New Jericho, Herod had planted a long row of sycamore trees. They would grow faster here in the valley than anywhere else in Palestine, so were quite large by now. As they approached the city, the chief customs contractor for Herod (this is a major trade route) got wind of this famous rabbi approaching and tried to see Him. However, being too short, he decided to run ahead of the crowd and climb up on some of the lower limbs that sprouted from these sycamores. He didn't really have to get very high to see over the heads of the people in the crowd.
Not only did Zacchaeus see Jesus, but Jesus claimed that He had come to see Zacchaeus! This famous rabbi declared that He wanted this customs chief to host Him and His disciples for the night. Of course he was wealthy enough to do so; not only did he get a hefty cut of the taxes, but since he had employees doing all the work, he was a man of leisure who could invest his wealth wisely based on his knowledge of tax policy and business. But he was also quite the social outcast among Jews, and to finally be treated as a man worthy of such company was thrilling to him.
The Pharisees in the crowd fussed about Jesus socializing with a hated tax collector. Men like him were treated as Gentiles, total outcasts. It was deeply embarrassing for them that a Jew could become wealthy without bearing the burden of their silly Talmudic rules. His was dirty money in their eyes, not a blessing from God.
Jesus and the Twelve spent the balance of the day with him. After hearing Jesus teach in person, the man arose at dinner and announced that he would give half of his substantial wealth to the poor. Further, he would go back and review his collections. If there was anywhere that he had unjustly confiscated property for a tax debt, it wasn't just a fraud -- a 20% bonus added to the original. No, he would treat it as robbery, returning four times the amount.
Jesus declared that a soul had been delivered that day. He was not a true Son of Abraham, something far more significant than merely saying he was a Son of the Law. This man was walking the faith of Abraham, the one who was ready to sacrifice his own son at God's whim. Jesus came seeking among His nation for those who had such faith, but had been pushed aside by false rules of religion.
Now that Jesus had such a wealth and politically important backer, the throng that accompanied Him was really feeling the sense of power about what was coming. So, the next day they began the long ascent toward Jerusalem. The initial path was rocky and dusty, a steep climb, a narrow road cut into the walls of a tight rocky gorge. The group would have spread out along the trail. Taking a final climb over a dry ridge, they came to a greener area that was flatter for a while.
It would take most of the day to reach Jerusalem, a 3000 foot climb in a dozen or so miles of linear distance. They would typically stop to rest and have lunch about two-thirds of the way up. Ruins and tradition indicate there were inns at this point, selling food as well. There Jesus offered another parable.
It's based on the infamous dispute between Herod Antipas and his brother Archelaus over the portion of the kingdom given to the former by the bequest of their father, Herod the Great. Because Antipas had to stand before Caesar in Rome for this challenge, he was gone a few years. He left portions of his royal affairs in the hands of noble managers in his absence, just in case he didn't return alive.
Jesus takes off on this well known practice by using the image of the mina -- a sum of money equivalent to 100 days common labor wages. Each of the ten trustees received a mina to keep for the king.
Antipas did eventually win his case and return. In the parable, the man came back as king and called in his trustees to account for what they had managed. The first had invested wisely and was able to return ten times the amount granted. He was promoted to having stewardship of ten cities. The next was a little less successful, but still had five minas. He was promoted to managing five cities in the realm. A third came with the exact amount he was given. It was wrapped in a cloth and had been hidden safely.
The steward claimed that he knew this money was not his, and so he had to be careful dealing with a ruler who was known for seizing property on the smallest pretext. It was a sarcastic insult. And the king decided he would judge the man based on his own words. Why didn't the servant at least have the sense to invest it in banking, so that the king could collect a little interest on it? We're talking several years of absence, so it would be worth a bit more than one mina.
So he ordered the man relieved of his fearful obligation and the money was handed over to the first one, so that he now managed eleven. Better to invest it with the man who brought the best return.
The lesson should be obvious. The people to whom God had entrusted great blessings were obliged to use those blessings to increase the treasure of the Messianic Kingdom -- souls who would be drawn by the testimony of the blessings and become faithful. Israel had failed in this duty. To those who never quite understand why they were entrusted with so much, what little they had would be taken from them. Israel would lose their place as God's household on earth. Faith is the biggest blessing of all, but if you can't embrace it as yours, then it won't matter whatever else God gives you. It accomplishes nothing. Those who enrich the Kingdom of Heaven will see their lives filled with power.
To nail it down clearly, Jesus refers to the large block of Jewish activists who supported Archelaus in his suit against Antipas. We should not doubt that when Antipas returned from Rome, a good many political opponents were executed. What do you think God will do to those who opposed the idea of Jesus as the Messiah? He was referring to the Jewish rulers.
Jesus is warning His followers that the Kingdom was not what they were expecting, and that it was not going to be immediate. He would have to go away and win a highly contested bequest from His Father. In the meantime, He expected His supporters to serve as managers. They would take the rich faith and other blessings from His hand and grow a Kingdom worthy of His taking possession when He returned. He expects His servants to take what they have and bring in far more wealth -- committed covenant believers.
Again, we know the teaching was caught in their hearts, saved up for the day when their brains would finally surrender and understand the truth. Until then, it was just another enigmatic story Jesus told them.
Between the two sites along the main road we discover a pair of blind men, one of them named Bartimaeus. Jesus healed them. While certainly a whole lot better than alms in a bowl, it was small change for the Kingdom when the real treasure was two souls who truly believed in the Messiah. However noisy was the crowd that got their attention in the first place, it now became a raucous celebration of His power as they joined the march.
Toward the New Jericho, Herod had planted a long row of sycamore trees. They would grow faster here in the valley than anywhere else in Palestine, so were quite large by now. As they approached the city, the chief customs contractor for Herod (this is a major trade route) got wind of this famous rabbi approaching and tried to see Him. However, being too short, he decided to run ahead of the crowd and climb up on some of the lower limbs that sprouted from these sycamores. He didn't really have to get very high to see over the heads of the people in the crowd.
Not only did Zacchaeus see Jesus, but Jesus claimed that He had come to see Zacchaeus! This famous rabbi declared that He wanted this customs chief to host Him and His disciples for the night. Of course he was wealthy enough to do so; not only did he get a hefty cut of the taxes, but since he had employees doing all the work, he was a man of leisure who could invest his wealth wisely based on his knowledge of tax policy and business. But he was also quite the social outcast among Jews, and to finally be treated as a man worthy of such company was thrilling to him.
The Pharisees in the crowd fussed about Jesus socializing with a hated tax collector. Men like him were treated as Gentiles, total outcasts. It was deeply embarrassing for them that a Jew could become wealthy without bearing the burden of their silly Talmudic rules. His was dirty money in their eyes, not a blessing from God.
Jesus and the Twelve spent the balance of the day with him. After hearing Jesus teach in person, the man arose at dinner and announced that he would give half of his substantial wealth to the poor. Further, he would go back and review his collections. If there was anywhere that he had unjustly confiscated property for a tax debt, it wasn't just a fraud -- a 20% bonus added to the original. No, he would treat it as robbery, returning four times the amount.
Jesus declared that a soul had been delivered that day. He was not a true Son of Abraham, something far more significant than merely saying he was a Son of the Law. This man was walking the faith of Abraham, the one who was ready to sacrifice his own son at God's whim. Jesus came seeking among His nation for those who had such faith, but had been pushed aside by false rules of religion.
Now that Jesus had such a wealth and politically important backer, the throng that accompanied Him was really feeling the sense of power about what was coming. So, the next day they began the long ascent toward Jerusalem. The initial path was rocky and dusty, a steep climb, a narrow road cut into the walls of a tight rocky gorge. The group would have spread out along the trail. Taking a final climb over a dry ridge, they came to a greener area that was flatter for a while.
It would take most of the day to reach Jerusalem, a 3000 foot climb in a dozen or so miles of linear distance. They would typically stop to rest and have lunch about two-thirds of the way up. Ruins and tradition indicate there were inns at this point, selling food as well. There Jesus offered another parable.
It's based on the infamous dispute between Herod Antipas and his brother Archelaus over the portion of the kingdom given to the former by the bequest of their father, Herod the Great. Because Antipas had to stand before Caesar in Rome for this challenge, he was gone a few years. He left portions of his royal affairs in the hands of noble managers in his absence, just in case he didn't return alive.
Jesus takes off on this well known practice by using the image of the mina -- a sum of money equivalent to 100 days common labor wages. Each of the ten trustees received a mina to keep for the king.
Antipas did eventually win his case and return. In the parable, the man came back as king and called in his trustees to account for what they had managed. The first had invested wisely and was able to return ten times the amount granted. He was promoted to having stewardship of ten cities. The next was a little less successful, but still had five minas. He was promoted to managing five cities in the realm. A third came with the exact amount he was given. It was wrapped in a cloth and had been hidden safely.
The steward claimed that he knew this money was not his, and so he had to be careful dealing with a ruler who was known for seizing property on the smallest pretext. It was a sarcastic insult. And the king decided he would judge the man based on his own words. Why didn't the servant at least have the sense to invest it in banking, so that the king could collect a little interest on it? We're talking several years of absence, so it would be worth a bit more than one mina.
So he ordered the man relieved of his fearful obligation and the money was handed over to the first one, so that he now managed eleven. Better to invest it with the man who brought the best return.
The lesson should be obvious. The people to whom God had entrusted great blessings were obliged to use those blessings to increase the treasure of the Messianic Kingdom -- souls who would be drawn by the testimony of the blessings and become faithful. Israel had failed in this duty. To those who never quite understand why they were entrusted with so much, what little they had would be taken from them. Israel would lose their place as God's household on earth. Faith is the biggest blessing of all, but if you can't embrace it as yours, then it won't matter whatever else God gives you. It accomplishes nothing. Those who enrich the Kingdom of Heaven will see their lives filled with power.
To nail it down clearly, Jesus refers to the large block of Jewish activists who supported Archelaus in his suit against Antipas. We should not doubt that when Antipas returned from Rome, a good many political opponents were executed. What do you think God will do to those who opposed the idea of Jesus as the Messiah? He was referring to the Jewish rulers.
Jesus is warning His followers that the Kingdom was not what they were expecting, and that it was not going to be immediate. He would have to go away and win a highly contested bequest from His Father. In the meantime, He expected His supporters to serve as managers. They would take the rich faith and other blessings from His hand and grow a Kingdom worthy of His taking possession when He returned. He expects His servants to take what they have and bring in far more wealth -- committed covenant believers.
Again, we know the teaching was caught in their hearts, saved up for the day when their brains would finally surrender and understand the truth. Until then, it was just another enigmatic story Jesus told them.