• 04Feb

  “Lord, He Stinkest”: Jewish Burial Practices, Mourning Customs and Rabbinic Theology on John 11

  Life of Christ Comments Off on “Lord, He Stinkest”: Jewish Burial Practices, Mourning Customs and Rabbinic Theology on John 11

  By Gordon Franz

  As the Easter season approaches, Christians contemplate the two greatest events in human history: the death of the Lord Jesus in order to pay for our sins, as well as His victorious resurrection from the grave.

  The resurrection of the Lord Jesus was a watershed event in the history of the world. It was proof of His deity (Acts 2:32, 36; Rom. 1:4). It was proof that the payment for sin was complete and accepted by God (Rom. 4:25; 10:9; John 11:25). Finally, it was proof that the Word of God is true. It is the basis of the Christian message (Rom. 1:4; 3:24,25; 5:9,10), the fulfillment of Bible prophecy (Ps. 16:10, cf. Acts 2:22-32; 13:35-39), and the gospel (1 Cor. 15:1-4).

  A careful examination of the Scriptures reveals that the entire Trinity was involved in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: the Father (Ps. 16:10; Acts 2:24,27,30,31; 13:30; Rom. 6:4; Eph. 1:19,20), the Son (John 2:19-22; 10:17,18), and the Holy Spirit (Rom. 1:4; 8:11; 1 Pet. 3:18).

  John the Baptizer sent two of his disciples to ask Jesus if He really was the coming Messiah (Matt. 11:2,3). The Lord Jesus responds by saying, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see. The blind receive their sight and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me” (11:4-6).

  At this point in Jesus’ public ministry, there are two recorded accounts of individuals being raised from the dead. The first is Jairus’ daughter (Matt. 9:23-26 // Mark 5:35-43 // Luke 8:49-56) and the second is the son of the widow woman from Naim (Luke 7:11-16). Both miracles took place in Galilee: the first in Capernaum and the second in Naim. How many unrecorded resurrections there were, we do not know. When Jesus sent out His twelve disciples to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” He gave them power to raise people from the dead (Matt. 10:8).

  In the first half of his gospel, the Apostle John records seven miracles, or signs, to demonstrate that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing on Him, one could have eternal life (John 20:30, 31). The culminating miracle was the resurrection of His friend Lazarus from the dead (John 11).

  When John wrote the gospel that bears his name, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, his mind went back more than 60 years to this monumental event that he had personally witnessed. He records five Jewish burial practices, mourning customs, or a point of rabbinic theology. A Jewish person reading this gospel at the end of the First century AD would catch the significance to these practices and customs right away.

  The Lord Jesus deliberately did not rush to the aid of his dying friend because He wanted to show His disciples and the world, that He was Lord of Life and had power over death. He came to Bethany, on the backside of the Mount of Olives, on the fourth day after Lazarus died. As He approached the village, Martha, the sister of the deceased, went out to meet Jesus. Her sister, Mary, the text says, “was sitting in the house” (11:20).

  When a Jewish person died, the body was prepared for burial and it was placed in the grave soon after death. It was the custom to bury within 24 hours. After, the family would sit in their house and mourn, receiving the condolences of friends and neighbors for one week, this was called shiva. Mary and Martha were practicing this custom.

  The second custom hinted at in this passage was visiting the tomb. Martha returned to the village and told her sister that Jesus wanted to see her. He arose from her house and went to see Jesus. The mourners in the house thought she was going to visit the tomb of her brother and weep (11:31). Tractate Semahot (“Mourning”) says: “One may go out to the cemetery for three days to inspect the dead for a sign of life, without fear that this smacks of heathen practice. For it happened that a man was inspected after three days, and he went on to live twenty-five years; still another went on to have five children and died later” (8:1).

  The tomb of Lazarus was outside the village of Bethany. Jesus approaches it and commands the people to take away the stone (11:39). John recalled this event and described the tomb as a cave with a stone placed against it (11:38). It was a typical Jewish burial practice to have a tomb hewn out of bedrock. In fact, archaeologists have found hundreds of Jewish rock-hewn burial caves around Jerusalem, many of them on the Mount of Olives. When the Franciscans excavated Bethany in the 1950’s they found several Jewish rock-hewn burials outside the village. It was the practice to place a stone, either round or square, in front of the entrance to the tomb. This stone was called a golal.

  Rabbinic theology will help illustrate the fourth point. When Jesus commanded the people to remove the stone, Martha protested (I like the KJV rendering), “Lord he stinkest!” She points out that her brother had been dead four days and his body was beginning to rot (11:39). According to Rabbinic theology, the body began to decompose after the third day in order to expiate, or be punished for, the sins of the dead person. Jesus is about to demonstrate what He told the people in Jerusalem two years prior to this occasion. “Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth – those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of the condemnation” (5:25-29 NKJV).

  After the stone was removed, Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth” (11:43). The great evangelist of the 19^th century, D. L. Moody said, “Jesus had to call Lazarus by name because if he did not, everybody in the grave would have come forth!”

  Verse 44 describes the final burial practice. Lazarus is bound hand and foot with grave clothes and his face was wrapped with a cloth. The Jewish burial practice was to wash the body, anoint it with perfumes, then bind the hands and feet, as well as the jaw, in order to prevent the extremities from flying all over the place when rigor mortis sets in.

  The resurrection of Lazarus was a powerful testimony to the deity of the Lord Jesus and His ability to give eternal life to any and all who would put their trust in Him. In fact, John records that “many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him” (11:45), thus fulfilling the purpose of John’s gospel (20:30, 31). Have you trusted Him as your Savior?
• 04Feb

  The Feedings of the Multitudes – When, Where and Why?

  Life of Christ Comments Off on The Feedings of the Multitudes – When, Where and Why?

  By Gordon Franz

  All four gospels record the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 (Matt. 14:13-21; Mark 6:31-44; Luke 9:11-17; John 6:1-13), but only Matthew (15:29-39) and Mark (8:1-10) record the feeding of the 4,000. Are these feedings actually the same event as some critical scholars suggest, or are they two separate events? When did they take place and why does the Lord Jesus perform the same miracle twice? Who are the recipients of Jesus’ miracles? What actually took place on the hillside of Galilee and elsewhere?

  The early pilgrims to the Holy Land commemorated both feedings (they assumed there were two feedings) at the site of Heptapegon (Greek for “seven springs”). A pilgrim, tourist or student of the Bible Lands visiting Israel today would recognize the corrupted Arabic form of the name Tabgha where the Benedictine monastery and church are situated. Is this tradition accurate? The visitor to the site will enjoy the Benedictine hospitality as well as view the lovely mosaic floor from the Byzantine church that depicts a basket containing four loaves marked with crosses and two fish on each side.

  Ironically, the artisan who made this mosaic floor did not read his Bible or eat in any of the local fish restaurants while he was employed at the church. First, the Bible says there were five loaves of bread, not four. Second, the fish depicted on the floor has two dorsal fins. These are not indigenous to the Sea of Galilee! The “musht” fish (Arabic for “comb”), better known as the “Saint Peter’s Fish”, has only one dorsal fin. Does this site square with the information given to us in the Bible? If not, how and why did the tradition move there? Is it possible to identify the site where Jesus performed both miracles?

  THE FEEDING OF THE 5,000

  When did this event that place?

  This is probably the easiest question to answer because the Scriptures are quite clear on the matter. John 6:4 says, “Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near.” I will assume an AD 30 crucifixion and resurrection for the Lord Jesus. Thus the event took place in the Spring of AD 29, right before Passover. Another time indicator in the gospel accounts has to do with the grass. Matthew states that Jesus commands the multitudes to “sit down on the grass” (14:19). Mark says the grass is green (6:39) and John informs us there “was much grass in the place” (6:10). There is always lush vegetation in Galilee during the springtime, especially right before Passover. However, soon after Passover, the “hamsin” winds from the Arabian desert blow and kill off all the flowers and grass (cf. Ps. 103:15, 16; Isa. 40:6-8). If the Synoptic gospels are in chronological order at this point, and I believe they are, than the feeding of the 5,000 follows immediately after Jesus is informed of the beheading of John the Baptizer (Matt. 14:22). It also took place after the Twelve who had been sent out two-by-two to the “lost sheep of the House of Israel” returned for their “debriefing”. Jesus wanted to spend time along with His disciples.

  Where did this event take place?

  This is the most difficult question to answer and scholars have had a field day trying to answer it. The gospel records give several clues that need to be reconciled. First, the Synoptic gospel writers say it was a “deserted place” (Matt. 14:13, 15; Mark 6:31, 32, 35; Luke 9:10, 12). Luke adds that this deserted place belonged to the city of Bethsaida (9:10). Second, John informs us that it was up on a mountain (6:3) and after the feeding of the multitudes, the disciples “went down to the sea” (6:16). Third, Jesus and His disciples went out by boat to this place (Matt. 14:13; Mark 6:32) and after feeding of the multitude, Jesus immediately made His disciples get into their boat and head for the “other side” (Matt. 14:22; Mark 6:45; John 6:16, 17).

  Mendel Nun, a retired fisherman from Kibbutz Ein Gev, has done an extensive survey of the ancient harbors and anchorages around the Sea of Galilee. Due to abnormally low water levels at times, he went out and located and documented 16 ancient harbors and anchorages. It would make sense that Jesus and His fisherman-disciples would anchor their boat in one of these harbors. Fourth, the multitudes came from the surrounding cities on foot. It would be impossible for such a large number of people to cross the Jordan River in such a short time, especially during the spring flood stage. Thus the multitudes would have to be either from the east side of the Jordan River or the west. Fifth, after the disciples got into the boat to head for Bethsaida and the “other side” (Mark 6:45), a strong east wind that was “contrary”, or “against them” (Matt. 14:24; Mark 6:48), blew them off course to the Land of the Gennessaret and Capernaum (Matt. 14:34; Mark 6:53; John 6:17, 21). This eastern wind storm, called a “Sharkia”, suddenly blew off the Golan Heights. This storm could not have been the westerly winter storm that brought rain because the fisherman-disciples were well aware of how to interpret the appearance of the sky (Matt. 16:1-3). “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather; for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening’.” The fisherman-disciples would not have ventured out on the lake if they knew a westerly or northerly (cf. Prov. 25: 23) rain storm was coming. However, the easterly windstorms arise suddenly, unexpectedly, when the sky is clear. This is the storm the fisherman of the lake fear most. These are the Biblical requirements for the location of the feeding of the 5,000.

  Gustaf Dalman, in his Sacred Sites and Ways (p. 173), places the miraculous feeding at Mika’ ‘Edlo, between Kursi and Ein Gev, on the east side of the lake. The late Father Bargil Pixner, a Biblical geographer who lived at Tabgha, follows the traditional identification of this event and places it at Tabgha.

  One of the earliest pilgrim’s accounts for this event is Aetheria (AD 390). He states, “Not far from there (Capernaum) one can see the stone steps on which our Lord stood. Just there, above the Lake, there is a plain rich in vegetation, which has plenty of grass and palm trees. Next to them are seven fountains, each of which pours forth much water. In this field our Lord fed the people with five loaves and two fishes. Moreover, the stone on which the Lord placed the bread has been made into an altar. Visitors take away small pieces of this stone for their welfare, and all find it salutary. The public road where the Apostle Matthew had his seat of custom passed close to the walls of this church. From there towards the mountains which stand nearby, is the raised piece of ground where, after climbing up to it, the Savior delivered the Beatitudes. Not far from here, however, is a synagogue which our lord cursed.” There are three geographical features that are known today. The “stone steps” are clearly visible today on the lake side of the Church of the Primacy. The “seven fountains” is a clear reference to Heptapegon. The “stone” is the altar area of the Church of the Multiplication of the Fish and the Loaves. Aetheria points out that the “seat of custom” was next to the church. However, geographically Matthew would have had his custom house either in Capernaum, or east of Capernaum toward Gaulanitis. The Sermon on the Mount is localized here as well. Even as early as the 4^th century, several events from the gospels were localized in one area. More than likely, this was for the convenience of the pilgrims. The site was chosen because it was near the main highway, the seven springs would draw visitors because of its natural beauty and abundance of drinking water, and the area was sanctified by the memory of Christ and the Twelve. But was it the real site? The biggest draw back to this site, as well as Dalman’s, is that it does not belong to the territory of Bethsaida.

  A short digression should be made to discuss the identification of Bethsaida. Geographers of the Bible have hotly debated the identification of this site and whether there was one Bethsaida or two. Josephus describes Bethsaida Julias as the southern capital of Gaulanitis under the rule of Philip the Tetrarch (4 BC to AD 34). The Gospel of John states that Bethsaida, the meaning of which is “house of the fisherman”, was the home (apo) of Philip, one of the Twelve, and the birthplace (ek) of Andrew and Peter (1:44). He also states that Philip, the disciple, came from “Bethsaida in Galilee” (12:21). Is Bethsaida Julias the same city as Bethsaida in Galilee?

  More than likely, Bethsaida Julias is located at the site of et-Tell, east of the Jordan River and about two and a half kilometers from the lake, or at el-Mesadiyye, just southeast of Tel el-Araj.. According to Josephus, the border between Galilee, to the west, and Gaulanitis to the east, is the Jordan River. Bethsaida in Galilee should be located ay Khirbet el-‘Araj, named after a sacred zizyphus tree, and is also east of the present day Jordan River. Several scholars have suggested that the Jordan River ran east of the Khirbet el-‘Araj during the Second Temple period, thus putting the site in Galilee. If this is the case, it has far reaching implications for the identification of the location for the feeding of the 5,000. Luke places the event in a deserted place belonging to Bethsaida. Assuming Bethsaida in Galilee is being referred to, than the event took place on one of the hills west of the Jordan River, rather than on the Plains of Bethsaida east of the river. I would like to propose that the feeding of the 5,000 took place in the vicinity of present day Moshav Almagor.

  The three major Jewish cities on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee are Capernaum, Chorizin and Bethsaida of Galilee. These are the three cities that the Lord Jesus pronounces woes against. A careful examination of a topographical map reveals some very interesting data to help understand these cities and the territories that is under their control. Between Capernaum and Bethsaida there are three wadis (dry river beds) that drain into the Sea of Galilee. Moving from west to east is Wadi Korazeh that turns into Wadi el-Wabdah as it drains into the lake. The middle wadi is Wadi en-Nashef (Nahal Cah), and finally west of Bethsaida is Wadi Zukluk (Nahal Or). The fishing ground for Capernaum is Tabgha to the west of the city. The fishing grounds for Bethsaida of Galilee would be Kh. ‘Oshsheh (Aish), to the west. Both sites have ancient anchorages. The territory controlled by Capernaum would be everything west of Wadi Korazeh to include Tabgha. Chorazin would probably control the land between Wadi Korazeh and Wadi en-Nashef. Bethsaida would control the land from Wadi en-Nashef to the Jordan River. The elevated location of Moshav Almagor would be within the control of Bethsaida in Galilee.

  The Biblical accounts have Jesus going up a mountain and there feeding the multitudes. The site of Moshav Almagor has a commanding view of the entire area and a clear view down to Bethsaida in Galilee. An interesting side light, when Jesus saw the multitudes He turned to Philip and asked him where one could buy bread. Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, would have known where all the bakeries were just in the city just down the hill in which to buy bread. Jesus probably met His disciples in Capernaum in order to take them by boat to this deserted place. Wherever the deserted place was, they would have landed in one of the harbors or anchorages along the shore. The Kh. ‘Oshsheh (Aish) anchorage would fit the topography well. One could visualize the disciples walking down the hill to get to their boat that was left in the anchorage and head across the lake in an eastward direction. Most of the people in the crowd that Jesus preached to, and fed, were Galilean Jews. For them to travel on foot to Almagor would not have been that difficult. If the multitude had to cross the Jordan River at flood stage in order to get to the east side, this would have been more difficult. Dalman did not think this was a difficulty. He recalled, “On Oct. 10, 1921, I saw that it was almost possible to cross over the Jordan dry-shod, just where it enters the lake. An absolutely dry bar lay before the mouth.” It should be pointed out that the river would be low in October because the former rains had not begun, thus causing the river to overflow its banks (cf. Matt. 7:27; Luke 6:48, 49). Finally, Jesus commanded His disciples to get in the boat and head for Bethsaida, possibly el-Mesadiyya, in an eastward direction and the “other side”. The indication seems to be that they are headed in an eastward or southeastward direction toward the Decapolis area. This withdrawal would make good political sense. The crowd wanted to make Jesus king because of the miracle that He did (John 6:15). If word got back to Herod Antipas in Tiberias, he would send out a detachment of soldiers to arrest Jesus and His disciples for insurrection. Only a few weeks before, Herod had John the Baptizer beheaded because he did not like what he heard from him. The Lord Jesus, knowing His time was not yet come, wanted to avoid trouble and withdraw from Galilee. True, He was in Capernaum the next day, but soon after, He takes off for Tyre and Sidon. The disciples headed in an eastward direction but were met with a strong east winds off the Golan Heights. This wind blows them in the direction of the Land of Gennesaret, of which Capernaum is the easternmost part.

  THE FEEDING OF THE 4,000

  In order to answer the question “why” Jesus fed this multitude, the “when” and “where” of the feeding of the 4,000 should be addressed.

  The focus of the ministry of the Lord Jesus toward His disciples changed somewhat after the feeding of the 5,000. He wanted to spend time alone with His disciples and to avoid the crowds. They traveled to Tyre and Sidon to escape the arm of Herod Antipas, but also to spend time together. After ministering to the Syro-Phoenician woman, they departed from the region and “came through the midst of the region of the Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee” (Mark 7:31). There, the Lord Jesus preformed a number of healing miracles for three days, primarily to a Gentile audience, and they “glorified the God of Israel” (Matt. 15:29-31; Mark 7:31-37). Toward the end of the third day the multitudes are fed with seven loaves of bread and a few small fish. This event takes place on the east side of the lake, but where?

  Father Bargil Pixner places it at Tel Hadar and has even put up a marker to commemorate the site. This site, however, is north of the area of the Decapolis. The border between the Decapolis and Gaulanitis apparently was the Wadi Samak. I would like to propose that the feeding of the 4,000 took place at the Kursi Church and in fact, that is the event that is being commemorated, rather than the casting of the demons into the swine.

  There are several reasons for this suggestion. First, I have already suggested elsewhere that the demoniac event took place near the harbor of Gadara in the southeastern corner of the Sea of Galilee. The ancient harbor is located near Tel Samra on the property of Kibbutz Ha’on. Second, there is no indication from the mosaics on the floor of the church that it commemorates the demoniac event. Third, the early church sources and pilgrim accounts just state that the demoniac event took place on the east side of the lake, but are not specific as to where it was. Fourth, the mosaics seem to hint that this is where Jesus fed the 4,000.

  The mosaic floor is partially intact. Still visible are some of the plants and animals. Most of the animals were destroyed during an Islamic iconoclastic craze yet some can still be discerned. The fish that were partially destroyed interested me the most. Mendel Nun identified them as barbell fish, yet the gospel narrative states they were “small fish”, most likely the sardines that Wadi Samak is noted for. The other thing that interested me was the baskets. They contained handles which were mentioned in the gospel narratives of the feeding of the 4,000 (Matt. 15:37; 16:10; Mark 8:8, 20). One basket is similar to the basket on the mosaic floor at Tabgha. Unfortunately this floor was vandalized a few years ago. If this proposal is accepted, than the church would commemorate the feeding of the 4,000 rather than the demoniac event.

  To the southeast of the basilica, on the slopes of the Wadi Samak, is an ancient tower. According to the excavator, this is the “chapel of the miracle of the swine.” Some have suggested this was built over the tombs that the demoniacs lived in. Nothing in the chapel indicates to whom or what it was dedicated to. If my suggestion is accepted, it could possibly be dedicated to the healing events that took place just prior to the feeding of the multitudes. The text states that Jesus “went up on the mountain and sat down there.” For the convenience of the pilgrims, this chapel was placed just above on the slopes of the mountain. Kursi, interestingly enough, means “armchair, chair,” a place for sitting down.

  THE PURPOSE OF THE FEEDING OF THE 5,000

  There are at least three reasons why Jesus performed this miracle. The primary reason was to teach the disciples a lesson in faith. Several months before this event, He had sent out His disciples on their own for the first time to preach the gospel to the “lost sheep of the House of Israel.” He gave them authority over unclean spirits, the power to heal diseases, and to raise the dead. Now they were returning from their preaching tour and Jesus wanted to hear what they did and the response they received to the gospel message. This time was sort of a “debriefing” session. As the Master Teacher, the Lord Jesus wanted to reinforce the lessons taught and learned. He challenged the disciples to continue using the power He gave them. Here was a teaching moment. The multitudes that were gathered needed to be fed. Yet it seems the disciples had a “laid back” attitude, i.e. “Well Lord, we’re with you now, we’ll let You do the miracles!” Jesus wanted them to get involved. After the supper, there were twelve baskets of leftover bread picked up, one basket by each disciple. I suspect that the Lord Jesus did this to “convict” each of the disciples of their lack of faith and to show them His power and provision.

  The second reason was to provide a setting for the gospel to be preached the next day in the synagogue in Capernaum. John informs us that he wrote his gospel for the specific purpose of setting forth seven (or eight, depending on how you count them) “signs” (miracles) to demonstrate that “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and believing you might have life through His name” (20:30,31). The crowd wanted to make Jesus king because He provided a “welfare program” that provided for their physical needs. The next day in the Shabbat service at the synagogue in Capernaum He expounded the real meaning of the miracle. He was the “Bread of life.”

  The final reason was to enhance the understanding of the disciples (Mark 8:21). Jesus appears to be trying to teach “kosher” disciples, who were always reluctant to have any association with Gentiles that salvation was for all, both Jews and Gentiles. Origen may have had a point when he allegorized the two accounts in this manner. [I must confess, I hate to admit he might be right!]. He suggested that the feeding of the 5,000 was to a Jewish audience, and the twelve baskets taken up represented the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Origen would be geographically correct if the feeding of the 5,000 took place at Moshav Almagor. The feeding of the 4,000 took place in the Decapolis area (assuming Kursi is the proper location). The seven baskets that were taken up would represent, according to Origen, the seven Gentile nations in the Land when Joshua entered it (Deut. 7:1; Acts 13:19).

  If Origen is correct, the lesson is clear, the offer of salvation is for all, both Jews and Gentiles, and the disciples of the Lord Jesus should remove the prejudices they have toward those who are not like themselves and share the gospel with all. The gospel was then, and is now, the good news of salvation for any and all who put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior, because He was the One who died for all their sins and rose from the dead three days later to show sin had been paid for in full. God offers His righteousness to any and all who trust the Lord Jesus, and Him alone, and not their own works of righteousness (I Cor. 15:1-4; Phil. 3:9).
• 04Feb

  Temple Tax

  Life of Christ Comments Off on Temple Tax

  By Gordon Franz

  “Does Your Teacher Not Pay the [Temple] Tax? ” (Mt 17:24-27)

  Benjamin Franklin once wrote, “… in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.” What was said in 1789 is still true today. Franklin, however, was not the first to address these issues. The Lord Jesus spoke of the certainty of death (Luke 12:20; cf. Heb. 9:27; James 4:14, 15) as well as the certainty of taxes. He addressed the issue of the civil tax to the Roman government (Matt. 22:15-22; Mark 12:13-17; Luke 20:20-26) as well as the religious tax, called the Shekalim, paid to the Temple in Jerusalem (Matt. 17:24-27).

  Matthew, the tax collector (Matt. 9:9-13; Mark 2:13-17; Luke 5:27-32), was employed by the Roman government to collect civil taxes. He is the only gospel writer to record the incident of the Temple tax.

  This paper will explore several aspects of this saying. First, the saying will be put in its chronological setting. Second, the shekel will be examined in light of First Century Jewish use for the Temple tax. Third, fishhooks from the area of the Sea of Galilee will be analyzed. The kind of fish caught by Peter will be the next subject. Finally the purpose of this saying will round out our search.

  The Chronological Setting

  The Temple tax incident took place in Capernaum soon after the Transfiguration of the Lord Jesus on Mount Hermon. This event occurred in September of AD 29, right before Succoth (the Feast of Tabernacles). As the disciples walked back to Capernaum with the Lord Jesus, they engaged in a heated theological discussion among themselves, “Who is the greatest?” (Mark 9:33, 34). Before the Lord Jesus addressed that question, He demonstrated Biblical greatness by paying the Temple tax for Himself and Peter.

  The Shekel ( Stater)

  During the Second Temple period, the Temple institution collected a half- shekel tax annually. This tax was designated for the daily and Shabbat (festival) sacrifices, their libations, the omer, the two loaves of bread, the show bread, the communal sacrifices and other needs of the Temple ( Mishnah Shekalim 4:1-4). The rabbis linked the annual half- shekel tax to the half- shekel offering in the Pentateuch (Liver 1963: 184).

  This half- shekel was mentioned in Exodus 30:11-16. There seems to be a hint in the Bible that this tax became a permanent institution during the First Temple Period (Je(ho)ash – II Kings 12:4, 16 // II Chron. 24:4-13; Josiah – II Kings 22:3-7 // II Chron. 34:8-14). The one-third shekel seems to be the Persian equivalent of the half- shekel (Nehemiah 10:33, 34). Josephus, the First Century AD Jewish historian, likewise understood the Temple tax to be the same as the one decreed by Moses in the wilderness ( Antiquities 3:193-196; LCL 4:409-411; 18:312-314; LCL 9:181).

  A warning was given on the first day of Adar (around the month of March) that the half- shekel was due ( Mishnah Shekalim 1:1). On the 15^th of the month, the tables were set up in the provinces in order to collect the tax.

  One might assume, since Capernaum was a major Jewish center in Galilee that one of the tables was in that city. By the 25^th of Adar, the tables were set up in the Temple ( Mishnah Shekalim 1:3). If one chose to pay the tax in the Temple, there were 13 shofar-chests in the Temple court which were used to collect different offerings ( Mishnah Shekalim 6:5). One was inscribed “New Shekel dues: which was for that year. Another was inscribed “Old [ shekel dues]” in order to collect the tax from the previous year if it had not been paid.

  Every Jewish male, 20 years old and up, voluntarily paid this tax once a year. He was to pay the tax either in his province or in the Temple in Jerusalem ( Mishnah Shekalim 1:3). The tax was always paid in the Tyrian coinage ( Mishnah Bekhoroth 8:7; Babylonian Talmud Kiddushim 11b). These coins average 14.2 grams in weight and were minted with near pure silver.

  Leo Kadman describes an important discovery relating to these Tyrian shekels. He reports: “In the spring of 1960, a hoard of about 4,500 ancient coins was discovered near Isfiya on Mount Carmel; 3,400 of the coins were Tyrian Shekels, about 1,000 Half-shekels, and 160 Roman Dinarii of Augustus. The Shekels and Half-shekels are dated from 40 B.C.E. to 52/53 C.E. … the bulk of them from 20-53 C.E. … In the middle of the first century C.E., there was only one purpose for which the exclusive use of Tyrian Shekels was prescribed: the Temple-Dues of half a Shekel, which every male Jew of 20 years of age and above had to pay yearly to the Temple in Jerusalem. … The disproportion between the 3,400 Shekels and the 1,000 Half-Shekels is to be understood from the prescription of the Mishnah that each payment of a Half-Shekel for one person was liable to an agio¹ of 4-8%, while the payment of a Full-Shekel for two persons was exempt from the agio. … The 160 Dinarii exactly represents the agio of 8% on the 1,000 Half-Shekel found in the hoard (1962:9, 10).

  This hoard of coins was probably from a community of 30,000 Jews living in Phoenicia. The coins were most likely hidden on Mount Carmel when the caravans realized they could not make it to Jerusalem in May AD 67, because the Romans controlled the road from Megiddo to Jerusalem (Kadman 1962:11).

  Those in authority approached Peter in September of AD 29 to inquire if he and Jesus were going to pay their Temple tax for that year. Apparently, Jesus did not pay the Temple tax the previous spring because the only time He was in Capernaum before Passover was on Shabbat (John 6:4, 59). As an observant Jew, He would not have handled money on that day. The Temple tax from Mesopotamia was due in September for Succoth (Kadman 1962:11). Those who received the Temple tax in Capernaum probably wanted to send what they collected since Passover along with the caravans going up to Jerusalem for Succoth that year.

  The Fishhook

  Only a few fishhooks have been discovered in archaeological excavations in the region of the Sea of Galilee. Two were found in the traditional “St. Peter’s House” in Capernaum (Corbo 1972:73, 74, fig. 26; 1975:83, photo 32). These fishhooks come from the destruction level of the fourth century structure and not the floor of the first century house. Most likely the hooks were placed there by pilgrims wanting to commemorate the event from the life of Peter (Taylor 1993: 278). Another fishhook, made of iron and measuring 2.5 inches long, was found at the site of et-Tell, identified by the excavators as Bethsaida (Kuhn and Arav 1991:102, 105, plate 1:13). The hook is most likely first century or earlier. However, in the first volume of the excavation report, there is no mention of this fishhook (Arav and Freund 1995:27, 28, Fig. 17, 244, 245).

  The Fish

  A tourist visiting Israel usually has an obligatory fish dinner at one of the fish restaurants around the Sea of Galilee. The fish usually served, head and all, is called the “St. Peter’s” fish, known as the Musht (or “comb” in Arabic, for its long dorsal fin) fish. Sometimes a modern shekel coin is found in the mouth by someone in the tour group, usually one of the children. Of course, the waiter put it in the mouth!

  Early Christian tradition says that the musht fish was the one caught with the hook by Peter (Sapir and Ne-eman 1967:7). One of its characteristics is that the mother fish carries the fertilized eggs in her mouth for three weeks until they hatch. For several days thereafter, the young fry swim near the mouth. Any sign of danger, the mother opens her mouth and the fry swim back inside the mouth for protection (Nun 1989:6, 7). This fish, the reasoning goes, has a big enough mouth to hold a shekel coin. The problem with this tradition is that the musht fish is a plankton eater and caught with a net and not a hook and line. The most likely reason this fish got the name “St. Peter’s” was because the local eating establishments, catering to the pilgrims to the Holy Land, found the name very marketable and good for tourism! (Nun 1989:46-48).

  Only two other fish are possible, the catfish and the barbell fish. The catfish, a scavenger, is possible because it feeds off the bottom of the Lake, and thus could pick up the coin. It can also be seen along the rocky shore near ancient Capernaum. If it was the catfish, the reason Jesus instructed Peter to open the mouth of the fish (Matt. 17:17) was because it was non-kosher (it has no scales, Lev. 11:9-12) and would have been thrown back by the fisherman without even looking inside (Matt. 13:48).

  Most likely, however, the fish caught by Peter was the Barbel fish. This fish, in the carp family, has barbs at the corner of its mouth, thus its name. It is a predator and “bottom feeder” and would go for a baited hook (Nun 1989:86). It is usually caught along the shore during the autumn (Dalman 1935:134), the chronological setting of this event.

  The Purpose of This Incident

  A lesson is most effectively taught if the teacher demonstrates the idea in a practical way. The Lord Jesus, the Master Teacher, demonstrated Biblical greatness before He answered the question put to Him by His disciples.

  In His omniscience, Jesus knew of the conversation between Peter and the individuals who received the Temple tax. They asked if Jesus paid the tax or not. Peter answered in the affirmative. When Peter entered the house, Jesus put the question to Peter whether the sons of the kings or strangers paid taxes to kings of the earth. Peter correctly responded that the strangers did. Jesus reinforced this fact by stating that the sons were free. Not wanting to offend the tax collectors though, Jesus instructed Peter to cast a hook in the lake and take a shekel that would be found in the mouth of the fish and pay the Temple tax for Him and Peter. Why did He do this?

  Jesus was demonstrating humility and servant hood, the true characteristic of Biblical greatness, to Peter and his fellow disciples (Mark 10:42-45). Jesus, following up on Peter’s great confession made at Caesarea Philippi (Matt. 16:15-17), was God manifest in human flesh (I Tim. 3:16 NKJV). He did not have to pay the Temple tax because in the analogy that He made to Peter, He was the king’s son. The Temple was His Father’s House and He was greater than that Temple (Matt. 12:6; Matt. 21:12, 13; Mark 11:17), yet He voluntarily, and in humility, paid the tax. What a lesson in humility!

  Jesus demonstrated another principle of humility when He paid for Peter as well. He did not have to do this either, but He did. I suspect, but can not prove, that Jesus singled out Peter because he was full of pride after having seen the Transfiguration. I wonder if Peter was not the one who first raised the question, “Who is the greatest?” It is quite possible that this is the incident that the Apostle Paul had in mind when he described the humble “mind of Christ” when he wrote: “In lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others” (Phil. 3:3, 4).

  Jesus exemplified humility when He paid Peter’s tax as well. These words were penned in the context of the Lord Jesus humbling Himself by His death on the cross of Calvary (Phil. 2:1-11).

  This event records the first time the disciples asked the question, “Who is the greatest?”, but it was not the last. On the way to Jerusalem for Passover in AD 30, they raised the question in Jericho (Matt. 20:20-28; Mark 10:35-45). Later, just before Passover, Jesus addressed the scribes and Pharisees on this issue (Matt. 23:11, 12). The disciples, however, still did not understand the answer to the question. At the Last Supper they were still arguing the question (Luke 22:24-30). Jesus again gave a practical demonstration of humility by washing the feet of His disciples (John 13:1-20).

  These examples of humility finally broke through to Peter. Years later, as he reflected on them, he admonished his follow elders to … “shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, … [not] being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock (I Pet. 5:2, 3).

  Peter finally learned the lesson: God gives grace to the humble, but He will exalt the humble in due time (I Pet. 5:5, 6; cf. Prov. 3:34; 15:33).

  Bibliography

  Arav, Rami, and Freund, Richard, eds.

  1995 Bethsaida. A City by the North Shore of the Sea of Galilee. Kirksville, MO: Thomas Jefferson University.

  Bruce, A. B.

  1971 The Training of the Twelve. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel.

  Corbo, V.

  1972 The House of St. Peter at Capharnaum. Jerusalem: Franciscan.

  1975 Cafarnao. Gli Edifici Della Citta’. Jerusalem: Franciscan.

  Dalman, G.

  1935 Sacred Sites and Ways. London: SPCK.

  Danby, H.

  1985 The Mishnah. Oxford: Oxford University.

  Josephus

  1978 Jewish Antiquities. Books 1-4. Vol. 4. Trans. by H. Thackeray. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loed Classical Library 242.

  1981 Jewish Antiquities. Books 18-19. Vol. 9. Trans. by L. Feldman. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 433.

  Kadman, L.

  1962 Temple Dues and Currency in Ancient Palestine in the Light of Recent Discovered Coin-Hoards. Israel Numismatic Bulletin 1:9-11.

  Kehati

  1991 Seder Moed. Vol. 3. Shekalim. Jerusalem: Department for Torah Education and Culture in the Diaspora of the World Zionist Organization.

  Kuhn, H., and Arav, Rami

  1991 The Bethsaida Excavation: Historical and Archaeological Approaches. Pp. 77-106 in The Future of Early Christianity. Edited by B. Pearson. Minneapolis: Fortress.

  Liver, J.

  1963 The Half-Shekel Offering in Biblical and Post-Biblical Literature. Harvard Theological Review 56/3: 173-198.

  Nun, Mendel

  1989 The Sea of Galilee and Its Fishermen in the New Testament. Kibbutz Ein Gev: Kennereth Sailing.

  Sapir, B., and Ne’eman, D.

  1967 Capernaum. Tel Aviv: Historical Sites Library.

  Taylor, J.

  1993 Christians and the Holy Places. Oxford: Clarendon.

  ¹ An agio is a fee paid for exchanging money. One might call it a commission.
• 04Feb

  Jesus in the Region of Tyre and Sidon

  Life of Christ Comments Off on Jesus in the Region of Tyre and Sidon

  By Gordon Franz

  Introduction

  During the summer of 2005, while standing on top of the dump of Area A-5, I had a conversation with the director of the Hazor excavation, Dr. Amnon Ben Tor. He asked me why most Christian pilgrims and tourists visit Megiddo, but not Hazor. I responded that there were two reasons. The first reason is logistics. The pilgrim / tourist lands at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv and spend the first night in either Tel Aviv or Natanya. The next day they head for Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. Megiddo is just off the road on the way to Nazareth, so they stop there. The second reason is its Biblical connection. Megiddo is mentioned in Revelation 16:16 as Armageddon. With that, Amnon said, “Find me a New Testament connection for Hazor!” I replied that I thought the Lord Jesus walked past the site on several occasions with His disciples. He said emphatically, “Write me an article!”

  As I contemplated and researched this assignment, I came to the conclusion that Jesus walked past the ruins of Hazor with His disciples on their way to the region of Tyre and Sidon. But I wondered, “Why did Jesus take His disciples to the region of Tyre and Sidon?” There might have been a handful of Jewish people living in this predominately Gentile area that was outside the territory of Galilee. In fact, Josephus, the First Century Jewish historian comments that “among the Phoenicians the Tyrians, are notoriously our bitterest enemies” ( Against Apion 1:70, 71; LCL 1:191). That does not sound like a nice neighborhood to visit!

  The accounts of this visit to Gentile territory can be found in Matt. 15:21-28 and Mark 7:24-30.

  Theme

  The Syro-Phoenician woman is used by the Lord Jesus as a test case to expose prejudice in the lives of the Twelve and then teach them a very valuable lesson concerning prejudice. The lesson is this: an exclusive mentality caused by pride; one that says we’re better than you, economically, ethnically, physically, religiously, can result in prejudice and could lead to partiality and discrimination.

  Just prior to Jesus’s departure from the Sea of Galilee, He addressed the issue of defilement. His disciples asked Him about His comments. He answered them, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these things come from within and defile a man” (Mark 7:20-23). Jesus then gave a vivid lesson to His disciples about pride that came to fruition as prejudice.

  Matthew and Mark are the only gospel writers that record this event. Mark, hearing this account from Peter, would have recorded it because this was a lesson Peter had to learn the hard way. Even though he was an apostle to the circumcision, Peter came to realize that salvation was for all, both Jews and Gentiles. Mark was also writing to a Jewish audience in Rome. Both record this event because they may have included this event in order to provoke their Jewish audience to jealousy when they realize Gentiles can be part of the Kingdom of God as well (Rom. 11:11, 12).

  The Geographical and Historical Setting

  Matthew and Mark both record that Jesus and the Twelve departed to the “region of Tyre and Sidon” (Matt. 15:21; Mark 7:24, 31). Commentators are divided as to whether Jesus and His disciples actually visited these Phoenician cities or they just stepped out of Galilee into the region of Tyre. If it’s the latter, they could have gone up the Hulah Valley, just past the ancient city of Hazor and headed up the hill toward Kedesh of Naphtali. Josephus says that Kedesh, or Kedasa, as it was known in the First century, was “a Tyrian village” ( Wars 2:459; LCL 2: 503). The fact that Sidon is mentioned by the gospel writers seems to indicate that they went deeper into Tyrian territory than just stepping outside of Galilee.

  I assume that Jesus either visited the city of Tyre, or He and His disciples were very close to it. Strabo, a Greek geographer, wrote a description of the city of Tyre sometime at the beginning of the First Century AD stating: “Tyre is wholly an island, being built up nearly in the same way as Aradus; and it is connected with the mainland by a mole, which was constructed by Alexander when he was besieging it; and it has two harbours, one that can be closed and the other, called ‘Aegyptian’ harbour, open. The houses here, it is said, have many stories, even more than the houses at Rome, and on this account, when an earthquake took place, it lacked but little of utterly wiping out the city. The city was also unfortunate when it was taken by siege by Alexander; but it overcame such misfortunes and restored itself both by means of the seamanship of its people, in which the Phoenicians in general have been superior to all peoples of all times, and by means of their dye-houses for purple; for the Tyrian purple has proved itself by far the most beautiful of all; and the shell-fish are caught near the coast; and the other things requisite for dyeing are easily got; and although the great number of dye-works makes the city unpleasant to live in, yet it makes the city rich through the superior skill of its inhabitants. The Tyrians were adjudged autonomous, not only by the kings, but also, at small expense to them, by the Romans, when the Romans confirmed the decree of the kings. Heracles is paid extravagant honours by them. The number and size of their colonial cities is an evidence of their power in maritime affairs. Such, then, are the Tyrians” ( Geography 16.2.23; LCL 7: 267, 269).

  Pliny the Elder, writing later in the First Century AD, describes Tyre in these terms: “Next Tyre, once an island separated from the mainland by a very deep sea-channel 700 yards wide, but now joined to it by works constructed by Alexander when besieging the place, and formerly famous as the mother-city from which sprang the cities of Leptis, Utica and the great rival of Rome’s empire in coveting world-sovereignty, Carthage, and also Cadiz, which she founded outside the confines of the world; but the entire renown of Tyre now consists in a shell-fish and a purple dye! The circumference of the city, including Old Tyre on the coast, measures 19 miles, the actual covering 2 ½ miles” ( Natural History 5:76; LCL 2:279). For a history of Roman Tyre, see also Fleming 1915:70-73 and Bikai 1992:61-68.

  Strabo briefly mentions Alexander the Great building a causeway from the mainland to the island of Tyre. The full history is very interesting. Alexander the Great thought himself to be Heracles. The oracle of Delphi instructed him to offer a sacrifice in the temple of Heracles in Tyre. When he approached Tyre on his way down the Phoenician coast in July, 332 BC, he asked to sacrifice at Tyre. The people of Tyre refused him entrance. [Memo to people of Tyre: When Heracles comes knocking at your door and wants to sacrifice to himself, you let him in … or else!]. Alexander built the causeway to the island in order to conquer the city, thus fulfilling Ezekiel’s prophecy made several hundred years before. “They will plunder your riches and pillage your merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timbers, and your soil in the midst of the water (26:12).”

  The Greek god Heracles, known as Melkarth to the Phoenicians, was the main deity of Tyre. Yet he was not the only god worshipped in this city. An inscription was discovered in the necropolis of Tyre that dated the dedication of a temple to the god Apollo to around AD 28/29 (Rey-Coquais 1977:1-3, Plate 50; Bikai, Fulco, and Marchand 1996). This event took place around the time of the story of the Syro-Phoenician woman.

  From the accounts of Strabo and Pliny the Elder, we learn that the people of First Century AD Tyre excelled in two areas. First, they were master seamen. They were the best mariners in the Mediterranean world, plying their ships and trading as far as Spain, if not beyond. Second, they were skilled dye workers that manufactured a famous red-purple dye that was given the name Tyrian purple. This dye was extracted from a certain gland of the spiny dye-murex (Ziderman 1990). This product brought great wealth to the city.

  The extraction of the dye from live snails and discarding them to rot, as well as the whole dyeing process did not leave the best fragrance in the city. For some young men of Tyre, a career choice might have been a difficult decision to make. “Do I stay in the polluted city of Tyre and make a lot of money, or do I sail on the Mediterranean and enjoy the fresh sea breeze?!”

  The Theological / Chronological Setting

  The journey to Tyre and Sidon took place around the time of Passover, AD 29. In order to understand the significance of this journey, a brief review of key events in the ministry of Jesus to the disciples must be recounted.

  In the spring of AD 28, sometime after Passover, Jesus is at the height of His popularity. The crowds are following Him, listening to His messages, seeing people being healed and demons being cast out of people. The gospel writers state that the people were from Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, Perea and Tyre and Sidon (Mark 3:6-12; Luke 6:17-19). This raises the possibility that this Syro-Phoenician woman had already heard Jesus and seen Him heal the sick and cast out demons in Galilee before He came to Tyre. Or, she had heard about Jesus’ mighty works from family or friends that had gone to Galilee. Most likely the former is the case because the woman expressed her faith in the Lord Jesus and had a correct theological understanding as to who He was (Rom. 10:9-17).

  Later in the spring, Jesus healed a woman who had an issue of blood for twelve years (Matt. 9:20-22; Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48). According to Eusebius, a 4^th century Church Father, this woman was a Gentile from Caesarea Philippi ( Ecclesiastical History 7.18; LCL 2:175,177).

  In the fall of that year, the religious leaders accused Jesus of doing miracles by the power of Beelzebub (Matt. 12:24; Mark 3:22; Luke 11:15). At this point in time, Jesus made a major shift in the focus of His ministry. He decided to take His disciples over to the “other side” to the Decapolis city of Gadara, a pagan / Gentile city where they ate non-kosher food and worshiped pagan deities. One could go into a deli at Gadara and purchase a ham and cheese sandwich, or go to the fish restaurant at the harbor of Gadara on the Sea of Galilee and have a meal of catfish and chips!

  One of the disciples baulks at this venture and makes the excuse, “Let me first go and (re)bury my father.” Jesus rebukes him with the words, “Follow Me. Let the dead bury their own dead” (Matt. 8:18-22; Franz 1992:54-58). This was the first recorded time in Jesus’ public ministry that He goes to Gentile territory.

  Upon returning to Galilee, Jesus is rejected a second time by His family and the people of Nazareth (Matt. 13:54-58; Mark 6:1-6). In the winter he sends out His disciples, two-by-two, with instructions: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritan. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons” (Matt. 10:5-8).

  Just before Passover of AD 29, the disciples returned from their preaching tour and met Jesus at Capernaum for a debriefing time. He wanted to hear how their tours went so He took them to a “desert place” near Bethsaida. The crowds, however, followed Him. Jesus took this opportunity to use the crowd as a “test” for the disciples. Would they be able to demonstrate the power the Lord Jesus gave them at the beginning of their preaching tour and feed the multitudes? The disciples passed up the opportunity to feed the multitudes and let Jesus feed the 5,000 men plus women and children (Matt. 14:15-33; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14). When the leftover food was picked up, there were twelve full baskets. Each disciple held a circular basket and realized that the score of their “final exam” was just like the edge of the basket … a big fat zero! They flunked the exam.

  The day after the feeding of the multitudes, the Lord Jesus gave a discourse in the synagogue of Capernaum on the Bread of Life (John 6:22-39). Many of His disciples thought that some of what He said was a “hard saying” and they “walked with Him no more” (John 6:60-66). Jesus asked the Twelve if they were going to leave as well. Peter responded, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (John 6:68, 69).

  After these events, the Lord Jesus took His disciples to Tyre and Sidon. Why does He do this? I think it is safe to say, they were not going for the Grand Opening and dedication of the new Temple to Apollo! However, there are at least three reasons for this trip. First, the Lord Jesus knew He had one year to instruct His disciples in sound doctrine and how to reach the world with the gospel before He returned to Heaven. The focus of His ministry now is no longer the multitudes, but rather, His disciples. He wanted to spend quality time instructing them in the word of God. Second, He wanted to avoid Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea. After Jesus fed the multitudes, they wanted to make Him king (John 6:15). Antipas would have seen this as an insurrection and a threat to his throne, and wanted Jesus arrested. The third reason is Jesus is now going to initiate another test for His disciples and teach them a valuable lesson about prejudice after exposing this sin in their lives.

  The Test to Reveal the Disciples’ Prejudice Against Gentiles

  The Lord Jesus departed from the area of the Sea of Galilee and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon (Matt. 15:21; Mark 7:24). Most Bible geographers trace the route of this journey via Safat and Gush Halav (Jish) in Upper Galilee and then down through Lebanon to Tyre. For example, see the Carta Bible Atlas, map 234. That road, at points, is very steep and reaches a high elevation. An easier, more convenient route was up through the Hulah Valley past Hazor and then up into the hills past Kedasa and continues north to meet the east-west Roman road. This road went from Paneas (Banyas) to Tyre (Aviam 2004: 133-135) and was called the “Way of the Sea” by the prophet Isaiah (Isa. 9:1; Rainey 1981; 1989). It was a little bit longer, but had a more gradual incline and was not as high in elevation as the road over Upper Galilee.

  Mark adds the detail that He entered a house. Were they in Tyre? If so, were they trying to get away from the rotten stench of the city? The text says He did not want anybody to know He was in town. Yet He could not be hidden (Mark 7:24). Apparently some of the Phoenicians who heard him in Galilee recognized Him as He came into town.

  A woman (Matthew identifies her as a Canaanite, cf. Gen. 10:6, 15; Mark says a Greek, a Syro-Phornicain by birth) came to Jesus in the house and cried out to Him, “Have mercy on me, O Lord ( kurie), Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed” (Matt. 15:22; Mark 7:25, 26). She apparently heard from others that Jesus was in town and knew that He had cast out demons in Galilee. She may have thought, “This is the Man that could take care of my daughter’s problem.”

  Notice in her cry to Jesus how much she knew of the Person and work of the Lord Jesus. She cried for mercy because as a Canaanite, she was not part of the covenant community, yet she knew that Jesus was the God and King of the nation of Israel. She calls Him Lord ( Kurios) and Son of David. This is the first time in her conversation that she will call Him Lord and could be using it in the sense that Paul wrote about in Romans 10:9-13. This was her confession of the Jesus as Lord (Yahweh): “For ‘whoever calls on the name of the LORD (Jesus as Yahweh) shall be saved'” (10:13).

  Jesus seemingly does not answer her plea. He is silent. Some have accused Jesus of being rude by ignoring this woman. But in His omniscience, He knew of her faith in Him and He wanted her to express that faith so that His disciples could see it. This was a test for the disciples in order to see if they were prejudice. Unfortunately the disciples failed this test as well. They misinterpret His silence as a rejection of her. Their nationalistic pride led to a prejudice against this woman, so they discriminated against her by saying to Jesus, “Get rid of her! She is harassing us as well.”

  Jesus answered the disciples (implied in the context): “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (15:24). “[The] ‘Lost sheep of Israel’ does not mean the lost sheep among Israel, as though some were lost and others not. The expression indicates the lost sheep who are Israel” (Wilkins 2004: 539).

  The phrase “lost sheep of the house of Israel” should have caused the disciples to recall the instructions that Jesus gave when He sent them out on their preaching tour a few months earlier. When He instructed them about the “lost sheep”, He also said not to go in the “way of the Gentiles”. In essence, He was saying, do not walk on the Roman roads. What had they just done? They walked down the Paneas – Tyre Roman Road to this city! They were now in Gentile territory and should have realized that the instructions Jesus had given the disciples before were not valid at this point.

  The Canaanite woman, on the other hand, probably caught the irony, absurdity, and maybe even the humor of the statement. She said to herself: “What are you doing here? This is Phoenicia! You are outside the Land of Israel. It’s Gentile territory! There are very few lost sheep of the House of Israel here anyway.” She came to the realization that Jesus was on her side, so she fell at His feet (Mark 7:25), worshipped Him (Matt. 15:25) and said, “Lord, help me!” This is the second time this woman calls Jesus Lord ( kurie).

  Jesus responds to the woman, “Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs (puppy dogs)” (Mark 7:27).

  Some people may not like dogs, but everybody loves puppy dogs. The Jewish people considered dogs unclean animals and most likely would not keep them as pets. On the other hand, however, in the Roman world they were good pets. Children enjoyed playing with puppy dogs. There is a marble funerary altar on display in the newly reopened Greek and Roman wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The altar has a little boy on the side in high relief with his pet dog wagging his tail at his feet. The provenience is unknown, but it dates to the first half of the first century AD. It was dedicated to a deceased child named Anthus, and called “sweetest son” by his father Lucius Iulius Gamus.

  In His statement, the Lord Jesus points out the priority of the gospel. The little children (the lost sheep of the House of Israel) are filled first (cf. Rom. 1:16; 2:11-16, 26-29; 3:9; 16:26; Isa. 42: 5-7). While it may not be proper manners to feed pets under the table, it is hard to stop the little children from dropping crumbs to the puppy dogs under the table.

  In her response, the woman acknowledges the priority of the gospel to the Jewish people first. She said, “True Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their master’s table” (Matt. 15:27). This is the third time she calls Jesus Lord. In essence she is saying, “Gentiles may not be part of the covenant community, yet there were some dogs at the Master’s table, i.e. part of the family. People may look upon her as a puppy dog, yet she was under the table, a Gentile who had believed in the Lord Jesus.”

  Jesus successfully got her to express her faith in Him. He says, “Oh woman, great is your faith!” (Matt. 15:28). As a result of her faith, her daughter was healed of the demon possession. Interestingly, there was one other person commended for his great faith in the Lord Jesus and that was the Gentile centurion in Capernaum (Matt. 8:10; Luke 7:9).

  The disciples had flunked the prejudice test, yet Jesus turns this into a teaching opportunity. He reinforces what He has been saying all along: Gentiles are included in God’s program of salvation. Jesus knows that if His disciples can begin to grasp this lesson with one Gentile, they will be able to handle 4,000 of them when they get to the Decapolis in a few weeks (Matt. 15:29-39; Mark 7:31-8:9).

  Personal Application

  If we are honest with ourselves, we are all prejudice to one degree or another. This prejudice leads to partiality and discrimination (James 2:1-9). It is sin and must be confessed to the Lord and forsaken (James 2:9; I John 1:9).

  The believer in the Lord Jesus must see this world from God’s perspective. He is not a respecter of persons and shows no partiality towards individuals (Acts 10:34, 35; Deut. 10:17; Rom. 2:11, cf. Rom. 3:29-30; 10:12-13). The believer’s attitude should be based on John 3:16. If God loves the world (and He does) and the Lord Jesus Christ died for all our sins (and He did), then I must view the world from that perspective. Each individual, whatever their ethnic or economic background, however they look, whatever may be their faults, is a person who God loves and the Lord Jesus paid for all their sins of the Cross and rose again from the dead three days later and offers the forgiveness of sins and the righteousness of God (Eph. 2:8, 9; Phil. 3:9).

  Bibliography

  Aviam, Mordechai

  2004 Two Roman Roads in the Galilee. Pp. 133-138 in Jews, Pagans and Christians in the Galilee. Rochester, NY: Institute of Galilean Archaeology, University of Rochester.

  Bikai, Patricia

  1992 Classical Tyre. Pp. 61-68 in The Heritage of Tyre. Edited by M. Joukowsky. Debuque, IA: Kendall / Hunt.

  Bikai, Patricia; Fulco, William; and Marchand, Jeannie

  1996 Tyre: The Shrine of Apollo. Amman, Jordan.

  Burkill, T. A.

  1966 The Syrophoenician Woman: The Congruence of Mark 7:24-31. Zeitschrift fur die Neutestamentliche Wissenschaft 57: 23-37.

  1967 The Historical Development of the Story of the Syrophoenician Woman (Mark 7:24-31). Novum Testamentum 9: 161-177.

  1968 The Syrophoenician Woman: Mark 7:24-31. Pp. 166-170 in Studia Evangelica, Vol. 4. Edited by F. L. Cross. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag.

  Cholmondeley, F. G.

  1901-1902 Christ and the Woman of Canaan. Expository Times 13: 138, 139.

  Davies, W. D.; and Allison, Dale

  1991 A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to Matthew. Edinburgh: T&T Clark.

  Derrett, J.

  1973 Law in the New Testament: The Syro-Phoenician Woman and the Centurion of Capernaum. Novum Testamentum 15/3: 161-186.

  Eusebius

  1980 Ecclesiastical History. Vol. 2. Trans. by J. Oulton. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 265.

  Fleming, Wallace

  1915 The History of Tyre. New York: Columbia University.

  Franz, Gordon

  1992 “Let the Dead Bury Their Own Dead” (Matt. 8:22; Luke 9:60). Archaeology and Biblical Research 5/2: 54-58.

  Gibbs, James M.

  1963-1964 Purpose and Pattern in Matthew’s Use of the Title of “Son of David”. New Testament Studies 10: 446-464.

  Goodchild, R. G.

  1941 The Coast Road of Phoenicia and Its Roman Milestones. Berytus 9: 91-127.

  Gould, Ezra

  1955 A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to St. Mark. Edinburgh: T&T Clark.

  Guelich, Robert

  1989 Word Biblical Commentary. Mark 1:8:26. Vol. 34A. Dallas, TX: Word Books.

  Harrisville, Roy A.

  1966 The Woman of Canaan. Interpretation 20: 274-287.

  Hasler, J. Ireland

  1933-1934 The Incident of the Syrophoenician Woman (Matt. 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30). Expository Times 45: 459-461.

  Josephus

  1976a The Life. Against Apion. Vol. 1. Trans. by H. Thackeray. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 186.

  1976b Jewish Wars. Books 1-3. Vol. 2. Trans. by H. Thackeray. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 203.

  Lachs, Samuel

  1987 A Rabbinic Commentary on the New Testament. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. Hoboken, NJ: Ktav.

  Mann, C. S.

  1986 The Anchor Bible. Mark. A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary. Garden City, MY: Doubleday.

  Pritchard, James B.

  1972 Sarepta in History and Tradition. Pp. 101-114 in Understanding the Sacred Text. Edited by J. Reumann. Valley Forge, PA: Judson.

  Rainey, Anson

  1981 Toponymic Problems (cont.). The Way of the Sea. Tel Aviv 8/2:

  146-151.

  1989 Identifying the “Way of the Sea”. Bible Review 5/2: 13, 14.

  1996 Who Was A Canaanite? A Review of the Textual Evidence. Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 304: 1-15.

  Rey-Coquais, Jean-Paul

  1977 Inscriptions de la Necropole. Vol. 1. Bulletin du Musee de Beyrouth 29.

  Smart, James D.

  1938-1939 Jesus, the Syro-Phoenician Woman – and the Disciples. Expository Times 50: 469-472.

  Smith, D.

  1900-1901 Our Lord’s Hard Saying to the Syro-Phoenician Woman. Expository Times 12: 319-321.

  Strabo

  1995 The Geography of Strabo. Books 15-16. Vol. 7. Trans. by H. L. Jones. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 241.

  Torrey, Charles T.

  1948 The Exiled God of Sarepta. Berytus 9: 45-49.

  Trueblood, Elton

  1964 The Humor of Christ. New York: Harper and Row.

  Ward, B. Horance

  1901-1902 Our Lord’s Hard Saying to the Syro-Phoenician Woman. Expository Times 13: 48.

  Wilkins, Michael

  2004 The NIV Application Commentary. Matthew. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

  Witherington, Ben III

  1994 Women in the Ministry of Jesus. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University.

  Ziderman, I. Irving

  1990 Seashells and Ancient Purple Dyeing. Biblical Archaeologist 53/2: 98-101.
• 04Feb

  Aristarchus

  Profiles in Missions Comments Off on Aristarchus

  By Gordon Franz

  Introduction

  Queen Victoria, the longest reigning monarch of the British Empire during the 19^th century, reportedly said: “I thank God for the letter M”. As a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, she knew I Cor. 1:26. It says: “For you see your calling brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.” The verse did not say not any noble, but rather, not many. Because there was an “m” in front of “any”, she was included in those who were called to Christian service. She was used of the Lord during her lengthy reign.

  Aristarchus’ name hints at a noble birth or an aristocratic upbringing. Yet he was one whom God called to a nobler pursuit, the work of the ministry, and was used mightily for His glory.

  Aristarchus the Thessalonian

  The name Aristarchus was a common Macedonian name and means “best ruling”. The word “aristocrat” is at the root of his name (Thomas 1983-84:150). One gets the distinct impression that he was born into a noble family and would have been part of the ruling class.

  Aristarchus was a Diaspora Jew living in the free Greek city of Thessalonica in the Province of Macedonia. His name appears three times in the Book of Acts. The first time Aristarchus appears in Scripture, he is identified as a Macedonian (19:29). The second time he is mentioned, it is stated that he is a Thessalonian (20:4). The final time he appears, he is identified as a Macedonian of Thessalonica (27:2). The Apostle Paul, when he wrote to the church in Colosse states that Aristarchus was “of the circumcision”, i.e. of Jewish heritage (Col. 4:10, 11; contra Thomas 1983-84: 150).

  Scripture is silent as to when and how Aristarchus came to faith in the Lord Jesus. The first record of a gospel witness in Thessalonica was around AD 50 when Paul, Silas and Timothy visited the city during the second missionary journey of the Apostle Paul (Acts 17:1-9, 13).

  Dr. Luke recounts that there was “a synagogue of the Jews [in Thessalonica]. Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ was to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, ‘This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.’ And some of them were persuaded” (Acts 17:1-4). Those persuaded included Jewish people in the synagogue as well as devout Greeks and leading women, apparently part of the aristocracy of the city (17:4).

  It is quite possible that Aristarchus came to faith in the Lord Jesus as his Messiah during the ministry of Paul, Silas and Timothy; or, if his mother was one of the “leading women”, she could have shared the gospel with him and he trusted Christ as his Savior.

  Aristarchus is an example of a believer exercising spiritual gifts

  One individual has speculated that the person going to Corinth with Titus in AD 56 was Aristarchus (Redlich 1913: 217-218). Paul describes this un-named brother as one “whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches, and not only that, but who was also chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift” (II Cor. 8:18, 19). The words “to travel with us” is the Greek word “sunekdemos“. This word appears only one other time in the New Testament and that is in Acts 19:29. In this passage the two Macedonians, Gaius and Aristarchus, are described as “Paul’s travel companions”. While the connection with Aristarchus is based on the rare use of the word, if this logic is followed, Gaius could also be the unnamed brother.

  But let’s assume for a minute that the unnamed brother is Aristarchus. What could we learn from this passage? His praise, or proclamation, was in the gospel. In other words, he was an evangelist. About seven years after he had come to faith in the Lord Jesus he was actively involved in the work of the Lord and exercising his spiritual gift of an evangelist (Eph. 4:11).

  The Spirit of God has given each believer in the Lord Jesus Christ at least one spiritual gift (some may have more). These gifts were given to the Body of Christ in order to profit all in the Body and to build up the Body of Christ numerically and spiritually (Rom. 12:3-8; I Cor. 12:4-14:40; Eph. 4:7-16). Each believer should seek to determine what spiritual gift they have and to exercise that gift to God’s honor and glory.

  Aristarchus is an example of a believer being persecuted for righteousness’ sake

  The Lord Jesus instructed His disciples when He gave the Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matt. 5:11, 12). The Apostle Paul would later write: “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (II Tim. 3:12). These words would become personal to Aristarchus and his fellow Macedonian, Gaius.

  The Apostle Paul had a very effective ministry in Ephesus for two years and three months during his third missionary journey (AD 52-55). It began in the synagogue of Ephesus, but moved to the School of Tyrannus where he, Timothy and others discipled younger men in Biblical theology, evangelism and church planting (cf. II Tim. 2:2). This ministry was so effective that Dr. Luke reported, “that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks” (Acts 19:10).

  It is at this point that Aristarchus first appears in the Book of Acts. He and Gaius, his fellow Thessalonians, are described as Paul’s “traveling companions.” One wonders if they had come to faith during Paul’s visit to their hometown during his second missionary journey and then traveled with him as disciples in Paul’s “seminary on the road” with “on the job training” for three or four years. Or, were they laboring with Paul in the School of Tyrannus and traveling with him when he made short trips outside the city. Scripture is silent with regards to their travels.

  The city of Ephesus was one of the major trade centers in the ancient world. It was also the location of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Temple of Artemis / Diana. Tourist and pilgrims would flock from all over the Greco-Roman world to visit this magnificent edifice to the goddess of the hunt. As with any religious tourist attraction, people would be hawking their wares and trying to make money off the shrine. The gospel, the power of God (Rom. 1:16), began to affect the economy of this tourist attraction. So much so, that the silversmiths who had a lucrative idol-manufacturing business making silver trinkets and shrines to sell to the religious pilgrim / tourist began to lose money because people were following the Lord Jesus and not worshipping Artemis. This defection occurred not only in Ephesus, but throughout the Province of Asia Minor.

  The shop foreman of the silversmith trade union, Demetrius by name, organized a mob action in conjunction with other craft unions. They met in the large theater of the city, with seating capacity for 25,000 spectators, in order to protest their economic downturn. Demetrius incited the mob by reminding them that they made their lucrative livelihood off the tourist that visit the Temple of Artemis. He pointed a finger at the apostle Paul for turning people away from the temple because he said that those things made with hands are not gods. Demetrius ratcheted up his rhetoric by defending the honor of the goddess and saying the Temple of Artemis would be despised throughout the Greco-Roman world (Acts 19:24-27). The crowd in its frenzy shouted with one accord for two hours, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians”.¹

  During the uproar in Ephesus, the union thugs manhandled Gaius and Aristarchus and dragged them into the theater (Acts 19: 29). Paul, in his holy boldness, wanted to confront the mod in the theater. His disciples, and friendly government officials (the Asiarchs), thought otherwise and strongly advised Paul not to venture forth into the theater for fear the mob might do him bodily harm. It took the city clerk to quiet the mob and finally disperse them (19:35-41). Presumably Gaius and Aristarchus were released after cooler heads prevailed.

  One writer has observed: “When the gospel begins to have a real impact on people and society, as it was beginning to do at Ephesus, their opposition from those who have vested interests is likely to be aroused. As someone has cryptically put it: ‘You cannot be the salt of the earth without smarting someone.'” He went on to say, “Whenever the Christian ethic challenges social evils it will meet with opposition from those who stand to gain from them” (Thomas 1983-84: 151). Another example of opposition to the gospel because of economic considerations is when Paul cast the demons out of the slave girl at Philippi. Her handlers were very upset because they were losing money in that she could no longer tell fortunes (Acts 16:16-24).

  After the uproar, the Apostle Paul realized the severity of the situation and its dangers, and departed from Ephesus (II Cor. 1:8). His first stop was Macedonia. Most likely Aristarchus and Gaius left with him and returned to Thessalonica. Paul probably went to Illyricum before he went to Greece for three months (Acts 20:1-3; Rom. 15:19).

  Aristarchus is an example of a believer who is entrusted with responsibility by the people of his assembly

  Aristarchus, along with six other men from Macedonia and Asia Minor, accompanied Paul and Luke to Jerusalem with the collection from the Gentile churches in that region to the saints in Jerusalem (Acts 20:4; Acts 24: 17; I Cor. 16: 1-4; II Cor. 8 and 9). Aristarchus and Secundus were the representatives from the assembly in Thessalonica and both were esteemed and trusted brothers.

  Trust is something that is earned, and not arbitrarily bestowed upon somebody. Amongst Christians, when a person proves his character by demonstrating integrity, honesty, faithfulness, hard work, trustworthiness and so forth, more responsibility is bestowed upon him by the local assembly. It must have been a great honor for these two brothers to accompany the collection to Jerusalem and to see the joy on the faces of the believers in Jerusalem when the gift arrived.

  Aristarchus is an example of a believer who followed Jesus’ instructions to work in teams

  Aristarchus apparently stays in the Province of Judea for the two years while Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea by the Sea (Acts 24:27). When Paul appealed to Caesar and his request is granted by King Agrippa II and the procurator Festus he is placed on a ship of Adramyttium, Dr. Luke and Aristarchus book passage on the same ship as well (Acts 21:1, 2).

  What did Aristarchus do while he was in Judea for these two years? I believe there were two things. First, he probably was traveling with Dr. Luke as he was interviewing the eye-witnesses to the earthly life of the Lord Jesus so he could write his gospel (Luke 1:1-4). The second thing he and Dr. Luke would do is visit the Apostle Paul while he was in prison. The procurator, Felix allowed Paul to have friends visit and provide for his physical needs (Acts 24: 23).

  The possibility that Dr. Luke and Aristarchus were working together during these two years makes sense in light of Jesus command, recorded by Dr. Luke, that the disciples go forth “two by two” (Luke 10:1). This team concept allowed for accountability and mutual encouragement towards one another.

  Sir William Ramsay opined that Dr. Luke and Aristarchus went on the ship as Paul’s slaves in order to raise his status with the centurion (1905: 316). Most likely this is not the case. It would make more sense that Dr. Luke went on as the ship’s doctor, and Aristarchus was his assistant so they could follow the “two by two” pattern of missions and accompany Paul to Rome.

  Lightfoot thinks Aristarchus joined them because he was heading home to Thessalonica and Paul and Luke parted company with Aristarchus at Myra when the centurion found an Alexandrian grain ship going directly to Rome (Acts 27:5, 6; Lightfoot 1927: 35, 36, footnote 2). Scripture is silent on whether Aristarchus was going home or not. When we see Aristarchus next, he is in Rome with Paul (Col. 4:10).

  Aristarchus is an example of a believer who puts his life on the line for a friend

  The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, said, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13). The Apostle John gives us the motive for this command, “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (I John 3:16). The Lord Jesus demonstrated His great love toward us by dying for all our sins. That is the motivating factor for believers laying down their life for a fellow believer.

  When the Apostle Paul wrote the letter to the church at Colosse, as well as the personal letter to Philemon, he sent greetings from Aristarchus along with other brethren. Somehow Aristarchus was known to the believers in the Lycus Valley. Perhaps he knew Philemon and Epaphras, two leading brothers in the churches there, from the School of Tyrannus, or Aristarchus could have traveled to the Lycus Valley sometime when he was in Ephesus. Scripture is silent on this matter, but he was known to the churches in the valley.

  In these two letters, Paul describes Aristarchus as a “fellow prisoner” (Col. 4:10) and a “fellow laborer” (Philemon 24). The word “fellow prisoner” literally means a “prisoner of war”. That identification can not be taken literally because he had not engaged in any physical combat. However, it could be taken metaphorically because he was engaged in spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:10-17). The Apostle Paul was confined to house arrest hindering him from actively traveling and preaching the gospel to large crowds. It could be that from Satan’s perspective, Paul, Aristarchus, and Epaphras (Philemon 23) were his prisoner’s of war in this spiritual conflict. Paul uses this prisoner metaphor in his epistle to the Philippians (1:13, 14; 4:22) yet it did not prevent him from boldly proclaiming the gospel to the Pretorium guards or those in Caesar’s household. Nor did it hinder him from writing letters to churches that would eventually make up the New Testament. Paul, Aristarchus and Epaphras may have been chained as prisoners of war, but the gospel was not hindered and the work of the Lord continued (Acts 28:30, 31). While Paul was under house arrest in Rome, Aristarchus proved to be a comfort Paul (Col. 4:11). What he did, we are not told. Yet just his presence would have encouraged the apostle.

  Church tradition affirms that Aristarchus was martyred in Rome at the command of Nero (Hippolytus 1994: 256). The Pseudo-Dorotheus states that Aristarchus, Pudens and Trophimus were all beheaded in Rome during the reign of Emperor Nero (Redlich 1913:211).

  Applications

  Granted, some of my historical reconstruction of the life of Aristarchus is speculative, but the principles and applications that I draw from the speculation are Biblical. There are at least five applications that we can draw from the life of Aristarchus for our own life.

  The first application we can draw from the life of Aristarchus is that he exercised his spiritual gift. In his case, it was the gift of evangelist. Believers in the Lord Jesus must discern what their spiritual gifts are and exercise them in order to build up the Body of Christ. It would help to ask spiritual mature believers, or elders in the assembly, what they think the individual’s spiritual gift might be (McRae 1976:103-138).

  The second application for the life of the believer is to understand that we will be persecuted for righteousness sake. Dr. Luke does not record how Gaius and Aristarchus responded while being manhandled by the union thugs. Perhaps they knew of Jesus’ teaching and rejoiced and were exceedingly glad (Matt. 5:12), or as James put it, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials” (James 1:2).

  The third application is that trust is earned and not bestowed. When that trust is earned, the individual will be given more responsibilities because they can be trusted.

  The fourth thing we learn from Aristarchus’ life is that he followed the divinely ordained pattern of Christian work, the “two-by-two” principle, or team concept set forth by Jesus and reaffirmed by the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts (Mark 6:7; Luke 10:1; Acts 13:2; 15:39, 40).

  The final application we learn from the life of Aristarchus is that he put his life on the line for his friends. Aristarchus was not afraid to identify himself with his friend and mentor, the Apostle Paul.

  Aristarchus was a man of noble birth who could have been part of the aristocracy in Thessalonica, but he chose to follow a nobler pursuit: the ministry of the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Because of his life on earth, he received the noblest reward from the King of Kings at the Judgment Seat of Christ, at least two crowns: the crown of rejoicing because of his work in the gospel (I Thess. 2:9) and the crown of life for enduring trials, even to the point of death (James 1:12; Rev. 2:10).

  Bibliography

  Boyd, William F.

  1916 Aristarchus. P. 91 in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church. Vol. 1. J. Hastings, ed. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.

  Bruce, F. F.

  1985 The Pauline Circle. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans.

  Gillman, John

  1992 Aristarchus. Pp 379-380 in Anchor Bible Dictionary. Vol. 1. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday.

  Gromacki, Robert

  2003 The Books of Philippians and Colossians. Joy and Completeness in Christ. Chattanooga, TN: AMG.

  Hiebert, D. Edmond

  1992 In Paul’s Shadows. Friends and Foes of the Great Apostle. Greenville, SC: Bob Jones University.

  Hippolytus

  1994 Appendix to the Works of Hippolytus. Pp. 242-258 in Ante-Nicene Fathers. Vol. 5. Edited by A. Roberts and J. Donaldson. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

  Knowling, R. J.

  1988 The Acts of the Apostles. In The Expositor’s Greek Testament. Edited by W. R. Nicoll. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans.

  Lightfoot, Joseph Barber

  1927 Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians. London: MacMillan and Company.

  1976 Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians and to the Philemon. Grand Rapids: Zondervan. Reprint of 1879 edition.

  MacLaren, Alexander

  1887 Salutations from the Prisoners Friends. Expositor, 3^rd series. 5: 125-138.

  McRae, William

  1976 The Dynamics of Spiritual Gifts. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

  Ramsay, William

  1905 St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

  Redlich, E. Basil

  1913 S. Paul and His Companions. London: MacMillan and Company.

  Thomas, W. D.

  1983-1984 Aristarchus. A Disciple through Taunt and Tempest. Expository Times 95: 150, 151.

  ¹ The Greek text of the Book of Acts records the Greek name for the goddess of the hunt, Artemis. Some English translations give the Latin name, Diana, for the same goddess.
• 04Feb

  Lovers of Husbands and Children

  Paul and Places Comments Off on Lovers of Husbands and Children

  By Gordon Franz

  Introduction

  Ancient funerary monuments, sarcophagi, and ossuaries can tell much about the dead that can be instructive for the living today. The inscriptions about the dead can tell the living today what life was like in the past and can teach us lessons for life today. A visit to a cemetery can be an interesting, instructive, and a very informative experience.

  When I was a student, and later a field trip instructor, at the Institute of Holy Land Studies in Jerusalem, I would give tours of the Protestant cemetery located behind the old Bishop Gobat School on Mount Zion. This cemetery contained the graves of the “Who’s Who” of the 19^th and early 20^th century Protestants living in Jerusalem. Most would recognize the name Horatio Spafford (1828-1888), the composer of the well loved hymn “It Is Well With My Soul.” As an archaeologist, I was keenly interested in the gravestones of Dr. Conrad Schick (1822-1901), an architect and early explorer of Jerusalem; Sir Flinders Petrie (1853-1942), the father of modern Biblical Archaeology; Dr. Clarence Fisher (1876-1941), one of the excavators of Samaria; James Leslie Starkey (1895-1938), the first excavator of Lachish; and other archaeologists and explorers of Jerusalem. As a believer in the Lord Jesus, I was moved by the epitaphs on some of the tombstones that expressed the assurance of eternal life for those who had placed their trust in the Lord Jesus as their personal Savior (I John 5:13).

  The Older Women in the Church

  The apostle Paul wrote a letter to his co-worker, Titus, who was laboring on the island of Crete that instructed him to “set in order the things that are lacking [in the churches on Crete], and appoint elders in every city” (Titus 1:5, all Scripture quotes are from the New King James Bible). He also told Titus to instruct the people in the churches about “things which are proper for sound doctrine” (2:1).

  Of the older women in the churches, the Apostle Paul says they should be “reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things – that they admonish the younger women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the Word of God may not be blasphemed” (2:3-5). I would like to look at two phrases in this admonition: “to be lovers of (their) husbands, lovers of (their) children (philandrous einai philoteknous).”

  Funerary Inscriptions

  The epitaphs on tombstones reveal much about an individual and how people viewed their life. In the graveyard of Trinity Church Wall Street in New York City is the tombstone of Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804). Among other things, he was an army office in the American Revolution, the first Secretary of the Treasury (1789-1795) and lost his life in a duel with Aaron Burr the vice president of the United States. His epitaph reads: “In testimony of their respect for the Patriot of incorruptible integrity, the Soldier of approved valour, the Statesman of consummate wisdom; whose talents and virtues will be admired by grateful posterity long after this marble shall have mouldered into dust.” The one thing we admire about Hamilton today is that we can carry him around in our wallet because he is on the front of the ten dollar bill! I can also report that after 204 years, his marble gravestone is still there. It has survived the air pollution in New York City, as well as the September 11^th attack.

  A Sarcophagus from Aphrodisias

  The ancient city of Aphrodisias is located in the Caria region of southwestern Asia Minor in Turkey today. It was named after its patron goddess Aphrodites, the goddess of love and beauty, and had an impressive sanctuary built in her honor. The city was situated next to a marble quarry and was famous throughout the Greek and Roman world for the marble statues that were sculptured there.

  Just outside the entrance of the Museum of Aphrodisias, there is a marble sarcophagus that was found in the area at the end of the 19^th century. On it there is a Greek inscription with three panels that describe why this sarcophagus was made and who was placed in it. It said that the city council and the people of Aphrodisias wanted to honor the deceased – Pereitas Kallimedes, and his wife Tatia, because of certain characteristics and virtues they had observed in this couple. On the third panel, on the right side of the sarcophagus, is the dedication to Tatia. It is translated: “The City Council and the People honored Tatia, daughter of Diogenes, son of Diogenes, grandson of Demrtrios Phileman, a woman who was modest, who loved her husband and children and throughout her life was endowed with dignity and virtue, and who was wife of Pereitas Kallimedes, son of Diogenes, grandson of Apollonios a man who acted piously and munificently in his public offices, embassies and public duties and in his capacity as temple overseer” [emphasis mine]. She was known for her modesty, dignity, virtue, and she loved her husband and children. The same Greek words for “loved her husband and children” are used on this epitaph that is mentioned in Titus 2:4. There are hundreds of tombstones and sarcophagi in the Greek and Roman world that has these two phrases on them describing the deceased women, several were even found on the island of Crete.

  Conclusion

  There is no indication that Tatia was a Christian (her husband was the priest of a pagan temple), but we do know that she exemplified some of the things the Apostle Paul instructed the older women to teach the younger women to do in the book of Titus. Today, the older Christian woman should be modeling by her life and reaching by her lips, so that the younger Christian woman will know how to love her husband and children. Perhaps someday he tombstone will also read, “She loved her husband, she loved her children.”
• 04Feb

  Skeletons On The Table

  Paul and Places Comments Off on Skeletons On The Table

  By Gordon Franz and Ernie McGinnis

  Introduction

  The term “skeletons in the closet” conjures up secrets from our past that we do not want other people to know about. But here is an unusual twist from the ancient Greco-Roman world: skeletons on the table! Recently we visited the Getty Villa in Malibu, CA. Gordon was working on a self-guided tour of the Biblically related objects in the Villa for the students in the Talbot School of Theology’s Bible Lands program, and Ernie was photographing the objects on display for the courses he instructs on Greek and Roman archaeology at Burbank High School. In the Coin Room (212), we observed a small bronze skeleton. When Ernie saw this object he said with excitement, “Cool, my high school kids would love this!” Gordon stared at it with a quizzed look on his face and said, “What was this used for?” Well, inquiring minds wanted to know, so we began our search, (not in closets), but on library bookshelves!

  The Skeleton at the Getty

  The small bronze skeleton was acquired by the Getty Museum in 1978 and published in their museum journal (Frel 1980: 171-172; accession number: 78.AB.307). The Romans called these skeletons a larva convivalis, which means “banquet ghost.” The Latin term convivalis bases its roots on the term vivo, which literally means “to be alive” or “to be lively”. The term itself suggests not only the contradictions between life and death, but also the Greco-Roman view of the futility of life in the face of impending death.

  The skeleton in the Getty collection is made of bronze and is preserved to a height of 6.6 centimeters. It has its skull, collarbone, ribs, spine and pelvic bones and left femur bone. The arms, right leg, and the lower portion of the left leg are missing. The metal “joints and sockets” can still be seen where the limbs were attached to each other in order to give the skeleton flexibility, so when shaken it gives the impression of jumping or dancing. This skeleton reminded people “of the brevity of human life and the necessity of profiting from the short time which remained” (1980:171).

  There are ten similar skeletons scattered in museums throughout Europe; one is made of silver, another of wood and the rest are made of bronze. Dr. Frel has dated all these skeletons from the first century BC to the first century AD and associated them with Roman Epicureanism (1980:171, 172). Epicureanism bases its roots in the ancient Greek philosophy of Epicurius of Samos (341-270 BC) who taught man’s greatest accomplishment is to be found in his tranquility of mind, which is subject to those most base activities that bring man his fleshly pleasures. Epicureans believed that the gods existed, but they were impersonal and off somewhere living a life of eternal, undisturbed happiness. They thought that the gods should be admired and respected, but not to expect favors or even punishment from them (Furley 1996:533). The Apostle Paul had some encounters with Epicurean philosophers in Athens (Acts 17:18).

  A picture of this skeleton can be seen at the Getty Museum website:

  http://www.getty.edu/art/gettyguide/artObjectDetails?artobj=9522

  Party Time in Puteoli

  Titus Petronius Arbitor lived during the reigns of Emperors Claudius and Nero. Tacitus, a Roman historian (ca. AD 55-AD 120), recounts some aspects of Petronius’ life this way: “He was a man whose day was passed in sleep, his nights in the social duties and amenities of life: other industry may raise to greatness —Petronius had idled into fame. Nor was he regarded, like the common crowd of spendthrifts, as a debauchee and wastrel, but as the finished artist of extravagance. His words and actions had a freedom and a stamp of self-abandonment which rendered them doubly acceptable by an air of native simplicity. Yet as proconsul of Bithynia, and later as consul, he showed himself a man of energy and competent to affairs. Then, lapsing into habit, or copying the features, of vice, he was adopted into the narrow circle of Nero’s intimates as his Arbiter of Elegance; the jaded emperor finding charm and delicacy in nothing save what Petronius had commended” (Annals 16.18; LCL 5:363-365). In other words, Petronius was a competent, happy-go-lucky, administrator, yet also a consummated “party animal” par excellent!

  As an intimate with Nero, Petronius was falsely accused by his rival, Tigellinus, of being involved in the Piso conspiracy to overthrow Nero. When this was known, Petronius took matters into his own hands and committed suicide in AD 66, by slitting his arteries and slowly bleeding to death as he ate his final meal listening to music and poetry. He died, but not before revealing the skeletons in Nero’s closet! Tacitus goes on to say, “Not even in his will did he follow the routine of suicide by flattering Nero and Tigellinus or another of the mighty, but — prefixing the names of the various catamites [boys kept for sexual purposes] and women – detailed the imperial debauches and the novel features of each act of lust, and sent the document under seal to Nero. His signet-ring he broke, lest it should render dangerous service later (Annals 16:19; LCL 5:367, brackets added by authors).

  Most likely, Petronius was the author of the satiric novel, Satyricon, written during the reign of Emperor Nero. In chapters 26-78 of this lengthy novel (LCL 43-183), he described a debaucherous party, a Cena Trimalchionis, (Latin for “banquet of Trimalchio”, the host of the meal) at the home of a freedman named Trimalchio, most likely in Puteoli (Harrison 1996:1150).

  At one point in this extravagant comic meal, served with exotic dishes and lavish “entertainment”, the host, Trimalchio, brings in vintage wine that was said to be 100 years old. He notes, “Ah me, so wine lives longer than miserable man. So let us be merry.” Petronius goes on to say that the guests “drank and admired each luxury in detail, a slave brought in a silver skeleton, made so that its joints and sockets could be moved and bent in every direction. He threw it down once or twice on the table so that the supple sections showed several attitudes, and Trimalchio said appropriately: ‘Alas for us poor mortals, all that poor man is is nothing. So we shall all be, after the world below takes us away. Let us live then while it can go well with us’” (Satyricon 34; LCL 61).

  The bronze skeleton on display at the Getty Villa is the kind of object mentioned by Petronius. Interestingly, a silver skeleton was found in the excavations at Pompeii, not far from Puteoli. It is now on display in the Museo Nazionale in Naples (Frel 1980:171, footnote 2; Caetani-Lovatelli 1895:10, fig. 1). The Apostle Paul, Dr. Luke and Aristarchus visited the believers in Puteoli for seven days as they made their way to Rome for the first time in AD 60 (Acts 27:2; 28:13).

  The Greek historian Herodotus (484 —ca. 430 BC), describes drinking bouts at banquets in Egypt several hundred years before the time of Petronius. He wrote: “At rich men’s banquets, after dinner a man carries round a wooden image of a corpse in a coffin, painted and carved in exact imitation, a cubit or two cubits long. This he shows to each of the company, saying ‘Drink and make merry, but look on this; for such shalt thou be when thou art dead.’ Such is the custom at their drinking-bouts” (Persian Wars 2:78; LCL 1:365).

  Eat, Drink and be Merry?

  The Mosaic Law describes the punishment for a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his parents, even after being disciplined by them. The parents would bring him to the elders of the city and state that he was a stubborn and rebellious son, and also a glutton and a drunkard. If he was found guilty, all the men of the city would stone the rebellious son to death (Deut. 21:18-21).

  Solomon, the wisest man in his generation, passed on some wisdom to his son: “Hear, my son, and be wise; and guide your heart in the way. Do not mix with winebibbers, or with gluttonous eaters of meat; for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe a man with rags” (Prov. 23:19-21).

  Yet this wise man (Eccl. 12:9; cf. I Kings 4:29-34), nicknamed Koheleth (“the preacher”), anticipating the Epicurean philosophy, put eating and drinking in their proper perspective. He begins and ends his sermon by stating: “Vanity of vanities. Vanity of vanities, all is vanity” (Eccl. 1:2; 12:8), but sets this concept in the context of his concluding remarks: “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil” (12:13, 14; see also 11:9, 10).

  The Apostle Paul has both these themes in mind when he penned his epistles to the Romans and the Corinthians. He understood the whole creation to be subject to futility, or vanity (Rom. 8:18-22), and also that the believers in the Lord Jesus will one day appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ to receive rewards for the work they do in their bodies for God’s glory (1 Cor. 3:12-15; 2Cor. 5:9, 10).

  The theme of the Book of Ecclesiastes is the search for the key that unlocks the door to the meaning of life. Solomon states: “He [God] has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor — it is the gift of God” (Eccl. 3:11-13). The concept of eating and drinking and enjoying the fruits of ones labor reoccurs over and over in the book (Eccl. 2:24; 3:12, 13; 3:22; 5:18, 19; 8:15; 9:7-9).

  God has put eternity in the hearts of people who wish to know the end from the beginning, but who will not fully understand the plans and purposes of God this side of eternity. Thus, the believer in the Lord Jesus must walk by faith and not by sight, believing that God is sovereign and in control of history and all things will work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). While walking by faith, they are to eat and drink and enjoy the labor of their hands because it is a gift from God. [For a full development of the theme of the book of Ecclesiastes, see Wright 1972:133-150].

  The Epicureans, on the other hand, eat and drink to excess, and do not recognize that life is a gift from God and have no thought of a future judgment. Petronius, who did not labor with his hands, exemplified this philosophy. For him, life was one big party. He thought, “Let us eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die!”

  Jesus, a Glutton and Winebibber?

  Jesus ate with tax-collectors and sinners, and was falsely accused of being a glutton and winebibber (Matt. 11:19; Luke 7:34). Apparently He ate at some extravagant banquets and one wonders if a silver or bronze skeleton was thrown on the table during these meals.

  Ironically, it was Jesus that held the key that unlocked the door to the meaning of life, as well as eternity. He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). Jesus came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 9:56; 19:10), and to give His life for a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). The Lord Jesus was sinless, (He had no skeletons in His closet), so as God manifest in human flesh, He could die on the Cross and pay for all the sins (the “skeletons in our closets”) of humanity (2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15; James 1:13). He rose again from the dead three days later to prove that sin had been paid for, Satan conquered, and death vanquished.

  He offers the free gift of eternal life and God’s righteousness to any and all, including Petronius and other Epicureans, who would put their trust in Him and Him alone for their salvation, and not their works or any merits of their own (Rom. 4:1-8; 5:8; Phil. 3:9). All who trust in Him would receive an invitation to the marriage supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7-10). Since believers in the Lord Jesus Christ will have new bodies and live forever in Heaven; at this banquet they will also sing the lines from Handel’s Messiah, “O Death, where is your sting? O Grave, where is your victory? … But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (cf. Hosea 13:14; 1 Cor. 15:55, 57). Alas, there will be no servants walking around that banquet throwing skeletons on the table!

  Bibliography

  Caetani-Lovatelli, C.
  1895 Di Una Piccula Larva Convivale in Bronzo. Monumenti Antichi 5:5-16.

  Frel, Faya Causey
  1980 A Larva Convivalis in the Getty Museum. The J. Paul Getty Museum Journal 8: 171-172.

  Furley, David
  1996 Epicurus. Pp. 532-534 in Oxford Classical Dictionary. Third edition. Edited by S. Hornblower and A. Spawforth. Oxford and New York: Oxford University.

  Harrison, Stephen J.
  1996 Petronius Arbiter. Pp. 1149-1150 in The Oxford Classical Dictionary. Third edition. Edited by S. Hornblower and A. Spawforth. Oxford and New York: Oxford University.

  Herodotus
  1926 The Persian Wars. Books 1-2. Vol. 1. Trans. by A. D. Godley. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 117. Reprinted 1999.

  Petronius
  1969 Satyricon. Trans. by M. Heseltine, Revised by E. Warmington. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 15. Reprinted 1997.

  Tacitus
  1937 Annals. Books 13-16. Vol. 5. Trans. by J. Jackson. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library 322. Reprinted 1994.

  Wright, J. Stafford
  1972 The Interpretation of Ecclesiastes. Pp. 133-150 in Classical Evangelical Essays in Old Testament Interpretation. Edited by W. Kaiser, Jr. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books. Third Printing 1976.
• 04Feb

  Paul at Isthmia –Going For The Gold!

  Paul and Places Comments Off on Paul at Isthmia –Going For The Gold!

  By Gordon Franz

  A sport shoe company ran an advertisement during the 1996 Olympics, with the line, “You do not win the silver medal, you lose the gold!” That line caught the essence of athletic competition. The athlete enters the competition with the goal of winning the event, not losing it. The legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers, Vince Lombardi, tried to instill this winning attitude in his football players when he said, “Winning is not everything, it is the only thing.”

  The epitaph of a boxer named Agathos Daimon found on a funerary monument at Olympia in Greece said:

  Here he died boxing in the stadium
  Having prayed to Zeus for a wreath
  or death. Age 35. Farewell.

  For this competitor, second place was not an option. He went for the gold and died trying to win it (Milavic 1992: 11).

  The Apostle Paul described the Christian life in terms of athletic metaphors. His goal was to win the “race” of the Christian life, not to loose it (Phil. 3:12-14; 1 Cor. 9:24-27; 2 Tim. 4:6-8). He died winning the race!

  Paul at Corinth

  Dr. Luke does not explicitly state why Paul went to Corinth during his second missionary journey (Acts 18). However, the discerning Bible student, knowing the historical-geography of the city of Corinth could surmise three reasons for Paul going to this city. First, Corinth was on the strategic lines of communications. There was the major east-west maritime trade route that went via the Isthmus of Corinth, which was a vital link in trade between Rome and the eastern part of the empire. There were also the north-south land roads that went from the Greek mainland to the Peloponnesos. Many people passed through this area and Corinth would be strategic for the spread of the gospel. The second reason for Paul going to Corinth was that there was a Jewish community in Corinth (Acts 18:4). As a general rule, Paul sought out the Jewish community because he had a desire to reach his kinsmen according to the flesh with the gospel (Rom. 1:16; 9:1-5). The third reason was that the Isthmian Games were held during the spring of AD 51 and Paul knew there would be many people from throughout Greece at this event. The games were a golden opportunity to reach many with the gospel. All three reasons for going to Corinth have one common denominator. The Apostle Paul wanted to reach as many people as he could with the gospel. The message that Paul preached to these people was that the Lord Jesus died for all the sins of fallen humanity and rose again from the dead on the third day to prove that sin had been paid for. Paul taught that the Lord offers eternal life, a home in heaven and forgiveness of sins to any and all who would put there trust in the Lord Jesus Christ alone for their salvation. Good works, baptism, or any other meritorious deeds had nothing to do with ones salvation (1 Cor. 15:3,4; Eph. 2:8,9; Rom. 4:5; 5:8).

  The Isthmian Games

  Athletes throughout Greece would converge on the Isthmian Games every two years during the spring. These games were in honor of the Greek god Poseidon (the Roman counterpart was Neptune), the “earthshaking god of the sea”. The most prominent building at Isthmia was a temple dedicated to Poseidon. There was also a stadium, theater and hippodrome used for the athletic competitions. A small structure called the Palaimon was situated near the Poseidon temple. Within this structure, the athlete took an oath to abide by the rules of the Games. If they broke the oath, they were disqualified from the Games.

  The athletes would compete in footraces, wrestling, boxing, throwing the discus and javelin, the long jump, chariot racing, poetry reading and singing. (You did not know singing was considered an athletic event, did you?). According to several inscriptions that are contemporary to Paul, women competed in these games as well. The inscriptions mention women winning the 200-meter dash as well as the war-chariot races.

  Since there were no permanent accommodations at the site, the people stayed in tents in the surrounding fields. Fixing or selling tents would have given Paul and his new found colleagues, Aquila and Priscilla, ample employment as well as opportunities to share the gospel with those attending the Games (Acts 18:3). Joining him also were two of his disciples, Silvanus and Timothy (1 Thess. 1:1; 2 Thess. 1:1).

  Paul’s Use of Athletic Terminology

  Let us examine four passages of Scripture where Paul probably has the Isthmian Games in mind when he penned the words.

  The first passage is 1 Cor. 9:24-27. This section introduces the next portion concerning Old Testament examples of believers who were tempted with various sins (10:1-13). Paul encourages them to exercise self- discipline in their Christian life so they will not be disqualified from the race.

  Unlike the modern Olympic games where gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded to the first three places respectively, in the ancient games, only the winner received the crown. There was no second place award – winning was everything! Paul encouraged the believers in Corinth to run the race of the Christian life to obtain the prize (verse 24). According to Paul, believers are to “compete” by being temperate or exercising self-control, in their personal behavior (verse 25a). In the Isthmian Games, those who won the competition were awarded a celery crown for the prize. Paul describes it as a “perishable crown”, yet focuses the believers attention on the goal of the “heavenly race”, an “imperishable crown” (verse 25b).

  The two word pictures that Paul uses in verse 26 are that of a runner who runs focused on the finish line and the boxer who doesn’t shy away from his opponent like a shadow boxer, but rather engages him to the finish. In the Olympics, boxing was the most brutal of events. The boxer wrapped his knuckles with leather straps. In the Roman competition, which the Isthmian games probably followed, the wrapping “incorporated lead, irons and even spikes”! The athletes boxed, sometimes up to four hours, until one competitor was knocked out. Or one boxer “signaled defeat by a raised index finger” (Milavic 1992: 14). Boxing was serious and brutal competition. At times, the Christian life could be also (2 Tim. 3:12).

  Paul goes on to say that he disciplines his body so he will not be disqualified from the Christian “race” (verse 27). Paul is not saying he could loose his salvation. He knew that was eternally secure in the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Tim. 1:12; Rom. 8:31-39). He was, however, concerned that the Lord would not be able to use him in preaching the gospel to others and that he would suffer the loss of rewards as well as be “ashamed at His coming” at the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10; 1 Cor. 3:12-17; I John 2:28; 2 Tim. 2:11-13).

  The second athletic passage to examine is 1 Tim. 4:7,8. Paul admonishes Timothy to “exercise yourself to godliness”. He had in mind the gymnasium, which is common in every Greek City, where the athlete would spend time exercising his body in preparation for the upcoming games. The priority for the Christian should be on exercising the “spiritual life” before the “physical life.” Paul is not against exercising ones body because he points out there is some temporal benefits for it. However, exercising the spiritual life should be a priority because it has both temporal and eternal consequences.

  The third passage is 2 Tim. 2:5. Paul states, “If anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.” Most likely Paul had in mind the oaths that the athletes took in the underground cave of the Palaimon. Here, the athletes swore that they would follow the rules in their training as well as not cheat in order to win the Isthmian crown. In the Christian “race”, we must follow the rules as well. In order to know what the rules are, one must know the “Rule Book”, the Word of God. It behooves the believer in the Lord Jesus to read, study and apply the Word of God to his / her life.

  The final passage, 2 Tim. 4:6-8, was penned by Paul while he was imprisoned in Rome awaiting his execution in June of AD 67. One of the archaeologists that excavated at Isthmia described Paul’s words here in this way. “The words in Greek have a more distinctly athletic flavor. To bring this out the passage might be rendered: ‘I have competed in the good athletic games; I have finished the foot race, I have kept the pledge (i.e. to compete honestly, with reference to the athletic oath). What remains to me is to receive the crown of righteousness, which has been put aside for me; it will be awarded to me by the Lord, the just umpire, on that day’ (an allusion to the last day of the games when, presumably, the prizes were handed out to the winners)” (Broneer 1962:31, footnote 23).

  It is interesting that Paul brings up the same two word pictures that he uses in 1 Cor. 9, the boxer and runner, when he describes his disciplined Christian life. Now at the end of his life, the discipline had paid off. He was a winner and the fear of being disqualified is behind him.

  Paul addressed this passage to his disciple Timothy who had spent time with him in Corinth during his second missionary journey. He instructed Timothy to go to (Alexandria) Troas and bring his winter garments and books that he left in the care of Carpus (2 Tim. 4:13,21). Paul apparently had left them in Troas during his fourth missionary journey on his way to Nicopolis where he was eventually arrested and taken to Rome (Tit. 3:12).

  At this point, permit me to use my “sanctified imagination”. On his journey from Troas to Nicopolis, Paul stopped in Corinth to meet the believers. While there, he heard of Emperor Nero’s performance in the singing competition or actually saw it himself. Emperor Nero was visiting Corinth in order to inaugurate the beginning of the Isthmian canal project. While there, he wanted to compete in the Isthmian Games, so the people accommodated him by changing the date of the event to the fall of AD 66.

  Suetonius, a Roman historian, wrote about Nero’s singing exploits in Greece in his Lives of the Caesars, Nero. He described Nero’s voice as “weak and husky” (Nero 20:1) and even commented that one of Nero’s generals, probably tongue-in-cheek, called it a “divine voice” (Nero 21:1). The singing competition did not involve just one song, but a whole oratorio usually lasting several hours. Suetonius describes some humorous events that transpired while Nero sang. “While he was singing no one was allowed to leave the theatre even for the most urgent reasons. And so it is said that some women gave birth to children there, while many who were worn out with listening and applauding, secretly leaped from the walls, since the gates at the entrance were closed, or feigned death and were carried out as if for burial” (Nero 23:2). This is hardly a description of a prize-winning performance. Yet Nero won almost all the contests he entered. How did he do it?

  There were four ways Nero could win the singing competition. First, he could win on his own merits because he had an excellent voice. Suetonius put the lie to that. Second, he could bribe his competition to “throw” the contest. Some of them did take the money Nero offered them (Nero 23:2). One greedy competitor thought he could take advantage of this and ask for 10 talents (of gold?). Nero thought this was extortion so he reverted to his third option, which was to send his thugs out to intimidate this competitor. Needless to say, he was convinced to drop out of the event! The final way for him to win was to bribe the judges. That Nero did very effectively by offering the judges Roman citizenship and a large sum of money (Nero 23:3; 24:2)!

  I believe Paul was aware of what transpired at Isthmia and used this as the backdrop for his final words to Timothy. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who love His appearing.” The Apostle Paul knew he had played by the rules and that he had won the race. The Lord Jesus, the righteous Judge, would reward him for his victory. This was a marked contrast with Nero who did not play by the rules and had bribed the unrighteous judges!

  Perhaps Paul stopped at the office of the Agonothetes, the president of the Isthmian Games, at the southern side of the Agora of Corinth. He noticed the athletic scene on the mosaic floor. In the midst of the circular panel an athlete stood wearing a leafy crown and holding a palm branch, and giving thanks to the seated Eutychia, the goddess of good fortune, for his recent victory. Paul probably chuckled when he wrote Timothy because his crown came from the Lord Jesus, not Eutychia (2 Tim. 4:8) and it was to Him he gave all the glory for the strength to stand firm in the conflict (2 Tim. 4:18).

  Paul’s Outreach Strategy

  There are at least three lessons that can be gleaned from Paul’s visit to the Isthmian Games. The first is that he went where the people were. There are some Christians who have expressed concerns about Christians going to athletic events, especially the Olympics, because of the commercialism and the pagan New Age influence. Yet this is nothing new. Paul had Poseidon and commercialism to contend with at the Isthmian Games. It would be helpful to keep in mind that Paul did not go to the Isthmian Games to worship Poseidon, he went to witness to people! Christians should take advantages of local and state fairs, athletic events, and religious festivals to present the gospel to a multitude of people.

  Second, when Paul communicated with the people in his epistles, he used familiar illustrations. His epistles are peppered with athletic terminology (Sauer 1956: 30-67). The teacher of the Word of God should know his audience and use word-pictures from everyday life that is familiar to them. In the event that believers are going to large events to pass out tracts, the gospel literature should be pertinent to the event and clearly presents the gospel.

  Third, Paul was not a “Lone Ranger” missionary when he engaged in mission work. He always did his outreach with others. He was able to work side by side with transplanted “locals”, Aquila and Priscilla as well as continue his discipleship of Silvanus and Timothy (2 Tim. 2:1,2).

  The Challenge

  We in the assemblies claim to follow the New Testament pattern of worship and missions. Do we? Are we seeking the lost where they are at? Do we speak in terms that people can understand? Are we disciplining younger people to continue the work after we are gone? Well might we be imitators of Paul as he followed the example of the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 11:1).

  Remember that we are not running the “race” for celery leaves, but eternal crowns!

  Bibliography

  Broneer, O.
  1962 The Apostle Paul and the Isthmian Games. Biblical Archaeologist 25/1: 2-31.

  Milavic, A.
  1992 Ancient Olympia: The Place, The Games. The Celator 6/7: 6-16.

  Rolfe, J. C., trans.
  1992 Suetonius, Lives of the Caesars, Nero. Vol. 2. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.

  Sauer, E.

  1956 In the Arena of Faith. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans.
• 04Feb

  Gods, Glory and the Gold of Philippi

  Paul and Places Comments Off on Gods, Glory and the Gold of Philippi

  By Gordon Franz

  The Apostle Paul’s visit to Macedonia marked the first time he set foot on European soil (Acts 16:11). However, this was not the first time the gospel was proclaimed in Europe (cf. Acts 2:10). In fact, the “Macedonian call” (Acts 16:9) seems to imply that there were already believers in Macedonia that needed help in evangelizing their province.

  One writer commented, “Out of Macedonia, Alexander the Great once went to conquer the Eastern world but later from Macedonia the power of the gospel went to conquer the Western world of Paul’s day” (Swift 1984:250).

  Philippi played an important role in the life and ministry of the Apostle Paul. He also had an effective and lasting ministry in the lives of the believers in the Lord Jesus in Philippi.

  Historical Overview

  The earliest city that occupied the site of Philippi was called Datos. In 360 BC Greeks from the island of Thasos colonized it. They changed the name to Krenides, meaning “with many springs” because of the abundance of springs in the area (Diodorus of Sicily, Library of History 16:3:7; LCL 7:243). It was also famous for the fertile plain that stretched out before it as well as Mt. Pangaion to the southwest. To the east of Philippi was the Orbelos mountain range.

  In the mountains of that area, there were gold and silver mines (Strabo Geography 7, fr 34; LCL 3:355). It was these mines that caused friction between the Thracian tribes and the colonists from Thasos. In 356 BC, the colonists invited Philip II, the king of Macedonia, to help defend themselves from the Thracian tribes. Seeing the strategic importance of this city as well as the gold and silver mines, Philip II was more than happy to assist them. In the process of helping, he took over the city, enlarged and refortified its walls and renamed the city Philippi in his honor.

  Diodorus of Sicily, a Greek historian of the first century BC, writing in his Library of History describes what happened next. “And then, turning to the gold mines in its territory, which were very scanty and insignificant, he increased their output so much by his improvements that they could bring him a revenue of more than a thousand talents. And because from these mines he had soon amassed a fortune, with the abundance of money he raised the Macedonian kingdom higher and higher to a greatly superior position, for with the gold which he struck [as coins] … he organized a large force of mercenaries, and by using these coins for bribes induced many Greeks to become betrayers of their native lands” (Book 16:8:6,7; LCL 7:261). This is a classic example of the world’s Golden Rule. “He who has the gold makes the rules!”

  Alexander the Great, the son of Philip II, was able to use the money to raise an army and pay his troops well. They swiftly conquered the Persian Empire, just as the Prophet Daniel predicted (Dan. 8:5-8; 11:3,4a).

  The Romans conquered Macedonia in 168 BC and divided it into four parts. Philippi became the chief city of one of the districts (cf. Acts 16:12). The Romans also built the via Egnatia, a military and commercial road that went across northern Greece between 146 and 120 BC. The Apostle Paul and his team were able to make effective use of this road for the spread of the gospel in the 1^st century AD.

  A pivotal battle in the history of the Roman Empire took place at Philippi. On the Ides of March (March 15, 44 BC) the tyrannical Julius Caesar was assassinated in Rome by a conspiracy lead by two Senators, Brutus and Cassius. They misjudged the mood of the people of Rome and had to flee to Asia Minor because the people did not support the assassination. While there, they began to raise an army in order to reconquer Rome and reestablish it as a Republic. Brutus had the audacity to mint coins with his portrait on the obverse and on the reverse two daggers, a liberty cap and the words “EID MAR” (Eidibus Martiis)! (Molnar 1994:6-10). Mark Antony and Octavian (later to be known as Augusta) lead an army from Rome to Philippi in order to confront Brutus and Cassius. The Republican army of Burtus and Cassius had the clear advantage as far as its defensive position, access to supplies, finances and military tactics. However, the tired and ill supplied army of Mark Antony and Octavian defeated them. Upon recognizing their defeat, Brutus and Cassius committed suicide (cf. Acts 16:27).

  The description of this battle can be read in the writings of the ancient historians Appian (Roman History 4:105-138), Dio Cassius (Roman History 47:35-49; LCL 5:189-217) and Plutarch (Parallel Lives, Brutus 38-53; LCL 6: 209-247 and Parallel Lives, Antony 22; LCL 9:183,185).

  This defeat meant that Rome would have an imperial form of government and not a republican one. It ensured the worship of the deified dead emperor and would later be grounds for contention between the Christians and the Roman government. The Christians would refuse to worship the imperial cult.

  After this battle, Philippi was enlarged and became a Roman colony and discharged soldiers were given fertile land to farm and settled in the city (Strabo, Geography 7, fr. 41; LCL 3:363). Luke was accurate when he said Philippi was a colony (Acts 16:12). After the Battle of Actium in 30 BC more soldiers were settled in Philippi. It should be no surprise that Paul used military terminology when he wrote his epistle to the church of Philippi. Some of the believers might have had relatives that had been in the Roman army. Paul called Epaphroditus “my fellow soldier” (Phil. 2:25).

  The Visits of the Apostle Paul

  The Apostle Paul visited Philippi for the first time on his second missionary journey in AD 49/50. Following the principle set forth by the Lord Jesus, he went out “two-by-two” with his co-worker Silas (also known as Silvanus) and their disciple Timothy (cf. Matt. 10:2-4; Luke 10:1; Acts 15:40; 2 Tim. 2:2). Dr. Luke, the author of the gospel that bears his name and the book of Acts, escorted them from Alexandria Troas (Acts 16:10,11).

  As Paul’s custom was, he sought out the Jewish people whenever he went into a new city (Rom. 1:16). His desire for the Jewish people was that they might come to faith in the Lord Jesus as their Messiah (Rom. 9:1-5; 10:1-3).

  On Shabbat he found a group of women praying by the riverside (Acts 16:13). The phrase “where prayer was customarily made” may indicate there was a synagogue or prayer structure of some sort near the riverside. Recent excavations of the western necropolis of Philippi unearthed a Jewish burial inscription from the 2^nd century AD that mentioned a synagogue in Philippi (Koukouli-Chrysantaki 1998:28-35, plate 11). The question is, was there an earlier one?

  The Lord opened the heart of Lydia, a God-fearer from Thyatira. She and her household were baptized and she offered Paul and his team hospitality (Acts 16:14,15).

  One day, while Paul, Luke and Silas were on their way to prayer, they were harassed by a slave girl possessed with the “spirit of divination” (“pythoness“). Apollo, the god of prophecy and the giver of oracles at his shrine in Delphi inspired this “spirit”. Not wanting an endorsement from the “enemy”, Paul cast the demon out of this girl (Acts 16:16-18; cf. Luke 4:31-37).

  The owners of the slave girl seized Paul and Silas (but not Luke) and brought them before the magistrates at the Forum. They were accused of being Jews and causing trouble in Philippi. This anti-Semitism might stem from the fact that Emperor Claudius had expelled the Jews from Rome the previous year because they were troublemakers (Acts 18:2; Suetonius, Deified Claudius 25:4; LCL 2:53).

  Paul and Silas were beaten and thrown into prison. While there, they were “praying and singing hymns to God” (Acts 16:25). This joyous attitude while being persecuted was already set forth by James the son of Zebedee (James 1:2-4) and Peter (1 Peter 1:5-9; 3:13-4:19).

  At midnight, an earthquake struck and the Philippian jailer thought all the prisoners escaped. Thinking along the lines of Brutus and Cassius, he decided to commit suicide. Paul stopped him when he informed the jailer that nobody had escaped. The jailer, realizing that there was something different about Paul and Silas, asked them “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” In unison, they responded, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:25-31).

  The magistrates decided to let Paul and Silas go. However, Paul knowing Roman law asked that the magistrates come and get them out. They wanted an apology because they were uncondemned Roman citizens. When the magistrates found out Paul and Silas were Romans, they were afraid. I suspect that Paul wanted to hold this over the heads of the magistrates. If they persecuted the church at Philippi or did not protect them, Paul would tell the authorities in Rome what had happened. There would be severe punishment and loss of a job if Rome found out (Acts 16:35-40; cf. I Thess. 2:2).

  Paul knew that Roman citizenship had its privileges! However, he knew that his heavenly citizenship was more important. This citizenship would entitle him to a place in Heaven and a transformation of his earthly body, when the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ returned to earth (Phil. 3:20,21). This was in marked contrast to the emperors who were called “saviors” but could not do anything about immortality and eternal life (cf. I Tim. 1:17; 6:15,16; Witherington 1994:99-102).

  With this, Paul, Silas and Timothy left Philippi on the Via Egnatia for Thessalonica (Acts 17:1). While ministering there, and probably in Corinth, the church at Philippi sent Paul some money to help with the work (Phil. 4:15,16). Paul thanked them for the gift, but prayed the Lord would bless them for their efforts (Phil. 4:17,19).

  Paul visited Macedonia after an extended stay at Ephesus on his third missionary journey. Most likely Philippi was his first stop (Acts 20:1). After three months of traveling through Greece, he rejoined Luke at Philippi. Both proceeded to travel to Jerusalem for Pentecost (Acts 20:3-6).

  The epistle of Philippians was written from prison in Rome during Paul’s first imprisonment there (AD 60-62). He thanked the Lord for their fellowship in the gospel and expressed his desire to visit with them again (Phil. 1:3-8, 26,27; 2:24). He was also going to send Timothy to visit on his way to minister in Ephesus (Phil. 2:19-23; cf. I Tim. 1:3).

  After Paul was released from his first imprisonment (2 Tim. 4:16), he went on a fourth missionary journey (Kent 1986:13-15,21,47-50). His desire was to go to Spain (Rom. 15:28). Church history seems to indicate that Paul visited this country. He was also on the island of Crete (Tit. 1:5) and wrote his first epistle to Timothy from Macedonia (I Tim. 1:3; 3:14,15). There is a good possibility that he wrote this epistle from Philippi before he went to Asia Minor.

  Was Philippi Dr. Luke’s Hometown?

  Some scholars have suggested that Dr. Luke’s hometown was Philippi. This is a possibility. When one examines the pronouns in the book of Acts this observation is borne out. Up until chapter 16, Luke is writing about the work of Peter and Paul. When Paul, Silas and Timothy get to Alexandria Troas the pronouns change from “they/them” (Acts 16:7,8) to “us/we” (Acts 16:9,10). Dr. Luke escorts the group to Philippi (Acts 16:11,12). He is with them when they go to the place of prayer (Acts 16:13,16,17). When Paul and Silas leave Philippi, Dr. Luke stayed behind (Acts 17:1). Paul picks him up on his way to Jerusalem at the end of his third missionary journey (Acts 20:5,6). Luke appears to have stayed in Philippi for at least six years. More than likely it was because it was his home.

  After Paul cast the demon out of the slave girl, he and Silas were tried before the magistrates and accused of being Jewish, but Luke was not (Acts 16:19,20). Dr. Luke was a respected member of the community so they did not bring him before the magistrate. But also, Luke was a Gentile (cf. Col. 4:11,14), so the accusation of being Jewish would not have applied.

  This possibility will never know for certain unless an archaeologist uncovers an inscription in Philippi with Dr. Luke’s name on it, although this is not outside the realm of possibility. A number of years ago an inscription was found in Corinth with the name of Erastus on it (Rom. 16:23; Acts 19:22; 2 Tim. 4:20).

  The Book of Philippians

  The central theme of the book of Philippians is: “the Philippians’ partnership in the gospel” (cf. Phil. 1:5,6; Swift 1984:237; Luter and Lee 1996). This theme is the reason Paul wrote to implore two sisters, Euodia and Syntyche, to be reconciled to one another and have the same mind in the Lord (Phil. 4:2-3). Apparently these two sisters were murmuring and disputing and this was hindering the gospel work (Phil. 2:14). James, the son of Zebedee, addresses the issue of fighting in the church and states that the root cause of this problem is pride (James 4:1-12).

  Paul uses an interesting word picture when he described the women as those who had “labored with me in the gospel” (Phil. 4:3 NKJV). This word comes from the gladiatorial arena of two gladiators that fought side by side against the beasts (Hawthorne 1983: 180; Witherington 1994: 105,106). In the second and third centuries AD (after the time of Paul), the theater of Philip II was converted into an arena for spectacles between gladiators and beasts (Koukouli-Chrysanthaki and Bakirtzis 1995:23,24). Imagine the gladiators going into the arena to fight the beasts and then turn on each other. The lion would turn to the bear in bewilderment and say, “Aren’t they suppose to be fighting us?” The bear would growl, “Who cares, once they finish each other off, we’ll have them both for lunch!” The apostle Paul would say, “Hey ladies, what’s wrong with this picture? You’re supposed to be fighting the “beasts”, not each other!” (cf. Eph. 6:10-17).

  Paul brilliantly lays the theological foundation and solution to the problem before he addresses the women. This was the same pattern used by Nathan when he confronted David about his sin with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband, Uriah the Hittite. After Nathan told a parable about a rich man taking a poor man’s lamb, he asked David what should be done. David correctly responded, “The man ought to die”. Nathan pointed to David and said, “You are the man!” (II Sam. 12:1-12).

  The fighting was caused by pride. Apostle Paul addressed the subject of the mind of Christ that entailed humility in chapter 2. In that chapter, Paul gives four examples of humility; the Lord Jesus Christ (Phil. 2:5-15), himself (Phil. 2:17,18), Timothy (Phil. 2:19-24), and Epaphroditus (Phil. 2:25-30). In chapter three, Paul addresses the issue of trusting the flesh.

  One can imagine the first time this epistle was read in the church at Philippi. Euodia is sitting on one side of the room listening and thinking to herself, “Amen, preach it Paul, we need to be more humble.” On the other side of the room Syntyche is saying, “That’s right Paul, we should not trust the arm of the flesh.” When chapter 4 was read, Paul in essence said, “Euodia and Syntyche, you need to kiss and make up!” That must have been a tense, yet powerful, moment in the meeting.

  A plausible background / setting for Philippians 2:1-10 might be a prominent building on the north side of the Via Egnatia on the edge of the Forum (marketplace). This building was the Haroon for the cult of dead king Philip II (Koukouli-Chrysantaki 1998:19). People worshiped him, believing him to be a god (Fredricksmeyer 1979).

  Philip II was, in many ways, like King Uzziah of Judah. Both had material possessions (gold and silver) and a strong military, and because of that, both had hearts that were lifted up with pride (2 Chron. 26; Isa. 2). In the spring of 336 BC, Philip II celebrated the wedding of his daughter Kleopatra to Alexandros, king of Molossia, in the theater at Aigai. Diodorus describes the wedding procession and Philip’s arrogance. “Philip included in the procession statues of the Twelve Gods wrought with great artistry and adorned with a dazzling show of wealth to strike awe in the beholder, and along with these was conducted a thirteenth statue, suitable for a god, that of Philip himself, so that the king established himself enthroned among the Twelve Gods” (Library of History 16:92:5; LCL 8:95). Moments later he was assassinated by one of his bodyguards. Truly “pride goes before destruction and the haughty spirit before the fall” (Prov. 16:18)! Another example of a king struck down in a theater because he thought he was a god was Herod Agrippa I at Caesarea (Acts 12:20-24; Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 19:343-350; LCL 9:377-381).

  Diodorus of Sicily goes on to summarize the life of Philip in these terms: “Such was the end of Philip, who had made himself the greatest of the kings in Europe in his time, and because of the extent of his kingdom had made himself a throned companion of the Twelve Gods (Book 16:95:1; LCL 8:101).

  I believe the Apostle Paul was thinking about the Haroon of Philip II when he penned the words, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but he made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:5-8 NKJV). With these verses, he set forth the ultimate example of humility, the death of the Lord Jesus, for the two sisters to follow.

  Paul went on to say, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (2:9-11 NKJV). With one sentence from Paul’s pen, he has set the Lord Jesus, God manifest in human flesh, apart from every god or goddess in Philippi, even Philip II, for whom the city was named and the people worshiped!

  Paul had admonished the believers to “esteem others better than themselves” and to “look out for the interests of others” (Phil. 2:3,4). A Biblical example from the life of the Lord Jesus that Paul might have had in mind was when the Lord Jesus paid the Temple tax for Himself and Peter. This is a great example of humility and esteeming Peter better than Himself (Matt. 17:24-27; Franz 1997:81-87).

  In chapter three, Paul writes about having confidence in the flesh (Phil. 3:4). In essence, he is saying, “If anybody could gain God’s righteousness by works, it would be me. I was circumcised on the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless” (Phil. 3:5,6). Yet Paul realized all theses things were “rubbish” (NKJV) when it comes to gaining God’s righteousness (Phil. 3:8,9).

  Paul used the vulgar term skybala to describe his utter revulsion of the qualifications he thought would merit his salvation. Today we would use a four-letter word for excrement! Shocking? Yes, but in so doing, Paul was following the example of the prophet Isaiah who describes all our righteousnesses as “filthy rags” (64:6). In today’s vernacular, that would translate to menstrual rags! (cf. also Zech. 3:3-5).

  There is absolutely nothing we can do to gain God’s righteousness. If we try to work for our salvation it would be an affront to God because He abhors anything we do to merit salvation because it detracts from the finished work of His Son on the Cross.

  To the west of Basilica B of the excavations at Philippi, there are remains of a public toilet (Koukouli-Chrysanthaki and Bakirtzis 1995: 45,46). This structure was built in the 2^nd century AD (after the time of Paul), yet it should reminds us of the skybala. Paul realized that the only way to gain salvation was to be “found in Christ”. Only He could give us His righteousness whereby we could stand before a Holy God. This righteousness was freely given by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus and not by keeping the Law (3:9).

  The Glory in Philippi

  Paul describes the Thessalonian believers as “our glory and joy” (I Thess. 2:20). He would have said the same thing of those in Philippi, but he also calls them his “joy, crown and beloved” (Phil. 4:1). When we read the account in Acts 16, we see the Lord opening the hearts of Lydia and her household (16:14,15). Also, the demon-possessed girl was delivered from Satan’s hold (16:19). The Philippian jailer and his household believing on the Lord Jesus Christ (16:31,33).

  In his letter to the Philippian church he mentions the Praetorian guards (“palace guards” NKJV, 1:13) who had heard the gospel while Paul was in chains in Rome. This would have been significant for the people at Philippi. Some of the coins of Philippi from the reign of Claudius-Nero were minted with the Latin inscription COHOR PRAE PHIL. This commemorated the “settlement of veterans from the Praetorian cohort at Philippi” (Burnett, et. al. 1992: 208; coin 1651). Perhaps some of the believers in Philippi knew Praetorian guards in Rome and would be interested in Paul’s outreach there. This would help them to pray more effectively for their former colleagues and friends (Phil. 1:12).

  The Peace of God

  Philippi was the scene of a terrible battle in 42 BC and peace in the region was shattered. Emperors Claudius and Nero seemed to have brought a measure of peace to the region. However, neither of them could bring peace to the hearts of men and women.

  The Apostle Paul had written to the church at Rome and stated how they could have “peace with God” through faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1). To the church at Philippi he will write about the “peace of God” which will surpass all understanding (Phil. 4:7). This peace would come by meditating on the God of Peace and the things that are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, a good report, virtuous and praiseworthy (Phil. 4:8,9).

  Oh sinner, do you have “peace with God” (Rom. 5:1)? Oh saint, do you have the “peace of God” (Phil. 4:7-9) and know “the power of His resurrection” even while suffering (Phil. 3:10)?

  Bibliography

  Burnett, A., Amandry, M., and Ripolles, P.
  1992 Roman Provincial Coinage. Vol. 1. London: British Museum and Paris: Bibliotheque nationale de France.

  Franz, G.
  1997 “Does Your Teacher Not Pay the [Temple] Tax?” (Mt 17:24-27). Bible and Spade 10/4: 81-87.

  Fredricksmeyer, E.
  1979 Divine Honors for Philip II. Transaction of the American Philological Association 109: 39-61.

  Hawthorne, G.

  1983 Word Biblical Commentary, Philippians. Waco, TX: Word.

  Kent, H.
  1986The Pastoral Epistles. Revised edition. Salem, WI: Sheffield.

  Koukouli-Chrysantaki, C.
  1998 Colonia Iulia Augusta Philippensis. Pp. 5-35 in Philippi at the Time of Paul and after His Death. Harrisburg, PA: Trinity.

  Koukouli-Chrysanthaki, C., and Bakirtzis, C.
  1995Philippi. Athens: Archaeological Receipts Funds.

  LCL = Loeb Classical Library. Harvard University Press.

  Luter, B., and Lee, M.
  1995 Philippians as Chiasmus: Key to the Structure, Unity and Theme Questions. New Testament Studies 41: 89-101.

  Marotta, M., and Zakelj, A.
  2002 Portraits and Representations of Alexander the Great. The Celator 16/7: 6-20.

  Molnar, M.
  1994The Ides of March. The Celator 8:11: 6-10.

  Swift, R.
  1984 The Theme and Structure of Philippians. Bibliotheca Sacra 141: 234-254.

  Witherington, B. III
  1994 Friendship and finances in Philippi. Valley Forge, PA: Trinity Press International.
• 03Feb

  Why Did God Choose Jerusalem As The Capital Of Israel?

  Jerusalem Comments Off on Why Did God Choose Jerusalem As The Capital Of Israel?

  By Gordon Franz

  Introduction

  Jerusalem is a city that is sacred to the three monotheistic religions of the world: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It has been and remains to this day, a contested piece of real estate for two of these religions.

  Former Israeli Prime Minister, Menachem Begin, often said, “Jerusalem is the eternal, undivided capital of the nation of Israel and the Jewish people.” On the other hand, the Palestinian Authority, with the help of some world politicians, wants to divide the city and create a Palestinian State with Abu Dis in eastern Jerusalem as its capital.

  Within Jerusalem, the Temple Mount is the most hotly debated piece of real estate anywhere in the world. At the Second Camp David summit held during the summer of 2000, Yasser Arafat said that there was never a temple built by Solomon or Herod on what the Moslems call the Haram esh-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary). Those temples, he said, were located on Mount Gerizim near Nablus (Gold 2007: 11). The literary sources and the Temple Mount Sifting Project have clearly demonstrated that these Temples once stood on the Haram.

  The Bible, history, and geography are clear: Jerusalem was chosen by the Almighty as the capital of the nation of Israel … why? The simple answer – God’s Son.

  There are Better Cities to be Capital

  Politically and strategically there were better sites that David could have chosen to be the capital of Israel. But God had Jerusalem in mind, primarily, it can be argued, for spiritual reasons.

  The first city David could have chosen was Hebron (Tel Rumeidah). In fact, this was the first city from which David ruled when he came to the throne. David was selected by God to be king and anointed by Samuel in Bethlehem (I Sam. 16:1-13). After his flight from Saul, God instructed David to go to the city of Hebron and there the men of Judah “anointed David king over the house of Judah” (II Sam. 2:1-4)¹ and he reigned over Judah for seven and a half years (II Sam. 5:5). Finally, all the tribes of Israel came to King David and anointed him king over all Israel and Judah and he reigned for thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

  The reason Hebron was David’s first capital was because he was from the tribe of Judah and Hebron was in the tribal territory of Judah. The city also had a Patriarchal connection: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, along with some of their wives, are buried in the Cave of Machpelah near Hebron (Gen. 23:9, 17; 25:7-11; 49:29-32). Hebron overlooks the Patriarchal Highway the runs through the Hill Country of Judah down to Beersheva.

  David’s second choice of a capital could have been Gibeah of Saul (Tel el-Ful). Gibeah was King Saul’s capital (I Sam. 15:34). This city had a commanding view of the Central Benjamin Plateau from its position on the Patriarchal Highway (Judges 19:13).

  A third possibility might have been Bethel (el-Birah). This city was situated on the Patriarchal Highway (Judges 21:19) and had Patriarchal connections. This was the second place Abraham built an altar after he entered the Promised Land (Gen. 12:8-9). Jacob had his hallmark “ladder dream” at Bethel and it was at that event that God reconfirmed the Abrahamic covenant to Jacob (Gen. 28:11-22; cf. John 1:51).

  A fourth possibility is Gibeon (el-Jib) because “this great city, like one of the royal cities” (Josh. 10:2) was strategically located on the Central Benjamin Plateau and controlled the road leading to the Beth Horon Ridge Route. This road goes from the Central Benjamin Plateau to the International Coastal Highway and the port city of Jaffa.

  The last city David could have chosen was Shechem (Tel Balatah). It too was located on the Patriarchal Highway (Judges 21:19) at a strategic junction where the road splits. One could go west between Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, or go northeast down to Tirzah and the Wadi Farah. Shechem, like some of the other cities, had Patriarchal connections as well. This was the first place Abraham built an altar after he came into the Promised Land (Gen. 12:6, 7) and Joseph is buried there (Josh. 24:32). Interestingly, Shechem was made the first capital of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) by Jeroboam I following the division of the kingdom (I Kings 12:23).

  These five cities may have geographically, militarily, and strategically made better capitals for the Kingdom of Israel, yet Jebus (Jerusalem) was chosen … why? The simple answer – God’s Son.

  Why Jebus (Jerusalem) Should Not Have Been Chosen

  The ancient city of Jebus is situated on the ridge above the Gihon Spring. Jebus, later named the City of David, covered a small area of approximately 10 acres (Mazar 2007:12). It was not located on the Patriarchal Highway, in fact, one had to turn off the ridge route (the Patriarchal Highway) in order to get to the city (Judges 19:10-12). The city is also isolated by steep valleys (Psalm 125:1, 2). The Kidron Valley is on the east and the Tyropean Valley (Central Valley) is on the west (Neh. 2:13). The city is isolated and in a bowl because it is surrounded by hills (Psalm 125:1, 2). Strategically and geographically, Jebus (Jerusalem) should not have been chosen the capital of Israel, yet it was … why? The simple answer – God’s Son.

  Why Was It Chosen the Capital?

  There are two reasons Jerusalem was chosen the capital of Israel. The first, from David’s perspective, is political. The second, from God’s perspective, and more importantly, is spiritual.

  Political Reason

  Jerusalem was not conquered during the initial conquest of the Land by Joshua (Josh. 15:63). Thus it was still controlled by the Jebusites. During the period of the Judges, Judah and Benjamin could not drive the Jebusites out of the city (Judges 1:21; cf. 19:12).

  When David came to the throne, he first ruled from Hebron. In order to unify the country, he had to find a “neutral” site that was not in the tribal territory of Judah. The unconquered city of Jebus was in the tribal territory of Benjamin (Josh. 15:7, 8; 18:16, 28). Also, there were not any Benjamites living in the city because the Jebusites were able to regain the city after Judah took the city and burned it during the period of the Judges (Judges 1:8; Mazar 2007:47-48).

  David also understood the geo-political realities of the tribal territory of Benjamin. The easiest and most convenient road from Jericho, and thus the Transjordanian Plateau, to the International Coast Highway in the west was via the Central Benjamin Plateau. The tribal territory of Benjamin is lower in elevation than the territories of Judah to its south and Ephraim to its north. David wanted to keep the tribe of Benjamin on Judah’s side so he could control these east-west roads and not let them fall under Ephraim’s control. Eventually, David and his men were able to take the city of Jebus and he moved the capital to the city (II Sam. 5:6-10; I Chron. 11:4-9).

  Spiritual Reason

  God used David as a human instrument to bring about His divine purpose of placing His name in the capital of Jerusalem. Just before the nation of Israel entered the Promised Land, the LORD instructed Moses to tell the people of Israel that they were to meet the LORD three times a year in a place that He would choose to place His name (Deut. 12:1-11). “But when you cross over the Jordan and dwell in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to inherit … then there will be the place where the LORD your God chooses to make His name abide. There you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice offerings which you vow to the LORD” (12:10-11).

  God does not reveal the identity of this place until nearly 400 years later when Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem. Solomon prayed: “O LORD my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which your servant is praying before You today: that Your eyes may be open toward this temple night and day, toward the place of which You said, ‘My name shall be there,’ and You may hear the prayer which Your servant makes toward this place” (I Kings 8:28, 29; see also 8:44, 48; cf. II Chron. 6:20, 33, 34, 38; Ps. 78:67-69; 132:13, 14). The LORD affirmed Solomon’s prayer when He said: “I have heard your prayer and supplication that you have made before Me; I have consecrated this house which you have built to put My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually” (I Kings 9:3; cf. II Chron. 7:12, 16).

  God chose to place His name in Jerusalem because of the two events that transpired in the city that are recorded in the book of Genesis. Both events foreshadow the Person and Work of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

  The first event is recorded in Genesis 14. In this account, Abram delivers his nephew Lot from the Mesopotamian kings at the city of Laish (Dan). On his way back to the Negev he stops at the Valley of Shaveh (cf. II Sam. 18:18) and meets Melchizedek. Melchizedek was the king of Salem and also the priest of the Most High God (El Elyon). The King / Priest blessed Abram and Abram in turn gave a tithe to Melchizedek (14:18-20; cf. Heb. 7:1-4).

  The Book of Hebrews gives a divine commentary on this passage as well as Psalm 110 where David stated, “The LORD (Yahweh) has sworn and will not relent, ‘You (David’s Lord) are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek'” (110:4). In Hebrews 5:5, 6, God (the Father) said to David’s Lord (God’s Son), “You are My Son, today I have begotten You” (a quotation from Psalm 2:7), and also “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (a quotation from Psalm 110:4). Later, Jesus is identified as the Son who is the “High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb. 6:20).

  King David composed Psalm 110, a beautiful and prophetic psalm, by the inspiration of the Spirit of God (Matt. 22:43; Mark 12:36). In this psalm, David’s Lord is commanded to “Sit at My (Yahweh’s) right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’ The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!” (110:1). David, also being a prophet (Acts 2:30), foresaw the day when his descendent would rule forever from Zion (cf. Luke 1:31-33; Matt. 22:41-46; II Sam. 7:4-17; I Chron. 17:3-15). Zion is another name for the City of David, Salem, or Jerusalem (II Sam. 5:7; Ps. 76:1, 2; I Kings 8:1).

  The first reason God chose Jerusalem as the capital is because one day, His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Triune God, will return again to the Mount of Olives with His saints and sit upon the throne of David and establish His Kingdom over all the earth in Jerusalem as a King / Priest (Zech. 14; cf. Acts 1:11; Rev. 1:5-8; Zech. 12:10; Rev. 19:11-19).

  The second event recorded in the book of Genesis was Abraham offering up Isaac on a mountain in the Land of Moriah (Gen. 22), called in Jewish tradition Akedah, for the “binding” of Isaac. The Temple built by Solomon was located on Mount Moriah (II Chron. 3:1).

  In this touching account, God tested Abraham by commanding him to “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the Land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” (22:2). In the Septuagint (LXX), the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, it says, “Take thy son, the beloved one, whom thou hast loved – Isaac.” The Greek word for “beloved one” in the LXX is the same word used of Jesus at His baptism and transfiguration. The voice from heaven, God the Father, said at His baptism: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). Again at the transfiguration He said: “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” (Matt. 17:5).

  Abraham took his son Isaac, two young men, and a donkey that carried the wood for the sacrifice to the Land of Moriah. When they could see the mountain, Abraham said to the young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you” (22:5). Abraham said, “we (plural) will come back”, fully anticipating that Isaac would return with him, even though God had said to sacrifice him!

  Rabbis and commentators have had a field day trying to figure out this paradox. How could Abraham kill his son as a sacrifice, yet they were going to return together from worshiping God? Again, the book of Hebrews gives us a divine commentary on this event. “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac; and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it is said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,’ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense” (11:17-19). Abraham fully believed that God would raise Isaac from the dead, if he killed him.

  As the father (Abraham) and the son (Isaac) walked together to the mountain with the wood on the son’s shoulders, and the knife and fire in the father’s hands, Isaac asks, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” (22:7). Abraham solemnly responded, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering” (22:8).

  Abraham built an altar and bound his beloved son and placed him on it. As he was about to slay him with the knife, the Angel of the LORD stopped him with these words: “Do not lay your hands on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me” (22:12).

  Abraham lifted up his eyes, probably filled with tears, and saw a ram caught in a nearby thicket. He took the ram and sacrificed it in place of his son Isaac and named the place, “The LORD will provide; as it is said to this day, ‘In the Mount of the LORD it shall be provided'” (22:13, 14).

  The Lord Jesus was visiting the Temple during the Feast of Succoth (Tabernacles) in AD 29 when He had an encounter with the religious leaders. The topic of discussion was Father Abraham. They asked Jesus if He was greater than Abraham and the prophets. Jesus answered in the affirmative and said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad” (John 8:56). The religious leaders said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” (8:57). With that, the Lord Jesus asserted His deity by saying, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM” (8:58). The religious leaders understood that Jesus was attributing the divine name I AM WHO I AM (cf. Ex. 3:14) to Himself and so they picked up stones to throw at Him for blasphemy (John 8:59).

  But what did Jesus mean by, “You father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad”? What day was he talking about and why was he glad? I believe this statement goes back to the account in Genesis 22. Abraham, the friend of God, somehow knew of the Person and work of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus, because he called the name of the place “The LORD Will Provide” which meant “In the Mount of the LORD it shall be provided.” Abraham said to Isaac that God would provide a lamb as a burnt offering, and a ram was caught in the thicket. The ram is not a lamb! The ram was a substitute for Isaac, the ram died in Isaac’s place. It is not until 2,000 years later that John the Baptizer [remember, John was a Jew, not a Baptist!!!] was at Bethany beyond the Jordan (Batanea) when he saw Jesus approaching him after His 40 days of testing (Matt. 4:1-11; Mark 1:12, 13; Luke 4:1-13) and said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Jesus was the Lamb that God would provide Himself (Gen. 22:8).

  It was on Mount Moriah that Solomon built a Temple (and later the Second Temple stood) where people could bring sacrifices that could only atone for, or cover sins, but could never take away sins. It was on a nearby hill, called Calvary, that the Lord Jesus Christ, the perfect, sinless, Lamb of God, died as the perfect sacrifice in order to pay for all the sins of all humanity (Heb. 9:11-10:18; 13:13; I John 2:2; John 19:16-42). The final cry from the cross was “It is finished” (John 19:30). This word was used of a financial transaction that stated a bill was paid in full.

  In the Mount of the LORD, eternal redemption was provided by God and He offers His righteousness to any and all who would put their trust in the Lamb of God. The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Philippi in Macedonia and said if anyone could gain salvation by their good works, or their own merits, it was himself (Phil. 3:4-6). But he came to realize the great truth, “and be found in Him [the Lord Jesus], not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith” (3:9).

  The Apostle Peter stated that redemption was not with corruptible things such as silver and gold, but it was by “the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (I Pet. 1:18, 19).

  The Lord Jesus told Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes [trust in, or rely upon] in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

  The Answer to the Question

  God chose Jerusalem as the capital of Israel because of the priority He placed on His Son and His Son’s coming to redeem sinners. Jerusalem figures prominently, practically, and prophetically into Jesus’s coming to earth. The two Jerusalem-centered events in the book of Genesis foreshadowed the Person and work of the Lord Jesus in His first and second comings to earth. The first time He came, He was the Lamb of God who took away the sin of the world on a cross outside Jerusalem. The second time He will come, He will be the King / Priest who will rule the world from the Davidic throne on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.

  Bibliography

  Gold, Dore

  2007 The Fight for Jerusalem. Radical Islam, the West, and the Future of the Holy City. Washington, DC: Regnery.

  Mazar, Eilat

  2007 Preliminary Report on the City of David Excavations 2005 at the Visitors Center Area. Jerusalem and New York: Shalem.

  ¹ All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version.

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