Matthew the apostle wrote, “At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were hungry, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat”, and in chapter twelve and verse two of his book, Matthew shared how the Pharisees said Jesus' disciples, “do that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath day” where we read:
But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him,
Behold, your disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.
The verse reads, “But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, ...” Matthew began with the word, “but” which means “nevertheless, moreover and” “when” which means “at the time and moment” “the Pharisees” or “the sect that seems to have started after the Jewish exile. In addition to OT books the Pharisees recognized in oral tradition a standard of belief and life. They sought for distinction and praise by outward observance of external rites and by outward forms of piety, and such as ceremonial washings, fasting, prayers, and alms giving; and, comparatively negligent of genuine piety and they prided themselves on their fancied good work” “saw it” which means “perceived, noticed, discerned and discovered”, “they said” or “the Pharisees uttered, proclaimed and declared” “unto him” which refers to “Jesus”. Matthew shared how the religious sect called “the Pharisees” “saw” Jesus' disciples plucking the ears of “wheat” from the stalks and said the following to Him.
The verse goes on to say, “Behold, your disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.” Matthew continued with the word, “behold” which means “lo and see” “your disciples” or “Jesus' students, pupils and attendants” “do that which is not lawful” or “make ready, produce, prepare and execute an unlawful practice” “to do” which means “make ready, produce, prepare and execute” “upon the sabbath day” or “on the seventh day of each week which was a sacred festival on which the Israelites were required to abstain from all work”. Matthew shared how “the Pharisees” condemned Jesus' disciples for “unlawful” practices on the “Sabbath day”.
When we consider Matthew's words in this verse, we see how the Pharisees referred to Exodus chapter twenty and verse nine through eleven where it reads, “Six days shall you labour, and do all your work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD your God: in it you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger that is within your gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it”, and they considered Jesus' disciples plucking the ears of “corn” as “work”. This is why the Pharisees thought Jesus' disciples were violating the law. God desires to have a relationship with every person through His Son Jesus, and as people study Jesus' life, they shall find that He is much more about “saving” people than determining whether they are breaking a man made law.
Next time Matthew shares how Jesus asked, “Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book
“Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the
marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the
Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms
Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County"
in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
No comments:
Post a Comment