Matthew the apostle wrote how Jesus said, “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory”, and in chapter twenty-five and verse thirty-two of his book, Matthew writes how Jesus added, “before him shall be gathered all nations” where we read:
And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another,
as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats:
The verse reads, “And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, ...” Matthew began with Jesus' words, “and before him” which means “and in front of and in the presence of Jesus” “shall be gathered” or “will be collected and assembled” “all nations” which means “each, every, the whole and everyone of the companies, troops and multitudes of individuals of the same nature or genus”: “and he shall separate them” or “and Jesus will divide, mark off from others with boundaries and set apart the nations” “one from another” which means “one nation apart from another nation”. Matthew shared how Jesus said “all the nations of the world” will be assembled before Him, and He will “separate” them apart from each other.
The verse goes on to say, “... as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats:” Matthew added Jesus' words, “as a shepherd” which means “like unto, in likeness and in a manner like a herdsman or one who cares for others as an overseer” “divides” or “separates and marks off from others by boundaries” “his sheep” which means “the shepherd's four footed tame animals who are accustomed to graze” “from the goats” or “apart and separate from the kids or small goats” . Matthew shared how Jesus said He will “separate” the nations who are like “sheep” from those who are like “goats”.
When we meditate upon Matthew's words in this verse, we understand how Jesus will gather together all the “nations” of the world and “separate” them from each other. Some of the nations will be compliant like “sheep” are to their “shepherd” and others are like “goats” who are stubborn and refuse to follow their “shepherd's instruction”. Those who are wise will understand God has sent His Son Jesus to be the “Savior and Lord” of all mankind, and they will submit their lives unto Him and be like unto the “sheep” nations who obey His word. Otherwise, be assured, those who are “stubborn” like goats will find themselves apart from the people of God.
Next time Matthew writes how Jesus shares, “he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left”, 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"
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; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
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