magistrates

June 14, 2019

Persecution (Lk 21:12-21:12)

“But before all this occurs,

They will arrest you.

They will persecute you.

They will hand you over

To synagogues

And prisons.

You will be brought

Before kings

And governors

Because of my name.”

 

πρὸ δὲ τούτων πάντων ἐπιβαλοῦσιν ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῶν καὶ διώξουσιν, παραδιδόντες εἰς τὰς συναγωγὰς καὶ φυλακάς, ἀπαγομένους ἐπὶ βασιλεῖς καὶ ἡγεμόνας ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματός μου

 

Luke indicated that Jesus said that before all this occurred (πρὸ δὲ τούτων πάντων), they would arrest or lay hands on his disciples (ἐπιβαλοῦσιν ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῶν).  They would persecute them (καὶ διώξουσιν) and hand them over (παραδιδόντες) to the synagogues (εἰς τὰς συναγωγὰς) and prisons (καὶ φυλακάς).  They would be brought before kings (ἀπαγομένους ἐπὶ βασιλεῖς) and governors (καὶ ἡγεμόνας) because of the name of Jesus (ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματός μου).  There was something similar in Mark, chapter 13:9, and Matthew, chapter 24:9.  Jesus said that his followers were going to be persecuted.  Mark indicated that Jesus warned them that they should be self-aware (Βλέπετε δὲ ὑμεῖς ἑαυτούς).  They would be handed over (παραδώσουσιν ὑμᾶς) to courts, councils, or synods (εἰς συνέδρια) and synagogues (καὶ εἰς συναγωγὰς), since some of the Jewish Christians were still part of Jewish social, political, and religious life.  They would also be beaten (δαρήσεσθε).  On the other hand, they would also have to stand before governors and kings (καὶ ἐπὶ ἡγεμόνων καὶ βασιλέων σταθήσεσθε) to give testimony as a witness to them about Jesus (ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ, εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς).  This idea of the persecution of the Jesus followers was not a new theme for Matthew, because it was mentioned earlier in chapter 10:16-25, where Jesus was more reassuring, and chapter 16:24, where Jesus spoke about bearing the cross of death.  Jesus said that his followers were going to be persecuted, distressed, or afflicted (τότε παραδώσουσιν ὑμᾶς εἰς θλῖψιν), even though there was no mention of this taking place in the synagogues in Matthew.  No doubt about it, they were going to be handed over to be tortured and put to death (καὶ ἀποκτενοῦσιν ὑμᾶς).  They would be hated and detested (καὶ ἔσεσθε μισούμενοι) by all the gentile nations (ὑπὸ πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν) because of his name (διὰ τὸ ὄνομά μου).  This was tough talk because it was not going to be easy to be a disciple of Jesus after he was gone.  In the Acts of the Apostles, there are many instances of the early Christians being persecuted in prisons and being brought before various magistrates.  Do you think it would be difficult to be persecuted because you were a Christian?

August 6, 2017

The assembly at the statue dedication (Dan 3:3-3:3)

“Then the satraps,

The prefects,

The governors,

The counselors,

The treasurers,

The justices,

The magistrates,

All the officials

Of the provinces,

Assembled

For the dedication

Of the statue

That King Nebuchadnezzar

Had set up.

They stood before

The statue

That King Nebuchadnezzar

Had set up.”

Guess what! All these officials showed up for the dedication of this statue. The satraps, the prefects, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered around the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. They all understood that the request was really an order to show up.

April 4, 2015

The sending of the decree (Esth 3:12-3:13)

“The king’s secretaries were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month. In accordance with Haman’s instructions, they wrote in the name of King Artaxerxes to the magistrates and the governors in every province from India to Ethiopia. There were one hundred twenty-seven provinces in all. The governors were addressed each in his own language. It was written and sealed with the king’s ring. Letters were sent by couriers throughout all the empire of King Artaxerxes to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jewish people, young and old, women and children, on a given day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is Adar, and to plunder their goods.”

The king’s secretaries were summoned on the next day after the meeting between Haman and the king. They were to follow the instructions of Haman. They wrote in the name of the king to the magistrates and governors of all the 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia, each in their own language with the royal seal. They were sent by royal couriers throughout the empire. On the 13th day of the 12th month of that year they were to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jewish people and take their goods. This was also the final solution of Hitler some 2500 years before his time.

March 18, 2015

Achior tells his story to the Israelites (Jdt 6:14-6:17)

“Then the Israelites came down from their town. They found Achior and untied him. They brought him into Bethulia. They placed him before the magistrates of their city, who in those days were Uzziah son of Micah, of the tribe of Simeon, and Chabris son of Gothoniel, and Charmis son of Melchiel. They called together all the elders of the town. All their young men and women ran to the assembly. They set Achior in the midst of all their people. Uzziah questioned him about what had happened. He answered them. He told them what had taken place at the council of General Holofernes. He told them everything that he had said in the presence of the Assyrian leaders. He told them that General Holofernes had boasted what he would do against the house of Israel.”

The Israelites came down from Bethulia, this difficult to locate town. They found Achior tied up. So they untied him and brought him back to Bethulia. There they called the 3 leaders in Bethulia, Uzziah, Chabris, and Charmis. This author noted that Uzziah was from Simeon, but that tribe had been fully integrated into Judah for centuries. This Uzziah was not the king of Judah who ruled in the 8th century BCE. Both Chabris and Charmis only appear here in this book of Judith. Although they called a meeting for the elders, both the young men and women came to the meeting. Uzziah was the lead questioner. He wanted to know what happened. Then Achior told his side of the story about what he told General Holofernes, plus what General Holofernes had said about the Israelites.