Bad treatment for the Son of Man (Lk 18:32-18:32)

“The Son of Man

Will be handed over

To the gentiles.

He will be mocked.

He will be insulted.

He will be spat upon.”

 

παραδοθήσεται γὰρ τοῖς ἔθνεσιν καὶ ἐμπαιχθήσεται καὶ ὑβρισθήσεται καὶ ἐμπτυσθήσεται,

 

Luke indicated that Jesus said that the Son of Man would be handed over to the gentiles (παραδοθήσεται γὰρ τοῖς ἔθνεσιν), the non-Israelites, obviously the Romans.  He would be mocked or ridiculed (καὶ ἐμπαιχθήσεται), insulted (καὶ ὑβρισθήσεται), and spat upon (καὶ ἐμπτυσθήσεται).  There was no clear statement about who was doing all this here in Luke, as there was in Mark and Matthew, where the chief priests and Scribes, but not the Pharisees or Sadducees, were betraying or handing over Jesus to the gentiles.  This was the 3rd prediction of the future sufferings of Jesus.  Luke had mentioned it in chapter 9:22 and 9:44-45.  Mark, chapter 10:33, and Matthew, chapter 20:18, have something similar to this.  Mark also had this as the 3rd prediction about the death of Jesus as he had mentioned it in chapters 8:31-33 and 9:30-32.  Jesus told his trusted 12 leaders that they were going up to Jerusalem (ὅτι Ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα), where the Son of Man would be handed over to the chief priests and the Scribes (καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδοθήσεται τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν καὶ τοῖς γραμματεῦσιν).  These chief priests and Scribes were going to condemn him to death (καὶ κατακρινοῦσιν αὐτὸν εἰς θανάτῳ).  They would, in turn, hand him over to the gentiles (καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν), meaning the Romans.  In Matthew, this would be the 3rd prediction of Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection, after chapters 16:21 and 17:22-23.  Yet this is the most descriptive explanation.  Jesus told his trusted 12 leaders that they were going to Jerusalem (Ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα).  There the Son of Man would be handed over to the chief priests of Jerusalem and the Scribes (καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδοθήσεται τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν καὶ γραμματεῦσιν).  These priests and Scribes were going to condemn him to death (καὶ κατακρινοῦσιν αὐτὸν εἰς θάνατον).  They would, in turn, hand him over to the gentiles (καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν), obviously the Romans.  These imminent predictions were about the future sufferings of the Son of Man, Jesus, in Jerusalem.  Would you like to know about your future sufferings?

Hail King of the Jews (Mk 15:18-15:18)

“They began

To salute Jesus.

‘Hail!

King of the Jews!’”

 

καὶ ἤρξαντο ἀσπάζεσθαι αὐτόν Χαῖρε, Βασιλεῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων·

 

This is almost word for word in Matthew, chapter 27:29, but not in Luke.  In John, chapter 19:3, there is something similar.  Mark said that these Roman soldiers began to salute Jesus (καὶ ἤρξαντο ἀσπάζεσθαι αὐτόν), as they mocked him, saying, “Hail (Χαῖρε)! King of the Jews (Βασιλεῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων)!”  Clearly, the title “King of the Jews” had become popular for addressing Jesus in a teasing way.

Conclusion: Passion, Resurrection and Great Commission

 

This gospel concluded with the events of the last week of Jesus, a main preoccupation of all four gospels.  Jesus had entered Jerusalem in triumph.  He held a last supper and prayed to be spared.  He was betrayed by Judas.  Then he was tried by the Jewish leaders and before The roman governor Pontius Pilate.  Jesus was crucified as king of the Jews and mocked by all.  At his death, there was an earthquake, when the veil of the Temple was cut in two, and the saints rose from their tombs.  Mary Magdalene and the other women discovered the empty tomb.  Jesus told them to tell the disciples to meet him in Galilee.

There was a plot to kill Jesus.  Jesus spoke to his disciples and gave his fourth prediction about the death of the Son of Man.  Then the chief priests and the elders gathered to plot the arrest of Jesus.  However, before that, there was an anointing by the unnamed women in Bethany as she poured oil on Jesus.  Others wanted to know why she was wasting oil.  Jesus said that she had done a good thing by anointing him for burial.  Thus, she would be remembered.  Meanwhile, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

Then they made the preparations for the Passover.  Where would the Passover be?  There was a house for the Passover meal, as the disciples prepared for the Passover evening meal.  Jesus announced the betrayal.  Who would betray Jesus?  This betrayer would be cursed, as Judas spoke out.  At the Last Supper Eucharist, Jesus said that this was his body and blood with eschatological implications.

They went to the Mount of Olives.  Jesus predicted that the apostles would scatter.  He was going to go to Galilee.  Peter said that he would never desert Jesus.  Then Jesus warned Peter about his desertion, but Peter was adamant that he would never deny Jesus.

They went to Gethsemane as Jesus took his three favorite apostles.  He prayed to his Father while these apostles slept.  There was a second prayer of Jesus, as he came a second time to the sleeping apostles.  He prayed a third time.  Then Jesus woke them up.

Judas arrived and kissed Jesus, as they then seized Jesus.  Someone cut off the ear of the high priest’s slave.  However, Jesus told them to put their swords away as the disciples fled.

Jesus went before Caiaphas the high priest, while Peter followed Jesus to the courtyard of the high priest.  They were looking for false testimony.  Finally, two witnesses came forward.  The high priest spoke and Jesus responded.  He called the words of Jesus blasphemy, as they mocked Jesus.  Peter’s denied Jesus three time and then he remembered Jesus’ words.

The elders and Pharisees planned to kill Jesus.  They would deliver Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor.  Meanwhile, Judas repented, but he hung himself.  He returned the pieces of silver to the Temple, but it was used to purchase a graveyard called the Field of Blood to fulfill a prophecy of Jeremiah.

Jesus went before Pilate as he asked him if he was the king of the Jews?  However, Jesus did not respond.  The governor was going to release one prisoner at the festival time.  However, the people wanted the prisoner Barabbas rather than Jesus.  Pilate got a warning from his wife.  Nevertheless, the crowd wanted to crucify Jesus.  Pilate claimed that he was innocent of his blood but the crowds said that his blood be on us.  Barabbas was then released.  Jesus went to the governor’s head quarters where the Roman soldiers mocked him.

They prepared Jesus for the crucifixion.  They got Simon of Cyrene to help with the cross as they went to Golgotha.  They divided his garments and wrote on the cross Jesus, King of the Jews.  There were two robbers who derided and and taunted Jesus, just like the Jewish religious leaders had mocked Jesus.

Darkness fell over the land as Jesus died.  The cry of Jesus was interpreted as a call to Elijah.  They gave him sour wine to drink.  Would Elijah save Jesus?  When Jesus died, the Temple curtain was torn in two.  Tombs opened and the dead rose and appeared in Jerusalem.  He truly was  the Son of God.

There were women from Galilee, especially the women called Mary.  Joseph of Arimathea got the body of Jesus and put it in his tomb as the women called Mary were vigilant.  Meanwhile, there was a gathering with Pilate, since the Jewish religious leaders wanted to have the tomb secure.  Thus, a custodial guard was set up at the tomb.

The two Marys visited the tomb, where there was another earthquake with an angel at the tomb.  The guards were afraid, but the angel speaks to the women to tell them to let the disciples know what happened.  The women left the tomb and Jesus appeared to them.  Meanwhile, the guards told the chief priests in Jerusalem what had happened.  These religious leaders paid the guards to tell everyone that someone stole the body of Jesus while they were sleeping.  Thus, this stolen body story spread.

After the resurrection, the remaining eleven disciples returned to an unnamed mountain in Galilee.  There the post-resurrection Jesus gave them authority in heaven and on earth with his great commission:  They were to make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them with a Trinitarian formula.  They were to follow his commandments because Jesus would be with them until the end of time.

The Roman soldiers mock Jesus (Mt 27:28-27:30)

“They stripped Jesus.

They put a scarlet robe

On him.

They twisted

Some thorns

Into a crown.

They put it

On his head.

They put a reed

In his right hand.

They knelt

Before him.

They mocked him.

They said.

‘Hail!

King of the Jews!’

They spat

On Jesus.

They took the reed.

They struck him

On the head.”

 

καὶ ἐκδύσαντες αὐτὸν χλαμύδα κοκκίνην περιέθηκαν αὐτῷ,

καὶ πλέξαντες στέφανον ἐξ ἀκανθῶν ἐπέθηκαν ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ κάλαμον ἐν τῇ δεξιᾷ αὐτοῦ, καὶ γονυπετήσαντες ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ ἐνέπαιξαν αὐτῷ λέγοντες Χαῖρε, Βασιλεῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων,

καὶ ἐμπτύσαντες εἰς αὐτὸν ἔλαβον τὸν κάλαμον καὶ ἔτυπτον εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ.

 

This is almost word for word in Mark, chapter 15:17-19, but not in Luke.  In John, chapter 19:2-3, there is something similar.  Matthew said that these Roman soldiers stripped Jesus of his clothes (καὶ ἐκδύσαντες αὐτὸν).  They put a scarlet robe on him (κοκκίνην περιέθηκαν αὐτῷ), a Roman soldier’s tunic.  Thus, he might have looked like a king in a purple robe.  Then they twisted some thorns into a crown (καὶ πλέξαντες στέφανον ἐξ ἀκανθῶν).  They put this crown on his head (πέθηκαν ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ) like a Roman laurel or gold crown.  They put a reed in his right hand (καὶ κάλαμον ἐν τῇ δεξιᾷ αὐτοῦ) like a royal scepter.  Then these Roman soldiers knelt before him (καὶ γονυπετήσαντες ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ) as they mocked him, saying “Hail! King of the Jews (ἐνέπαιξαν αὐτῷ λέγοντες Χαῖρε, Βασιλεῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων)!”  Then they spat on Jesus (καὶ ἐμπτύσαντες).  They took the reed from his hand (εἰς αὐτὸν ἔλαβον τὸν κάλαμον) and struck him on the head (καὶ ἔτυπτον εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ).  They were mocking this pretended king of the Jews.

Prediction of what is going to happen in Jerusalem (Mt 20:18-20:19)

“See!

We are going up

To Jerusalem.

The Son of Man

Will be handed over

To the chief priests

And scribes.

They will condemn him

To death.

Then they will hand him

Over to the gentiles.

He will be mocked.

He will be scourged.

He will be crucified.

On the third day

He will be raised up.”

 

Ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα, καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδοθήσεται τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν καὶ γραμματεῦσιν, καὶ κατακρινοῦσιν αὐτὸν εἰς θάνατον,

καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν εἰς τὸ ἐμπαῖξαι καὶ μαστιγῶσαι καὶ σταυρῶσαι, καὶ τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ ἐγερθήσεται.

 

Mark, chapter 10:33-34, and Luke, chapter 18:32-33, have something similar to this.  This would be the 3rd prediction of Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection after chapters 16:21 and 17:22-23.  Yet this is the most descriptive explanation.  Jesus told his trusted 12 leaders that they were going to Jerusalem (Ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα).  There the Son of Man would be handed over to the chief priests of Jerusalem and the scribes (καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδοθήσεται τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν καὶ γραμματεῦσιν).  There was no mention of the Pharisees or Sadducees.  These priests and scribes were going to condemn him to death (καὶ κατακρινοῦσιν αὐτὸν εἰς θάνατον).  They would, in turn, hand him over to the gentiles (καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν), meaning the Romans.  Then they would mock or ridicule him (εἰς τὸ ἐμπαῖξαι).  They would scourge him (καὶ μαστιγῶσαι).  Finally, they would crucify him (καὶ σταυρῶσαι), the common form of Roman execution.  However, on the 3rd day, the Son of Man would be raised up (καὶ τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ ἐγερθήσεται).  Obviously, Jesus was talking about himself, but he always used the term Son of Man.

Jerusalem remembers (Lam 1:7-1:7)

Zayin

“Jerusalem remembers

In the days

Of her affliction,

In the days

Of her wandering,

All the precious things

That were hers

In the days of old.

When her people fell

Into the hand

Of the foe,

There was no one

To help her.

The foe looked on,

Mocking over

Her downfall.”

Jerusalem remembered what happened. There were the days of affliction and wandering. She had many precious things in the good old days. However, her people fell into the hands of their foe. No one was there to help them as her enemies mocked her over her downfall. This verse starts with the Hebrew consonant letter Zayin. Each verse after this will use the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet in this acrostic poem.

The oracle of Yahweh against the Assyrian king (Isa 37:22-37:25)

“This is the word

That Yahweh

Has spoken

Concerning King Sennacherib.

‘She despises you.

She scorns you.

Virgin daughter Zion!

She tosses her head

Behind your back.

Daughter Jerusalem!

Whom have you mocked?

Whom have you reviled?

Against who have you raised your voice?

Against who have you haughtily lifted your eyes?

Against the Holy One of Israel!

By your messengers,

You have mocked Yahweh.

You have said.

‘With my many chariots,

I have gone up to

The heights of the mountains,

To the far recesses of Lebanon.

I felled its tallest cedars,

Its choicest cypresses.

I came to its remotest heights,

Its densest forest.

I dug wells.

I drank foreign waters.

I dried up with the sole of my foot

All the streams of Egypt’”

Once again, this is almost word for word from 2 Kings, chapter 19. In very poetic words, Isaiah speaks for Yahweh. Judah was his daughter Zion as well as his daughter Jerusalem, his favorite spot. King Sennacherib has mocked, reviled, raised his voice, and lifted up his eyes against the Holy One of Israel. He even sent messengers mocking Yahweh. He has bragged about his mighty exploits with chariots in mountains, trees, wells, and streams.

 

The beautiful prayer of King Hezekiah (Isa 37:15-37:20)

“King Hezekiah prayed to Yahweh.

He said.

‘O Yahweh of hosts!

God of Israel!

You are enthroned above the cherubim!

You alone are God

Of all the kingdoms of the earth.

You have made heaven and earth.

Incline your ear!

O Yahweh!

Hear!

Open your eyes!

O Yahweh!

See!

Hear all the words of King Sennacherib

That he has sent to mock the living God!

O Yahweh!

The kings of Assyria have laid waste

All the nations with all their lands.

They have hurled their gods into the fire.

They were no gods,

But the work of human hands,

Wood with stone.

So they were destroyed.

O Yahweh!

Our God!

I pray you,

Save us

From his hand!

Thus all the kingdoms of the earth

May know that you,

O Yahweh,

Are God alone.’”

Once again, this beautiful prayer of monotheism is almost word for word from 2 Kings, chapter 19. There is no doubt or question that there is only one God, Yahweh. There are no other gods, since this is the monotheistic religion of Yahweh. There might have been some ambiguity in the past, but not here. This is a personal direct prayer to Yahweh. King Hezekiah cries out to Yahweh, who is almighty in heaven, above all the kingdoms of the earth. He has made heaven and earth as its creator. Now the personal plea comes, as King Hezekiah asks Yahweh to listen to how King Sennacherib of Assyria has mocked Yahweh. It is true that he has destroyed many nations and many gods, but those gods were manmade gods of sticks and stones. King Hezekiah wants Yahweh to show his glory to all the nations of the world by saving Jerusalem.

The wager of Rabshakeh

“Come now!

Make a wager

With my master

The king of Assyria.

I will give you

Two thousand horses,

If you are able,

On your part,

To set riders on them.

How then can you repulse a single captain

Among the least of my master’s servants?

You rely on Egypt for chariots.

You rely on Egypt for horsemen.

Moreover,

Is it without Yahweh

That I have come up

Against this land to destroy it?

Yahweh said to me.

‘Go up against this land!

Destroy it!’”

In words that are word for word from 2 Kings, chapter 18, Rabshakeh presents a wager. He said that Judah would not have enough horsemen even if he gave them 2,000 horses. How could they fight against his army? He wanted to know where the chariots and horsemen that came from Egypt were. He mocked them for saying he had not relied on Yahweh. In fact, he said that Yahweh had come to him to tell him to destroy this land of Jerusalem.

The speech of Rabshakeh (Isa 36:4-36:7)

“Rabshakeh said to them.

‘Say to King Hezekiah.

Thus says the great king of Assyria.

On what do you base this confidence of yours?

Do you think that mere words are strategy?

Do you think that power is for war?

On whom do you now rely?

You have rebelled against me.

See!

You are relying on Egypt,

That broken reed of a staff,

That will pierce the hand

Of any man who leans on it.

Such is the Pharaoh King of Egypt

To all who rely on him.

But you say to me.

‘We rely on Yahweh our God.’

Is it not he whose high places

That King Hezekiah has removed?

Is it not he whose altars

King Hezekiah has removed?”

In words that are word for word from 2 Kings, chapter 18, Isaiah presents this speech from Rabshakeh meant for King Hezekiah of Judah (716-687 BCE). His diatribe, in the name of King Sennacherib of Assyria (706-681 BCE), implies that King Hezekiah had rebelled against the King of Assyria, since he now had a treaty with the Egyptian Pharaoh. Rabshakeh maintained that Judah had to be with either Assyria or Egypt. Rabshakeh told them not to be tricked by Egypt since they were a broken reed that would pierce their hands. He mocked the Israelites for saying that they relied on Yahweh, since King Hezekiah had torn down all the idol shrines during his religious reforms. However, there was no mention of the altar at Jerusalem here.