spit

May 21, 2019

He will rise on the third day (Lk 18:33-18:33)

“After they have

Flogged him,

They will kill him.

On the third day,

He will rise again.”

 

καὶ μαστιγώσαντες ἀποκτενοῦσιν αὐτόν, καὶ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ τρίτῃ ἀναστήσεται,

 

Luke indicated that Jesus said that after they had flogged (καὶ μαστιγώσαντες) the Son of Man, they would kill him (ἀποκτενοῦσιν αὐτόν).  However, on the third day (καὶ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ τρίτῃ), he would rise again (ἀναστήσεται).  Mark, chapter 10:34, and Matthew, chapter 20:19, have something similar.  Mark indicated that Jesus said that they would mock or ridicule him (καὶ ἐμπαίξουσιν αὐτῷ).  They would spit on him (καὶ ἐμπτύσουσιν αὐτῷ).  They would flog or scourge him (καὶ μαστιγώσουσιν αὐτὸν).  Finally, they would kill him (καὶ ἀποκτενοῦσιν).  However, after three days (καὶ μετὰ τρεῖς ἡμέρας), he would rise again (ἀναστήσεται), as here in Luke.  Matthew indicated that Jesus said that they would mock or ridicule the Son of Man (εἰς τὸ ἐμπαῖξαι).  They would scourge him (καὶ μαστιγῶσαι).  Finally, they would crucify him (καὶ σταυρῶσαι), the common form of Roman execution.  Matthew was the only gospel writer here to mention the way of death, the crucifixion.  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 in talking about his future suffering, death, and resurrection.  What do you think about the resurrection of Jesus on the 3rd day?

November 20, 2018

They taunted Jesus (Mk 14:65-14:65)

“Some began

To spit on Jesus.

They blindfolded him.

They struck him.

They said to him.

‘Prophesy!’

The guards

Also took over him.

They beat him.”

 

Καὶ ἤρξαντό τινες ἐμπτύειν αὐτῷ καὶ περικαλύπτειν αὐτοῦ τὸ πρόσωπον καὶ κολαφίζειν αὐτὸν καὶ λέγειν αὐτῷ Προφήτευσον, καὶ οἱ ὑπηρέται ῥαπίσμασιν αὐτὸν ἔλαβον.

 

This is something similar in Mathew, chapter 26:67-68.  There is nothing like this in Luke, chapter 22, and John, chapter 18.  Mark said that some in this council were not reluctant to abuse him with spitting, punching, slapping, and taunting Jesus.  Thus, they began to spit at him (Καὶ ἤρξαντό τινες ἐμπτύειν αὐτῷ).  They blindfolded him or covered up his face (καὶ περικαλύπτειν αὐτοῦ τὸ πρόσωπον).  Then they struck him (καὶ κολαφίζειν αὐτὸν).  They then told Jesus to prophesize to them (καὶ λέγειν αὐτῷ Προφήτευσον) who had struck him.  Finally, the guards took over and beat and slapped him (καὶ οἱ ὑπηρέται ῥαπίσμασιν αὐτὸν ἔλαβον).  Thus, this secret Jewish leaders’ night trial came to an inglorious end.

October 12, 2018

The things to come (Mk 10:33-10:34)

“Jesus said.

‘See!

We are going up

To Jerusalem.

The Son of man

Will be handed over

To the chief priests

And the Scribes.

They will condemn him

To death.

Then they will

Hand him over

To the gentiles.

They will mock him.

They will spit upon him.

They will flog him.

They will kill him.

After three days,

He will rise again.’”

 

ὅτι Ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα, καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου παραδοθήσεται τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν καὶ τοῖς γραμματεῦσιν, καὶ κατακρινοῦσιν αὐτὸν θανάτῳ καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν

καὶ ἐμπαίξουσιν αὐτῷ καὶ ἐμπτύσουσιν αὐτῷ καὶ μαστιγώσουσιν αὐτὸν καὶ ἀποκτενοῦσιν, καὶ μετὰ τρεῖς ἡμέρας ἀναστήσεται.

 

Matthew, chapter 20:18-19, and Luke, chapter 18:32-33, have something similar to this, almost word for word.  This would be the 3rd prediction of Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection.  Yet this is the most descriptive explanation.  Mark said that Jesus told his trusted 12 leaders that they were going up to Jerusalem (ὅτι Ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα).  There 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), with no mention of the Pharisees or Sadducees.  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.  While this first part was almost word for word with Matthew, there was a change of vocabulary in the second verse.  Then they would mock or ridicule him (καὶ ἐμπαίξουσιν αὐτῷ).  They would spit on him (καὶ ἐμπτύσουσιν αὐτῷ).  They would flog or scourge him (καὶ μαστιγώσουσιν αὐτὸν).  Finally, they would kill him (καὶ ἀποκτενοῦσιν), but there was no mention of a crucifixion, as in Matthew.  After three days (καὶ μετὰ τρεῖς ἡμέρας), he would rise again (ἀναστήσεται).  Obviously, Jesus was talking about himself, but he always used the term Son of Man.

May 28, 2016

Quarrels (Sir 28:8-28:12)

“Refrain from strife.

Your sins will be fewer.

The hot tempered kindle strife.

The sinner disrupts friendships.

The sinner sows discord

Among those who are at peace.

In proportion to the fuel,

So will the fire burn.

In proportion to the obstinacy,

So will strife increase.

In proportion to a person’s strength,

So will be his anger.

In proportion to his wealth,

So he will increase his wrath.

A hasty quarrel kindles a fire.

A hasty dispute sheds blood.

If you blow on a spark,

It will glow.

If you spit on it,

It will be put out.

Yet both come out of your mouth.”

Sirach reminds us of the problems with quarrels and arguments. If you refrain from conflicts, your sins will be less. Usually it is the hot tempered people who start disputes. Sinners disrupt friendships. They sow discord among peacemakers. Then Sirach has a number of proportional examples. The more fuel you have, the more the fire burns. The more stubborn you are, the more disagreements you create. The stronger you are, the more you will be angry. The more wealth that you have, the more fury you will have. Sometimes it is a hasty quarrel that starts a fire that leads to bloodshed. However, you have control with your mouth. You can either blow on the spark to increase the flame or spit on the spark to put it out. The choice is yours, spit or blow on the spark of a fire to increase or decrease the argument.

May 25, 2016

The good and bad wife (Sir 26:22-26:27)

“A prostitute is regarded as spittle.

A married woman

Is a tower of death to her lovers.

A godless wife is given as a portion

To a lawless man.

But a pious wife is given

To a man who fears the Lord.

A shameless woman constantly

Acts disgracefully.

A modest daughter will even

Be embarrassed before her husband.

A headstrong wife is regarded as a dog.

But one who has a sense of shame

Will fear the Lord.

A wife honoring her husband

Will seem wise to all.

But if she dishonors him

In her pride,

She will be known to all

As ungodly.

Happy is the husband

Of a good wife.

The number of his years

Will be doubled.

A loud voiced wife is

Like a trumpet sound.

A garrulous wife is

Like a trumpet sounding the charge.

Every person like this,

Lives in the anarchy of war.”

This section, like the preceding, does not appear in some editions. Sirach once again distinguishes between the good and the bad wife. Of course, prostitutes are like spit. A married wife who has lovers is like the tower of death to them. These godless wives belong with lawless husbands. On the other hand, a pious wife is a gift to a husband who fears the Lord. The shameless wife consistently acts disgraceful, so that even her daughter is embarrassed when her husband is around. A headstrong wife is a like a dog. She needs to be brought under control. The wife who has a sense of shame fears the Lord. Wives who honor their husbands are seen as wise. However, the ungodly wives dishonor their husbands. If a man has a good wife, as above, his life span will be doubled. A loud and talky wife is like a trumpet sound in battle. They deserve to live in a war of anarchy. Thus the humble wife is the ideal.

September 11, 2015

Blessed be Yahweh (Ps 34:1-34:3)

“A psalm of David, when he feigned madness before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away

Aleph 

“I will bless Yahweh at all times!

His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

Bet      

My soul makes its boast in Yahweh.

Let the humble hear and be glad.

Gimel 

O magnify Yahweh with me!

Let us exalt his name together!”

Psalm 34 is a long sapiential psalm about what happened to David in 1 Samuel, chapter 21. It is also an acrostic or alphabet psalm as each verse starts with another letter of the Hebrew alphabet like Psalms 9, 10, and 25. In the 1 Samuel story, David pretended to be deranged when he appeared before the Philistine King Achish at city of Gath. David had spit all over his beard and started to scratch at everything around him. However, the king’s name was not Abimelech, who was another Philistine King of Gerar around the time of Abraham and Isaac. However, this psalmist did not use this name within the psalm, so that it might have been a title misidentification. However, the story in 1 Samuel did have David pretend that he was mad so that he was dismissed by the Philistine king of Gath as a crazy person and not David. This psalm actually makes very little reference to that story. David or the psalmist began by blessing and praising Yahweh as he boasted in Yahweh. He wanted his name to be magnified. He wanted the humble ones to hear and be exalted.

July 23, 2015

These outcasts now look down on Job (Job 30:9-30:15)

“Now they mock me in song.

I am a byword to them.

They abhor me.

They keep aloof from me.

They do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.

God has loosed my bowstring.

God has humbled me.

They now have cast off restraint in my presence.

On my right hand

The rabble rises up.

They send me sprawling.

They build roadblocks from ruin.

They break up my path.

They promote my calamity.

No one restrains them.

As through a wide breach they come.

Amid the crash they roll on.

Terrors are turned upon me.

My honor is pursued as by the wind.

My prosperity has passed away like a cloud.”

Once again, in colorful language, Job complains about the rabble around him. He did not like what they were doing to him. They were mocking him with various songs and stories. They did not like him. They spit in his direction when he came near to them. They really had no restraints in his presence since God had abandoned him. This rabble of outcasts sent him sprawling to the ground. They blocked his path. They were bullies to him since no one stopped them in their conduct. They already were the outcasts of society. They came at him just like through a hole in the wall. They just rolled over him. All of Job’s honor and prosperity was gone like a wind or cloud. Here today, but gone tomorrow.

July 11, 2015

Job proclaims his terrible situation (Job 17:6-17:10)

“He has made me a byword of the peoples.

I am one before whom men spit.

My eye has grown dim from grief,

All my members are like a shadow.

Upright men are appalled at this.

The innocent men stir themselves up against the godless.

Yet the righteous men hold to their way.

They that have clean hands grow stronger and stronger.

But you,

Come back now.

All of you,

I shall not find a sensible person among you.”

Job has become a byword, a fable, or a symbol for the people. People spit at him. His eyes are failing. His body is a shadow of what it once was. Upright people are appalled at him. The innocent and righteous people hold their own, as their clean hands grow stronger each day. However, among the friends of Job, he could not find a sensible man.