Tag Archives: Ordinary time after Pentecost

Matthew 22:1-14 – The parable of the wedding banquet [Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Matthew 22:1-14

Once more Jesus spoke to the people in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”

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This is the Gospel reading from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 23, the nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost. This will next be read aloud by a priest in church on Sunday, October 15, 2017. This is the parable of the Wedding Banquet and is important because it speaks of all who are invited to serve the Lord, but treat that invitation with ridicule and scorn.

This parable immediately follows the parable of the tenants, which was the Gospel reading for the prior Sunday. Because it begins a new chapter, one can say a day in Jesus’ “inspection” has passed and a new day has begun. This would be why Matthew began by writing, “Once more Jesus spoke to the people in parables.”

Still, the Greek word “apokritheis” was written and not factored into the translation above. That word states that Jesus “answered” the people, or “took up conversation” with them. The implication is that some question asked or something said that needed clarification. This means Jesus did not simply begin speaking in a parable, as a parable is an answer created to make someone think about its symbolism.

This parable begins with the statement that is the overview. Everything hangs from Jesus beginning by stating, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son.” Thus, the question being answered or the clarification needed is relative to the kingdom of heaven.

The parable could then be addressing the question, “How do we gain the assurance of Heaven?” A similar question was posed to Jesus at a prior time to his return to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. That time a young, wealthy Pharisee asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” (Matthew 19:16-22) Jesus answered quite clearly then: Law, Give, Follow. Now, it is answered symbolically.

When Jesus said the comparison was “to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son,” the focus given by all Christians today is on “his son.” This (of course) is Jesus. Still, to think that Jesus is telling a parable about about himself is over-simplifying this message.

Over-simplification is part of what I call “Big Brain Syndrome.” We think we know a thing or two today, so we are smarter than those rubes who were standing around Jesus then. We slap Jesus on the back and say, “Tell them Jesus, we know you’re talking about you as his son.” However, the sad reality is most people do not have a clue about the real meaning of this parable; but because people today know how to operate a smart phone, they think that makes them become Jesus-like.

Sure, the “king” is God and “his son” is Jesus; but the operative word that needs to be grasped here is “wedding.”

When we read, “[The king] sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come,” “his slaves” are those who serve the LORD. Those who would not come are those who think they are better than slaves and equal to a king.

In the symbolism of this parable, the “slaves” are the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob [aka Israel], who served God and attended to His needs. There are quite a few over a long period of time: The Israelites were freed by Moses, who was one of “his slaves”; All the Judges (like Gideon, Deborah, Samson, Eli, et al) were the king’s slaves; all the leaders of the people (like Joshua, Samuel, David, et al) were the slaves of God; and all the temple prophets (like Elijah, Elisha, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Isaiah, et al) were “his slaves.” That is the meaning of those who were sent out “to call” the invited.

The “invited” are all the children of Israel, which includes Jews (who were then surrounding Jesus) and Christians (now, who are reading about this parable).

What flies over everyone’s head is how the invitation was not to have a bunch of party-goers come to the king’s palace for free food, with plenty of wine available for getting drunk. The invitation has to be seen symbolically as quite important, meaning the invitation was to marry his son. Better yet, it was to marry God and become his son, which would make that person be reborn as Jesus Christ.

Either way, the books of the Holy Bible (then called the Torah and the scrolls) are the record of “slaves” inviting those following the trail of the One God, who all believed they were promised land AND Heaven. The problem was the invitations (then, as an allusion to those standing within earshot of Jesus) only went to Jewish men of position and power.

That is why those who were invited got angry and upset, so that “they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them.” Keep in mind this was a parable told well before “women’s lib,” so all the invited were adult Jewish males – menfolk who owned property and wares (things). Now, it applies to anyone (both sexes, Judeo-Christian) who own stuff and control people.

Even in these modern times, when human beings love to call 0 and 1 equal [we’re all numbers], and when the concept of marriage has been rolled in the mud for so long it is barely recognizable and hardly desirable, those who still hold marriage in high regard do so by standards that are considered “old fashioned.”

By this, I mean the man asks a woman to marry him. The man give something of value to the woman (an engagement ring, usually). The woman takes the man’s name in marriage.

To some, perhaps, marriage pleasantly leads to dreams of the husband going off to work and earning a living. He buys the wife a house. The wife then stays home, to cook, clean, and raise babies (the intent of a honeymoon).

Admittedly, fewer and fewer people grow up with this ideal in mind, especially now that some primary schools and kindergartens are teaching gender identity is what you want to be, not what you are. Go figure.

No wonder marriage is seeming more and more like dinosaur bones and relics (“Mortal can these dried bones live?”)

Because of this innate social concept of marriage and submission being a matter of the heart and not one of brawn, females have long been much more inclined to look forward to marriage, as well as believe in religion, God, prayer, and all the things “church ladies” do. Nuns are such devoted believers they marry Christ. Faith, therefore, is a matter of the heart.

Men [gruff, gruff], on the other hand, tend to stay away from all this faith stuff, as much as possible. They usually pray only when they are about to lose money gambling on sports teams. Most men will go along with the pretense of faith, “as long as it keeps the wife happy.” Men also like children … God’s blessings … but still men like the sex part about making babies too (an outward sign of inward grace?).

Women are from Venus, men are from Mars?

Because of that male-dominated-world mentality, when a man is invited to marry the “son” of “the king,” … well forget that! Men have property to purchase and wares to sell, because they have families to provide for … thank you very much for understanding that!

How ’bout dem Bears?

Well, the application of this parable is “one size fits all.” Men and women – equally – are invited to marry God and become Jesus Christ, by receipt of God’s Holy Spirit. Accepting the invitation means gladly saying, “I do!” That does not mean, “I comply.” It means, “I love you God.”

When Jesus said the king announced, “I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet,” this is the ceremonial sacrifices for all those planned marriages. The “oxen” and “fat calves” are those egos that overestimate their virility and net worth. They are egos fattened by the blessings of God, so those who took the engagement rings of wealth are His beasts of burden … His chosen ones. Once those animals are sacrificed, “everything is ready” to join with the Christ Mind and become “his son” (for the umpteenth time … regardless of one’s human gender).

When we read, “they made light of it and went away, … (and) seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them,” this is how every Jew of Jesus’ Jerusalem and every Christian today, any who will admit “I am no Saint,” they reject this plan of God. God’s plan is for lost human beings to be found, through the light of Christ. But, lost human beings have so much fun being lost, they think self is more important than holy selflessness.

They hear all those slaves of the king giving the same invitations in the holy texts (differently), but they only laugh at it as nonsense, or they mistreat it by writing it off as being a long time ago – no longer applicable in this complex world. Some even kill those writers through the scientific methods of agnosticism and atheism (where they attempt to kill the spirit of anyone reading an invitation and thinking, “Hmmmm. Maybe I’ll go.”)

This kind of response to God’s wedding invitation did not go over well with God. We read, “The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.” Can you recall how the divided kingdoms, Israel and Judah, were overrun and destroyed? Scattered people who had their Promised Land repossessed by God, for failure to accept His invitation to be married to God as “his son.”

This same fate applied to the Second Temple businessmen, and it applies to the exponentially growing number of “Christian” churches that are preaching (through the absence of a “How to be a Saint” message), “Don’t be married to God.” Those are seen as murderers of wide-scale Apostlehood, as the bad shepherds holding flocks of sheep in centers designed for wool profiteering.

When we then read, “He said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet,” those unworthy were the Pharisees (and other Temple-related well-to-dos). That then factors to modern times as Christians who make a living selling Christianity on TV or in mega-churches [including the Vatican].

This makes “the main streets” be the mainstream of humanity that flows in torrents around the world. The invitation is for anyone who picks up a Holy Bible and reads a slave pronouncing an invitation to be married to God and become “his son” (regardless of human gender). If that person says, “Yes! I want that!”, then, “You’re engaged to marry God!”

To then read, “[The slaves] found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests,” the “good and bad” actually states “the wicked, evil, malicious, slothful” (“ponērous”) and “the intrinsically good, good in nature, good whether or not it can be seen, and believers” (“agathous”). That means there are those found by the “slaves” who were like those who Jesus said were closer to salvation (tax collectors and prostitutes) than the Pharisees (Popes, televangelists, authors of bestselling Christian novels, et al). The “bad” were those sinners who wanted to not be bad, and the “good” were those who fought hard to find support and encouragement to keep up the good fight.

None of those were led to marry God by anyone other than the king’s slaves.

When we read “guests” filled the banquet hall, this is misleading, as weddings are typically many more guests than marriage participants. The Greek word written is “anakeimenōn,” which means “recliners” or those “seated” at the dinner table. Because we are told, “[the king] noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe,” the implication is all those “seated” were properly dressed for their marriage. Now, here was this guy who strolled in wearing his street clothes, or perhaps he was looking like a wolf, uncovered?

When Jesus said the king (God) asked this man, politely, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” the implication is the man had proclaimed to be a “friend” of God and “his son.” However, to be wedded to God, to become “his son” through marriage, to be ceremoniously sacrificed of ego means to be more than simply a “friend.” The Greek word here is “Hetaire,” which means, “a companion (normally an impostor), posing to be a comrade but in reality only has his own interests in mind.”

This is actually a statement of what a true Church consists of. Paul wrote, “There is one body, but it has many parts. But all its many parts make up one body. It is the same with Christ.” (1 Corinthians 12:12) The same can be said of this wedding banquet, where many types of people had submitted themselves to God, to be married through His Christ. All would become “one body” through marriage, as all would become one with God and Christ.

Anyone who is not a true Saint or Apostle, not having talents of the Holy Spirit, is just a “pal,” who “has his or her own interests in mind.” When one’s own interest is a “Big Brain” and not the Christ Mind, then that person is spotted by God the king and questioned. God does not call those “Friend.” He calls them “Impostor!” and asks, “What are you doing with my chosen people?”

Jesus said the response to that questioning by God was, “And [the uninvited guest] was speechless.” That impostor, who didn’t even dress like he was going to get married to “his son,” had nothing to say. When saying the truth, “Just here for the food and wine,” would have been a good start to a conversation; the reality is he was “speechless” for a symbolic reason.

Here, “speechless” means the man’s tongue had not been lit “like a violent rush of wind,” which gave him “a tongue of fire.” His being speechless meant he was unable to answer, because he could not begin speaking in holy language, as would be given from the Spirit within. This is confirmed when one sees how the Greek word translated as “speechless” is “ephimōthē,” which implies “muzzled” or “put to silence.” Thus, only those who were rightfully present at the wedding banquet could speak, but they could only speak what the Holy Spirit allowed.

The moral of this parable is then stated by Jesus as being, “The king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Clearly, the easy summary says, “Ignore the invitations found in the Holy Bible and go to Hell.” However, it is not that simple.

To be bound “hand and foot” is less about the acts of the Lord’s “servants” or “attendants” (those rightfully present at the wedding banquet), but that which binds is self-inflicted. The man was bound by his own actions. He was bound by the path he had taken and those whom he had walked upon to get there (“feet”). Additionally, he was bound by what he had taken from others and kept for himself, instead of giving freely (“hands”).

It was those self-binding actions that cast himself “into the outer darkness,” away from the light of Christ. In darkness souls suffer, because they are reborn time and time again into fleshy bodies that feel the pains of a sinful world. In the world of flesh “there will [always] be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Lamentations will always be for the pains of that which was lost; and, the gnashing of teeth comes from eternally biting on the backs of others, causing a karmic debt that makes one’s own back always be bitten.

The “outer darkness” is the opposite of an inner light. To be cast there is to deny the Mind of Christ. The outer darkness is all the answers a Big Brain becomes speechless to know. The inner light comes from a heart in love with God.

This moral then makes it easier to read the last verse, which states: “For many are called, but few are chosen.” It can lead to confusion, since the man who ended up being cast out can seem to have answered a call. Why, then, wasn’t he chosen? Doesn’t God love everyone?

The man has to be understood as being there under false pretenses. It is like someone going to a church because he thinks he will be more promotable at work that way. The man was not there to be committed to God and Christ on a permanent (24/7/365.25) basis. He was called, but he rejected the true call.

When we read “few are chosen,” certainly God only allows those who love Him deeply from their hearts to marry Him and become One with the Trinity – be a Saint. But, the deeper meaning is (sadly) how few will choose to sacrifice their egos and submit totally to God’s Will. All are called to do that, because the “slaves” took the invitations to those who were not born of a special race and/or religion. No one goes to the kingdom of God simply by birth, with no special requirements of any kind.

One has to earn that. And, when they say you can’t take it with you, it means more than material things. No Big Brains allowed either. The young, rich ruler who Jesus told how to be assured of eternal reward was to get rid of that brain that thinks having more than others makes that point. Then, when Jesus said, “Follow me,” that meant accept God’s invitation to be married, so he would be the next Jesus … Christ … God’s Son.

If only the males of the world could see themselves as called to a wedding banquet to be the bride of God … to become “his son” through marriage … then the world would have a chance of being a better place. However, the world makes men surround themselves with that defender mentality; and, it is hard for both sexes to sacrifice ego and trust in the LORD.

We all know there is only one Son of God, who is Jesus Christ, who sits at the right hand of God. Marriage to God brings about the rebirth of Jesus Christ in the one wearing the wedding gown, reclining before God in subservience. This is quintessentially the meaning of being Christian. Listen to what the “slaves” are saying.

Exodus, Language, Teaching

Exodus 33:12-23 – Being Jesus reborn is finding favor by Yahweh [Twentieth Sunay after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have said to me, ‘Bring up this people’; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ Now if I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.” He said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” And he said to him, “If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.”

The Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing that you have asked; for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.” Moses said, “Show me your glory, I pray.” And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name, ‘The Lord’; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live.” And the Lord continued, “See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.”

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This is the Old Testament selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 24, the twentieth Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud in church on Sunday, October 22, 2017. It is important as God tells Moses His presence will go with Moses, with Moses able to be shown the way of the LORD to God’s chosen people. The glory of the LORD will rest on Moses.

This reading continues the dream sequence that Exodus 31 presented, about the golden calf. In between that dream and this selection are other elements that are best seen as prophecy. We find that YHWH directed Moses to record a second version of the Covenant, after getting so angry he smashed the first tablets of stone, which can then be seen as prophesying the coming of Jesus and the New Covenant. Rather than the stone tablets being broken in anger by Moses, it was the Israelites (over a millennia) who broke the Law and lost their lands. The second story is then pertinent to the second phase of the agreement to abide by the Law, while the Jews were in Babylon.

I am fed up with you people continually dragging my name through the mud for centuries.

I recommend every Christian re-read Exodus and Deuteronomy, paying close attention to the stories told that are repeated, but told differently. Simply be aware of the possibility that the differences are due to a prophetic dream being the purpose, which would later be fulfilled, well into the future from then. See the purpose of two versions of the tablet story and the agreements made, and the other duplicate stories that complete Exodus (and repeat in Deuteronomy), as God looking to see who pauses and begins to look deeper, looking for truth, rather than excuse to disbelieve.

In regards to this reading, the text above suffers greatly from the Hebrew text. The reality of the Hebrew exposes more insight into the dream powers that Moses possessed. This makes the prophecy of Joel worth remembering, when he prophesied as the voice of God:

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.” (Joel 2:28)

One needs to see Moses as an “old man,” since he was neither young nor a child when on Mount Horeb. We regularly read of Moses going to have a talk with God; but the question now becomes, “Just how did Moses have those conversations?”

In the Tent of Meeting?
“Your old men shall dream dreams.” Joel 2:28

That prophecy written by Joel, which Peter quoted to the pilgrims in Jerusalem on Pentecost, was fulfilled on that Pentecost morning; but it was not the only fulfillment. Prophecy by the pouring out of Spirit is repeatedly seen fulfilled every time God’s Spirit comes upon men of God. Moses was one of those men who spoke to YHWH in a dream state. Samuel answered the call of God as a child when asleep. Joseph interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh, and Daniel did the same for Nebuchadnezzar. Therefore, the tent of meeting might well have been the place where Moses went to find solitude (outside the camp of Israelites), so that there he could drift into a prophetic dream state.

To grasp this Exodus 33 reading, I recommend the readers here visit this Interlinear page on BibleHub.com. It shows the Hebrew text for all of Exodus 33, so scroll down to verse 12; and the remainder of the page is this reading. The page lists the Hebrew root word and an English translation. The written words have links to a page that offers examples of other uses and their translations, with the root word (above the actual text word) having a link to a page that details the root meaning and translations, based on their possible usage. The English translation is then literal, as it maintains the order of the written text. Reading literally is a great way to realize the Hebrew text before it becomes mutated in English translation.

When the literal is compared to the English translation that will be read in churches (the New International Version), it is eye-opening how much meaning is lost. Seeing the words that were actually written, thus representative of the language of the LORD, means one is freed (somewhat) of translations that act as paraphrases of what God told a prophet to write. Looking at the root language is a good beginning, from which God will see an effort made to learn. Understanding the words of Scripture (at all times) requires the Holy Spirit’s assistance, so one can be fluent in that holy tongue.

The word count for the selected reading is 319 words. Beginning where the first verse says, “See,” the focus is strongly placed on vision. We have “my sight,” “your sight,” “show me,” “show mercy,” and “see” written multiple (14) times. Additionally, we find “the face” and “my face” three more times, with “face” an omitted part (in English translation) of the First Commandment, and the “face” is where the eyes are located. This is not coincidence, as this reading (entitled “Moses and the Glory of God” on some translation sites) is about Moses seeing, in a special way, as one filled with God’s Holy Spirit. Therefore, everything is metaphor for being led by the Mind of Christ.

Yahweh: “Samuel!”
All like Samuel: “Here I am!”

Here are some notes I made, from looking at the Hebrew translated into literal English translations. If you open a separate window by clicking the link to BibleHub.com, you can see what I am taking notes from, as well as check the links to word meanings.

“See” = “rə·’êh” = “Vision, View, Understanding.” The meaning is to have access to visions of prophecy and hearing what YHWH wants a prophet to “See.”

“Bring up” = “ha·‘al” = “Ascend, Raise.” This indicates that it was Moses’ role, as the leader of the Israelites and who was in touch with YHWH, to elevate the Israelites Spiritually. That helps explain 40 years in the wilderness – they were slow learners?

“you have not let me know whom you will send with me.” This means that Moses has not yet seen (through dream insight) what powers of elevation God will send to him, which can then be passed on to the Israelite followers.

“I may know you by name” = “yə·ḏa‘·tî·ḵā bə·šêm” = “I know you by name.” By Moses having the presence of YHWH, he knows what YHWH knows, as if Moses were YHWH. This does not mean God knew Moses was named Moses. It means a union of God and Moses, so Moses can know what needs to be known “in the name” of God.

“in My sight” = “bə·‘ê·nāy” = “in My eyes.” God has shown favor to Moses, where “favor” means with God’s blessing. Moses was “accepted” [translation possibility for “favor”] by God, known by His showing Moses visions to guide him. The word for “favor” (“ḥên”) also means “grace.”

“Consider” = “ū·rə·’êh” = same as “See” [see above – “rə·’êh”]. Moses was shown that the Israelites (“‘am·me·ḵā” – “your people”) are a “nation” or “community of people.” They too are to be “this,” or the “same,” as was Moses … able to “See.”

“My presence” = “pā·nāy” = “My face.” This means that Moses will wear the face of YHWH, as the presence of God within him.

“I will give rest” = “wa·hă·ni·ḥō·ṯî”. “I will give calm or rest” means God will allow Moses to have daydreams and night dreams of prophecy and guidance.

“If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here.” This means that without the presence of YHWH on Moses, the Israelites will not be raised or elevated. They cannot progress as servants of the LORD without that spiritual elevation.

“For how shall it” = “ū·ḇam·meh” = “Wherein” or “How many?” This asks the question “How many will know the grace of God’s Sight, [besides] I [Moses] and your people [the Israelites].” The question then applies to all who will be allowed the Sight of YHWH. If they ever become separated from that presence [face of YHWH], then they will go nowhere, nor will anyone else in the world. The “face of the world” will not be that of God, if the Israelites and Moses are separated from the “face of God.” Separated mean wearing “the face of the world.” This is a statement of importance placed on Moses and the Israelites. It is a prophecy that the world is that which needs to be saved by “the people” (of God), so they must not be separated from that service to the LORD.

“show me your glory” = “har·’ê·nî nā , ’êṯ kə·ḇō·ḏe·ḵā” = “show me now” or “show me I beg, pray, saying please” [pause of separation comma implied] “your abundance, riches, honor, glory” This says Moses asked God to give him the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so he could See for the LORD, recognizing that “glory” was not his own, but that only of God.

“I will make all my goodness pass before you” = “’ă·nî ’a·‘ă·ḇîr kāl- ṭū·ḇî ‘al- pā·ne·ḵā” = “I will pass over all My goodness over your face.” This says Moses was to shine with the face of the LORD upon him.

“and will proclaim before you the name, ‘The Lord’” = “I will proclaim the name of Yahweh on your face [which projects before your head].” This says the people will know Moses has the face of the LORD, because of the glow on his face.”

“and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.” = “and will show blessing to whom I favor, and will show compassion to whom I am compassionate.” This means God’s face will shine upon only those who, like Moses, are compassionate for the LORD [compassionate means, “from suffering,” meaning drawn to the LORD through suffering AND willing to suffer to serve the LORD].

“you cannot see my face” = “lō tū·ḵal lir·’ō·wṯ pā·nāy” = “not are you able to See my face [upon your face].” This means one with the Holy Spirit upon him or her will See what the LORD allows to be seen, but will still look like the human being they are [look like themselves].

“for no one shall see me and live” = “for not can See me [“hā·’ā·ḏām , wā·ḥay”] man , and be alive [live].” This means to know the image of God is impossible for human bodies of flesh, as YHWH is unfathomable to such little brains. Only through death, when the soul is released from the narrowmindedness of a physical brain, can the soul See God as He is.

“See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock” = “the LORD behold! , wherever [a space, any physical place] near me , a pillar over of strength [or a cliff, a rock].” This says that wherever one Sees through the face of God, that person will stand like a pillar of strength for others.

“while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock” = “And it will come to pass over , the pass over of my favor [glory] , and you will be set [or placed, or granted] in a cleft [or fissure, or cavern] of my strength [that rock].” This means that one filled with the Holy Spirit of God is within an encasement of the LORD’s covering.

“I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by” = “I will cover you with my power [or my branches] , will cover through the pass over.” This means the powers of the Holy Spirit, and all talents given by the LORD, surround the one wearing the face of God, for as long as God’s presence is within one.

“then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back” = “And will turn aside with my power [my branches] , and you shall Know my back side [or hind part].” This means that the result of God’s power will be all that is Seen, as none of the power will be explainable. This is how Jesus routinely said, “Go. Your faith has healed you.” He did nothing that could be Seen, but the result (“the back side”) was the power of the LORD.

“but my face shall not be seen.” This means the face of God cannot be seen as the one who wears the face of God. One cannot say, “I am the Son of God. See? I look just like Him.”

When Jesus made insinuations, proclamations or affirmations that his Father was God, Jesus only looked like a man. Thus, Jesus did not appear to have the face of God. God’s face shall not be seen, but it is present in all who become reproductions of His Son, shining through inner powers of strength.

Hopefully, these notes will make my point clear, which is this story of Moses talking to God was a prophecy that says all who are chosen to follow God need to be elevated spiritually. If you look closely at the Greek text of Acts 2:14, where a standard translation states:

“Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say,”

You will see that what is written more importantly says that Peter spoke, “with an elevated voice.” Maybe he yelled, or maybe elevated voices carry to ears without screaming? The meaning is that after having been given the gift of speaking in foreign languages (without formal training or education), his voice was elevated to speak interpretation of Scripture. All Apostles were, are, and will always be elevated spiritually.

Christians today are called to become Moses in this prophecy. We are to converse with God, asking Him to guide us as we take on the task of “bringing up these people” that look at us for spiritual guidance. We need to be able to wear the face of God, so He knows us by name … Jesus Christ reborn.

Peter became Christ Peter when he stood in a cleft of rock and let the Holy Spirit send words out of his mouth. He certainly lived up to his nickname (given by Jesus), as Peter the Rock of Jesus Christ. Peter was encased by the strength and power of God’s Holy Spirit.

Three thousand pilgrims did as Peter instructed that day and listened carefully to what he and the other Apostles said. Those listening also were filled by the Holy Spirit, from being told the meaning of Scripture in ways they had never been taught. That was the pass over of God; but no one saw His face. Only the back side of God was seen in the conversion of Jews, to faith in Jesus as their true Messiah.

This reading prophesied that event, and all other conversions since and still to come.

#Exodus331223 #Joel228 #twentiethSundayafterPentecost #Proper24YearA #Acts214

1 Thessalonians, Language, Teaching

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 – The message of the Gospel comes spiritually not vai sound waves [Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace to you and peace.

We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead– Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming.

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This is the Epistle selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 24, the twentieth Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud in church on Sunday, October 22, 2017. This is important as Paul addressed the Christians of Thessaly as all true Christians must recognize – as being beloveds of God, chosen to become imitators of Christ the Lord, sharing their love of God and Christ to all they live among and come in contact with.

As the introduction chapter to a new letter, it is worthwhile to note how Paul includes his Christian travel companions as equally supporting the contents of this letter. One should not see Paul adding those names as though it was some cordial inclusion of his helpers or underlings. The Greek text says, “Paul, and Silvanus, and Timothy,” where the conjunction “kai” can be translated as “also, even, indeed, again, same,” and (among many other possibilities) “together.” When this equality is seen, those three men (each filled with the Holy Spirit) become representative of a holy Trinity, or a triple Trinity, as each were Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, just with different travel names.

That multiplicity being stated at the beginning of this letter (chapter) can then be seen as a governing factor for the rest of this reading.

The salutation above is missing a comma (which was written or implied), as it is “To the church of the Thessalonians.” The Greek word “ekklēsia” also states “To the assembly,” where that meant “the whole body of Christian believers” who lived in Thessaly. Following the comma, the address states: “in God [the] Father and [the] Lord Jesus Christ.” The separation of the comma allows for this segment of words to say that Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, along with the assembly of Christians in Thessaly are all related “in God,” the “Father.” The use of “kai” here then adds that the relationship all have, through the Father, is they all have become reborn versions of Jesus, with the Christ Mind. This is the deepest meaning that was written with intention and thus it was received by the Thessalonians with understanding.

It is not a greeting without deep and sincere meaning attached, regardless of how many times others will read that greeting and miss that intent.

When Paul then continued with his salutation (following the colon – a mark of clarification about the intent of “in God Father and Jesus Christ”), writing, “Grace to you and peace,” please understand that Paul is not attempting to give “Grace and peace” to anyone. Such use of flowery language today is a sign of how people throw about good wishes, with no idea how grace and peace ever comes to be. The Greek word “Charis” means “Grace,” but the usage states, “a gift or blessing brought to man by Jesus Christ,” as well as “the Lord’s favor” and refers “to God freely extending Himself, reaching to people because He is disposed to bless (be near) them.” Thus, Paul (and his co-equals) were stating a known fact about the Christians of Thessaly: They had been given Grace by the Father and that comes with peace of mind and general good health and welfare.

To further clarify (which has been omitted above [NIV], but is in the KJV), Paul followed another comma and stated that Grace and peace had come “from God our Father and Lord Jesus Christ.” He made it clearly stated that he was not making some kind of papal decree of holiness bestowed, as Paul sending his blessings out to people he once spent time with.

After the greeting, this letter demonstrates how difficult it can be to read the epistles of Paul. He appears long-winded as his sentences seem to go on and on, with few period marks. In this regard, I have found the same characteristic of writing in the two letters that Nostradamus wrote (a Preface and a letter to King Henry II of France), which have become fixtures to the publications entitled The Prophecies. The same long-windedness and scarcity of period marks are repeated there; and this means both Paul and Nostradamus wrote in the same manner, without attempts to copy this style. The commonality of the two says they were both filled with God’s Holy Spirit (by their own admission), which makes this style of writing that which can be termed the language of God – Holy Scripture.

It is important, therefore, to not attempt to read Paul as one would read the latest (fill in the name of your favorite fiction author here) novel, as if you can’t wait to see what is written several pages away, because the excitement builds so rapidly. Prophets of God write in ways that demand one pull up a chair at a table, get out the paper and pen, and make some notes. Reading must then be done slowly, rather than as a graduate of some speed reading program.

This makes all internal punctuation become the stepping stones (or speed bumps), from which pause and reflection are demanded. Because one’s brain is trained to read quickly, it becomes an automatic process where “auto-correct” occurs … with the same inabilities one sees a cell phone make. Errors of understanding are commonplace, and the more they occur the more they are accepted as correct. Therefore, reading slowly allows the full impact of what has been written to appear, so the words of prophets can amazingly become specific in choice, yielding detailed and meaningful text.

This is God at work.

In regard to reading in this manner, keep in mind that God has set apart the seventh day as holy. It is to be a day of rest – the peace of the Lord upon one. No ordinary or daily work is to be done on the Sabbath. So, what better way to spend eight hours on a Saturday can there be, other than letting the Holy Spirit enlighten one and increase one’s faith through understanding?

On the other hand, what better way is there to make the cornerstone of one’s religion erode and crumble into nothing meaningful, when one does not take dedicated time to explore the Word of the Lord? This is why God commanded attention be paid to holy matters.

With that said, consider the statement made in verse two, which begins by saying, “We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers.” This is how true Apostles and Saints go about their daily business: “We give thanks to God always.” Being filled with the Holy Spirit is a gift that keeps on giving. Therefore, the thank-yous to God keep on coming. This is not something only Paul, Silvanus and Timothy did, as “concerning all of you [the Christians of Thessaly],” for they too continuously gave thanks to God.

Following the comma (not recognized in the text above), verse two goes on to state, “mention you in our prayers.” The actual text becomes more accurately stated as a separate segment (following a comma), beginning with “remembrance,” which is more a follow-up on the prior statement of “giving thanks to God.” Therefore, one gives thanks to God through their “remembrances made in the prayers of everyone” Christian.

Certainly, thanks would be made to God, through prayers, for having been found, led, and made associated with others who likewise became rebirths of Jesus Christ. This means Paul’s (et al) prayers were not pleas that God would keep the Thessalonian Christians remembered (as God knows all hearts and minds that are His), but that all Christians remembered other Christians through prayers of thanksgiving.

In verse three, the above statement is likewise missing quite a few commas (each either written or implied), as we read, “constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” The literal Greek text breaks this into a series of segments, where each part stands alone as meaningful, before joining with the other segments. The series states: “unceasingly remembering your work of faith,” followed by “and the labor of love,” followed by “and the endurance of hope of the Lord of us,” followed by “Jesus Christ,” and finally followed by “before the God and Father of us.” As one needs to be able to see, reading slowly, segment by segment, allows a much deeper and meaningful letter to unfold.

After one has been thankful to God’s presence within one, thankful through remembrance in prayer, one is then constantly praying. The prayers of thanks are not like those of a child, on one’s knees at the bedside before sleep. One is “constantly recalling one’s work of faith” in prayer. One is thankful because those works are “labors of love,” where the love is a relationship with God, and God’s direction of that work.

So often people speak highly of “hope,” when “hope” becomes an “enduring desire to maintain the presence of the Lord” within one. One’s “hope” is to forever act as “Jesus Christ,” whose Mind has been the product of one’s love of God (baby Jesus born within one, as the consummation of one’s love with God). It is through that rebirth of “Jesus Christ” within one that allows all Christians to truly stand “before God,” knowing He is the “Father of us all,” as each true Christian is a reproduction of the Son of God.

Verse four then states above, “For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you.” The translation “For we know” comes from one Greek word, which is “eidotes.” With that one word set apart by period before and comma after, it bears more importance than simply a statement of what Paul “knew.”

The word implies “perception” and “understanding,” as “a gateway to grasp spiritual truth (reality) from a physical plane.” (Word Studies reference) Therefore, this “knowing” comes in the same way it came to Paul (et al), as all were “brothers [and sisters]” due to the consummation of God’s love (“beloved by God”).” This is not a casual spreading of God’s seed, as would occur in human nature through unmarried and unprotected sex [fornication, like animals]; but , instead, all Christians are brothers [and sisters] because they have all been “chosen by God.” God chooses His brides; thus being chosen by God is metaphor for being married to God.

Marriage begets baby Jesuses.

Aaaahhh. I think he looks just like you!

Verse five then begins by stating (as shown above): “because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only.” The Greek word translated as “message” is “euangelion,” which means, “The good news of the coming of the Messiah, the gospel,” but implies “the human transmitter (an apostle).” This then explains the “hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” An Apostle spreads this “hope” to others; but this “hope” did not come to the Saint simply by reading or hearing “words only.” Therefore, being an Apostles means more than telling people about Jesus as the Christ.

Hope that comes only from words means that which is hoped for is always beyond one’s reach. We hope for things to materialize in this realm, when hope is only truly answered “in our Lord” being our Lord within. A true Christian’s hope is to become Jesus Christ.

The second segment of verse five then states (as above): “but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.” This means that an Apostle gives others the keys to fulfilled “hope,” by explaining the intent of the “word” so that others can see the “power” those words contain. That power illuminates the presence of the Holy Spirit, in the writer of the words, in the Apostle explaining those words, and in the abilities within one being enlightened. Only from one being exposed to the light of truth can one personally feel the power within and realize the “full assurance” and “conviction” that the Word is indeed Holy.

Only from that personal relationship can one have “full confidence” in God and His Christ. This is how “hope” is “assured.”

Verse five concludes by stating (as above): “just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake.” This says that the personal experience then allows each new believer to “know” and “appreciate” that a Saint has come to him or her, in order for him or her to be enlightened personally. That personal connection to God is what leads one to choose to be “that kind of person” who likewise seeks others to enlighten. It is a light that opens one’s eyes to helping others, more than self.

Verse six begins by simply stating, “And you,” where the focus of the letter changes from the wonders that all Apostles and Saints feel, to specifically address the accomplishments of the Thessalonian Christians. Paul pointed out that, by stating that they “became imitators of us and of the Lord.” Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy had been welcomed by them in their travels, but that presence had the effect of passing on the Holy Spirit to all.

As “imitators,” the Thessalonians had become “followers,” in the way that Jesus meant when he said, “follow me.” The Greek word here is “mimētai,” which was only used by Paul in his letters and means, “imitators” or “followers,” but more properly: “the positive imitation that arises by admiring the pattern set by someone worthy of emulation.” There was nothing artificial – no pretense – in their following holy men into sainthood.

This is an example of an imitator, who never is who he acts to be. This is a reflection of idol worship.

To clarify that this was a statement of the Thessalonians being “followers” in Christ, following a comma (not shown above) Paul then wrote, “and of the Lord.” This means all were “imitators” of Jesus Christ, just as were Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy. By Paul stating “the Lord,” using the Greek word “Kyriou,” he meant it was understood that Jesus becomes “the Master” of one’s physical body (his kingdom), and that “Lord” is whose commands a “follower” or “subject” obeys.

When is read, “for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit,” this is split in two by a comma not brought into the translation above. By Paul separating this into a segment that stated the Thessalonians “had received the word amid much tribulation,” this says the Thessalonian Christians primarily were Jewish. They were then outcast by Jews who rejected the “word” that the Christ had come. Similarly, as had occurred in Jerusalem and Galilee, attempts had been made to harm them or force them to recant their beliefs. Still, they believed Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah because of more than simply words having been spoken.

They maintained their faith in Jesus Christ because they “received the word.” The Thessalonians had “welcomed” and “accepted” the Good News, but they had also breathed in the Spirit that news brought. Therefore, that receipt came “with the “joy” and “gladness of the Holy Spirit.”

Verse seven then continues the thought line on the Thessalonian Christians being imitators of Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, through the joyful presence of the Holy Spirit and the Christ Mind, as they too have evangelized to others. Rather than just become “couch potato Christians” and stay at home, doing nothing, some “became examples” of Jesus Christ reborn, bringing forth “all the believers in Macedonia.” Some of them spread the Gospel “in Achaia,” which is stated separately via comma. Those two places represent distances traveled to the southwest and northeast, in mainland Greece, from Thessaly.

In verse eight, Paul stated his certainty (from personal experience) that the Christians of Thessaly were in no way limited to how far and to whom their “words” of Christ Jesus were announced, with joy motivating them to speak that truth wherever they traveled and wherever they lived. This means they were not limited to telling Jews only, in Macedonia and in Achaia. That meant it was unnecessary for Paul to list every place in the world where Greeks had access, as places where they might consider going. Just as Paul (et al) was driven by the Holy Spirit to evangelize, he and his travel companions knew the same motivation was present in the Christians of Thessaly.

In verse nine, Paul informed the Christians of Thessaly that he and his companions, in their travels, were meeting other Christians who had been affected by those Thessalonians. The Greek word that has been translated as “welcomed” (“eisodon”) actually translates as “reception,” implying an “entering” or “entrance into.” As such, these reports Paul (et al) were hearing were more than the Christians of Thessaly saying how happy they were to meet Paul and his traveling companions; but the same Spirit had entered them.

When Paul wrote, “and how you turned to God from idols,” this clarified how they had been filled with the Holy Spirit of the LORD. The Greek word “eidolon” means “idols,” but denotes an “image (for worship),” thus “false gods.” While the history of the Greeks is known to be polytheistic, as their mythology had them erecting many statues to the gods (including one to “the unknown god”), the “false gods” that the Jewish converts to Christianity had turned away from were the leaders who condemned Christianity (as a belief in the Messiah having come as Jesus of Nazareth). Evidence of this can be seen reflected in the story of Jesus and the young, wealthy ruler (Pharisee), who proved he served a material master. The “idols” worshipped by many leading Jews were representative of things possessed (land, coins, clothing, and the rest), where those “idols” were proof to them of their God.

From grasping this connection to Judaism, which believed in the God of Moses (ancient history, thus perhaps a dead God – after their ancestors lost their land?), they served themselves as the special ones whom God rewards with things. All of the Greeks of paganism worshipped dead gods (stone monuments) out of fear, more than belief. They offered sacrifices out of ritual, with few expectations beyond the uncertainty of Mother Nature. Still, those pagan Greeks were not persecuted for “mailing in” their “faith card,” so they did not “turn to God from idols” because someone told them about Jesus dying, resurrecting, and ascending to heaven, before witnesses. The Jews had belief in such things in their history (Elijah for one), but they had reverted (once again, in a history of many times) to idolatry.

This is why Paul then wrote about that turn away from idols as being “to serve a living and true God.” The Greek text presents a comma (written or implied) between “God living , and true.” The separation is important, as “a living God” (“Theō zōnti”) placed focus on God being alive in the servant (or “slave, devotee, subject” – from “douleuein”). It is not a statement that God is Alive, but one that says one lives as God incarnate.

This is the story of Jesus of Nazareth, who walked the earth as the living presence of God. ALL subsequent Apostles and Saints are then reproductions of Jesus of Nazareth, as the Son of God still living on the earthly plane. Those who worship idols are as dead as the stone images they stand before, or as dead as the rabbis who cannot teach one to be filled with God’s Holy Spirit and make God be Alive on earth. Therefore, the separate statement, “and true,” means one is “genuine,” “real,” and literally “made of truth.”

The Greek word “alēthinō” means “true,” while “emphasizing the organic connection (authentic unity) between what is true and its source or origin.” Every time Jesus said “verily,” he said, “I only speak the truth.” The truth is certain. God becomes alive and present through those who speak His truth.

When Paul began to wind down this introductory page of his letter to the Christians of Thessaly, he continued by stating, “and to wait for his Son from heaven.” This has to be seen as adding meaning to the use of “to serve God living,” where “truth” is all important. By Paul adding the need “to wait for the Son of him of the heavens,” the reason one calls a “waiter” in a restaurant by that name, is the customer decides what the waiter will bring forth; and until that time an order is determined, it is the place of that servant “to await” that order. For Paul to say “to wait for his Son” or “await the Son,” this is confirmation that each true Christian is indeed a body of flesh that is the attendant of the Son, as the rebirth of Jesus Christ.

That presence in a human body is then not physical, but spiritual, being “from heaven” or “of the heavens,” which is the Holy Spirit.

This too is confirmed when Paul next wrote, “whom he raised from the dead.” Each and every true Christian is the one “to wait for his Son,” as the one (one of many) “whom God raised from the dead.” All human beings are born of death, as mortal creatures housing living souls. Death means reincarnation; whereas Life means the release of the soul to eternal life, without the restraints of mortal death.

Jesus of Nazareth was one “whom God raised from the dead,” but all true Christians are likewise raised from the dead by the rebirth of Jesus Christ within them. Therefore, Paul stated “Jesus” between two commas, standing alone as that statement of rebirth.

The presence of “Jesus” within a servant waiting on that Son is the only way one becomes “rescued from the wrath” that is mortal death, as repeating the life of a soul imprisoned in another body of flesh. Becoming a servant to the LORD means dying of self and being reborn with the Mind of Christ, which makes one like Paul, Silvanus, Timothy, and the Christians of Thessaly – those who await the Son sent to them from heaven, and go to others so they too can be “rescued from the wrath.”

The Greek word that has been translated as “rescues” is “rhyomenon.” The word actually says, “delivering.” The servant who makes deliveries is always seeking the one who will receive. Thus, salvation is more than the words one takes out to the world. It is about finding those who will be receiving them spiritually.

From this detailed interpretation of the 256 words Paul wrote here, in his first letter to the Thessalonians, one should come away with either a headache or the “wow effect.” There is so much contained in so few words that to listen to them be read aloud in a church requires amazing abilities of grasping meaning and retention of that meaning, for Paul to be understood fully. I have written over four thousand words in explanation of 256 written by Paul.

The same depth of meaning comes from the writings of Nostradamus; but then God purposefully had Nostradamus write in more confusing text than did he tell Paul. Nostradamus clearly entitled his work The Prophecies, as a statement that the future was only knowable by God. Something only knowable by God requires God to understand. Paul also wrote of the future, with the confusion being in a letter addressed to people long gone. To not see that fixed in the past state of 1 Thessalonians 1, one likewise needs God to see Paul wrote a prophecy of the future – now – always now.

The point here is that Paul was not simply rubber stamping a “thank you” letter to the Thessalonians. He wrote words that only one filled by the Holy Spirit could fully comprehend, after happily spending hours poring over each word written. Each of Paul’s letters should be seen as written to every true Christian who will ever read or listen to his words.

They are written to me and to you, because that is the power of God and His Word. If you read Paul and are thinking “Yada, yada, yada” (which is actually Hebrew, stating, “I know, I know, I know”), then you might want to look around and see if you spend more time worshiping things (idols) and much less time having fun letting the Holy Spirit enlighten you about Scripture. Hopefully, you read my words here and said, “YADA! YADA! YADA!, because you saw the same things, but felt you had no one to tell.

If that is the case, consider this interpretation of a letter of Paul my congratulations to you. Thank you for being Christian.

Language, Matthew, Teaching

Matthew 22:15-22 – Give unto Caesar materially and give spiritually what is due Yahweh [Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

The Pharisees went and plotted to entrap Jesus in what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” They answered, “The emperor’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.

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This is the Gospel selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 24, the twentieth Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud by a priest on Sunday, October 22, 2017. It is important as Jesus saw through the trick of the Pharisees and told them worldly debt is owed to worldly rulers, but spiritual debt is owed to God.

When this reading is compared to the deeply metaphysical dream state of Moses speaking with God (Exodus 33) and Paul’s letter thanking the Thessalonians for helping spread the message of Christ (1 Thessalonians 1), a confrontation between Jesus and those planning to trap him in his teachings seems quite plain and simple. Certainly, many a priest will take this easy out and prepare a sermon about paying dues money, omitting the Moses and Paul connections.

After all, October is when those pledge cards are needed to be turned in and this Gospel reading is about sending in money. Right?

There are deeper issues involved in this reading, one of which is that few people today fully understand the financial responsibilities first century Jews bore. Another little grasped aspect is the different coins that were legal tender in the New Testament writings; and that ignorance makes it is easy to read this Gospel selection and think ALL coins bore the image of the emperor. That was not the case.

A Gospel reading every Sunday needs to relate that aspect of Jesus’ life with the lives Christians face in a modern world. Every reading must be applied in that manner, as if each person listening is personally involved in the story unfolding from the text. This leads one to question today, “How does this message apply to the American greenbacks (paper money or digital numbers) I own? How do I tithe, pay bills and taxes, help those in need, and still have enough for my family, including my retirement?”

To begin to address such monetary issues, here is a quick ancient history lesson first:

The coinage of Jesus’ day were either coined by the descendants of Herod the Great – shekels of silver mostly (but some of brass) – or those coined by the Romans, of which the denarius was one. The denarius and the assarius both had the Emperor’s image on them, but a lesser coin did not, as the Romans knew the Jews had complaints about graven images.

Still, the civil tax Rome demanded of all its subjects (including those in Judea and Galilee) had to be paid in denarius coins only. The Temple Tax, which was a financial burden on the Jews for the remodeling of Herod’s Temple, was to be paid in Tyrian Shekels, which were minted in Jerusalem. Those had the image of a plant on them.

The Tyrian Shekel was originally a Greek monetary unit (minted in Tyre), which was adopted by Herod the Great. Herod’s survivors (Archelaus, Antipas, Herod II, and Philip the Tetrarch) each eventually minted coins with their names, for circulation in the provinces they ruled for Rome.

The Herod family had Jewish roots, but little devotion or personal attention to tradition. They mostly did as Rome said, while honoring the Jewish people’s presence in a lost land, due to their willingness to accept foreign rule, as long as they could freely worship their God. Jerusalem had become something like Vatican City is to Italy, as special allowances were permitted within its walls. The Herodians were Jewish partisans of Herod Antipas, who had a palace in Jerusalem, although his area of official control was Galilee and the land beyond the Jordan.

With this brief background established, one can then read, “The Pharisees went and plotted to entrap Jesus in what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians” and realize two important elements are stated in that. One is the Pharisees involvement and the other is the involvement of their underlings.

First, the Pharisees were those who got personal wealth from knowing the Law. They were the first of a LONG line of Jewish lawyers, which is a profession Jews still excel in today. They learned lawyers never make any money simply by knowing the law. Obedience to the law means no one needs a lawyer. Lawyers only make money when legal questions stir up unrest, which then demands a lawyer help straighten things out … legally. Therefore, the Pharisees hatched a plan to entrap Jesus so his words could be used legally against him.

Second, the lawyers can never be the ones seen stirring up legal messes, which would void their rights to be part of the legal proceeding that follow. This means it is important to see how they sent their followers, or the disciples of the Law, as those underlings were not fully versed in all the intricate details of the Law. They were learning the practice that later would be applied before the judicial body of the Temple.

The Herodians were those who favored the Temple Tax, knowing that the Roman Civil Tax (a poll tax) lessened the amount Herod’s Temple could assess on Jews. The Pharisees, who held vast amounts of Jewish wealth, were not exempt from the Roman taxes, so their disciples were sent to stir the hornet’s nest that was the tax burdens placed on the Jewish people. Then, as today and commonly throughout history, taxation rubs a sore spot on taxpayers.

To then read these law students said to Jesus, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality,” this is standard classroom training of lawyers-to-be, where the pleasantries have little to do with proving Jesus was a Rabbi, was a sincere Law teacher, was trained to know the Law, and was unbiased in his application of the Law. Their smooth talk was a tactic of wooing the jury and courtroom watchers (the crowd surrounding Jesus on the Temple steps) with their complete lack of bias, as they set Jesus up for the kill question.

All that “buttering up” was designed to make a statement that Pharisees were fine and upstanding figures in Jewish society; and if Jesus wants to be speaking his mind on the Temple steps, then he needs to be a fair and balanced lawyer … like the Pharisees. His answer would be something like an unofficial bar exam.

In this regard, remember how three years earlier, following Jesus’ first Passover as a Rabbi on the Temple steps in Jerusalem, Nicodemus (probably the young, rich ruler unnamed later) came by night to recruit Jesus to the ranks of the Pharisees. The charisma they saw in Jesus would have been an excellent addition to their fund-raising abilities; so they wanted that fresh new face on their team. Jesus, however, rhetorically asked Nicodemus, “You call yourself a teacher of spiritual matters, when you do not know anything about spiritual matters?” That encounter meant that the Pharisees only stood for financial gain, through knowledge (a Big Brain power) of legal words.

The zinger question that was designed to be the trap Jesus was then, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” To paraphrase that question a little, they could have said, “Did Moses say the children of God should send silver to the Roman Empire?”

The obvious answer was, “No.” Moses never knew about the Temple of Jerusalem, nor the Romans. However, law is purposefully written in black and white, so that everything in between the lines of written text becomes the gray matter that Big Brained lawyers love to argue.

The trap was to have Jesus speak words that could then be used against him, as a Jew preaching rebellion against Roman taxation. A simple answer (the obvious answer) would have been enough to convict Jesus in a Roman court of law, as a seditionist. However, Jesus (led by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit and the Christ Mind) saw through the trap and went on the offensive.

Jesus asked, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites?” The operative word in that question was “hypocrites.”

The Greek word, “hypokritai,” actually means, “A stage-player,” as a “pretender.” The hypocrisy was those young lawyers-to-be knew the answer to their question, but pretended not to. They were “two-faced” in that regard. The use here, as a stand-alone statement in one word, says Jesus said they were those “whose profession does not match their practice.” They acted like they were seeking teaching (as disciples), when they were trying to get Jesus to perjure himself, as guilty of preaching revolution.

When Jesus then said, “Show me the coin used for the tax,” we are then told “they brought him a denarius.” By knowing that the denarius was the only currency accepted for payment of the Roman tax, which was required of all registered property owners and based on the value of that property, this explains why the Jews inside the Temple grounds would bring out that specific coin.

That says the Pharisees knew full well that an “income tax” on their wealth demanded they have a supply of denarii readily available; so they charged their Jewish clients in Roman coins or Tyrian Shekels, whichever they had on hand. Those silver coins would then be sold by weight (minas or talents) to Roman moneychangers, getting back only denarii when tax time was due.

The purpose of asking for an example of that coin then leads to a logical question in return (not asked), for the Pharisees disciples to answer: “What did Moses say the children of God owed in taxes to the Temple, so tax-exempt priests, scribes, and their legal advisers could have beautified office space there at the expense of the ordinary Jews, with no costs passed onto them?”

It was hypocritical to ask about the Law of Moses being applied to any worldly tax or material cost.

We then read that Jesus asked, after receiving a Roman denarius, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” That was not simply a question about who Tiberius was (or Augustus, if a coin that had been left over from the previous emperor’s minting). It was a jab at the rules of the very people who oversaw the Temple, and sent their disciples to ask an asinine question. The Temple of Jerusalem was deemed a sacred place that Romans needed to be very careful about how they acted when within those walls. If Romans had to tread lightly, the Jews were most certainly expected to be reverent there.

The first ruler of Judea, after Herod the Great’s death, was Herod Archelaus. He killed over 40 Jews who took down and chopped to pieces a golden eagle that had been placed over the Temple entrance. It had been ordered placed there by Herod the Great, just before his death. In response to that action by a mob of Jews, Archelaus ordered troops kill two Rabbis and 40 zealots. Their actions were because they saw that foreign image as blasphemous. Archelaus even cancelled Passover and dismissed a high priest, due to the sedition that arose over his actions.

Rome would remove this son of Herod the Great and send him into retirement exile in southern France. His replacement was a Roman governor (which Pontius Pilate was later to be one), who were ordered not to make the natives restless. Therefore, Jesus was pointing out that history of Jewish sedition in the past; and now here was a blasphemous coin with the graven image of a Roman ruler, on the same sacred grounds.

The simple answer given to Jesus was, “[Um. That is] The emperor’s [graven image].”

The emperor? Of Rome? Wasn’t he the one who had standards with golden eagles on them? A graven image of a Roman emperor is on this coin … here?

No one was up in arms over that sacrilege. The Jews there that day were cool with the idea of Roman emperors.

So, what was the big deal about paying a tax to the Roman owner of their land?

When Jesus saw no outburst of unrest caused by the presence of an image of the ruler of the land previously possessed by Israelites (centuries prior), the unspoken answer to the question about the lawfulness of taxes paid to the empereur-du-jour of Rome was: “Moses did not receive any Laws from God about tributes made to kings, emperors, or any other kind of custodian of the physical world.”

God was not concerned with how many things one should have, or how much one should charge for legal advice. I doubt God would even send His blessing to modern Israel, even if that theft of land is said to be stolen in the name of God.

God’s only reason for choosing a groups of descendants of Abraham (a truly righteous dude), a lineage passed on through Isaac and Jacob, was to groom those descendants to serve only God. All the laws were then designed to slap the hands of any who tried to have more than God allowed, based on need alone.

The sole responsibility of God’s servants was (eventually, through Jesus of Nazareth and the Holy Spirit) to lead disciples away from a dependency on human rulers and to God as their only King. This, obviously, was why Jesus then told the crowd, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

Within a week, Jesus would be dead, nailed to a tree by Roman hands. At the time of his death, an earthquake would split open the rock that entombed buried Saints, and the curtain that kept the Holy of Holies private, for God to live in that chamber, it was split in two, from top to bottom. A few decades later, the Roman tore down the Second Temple.

God has no use for material things. He left that building forever. Let the Romans have the property. Let the Jews pay them as their debt to the One God they serve.

The souls, on the other hand, no physical body can hold onto one for longer than a matter of decades. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust is all about paying the earth its due. The soul is forever the possession of God, whether it turns away from God for things, or faces God in servitude. Thus, the “amazing” effect Jesus had on legal beagles was his words resonated within them as if God Himself touched their hearts and they knew the truth had been spoken to them, saying “Give … to God the things that are God’s.”

As always, Christians today need to be more than disciples of Pharisees, who “left [Jesus] and went away.” The Big Brain of the Twenty-first century says, “You told them Jesus, ole boy! Hooray for us!” Unfortunately, anyone who sees him or herself as separate from Jesus can never speak as Jesus. God wants more who will be Jesus and speak words like Jesus spoke. Christ wants more who will be led like Jesus.

The problem is so many people ARE THE PHARISEES. People calling themselves “Christian” are little more than the disciples of the Pharisees, hypocritically pretending to do good things for God and Christ, while keeping things to themselves. People today want to keep as much precious metals as they can get their hands on, so they try to entrap Jesus’ words.

Christians look for Scriptural justifications for cheating on their income tax returns. Some so-called ministers [those in concrete buildings with neon lights on the outside and stadium seating on the inside, with cup holders on chair arms rather than places for prayer books on pew backs, and a stage with a dancing choir and a live band playing while clapping audiences follow-the-bouncing-ball big screen monitors is the scene, rather an altar, organ, and song books] they preach that what Jesus said means he wants to make you cash rich!

Even the priest who preaches a sermon that places guilt on the shoulders of a congregation to give one’s fair share to the church, rather than everyone in the congregation already being all in … that is a remodeling of the Second Temple, in the Twenty-first century. Tithing becomes a Temple Tax that never goes away. It places more value on material things than on an honored pledge of spiritual ministry. That was what was wrong then; and that is what is wrong still.

Every Christian should be amazed reading or hearing read, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” To paraphrase that: “Give therefore to the world the things that are of the world, and to God your whole heart and soul.”

Deuteronomy, Language, Teaching

Deuteronomy 34:1-12 – Moses saw the whole land of his seed from spiritual heights [Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain—that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees—as far as Zoar. The Lord said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.” Then Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab, at the Lord’s command. He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor, but no one knows his burial place to this day. Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigor had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended.

Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. He was unequaled for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.

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This is the Old Testament selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 25, the twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud in church on Sunday, October 29, 2017. This is important because it tells of the death of Moses and his legacy among the Israelites.

This reading becomes a confirmation of the dream state analysis I presented for the readings from Exodus 31 and Exodus 33. It also speaks about the use of “face,” which has been omitted from English translations of the First Commandment. The proper translation should state: “Thou shall have no other gods before me to face.” Because we are told here, “Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face,” that element (meaning one cannot even wear his or her own face before God, as that acts as another god before God) is key to grasping the depth of this whole reading.

The thirty-fourth chapter of Deuteronomy begins by stating, “Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan.” Simply from the imagery that comes from those segments, creating one statement, one can easily hear or read those words and think Moses went to some high elevation and God opened his eyes to see long distance. Without knowing how high Mount Nebo is (it is 817 meters, or 2,680 feet above sea level), one can think this is similar to going atop Lookout Mountain (see Rock City, elevation 2,389 feet), where one can see U. S. seven states. However, this is not how to read verse one.

To get the big picture, one has to focus on the word “Pisgah.” This is not a proper place, although some may offer conjecture that this is the name of another mountain in Moab, presumably beyond Mount Nebo. The word “pisgah” means “cleft,” in Hebrew. This means Moses did not go to the “top” of a specific ridge on Mount Nebo, but he went into a cleft at the top of Mount Nebo. Any capitalization then written or implied acts to show this was not an ordinary “cleft,” but a most important one.

This is then a reference to Exodus 33:22, where the LORD told Moses, “See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by.” The Hebrew word used there is “bə·niq·raṯ” (root “neqarah”), which means, “a hole or crevice,” implying a “cavern or cleft.”

As I explained (hypothesized) in my interpretation of that Old Testament reading for Proper 24, Moses became one with God when in that cleft, as his body became encased in the “rock” that was God surrounding him. Thus, being in a “cleft” of the LORD implies being in that holy dream state, where prophetic visions make one see through the face of God. It is only after coming out of that state, when the results of the Holy Spirit’s presence can be seen, such that that becomes identified as the “back side of the LORD.” This same meaning should be inferred in Deuteronomy 34:1, upon “Pisgah.”

By realizing that, one can now look at the map below and see the breadth of vision that was allowed Moses, while in a holy dream state atop Mount Nebo. Due east of Mount Nebo is Bethlehem, 35 miles away. The “sea” was twice that distance, 70 miles away. It was 80 miles, north and slightly west, to Bethsaida, at the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, the southern edge of Naphtali. It was roughly 58 miles to the southwest where Zoar was located. The purple circle that I have added to the map then represents a panoramic view with a radius of 80 miles. That distance captures all of the places mentioned in the first three verses of Deuteronomy 34.

It might be possible to see the distant tops of mountains that border the valley of the Jordan River (and Gilead was a mountain range east of the Jordan River, between Manasseh and Gad); but was Moses limited to such a pedestrian view? If “Pisgah” does indeed mean “cleft,” then one can realize how God showed Moses much more than a vista of the Promised Land.

When we then read the LORD telling Moses, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there,” we are returned to the element of “Seeing,” which began Exodus 33 and was the theme of that reading.

The translation, “I have let you see it with your eyes,” comes from the Hebrew “’et·tə·nen·nāh her·’î·ṯî·ḵā ḇə·‘ê·ne·ḵā,” which (as variations of three words) is more like three statements being made: “I will give” (“nathan: to give, put, set”), “I have caused you to see [it]” (“raah: to see”), and “with your eyes” (“ayin: an eye”). The allowance of God is a gift of the Holy Spirit, which then becomes the cause of a vision (acceptable variation allowed from “raah: to see”). This “sight” was then seen by Moses in his mind’s eye.

When it then shows (by the English translation above) an exception to this “gift” of “sight” by God, as “but you shall not cross over there,” it gives the impression that God was teasing Moses. He was showing him all the bounty of the Promised Land, but then saying, “You can’t go there.” That is the wrong impression.

The Hebrew actually says, “wə·šām·māh lō ṯa·‘ă·ḇōr,” which is better translated as “and there not do cross over.” If anyone remembers the TV show Crossing Over with John Edwards, then one should be familiar with the term “crossing over” as it is relative to death.

A viable use of “abar” (the root of “ṯa·‘ă·ḇōr”) is “pass on” or “pass away.” Since the next verse states, “Then Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab,” the meaning of “and you shall not pass away there, at the Lord’s command,” says God told Moses, while in a prophetic vision state, “You will die before setting foot on this land I am showing you.”

Because the verse that follows states, “Moses then died,” the assumption is that Moses died as soon as God told him that. However, the end of a verse with a period (mark of “complete stop”) and the beginning of a new verse with a capitalized first word (new thought) does not mean take a deep breath and then immediately continue. To see how considerable time can pass between such transition points, I recommend looking at the Last Supper verses. That evening took at least six hours of time.

Because of this realization, there is the distinct possibility that Moses awoke from that dream state atop Mount Nebo, knowing his future; and he was then able to make a few arrangements about his burial and inform key personnel about the coming change. According to lore, Nostradamus told his assistant (Chavigny) he would be found dead in the morning, and he was. If you recall, Jesus made a few preparatory comments to his disciples, prior to his dying. Therefore, it is reasonable to think God would not suddenly take the life of Moses away from him.

When we are then told, “Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigor had not abated,” this firmly states that Moses and God were still of One-being, until the day Moses “gave up the ghost.” Moses was filled with the strength and longevity that the Holy Spirit brings. He was fully capable of seeing as a prophet of the LORD, and he was fully capable of acting on every command the LORD gave. In this case, the LORD commanded it was time for the physical presence of Moses among the Israelites to leave them.

The death of Moses, in this light, has to be seen in direct comparison to Jesus of Nazareth. Moses lived 120 years, which is a numerological 3 (1+2+0=12 > 1+2=3). The number three is symbolic of the Trinity, as well as “initial completion.” The children of Israel had reached a stage of training, where their most holy teacher had to let them graduate and take forth what they had been taught to the next level. Jesus lived 33 years, which is a numerological 3 elevated to the spiritual status of an 11 (3 x 11=33). This means Jesus was on a higher plane spiritually than an ordinary 6 (3 + 3 = 6).

Additionally, Jesus was transfigured on the high mountain and Moses appeared beside him. Both Moses and Jesus were representatives of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in one being). Both obeyed the commands of the Father. Both were able to talk with God with “unimpaired vision” of what was before them. Both were doing the work of the LORD, without any weakness of Spirit.

When this reading from Deuteronomy 34 goes on to state, “Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him,” the same way that Moses touched Joshua spiritually is then comparable to Peter standing (with the other ten Apostles), as Jesus had “laid hands upon him” similarly. Where as Moses touched one (Joshua), a Trinity led to a Trinity. An an elevated Trinity, Jesus touched eleven, leading to eleven Trinities. All who were touched became filled with the “spirit of wisdom.”

By adding, “the Israelites obeyed [Joshua], doing as the Lord had commanded Moses,” this says the disciples of Moses became the disciples of Joshua. Joshua taught and the Israelites learned and believed. This is also how the Jews converted to becoming Christians, with everyone doing as the LORD commanded, via the Holy Spirit. As was Moses, so was Joshua, and as were the Israelites. As was Jesus, so were the Apostles, and as are, and always will be Christians.

It is so easy for Christians today to see Jesus Christ as the Son of God, seated at the right hand of the LORD, and think less of those holy men who came before Jesus. However, to read, “Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face,” one has to see Moses as the equivalent to Jesus, with this truth stated about Moses being tied to Israel, prior to their fall.

Jesus can have the same truth stated about him, as “Never since has there arisen a prophet in the world like Jesus, whom the LORD knew face to face.”

The element stated as “face to face” is in Hebrew “panim el- panim.” The “el” word is read as a prepositional prefix added to the first “panim,” but the noun “el” means “god,” which can be ignored or read as a clue about how to read this three-word statement. As a preposition, “el-” means, “to,” but also “into” and “towards,” with the implication being “against.” As such, the statement says the LORD knew Moses because Moses allowed his “face” to change “into” the “face of God.” His “face” was “towards” God, as subservient, to the point of being pressed “against” the “face” of God, so his own “face” was lost. What the LORD’s Mind needed to be transferred, as the knowledge of Moses, it entered that person so Moses’ “face” shone like the sun. Jesus was known by God in the same way, but less physically obvious. Still, Jesus is said to be the “light,” as he shines the “face” of God so all can see the truth.

I will leave it up to the reader to draw comparisons to the statement that Moses was “unequaled for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to perform.” It should not be hard to do that now.

1 Thessalonians, Language, Teaching

1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 – rue divinity does not require smoke and mirrors [Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

You yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our coming to you was not in vain, but though we had already suffered and been shamefully mistreated at Philippi, as you know, we had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of great opposition. For our appeal does not spring from deceit or impure motives or trickery, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the message of the gospel, even so we speak, not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts. As you know and as God is our witness, we never came with words of flattery or with a pretext for greed; nor did we seek praise from mortals, whether from you or from others, though we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children. So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us.

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This is the Epistle selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 25, the twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost. This will next be read aloud in church on Sunday, October 29, 2017. This is important as it sheds more light on the motives and actions of true Christians, in relationship with other true Christians.

In the past interpretations of Paul’s epistles, I have made reference to “segments” of his long-winded “sentences.” I use that terminology because of my having been enlightened in how to read the complex letters of Nostradamus, which are part of the posthumous publications of his work The Prophecies (Les Propheties). In that regard, I have stated the need to slow down one’s natural reading process, from normally quite fast, to very slow. This means breaking the text down into “segments” (the words between punctuation marks, either directly written or implied in some way), so those words can be more deeply inspected for meaning.

One “sentence” of Nostradamus has a lot of internal marks.

Because the letters of Nostradamus are so difficult to read, due to a very limited number of period marks (among other difficulties), I have found it easier for the readers of my Nostradamus publications to grasp the deeper meaning by breaking down pages of block text into segments, dictated by the presence of punctuation marks. This process allows the actual text to be more clearly presented, and it prevents the automatic processes, of a brain taught to read text fast, that make auto-corrects of inconsistencies in tense, number, and gender, so that we are trained to quickly paraphrase complexities of writing into understandable language.

While Nostradamus was commanded by God to write extremely complex epistles, Paul was meant to be understood, making the two prophets seem only similar in their penchant for long, run-on statements. However, as the source influence for both was God’s Holy Spirit, meaning both were writing in a holy language, with its own purposeful syntax applied, Paul’s epistles can be broken down into segments, in the same way that I have done previously with the text of Nostradamus’ letters.

The translation of 1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 listed above is the New International Version of the original Greek text. This is a valid translation, based on the syntax of normal Greek being applied to the syntax of normal American English, where certain syntactical liberties are naturally taken. When translated in this way, one reads what normal Paul wrote, in a letter sent to normal Thessalonians. However, we know neither Paul (and his apostle companions) nor the Thessalonians receiving this letter were normal; as they were all true Christians, each filled with the Holy Spirit.

In order to see the holiness of this epistle more clearly, I advise the readers here to open a separate window and read along in the Interlinear Bible presentation of 1 Thessalonians 2, which shows the Greek, a standard translation for each word, and the root word that is linked to that word’s usage and definitions, as indicated by Strong’s Concordance (and others). With that guide to assist you, please read now the above eight verses in segmented fashion, reflecting on each segment before leaping rapidly to the next.

(Literal Translation of Interlinear Bible – Viable Literal Translation from Strong’s)

1. You yourselves indeed know, – Your selves truly know,

brothers, – brethren in Christ,

the coming of us to you, – the entrance of ourselves to you,

that not in vain has been; – that [entrance] not pretentious was born;

2. but having previously suffered and having been mistreated, – except suffered previously and having been injured,

even as you know, – just as you know,

in Philippi, – in Philippi,

we had boldness in the God of us, – we spoke freely within the God of us,

to speak to you the gospel of God, – to talk with you the good news of God,

amid much conflict. – among many [who] struggle.

3. For [the] exhortation of us [was] not of error, – Indeed a calling of us not of delusion [or wandering, sin],

nor of impurity, – nor of uncleanness [impurity],

nor in trickery; – nor in deceit [or guile, treachery];

4. but just as we have been approved by God, – but according to the manner we have been tested by God,

to be entrusted with the gospel, – to be given faith in the good news,

so we speak; – in this manner we proclaim;

not as men pleasing, – not as humans approving,

but God, – on the other hand God,

the [One] examining the hearts of us. – he proving [or testing] the intentions of us.

5. Never indeed at any time with word of flattery were we [coming], – not for once a word used for advantage or gain,

even as you know, – just as you know,

nor with a pretext for greed – – not in an excuse for covetousness —

God [is] witness; – God a witness;

6. nor seeking from men glory, – not desiring from humans praise,

nor from you, – not from you,

nor from others, – not from others,

[though] having authority in [it] burden to be, – having the ability by weight [or burden] to be,

as Christ’s apostles. – as the Anointed One’s messengers.

7. But we were gentle in [the] midst of you, – However our birth an infant in the middle of you,

as if a nursing mother would cherish her own children. – like as if a nursing care-giver would foster her own children.

8. So yearning over you, – In this way desiring earnestly for you,

we were pleased to have imparted to you, – we well-pleased to have given shares to you,

not only the gospel of God, – not only the good news of God,

but also our own lives, – but also our own souls,

because beloved to us you have become. – because beloved by God to us you have been born.

I will just make a couple of comments, beyond stating the obvious: The above text is from holy men to holy men, conceived by God in apostles and received by apostles who were enlightened by God to its true purpose. That truth lasts forever, to all who read these holy words, in all times: past, present, and future. The epistles of Paul are in a Holy Bible, for that reason – they are holy documents; and it requires the assistance of God to fully understand the holiness of their words.

That said, look at how the Greek word “adelphoi” was written and then translated as “brothers and sisters” in the New International Version above. That one word in Greek means, “A brother, member of the same religious community, especially a fellow-Christian.” (Strong’s) It is translated a number of times in the New American Standard Bible to be: “believing husband (1), brethren (170), brethren* (13), brother (111), brother’s (8), brothers (40).” (NAS)

As a typical statement of male apostles writing to male apostles, at an historic time when female apostles were never addressed as the caretakers of a church, it then becomes a modern paraphrase to change the essence to “brothers and sisters,” due to the allowance of female priests these days. However, that is not grasping the deepest spiritual meaning of this particular one-word statement, surrounded by two commas.

The word “adelphoi” means both the writer(s) and the recipient(s) were related. As such, the epistles were intended to both males and females, with both sexes referred to as “brothers.” They were not physically related, which means the differences in sex organs are inconsequential in this address. The relationship was solely Spiritual. All were brothers because all had been reborn as the Son of God, Jesus Christ. To reduce this to “brothers and sisters” is to put women back into a subservient role to men, as if only men could be filled with God’s Holy Spirit. That is not the intent of this word’s spiritual intent.

Mary has a halo in this work of art. Was it because she was holy? Or was it because the Son of God was within her womb? Think about that for a moment.

Second, the repeating of the segment that says “kathōs iodate,” translated as “just as you know,” says that Paul was not telling the Christians of Thessaly anything new. Because all were equally filled with the same Holy Spirit of God, the elements stated by Paul about the sufferings experienced and injuries caused, prior to becoming apostles of Christ, and the purpose their lives had taken on, after becoming apostles of Christ, were dawnings that all understood.

For this reason, Paul wrote that segment twice here (as influenced by the Mind of Christ to write) because the same statement is made to each reader, for as long as this epistle will be read. Understanding the steps of apostlehood is “even as you know.” If you are a fast reader, and everything Paul wrote seems to be “Greek to you,” then you know little of being an apostle of Christ (a true Christian). If you read Paul and believe this epistle was written to you, then the experiences recounted here as “just as you know.”

With that said, I will leave this letter to speak for itself, with the presentation I have shown an aid towards understanding. If anyone has questions or comments, then feel free to post them for all to see. I will answer any comment that specifically references the internal text of this posting.

Language, Matthew, Teaching

Matthew 22:34-46 – Whose son is the Messiah? [Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” He said to him, “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question: “What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” He said to them, “How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying,

‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet”’?

If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?” No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

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This is the Gospel selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 25, the twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud in a church by a priest on Sunday, October 29, 2017. It is important because here Jesus stated the First Commandment as the most important, with loving your fellows that are also devoted to God the next greatest commandment, from which obedience to all other laws follows naturally.

As this reading begins, we read, “When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees.” Matthew’s twenty-second chapter begins with Jesus telling the parable of the wedding banquet, followed by the test by the Pharisees as to whether or not Moses said paying tribute to Rome was legal. Prior to this reading was the approach by the Sadducees, who tested Jesus about seven sons marrying the same woman (repeatedly widowed without child), as to who would claim her as their wife in heaven, after all had died. All of these tests of Jesus are to be seen as the inspection of a sacrificial lamb for imperfections. Because Jesus continually sent his inspectors away humbled, each time he was found without blemish.

Again, these inspections are taking place in the Temple area, as the Jewish Holy Week of the Passover Festival is only days away from beginning. That commanded ritual required eight days of pious recognition of God having saved them, that year beginning at 6:00 PM on Friday – a Jewish Sabbath evening. Thus, four days of inspection becomes Monday through Thursday, with Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey and her colt on Sunday – the first day of the week. Sunday was then 9 Nissan, with Monday through Thursday being 10-13 Nissan, and Friday (the day of preparation for the Sabbath) being 14 Nissan. Passover always begins on 15 Nissan.

The multiple inspections of Jesus that were done each day is then a statement that the commandment given by God, through Moses, was important:

“Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth of this month they are each one to take a lamb for themselves, according to their fathers’ households, a lamb for each household.” (Exodus 12:3) “Y our lamb shall be an unblemished male a year old; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month, then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel is to kill it at twilight.” (Exodus 12:5-6) “This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD–a lasting ordinance.” (Exodus 12:14)

To put this in perspective, Jesus was not the only guy who had people running around calling him a prophet and possibly the Messiah. People thought the same about John the Baptizer (since killed). There were others as well. In a way of protecting the people from following a false shepherd, the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Temple priests (all the Big Brains of Jerusalem) had taken it upon themselves to inspect all potential Christs for blemishes. In that way, they played a valuable role, just as did the leaders of the Israelite families in Egypt, who could not allow a diseased sheep or goat to have its blood shed to save lives. This was in spite of them being blind to themselves needing to be inspected.

In this reading, the inspection is a question posed to Jesus, about which of the 613 laws of Moses is most important for a Jew to obey. We then read, “[Jesus] said to [the legal beagle inspecting], “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment.”

Before going beyond this point, it is important to grasp how well this statement by Jesus, about the First Commandment, fits that which was written.

The Hebrew of the First Commandment (Exodus 20:3) says: “לֹא יִהְיֶה לְךָ אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים עַל פָּנָי,” as “lo yih’yeh le’kha e’lo’him a’hhey’rim al pa’nai,” literally translated as, “NOT he~will~EXIST to~you(ms) “Elohiym POWER~s” OTHER~s UPON FACE~s~me other “Elohiym Powers” will not exist (for) you upon my face.” (Source: Ancient Hebrew Research Center) This is usually translated for English-speaking Americans as: “You shall have no other gods before me.”

(Notice how the literal translation places focus on the word “panim,” which clearly states “face.”)

Knowing that the question to Jesus was posed by a “lawyer” (“nomikos”), which is not someone versed in Roman laws, but Mosaic Law (all 613 of them), such an authority would know Hebrew and the text stated above (“lo yih’yeh le’kha e’lo’him a’hhey’rim al pa’nai”). Thus, he would not have floating in his legal mind, “You shall have no other gods before me,” as an official inspector hoping to find an ugly blemish on Jesus. Therefore, when Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind,” that lawyer was processing, “Does love of Yahweh, from your heart, soul, and mind, mean you do not wear the face of any other gods?”

When Jesus then went on to state, “And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” … there was that “love” word (“Agapēseis”) again. Who can argue with the “love” word, especially when Exodus 20:6 says, “but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments”?

Hmmmmm. “Group think!” the lawyer must have thought, as he motioned to the other Pharisees standing there … speechless.

“Let’s put our heads together guys. Was that a blemish?”

As they were talking amongst themselves, Jesus asked them a legal question:

“What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

After having mentioning the prophets, whose prophecies were further amendments to the Law, coming from the LORD, they (Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Zechariah, and Amos, along with some Psalms of David) were the primary ones who foretold of a coming Savior. Still, as a concept of Judaism, rather than a prophecy etched in stone (as was Mosaic Law), the standard answer was that instantly known by the Jews of the Second Temple: “The Messiah was to be a future Jewish king from the Davidic line.”

From that standard teaching that the Pharisees had memorized, they probably said in unison, “The son of David,” as a knee-jerk reaction, uncontrollable when that nerve was struck. Undoubtedly, Jesus asked a question to which he knew what the answer would be, setting up his next follow-up question.

Jesus asked, “How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet”?”

He quoted to them Psalm 110:1, which begins by stating, “Of David a Psalm said.” Jesus used the words of David himself, which the Pharisees regularly belted out in song, while drawing special attention to themselves in the synagogues. So, they knew the words Jesus quoted.

They had just never really pondered what those words meant, until then, when Jesus used that as evidence that challenged their concept of a Messiah.

When David wrote, “Yah-weh la·ḏō·nî,” the “LORD of my lord,” this is similar to the repetitious use of “Yahweh elohim” in Genesis 2 – “LORD of lords” or “God of gods” – and the use of “ĕ·lō·hê hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm , wa·’ă·ḏō·nê hā·’ă·ḏō·nîm hā·’êl” in Deuteronomy 10:17 – “God of gods, the Lord, Lord God.” Because the First Commandment refers to “elohim” – as “god powers upon a face” or “gods before me” – the Pharisees had just stepped into a trap that had them putting a human face (a descendant of David) on the Anointed One – the Son of God.

When David sang, “The Lord said to my Lord,” the Pharisees understood that “The Lord” was God (Yahweh) and “my Lord” was the Messiah, who “sat at the right hand” of God, as God’s Son, the Lord of David. Therefore, it was impossible for the Messiah to be some human to be born as the Messiah, simply from bloodline and heritage. God, and thus His Son, was more than flesh and blood.

When Jesus then asked the Pharisees, “If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?,” they just got real silent and walked away, too afraid to say anything else.

The funny thing is that was a trick question asked by Jesus; but the Pharisees were not filled with any Holy Spirit to answer. They could have said: “The Christ can be any human whom God chooses to be His Son. If the LORD is my Lord, as David said, then David was one in a long line of God’s chosen Messiahs.”

Adam was one. Abraham was one. Moses was one. Samuel was one. Elijah was one. Jesus was one, and so on. The presence of the Christ (Greek for “Messiah“) Mind means the the presence of the LORD within a human kingdom, making the LORD “my Lord.”

Therefore, the trick answer to the trick question becomes a statement of the two most important commandments:

“Anyone who loves God so much that he or she becomes the face of God on earth (a Messiah), and that face of God loves all others who wear the face of God on their faces, then the Messiah will always be a descendant of the Davidic lineage of Spirituality.”

Not many would know that answer then; but by the Fiftieth Day (6 Sivan), in remembrance of when Moses first delivered the Law to the Israelites, an ever growing number of Messiahs were then enabled to see this inference. The question now is: Are we like the Pharisees all over again (blind), or are we like the Apostles (enlightened)?

Joshua, Language, Teaching

Joshua 3:7-17 – Crossing the Jordan on dry ground [Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

The Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they may know that I will be with you as I was with Moses. You are the one who shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” Joshua then said to the Israelites, “Draw near and hear the words of the Lord your God.” Joshua said, “By this you shall know that among you is the living God who without fail will drive out from before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites: the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is going to pass before you into the Jordan. So now select twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. When the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan flowing from above shall be cut off; they shall stand in a single heap.”

When the people set out from their tents to cross over the Jordan, the priests bearing the ark of the covenant were in front of the people. Now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest. So when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water, the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, while those flowing toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off. Then the people crossed over opposite Jericho. While all Israel were crossing over on dry ground, the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, until the entire nation finished crossing over the Jordan.

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This is the Old Testament primary selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 26, the twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud in church on Sunday, November 5, 2017. This is important as it tells of the Israelites’ entry into the Promised Land in the same manner that they departed Egypt, with all threats removed and the waters of emotional unbalance made dry.

It is easy to read this selection and think that God has told Joshua, “Not to worry, I’ll still be with you guys, making sure things go well for you.” But, that misses several important points that are stated in that assurance.

To read, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they may know that I will be with you as I was with Moses,” the well-trained reading brain comes away thinking God said, “The Israelites will see Joshua as a big man;” but that fails to grasp God telling Joshua, “I will make you greater with the sight (or eyes) of Israel (the next place for the growth vision for a land of God’s priests).”

The Hebrew words “gad·del·ḵā bə·‘ê·nê” say, “to magnify you in the sight.” This is then a promise to “grow” the “sight” of Joshua, in the same way God gave “eyes” to Moses, through his prophetic dream state visions. The promise now says that Joshua will have the same talents of prophecy, as this is how God speaks to His prophets; but it still says that the Israelites will see this comparison to Moses in Joshua. So, the Israelites will follow the lead of Joshua in the same manner.

Now, beginning in verse 8, the words “ark of the covenant” (“’ă·rō·wn hab·bə·rîṯ”) are found. That combination of words is then repeated (in variations) two more times (verses, 11 and 17), with “ark” stated alone, in verses 13 (“the ark of the Lord of lords”) and 15 (“the ark”). It should be noted that repetition is not to make one’s eyes tired, but to alert one to an important element being stated. That awareness becomes important in this reading selection.

If one watches the plethora of programming on The History Channel, about “Ancient Aliens,” or if one reads any of the number of books that attempt to solve the mystery of the Holy Grail, one invariably comes across wild conjecture about the ark of the covenant. Some say, if you follow the directions given in Exodus 25 (verses 10 through 22) and repeated in Exodus 37:1-9, then you end up with a highly charged conductor of energy. The addition of a requirement that it should never be touched, thus carried by wooden poles, is another aspect of some device having been created that has super powers.

As ancient alien theorists believe, it connects to a spaceship somewhere, and God is more like the Wizard of Oz … just some guy behind a curtain.

The point I want to make about the carrying of the ark of the covenant into the ankle-deep waters of a swollen Jordan River, causing it’s waters to separate and the ground to be exposed and become instantly dry, a larger body of water was likewise effected by Moses and his staff. With all the mystery about the missing ark and if the Knights Templar found it and stole away with it, where is the mystery over the loss of the staff of Moses? Would Moses have been buried with his staff, when that staff had such amazing powers?

Perhaps it was not the staff as much as it was God. In the same way, perhaps it was not so much the electrical properties of a gold-plated cedar chest, but the presence of God in the holy men carrying those wooden poles (horizontal staffs). What if the ark of the covenant was symbolic of the powers of God, when He is placed inside a human body?

Imagine the diodes of the heart causing highly charged spiritual energy being fed through neural wires leading to the hands, eyes, ears, mouth, and of course … feet.

Anyone see the science fiction movie about a woman who accidentally gains psychokinetic powers, Lucy? I digress.

When we read or hear read, “Joshua then said to the Israelites, “Draw near and hear the words of the Lord your God,” this means he told them “the conditions set forth that must be met, coming from the LORD your God.” The Hebrew word “diḇ-rê” (root debar) means “speech” or “words,” but is also translatable as “commandments, conversations,” and ”conditions.” These “words” or “commandments” do not demand the Israelites recognize God had them craft a machine, in which to carry the stone tablets, as a chest that was radio-controlled from outer space and could zap anyone at will.

Joshua announced he was speaking as Moses had, allowing the words of the Lord God of Israel to use his voice to sound Spiritual instructions. We then see the conditions that were set said nothing immediately about an ark doing anything. Initially, we read that “Joshua said, ‘By this you shall know that among you is the living God who without fail will drive out from before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites,’” The part that says “living God” is vital to grasp, as an ark is made of non-living materials.

“Among you is the living God” means “God is alive within you,” so the Israelites were the ones who had the power of God. It means that those human beings who were “without” that power within them (all those specifically named), they would “fail” to defend the land they had lived on. It would not be an ark leading the victories, as victories would be won by those with God’s power within them. Joshua, speaking “the words of the LORD,” then named all those tribes of people who were “without” the Holy Spirit, whose lands would be lost to the Israelites.

In a verse that precedes the selected verses above, in Joshua 3:5 is found: “Then Joshua said to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”’ This order said to take steps to sanctify themselves and to take the necessary steps to be holy means the Israelites were prepared to be filled with God’s Holy Spirit.

The words translated as “the LORD will do wonders among you” can be read as “the LORD inwardly to be extraordinary.” As such, when Joshua gave instructions to the priests who carried the ark of the covenant (verse 3:6), where they were told to pass by the Israelites and lead the crossing with the ark of the covenant. The Israelites were filled with the Spirit of God within them, just as the ark contained their agreement with God inside it. That made the ark of the covenant symbolize those who followed it were empowered by the LORD.

When we read then in verse 11, “the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is going to pass before you into the Jordan,” and in verse 13, “the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan,” we find repeated “the Lord of all the earth.” The Hebrew word “eretz” means “earth, lands, or world,” such that the LORD is not simply a deity that rules over all humanity; but God created everything material, of which human bodies are formed and of which lands and their rivers are made. Therefore, God is the LORD of all anomalies of physics (metaphysics?), including those that stand still flowing waters and force them back, making wet soil become immediately dry.

In the Old Testament reading of Proper 25, where Moses was told by the LORD, “You will not pass over there,” as reference to both his going across the Jordan River and his passing over from life to death, the same meaning can now be seen here in Joshua 3. The words translated as “passing before” (“‘ō-ḇêr lip̄·nê·ḵem”) are repeated in some variation, multiple times. Joshua 3:1, 3:4, 3:6 [not read in this selection], plus Joshua 3:11, 3:14, 3:16, and 3:17, state either “passed” or “before” or both.

The root words are “abar panim,” or “pass over to face.” This, again, is a hidden statement about the First Commandment that says, “Thou shall wear no other face as a god in the presence of the LORD.”

This acts as a confirmation that the priests – one from each of the twelve tribes [or “two and ten men from the tribes of Israel”] – were filled with God’s Holy Spirit. By not being limited as Levites, the priests of the tabernacle in which the ark of the covenant was kept, choosing “ordinary Israelites” demonstrated they all were holy, by having a love of the LORD in the chest [their ark] that was their hearts. Therefore, all of Israel had consecrated themselves, so the face of the LORD passed over theirs, so all had the same face of holiness.

This then leads to the statements, “When the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan” and “when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water,” where “feet” become a focus. This brings back in mind the Psalm quoted by Jesus to the Pharisees (110:1), in the Proper 25 Gospel selection: “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet,” or “until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”

The Hebrew word translated as “your enemy” is “’ō·yə·ḇe·ḵā,” where an “enemy” is a “foe” or “adversary.” When Joshua named the tribes of Canaan who would “fail” before the “living God of Israel,” he was naming the “enemies” who would become “the footstools under the feet” of God’s priests. Thus, they would be defeated by God, with the priests being God’s agents, who were given the powers of the LORD.

As the LORD of the world, nothing material could overcome this power, meaning not even a swollen Jordan River could oppose the children of God entering into the lands the LORD had promised them; and, as with the difficulty factor of escaping Egypt in the face of a great sea, no earthly barrier can be a match for those who bear the power of the LORD. Anything is possible to the LORD.

Because we read, “the waters of the Jordan flowing from above shall be cut off; they shall stand in a single heap” and “the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, while those flowing toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off,” after we read of the “feet” in the Jordan, this feat cannot be attributed to the ark of the covenant. It was “the feet” of those carrying the ark of the covenant that entered (barely) the waters of the Jordan. Because of that realization, one needs to see the subsequent actions involving water to be attributed to the human factor as the cause, more than the mechanisms of the ark of the covenant.

Consider how the wayward Israelites (under the priest Eli) had caused the loss of the ark of the covenant to the Philistines (1 Samuel 4). They lost it because they thought using the ark would bring about victory; but the ark had no effect that day in battle, when 30,000 foot soldiers died, the ark was captured and two sons of Eli (tabernacle priests) died. Without the human factor, where the Israelites became like the ark of the covenant, filled with the love of the LORD and the powers He bestows, the ark of the covenant is only a reflection of whose face one wears as a god before the LORD.

Then, the Israelites wore their own faces and depended on Eli, who had two sons committing atrocities that he would not punish. They had turned away from God, selfishly. The Palestinians wore the face of Dagon, their idol god, before which they placed the prize ark of Israel. That act provoked the LORD, we are told (1 Samuel 5), and the Philistines would rue that act of putting the idol of another god before the LORD.

Ancient alien theorists don’t give much thought to this negative power that surrounded the ark of the covenant. If the ark of the covenant were some amazingly powerful energy generator, why would water be stopped, when water is a conductor of electricity? Why were the priest not electrocuted, once their feet touched the water? In the hypotheses of the Templar Knights, if they had found the ark of the covenant AND THEN STOLEN IT, would they not soon realize the same negative powers of an angry God, so the plague-ridden remainders of those knights would have left the ark out in the open land of southern France with a sign on it saying, “Do not touch unless you are a Saint”?

The point here is the power of God was in His priests, who bore the sacred chest that held the sacred tablets that represented the total commitment of the Israelites to the LORD their God. That love consecrated them, so their faith turned back the waters of the Jordan, in the same manner that the faith of lepers, blind men, possessed people, and the lame equally created miracles, as told in the Gospels. Jesus was a totally committed human, who represented the reappearance of the ark of the covenant, which had been lost by the time the Israelites lost the Promised Land [the Covenant broken was no longer stored away]. Therefore, Christians can make water (symbolic for emotions) “stand in a heap,” as the conduits of God’s powers on earth.

When we are then told the extent of the cessation of waters flowing, “rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan,” this needs to be grasped both physically (actual locations) and spiritually (why those places bore those names). Here is a map that someone who has written about Joshua has posted online:

This map shows the physicality of what is stated. The Wadi Nimrin represents a dry ravine during the dry season, but since the text states, “Now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest,” the wadi would have been flowing a lot of water into the Jordan, causing it to overflow its banks. Just north of Adam is the Jabbok River, which flows into the Jordan, and just to the south is where the Wadi Tirzah had its confluence. The sheer size of this area affected (15 miles roughly) must be seen as a necessary space that could accommodate a great number of Israelites. If that many who were filled with the Holy Spirit of God were ready along the banks of the Jordan, awaiting Joshua’s commands of the LORD, the feet touching far away to the south would have started a backwards flow northward.

On a deeper level of thought, my opinion (which will not be found commonly stated in scholarly interpretations of Joshua) is that one has to ponder what the presence of the two names and what that means. All names presented in the Holy Bible are symbolic statements of meaning. Names were not made up because they sounded funny or cool back then. Names stood for people, places, and things for reason and purpose; and that reason and purpose needs to be examined here.

It does not take a biblical rocket scientist to see the name Adam and think of the Son of God, the one who used to live in the “eretz” (“land”) called “the garden of Eden.” Of course, little-a “adam” is Hebrew for “man,” but some say the word implies “red man,” or even “mud” (I assume “reddish clay”). In that case, the name of a place known as “Adam,” could be because of the muddy land surrounding it, where two rivers join – like a red delta. Still, after Adam and Eve were found to have sinned, they were cast out of Eden, with God placing cherubim to the east of Eden. Such a place where Adam could have begun to toil, working the land, could very well have been where this place named Adam was. The purpose of the name was that settlement identity. While outcast, Adam might have still wanted to stay close to his old home, so he only went as far as just beyond where he was no longer allowed.

Now, the name “Zaretan” [a.k.a. “Zarethan”] means “the Fortress” or “Narrowness of Dwelling Place,” according to Abarim Publications. The map above shows where a place named Zaredah was located, and this is presumed (by some) to be the same place as Zaretan. As this location is about as far away from Adam (north), as Adam was from the crossing point opposite Jericho (south), it is not near and certainly not “beside” it.

In that regard, the word written (“miṣ·ṣaḏ”) means “beside, to the side,” or “an arm of.” This means the reference to “from the city” (“hā·‘îr“) means Adam was a place of “excitement,” as “towns” are (from “iyr”).

In the picture above, the southern tip of the land between the Jordan River and the Jabbok River is to the eastern side of Adam. That land appears like an arm reaching down, with its hand almost touching the “town” of “Adam.” This can then be seen as defining that land as a “Narrowness of Dwelling Place,” with purpose and reason behind that name. As such, Zaretan can be read as descriptive of a delta formation of land that is next to the city (or town) that was Adam; and that could infer that Adam, the son of God, toiled that earth, from that place of “excitement.”

Beyond Joshua making a statement about how far north the Jordan River backed up, the symbolism states a claim that this crossing is into holy land, which is then backing up the flow of time, to the time when Adam lived in Eden, prior to his expulsion. It says the ark of the covenant and the Israelites filled with God’s Holy Spirit are returning to their ancestral home, as Adam’s heirs, through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

From seeing this statement of two names that do little more than create surface confusion, as to “Why?” the continuation that is translated as: “while those flowing toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off,” then speaks of those who had migrated into that holy land (which Joshua, as a spy, had said was “flowing with milk and honey”). To read “toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea,” where people were “wholly cut off,” the inference is cut off from that holy lineage. The ones named held no rights of ownership.

As such, “the sea of the plain” (“yam ha-arabah”) and “the sea of salt” (“yam ham-melah”) are references to the sea of mankind that was “Arab” (“Arabah” is the Hebrew feminine form of “Arabia”). This means a statement of waters not being replenished to the south is something Captain Obvious would say, as it adds nothing of value to the miracle of waters backed up 15 miles. The people there were “of the plain,” thus not “elevated” through consecration. They were the “salt” of the earth, but the Salt Sea is known also as the Dead Sea, meaning the “salt” was mortal, not everlasting. As the descendants of Ishmael and Esau, they were “wholly cut off” from knowing the LORD Yahweh.

When the reading then makes its conclusion by stating, “While all Israel were crossing over on dry ground” and “the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan,” this element of dry ground is repeated. The Hebrew word “be·ḥā·rā·ḇāh” has that meaning, but implies a “desert.” This means more than the powers of God stopping the flow of rivers and wadis that were swollen with fall rains, backing those up 15 miles, and instantly making hard earth be under the feet of men holding the ark of the covenant. It means, despite the amount of annual rainfall, the land was void of spiritual recognition of Holy Land. That earth was dried of all emotion for the true God, because the people had become lost.

This understanding then allows one to see the flow of living waters – spiritual waters that never need replenishing – coming back into the land that was once the garden of Eden. Without that presence of God being the source of the bounty of the land, since Adam had been cast out, and since Melchizedek, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had last dug wells and given life to that land, it had become a desert, as far as Spirituality was concerned. Therefore, when “the entire nation finished crossing over the Jordan,” so the garden was again in bloom. The Spirit of the LORD was being reinstated into the heart of the land, with the sacred ark becoming the central pump of the Holy Spirit to the far reaches of the Twelve Tribes of Israel.

1 Thessalonians, Language, Teaching

1 Thessalonians 2:9-13 – Witnesses of Yahweh speak the truth of Jesus [Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

You remember our labor and toil, brothers and sisters; we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how pure, upright, and blameless our conduct was toward you believers. As you know, we dealt with each one of you like a father with his children, urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers.

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This is the Epistle selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 26, the twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost. This will next be read aloud in church on Sunday, November 5, 2017. This is important as it makes clear the work that is involved in being truly Christian.

To repeat what I posted previously about Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians, the statement above that says “brothers and sisters” is not what was written in this letter. The Greek word Paul wrote is “adelphoi,” which is the plural form of “adelphos” and says “brothers.” We can accept “brothers and sisters” in translation, because “brothers” was used in the epistles of Paul to denote “members of the same religious community, especially fellow-Christians.” (Strong’s) However, to translate it as both masculine and feminine Christians can become confusing, when one gets to the part where Paul wrote, “We dealt with each one of you like a father with his children.”

This is confusing because Paul treated the Christians of Thessaly “like a father.” The deeper meaning in that statement says it was the Father’s love of Paul in him which Paul then modeled behavior from. God raised Paul to raise others like Paul, so all would have the same love of the Father within them, with all modeling their behavior after God the Father. This is why priests are addressed as “Father.”

This issue will be further addressed by Jesus in the Gospel reading that accompanies this epistle reading in 1 Thessalonians (Matthew 23:1-12). That was when Jesus made the remark that Pharisees and those of the Temple liked to be called “rabbi,” but they never taught by example. They were never the “Fathers” of the Jews, as those lowly people were raised as if they were orphans. So, when Paul said, “We dealt with each one of you like a father with his children,” all the “sisters” could be confused about what that means.

My wife is an Episcopalian priest. In seminary, she had a woman professor who was referred to as “Mother.” When my wife was ordained, the parishioners began calling her “Mother.” In my mind, this is not a complimentary title.

Before I comment on that, let me also say that I have sat in some Episcopal churches and read along in the Prayer Book, for the Eucharist Rite II, Prayer C: “Lord God of our Fathers; God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,” only to hear the priest (a male) say, “Lord God of our Fathers and Mothers; God of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob, Rachel and Leah.”

What?

I asked a different male priest, who did not make those additions for the wives of Patriarchs (Pater is Latin for Father), why some priests did and some did not. He said it was up to the priest; but it was a modern way of making unofficial changes to the Prayer Book, which took into consideration the role women play in the Church.

If that is why “adelphoi” is translated as “brothers and sisters,” then it misses the point of the Father as the teacher of His children, with Jesus Christ the Son of God, where ALL Christians are “brothers” [male and female He made them], as reborn Jesuses. If that is why a female priest of the One God is called “Mother,” it misses the point of who is teaching, what is being taught, and how children know the difference between mommy and daddy.

It misses the point that ALL Christians are called to be “the brides of God” [male and female He calls them], with the consummation of that marriage bringing about the baby boy Jesus, with the Mind of Christ – who sits at the right hand of the Father, as the male heir to the throne – making a human being become One (a Trinity) in the flesh.

It misses the point that Christians are ALL “brothers,” because nobody speaks their sex organs as a servant of the LORD. The FATHER speaks, while Christians just open their pie holes and let the words come out.

Now, that said, let me inform whoever reads this that I had no father around when I grew up. I had a mother, and that was it. My mother did lots of things a father could do, such as go to work and leave me in someone else’s care, or go to work and leave me alone at home. Occasionally, my mother spanked me with a belt, but she never made me so afraid of punishment that I felt compelled to toe the line. In all actuality, I was allowed to do as I pleased, more and more the older I got.

My mother saw me as the “man of the house.” My mother loved me. My mother sacrificed for my benefit. My mother gave me as much as she could afford to give, and was sorry she could not give more. My friends with fathers AND mothers never had as much as I had; and as I grew older, I felt guilty for having too much … as a lower, middle-class male. (I call it middle-class because my mother bought a house to raise me in.)

From that personal historic background and experience, when I hear a priest of the LORD referred to as “Mother (fill in the blank),” it gives me the impression of one who is permissive, more than demanding. It makes me think that “parent” is there to make all my boo boos feel better, more than tell me to get up when I fall … “Rub some dirt on it!”

Without the presence of a real father in my life (my father visited on some holidays – he was not dead, just very absent), I grew up male, but knowing very little about things boys with fathers are taught. As some model by which I could become an adult male, with eventually a wife and family and responsibilities of fatherhood, I looked to other fathers. Some were real fathers I spent time with, as a friend of their sons; and some were fictional characters on TV.

At no time did I ever learn any adult male skills from my mother. I watched other males and learned through observation. Male teachers and gym coaches were the ones who told me how to become a man and do manly things; and I absorbed that knowledge like a sponge. Of course, my peers helped me learn too, by leading me down all the wrong paths of masculine ignorance. Without a real father to guide me, I found trial and error was my best teacher.

In defense of my mom, she was always buying things that I was tasked to put together and she bought some tools that I could use in that effort. Indirectly, my mother taught me to read the directions first, not after you try to put something together wrong … over and over again … never thinking to read the print under the pictures.

The point that I have made in the past and still make today is this: A priest (or pastor, minister, reverend, padre, et al titles) is THE Father, via the Holy Spirit, regardless of one’s human gender. Paul said this when he wrote how he, Silvanus and Timothy had been acting like a father to his children, “urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.”

It was not those three men who were acting like fathers, because they called the Thessalonians “brothers.” They acted as “God” who was within them. God is “who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.”

The modern Western rationale now is to find equality in the sexes (which is the same rationale that is applied to all efforts calling for equality). This is little more than a philosophy of man that seeks (through the Big Brain) to lower those who have been artificially elevated, and to raise those who have been downtrodden. This is good when the ones pointing our all the mistakes in others comes from THE Father, and not some personal agenda. That message, again, is the point made in the accompanying Gospel reading for Proper 26, where Jesus said, “All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.” He was referring to the usual suspects in Jerusalem (Pharisees, scribes, et al).

I am reminded now of the lyrics of a song written by Roland Orzabal (Tears For Fears video), about the humbling of Spain, due to its devotion to the philosophy of Salic Law and Patrilineal or Agnatic Succession, where only male heirs could wear the crown. In two verses the song lyrics sing, “Did you know your father was an island Did you know your mother was the sea” and “Did you know all mothers come from heaven Did you know all fathers come from hell.” The lack of a male heir in Spain was then symbolically stated as a lack of a fixed (island) and ruthless (hell) ruler, which led to the ultimate ruin of the Spanish monarchy.

The Spanish refused to make a Queen their supreme leader, as that would be recognizing Mother Spain as capable of being inspired by God THE Father. A nation was not allowed to be ruled by changing emotions (the sea) or the nebulousness of spiritual faith (heaven) in the physical realm.

The Spanish did this (I presume) because the Pope had become their father figure, by whom Spain was raised. The Vatican denied women the right to serve God as His priests, for Christians. Therefore, Queens had no rights to serve God as His national rulers, over Christian lands.

That philosophy crumbled when a King of Spain sired no male heirs before dying. The War of Spanish Succession ensued. Because of that war, the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV, declared it would be legal for his daughter to become the Empress upon his death; a transition that was challenged by the War of Austrian Succession. All the while, the English had managed to do fine with the succession of Queens, mixed with Kings.

I imagine it was the costs of wars over succession that led some to reflect on how priests of Rome could call themselves “Father,” when they were denied marriage, by edict, thus denied all capability of actually having children. That system came tumbling down when brains began pondering, “Why can’t women be priests, if a queen can rule England?”

Still, men and women are different, or they would be called the same word (without gender application necessitating separate words). The same goes for fathers and mothers: They are different and not the same, because each was created for specific purpose, as compliments of the other. The Commandment to honor your father and your mother recognized the equality of separate responsibilities. Both sexes have equal value in the production of offspring and raising those children to serve a purpose. However, anyone who exalts him or herself because of gender (this is called “Pride,” which is a Deadly Sin) is then destined to be humbled in the eyes of THE Father.

The Israelites went to Samuel and asked to be given a king, to be like other nations. No man (and thus no woman) can ever be more than a human figurehead, because God told Samuel, “they have rejected me as their king.” “All who exalt themselves will be humbled,” as only THE Father leads His subjects to the true Promised Land. Mother Earth is the ruler of the physical and material, and as harsh and/or as gentle as she can be, she can only offer ashes to ashes and dust to dust as the rewards for serving her.

This means to call oneself “Father,” simply because one is a male graduate of a seminary, ordained into a job for a religious order that brings that title of masculinity, because one is masculine, is wrong. Likewise, to call oneself “Mother,” simply because one is a female graduate of a seminary, ordained into a job for a religious order that brings that title of femininity, because one is feminine, is wrong. To deny women the right to be THE Father to a congregation is equally wrong.

It is wrong because everything religious is then reduced to the human level of gender identification, rather than being elevated Spiritually. The trick question of the Sadducees put to Jesus, about who would be the rightful husband to the widow of seven brothers (where none produced a male heir), was answered by Jesus saying, “At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.” That means the soul has no gender. It is placed into flesh that may or may not be reproductive on earth.

Humans love attaching gender to angels. Gender is a human trait for reproduction. Angles are immortal and cannot reproduce.

The model of THE Father as being the one who sets the rules for a congregation to follow, and then fairly making sure those rules are followed – “urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God” – is God (Yahweh, the LORD). Moses did not make anything up from his own brain, such that a human male was written in stone as the only gender of humanity that could ever lead the Israelites. We know this because in the Book of Judges we are told of the Priestess Deborah, who God used to lead the Israelites back to leading lives “worthy of God.”

You might note that the Priestess Deborah was not referred to as “Mother Debbie.” She did not become a Judge of the Israelites because she knew how to raise children. Deborah was a prophet of the God of the Israelites, while also being recognized as being “a counselor, warrior, and the wife of Lapidoth.” As a wife, she presumably had babies, so that would mean she also was a mother; but her human roles, based on gender, had nothing to do with her saving the wayward from ruin. She was the physical embodiment of THE Father.

When Paul said God “calls you into his own kingdom and glory,” he did not mean a call for you to imagine your soul floating away to some magical place, where if unicorns do exist, then they run and play in heaven; and the ghost of Jesus is there to pick flowers with you, after Saint Peter allows your soul to enter that kingdom and glory, where God is the cloud that surround everyone. Paul said “God calls you.” His call is for you to be the physical embodiment of His own kingdom. Receiving that call means you become “the unspoken manifestation of God” (from the Greek word “doxa”).

To be my Brother as the Son reborn into flesh.

There is no sexual bias attached to this call “into his own kingdom and glory.” All are welcomed to open their hearts and become engaged to the LORD. Once married, your ego becomes completely subservient to the LORD. You are God’s committed wife (till death does your soul depart your flesh), so you stand to the rear as the LORD speaks out of your mouth. The LORD speaks as THE Father, just as He spoke through Jesus, as the Mind of Christ fills the newborn baby (reborn Christian) of that marriage.

In this arrangement, you are not alone. God takes on as many wives as He can afford (and He can afford every human being). You are summoned to marry God, and His proposal is that message brought by Apostles (male and female), and served as a father to his children. Acceptance means you become “brothers” with all the other wives of the LORD. You all become like Paul and seek new Christians to raise, like a father does to his children. God calls you to be a Father, in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ.

In this way all Christians “accepted it [the words of proposal to marry God] not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word.” It does not matter what human form God takes, as it is not their gender uttering those words. All words spoken by Saints come from THE Father.

Language, Matthew, Teaching

Matthew 23:1-12 – The do not practice what they teach [Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost]

January 22, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father– the one in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

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The is the Gospel selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for Year A, Proper 26, the twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost. It will next be read aloud by a priest in church on Sunday, November 5, 2017. It is important because Jesus pointed out how people who stand highly as religious leaders, in the eyes of human beings, will be humbled in the eyes of the LORD. This means the most exalted Spiritual teachers on earth will serve only God.

Verse two of this selection has Jesus telling his followers (both general listeners and valued assistants), “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat.” This is the only specific reference to “Moses’ seat” in all the Holy Bible. Some take this statement as meaning there was some physical “seat, chair,” or “bench,” upon which Moses sat. Some say the Roman Catholic Church and the Pope now sits on that figurative “seat,” as the See of St. Peter.

Some might sell tickets in the Holy Land, for pilgrims to have their picture taken by the “seat of Moses.”

Found in Chorazin, which is just north of the Sea of Galilee … a place Moses never went.

To best understand this statement by Jesus, one has to grasp how “Moses’ seat” was a reference to the state of Judea then, where Jerusalem was a place that had been set aside for exilic Jews to play the game, “What if?”

“What if our ancestors had not lost our land?” they would say. Then they would surmise, “We would be returned to the days when Judges would be sent by God to save us.” It was the Judges of Israel, before the Twelve Tribes had a king, and before they had a powerful prophet of the LORD in Samuel, who every 80 years would snap the wayward children of Israel back from their pagan ways, getting them to remember their Covenant to be righteous in the eyes of the One God.

The Judges of Israel sat on “Moses’ seat,” just as Moses had judged the Israelites prior to their entrance into the Promised Land. Thus, “Moses’ seat” stands for “Tradition,” which is the claim the Vatican has made. The Pope and his entourage sit as Judges of Christians. Unfortunately, that makes Rome the epitome of what this Scripture says, where Jesus warned the Jews around him, “Do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach.”

This statement of “Moses’ seat” is best understood from careful examination of Exodus 18 (as all examination of Scripture should be … carefully done … as if one cares about the truth being revealed). Here is a link to that chapter, which the New International Version has entitled, “Jethro Visits Moses.”

Jethro was the father-in-law of Moses, the father of Zipporah, and a priest of Midian. In Exodus 18:13 we read, “The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening.” (NIV) The actual Hebrew states, “way·yê·šeḇ mō·šeh liš·pōṭ,” rooted in “yashab Mosheh shaphat,” meaning “Sat Moses to judge.” The act of sitting implies a “seat, chair” or “bench,” but that specificity was not directly stated. Moses could have “sat” on the ground; but the implication of “sitting in judgment” implies an elevated position, like a mound that overlooked the people.

Today, furniture manufacturers sell “Judge’s chairs,” which have high backs, much like a king’s throne. In a courtroom setting, such a Judge’s chair would be set upon a raised floor (24”), higher than the people’s benches and the chairs of the jurors’ (set on a floor raised 12”). This could imply the “seat of Moses” was a high-back chair, which went wherever the Tabernacle went, along with some platform to set the chair on.

In Exodus 18, the wisdom of Jethro is imparted to Moses, after Jethro saw Moses being the Judge of the Israelites. In Exodus 18:17 we read, “Moses’ father-in-law [said], “What you are doing is not good.” Jethro saw that doing everything alone was too heavy of a burden to bear; so he recommended that Moses choose “good men” to do the majority of the judging, so that only the major problems came before Moses.

Moses listened to Jethro and did what he advised; so we read in Exodus 18:26: “They [the “good men” chosen by Moses] served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.” Thus, the seat of Moses was only for matters that needed to be petitioned to the LORD. It would be more in line with America’s Supreme Court, rather than a lesser court.

For Jesus to say, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat” (in the plural number), the intent was to point out how the wisdom of Jethro was missing in the Temple of Jerusalem’s justice system. That system revolved around a series of changing High Priests, with Joseph Caiaphas the ruler of that roost at that time. His appointment was based on support from “the scribes and the Pharisees,” in the artificial environment that made the Second Temple (Herod’s Temple) be like Disneyland (a Magical Kingdom), in the midst of Roman empirical domination.

The logic of that system was, “We lost our land because of our failure to follow the Laws of Moses, therefore we will model Judaism after the times when Judges sat on the seat of Moses, until God sends us our next Savior Judge.” The idea of a Messiah (or a Christ) was thought to be a strong warrior-leader; but when the Roman Empire was the current champion whose title belt needed to be taken in a fight to the death, few scribes and Pharisees gave that prophecy any chance of ever happening. If you ask a Jew today about that prophecy, he or she will say they are still waiting. To wait 3,000 years for a prophecy to come true means one does not believe it will ever happen, but faith calls for polite patronizing.

This means those judges were sitting upon the seat of Moses, like Moses did prior to taking the advice of Jethro. The scribes and Pharisees eschewed such wisdom and shunned any thoughts about sharing the responsibilities of judgment, keeping that heavy burden all for themselves. After all, that system of Kings replacing Judges had failed miserably … to the Assyrians and the Babylonians. Thus, when Jesus said, “Do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them,” they had no problem with bearing a heavy burden, because they only had to pass judgments that benefited themselves, at the expense of others.

Because Jesus told the crowd and his disciples to do as they taught, he was saying they taught the Laws of Moses. All the descendants of the Israelites must follow those rules. As for not allowing those judges to be their personal role models, the actions of writers and lawyers would only lead the crowds, and disciples who followed their leads, to lives of corruption.

When Jesus said, “For they make their phylacteries broad,” I imagine most Christians are like me and hear a word like “phylacteries” and wonder, “Hmmm what the heck is that.” Then, the majority of Christians ignore that thought and keep on reading, never doing anything to learn what Jesus said and what that meant.

These are “phylacteries.”

They are defined as: “two small leather boxes worn during morning prayers by Orthodox and Conservative Jews after the age of 13 years and one day. Each box contains strips of parchment inscribed with verses from the Scriptures: Ex. 13.1–10; 13.11–16; Deut. 6.4–9; 11.13–21. One box is fastened to the forehead and the other to the left arm; they are intended to serve as a reminder of the constant presence of God and of the need to keep Him uppermost in one’s thoughts and deeds, thereby safeguarding the wearer against committing a sin. They are not worn on the Sabbath or holy days, since these days are in themselves a reminder of God. Phylacteries are also called tephillin.” (Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, via The Free Dictionary by Farlex) The word is Greek for “safeguard,” just as is the meaning of the Hebrew word “tephillin.”

When Jesus said, “They make … their fringes long,” this is what that refers to:

By increasing the size of two symbols of devotion to God, which made it easier for everyone to notice, the scribes and Pharisees were skilled in the art of deception. They knew the power of suggestion. They understood that acting a part makes people believe you are the character whose role you are playing. And it technically wasn’t lying, if you never said you were what you led people to believe you were … erroneously.

The point made by Jesus saying the scribes and the Pharisees was that they were quite showy about their religious pedigree. They put on airs. The saying, “The clothes make the man” (Mark Twain, as a paraphrase of Shakespeare: “Apparel oft proclaims the man”) means that the way one looks is how others will think of that one.

In the words of Billy Crystal (pretending to be Fernando Lamas): “You dahling? You look mahvelous!”

If Jesus were to reappear as Jesus before the crowd and his Christian disciples today, he would be pointing out the same flaws still present in religious clothing.

Jesus said of the writers (scribes) and the lawyers (Pharisees), “They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi.” Those translated words make it easy to see the special societal favors that were expected by high-ranking Jews in ancient times. However, do the same words not identify these modern personalities, who “teach” as idols?

The wheels on the bike go round and roun

Seeing how such glittering stars in politics, acting, and sports have risen to the top and fallen to the depths of their popularity, after their public images have been exposed as unworthy of worship, Jesus spoke the truth when he said, “Do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach.”

We look up to teachers (rabbis) that surround us, blindly trusting that they are there to help us. Then, time and again, the truth comes out that our idols were only helping themselves. They were taking advantage of common ignorance.

Jesus warned the crowd and his disciples, “You are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students.” Our only teacher is God, who sent us laws to live by, through Moses. The only thing that can be taught of true value is this: “Listen to the LORD.” The word of the LORD can be recited for us, but only fear of God will make one obey that word.

Then, Jesus went on. He added, “And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father– the one in heaven.” This applies to the interpretation that I did on Paul’s first epistle to the Thessalonians, where he wrote, “We dealt with each one of you like a father with his children, urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God.” (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12) Paul was not a genetic parent to adults he met in his evangelism. Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit of the Father; therefore he taught the Thessalonians how to be Christian, as the Father in heaven told him.

For that reason, Jesus then said, “Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah.” The “Messiah” is the “Christ.” This means Paul was an instructor, just as Jesus was instructing the crowd and his disciples in Jerusalem. If you ponder that instruction carefully, then you will see that every Apostle becomes an instructor, just as did Paul, Silvanus, Timothy, and those of Thessaly, the same way Jesus became one – God sent His Holy Spirit to be One with the faithful, allowing all to become “the Messiah,” “the Christ.”

I have said it before, and I will repeat it once again now: You fall in love with GOD and accept His proposal for marriage (males AND females). The you consummate your love of GOD by doing acts of faith, until you give birth to a new you, which is the rebirth of Jesus Christ in your body. Just as Jesus was “Christ Jesus,” you become “Christ (fill in your name here),”

The birth of Jesus Christ as you means you cease trying to “have the place of honor at [awards] banquets and the best seats in the [houses of worship], and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces [places of employment, where so many sell their souls routinely], and to have people call [you] role model [based on the materials you amass].” You stop serving self and begin (forevermore) serving Yahweh. Thus, Jesus said, “The greatest among you will be your servant.”

To be reborn as Jesus Christ means “the abundance” [“the greatest”] of “the Christ” will be in “yourselves,” as within “you” [meanings of the Greek word “hymōn”]. This presence will ensure “you” or “yourselves” [repetition of “hymōn”] of becoming a “servant” or “waiter” or “anyone who performs any service.” As a “servant” of “the Messiah,” you will do exactly as Jesus of Nazareth did, and repeatedly say, “I speak the truth, for the Father.”

This way of grasping verse 11 makes understanding verse 12 easier. “All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted,” says that you choose which path you take in life. Do you lie, cheat, steal, prostitute yourself and covet those who wear the finest clothes and get into the most exclusive nightclubs and restaurants? Or, do you thank God for what little you have, while praying for those who are destroying the fabric of our society? One way will raise you to the heights the world has to offer. The other will raise you to the heights heaven holds for those who serve the LORD.

Either way, you will be humbled. As the old Fram oil filter commercial said: “You can pay me now or you can pay me later.” One way or the other, you are going to pay for your life choices.

When you play this forward to modern times, then you understand what Jesus meant, when he said what to watch out for. Can you see holy looking men and women that are “tying up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and laying them on the shoulders of others [Christians raised to think the Laws were etched in stone]; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them”?

Are political challengers not interpreting Scripture in ways that seek to destroy all links between Christianity and American laws, through the pollution of the representatives who sit on the seat of Washington D.C.? Jesus pointed out the writers of law (the scribes) and the enforcers of law (the Pharisees) were in no way holy, because they did not talk to God. When they used holy Law as their excuse for leadership, then they were repeating what Moses had brought down from the mount to the people. The long-standing fairy tale of the United States of America was it was founded as a nation of Christians (Protestants), who (collectively) did not want a King or a Pope sitting on the seat of Law in the New World.

Then non-Christians began elevating themselves into the government of the people, for the people to become as screwed as were the Jews of Judea and Galilee, when Jesus pointed out this is not preventable. It is the common way of the world. It is the way things will always deteriorate, degenerate, corrupt, and disintegrate, when led by self-serving men and women.

Moses spoke to God and then Moses passed on what God demanded to those who listened to Moses. The Judges of Israel who sat on that same seat of holy Law did the same thing. David did it with the help of Samuel. Elijah, Elisha and other Prophets helped other kings, with less and less compliance to what God demanded. Those holy people all spoke holy Law – the Word of the LORD – and then the people did what they wanted.

When Jesus said the scribes and the Pharisees were making up interpretations of holy Law, while quoting God’s Commandments, they were creating huge burdens for God-fearing Jews. By saying, ” they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them,” the key word to understand is the Greek word “kinēsai,” which means “to move,” as “to set in motion, excite, stir up.” That says the written laws of Jerusalem, enforced by the lawyers of Jerusalem (the Disneyland police), never helped any typical Jews be inspired by explanations that said “God will reward you,” coming from anyone who said they sat on the “seat of Moses.” It was always demand more money and threaten punishment for sins.

Today, little has changed. Who can be “moved” by a government that is in gridlock because two parties hate one another? The members of Congress sit on the seat of legislative laws, which do little to “lift a finger” to cut taxes, guarantee health, welfare, and safety of the citizens; although they will pass benefit packages for themselves, none of which are commonly available for “regular folk.”

The Judicial Branch is petitioned by lawyers and law checkers, challenging any right to actually legally punish cities that break Federal laws, because local ordinances have been written that are contrary (approved by local voters). Lawsuits have forced judicial reason to justify removal of monuments that are representative of Judeo-Christian faith, justify a redefining of marriage (which went unchanged for millennia prior) to meet modern needs, and to justify the killing of babies while people scream for the preservation of the lives of heinous criminals. It has become a hate crime to defend America as a nation standing for Christianity, if that means trying to keep those who hate Christians out of America.

Jesus was not telling the crowd nor his disciples to rise up in rebellion and overthrow a world gone to the dogs. Nope. The world is the homeland of sin. It will always find a way to rewrite the laws that makes good stand out of the way of evil. Jesus was simply pointing out how you cannot be led by any human, no matter how big they smile, how fancy they dress, and how much of the world they promise can be yours. People always talk a good game; but then they play by the rules they make up as they go.

You can only do what God’s Law says; and that means looking within, not without. The only role model to follow is Jesus Christ, who fills one’s Mind, through the love of God.

If you listen to your heart, you know Jesus is talking to you when he said, “Do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach.” They are hypocrites, which means “actors” and “pretenders.”

Explaining the Readings

Tag Archives: Ordinary time after Pentecost

Matthew 22:1-14 – The parable of the wedding banquet [Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost]

Exodus 33:12-23 – Being Jesus reborn is finding favor by Yahweh [Twentieth Sunay after Pentecost]

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 – The message of the Gospel comes spiritually not vai sound waves [Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost]

Matthew 22:15-22 – Give unto Caesar materially and give spiritually what is due Yahweh [Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost]

Deuteronomy 34:1-12 – Moses saw the whole land of his seed from spiritual heights [Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost]

1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 – rue divinity does not require smoke and mirrors [Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost]

Matthew 22:34-46 – Whose son is the Messiah? [Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost]

Joshua 3:7-17 – Crossing the Jordan on dry ground [Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost]

1 Thessalonians 2:9-13 – Witnesses of Yahweh speak the truth of Jesus [Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost]

Matthew 23:1-12 – The do not practice what they teach [Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost]

The Episcopal Lectionary Discerned