BIBLE IN TEN

Thursday, 5 November 2026
 
Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. Matthew 24:1
 
“And having departed, the ‘Jesus’, He traversed from the temple, and they approached, the ‘disciples, His’, to exhibit to Him the ‘buildings, the temple’.” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus finished Chapter 23 with His warning to Jerusalem that they would not see Him again until they should speak, “Having been blessed, the ‘Coming in Name, Lord’.” Chapter 24, a chapter filled with prophecies concerning Israel’s future, begins with, “And having departed, the ‘Jesus’, He traversed from the temple.”
 
Matthew records this as a point of reference. Jesus had been at the temple. He pronounced woes upon Israel’s spiritual leadership and told the city (meaning its leaders) they would see Him no more until they acknowledged Him as the Christ, coming in the Name of the Lord.
 
In stating that He has traversed from the temple, it means He will not return there again without that condition being met. While traversing from there, it next says, “and they approached, the ‘disciples, His’, to exhibit to Him the ‘buildings, the temple’.”
 
A new word is seen here, oikodomé, architecture, but concretely, a structure. It is also used figuratively, such as building one up, as in edification. It is from oikos, a dwelling and usually translated as house or home, and the base of the word dóma, an edifice, but especially a housetop.
 
Jesus had just proclaimed to Jerusalem that her house was left to her desolate. The disciples understood the meaning of this, having had their first temple, meaning Solomon’s temple, destroyed by the Babylonians. This temple, built by Herod, had been under construction for forty-six years, as noted in John 2:20.
 
The temple and its complex were massive, beautifully ordained, and built upon a structure that covered an entire mountain (Mount Moriah). Walking from the temple to their next destination at the Mount of Olives, the temple is in open view. Considering it, the disciples surely questioned how something so grand and magnificent could be made desolate.
 
The amazing size of the stones alone would make this seem impossible. The foundation stones were absolutely enormous. Its largest known stone today is called the Great Stone. It is located underground in the tunnels under the Western Wall. Though probably not visible at the time, it would be known about, being one of the largest single building blocks ever used in human history.
 
It is over 44 feet long, has a height reaching twelve feet, and is estimated to be between six and fifteen feet thick. Though unknown, its weight is estimated to be between 285 and 570 tons. Its placement would have been the stuff of legends, and anyone there during the construction would still speak about it.
 
Other massive stones like this were used as described by Josephus. Barnes, citing this, says, “‘In that temple,’ says Josephus, the Jewish historian, ‘were several stones which were 45 cubits in length, 5 in height, and 6 in breadth;’ that is, more than 70 feet long, 10 wide, and 8 high. These stones, of such enormous size, were principally used in building the high wall on the east side, from the base to the top of the mountain. They were also, it is said, beautifully painted with variegated colors.”
 
With this in mind, the disciples surely could not fathom how such an edifice atop such a massive foundation could be laid waste.
 
Life application: Man has accomplished many great things throughout the centuries. Massive complexes of stone have been discovered that formed enormous cities. However, within a short amount of time, the archaeological record shows that they were abandoned.
 
Skyscrapers are constructed, and it seems like they will last forever. And yet, within a short span, they become obsolete and must be taken down. Others may come down because Islamic terrorists fly planes into them. The great achievements of man don’t seem so great at such times.
 
Some people build empires worth amazing amounts of money. Solomon is often referred to as the richest man who ever lived. He controlled an empire that stretched from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines (1 Kings 4:21). And yet, it was divided during the lifetime of his son, and the wealth of the empire quickly faded into the past.
 
Those things that seem like they will last forever can be gone in a moment. Empires fade away, riches disappear through a single bad decision, and the effort of a lifetime can be erased by a single earthquake or tsunami.
 
Despite this, humanity can’t seem to learn the lesson the Bible teaches us. Everything will pass away, but the word of the Lord will stand forever. For those who put their trust in Jesus, we have a permanent foundation that can never be shaken. How much better it is to trust in Jesus than in anything this world can offer.
 
We are young one moment, and our lives are ending in the next. It is as if a few breaths were taken and we are planning for our funerals. Keep Jesus in your mind and heart always. Fix your eyes on Him, and don’t be pulled away from faithful devotion to Him. This will last forever.
 
Lord God, may we carefully consider our days, knowing that they are few and evil. Everything we work for will be left to others. Help us to leave a good mark on the world we live in through our devotion to You. May we speak about You, sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. Truly, this is something that will outlast even the mountains. Help us to be wise in this way. Amen.

Exploring the Connection Between Matthew 23, the book of Isaiah, and Isaiah 23
For Bible in Ten – By DH – 3rd November 2026
 
Isaiah contains 66 chapters, corresponding numerically to the 66 books of the Bible. Although chapter divisions were introduced long after the books were written, this is no barrier for the Lord who created time!  As such numerical parallels provide an interesting framework for exploring the extraordinary unity of Scripture.
The 23rd book of the Bible is actually Isaiah!  In Matthew 23 and Isaiah (especially chapter 23), we encounter people who have elevated themselves and then God demonstrates His judgment against their sin.
Let's look at 8 connections between these chapters. 
1. Isaiah 23: The Humiliation of Worldly Greatness
Ancient Tyre's trading networks connected nations across the Mediterranean. Its merchants accumulated wealth and enjoyed considerable influence.
Isaiah 23:8 describes this position:  
Her merchants were treated like princes. (ICB)
These men’s commercial success had elevated them to positions resembling royalty.  But their influence could not protect them from the judgment of God.
Isaiah 23:9 explains the reason for the city's downfall:
He decided to make these proud men unimportant. (ICB)
In Matthew 23 Jesus describes religious leaders who loved prominent seats, prestigious titles, etc.  As they sought glory for themselves.   But Jesus establishes the divine principle in Matthew 23:12:
Whoever makes himself great will be made humble.Whoever makes himself humble will be made great. (ICB)
Man must never occupy the place that belongs to God.
2. Prosperity and Religious Influence
Isaiah 23 describes merchants, ships, foreign ports, and the international trading networks through which Tyre became wealthy.  Matthew 23:15 also describes people travelling.  
Jesus condemns the scribes and Pharisees for the considerable distances they go to make a single convert, only to lead that person into the same spiritual error they themselves embraced.
Tyre crossed the seas to distribute merchandise.  The religious leaders crossed the seas to distribute doctrine.  Tyre's greatness had become an occasion for pride. 
The responsibility of Israel's spiritual leaders was to direct the people towards the Lord. Instead, pride blinded them.  Their teachings prevented people from recognizing the Lord.  
Matthew 23:16–22 and the conclusion of Isaiah 23
Jesus condemns the religious leaders for placing greater importance upon the gold associated with the temple than upon the temple itself.
Now consider Isaiah 23:18.  After announcing Tyre's judgment and a future return to commercial activity, Isaiah reveals something unexpected:
The profits will be saved for the Lord. (ICB)
The riches that once contributed to Tyre's greatness would ultimately serve a purpose determined by God.
In Matthew 23, the religious leaders had elevated gold above the holy things of God.In Isaiah 23, God declares that the profits of a great commercial city will belong to Him.
Christ exposes the blindness of anyone who confuses the value of material things with the holiness of God.
4. A Connection Between Three Verses Numbered 23
Within Isaiah, two early verses numbered 23 closely resemble the central concern of Matthew 23:23.
Consider the following passages.
Isaiah 1:23 - Corrupt rulers
Isaiah condemns Jerusalem's rulers for accepting payments, associating with dishonest people, neglecting orphans, and ignoring the needs of widows.
The accusation against the rulers in Isaiah is therefore closely related to the accusation against the scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23.
Isaiah 5:23 - Corrupted justice
Isaiah again condemns those entrusted with responsibility:
They take money to set the guilty free.
    But they don’t allow good people to be judged fairly. (ICB)
Those responsible for upholding what is right had begun using their authority for personal advantage.
Now compare this with Matthew 23:23 - Jesus condemns the scribes and Pharisees for their careful attention to religious tithing while neglecting the more important requirements of God's law:
being fair, showing mercy, and being loyal. (ICB)
All three passages concern the failure to administer righteousness according to God's standards.  
5. The Outward Appearance and the Condition of the Heart
In Isaiah 29:13, the Lord condemns people whose outward expressions of devotion do not reflect their inward condition:
“These people say they love me.
    They show honor to me with words.
    But their hearts are far from me.
The honor they show me
    is nothing but human rules they have memorized.. (ICB)
This is the very problem Jesus emphatically exposes in Matthew 23.  Jesus compares them to vessels that have been cleaned externally but remain defiled within.  
A Destroyed Harbour and a Desolate House
Isaiah 23 opens with the destruction of Tyre's harbour and its associated commercial security.  Its wealth and influence could not preserve it.
Matthew 23 concludes with a declaration of desolation as Jesus announces that Jerusalem's house will be left empty.
As CG explains, this refers to the temple. The building that had been identified with the presence of the Lord would be left desolate as Christ departed.
How dreadful it is for man to admire the things associated with God while rejecting God Himself!   
7. Seventy Years, an Unspecified Until, and the Faithfulness of God
Despite its announcement of destruction, Isaiah 23 does not conclude with destruction.  In verse 15, God declares that Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years.  After that period, the city's commercial activity will resume.
Now consider the concluding words of Matthew 23 as Jesus announces judgment upon Jerusalem and its leaders, His final words do not exclude future hope.  Instead, He establishes an until.  He declares that they will not see Him again until they acknowledge the One coming in the name of the Lord.  Compare this with the 70 weeks of years prophecy found in Daniel chapter 9 which ends with Israel’s restoration, confirmed in Romans 11.  
God has not rejected His covenant purposes for Israel. A remnant remains according to grace, and the future restoration of Israel is bound to God's faithfulness.
8. Isaiah's Greater Revelation: The Rejected Messiah
Having considered Isaiah 23, we should not overlook the most important revelation contained in the wider book.
Isaiah reveals the One through whom God's redemptive purposes will be accomplished.  The suffering Servant.  He is rejected by men, yet His suffering has a redemptive purpose.
Isaiah 53:5 declares:
But he was wounded for the wrong things we did.
    He was crushed for the evil things we did.
The punishment, which made us well, was given to him.
    And we are healed because of his wounds. (ICB)
We can see the Lord Jesus Christ.
The very One they rejected would soon offer Himself for the sins of mankind.
Christ humbled Himself in obedience to the Father.
He came to accomplish the will of God.
He would bear the burden of sin through His sacrificial death.
Man cannot make himself righteous through religious appearance or obedience to human traditions.
Righteousness before God comes through Jesus Christ.
His death, burial, and resurrection provide the means of salvation for all who place their faith in Him.
This is the central truth toward which the whole of Scripture repeatedly and marvellously directs our attention.
Life Application
Where does our own confidence rest?  Neither wealth nor religious achievement can make a person righteous before God.  
He calls us to recognize our need for the salvation He has provided through His Son.  It is through faith in Jesus Christ, who died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, that we receive the gift of eternal life.
The lesson of Matthew 23 is not merely to avoid the hypocrisy of the religious leaders.  It is to recognize the Saviour whom they rejected.
And the lesson of Isaiah is not merely that God will humble the proud. It is that the sovereign Lord has provided the way by which sinful man can be reconciled to Him.
May we never become so occupied with the outward things of religion that we overlook the glorious Person at its centre.
All glory belongs to God, and all our hope is found in Jesus Christ.
Heavenly Father, how wonderful is Your Word!  Across the centuries, You have spoken consistently through Your prophets, revealing Your holiness, Your righteousness, and Your faithfulness.
We thank You for the remarkable connections that encourage us to search the Scriptures more carefully and to recognize the unity of Your divine revelation.
Keep us from the pride of worldly success and the emptiness of outward religion.  Help us to remember that every blessing comes from You and that all glory belongs to You alone.
Above all, we thank You for Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, who humbled Himself and bore our sins so that we might receive eternal life through faith in Him.
Hallelujah and Amen!

Wednesday, 4 November 2026
 
A summary of Matthew Chapter 23.
 
Each chapter of Matthew has provided a broad panorama of what is going on in redemptive history. Reviewing the last few chapters, we saw that Chapter 20 hinted at the transition from the dispensation of the law to the dispensation of grace. It presented the truth that God has made faith in what He has done the necessary condition for man’s salvation.
 
Chapter 21 continued that thought, dealing specifically with the object of that faith, Jesus Christ. Chapter 21 ended with the parable of the wicked vinedressers, revealing that the vineyard would be taken away from Israel and given to other vinedressers.
 
Chapter 22 began with the parable of the wedding feast. The symbolism was that the Father was preparing Jesus as a bridegroom. The invitation was made to Israel, but they rejected the offer. Because of this, they were destroyed and their city, Jerusalem, was burned, exactly what later occurred.
 
From there, the message went throughout the world, inviting anyone to come and share in the banquet. At the end of the parable, it was seen that only those who had the appropriate garments, signifying the righteousness of Christ, were welcome. All others would be cast into outer darkness.
 
The chapter continued, showing Israel what their true responsibilities are and where their proper doctrine should lie. Though they were destroyed and exiled, it did not mean that the nation was finished as far as God’s redemptive plans are concerned.
 
Chapter 23 focuses almost all of its attention on the scribes and Pharisees. They represent the spiritual leadership in Israel. Despite Israel being exiled, such leaders have remained among the people all along, in their synagogues and rabbinic schools of instruction.
 
The scribes and Pharisees essentially got Israel into the mess they were in. The rabbis have continued to mislead the people for the past two thousand years, rejecting Christ and looking to establish their own righteousness apart from Him.
 
Jesus warned the multitudes concerning such people in verses 1-12, explaining how they should handle such people and with whom their fellowship should be. He stressed the people’s need to focus on the teachings of the Christ and have their affections set on the Father. Verses 10-12 were shown to point specifically to the Christ. They are not merely general statements about followers of Christ.
 
From verses 13-36, Jesus pronounced eight woes upon the scribes and Pharisees, clearly demonstrating that it is their doctrine and teachings that led the people astray. Sheep follow their shepherds. The scribes and Pharisees were worthless shepherds. A good, comparable chapter in the Old Testament to see the Lord’s attitude toward such worthless leaders is Ezekiel 34. In many ways, the words of that chapter mirror the intent of Jesus in Matthew 23 concerning the scribes and Pharisees and now the rabbis and religious schools.
 
The final woe pronounced by Jesus went from verses 29-36, warning the scribes and Pharisees that they would be held accountable for all of the blood of the righteous, “from the ‘blood, Abel, the righteous’ until the ‘blood, Zechariah, son, blessed of Yah’ whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.” Jesus assured them that this reckoning would arrive upon that generation.
 
The conclusion stated in the commentary on verse 36 said, “As such, it would logically follow that the generation referred to by Jesus is the entire span of the time of those curses.” In other words, the reckoning of the blood of the righteous was not merely poured out on the scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ time, but it continues to this day.
 
Any worthless shepherd in Israel who fails to proclaim Christ Jesus will be a part of that sure judgment. Verses 37-39 confirm this. Jesus wept over Jerusalem, the city led by these worthless shepherds who misdirected the people, telling the city that she would not see Jesus again until she (meaning the leaders within her) says, “Having been blessed, the ‘Coming in Name, Lord’.”
 
In other words, until the religious leaders of Israel acknowledge Christ Jesus and direct the people to Him, He will not return. When they do, He will return and save them, as indicated in Revelation 19.
 
These events marked out in Chapter 23 occurred after Jesus completed His work, meaning during the time of the church age, but the chapter does not deal with the church. It deals with Israel’s responsibility toward Christ and the Father, something that has been almost wholly neglected by Israel for two thousand years.
 
Paul assures us in Romans 11 that there has always been a remnant of Israel according to the election as grace, but for the most part, the woes pronounced upon the scribes and Pharisees have come upon the leaders. In turn, they have come upon the people who have been misdirected by these wicked leaders. Much suffering is ahead for Israel because they rejected and continue to reject Christ Jesus.
 
Life application: Chapter 24 lies ahead. It is a mournful chapter of the woes coming upon Israel because of their rejection of Jesus, but before it arrives, the hope of Matthew 23:39 is that Jesus will, in fact, be called out to by the leaders in Jerusalem, and He will return to save them. Despite being mournful information about the state of Israel’s leaders and the nation as a whole, there is hope for this wayward nation. That hope is found in their long-rejected Messiah, Jesus.
 
Lord God, thank You for Your covenant faithfulness. Even when Your people are unfaithful to You, You remain steadfast and faithful to the word You have pronounced. Were it not so, heaven would remain barren of people. But because of Your goodness, grace, and covenant-keeping, it will be filled with the saints of all ages. Thank You for Jesus, who has made this possible. Amen.
Matthew 23
 
23 Then, the ‘Jesus’, He spoke to the crowds and to ‘disciples, His’. 2saying, “Upon the ‘Moses’ bench’, they sat, the scribes and the Pharisees.” 3All, therefore, as much if they might say to you to guard, you guard, and you do. According, also, to their works, not you do. They say, indeed, and not they do. 4They bind, indeed, burdens, weighty and oppressive, and they lay upon the ‘shoulders, the men’. The also ‘finger, theirs’, not they will to stir them. 5All, also, the ‘deeds, theirs’, they do to ‘see’, the men. They widen, also, the ‘phylacteries, theirs’, and they enlarge the ‘tassels, the cloaks, theirs’. 6They affectionate, also, the first-reclining in the suppers, and the first-sittings in the synagogues, 7and the greetings in the markets, and to be called by the ‘men’, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ 8You, also, not you should be called ‘Rabbi.’ One, indeed, He is of you the Guide: the Christ. All, also you, brothers – you are. 9And ‘father’, none you should call, of you, upon the earth. One, indeed, He is the ‘Father, yours’, the ‘in the celestial’.
10Not also you should be called guides. One, indeed, of you, He is the Guide: the Christ. 11The ‘also Greater’ of you, He will be your Attendant. 12Who, also, he will elevate himself, he will be humbled, and who, He will humble Himself, He will be elevated*.”
 
13“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you close the ‘kingdom, the heavens’ before the ‘men’. You, indeed, neither enter, nor those entering you permit to enter. 14Woe, also, to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour the ‘houses, the widows’, and pretense – lengthy praying. Through this, you will receive superabundant judgment.
 
15“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you traverse the sea and the arid to make one proselyte, and when he might become, you make him ‘son, Gehenna’ two-fold yourselves.
 
16“Woe to you, ‘conductors, blind’! Those saying, ‘Who, if he should swear ‘in the temple’, nothing, it is. Who, also, if he should swear ‘in the gold, the temple’, he is obligated. 17Moronics and blind! Which, indeed, greater it is, the gold or the temple, the ‘having hallowed the gold’? 18And who, if he should swear ‘in the altar’, nothing, it is. Who, also, if he should swear ‘in the gift, the atop it’, he is obligated. 19Moronics and blind! Which, indeed – greater: the gift or the ‘altar, the hallowing the gift’? 20The ‘therefore having sworn in the altar’, he swears in it and in all those atop it. 21And the ‘having sworn in the temple’, he swears in it and in the ‘dwelling, it’. 22And the ‘having sworn in the heaven’, he swears in the ‘throne, the God’ and in the ‘sitting atop it’.
 
23“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! Hypocrites! Because you tithe the mint, and the dill, and the cummin, and you left the ‘weightier, the law’: the judgment, and the mercy, and the faith. These, also, it necessitated to do – those, not leave! 24‘Guides, blind’! The ‘through-filtering the gnat’, the ‘also camel gulping’.
 
25“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! Hypocrites! Because you cleanse the ‘outwardly, the cup and the side-dish’. Inwardly, also, they swell from pillage and unrestraint. 26‘Pharisee, blind’! You cleanse first the ‘within the cup and the side-dish’ that it might be, also the outward of them, clean.
 
27“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! Hypocrites! Because you resemble tombs having been whitewashed, which outwardly, indeed, they appear beautiful. Inwardly, also, they swell – ‘bones, dead and all impurity’. 28 Thus, also, outwardly – indeed – you appear to the men righteous. Inwardly, also, you are replete – hypocrisy and lawlessness.
 
29“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! Hypocrites! Because you build the ‘tombs, the prophets’, and you arrange the ‘sepulchers, the righteous’. 30And you say, ‘If we were in the ‘days, the fathers, us’, not if we were ‘sharers with them’ in the ‘blood, the prophets’. 31Thus, you witness to yourselves that sons, you are – the ‘having murdered the prophets’. 32And you, you must fill the measure, the ‘fathers, yours’. 33Serpents! ‘Offspring, vipers’! How might you flee from the ‘judgment, the Gehenna’? 34Through this, you behold! I, I send to you prophets, and wise, and scribes. From them you will kill, and you will crucify, and from them you will flog in the ‘synagogues, yours’, and you will pursue from town to town. 35That it should come upon you all ‘blood, righteous being outpoured upon the earth’, from the ‘blood, Abel, the righteous’ until the ‘blood, Zechariah, son, blessed of Yah’ whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36Amen, I say to you, it will arrive, these all, upon the ‘generation, this’.
 
37“Jerusalem! Jerusalem! The ‘killing the prophets and stoning those having been sent to her’! How often I willed to upon-gather the ‘children, yours’, which way ‘upon-gathers, hen the chicks, hers under the wings’, and not you willed. 38You behold! It is left to you, the ‘house, yours’, desolate! 39I say, indeed, to you, no, not Me you should see from now, until if you should speak, “Having been blessed, the ‘Coming in Name, Lord’.”
 
*Verses 10-12 – It is undoubtedly the case that Jesus refers to Himself in these verses. They explain the reference to “the Christ” in verse 8. Hence, the capitalization.
 

Tuesday, 3 November 2026
 
for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’” Matthew 23:39
 
“I say, indeed, to you, no, not Me you should see from now, until if you should speak, ‘Having been blessed, the ‘Coming in Name, Lord’.’” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus told the city of Jerusalem, meaning its leaders within it, that its house was left to them desolate. Next, He finishes Chapter 23, saying, “I say, indeed, to you, no, not Me you should see from now.”
 
There should be no debate about the meaning. Jesus is set to be crucified. The leaders of Israel, of which Jerusalem is emblematic, would have their hand in what was coming. Their continued rejection of Him after the resurrection and growth of the church is what brought about their destruction, something they openly called for –
 
“When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, ‘I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.’25 And all the people answered and said, ‘His blood be on us and on our children.’” Matthew 27:24, 25
 
Jesus is speaking to this group of people. They are representatives of the nation in religious matters. Today, they are the religious elite in Israel, but this extends to the civil leadership as well. Together, they work to direct the nation. This is what leadership does. At this point in Israel’s history, they are in complete personal enmity with the message of Jesus. As such, they will not see Him until there is a change. That is seen in Jesus’ continued words, saying, “until if.”
 
It is a conditional phrase. Leaving off the word an, if, as most translations do, damages the intent of what is said. Matthew Poole, relying on the word “till” alone, says, “For whereas some interpret the term till, & c. of the day of judgment, or the time when the Jews shall be converted, I take them to be strained interpretations.” Continuing, he says – 
 
“Till here certainly is to be interpreted, as Psalm 110:1, Matthew 1:25; and this comports with the history, for after this time our Saviour appeared in the temple publicly no more. For the disputes raised from Matthew 23:37, about God’s secret will, whether he seriously willed the salvation of the Jews, &c., I take the affirmative part to have no foundation in this text”
 
It is incredible to think that people can read the Bible and think that God doesn’t will the salvation of the Jews. Further, it makes no sense to make a conditional statement, relaying it as an absolute assertion, just to deny what the conditional statement says. He will do this thing when they do what He says they must do, which is when, as He says to Jerusalem, “you should speak, ‘Having been blessed, the ‘Coming in Name, Lord’.’”
 
Jesus tells Jerusalem exactly when He will return. There is no ambiguity in His words. He is not speaking to the church (which didn’t exist at the time). If He intended permanent and complete separation from the Jewish people, His proclamation would have been completely different.
 
Israel, led by Jerusalem, which is led by its civil/religious leaders, must call out concerning Jesus the words of Psalm 118:26, “Blessed the ‘coming in name, Yehovah’.” (CG). In other words, whenever Jerusalem acknowledges Jesus as their Messiah and the One who was sent in the name of the covenant-keeping Lord they committed to at Mount Sinai, Jesus will return to them.
 
It is solely up to the nation for Him to deliver them. This is the point and purpose of the coming tribulation period, something that has nothing to do with the church. The church will not be here for that. Why? Because they have already called on Jesus as Lord. There is no need for them to enter into the tribulation. They are His.
 
Life application: There are two predominant positions on Jesus’ words of this verse. We have already heard from Matthew Poole. Here is one more aligned with Poole and then two that take the other view –
 
“There can be little doubt that our Lord points to the second Advent, and to the welcome that will then be given Him by all the true Israel of God. For that generation, and for the outward Israel as such, the abandonment was final.” Charles Ellicott
 
“Blessed be he that comes as the Messiah, to bring deliverance. This has not been yet accomplished, but the days will come when the Jews, long cast out and rejected, will hail Jesus as the Messiah, and receive him whom their fathers killed as the merciful Saviour, Romans 11:25-32.” Albert Barnes
 
“The time intended is that when Israel shall repent of its rejection of the Messiah, and in bitter contrition look on him whom it pierced, owning and receiving Jesus with glad ‘Hosannahs!’ Then shall they behold him coming in power and glory, and shall regain their old position as beloved of God (see Hosea 3:4, 5; Zechariah 12:10). Then ‘all Israel shall be saved’ (Romans 11:26).” Pulpit Commentary
 
Ellicott says the abandonment of “outward Israel”, meaning the Jews, is final. Barnes and the Pulpit Commentary assert that Israel, meaning the nation comprised of the Jewish people, will be saved when they call out to God through Jesus. Either one view is wrong, and the other is right, or they are both wrong, but they cannot both be right. Which do you think is correct?
 
If you are not sure, you should start reading your Bible more. Further, when you read the Bible, you should consider what God says as absolutely true at all times. And more, ignoring or mixing the boxes of dispensationalism inevitably leads to very crummy theology. Don’t have very crummy theology by ignoring or mixing dispensations.
 
If you get what God is doing with the nation of Israel wrong, your doctrine and theology in other areas will inevitably be wrong. Be sure to get what God is doing with Israel right. It really matters.
 
Lord God, Your faithfulness to Israel is beyond our imagination. They have rejected You continuously for over three millennia. Very few times have they pursued You as they should have during all that time. Mostly, it’s been lip service or completely ignoring You. And yet, You have remained faithfully faithful to them. Thank You for Your faithfulness to those You have covenanted with. Amen.
 

Monday, 2 November 2026
 
See! Your house is left to you desolate; Matthew 23:38
 
“You behold! It is left to you, the ‘house, yours’, desolate!” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus spoke to the city of Jerusalem (with the intended meaning that He was addressing its leaders) concerning His desire to have cared for it, gathering her as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but she was not willing. Next, He says, “You behold! It is left to you, the ‘house, yours’, desolate!”
 
Jesus refers to the temple as “your house.” It was the House of the Lord, but He is about to depart the area for the last time (Matthew 24:1). It is no longer the House of the Lord, but an empty structure that bears no life in relation to the God of Israel. From there, He will go to the Mount of Olives to instruct His disciples (Matthew 24:3). Saying the house is desolate means that destruction lies ahead for the temple.
 
It is no longer an edifice suitable for ministering to the Lord. Like the temple when destroyed by Babylon, so will this temple be destroyed by Rome.
 
Notice the symbolism. Jesus is in the temple complex. In Ezekiel 9, the Lord is in His temple. In Ezekiel 9, a mark, a tav (a cross shaped letter) is placed on the forehead of those who follow the Lord while the rest are slain. In Matthew, Jesus will die on the cross. Any who look to the cross will be saved. The rest will be judged and destroyed.
 
In Ezekiel 10, the Lord departed from the threshold of the temple, standing over the cherubim. In Matthew 24, Jesus departs from the temple accompanied by His disciples. In Ezekiel 11:23, it says that the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and stood on the mountain which is on the east of the city. In Matthew 24:3, Jesus is said to have sat on the Mount of Olives, the same mountain referred to in Ezekiel.
 
The symbolism is clear. Jesus is showing by His movements that what happened in the past is happening again. He is the same Lord who departed from the temple at the time of Ezekiel, but He has now come in human flesh as a tangible, visible manifestation of the Lord for all to see. His traversal from the temple to the Mount is like a signature proclaiming His deity.
 
Life application: Jesus’ words and movements are intentional, setting a clear pattern that He is the Lord and that what happened in the past is set to be repeated. Just as Babylon came and destroyed the temple and exiled the people, so will Rome (called Babylon by Peter in 1 Peter 5:13) come, destroy the temple, and exile the people.
 
The temple after the Babylonian exile was rebuilt and continued to be a place of mediation between the people and the Lord until the coming of Jesus. However, the temple will never again be considered an appropriate place of mediation between God and man.
 
Jesus clearly revealed this in the cursing of the fig tree. There is only one suitable point of mediation between God and man, that is the Man, Christ Jesus, as Paul explicitly states in 1 Timothy 2:5. Today, Christian teachers around the world actively support Israel’s Temple Institute. They excitedly teach about the coming temple and its sacrifices, as if these are good things.
 
But this is just the opposite of what should be. The temple is the antichrist’s temple. The people will be following the devil, not the Lord. They will have set themselves at complete enmity with the God of the Bible. It will take the antichrist appearing in the temple for the people to begin to wake up from their apostasy.
 
Instead of supporting this unholy temple, pastors, preachers, and teachers should be preaching the gospel, speaking against what is being prepared in Israel, and warning those who believe that observing Moses is acceptable that it is rather a path to perdition. The book of Hebrews sets this warning out in clear and precise terms for the Hebrew people to know this and to turn to Jesus.
 
Be sure to not get caught up in the hype of what is going on in regard to the building of the temple in Israel. It is sadness heaped upon thousands of years of sadness because it is a sign of the people’s continued rejection of the Lord Jesus.
 
Lord God, help us to have our thinking caps on as we consider what is going on in the world. May we hold fast to what is right, sound, and proper in regard to our relationship with You through Jesus Christ our Lord. Yes, help us in this, O God. Amen.
 

Sunday, 1 November 2026
 
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! Matthew 23:37
 
“Jerusalem! Jerusalem! The ‘killing the prophets’ and ‘stoning those having been sent to her’! How often I willed to upon-gather the ‘children, yours’, which way ‘upon-gathers, hen’ the ‘chicks, hers’ under the wings, and not you willed.” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees that all the things He said would come upon “this generation.” The meaning of “this generation” was not detailed in that verse, but an explanation of it begins to be seen in this verse. Jesus starts with, “Jerusalem! Jerusalem!”
 
This is a standard type of Hebraism where repetition forms a strong stress. Calling out the name of the city in this manner sets an unambiguous definition of whom He is referring to. The form of the name is different than that used eleven times already in Matthew. Rather, this is probably the exact term Jesus used. It is the transliterated Aramaic form of the name, Ierousalém. It is the form commonly employed by Luke.
 
Jerusalem is the seat of power within the nation. Those who rule from Jerusalem, then, are the focus of what Jesus will say. Of this city, meaning those who rule from it, He says, “The ‘killing the prophets’ and ‘stoning those having been sent to her’!”
 
Jesus personifies the city, using it as emblematic of those within her who actually do what He ascribes to it. The people of Jerusalem had rejected the words of the prophets. They had treated them shamefully and resorted to killing them. Some of this is highlighted by the author of Hebrews –
 
“Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword.” Hebrews 11:36, 37
 
Although the author of Hebrews is not specifically speaking of only Jerusalem, his words describe the general treatment that faithful followers of the Lord faced. The words of Jesus mirror what He said in the Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers found in Matthew 21.
 
Jerusalem, being the capital and place of the king, was the key city in which such treatment took place. Despite their treatment of the people of God, Jesus continues His address to the city, saying, “How often I willed to upon-gather the ‘children, yours’.”
 
A new word is seen here, episunagó, to upon-gather. It is derived from epi, upon, and sunagó, to lead or gather together. Thayer’s says, “to gather besides, to bring together to others already assembled.” One can think of gathering together and then heaping more into the gathering.
 
Jesus clearly indicates preexistence, and thus deity, with these words. How could He otherwise have been present to desire such a thing? But His words indicate that He is the Lord, Yehovah of the Hebrew Scriptures, having come in human form.
 
One can see Him having pled with the city for eons, sending prophets with messages and petitions for them to turn and call out to Him. Continuing, He describes the manner in which He willed to upon-gather them, saying, “which way ‘upon-gathers, hen’ the ‘chicks, hers’ under the wings.”
 
Three more new words are seen. The first is tropos, a turn and thus, by implication, a manner, mode, way, or style. The next word is ornis, a bird, especially a hen. It will only be seen here and in a comparable exclamation in Luke 13:34. The third word is nossion, a birdling. In this case, it refers to the chicks of a hen. The last word is pterux, a wing, coming from petomai, to fly.
 
A hen will gather her chicks under her wings to keep them safe, protect them from predators and the elements, etc. Jesus states that this is how He desired the people of Jerusalem to be to Him, again, clearly indicating preexistence. The Lord of the Hebrew Scriptures had reached out to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, begging them for a right and loving relationship. However, Jesus next says, “and not you willed.”
 
No matter how many times the Lord sent prophets to correct the people, they went about their evil ways, rejecting His word, ignoring Him except through lip service, and they greedily lived their lives as they saw fit, regardless of His care for them.
 
In His incarnation, He came to them, more perfectly expressing the love of God than had ever been done before. The Lord was willing to suffer the indignity of wearing the garments of humanity, coming in the likeness of fallen man to demonstrate the pure love of God for His children. And yet, they rejected Him, crucified Him, and continue to deny Him two thousand years later.
 
Life application: Who can truly understand the magnificence of what God has done in sending Jesus? And who can truly understand the blackness of the human heart to ignore what He has done, speaking against it, spitting on the thought of it, and condemning God with our lips for His having humbled Himself through the incarnation and Christ’s death on the cross?
 
And more, Jesus rose again, proving that it is God who had done it. Despite this, the world continues to speak against God, refusing to accept the marvelous gift of grace that has been poured out on us.
 
Even in churches around the world where people claim Jesus’ name, they deny Him and His work by relying on observing the Law of Moses to obtain God’s favor. It is as if what Jesus did is reprehensible to them. And so they ignore it and set about to establish their own righteousness before God.
 
May we learn to trust God, holding fast to what He alone has done in the giving of Jesus. Let us take ourselves and our pitiful attempts to merit His favor out of the salvation equation. May we rest solely and completely in the merits of Jesus Christ for our righteousness before God.
 
Lord God, help us to set aside any thought of meriting Your favor. May we place our full trust and hope in the work of Jesus Christ, knowing that it alone can restore us to You. May it be so, to Your glory. Amen.
 

Saturday, 31 October 2026
 
Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. Matthew 23:36
 
“Amen, I say to you, it will arrive, these all, upon the ‘generation, this’.” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees that all the righteous blood shed on the earth would come upon them. He then mentioned the blood of righteous Abel to that of ‘Zechariah, son, blessed of Yah’. He next says as a solemn declaration, “Amen, I say to you, it will arrive, these all, upon the ‘generation, this’.”
 
Jesus is the Lord. He has solemnly proclaimed that the punishment for the guilt of these men of Israel would come upon them, meaning all of “this generation.” But that must be defined. What does “this generation” mean? Most tie this in with the destruction of the temple in AD70. And it is true that took place as prophesied by Jesus in His words concerning the sign of Jonah.
 
But a generation is simply a period of time. It can be the span of a man’s life, or it can be a set period or designation without regard to time. For example, in Matthew 17, it says –
 
“Then Jesus answered and said, ‘O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.’” Matthew 17:17
 
His words identify them as a “generation of unbelief.” In Philippians 2, Paul does something similar, saying –
 
“Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.” Philippians 2:14-16
 
Paul speaks of the entire church age, whatever its duration is, as being surrounded by those of a crooked and perverse generation. As to what Jesus is referring to, the words must extend beyond the destruction of the temple. The temple was destroyed as a part of the punishments of Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28.
 
As such, it would logically follow that the generation referred to by Jesus is the entire span of the time of those curses. Indeed, this will be seen to be exactly what Jesus is referring to in the final verses of Chapter 23.
 
Life application: In Hebrews 3, the author calls those who perished in the wilderness “that generation.” It was an entire period of time that covered from their rejection of entrance into the land in Numbers 14 until the nation entered Canaan by passing through the Jordan in Joshua 3 & 4.
 
The period typologically refers to the generation that rejected Christ, from the time of the resurrection until the time that they, as a nation, enter into the New Covenant by faith in Christ. This typology is exact, and it covers the present time, which has gone on for two thousand years. Someday, that generation will end, replacing their unbelief with faith in Christ.
 
To understand the words of Jesus in the gospels, one must understand the entire panorama of what God is doing in typology in the Old Testament. And more, one must understand and stick to the dispensational model. Mixing dispensations will cause confusion in one’s theology.
 
Jesus is speaking to Israel under the law in Matthew 23. There is not a hint of the Gentile-led church age in what He says. This is true with Matthew 24 as well. If you get this wrong, then of course your entire understanding of eschatology will be wrong. It is why there are those who hold to mid- or post-tribulation rapture. They have mishandled God’s word.
 
Be careful not to mix dispensations. In this, you will do well. Check the context and stick within the parameters as they are laid out in that context. This is the sweet spot in understanding what is going on in Scripture.
 
Lord God, may our doctrine be in accord with Your word. Help us to keep things in their intended context. By doing this, we won’t be leading people down odd paths of biblical interpretation. May we always strive to honor You by properly interpreting Your word. To Your glory, we pray. Amen.

Friday, 30 October 2026
 
that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Matthew 23:35
 
“That it should come upon you all ‘blood, righteous’ being outpoured upon the earth, from the ‘blood, Abel, the righteous’ until the ‘blood, Zechariah, son, blessed of Yah’ whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees that He would send them prophets, wise men, and scribes, noting that they would crucify some, and some they would scourge or persecute. He next explicitly states what the result of this will be, saying, “That it should come upon you all ‘blood, righteous’ being outpoured upon the earth.”
 
The meaning of “upon you” is the bloodguilt of the righteous who had been killed. There is a constant stream of the righteous being killed in the pages of Scripture. The Jews had confirmed that they are the sons of those who had done those things through their building of tombs and adorning sepulchers. Thus, there was an admission by them of the connection to the guilt of that outpoured blood.
 
Jesus says that the judgment and punishment for this was to come upon them. This includes the bloodguilt of every single such person in the Hebrew Scriptures, as witnessed by His next words, which begin with, “from the ‘blood, Abel, the righteous’.”
 
Abel is introduced here in the New Testament. His name is from havel, vanity, or emptiness. Abel was the first person recorded as having been killed in the Bible. The record of it is found in Genesis 4:8 –
 
“Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.”
 
Jesus calls Abel “the righteous” because he did what was right by bringing an offering in faith before the presence of the Lord. Jesus’ all-inclusive list goes “until the ‘blood, Zechariah, son, blessed of Yah’.”
 
The record of this name has given as much difficulty to the narrative as anything found in the book of Matthew. Jesus is detailing a list of people noted in Scripture by using a “first and last” reference, which sit as bookends to the entire list of those who logically fall between them.
 
The Hebrew canon does not end with Malachi, as does the common Christian canon of the Old Testament. Rather, the Hebrew Scriptures go from Genesis to Chronicles (1 & 2 Chronicles are considered one book). The last martyr noted in the book of Chronicles is found in 2 Chronicles 24 –
 
“Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, who stood above the people, and said to them, ‘Thus says God: “Why do you transgress the commandments of the Lord, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, He also has forsaken you.”’ 21 So they conspired against him, and at the command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the Lord.” 2 Chronicles 24:20, 21
 
Thus, Jesus’ listing implies every person between and including these two men. The problem in Matthew is that he says Zechariah the son of Berechiah, not Jehoiada. The only Zechariah, son of Berechiah, is the prophet Zechariah who wrote the book of Zechariah (see Zechariah 1:1 and 1:7).
 
Because of this, various suggestions have arisen. The standard liberal suggestion is that this is an error in the text. Some say it is a later interpolation by some unknown scribe. Some say this is the same as Zechariah, son of Baruch, mentioned by Josephus.
 
That is obviously wrong because Baruch and Berechiah are not the same name. It would further blow the obvious structure of Jesus’ words being an all-inclusive list from Genesis to Chronicles. Further, Josephus’ writings date after the time of Jesus. We know that Jesus is making such an all-inclusive list because of His final words, “whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.”
 
Jesus makes this murder of Zechariah the closing death recorded in His all-inclusive list. It is a summary His audience would have understood perfectly. But because the name is not the same, the difficulty remains. Therefore, other suggestions have been given, none of which seem to explain the intent. This is because they are tying the name to a genealogy.
 
However, in the Bible, a son does not always refer to a genealogical identity between a father (or greater ancestor) and a child. Rather, the word son is just as commonly used to signify identity, such as “son of murderers,” “son of death,” “son of God,” etc.
 
Both names, Zechariah and Berechiah, are introduced here. Zechariah is from zakar, to remember, or zakar, a male, and Yah, a shortened form of Yehovah. The name means Remembered of the Lord, Yah Remembers, Male of Yah, or something similar.
 
Berechiah comes from berek, the knee, and Yah. The noun berek corresponds to the verb barak, to bless. The reason is that a blessing comes from a position of kneeling, either as an act of adoration or as a benefit.
 
For example, it says in Genesis 1:22 that God blessed (barak) the creatures, telling them to be fruitful and multiply. Thus, there is benefit bestowed as if kneeling took place. To resolve the issue of Jesus’ words, note that Abel is defined by an identity. Jesus called him righteous. Zechariah is also identified not by his father’s name, but as being a “son of ‘blessed of Yah’.”
 
Thus, this does not have to be a proper name at all. Rather, it is a proclamation of identity. In translating the name, the difficulty is removed. It also provides a suitable parallel to the identity of Abel to explain Jesus’ intent –
 
From:
the ‘blood, Abel, the righteous’
until –
the ‘blood, Zechariah, son, blessed of Yah’
 
Life application: There are difficulties in Scripture, but there is no reason to take the immediate and default position that so many do and assume there is an error. The explanation for the difficulty is that this verse forms a parallel structure, something common in the Bible. It is a way of highlighting a matter to be considered.
 
Abel, who was considered only vanity by his mother at his birth, was considered righteous by God in his death. Zechariah, Yah Remembers, was considered blessed of Yah in his death. No such blood spilled will be forgotten by God, and all wrongdoing will be judged by Him.
 
Lord God, thank You that regardless of how the world views Your people, You not only know them, but because of their faith, they are considered righteous before You. Being righteous, we are blessed by You with the surety of being raised to eternal life. Thank You for the assurances we possess in Christ! Amen.

Thursday, 29 October 2026
 
Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, Matthew 23:34
 
“Through this, you behold! I, I send to you prophets, and wise, and scribes. From them you will kill, and you will crucify, and from them you will flog in the ‘synagogues, yours’, and you will pursue from town to town.” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees a brood of vipers, asking how they thought they could escape the condemnation of hell. He continues, saying, “Through this, you behold! I, I send to you prophets, and wise, and scribes.”
 
These are general terms His audience would understand. Therefore, there does not need to be a direct correlation to the terms in the New Testament, or Jesus’ words are somehow suspect. For example, the scribe is not a term associated with any person or believers in the epistles.
 
Rather, these identifiers can be seen fulfilled in the apostles and disciples later described in the New Testament. For example, Paul says this in 1 Corinthians 1 –
 
“Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”1 Corinthians 1:20, 21
 
Jesus continues, saying, “From them you will kill, and you will crucify, and from them you will flog in the ‘synagogues, yours’.” There is evidence of these things to some degree in the New Testament. In later history, there are accounts of crucifixions, like that of Peter. However, this was not done by the Jews.
 
Jesus’ words are to be taken as a note to these men that what He said earlier was true. They were the sons of those who murdered the prophets, and the same seed that lived in their fathers lived in them. They would take the same righteous type of people as their fathers killed, and they would continue the slaughter until the cup of guilt was filled up.
 
The verse finishes with, “and you will pursue from town to town.” This certainly describes Paul’s conduct as recorded in Acts. He pursued Christians in this manner not only in Israel, but outside the land as well. In Acts 26, he says –
 
“Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10 This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 11 And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.” Acts 26:9-11
 
Life application: The persecution of Christians within the Jewish nation continued until the destruction of the temple. Since that time, there has been a wall of enmity built up between Christians and Jews. In some cases, it is just in their thinking and not outwardly.
 
In some cases, the enmity has manifested itself in physical harm. There has also been hatred of the Jews that has manifested itself in persecution that wasn’t really Christian in nature, even if it is blamed on the overall umbrella of the sphere of Christian nations. For example, Germany was predominantly a Christian nation at the time of the holocaust.
 
In Israel today, the enmity still exists. Jews who come to Christ are hounded by religious Jews. They get unwelcome surprises on their doorsteps, protests are held at their musical gatherings, they are spit on by observant Jews, and a great deal of anger is directed towards them. As such, Jesus’ words continue to find their fulfillment in Israel today. That will be evident as the chapter continues.
 
So deep is the hatred of Jesus in the public mind that when a mural was done of the most prominent Jews in their history and placed on display at Ben-Gurion Airport, the most famous Jew of all, Jesus, was completely ignored in the panorama. His inclusion would have been the epitome of offense to the vast majority of those who stopp to view it.
 
Someday, this enmity will be over. Until then, however, many troubles will come upon the nation. Israel is on a journey back to her Lord, but they will not make it until they call on Him. His name is Yeshua, Jesus.
 
Heavenly Father, You have displayed Your glory in the face of Jesus Christ. We know that someday all people will come and bow the knee before Him. We pray for the day when all people finally see and understand what You have done. May that day be soon. Amen.

Wednesday, 28 October 2026
 
Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? Matthew 23:33
 
“Serpents! ‘Offspring, vipers’! How might you flee from the ‘judgment, the Gehenna’?” (CG)
 
In the previous verse, Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees to fill up the measure of their fathers’ guilt. He continues, saying, “Serpents! ‘Offspring, vipers’!”
 
The ophis, serpent, is derived from optanomai, to appear, as in being seen. The serpent thus has keenness of vision. Figuratively, it refers to an artfully malicious person. Thus, he is Satan-like. Saying next that they are the offspring of vipers adds another level of wickedness.
 
The words take the mind back to the temptation and fall of man in the early Genesis account. The main thought is that these men were Satan-like, being his spawn. They caused the people to sin, separating them from God.
 
They are the evil offspring of their evil parent, acting in crafty and malevolent ways. Because of this, Jesus continues, asking, “How might you flee from the ‘judgment, the Gehenna’?”
 
The question is rhetorical. As it stands, the answer is, “They shall not flee from it.” The thought matches the question found in Jeremiah 13:23 –
 
“Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots?Then may you also do good who are accustomed to do evil.”
 
These men are like their father, who will not escape. They are born of their father, bearing his traits. They will receive his condemnation and sentence because of it.
 
Life application: Jesus knew the makeup of these men. He understood their motivations, intents, and methods. Calling them out for their conduct was probably less an appeal for them to repent than a surety of condemnation when judgment came. At that time, they would know the sentence was just. What was to become of them was told in advance. Thus, they could not say they didn’t have warning.
 
The Pharisees are like drug runners in a nation that has a mandatory death penalty for running drugs. Despite knowing the consequences, some will think, “I can get away with it.” And yet, they eventually find themselves dangling at the end of a rope, legs twitching.
 
Each of us has to ask if what we are doing is worth the consequences of our actions. Every wrong deed must be judged. Thankfully, for those in Christ, sin is no longer imputed. But there is still a time when we must appear before the Lord and “receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).
 
There is no escaping what lies ahead. As such, we should be fixing our eyes on Jesus, and our minds should be set to be pleasing to Him. What little thing can we work on today to improve how we conduct our lives?
 
Think through your daily routine. What have you allowed to slip in your pursuit of the Lord? What has it been replaced with? How are your thoughts, and what are you focusing on? Little checkups like this may help redirect those things that have gotten away from you. So think about how you can get them back on a better track.
 
“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” Philippians 4:8
 
Heavenly Father, it is easy for our thoughts and minds to get misdirected. And it isn’t intentional. We look left and get distracted. We look right and get pulled away from what we should be doing. Help us to fix our gaze toward the prize of Your upward call in Christ Jesus. To Your glory, we pray. Amen.
 

Tuesday, 27 October 2026
 
Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt. Matthew 23:32
 
“And you, you must fill the measure, the ‘fathers, yours’.” (CG).
 
In the previous verse, Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees that they were witnesses against themselves that they are the sons of those who murdered the prophets. Having done so, there is something left for their kind to do to bring about their desired reaction from God.
 
In other words, if these people believed the prophets were true, they would be abject fools to kill the prophets who were proclaiming the word of the Lord. But like the religious arrogant throughout time, they claim God while denying His power. The thought is reflected in Ezekiel 9 –
 
“Then He said to me, ‘The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great, and the land is full of bloodshed, and the city full of perversity; for they say, “The Lord has forsaken the land, and the Lord does not see!”’” Ezekiel 9:9
 
Because of this disgraceful thinking, Jesus emphatically says to them using an imperative, “And you, you must fill the measure, the ‘fathers, yours’.”
 
These men are the sons of their fathers, meaning those who have killed the Lord’s prophets for centuries. With each act against the Lord, they are measuring up guilt and wrath that will someday be poured out on them for their iniquity. But with each incident seemingly ignored by the Lord because no response was forthcoming, they would push the matter a little further, testing to see if there would be a response.
 
They were like children poking at their parents to see how far they could go before getting a reaction. But the guilt was accumulating whether they knew it or not. This seemingly delayed judgment is seen in how the Lord dealt with the inhabitants of Canaan at the time of Abraham –
 
“Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then He said to Abram: ‘Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. 14 And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. 16 But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.’” Genesis 15:12-16
 
The Lord promised Abraham the land, but it would not come until its inhabitants had become too wicked to be allowed to continue. The Lord knew how long that would be and would use Israel to destroy them in judgment.
 
Jesus, in His words to these men, emphatically urges them to finish the job of their fathers. There is a measure that must be filled before it reaches the season for judgment. The cup was almost full, but they needed to do a little bit more before it overflowed and judgment would then be poured out.
 
This “little bit more” would be the crucifixion of Christ, His continued rejection, and the persecution and killing of His saints. With those things filled up in Israel, the Lord would call down their destruction.
 
Life application: One can see the same attitude in the people of the church today. There is a caving of moral principles. Churches are filled with the acceptance of other religions into their halls. There is immorality that increases in intensity almost weekly in some churches.
 
Homosexuals and lesbians have taken over leadership positions. The efficacy of the cross and resurrection is lambasted as foolish delusions, and any social nonsense that can be inculcated into the churches’ mission become priorities. The word of God is belittled, and the name of Jesus holds no honor on the lips or in the hearts of these wicked people.
 
And because the Lord doesn’t come and snatch the life out of them in an instant, they think He doesn’t care, or maybe He isn’t capable of defending His name. And so, they move from one act of defiance to another, testing Him and mocking Him in the process.
 
Someday they will have filled up the measure of their wickedness, and He will act. But having rejected the word, they misunderstand that God’s love restrains Him as He waits for the change to be in them –
 
“But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:8, 9
 
People think God’s failure to act demonstrates a weakness. Some go so far as to say that God simply doesn’t exist. His failure to act proves it. Such people know nothing about the plans and purposes of God.
 
Lord God, may we never assume that You are not there or that You don’t care when our prayers seem to go unheard. Help us to remember that Your plans and timeline are what matter. Help us to patiently wait on Your timing. Amen.

Monday, 26 October 2026
 
“Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Matthew 23:31
 
“Thus, you witness to yourselves that sons, you are – the ‘having murdered the prophets’.” (CG).
 
In the previous verse, Jesus noted the “would have been” nature of the scribes and Pharisees who built tombs for the prophets and adorned the sepulchers of the righteous. They claimed that if they lived in those days, they would not have joined in the guilt of their blood. But Jesus notes that their actions speak against them, saying emphatically, “Thus, you witness to yourselves.”
 
The building and adorning they participated in were their own witness against them. Think of it. When the North won the Civil War, what did they do? They put up statues of those who won their battles. It was a witness to what they did.
 
The memorial battlefields at Gettysburg, Antietam, and elsewhere witness to the battles that took place. The statues erected there witness to who lived and who died, and who won and who lost.
 
The memorials from the South, honoring their generals and heroes, witness to the North’s acceptance that this was a national battle and that despite their victory, they were willing to allow the losing side to maintain its honor and dignity. Military bases and naval ships, to this day, have the names of heroes from both sides of the conflict. These things bear witness to what happened, who prevailed, who lost, and the gracious nature of the victors.
 
Understanding this, Jesus says, “that sons, you are – the ‘having murdered the prophets’.” The very fact that these men participated in the building and adornment of these tombs and sepulchers witnessed to the fact that they descended from those who were guilty of the blood of those men of the past.
 
They were taking an abstract structural outline of the deeds of their fathers and reshaping them into a tangible witness of what they had done. It is as if they were proclaiming, “My father was guilty of the blood of this prophet! This tomb bears witness to that. This is my way of atoning for what I would never have done.”
 
This is what such memorials are for. The problem is that these things do not atone for what the fathers did. Nor do they sever the connection between the fathers and the descendants. Rather, they more firmly establish it.
 
Life application: Today in Israel, there are monuments to the past that are set up, identifying events that took place, who took part in them, and when these things happened. One, for example, is a model of the temple where Jesus spent much of His last week before His crucifixion.
 
They testify to the events of the past in order to establish a connection to the present. The intent is that Israel can say, “We have a historical connection to this land. It was ours, and these things prove it.”
 
This is good because it establishes the truth denied by much of the world. But at the same time, the people are (maybe unwittingly) testifying that they are the people recorded in Scripture. Scripture validates the message of the coming Messiah. It also validates that when He came, He was rejected by His own people –
 
“He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.” John 1:10, 11
 
This is fine if Jesus was just another Jew who claimed to be the Messiah and turned out to be false. He would be chalked up on the board of a list long enough to go buy a few more boards. However, if Jesus is the true Messiah, and the Bible bears witness to the truth that He is, then their claims to the land witness against them in this regard.
 
We cannot disassociate Jesus’ words from the context of them: He is speaking to Israel. They are under the Law of Moses. It is the week of Jesus’ Passion. He is about to be rejected and killed by the leaders. From there, the nation as a whole will follow suit, be destroyed, and exiled.
 
His addressees are sons of those who “denied and killed their Messiah” (Acts 2:23, etc.). They cannot have it both ways. Nor can we. We cannot say, “I support Israel” unless we have a valid reason to do so that is in line with what the Bible says about Jesus. If we say, “I support Israel because they are God’s people”, we must define what “God’s people” means.
 
It cannot mean that they are God’s chosen race for salvation at this time. Only Jesus saves. If they are those who rejected and killed Jesus, they cannot be His people for salvation. Those of the church who have received Jesus are in that category.
 
The Bible tells us exactly how Israel today fits into God’s plans. It tells us who they are in relation to God now and in the future. It tells us why these things are and when they will change. And these things, in turn, tell us of the gracious nature of God as well as His covenant-keeping faithfulness.
 
If you support the nation of Israel, you must explain it from a properly evaluated analysis of Scripture, or you are actually fighting against God’s purposes. And this is going on in far too many churches around the world.
 
Many are fighting against them by saying the Jews have been replaced and are permanently forsaken by God. On the other hand, many are fighting against them by calling them God’s chosen people without properly defining what that means. In both, harm to the exalted name of Jesus is the result. Jesus’ words in Matthew 23:31 testify to this.
 
Lord God, help us to be responsible, sober, and precise in how we deal with the name of Jesus. You sent Him to save. That will not take place if His name is not placed above all else in the hearts and minds of the people of the world. Help us in this, O God. Amen.