Who are the many that Jesus gave his life for?

In Matthew 20:28, Jesus said that he gave his life as a ransom for many. Who are the many? The Hebrew word for “many” is “rohv” (רב) and it appears many places in the Old Testament including Genesis 32:12,… “I will do you good, and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.” However, the first place that the Hebrew word (רב) appears in the Bible is in Genesis 6:5 where it has the meaning of “great”… “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great (רב) in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

Jesus gave his life as a ransom for “many” (רב) whose wickedness was “great” (רב). Why did he do this? Numbers 14:18, `The LORD is slow to anger, and abounding (רב) in steadfast love…

Fortunately, for the “many” (רב) whose wickedness was “great” (רב) God’s love is abounding (רב)!

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament

The Nature of Human Evil

In Matthew 15:29-39, Jesus miraculously healed the lame, blind, maimed, and mute. Then he miraculously fed the hungry. Afterwards the Pharisees and Sadducees to test him asked him to show them a sign from heaven. Notice that the test they devised would benefit no one – not even themselves except possibly being entertained. The nature of human evil is that ultimately it is a desire for things that are not beneficial to anyone – except possibly being entertained.

Matthew 16:4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament

Matthew 15:29 And Jesus went on from there and passed along the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain, and sat down there. 30 Then great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the maimed, the mute, and many others. And they laid them down at his feet, and he healed them. 31 So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel…36 He took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples. And the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces that were left over. 38 Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And he sent away the crowds, got into the boat, and went to the region of Magadan.

Matthew 16:1 Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.

The Accuracy of the Bible – The Beatitudes (Sermon on the Mount)

Recently, members of another religion have been making comments about the accuracy of the Christian Bible. Let’s examine the accuracy of one of the most famous passages in the Bible known as “The Beatitudes” from the Sermon on the Mount - Matthew 5:1-12. There are two notable differences listed below that occur in versions of the Bible:

1. A few versions place verse 4 after verse 5.

2. A few versions omit the word “falsely” in verse 11.

Examine the text below and consider the two listed variants. Neither of these differences changes the actual meaning of the text. In the New Testament, there are over 15,000 textual variants that exist. Most of the textual variants in the New Testament are similar in nature to the two examples noted above. The important thing to keep in mind is that the message does not change. Both of these textual variants exist due to the editing process for publication. The text was published repeatedly over many centuries and editing changes occurred for a variety of reasons. However, the message remained the same. Remember, Jesus preached and his message was preserved by his apostles and their followers through the centuries. That message as preserved in the New Testament is the same now as it was then.

J. Clontz – based on the textual notes in the Comprehensive New Testament

5

            1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on a mountain. And when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

3          “Blessed are the poor in spirit,

                        for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4          Blessed are those who mourn,

                        for they shall be comforted.

5          Blessed are the meek,

                        for they shall inherit the earth.

6          Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

                        for they shall be filled.

7          Blessed are the merciful,

                        for they shall obtain mercy.

8          Blessed are the pure in heart,

                        for they shall see God.

9          Blessed are the peacemakers,

                        for they shall be called sons of God.

10        Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,

                        for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are you when they revile you and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you [falsely] for my sake. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Foreshadowing Jesus – Noah’s Ark

Baptism corresponds to Noah's flood - 1Peter 3.20-21. The correspondence between Baptism and Noah’s flood includes a correspondence between Jesus / Noah’s ark and John the Baptist / Noah as outlined below:

The ark was anointed and Jesus is the anointed one (Christ and Messiah mean anointed) - Genesis 6.14 / Matthew 3.16

The dove landed and went into the ark/The Holy Spirit descended like a dove and alighted on Jesus - Genesis 8.9 / Matthew 3.16

Both Jesus and the ark had a hole in the ribbed area of their bodies - Genesis 6.16 / John 19.34

God closed the hole in the side of the ark and Jesus - Genesis 7.16 / John 20.20

Both Jesus and the ark rose up from the earth - Genesis 7.12, 17 / Matthew 28.6

After they arose from the earth, both Jesus and the ark went about the earth for 40 days and ended their earthly journey on a mountain where there are olive trees - Genesis 7.17,8.4,8.11 / Acts 1.3,1.12

Jesus and the ark rising from the earth resulted in new covenants between God and humanity - Genesis 9.11-12 / Luke 22.20

The same single dietary restriction is requested after Jesus and the ark arose from the earth – Genesis 9.4 / Acts 15.20

Those in the body of the ark and those in the body of Christ are saved - Genesis 7.23 / Romans 12.5

Noah and John the Baptist were heralds or messengers of righteousness - Genesis 6.8 / 1Peter 3.20-21

Noah and John the Baptist both preached to an evil generation - Genesis 6.05, 11-12 / Matthew 12.39

God sent the clean and the unclean to both Noah and John the Baptist - Genesis 7.8 / Luke 3.12

Noah and John the Baptist both warned people of the coming destruction - Genesis 6.13 / Matthew 3.7

There was a 100 year interval between the time that Noah (Genesis 5.32, 7.6) and John began their missions and when people were overtaken by overwhelming destruction. Hadrian's visit to Jerusalem in AD 130 culminated in the death or removal of all Jews from Palestine. The Jewish Christian lives were spared since they heeded the warning and had entered the body of Christ. During the Bar Kochba revolt against the Romans, the Jewish Christians refused to follow Bar Kochba since he was acclaimed as the Messiah by his followers. The lives of the Jewish Christians were spared by the Romans and they were neither killed nor sold into slavery. Their faith in Jesus as the Messiah literally saved their lives. Hadrian rebuilt the temple on the temple mount in Jerusalem. The rebuilt temple was completed in AD 135. The temple was dedicated to the worship of Jupiter and was the largest temple of Jupiter in existence at that time. Hadrian also had a statue of himself sitting on a horse placed at the temple as an object of worship. The statue of Hadrian may have been positioned in the original location of the Holy of Holies. The term “abomination of desolation” that appears in Daniel 9.27,11.31,12.11, Matthew 24.15, Mark 13.14 is believed by many scholars to refer to the Roman false god Jupiter via an intentional distortion of the appellation for Jupiter of "Baal Shamem" ("lord of heaven"). The Hebrew term “abomination” has an idiomatic meaning of “idol” and the term “Baal” and “idol” are somewhat synonymous. The Hebrew words for “heaven” and “desolate” have similar spellings. Thus the “Baal” or “idol” (abomination) of heaven (desolation) is an idol of Jupiter whose pagan title is lord (Baal) of heaven.

The heavens opened - Genesis 7.11 / Matthew 3.16

In the story of Noah and the gospels blood symbolizes life - Genesis 9.4-6 / Luke 22.20

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament

Christianity versus Islam – Which is Correct?

Christians, including the apostles who knew Jesus, maintain that Jesus is the Son of God and is God. Muslims claim that Jesus is not the Son of God and is not God. Obviously only one of these views can be correct. Thus only one of these views is true and inspired by God and the other view is false and not inspired by God but was originated by something else.

Muslims maintain that Jesus is a prophet. Even more importantly, Muslims maintain that calling Jesus the Son of God is blasphemy. However according to Matthew 16:15-17 - Jesus indicated that he is the Son of God. When the apostle Peter called Jesus the Son of the living God, Jesus said that Peter was blessed. So are the Muslims correct about Jesus or are Jesus and Peter correct about Jesus? The answer is obvious.

Matthew 16:15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 But Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

Where does this leave us with regard to the Muslims? According to the Muslims, Mohammad was in a cave when he received his information from the angel Gabriel. The apostle Paul gives us the following warning:

2Corinthians 11:12 “And what I am doing, I will also continue to do, in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things of which they boast. 13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will be according to their deeds.”  

Below are the passages cited in the Comprehensive New Testament cross reference index indicating that Jesus is the Son of God.

Matthew 4:3-6

Matthew 8:29

Matthew 14:33

Matthew 16:16

Matthew 26:63

Matthew 27:40-43

Matthew 27:54

Mark 1:1

Mark 3:11

Mark 15:39

Luke 1:35

Luke 3:38

Luke 4:3-9

Luke 4:41

Luke 22:70

John 1:34

John 1:49

John 3:18

John 5:25

John 9:35

John 10:36

John 11:4

John 11:27

John 19:7

John 20:31

Acts 8:37

Acts 9:20

Acts 13:33

Romans 1:4

2Corinthians 1:19

Galatians 2:20

Ephesians 4:13

Hebrews 1:5

Hebrews 4:14

Hebrews 5:5

Hebrews 6:6

Hebrews 7:3

Hebrews 10:29

1John 3:8

1John 4:9

1John 4:15

1John 5:5

1John 5:10-13

1John 5:20

Revelation 2:18

“I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in me should not remain in darkness.” - John 12:46

When you are in the dark, turn to the Light.

“to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’” Acts 26:18

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament

He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if some one should rise from the dead.'" - Luke 16:31

Jesus rose from the dead just as Moses and the prophets had said he would. "These are my words which I spoke to you, while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled." - Luke 24:44

If you’re convinced, there is good news - you are blessed:

“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." - John 20:29

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament 

"Who do men say that the Son of Man is?" - Matthew 16:13

For the past 2,000 years, people have been debating who Jesus is. For many people, their views about Jesus mold their lives. Jesus is the image of God and in that image people are created anew.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. - Genesis 1:27 

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament 

"Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost." - John 6:12

Are you ready to be gathered up? Jesus is the bread of life and we are part of the body of Christ. Just like the fragments that were gathered up and none were lost – so also we will be gathered up and none lost.

"I am the bread of life… And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up at the last day.” John 6:35-39

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament 

"Take courage! It is I; do not be afraid." - Matthew 14:27

Imagine when Christ returns and you hear the words: "Take courage! It is I; do not be afraid."

Hope to see you then,

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament

Genesis 3:13 “…The Serpent Beguiled Me…”

The Hebrew words for “Serpent” (נחש) nahghahsh and “Beguiled” or “Deceived” (נשא) nahshah form a Hebrew pun. The Hebrew word for serpent “Serpent” (נחש) nahghahsh is spelled the same as the Hebrew word for “Enchantment” (נחש) nahghash. The Hebrew word for “Beguiled” or “Deceived” (נשא) nahshah is spelled the same as “Deprive” (נשא) nahshah.

Thus the serpent deceives (נשא) nahshah

people through enchantments (נחש) nahghash

in order to deprive (נשא) nahshah

them.

Don’t let the serpent deprive (נשא) nahshah you of your inheritance in heaven through his deceptions (נשא) nahshah on earth!

Dr. J. (Michael) Clontz is the author of several books including; The Gospel of Matthew: a Poetic Analysis, The Comprehensive New Testament, and The Gospels in Perfect Harmony. He has been listed in the Directory of American Poets and Fiction Writers and Marquis Who’s Who in America. He is the Recipient of the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. 

Remember to A.S.K.

Ask,

And it will be given to you.

Seek,

And you will find.

Knock,

And it will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks receives

And he who seeks finds

And to him who knocks it will be opened.

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament (Matthew 7:7-8)

Four Things to Remember

Judge not,

And you will never be judged.

Condemn not,

And you will never be condemned.

Forgive,

And you will be forgiven.

Give,

And it will be given to you.

J. Clontz – Editor of the Comprehensive New Testament (Luke 6:37-38a)