Matt. 23:37 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!"
Who is ‘Jerusalem’ in the context of this passage? Some folks believe Jerusalem to be in reference to individual Jews, but this can’t be. Starting at the beginning of Matthew 23 we find our Lord speaking of the leaders of Jerusalem, the Scribes and Pharisee, those who killed the prophets:
v. 2 “...Pharisees sit in Moses sit...â€Â
v. 6 “...chief seats in the synagogues...â€Â
v. 7 “...Rabbi, Rabbi...â€Â
v. 13 “But woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees...â€Â
v. 14 “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees...â€Â
v. 15 “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees...â€Â
v. 16 “Woe unto you, ye blind guides...â€Â
etc, etc. I think you get the picture.
Another look at Matt. 23:37, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!†Jesus isn’t calling the leaders to gather He is calling the ‘children’ or believers, ‘Jerusalem’ or the leaders and rulers of Jerusalem are not being called to gather at all. The leaders wouldn’t allow the faithful of God to come together, God wasn’t seeking to bring together those who ‘killest the prophets’ but the faithful. The unwillingness comes from not allowing the faithful to come together, not rejecting an offer of salvation.
Those Christ would gather are not represented as being unwilling, but not allowed by the ruling class in Jerusalem to come together.
I hope this was of use.
j
Who is ‘Jerusalem’ in the context of this passage? Some folks believe Jerusalem to be in reference to individual Jews, but this can’t be. Starting at the beginning of Matthew 23 we find our Lord speaking of the leaders of Jerusalem, the Scribes and Pharisee, those who killed the prophets:
v. 2 “...Pharisees sit in Moses sit...â€Â
v. 6 “...chief seats in the synagogues...â€Â
v. 7 “...Rabbi, Rabbi...â€Â
v. 13 “But woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees...â€Â
v. 14 “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees...â€Â
v. 15 “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees...â€Â
v. 16 “Woe unto you, ye blind guides...â€Â
etc, etc. I think you get the picture.
Another look at Matt. 23:37, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!†Jesus isn’t calling the leaders to gather He is calling the ‘children’ or believers, ‘Jerusalem’ or the leaders and rulers of Jerusalem are not being called to gather at all. The leaders wouldn’t allow the faithful of God to come together, God wasn’t seeking to bring together those who ‘killest the prophets’ but the faithful. The unwillingness comes from not allowing the faithful to come together, not rejecting an offer of salvation.
Those Christ would gather are not represented as being unwilling, but not allowed by the ruling class in Jerusalem to come together.
I hope this was of use.
j
: :wink: ;-) :fadein: