by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. Chapter 18 – 20 of the Gospel of Matthew contain the 4th major discourse in this Gospel and it deals about the expected nature of the community of disciples in the Kingdom of Heaven. After this teaching round, the Messiah Jesus then proceeds to his final journey to Jerusalem. We…
The Temple Tax and the Lord’s Talmidim
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. After the Transfiguration, the Lord Jesus heals a demon-possessed boy when his disciples could not; and then warns them the second time about his coming suffering, death and resurrection. When they came to Capernaum, Matthew 17:24-27 narrates something that is only found in this Gospel. While one would expect a…
The Transfiguration and Mt. Hermon
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. In Matthew 17:1-13 it is narrated that after 6 days from Caesarea Philippi, the Lord Jesus took only his disciples Simon Peter, John and James to a high mountain and there the Transfiguration happened. The Transfiguration as narrated in Matthew has close parallels in Mark 9:2-13 and in Luke 9:28-36….
Caesarea Philippi and the Gates of Hades – Part 4
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. From last week, we saw in Matthew 16:13-20 that the Lord meant for the coming Kingdom of Heaven to destroy the gates of Hades: 18κἀγὼ δέ σοι λέγω ὅτι σὺ εἶ Πέτρος, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς· And I say…
Caesarea Philippi and the Gates of Hades – Part 3
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. To continue, in Matthew 16:13 as our Lord came into the vicinity of Caesarea Philippi in Bashan, at the foot of Mt. Hermon, he asked his disciples who is it that people believed him to be. He was using his favorite title: “Son of Man,” (τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου) as…
Caesarea Philippi and the Gates of Hades – Part 2
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. As we saw last week, Caesarea Philippi, Panias/Banias, Bashan and Mt. Hermon individually and together represented demonic forces against the God of Israel. Furthermore, in Second Temple period Jewish thought, 1 Enoch points to the origin of demons connected to these locations: the illicit sexual cohabitation between divine beings (“sons…
Caesarea Philippi and the Gates of Hades – Part 1
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. The passage about our Lord’s visit to Caesarea Philippi in the northernmost extent of ancient, unified Israel’s territory under King Solomon moves us closer to the fourth of the five (5) major discourses contained in the Gospel according to Matthew. It also marks the turning point after which the Lord…
The Parable of the Sower and the 4 Soils
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. We now explore another passage in the Gospel according to Matthew that is also the third of the five (5) major discourses of this Gospel. This 3rd discourse reveals more about the Kingdom of God and discipleship via the technique of using Hebraic parables. A parable (Greek παραβολή, “parabole”) or…
The Servant Messiah – Part 7
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. Our study of the Isaiah Servant Songs seems to indicate that 2 different servants are really spoken of. The nation of Israel is one servant. The other servant is identified as the (preserved) faithful remnant of Israel; or the prophet Jeremiah; or Zerubbabel; or the Teacher of Righteousness written about…
The Servant Messiah – Part 6
by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. The 4th and last Isaiah Servant Song which identifies the chosen servant of the LORD as the messiah (who also suffers), continues this theme from the verses found in Isaiah 49:7b and 50:6. As we have seen last week, this “suffering messiah” or “suffering servant” figure was also found in…