by Ptr. Art Calaguas<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shalom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the Gospel of Mark, there is one more \u03b5\u03b3\u03ce \u03b5\u1f30\u03bc\u03b9 (\u201cI AM\u201d) declaration of our Lord Jesus made after his arrest and during his trial. This is found in Mark 14:62 and brings us back to the trial of our Lord before the \u1f38\u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b1\u1fd6\u03bf\u03b9 (the Jewish authorities and parties opposing our Lord) and Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor (Greek \u1f21\u03b3\u03b5\u03bc\u03ce\u03bd, \u201chegemon\u201d) of Judea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From the 4 Gospels it is evident that there were 2 phases of the trial of our Lord Jesus: the Jewish \u1f38\u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b1\u1fd6\u03bf\u03b9 part which encompassed the Lord\u2019s appearance before Annas, Caiphas and the entire Council\/Supreme Court (Greek \u03c3\u03c5\u03bd\u03ad\u03b4\u03c1\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd, \u201csunedrion\u201d or \u201cSanhedrin\u201d) and the Roman part which was before Pilate, then Herod (Antipas), and finally, back to Pilate. While the Synoptic Gospels name Caiaphas, the ruling high priest appointed by the Romans, only John\u2019s Gospel mentions our Lord being first led to Annas before Caiaphas (see John 18:12-14). Annas was the former high priest and father-in-law of Caiaphas. For the Jews, the position of high priest was for life, but the Romans appointed Caiaphas to replace him. It is from the Gospel of Luke that we know that Pilate sent the Lord to Herod since as a Galilean, he was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee (see Luke 23:6-12); and incidentally, the executioner of John the Baptizer. Luke\u2019s Gospel also notes that both Herod and Pilate did not find the Lord Jesus guilty of the charges leveled by the \u1f38\u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b1\u1fd6\u03bf\u03b9 that called for the death sentence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Focusing now on the account of the trial with the high priest Caiaphas in the Gospel of Mark, our Lord is accused by several false witnesses in the attempt to pin him down. This is narrated in Mark 14:53-65. Toward the end, the high priest questions our Lord and asks if he has anything to say about the accusations against him. The Lord remained silent until he was asked this question (in Mark 14:61; with my formal translation):<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2026\u03a3<\/em>\u1f7a<\/em> \u03b5<\/em>\u1f36<\/em> <\/em>\u1f41<\/em> \u03c7\u03c1\u03b9\u03c3\u03c4<\/em>\u1f78<\/em>\u03c2 <\/em>\u1f41<\/em> \u03c5<\/em>\u1f31\u1f78<\/em>\u03c2 \u03c4\u03bf<\/em>\u1fe6<\/em> \u03b5<\/em>\u1f50<\/em>\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03b7\u03c4\u03bf<\/em>\u1fe6<\/em>;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2026Are you the Messiah\/Christ, the Son of the Blessed (One)?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Gospel records our Lord\u2019s reply in the next verse (Mark 14:62; followed by my formal translation):<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u1f41 \u03b4\u1f72 \u1f38\u03b7\u03c3\u03bf\u1fe6\u03c2 \u03b5\u1f36\u03c0\u03b5\u03bd\u00b7<\/em> \u1f18\u03b3\u03ce \u03b5\u1f30\u03bc\u03b9<\/mark>, \u03ba\u03b1\u1f76 \u1f44\u03c8\u03b5\u03c3\u03b8\u03b5 \u03c4\u1f78\u03bd \u03c5\u1f31\u1f78\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf\u1fe6 \u1f00\u03bd\u03b8\u03c1\u03ce\u03c0\u03bf\u03c5 \u1f10\u03ba \u03b4\u03b5\u03be\u03b9\u1ff6\u03bd \u03ba\u03b1\u03b8\u03ae\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd \u03c4\u1fc6\u03c2 \u03b4\u03c5\u03bd\u03ac\u03bc\u03b5\u03c9\u03c2 \u03ba\u03b1\u1f76 \u1f10\u03c1\u03c7\u03cc\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd \u03bc\u03b5\u03c4\u1f70 \u03c4\u1ff6\u03bd \u03bd\u03b5\u03c6\u03b5\u03bb\u1ff6\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf\u1fe6 \u03bf\u1f50\u03c1\u03b1\u03bd\u03bf\u1fe6.<\/mark><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n And Jesus said:<\/em> I AM<\/mark>, and you will see the Son of Man sitting from the right hand\/side of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The question of the high priest needs to be unpacked. The Jews, in general do not want to inadvertently misuse the name of God and thus use a number of ways or euphemisms to avoid this. The \u201cBlessed One\u201d (from the Greek \u03b5\u1f50\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03b7\u03c4\u03cc\u03c2, \u201ceulogetos\u201d meaning blessed, worthy of praise) used in the question in verse 61 is one such way. The Greek word is an adjective used only 8 times in the New Testament (NT) and only in reference to God (the Father). Used with the definite article here in Mark 14:61, it properly should be read as \u201cBlessed One\u201d (NB. This usage is unique in Mark\u2019s Gospel). Hence, in effect, the question is \u201cAre you the Messiah\/Christ, the Son of God?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n To the previous accusations and question(s), the Lord Jesus did not answer and remained silent; but in this question, he gave a powerful affirmative answer to the high priest and the entire Sanhedrin. Our Lord Jesus emphatically answers that \u201cI truly\/really AM the Messiah\/Christ!\u201d And not only that, he quotes 2 Old Testament (OT) scriptures as well: Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13-14.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because he quotes Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13-14, there seems to be no doubt that our Lord wanted his audience to grasp the implications of his \u03b5\u03b3\u03ce \u03b5\u1f30\u03bc\u03b9 (\u201cI AM\u201d) declaration that we have studied in its numerous uses in the Gospel of John. Here, in the Gospel of Mark, 2 aspects of his Messianic character are brought to light in Mark 14:62. First, Psalm 110:1 is a psalm attributed to David and the Royal Messiah that comes from his line. The LORD God makes his Messiah sit at his right hand\/side; this being a symbol of authority, honor, distinction and power in ancient Near East literature, aside from the OT itself. The \u201cright hand\/side of Power\u201d is parallel to Psalm 110:1 where \u201cPower\u201d is a direct translation of the Greek \u03b4\u03cd\u03bd\u03b1\u03bc\u03b9\u03c2, \u201cdunamis\u201d which Thayer\u2019s Greek Lexicon defines as power, strength, and\/or ability. It is also used as a way of referring to God and\/or his miraculous power. The context of Psalm 110 shows that the LORD\u2019s Messiah will be victorious over his enemies and execute judgment over the nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Caiaphas asked if our Lord Jesus was the Messiah, he probably thought of the Messiah as a human being. During those times, the Jewish majority thinking was that the Messiah would be human (although some Second Temple literature presents alternatives). This is where Daniel 7:13-14 comes in to present the second aspect of this Messiah: he is a divine being! If the emphatic \u03b5\u03b3\u03ce \u03b5\u1f30\u03bc\u03b9 together with the allusion to the Davidic Messiah sitting at God\u2019s right side angered the high priest, the other part of the Lord\u2019s answer was clearly blasphemous in the ears of the \u1f38\u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b1\u1fd6\u03bf\u03b9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Daniel 7:13-14 has the \u201cson of man\u201d coming with the clouds of heaven and presented before the Ancient of Days (the LORD God). No mere mortal human being normally comes with the clouds of heaven, so the implication is quite clear; this son of man was more than human. And since his dominion given by the Almighty is an everlasting dominion, this \u201cson of man\u201d is indeed divine. Note also the context of the entire Daniel chapter 7 where the 4 beasts (Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Macedonian-Greek, and Roman empires) are prophetically revealed (see parallel in Daniel 2). Perhaps the high priest and at least some of the Sanhedrin might have realized that they were already in the period of the 4th<\/sup> beast and here was outsider, someone not of their liking, who was claiming to be Daniel\u2019s \u201cson of man;\u201d the ruler of all. So when the Lord Jesus answered the high priest by combining these 2 characteristics of the Messiah he claimed to be, the reaction of Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin was not surprising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Lord Jesus not only reveals himself as the Davidic Messiah sitting at God\u2019s right side; he was also Daniel\u2019s divine \u201cson of man\u201d who would come with the clouds and execute judgment on the \u1f38\u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b1\u1fd6\u03bf\u03b9, including the high priest and the Sanhedrin and all the nations of the world for that matter; and defeat all of God\u2019s enemies. The Lord\u2019s resurrection and ascension would attest to this. He and his kingdom would last forever!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u039c\u03b1\u03c1\u03ac\u03bd\u03b1 \u03b8\u03ac<\/em> <\/em>(\u05de\u05e8\u05e0\u05d0\u05ea\u05d0\u200e<\/em>, “Maranatha”)!<\/p>\n\n\n\n We will continue next week with the \u201cI AM\u201d declarations of our Lord Jesus in the Book of Acts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God bless us all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Ptr. Art Calaguas Shalom. In the Gospel of Mark, there is one more \u03b5\u03b3\u03ce \u03b5\u1f30\u03bc\u03b9 (\u201cI AM\u201d) declaration of our Lord Jesus made after his arrest and during his trial. This is found in Mark 14:62 and brings us back to the trial of our Lord before the \u1f38\u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b1\u1fd6\u03bf\u03b9 (the Jewish authorities and parties…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[6,7,16,18,9,8,5],"class_list":["post-187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ptr-art-calaguas","tag-church-of-the-risen-lord","tag-crl","tag-i-am","tag-jesus","tag-spiritual-refreshment-of-the-day","tag-upcemi","tag-upcrl"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":188,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187\/revisions\/188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}