tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11840313.post1630089807901667541..comments2024-03-10T10:54:59.776-07:00Comments on Ben Witherington: The Hinge of History-- a Palm Sunday Sermon (John 12.12-19)Ben Witheringtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06017701050859255865noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11840313.post-66220825240694887852007-04-05T15:30:00.000-07:002007-04-05T15:30:00.000-07:00Hi Mitchell: Excellent post. You are quite right a...Hi Mitchell: <BR/><BR/>Excellent post. You are quite right about Zechariah. What is interesting however is the verses used to exegete what Jesus was doing, not what was left out. The same applies to the use of Isaiah in Jesus' same Lk. 4 speech where redemption is the subject, and the mention of judgment is left out. And while you are right that Zechariah is not saying that the kingdom will come by pacifistic demonstrations that is hardly the point. The point is that God will strike the shepherd, and though the sheep will scatter, through that death sin, suffering, death, violence will be overcome. That's not a pacifistic demonstration-- that's dying, paradoxically enough, to end sin and all its manifestations including violence.<BR/><BR/>Peace doesn't come by violent 'pacification' using weapons against one's enemies. Peace comes when the king of peace dies for his enemies (read Romans 3). <BR/><BR/>Happy Easter,<BR/><BR/>Ben W.Ben Witheringtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06017701050859255865noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11840313.post-2804054834860888972007-04-05T13:12:00.000-07:002007-04-05T13:12:00.000-07:00Clearly Jesus did not enter Jerusalem with the int...Clearly Jesus did not enter Jerusalem with the intent of fomenting insurrection against either Roman or Jewish powers. It's interesting, however, that people quote the Zechariah 9 material as if it were talking about means instead of ends. <BR/><BR/>Zechariah 9-14 certainly does not envision the donkey-riding king making peace by singing "Give Peace a Chance." The king of Zechariah 9:9-10 enters in peace because the battle has been won. There is no longer a need for chariots or war horses because permanent, inviolable victory over evil has been achieved. <BR/><BR/>Zechariah's vision is certainly not pacifistic in the modern sense. Zechariah sees the Lord rousing the sons of Zion against the sons of Greece. Judah is his bow and Ephraim his arrow. With quite violent language, Zechariah describes how the Lord's warriors "devour and tread down the slingers; they shall drink their blood." (9:13-15)<BR/><BR/>Essentially, Zechariah 9-14 is an apocalyptic vision. The framework of this vision is clearest in chapter 14: God's enemies come to fight against Jerusalem, but God defeats them and establishes a recreated world order. <BR/><BR/>When Jesus adopted Zechariah's donkey as a symbol of his kingdom, he identified himself as the one who fulfills Zechariah's vision. <BR/><BR/>I take both Zechariah's vision and Jesus' adoption of it as eschatological - having to do with ends, not means. The means will be Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. Armed rebellion, it is true, will not bring God's kingdom to fruition - but neither will pacifistic political demonstrations.Monkey Czarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02479627887321037421noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11840313.post-44706987549361381142007-04-05T11:02:00.000-07:002007-04-05T11:02:00.000-07:00Thank you for your thoughts on this and thank you ...Thank you for your thoughts on this and thank you also for all you put into your Corinthians Commentary. I have been using it among a few other things to prepare for a class and it has been helpful. It was really well done.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14368791607689982645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11840313.post-65223024707370485872007-04-05T05:24:00.000-07:002007-04-05T05:24:00.000-07:00I really liked that.Found a typo: "apparently dese...I really liked that.<BR/>Found a typo: "apparently deserted—left him along on a cross even exclaiming" <BR/>might it be "alone"?<BR/>Love your blog and am in the middle of the novel.jwmeyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04686373945929550713noreply@blogger.com