{"id":440,"date":"2022-03-27T20:36:31","date_gmt":"2022-03-27T20:36:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/deadmannotwalking.org\/?p=440"},"modified":"2022-03-27T20:36:36","modified_gmt":"2022-03-27T20:36:36","slug":"prophecy-xiv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deadmannotwalking.org\/?p=440","title":{"rendered":"Prophecy XIV"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

“. . . Nevertheless I must journey on today and tomorrow and the next\u00a0day;<\/em>\u00a0for it cannot be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem.\u00a0O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,\u00a0the city<\/em>\u00a0that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen\u00a0gathers<\/em>\u00a0her brood under her wings, and you would not\u00a0have it!<\/em>\u00a0Behold, your house is left to you\u00a0desolate;<\/em>\u00a0and I say to you, you will not see Me until\u00a0the time<\/em>\u00a0comes when you say, \u2018Blessed is\u00a0He who comes in the name of the\u00a0Lord!\u2019\u2009\u201d<\/mark>\u00a0\u00a0(Luke 13:33-35, NASB)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Luke writes here of Jesus’ lament over the city of Jerusalem.  Some Pharisees had warned Jesus that Herod the king wanted to kill Him.  Jesus replied that they should tell Herod, “Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I reach My goal.”  (Luke 13:32)  That’s where we pick up the text above.  Jesus makes three interesting prophecies in this passage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus’ first prediction is the place He is to die, Jerusalem.  He is on His way there to fulfill His mission, to present Himself as the perfect sacrifice, the only acceptable sacrifice to God, to atone for the sins of the world.  Why Jerusalem?  Jesus says, “It cannot be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem.”  Jerusalem is where the chief priests were, and He has been warning the disciples for some time that He would go there, be arrested, then killed, and on the third day be raised again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next section of the text is Jesus’ lamentation over the city.\u00a0 He says it’s “the city that kills the prophets.”\u00a0 Jerusalem had a history of doing just that.\u00a0 During the era of the kings, the prophets told the people if they didn’t repent, the kingdoms of Israel and Judah would be taken away and its people sent into exile.\u00a0 Nobody wanted to hear that, especially the kings.\u00a0 So many of the prophets were executed.\u00a0 Jesus further laments that He “wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!”\u00a0 \u00a0He was rejected and despised.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a consequence of the city’s rejection of Jesus, He makes the second prediction:\u00a0 “Behold, your house is left to you desolate.”\u00a0 Jesus is predicting Jerusalem’s destruction, which took place in 70 AD.\u00a0 The reason?\u00a0 The rejection of the Messiah, God’s own Son.\u00a0 The Temple was completely destroyed, as Jesus says in other places, “not one stone left upon another.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luke 13:35 poster.  Found at Bible Hub, https:\/\/biblepic.com\/45\/luke_13-35.htm<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The third instance of Jesus’ prophecy will happen sometime in the future from now:\u00a0 “You will not see Me until the time comes when you say, \u2018Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!\u2019”\u00a0 At some point in the future, Jesus will return.\u00a0 He will come back for His elect.\u00a0 And people will say “Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jewish tradition says that when Messiah comes, He will enter Jerusalem through the East Gate, opposite the Mount of Olives.\u00a0 In medieval times, the ruling Muslims, knowing this, sealed the gate.\u00a0 Just to make sure the Jewish Messiah wouldn’t come through that way, they established a Muslim cemetery right outside the gate.\u00a0 They understood that a Jewish Rabbi would never defile Himself by passing through a cemetery.\u00a0 I don’t know how Jesus plans to return with respect to Jerusalem.\u00a0 But I do know that if He wishes to go through the East Gate, He won’t allow a cemetery or some bricks deter Him!\u00a0
\"EasternJerusalem East Gate and cemetery.\u00a0 Found at iStock,\u00a0\u00a0https:\/\/www.istockphoto.com\/photo\/eastern-gate-and-cemetery-in-israel-gm683468586-126964459<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus offers prophecy in Luke’s narrative.\u00a0 He is on His way to Jerusalem, and He says He’s going to die there.\u00a0 He also predicts the destruction of the city, including the Temple, which occurred in 70 AD.\u00a0 And yet to come, His return to His earth.\u00a0 Jesus was determined to get to Jerusalem to fulfill His purpose on earth.\u00a0 He died as a sacrifice so we could be freed from sin and death.\u00a0 He is coming back again to unite His followers with His Father.\u00a0 Jerusalem paid the penalty for rejecting Him.\u00a0 My prayer is that you accept Him as your Savior.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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