God Interjected Matthew 20: 17-19

English Standard Version Chapter 20

17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them,

18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death

19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”

1. Context :up to Jerusalem vs 17

the term “going up” is used in sense of;

1. Going up on a mountain Matt 5:1 “Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.”

Matt 14:23 “And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,”

Matt 15:29 “Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there.”

2. Rising up from Baptism

Matt 3:16 “And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him;”

3. The Journey to Jerusalem

Mark 10:32 “And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him,”

Luke 18:10 ““Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.”

John2:13 “The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.”

The elevated location of Jerusalem is often referenced in the Bible, with the phrase “up to Jerusalem” occurring more than 10 times (compare 1 Kgs 12:28; Ezra 1:3; Matt 20:17; Mark 10:32).

2. Interjection vs 18

here is an interjection for attention “ see” at time it is used as;

Behold used in Matthew 61 times in 58 verses/ in Mark it is used 7 times in 7 verses, in Luke it is used 57 times in 55 verse and John 4 times in 4 verses

Matt 1:23 ““Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).”

Matt 2:1 “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem,”

Matt 20:18 ““See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death”

Jesus interjects their attention with purpose for a reminder of what awaits him in Jerusalem lest they forget or miss his misunderstand his mission .

Luke 18:31 “And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.”

3. The Son of Man

Jesus refereed to himself as Son of man to signify his humanity, servanthood and the one who fulfill Daniels ( Daniel 7:13-14)vision of the son of man as the coming figure of Judgement and authority. The term is used 90 time in 87 verses in the OT it used in small letters while in NT it capital letter.

He is the Son of David, the son of Abraham Matt 1:1 “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”

He was Born/ everyone born must die Matt 1:18 “Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.”

He used the term so often Matt 8:20 “And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.””

As the Son of man he can be betrayed

To betray is to violate personal trust or confidence of a moral standard.

Jesus was betrayed so that that could deliver all who have been betrayed by Satan, the world and the flesh. Gen 3:4 “But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.”

Chief priest

in OT the primary responsibility for the high priest was to a representative and mediator between the people and Yahweh.

other areas of service where

To ensure the covenant was enforce.

To ensure the duties of the temple were carried out and the law of Moses

As a representative it high priests role to direct people’s hearts towards God.

Regularly handled sacrifices and offerings , blessing the people

An annual entrance into the most holy place in the tabernacle or the temple during the Atonement.

Scribes

They were expert in the understanding the law of Moses, they were referred to as lawyers and teachers of the law. Ezra 7: 6

Ezra 7:6 ESV

this Ezra went up from Babylonia. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses that the Lord, the God of Israel, had given, and the king granted him all that he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.

The two offices will deliver Jesus to be

1. Mocked

2. flogged

3. Crucified

Crucifixion

It was the most painful,cruel and long than expect form of execution which involved the victim being roped or nailed to an elevated wooden cross.

This type of execution was favored by the Romans aimed at discouraging rebellion against authority.

the victim was scourged before crucifixion - John19:1

Carried his cross John 19:17

Was fixed on the cross matt 27:37, Mk 15:24, John 19:23, 20:25

A charge board was fixed on the cross Mt 27:37, Mk 15:26, Lk 23:38, John 19:19

The victims suffering were prolonged John 19:32-33

God interjected in human hopelessness because of sin by becoming man.

The Son of Man.

As Son of Man he will be betrayed so that he deliver those who are betrayed by sin.

He will be condemned by those who should mediate between people and God in favor of God’s holiness against the sinless one so that he may make an atonement for sinners.

He will be condemned by the expert in the law the scribes in order to fulfil what the son of man has failed.

He will take shame, flogging and the cross in place of those who have rebelled against God.

But then he will rise from the dead on the third day.