Chapter
III
Section IV
The Texts that were attributed directly to the Old
Testament in the Gospels
In this section we will examine the texts of the Old
Testament that were attributed directly to it, and the Gospels authors said
that they have not been fulfilled, and achieved only in Jesus and his time and
his generation, to find out what is the truth and the reality of them, and if
the Gospels authors have told the truth or not.
5
- The Source of the Saying that John the Baptist is the Voice of One Crying in
the Wilderness
Matthew 3:3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet
Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight’."
Mark 1:2 As it is written in the Prophets:
"Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who
will prepare Your way before You."
Mark 1:3 "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight’."
Mark 1:4 John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching
a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
Luke 3:2 while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of
God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.
Luke 3:3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching
a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,
Luke 3:4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah
the prophet, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.
Luke 3:5 Every valley shall be filled And every mountain and hill
brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough ways
smooth;
Luke 3:6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God’."
John 1:22 Then they said to him, "Who are you, that we may
give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?"
John 1:23 He said: "I am
‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Make straight the way of the
Lord,"‘ as the prophet Isaiah said."
These
are four texts written in the four Gospels that say that John the Baptist is
the voice of one crying in the wilderness who was mentioned by Isaiah, and said
that the task of the voice of one crying in the wilderness is preparation the
way of the Lord and makes His paths straight, which is a reference to John the
Baptist, who supposed to be the one who will prepare the way for Jesus and
makes his paths straight, as the Gospels say, but what is written in the
Gospels about John the Baptist does not indicate to this for many things.
The
first is that Jesus was baptized by
John, while John was not baptized by
Jesus.
Mark 1:9 It came to
pass in those days that Jesus
came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John
in the Jordan.
The
second is that John remained has
doubts in the task of Jesus until his last days, forcing him to send two of his
disciples when he was in prison for asking him if he is the Christ or not! As
in the following texts:
Matthew 11:2 And when John had heard in prison about the
works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples
Matthew 11:3 and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One,
or do we look for another?"
Matthew 11:4 Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things
which you hear and see:
Luke 7:18 Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning
all these things.
Luke 7:19 And John,
calling two of his disciples to him,
sent them to Jesus, saying,
"Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"
Luke 7:20 When the men had come to Him, they said, "John
the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, ‘Are You the Coming One, or
do we look for another’?"
Luke 7:21 And that very hour He cured many of infirmities,
afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.
Luke 7:22 Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the
things you have seen and heard: that the
blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor
have the gospel preached to them.
Luke 7:23 "And
blessed is he who is not offended
because of Me."
The
third is that the disciples of John
remained separate from Jesus and his disciples in acts of worship, even that
the disciples of Jesus have asked him to teach them to pray as John taught his
disciples, as in the following texts:
Luke 11:1 Now it came
to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to
Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples."
Matthew 9:14 Then the
disciples of John came to Him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees
fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?"
Mark 2:18 The disciples
of John and of the Pharisees were fasting. Then they came and said to
Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast,
but Your disciples do not fast?"
Luke 5:33 Then they said to Him, "Why do the disciples
of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the
Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?"
Therefore,
when and where has John prepared the way for Jesus and made his paths straight
if he was the voice of one crying in the wilderness?!
Here,
I'd like to review the text of the book of Isaiah to find out if it indicates
to John the Baptist or not, which is as follows:
Isaiah 40:1 "Comfort,
yes, comfort My people!" Says your God.
Isaiah 40:2 "Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and
cry out to her, That her warfare is ended, That her
iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the LORD’S hand
Double for all her sins."
In
these paragraphs the Lord says speak comfort to his people and Jerusalem, and
declares that her warfare is ended, and her iniquity is pardoned; for she has
received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins, and then says:
Isaiah 40:3 The voice of
one crying in the wilderness: "Prepare the way of the LORD;
Make straight in the desert A highway for our God.
Isaiah 40:4 Every valley shall be exalted And every
mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made
straight And the rough places smooth;
These
are the paragraphs that cited by the Gospels authors and said that it was
indicating to John the Baptist. So is it true that he has prepared the ways for
Jesus, and every valley became exalted, and every mountain and hill were
brought low, and the crooked places became straight and the rough places became
smooth for Jesus, or that he, i.e., Jesus, lived all his life afraid of the Jews,
and he has spent a lot of days in the wilderness so as not to be killed by the
Jews?! As in the following texts:
Mark 1:43 And He strictly warned him and sent him away at
once,
Mark 1:44 and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go
your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those
things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."
Mark 1:45 However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so
that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside
in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.
John 6:14 Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus
did, said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world."
John 6:15 Therefore when
Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him
king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.
And
was John crying out in the wilderness to prepare the way of Jesus and made his
paths straight, or he, in his last days, has sent his disciples to ask him if
he is the Coming One, or look for another, as is written in the previous texts?
All
this shows us that the text was not talking about John or Jesus, and then we read
the following paragraph:
Isaiah 40:5 The glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
And all flesh shall see it
together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
This
paragraph says that the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind
together shall see it, for the Lord has spoken, and here we find that there are
two issues must be discussed.
The
first is the state of Incarnation or
Anthropomorphism which the Gospels authors and the churches believe in, that
says that Jesus is one of the incarnations of the Lord the Creator, and this is
a mistake, and even is greater than a mistake, because the glory of the Lord,
and seeing it by people, does not mean seeing the Lord, the Creator of the
heavens and the earth directly, or that He has embodied in some of His
creatures, but means that people see the glory of the Lord and his greatness
through what He does in the cosmos, whether in nature or in human life, as was
the case when Moses and the children of Israel crossed into the sea, and
Pharaoh and his soldiers were drowned, as in the following text:
Exodus 14:17 "And I indeed will harden the hearts of the
Egyptians, and they shall follow them. So I will gain honor over Pharaoh
and over all his army, his chariots, and his horsemen.
Exodus 14:18 "Then the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gained
honor for Myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen."
As
well as, the people have seen the glory of the Lord through the miracles of
Moses and other prophets. This is the glory of the Lord which had been seen by
all mankind. Moreover seeing the Lord directly is not possible, because no one
sees the glory of the LORD and remains alive as the Old Testament says, (Exodus
33:20).
The
second issue is if we agreed with the
Gospels authors and the churches that it indicates to Jesus, so did Jesus
reveal his glory; he who had commanded his disciples not to declare that he is
the Christ?! As in the following texts:
Matthew 16:20 Then He commanded His disciples that they
should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.
Mark 8:27 Now Jesus and
His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He
asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"
Mark 8:28 So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the
prophets."
Mark 8:29 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered and said to Him, "You
are the Christ."
Mark 8:30 Then He strictly warned them that they should tell
no one about Him.
Or
did Jesus declare His glory when he met with Pilate or Herod during his trial,
he who did not respond to any question, so he did not respond to the question
of what is the truth when Pilate asked him about it? As in the following texts:
Matthew 27:14 But He answered him not one word, so
that the governor marveled greatly.
Mark 15:5 But Jesus still answered nothing, so that
Pilate marveled.
Luke 23:9 Then he questioned Him with many words, but
He answered him nothing.
John 18:38 Pilate said to Him, "What is
truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews,
and said to them, "I find no fault in Him at all.
John 19:9 and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus,
"Where are You from?" But Jesus gave him no answer.
Isaiah 40:6 The voice said, "Cry out!" And he said,
"What shall I cry?" "All flesh is grass, And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
Isaiah 40:7 The grass withers, the flower fades, Because
the breath of the LORD blows upon it; Surely the people are grass.
Isaiah 40:8 The grass withers, the flower fades, But the
word of our God stands forever."
These
paragraphs talk about the lack of faith among the people, but say that the word
of God stands forever, and I have shown that the word of the Lord stands
forever in the first chapter, but the churches know well that they have
violated the word of their god, i.e., Jesus, when he said he was not sent
except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, they turned to preach among
the Gentiles, and many others, which contrasts with the word of Jesus, so why
the words of Jesus do not stand forever if the text was talking about John the
Baptist and Jesus?
Matthew 15:23 But He answered her not a word. And His disciples
came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after
us."
Matthew 15:24 But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the
lost sheep of the house of Israel."
Matthew 10:5 These
twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: "Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do
not enter a city of the Samaritans.
Matthew 10:6
"But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Isaiah 40:9 O Zion, You
who bring good tidings, Get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, You who
bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah,
"Behold your God!"
Isaiah 40:10 Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with a strong hand, And His arm shall
rule for Him; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him.
Isaiah 40:11 He will feed His flock like a shepherd;
He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with
young.
These
paragraphs, if anyone says it refers to Jesus, he must tell us when and where
was Jesus reigned, with knowing that he refused to be king, as in the following
text:
John 6:15 Therefore when
Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to
make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.
Moreover,
he said that his kingdom is not of this world as in the following text:
John 18:36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom
were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered
to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here."
Furthermore,
he refused to divide the inheritance between two brothers, and said "Man,
who made me a judge or an arbitrator over you?" as in the following text:
Luke 12:13 Then one
from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the
inheritance with me."
Luke 12:14 But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?"
In
addition, he was paying the taxes to Caesar and calls the Jews to pay, by saying
"give to Caesar what is Caesar's", as in the following texts:
Matthew 17:27 "Nevertheless,
lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that
comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of
money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."
Matthew 22:21 They said to Him, "Caesar’s." And He said
to them, "Render
therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things
that are God’s."
As
well as where are the rewards of Jesus that were given to the disciples, while
the Gospels say that some women were helping to support them out of their means,
as in the following text:
Luke 8:1 Now it came to
pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and
bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him,
Luke 8:2 and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and
infirmities — Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons,
Luke 8:3 and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and
Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.
Isaiah 40:12 Who has
measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, Measured heaven
with a span And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure? Weighed
the mountains in scales And the hills in a balance?
Isaiah 40:13 Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD,
Or as His counselor has
taught Him?
Isaiah 40:14 With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, And taught Him
in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, And showed
Him the way of understanding?
The
good people of the followers of the churches should pay attention to these
questions, and rethinking in them, and compare them with the characteristics of
Jesus to find out what is the truth of what they believe in, and how the
churches have violated the Old Testament.
Isaiah 40:15 Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, And are counted as the small
dust on the scales; Look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing.
Isaiah 40:16 And Lebanon is
not sufficient to burn, Nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.
Isaiah 40:17 All nations before Him are as nothing, And they are counted by Him less than
nothing and worthless.
Isaiah 40:18 To whom
then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him?
This
is the most significant question in the human life, therefore, to whom then do
you liken God? Or what likeness do you compare to Him?
Is
the LORD like any one of his creatures, whether was born of a woman only, or of
a man and a woman?
Is
the Lord like the one who has settled in the womb of a woman for nine months,
and was suckling milk for growing? And drinks and eats and sleeps, and feels
thirsty and hungry, and feels tired, and was beaten and whipped, and was crying
out, and in the end died?!
Matthew 1:25 and did not know her till she had brought forth
her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.
Luke 2:6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were
completed for her to be delivered.
Luke 2:7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son,
and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there
was no room for them in the inn.
John 4:6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being
wearied from His journey, sat
thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.
John 4:7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her,
"Give Me a
drink."
Luke 24:42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some
honeycomb.
Luke 24:43 And He took it
and ate in their presence.
Mark 4:38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.
And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are
perishing?"
Matthew 26:67 Then they spat in His face and beat
Him; and others struck Him
with the palms of their hands,
Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with
a loud voice, saying, "Eli,
Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You
forsaken Me?"
Matthew 27:50 And Jesus
cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His
spirit.
Thus
to whom then do you liken the LORD the Creator? Or what likeness do you compare
to Him?!
Isaiah 40:19 The workman molds an image, The
goldsmith overspreads it with gold, And the silversmith casts silver chains.
Isaiah 40:20 Whoever is
too impoverished for such a
contribution Chooses a tree that will
not rot; He seeks for himself a skillful workman To prepare a carved
image that will not totter.
Isaiah 40:21 Have you not known? Have you not
heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have
you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
Have
you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have
you not understood from the foundations of the earth, that the LORD is not like
any creature?
Or
have you wanted to compare the LORD with Jesus and his father, who said that he
is a man and he who has seen him has seen his father, as in the following texts:
John 8:39 They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our
father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of
Abraham.
John 8:40 "But
now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I
heard from God. Abraham did not do this.
John 14:9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me,
Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you
say, ‘Show us the Father’?
John 12:45 "And
he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.
Isaiah 40:25 "To whom then will you liken Me,
Or to whom shall I be
equal?" says the Holy One.
Says
the LORD the Holy One to whom then will you liken Him, or to whom shall He be
equal?!
Isaiah 40:26 Lift up your eyes on high, And see who
has created these things, Who
brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name,
By the greatness of His might And the strength of His power; Not one is missing.
To
whom then do you liken Me, or to whom shall I be equal? Says the LORD the Holy
One, lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things.
The
rest of the texts talk about the Lord and his ability which does not fail in
creating anything.
Isaiah 40:27 Why do you
say, O Jacob, And speak, O Israel: "My way is hidden from the LORD, And my
just claim is passed over by my God"?
Isaiah 40:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.
Isaiah 40:29 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases
strength.
From
this careful reading of some events of the story of John the Baptist in the
Gospels, and reading the text of Isaiah, we find that the Gospels authors did
not write this text according to the real seeing or hearing, but according to
their way of writing, which is the quoting the texts of the Old Testament and
reformulating them in their accounts to bestow a state of holiness and
credibility and reliability on the Gospels, and this appears clearly in the
beginning of the Gospel of Mark as we have read where he attributed it to the
book of Isaiah, while he quoted from Malachi and Isaiah at the same time, not
from Isaiah alone, which forced some scribes to correct this error later, as
shown in the previous chapter, so we conclude that our law "do not accept
the lying and false" applies to the Saying that John the Baptist is the
Voice of One Crying in the Wilderness.
6 - The Source of the Saying that John the Baptist is an Angel or a Messenger
Matthew 11:10 "For
this is he of whom it is
written: ‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will
prepare Your way before You’.
Mark 1:2 As it is written in the Prophets:
"Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your
way before You."
Mark 1:3 "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare
the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight’."
Luke 7:27 "This
is he of whom it is written:
‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way
before You’.
Luke 7:28 "For
I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than
John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than
he."
In these texts Matthew, Mark and Luke wrote that the
one who is intended in the text of Malachi is John the Baptist, which means
that John the Baptist is a messenger before Jesus' face, who he will prepare
his way before him, and here we have several notes on this issue.
The first is that in the most of the manuscripts have been written
an angel, not a messenger, So if we say that the texts talk about an angel this
will cause a problem, because Luke has written that John the Baptist is a man, and
born of a man and a woman according to the promise from the Lord, because his
mother was barren, and his parents were both well along in years, and the birth
of John was as a prelude of the birth of Jesus, as in the following text:
Luke 1:36 "Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also
conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her
who was called barren.
Luke 1:37 "For with God nothing will be impossible."
The
second is if we agreed with the other
manuscripts that say that the texts talk about a messenger, this also will
cause a problem because John was not a messenger for Jesus, as is shown
previously.
The
third is that the text of Mark has a textual
problem, because it is written in the oldest manuscripts "as it is written
in Isaiah", not as it is written in the prophets, as shown previously.
Despite
all this, we should read the text which the authors of the three Gospels had
cited to say that John the Baptist is a messenger, or an angel, to find out if
it was a prophecy about John or not, which is mentioned in the book of Malachi,
chapter III, which is as follows:
Malachi 3:1 "Behold,
I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me.
And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple,
Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He
is coming," Says the LORD of hosts.
This
is the paragraph which has been quoted by the Gospels authors, and it says that
the LORD will send His messenger to prepare the way before Him, but the Gospels
authors said it was talking about Jesus and John the Baptist. Now let's agree
with them; yet does the rest of the text talk about them?!
The
following paragraphs say that the LORD will suddenly come to His temple, even
the Messenger (or the Angel) of the covenant, in whom the Jews delight, nevertheless,
the Gospels authors did not write any story about Jesus, and how he came
suddenly to the temple with John the Baptist, if the text was talking about
John! But they told us that John has lived in the wilderness until he was
arrested, and then had been cut off his head and was presented on a plate to a
dancer woman, and did not tell us that he was with Jesus, or met him except
during the baptism, and that the Jews have delight when they saw them in the
temple, but they wrote that when Jesus comes to the temple was not openly, but
in secret, because he was afraid of the Jews, even he was at his last visit to
the temple not safe to stay there during night, for this he stayed outside
Jerusalem with his disciples, as in the following texts:
Luke 21:37 And in the daytime He was teaching in the temple,
but at night He went out and stayed on the mountain called
Olivet.
John 7:1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did
not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.
John 7:10 But when His brothers had gone up, then He
also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.
John 11:53 Then, from that day on, they plotted to put Him to
death.
John 11:54 Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the
Jews, but went from there into the country near the wilderness, to a city
called Ephraim, and there remained with His disciples.
Malachi 3:2 "But who can endure the day of His coming?
And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire And like launderer’s soap.
As
for this paragraph, it is certainly does not talk about Jesus nor John the
Baptist, because John the Baptist was killed before the coming of Jesus to
Jerusalem, and when Jesus came to Jerusalem, his coming was not difficult for
Jews, and was not like a refiner’s fire and like launderer’s soap, because they
tried hard to kill him and have succeeded to do so after several days of his
coming as the Gospels say!
Malachi 3:3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He
will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That
they may offer to the LORD An offering in righteousness.
This
paragraph confirms that the text was not talking about John the Baptist and
Jesus, because the Gospels authors did not say that Jesus has purified and
refined the sons of Levi, but wrote that the sons of Levi are the ones who
sought to crucify Jesus and kill him!
Malachi 3:4 "Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem
Will be pleasant to the LORD, As in the days of old, As in
former years.
Malachi 3:5 And I will come near you for judgment; I
will be a swift witness Against sorcerers, Against adulterers,
Against perjurers, Against those who exploit wage earners and widows and
orphans, And against those who turn away an alien — Because they do not fear
Me," Says the LORD of hosts.
The
first verse says that the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to
the LORD, which was rejected by the churches because they state that there is
no longer the offerings and sacrifices after the crucifixion of Jesus, and that
he is the only acceptable sacrifice to God, and here I will not talk about this
doctrine, but certainly this verse was not talking about the time of Jesus.
The
second verse talks about the judgment of the LORD among the people, while Jesus
did not claim such as this task for himself in one day throughout his life, because
he has refused to condemn the woman who was caught in adultery, (John 8:1-11),
and refused to divide the inheritance between two brothers, (Luke 12: 13-14),
as well as refused to be king over the Jews, (John 6:15).
From all of the above, we conclude that Malachi was not talking or
prophesying about John the Baptist, but the Gospels authors, as is their way or
method or approach, have used the texts of the Old Testament to compose their
accounts to bestow a state of holiness and credibility and reliability on the
Gospels regardless of the real meaning of the texts or even if they contradict
with what they have written in their Gospels, which indicates that our law
"do not accept the lying and false" applies to these texts.
(Note:
the following post is in Section V in the book, but because it's related with
previous posts I liked to post them together)
12
- The Source of the Saying of Jesus that John the Baptist is Elijah
In
the previous section we have read that the Gospels authors describe John the
Baptist as an angel, or a messenger, and the voice of one crying in the
wilderness, and how they quoted the texts of the Old Testament to prove it, and
here we will read another description, which is that John the Baptist is Elijah
the prophet! As in the following texts:
Matthew 11:2 And when John had heard in prison about
the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples
Matthew 11:3 and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One,
or do we look for another?"
Matthew 11:4 Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things which you
hear and see:
Matthew 11:5
"The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the
deaf hear; the dead are raised up and
the poor have the gospel preached to
them.
Matthew 11:6
"And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."
Matthew 11:7 As
they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John:
"What did you go out
into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?
Matthew 11:8
"But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed,
those who wear soft clothing are in
kings’ houses.
Matthew 11:9
"But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to
you, and more than a prophet.
Matthew 11:10 "For
this is he of whom it is
written: ‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will
prepare Your way before You’.
Matthew 11:11 "Assuredly,
I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater
than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of
heaven is greater than he.
Matthew 11:12 "And
from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers
violence, and the violent take it by force.
Matthew 11:13 "For
all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
Matthew 11:14 "And
if you are willing to receive it, he
is Elijah who is to come.
Matthew 11:15 "He
who has ears to hear, let him hear!
Matthew 17:10 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Why
then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"
Matthew 17:11 Jesus answered and said to them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first
and will restore all things.
Matthew 17:12 "But
I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not
know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise the Son of Man
is also about to suffer at their hands."
Matthew 17:13 Then the disciples understood that He spoke to
them of John the Baptist.
Mark 9:11 And they asked Him, saying, "Why do the scribes say
that Elijah must come first?"
Mark 9:12 Then He answered and told them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first
and restores all things. And how is it written concerning the Son of
Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt?
Mark 9:13 "But
I say to you that Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they
wished, as it is written of him."
In
these texts, Matthew and Mark wrote on the lips of Jesus that John the Baptist
is Elijah, and this description is unacceptable more than the previous ones,
because we may find some excuse to describe him as an angel, or a messenger, or
the voice of one crying, which appeared that they are untrue as shown
previously, but describing him as a man who was born before hundreds of years; I
think that there will be no one can believe or imagine this description!
I
wonder, if someone said to Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist, that the fetus
who in her womb is in fact a man who was born before hundreds of years what
will her reaction be?!
However,
what is the opinion of John the Baptist himself of this description, does he
say that he is Elijah?!
Let's
read the following text:
John 1:19 Now this
is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from
Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"
John 1:20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, "I
am not the Christ."
John 1:21 And they asked him, "What then? Are
you Elijah?" He said, "I am not."
"Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No."
John 1:22 Then they said to him, "Who are you, that we may
give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?"
John 1:23 He said: "I am
‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Make straight the way of the
Lord,"‘ as the prophet Isaiah said."
In
this text John writes in his Gospel that John the Baptist said to the Jews that
he is not Elijah!
So,
whom should we believe; Matthew and Mark, who have written on the lips of Jesus
that John the Baptist is Elijah, or John the gospel writer who has written on
the lips of John the Baptist himself that he is not Elijah?!
The
choosing of any of these sayings will prove that there are many contradictions
among the stories and paragraphs of the Gospels that cannot be reconciled
between them, which indicates that the writing of the Gospels was away from the
revelation and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and the quoting from the Old
Testament texts is an attempt by the Gospels authors to say that they are from
the same source to bestow a state of holiness and reliability and credibility
on the Gospels as is their method and approach of writing the Gospels, as is
shown in this book.
It
is almost certainly that the reason for saying about John that he is Elijah
because of reading Matthew and Mark what is written in the book of Malachi
chapter IV, which is as follows:
Malachi 4:1 "For behold, the day is coming,
Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be
stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up," Says the LORD of
hosts, "That will leave them neither root nor branch.
Malachi 4:2 But to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness
shall arise With healing in His wings; And you shall go out And grow fat like
stall-fed calves.
Malachi 4:3 You shall trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes
under the soles of your feet On the day that I do this," Says the LORD of hosts.
Malachi 4:4 "Remember
the Law of Moses, My servant, Which I commanded him
in Horeb for all Israel, With the
statutes and judgments.
Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before
the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.
Malachi 4:6 And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to
the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers,
Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."
This
is the text that made Matthew and Mark to write this error, because of the lack
of understanding the exact meaning of it, or ignorance of the history of the
story of Elijah, and seeking to write their Gospels through the Old Testament
texts as is their method of writing the Gospels to serve what they believe in!
But
if we read this text carefully, away of the foolish and the stupid of arguments
and interpretations, will see that it was talking about sending Elijah the
prophet at the first time, especially, the calling to remember the Law of
Moses, His servant, which He commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, with the
statutes and judgments, which have not been committed to by the churches, as
shown previously, and this thing will be appeared clearly in the following text:
1Kings 18:36 And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening
sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, "LORD
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things
at Your word.
1Kings 18:37 "Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this
people may know that You are the
LORD God, and that You have
turned their hearts back to You again."
In
this text we read that Elijah said "Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this
people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their
hearts back to You again", which indicates that the text or the prophecy
of Malachi took place before hundreds of years of the birth of Jesus, not as
Matthew and Mark said that it has been fulfilled in Jesus' time, and refers to
John the Baptist!
This
way of interpretation of the Old Testament texts and writing them in the
narratives of Gospels is the main reason of all the contradictions and
discrepancies and differences, which we read in the Gospels; and this will be more
clear if we read what Luke wrote about John the Baptist and his relationship
with Elijah, as in the following text:
Luke 1:13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be
afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will
bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
Luke 1:14 "And you will have joy and gladness,
and many will rejoice at his birth.
Luke 1:15 "For he will be great in the sight of the
Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also
be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
Luke 1:16 "And he will turn many of the children of
Israel to the Lord their God.
Luke 1:17 "He will also go before Him in the spirit and
power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the
children’, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make
ready a people prepared for the Lord."
Luke 1:18 And Zacharias said to the angel, "How shall I know
this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years."
As
we read that Luke has written that John the Baptist will turn many of the
children of Israel to the Lord their God, and turn the hearts of the fathers to
the children to make ready a people prepared for the Lord, and these words are
the same words of Malachi, but Luke wrote it as a prophecy of the angel about
John the Baptist, and did not say that John is Elijah, but he said "He
will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah"!
This
unfulfilled prophecy with John the Baptist, as shown previously, indicates that
the former saying is not a revelation or inspiration of the Holy Spirit, but was
quoted from the Old Testament. However, what is the source of the Luke's story,
which is that John the Baptist will go before Jesus in the spirit and power of
Elijah?
Let's
read the following text:
2Kings 2:15 Now when the sons of the prophets who were from Jericho saw him, they said,
"The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha." And they came
to meet him, and bowed to the ground before him.
In
this text we read that the spirit of Elijah has rested on Elisha, for this when
Luke read this text thought that the spirit of Elijah is its own, ignoring that
the spirit which was with the prophets of the children of Israel were separated
from them, as shown in the first chapter, for this he wrote that John will go
before Jesus in the spirit and power of Elijah, which appeared to us as have
already explained that John did not go before Jesus in the spirit of Elijah nor
in his own spirit!
All
of this indicates that the Gospels authors did not write these stories and
sayings by any kind of revelation or inspiration, because the revelation and
the inspiration do not contradict with each other, nor contain false stories.
From all of the above, shows to us that the Gospels writers did not write these texts through any kind of revelation or inspiration, because the revelation or inspiration do not commit such these errors and contradictions, but they wrote them through their way and method and approach of writing, which is the quoting the texts from the Old Testament and reformulating them in their accounts to bestow a state of holiness and credibility and reliability on the Gospels, which means that the law "do not accept the lying and false" applies to all of them.
No comments:
Post a Comment