1 Kings 9:10-19 - At the end of twenty years

9:10-14

We now get a sign of things starting to not go well. Hiram had been on good terms with David, and then with Solomon, supplying him with much of the material for the building of the temple and the royal palace. However, things now start to break down. In return for his help, Solomon gave Hiram twenty towns in Galilee. There is the question of whether Solomon had the right, in God’s eyes, to give away these towns. Whatever the case on that matter, Hiram was not pleased. The goods he had given to Solomon, including much gold, were truly valuable, but Hiram did not consider these twenty towns to be up to much at all. Hiram called the “Land of Kabul” (or Cabul, if you are reading ESV)., which means “good for nothing”. And they seem to have retained this title!

9:15-19

Solomon used a lot of forced labour in building the temple and the palace, along with other structures as well. Remember that Solomon had married Pharaoh’s daughter. Pharaoh gave his daughter Gezer as a wedding gift, after he had captured it and set it on fire. So Gezer doesn’t actually seem that much better than the towns of Galilee.  However, Solomon rebuilt Gezer. Solomon was a master planner.

Mark 13:1-4 - Not one stone

13:1,2

The disciples are leaving the temple, and one of them remarks on the “massive stones” and “magnificent buildings”. The buildings were probably other parts of the temple complex. Jesus does not deny that the buildings were magnificent. However, He then goes on to say that the buildings would be completely destroyed. This did indeed happen in AD 70.

13:3,4

What Jesus had just said was quite momentous, and Peter, James, John and Andrew all wanted to know when these things would happen. They also want to know what the sign would be that these things were about to happen. They appreciated the enormity of what would happen, and wanted warning of them being about to happen. 

1 Kings 9:6-9 - If you turn away from me

9:6,7

We then get the alternative, what will happen if they do not walk in obedience? This, of course, is what did happen. The kings, Solomon included, did not observe all God’s commands, and did go off to worship other gods. In that case, then Israel would be cut off from the land, and God would reject the temple. There was no permanent commitment to the temple. Israel, instead of being the head of nations, would become the tail.

9:8,9

The temple would become a heap of rubble. Jer 5:7 warned them against putting a superstitious hope in the temple. And Jesus warned that the temple (the second temple) would become a heap of rubble (Mark 13:2). Israel would become an object of scorn. The nations would also recognise that these terrible things had happened to Israel because Israel had forsaken her God. One way or another, Israel would be a  sign to the nations.

Mark 13:1 - Look, Teacher!

13:1

This chapter contains the longest recorded speech by Jesus in Mark. With its apocalyptic tone it provides controversy and difficulty in interpreting it. I must admit that the problems do not seem to me to be as great as are sometimes made out. The passage refers to both the destruction of the temple, which occurred in AD 70, and to the very end times. There are some extreme views that see it referring predominantly to one or the other. The simplest outline sees vv 5-23 as referring to the destruction of the temple, and vv 24-37 to the second coming. A slightly more complicated pattern is 5-23 and 28-31 refer to the destruction of the temple, and 24-27 and 32-37 to the second coming. Schnabel (from whom I got the above information) simplifies this structure with 5-23 to the destruction of the temple, 24-27 to the second coming, and 28-37 with the consequences to the disciples of the destruction of the temple, and the second coming of Jesus. My own view is that while some parts clearly refer to one or the other, the two are related. With a number of promises in the Bible, and things like the dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8) have both an immediate fulfilment and  also look forward to the greater and complete fulfilment in Christ.

1 Kings 9:1-5 - When Solomon had finished building

9:1-3

“The Lord appeared to him a second time”. This would imply that the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, as He had done on the previous occasion (1 Kings 3:5). This time the Lord assures Solomon that He has heard the prayers and pleas that we read about in the previous chapter. “I have consecrated this temple”. In Deuteronomy there was repeated emphasis on the importance of worshipping at the place that God would choose. God confirms that this temple is the place that He has chosen. God’s “eyes and heart” would always be on the temple.

9:4,5

The promise is conditional, and as Deuteronomy, and Solomon’s prayer, show, there was always the expectation that Israel would fail. “If you walk before me with integrity”.  The promise was conditional upon obedience. If Solomon and his successors obeyed the Lord, then they would continue to be on the throne of Israel. 

Mark 12:41-44 - A poor woman

12:41,42

Having seen examples of people who do not understand, or people who have far too high opinion of themselves, and are regarded highly in society, we now get the opposite. We encounter a person who was considered to be of little value by society, but is actually contributing more to God than all the “important” people. Many rich people were making large contributions, and everyone would know about it for the money would be checked before it was put in the temple treasury. Then there was a poor widow who put in two small coins, an apparently very meagre contribution. So the natural assessment of the situation would be that the rich people had given generously, but that the widow had given little.

12:43,44

Jesus gave a very different assessment of the situation. It was the widow who had actually given the most, for she had given “all she had to live on”, she had given out of her poverty. The others had given out of their wealth. Now this does not mean it is wrong to give out of our wealth, nor that it is wrong to be wealthy. The Bible contains a number of good wealthy people. What does matter is our heart attitude. If we are blessed with wealth we should give generously, but we should not think we are anything special.

1 Kings 8:62-66 - Offered sacrifices before the Lord

8:62-64

After all this many more sacrifices are offered. Again it is a vast number, though this time they are counted. Twenty two thousand cattle and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. The numbers do seem to be incredibly large. Thi was the culmination of the dedication of the temple of the Lord. Burnt and grain offerings were offered in order to consecrate the “middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple”. There is a recognition that the altar in the temple itself could not handle all the sacrifices.

8:65,66

The offerings were made in accordance with the requirements of the Law. It seems that all Israel was there. “From Lebo Hamath to the Wadi of Egypt” indicates the extent of Solomon’s empire. The whole event took fourteen days in total. The people were then sent away. The people blessed the king and they were “joyful and glad in heart”, and were grateful to the Lord. This was the high watermark of Israel, sadly things would soon go downhill from here.

Mark 12:38b-40 - Watch out for the teachers of the Law

12:38b-40

The teachers of the Law walked around in flowing robes, receiving greetings in the market-places. It was the custom that inferiors should greet their superiors. The teachers of the Law had a high opinion of themselves, and liked to milk their supposed status.  They took the best seats in the synagogues and at banquets. One might say that many bishops today like to wear fancy garments. 

In the Old Testament there are many commands to look after the poor, orphans and widows, and we are told that God has a special concern for widows. Instead of following these commands, the teachers of the Law “devoured” widow’s houses. Even using “legal” means to take their property. They also made lengthy prayers, boasting of how clever they were. Jesus assures the people that “these men will be punished most severely”. There are always individuals or groups of people who seem to get away with things, but no one can escape the judgement of God.

1 Kings 8:54-61 - When Solomon had finished

8:54-57

Solomon had been kneeling before the altar while he uttered all these prayers, and had had his hands “spread out towards heaven”. Then he stood and blessed the whole assembly. The basis for the blessing was that God had fulfilled all His promises made through Moses. Solomon asks that God would never leave nor forsake them. Sadly, Israel would leave and forsake the Lord.

8:58-61

“May He turn out hearts to Him ...” Israel would turn away from the Lord, but there will come a time when they do turn back to the Lord. The goal is that “all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God”. “And may your hearts be fully committed.” God’s purposes are a fully committed people, and His glory going throughout the earth. These purposes have not changed.

Mark 14:62-65 -You will see he Son of Man at thr right hand of the Mighty One

14:62

The latter point is brought out all the more clearly in Jesus’ reply. He affirms that He is the Messiah and the Son of God. Interestingly He also sticks with the title Son of Man as well. Then, as He often did, He makes the situation “worse”, ie far from compromising He makes the situation even more acute. Jesus tells them that one day they would see Him seated at the right hand of God. There is now no doubt about the situation.

 

14:63

The high priest knew exactly what Jesus was saying, there was no room for “interpretation”. So he tore his clothes, this is a common idiom in the Bible, representing repentance or horror at what one has done, or what someone else has done. In this case it was the amazing claims of Jesus.

14:64,65

In the eyes of the high priest Jesus had blasphemed, He had claimed equality with God. So the “court” was unanimously agreed that Jesus must die, He was deserving of death. So they mocked Jesus and spat upon Him, and He was beaten with many blows. All this was outside the proper functioning of the court. They also had the problem that they did not have the authority to actually put Jesus to death, which is why the Romans had to be brought into the picture.

Mark 12:36-38a - The Lord said to my Lord

12:36,37

Jesus quotes from Ps 110:1. Psalm 110 was accepted as being messianic, and it is oft quoted or alluded to in the New Testament. The key point used by Jesus here is “The Lord said to my Lord”, followed by “Sit at my right hand ...” The two figures here are treated as equal, and this Psalm was written by David. So David is referring to someone greater than his son, for he would not write about his son in such terms. “The large crowd listened to Him with delight”. Why with delight? Maybe because the teachers of the Law considered themselves to be so learned , and such experts in the Bible, yet here was Jesus clearly demonstrating that they were not as clever as they thought they were.

12:38a

Jesus continues His criticism of the teachers of the Law by saying “Watch out for the teachers of the Law”. When the teacher of the Law asked Jesus the question about the greatest commandment I remarked that he seemed a rather proud person, somewhat full of himself. Jesus did tell him that he was not far from the kingdom of God, so seems to have had a favourable attitude towards him, but clearly Jesus did not think much of the teachers of the Law in general.

1 Kings 8:48-53 - If they turn back to you

8:48-51

When they do wholeheartedly turn back to the Lord, Solomon calls on God to hear their cries for mercy. This is based on the original promises given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Solomon asks God to  forgive all their sins, and also for their captors to show them mercy. This happened in the Babylonian captivity. Cyrus sent them back to Israel, and Artaxerxes showed mercy by allowing Nehemiah to go to Jerusalem to organise the rebuilding work. Solomon reminds God of how He brought the Israelites out of Egypt. God has a long term commitment to Israel. We need to realise that God has a long term commitment to us, His favour is not based on a whim.

8:52,53

God being open to the cry of His people is considered essential by Solomon. Indeed, a repeated characteristic of people being in right relationship with the Lord is that they cry out to Him and that He hears them. The basis for Solomon expecting this is that God “singled them out”. God chose and formed Israel. We too have been chosen by Christ (John 15:16). We should expect God to hear our prayers.

Mark 14:53-56 - Many testified falsely

14:53-55

This “court” was highly unusual, meeting late at night. All the Jewish religious leaders were involved. Peter had followed at a distance and had even gone into the courtyard. He was warming himself by the fire. The Council (the Sanhedrin) wanted to find an excuse to put Jesus to death. When fear and self-interest get a hold our thinking becomes very warped, and here the Council was totally blind to how wrong their actions were, effectively contemplating murder. We can always wonder how others can be so blind. Many of us are amazed at how pro-abortionists can be so blind to the fact that abortion involves killing a human being. But we must always be aware that we can be blind to our own sins. That is part of the reason we need the Holy Spirit, and that we need each other. For God will often use others to make us aware of areas of our lives that need to change.

14:56

In seeking to achieve their aims they could find many willing to bear false witness, but their testimonies did not add up. We should be aware of how evil works. There will be elements where evil seems to succeed, but because of the inherent contradictions in evil it will always ultimately fall.

Mark 12:34,35 - You are not far from the kingdom of God

12:34

Despite my thinking the man is a bit full of himself, Jesus thinks he has answered wisely, which of course he has, but then says “You are not far from the kingdom of God”. The man may well have many right insights and views, but this alone does not save him. We all need to beware of thinking that because we have the right doctrine or views, then that makes us right.

“And from then on no one dared ask Him any more questions”. Luke does not have the greatest commandment encounter, and places this comment immediately after the confrontation with the Sadducees, which seems a more appropriate place for it in some ways. However, in Mark’s account it would have looked a bit silly there as the teacher of the Law then asks another question!

12:35

Having been asked a number of questions, Jesus now poses His own question, “Why do the teachers of the Law say that the Messiah is the son of David?”. Now the greatest commandment questioner was a teacher of the Law, and if he was trying to show how clever he was, Jesus is showing that the Teachers of the Law were not as clever as they thought they were. We should understand that Jesus did not object to the term “Son of David” per se, for He had used it Himself, rather their understanding was very limited. The Messiah was much more than the “Son of David”. 

1 Kings 8:41-47 - As for the foreigner

8:41-43

God’s promise to Abraham was that all peoples would be blessed through him (Gen 12:3). We see here Solomon looking forward to that promise being fulfilled. How would it happen? The nations would hear of the great name of the Lord and what He has done. Then they would come to pray towards God’s temple. When this happens, Solomon calls on God to hear their prayers. Solomon sees everything focused around the temple, in terms of the temple representing God’s presence.

8:44,45

This prayer does not involve Israel’s sin! It concerns God’s people going out to war against their enemies. “Wherever you send them”, then “when they pray to the Lord”, with the temple again being mentioned. So here the people are acting in obedience to the Lord, In those circumstances Solomon asks God to “uphold their cause”.

8:46,47

We are back to sin! “When they sins against you ...” Solomon knows that all people sin, and Israel is no different. The Old Testament is completely clear on the sinfulness of Israel, and the whole of the world. Solomon also knows that this will result in God’s judgement upon Israel. He then goes on to consider the possibility of the people realising that they have sinned, and turning back to the Lord.

Mark 12:29-33 -Hear, O Israel

12:29-31

Jesus responds by citing the Shema, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is One” and then going on to say that we should love God with all that we have (Deut 6:4,5). Jesus then goes on to say “Love your neighbour as yourself” (Lev 19:18). In Matt 22:39 Jesus says “and the second is like it”. 1 John emphasises the point that if we say we love God but do not love our neighbour, then our supposed love for God is a sham. Loving God can become very theoretical, loving our neighbour roots it in reality.

12:32.33

“Well said teacher ...” seems a little like the teacher is giving Jesus high marks, as though he is the one judging Jesus. He congratulates Jesus on saying God is one, and is above all. He then adds the comment that loving God and loving our neighbour is more important than “all burnt offerings and sacrifices”, and there is Biblical warrant for this in the Old Testament.

1 Kings 8:35-40 - When the heavens are shut up

8:35,36

Next is the case where there is no rain “because your people have sinned against you”. Again, it looks forward to the time when they turn back to God and repent of their sins “because you have afflicted”. We need to face up to the fact that sometimes God does afflict people because of their sin. The result asked for here is God sending rain back to the land.

8:37-40

Next come plagues, or an enemy besieging the cities. It then becomes even more general, “whatever disease or disaster may come”. Yet again Solomon asks God to hear their plea when they turn back to God and His temple, asking for help. Solomon recognises that God alone knows the hearts of all men. The goal is that the people fear the Lord (which is equivalent to knowing the Lord) and will live in the “land you gave our ancestors”. All the requests look to seeing God’s purposes being fulfilled.

Mark 14:67-72 - You were with Jesus

14:67-7

Peter may have thought he was escsping scrutiny, but there was no escape. Another servant girl saw him and studied him closely, she recognized that he had been with Jesus and told him so. Again, Peter denied it \\yet again Peer tried to escape, and yet again failed.  The more accusations, the more vehemently \ Peter denied knowing Jesus. Then the cock crowed s second time and peter remembered \jedSus’ words . Peter realised what a failure he was, and broke down and cried bitterly.

Mark 12:27,28 - The God of the living

12:27

“He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!” God surely is the God of the living, there is not much point being the God of the dead! This also implies that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are alive and will be raised. There is no record of the response in Mark’s gospel, though Luke says that no one dared to ask Him anymore questions.

12:28

We now get another questioner, this time one of the teachers of the Law. This time the question is not hostile Schnabel posits the possibility that the questioner may start off as being hostile, but there really does not seem to be any evidence for this in the text. The questioner notices “that Jesus had given them a good answer”. This would suggest that the man was a Pharisee, or at least sympathetic to them. He then asks which is the most important commandment? Now why does he do this? It could be a further test of Jesus, or it could be the man trying to prove how clever he is!

1 Kings 8:31-34 - Then hear from heaven

8:31,32

We now get a series of sins, based on Deuteronomy. The first in the series asks God to judge a case. Why is he asking God to do this? Presumably it is because there are no witnesses, so man is not able to properly judge the case. God is the only one who has full knowledge of the matter. We need to recognise the limits of human judges.

8:33,34

There then follow a number of cases where the nation is under judgement from God. The first example is where the army has been defeated “because they have sinned against you”. Solomon asks God to forgive them when they turn back to the Lord, repenting and praising God. The Old Testament always accepts/knows that Israel would not keep the Law, and so there is provision for repentance and forgiveness. Note that forgiveness and repentance go together. “Teach them the right way to live”. Forgiveness is not “being let off”, but involves learning the right way. The result asked for here is God bringing the people back to the land.

Mark 13:69-72 - Peter's denial complete

14:69-72

The servant girl saw him again, and this time said to those around about that Peter was one of Jesus’ disciples. Again Peter denied it. The third time those standing near Peter accused him of being with Jesus. His accent may have given him away as a Galilean, and they knew that many of Jesus’ disciples were Galileans. Galileans were looked down upon, regarded as peasants. Peter then denied knowing Jesus all the more vehemently, even calling down curses upon himself. Then the rooster crowed and Peter came to his senses, remembering what Jesus had said, and realising what he had done. It is so easy to do the wrong thing. In 1 Per 1:13 Peter tells us to prepare our minds for action. We need to do this in order to reduce the risk of our doing something sinful or wrong. Otherwise it is easy for us to be caught off guard and our flesh will cease the opportunity.

mark 15:1-7 - Are you the king of the Jews?

15:1

Jesus is now brought before Pilate, the Jewish religious leaders were unable to have Jesus killed themselves, they needed the Romans to do it for them. So there is an interesting comparison here. The Jews and the Gentile had to work together to reject Jesus. Now the Gentiles and Jews together can find eternal life by believing in Jesus. Jesus was bound and handed over to Pilate, the Roman governor. Just ponder on this for a moment. Men have bound the Son of God, and the Son of God, who could have called on myriads of angels, has let them, has submitted to this.

15:2-4

Pilate asks Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “You have said so” was Jesus reply. In many ways Jesus’ answers were not helpful. What He was doing was let the Jewish leaders, Pilate and others take the consequences of their decisions. The chief priests piled on a heap of other accusations. Jesus remained silent and Pilate was perplexed that Jesus did not answer any of their accusations.

15:5-7

The natural reaction when accused of something, especially when falsely accused, is to respond denying the accusations. Jesus’ lack of response is in line with Is 53:7. Pilate could not understand Jesus’ lack of response.  It was the custom for the governor at this time of year to release one prisoner. The governor was not obliged to do so by law, but would often do this to help maintain peaceful relations with the people. Note that this implies that prisoners were not all normal criminals, but some were “political prisoners”. The primary aim of a governor was to maintain peace, the worst thing that could happen is that there were riots, as this would make the governor look very bad in the eyes of Rome. 

Mark 12:25,26 - TheY Will neither marry nor be given in marriage

12:25

The Sadducees assumed that the resurrection was a mere continuation of this life, in particular that marriage will continue to exist as it does in this life. In 1 Cor 15 Paul makes clear that life will be very different, we die mortal, but will be raised immortal (1 Cor 15:53,54). Here Jesus points out that we will be like the angels. This does not mean we will be angels, but that we will be like them in the sense that marriage is no longer a thing.

12:26

Jesus does not leave things there. He now “puts the knife in”, as He often did. The Sadducees claimed to hold to the Book of Moses (the first five books of the Old Testament), but Jesus shows that these very books proclaim the resurrection. “Have you not read in the Book of Moses”, Jesus is now mocking the Sadducees. He refers to the incident of God meeting Moses in the burning bush, where God declares Himself to be “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob”.

1 Kings 8:27-30 - Will God really dwell on earth?

8:27,28

While Solomon is pleased to have completed the temple, and pleased that God enabled this to happen, he realises that a man made temple cannot contain the greatness of the Lord. Even so, he asks the Lord to hear his prayers, and that the Lord would have mercy upon him. “Is praying in your presence this day”. The presence of the Lord is vital for Solomon.

8:29,30

“My Name shall be there”. “Name” here is not just a title, but represents the character and person of the Lord. Solomon’s prayer is that the Lord will dwell with the people of Israel. Moses expressed a similar desire for the presence of the Lord (Ex 33:14,15), and Rev 21:3 declares that the dwelling of the Lord is now among the people. Solomon calls upon the Lord to always hear the prayers of His people, and a sign of the people being committed to the Lord is that they pray to the Lord and that He will hear and answer them.

Mark 14:53-56 - Many tetified falsely

14:53-55

This “court” was highly unusual, meeting late at night. All the Jewish religious leaders were involved. Peter had followed at a distance and had even gone into the courtyard. He was warming himself by the fire. The Council (the Sanhedrin) wanted to find an excuse to put Jesus to death. When fear and self-interest get a hold our thinking becomes very warped, and here the Council was totally blind to how wrong their actions were, effectively contemplating murder. We can always wonder how others can be so blind. Many of us are amazed at how pro-abortionists can be so blind to the fact that abortion involves killing a human being. But we must always be aware that we can be blind to our own sins. That is part of the reason we need the Holy Spirit, and that we need each other. For God will often use others to make us aware of areas of our lives that need to change.

14:56

In seeking to achieve their aims they could find many willing to bear false witness, but their testimonies did not add up. We should be aware of how evil works. There will be elements where evil seems to succeed, but because of the inherent contradictions in evil it will always ultimately fall.

Mark 14:53-62 - Many testified falsely against Him

14:53,54

Jesus questioned his captors as to why they needed to use force, for he was not leading a rebellion. They had had ample opportunity to arrest him, but had not taken these opportunities.At this point everyone fled. A young man is named who fled naked. his anonymity if preserved possibly for his own safety. 

\The chief priests and elders were all gathered together/, they were united in their efforts ro have Jesus killed.Peter had managed to get into the courtyard probably thinking he was fulfilling his promise to stick with Jesus.

14:55,56

The chief priests and the sanhedrin were determined to find a way to have Jesus put to death, but they could not find any evidence. The evidence of those who testified against h\im did not agree. They used a misinterpreted statement of Jesus, but even these did not agree. The HIgh Priest was getting frustrated because Jesus was nor answering the so-called charges. Jesus did give an answer, but it annoyed them all the more, for He did claim to be the Messiah.

14:57-61

We now get the nature of the false accusations, namely that Jesus would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days. Mark does not record the precise words that were the basis of these accusations. Mark 13:2 could well be the basis for the destruction part. Though Jesus’ words in John 2:19 could well be the basis for the whole accusation.

14:62

Jesus knew who He was, and this was the basis for his mission, likewise the foundation for our mission must be who \jesus is. At this point the priests and guards attacked jesus.

Mark 13:63-72 - Why do we need any more witnesses

14:63

The High Priest knew that Jesus was claiming to be the Messiah, as far as he was concerned they had all they needed.They all agreed on this. They had all the evidence they needed

14:64,65

Jesus’ words if 14:62 were considered to be claiming equality with God, and so were considered to be blasphemy. Therefore, as far as the religious leaders were concerned the vase was over and Jeus deserved to die.

14:66

Peter now begins his denials.  A servant girl confronts Peter, asking if he was with Jesus, implying that she had seen him with Jesus.Peter quickly denied this. \why did he do this, maybe out of fear, maybe our of just not thinking, not being prepared.

14:67-72

Peter may have thought he was escaping scrutiny, but there was no escape. Another servant girl saw him and studied him closely, she recognized that he had been with Jesus and told him so. Again, Peter denied it yet again Peer tried to escape, and yet again failed.  The more accusations, the more vehemently  Peter denied knowing Jesus. Then the cock crowed s second time and peter remembered Jesus’ words . Peter realised what a failure he was, and broke down and cried bitterly.

Mark 12:19-24 - There were seven brothers

12:19-23

They address Jesus as “Teacher” since they are asking a theological question, though they may well have been using the term in a mocking way, thinking that they were about to demonstrate that Jesus was not so clever after all. The question they raise is a reductio ad absurdum type argument. They did not believe in the resurrection, so their question assumes that there is a resurrection, but then seeks to demonstrate that this leads to nonsense. They refer to Deut 25:5,6 that instructs that if a man dies without a son, then his wife should marry within the family so that the man’s name can be continued. They then extend this to an imagined scenario involving seven brothers, finishing with what they see as the clincher. “At the resurrection, whose wife will she be?”

12:24

We see here an example of presuppositional apologetics. Rather getting involved in a silly argument accepting the assumptions of the Sadducees argument, Jesus attacks the underlying assumptions of what the Sadducees are saying. In fact Jesus does not hold back, and strongly rebukes the Sadducees. “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?” The Sadducees who considered themselves to be worldly wise, were actually rather stupid. The same can be said of many of the so-called clever people of today, especially those in the church.

1 Kings 8:24-26 - Let your word come true

8:24

The commitment of the Lord to His people and His covenant is demonstrated in His keeping of His promise to David. The love of the Lord, both His love towards us and our love towards Him is demonstrated in very practical ways, and it is a relationship. Emotions etc on their own are worthless, but actions without emotions are lacking as well.

8:25,26

Solomon then looks to the future, asking God to keep His promise for his father David to always have a successor on the throne of Israel. This promise was conditional on the people walking faithfully before the Lord. Solomon asks that this word comes true, which it did. Israel did not walk faithfully before the Lord, and were thrown out of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. But God Himself became the faithful king in Jesus Christ.

Mark 12:16-18 - Give to God what is God's

12:16,17

Then Jesus asked them whose image was on the coin. The answer, of course, was “Caesar’s”, as was his inscription. Jesus then gives His famous answer, “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and God what is God’s”. By using the Roman coins they were tacitly acknowledging that Caesar had some authority over them, and that they owed him something. But the more important part was rendering unto God what is God’s. Were the Pharisees or Herodians (or any of us, for that matter) doing that? It is easy for us to question the right of the government, or some other authority, to exercise power over us, and all of them do it badly to some degree. But our first concern should always be are we seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness? (Matt 6:33)

12:18

The second question comes from the Sadducees. As Mark notes, the Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection. They only accepted the first five books of the Bible, i.e. the “Book of Moses”, neither were they keen on angels or miracles. In fact, there wasn’t that much that they did believe, and they were opposed to the Pharisees. In some ways they were very much like many of the current hierarchy in mainline denominations such as the Church of England or Church of Scotland. They came with a question, no doubt what they considered to be a very clever question, designed to illustrate how foolish Jesus was. It is likely that the high priests at this time were Sadducees.

1 Kings 8:20-23 - The Lord has kept the promise He made

8:20,21

Solomon declares that the promise is now being fulfilled, and that it is fulfilled through Solomon. Solomon is now on the throne, and he has built the temple. In building the temple Solomon had “provided a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord”. The ark contained the ten commandments, these were the basis for the old covenant. The rule of God was the basis, the “problem” with the old covenant was that it relied on man being able to keep it, something man could not do (Heb 7:19; 8:7). In Christ the rule of God is still central, but this time is not dependent upon our ability, but on Christ, God’s Son.

8:22,23

Solomon now prays to the Lord, standing before the altar. The start of the prayer is focused on how God has been faithful to David, after declaring that there is no god like the Lord. The Lord was faithful to His covenant of love towards his servants “who continue wholeheartedly in your way”. The hallmark of the people of the Lord is a wholehearted commitment to the Lord. The work of the Holy Spirit in our lives is geared towards producing an ever greater commitment to the Lord.