FRIDAY-SATURDAY:
As
we begin the final phase of our Bible Study preparation for this week’s sermon,
I want to discuss a few points made throughout the week.
Looking at other
Translations (Not Paraphrases)
First,
it is a good practice to always read the given Scripture text, and the text
around the text, from various translations not paraphrases. A translation is a
legitimate attempt to convey the “precise” meaning of the text. And, as I
implied earlier in the week, there are very literal translations (which I
prefer) versus translations that attempt to be “thought-perfect.” The latter
being valuable, but I don’t depend on them.
A
paraphrase is a VERY, VERY loose retelling of the story and not meant for
accuracy but for readability. Also, as I mentioned earlier in the week, the
further you get away from a literal translation the more chances of bias being
translated into the Scripture. Don’t not misunderstand, ALL TRANSLATIONS HAVE
VALUE AND SOME INTERPRETIVE BIAS! I just view them as different tools in my
Bible Toolbox that someone(s) have created. An example of a very literal
translation is Young’s Literal Translation (YLT). I almost never prepare a
sermon without double checking YLT. In any event, an example of a “thought-perfect”
(versus word-perfect) translation is the New International Version (NIV). An
example of a paraphrase is the Living Bible (LB). However, I would not use a
paraphrase for example, if I am defending or examining a doctrinal point. A
paraphrase is useful as “fun” reading if you are aware that the further you get
away from a “literal” version, the chances increase for a more liberal or
conservative bias (opinion) to sneak into the translating process. Therefore, I
try to read as many translations as time permits throughout the week for a given
passage. Which brings us to a promise I made…
SABBATHS
If
I had not read other ENGLISH translations I may not have noticed the word “sabbath”
being translated as “sabbaths” in one or more of the more literal translations.
Remember, even literal translations will make compromises to convey an idea
with less confusion. Some of the literal translations have chosen to keep ‘sabbath’ singular.’ However, HERE IS THE
REALLY COOL PART! Let’s take a look…
New International
Version (NIV)
|
Young’s Literal
Translation (YLT)
|
21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.
|
21 And they go on to Capernaum, and immediately, on the sabbaths, having gone into the
synagogue, he was teaching,
|
Neither
translation is particularly wrong, but this discrepancy bothered me. I asked
myself, “Is sabbath meant to be
plural? And, if so, why?” These are the types of what I call “Bible Study Rabbit Trails” that can be
fascinating. Sometimes with a “rabbit’
(idea) being caught, and sometimes the rabbit
gets away (meaning-idea is not there, or there is not enough information,
scholarship, or time in the week to solve the problem, etc.). Just in the
comparison of these two translation I am, at the writing of this blog seeing a
lot more rabbit trails to follow… but I don’t have time.
TEACHING POINT: Okay, okay… I can hear ‘ya
screaming for more! So, maybe just a quick chase. Notice the NIV does not
include the word “immediately.” It is in the Greek text. And, it is actually a
key word to understanding ALL OF MARK! As in indicated, the Gospel of Mark is
like a Bruce Willis’ “Diehard” movie (btw: Pastor Jim loves these movies!) In
any event, in Mark, like “Diehard,” the action never stops! To leave out the
word “immediately,” which occurs over 40 times in this Gospel, changes how to
understand Mark. Now let’s get back to work…
Here
is what I found. Most scholars believe there is a gap of time between the
verses dealing with Jesus’ calling the disciples and His entry into the
Capernaum synagogue. Let’s look…
Spawning Season for
Fish (Apr-Aug)
|
The Main Fishing
Season Starts at the End of August
|
GAP
|
Jewish New Year &
National Day of Atonement in Sep
|
20 and immediately he called them, and, having left their
father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, they went away after him.
|
21 And they go on to Capernaum, and immediately, on the
sabbaths, having gone into the synagogue, he was teaching,
|
||
There
must be some ‘gap’ of time because you CANNOT WORK ON THE SABBATH! Notice, in
my study of ‘fishing’ I came to discover the fish spawning season is from April
to August. And, even though some fishing took place for daily livelihood
year-round, you don’t want to disturb the fish when they are reproducing. Even
fish are shy! Fisherman would use nets with larger holes, so the smaller fish
could escape. The holes in the nets may get smaller as the main fishing season wore
on, IF the market demanded more fish. Just like today, the fishing industry is
managed. In 2010, Israel shut down fishing in the Seal of Galilee for two
years. However, it was not strictly enforced. The government then adjusted the
shutdown to the spawning season until the lake recovers and has a sustainable
fish population. Why is this important? Because when you study the Bible EVERYTHING
IS IMPORTANT! You must become an anthropologist and realize that understanding
the daily life, will help you to understand the Bible. When I researched “fishing”
in Lake Galilee I discovered this information about the spawning season. Bible understanding
is an attempt to put 2 and 2 together! It may equal 2.5 (demonstrating some
uncertainty), but that is closer than when you started!
TEACHING POINT: Therefore, the
disciples left their family fishing business at the BEGINNING of the MAIN fishing
season to follow Jesus. I wish I could have heard the conversation with father
Zebedee! “What! @#$%&” Zebedee must have said, “You are going to leave me
with all this work, to go follow some hippie?” Some things don’t change in any generation,
do they? This gives us a sense of the sacrifice the disciples AND THEIR FAMILIES
were making! How, better we understand this passage from Mark 10:28-31…
28 Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed
you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or
sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake
of the good news,[f] 30 who will not receive a hundredfold
now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and
fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But
many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
I
am still stuck with a question. I am sure the disciples, being part of the
working class, had to realize just how ‘dumb’
this decision might be. Leave their families? Leave dad who is getting older to
take on a very tough life by himself? You know Pastor Jim, I would have been “speaking
in tongues” at my children, and I don’t mean the good kind of speaking! In any
event, this decision was not easy! However, I think ZEBEDEE and corresponding
family members bought into the idea. Why? For the same reason people were
lining up at the Jordan River bank to be baptized. THEY WERE PREPARING FOR ROSH
HASHANA (Jewish New Year) AND YOM KIPPUR (National Day of Atonement (see
Leviticus 23)! These days can occur during the middle of the week! For example,
in 2018 Rosh Hashana is Monday-Tuesday, September 10-11 and Yom Kippur on Wednesday,
September 19th. I believe Mark is conflating these High Holy Days
with the regular Sabbaths on the given Friday-Saturdays.
Let
me set the context. There had been 400 years of silence. God seemed to stop
speaking. Then, out of nowhere comes this ‘other’ hippie named “John the
Baptist.” John’s one mission was to prepare the way of the Lord. It was
customary during this time of New Year and Atonement to repent. To think about
your eternal destiny. It was at this time, repentance assured your name was
written in,,, guess what? THE BOOK OF LIFE! It was a time to make sure that ALL
YOUR SINS were forgiven! Therefore, John’s mission fell with perfect timing with
Jesus’ arrival and entry into the synagogue at Capernaum. A synagogue which, “more
than likely” was paid for by the Roman Centurion (see Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10). And, listen to this! A
synagogue THAT EVEN JESUS MAY HAVE HELPED TO CONSTRUCT years earlier!
Therefore,
the term “sabbaths” is indeed plural because the National Day of Atonement was
and is often called, among others, a High Sabbath (High Holy Day). I would
argue, and Pastor Jim could be wrong, that the plural of “sabbath” lends itself
to our understanding of why:
·
So
many people wanted to repent!
·
Fisherman
would leave their parents business!
·
The
plural of sabbath is used!
·
And,
for the WHAT… determining the time of year in which this story takes place.
TEACHING POINT: As a side note, it is
interesting that Mark does not include the story of the faithful centurion. It
is only found in Matthew and Luke. This is especially odd, since this Gospel
was written by Mark in Rome TO THE ROMANS! However, this might explain Mark’s
conflating these Jewish festivals with the regular sabbath by using the plural,
“sabbaths.” It would have been confusing to his Gentile audience to go into
detail regarding Jewish festivals. The Jewish audience would understand. And,
it is consistent with Mark’s fast-paced, “highlights only” writing style.
I
hope you can see why “rabbit trails” are important. The Holy Spirit can stop
your reading and make your brain say, “What about this?” or “Why is that said…
that way?” or “Why that word, or story?” Therefore, Bible study is like taking
water out of a barrel that never runs dry. Each time we come to the Scriptures
God may have something special for us… for that time and moment in our lives!
So
where do we go from here? Remember, the ‘storytelling’ part of our preparation
earlier in the week. I have a bunch of folks who want me to tell this story of
Jesus tomorrow morning (Sunday). I am sure they are on the edge of their seats
in anticipation! Therefore, I go back to the “storytelling phase,” and I
correct, edit and add what I have learned in preparation for tomorrow’s sermon.
Even stuff I haven’t shared with y’all yet!
See you on Sunday at
9:30am!
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