. David, I think there is a sense where are true both the sentences: MALCHUS - THE LAST MAN CHRIST HEALED. So how was Jesus able to heal Malchus, the servant of the high priest, after his right ear was cut off (read Luke 22:50-51)? Early church father, Jerome, cites a post-resurrection appearance of Jesus to Malchus, quoting a passage from the lost "gospel according to the Hebrews." Peter couldnt be left to himself for one moment. writer who wants his character to fit a background ideology. In this depiction, Jesus heals Malchus' wounded ear, leaving the latter to stay behind sitting dumbfounded in a state of disbelief, suggesting a possible conversion to Christianity. There is exactly nothing Jewish about the Aramaic language, it is a language of imperial domination. The disciples are fulfilling prophecy, as if every character in this gospel and in particular in the Passion scenario. Neil made a good synthesis of the work without being an expert of the field. Your email address will not be published. Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. The good doctor has now threatened to ban me. According to the Bible, one of the disciples, Simon Peter, being armed with a sword, cut off the servant's ear in an attempt to prevent the arrest of Jesus. The Lord Jesus healed the slave, but whether he heard with an inner ear the truth about God at work in Christ Jesus we do not know. 47 But one of those who stood by drew his p sword and struck the servant 1 of the high priest and cut off his ear. Zeal without knowledge can be disastrous. Why would they have done so? It was me wot sold the pork sausages to the High Priests cook. 8 Jesus answered, "I told you that I am he. at least the rulers he's familiar with. paraphrases, if not transmission of quasi-verbatim statements by Jesus himself, The Lord Jesus was betrayed and unfairly arrested at that very moment, yet all that He had for this high priest's servant was the love of God for him. A swordsman does not make a diagonal strike to the opposite side of the head. But Jesus said to him, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.". Trying to protect Jesus, Peter drew a sword and attacked a man named Malchus, the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. Subject of a miracle by Jesus according to the Bible, This article is about Malchus. Luke included it precisely because he wanted the Romans to be sympathetic to the Christian message. When it is wielded with the blessing of the Spirit, it does indeed wound, but from heaven the Son of God heals spiritually wounded people. It is whole, undamaged, (Case of the Severed Ear). Ear: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. "The elders Jesus had started a riot in the Temple, so the authorities set out to arrest him straight away. Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Compare and contrast both lines of service. And he touched his ear, and healed him. (In John the word used is (speira), which is Greek for cohort. Knowledge of Greek for such a person no more needs special explanation than knowledge of English does among present day Israelis. This shames us all! Your rendering of Paul through Acts is hard for In what was to be an eventful night in the Garden of Gethsemane, a prayerful Jesus, in great agony, was speaking to His disciples when He was confronted by a multitude with swords and torches. It is part of the need of the suffering Messiah. Is not doing the will of God ever justified? Now it is night, Passover night, and Malchus goes on a How do we know his name is Malchus? That may be very difficult to accept (a Christian who hurts others deliberately), but what is astounding is how the Lord Himself responded: By correcting His disciple, and by healing Malchus' ear. Immediately after his arrest, the high priest Caiaphas broke Jewish customs to hold a hearing and decide Jesus's fate. Oh, yes! Because another excludes it doesn't mean that it is false. 4-7). Lately, he has been dispatched to learn about Jesus, prophet Perhaps Jesus did this great miracle so quickly that many there missed it in the . (c.1450). Perhaps in the dim light the man named Malchus saw the shining blade coming his way and, throwing his weight to one side, survived the attack. Peter, who cut off Malchus' ear, had a history of impulsive behavior. And he touched his ear, and healed him. John tells that the perpetrator of this crime was Simon Peter, known for his impetuous words and actions. But that's all we know about . Christ had come to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. him and arranges for a discreet meeting with Caiaphas. John. . This High Priest, whose hands will soon be bound, will use His hands one last time to show kindness to an enemy. Your email address will not be published. I think it was the word musings on Biblical studies, etc. Unconvincingly, J is able to walk away from it and spend the next three years preaching in public without having the authorities tracking him down. We know Caiaphass track record, and from it we can deduce what a sad life Malchus must have lived in the shadow of this corrupt and vain high priest. This healing is the last one that Mark records (we know others occurred), but he does this on purpose. In many ways, it is like St. Paul's experience on the road to Damascus, when the risen Lord appeared to him. His ear is whole, the bleeding stopped, only his blood-soaked cloak to indicate that there ever was a wound. I did not intend to write such a long comment, but I think I can reel For example, Often times, when I do marriage counseling, one person will tell a story one way, and another will add more details. So tunic. may we Data speaks, and gives us observations. If Jesus did not heal the ear that was cut off, then why was it not presented as evidence to aid in the requests for crucifixion? Welcome to BH. Using Kolmogorov complexity to measure difficulty of problems? The synoptics say (okhlos) multitude.) Malchus sees arrogance and pride up Thinking of the army guy getting his ear cut off, standing there, everyone in uproar, then the calm Jesus, unfazed by all going on just puts it back on. Grace: Favor for the Undeserving. Let them judge themselves, for the mission of the disciples is to continue . Reasons for thinking that Paul was not as much a native speaker of Aramaic as of Greek are basically nil by the way. "Come to me, all you who are weak and heavy laden," Jesus Had some soldier from the temple guard gone on attack? I think it is only with hindsight projecting the developments that were only finished in the 3rd or 4th century onto his text that we would think he is not just another ultra-devout Jew of the period, characterized by one among the available sectarian (messianic) tendencies, which he maybe carried to a certain fanatical extreme, or if you prefer, to its logical conclusion But I dont see why we need any influence of Greekness to explain this sectarianism, messianism and extremism; on the contrary, they are sort of a Judean speciality of the period to judge from e.g. Indeed, this scene is so mysterious that professors fervently desire more minds would deeply reflect upon it and share their discoveries inserious peer-reviewed research publications. "Very good. plot to silence the Teacher. Jesus was trying to tell us the true Father has no limits. By the When pondering the seizure of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, I often get stuck over the enormity of what happened to Malchus. Sons of God, Daughters of Men and Giants Why are they in the Bible? ", "Neil, this is actually rather useful. What is a word for the arcane equivalent of a monastery? One of the Lords disciples reached for his sword and pulled it out of its sheath. The apostle Simon Peter cut off Malchus' ear with a sword. Other modules in . When Malchus hears Jesus say, He who has ears to hear, let him hear, Malchus squirms nervously. Jesus' unbelievably gracious answer to his cry: "Father, forgive Jesus healed the ear without having to reattach or regrow it, meaning that the man had a wound that healed and stopped bleeding. Your clarification of Aramaic as a consequence of the exile According to the Bible, one of the disciples, Simon Peter, being armed with a sword, cut off the servant's ear in an attempt to prevent the arrest of Jesus. 3pages. Peter was a fisherman, not a soldier. makes more sense (to me atleast) to use Hellenism as a guiding Homily I on the Gospel According to St. Matthew. There is no historical embarrassment. Perhaps this shows us that by ourselves we can accomplish nothing - except to make matters worse. Comment: This tragic situation shows unbelief to be destructive, ugly, and cruel. The arrest did not take Jesus by surprise. Upon seeing Jesus personally, however, we're told that he gets to see a character like no other: A Man who would do good even in the face of such injustice. "No So Malchus was on the wrong side of historythe losing side. Armed with swords and clubs and torches, a band of about two hundred soldiers and temple guards arrived in Gethsemane, led by Judas. Also, there are other stories, instances that some gospels include that others do not. What happened to malchus? And isnt there some more meaning that can be looked into? However, Peter was not willing to let his Master be hauled off without a fight. "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the (The servants name was Malchus. The first rule of such a game is to ignore the literary context of any passage and speculate as wildly as one can on as wide a range of possibilities as one can imagine that might have happened quite independently of anything we read. I dont always agree with them, but I respect their work. (The servant's name was Malchus.) Peter was again putting his actions into play before thinking of the consequences. "Ive even been cited by atheists with approval (which I really dont know how to take, so thanks, I think, but Im not sure,Vrider(even though I feel like I need to take a shower now)). Malchus' story is found in all four Gospels. written in Greek, but that is another suspicious fact which has not All the So different This parable had a two fold meaning (which most do) . Now don't forget, Malchus was the ears of the High Priest. . The details are adequately explained within the literary and theological interests of the evangelist. Now that makes excellent poetic sense to me. Fresco, 182 x 181. Jesus ruled in a world with no religion. I shall have to read it, too. And thats exactly how Christ intervened with His erring disciple. Malchus served the high priest Caiaphas. All four Gospels describe Malchus as a servant of the high priest. How did He do this in the life of Peter (think of his denial and restoration) and/or Paul (think of his conversion)? But one correction: this site is no more about debunking Christianity than it is about debunking Islam or debunking Judaism or debunking Buddhism. Jesus' response to Peter's . So Malchus befriends I have requested it through interlibrary loan. Could it be that along with the great company of priests who became obedient to the faith (Acts 6:7), Malchus came into the early assembly of the church? Mark doesn't mention it, because it's not part of his bigger theme he wants his readers to learn. Wind learn from me. Looking forward to more segments. As far as I know the only reason for thinking that Paul was not just another Palestinian Jew characteristic of the period someone to be ranged alongside, say, Josephus comes from Acts 9:11 21:39 22:3 where Tarsus is mentioned. According to John, one disciple is able to slip into the High Priests house because the HP knows him! "Now go! We don't know whether Jesus touched Malchus and a new ear grew or whether Jesus reached down and said, "I think this is yourshere" and reattached the ear to his head. The man they call "the ear of Caiaphas" is People are no better today. Ambivalence is written all over him. And he touched his ear, and healed him" (Luke 22:50-51). Historically, in Biblical times, if a man was indebted to someone, he paid his debt by being his slave until said debt was paid off. It is necessary to establish the theological message. Finally, Malchus gets to his feet and returns to the palace. James F. McGrath suggests that this account reflects an event that did happen, in that early Christians would hardly have invented a story portraying themselves as violent.[1]. the torches reappears. Acidity of alcohols and basicity of amines, How do you get out of a corner when plotting yourself into a corner. It is perfectly well explained within the parameters of the literary and theological character of the gospel itself. The servant's name was Malchus. He lunged towards the group and aimed for the head of one of them. @RoHa that kind of makes sense that Peter would be allowed to watch his Masters humiliation. Instead, let's look at some others much more plausible reasons: I feel the most comfortable saying #1,3 are the most plausible reasons why he includes this story. Later, when he hears the news of Jesus' resurrection, he accepts Him as the Messiah as does his wife, Elizabeth, and daughter, Tabitha, even though in doing so she must give up . The Gospel of John describes the incident in detail, and mentions that Malchus was the servant of the high priest, Simon Peter. rooted in Pauls Christology, is Greco-Roman cultic documentation. Your clarity of expression, fair comments and personal insights are much valued. Moreover, for all we know,they may have subdued, or even killed, the person who sliced off the ear (assuming it wasnt Peter), after whichJesus prevented his followers from doing anything further. Malchus lost his ear. Later in Chapter 18, John records that a relative of Malchus witnessed Peter's assault in the Garden of Gethsemane, and identified Peter as a follower of Christ. They move pre-exilic Davidic forms derived from a Mosaic base, Registered in England and Wales 5090917, Christian Today, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN, Evangelical church redirects payments after CofE gay blessing vote, Evangelical church pursues alternative oversight after CofE same-sex blessing vote. Even though the incident of the servant's ear being cut off is recorded in all four gospels, Matthew 26:51; Mark 14:47; Luke 22:51; and John 18:10-11; the servant and the disciple are named as Malchus and Simon Peter only in John. ", "Here I give an admittedly subjective short list, in random order, of useful, high level and regularly updated weblogs on the study of the Old Testament . Perhaps the others are asking and Peter is acting. He amplified the mans ability to hear through and around all of the distractions of fleshly earth. But now happen to be some of the most astute and well-read amateurs you can read on the internet on the subject of biblical historicity. Peter didnt seem to wait for an answer (v. 50). -Luke 1:1-4. Detail of Fra Angelico, "Arrest of Christ" Nevertheless, the mob arrested Jesus and took Him to face trial, while the disciples scattered in fear for their . If it is a historical fact Because his name is explicitly mentioned in John, a book written some fifty years after the events it records, some commentators surmise that his name may have lived on in the Christian community as someone who had come into the Lords service. The Father is limitless. Is there any legitimate reason given by scholars as to why Luke uniquely adds the account of Jesus healing the ear of Malchus after it being severed off? I think it is justified to consider the NT a Hellenistic anthology. Jesus is the ear. (comment by JFM). He lived, died, and rose again so that one day He could fulfill His own inspired words from Isaiah 61:1: He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. Yet, his captors and eventual slayers, in their ungodly malice, could see His good words and works only as threats and Him only as an enemy, a man to shame, wound, and kill. I couldnt remember what that tour guides interpretation of it was. As High Priest, Christ stopped the flow of this mans blood, but He would soon allow His own blood to flow. We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. Rev. Shall we strike with the sword? be your slave, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of No. If ever there was a situation that justified a little self-focus, one would think it would have been this time. 10 Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, cutting off his right ear. Tell me what's happening." Not just the outward healing but the inward healing and the ability to perceive and hear the voice of God. Jesus had just told Peter that he would deny Him, but here we see Peter standing up for Jesus. This is a . (Except in John, which has the riot in the wrong place. According to the Bible, one of the disciples, Simon Peter, being armed with a sword, cut off the servant's ear in an . . . Now he did what he shouldnt have done. In Biblical Names the meaning of the name Annas is: One who answers; humble. Malchus listens as Jesus In what ways do we trust in a system of ceremonies? The scene is as much a literary symbol as is Marks young man fleeing naked at the arrest of Jesus. them from all suspicion, and speaks clearly in behalf of the character Some chose to continue serving and by doing so, their right ear was pierced to signify this man was the property of Mr X. In Luke 22:50,51 - And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear. Malchus is alone. It was fun while it lasted. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. (Matt 26:51; Mark 14:43f; John 18:10). But now my kingdom is from another place.. To read more about Neil, see our, The story in the Gospels is puzzling enough that it ought to be the focus of far more attention than it has been. When Jesus healed the ear of Malchus, he healed a wound that had been inflicted by one of his own disciples. How to notate a grace note at the start of a bar with lilypond? To show that Jesus was a lover of his enemies, and not just another bandit who planned to overthrow Rome and failed. his face. At the moment of the disciple cutting off the ear in Marks gospel Jesus says: 14:48 Am I leading a rebellion, said Jesus, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Perhaps some of the conversations here will lead to formal research and publications. The Holy Spirit perhapthe toungue. gentle eyes boring into his soul. Yes, the rhetoric through and through, especially in Johns gospel, belies any intent to incorporate historical traditions. . rubric for interpreting the NT, as well as apocryphal texts. Christ possessed all the power to serveto heal and to bring peaceyet He was seized and bound to suppress His good works. myself into the original post by saying that any supposed dialogue This is the only external wound that Jesus heals. We are so easily persuaded to see Christianity as a cause in which we must fight. And He touched his ear and healed him. As you point out, hindsight is prone to fallacious The story in the Gospels is puzzling enough that it ought to be the focus of far more attention than it has been. What a mercy that it didnt! All of this is symbolized very well in the story by Luke, who is an excellent writer. But I have often been impressed with their grasp of logic and analysis of scholarship. What a blessing that Peter could continue as a servant of the real High Priest, Jesus, proclaiming His love and mercy to those enslaved to sin and formal religion. Among the gospel authors, it was Luke, the physician, who described this miracle of the Heavenly Physician. Why, of course: [I]t is hard to imagine Christians, eager to depict themselves and their leader as not violent revolutionaries, making this incident up. Please carry on. John 18:10 (CSB) > When those around him saw what was going to happen, they asked, "Lord, should we strike with the sword?" Then one o. The very loving and gracious Savior of the world. Then he touched the servant's ear and healed him. Such unbelievers should be ushered into the Lord, and such Christians need to grow in the love of God. Following Judas' traitorous kiss, Jesus confirmed their intention to take Him prisoner, choosing to yield Himself peacefully. To enjoy our website, you'll need to enable JavaScript in your web browser. Is it not more likely that the incident reflects something that actually happened, and the oddities of the story reflect an attempt to reinterpret the event? If you are looking for me, then let these men go. 9This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: I have not lost one of those you gave me., 10Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priests servant, cutting off his right ear. ", "These reviews of yours are so bloody weird! We often respond like Peter did when we see more of the enemy around us than we do the guilt within us. Your answer contradicts the text which the Questioner stated. 11 When Jesus appeared to his disciples after his resurrection What did they give him to eat? Once a person's ears have developed, if they ever get cut off, they do not grow back. A faithful priest, we are told elsewhere, had to be able to have compassion on the ignorant and on them that are out of the way (Heb. Please see the Tour and the Help. b) Peter and John. Specifically, Jesus first touched the man's ears, then touched his tongue after spitting, and then said Ephphatha!, an Aramaic word meaning Be opened. And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. The story, I have no doubt, is fiction, but I do wonder (entirely speculative) if some of the characters were inspired in some indirect way by historical ones we read about in Josephus such as Simon the Zealot. For what glory is it, if when ye be buffeted for your faults ye shall take it patiently? The simple answer is that Jesus is God, and God can do anything that can be done (and that is in accordance with His nature). If the Gospels are generally supposed as history, then one would think that a Peter uses a sword to cut an ear off one of the men who came to arrest Jesus. The more I read your stuff (and I still do, of course), the more I realize how much we all owe you.
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