MATTHEW 16 1-12

   🍃🕊️ 02/28 - GospeL Verses 🕊️🍃

1 - The leaders, the Pharisees and Sadducees came to test him, asking him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He answered them, “When it’s evening, you say, ‘It’ll be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ 3 And then in the morning you say, ‘The sky is red and threatening, it will be stormy today.’ You know how to interpret the signs of the sky, but you don’t see the signs of the times. 4 An unfaithful and trying generation seeks for a sign. But the only sign that will be given to it, is the sign of Jonah.” {And the multitude of healings he did. I think healings were supposed to be shared with the priests.. but these priests/leaders had long ago(?) traded their faith in Yhwh and spirituality for politics, their seats of power. Keeping their seats during occupation by a foreign world order (part world domination and occupation). And politics seems to bring out the worst in human nature. Though it talks a good talk/puts on sheep’s clothing, but the wolf still shines through..Especially when it’s all power is attained, oR to get there.}

     5 When the disciples reached the other side of the lake (Galilee) they realized they had forgotten to bring any bread. 6 At about that time Jesus said to them, “Watch out, and beware the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 7 The disciples began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.” 8 But Jesus, aware of it, said, “Oh you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? 9 Don’t you yet see? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets left over you gathered? (12) 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? (5?) 11 How is it that you don’t understand that I’m not talking about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 12 Then they understood he didn’t tell them to beware the leaven of bread, but the teaching {and example?} of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

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🗝️ [  ] - word/language insights, usually from biblehub dot com - peering through translator partial unbelief; facts, cross references, etc.

      {  } - thots

Tomorrows verses - Matthew 16:13-20

My own studies. Verses paraphrased.

Truth Will Win

I don't know why untruth (untrue things) get such a deep hold within people and within institutions. Why?

If Christians (the churches) think they are going to, or are supposed to "subdue the world" they're wrong! Jesus said His kingdom was/is not of this world"! Yes, I'd like to see the mad dash toward collapse,etc slowed down (my interest in politics). But that's about all I can hope for. This world is going to, and actually is supposed to, collapse! Why? So God can be proven right! God is life. A person (or angel, or any other rational creature) cannot wander away from God. That's the whole thing/lesson in a nutshell, this chewing upon the knowing of good from evil (life from death, true from untrue).

Yes, God could have spared us all this! Himself too! He being Life, lives through and experiences it all! Why'd he put Himself, and all of us, through all this? I can only assume, through logic, that it's because He's not creating robots or an ant farm. And this life is a unavoidable journey and lesson, if there's to be thinking ability or rational creatures that is! Because, thinking ability sooner or later includes being able to choose and make choices, etc.

"It pleased God to reconcile ALL things to Himself through Him (Jesus), all things whether in heaven or on earth" Colossians 1:20

"For even as in Adam all die, so also in the Christ all shall be made alive, 23 but each in his proper order, " 1 Corinthians 15:22

Resurrection of all - Contemporary English Version (CEV)
"22 Adam brought death to all of us, and Christ will bring life to all of us. 23 But we must each wait our turn. Christ was the first to be raised to life, and his people will be raised to life when he returns. 24 Then after Christ has destroyed all powers and forces, the end will come, and he will give the kingdom to God the Father." [oh! 1st, Jesus was resurrected, then 2nd, the resurrection of all believers at His return, and 3rd, another raising to incorruption and immortality at the 'end' when ALL things are made new.. after the millennium and its purpose, and what is commonly called judgment day, and its purpose.]

"25 Christ will rule until he puts all his enemies under his power, 26 and the last enemy he destroys will be death. 27 When the Scriptures say that he will put everything under his power, they don't include God. It was God who put everything under the power of Christ. 28 After everything is under the power of God's Son, he will put himself under the power of God, who put everything under his Son's power. Then God will mean everything to everyone."

"God is the savior of all, especially those which believe" 1 Tim 4:10

Keeping Hatred Out of Politics

I read a book once which says there are basically three psychologies to life - "I'm ok, you're not ok" -"I'm not ok, you're ok" -and "I'm ok, you're ok" . Only the third one is healthy. How do we make politics more healthy? By realizing (both) parties mean well, but simply have a different view, and idea, or vision of what will work.

Politics and Religion All in One

Here's politics and religion all in one!
- In order to have a perfect world (or household) it basically requires a dictatorship, and of course that's short lived, or an illusion unless said dictator(ship) is perfect and incorruptible - or, if the members of the world (or household, etc) are perfect and incorruptible, along with a total knowledge of cause and effect (good and evil).

Getting the Last of Wisconsin Politics Outa my Head

We're all pawns of the parties, that's why "the people" of the two parties talking and listening to each other is so totally important. The key to these "united" states is to keep voting out those who would make government too big and powerful, no matter which party is currently doing so. If we can't get along, we can't trim back at those huge ultra rich forces working so hard to coerce our government (of both parties, that is). A big part of where we'll go depends on if we the people will follow our noble nature or our baser nature. If we let ourselves be stirred up into mere confrontation between the parties, in all seriousness, all will be lost, because we'll find ourselves (this republic of states) volleying back and forth between the corporations and the huge interests of the world and neither party will recognize the country which emerges.

Western Politics in a Nutshell

Sometimes the republican crowd seem to be for unfettered, totally unregulated capitalism (and perhaps one or two somewhere in the world, as claimed, are for doing away with society safety nets).. But! Ideally, the people would regulate business by their boycotting power, but look at all the buying and selling of things not really all that good for people nor society. What to do, what to do.. The right at times wants to regulate personal choices, and the left at times wants to be in control of the economy and business. What (some) christians, for instance, and some libertarians understand, is that all humans are fallible, thus no one or no group should be overseers over any of these things and therefor, limitations upon power and reach, guarantee the most for safety. (Surely?) Are their forces in(?) or upon the modern world that seeks to keep the two (left and right) from dialogue?

A Little Home Town Politics

I can understand that taxpayer$ can't be in on every decision as to what tax dollar$ are spent on.. be it state or national.. But! when it comes to one's own school and district,etc I think taxpayer$ should have alot of rights as to what's spent and for what.. If there's pretty much only one side at the table, the bill's just going to keep going up and up.. Thanks SW!!! :))

Revelation Riddle - Big Beast

The Book of Revelation is full of riddles! But once the mystery of them is unlocked, they fit together like the pieces to a puzzle forming a complete picture. There a lot of ruminating over who (or what) "the beast" of Revelation/Apocalypse chapter 13 is. One of the most important things to notice, and surprisingly, some don't, is that there are two beasts in that chapter! There is the many headed, many horned and many crowned beast of verse 1 through 10, and then there is the (smaller) two horned (two office) beast of verses 11 through 18.
- Of course a big clue to Bible prophecy riddles is cross-references, those other Bible verses which are closely linked, having words or similarities in common. Such a reference to the description of the larger beast of Revelation/Apocalypse chapter 13, verses 1 through 10, is found in Daniel chapter 7, verses 7 and 19.
- Here are the two references - Young's Literal Translation (YLT):

Revelation 13

 ¹And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and I saw out of the sea a beast coming up, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon its horns ten diadems, and upon its heads a name of evil speaking..

Daniel 7

 ⁷After this I was seeing in the visions of the night, and lo, a fourth beast, terrible and fearful, and exceedingly strong; and it hath iron teeth very great, it hath consumed, yea, it doth break small, and the remnant with its feet it hath trampled; and it [is] diverse from all the beasts that [are] before it; and it hath ten horns.
 ¹⁹Then I wished for certainty concerning the fourth beast, that was diverse from them all, fearful exceedingly; its teeth of iron, and its nails of brass, it hath devoured, it doth break small, and the remnant with its feet it hath trampled..

To make the riddle more certain, is the phrase "its teeth of iron, and its nails of brass" which brings us to yet another important cross-reference, one not well noticed, or at least I have never come across any reference to it by any other Bible prophecy buffs.


An Ancient Dream of a Huge Statue - Of Ancient World Empires (with impact upon Israel) and a last World Empire:

Daniel 2

 ³²This image! its head [is] of pure gold, its breasts and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of brass;

³³its legs of iron, its feet, part of them of iron, and part of them of clay.. (ten toes)..
( ³⁴Thou wast looking till that a stone hath been cut out without hands, and it hath smitten the image on its feet, that [are] of iron and of clay, and it hath broken them small..)

Bible scholars agree, the brass represented Greece, and the iron represented Rome ("iron teeth", ancient iron columns of Rome!) To find the identity of the many headed, many horned (seated) and many crowned (rulers, modern) we need to look for its Graeco/Roman roots (of philosophy, arts, architecture, politics, etc). Preceeded by the golden head, being Babylon, and the Silver, being (Media)-Persia.

Daniel 7:19 - Amplified Bible (AMP)

¹⁹Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast--which was different from all the others, exceedingly terrible and shocking, whose teeth were of iron and its nails of bronze, (or brass) which devoured, broke and crushed, and trampled what was left with its feet-- [What the iron doesn't devour, the Greek (secular humanism / nowadays "humans are the higher power" philosophy) will break up and trample underfoot..]

Politics !

Proverbs 15:7

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

⁷"...the thoughts of a fool    make no sense at all"

Psalm 14:1

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

^1"Only a fool would say,    "There is no God!"

Wall Street

October 2011 - We'll never get Wall Street under control as long as they can lobby Washington!

PoLiTiCs !!

I can say I'm of a certain party, politically, because I side with them on more issues, and think they bode better for the future than the other party. But I surely don't believe a whole lot government / politicians, or any party says! Because you know why? If I did believe a lot of what they said, it could become a religion to me! And most of what I would have to say about it would do more harm than good. It's not Religion (any spirituality/philosophy other than my own) that's the cause of all wars, it's human nature and false beliefs about (the) others..