MATTHEW LESSON 54

     This lesson begins in Matthew 26:1 "And it came to pass, when
Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples,"
Matthew 26:2 "Ye know that after two days is [the feast of] the
passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified."

     You see, the authorities coming to get Jesus and crucifying Him
would be no surprise to Him. He was fully aware that He, Himself was
the Passover Lamb for all believers. He had finished teaching the
public.  After His crucifixion and after He had risen from the grave,
He would continue to teach His disciples. The feast of the passover was
done in remembrance of a night long ago when the death angel came
through the streets in Egypt to kill the firstborn in every family.
The only ones who were spared were the Hebrews who killed a male lamb
and put the blood over their door. Everyone in the house was spared
when the blood was over their door. This passover had been celebrated
on the fourteenth of Nisan, in remembrance that God had spared their lives
so many years ago. Just as the lamb spared the Hebrew, Jesus, our
passover Lamb, will save all believers from death. Jesus knew He was
to be betrayed and even knew who it was that would betray Him. Jesus
came into the world for this very purpose. He would not run. He would
willingly go through all this for His own.

     Matthew 26:3 "Then assembled together the chief priests, and the
scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high
priest, who was called Caiaphas,"  Matthew 26:4 "And consulted that
they might take Jesus by subtlety, and kill [him]."

     The very time that Jesus was telling the disciples about His coming
crucifixion, the chief priests, scribes and elders were plotting trying 
to capture Jesus and kill Him. These chief priests, were of the Sanhedrin. 
This high priest, whose home they met in, was Caiaphas. He was really a "go between"for the Romans who had given him this job. They planned to get Him 
as quitely as possible and do away with Him the same way, so they would not start a fight with His followers.

     Matthew 26:5 "But they said, Not on the feast [day], lest there
be an uproar among the people."

     The passover celebration actually lasted eight days, and many
Galileans would be there. They were trying not to  have a confrontation
with Jesus' people.

     Matthew 26:6  "Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of
Simon the leper," Matthew 26:7 "There came unto him a woman having an
alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as
he sat [at meat]."

     Bethany was the home of Jesus' friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.
This time Jesus was in Simon the leper's home. Probably, he had been
one of the leper's that Jesus healed. This is not known for sure.
Simon could have been a relative or close friend of Mary and Martha.
It seems they were here in Simon's house. The woman spoken of here was
Mary, the sister of Lazarus. St. John identified her as this Mary.
Why her name was omitted here we do not know.  This "alabaster box"
was used for expensive perfume or ointment. This "Ointment" which Mary
poured on His head was like anointing. Mary loved Jesus, and this was no
sacrifice to her.  Mary, on several occasions, called Him Master.

     Matthew 26:8 "But when his disciples saw [it], they had
indignation, saying, To what purpose [is] this waste?"  Matthew 26:9
"For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the
poor."

     In another book, it was mentioned that Judas complained. Of
course, Judas was the one that carried the purse. This perfume was
worth about 300 days' wages. Mary was a very a very wealthy woman and
could well afford this. It was hers, and no one else really should
have a say in what she was to do with it. This was her Lord, nothing
was too good for Him. You hear so much today, even from the ones who 
usually give very little to God, that there is too much spent on
beauty in the church and should be used to feed the poor. I wonder how
God feels about that.

     The tabernacle in the wilderness and the temple in Jerusalem were
very expensive places of worship by Almighty God's directions. It is
easy to take your place of worship too lightly. We truly must help the
poor, but we must give into God's house, as well. Sometimes, I think the
magnificence of a particular church makes you feel the greatness of
God. We must not take God too lightly. Probably, Judas didn't really
have the poor in mind at all, but in lining his own pocket.

     Matthew 26:10 "When Jesus understood [it], he said unto them, Why
trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me."
Matthew 26:11 "For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have
not always." Matthew 26:12 "For in that she hath poured this ointment
on my body, she did [it] for my burial."

     It seems as though the disciples still did not understand what was
about to take place, even though Jesus had told them several times.
Jesus took up for Mary and told the disciples to leave her alone. He
told them one more time that He would not be with them very long in
body form. Mary showed her reverence for Jesus' body. She had realized
what Jesus had ben telling them, and the disciples did not.

     Matthew 26:13 "Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel
shall be preached in the whole world, [there] shall also this, that
this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her."

     Jesus was appreciative of this unselfish act of Mary's, and He
told them that this pouring of this ointment on His head for burial
would never be forgotten. It shall be remembered, and shall also be
remembered who did this.

     Matthew 26:14  "Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot,
went unto the chief priests," Matthew 26:15 "And said [unto them],
What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they
covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver." Matthew 26:16 "And
from that time he sought opportunity to betray him."

     Here, we are told that Judas, one of the original twelve chosen by
Jesus, would be the one who would betray Him. Probably, the reason
Judas name was given, was so he would not be confused with another Judas
who joined in with the disciples later and helped them.

     Whether Judas was angry about the expensive perfume, and that
prompted him to do this terrible thing, we are not told. Some believe
that Judas was chosen of God for this task, and that he (Judas) had no
choice.  Whatever the reason, he did it. I believe that Judas' greed
for money prompted this act. Greed is a terrible thing when it goes
unchecked.

     This agreement for 30 pieces of silver has a lot of spiritual
significance. Thirty pieces of silver was the price of a male slave in
his prime of life. Thirty also is 3 times ten. Three means God, and
ten means world government. This is God dealing with the world to
redeem His children. "Silver" means redemption. You can easily see the
connection. It is one thing to oppose someone, but betrayal is a
terrible thing to do.

     We will take up the next lesson at Matthew 26:17.





























                      Matthew Questions 54.

1.  How many days was it to passover when Jesus finished talking to
    the people and came to the disciples?
2.  What two things did Jesus tell them would happen to Him?
3.  Who is the passover Lamb for the believers?
4.  What was passover in remembrance of?
5.  When was it celebrated?
6.  Who assembled together to plot a way to kill Jesus?
7.  Who were these chief priests?
8.  Why did they not want to do this on feast day?
9.  How long did passover celebration last?
10. Whose house was Jesus in Bethany?
11. Who was the woman who poured ointment on Jesus?
12. What did the disciples say about this?
13. Were they really interested in the poor?
14. Who was the disciple who carried the purse?
15. About how much was the ointment worth?
16. What did Jesus say about Mary?
17. Why did Jesus say she poured the ointment on His head.
18. What did Jesus say about Mary?
19. Which disciple went to see the chief priests?
20. How much did the priests agree to pay Judas for Jesus?
21. Explain the spiritual meaning of the price.
22. Why did they give Judas' full name.