Weddings and Marriages.....

Do yourself a real favour. Read this. Weddings. Marriages. The prayer meeting is on weddings. The main Message on Weddings. Then a Wedding this afternoon. Wedding Contracts. Papers. It’s all a week focused on wedding/marriage. So, it’s only fitting that the SNL is on the week’s theme, of wedding/marriage focus. It’s been a tremendous amount of focus on one thing; the institution of marriage. From physical to spiritual. What have I learnt through much focus this week on this theme? I don’t know if I learnt so much, except for Rebekah’s age; but what I have learnt apart from the argument how to spell Rebecca or Rebekah, and the fact that she was 14 years old when she married…all the rest is pretty much for reflection. I learnt Boaz the biggest gap in marriage to Ruth’s age, 40 year gap and that Isaac being 40 and Rebekah being 14 consummated their marriage via sex in a tent. I guess in 2022, Boaz would be somewhat frowned at, whilst Isaac would have been arrested. Then God could not be the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, but only God of Abraham (Isaac arrested) and Jacob. Hence the weighty words. The Hebrew word for virgin is “bethulah” and cannot be found anywhere in the original Hebrew text, meaning that the original writer did not intend for it to be read as “virgin” but as “young” girl. Almah (עַלְמָה‎ 'almāh, is what is used in Isaiah 7: 14b. We learnt this in Bible College. It does not mean, as translated a virgin will be with child, (meaning Mary) but a young girl will be with child. Joseph now arrested, Jesus taken from Mary, and put in a foster home. But it makes perfect sense Rebekah was 14. Mary no more than 16. And NIV and most translation put the word in virgin, which was never used in Isaiah. Thus the error perpetuated in Mth 1:23 by using the Greek word Parthenos - which is defined as a virgin, generally a woman, in Greek. So, Isaiah said and wrote young girl. Greek translated it to virgin lady. So the errors perpetuate. Let us try to find facts, truths and not believe everything we read as translated. Does it make a difference? Yes. A whole lot of difference. And so the human bloodline of Jesus really is filled with intrigue. From Rebekah to Mary, what we would say, offences for imprisonment. That’s why some Arab countries still hold to these principles of young girls. Why did God chose this way, as he would know 2022 thinking, as he made sure people would think as they do. The more we learn, the more we ask. Hopefully.

MCC Admin

4 Tamuz 5782