Wednesday Evening Bible Study

August 7, 2002

Introduction

Jesus has been crucified and buried.  On early Sunday morning, some of the gals went to the tomb to put more spices on His body.  But the tomb was empty and the body was gone.

They go back to tell the disciples about the body being gone, and Peter and John run to the tomb to also see that it was empty.

When Mary Magdalene goes back to the tomb a second time, she becomes the first person that Jesus appears to.

:13  And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs.

two of them – two of the disciples.  Not necessarily two of the twelve.  One of them is named Cleopas (vs.18).

that same day – Sunday, the day of the resurrection.

Emmaus – Emmaous – “warm baths”.  The location of this village is unknown.

furlongs – stadion – a space or distance of about 600 feet (185 m)

60 furlongs is about 7 miles.

:14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened.

they talked – homileo – to be in company with; to associate with; to stay with; to converse with, talk about: with one

We get the word “homiletics” from this word, which is what preaching is all about.  Originally the idea of “preaching” was to simply talk about, converse about the things of the Scripture.  Later, somebody came up with the idea of getting fancy and all.

It wouldn’t hurt for us to work at getting back to simply talking together about the Scriptures.

which had happened – sumbaino – to walk with the feet near together; to come together, meet with one; of things which fall out at the same time, to happen, turn out, come to pass

They were talking about all the events that had just happened in the last couple of days, all the things that had just come together.

:15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.

communed – homileo – to be in company with; to associate with; to stay with; to converse with, talk about: with one

Same word as “talked” in verse 14.

reasoned – suzeteo – to seek or examine together; in the NT to discuss, dispute, question

Each man was questioning the other over the things they had seen and heard the last few days.

Basically, neither of them knew what was going on.

drew near – eggizo – to bring near, to join one thing to another; to draw or come near to, to approach

went with them – sumporeuomai – to go or journey together; to come together, to assemble

:16 But their eyes were holden that they should not know him.

eyes – ophthalmos – the eye; metaph. the eyes of the mind, the faculty of knowing

were holden – krateo – to have power, be powerful; to be chief, be master of, to rule; to get possession of; to become master of, to obtain; to take hold of; to take hold of, take, seize; to lay hands on one in order to get him into one’s power; to hold

know – epiginosko – to become thoroughly acquainted with, to know thoroughly; to know accurately, know well; to know; to recognise; by sight, hearing, of certain signs, to perceive who a person is

In Jesus’ resurrected body, He had the ability of exercising influence on their minds in such a way that they were kept from recognizing Him.

Lesson

Jesus wants you to know Him

For a while, Jesus will keep Himself unknown to these men.

But ask yourself the question, “What is Jesus doing, walking along with these men?”

He WANTS them to understand.  He wants them to know Him.

Jesus wants to answer your questions.

:17 And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?

communications – logos – of speech; a word, uttered by a living voice, embodies a conception or idea; what someone has said; its use as respect to the MIND alone; reason, the mental faculty of thinking, meditating, reasoning, calculating

ye have – antiballo – to throw in turn

They were “throwing” words back and forth.

as ye walk – peripateo – to walk

are sad – skuthropos – of a sad and gloomy countenance

Lesson

What would Jesus say if He overheard your conversations?

Elisha and Ben-hadad’s secrets.

Jesus and the Pharisees:

(Mat 12:36 KJV)  But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

What if that stranger sitting behind you at McDonald’s was Jesus?

Lesson

Do we even know what we’re talking about?

I think that sometimes I get to pontificating about such grand ideas of which I know nothing about.

Here’s these guys so sad about Jesus dying, and they don’t even get it.  He’s not dead.  He’s right in front of them.

:18 And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?

Cleopas – Kleopas – “of a renowned father”

There was one of the Marys who stood at the cross who was married to a Cleopas.

(John 19:25 KJV)  Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.

alone – monos – alone (without a companion), forsaken, destitute of help, alone, only, merely

“Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem …”

a stranger – paroikeo – to dwell beside (one) or in one’s neighbourhood, to live near; in the NT, to be or dwell in a place as a stranger, to sojourn

known – ginosko – to learn to know, come to know, get a knowledge of perceive, feel

In other words, Jesus’ crucifixion wasn’t something done behind closed doors.  Everyone knew about it.

:19 And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people:

What things? – I wonder if Jesus had a little grin on His face when He said this.  He wants to hear their take on things.

mighty – dunatos – able, powerful, mighty, strong

deed – ergon – business, employment, that which any one is occupied; any product whatever, any thing accomplished by hand, art, industry, or mind; an act, deed, thing done: the idea of working is emphasised in opp. to that which is less than work

word – logos – of speech; a word, uttered by a living voice, embodies a conception or idea; its use as respect to the MIND alone; reason, the mental faculty of thinking, meditating, reasoning, calculating

:20 And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him.

delivered – paradidomi – to give into the hands (of another); to give over into (one’s) power or use; to deliver up one to custody, to be judged, condemned, punished, scourged, tormented, put to death; to deliver up treacherously

to be condemned – krima – a decree, judgments; the sentence of a judge; the punishment with which one is sentenced; condemnatory sentence, penal judgment, sentence; a matter to be judicially decided, a lawsuit, a case in court

crucified – stauroo – to stake, drive down stakes; to crucify

:21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.

we trusted – elpizo – to hope; in a religious sense, to wait for salvation with joy and full confidence; hopefully to trust in

which should – mello – to be about; to be on the point of doing or suffering something; to intend, have in mind, think to

redeemed – lutroo – to release on receipt of ransom; to redeem, liberate by payment of ransom

It seems that they were thinking of Jesus redeeming Israel in the sense of buying Israel from the Roman government.

Instead, Jesus redeemed us from our sins.

the third day – are they saying this because they had been hoping for the resurrection?  I think they were just depressed that Jesus had been dead for three days.

:22 Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre;

made us astonished – existemi – to throw out of position, displace; to amaze, to astonish, throw into wonderment; to be amazed, astounded; to be out of one’s mind, besides one’s self, insane

early – orthrios – early; rising at the first dawn or very early in the morning

sepulchre – mnemeion – any visible object for preserving or recalling the memory of any person or thing; a memorial, monument, specifically, a sepulchral monument; a sepulchre, a tomb

:23 And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive.

they found – heurisko – to come upon, hit upon, to meet with; to find by enquiry, thought, examination, scrutiny, observation, to find out by practice and experience

vision – optasia – the act of exhibiting one’s self to view; a sight, a vision, an appearance presented to one whether asleep or awake

had … seen – horao – to see with the eyes; to see with the mind, to perceive, know; to see, i.e. become acquainted with by experience, to experience; to see, to look to

said – lego – to say, to speak.  Present active indicative.  They are saying

alive – zao – to live, breathe, be among the living (not lifeless, not dead); to enjoy real life

Luke had recorded that the men seemed to think that the ladies were a little crazy:

(Luke 24:11 KJV)  And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.

:24 And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not.

Peter and John had gone to the tomb.  But they hadn’t seen Jesus yet. (It was Mary Magdalene who would see Jesus first).

At this point, the two disciples have not yet heard anyone claim that they saw Jesus.

:25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:

fools – anoetos – not understood, unintelligible; not understanding, unwise, foolish

slow – bradus – slow; metaph. dull, inactive, in mind; stupid, slow to apprehend or believe

heart – kardia – the heart; denotes the centre of all physical and spiritual life; the soul or mind, as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavours; of the understanding, the faculty and seat of the intelligence; of the will and character; of the soul so far as it is affected and stirred in a bad way or good, or of the soul as the seat of the sensibilities, affections, emotions, desires, appetites, passions

to believe – pisteuo – to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in

Lesson

Slow to believe

Elisha and the lord upon whom the king leaned.

(2 Ki 7:2 KJV)  Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

I think that sometimes I have a hard time believing ALL that God has spoken for me.

(Jer 29:11-13 KJV)  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. {12} Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. {13} And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

:26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?

ought – dei – it is necessary, there is need of, it behooves, is right and proper

“wasn’t it necessary …”

to have suffered – pascho – to be affected or have been affected, to feel, have a sensible experience, to undergo; in a bad sense, to suffer sadly, be in a bad plight

to enter into – eiserchomai – to go out or come in: to enter

glory – doxa – opinion, judgment, view; in the NT always a good opinion concerning one, resulting in praise, honour, and glory; splendour, brightness; a most glorious condition, most exalted state

These men were having problems with the idea of Jesus dying, yet that was the very reason He came to earth in the first place.

He needed to die.  It was necessary.

Our sins separate us from God.

Someone needed to do something to pay for our sins.

Jesus didn’t just come to show us a better way of life.  He came to pay for our sins.

This is why Jesus said,

(John 14:6 KJV)  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

He is the only one who has paid for your sins.

:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

beginning – archomai – to be the first to do (anything), to begin; to begin, make a beginning

Wouldn’t you have loved to have heard that Bible Study?  Perhaps Jesus talked about …

Gen. 3 - In Genesis God declared that the serpent would bruise the heel of the woman’s seed.

Gen 22 - Abraham prophesied that God would provide Himself a sacrifice, in the mount of the Lord it would be seen.

Exo 12 - the blood of the lamb was to be placed over the door that the household might escape the sentence of death. If sprinkled on lintel and two side posts it was in the shape of a cross.

Leviticus - All of the sacrifices were a foreshadowing of His once and for all sacrifice.

Psalm 118 –  He was the Stone that was set of naught by the builders.

Psalm 22 - the Messiah is poured out like water, all His bones are out of joint, they pierced His hands and His feet, and cast lots for His vesture.

Isaiah 50 - He would give His back to the smiters, and His cheeks to those who would pluck out His beard.

Isaiah 52 – His face would be so marred they would not recognize Him as a man.

Isaiah 53 – He would be wounded for our transgressions bruised for our iniquities, and by His stripes we would be healed.

Daniel 9 – the Messiah who would come 483 years after the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem would be cut off and receive nothing for Himself. (That is, He would not receive the kingdom.)

the scriptures – graphe – a writing, thing written; the Scripture, used to denote either the book itself, or its contents; a certain portion or section of the Holy Scripture

Note:  Jesus used the Old Testament to teach about Himself.

Some people think that we ought to only read the New Testament.  Jesus didn’t seem to think so.

he expounded – diermeneuo – to unfold the meaning of what is said, explain, expound; to translate into one’s native language; from hermeneuo – to explain in words, expound; to interpret; to translate what has been spoken or written in a foreign tongue into the vernacular

Lesson

Teaching

Ezra – giving the understanding

(Neh 8:8 KJV)  So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.

Teaching the Bible is all about helping people understand what it means.

:28 And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further.

drew nigh – eggizo – to bring near, to join one thing to another; to draw or come near to, to approach

the village – kome – the common sleeping place to which labourers in the field return, a village; the name of the city near which the villages lie and to whose municipality they belong; the inhabitants of villages

he made as though – prospoieomai (“toward” + “to make”)– to take or claim a thing to one’s self; to conform one’s self to a thing, or rather to affect to one’s self; to pretend

further – porrhotero – further

Lesson

Ask Him

They needed to ask Jesus to stay with them.  Just as we need to ask Jesus to come into our heart. If you want to know God better, you need to seek Him.

:29 But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.

they constrained – parabiazomai – to employ force contrary to nature and right; to compel by employing force; to constrain one by entreaties

abide – meno – to remain, abide; in reference to place; to sojourn, tarry; not to depart; to continue to be present

evening – hespera – evening, eventide

is far spent – klino – transitively to incline, bow; to cause to fall back; to recline; in a place for repose; intransitively to incline one’s self; of the declining of the day

:30 And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them.

he sat – kataklino – in the NT in reference to eating, to make to recline; to recline (at a table)

he took – lambano – to take; to take with the hand, lay hold of, any person or thing in order to use it

bread – artos – food composed of flour mixed with water and baked

blessed – eulogeo – to praise, celebrate with praises; to invoke blessings; to consecrate a thing with solemn prayers

brake – klao – to break; used in the NT of the breaking of bread or communion

gave to – epididomi – to hand, give by hand

:31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.

were opened – dianoigo – to open by dividing or drawing asunder, to open thoroughly (what had been closed)

eyes – ophthalmos – the eye; metaph. the eyes of the mind, the faculty of knowing

they knew – epiginosko – to become thoroughly acquainted with, to know thoroughly; to know accurately, know well

vanished – aphantos (“not” + “shining”) – taken out of sight, made invisible

Lesson

Communion

Some have suggested that they recognized Him because they may have seen the nail prints in His hands.

Perhaps it was simply the act of breaking the bread that rang a bell.

Luke recorded that when Jesus broke bread with the disciples a few days back, he had said,

(Luke 22:19 KJV)  And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. {20} Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.

Eyes opened through the breaking of bread.

Draw near to God.

:32 And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?

burn – kaio – to set on fire, light, burning; to burn, consume with fire

the way – hodos – a way; a travelled way, road; a travellers way, journey, travelling

While Jesus had been speaking to them as they walked along the road.

Jesus wants to talk to us as WE walk through life.

opened – dianoigo – to open by dividing or drawing asunder, to open thoroughly (what had been closed); to open the mind of one, i.e. to cause to understand a thing; to open one’s soul, i.e. to rouse in one the faculty of understanding or the desire of learning

the scriptures – graphe – a writing, thing written; the Scripture, used to denote either the book itself, or its contents; a certain portion or section of the Holy Scripture

Lesson

God wants to teach you

Warning about feelings – Mormon teaching – sometimes it’s just the pizza.

Yet there is a sense in which God DOES speak to our hearts.

The teaching of the Holy Spirit.

(John 16:13 KJV)  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.

(John 14:26 KJV)  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Sometimes when God speaks, it burns.

Jeremiah said,

(Jer 20:9 KJV)  Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.

:33 And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them,

they rose up – anistemi – to cause to rise up, raise up; raise up from laying down; to raise up from the dead

They didn’t wait until the next morning.  They hit the road immediately to tell the other disciples.

gathered together – sunathroizo (“together” + “to hoard”) – to gather together with others; to assemble; to be gathered together i.e. to come together

the eleven – Judas is no longer with the other disciples.  He had already killed himself.

them that were with them – there were more than just the eleven present.

:34 Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.

risen – egeiro – to arouse, cause to rise; to arouse from sleep, to awake; to arouse from the sleep of death, to recall the dead to life

indeed – ontos – truly, in reality, in point of fact, as opp. to what is pretended, fictitious, false, conjectural; that which is truly etc., that which is indeed

hath appeared – optanomai – to look at, behold; to allow one’s self to be seen, to appear

Simon – Peter

Before they can get a word out of their own mouths, they are told that Jesus had appeared to Simon Peter.  We aren’t told at what point during the day this appearance occurred.

:35 And they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them in breaking of bread.

they told – exegeomai – to lead out, be leader, go before; metaph., to draw out in narrative, unfold a teaching; to recount, rehearse; to unfold, declare; the things relating to God; used in Greek writing of the interpretation of things sacred and divine, oracles, dreams, etc.

the way – hodos – a way; a travelled way, road; a travellers way, journey, travelling

he was known – ginosko – to learn to know, come to know, get a knowledge of perceive, feel

breaking – klasis – a breaking

bread – artos – food composed of flour mixed with water and baked

Jesus’ resurrection was observed by quite a few people in quite a few different instances.

(1 Cor 15:1-8 KJV)  Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; {2} By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. {3} For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; {4} And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: {5} And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: {6} After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. {7} After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. {8} And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.