We are continuing in our study of N.T. Wright’s book, Simply Jesus, and I have interpreted the Gospel narratives to reveal that only the Jewish authorities of Judea believed Jesus’ Gospel of the Kingdom of God was politically motivated. Neither Herod nor Pilate agreed with those authorities that Jesus was seditious, seeking to overthrow the existing political powers. So, what was Jesus doing, as he went about Galilee preaching forgiveness, healing the broken and celebrating with publicans and sinners? What was that all about, and how was it interpreted by the Jewish authorities to the south and the Jewish populace at large?
Jesus came preaching: “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the Gospel” (Mark 1:15). What “time” was Jesus saying had come to fulfillment? Daniel the prophet, had been praying for God to keep his promise and bring the Jews back to their homeland, according to the 70 years prophecy of Jeremiah (Daniel 9:1-19; cp. Jeremiah 25”11-12). An angel appeared and told Daniel his prayer was answered, but it would take another 70 times 70 years (490 years; 10 jubilees) to bring it to its fulfillment (Daniel 9:24). The first jubilee or 49 years would see Jerusalem and the Temple rebuilt (Daniel 9:25), but there would be another 434 years that would be spent under the authority of foreign powers, as the Jews waited for their God to return. The final 7 years would complete the 10 jubilees, and in those final seven years a New Covenant would be made, but the Anointed One, or the Messiah, would be cut off in the midst of those seven years (Daniel 9:27), and ultimately both Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed again by a prince during a war (Daniel 9:26). In other words, Jesus was saying the Jews had entered the final 7 years of the Times of the Gentiles, and they needed to repent, as God had returned to initiate a New Covenant with them (Daniel 9:27; Jeremiah 31:31).
This would mean there would be a new Exodus similar to the one under Moses and the three under Zerubbabel, Nehemiah and Ezra. While that under Moses heralded new political and religious authority, the three under Zerubbabel, Nehemiah and Ezra didn’t replace the gentile authorities that released the Jews to return to their homeland. So, while the Jews expected an Exodus like that under Moses, Jesus offered one like what occurred in their return from Babylon. Ultimately, God was supreme, but a change in political regimes didn’t occur. Instead, a peaceful Exodus occurred.
Jesus’ Exodus came with celebration, but he partied with the ‘wrong people’ (Matthew 9:9-13; Luke 19:1-10). Everyone expected Jesus to fast (Mark 2:18). What is peculiar about Mark 2:18 is the Pharisees and John the Baptize are in agreement (cp. Matthew 3:1, 5-7). This is an oddity, so what does it mean? It seems that both the disciples of John and the Pharisees were fasting (Mark 2:18), while Jesus was feasting with the publicans and sinners in Levi’s/Matthew’s home (Mark 2:13-17). The phrase “used to fast” (Mark 2:18 KJV) is composed of two Greek words (G2258 and G3532) and should be translated “were fasting.” Jesus’ call of Matthew can be shown to have occurred during the time of the harvest or the seventh month. A minor fast of the Jews occurred on the third of the seventh month, the Fast of Gedaliah.[1] Gedaliah was the Jew appointed governor of the Jews, whom Babylon left behind after Jerusalem was destroyed. He represents the last Jewish legal authority over the Jews, and he was assassinated. The disciples of John and the Pharisees were in mourning over this event. It was a national fast day, and it was considered patriotic to observe the fast. However, Jesus wasn’t playing by the rules. Why?
After his baptism, Jesus returned to the Nazareth synagogue and read: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:18-19), and when he finished, he claimed that scripture was fulfilled in his hearers ears (Luke 4:20-21). In other words, Jesus was setting things right in the world, making all things like they should be; all things broken were being fixed, but it would not be in a context that was expected (Luke 4:23-24), and he warned the people that, if they didn’t repent and believe the Gospel, the blessings would go to the gentiles (Luke 4:25-27). In other words, God wasn’t concerned with the outward appearance of things, vis-à-vis the patriotism of the fast (national structures), but with the inward things of the heart. It would do little good to restore the nation, if the people remained broken. Therefore, it was the condition of the people that the Lord was concerned with, vis-à-vis his being with the publicans and sinners. Forgiveness and the return of God begins with them (Mark 2:1-12), his Presence is celebrated with them (Mark 2:15), and his return is healing to them (Mark 2:11), before national structures could be returned to their original state.
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[1] See Jewish Minor Fast Days and The Fast of Gedaliah for more information about this fast day.
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