Mar 1:15 The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent you, and believe the gospel.
Alternative: The measure is full and the kingdom of God is brought near; you can change your mind and believe in the reward for bringing good news.

These are Christ's first words in Mark. They are more forceful and direct than Christ's first words in Matthew. Here he provides a simple summary of his mission.

The first idea, that is that the time has come and the measure is full (both ideas are the same) suggests that human history had to get to a certain point before it was ready for Christ's message. That time was predicted to come and it did. Of course, the big issue is what that change entails.

Next it moves to the very difficult idea of "the kingdom of God." (Interestingly, Mark starts with this formulation referring to "God" instead of the more common phrase of "the kingdom of heaven." I don't know that the two phrases means exactly the same thing.) In either case, this is a central idea because Christ spends most of his time in Matthew explaining this idea and a difficult one. While this idea may encompass aspects of the afterlife, it clearly is more than that: a state of being that is aligned with God, an idea and culture spreading through human civilzation.

Finally, it ends with a statement that I think has been mistranslated. "Good news" has come to mean the Christ story itself, i.e. the Gospel, but Christ doesn't seem to use it that way at all. He used it more simply. The phrase doesn't mean the "good news itself." Instead it means "the reward for bringing good news." For Christ, changing our mind means believing that trusting in the future and specifcially in a future that is increasingly close to God, will have its own rewards. This is at one level, a statement about optimism generally.

Christ is saying that the world starts to get better when we believe that we will be rewarded for bringing good news instead of punished for it. This goes beyond simply optimism because the good news he brings is specific: that God is changing the world through each of us.



"Time" is from kairos, which means "due measure," "proportion," "fitness," "exact time," "season," "opportunity," "time," "critical times," "advantage," and "profit."

"Fulfilled" is plêroô (pleroo), which mean "to fill," "to fulfill," "to make complete," "to pay in full," "to make pregnant," and "to fill full."

"Is at hand" is from engizô (eggizo), which means "to bring near," "to approach," and "to bring up."

"Good news" is from euangelion (euaggelion) a "reward of good tidings," a "thank offering for good tidings, " "good news," and "good tidings." Originally, this terms described a reward, like a tip, given to a messenger who brought good news.

Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.
Alternative: Explain to them how to take care of everything as far as I have commanded you, and see I am with you every day until the end of the age. Amen.

These are the last words of Christ. My sense is that Christ was entrusting his teaching not only to the Apostles, but to everyone who followed him. As God entrusted the world to mankind, Christ specifically entrusts his teaching to us.

Earlier today, I was thinking about the cycle of life that Christ talks about so frequently, both directly and in symbols, with the temporary realm consisting of the physical, mental, and emotional. It occurred to me that life follows a pattern: when we are born, we have few physical and mental capacities, so we rely our our emotional relationship with our parents. We grow into adulthood, developing our physical and mental powers and extending our relationships to friends and the building of our own family. However, if we live long enough, life reduces our physical and mental powers until we are, at last, relying solely on our relationships.

While all earthly emotional relationships are temporary (Christ specifically says that even marriage is just a part of this life), our emotional relationships are closer in nature to our spiritual nature than our physical or mental powers. Christ is the word, appealing to our mental powers. The Father is the physical creator. However the Holy Spirit is the master of the emotional relationships.

In his last words, Christ makes the point that he is with us, but he is not with us physically. His word or rather echoes of it remain in the Gospels, but what really remains of both the Father and the Son is the relationship, the spirit.


"Teaching" is from didaskô (didasko), which means "to teach," "to instruct," "to indicate," "to explain," and "to give sign of."

"Observe" is from têreô (tereo), which means "to watch over," "to guard," "to take care of," "to give heed to," "to keep," and "to observe."

"Whatsoever" is from hosos (hosos), which means "as many," "as much as," "as great as," "as far as," and "only so far as."

"Commanded" is from entellô (entello), which means "to enjoin," and "to command."

"Lo" is from idou (idou), which means "to behold," "to see," and "to perceive." It is a form of the verb eido.

"Am" is from eimi (eimi), which means "to exist," "to be' (as the opposite of "become"), "to be the fact," "to be possible," "to consist of," and a number of special uses.

"End" is from sunteleia (sunteleia), which means "completion" or "consumation."

"The world" is from aion (aion), which means "life," "lifetime," "age," or "generation."

Mat 28:19 Go you therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Alternative: Therefore carry on and make disciples of all foreigners, plunging them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Sacred Breath of Life.

Here, Christ closes the book on his teaching, at least in Matthew. The rest is up to the Apostles. Christ doesn't charge them to just go, but to carry on, to take up his role. Strangely, he doesn't focus them on converting the Jews, but the Gentiles. This is clearer in the Greek, where the world chosen, ethnos, is used throughout the Gospels to refer to the non-Jews. The Apostles' job is not just to teach them, but to make them disciples, students.

In thinking about the original meaning of Christ's words, it is interesting to think about ideas that originated with Christ that are now commonly accepted but at the time must have seem strange. Here, we start with the idea of baptism. And, of course, no idea has been as hard to understand as that of the "Holy Ghost."

While I don't want to get into the concept of the Sacred Breath of Life because the idea of the Trinity has been a contentious area of Christianity and, as I may have said elsewhere, human speculating on the nature of divinity is like cockroaches speculating on quantum physics. I don't think we have the mental equipment to climb that mountain. However, I will admit that I get more from the concept of the Sacred Breath of Life, which is in all of us, uniting us and making us Godlike, than I do from most formulations of the Holy Ghost.

Let's go back to baptism. What did people of the time think about baptism? Though it was not a part of any historical religion I have run across before John the Baptist. Ritual washing was a common practice in many religions, especially before entering a holy place, but baptism isn't just washing. A baptism is just done once, as a sign of conversion. The meaning of baptism as rebirth, though never exactly explained by Christ, was instantly recognized. Everyone seems to have taken to it right away.

Water seems like such a weak choice for this particular symbol. Sacrifice was the central religious practice until the time of Christ. Animal sacrifice meant blood. The Romans literally washed themselves in blood during certain sacrificial rites. A lot of the religious washing was necessary simply to clean up all the blood. But if you are emulating birth in a rebirth ceremony, blood seems more appropriate doesn't it?

It is strange how blood sacrifice disappears with the spread of Christianity. The historical transformation is miraculous. Remember, all ancient religions were organized around rites of offering and sacrifice, especially blood sacrifice. The Old Testament starts with the sacrifice of Cain and Able. The first time I read the Bible, the Old Testament seemed to be the story about the Jews battle against human sacrifice, which was common throughout ancient history. Beginning with Abraham and Isaac, human sacrifice was forbidden, replaced with animal sacrifice. The Biblical view was that the human sacrifice was abhorrent, and that the wars of the Jews against their neighbors were largely justified to put an end to the practice.

However, despite thousands of years of animal sacrifice, the Jews stopped the practice of sacrifice after the fall of Jerusalem and destruction of the temple after Christ's death. Why? The temple had been destroyed before and Jews continued sacrifice. The rituals dated from well before any temple. All the rituals in their law were built around sacrifice. Why did these suddenly fall out of favor?

I think there is only one answer: the rise of Christianity.

Sacrifice dissappeared where ever Christianity went, even before Christians had any power to prevent it. It started with the Jews, but as Christianity spread through the Western world, sacrifice falls out of favor, replaced by other cerimonies, primarily prayer, even in other religions. As Christianity spead to Asia and America, sacrifice stops, even in areas where Christians never had control. Christianity suddenly made animal sacrifice seem primitive, brutal, and irreligous.


"Go" is from poreuô (poreuomai), which means "make to go," "carry," "convey," "bring," "go," "march," and "proceed." It is almost always translated as "go" in the NT.

"Teach" is from mathêteuô (matheteuo), which means "to be a pupil" or "to make a disciple of."

"Nations" is from ethnos, which means "a number of people living together," "caste," "tribe" or "nation," and implies a foriegn group. It is almost always translated as "Gentiles" in the New Testament.

"Baptize" is from baptizô (baptizo), which means "to dip," "to plunge," "to be drenched," "to be drowned," and "getting in deep water."

"Holy" is from hagios ( hagios ), which means "devoted to the gods," "pure," "holy," and on the negative side "accursed."

"Spirit" is pneuma, which means "blast," "wind," "breath," "the breath of life," and "divine inspiration."

Mat 28:18 All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

There are two different words that are translated as "power" in the KJV of Matthew. The one used here, exousia, is most frequently translated as "authority" and Christ usually uses it to refer to his power. The first time, in Mat 9:6 as his "power to forgive sins on earth." The other word translated as "power" is dunamis (dunamis), which Christ usually uses to refer to the power of God, the first time in the Lord's Prayer, Mat 6:13. This word, though usually translated as "power" is sometimes translated as "mighty works."

My sense in just looking at Christ's words is that he uses the first word, exousia, to refer to his own authority, while he uses the term dunamis to refer to God's powers. Though he refers to the "mighty works" (dunamis) done in Capernaum (Mat 11:23) and to himself coming down from heaven "with power" (dunamis) in Mat 24:30, both of these references seem to refer more to the Father than himself. He uses the term "power of God" more directly as in Mat 22:29.

Christ uses the term exousia (authority) to refer to the source of John the Baptist's right to baptize in Mat 21:24. In every context, he (and Matthews) uses this with the sense that this type of "power" is given to one person from a higher power.

That is certainly the case here, where Christ says specifically that he has been given this authority. The tense of the verb in Greek is called Aorist, which unlike the simple past tense in English indicates that something was either started or ended at a very specific point in the past as opposed to happening generally or gradually. The inference is that before his resurrection he had certain forms of "authority" from the Father specifically to "forgive sins" (or more accurately "let loose of mistakes") and to teach. After his resurrection, he had "all kinds of authority" or "complete authority." That idea is emphasized by Christ's use of the "earth and heaven," which he uses to refer to all of the universe, both what we see (earth) and what is hidden (sky).

"All" is from pas, which means "all," "the whole," "every," "anyone," "all kinds," and "anything."

"Power" is from exousia ( exousia ), which means "control," "the power of choice," "permission," "the power of authority," "the right of privilege," "abundance of means," and "abuse of power."

"Given" is from didômi (didomi), which means "to give," "to grant," "to hand over," and "to describe."

"Earth" is from gê (ge), which means "the element of earth," "land (country)," "arable land," "the ground," and "the world" as the opposite of the sky.

The other word for "power" discussed here but not in the verse is from dunamis (dunamis), which means "power," "might," "strength," "capacity," "faculty," and "the worth and value of money."

Mat 28:9 All hail.
Mat 28:10 Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me.
Alternative: Rejoice! Don't run away! Leave and report to my brothers that they are to go away to Galilee and there shall see me.

After his resurrection, Christ is no longer a teacher, at least not in here Matthew. He is all business. He greets the apostles warmly, using a term that suggests his pleasure at seeing them. He is also concerned about their fear at seeing him. For them, it was like seeing a ghost, but Christ doesn't even discuss his resurrection. The only business left to take care of is organizing the apostles. Here, he simply tells them where they are suppose to go and that he will meet them.

"All hail" is from chairô (chairo) which means "rejoice," "take pleasure in," and "welcome."

"Afraid" is from phobeô (phobeo), which means "to be put to flight," "to fear," and "to be afraid."

The first "go" is from aperchomai (aperchomai), which means "to go away," and "to depart."

"Tell" is from apangellô (apaggello), which means "bring tidings," and "report." From, aggelos, which means "messenger" and "envoy" and which is the word from which we get "angels."

The second "go" is from hupagô (hupago), which means "to lead under," "to bring under," "to bring a person before judgment," "to lead on by degrees," "to take away from beneath," "to withdraw," "to go away," "to retire," "to draw off," and "off with you."

"Shall see" is from optazomai (optanomai ), which means "to be seen."

My God, my God, why have your forsaken me?

Christ's last prayer was Psalm 22. He could only say that first line aloud (which fits the words perfectly), but he had time to pray the rest silently before he died. This Psalm was the best summary for his life. In Hebrew, like most ancient languages, it is very simple, very spare. The older the language, the leaner it is. Ancient Hebrew is simpler than the ancient Greek. This new translation tries to capture that simplicity.

Read this imagining you are hanging on a cross, near death. It makes the more perfect sense as a summary of Christ's life and purpose. It echos most of his last lessons about duty, the end of the age, and the beginning of the new age and his role in bringing it.

God, God, I am abandoned, far from deliverance, roaring words.
Gods, I call out all day and you don't answer, the silence of the night.
Holy One, you dwell in Israel's praise.
Our father trusted, trusted in being saved.
They called out and were saved, trusted and were delivered.
I am a worm, not a man, scorned by humanity, despised by people.
See me mocked openly by them saying as they shake their heads:
"He rolls with the One who Exists, saved, rescued and delighted."
Bursting from the womb, I trusted at my mother breast.
I was thrown from the womb, God, my mother's belly.
You are far; but distress is near: nothing helps.
Great bulls surround, mighty Bashans encircle.
Open mouths to rend and roar like lions.
I am spilled water; my bones pulled apart, my heart waxen, melting in the midst of my bowels.
My strength is withered shards; my tongue sticks to my jaws, ordained to the dust of dying.
Dogs surround, gathering to do evil, going around, digging like lions into my hands and feet.
I count my bones as they look, staring.
They divide my garments and cast lots for my clothing
Don't be far, Existing One, strong one hurry your help.
Deliver my soul, my sword, my only, from dogs' hands.
Save me from the lion's mouth, answer the bullhorn.
I declared your name to my brothers in the midst of their meeting I gave praise.
Those who fear Existence, give praise; seed of Jacob, give honor; abide seed of Israel.
He does not destain or detest the afflicted; He hides his face but hears our shouts.
I sing praise to the great assembly: I am at peace with my fearful vows.
The poor shall eat and be satisfied; they shall praise Existence and seek in their hearts to remain alive forever.
The end of the earth will remember and return to the Existing One, families and nations will bow-down to your Face.
The Existing One's kingship shall rule the nations.
Eating the fat of the land, they shall bow down; descending into dust, kneeling in Your Presence; reborn to feeling.
The seed shall serve and be recounted for the Lord's era.
They shall come, declaring justice to the nations born of His doing .

Mat 27:46 Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? (My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?)

By far, the most interesting words of Christ in the Bible. Did Christ feel abandoned by God? Was he quoting a Hebrew psalm that ends very optimistically? Was Matthew's translation accurate? As usual, my choice to to believe all of the above.

I have two sources for this verse. (I would have three if I could find a decent Aramaic dictionary on-line, but I haven't yet.) Christ is quoting Psa 22:1, which is Hebrew, but Matthew provides his translation, which is, of course, in Greek.

The Hebrew for this part of the psalm is "el, el azab." "El" means "God" or "Might one." "Azab" means "to leave," "to depart," "to abandon," "to foresake," "to let go," and "to free." The line completes by saying "far from me." For me, the original Psalm says the basic truth of all reality: that God is distant so that we can be free. Only his distance gives us the freedom to choose. If God was not hidden, we would have no choice but to do his will. Our distance from God is a prerequisite for our freedom. I find it surprising that none of the many commentaries I have read regarding this line mentions this. I find that the whole Psalm has more interesting shades of meaning in the original Hebrew than in English translation, but my knowledge of Hebrew is limited.

In the Greek translation, the focus is more personal. The verb doesn't have the sense of "freeing" someone or "forsaking" them as much as abandoning them or leaving them behind. Thinking about Christ's words from this angle, Christ is expressing what we all feel: that God has left us alone, left us to make our own decisions, to suffer our own consequences.

Christ knew this was coming. He spoke about this exactly in the previous chapter. This was his decision in accepting his fate and do what God willed for him. What God willed for him and all of us was to die alone, without knowing our fate, but of course, Christ alone knew his fate exactly.

But there is something more here. This cry as a final prayer and it was the last time Christ could make this particular prayer. With his death, he was ending his separation from God. His death wasn't his separation from the Father: his birth was. Life is separation from God. Our human freedom to choose comes at the terrible price of that separation. His agony in the garden was the agony of him making his final, free choice. Despite the needs of history, he was still separated enough from God so that he was free and still connected enough to God that In a way, this prayer was his way of saying good bye to that separation.

"Forsaken" in the Greek is from enkataleipô (egkataleipo), which means "to leave behind," "to leave in the lurch," and "to abandon."

Mat 27:11 You say [it].
Alternative: You name me.

This is Christ's response to Pilate when he was asked if he was the King of the Jews. While the Greek word translated as "say" has a variety of meanings, it is specifically a response to being called by name. In English, we might respond simply by saying "here," "present," or "you called?" to indicate our identity in response to someone saying our name. This word is used in a similar manner

Notice that Christ does not name himself as a king. As in the previous verse, he simply responds to someone else's naming him. This is reemphasizes an important point about Christ's view of kingship. His message is proclaiming that the "kingdom of heaven" is on its way. In Jhn 18:36, Christ says his kingdom is not of this world (kosmos -world order), but through the course of the Gospels, Christ spends most of his time describing the "kingdom of heaven," which, as we explain can also mean that the "universal rule" is under way, in the sense that the laws of the universe.

What makes Christ kingdom different is that entering into the kingdom of heaven is completely voluntary. You aren't born into it, but you choose to be reborn into it. It isn't a piece of ground, a place, but a state of mind or, perhaps, grace. Christ spends most of the Gospel describing the nature of this kingdom and it spreading throughout society, from one person to another like leaven being mixed in the bread.

Since this kingdom is voluntary, it is up to it citizens to claim their king. Christ is talking to us as well as Pilate when he tells us that we can name him king.

The idea of "kingship" can be interpreted as a ruler, one whose will is to be obeyed, but a more important idea of Jewish kingship is that the "king" is selected by God to have power. The Greek doesn't make it clear whether his kingship is over the Jews or simply decending from the Jews. Christ was select by God as the king of this very special kingdom, where each individual must choose his rule.

"Said" is from legô, which means "to gather," "to pick up," "to count," "to tell," "to recount," "to say," "to speak," and "to call by name." It doesn't mean simply speaking, but verbally connecting things together, enumerating things, recounting things.

Mat 26:64 You have said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall you see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
Alternative: So you say, but I tell you truly that from this moment you shall see that the son of man sits by the power of right and is making his way on the sorrows of the universe.

This question is in response to Christ being asked directly if he is the Christ, the son of God.

Christ uses this formula describing the right hand of power and the clouds of heaven several times. In my alternative translation, I am exploring its other potential meanings.

"Shall see" is from optazomai (optanomai ), which means "to be seen."

"Sitting" is from kathêmai (kathemai), which means "to sit," "to be seated," "to sit still," "to sit quiet," "to reside," and "to be placed."

"Right hand" is from dexios (dexios ), which means "on the right hand," "fortunate," "skillful," and "kindly."

"Power" is from dunamis (dunamis), which means "power," "might," "strength," "capacity," "faculty," and "the worth and value of money."

"Clouds" is from nephelê (nephele), which means "clouds" but in Greek this word is associated with a metaphor for death and sorrow.