they did not know Him. Indeed they
despised Him and rejected Him.
So the Lord asked again, “What
things?” “What are you talking about?”
And they told Him. (Verses 19-24)
Notice again how they referred to Him
as “Jesus, a Man, a Prophet, mighty in
word and deed,” unwittingly signifying
His Divine love, wisdom and power,
which is what these names mean in
their spiritual sense.
Then they referred to the chief
priests and rulers of Jerusalem,
signifying the perverted loves and
doctrines in the church at the time,
which rejected Him. The phrase,
“But we were hoping....” speaks to the
innocence and trust they had lost in
the crucifixion, and yet very subtly
suggests that a remnant of that hope
may still linger.
“And besides all this, today is the
third day...” Yes, come to think of it,
He did say He would rise again on the third day... But where is He? What
happened?
“And certain women of our company astonished us with their story....”
Women in the Word represent our affections (as distinct from the thoughts
of our understanding). And it is no accident that they are the first to see the
angels, and even the Lord Himself. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall
see God.” It is the will that takes us to the Lord; the understanding only comes
along after in support.
After listening a long time the Lord finally speaks: “O foolish ones, and
slow of heart to believe.... Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things,
and to enter into His glory?”
Foolish ones! Perhaps it is not as harsh as it sounds, but it was a stern
rebuke. “Didn’t He tell you that all this would happen, and that He would rise
again on the third day? Didn’t He tell you this repeatedly in the weeks before
the crucifixion?”
But we are slow. The understanding labors long and hard to see the truth
– about ourselves and about the Lord. And this labor is important, lest we be
compelled, or lest we be changed so quickly that we lose our identity, our sense
Our doctrines tell us
that even in heaven
when something definite
is learned, it is often
followed by something
that raises questions
or causes doubt so that
the person learning it
will not be compelled
by external means to
believe it, but can think
about it and consider
it and compel himself
to believe it or not.
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