Dear in Christ,
In Matthew’s case, he uses the phrase “kingdom of heaven” rather than the terminology “kingdom of God.” He does this not because he has a different view of the meaning or content of the kingdom of God; rather, out of sensitivity to his Jewish readers, he makes common use of what is called periphrasis, a certain type of circumlocution to avoid mentioning the sacred name of God.
Okay, I am not a theologian and I have never stepped inside a college of theology or seminary, but the above statement is plain nonsense.
- If the Jewish readers of the Gospel of Matthew are sensitive to the usage of the word "God", why that sensitivity is limited only to the instances; where the word is used in association with "the kingdom"?
- There are 55 instances in 46 verses of the Gospel of Matthew where the Greek word for God (G2316 in Strong's lexicon) is used. Why the Jewish readers are not sensitive to these usages?
- There are 5 scriptures in which Matthew has used "Kingdom of God" (Mat 6:33; 12:28; 19:24; 21:31; 21:43). Why Jewish readers are not sensitive in these 5 instances?
In fact Matthew has used Kingdom of God and Kingdom of Heaven interchangeably.
Mat 19:23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.No, I don't claim that I have the answers, but it is pretty clear that the scholarly answers are dumb and lame.
Mat 19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into THE KINGDOM OF GOD.
In Christ,
Tomsan Kattackal
Dear S P RAJ, Let me congratulate you on making a public display of your ignorance of the scriptures (one way it is also a public display of the group/denomination/religion to which you belong).
ReplyDeleteHave you ever (even by mistake) noticed that the expression "the Kingdom of Heaven" appears only in the gospel of Matthew?
Have you ever noticed that "the parable of the leaven" is presented in Matthew 13:33 saying it's about the Kingdom of Heaven, whereas it's presented in Luke 13:20-21 it says it's about the Kingdom of God?
Again, have you, even by mistake, noticed that "the parable of the mustard seed" is presented in Matthew 13:31-32, saying it's about the Kingdom of Heaven, whereas, in Mark 4:30-32 and Luke 13:18-19, it's presented as a parable about the Kingdom of God?
I can go on and on, but, I hope and wish that, from now on, you will study the scriptures before getting upset about anything that you find on the Internet.