Stringing Pearls With the Rabbi
Luke 24:44
Series: In the Steps of the Rabbi

     "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms."

I. To increase the impact of a statement, rabbis would quote part of a Scripture (Hinting) and then let their audience fill in the rest.

A. Passages from which Jesus quoted provide background for understanding his meaning more fully. If we miss his reference, we may miss his point.

1. Example: Matthew 21:16 hints at Psalm 8:2
"From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger."

B. There are times when knowing what Jesus doesn't say becomes as important as knowing what he does say.

1. Example: Matthew 18:22 Peter asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive someone who sins against me? Up to seven times?"
Jesus responded, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times."

2. The key to understanding Jesus' meaning is embedded in the passage to which he alluded - Genesis 4:24:
"I have killed ? a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times." (Gen. 4:23b-24)

C. Another Example:
"The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough" (Matthew 13:33).
"Quick ... get three seahs of fine flour and knead it and bake some bread" (Gen. 18:6).

D. A single distinctive word or phrase can refer to a larger recognizable context.

II. One rabbinic rule for interpreting Scriptures was to allow Scripture to interpret Scripture (Stringing Pearls).

A. The Scriptures Jesus read are the same books as those in the Protestant Old Testament and were referred to as the Law (of Moses); the Prophets, and the Psalms.
B. One passage could be used to expand on another if they share the same word or phrase.

1. "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" (Matthew 22:36-39).

C. Example: Jesus is being baptized by John the Baptist

1. (Mark 1:11): "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
2. "You are my Son" is from Psalm 2:7: "He said to me, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father."
3. "Whom I love" is from Genesis 22:2: "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."
4. "With you I am well pleased" is from Isaiah 42:1: "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations."