2025/08/11

208. Solutions to the Issues Raised in the Letter to the Hebrews and Their Fruit

The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews states, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old received divine approval. By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do not appear" (Heb 11:1-3). He then briefly describes the history of the people of the Old Testament who received divine approval because of their faith (cf. 11:4-38) and concludes as follows: "And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect" (11:39-40).

In the faith of Christians who follow Jesus Christ, a Hebrew, there is no break with the history of the Old Testament. However, here the writer shows two different types of faith and announces that a thoroughly new era has come in the history of the people of the Old Testament. For this reason, the definition of faith as "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" resulted in "And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was promised." On the other hand, those who believe in the name of Jesus through the Holy Spirit receive the state of "By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do not appear." The expression, "God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect" refers to this state.

John the Evangelist testifies to these differences between the Old and New Testament ways of faith through the first and second signs performed by Jesus in Cana of Galilee. The mother who conceived Jesus through the Holy Spirit believed the words of the angel, "You shall call his name Jesus" (Mat 1:21, Lk 1:31), together with her husband, Joseph. Through that faith, she experienced that "the world was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do not appear." Filled with the Holy Spirit, she had already attained perfection, anticipating the "something better" that God had planned for us. That is as the risen Jesus said, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe" (Jn 20:29).

"There was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his disciples. When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to him, 'They have no wine.'" (Jn 2:1-3). Jesus replied, "O woman, what have you to do with me? My hour has not yet come" (2:4). These words of Jesus indicate that he came to earth with a divine plan. Jesus' mother, who had shared everything with him, understood this and told the servants, "Do whatever he tells you" (2:5), which was her response to Jesus' words. Thus, his mother, his disciples, and the servants who had obeyed Jesus' command all encountered the very time when Jesus performed his first sign of turning water into wine and "manifested his glory" (2:11). Here we see a model of New Testament faith.

The second sign in Cana, Galilee, was as follows. There was an officer, and "When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death" (Jn 4:47). As it is written, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old received divine approval," the officer was assured of the hope that Jesus would heal his son. Therefore, he, as if neglecting Jesus' words, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe" (4:48), immediately said, "Sir, come down before my child dies" (4:49). He tried to be convinced of the unseen thing that Jesus would heal his son. In fact, later he confirmed the time when Jesus said, "Go; your son will live" (4:50) and the time when his son was healed (cf. 4:51-53). He believed Jesus' words and went home. And his son was healed. That is the model of faith in the Old Testament.

Although the official, by his faith, was approved by Jesus, he "did not receive what was promised." There are still many people around the world today who receive the same result. To advance history, we Christians must understand and accept the conclusion that "God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect" and strive to "be made perfect." Therefore, the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews goes on to earnestly encourage believers saying, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith" (Heb 12:1-2).

Maria K. M.

 2025/08/04

207. From the Issues Raised in the Letter to the Hebrews to Their Solution (the Assembly)

The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews had to support through a letter his community, which was undergoing persecution and social pressure (cf. Heb 10:32-34) and was prone to reverting to Old Testament practice (cf. 2:1). He therefore used the word "assembly" to evoke the image of a new community of God's people centred on Christ. That was because it was what he called "such a great salvation" (2:3). In this "assembly," God distributes the gifts of the Holy Spirit, sent in the name of Jesus, according to his will (cf. 2:4). There, Christ, who is at the centre of worship and praise, calls believers "brothers" and praises God together with them (cf. 2:12). And he says, "Here am I, and the children God has given me" (2:13). The Book of Revelation also says, "He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be my son" (Rev 21:7). The "assembly" is to become the very place where people will enter God's rest, the promised land, the "new Jerusalem" (cf. 21:2–6).

The writer encouraged believers to strive to participate in the "assembly." There, the Holy Spirit seeks to distribute his gifts according to his Father's will to believers who have become children of Christ by calling God their Father. However, the power of the word of God that the writer was convinced as "the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (Heb 4:12), sometimes discourages believers because it suggested a severe training. It was hard to overcome the situation in that environment at the time (cf. 10:32-34). In addition, the words, "And before him no creature is hidden, but all are open and laid bare to the eyes of him with whom we have to do" (4:13), made them confront the reality of God, which could cause human fear. 

The writer says that "we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God" (Heb 4:14) and that "we have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin" (Heb 4:15), encouraging believers by saying, "Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (4:16). That is why the writer developed and emphasised the theme, "Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchiz'edek" (5:6), and intended to thoroughly testifiy that Jesus Christ was at the centre of this "assembly." 

However, as discussed in the previous issues, the writer's community faced problems such as the inherent nature of people to strongly revert to habitual ways of thinking instilled in them by their upbringing, which had a significant impact on the Church community, and the question of how to receive Jesus' help in confronting information referred to as devils and Satan. These issues are more likely to occur outside the "assembly." To resolve them and enable believers who live with the Holy Spirit sent in the name of Jesus to keep Jesus' words, a realistic and concrete method of formation is necessary. That is the formation which is to support the "assembly" that the writer believed in and to lead to the completion of the "assembly" itself, realising the writer's conviction through the belief and practice of all believers, who are the living Church. To fulfil this aim, the establishment of the New Testament is imperative. Jesus' name does not appear in the Old Testament.

He wrote, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old received divine approval. By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do not appear" (Heb 11:1-3). In this passage, we see two types of faith. I expect that the clue leading to the realistic and concrete method of formation is hidden here. In the next issue, I would like to explore this idea further. 

Maria K.M.

 2025/07/28

206. Issues Raised in the Letter to the Hebrews (Human Information)

At the end of Chapter 2 of the Letter to the Hebrews, it says, "Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same nature, that through death he might destroy him who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage" (Heb 2:14-15). To understand the writer's words above, we need to know the true nature of "the devil." Devils and Satan are information, and when taken in by people, they become human thoughts. The Book of Revelation says that what is called the devil or Satan is "that ancient serpent" (Rev 20:2), urging us to pay attention to the story of the first man and woman in Genesis.

Information generated through human interactions is highly compatible with human memory and easily forms human thoughts when taken in. In this way, God's command, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die" (Gen 2:16-17), has been replaced by the human thoughts: "We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" (3:2-3). The memory of God's words that the first man and woman had at the beginning of Genesis has been overwritten.

Ignoring God's will, they acted on their human thoughts, "You will not die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Gen 3:4-5). And indeed, things turned out just as they had thought. They did not die after eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and their eyes were opened. However, with their eyes opened, they eventually came to realise that their bodies, which were nothing but dust, would return to dust (cf. 3:19). The words, "You shall die," meant that they would know physical death and become subject to lifelong bondage through fear of death. Viewing from the side of God, they are as good as dead. To free these people, Jesus, the Son of God, became a human being. And he responded to Peter with harsh words, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of men" (Mat 16:23), when Peter rebuked him after he first revealed his suffering, death, and resurrection to his disciples.

The Gospels record the events that occurred after Jesus received baptism from John the Baptist and fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, revealing how Jesus, the Son of God, confronted the human information known as the devil or Satan. Jesus, who was about to begin his public life, must have held God's plan entrusted to him by his Father in his mind and was filled with determination to carry it out. However, after fasting, Jesus got hungry, and a strange idea to command the stones to become loaves of bread came to his mind, combining the thoughts of the Son of God with the thoughts of a human being having lived as a man (cf. Mat 4:1). That is because Jesus had a plan to institute the Eucharist, in which bread and wine would become his body and blood through the Word, so that his words, "[H]e who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day" (Jn 6:54), would come true. Jesus distinguished human thoughts from God's plan by answering, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" (Mat 4:4).

Meanwhile, Jesus' humanity, which had already exceeded the limits of physical endurance, experienced a hallucination. He stood on the edge of the temple roof. His idea, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down" (Mat 4:6), that has come to his mind seems to make us recall the deriding words of those who saw Jesus crucified on the cross, "You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross" (27:40). As a human being with a physical body, Jesus had to face his own death with the same feelings as those who had been slaves all their lives because of their fear of death. However, Jesus distinguished his thoughts, which were based on God's plan, from human thoughts, saying, "Again it is written, 'You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'" (4:7).

The hallucination continues. Jesus is taken to a very high mountain and sees all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. An idea arises in his mind, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me" (Mat 4:9). In this case, the suggestive form "if you are the Son of God" is not used. That is because Jesus, the Son of God, had memories of people who had fallen to their knees before these words, given themselves over to all kinds of idolatry, and perished. That idea was human information, kept separate in Jesus' memory. Jesus called it by name and treated it as completely foreign, saying, "Begone, Satan! for it is written, `You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'" (4:10). Then the human information left him. The Gospel says, "angels came and ministered to him" (4:11). Peace has come.

Jesus' experience in the wilderness is a powerful help to us, as it is written in the Letter to the Hebrews, "For because he himself has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted" (Heb 2:18). Jesus dealt with the human thoughts that arose within him by responding with the words of God. That was because he had retained the words of the Old Testament. However, Jesus' name is not found in the Old Testament. At the time when the systematic New Testament had not yet been established, believers, who lived with the Holy Spirit sent in the name of Jesus, needed a practical and concrete method of retaining Jesus' words so that they could follow Jesus' example in the wilderness. The absence of such a method was the second issue that affected the Church community, following on from the first issue mentioned in the previous article.

Maria K. M.

 2025/07/21

205. Issues raised in the Letter to the Hebrews (Chapters 1-2)

The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews, who was in an age when the New Testament had not yet been compiled into a systematic whole, seems to be trying to somehow explain theoretically Jesus Christ as seen through the eyes of faith and the new covenant, based on what he had heard, using the Old Testament. The text contains a separate thread from the topic of priesthood, which we discussed last time, in which the writer develops a remarkable reflection on the theme of faith. So, I would like to pick the issues the writer would have faced in leading his community, and finally, I will try to present the solutions to them. 

The writer first clarifies who Jesus, the Son of God, is (cf. Heb 1:1-3), and then explains the difference between the Son and the angels (cf. 1:4-14). The writer is very concerned with the theme of angels. That is because, just as it was an angel who announced the coming of the Son of God to Joseph and Mary, the Hebrews of that time generally believed that angels were intermediaries between God and humans, and that God's revelations were communicated through angels. Therefore, the writer had to carefully argue that Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man, was essentially superior to angels, despite appearing to be less than an angel. The Book of Revelation begins with the words, "The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants what must soon take place; and he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John" (Rev 1:1), which also shows the importance of showing Christ's superiority to angels clearly. 

In addition, the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews says, "Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve, for the sake of those who are to obtain salvation?" (Heb 1:14), which is consistent with what the angel himself says in Revelation: "I am a fellow servant with you and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus" (Rev 19:10) and "I am a fellow servant with you and your brethren the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book" (22:9). However, as the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews urges self-control, continuing, "Therefore we must pay the closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it" (Heb 2:1), people have a strong tendency to revert to habitual ways of thinking instilled in them by their upbringing. 

Considering this, we can well sympathize with the sentiment of the writer when he wrote, "[H]ow shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?" (Heb 2:3). That is because this salvation was declared not by angels but "at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard him, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his own will" (2:3-4). 

Therefore, as the writer says, "For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through suffering" (Heb 2:10), it was only through Jesus, the Son of God, showing himself fulfilling God's will completely through various sufferings before us humans that people, created by God, would be able to accept the fact that they had been made after the likeness of the one "for whom and by whom all things exist," i.e., after God's likeness. 

Considering the above, we can say one of the issues that the writer would have faced in leading his community is that people have a strong tendency to revert to habitual ways of thinking instilled in them by their upbringing. Amid this problem, believers "neglect such a great salvation." That is the first issue influencing the Church community. 

Maria K.M.

 2025/07/14

204. Revelation and the Letter to the Hebrews

In the latter half of Revelation, the priesthood appears at its beginning symbolically in the form of a woman crowned with twelve stars (cf. Rev. 12:1-2). The Letter to the Hebrews, quoting Genesis 14, develops the theme: "Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchiz'edek" (Heb 5:6, etc.). As discussed in the previous article, "Mel-chiz'edek king of Salem ... priest of God Most High," who brought out bread and wine to Abraham after his victory in battle (cf. Gen 14:1-18), symbolises the priesthood of the New Covenant that Jesus showed to the Apostles, who had prepared bread and wine at his last Passover meal, which means that at that time, Jesus was in the position of Abraham in the scene in Genesis. By conferring the priesthood on the Apostles at the same time as instituting the Eucharist, Jesus established the eternal priesthood. 

Just as Jesus said to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father" (Jn 4:21), this priesthood was of a completely different concept from the priesthood of the Old Covenant. In the Letter to the Hebrews, its author emphasises the priesthood of Melchizedek, writing, "He is without father or mother or genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest for ever" (Heb 7:3). That must be because he was longing for a perfect priest transcending the boundaries of the Law, that is Jesus Christ, for both the Gentile community and the Jewish community. 

In Genesis, after the scene of Abraham's encounter with Melchizedek, a story begins with "After these things ..." (Gen 15:1), in which Abraham, following God's command, brings a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon to God (cf. 15:9). This scene is reminiscent of the people who came by Jesus' cross in the Gospel of John (cf. Jn 19:25-26). The three-year-old heifer corresponds to Mary, the wife of Clopas; the three-year-old female goat to Mary Magdalene; the three-year-old ram to the beloved disciple; and the turtledove and the young pigeon to Jesus' mother. That is because Jesus' mother, together with her husband Joseph, took Jesus to Jerusalem on the day of his presentation "to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, 'a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons'" (Lk 2:24). The similarity of these two scenes also tells us that Jesus was in the position of Abraham. 

In the scene at Jacob's well, Jesus continued to the Samaritan woman, "You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews" (Jn 4:22). Jesus was connected to the priesthood of the Old Covenant. That is because it contains the plan of God, who created human beings, and the prophecies. That is also the reason why Jesus' mother had to be a relative of the priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth, who was from the daughters of Aaron (cf. Lk 1:5). 

Jesus explains why it was necessary to give the priesthood to human beings: "But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth" (Jn 4:23-24). God the Father desires that those who seek the truth worship him in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. That is the very image of the priest of the New Covenant, who celebrates the Mass. The words "now is" indicate that Jesus, who is to be worshipped in this way, is here. 

From the above considerations, we can see that the author of the Letter to the Hebrews attempted to position Jesus Christ, the Son f God, who is now seated at the right hand of the Father, as the eternal priest of the Church community. It is supposed that under his focus on Melchizedek’s priesthood lay his expectation for the "priesthood" (cf. Heb 7:11-12) that the Church community at that time and everyone who would accept the Gospel could be satisfied. However, that is not all. This letter also contains another thread that expands on the theme of faith. Next time, we will focus on that. 

Maria K. M.

 2025/07/07

203. The Ark of the Covenant was Seen within the Temple of God in Heaven

"Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet" (Rev 11:15). At the end of Revelation 11, all the books of the New Testament were present. The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of Paul, which contain specific instructions to believers, are given a place to work fully alongside the four Gospels. The second half of Revelation is coming. "[T]here were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.'" (Ibid.). The Lord's reign means that the time has come for Jesus to achieve what he could not while he lived as a man on earth even though he was fully God. That includes judging the dead, rewarding God's servants, prophets, saints, and all who fear his name, and destroying the destroyers of the earth (cf. 11:18). These events first occur in the world of the Book of Revelation, which is a book of prophecy (cf. 1:3, 22:19). 

Revelation reads, "Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, voices, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail" (Rev 11:19). "God's temple in heaven" is the body of Christ, as written in the Gospel of John: "But he spoke of the temple of his body" (Jn 2:21). What is the "ark of his covenant" within it? 

As the Gospel of Matthew writes, "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Mat 1:1), and as Jesus himself said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am" (Jn 8:58), his lineage is from David, a descendent of Abraham, that is, from the tribe of Judah. 

On the other hand, as the angel who visited Mary told her (cf. Lk 1:36), Mary was a relative of the priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth, who was from the daughters of Aaron (cf. 1:5), which means she, Jesus' mother, was of the tribe of Levi. In fact, Mary visited Elizabeth, who was pregnant, and stayed for three months to help Elizabeth, which shows how close they were. So, we can take that Jesus, who was born as her son, also had the blood of the tribe of Levi. 

Indeed, the "ark of his covenant" represented the Levite blood in Jesus' body, that is, the priesthood. Revelation describes the priesthood as follows, with the image of Jesus' mother: "And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars" (Rev 12:1). 

The Letter to the Hebrews asserts that Jesus' priesthood transcends the "Levit'ical priesthood" (Heb 7:11) of the Old Testament, quoting Genesis 14 and using the phrase "a priest for ever, after the order of Melchiz'edek" (5:6, etc.) as a key phrase. When Abraham was still called Abram, he defeated the kings who had taken his nephew Lot captive and rescued him. The king of Sodom went out to meet Abram. At that time, Melchizedek, king of Salem, who was priest of God Most High, also came with bread and wine (cf. Gen 14:1-18). Melchizedek blessed Abram, and Abram gave him a tenth of everything (cf. 14:19-20). 

This episode can be contrasted with the events of Jesus' last Passover meal, based on the image of "bread and wine." At that time, Jesus commanded Peter and John to prepare the meal (cf. Lk 22:7). It is natural to think that they were the ones who brought "bread and wine." In Genesis, it was "Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High," who brought "bread and wine," while in the Gospel, it was the disciples whom Jesus had chosen and named Apostles (cf. Lk 6:12-16) who brought them. Jesus placed himself in the position of Abram, who gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything, and gave his body and blood to the Apostles, who had prepared the bread and wine. That is to say, Jesus gave everything he had to his Apostles. 

Furthermore, on the cross, Jesus publicly conferred the priesthood on the Apostles by binding an Apostle to his mother, who was to be the only one to fully share in his birth and death, with the bond of parenthood (cf. Jn 19:26-27). Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the source of the experience of priests, who bring forth the Eucharist, sharing in its birth and death, cooperating with the Holy Spirit. Jesus commanded the Apostles to ask anything of the Father in his name (cf. 16:23-24). Therefor, priests ask especially that bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ. This is modelled on the attitude of Jesus' mother when Jesus performed the sign of turning water into wine (cf. 2:1-12). In this way, the Apostles were bound to Jesus' priesthood with an unbreakable bond. 

All above is prophesied at the beginning of Revelation: "Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen" (Rev 1:4-6) 

Maria K. M.

 2025/06/30

202. The Beast That Ascends from the Bottomless Pit Will Make War Upon Them and Conquer Them and Kill Them

The two witnesses appearing in Revelation 11 represent the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of Paul. When these two books have finished their testimony, "the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit will make war upon them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which is allegorically called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified" (Rev 11:7-8). This is a prophecy that people will use the knowledge of the past, or the "bottomless pit," to interpret these two books, distort the truth they convey, and even interpret the teachings of the Lord's crucifixion with the knowledge of the past. Furthermore, it foretells a future in which, as a result, people on earth will pursue money and wealth, and power and authority will be bought and sold. This "beast" is a foreshadowing of the phenomenon that will occur when the beast "rising out of the sea" (13:1) and the beast that "rose out of the earth" (13:11) in Revelation 13 are intertwined in history. 

The phrase "rising out of the sea" reminds us of the Israelites, who crossed the Red Sea in the time of Moses. It is written, "One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth followed the beast with wonder" (Rev 13:3). The "mortal wound" refers to the fact, despite God's promise to David, regarding his son Solomon, "I will be his father, and he shall be my son" (2 Sam 7:14), Solomon turned away from God, failing this promise to be fulfilled (cf. 1 King 11:1-10). The Israelites failed to get the chance to become the one who was equal to God by establishing the relationship of father and son with God. Thus, a beast arose from their history, that is, a theology that likens the relationship between God and His people to marriage. Thanks to this illusion, the mortal wound was healed, and the people surrendered themselves to this theology. However, the wound remained. That is why the Jews, filled with intense jealousy toward Jesus, who called God his Father, all the more sought to kill him (cf. Jn 5:17-18). 

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, "circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law a Pharisee, as to zeal a persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under the law blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ" (Phil 3:5-7). And he continues, "Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him " (3:8-9). In these words, we find a man who has regained the relationship between God and people as father and son, God and son (cf. Jn 1:12, Rom 8:14-17, Gal 4:6-7, and Rev 21:7). 

On the other hand, the beast that "rose out of the earth" refers to Greek philosophy, which pursued earthly matters. The "two horns" in the description: "[I]t had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon" (Rev 13:11), likely refer to the philosophies of Plato (427-347 BC) and Aristotle (384-322 BC), which had a significant influence on Christianity. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul writes, "See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ" (Col 2:8). The following words give us an image of the Eucharist, which is the body of Christ: "For in him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fulness of life in him, who is the head of all rule and authority" (2:9-10). 

For Paul, who desired to "attain the resurrection from the dead" (Phil 3:11), there was nothing else to do but to "press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (3:14). However, he also encouraged people, saying, "If in anything you are otherwise minded, God will reveal that also to you" (3:15). Nevertheless, he hopes that everyone will move forward based on what he has achieved, and strongly urges them, "Brethren, join in imitating me" (3:17). That is because he says, "For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, live as enemies of the cross of Christ" (3:18). There are still believers who aim for self-realisation, making their belly their God, glorying in their shame, with minds set on earthly things, not knowing where they will end up (cf. 3:19). Despite being baptised, they are also those who have been marked with the name of "the beast" (cf. Rev 13:16). 

However, Paul was not afraid of them because he was convinced that Jesus Christ "will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power which enables him even to subject all things to himself" (Phil 3:21). At the beginning of the latter half of Revelation, "the power which enables him even to subject all things to himself" is revealed as follows: "And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars" (Rev 12:1). Therefore, Paul strongly encourages us saying, "Therefore, my brethren, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved" (Phil 4:1). 

Maria K. M.