"Rope" or "Camel" through the Eye of a Needle?"
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:50 pm
Matthew 19: 23 - 24 (RSV):
[23] And Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.
[24] Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
It's always been that way hasn't it? Follow Stephan Huller's Posting on Clement and Origen. 100 years plus a few after the Destruction of the Temple and it is there for all to see.
Matthew 19: 24 (Lamsa and others):
24 Again I say to you, It is easier for a rope to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Kooks. Cranks. Fringe Translations.
There would have to be a reason to switch our understanding here, yes? I can present several:
1. What was the "Kingdom of God" or, as Matthew puts it in several places, "The Realm of Heaven" (Moffatt Trans.)? I believe that it was a Real, Physical Place, probably in Antonia. The Priests assembled there for their preparations in their Duties for the Mishmarot Priesthood. Only the Priests were allowed - and at least youths such as Peter, who was there in 4 BCE as a child. Others were not allowed:
Matthew 5: 20 (RSV):
[20] For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Only the Priests.
I have attempted through the years to Chronicle the Alternate Story of Peter and the Temple Slaughter of 4 BCE. Peter is a child who goes to Jerusalem for the Passover as a Member of the Mishmarot Group Immer (1 Chronicles 24). He is expecting the Overthrow of Herod and the Romans in a Coup. He sees a Slaughter instead as 3000+ people are murdered around the Temple. As this Atrocity is taking place, he sees a Priest, a friend, probably also of Immer but perhaps from Jehoiarib. The Priest should be dead. There is no way out. The child Peter, however knows a small Passageway:
Luke 13: 23 - 24 (RSV):
[23] And some one said to him, "Lord, will those who are saved be few?" And he said to them,
[24] "Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
As Pie in the Sky, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, this is most uplifting. As a description of people attempting to evade the Death that surrounds them, it means something terribly different. It may also indicate a Literary Structure. If several are crowded around the small door as others around them being hacked to bits, it would be difficult to imagine that there would not be bodies in the way of the safety that the Passage would provide. On the other hand, it may be perfectly descriptive and a Heroic reflection of all the Peter did. Alas, this part of the Story has been deeply hidden.
Matthew 18: 1 - 4 (RSV):
[1] At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
[2] And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them,
[3] and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
[4] Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Here is another example of alternate Translations. In several translations, the text reads, "...unless you CHANGE like children...". The Understanding and Intentionality, without proper Context, always travels to the Metaphysical. If you can see the Story, however, it is OBVIOUS that the reading should be "...unless you turn like children". The door and the passageway are that narrow.
Which brings us to the consideration of Matthew 19. I believer that the "Camel through the eye of a needle" cannot be correct. The Intentionality here is that "...a rich man is a fat man" and that makes all the difference. This Passage is from the Story of the Temple Slaughter of 4 BCE. It is NOT a commentary on a rich man not being able to get into the Heavenly Park in the Sky, where the Kingdom of Heaven is. It is about the Death. Real Death around the Temple in Jerusalem, in 4 BCE. No Metaphysics. The description is of a real piece of Real Estate:
Mark 9: 47 (RSV):
[47] And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell
How Ironic. The Meeting Place of the Priests, a Place only those without Blemish may gather. That day, there were survivors and the few who survived were bloodied and maimed. There were some who were rich, fattened by years of easy living. They could not could not make into the Realm of Heaven. The FIrst, the Well to Do, were last. There were children, the least of all in the Scheme of Things, who were First. It would be easier for a rope to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Realm of Heaven.
One child, Peter, saved a Priest. They would return 12 years later. Only, the Priest would be captured and Crucified. On the cross, the Priest yells, "My God, my God, for this was I spared?"
Many who have wrestled with this Translation are deeply puzzled though they accept these words. Kooks? Cranks? No. Without the Context, it makes little sense. It makes Perfect Sense.
CW
[23] And Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.
[24] Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
It's always been that way hasn't it? Follow Stephan Huller's Posting on Clement and Origen. 100 years plus a few after the Destruction of the Temple and it is there for all to see.
Matthew 19: 24 (Lamsa and others):
24 Again I say to you, It is easier for a rope to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Kooks. Cranks. Fringe Translations.
There would have to be a reason to switch our understanding here, yes? I can present several:
1. What was the "Kingdom of God" or, as Matthew puts it in several places, "The Realm of Heaven" (Moffatt Trans.)? I believe that it was a Real, Physical Place, probably in Antonia. The Priests assembled there for their preparations in their Duties for the Mishmarot Priesthood. Only the Priests were allowed - and at least youths such as Peter, who was there in 4 BCE as a child. Others were not allowed:
Matthew 5: 20 (RSV):
[20] For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Only the Priests.
I have attempted through the years to Chronicle the Alternate Story of Peter and the Temple Slaughter of 4 BCE. Peter is a child who goes to Jerusalem for the Passover as a Member of the Mishmarot Group Immer (1 Chronicles 24). He is expecting the Overthrow of Herod and the Romans in a Coup. He sees a Slaughter instead as 3000+ people are murdered around the Temple. As this Atrocity is taking place, he sees a Priest, a friend, probably also of Immer but perhaps from Jehoiarib. The Priest should be dead. There is no way out. The child Peter, however knows a small Passageway:
Luke 13: 23 - 24 (RSV):
[23] And some one said to him, "Lord, will those who are saved be few?" And he said to them,
[24] "Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
As Pie in the Sky, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, this is most uplifting. As a description of people attempting to evade the Death that surrounds them, it means something terribly different. It may also indicate a Literary Structure. If several are crowded around the small door as others around them being hacked to bits, it would be difficult to imagine that there would not be bodies in the way of the safety that the Passage would provide. On the other hand, it may be perfectly descriptive and a Heroic reflection of all the Peter did. Alas, this part of the Story has been deeply hidden.
Matthew 18: 1 - 4 (RSV):
[1] At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
[2] And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them,
[3] and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
[4] Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Here is another example of alternate Translations. In several translations, the text reads, "...unless you CHANGE like children...". The Understanding and Intentionality, without proper Context, always travels to the Metaphysical. If you can see the Story, however, it is OBVIOUS that the reading should be "...unless you turn like children". The door and the passageway are that narrow.
Which brings us to the consideration of Matthew 19. I believer that the "Camel through the eye of a needle" cannot be correct. The Intentionality here is that "...a rich man is a fat man" and that makes all the difference. This Passage is from the Story of the Temple Slaughter of 4 BCE. It is NOT a commentary on a rich man not being able to get into the Heavenly Park in the Sky, where the Kingdom of Heaven is. It is about the Death. Real Death around the Temple in Jerusalem, in 4 BCE. No Metaphysics. The description is of a real piece of Real Estate:
Mark 9: 47 (RSV):
[47] And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell
How Ironic. The Meeting Place of the Priests, a Place only those without Blemish may gather. That day, there were survivors and the few who survived were bloodied and maimed. There were some who were rich, fattened by years of easy living. They could not could not make into the Realm of Heaven. The FIrst, the Well to Do, were last. There were children, the least of all in the Scheme of Things, who were First. It would be easier for a rope to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Realm of Heaven.
One child, Peter, saved a Priest. They would return 12 years later. Only, the Priest would be captured and Crucified. On the cross, the Priest yells, "My God, my God, for this was I spared?"
Many who have wrestled with this Translation are deeply puzzled though they accept these words. Kooks? Cranks? No. Without the Context, it makes little sense. It makes Perfect Sense.
CW