Time to look at the detail of the next segment. Once again I will put the ball in your court to study the Word of God and see what Gems you can find. I tell Deeper Bible Classes frequently to look at the Macro level (big picture) as well as the Micro level (minute details) at the same time. I told them many times you will find macro level clues when you take in the big picture by reading it over and over and looking at how all of the segments (or pericope) flow together. Other times you will find the Macro level features and the micro level features mixed together in one verses. One person in a DB groups asked me recently, “So what does that detail mean? If it means “that” at the micro level then we have to conclude “this” at the macro level. Is that possible Ian?” Yes exactly! The details you find along the way shape the nature of the conclusions we come to on the wider perspective.
Don’t lose sight of the significance of what Luke is doing here. He is stacking up the evidence for Jesus appearances one after the other. This will be the third appearance He tells us of which is evidence of the fact that Jesus rose to life in bodily form.
Remember Luke is not just telling you haphazard things as he remembers them. He is giving you, a lover of God, an ordered account of the reports of eye witnesses on the things that happened so you can be assured of things you have been taught. Thus there is an element of intention in the way Luke has ordered these eye witness accounts of Jesus appearances post resurrection. They are fascinating in the way they all dovetail together and build toward climaxes. Yes not just one climax but many. Step back from the details and take in the big picture as it unfolds.
Now having done that make sure you pick up on the detail and timing of what is being told to you. What is recorded here by Luke are not just throw away lines. He has carefully structured what he is telling us. There are lots of little details hidden in the text. For example, have you connected the first little detail you come across?
Luke tells us “And within the hour they were on their way back to Jerusalem.” Mark writes, ‘They rushed back to tell the others . . . “ Just this opening statement is highly significant. Look at how the translations deal with this statement in the Greek.
(GNT)
καὶ ἀναστάντες αὐτῇ τῇ ὥρᾳ ὑπέστρεψαν εἰς ῾Ιερουσαλήμ καὶ εὗρον συνηθροισμένους τοὺς ἕνδεκα καὶ τοὺς σὺν αὐτοῖς
And {standing up} {in that} the hour returned to Jerusalem and found {gathered together} the twelve and those with them
- (AMP) And rising up that very hour, they went back to Jerusalem, where they found the Eleven [apostles] gathered together and those who were with them,
- (BBE) And that very hour they got up and went back to Jerusalem, where the eleven and the others had come together.
- (CEV) So they got right up and returned to Jerusalem. The two disciples found the eleven apostles and the others gathered together.
- (ESV) And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together,
- (GNB) They got up at once and went back to Jerusalem, where they found the eleven disciples gathered together with the others
- (GW) That same hour they went back to Jerusalem. They found the eleven apostles and those who were with them gathered together.
- (ISV) That same hour they got up and went back to Jerusalem and found the eleven and their companions all together.
- (KJV) And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them,
- (LITV) And rising up in the same hour, they went back to Jerusalem, and they found the Eleven, and those with them, having been gathered,
- (MKJV) And they rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem and found assembled the Eleven and those with them.
- (MSG) They didn’t waste a minute. They were up and on their way back to Jerusalem. They found the Eleven and their friends gathered together,
- (NASB) And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with them,
- (NLT) And within the hour they were on their way back to Jerusalem. There they found the eleven disciples and the others who had gathered with them,
- (Webster) And they rose the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven assembled, and them that were with them,
- (YLT) And they, having risen up the same hour, turned back to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven, and those with them,
Take time to think about what Luke has written above and put the pieces together. I will give you the time between Gems to glean from this what you can when you take in the context of what Luke has written for us. Then I will add the rest of the detail in the next Gem. This will demonstrate for you what is meant by dealing with macro and micro level elements at the same time. I have been inspired to do this for this Gem as a result of the inspiration that came to one of the student i desired above when she saw the connection between macro and micro level elements in one verse. Yes exactly, its exciting when you start to read the Bible the way it is meant to be read.
You may not always know the details of your journey or clearly see where the trail is leading, but God will always give you enough light to take the next step.
Anon
The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into possibility.
Arthur C. Clark
If you study the Bible and it doesn’t lead you to wonder and awe then you haven’t gone deep enough.
Ian Vail
Studying God’s Thoughts Will Make You Wise, While Studying Man’s Only Makes You Clever.
Robb Thompson