SEEKING THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN

 

Jews was speaking to the “multitude” which seems to have been mostly Jews for He said, “For all these things the Gentiles seek” (Mat 6:32). The things were nourishment, housing, glory, and stature. The multitude, even the Jews, sought the same things. They had become much like the Gentiles, or “ethnos,” in the Greek — those with the same genus (Strong 2006), but differentiated from the Hebrews.

By the time of Christ, the ethnic Jews were the only remnant of David remaining. All the others had perished by intermarriage and migrations. As such, Judea was an ethnarchy which had no king during the ministry of Jesus. Prelates of Caesar were the Gentile kings who had the stature to rule.

Kings and priests of Judea had always been Jews, excepting the Herodians who were Idumean Arabs, but confessing Jews. Herodians were outwardly Arabs but inwardly, or spiritually Jewish, and even that is questionable! They were “Jews” because they had to be to be kings of Judea.

Abraham’s kind had degenerated by intermixing with those of other genera. First off, the Ishmaelites were of another genus followed by the Edomites; those two genera intermarried and became Arabs. Finally, the Abraham Covenant came true for Ishmael. Both Jacob and Ishmael had been promised the same land by God. Did God make a mistake? That is soon to follow.

The Hebrews had become like the Egyptians in the days of Moses. God sifted them out to improve their genera. By the time they arrived in the Promise Land, the Hebrew ethnicity had been improved. God is into people improvement!

Soon, sin caused the Hebrew genera to degenerate more with the division of Israel from Judah. With that, ten tribes of the twelve were lost to history and now genetics have identified even black Egyptians with the genera of “cohens” — Jewish priests.

Soon the a portion of the lost people of Israel (by then Samaria) were replaced with Cutheans from Kutha which was near the city of Babylon.

Why “good Samaritan”? Because Jews considered Samaritans dirty as there genera were a mix of two, and possibly more. They were a “multitude” of races.  They were part Jew and part Gentile, to wit: “There followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan” (Mat 4:25).

Most of us were taught that “multitude” just meant many. Of course, many followed him, but they were a multitude of genera — a multitude of ethnic groups whose genes came from many places.

They were the “common people,” an admixture of many ethnic groups. Not only were Jews following Jesus but Gentiles as well. Even many of the Hebrews were by the time of Jesus were Gentiles because of miscegenation and migration. They were neither Jews outwardly nor inwardly because the Samaritan form of worship was on a different holy mountain (Gerizim) and a different temple that had previously been torn down. They were pagans in nature but Jews when they had to be to exist alongside them. Theirs, prior to the time of Jesus, had not been a religion at all but a farce! In pre-Woke terms; they were a bastard race of people who were ritually unclean… but they followed Jesus as well to be cleansed of sin.

Jesus pointedly made the Gentiles different. He essentially asked them to become “Jews,” at least inwardly. Later, Paul clarified that; speaking to the Romans (Kittim), Paul wrote, “He is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God” (Rom 2:29).

Kittim seems to apply to mostly Japhetites: Hittites, Greeks, Romans, and essentially all the western people; especially the Romans.

Christians were Jews inwardly. They had the promise of Abraham in their genes. Outwardly, they were of different ethnicities, but Christ endowed them with Abrahamic genes.

Today’s key verse follows: 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Mat 6:33)

 Now I ask, what was Abraham seeking? Not the land of Canaan but the Promise Land. According to the Book of Jasher, Abraham was a king who resided as a guest in Canaan’s land. Canaan was not truly the Promised Land; that Estate was in another realm. Abraham was seeking the Kingdom of God!

What was the domain of Canaan? Because it was people of the gens of Canaan, it was not righteous but pagan. It was cursed. Among others, their main god was Molech.

Abraham resided in Canaan to seek the righteousness of God and finally, that happened when Jesus was born and became King of kings and Lord of lords on that land. Still on that landed estate, Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36).

All that time, Jews had been seeking land as the Promised Estate of God, but that land was promised to the gens of Ishmael as well. That was no accident on God’s part! Those same people (Muslims) still reside there. It may be their land as they claim it to be because the “land” promised to Abraham was in the Kingdom of God wherein Abraham remained king there in death until the time of Jesus. The people there were resting in “Abraham’s Bosom:” 

And in hell (the rich man) lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. (Luke 16:23)

 With the story of Lazarus and the rich man, Jesus affirmed the story in Matthew 6 

Abraham said, “Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.” (Luke 16:25)

 Abraham called the rich man, “son” and reminded him that while he lived, he received good things. (Mat 6:20). On the other hand, Lazarus received evil things, both speaking of worldly things. That was not what life was all about. In heaven, Lazarus was comforted in Abraham’s Bosom. Abraham was king there awaiting the reign of Jesus. Lazarus would have received royal things from Abraham.

But now things had taken a turn. The rich man who had wealth and comfort on Earth, now had poverty and discomfort in “Satan’s Bosom.”

“Bosom” therein refers to the chest of a person. What is in the chest? The heart and in scripture, the heart is the innermost person — his nature. Lazarus was comforted by “Father Abraham” as the rich man finally realized (Luke 16:24) when be begged Abraham for mercy. Calling Abraham “father” was suggesting that the rich man had the gens of Abraham. He only thought so, but surely Lazarus, since he was in Father Abraham’s Bosom, was of the gens of Abraham and was a recipient of the Abrahamic Covenant.

Abraham’s Bosom would be the Promised Land in Heaven, called “Paradise.” That is where the souls of those who died had gone prior to the death and resurrection of Jesus. Abraham was a sort of “place-keeper” for God until Jesus would come to reign.

What is the desire of a Christian? For true prosperity — to seek first the Kingdom of God and righteousness.

As far as “Satan’s Bosom,” that is my terminology. It is Gehenna, or Hell. The Word in the beginning prophesied about the Serpent, “Upon thy belly thou shalt go” (Gen 3:14). Hell was the destiny of the Serpent, or Satan. Hell is where Satan reigns; hence “Satan’s Belly” or “Bosom” to mimic Abraham’s Estate in heaven.

(PICTURE credit; Wikipedia; "Abraham's Bosom"