Matt. 27:34,48, 57-60; Psa. 69:21; Isa. 53:9, In Death

There are two situations before us today, neither of which is claimed by Matthew to be a prophecy fulfillment.  And yet, each is considered by many to be fulfilled in Jesus death and burial.  Is there good reason to do so?

·        Matthew 27:34,48 and Psalm 69:21.

The question here is: did the giving of sour wine to Jesus fulfill David’s words? or do we have two passages speaking of two similar events with no connection?  Our belief that there is a fulfillment of prophecy is based on the Messianic character of all of Psalm 69.  There are several fulfillments (69:4 to John 15:25; 69:9 in John 2:17; 69:22 in Rom. 11:9; 69:25 in Acts 1:16 in addition to the one we are considering). 

Psalm 69, in the title, is said to be a Psalm of David.  We have noted on occasion that any Psalm of David will have a connection to the Messiah, even if it is only because Messiah is the “Son of David.”  But if you were to study Psalm 69 you would see that it goes beyond the experiences of David’s life.  For example, 69:22-28 speaks of Israel’s desolation and captivity; that did not happen in David’s lifetime. 

As is often the case, many Jewish writers see the Psalm as applying to Israel; Israel is the suffering Servant.  But this does not fit the fact that the Psalm speaks of an individual.  In 69:19-21 the adversaries of the suffering One are those who give Him gall for food and vinegar to drink.  Then, what immediately follows is the judgment called down on those adversaries (v22-28), the unrighteous nation.  The single Sufferer cannot be the same as the corporate adversary.

What we have in this amazing Psalm is the cry to God by the Servant.  In 69:1-21 we have an expanded version of Psalm 22:1: My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me. 

One more issue comes from 69:5.  How can “foolishness” and “sin” be associated with the Holy One, the perfect Lamb of God?  That must be David speaking of himself?  But we would believe otherwise.  It speaks of what Jesus became for sinners.  He was numbered with the transgressors (Isa. 53:12).  He bore our sins in His body on the tree (1 Peter 2:24).  He became sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21).  His association with sin was so real the Father turned His back on His Son and the world was plunged into darkness for three hours of the greatest agony. 

·        Matthew 27:57-60 and Isaiah 53:9.

The burial of Jesus in the tomb of the wealthy Joseph of Arimathea was a fulfillment of one of those little “details” in Scripture.  Isaiah 53 is all about the Messiah, of course, as we have noted in these studies.  But it is about the vicarious suffering, the bearing of sin.  It would be easy to miss this matter of being buried with the rich.  But it is a very necessary detail.  Why?  Because of what Isaiah says: He had done no violence nor was any deceit in His mouth. 

Psalm 22 described death by crucifixion, an amazingly accurate description hundreds of years before it happened.  In the Roman system those who were crucified did not get burial in a rich man’s tomb; that would be an honor, when the whole point of crucifixion is to shame the criminal.  And yet, Jesus fit every detail, in death, in burial, and in resurrection!

Aren’t these prophecies wonderful reminders of the grace and love of our Savior?  He bore our sins, becoming sin for us.  And He suffered without any comfort.  Matthew’s account says Jesus first refused the sour wine which would have deadened the pain somewhat, until moments before He died, when He accepted it when offered again.  What is important is that none of the sins He bore were His.  His burial demonstrates that according to Scripture.  He was the perfect sacrificial Lamb, being without defect.  Thus the payment was received in full!  Hallelujah!!

Bibliography

References were made in several of the devotions to various authors.  In lieu of footnotes here is a listing of the sources used.

Buksbazen, Victor. The Prophet Isaiah: A Commentary. Bellmawr, NJ: The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, Inc. 1971 (second printing 2010). (VB)

Edersheim, Alfred. The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah.  Oxford, Sept. 1883.  Online edition, Christian Classics Ethereal Edition. (AE)

Etheridge, J. W. The Targums of Onkalos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel on the Pentateuch. New York: Ktav Publishing House, Inc., 1968. (JWE)

Gill, John. Exposition of the Bible. Online version at Christianity.com.  https://www.christianity.com/bible/commentary.php?com=gill.  Originally published 1746-1763. (JG)

Jamieson, Robert, Fausset, A. R., Brown, David. Biblical Commentary: Critical and Explanatory.  Originally published 1871. Online version at Christianity.com. https://www.christianity.com/bible/commentary.php?com=jfb. (JFB)

Jewish Awareness Ministries, Psalm 118. http://www.jewishawareness.org/psalm-118/. Online article. (JAM)

Jews for Jesus, Messianic Prophecy. Online article at https://jewsforjesus.org/jewish-resources/messianic-prophecy.  (JFJ)

Mounce, Robert H. New International Biblical Commentary: Matthew.  Hendrickson Publishing, Inc.: 1985. (RM)

Psalm 119:49-56

Easter Greeting #1:
CHRIST IS RISEN!  HE IS RISEN INDEED!
You might have expected a post today that highlights Easter.  But as is our pattern on Sunday, we have posted on the Psalms.  Don't be disappointed.  Look at the first verse:

Remember the word to Your servant,

Upon which You have caused me to hope.

We have placed our hope in the word of God, expressed through one of His messengers: 

Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here.  He is risen.

Easter Greeting #2:

Greetings on this Easter morning in the United States.  We will greet our Ukrainian brothers and sisters in a similar fashion next week when they celebrate the Eastern Easter.  Of course, every Sunday is an Easter celebration for believers in Christ, being the first day of the week.  And every day is an Easter celebration for believers in Christ, being a day lived in newness of life, praise to our Lord Jesus Christ.  We are letting you know that on this day, at 10:45AM MDT in the USA, we will be worshiping online.  You can join us on our Facebook page, "RonCindy Youde".  You will want to send a friend request in order to join us.  God's richest blessings have been given us in Christ, every spiritual blessing.  May we each live out of this today!  As is our pattern, our post today is from the Psalms.  Enjoy it and see how it relates to the topics of the day: Easter, coronavirus, having a relationship with our Creator.

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The first verse seems to give sense to the entire stanza.

Consider first the last half of v49.  God caused him to hope in His word.  To hope in God’s word involves a no-holds-barred kind of trust in God.  Consider, from the rest of the stanza, the extent to which the saint commits his way to God and both the commands and promises of Scripture.

·        v50: the life-giving Word is his comfort in affliction.

·        v51: the law of God is his path in the face of derision.

·        v52: he affirms his comfort is based in God’s ancient Word.

·        v53: he is indignant against those who forsake God’s law.

·        v54: he has built his home-life around God’s statutes.

·        v55: his night meditations center on God’s law.

In the end (v56) he can say he is so immersed in the Word in which God has caused him to hope that “it is mine”.  His life is becoming more and more the life of the Word.  As Spurgeon would say of John Bunyan, “Prick him anywhere; his blood is Bibline; the very essence of the Bible flows from him.”

This is the hope the Psalmist has.  He does not question the Word when doubts arise.  He has an absolute trust in the path laid out for him in Scripture.

But what happens when he rounds the next corner and his trial throws something else at him?  How does he respond?  Since God has caused him to hope in the Word he simply prays, “Lord, remember the word to your servant!”

It is not as if he were concerned that God would forget.  He is, in a sense, praying God’s word back to Him.  This is the surest way to pray in the will of God.  The Psalmist himself remembers God’s word for his present situation and then prays, “God, do as You said You would.”

He does what the Lord Jesus Himself did when tempted by Satan.  He simply quotes Scripture for which Satan has no answer (Matt. 4:1-11).  He is using the believer’s prime offensive weapon, the “sword of the Spirit which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:17).

This kind of praying is the privilege of the one who truly hopes in God’s word, who can say of Scripture, “This has become mine!”

Read Matt. 27:35,42-43,46; Psalm 22:18,8,1, On the Cross

The crucifixion itself overflows with fulfilled prophecy.  We have placed together three of those that are each predicted in Psalm 22.  When you read the other gospels, especially the Gospel of John and his account of the crucifixion, you will see even more.  The three before us today are:

·        27:35: The soldiers casting lots for Jesus’ robe.  This was common in this setting.  But what is interesting is that Psalm 22 even mentions this.  It is a somewhat minute detail, but thus a detail that is often characteristic of Bible prophecy.

·        27:42-43: The point of crucifixion, besides the pain involved, was to shame the criminal.  The crosses were not terribly high off the ground.  Thus those who walked by got a full dose of the pain and shame of the one lifted up.  Part of the shame for the criminal was hearing the taunts of the onlookers.  The Romans always put crosses near busy roads to maximize this so people were warned not to violate Roman law.

·        27:46: These words of Jesus are the opening words of Psalm 22.  It shows that it is not just Matthew who sees the connection; Jesus, it appears, understood that He was “living out” Psalm 22 in His crucifixion. 

Crucifixion was not only not common in David’s day; it was unheard of.  The Persians invented this form of torturous execution hundreds of years after David; and it was the Romans who perfected it and used it widely.  If you take the time to study the entire Psalm, and we highly recommend you do that, you will see that 22:1-21 are an accurate description of what the person on a cross experiences, and especially what the Man Jesus experienced. 

One consequence of this is that there is no other person in history to whom this Psalm can possibly apply.  As John Gill (JG) says, “the Jews would have any rather than the Messiah” as the subject of this Psalm.  Some suggest it speaks of Esther but there are things in the Psalm that fit men; and nothing here connects with the Esther story.  Some say David or Absalom; but the disjointed bones, piercing of hands and feet, and casting lots for the clothing have no connection with those men.  Some suggest it applies to the Nation; but the Psalm is written of one Person.  As we have already noted, Christians should have no question but to apply it to Jesus the Christ. 

In research for these studies we have noted various current Jewish web pages that seek to specialize in showing that Jesus is not the Jewish Messiah.  The arguments show the truth in what Gill said about the Jews wanting to have anyone but Jesus be the fulfillment.  The arguments presented against Christ do not stand the test of truth.  Let me share some of those for illustration purposes (from a web page called jewsforjudaism.org.

·        Jews ask, Why should he have thought of himself as separated from God at the very moment when, according to Christian theology, he was fulfilling God’s plan?  Answer: The separation of Father and Son was real.  The plan of the Father required something the Son had never experienced.  He had never experienced the bearing of sin.  He had never experienced the separation.  It was a major aspect of His pain.

·        Another objection is this: Luke and John omit this cry in their crucifixion accounts, and instead, imply that Jesus himself was in complete control of the event.  This control is seen in Jesus’ yielding His spirit to God.  But the answer is, there is no conflict here.  Both are true: the pain of separation and the trust in His Father.  The fact that the separation is not final does not mean it is not real in terms of the suffering.

·        One other objection: Jesus’ speaking of the separation is at odds with the more positive nature of the end of Psalm 22.  The answer is, it is true that with the last line of 22:21 it turns from the agony of crucifixion to the blessing of resurrection.  The key phrase is, You have answered Me (v21).  The remainder of the Psalm fits quite well with the blessings of Jesus’ exaltation when the humiliation was complete.  It is no different than Isaiah 53 which speaks of Jesus’ vicarious suffering, but in the closing verses speaks of His posterity after death and the blessing of the Father.  As we have said, Jesus is the ONLY person in history who fits Psalm 22.  It required One who truly died and truly was raised from the dead.  Jesus is that One!

Hallelujah!

Read Matt. 26:31-32; Zechariah 13:7-8, The Sheep Scattered

In Matthew 26:31-32 Jesus shows His trust in Scripture by making a prediction of what will happen later that evening, based on a prophecy from Zechariah 13:7.  On “Day 16” (April 2, 2020 on the blog) we briefly laid out the topics of Zechariah 9-14 and showed how both the oracles (9-11 and 12-14) related to the Messiah.  It speaks both of His rejection and His eventual glory. 

Zechariah 13:7-8 is a fascinating prophecy because in two verses it speaks both of Jesus first advent (suffering, rejection) and second advent (glory, salvation of Israel).  In v7 we read, “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the Man who is My Companion”, says the LORD of hosts.  The LORD is speaking.  It is the Shepherd which He established, His Son.  Remember that Zech. 11 is a prophecy concerning the shepherds who did not pity God’s people.  The sword is against the worthless shepherd.  Now the sword is against the LORD’s Shepherd, Messiah.  In that context are the words Jesus quotes at the Passover Seder with His disciples in Matthew 26. 

Zechariah 13:8 goes on to predict that there will be a remnant of one third of the nations that will be refined in the fire.  To them the LORD says, This is My people; and each one will say, The LORD is my God.  The OT prophets, and indeed the OT nation of Israel, could not miss the fact of the Messiah’s suffering followed by His glory.  They could not miss it.  They also could not understand how it would play out.

Read Matt. 26:24,51-56, It Must Happen Thus!

They could not understand God’s plan.  But nevertheless, everything that was prophesied concerning Messiah would have to be fulfilled.  It must!  Why?  Because the writings of the prophets were Scripture.  What they wrote was the word of God.  As Peter said, the OT prophets inquired and searched carefully the salvation the Holy Spirit laid on their hearts, the Holy Spirit who testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow (1 Peter 1:10-12). 

If the prophets could not explain it, we are not surprised the shepherds (leaders) of the people also could not put it together.  What this leads us to conclude is that, like the prophets, the leaders needed to trust God to work it out in His way and His time.  The fact that, at times, there are Messianic prophecies that were not properly explained by some rabbi and not understood by the people does not mean the prophecy is not true.  We have the same issue today.  There are things about the future, many things, that we do not understand.  How will these things play out?  But this question must not become an excuse for rejecting the things we do know about the future.  We may not understand why it is taking so long for Christ to return.  But we cannot allow that to cause us to dismiss His return (2 Peter 3:3-6).

In addition, from Mt. 26:24 note that the fact that God says something is going to happen does not mean we are not held responsible for our part in the prophesied event.  Even though Judas’ betrayal was predicted, he was still judged guilty for what he did.  We see the same in 26:51-56.  Jesus says the Scripture must be completely fulfilled.  At the same time, He rebukes those who have come to arrest Him for fearfully coming at night to get Him rather than on one of the occasions when He taught in the temple.

In the end we see that Jesus was guided by the prophesies that concerned Him.  The Scriptures must be fulfilled.  He subjected Himself to the prophesies.  The same way:

·        Jacob, after a struggle, subjected himself to God’s word given to him at Bethel.

·        Joseph subjected himself to the dreams God gave him as a young boy.

·        Moses, after an argument, subjected himself to God’s call at the burning bush.

·        Isaiah subjected himself to God’s call when he saw the LORD high and lifted up.

·        We must subject ourselves to God’s word in the gospel and the New Testament.

Mt. 26:14-16; 27:3-10; Zech. 11:12-13; Thirty Pieces of Silver

(We have, in the normal process of working through a list of prophetic passages from Matthew, come to this prophecy concerning the betrayal of Judas, an event that happened on the original "Maundy Thursday" which is being celebrated this day in some Western Churches.  Being non-denominational evangelicals, we don't pay much attention to this day.  In Ukraine the Baptist churches meet on Thursday evening before Easter for a service around the Lord's Table.)

Matthew speaks of Judas, the silver and the field of blood that was bought with it as fulfillment of prophecy.  Who penned the prophecy: Jeremiah (27:9) or Zechariah?  Also, the Zechariah passage seems to be speaking to the Shepherd (Messiah) as the One who throws the money to the temple; how do we understand that?

·        Who wrote the OT prophecy?  John Gill (JG) notes several answers that fail to answer.  For example, some manuscripts omit any name at all; just what “a prophet” said.  Some attribute it to an apocryphal book written by Jeremiah.  Another claims Jeremiah wrote the last several chapters of Zechariah’s prophecy.  Some Jewish writers have spoken of “the spirit of Jeremiah being in Zechariah,” not so much to answer a question from Matthew as simply to be a Jewish idea.  The most likely answer to this issue is that, in the Hebrew Bible, Jeremiah was the first of the books of the prophets.  Thus, as a group, they could be and were referred to by the “group name” if you will.  That is the only answer that satisfies me.  Certainly the passage of note is Zechariah 11:12-13.

·        Who throws the money to the temple floor?  It is interesting that many Jewish writers saw Zech. 11:12-13 as Messianic.  The context is what is often called, “the prophecy of the shepherds.”  It speaks of shepherds, leaders, that do not truly care for the flock of Israel (v4-5).  Thus, the LORD says He will not pity them and will feed the flock for slaughter (v6-11).  This speaks of their rejection of the Christ and the subsequent abandonment of the Nation by God (the temporary, partial blindness of Rom. 11:25).  It is at that point that we have the prophecy of thirty pieces of silver (v12-13).  In other words, it is connected with the rejection of the Christ.  

The Jewish writers seem most often to take the silver as symbolic.  One writers says “thirty mighty men” and another “thirty commandments.”  Matthew takes it literally, of the money given to Judas.  In my way of thinking it would not be odd if this were one of those cases where a passage was not fully understood until the event of fulfillment actually took place.  The Jewish writers at least tended to understand it in the context of the rejection of Messiah.  When the event actually unfolded that night, at the hall of the Sanhedrin, the priests should not have missed the connection between Zechariah and what happened before their eyes. 

As for the question about the prophecy being attributed to the Messiah rather than the one who betrayed Him, Gill believes the translation should be “give my price,” not “give me my price.”  Perhaps.  But I see a lot of sense in this commentary by Jameson/ Faucett/Brown (JFB) and I share it with you to consider it’s explanation as well as the powerful picture, that thirty pieces of silver are cheap wages for the Messiah.

My price--my reward for pastoral care, both during the whole of Israel's history from the Exodus, and especially the three and a half years of Messiah's ministry. He speaks as their "servant," which He was to them in order to fulfil the Father's will (Php 2:7).

thirty pieces of silver--thirty shekels. They not only refused Him His due, but added insult to injury by giving for Him the price of a gored bond-servant (Ex 21:32; Mt 26:15). A freeman was rated at twice that sum.

13. Cast it unto the potter--proverbial: Throw it to the temple potter, the most suitable person to whom to cast the despicable sum, plying his trade as he did in the polluted valley (2Ki 23:10) of Hinnom, because it furnished him with the most suitable clay. This same valley, and the potter's shop, were made the scene of symbolic actions by Jeremiah (Jer 18:1-19:15) when prophesying of this very period of Jewish history.

With all this consideration of the meaning, step away for a moment and consider the Savior being betrayed in such a manner.  And that this degradation was prophesied as well.  Jesus knew it was coming (John 6:70; 13:11), and still set His face steadfastly to go to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51).

Mt. 24:15; Dan. 11:31; 12:11; 9:26f, Abomination of Desolation

In this passage Jesus uses the OT properly to make a prediction. 

·        There are three passages in Daniel to consider first.  Dan. 11:31 and 12:11 are part of the same latter-day prophesy, in Dan. 10-12.  In 11:31 “the abomination of desolation” is something set up in the temple in connection with the forced cessation of the daily sacrifices.  The great majority of commentators refer this verse to Antiochus Epiphanes, in the time between Malachi and Matthew.  And most of those men would say that Antiochus is a type of the great antichrist to come.  Dan. 12:11 bears out this thought, that the “abomination of desolation” is both a past event (Antiochus) and a future event.  The past event was described in some detail, both in the apocryphal writings (1 Maccabees 1, and 2 Maccabees 6) and in the writings of Josephus (Book 10, Chapter 11). 

·        Daniel 9:24-27, in the prophecy of “70 Weeks” includes a reference to an event in the middle of the last week of seven years in v27: But in the middle of the week, He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.  And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate.  We have posted on this passage several times so we will not go into detail.  Our view is that the last seven of the 490 years (70X7) are yet future.  Thus, it makes sense Dan. 9 and 12 speak of the same, future event.

·        When you put Daniel and Matt. 24 and the Revelation together, it is clear to me that they are speaking of the same time framework.  There are some who seek to apply Jesus’ words in Matt. 24 to the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD.  We do not believe that this interpretation fulfills what is called for.  The question is not whether the Romans desecrated the temple; depending on your definition of “desecration” they certainly entered it as Roman idolaters and then destroyed it.  The question is, does that event fit the context of Mt. 24?  The years 33-70AD, in Israel, do not fit what Jesus describes in 24:4-14.  Further, 24:16-28 describe what is called great tribulation (v21), traumatic events that are followed immediately after (v29-31) by the return of Christ.  In addition, the prophecy of Daniel 9 indicates the abomination occurs in the middle of seven years, and that after the latter three and a half years the purposes are accomplished, including the anointing of the Most Holy (9:24).  Likewise, Dan. 12:11 places the abomination of desolation in the context of the resurrection of the just and unjust (12:1-3), the salvation of Israel (12:7,10) and the introduction of blessings (12:12). 

What we conclude is that, first, of course, Jesus used the Scripture properly.  He referred to an event that it seems He expected even the twelve to understand.  Remember the questions of the disciples that produced this sermon: When will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age? (24:3).  Jesus knew of and had predicted the destruction by the Romans (Mt. 23:37-39).  The Romans were the ones who fulfilled the prophecy of not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down (24:2).  But 70AD did not usher in the Kingdom.  It did not result in the return of Christ immediately after. 

Not only did Jesus use Daniel’s prophecy correctly.  He also took it upon Himself to predict His return in power and great glory.  And He did it with His own timeline of events, with the beginning of sorrows (24:8), the abomination of desolation (24:15), great tribulation (24:21), and then His return (24:29-31).  Jesus fulfilled prophecy.  Then Jesus declared prophecy, which He will fulfill in His return. 

Hallelujah!

Read Matt. 22:29-32; Exodus 3:6,15, Resurrection is Real

We will look at two passages today that demonstrate Jesus’ use of Scripture.  Some might consider these as mere “gotcha” moments where Jesus catches, first the Sadducees, then the Pharisees.  But Jesus says He is not merely proving them wrong.  His claim is that they do not know Scripture. 

Why is this important?  Because there are some Messianic prophecies that the rabbis, the scholars, and even Jews today, have seldom or never considered Messianic.  Yet the writers of the Gospels, and especially Matthew, claim these to be fulfillments.  There were “blind spots” among the Jews.  We should keep that in mind for ourselves.  At times, our cultural, political, economic or theological settings make some commands and predictions in Scripture hard for us to see.  Jesus’ answer to the Sadducees showed them they had missed something obvious.  The politically powerful and financially wealthy Sadducees had overlooked a simple thought, that their theology made God the “God of the dead.”  No wonder the crowds were astonished (v33).

Read Matt. 22:41-46; Psalm 110:1, David’s Son is David’s Lord

After being questioned by the various leadership groups in Israel, Jesus turns the table and asks a question.  It is based in Psalm 110:1: The Lord (YAHWEH) said to my Lord (Adonai), “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” 

First, Jesus referred to a very Messianic Psalm.  It is the most frequently quoted Psalm in the NT.  If we ask, how is this interpreted in Judaism, we get the usual plurality of ideas.  Some think “my Lord” refers to Abraham, some to David, and some to the Messiah. (Alfred Edersheim notes several Jewish writings that refer Psalm 110 to the Messiah, AE, p1390, Appendix 9.)  The idea of Abraham comes from the fact that it was Abraham who met Melchizedek.  The belief that the priesthood was given to Abraham, and thus to Levi, his descendent, doesn’t fit.  How can the priesthood belong to Abraham/Levi and at the same time be in the line of Melchizedek?  With respect to the idea that the Psalm is by David and thus refers to David, consider the following.

·        If David is saying, “YAHWEH said to my master,” we would ask, “how can David have a master other than YAHWEH?  He is the King of Israel.”  One common answer to this is to say that David wrote the Psalm for the Levites to recite in the temple.  Thus, it is the Levites who are saying, “YAHWEH said to my master, David.”  Think on that for a moment as we move on …

·        In 110:4 there is a clear reference to someone who is both king and priest.  This could not refer to David as he was from the wrong tribe.  It could not refer to the Levites who could never be king as they were not from Judah.  Zech. 6:13 speaks clearly of the “Branch” (a reference to Messiah acknowledge by most Jewish and Christian scholars) who is a “priest on His throne,” a King-Priest.  In other words, when David speaks of “my Lord” in 110:1 he is speaking of the Messiah, the Branch.  When Jesus asks the question, His point is that both YAHWEH and Adonai are to be understood here as divine characters.

In Matthew 22 the Pharisees did not reject Jesus’ assumptions that “my Lord” referred to Messiah, David’s Son.  They did not argue about interpretations or translation.  They said nothing.  No one could answer.

What we have is a “Cain” situation.  In Gen. 4 God came to Cain and reproved him for his offering and told him what he needed to do.  If you do well, will you not be accepted?  And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door.  And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it (Gen. 4:7).  The Pharisees needed to rule their spirits and fall down before Jesus, confessing Him as “my Lord.”  They did not.  Though some did.  Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea come to mind.

Where are you in the matter of confessing Jesus to be your Lord?  Time and again He fulfills the prophecies.  Sin is at the door and wants to rule you!