In today's Gospel reading there is one small but rather difficult point, namely the words: and He wanted to pass them by. They are so hard to understand that in the parallel, later text of Matthew's Gospel they are omitted. Why did He want to pass them by, if...
In today's Gospel reading there is one small but rather difficult point, namely the words: and He wanted to pass them by. They are so hard to understand that in the parallel, later text of Matthew's Gospel they are omitted. Why did He want to pass them by, if it says that He saw them distressed in rowing, because the wind was against them? That is, He saw this and went to help them; why, then, did He want to pass them by?
The simplest thing in such difficult cases is simply not to notice the words that are unclear, as if they were not there. But not everyone will find such an approach acceptable. The author of the new translation "Good News," Valentina Kuznetsova, offers us one way to solve this problem: it looked as though He wanted to pass by them. That is, everything is very simple: it only appeared so to them.
It is hard for people untrained in philology to judge, but they can analyze different translations into modern languages, comparing the work of different translators. And nowhere else were we able to find the word "appeared." But how can it be that many different translators all omitted the same word in the same way?
Yet we are not at all frightened even by the degree of paradox present in the text without the word "appeared." Do we have the right to judge the Lord's intention? No. Therefore let us not try to solve what He actually wanted to do. There was some meaning in His actions, one now unknown to us. Let us look at the disciples' testimony: He wanted to pass by. Let us look, without any mental labor of our own, at the testimony in all its simplicity (especially since this is, after all, the Gospel according to Mark), and turn to our own life: does it not happen with us that we are in extremely harsh conditions, praying to the Lord for help, yet see only how help passes by us? It does not appear so to us; rather, we simply see with our own eyes that help is coming toward us, but we cannot make use of it.
Yet in the end the disciples were saved. As we too will be saved. Adding the word "appeared," however, shifts everything onto the unstable ground of unclear sensations whose relation to reality is unknown; and one gets the impression, precisely an impression, that such an approach is rather dangerous.
8 The chief men of Israel called together, Ki1 8:1-2.
The ark fixt in the most holy place, Ki1 8:3-9.
God takes possession of it by a cloud, Ki1 8:10-12.
Solomon tells the people the occasion of their meeting, Ki1 8:13-21.
The prayer of dedication, Ki1 8:22-53.
He dismisses the assembly with a blessing and an exhortation, Ki1 8:54-61.
Offers abundance of sacrifices, Ki1 8:62-66.
8:1 Elders - The senators, and judges, and rulers. Heads - For each tribe had a peculiar governor. Chief - The chief persons of every greatfamily in each tribe. Jerusalem - Where the temple was built. Bringthe ark - To the top of Moriah, upon which it was built; whither theywere now to carry the ark in solemn pomp. City of David - Where Davidhad placed the ark, which is called Zion, because it was built upon thathill.
8:2 All Israel - Not only the chief men, but a vast number of the common people. The feast - The feast of the dedication, to whichSolomon had invited them. Seventh month - Which time he chose withrespect to his peoples convenience, because now they had gathered in alltheir fruits, and were come up to Jerusalem, to celebrate the feast oftabernacles. But the temple was not finished till the eighth month,chap.Ki1 6:38, how then could he invite them in the seventh month? Thiswas the seventh month of the next year. For although the house in allits parts was finished the year before, yet the utensils of it were notthen fully finished: and many preparations were to be made for this greatand extraordinary occasion.
8:3 The priests - For although the Levites might do this, Num 4:15, yet the priests did it at this time, for the greaterhonour of the solemnity; and because the Levites might not enter intothe holy - place, much less into the holy of holies, where it was to beplaced, into which the priests themselves might not have entered, if thehigh - priest alone could have done it.
8:4 The tabernacle - That made by Moses, which doubtless before this time had been translated from Gibeon to Zion, and now togetherwith other things, was put into the treasuries of the Lord's house, toprevent all superstitious use of it, and to oblige the people to come upto Jerusalem, as the only place where God would now be worshipped.
8:5 Sacrificing - When the ark was seated in its place: for although they might in the way offer some sacrifices, as David did; yet that wasnot a proper season to offer so many sacrifices as could not be numbered.This is more particularly related below, ver. Ki1 8:62-64, which is heresignified by way of anticipation.
8:6 Cherubim - Of Solomon's new made cherubim, not of the Mosaic cherubim, which were far less, and unmovably fixed to the ark,Exo 37:7-8, and therefore together with the ark, were put underthe wings of these cherubim.