Which is the better translation of Matthew 11:12? Whereas the title above corresponds to the King James version most newer translations have "the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing."
When read in context, it does not really matter which interpretation is accepted. That is another one of those wonderful properties of the Bible as it has come down to us. In so many places where the original is in doubt, it is not really important.
I have often wondered whether Jesus was for or against the way in which the kingdom was advancing but that was not the point he was making. He was berating the general public for their tardiness in accepting the new dispensation inaugurated by John and him. He was as it were saying: "Which millenium are you living in? Don't you know a new millenium began at my birth? The time of the Law and the Prophets is over and the Kingdom of Heaven is passing you by and being grabbed by violent men."
Jesus used similar language on another occasion (Luke 16:16). He was rebuking the Pharisees for their lack of insight into the values propounded in the Law and the Prophets. They were comfortable in their religious club and snickering at the interpretaion Jesus gave to their Bible, oblivious of the fact that he was the One who authored it.
Friday 5 March 2010
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