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M
Matt. 3:3; Luke 1:76; John 1:23 all echo Isa. 40:3. And in Isa. 40:1-9, one can glimpse the "Lord GOD" to whom the referenced and well-worn spiritual paths were figuratively beaten down by the spiritual feet of ancient followers of both Judaism and the tribal-national "God" of Israel. It is that "Lord God" (יהוה / YHVH / Jehovah) who was promised to come with a strong hand and a ruling arm (Isa. 40:10), but who has yet to arrive, to whom those beaten paths are believed to lead.
Only those Christians who relate Jesus of Nazareth to the God of ancient Israel and the OT (יהוה/ YHVH /Jehovah) in accordance with the scripturally unsupported doctrine of the Trinity believe those paths lead to him.
Only those Christians who relate Jesus of Nazareth to the God of ancient Israel and the OT (יהוה/ YHVH /Jehovah) in accordance with the scripturally unsupported doctrine of the Trinity believe those paths lead to him.
E
My observation is that John isn't pointing to himself and continuing to speak in verse 3.
I believe verse 2 is the entirety of his quote.
1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
[SUP]2 [/SUP]And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[SUP]3 [/SUP]For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying,
The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
Isaiah's prophecy = John's message, not John.
"The voice of one crying in the wilderness" = anyone "preaching in the wilderness of Judea"
"Prepare ye the way of the Lord" = "The kingdom of God is at hand"
"Make his paths straight" = "Repent"
Straightly walking an already beaten cow path:
I believe verse 2 is the entirety of his quote.
1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
[SUP]2 [/SUP]And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[SUP]3 [/SUP]For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying,
The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
Isaiah's prophecy = John's message, not John.
"The voice of one crying in the wilderness" = anyone "preaching in the wilderness of Judea"
"Prepare ye the way of the Lord" = "The kingdom of God is at hand"
"Make his paths straight" = "Repent"
Straightly walking an already beaten cow path:
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C
Enoch,
From the following, I gather that the one crying in the wilderness is John.
But, that is not a biggie.
Question:
What are your thoughts on why "path" is in the plural when it is speaking about making the Lord's path straight in lull of
Isa 40:4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
Do you think it has more to do with His appearance to man than to the path He carved out for us to follow?
From the following, I gather that the one crying in the wilderness is John.
But, that is not a biggie.
Question:
What are your thoughts on why "path" is in the plural when it is speaking about making the Lord's path straight in lull of
Isa 40:4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
Do you think it has more to do with His appearance to man than to the path He carved out for us to follow?
I would think the context is that the people need to bend their wills in accordance with the will of God that He strengthen them.
The alternative is walk in discordance with the will of God and and John is warning here that when the rock of God comes plowing down the road it will smash you to pieces.
In other words John is compelling people to repent and yield to God.
The alternative is walk in discordance with the will of God and and John is warning here that when the rock of God comes plowing down the road it will smash you to pieces.
In other words John is compelling people to repent and yield to God.
From the Bible Knowledge Commentary:
When a king traveled the desert, workmen preceded him to clear debris and smooth out the roads to make his trip easier. In Luke the leveling of the land was a figurative expression denoting that the way of the Messiah would be made smooth because through John a large number of people were ready to receive Jesus’ message (cf. Luke 1:17).
It would seem to me that "paths" in the plural would indicate Jesus' smooth path to every heart, that He is equally able to reach every individual easily. Hope that helps.
When a king traveled the desert, workmen preceded him to clear debris and smooth out the roads to make his trip easier. In Luke the leveling of the land was a figurative expression denoting that the way of the Messiah would be made smooth because through John a large number of people were ready to receive Jesus’ message (cf. Luke 1:17).
It would seem to me that "paths" in the plural would indicate Jesus' smooth path to every heart, that He is equally able to reach every individual easily. Hope that helps.
Matthew 3:3 (KJV may help in understanding in a more full way)
[SUP]3 [/SUP]For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
To get better understanding, one needs to go to the Old Testament prophecy.
Isaiah 40:3 (KJV)
[SUP]3 [/SUP]The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
[SUP]4 [/SUP]Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
The straight in verse 3 is defined as right, pleasant, and prosperous. In the Hebrew pictorial language it means giving food through the spirit of understanding.
The straight in verse 4 is defined as a successive transformation due to bloodshed being the origin and completion of the first.
Knowing that John was foretelling of Christ Jesus, our Savior, we can put it in its proper context as a whole through the Hebrew language; The Spirit of God gives to us Spiritual food to ingest, and to understand that the sacrifice of Christ Jesus leads to a successive transformation called a straight path according to the divine power, and will of God.
[SUP]3 [/SUP]For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
To get better understanding, one needs to go to the Old Testament prophecy.
Isaiah 40:3 (KJV)
[SUP]3 [/SUP]The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
[SUP]4 [/SUP]Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
The straight in verse 3 is defined as right, pleasant, and prosperous. In the Hebrew pictorial language it means giving food through the spirit of understanding.
The straight in verse 4 is defined as a successive transformation due to bloodshed being the origin and completion of the first.
Knowing that John was foretelling of Christ Jesus, our Savior, we can put it in its proper context as a whole through the Hebrew language; The Spirit of God gives to us Spiritual food to ingest, and to understand that the sacrifice of Christ Jesus leads to a successive transformation called a straight path according to the divine power, and will of God.
To my understanding it saying that God is bringing in the true understanding of His word or purpose.
John 6:45It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.
Proverbs 4:2I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching.
Isaiah 44:25who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense,
2 Timothy 3:7always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth.
John 8:32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 16:13But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
John 18:38“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
John 6:45It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.
Proverbs 4:2I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching.
Isaiah 44:25who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense,
2 Timothy 3:7always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth.
John 8:32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 16:13But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
John 18:38“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
M
EDIT-- Matt. 3:3; Luke 1:76; John 1:23 all echo Isa. 40:3. And in Isa. 40:1-9, one can glimpse the "Lord GOD" to whom the referenced and well-worn spiritual paths were figuratively beaten down by the spiritual feet of ancient followers of both Judaism and the tribal-national "God" of Israel. It is that "Lord God" (יהוה / YHVH / Jehovah) who promised to send a messiah who would come with a strong hand and a ruling arm (Isa. 40:10) to whom those beaten paths are believed to lead.
Only those Christians who relate Jesus of Nazareth to the God of ancient Israel and the OT (יהוה/ YHVH /Jehovah) in accordance with the scripturally unsupported doctrine of the Trinity believe those paths lead to him (cf. Metzger, TCGNT 2nd 1994, 647; Metzger & Ehrman, Text of the NT--Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration 4th 2005, 88, 162, 182, 219; Robertson Word Pictures in the NT at 1 John 5:7; Vincent Word Studies, ibid.).
Only those Christians who relate Jesus of Nazareth to the God of ancient Israel and the OT (יהוה/ YHVH /Jehovah) in accordance with the scripturally unsupported doctrine of the Trinity believe those paths lead to him (cf. Metzger, TCGNT 2nd 1994, 647; Metzger & Ehrman, Text of the NT--Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration 4th 2005, 88, 162, 182, 219; Robertson Word Pictures in the NT at 1 John 5:7; Vincent Word Studies, ibid.).
My translation says "roads straight." Anyway, the following is an explanation of this verse.
John did, in a religious way, clear up the way for Jehovah and straighten out the highway through the desert plain for God. Of course, this was not for Jehovah to travel over literally, but it paved the way for the coming of Jehovah’s Messiah or Christ by preparing a people to recognize and accept his leadership to freedom. In fact, John the Baptist under inspiration applied the prophecy of Isaiah 40:3 to himself when questioned by the Jews. Read John 1:19-24.
This understanding of the application of the prophecy is supported also by the apostle Matthew as well as the Bible writers Mark and Luke. (Matthew 3:1-3; Mark 1:1-4; Luke 3:1-6) When John baptized Jesus he had proof that Jesus was the Son of God, not Jehovah himself that he was baptizing. He had the powerful testimony of God’s own voice to that fact.-Matthew 3:13-17.
As prophesied, John had the spirit and power of Elijah, that is, the drive and the powerful message that brought about a reformation or turning around of many honest Jews. He pointed them to the “Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.” He introduced Jesus’ first disciples to him. He was like “the friend of the bridegroom” that is happy to present the bride to her beloved.-John 3:28-30; compare 2 Corinthians 11:2.
John did, in a religious way, clear up the way for Jehovah and straighten out the highway through the desert plain for God. Of course, this was not for Jehovah to travel over literally, but it paved the way for the coming of Jehovah’s Messiah or Christ by preparing a people to recognize and accept his leadership to freedom. In fact, John the Baptist under inspiration applied the prophecy of Isaiah 40:3 to himself when questioned by the Jews. Read John 1:19-24.
This understanding of the application of the prophecy is supported also by the apostle Matthew as well as the Bible writers Mark and Luke. (Matthew 3:1-3; Mark 1:1-4; Luke 3:1-6) When John baptized Jesus he had proof that Jesus was the Son of God, not Jehovah himself that he was baptizing. He had the powerful testimony of God’s own voice to that fact.-Matthew 3:13-17.
As prophesied, John had the spirit and power of Elijah, that is, the drive and the powerful message that brought about a reformation or turning around of many honest Jews. He pointed them to the “Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.” He introduced Jesus’ first disciples to him. He was like “the friend of the bridegroom” that is happy to present the bride to her beloved.-John 3:28-30; compare 2 Corinthians 11:2.