Yet Jesus "knew all people and . Nicodemus appears in Johns Gospel two more times. About an hundred pound weight.--Comp. This is the first recorded encounter of Jesus and a Pharisees in John. Song of Solomon 4:6,14 Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense. I have not heard of any legends, but one speculation made involves Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea arranging for the burial of the crucified Jesus of Nazareth.. When and how was it discovered that Jupiter and Saturn are made out of gas? John A. T. Robinson considers Nicodemus to be from a well-established family of Jerusalem, while Joseph is "the nouveau riche country cousin with his brand-new tomb [cf. The Jewish leaders had a different perspective. Whether someone is a life-long follower of Jesus or just curious about Christianity's beliefs, followers, history, and practices, Christianity FAQ aims to offer trustworthy information that is easy to understand. The traditional Roman-rite Catholic liturgical calendar lists the same feast of the finding of their relics on the following day, 3 August. Jesus Christ, who will be rejected by the religious leaders, tells Nicodemus that he must be born again - even as a Pharisee! John 19:39-40 reads, "Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons. 329 views, 25 likes, 5 loves, 29 comments, 6 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from The Living God Tabernacle -God's Spoken Word Evangelism: 2023-01-22 SUNDAY SERVICE _"IF YOU ARE BORN AGAIN, WHERE IS. Scripture doesn't tell us. [11][12] Other than his apostleship, his betrayal, and his death, little else is revealed about Judas in the Gospels. New International Version (NIV), IVP New Testament Commentary Series Joseph and Nicodemus Bury Jesus' Body (19:38-42), Joseph and Nicodemus Bury Jesus' Body (19:38-42), IVP New Testament Commentaries are made available by the generosity of. For less than $5/mo. May we always respond with the great yes that we, as armchair quarterbacks, put into the mouth of The Chosens Nicodemus. Nicodemus (/nkdims/; Greek: , translit. Comparing what he knew from the Old Testament and the expectation of the Messiah, he planned for a way to see Jesus. Why did the pharisees and the party of Herod's followers plan to kill Jesus? In John 7:50-51, Nicodemus spoke to a group of unbelieving Pharisees against unlawfully seizing Jesus. He came looking for information and Jesus offered him transformation. The first time Nicodemus is mentioned, he is identified as a Pharisee who comes to see Jesus at night. Let me stress this: Jesus, a man, came from God. In the current Roman Martyrology of the Catholic Church, Nicodemus is commemorated along with Saint Joseph of Arimathea on 31 August. to learn more. - Bible Story and Verses. v. 41; Mt 27:60], which may suggest the lack of an established family mausoleum in the city" (1985:287). Such excessive amounts of spice were a feature of at least some royal funerals (2 Chron 16:14; Josephus Antiquities of the Jews 17.199). The conservation that follows is one of the most well-known stories in the Bible, and it includes perhaps the most famous verse in all of Scripture. He currently works as a professor at a local college. What was the Sanhedrin? Always the last on the list of the Apostles, he was their treasurer. Nicodemus himself might have wanted to know if Jesus was the Messiah. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. But I use it to shrug my shoulders and settle cutely into my tiny, comfortable corner of love. My seminary professor told us that he believed Nicodemus was saved early, even before Calvary, and was later baptized by the Apostles Peter and John, although he acknowledged that its impossible to prove. Read them in the archive below. Nicodemus is portrayed by Forrest Taylor in the 1952 television series The Living Bible and Erick Avari in the 2019 web television series The Chosen. How do you know that the High Priest was a Sadducee ? He came to Jesus at night and said, Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. It only takes a minute to sign up. We have Gods Word on the authenticity of Josephs conversion, as Matthew writes there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus (Matt 27:57). And it was not just he, but he and his close set of friends of some leaders of the Jews and some Pharisees. What Is The Education System Like In Israel? He is revered as a saint in the Church and spends his eternity with the King. Jesus gave Nicodemus the date, time, and place to meet, and the viewer watches the wheels continue to turn in the mind of this newest convert. Both men had power, wealth, and influence, but they were willing to lose that for the purpose of receiving eternal life and being born again. To carry, bear, bring; I conduct, lead; perhaps: I make publicly known. Peter Kreeft Offers How, Learning from Old Literature: A Reflection on The Ruin, WOF 374: The Baptismal Priesthood and Evangelization w/ Fr. Why is the article "the" used in "He invented THE slide rule"? How can these things be? he asks (v. 9). Thus, these are two of the people referred to earlier, who were secret believers, "for they loved praise from men more than praise from God" (12:42-43). that disappointed expression; that You came so close on the mouth of the Lord of the Universe. (Read John 3:5-7.) So that when Laurence thinks he is loving Aslan, he is really loving Jesus: and perhaps loving Him more than he ever did before. The same is true with the depiction of Jesus in the app-streamed series The Chosen. The Sanhedrin is known as the supreme court in ancient Israel. Lewis wrote: The things he loves Aslan for doing or saying are simply the things Jesus really did and said. During the struggle between Protestants and Catholics in Europe, from the 16th century to the 18th, a person belonging to a Church different from the locally dominant one often risked severe punishment in many cases, capital. At that time, there developed the use of "Nicodemite", usually a term of disparagement referring to a person who is suspected of public misrepresentation of their actual religious beliefs by exhibiting false appearance and concealing true beliefs. Brown 1994:2:1265) or be used generically for "grave clothes" (Robinson 1985:291). If you have any questions, please review our Privacy Policy or email us at privacy@biblegateway.com. That $197.40 is a value out of time, however. Nicodemus wanted to learn more about Jesus, but he ended up learning more about himself. Nicodemus' support for Jesus at the Feast could be nothing more than a Pharisaical desire to uphold the Law, regardless of the individual charged. A strengthened form of pro; a preposition of direction; forward to, i.e. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. What Jesus says next is perhaps the most famous verse in the Bible: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). The Burial of Jesus 38 Afterward, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus (but secretly for fear of the Jews), asked Pilate to let him remove the body of Jesus. Early traditions of the Roman imperial church, which held Nicodemus in high . Thus, Joseph had no claims on the body and, depending on how Pilate viewed the case, would have been putting himself in considerable danger. and knowing he wont take it. Nicodemus is mentioned only three times in the Gospel According to John (and nowhere in the Synoptic Gospels). He didn't argue with Jesus as other Pharisees did in later chapters. Matthew 12:20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory. One hundred. The other two appearances are relatively brief, yet nonetheless, significant. Further, he said that Nicodemus remains were said to be found in a common grave along with those of Gamaliel and Stephen. Here we have a man, one of the Pharisees and member of the Sanhedrin (the ancient High Court and Legislature in the land of Israel) coming to Jesus. The idea of uprooting all of those good things without knowing what the uprooting actually looked like was a seemingly insurmountable hurdle. Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" Nicodemus, thinking literally and physically, asks how anyone can be born twice (John 3:4). By submitting your email address, you understand that you will receive email communications from Bible Gateway, a division of The Zondervan Corporation, 3900 Sparks Drive SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 USA, including commercial communications and messages from partners of Bible Gateway. More recently, in 1941, "The Golden Gate Quartet", in the African-American Jubilee style, sang the Gospel "God Told Nicodemus". This would offset the smell of decay and help preserve the body until it could be properly attended to after the sabbath (v. 42; Robinson 1985:282-83). Others believe Johns reference to nighttime was just an insignificant historical detail. Joseph of Arimathea was with Nicodemus. Only God knows, but after Jesus' death, Nicodemus would later come and take His dead body and prepare it for burial, using "a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight. Nicodemus came to Jesus at night, and he said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him." 2. Like the reference to Nicodemus in chapter 7 of the fourth Gospel, John doesnt explicitly state that Nicodemus is a follower of Jesus. . Daniel's seminary degree is in Exegetical Theology. He was the apostles treasurer, though one might have thought this job would have gone to Matthew, the ex- tax-collector. And the tragedy is mine, not his. God loves each of us as if there were only one of us"- Augustine. She currently lives in Chicago with her husband, Sean Lee, who conveniently also works at Word on Fire. Joseph derived his name, Joseph of Arimathea, from the Judean city from which he came and Nicodemus was very much like Paul, a Pharisee of the Pharisees, a member of the Sanhedrin. Entombment, by Pietro Perugino, with Nicodemus and Joseph from Arimatea, Nicodemus (right) talking to Jesus, by William Brassey Hole, (18461917). In John 3, Nicodemus concedes that God must have sent Jesus because of all the miraculous signs he performed. Jesus often strongly denounced them for their legalism (see Matthew 23 ). The night, night-time. He acknowledged Jesus' miracles. How to extract the coefficients from a long exponential expression? Jesus has been lifted up and is now beginning to draw all people to himself (12:32), beginning with these hidden disciples, who were members of the very group that insisted on Jesus' death. Jesus calls him by an honorific title, "the Teacher of Israel" ( John 3:10 ). The Pharisees, however, did not believe Jesus was the Messiah, despite the signs which revealed His identity. Nicodemus is one of the few Pharisees who believed in Jesus. Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. We see this in John 3:1-21. In John 3:1, he is described as a Pharisee. It may also tie in with the theme of the creation of the new community: Jesus has reordered the lives of his mother and the Beloved Disciple (vv. In their first meeting, Nicodemus came to Jesus at night. John 3:2-Nicodemus said "we" know," who are "we" he refers to? Keep reading to learn the answers to these questions and others. He acknowledged that Jesus came from God. He was also a ruler of the Jews. Acceleration without force in rotational motion? Some think John's point is that Jesus would not be brought into contact with corruption (Westcott 1908:2:324), or that there would be no question of mistaken identity when the tomb was empty (Chrysostom In John 85.4; Brown 1970:959). Jesus has no ancestral tomb but rather has begun a new family of those born from above who will never die (11:26). #4 is equally unlikely. Bible Gateway John 3 :: NIV. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews." (John 19:39-40). During Jesus' burial, Nicodemus provides about 100 Roman pounds (33 kg) of a mixture of myrrh and aloes. [15], Jesus and Nicodemus by Crijn Hendricksz, 16161645. To, towards, with. Read this scene; and, if you have a pen handy, mark every mention of Nicodemus. Nicodemus was an early follower of Jesus Christ, uniquely mentioned only in the fourth gospel, the Gospel of John. Nicodemus chose not to go with Jesus because he had a covenant with his wife. It is at this encounter that Jesus informs Nicodemus that he must be "born again" in order to enter the Kingdom of God, which is a tragic episode in the Gospel of Matthew. A mixture of myrrh and aloes.--For "myrrh," comp. While in Jerusalem he chased the moneychangers from the temple and overturned their tables. Peter finds a purple bag of gold coins that was tossed by Nicodemus toward the group, a recognition of Jesus and his invitation, but a meager and somewhat sad response to that summons to an adventurous, self-forgetful new life. 26-27), in keeping with the new order of relationships of those who are united to him (cf. Nicodemus was confused and he asked how someone could be born again . What is it, then, that you do mean? A bystander as Nicodemus comes to terms with his decision, I couldnt help but think of all of the smart, safe, and comfortable discernment I have undergone in the face of the radicality of Christ, moments when my heart was stirred by the Holy Spirit to a particular action that I simply let time overtake. How did Jesus respond to this opening gesture? Translations of Nicodemus. rev2023.3.1.43269. Some of Jesus most important financial backers were women, historians say. The Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine-rite Catholic churches commemorate Nicodemus on the Sunday of the Myrrhbearers, celebrated on the Third Sunday of Pascha (i.e., the second Sunday after Easter) as well as 2 August, the date when tradition holds that his relics were found, along with those of Stephen the Protomartyr, Gamaliel, and Abibas (Gamaliel's second son). Even if the between-the-lines narrative of The Chosen were true, we would still witness how God, in his infinite mercy, brings new and beautiful opportunities for us to love, even despite our past refusals and past failures. Nicodemus, A man of great honor and influence, entirely and rightly rooted in the Jewish Law, recognizes in the most profound way that the young itinerant seated across from him is the fulfillment of the Law, the long-awaited Messiah. Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. That saved me the trouble, @Dottard You are most welcome (+1 for the answer). Why does John mention that it was nighttime? Jesus is scourged, crowned with thorns, and beaten. Peter finds a purple bag of gold coins that was tossed by Nicodemus toward the group, a recognition of Jesus and his invitation, but a meager and somewhat sad response to that summons to an adventurous, self-forgetful new life. As such, his character remains largely ambiguous within the biblical canon. Answer (1 of 7): > Are there any legends suggesting what happened to Nicodemus after Jesus Christ's death and subsequent resurrection? Instead, the seventy-five pounds of spices, which were probably in granular or powder form, could be packed under and around the body and in the strips of linen with which they wrapped the body. The aloe is an Eastern odoriferous wood--to be distinguished from the aloes of commerce--and chips of the better kinds are now said to be worth their weight in gold. Jesus continues the conversation teaching Nicodemus about the need to be born of the Spirit (John 3:5-8). [3], Finally, when Jesus is buried, Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloesabout 100 Roman pounds (33 kilograms (73lb))despite embalming being generally against Jewish custom (with the exceptions of Jacob and Joseph). 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