Devotional Reflection Based on the Incident of Peter Cutting Off Malchus's Ear: “Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.” ( Mark 14:47, Today's Korean Version ) 1. Identifying the People Involved: The person who stood beside Jesus and drew the sword was Simon Peter . The servant of the high priest was named Malchus . “Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.” ( John 18:10 ) 2. Jesus' Response to Peter's Action: (a) Jesus said: “Permit even this.” ( Luke 22:51, KJV: “Suffer ye thus far”; RSV: “No more of this” ) The Greek words clarify this: “ἕως τούτου” (“heōs toutou”) = “up to this point” or “even this” “ἐᾶτε” (“eate”) = “allow it,” “let it be,” “leave it alone” Therefore, Jesus is essentially saying: “Let them do what they are doing. Do not resist any further.” “If ...
Let us store up for ourselves treasures in heaven. [Matthew 6:19-24] Do you have any fears? If yes, what fears do you have? According to Deuteronomy 8:17, Moses, the great leader of Israel, was afraid. The fear was that the Israelites would say in their hearts, “My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.” Obviously, according to Deuteronomy 8:18, Moses was afraid that the Israelites might say that they obtained wealth by means of their own power and strength, even though God had given them the ability to obtain wealth. In a word, Moses was afraid that the Israelites would become proud and forget God (v. 14). When were the Israelites in danger of becoming proud? It was when all they had was abundant (v. 13). In other words, the Israelites went into Canaan, a land in which they lacked nothing (v. 9), a good land (v. 7), and ate and was satisfied (vv. 10, 12), built and lived in good houses (v. 12), their cattle multiplied, their silver and gold were m...