Preaching & Repentance - Part 3 (of 3)
Matthew 4:17 - Preaching & Repentance
It’s likely that Jesus preached this first sermon in His native tongue: Aramaic.
Another layer lost in translation even into the Greek (metanoiete) is the Aramaic “Thubu…” which means to “return” or “come back.”
Here, we have a more comprehensive picture - a “fullness” that’s not captured by “metanoiete.”
While the latter carries meaning proper to the change within the individual person, “Thubu” has a communal, familial depth.
Like the return of the Prodigal to a loving Father.
Sin’s effects on a family, on a community, are like a child who is far off, or a loved one who has drifted away. Or a spouse that has grown cold.
These experiences are like a bleak, relational winter.
But the eternal Word proceeds from the Father, calling us to repent. Return. Come back.
For “now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Eph 2:13).
For “this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (Jn 17:3)
Onward and upward,
Ted
Check out my latest piece on Substack on Emotional Leadership: How a Man Leads a Woman
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