Great and terrible things shall come. He could have said be strong or be prayerful etc... but He says to be patient. It is not that these other things are not each important, it is that they all come as a result of patience. Therefore posses your soul in patients.
This prophecy was fulfilled near AD 70 at the destruction of the temple by the Romans. It is said by critics that Jesus cannot be classified as a prophet because none of His prophecies have come true. Well what is this prophecy, chopped liver?
The word for Satan here can also be translated adversary. It is hard to imagine what type of human or political adversary would have pricked or enticed David enough to make him do this, especially knowing such a census was forbidden. Given the way God responded and the measure to which God responded, it is my belief that the KJV translation Satan is highly possible.
This is not to say that incurable disease is caused in this manner or reason in all cases. It was true in this particular case because we are told that it was so. How often this happens we do not know, we are not told. This is a very important time in Judah given what he had done to the remaining descendants of David, what he had encouraged Judah to sin in, and by his own idolatrous practices and alliances.
The acts of the Spirit are now giving indications to many regarding Paul but not necessarily revelations of the exact divine will; or at least they are not accepting it as such. They give their counsel based on their response to the indications not to the will. Of course they are thinking as friends in Paul's best interest and safety; the two things are different. Paul must be prepared not only for what he will soon face but for what they are now facing in this turn of events.
The muddy situation surrounding Paul's arrival to Jerusalem is perfectly clear; there is nothing that Paul will be able to say or do or concede that is going to appease the zealous masses gathering against him. It will be factions of his very own faith that will do him in. We can see that not even the counsel of other Apostles is going to be able to steer him right and may in fact steer him wrong. What is going to happen is going to happen for God has much greater purposes.
There is the physical temple and there is a temple of individual men's hearts. Where a man's heart is there will be his treasure. There are men who treasure making money from the religious needs of many. There are men who treasure peace that do not confront them. There are men who treasure their position in the church that allow for even profit from such allowance. There are men who treasure the way things just the way they are, the way things have long time been. There are those who treasure their own ideals of the temple and not the ill image it projects to those it mistreats. These are the types of men who would be displeased by Jesus' message carried out in the temple for they do not treasure Him. When we look as individuals upon a collective temple such as this we look upon men's collective hearts. The object is not to avoid coming to the collective temple, it is to call upon all men's hearts by a higher calling; to call upon all men to come observe the most holy heart of our Lord and Savior; to meet with Him by His grace then and there. And if need be, shake a few tables of our own.
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