well, i guess not EVERY single things in the bible are to be interpreted literally but just wonder.. whats the difference..
i looked up the dictionary and here are some of the definition:
lamb - young of the sheep, innocent mild-mannered person; dear person; without resistance or protest
sheep - grass eating animal kept for its flesh as food - mutton - and its wool, (and interestingly.. the dictionary quotes this) separate good and bad person -> Matthew 25:33 (as to differ from sheep and goats)
so.. lamb is the young of the sheep (clear enough). blurpoint 1#: when Jesus said, '.. i know my sheep and my sheep know me (john 10:14)'.. what about the lamb? does it mean that only the sheep - ie, a matured christian - can hear and know Jesus? well, in a way it does makes some sense cuz (my thinking, my thoughts, my intepretation) only when you're older that you can discern and identify with a familar voice. for example, a babe may respond to anyone that calls their name while an older child can recognize better their parent's voice.
it is also mentioned in john 21:15-18, when Jesus resurrected and talked to peter. He said in order.. 'feed my lambs - v15', 'take care of my sheep - v16' and 'feed my sheep - v17'.
Jesus mentioned about the lamb first then the sheep twice.. so, to my understanding.. its, we should guide the young christians, take care and guide the matured christians well.. and only a matured christian can help other matured christian.. right? and we need to be matured christian - hebrew 5:12-14.
then another question: why is Jesus mentioned as the Lamb of God..? why lamb and not sheep? well, this is when i think the second definition of lamb is more appropriate. not that Jesus is young lad (heck, he is most matured compared to anyone of us!) but because of his 'innocent mild-mannered person; dear person; without resistance or protest' character that he carried even to calvary. hmm.. then no wonder lambs are usually used for sacrifice.
hmm.. then, what does this verse mean? Isaiah 5:16-17
But the LORD Almighty will be exalted by his justice,and the holy God will show himself holy by his righteousness.
Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;
lambs will feed among the ruins of the rich.
blurpoint: the sheep (meaning matured christians?) will have their own property and the lamb (meaning younger christians?) will have to settle for what the rich dont want?
ps: sometimes i tend to ask questions and answer it myself or cause others to be blur with me.. hahaha.. no doubt why i'm blurred most of the time.. hahaha ;o)
5 comments:
eh, this is a pretty good entry lah...! :)
whoops, that was me, mate! :) hehe
hahahaha... thanx :D
eh good word study there man. regarding Jesus being the "Lamb" of God, my point is this. it's not that he is mild or meek or more childlike, it's because in the old testament times, they used to sacrifice a lamb - as in lamb, not sheep. those animals became known as "sacrificial lambs". so when Jesus became our sacrificial atonement, it doesn't matter if it came in spite of his maturity, he became the "lamb". in this sense, it's no longer linguistic, just a replacement of the lamb with jesus.
Thank you for sharing (both of you)! Funny thing, I was reading John 21 which lead me to do some research on the difference between a lamb and a sheep.
Anyways I was happy to read your thoughts and am grateful that you decided to share them. Again thank you and my God continue to bless you both.
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