Tuesday, March 31, 2009

The Woman of Samaria

For the List of the "Women of the Bible", click Blog Archive, 2008 December

16 Questions & Answers
Scripture Reference: John 4:1-42

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#1. True or False. The 'Woman of Samaria' given as her name in this story may be appropriate rather than her real name.

#1. True. Everybody knows Woman means an adult female human being. The teaching method of Jesus lay not in her name, but the political and religious relation of Samaritans with Jews serve a better understanding and implication of this particular story.
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#2. How Jesus happened to be at the well to meet with this ordinary woman?

#2. John 4:3-6. When the Lord learned of this(=hostility of Pharisees), he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. 4Now he had to go through Samaria. 5So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour(=noon).
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#3. Describe a brief religious history of Samaria to understand this context?

#3. When one church brands another a cult, it usually creates long-standing bitterness. The Samaritans and the Jews felt that way about each other. Samaritan religion closely resembled Judaism, but on key issues its followers had gone their own way.

Forty-two miles north of Jerusalem lie the ruins of ancient Samaria near a small village called Sebastiya. Samaria was the capital, residence, and burial place of the kings of Israel (1 Kings 16:23-28; 1 Kings 22:37; 2 Kings 6:24-30). Following the Northern Kingdom's fall to Assyria (721 B.C.), exiles from many nations settled Samaria (Ezra 4:9-10). Later, the Greeks conquered the region (331 B.C.) and hellenized the area with Greek inhabitants and culture. After a long period without inhabitants, Samaria lived again under the Romans (63 B.C.). Finally, Herod the Great obtained control of Samaria in 30 BC. and made it one of the chief cities of his territory. Again, the city was resettled with people from distant places, this time mercenaries from Europe. Herod renamed the city Sebaste, using the Greek word for Augustus, the emperor. When the Jews revolted in 66 A.D., the Romans reconquered the city and destroyed it. The Romans later rebuilt Samaria, but the city never regained the prestige it once had. Samaria is the only major city founded in Israel (the Northern Kingdom) by Omri, the sixth king of Israel (885-874 B.C.).
When Ahab, Omri's son, became king of Israel, he built an ivory palace at Samaria. Amos denounced him for doing this (Amos 6:1,Amos 6:4; 1 Kings 22:39). Jezebel influenced Ahab, her husband, to make the city the center for Baal worship (1 Kings 16:29-33). Jezebel also had many prophets of Yahweh killed in Samaria (1 Kings 18:2-4).

After the Assyrian conquest, Samaria began to shrink in size. By New Testament times, it became identified with the central region of Palestine, with Galilee to the north and Judea to the south. When Assyrian captives from distant places settled there (2 Kings 17:24) this led to the intermarriage of some, though not all, Jews with Gentiles and to widespread worship of foreign gods. By the time the Jews returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple and the walls of Jerusalem, Ezra and Nehemiah refused to let the Samaritans share in the experience (Ezra 4:1-3; Nehemiah 4:7). The old antagonism between Israel to the north and Judah to the south intensified the quarrel.

The Jewish inhabitants of Samaria identified Mount Gerizim as the chosen place of God and the only center of worship. Their scriptures were limited to the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible. The Samaritans expected a Messiah, but their rejection of all the inspired writings after the Pentateuch meant that they knew little about him. They thought of him mainly as a teacher. Moses was regarded as the only prophet and intercessor in the final judgment. They also believed that 6,000 years after creation, a Restorer would arise and would live on earth for 110 years. On the Judgment Day, the righteous would be resurrected in paradise and the wicked roasted in eternal fire.
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#4. The woman said the well was deep. How much was it deep?

#4. Christian pilgrim sources as early as the fourth century mention a well in this area that was about 100 feet deep. When the present well was cleaned out in 1935, it was found to be 138 feet deep. Jacob's well is mentioned only in the Scripture in
Jn 4:6.
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#5. What was the belief of Jews if they drink out of a vessel handled by a Samaritan?

#5. A Jew would become ceremonially unclean if he used a drinking vessel handled by a Samaritan, since the Jews held that all Samaritans were "unclean."
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#6. In the days of Christ, the relationship between the Jews and the Samaritans was greatly strained. Can you name the things Jesus did to improve this situation by reaching across the barriers?

#6. In the days of Christ, the relationship between the Jews and the Samaritans was greatly strained (Luke 9:52-54; Luke 10:25-37; Luke 17:11-19; John 8:48). The animosity was so great that the Jews bypassed Samaria as they traveled between Galilee and Judea. They went an extra distance through the barren land of Perea on the eastern side of the Jordan to avoid going through Samaria.

Yet Jesus:
a)rebuked His disciples for their hostility to the Samaritans(Luke 9:55-56),
b)healed a Samaritan leper (Luke 17:16),
c)honored a Samaritan for his neighborliness (Luke 10:30-37),
d)praised a Samaritan for his gratitude (Luke 17:11-18),
e)preached to the Samaritans (John 4:40-42).
f)In Acts 1:8, Jesus challenged His disciples to witness in Samaria.
(Philip, a deacon, opened a mission in Samaria - Acts 8:5),
g)and even Jesus asked a drink of a promiscuous Samaritan woman beside a well(John 4:7).
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#7. How many times Jesus told before his trial that he is the Messiah?

#7. Jn 4:26 "I who speak to you am he". This is the only occasion before his trial on which Jesus specifically declared that he was the Messiah. (See also Mk 9:41).
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#8. "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty". Who said this and what was the occasion?

#8. Samaritan woman requested Jesus at the well.
Jn 4:10-15 Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." 11"Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?" 13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."
15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water."
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#9. One of the constantly recurring contrasts in the Gospels is the repudiation of Jesus by the religious leaders of his nation. But what does the story of the Samaritan woman reemphasize about Jesus to us?

#9. The acceptance of Jesus by the outcasts, sinners, and common people.
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#10. Why the disciples were surprised when they came back to Jesus after the shopping trip in Sychar?

#10. Jn 4:27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, "What do you want?" or "Why are you talking with her?"

Jewish religious teachers rarely spoke with women in public. Jesus seemed refreshed and restored by his encounter with the woman, though he had arrived at the well thirsty, hungry, and tired from the journey towards Galilee in north.
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#11. Jesus clearly commanded, "how to worship God". What was it?

#11. Jn4:24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
This fact has great importance for the proper understanding of Christian worship.
(Holy Spirit is the third person of the trinity. Don't get confused with the context).

The place of worship is irrelevant, because true worship must be in keeping with God's nature, which is spirit. In John's Gospel truth is associated with Christ
Jn 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jn 17:17 your word is truth.

Jn 8:31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

1 Cor 14:15 So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind.

Phipp 3:3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—
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#12. What was the end result of Jesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman?

#12. Dodge, counter dodge- nothing the woman said would keep Jesus satisfied. He kept pressing beneath the surface, inviting her to a deeper understanding, by revealing his knowledge of the most intimate details of her life. When she finally admitted the truth, Jesus startled her with a revelation about himself: for the first time he admitted that he was the Messiah.

She immediately left and began telling people, “He told me everything I have ever done” (John 4:39). Many Samaritans believed in Jesus because of the woman's testimony. At the Samaritan's urging, Jesus stayed on for 2 days with them and many more came to believe. Thus the woman helped to proclaim the gospel. Also the visit of Jesus laid the groundwork for the hearty reception of the Gospel by the Samaritans a few years later (Acts 8:4-8).
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#13. What would have been the Samaritan woman's sorrow?

#13. She have lived in a way with many romantic liaisons that relegated her to the margins of her society. Though she helped to spread the Word after the encounter with the Lord, she would not have been most people's first choice to advance the gospel in a region where it had not yet been heard.
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#14. True or False. Jesus told the woman of Samaria, "You must be born again".

#14. False. (Jn 3:7) If Jesus had said this to the Samaritan woman, Nicodemus would have agreed with Jesus. But the wonderful teachings about "eternal life, His love and the new birth", Jesus taught the Israel's prominent religious teacher, a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin, and a respected interpretter of God's Law, Nicodemus.
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#15. What is the meaning of the term Messiah?

#15. 1.In Christianity, Jesus Christ regarded as the Messiah prophesied in the Hebrew Bible.
2. In the Hebrew Bible, an anointed king who will lead the Jews back to the land of Israel and establish justice in the world.

The term became the official title of the central figure of a deliverer and redeemer which the writers of the New Testament considered to be fulfilled in Jesus.
(Jewish messianic hope in the first century was considerably diverse, and different concepts of the Messiah were in circulation at the time of Jesus).
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#16. Give 2 promises in Scripture about hunger?

#16. 1. Matt 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
2. Luke 6:21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied.
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Lot's Wife

For the List of the "Women of the Bible", click Blog Archive, 2008 December

11 Questions & Answers
Scripture Reference: Gen 18:16-19; 29; Lk 17:28-33
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#1. Who was Lot?

#1. Lot was the son of Abraham's brother Haran, both of whom were sons of Terah. Therefore, Lot is the nephew of Abraham or Abraham is the uncle of Lot. On the death of Lot's father, he was left in charge of his grandfather Terah. After the death of Terah Lot accompanied his uncle Abraham and finally he separated from Abraham and settled in Sodom(Gen 13:5-13).
Lot made many mistakes in life, yet the divine record still calls him a "righteous" man(2 Peter 2:4-8). While living in Sodom, the wicked men of the city said, "He keeps acting as a judge"(Gen 19:9)
When the judgment of God descended on the guilty cities of the plain(Gen 19:1-20), Lot was miraculously delivered.Lot's deliverance was the main concern of Abraham's prayer

The angels found Lot in the gateway to Sodom—a fact loaded with significance. Traditionally, city fathers gathered in the gateway to make important decisions. Lot’s presence suggests that he had become “one of them” during his time in Sodom, which may explain why he struggled against leaving.
Lot apparently had lost his power of moral persuasion even among his family members-
his sons-in-law thought he was joking when asked to leave.
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#2. Who was Lot's wife and what was her name?

#2. The Old Testament only refers to "Lot's wife" in Genesis 19. In the new Testament
Jesus' words of warning is in Luke 17:32. In the Scripture these two are all that is said of this person. The Bible does not give us the name of "Lot's wife". She was married to Lot, a righteous man.
Genesis simply tells us that Lot and the women of the home did not want to leave the city of Sodom. As a result,the angelic visitors in their effort to hasten the slow departure, "seized" them by the hand and took them out of the city. The angels had commanded them to flee and warned them to not look back at the destruction, but Lot's wife did and she became a pillar of salt(a stiffened corpse). This was an act of God's judgment.
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#3. "Remember Lot's wife", who warned this, and what for? Lk. 17:32

#3. In the New Testament Jesus tells us why she looked back. We discover that she did not become a pillar of salt because she simply looked back. What was her sin? She was longing for the pleasures of Sodom - the pleasures of this world - more than she was longing to be faithful to God.

She was willing to live with the great wickedness that God hated in order to enjoy its pleasures. She did not really love God. She loved the things of this world more. She was not really willing to obey. So God punished her by turning her into a pillar of salt. (Did she really become a pillar of salt? Flavius Josephus, the Roman historian of 1st century A.D., recorded that he had seen her pillar of salt).

The end of Lot's wife is probably one of the difficulties of the Bible. But the value and the significance of the story to us are contained in the allusion of Christ given in LK 17:32.

Luke 17:28-29, 32-33
28"It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
32Remember Lot's wife! 33Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.
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#4. What did Abraham do for Sodom?

#4. Abraham interceded with the Lord for Sodom(Gen 19:27-28)
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#5. While running for life, did Lot's family go to the mountains as instructed?

#5. Disobediently protests against going to the mountains, and choose Zoar caves (Gen 19:17-22)
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#6. From the incestuous intercourse between Lot and his two daughters what two nations were produced?

#6. Moab and Ammon.
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#7. Gen. 19:26 says Don’t Look Back. Who disobeyed this warning of God?

#7. Lot's wife. For this she became a symbol of indecision. Lot and his family found it hard to leave their adopted home of Sodom, despite its immorality. Angel messengers warned them to hurry, not even stopping to look back. When Lot’s wife disobeyed, she turned into a pillar of salt—perhaps caught in volcanic explosions that engulfed Sodom. Jesus warned his followers to remember her example when their time of trouble came (Luke 17:32).
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#8. Why did God send his angels to Sodom?

#8. To rescue Lot and his family(Gen 18) from the upcoming destruction. Earlier, God had promised Abraham he would spare the city if he could find at least 10 righteous people in it, but not even 10 could be found.
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#9. Was God's mercy extended to Lot for love of Lot or for love of Abraham?

#9. Bible don't say any answer on this. But we do know God's mercy was available for Lot and his family and in the hardest of circumstances God stretched his hand to lead them to safety.
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#10. Did Lot consult his wife to invite the unexpected visitors of the city to spend the night under his roof?

#10. Certainly not. Lot's wife must have welcomed the strangers warmly too, for hospitality was a sacred trust in the ancient world. To avoid surrendering guests for the people's pleasure, Lot even attempted an appalling bargain with the offer of his 2 daughters for their will and pleasure. Lot did his own decisions on both of these situations.
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#11. What are the lessons we can learn from Lot's wife?

#11. A) She was married to a righteous man.

The power of good association. Paul warned us on this.
1 Cor 15:33 Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."

None of us is righteous enough.
Isa 59:1-2 Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.

1 Peter 4:17-18 For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18And, "If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?"

B) She was warned of the danger- a message from God himself to Lot and his wife.
Gen 19:17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, "Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!"

Christ also warns us of the danger before us--
(1)Matt 7:21-23 He spoke more about hell than all the apostles.
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
(2)Matt 25:46 Jesus tells us of the judgement day--"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

(3)2Thes 1:7-8 Paul foretold-- This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

(4)Acts 24:25 When Paul preached before Felix, the thought of a judgement day made him fearful-- As Paul discoursed on righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and said, "That's enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you."

(5)Acts 2:40 On the day of Pentecost, when the Lord's church was established and the terms of Divine pardon made known unto men, Peter preached the very first sermon ever given in the name of our risen Lord. He told those who believed that they need to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins--
With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation."

C) She made an effort to be saved. She was convinced but not converted and looked unto God(Jesus). She was seeking safety with divided desires and interests. The immediate cause of her fear has faded away and she became lukewarm.

D) In a society like ours, it is rare to find someone who is not attached to creature comforts. It may be worth to test our own level of attachments or rigidity that may have developed so that we can become free and flexible enough to respond quickly to God's direction.

E) We can look into some promises in the Scripture.

(1)Gen 19:16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them.

(2)Deut 13:17 he will show you mercy, have compassion on you,

(3)Psalm 25:6 Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.

(4)Jerem 3:12 'I will frown on you no longer, for I am merciful,' declares the LORD,
'I will not be angry forever.
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Glossary:

Dead Sea: Salt lake on the border between Israel and Jordan, in southwestern Asia. Its surface, at 400 m (1,312 ft) below sea level, marks the lowest point on Earth. Area: 1,020 sq km (394 sq mi).
The utter absence of the slightest trace of animal and vegetable life in its waters are a striking testimony to the catastrophe.

Sod·om:
a) city of depravity: In the Bible, a city full of moral corruption and evil that was destroyed along with Gomorrah by God

b) The historical records of the Canaanites tell us that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah now lie under the southwest end of the Dead Sea.

c) corrupt place: a place that is regarded as corrupt.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Money

20 Questions & Answers

#1. What is money?

Answer:
A portable medium of exchange generally accepted in a society as a measure of value.
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#2. Name the coins of the following peoples?
a)Roman, b)Greek, c)Jewish, d)American


Answers:
All these coins are mentioned in the NT except American. Sometimes its meaning or value is confusing.

a)Roman:
a.1)denarius
1. an ancient Roman silver coin originally worth ten asses,
first issued in the latter part of the 3rd century b.c., that fluctuated in value and sometimes appeared as a bronze coin.
2. an ancient Roman gold coin worth 25 silver denarii
3. the coin most often mentioned in the NT is Roman denarius.(the Romans took possession of Palestine in 63 BC).

a.2)farthing
1.used in the King James Version of the Bible to translate a Roman coin.
2. a former bronze coin of Great Britain, equal to one-fourth of a British penny: withdrawn in 1961.
3. something of very small value: I don't care a farthing for your opinion.

a.3)Pound

1)Roman currency, from which the pound is derived

The Roman currency during most of the Roman Republic and the western half of the Roman Empire consisted of coins including the aureus (gold), the denarius (silver), the sestertius (bronze), the dupondius (bronze), and the as (copper). These were used from the middle of the third century BC until the middle of the third century A.D.

They were still accepted as payment in Greek influenced territories, even though these regions issued their own base coinage and some silver in other denominations, either called Greek Imperial or Roman provincial coins.

During the third century, the denarius was replaced by the double denarius, now usually known as the antoninianus or radiate, which was then itself replaced during the monetary reform of Diocletian which created denominations such as the argenteus (silver) and the follis (silvered bronze). After the reforms Roman coinage consisted mainly of the gold solidus and small bronze denominations. This trend continued to the end of the Empire in the West.

2)A talent equaled about seventy-five pounds (Ex 25:39), a mina about 1.25 pounds (1Ki 10:17), forty shekels about one pound (Ge 3:15).

3)Also called pound sterling- a paper money, nickel-brass coin, and monetary unit of the United Kingdom formerly equal to 20 shillings or 240 pence: equal to 100 new pence after decimalization in Feb. 1971. Symbol: £.
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b)Greek:
b.1)drachma (4 definitions are given).
a. the principal silver coin of ancient Greece.
(the main unit of the former Greek currency, before the euro).
b. a cupronickel coin and monetary unit of modern Greece, equal to 100 lepta.
c. a small unit of weight in ancient Greece, approximately equivalent to the U.S. and British apothecaries' dram.
d. A Greek silver coin worth about a day's wages (Lk 15:8; Ac 19:19). The temple tax was two drachmas (Mt 17:24). In Ezr 2:69 and Ne 7:70-72 the term may refer to the Persian daric.
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c)Jewish:
The Israelites typically used the coinage of the nation that ruled over them. But they also developed their own local system of coinage.

c.1)mite
1. a contribution that is small but is all that a person can afford.
2. a very small sum of money.
3. a coin of very small value.
4. a very small creature.

c.2)shekel
1. the main unit of Israeli currency
2. ancient Jewish unit of weight: an ancient Jewish unit of weight equivalent to approximately 16 g (0.5 oz), or a weight, equal to twenty gerahs.
3. an ancient Jewish coin that was a unit of currency between 66 AD and 130 AD
4. Fines, Fees and Sanctuary revenues paid in shekels.

c.3) Gerah:
A weight equal about 1/20 of a shekel or 1/2 gram (Ex 30:13; Lev 27:25; Nu 3:47).

c.4)talent
a. an ancient unit of weight and money. A weight equal to sixty minas or about seventy-five pounds (1Ki 9:14, 28; 10:10, 14; Ex 25:39; 38:27). Parables of the talent(Mt 18:23-34; 25:15-30).
b. any of various ancient units of weight, as a unit of Palestine and Syria equal to 3000 shekels, or a unit of Greece equal to 6000 drachmas.
c. any of various ancient Hebrew or Attic monetary units equal in value to that of a talent weight of gold, silver, or other metal.
d. a power of mind or body considered as given to a person for use and improvement: so called from the parable in Matt. 25:14–30.
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d) American:
d.1)penny
a. The smallest Roman copper coin (Mt 5:26; Mk 12:42; Lk 12:6, 59).
b. coin in United States and Canada: a U.S. and Canadian coin worth one cent
c. former British coin: a bronze coin or a unit of money used in Britain before
1971, worth one twelfth of a shilling, or one two-hundred-and-fortieth of a pound.
Symbol: d
d. a coin or monetary unit with a low value in some countries
e. a very small amount of money
(eg:It won't cost you a penny).

d.2)cent
a common subunit of currency in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the European Union, and several other countries

d.3)dollar
The common unit of currency used in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and several other countries
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#3. When did the Israel start to use the coin?

Answer:
Coins didn't come into use in Israel until after the people returned from exile between 500 and 400 BC. Before that time people bartered, exchanging produce, animals, and precious metals for goods and services. The Israelites probably carried Persian and Babylonian coins back to Israel with them when they returned from exile there.
By Jesus' day, a large variety of coins had come from Rome and Greek as well as their own Jewish form of coinage.
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#4. What kind of images were found on coins?

Answer:
In olden days coins were crudely made. Each was individually punched from gold, silver or some other metal. Then a design was hammered onto each side.
The Greek coins most often had images of nature or animals or gods stamped onto them.
The Roman coins carried the image of the emperor of the time, as well as his name. Coins have been found with the images of all 12 Roman emperors.
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#5. How come Money-changers were found in the temple court?

Answer:
The coins of many lands were in circulation in Palestine during NT times.
The temple tax had to be paid in Jewish currency, shekels. Money-changers set up their businesses in the "outer court" in order to change other coinage into shekels(acceptable money per rabbis decree) for temple worshipers, (Deut 14:24-25). Money changers often cheated their customers, and certain priestly families shared in the proceeds. Sometimes money changers serve as bankers making loans with interest, which was contrary to Mosaic law.

Jesus was not opposed to the operation of such businesses, but to the operation within the temple itself. He furiously scattered them, declaring that his Father's house was a house of prayer, not a business site - (Matt 21:12-13).
"It is written," he said to them, " 'My house will be called a house of prayer,' but you are making it a 'den of robbers.'
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#6. While money is necessary for life in most cultures, the Bible warns against placing more importance on it than it should rightfully have. Can you fill up the missing words in the following verses?

a) Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not __________ for money, but eager to serve; 3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. (1 Peter 5:2-3)

b) Keep your lives free from the ________ of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." 6So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?" (Hebrews 13:5)

c) For the _______ of money is a ______ of all kinds of _______. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many ______.
11But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. 12Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.(1 Timothy 6:10-12)

(This is a famous verse but often misquoted words about money. A lover of money when giving it away, would make sure the gift was noisily apparent).


Answers:
a)greedy, b)love, c)love, root, evil, griefs.
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#7. Money drives an effective and forceful wedge between our Savior and us.
Jesus knew that and reminded us with the following words. Fill the missing words.


"No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both ______ and _________." (Luke 16:13)

Answer:
God, money.
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#8. With all the teachings available for Christians, are Christians susceptible to money's enticements?

Answer:
The pervasive lure of money and what it can provide-the need to have more and do more and get more- is probably more prevalent in our culture than in any other in history. Christians are just as susceptible to its enticements as anyone else.
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#9. Where the wealth is first mentioned in the Bible and what are the items of wealth?

Answer:
Wealth is first mentioned in the Bible in connection with Abraham (Gen 12:5; 12:16, 20). He possessed the three main items of wealth in the ancient world: livestock, silver and gold (Gen 13:2).
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#10. Since Jesus was a firstborn son not of the tribe of Levi, what his parents had to do to redeem him from the priesthood?

Answer:
Among the Jews the shekel was used for the temple tax, the poll tax, and redemption from the priesthood (Exod 30:11-16; 13:13; Num 3:44-51).
Since Jesus was a firstborn son not of the tribe of Levi, his parents redeemed him from the priesthood (Luke 2:21) by payment of a shekel, worth about a day's wages at the time.
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#11. Why the parable of 10,000 talents the unmerciful servant owed his master (Matt 18:23-25) was an overwhelming debt?

Answer:
It required 3,000 shekels to equal one talent of silver, which reveals that the 10,000 talents was an overwhelming debt,= 30,000000, ie 30 million shekels.
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#12. Who did Jesus send fishing to get money for taxes?
a) Matthew, b) Peter, c)John, d) Nicodemus


Answer:
b)Peter
The coin Peter found in the fish's mouth was the Greek stater (Matt 17:27). Since the temple tax was a half-shekel, the stater would pay for two, ie for Jesus and Peter.
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#13. How much was Judas Iscariot given to betray Jesus?
a)20 pieces of silver, b)A talent of gold, c)30 pieces of silver, d)30 pound


Answer:
c)30 pieces of silver
It is believed that the 30 pieces of silver (Matt 26:15; 27:3-5) that bought the greatest betrayal in history were tetra drachmas.
30 shekels was the price of a slave (Exod 21:32).
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#14. What prophet's sons were greedy, and took bribes?
a)Joshua, b)Elisha, c)Nathan, d)Samuel


Answer:
d)Samuel (1Samuel 8:1-3)
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#15. Who offered Delilah silver to find out the secret of Samson's strength?
a)The lords of the Philistines, b)The chief priests, c) The scribes, d) The Amorites


Answer:
a)the lords of the Philistines (Jud 16:17)
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#16. For how much was Joseph sold to the Ishmaelites?

Answer:
20 shekels (Gen 37:28)
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#17. Fill up. In early biblical times individuals paid tithes and taxes in _________, ________, or ____________ (Deut 14:22,23).

Answer:
grain, oil, or wine.
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#18. If it is too difficult to transport a tenth of one's crops to the place of worship, what does Deuteronomy advise?

Answer:
the crops may be exchanged for silver, (Deut 14:24,25).
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#19. Today we can estimate accurately the weight of silver in most units of ancient money. Compare Hebrew equivalent and weight in silver of the following units?
a) Talent, b)Mina, c)Shekel, d)pim, e)Beka, f)Gerah


Answer: (weights in approximations at best)
a)Talent = 3000 shekels = 75.6 pounds = 34.27 Kg
b)Mina . = 50 shekels . = 1.26 pounds = 571.2 grams
c)shekel .............. = 0.4 ounce.. = 11.42 grams
d)pim... = 2/3 shekel.. = 0.2 ounce.. = 7.62 grams
e)beka.. = 1/2 shekel.. = 0.13 ounce. = 5.71 grams
f)Gerah. = 1/20 shekel. = 8.71 grains = 0.57 gram
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#20. What are the 2 most familiar quotes on love of money?

Answer:
a)1 Tim 6:3-19
If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, 4he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions 5and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. ...............(Read from Bible).

b)James 5:1-5
Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. 2Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. 3Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. 4Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. 5You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter.
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#21. Where in the bible we see God owns everything?

Answer:
Psalm 24:1. The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.
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#22. Fill up. Deut 8:12-14. Dangers of success.
Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your ____________ and __________ increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will ____________ the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.


Answer:
silver, gold, forget.
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#23. As a rule about loans, OT says several examples to respect people, not money. Provide 2 or 3 of them?

Answer:
a) Exod 22:25. "If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest.

b)Deut 24:10-13. When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, do not go into his house to get what he is offering as a pledge. 11 Stay outside and let the man to whom you are making the loan bring the pledge out to you. 12 If the man is poor, do not go to sleep with his pledge in your possession. 13 Return his cloak to him by sunset so that he may sleep in it. Then he will thank you, and it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the LORD your God.

c) Deut 24:6. Do not take a pair of millstones—not even the upper one—as security for a debt, because that would be taking a man's livelihood as security.

Note: The OT laws contained many provisions to protect people from exploitation. Here Israelites could not charge each other interest for loans. Deuteronomy sets limit on the "collateral", or pledge, that secured a loan. The lender could not accept a millstone, for that would threaten the debtor's livelihood. There are several safeguards. The debtor was allowed to keep everything necessary for living. The lender could not even enter the debtor's house to get his pledge.
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#24. Fill up. Matt 6:19-21.
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on __________, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in ____________, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your ___________ will be also.


Answer:
earth, heaven, heart
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#25. Luke being a doctor gives descriptive accounts of physical healings, what does Matthew highlights?

Answer:
Matthew being a former tax collector, highlights stories about money.
Refer Chapters 18, 20, 25. Significantly, the former tax collector records Jesus' strongest words on treatment of the poor and needy.
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#26. Fill up. Psalm 62:10.
Do not trust in extortion or take pride in ______________ goods; though your ___________ increase, do not set your ___________ on them.


Answer:
stolen, riches, heart.
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#27. Jesus' perspective on money.
Jesus has more to say about money than almost any other topic. He sees money primarily as a spiritual force. Luke 12 offers a good summary of Jesus' attitude toward money. Jesus does not condemn all possessions.
With this in mind, Fill up. Lk 12:34.
Where your ___________ is, there your ___________ will be also.


Answer:
treasure, heart
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#28. There are 3 important insights presented in NT on money. How do you see those points?

Answer:
1. Money has no ultimate value.

a) Lk 12:13-21. In Jesus' parable, the rich fool was confident about the future. But that very night he died and he was not ready to meet God. Thus, all his wealth was worthless for eternal purposes.
b) Lk 12:22-31. Jesus reminded his deciples that God knows our needs and will meet them. So, the believer need not set his heart on things that unbelievers desire, but should seek God's Kingdom instead.

2. The love of money distorts relationships with God and others.

a) 1 Tim 6:3-10. Here Paul warns that the love of money leads to evil behavior.
b) Mt 6:24. A person cannot serve God and money, but must choose to make one or the other the highest goal in his life.(Ref Acts 5:1-5).
c) Mt 19:16-21. Here Jesus revealed that the young man had substituted confidence in his wealth for confidence in God.
d) 1 Tim 3:3; 1 Pet 5:2; Heb 13:5. An important qualification for Christian leadership is that he must be free from a love of money.
e) James 2:1-13. Because money distorts human relationships, James warned the members of the Jerusalem Church not to show favoritism toward the rich.

3. Money is to be used, not valued for itself.

a) Sripture does not suggest that it is wrong to be wealthy. In OT times wealth was seen as a divine blessing. The NT makes it clear, that money is to be valued only for what one can do with it.
b)1 Tim 6:17-19. Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.
This is the point of the parable of the troublesome unjust steward,(Lk 16:1-15).
Jesus did not commend him for his dishonesty but for realizing the money is to be used to prepare for the future.

It is difficult in any age to maintain a healthy and balanced attitude toward money. If we make God rather than wealth the focus of our desires, we will find contentment and inner peace for our lives rather than engaged with the rat race in the pursuit of wealth.
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Points to ponder

According to a Pastor, money issues can be reduced to 3 Questions. Probably these are good money management tools.

1. How do you get it?(Did it involve injustice, cheating, or oppression of the poor).

2. What are you doing with it? (Are you hoarding it? Exploiting others? Wasting it on needless luxuries?)

3. What is it doing to you?
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Glossary:

1. Vassal:
1) dependent landholder in feudal society: somebody who gave loyalty and homage to a feudal lord and received the right to occupy the lord's land and be protected by him.
2) slave: a bondman or slave
3) a person, nation, or group that is dependent on or subordinate to another
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