The Kingdom Awakens

By Themba Gamedze

An immediate consequence of this format is that it establishes a rigorous framework for an objective assessment of the level of consistency between the Gospels.
This chronological framework also allows for a natural exploration of the priorities and personalities of the Gospel writers in their quest to portray their central character, Jesus of Nazareth. As part of the author’s commitment to retaining as much of the context of Roman-ruled Israel of the 1st century as possible, he refers to Jesus of Nazareth as Y’shua and has insisted on immersing him fully into the traditions of his Jewish roots.
What emerges is a fascinating insight into Y’shua’s 2000 year old diary and the secrets it reveals about his complex identity.
“A thoroughly interesting read which presents a fascinating and refreshing angle on a topic well worth investigating. One is left with a sense of having visited with real people in a real context and experiencing the unfolding of real events. This certainly makes for enlightening and enjoyable reading, with plenty of room for further discovery.”
Editor’s note

• Language: English
• Publisher: Themba Gamedze
• Release date: Aug 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005124373

Book preview

About the author

Themba Gamedze BA Hons, MSc, FIA, FASSA, is an actuary who combines an interest in the strategic aspects of financial services competition with a passion for developing a non-confrontational framework for discussing the content and modern relevance of the Canonical Gospels. Themba lives in Johannesburg, South Africa with his wife Shirley and an ever-dwindling number of their five children.

Introduction

This is a portrayal of the Canonical Gospels (the Gospels) using a little-explored but extremely enlightening approach. I have consolidated all the events recorded in the four Gospels and placed them in strictly sequential order. In fact, the acronym ATOGA arose from the description, ‘A Time-Ordered Gospel Account’.

There is an increasing body of research and analysis in the area of Biblical Chronology to which readers may wish to make reference as part of their own background study. The most recent example at the time of writing is a 2008 Thomas Nelson publication: The Chronological Study Bible. I have also come across a detailed Chronological Gospel, with extensive commentaries published on the website [www.chronologicalbible.org]. I discovered these some four years after I began my study and was therefore rather unfortunate not to be able to take full advantage of the monumental work they represent. The approach I have followed can therefore no longer be described as unique. Nevertheless, I am quite convinced that the way I have presented the material has the potential to inspire the reader in a dynamically fresh, creative way.

It is not difficult to work out that one could end up with quite a number of slightly different sequential orderings of these events, each of which is consistent with the Gospel record. As I see it, that fact should not diminish the value of this process. The important thing by far is the tantalising prospect of reconstructing any chronological framework at all. Unlike many other religious writings, the Canonical Gospels do not simply represent a stream of consciousness based on spiritual concepts and wise teachings. Most of the content is linked inextricably with objective reference points. These are explicitly named places, seasons and times, and even specified individuals.

In studying the Gospels there is no escaping the sense that one is reading the copy of four journalists writing for newspapers representing disparate worldviews. This approach also provides a logical template for investigating the level of factual consistency across the Gospels.

In this simple way, I believe that the ATOGA Kingdom Series achieves one very important result: it removes the cop-out option of rejecting the Gospel record out of hand as fanciful myth, legend and folklore or as being full of contradictions. Indeed, I would venture to say that introducing the extra dimension of time brings an element of rigour into the study of the Gospels – one that has very far-reaching implications. However, the sword cuts both ways. Studying the Gospels using this framework has occasionally forced me to question the orthodoxy of one or two of my own long-held and much-taught beliefs. My hope is that all who pursue this study will encounter both points of confirmation and areas of challenge to their personal religious paradigm.

The contents of this volume follow the chronological order of events that appears in Appendix A: Timetable for ATOGA. The list therefore represents a section of the backbone of the ATOGA Kingdom Series project. As an example of what I mean, my comments on Event 1: Preamble are based on my interpretation of the content of Matthew 1:1; Mark 1:1-3; Luke 1:1-4; John 1: 1-9 and Acts 1:1-2.

In that sense then, it would be fair to describe the ATOGA Kingdom Series as a type of Gospel Commentary. The major differences between this and the commentaries currently available are the following:

• The ATOGA Kingdom framework encompasses a cross-cutting approach by incorporating the Gospel record as a whole. This is in contrast to the traditional method of following the content of individual verses in specific Gospels, an example of what could reasonably be described as a silo approach.

• As the focus of my remarks, I have concentrated much more on aspects of the narrative that are easily overlooked if one follows such a silo approach. These features are easily accessible to anyone using our methodology and do not require the application of non-intuitive interpretation or esoteric knowledge at all.

• A direct consequence of using this template is that it makes it impossible to avoid having to face up squarely to any potential discrepancies between he different Gospel accounts.

There are numerous excellent commentaries written by top Bible scholars who have spent many decades of their lives on their studies in this area. This eclectic commentary by an amateur makes no attempt to emulate their exceedingly thorough, hard-core analysis of scripture. I have therefore restricted my focus to the above priorities. My priority throughout is to compare and contrast the accounts presented by the different Gospel writers in their portrayal of the central figure. In order to highlight his out-and-out Jewishness, I shall refer to him as Y’shua, rather than by his Hellenised name of Jesus. Ultimately, what emerges is the closest thing possible to what some would call the story of Jesus – and what a story it is!

In Appendix B: The Priorities and Personalities of the Gospel Writers, I have shared a few of my thoughts on the priorities of these authors as I now understand them. I have also tried to delve a little deeper into their various accounts to see whether it is at all possible to detect something of their individual personalities buried in the events they reported. In my opinion, the way each of these writers related to his subject matter has left a personality trail that has not been dulled – even over 2000 years of history and even through the unspeakable trauma of translation. The way they reported the events; the details they emphasised, glossed over or even ignored; and finally even those events they left out completely, provide an intriguing set of clues. Together they serve as a sort of psychological genome trail leading back inexorably to those long-dead 1st century eye-witnesses and their confidantes.

My focus therefore has not been so much the content recorded by the writers, but rather a holistic combination of that content with two other specific ingredients. These are the discernible, but nevertheless subtle, shadow of the Gospel writer, and the nature of Y’shua himself. All these elements have been investigated as an integral part of Y’shua’s quite extraordinary diary, as it emerges more and more clearly from the analysis.

In trying to put all this together, it was absolutely critical not to remove these events from their special historical context. I have done my best not to stray from this aim. However, retaining a continual sense of the 1st century Jewish, but politically highly fractious, post-Hellenic socio-economic environment ruled from Rome has not been an easy task. We really are products of our times and I have no doubt that there are many 21st centurisms buried in here, despite the care I have taken.

Acknowledgements

I must recognise the immense value of a book to which I had access when I began this journey, courtesy of the Begbie-Kloppers in East London in the Eastern Cape. Jesus and the Four Gospels by John Drane served as an excellent primer for a non-theologian like me.

To avoid excessive clutter, I have not explicitly referenced quotations of scripture, as these are simply too numerous to itemise one by one. However, I think it appropriate to acknowledge that I used the text of the NIV Study Bible as the foundation of my studies. I must also mention the extensive use I have made of the search tools (especially Strong’s Concordance) from [www.blueletterbible.org], which I regard as having been totally invaluable.

Almost all factual information on the Jewish background of the ATOGA Kingdom Series has come from [www.jewfaq.org] and [www.hebcal.com]. These sources provided the content and timetable of the regular readings of the Jewish scriptures, the timing of the religious festivals in each relevant year around Y’shua’s lifetime, and a number of key cultural aspects of Judaism in 1st century Israel. I would also like to mention my use of a truly useful reference regarding the personalities who lived around the time of Y’shua. It is called Who’s Who in the Age of Jesus by Geza Vermes and is packed full of insights into all the major political and religious figures – as well as rather more esoteric personalities, such as ascetics and a number of other charismatic leaders of the time.

Finally, I would like to recommend to you the Holman Bible Atlas by Thomas Brisco, which provides a wonderful sense of both the geographical scale and the historical context of the events under discussion.

Dedication

I dedicate this work to my wife, Shirley, and my children: Londi, Thandi, Asher, Thuli and Nomsa. During the initial six months of my research I remember each of the children asking me, in one way or another, the question: Are you writing a new Bible? This was such a gloriously abandoned inquiry – given the enormous implications in terms of orthodoxy and potential for heresy embedded so innocently in such a question – that it warms my heart even now as I write.

It certainly re-establishes my faith in the beautiful innocence of children, and causes me to smile wistfully about the transience of all things.

And just for the record, I am not writing ‘another Bible’ at all, although I may perhaps end up with suggestions for a Consolidated Gospel. I would envisage that work as an aggregation of the different Gospel accounts into a single paraphrase-type record annotated appropriately.

I want to acknowledge publicly the value I place on my wife’s incredible reserves of patience. She allowed me to withdraw even more than I normally do from our shared responsibilities of parenthood. My sincere hope is that she will see the end result as having been worth the extra burden this has placed upon her.

Thank you so much, Shirley.

Ode to Y’shua

What do you give to the heir of all things?

First movement Heir of all things

What do you give to the Heir of all things?

What can you offer the One for whom it all exists, in whom it all finds its meaning -

The One before whom myriads of angelic beings fall in ordered rank - in lordly adoration?

What gift is worthy of the Creator of universes -

Planter of floral forest glades – virgin to the presence of man – yet intimately known to Him;

Designer of ocean depths, forever to present mysteries to the sons of earth?

He is the architect of worlds unknown, on the very cusp of space and time –

Perhaps never to be seen by any created being.

Where can one find a gift that could stir his heart, draw a smile from his eyes?

How does one surprise one of whose fame none can tell the full story –

At whose very word heaven’s constellations were at once formed and flung into deepest space?

Is it possible that such a One could have need of anything – anything at all?

This one who has always been with the eternal Father –

The Father – full of presents and gifts without number for his dearest Son.

Can there indeed be any way that He could ever be given something he valued above all these?

How it all began

It may be hard to believe, but this document began when, to my delight, and to my wife’s subsequent shock, she innocently bought me a copy of The Da Vinci Code. This was given to me as a birthday present in 2005.

I must admit that the hype had got to me, too. Furthermore, the joy of delving into the facts of a controversy does appeal to the adventurer in me. Yes, I know that the existence of such an alter-ego may be hard for many to imagine; and even more difficult to accept. After all, we are talking about someone who decided that the best way to cocoon himself from too interesting a life was to qualify as an actuary! Anyway, I remember immediately expressing surprise at how desperate she must have become for ideas for presents because she now had to resort to trafficking in heresy. You should have seen the look on her face at that description of a book many had thought of up to then as just a thriller!

However, having begun as I have, I must apologise sincerely for raising any expectations of huge controversy. The contents of The Da Vinci Code are not, in fact, directly a matter for the ATOGA Kingdom Series. Nevertheless, Dan Brown’s book did make me think afresh about the basis of my faith.

…And so it all began.

So, whatever anyone else may say – and no matter how distorted or illogical I found the content – thank you, Mr Brown!

As a result of carrying out the research for the ATOGA Kingdom Series, I have developed a far deeper passion for the Gospels. This has also extended to a much closer affinity to their focal point, the historical figure of Y’shua of Nazareth, than I had before. My hope is that by sharing my thoughts on the Gospels, I may be able to reignite, in all who read these books, the hope and longing for a better world that most of us hold dear.

My personal interest in such an outcome is based on the fact that I have two brothers, each of whom is regarded by many as an authority in his specific area of ministry. One is a Christian preacher in the Kingdom Teaching stream of the Pentecostal movement, based in South Africa. The other is a Jewish Rabbi, in the Hasidic tradition. He moved to Israel in 1989 and converted to Judaism not long after that.

I find it quite ironic that both of my brothers have access to, and could find themselves commenting on, the whole Bible; a book written almost entirely by Jews. The likelihood, however, is that while one brother is teaching from the New Testament letters, the other is probably expounding the Tanakh (Old Testament scriptures). My hope is that perhaps in the Gospels, we may find an area of common discussion and genuine sharing between us all.

BOOK ONE

A catch in the breath of eternity

From before the Big Bang to March,5 BCE

PART ONE

Can we have a bit of hush please?

Event one

Preamble

Matthew 1:1; Mark 1:1-3; Luke 1:1-4; John 1:1-9 and Acts 1:1-2

The story so far…

The problem with trying to trace the lives of famous people is that they simply fail to advertise beforehand the fact that they are going to be famous. Were they to do so, then it would be no trouble at all to put in place the usual information-gathering infrastructure. We could arrange for private investigators, journalists and paparazzi to be in place from birth – or even before – to surround them constantly right through to the very end.

However, in reality, many of those who make the greatest impression on planet Earth appear to have the distinctly anti-social habit of spending their early years in the most unpromising of backwaters, completely unnoticed by the world on which they will eventually make their mark. What is worse is that no sooner have they begun to register themselves on the communal radar screen, than many of them suddenly vanish again; often after an astonishingly brief period of time in the public eye.

This is the story of one such person. His fame in history is certainly way beyond question and perhaps exceeds that of all the rest. This is the story of Y’shua of the 1st century village of Nazareth in Galilee, drawn from those who originally wrote his story.

So, how would you begin the story of a famous person?

If he came from a privileged background, maybe your emphasis would rest on his pedigree or perhaps on the positive effect of his superior early training. If he came from an obscure family, you might focus on the local-boy-made-good or the jewel-in-the-rough angle. Alternatively, if the mark that person made on the world were truly monumentally huge, you may decide simply to leave out the distraction of an ‘early years’ section entirely and concentrate solely on the public persona.

It is interesting to observe that in the Gospels we see evidence of every single one of these approaches.

John stresses Y’shua’s emergence from the ultimate privileged upbringing. Certainly there cannot be many of us who can beat having been as close to God as is implied about Y’shua in John’s opening lines. On the other hand, the financial circumstances of Luke’s Y’shua and the people around him at his birth can only be described as very modest indeed. Mark, however, totally ignores the early years, without even seeming to bat an eyelid.

Matthew’s treatment is the most interesting of all, in some ways, because of the artful compromise he strikes. He deftly manages to present a humble setting for Y’shua’s origins, but only after taking great pains to establish his strong claim to Jewish nobility.

In essence, then, these initial comments represent a brave attempt by each of the Gospel writers to prioritise the central aspects of the roots of a truly human life. That life, although lived very much among us and truly as one of us, was nevertheless, in a number of interesting ways, significantly different from any lived before or since.

Comparative Gospel Analysis

The key points and implications of the narration of the different opening lines collectively referred to here as Event 1: Preamble are not difficult to establish.

Matthew

While I have decided to separate the genealogy beginning in verse 2 from the initial introductory comments, it is probably not fair to ignore the genealogy altogether. Before looking at that, though, the fact that Matthew introduces Y’shua as Messiah and son of David is very pertinent.

• We are clearly faced with a numbers man, here – look at all those fourteens arranged into three neat little groups!

• At the same time, we are also dealing with someone who is quite unconventional. For example, he introduces five women in his genealogy, all of whom are associated with at least a whiff of scandal.

• This is the first hint that the Y’shua we are about to see portrayed is going to be real. He is certainly not going to waft his way across history wearing a perfectly ironed, dazzling white panama suit that never gets spotted by the realities and inherent messiness of real life.

• Matthew’s underlying focus is on making a link between Y’shua and the line of David. Clearly his fundamental assumption is that if Y’shua is indeed the Messiah, unambiguously described in the scriptures as the son of David, then such a link must exist.

I shall return to the details of this genealogy later on when we discuss Event 4: Y’shua’s genealogy I.

Mark

His introduction is extremely succinct, but already his account differs from Matthew’s in introducing the title Son of God. At this stage it cannot yet be clear whether this is simply a title, perhaps as a result of Y’shua’s character or observed closeness to God, or whether it is an explicit statement as to the divinity of Y’shua. The points below summarise Mark’s priorities in these opening remarks.

• The next verse goes straight to the beginning of Y’shua’s ministry and anticipates the role to be played by John the Baptizer several decades later.

• Mark therefore focuses on Y’shua’s public ministry. What we read about is what would have been observable to the vast majority of people. He decides to waste no effort at all in delving into the obscurities of roots and babyhood.

• Mark’s attitude can best be summed up as follows: Everyone is born somewhere; everyone comes from somewhere. What counts is what people do, rather than the background from which they come.

Luke

By recognising previous Gospel accounts right up front, Luke’s narrative reads like the beginning of an academic treatise.