I Corinthians 12:24: “And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.  After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood…”

 

Paul probably gives the most comprehensive account of the last supper.  The Gospels relate this story but they all seem to use different words. This leads many to question the accuracy of the Scriptures.  However, to consider the mindset of the 1st century Jewish writers, this would really not be a problem. The writers were writing the things that were most important to them personally thus giving us a wider reporting of the events of that day.

 

There are also some other issues involved  here.  Jesus seems to really have gotten the attention of the disciples when he mentions His betrayal, but you hardly hear a peep when he talks about his death.  Surely, this would have a raised at least a “not so master” or a “hold on here.”  However, Jesus talks about his body being broken and His blood being shed to a group who have known and grown to love Him for three years and you hardly get an objection.”   Doesn’t that strike you as a little strange.

 

Finally, he talks about his body being broken. His body was beaten, tortured, but Scripture makes it clear that not a bone in His body was broken.  Why would He use the word broken?

 

Of course these issues have been debated and discussed for centuries and there are many possible explanations.  So I would like to throw in one such explanation taken from a Jewish point of view? Just for your consideration of course.

 

It is possible that when Jesus was talking about his death that the disciples were not taking Him literally.  Jewish masters often teach their disciples in codes.  You have the exoteric teaching which is one everyone can understanding.  Jesus gives a parable and everyone gets some sort of message from this.  Then you have the esoteric teaching where the master shrouds a hidden message in his teaching that is meant only for his disciples.  Thus, when Jesus broke the bread and said this is my body broken for  you…’   the disciples would automatically begin decoding the secret message and would have paid little heed to whether the master was speaking literally or figuratively.  The key word here could have been that word broken.  The “Hei” is known as the broken letter.    The Hei ה is an incomplete rectangle with a small opening in the right hand corner.  So the first letter in this game of  Jeopardy is the Hei.   Then Jesus took the cup and said “this is my blood which is shed for you.”   Blood and wine are symbols of life. The sages teach that the yod is the elemental, initiating force of life.  They would then  assume the letters were in reversed order so as to enhance its mystery and thus they would reverse the order of the letters and have the word  Yod, Hei, הwhich would spell the sacred name of God.  If indeed the disciples were unraveling a hidden mystery, the revelation that Jesus was now officially confirming that He was Jehovah Himself, would have bowled over his disciples so much that they would have given little thought to the literal expression that Jesus was going to die.

 

If you like this explanation, then next time you take communion, consider repeating to yourself, “This is the body and blood of Jehovah, the Master of the Universe, which was broken and shed for me.”

 

Let’s take another look at the broken letter  Hei ה.  You will notice that there is an opening in the top left hand corner of the letter.  I read in Jewish literature written about the time of Jesus that in this letter the opening in the left hand corner is considered the narrow gate.  Also notice at the bottom of the letter is a broader wider opening that leads downward.  This is known as the wide gate.  The sages used to teach that the letter Hei represents the presence and breath of God and that it is very difficult to climb to the narrow gate and few there are who can rise to that narrow gate and achieve such a state of righteousness that they are able to pass through that narrow gate to the Shekinah or the presence of God, but many are those who pass through the broad gate that leads to destruction.  We are not talking salvation here only entering into such an intimate relationship with God that we will experience His loving presence or the Shekinah glory.

 

I wonder if Jesus was not make an allusion to this when He said in Matthew 7:13, “Enter the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the road is spacious which leads to destruction, and many are those who are going in it.” Just a thought.

 

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