I’ve been puzzled for a while
Concerning Mark 13:32,
Because these are the words of Jesus
They surely must be true.
But of that day and that hour
Knoweth no man,
No, not the angels which are in heaven,
Neither the Son, but the Father.
Jesus had just foretold
The destruction of the temple
And this had evoked a probing query
From four of his disciples.
“Tell us,” they had inquired,
“When shall these things be?
And what shall be the sign
When all these things shall be fulfilled?”
Whatever your eschatology
You certainly cannot ignore
That here is something the Son of man
Is saying he does not know.
It was a searching question,
It meant a lot to them
And the fact that Jesus did not know
Posed a colossal problem.
This is fodder for the JWs
Who argued Jesus is not God
And Allah has no son, you should note,
Is the Muslim call.
It was a challenge for the disciples
And a difficulty for me too,
Is there anybody with an answer?
Tell me, have you?
I have listened to a few people
As they shared their view
But any who contradicts the Word
Surely cannot be true.
Jesus makes this statement!
It can only be false or true,
There can be no other option here-
This is neither opinion nor view.
God knows everything
And Jesus is shown to be God,
How can Jesus not know something
If he is also God?
Jesus always spoke the truth
And these are the words he said,
It is established that God cannot lie
Why would His Son lie instead?
Let’s look again at the statement
And ascertain its facts,
It is explicit and uncomplicated
And of clarity there is no lack.
But of that day and that hour
Knoweth no man,
No, not the angels which are in heaven,
Neither the Son, but the Father.
Notice first the hierarchy:
At the bottom is “no man”
Then the angels which are higher
And of the heavenly clan.
“No man and not the angels!”
And next: neither the Son!
The Son knew not the day or the hour
When these things would come.
Mark 13:4
Tell us,
When shall these things be?
And what shall be the sign
When all these things shall be fulfilled?
That the Son knew not the answer
Is crystal clear to me
Though both God and man
The Bible shows, was he.
Hence, the title of this poem:
Not detached but distinct,
From this we can grasp a few things
If we take the time to think.
I speak of the Son’s dual nature:
He was fully God and man,
Without the issue of sin of course,
To effect redemption’s plan.
In his divinity he knew everything
But in his humanity, he did not
And it was in the latter status
That he spoke to the enquiring lot.
Although he was the Son of God,
He humbled himself as a man
And thus, in his incarnate humanity,
He was not privy to every plan.
You would recall Luke 2:52
Where it says his wisdom increased
Hence, as a man he was limited
But as God such limitations ceased.
Not detached but distinct
To fulfilled redemption’s plan,
Jesus Christ was the Son of God
But also, he was the Son of man.
On the one hand he knew all
As accorded by his divinity
But at times his limitations were evident:
The effect of his humanity.
Romans 2:6-8
“Who, being in the form of God,
Thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made himself of no reputation,
And took upon him the form of a servant,
And was made in the likeness of men:
And being found in fashion as a man,
He humbled himself, and became obedient unto death,
Even the death of the cross.”
Imposed limitations
Not forced on him by any man
But in accordance with his dual nature
To accomplish our salvation plan.
Stewart Russell © May 15, 2023
