The Dowry Jesus Paid

 

 

The dowry Jesus paid

Was the price for his bride

Just like in Old Testament times

When such was applied.

 

Prior to the marriage

The dowry was to be paid

And such had to be presented

At the betrothal stage.

 

Just as in engagement,

The presentation of a ring

Is now a similar betrothal gesture

Of this dowry thing.

 

It was a compensation

To the bride’s family

For in a sense, depriving her kin

Of her familial duty.

 

 

The wealthy would pay

An enormous dowry

Hoping such a generous amount

Would appease a family.

 

It was Jewish law

Under which Jesus came

And he too presented a dowry

To stake his claim.

 

This bride was the church,

His chosen bride

And he made the presentation

When he died.

 

Purchasing his bride

With his precious blood,

He gave an infinitely greater dowry

That anyone could.

 

Which bride groom

Came back from the dead

And in remarkable circumstances

His bride did wed?

 

 

Only Jesus, I tell you,

You know how he died

When on that cross at Calvary

He was crucified.

 

Back on Mt Calvary

Where he was crucified,

Was the dowry that Christ paid

For the church, his bride.

 

A chaste virgin she was,

Presented to Christ,

What an infinite price it cost him!

What a sacrifice!

 

Yes, the holy Jerusalem

Which apostle John saw;

A bride adorned for her husband

Without a single flaw!

 

Unlike the old Jerusalem

That was given so much

Yet preferred the life of a harlot

And a Roman crutch.

 

Choosing Emperor Caesar

Rather than the Christ

And visiting on all God’s prophets

Their deeds of vice.

 

Such vice filling up

The measure of their fathers

Whereupon Jesus likened them

To a generation of vipers.

 

 

A dowry of infinite cost

The Lord Jesus paid

But he rose again from the tomb

Where he was laid.

 

No other could pay

The price of sin’s dowry,

It required the blood of a sinless one

And Jesus was that entity.

 

Stewart Russell © May 30, 2025

 

Go and Tell that Fox

 

Who said these words,

To whom they were spoken

And whom they actually targeted

Is the focus of this poem.

 

“Go ye and tell that fox”

The words of Jesus Christ

In his response to the Pharisees

Who were not nice.

 

That fox was King Herod

The then King of the Jews,

A vassal king put in place by Rome

And hence, bad news.

 

“Get thee out and depart

For Herod will kill thee,”

The advice that was given to Jesus

By certain Pharisees.

 

Depart hence, they warned,

Meaning away from Jerusalem,

Thus, one King Herod after another

Trying to be a problem.

 

You’d recall the first Herod

When Jesus Christ was born,

The second was no better than he

As these Pharisees warned.

 

 

The Herod at Jesus’ birth

Was King Herod the Great,

He sought the young child’s life

But he became the late.

 

His son, Herod Antipas,

Would certainly have his goal

Though not by his own scheme

The Bible shows…

 

 

 

Not by Herod’s designation

But at God’s appointed time,

Just like all the other prophets

Jesus stood in line.

 

The blood of the prophets

All the way back to Abel,

And Jesus would die at Jerusalem

As the prophets did tell.

 

But it won’t be a feather

In Herod Antipas’ cap,

That honour was the Pharisees’-

Compliment Judas’ pact.

 

You’d recall they paid Judas

To point out Jesus his friend

And that money bought a grave plot

For Judas at his end.

 

 

Go and tell that fox

That he will have to wait,

The Passover Lamb will be on time

Jesus was never late.

 

Go and tell that fox

That he is not in control,

Neither Caesar, nor Pilate nor Herod

Has any such claim or hold.

 

Jesus was in control

And there were yet three days,

Enough time to finish his work

In his predetermined way.

 

 

You’d recall Caiaphas’ words

That one must die for the people,

Jesus in the fulness of time

Completed that puzzle.

 

Jesus, not Barabbas,

“Give us Barabbas!” they cried,

He who came to die for them

They vehemently denied.

 

That Herod was cunning

Could never be in doubt

And Jesus’ referencing him as a fox

Surely bears this out.

 

Go and tell that fox

He is exactly like his dad

Who wanted to worship baby Jesus

But his was just a façade.

 

Like his son after him,

He too wanted to slay Jesus

But such was not in their control

However much they fussed.

 

Go tell that old fox

That Jesus is forever alive

And since Herod Antipas is no more,

He and his dad have died.

 

Satan is like a roaring lion

And as cunning as a fox,

Go tell Satan, that scheming old fox

That good will be our lot.

 

Yes, go tell that old fox,

We have no need to fear,

Death bands have been torn asunder

And Jesus Christ is here.

 

Go and tell that old fox

It is no longer night,

We have seen the risen Saviour,

We have seen the light.

 

Stewart Russell © April 9, 2024

 

If the Dead Could Talk

 

 

If only the dead could talk

What would they say?

Would it mean anything to us?

Would we change our way?

 

There’s a case in the Bible

With which we are au fait,

In which one begged for his brothers

From hell where he lay.

 

He was in fiery torment

And asked to warn his kin,

They were living wretched lives

And would end up like him.

 

They refused to listen

To the prophets of the day

And with ears nigh dysfunctional,

Went their own way.

 

If only the dead could talk

What would they say?

Would we listen to the departed

And change our way?

 

What about our parents?

What would they say?

Would they speak any differently

From back in their day?

 

What about our friends

Whom we loved so dearly?

Would we give a listening ear

And be really sorry?

 

Or, would we like many

Refuse to even listen

And join the ever-growing throng

Incarcerated in prison?

 

 

If only the dead could talk

They wouldn’t be dead

But like our blessed, risen Saviour

They’d be alive instead.

 

But the dead cannot talk,

Neither can they see

Thus, while life is yours today,

Be the best you can be.

 

Talk to an errant one today

To set his path straight,

To express his trust in Jesus Christ

And to love and not hate.

 

For there’s life after death

But only to the saved,

Meaning the born-again believer

Who from sin was raised.

Stewart Russell © April 8, 2025

Best Bible Study Ever

 

 

They moan and they groan

Under the yoke of Rome,

Their hopes have taken a dash.

 

Now they walk in despair

In their stark reality of fear,

What an unforgettable lash!

 

They thought he was the one

From that very dawn

But clearly that was not to be.

 

Now lost and down trodden

And gravely grief-stricken

Only hopelessness they see.

 

Then comes this stranger

Oblivious to their pain

And along with them he walks.

 

Then suddenly it’s brighter

And their load becomes lighter

As they listen to him talk.

 

There were Cleopas

And the other unnamed

In the best Bible study ever.

 

It was the Word himself

Sharing the Word himself;

That was extraordinarily clever!

 

 

And beginning at Moses

And all of all the prophets

He showed they all spoke about him.

 

Their hearts burned within them

Seeing that their hope was alive;

Their eyes were no longer dim.

 

They constrained him to remain

And he did for a while,

Together they sat at meat.

 

He took bread and blessed it

And gave them to eat;

The fellowship was so sweet!

 

 

Bible study par excellence

And breaking of bread too

For two on the Emmaus Road.

 

The best Bible study ever

Was by the Word himself;

He bore those disciples’ load.

 

He will do the same

If you ask him too,

He is just waiting for you to ask.

 

Call on him now,

As he is passing your way;

All you have to do is ask.

 

Stewart Russell © May 2, 2021

 

 

At Wit’s End Or?

I know of a woman

She was most discreet

So she begged all that came

Her secret to keep.

Now this is not hearsay

I have a reliable word,

It is through something I read

And not something I heard.

You could take my word though

This is as true as they come,

I’ll tell you what I know

And then I’ll be done.

I know of this man

He was a very powerful man

But he did as he liked

And did not stick to the plan.

Well he got into trouble

And was at his wit’s end,

There was none to help him

Not a relative or a friend.

He tried calling on God

But that didn’t help

So you could well imagine

How this man felt.

Well, he asked around

Through the people he knew

And soon a particular woman

Came into view.

But to do what he wanted

His own law he must contravene

However, this was no big thing

It was a regular scene.

After all he was a big one

And a law maker too,

Remember I told you

He did whatever he wanted to do.

To this woman he went

And of her made his request,

It was clearly illegal

But she promised her best.

She reminded him of the law

And the penalty of death

But he swore to secrecy

Putting her mind at rest.

He took with him two men

And it was night:

The ideal time to do those things

Which by law were not right.

Well she knew his request

But she needed the specifics,

This he revealed to her

And the results were terrific.

An old man appeared

He was wearing a mantle,

By now you must have guessed

It was the prophet Samuel.

When the woman saw Samuel

She cried with a loud voice,

What she had encountered

Was not of her choice.

Straightway she recognized

That her patron wore a disguise,

It was he who’d passed this law

This law he’d now despised.

He inquired of her

Of what form was he,

"An old man wearing a mantle,"

Alarmingly said she.

This great man showed respect

To the prophet he had ignored,

Now before him bowed

Unlike what he had done before.

There one conversation ended

And another begun

Initiated by the prophet Samuel

That this man had shunned.

“Why have you disquieted me?

Why have you brought me up?”

This powerful man responded

By detailing his bitter cup.

He had had little regard

For the prophet during his life

But now disturbs his rest

Alerting him of his strife.

Well the prophet reminded him

There was nothing he could do,

God had rejected him

And that was his just due.

Before the prophet left him

He did prophesy

But the prophecy was of no comfort

For on the morrow he would die.

To the woman he kept his word,

She even prepared him a meal,

Eventually he and his two men left

Anticipating what was revealed.

True to every word

Came to pass what the prophet said,

The Philistines defeated his armies

Leaving him and his sons also dead.

Noticed the play on the title?

Did you pick it up?

To make a law than break it

Must be a poisoned cup.

How this great man had fallen!

What a devastating plunge had he!

Right down to the witch at En-dor!

I wonder how much was her fee.

Such has been the case

Of many a man in God’s Word,

That’s where I read it

It was not something I heard.

Stewart Russell © October 2017

The Bible in Poetry: The Prophets

Extracted from the Bible In Poetry

From Genesis to Revelation

 
Then there were the prophets meant to lead the kings,

Each, the mouthpiece of God to guide in spiritual things;

Often the mighty king would ignore the word they brought,

The consequences were severe the people were distraught.

Samuel was not only a judge but a prophet and a priest,

He was not afraid of kings for God’s word never ceased;

As a priest he was revered, he sought no man’s favour,

It was of God he prophesied, for God he also laboured.

Once after a victorious battle he had to chastise Saul,

For being so disobedient that Samuel was appalled;

God’s instructions were clear which Saul had failed to keep,

Causing Samuel to ask, “What means the bleating sheep?”

Then there was Elijah, a prophet strong and bold,

He was a great reformer known to the men of old;

Elisha, as Elijah disappeared his falling mantle caught,

A double portion of the Spirit’s gift was Elisha’s lot.

Isaiah saw the Lord, “High and lifted up,” said he,

A miraculous encounter that certainly set him free;

He wrote of the Messiah to come at opportune time,

To save both Jew and Gentile from their sinful slime.

Then prophet after prophet had followed on behind,

Jeremiah and Ezekiel, two more that come to mind;

Micaiah is not to be left out or Hosea and Joel,

Amos, Obadiah and Jonah, of them the Holy Bible tell.

Jeremiah the weeping prophet destruction prophesied,

Over the city Jerusalem whose people had God denied,

He served among a people that had become so vile,

That God unleashed His judgment on them for a while.

Ezekiel saw a vision of a valley of bones that were dry,

“O ye dry bones hear God’s word,” to them he prophesied;

“Thus saith the Lord our God, O breathe upon these slain”

And then those dry bones stood and began to live again.

The list is not yet ended, check and you will see,

Nahum, Micah, Habakkuk, another case of three;

There were major prophets; some were minor too,

They all relied on God to prophesy what was true.

Zephaniah then Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi,

These are all the prophets, on God’s word we can rely;

They all were chosen of God to bring His good counsel,

But many refusing to listen preferred instead to rebel.

  

Do you remember Daniel, prepared as the lions’ meal?

God shut up the lions’ mouths on him he placed His seal;

Then there was that time only he understood the dream,

Of the kingdoms’ rise and fall upon the battle scene.

Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego also took a stand,

Like Daniel in a foreign land heeding God’s command;

They would not bend and they did not burn,

A fourth man was in the fire, all would later learn.

Jeremiah had prophesied Israel’s coming captivity,

Carried away to Babylon they suffered great indignity;

But a Persian King named Cyrus heard from Nehemiah,

And allowed the Jews to return to the land of Judah.

The law was read again, the walls had been rebuilt,

With a purpose so to work; the people would not quit;

The temple was repaired; they had answered the call,

Ezra read the law while Nehemiah supervised the wall.

During the reign of Ahasuerus, Esther was the Queen,

Wicked Haman devised a plan to cause an ugly scene;

Mordecai would be hanged and many Jews destroyed,

But Esther had a counter plan to foil his wicked ploy.

Scripture recalls her words, she said, “If I perish, I perish,”

She went into the king praying he would honour her wish;

The king in granting her favour acceded to her demand,

“Hang Haman on his gallows,” that was the King’s command.


Stewart Russell © 2013