Tracy,

>Mathew 21
>
>1 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples,
>
>2 Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
>
>3 And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.
>
>Ok, if the donkey was tied up, it OBVIOUSLY belonged to someone, and it doesn't mention paying for it or asking for it....sounds like theft to me! He even tells them what to say if someone tries to stop them! Theft!!!!! 30 years was not enough Doug...

*chuckle*

Ever borrow a lawn mower or ladder from a neighbor? If you read #3 you'll also notice the phrase 'and straightway he will send them.' That means in modern English, 'The Lord needs to use them and He'll send it right back.'

And you want to infer theft?

No offense Tracy but that is just about the screwiest attempt at logic I've ever seen. You're inserting your prejudice into a plainly told story albeit the differences in the use of English in 1611 and 2002. ALso, the word 'Lord' is a translation of the Greek 'kurios' which is the Greek version of the Old Testament word 'JHVH', often translated as 'Jehovah' or God Almighty. IOW, the disciples essentially told the owner of the donkey & colt, "The Messiah needs to borrow these two and will return them right away." Remember, Jesus was very well known by now so either the owner of these animals knew who Jesus was or perhaps even was someone who had had closer encounters with him. If your neighbor came over and borrowed a shovel, lawnmower or wheelbarrow you wouldn't call them a thief. You might be a stingy person or have a nasty disposition and as such be unable to get along with your neighbors but in allmost all of the cases I've ever seen where folks borrow items in a neighborhood it's innocent enough to avoid the notion of theft.

Maybe then you live in a neighborhoos where people don't talk or aren't friends??

Oh.. The Mount of Olives is within walking distance of where Jesus would have entered Jerusalem via the East Gate. I've been there and while I didn't walk the distance as we had busses it wasn't more than about 1/2 - 3/4 of a mile.

Oh.. One other thing...

In Zechariah 9:9 written at least > 500 years before Jesus was born he wrote, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass."

Interesting that Zechariah knew that not only would there be a donkey but that donkey would have a foal and that the Messaiah would ride on that foal, not the donkey.

Hmmm.. Maybe someone in a spaceship went back in time and wrote that!

No.. wait.. jesus must have read that and arranged for it. yeah.. That's what it was..

Hmmm.. Wonder how he arranged to be born in Bethlehem before he was born?

Micah 5:2 "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth [have been] from of old, from everlasting."

Sheesh.. Use the brain God gave you. <g>


>Tracy
>
>SNIP
>>>For that matter, He wasn't riding a donkey as He approached Jerusalem, but instead was walking. When He came within site, He had some followers trek ahead and steal a donkey from Jerusalem, which he then rode into town.
>>>
>>>Just my $.02, though, sorry if I pissed anyone off.
>>
>>Nahh.. Not upset if you disagree at all. You have every right to be wrong. <g>
>>
>>Having kidded you a little I would recommend you go back and read those accounts again. You've sort of embelleshed them with what appears to be some personal animus. NBD.. Happens all the time when folks don't have all the facts. Most church-going folks hardly ever read the Bible, let alone those who are predisposed against it. If you have any questions though I'll be more than happy to help answer them. I've been studying the book for some 30 years now so I have a fair idea of what it actually says, though it surely doesn't need me to defend it, knucklehead that I am at times. <g>
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>>
>>>
>>>jfh