Prostitute/virgin bride


Matthew handled the mystery better than Mark, having had more time to study after the book of Mark was written. A riddle concerning the lost generation has been observed as well as a demonstration of his use of pattern in the title of Jesus as the Usurping Second Son. In the rest of the genealogy you may find patterns displaying the Un-begotten Son, The Only Begotten Son, and the Forsaken Son. For expediency sake, the Second Son pattern was shown as an example rather than as an exhaustive enumeration into all the riddles. John makes an appeal to the same expediency excuse. [1]

The prostitute/virgin bride

Matthew demonstrates his observance of the prostitute/virgin bride motif or pattern found in the OT. It would be wrong to assume that Mark/Peter was unaware of the circumstances of Jesus’s birth. The disciples surely shared their knowledge among each other as they recollected the happenings. But the time of Mark’s book, they had not correlated those events with the scriptures, and did not see why those details were important to the fulfillment of prophecy.

The referent of this pattern is the church which is described as both a prostitute and a virgin. God’s people have the sin nature which makes them to be their own god, yet Christ makes the church his spotless bride. Matthew uses Mary as his example since she is a part of the literal life of Christ which is also a prophecy of the bride of Christ. If all things speak of Christ, then they look like each other sometimes.

Often one, and sometimes two women who are closely associated, participate in the establishment of the prostitute/virgin bride pattern. In this pattern the person may literally be one or both, or either part may be hinted at by the riddle, the same way that men became the second son by way of riddle.

Mary

Mary was suspected of adultery [2], yet was a virgin. [3]
Mary means ‘rebellious’ yet she was faithful. Her name also means ‘death מר of God’s people ים eem [4] ‘. This is curious since Tamar who prefigures Mary, mean ‘the end ת of death מר mar. Between the two women we have a riddle.

Mary represents the church before the cross which must die with Christ [5]. Tamar represents the church after the cross when her son ends death. [6]

Eve

Eve was seduced by the serpent [7] but had a son by the seed of the woman as a hint of a virgin birth. [8]

Rebekah

Rebekah was a virgin who was ‘took/married’ [9] by the servant
Rebekah was ‘uncovered’ with the servant, and covered herself when she saw Isaac. [10] This is a riddle hint of he prostitute, while she remained pure.

Leah and Rachel

Leah sneaked into Jacob’s wedding tent [11], playing the role of the prostitute while Rachel remained the virgin bride. The ambiguity of the pronoun is also suggestive that Laban took his own daughter as well. This did not occur, but it is relevant to the word-play of prophecy.

Tamar

Tamar played the harlot but was called more righteous than Judah. [12]

Gomer

Gomer was a prostitute who named her first child Jezreel “God sows” as a hint of the virgin birth. [13]

Israel and the church

Israel was repeatedly chastised for playing the harlot, and the church is described as he virgin bride.

References

  1. Joh 21:25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.
  2. Mt 1:19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just [man], and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
  3. Mt 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
  4. same usage as in Elohim
  5. Ro 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
  6. The names of her sons mean ‘breaking forth’ and ‘rising sun’ to prefigure Jesus as the Dayspring. Re 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
  7. Ge 3:1 ¶ Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
  8. Ge 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
  9. The Hebrew word for ‘took’ also means married
  10. Ge 24:65 For she [had] said unto the servant, What man [is] this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant [had] said, It [is] my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself.
  11. Ge 29:23 And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him [Jacob]; and he went in unto her.
  12. [[Ge 38:26 And Judah acknowledged [them], and said, She hath been more righteous than I; because that I gave her not to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more.
  13. Ho 1:2 ¶ The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, [departing] from the LORD. Ho 1:3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son. Ho 1:4 And the LORD said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little [while], and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel.

 

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