Scripture with the Fathers

Jesus begins laying down the hierarchy of the Church and the laity. We here from St. Ignatius of Antioch (A.D. 107) the second successor from St. Peter as the Bishop of Antioch. Of course we quote St. Jerome and also Dr. Edward Sri and Curtis Mitch. We end the second discourse of Jesus and begin Chapter 11 and decipher why John the Baptist sends his disciples to ask Jesus if he is the One or should they look to another. Did John not know that Jesus was the Messiah? We turn to the prophet Isaiah and St. John Chrysostom and St. Jerome to understand.

Who was Moses? How was he saved despite the edict of Pharaoh to kill all the male children? The continuity of Exodus with Genesis is displayed in the ark of Noah and the ark which saved Moses. We look to Josephus, Acts of the Apostles, and Ian Shaw (author of "The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt") and the Catholic Study Bible by Ignatius Press. Using these sources, we can understand how the Hebrews (Abiru) went from Joseph who was exalted to being enslaved. Moses' rescue is seen in continuity with Noah and foreshadows Jesus.

We look to the book of Wisdom, the Psalms and Micah to gain understanding of the price of living accoding to the commandments of God and disciples of Jesus. We hear from St. John Chrysostom, St. Jerome and Bishop Hilary of Pointers to gain insight into the division that Christ speaks about.

The Israelites in Egypt fulfill the command of God to "be fruitful and multiply". Pharaoh becomes afraid of the Israelites as they grew rapidly in number and so deals shrewdly with them by putting them to work in rigor. This situation sets up the book of Exodus as the struggle of the Israelites to become liberated from Pharaoh so that they could worship God in freedom. This struggle is true for man in himself as well by detachment from things of this world, our idols so we can worship God in true freedom.

In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus begins the second of the five discourses Matthew records. In this discourse, Jesus gives the Apostles a mission and tells them what they are to do and how. He further tells them of what they should expect as a result of preaching the Gospel. We should not be surprised to receive the same. For if we do, Jesus has called us as well.

Who was the Pharaoh at the time of the Exodus? When did the Exodus happen? We discuss the written and archeological evidence within the Sacred Scriptures and from extra-biblical sources. In this episode we look at the background information of that time period of the XVII and XVIII Dynasty in which the Egyptian Empire reached its height. We look at the religious and military practices of the Egyptians during that time period.

Jesus cures two blind men and drives out a mute demon; Miracles 9 and 10. Matthew shows How Jesus fulfills the covenant God made with King David through the prophet Nathan and how God fulfills His promise to come and shepherd his people as foretold in Ezekiel in the person of Jesus. In the curing of the blind and loosing the tongue of the mute, Matthew is declaring that, Yes, Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. Yet even in the light of this, those in power accuse Jesus of acting on behalf of demons.

Jacob prophetically tells the outcome of each of the tribes of Israel. In this, Jacob foretells of the coming of Christ out of the tribe of Judah which will be the royal tribe. Jacob dies and is buried by his sons in the land of Canaan. Israel returns to Egypt and all in the land mourn for Jacob. We hear from Dr. John Bergsma and Dr. Brandt Pitre in discussing the overarching theme of the "Joseph Cycle." We turn to St. John Chrysostom to see the foreshadowing of Jacob's last words for each of the tribes of Israel.

What can we learn from the woman suffering from a Hemorrhage for twelve years and a twelve year old girl brought back to life? Why are these significant and what do they tell us about who Jesus is? We look to Leviticus, Jonah, Mark and 2 Corinthians, St. John Chrysostom and St. Remigius of Anxerre to gain insight into these two events, that Matthew has linked together.

Jacob/Israel blesses Joseph's two sons Ephraim and Manasseh as Jacob would bless his other sons and grants them lands in the land of Canaan. Jacob blesses the younger to be greater than the older. St. Augustine and St. Cyril comment on the meaning of this blessing. We discuss Haydock's commentary as well.