In 1463 Edward IV restricted the length of the points for anyone below the rank of a lord to less than two inches within London “on pain of forfeiting 40d to your highness for every offence”. Writing in the International Journal of Paleopathology, Mitchell and colleagues report how they analysed the remains of 177 adults, all of whom had at least one first metatarsal present, from four cemeteries in Cambridge, including a rural parish cemetery, an Augustinian friary inside town, and a hospital. The team found that 31 of the individuals, 20 of them men, had skeletal signs of bunions. The study cannot prove that the bunions were triggered by poulaines.Īnalysis of remains that could be dated revealed bunions were significantly more prevalent during the 14th and 15th centuries, with 19 out of 71 individuals having the condition, compared with three out of 52 from the 11th–13th centuries. However, the researchers found bunions were more common among town dwellers and in particular those buried in the friary, who would have included clergy and wealthy laypeople. Sheep, by their very nature, tend to scatter. How much more when the Shepherd has been struck down! But this Shepherd, described in Matthew 26:31–35, is able to lead even scattered sheep. On his way to Gethsemane Jesus predicts the desertion of his disciples. In support of the warning he quotes Zechariah 13:7. Note the first person singular of the verb in the quote (an imperative in the Hebrew of Zechariah). But this is the Good Shepherd, the messianic figure, who is struck down by the Father’s will.Įarlier, in Zechariah 11:17 it is the foolish shepherd that is struck. “But the stricken shepherd here cannot be God, because he is expressly distinguished from him. God refers to him as the man who is close to me (7). He is clearly a ‘good’ shepherd, approved by God, and is someone intimately connected with God - but he cannot simply be equated with God. The book of Zechariah has provided us with only one person who fits this description, namely the ideal king of 9:9, whose coming was anticipated in the promises concerning ‘the Branch’ in 3:8 and 6:12. In other words, the striken shepherd is the Messiah. Here is perhaps the profoundest and most precious aspect of the theology of this book: like the great prophet Isaiah before him, Zechariah understood that the Messiah would have to suffer if sin were to be atoned for and Israel’s relationship with God were to be restored.” (Barry G. 169) One would expect the flock to be preserved by the well-being of the shepherd. But this flock is going to be redeemed precisely through the striking of the Shepherd. As terrible as the events of the next few hours will be, they are not accidental, but the fulfillment of God’s will, which had been recorded in the prophetic Scriptures (“for it is written,” verse 31), see also verse 24.ĭespite their denials, the sheep scatter. The striking of the Shepherd will result in the scattering of the flock. There is no indication that the sheep will be in great danger, and what danger exists, they escape by flight. Impetuous Peter strongly denies the he will fall away, verse 33. In Matthew 16:21–23, when Jesus had spoken of his death, Peter had taken Jesus aside and rebuked him. Here in Matthew 26, he does not contradict the idea of the Shepherd being struck - he just affirms that he will never deny his Lord. Jesus responds by warning Peter that before cockcrow, he will have denied his Lord three times. But Peter, instead of heeding the sobering warning, avers his willingness to die for his Lord. Peter may have been the most vocal, but the other disciples expressed the same sentiment. Before you point your finger at foolish Peter (and his boast was foolish), recognize your own liability to sin. You and I have greater light than Peter did at this point. We understand what the Messiah was about. You may be tempted to say, “I’d never make the mistake of Peter’s boast.” But do you recognize just how contradictory of your relationship with the Lord is sin in your life? Do you understand that what we dismiss as petty, little, sins, are a direct affront to God’s holiness? Do you appreciate that it was precisely because of these sins (among others) that the Shepherd had to be struck? When you’re really honest with yourself you recognize that you, in yourself, are no more faithful or capable of standing than was foolish Peter. You may not face the same occasion of scattering, but you are just as liable to go astray. The Lord promises to go ahead to Galilee. Attached to Jesus’ prophecy of his death is the promise of his resurrection.
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