Matthew 27:7

Matthew 27:7

And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in.

a. ASV: And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in.

b. YLT: And having taken counsel, they bought with them the field of the potter, for the burial of strangers;

c. Classic Amplified: So after consultation they bought with them [the pieces of silver] the potter’s field [as a place] in which to bury strangers.

1. “And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in.”

a. And [Strong: 1161. de deh a primary particle (adversative or continuative); but, and, etc.:--also, and, but, moreover, now (often unexpressed in English).]

b. [they] took [Strong: 2983. lambano lam-ban'-o a prolonged form of a primary verb, which is use only as an alternate in certain tenses; to take (in very many applications, literally and figuratively (properly objective or active, to get hold of; whereas 1209 is rather subjective or passive, to have offered to one; while 138 is more violent, to seize or remove)):--accept, + be amazed, assay, attain, bring, X when I call, catch, come on (X unto), + forget, have, hold, obtain, receive (X after), take (away, up).]

c. counsel [Strong: 4824. sumboulion soom-boo'-lee-on neuter of a presumed derivative of 4825; advisement; specially, a deliberative body, i.e. the provincial assessors or lay-court:--consultation, counsel, council.]

d.  [and] bought [Strong: 59. agorazo ag-or-ad'-zo from 58; properly, to go to market, i.e. (by implication) to purchase; specially, to redeem:--buy, redeem.]

e. with [Strong: 1537. ek ek or ex ex a primary preposition denoting origin (the point whence action or motion proceeds), from, out (of place, time, or cause; literal or figurative; direct or remote):--after, among, X are, at, betwixt(-yond), by (the means of), exceedingly, (+ abundantly above), for(- th), from (among, forth, up), + grudgingly, + heartily, X heavenly, X hereby, + very highly, in, ...ly, (because, by reason) of, off (from), on, out among (from, of), over, since, X thenceforth, through, X unto, X vehemently, with(-out). Often used in composition, with the same general import; often of completion.]

f. them [Strong: 846. autos ow-tos' from the particle au (perhaps akin to the base of 109 through the idea of a baffling wind) (backward); the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative 1438) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other persons:--her, it(-self), one, the other, (mine) own, said, (self-), the) same, ((him-, my-, thy- )self, (your-)selves, she, that, their(-s), them(-selves), there(-at, - by, -in, -into, -of, -on, -with), they, (these) things, this (man), those, together, very, which.’

g. the [Strong: 3588. [ton] ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [ton] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.]

h. potters [Strong: 2763. kerameus ker-am-yooce' from 2766; a potter:--potter.]

i. [Strong: 3588. [tou] ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tou] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.]

j. field [Strong: 68. agros ag-ros' from 71; a field (as a drive for cattle); genitive case, the country; specially, a farm, i.e. hamlet:--country, farm, piece of ground, land.]

k. to [Strong: 1519. eis ice a primary preposition; to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etc.); also in adverbial phrases:--(abundant-)ly, against, among, as, at, (back-)ward, before, by, concerning, + continual, + far more exceeding, for (intent, purpose), fore, + forth, in (among, at, unto, -so much that, -to), to the intent that, + of one mind, + never, of, (up-)on, + perish, + set at one again, (so) that, therefore(-unto), throughout, til, to (be, the end, -ward), (here-)until(-to), ...ward, (where-)fore, with. Often used in composition with the same general import, but only with verbs (etc.) expressing motion (literally or figuratively).]

l. bury [Strong: 5027. taphe taf-ay' feminine from 2290; burial (the act):--X bury.]

m. [Strong: 3588. [tois] ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tois] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.]

n. strangers [Strong: 3581. xenos xen'-os apparently a primary word; foreign (literally, alien, or figuratively, novel); by implication, a guest or (vice-versa) entertainer:--host, strange(-r).]

1). Of all the opinions I have read, which isn’t that much, the one I am most comfortable with is from Josh McDowell and Don Stewart’s 1980 book, Answers To Tough Questions, “Perhaps the best solution would be to understand that Matthew is combining two prophecies, one from Jeremiah and one from Zechariah, with a mention of only one author in the composite reference, namely Jeremiah, the major prophet. Zechariah says nothing concerning the buying of a field, but Jeremiah states that the Lord appointed him to buy a field (Jeremiah 32:6-8) as a solemn guarantee by the Lord Himself that fields and vineyards would be bought and sold in the future day (Jeremiah 32:15,43). One of the fields which God had in mind was the potter’s field. Zechariah adds the details of the 30 pieces of silver and the money thrown down on the floor of the temple. Thus it can be seen that Matthew takes the detail of both prophets, but stresses Jeremiah as the one who foretold these occurrences. Dr. J.E.Rosscup of Talbot Seminary adheres to a view consistent with the above. He points out: “Matthew felt that two passages were fulfilled, one typical (Jeremiah 19:1-13) and one explicit (Zechariah 11:13), and mentions only one author in the composite reference, a practice that sometimes occurred…”

a). Jeremiah 32:6-8 And Jeremiah said, The word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

32:7 Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee saying, Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth: for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.

32:8 So Hanameel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison according to the word of the Lord, and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.

b). Zechariah 11:12, 13 And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.

11:13 And the Lord said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord.

2). First, “it was common to combine quotations from the prophets in . . . chains of quotations” (Robertson 1930, 252), with only the more illustrious writer being mentioned by name. For example, both Malachi and Isaiah are quoted in Mark 1:2-3, but only Isaiah is named. It is thus possible that Matthew is combining prophecies from both Jeremiah (cf. 32:6-15) and Zechariah (14:12-13), while citing only the latter by name (Arndt 1955, 51-53). Third, one of the most obvious possibilities, however, is to focus upon the precise wording of the passage. Matthew does not say that the prophecy was written by the prophet Jeremiah; rather, the text reads: “Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah” (27:9). Who can presume to say that Jeremiah did not utter this prophecy if the Holy Spirit, through the inspired apostle, said that he did? Consider these factors: (1) There are several cases in the Bible where an inspired writer quoted from a former prophet, and yet the quotation is not to be found elsewhere in the Scriptures. Jude cited a prophecy from Enoch (v. 14), and yet that oracle is nowhere found in the Old Testament. Paul quoted from Jesus—“It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35); and yet that statement is not recorded in the Gospel accounts. (2) It is possible, therefore, that Jeremiah could have spoken the prophecy initially, and that Zechariah, during his ministry, incorporated the prediction into his own message (with some alteration; Matthew’s quotation does not exactly conform to the prophecy in Zechariah). Matthew may have cited the original source. (3) Zechariah suggested that at least some of his message was a reflection of what the “former prophets” had spoken. “Should you not hear the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets?” (7:7). In fact, there is evidence that Zechariah did rehearse the testimony of men like Jeremiah. www.christiancourier.com/articles/150-did-matthew-blunder