Jesus - Pierced with shame to the glory of God!

Jesus was 'Pierced for our transgressions'…(Isaiah 53:5)

I don't know about you, but I had never thought of the fact that Jesus was 'pierced' being anything except the physical nails piercing physical hands and feet with physical pain, and moreover as John 19:37 states, the physical piercing of Jesus' side in fulfillment of Zechariah 12:10.

However, it is amazing how living cross-culturally can open one's eyes to parts of Scripture that have been there all along, hidden in plain sight from 'one-eyed' Westerners like me, who don't even have a clue there is anything else to recognise.

Some years back I was fascinated to realise that when a Motswana (person of Botswana - sing.) speaks about being shamed, it isn't just one word that is used... Well many concepts in Setswana (language of Botswana) are collections of words, kind of an explanation for something, rather than having just a single word... Instead its a phrase…. a phrase which means to be 'pierced with shame'.  So someone isn't just shamed, they are pierced with shame.  

According to biblehub, the word used for 'pierce' in Scripture is 'chalal' - and is also used for contexts such as to defile or pollute or 'violate the honour of/dishonour'

So isn't this interesting!…

The Zechariah Context 

It gets even more interesting when you go back and read the end of Zechariah.

Chapter 12:10 mentions that people will mourn when they look 'on him whom they have pierced'.  We take that on the basis of it foretelling how Jesus would die - that his body would be pierced, as per John 19:37. And I don't doubt that for one moment.

But did the people of Zechariah's day only understand it in the physical sense. And in relation to expecting the Messiah's side to be speared, did the piercing only have physical connotations, or is there a greater context that is culturally assumed within and surrounding such a physical 'piercing'?

Since we must keep in mind there are no chapter divisions in the original Scriptures, it makes sense to read the context of the text prior to and following Zechariah 12:10. So it shouldn't be surprising that just a few verses later in 13:3 it talks about a prophet who speaks lies and will have his mother and father 'pierce' him through when he prophesies.  

What is that all about?  Will they physically spear his body through and kill him or just punch a hole in his hand or foot or earlobe…or what?

Well whatever, it is, the prophet wasn't expected to be dead afterwards. The purpose wasn't to kill him, - at least not have him dead physically - instead, we are told in the next verse, he is still very much alive because he has a reaction to this terrible state.

Immediately after in the next verse (verse 4) it says 'on that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision'. (Italics mine)

The purpose of the piercing, whatever it was, was in order to bring shame on the prophet of lies.

In other words, for the guilt of his wrongdoing - (his 'lies') - he was to suffer shame - the shame of piercing…piercing shame!

It turns out that in the following verses we get a bit more of a context when we are told that such a prophet ends up with wounds on his back. He was going to have to live with these wounds forever and thus the accompanying shame forever, as they prompt questions from onlookers which he has to answer about how he got such wounds. Every time he had to explain, the shame would be exposed again like it was just yesterday. He would live with ongoing, constant, unescapable shame.

So he was shamed for the guilt of his lies, - in other words the punishment is the shame, he bore the shame to pay for the guilt.

The John Explanation

What I am thus prompted to ask is: whether the piercing of Jesus' side was the only thing that fulfilled the 12:10 prophecy or was it the final 'piercing' act in a series?  First the 'stripes' on his back that would have ripped into (ie 'pierced') his flesh, then an even further piercing of his hands and feet, and then finally even his side.

From the Zechariah prophecy it seems to me that the Jews wouldn't have had too much trouble maybe connecting the dots from 12:10 to his 'stripes' and the subsequent wounds he would carry on his back forever after.  But Jesus' shame wasn't just the life-long shame of a whipping 'at the hands of family and friends' as in Zechariah 13. He also suffered the extreme humiliation of pierced hands and feet on the cross in the hands of his enemies - a death that the Romans perfected to deliver not only the most physical pain but also the most extensive public shame possible. But not even that was the whole story. 

Why didn't John comment on the piercing connection when he wrote of Jesus being whipped like a lying prophet, or when his head was stabbed by painful thorns, or even when he had his hands and feet punctured and was humiliated by his friends and enemies and family on a utterly shameful Roman cross? Instead John only commented on it when Jesus' side was pierced. That piercing was not usual in any context and seemingly not even as extreme in the original Zechariah context. The Roman soldiers only did it because they didn't have the 'normal' signals of whether Jesus had actually died, since he wasn't overcome by death, but gave himself up to death, so he died more quickly than normal. They would normally have just broken the legs of the person to speed up their death by suffocation. 

This was, we could say 'a one-off' piercing of the highest most extreme and unexpected level. 

This was even beyond the Roman piercing. Not only was his back ripped apart to be scarred with shame forever, not only were his hands and feet pinned down torturously and excruciatingly immobilising him, but his insides were then also ripped apart by a spear. His body was destroyed in its function to the very core, not just its appearance and movement.  This was unique. This was ultimate.  This was beyond even the most extreme human torture and shaming process.  He was made 'nothing' - nothing except a mangled, bleeding destroyed lump of human flesh - for you, for me.  

While this makes the resurrection even more amazing, it also makes his death something far greater than even what the cruelest humans could do. Now we also know that not breaking his legs was also part of fulfilling Scripture as the Passover lamb (Numbers 9:12), but this also took the punishment of 'piercing' to a whole new level - a level that clearly made him a unique God-appointed sacrifice who took a 'piercing shame' punishment like no one has taken before or since. Was this physical piercing (of a whole new level), demonstrating a shame piercing that was also being borne (also of a level greater than any other)?

He wasn't taking a 'piercing shame' punishment for his own transgression, such as the prophets in Zechariah were, Jesus was taking a 'piercing shame' punishment for the sin of the whole world (1John 2:2).

According to Zechariah 13:6-7, the purpose of the 'piercing' was so that the prophet would forever after carry the shame - the scars that would require explanation, an explanation that would be humiliating.  The purpose of the physical pain event was in order to have perpetual relationship-impacting 'shame pain' through the perpetual scars. He could never walk with full honour ever again.

It is therefore an incredibly humbling thought that Jesus still carries the scars of his physical suffering. It is, and will be, an ever present reminder to us all for all eternity, that someone else was shamed for us. He was our substitute.

The Shame Becomes Honour

But the amazing fact is that his shame actually brings honour - to him, to God and to us. God has exalted him, and we are clothed in him, and every time we will see those scars, like Thomas, we will just be overcome with worship - with giving glory and honour and praise and adoration to him as our king…as we join with Thomas in saying 'my Lord and my God'. Because those scars, unlike the lying prophets, will not be proof he is still the shamed one, but that he is the One who despised the shame - he shamed sin's shame by rising from the dead. Even the most extreme measures could not keep him physically dead, nor can the most extreme shame of sin, keep him defeated. Even with his scars, he is not rejected by his Father, but welcomed back to the Father's right hand, the position of honour, where he reigns for all eternity…and one day we will reign with him………..and all to the glory of God!

10Steps for Optimizing the Immune System in Flu/disease Prevention

Medical professionals are saying that because we have no vaccine for SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19, and no proven anti-virals, we have nothing else to do except to practice good hygiene and social distancing so as to reduce social transmission and just hope we don't get it bad enough to need major hospital intervention.

BUT

while it is necessary to practice good hygiene and appropriate social distancing, we can also do our best to be a 'bad host' for the virus if it comes our way. We want our bodies to be able to fight it, kill it and be an environment where it can't live long or replicate! There are some things we can do to give ourselves the best possibility for a mild dose.

So here are some simple and cheap things that I have come across in my leisure over the last few weeks (yes it is 'leisure' for me to go digging into medical stuff!), which we may have forgotten about in our modern drug/vaccine-dependant world. 

There are quite a few things we can all do to boost or optimize our immune system and help our bodies fight a viral attack (particularly respiratory viruses). We don't need to be siting helplessly thinking we just have to await a random roll of a dice and having no influence on how bad a dose we will get.

Yes, we certainly trust the Lord, but He has also given us a brain to use and an earth full of materials that he created to be used for our good, including our health.

10 Steps 

for optimising the Immune System in flu/disease prevention

1.  Sleep

Get at least 7-8 hours each night 

2. De-Stress

- stress lowers immune function, 

instead remember God says 'be Still and know that I am God'.

3. Stay active

- and maintain good exercise and appropriate body weight

4. Sensible and Clean Eating 

-  eat less processed food and more fruit and vegetables and good fats, and avoid sugar

5. Sunshine

- Nature's top source of Vitamin D which is required for a good immune system

6. Salt gargling - with warm water

7. Bi-carbonate of Soda

 - 1/2 teaspoon in a cup of water at least one hour before eating each morning

8.  Simple natural remedies if you get sick

 - water (stay well-hydrated), warm bone broths, and warm teas with honey, lemon, garlic, onion

9. Skip/Stop 

- the smoking and alcohol, and also the 'Ibuprofen' if you have a fever/pain.

10. Supplements 

- if you can, add to your daily intake….Vit D, C, Zinc, Quercetin, NAC (N-Acetyl Cysteine).

….and don't forget to 

Be Safe

- clean surfaces regularly

 and 

Don't Spread diseases 

- catch sneezes, sniffles and coughs in a tissue (or flexed elbow)

-don't shake hands, and practice social distancing

and

remember to

Sing

Enjoy singing and music to calm anxiety and relieve stress, 

and sing 'happy birthday to you' twice while washing your hands, 

so you know you have washed them long enough with your soap and water to dislodge/kill the viruses…

or instead of 'happy birthday', you and your kids could sing...

'Jesus loves me this I know, 

for the bible tells me so, 

little ones to him belong, 

I am weak but he is strong, 

yes Jesus loves me, 

yes Jesus loves me, 

yes Jesus loves me, 

the bible tells me so!'

Because He does love us, and he is strong, even when we feel weak...

I don't want to pass on just 'hearsay' or rumors, but have endeavoured to base what is said above on legitimate medical research (except for some of point 8 which are things that either have been recommended to me by doctors or we have personally used)…so if you are interested in more information and the medical studies on which the above is based I have put more details and the extra info/links below to medical info/studies/journals, and feel free to do your own 'google' research to see what else you can find.

1. It is becoming more and more known that when the body is deprived of sleep, the immune capacity is decreased. We need 7-8 hours with at least 2-3 hrs before mid-night to help keep the immune system healthy. God has given the gift of sleep, use it!And when you are ill, getting plenty of extra sleep is very helpful. You need 7-8 hours every night and the hours before midnight are important. You are much more likely to get sick if you don't get at least 7 hours of sleep a night.

2. Stress, worry, panic, and having an ongoing 'flight or fright' state is not healthy. Chronic stress will also lower the body's immunity. ….God can be trusted to take care of all that comes into our lives, nothing is outside his awareness, nothing takes him by surprise. Take time to relax, be calm and smile!

3. It is well known that being active benefits our health. The body is generally in better health if you exercise (although prolonged intense exercise can strain the immune system too much). It doesn't have to be formal or at the gym, but just taking the stairs instead of the lift or doing some energetic gardening or energetic house cleaning on a regular basis and walking whenever you can, is all beneficial. Take regular breaks if you have a job that involves a lot of sitting. Deep breathing to maximise lung function and oxygen is helpful. When ill with respiratory problems, steam inhalation with a few drops of TeaTree Oil is also useful.

4. A nutritional diet high in fruit and vegetables is good, especially those high in Quercetin  which enables Zinc to get into cells, and Zinc in cells stops the virus from multiplying. You will find higher levels of Quercetin in Apples, Red Onions, Dark Berries, Kale/Spinach, skin of Red apples, Cocoa, Red Grapes, Black Plums/Prunes. Vit C is good for the immune system and is also high in Moringa and Morula and other fruits such as Kiwifruit and Citrus. Vit D is imperative for the immune system and can be found in egg yolks and oily fish such as sardines, salmon and tuna.

Sugar, especially highly processed sucrose (table sugar) is not helpful to the body's fighting capacity and inhibit the immune system's disease fighting cells. Sugar and artificial sweetners aren't good for the brain either. Sugar not only impacts the immune system, a high sugar diet will propel you toward diabetes which then puts you at a compromised health state and easily overcome by other diseases such as COVID-19.

Although issues of diary are debated, in times of respiratory illness or if you already have lung conditions/diseases, reduce your dairy intake as some say (including my doctor when advising me regarding my Chronic Bronchitis), that dairy may thicken your mucous/phlegm and make it harder to expel, at the very time when you want to thin it and get it out as easily and quickly as possible.

5. Sunshine is the No1 source of Vit D, which is vital for a good immune response. 10-15 mins exposure of much of your body near the middle of the day will boost your levels. While over-exposure and sunburn is not good, regulated daily exposure to sunshine is vital.

6. Gargling with salty water every day will help deal with bacteria and viruses in the upper respiratory tract (throat, nose) at the first place they settle after you breath them in.  But it won't help any virus after it settles in the lung - but regular gargling multiple times every day is a worthwhile preventative to infections in the nose-throat area. Gargling has been shown in Japanese scientific studies to have a positive impact on preventing upper respiratory tract infections. And its a product in every kitchen and its cheap!

7. Bi-carbonate of Soda is one of those long lost remedies that we should all have in our cupboard. But in addition to using it in baking or for cleaning and it helping with arthritis, kidney disease, bloating, indigestion and exercise tolerance, it has been shown to help the immunological function of the spleen and it balances the body PH level to make it less hospitable to viruses, and there are stories from the Spanish Flu days where people who had 1/2 teaspoon of bi-carb soda each morning 1hour before breakfast did not get the flu or only got a very mild dose.

8. Simple remedies are not expensive and can really help. Lemon is high in Vit C, honey is a good antibacterial, helps with decongestion and is soothing. Bone broths (boiling bones for several hours and using the liquid as a warm drink is a great source of helpful nutrients), garlic and onions are high in Quercetin. Onion juice, or simply onions sliced with a little bit of sugar or honey inbetween slices and left to sit for a while, which produces a 'juice', and having a spoon of that juice several times a day is natural and cheap decongestant and I have used it effectively.

9. Smoking has significant detrimental effects on the lungs and stops them from working properly and puts you at greater risk of death from lung infections and pneumonia.   To keep your immune system functioning in A1 condition, significantly reduce/avoid Alcohol as it messes with your blood sugar levels and liver function, can increase risky interpersonal interaction due to lowered inhibition in a time when we need to be super alert to social distancing (this is one of the reasons that in this COVID-19 era some countries have closed bars and clubs and pubs), and medical studies have shown that alcohol consumption increases the risk of pneumonia and suppresses the immune system in several ways including inhibiting the body's ability to fight viruses. So reducing risks to your immune system at this time is critical. During a flu when you want to keep your hydration up, alcohol also decreases hydration.

Anti-inflamatory NSAID medications like Ibuprofen and asprin interfere with the body's virus fighting process. 

France have even issued a directive advising against use of NSAIDS, and some medical professionals talk about it here and here.   Dr John Campbell in the first link even suggests that an adult with a fever should sweat it out as the fever is part of making the body inhospitable to the virus.

10. Supplements can be expensive or difficult to obtain for some, but if you are able, then adding extra to your diet can be helpful - Vit C,  Vit D, and Zinc have already been mentioned above. NAC (N-Acetyl-Cysteine) is also a very good mucolytic/decongestant.