A man came from Europe to this country in 1867. He became dissatisfied and went to Cuba when they had that great civil war there. Finally he was arrested for a spy, court-martialed, and condemned to be shot. He sent for the American Consul and the English Consul, and went on to prove to them that he was no spy. These two men were thoroughly convinced that the man was no spy, and they went to one of the Spanish officers and said, “This man you have condemned to be shot is an innocent man.” “Well,” the Spanish officer says, “the man has been legally tried by our laws and condemned, and the law must take, its course and the man must die.” And the next morning the man was led out; the grave was already dug for him, and the black cap was put on him, and the soldiers were there ready to receive the order, “Fire,” and in a few moments the man would be shot and put in that grave and covered up, when who should rise up but the American Consul, who took the American flag and wrapped it around him, and the English Consul took the English flag and also wrapped it around him, and they said to those soldiers, “Fire on those flags if you dare!” [D. L. Moody, Anecdotes and Illustrations of D. L. Moody Related by Him in His Revival Work, ed. J. B. McClure (Chicago: Rhodes & McClure, 1878), 147–148] That’s how it is in Christ. We were condemned by the law. But God, in the person of Jesus, wrapped His robe of righteous around us. And though we were condemned to be executed to a devils hell, yet because of Jesus we are sons of God on our way to heaven.
The Bridge Commentary consists of four sections: Definitions, Background, Comments and Questions. The Definitions section explains all significant Greek words found in all the verses of this passage. The Background section contains material which will help to frame the passage in it’s 1st century setting. The Questions section includes queries you may want to ask of the text. Finally, the Comments section contains observations of the verses sorted in word or phrase order.
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