Old and New

This weekend as I studied and prepared for the divine service, I examined anew a passage of the Scriptures that I have pondered many times previously.

Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.  (Matthew 13:52)

As I read the text in the Greek language I noticed something that I’ve never noticed before.  Here is a literal translation of the text:

Then said he unto them: Therefore, every scribe having been discipled into the kingdom of heaven, same essence is to a man, a  housemaster, which throws out from the thesaurus of him, new and old.

The word that most prominently caught my attention is the word that we usually translate as treasure.  This treasure is Thesaurus.  Remarkable!  The word is actually Thesaurus.

Moreover, this treasurehouse of words is a source of both old and new declarations for the scribe who has been discipled into the kingdom of heaven.  The scribe, the student of the Scriptures, who has been truly discipled into the kingdom of heaven, truly looks to the Scriptures as storehouse of the revelation of the living Word of God.  Every time that this true disciple of the kingdom of heaven enters the storehouse, he throws out to the household of faith new and old proclamation.  The old never changes.  It remains the treasure of the ages.  But along with the doctrine that has been rightly preached time and time again, he also throws out to his hearers new riches from the thesaurus.  The old and the new are in perfect agreement.  The new is a fresh perspective and application of the doctrine of Jesus Christ and Him crucified, offered to the Church through the means of grace.

How can such a message ever be regarded as anything less than a rich treasure?

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