Book of Common Prayer

Christ the seed, Christ the mediator

¹⁵ My brothers and sisters, let me use a human illustration. When someone makes a covenanted will, nobody sets it aside or adds to it. ¹⁶ Well, the promises were made “to Abraham and his seed,” that is, his family. It doesn’t say “his seeds,” as though referring to several families, but indicates a single family by saying “and to your seed,” meaning the Messiah.

¹⁷ This is what I mean. God made this covenanted will; the law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, can’t undermine it and make the promise null and void. ¹⁸ If the inheritance came through the law, it would no longer be by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

¹⁹ Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the family should come to whom it had been promised. It was laid down by angels, at the hand of a mediator. ²⁰ He, however, is not the mediator of the “one”—but God is one!

²¹ Is the law then against God’s promises? Of course not! No, if a law had been given that could have given life, then covenant membership really would have been by the law. ²² But the Bible shut up everything together under the power of sin, so that the promise—which comes by the faithfulness of Jesus the Messiah—might be given to those who believe.

⁴⁷ When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the shore. ⁴⁸ He saw they were having to work hard at rowing, because the wind was against them; and he came to them, in the small hours of the night, walking on the sea. He intended to go past them, ⁴⁹ but they saw him walking on the sea and thought it was an apparition. They yelled out; ⁵⁰ all of them saw him, and they were scared stiff.

At once he spoke to them.

“Cheer up,” he said, “it’s me. Don’t be afraid.”

⁵¹ He came up to them and got into the boat, and the wind stopped. They were overwhelmed with astonishment. ⁵² They hadn’t understood about the loaves, because their hearts were hardened.

⁵³ They made landfall at Gennesaret, and tied up the boat. ⁵⁴ People recognized Jesus as soon as they got out of the boat, ⁵⁵ and scurried about the whole region to bring sick people on stretchers to wherever they heard that he was. ⁵⁶ And wherever he went, in villages, towns or in the open country, they placed the sick in the market-places and begged him to let them touch even the hem of his garment. And all who touched it were healed.