Chapter 5
CHANGING OF THE PRIESTHOOD
(Matthew 3:11-17)
In our last study we saw that one aspect John the Baptist's mission was to prepare the way for the Lord. Lord willing, in this study, we will see that John was also sent to bring about the glorious change of the priesthood. However, before we begin our study, let us pray.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Holy Father we come before You in the Name of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Father we ask You to please bless our study of the changing of the priesthood. Cause us to see the tremendous privilege and blessing we now have that Jesus Christ is our High Priest. Thank you Father for hearing our prayer.
Amen
For our study of the changing of the priesthood we will,
1. Review some pertinent background material relative to the Old Testament priests.
2. Read some examples of the promise God made to come and usher in a new order of priesthood.
3. Review the account of the arrival of John the Baptist.
4. Discover that when John the Baptist baptized Jesus he was baptizing Jesus into the priesthood.
5. Find that in the New Covenant the priesthood has changed.
Before we see how through the ministry of John the Baptist there was a major change from the Old Testament Levitical Priesthood it would be helpful for us to first review the following background material.
BACKGROUND
In this background section of our study we will,
1. Review the three types of Old Testament priests.
2. Review the duties of the Levitical priests.
Before we review the three types of Old Testament priests let us first address the question of: "What is a priest?" According to the second College Edition of Webster's New World Dictionary, a priest is:
"A person whose function is to make sacrificial offerings and perform other religious rites as an intermediary between deity and worshippers."
In reading the Old Testament we discover there were,
THREE TYPES OF OLD TESTAMENT PRIESTS
The first priest identified in the Old Testament is,
Melchizedek (Of whom we know very little)
After Abram returned from saving Lot and Lot's family from their captures, he had an encounter with Melchizedek. This is recorded for us in,
Genesis 14:17-20
"[17] After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King's Valley). [18] Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, [19] and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. [20] And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand." Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything."
Let us notice the following verses,
18 … Before the Levitical priesthood was established, Melchizedek was King of Salem and priest of God Most High. Psalm 76:2 reveals that the translation of the name Salem was a reference for the ancient city Jerusalem.
20 … Abram paid homage to Melchizedek by giving him a tenth of everything he had.
In addition, prior to the days of the Levitical priesthood there were,
Other Priests (Of whom we know even less)
We read of these priests at the time when God called Moses to receive the Law on the top of Mount Sinai. To see this let us read about this account in,
Exodus 19:20-25
"[20] The LORD descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up [21] and the LORD said to him, "Go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the LORD and many of them perish. [22] Even the priests, who approach the LORD, must consecrate themselves, or the LORD will break out against them." [23] Moses said to the LORD, "The people cannot come up Mount Sinai, because you yourself warned us, 'Put limits around the mountain and set it apart as holy.'" [24] The LORD replied, "Go down and bring Aaron up with you. But the priests and the people must not force their way through to come up to the LORD, or he will break out against them." [25] So Moses went down to the people and told them."
Notice in verses 22 and 24 the Bible identifies other priests within the ranks of the Israelites. This incident occurred prior to the time God consecrated Aaron and his sons to be His priests. I think these priests were the able men who Jethro (Moses’-father-law) the priest of Midian convinced Moses to appoint as heads over the Israelites (see Exodus 18:1 and 24-27).
This now brings us to the third type of Old Testament priest which was,
The Levitical Priests
This was the priesthood God established through the hand of Moses. These priests were Aaron and his descendents. The reason they were called the Levitical priests is because Aaron and his male descendents belonged to the tribe of Levi. To find out more about these priests let us first review what God commanded Moses to do to anoint Aaron and his sons into the priesthood. The actions Moses was to take are recorded in,
Exodus 40:12-16
""[12] Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and wash them with water. [13] Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest. [14] Bring his sons and dress them in tunics. [15] Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue for all generations to come." [16] Moses did everything just as the LORD commanded him."
Let us notice the following verses,
12 … They were to be washed with water, a type of water baptism.
13 … They were to be anointed and consecrated, that is set apart. It is noted that anointing and consecration to God was accomplished with the pouring of oil on the object to be consecrated. In this case the object was Aaron and his sons. To see that in the Old Testament consecration was accomplished through the application of oil let us read from,
Exodus 40:9
""[9] Take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and everything in it; consecrate it and all its furnishings, and it will be holy."
It is further noted that in the Old Testament oil was a symbol used to represent the anointing and consecration by the Holy Spirit.
Let us now return to the anointing of Aaron and his sons and look into Exodus 40, verse,
15 … Their anointing was to be into the priesthood to serve God Almighty.
The remaining male members of the tribe of Levi, that is those who were not descendents of Aaron, were appointed by God to assist the priests in their duties. This is recorded for us in,
Numbers 3:5-9
"[5] The LORD said to Moses, [6] "Bring the tribe of Levi and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him. [7] They are to perform duties for him and for the whole community at the Tent of Meeting by doing the work of the tabernacle. [8] They are to take care of all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting, fulfilling the obligations of the Israelites by doing the work of the tabernacle. [9] Give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are the Israelites who are to be given wholly to him.""
This now brings us to the question of; “What were the functions or tasks of the Levitical priests?” To find out let us now briefly review,
THE DUTIES OF THE LEVITICAL PRIESTHOOD
Within the Levitical priesthood there were two types of priests: (a) the ordinary priests and (b) the High Priest.
We begin with,
The Ordinary Priests
These priests were the sons or descendents of Aaron, the High Priest. They had two primary functions. The first function was to be God's messenger to Israel, that is to instruct the people as to the ways of the Lord. This can be seen by reading from,
Malachi 2:7
""[7] For the lips of a priest ought to preserve knowledge, and from his mouth men should seek instruction--because he is the messenger of the LORD Almighty."
Secondly, they on the behalf of the people, were to offer the sacrifices to God. As an example let us read from,
Leviticus 1:1-9
"[1] The LORD called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting. He said, [2] "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When any of you brings an offering to the LORD, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock. [3] "'If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he is to offer a male without defect. He must present it at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting so that it will be acceptable to the LORD. [4] He is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him. [5] He is to slaughter the young bull before the LORD, and then Aaron's sons the priests shall bring the blood and sprinkle it against the altar on all sides at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. [6] He is to skin the burnt offering and cut it into pieces. [7] The sons of Aaron the priest are to put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. [8] Then Aaron's sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, including the head and the fat, on the burning wood that is on the altar. [9] He is to wash the inner parts and the legs with water, and the priest is to burn all of it on the altar. It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD."
Let us notice the following verses,
1-5(a) … The person who brought the offering was to kill the required animal.
5(b)-9 … However, it was the priest who offered the sacrifice to God.
This now brings us to the responsibilities of,
The High Priest
As we read about the High Priest we come to realize that in this position he represented the whole nation of Israel. We discover this truth by reading a description of the ephod that the High Priest was to wear. To see this let us read from,
Exodus 28:6-12
"[6] "Make the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen--the work of a skilled craftsman. [7] It is to have two shoulder pieces attached to two of its corners, so it can be fastened. [8] Its skillfully woven waistband is to be like it--of one piece with the ephod and made with gold, and with blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and with finely twisted linen. [9] "Take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel [10] in the order of their birth--six names on one stone and the remaining six on the other. [11] Engrave the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the way a gem cutter engraves a seal. Then mount the stones in gold filigree settings [12] and fasten them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel. Aaron is to bear the names on his shoulders as a memorial before the LORD."
In addition to the two engraved onyx stones upon the High Priest's shoulders, he was also to wear a breastpiece. This breastpiece contained twelve precious stones to represent the twelve tribes of Israel. Rather than reading exactly how this breastpiece was to be made, let us read what the Lord said to Moses after He completed His instruction.
Exodus 28:28-29
"[28] The rings of the breastpiece are to be tied to the rings of the ephod with blue cord, connecting it to the waistband, so that the breastpiece will not swing out from the ephod. [29] "Whenever Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will bear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breastpiece of decision as a continuing memorial before the LORD."
In addition to representing the nation of Israel before God, the High Priest was the only one allowed to approach the Mercy seat in the Holiest of Holies. This was to occur once a year to make atonement, which is make amends with God for the sins he, his family and the nation of Israel committed against God. To see this let us read from,
Leviticus 16:2
"[2] The LORD said to Moses: "Tell your brother Aaron not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die, because I appear in the cloud over the atonement cover."
The time of year when the High Priest was to appear in the Holiest of Holies was identified as the Day of Atonement and is defined in,
Leviticus 23:26-28
"[26] The LORD said to Moses, [27] "The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to the LORD by fire. [28] Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God."
For a detailed description of how the High Priest was to make atonement please read Leviticus 16:3-18.
As we reflect upon all this background material we come to realize that from the establishment of the Levitical priesthood up until the New Testament times, the people always has a mediator between them and God, which was the priest. In other words, the people could never enter the sanctuary and present their offerings to God. They always had to rely upon the priests.
THE PROMISE OF A NEW ORDER OF PRIESTHOOD
As glorious, exalted and sacred this position of priest was, over time it became corrupted. For example, let us read what God said about His shepherds through His prophet Exekiel. To do this we go to,
Exekiel 34:1-16
"[1] The word of the LORD came to me: [2] "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? [3] You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. [4] You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. [5] So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. [6] My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them. [7] "'Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: [8] As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, [9] therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: [10] This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them. [11] "'For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. [12] As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. [13] I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. [14] I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. [15] I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. [16] I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice."
Let us notice the following verses,
2-4 … The shepherds or priests were only concerned about their own well being. They were not concerned about those whom they were appointed to care for.
5-8 … Because the shepherds did not faithfully administer their duties the people were lost, fell away from the faith and became prey for the Evil One.
9-10 … God foretold that He was going to remove His people out from under the authority of the shepherds.
11-16 … God promised there will be a time when He, Himself will shepherd His people. He will feed them, heal them, comfort them and care for them.
This brings us to,
THE ARRIVAL OF JOHN THE BAPTIST
With the above Old Testament background and prophecies let us now move our study to the New Testament and read about the fulfillment these prophecies.
First of all, as we discovered in our previous study, that is chapter 4, the arrival of John the Baptist fulfilled God's prophecy to send a messenger to prepare the way for His coming. John did this through his preaching of repentance. Thus, during this time of John’s activities his baptism was a baptism of repentance.
However, there is still the prophecy given to Ezekiel and a portion of the prophecy given to Malachi that we have yet to cover. Specifically; “How did the activities of John the Baptist pave the way for God to purify the sons of Levi or the priesthood?” To find out let us now explore,
THE BAPTISM OF JESUS CHRIST
However, before we do, it is interesting to note that in addition to being God's messenger to prepare the way for our Lord, John was also a member of the priestly lineage of the Levites. To see this let us read the account of John the Baptist’s birth. The Scriptures of interest is,
Luke 1:5-13
"[5] In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. [6] Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly. [7] But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years. [8] Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, [9] he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. [10] And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. [11] Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. [12] When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. [13] But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John."
Let us notice the following verses,
5 … Zechariah, John's father, was a priest. Elizabeth, John's mother, was also a descendent of Aaron, the High Priest.
7 … Elizabeth was barren.
Thus, from the above account, we discover that since Elizabeth was barren the birth of John was a miraculous one. In addition, since his father and mother were from the priestly lineage of Aaron, he too was a priest and belonged to the tribe of Levi.
With this in mind, let us now read about the time when Jesus asked John to baptize Him. To do this we go to,
Matthew 3:13-17
"[13] Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. [14] But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" [15] Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. [16] As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. [17] And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.""
Let us notice the following verses,
13 … Jesus came to John for baptism. Why? Clearly Jesus did not need to be baptized for repentance. As it turns out this was to be the baptism or washing into His position as our High Priest.
14 … John thinking that Jesus came for the baptism of repentance tried to deter Jesus by saying that he, John, needed to be baptized by Him.
15 … Jesus told John and now us that in order to fulfill the law, that is fulfill all righteousness (obedience to the Father), it was necessary. I believe Jesus was referring to the requirement, which we reviewed earlier, that for entering into the priesthood one had to be washed with water.
16 … Jesus is baptized in water. After Jesus rose from the water, the Holy Spirit came upon Him, which is the anointing or consecration. Thus, the requirements identified in Exodus 40:12-16 were fulfilled.
17 … God the Father gives His approval by saying, "This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased."
It is also interesting to note that as God used Moses, a member of the tribe of Levi, to anoint Aaron to be High Priest, we have now just read how God the Father used John the Baptist, a descendent of Aaron, to anoint Jesus Christ as High Priest, who was a physical descendent of Judah, not Levi (Matthew 1:2-3). Consequently,
THE PRIESTHOOD WAS CHANGED
To gain a better understanding and appreciation for the new change in the priesthood, let us begin by reading from,
Hebrews 7:11
"[11] If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come--one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?"
Let us notice the following verse,
11(a) … The Holy Spirit is asking us to recall the prophecies we read from Exekiel and Malachi. Remember, within them we discovered that the priests or shepherds became corrupt. Also, let us recall that God said He was going to come and shepherd the people. Thus, God the Father fulfilled His promise by anointing His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to be our priest. Hence, the priesthood was now purified.
11(b) … To help us understand the priestly ministry of Jesus Christ the Holy Spirit likens it to the order of Melchizedek. In other words, in the Old Testament Melchizedek was given to us as a foreshadowing of what was to be in Jesus Christ. He was to teach us several things about Jesus' priesthood.
First of all let us recall that when we read about Abraham's meeting with Melchizedek we discovered that Melchizedek was a priest perpetually. This is explained to us by reading from,
Hebrews 7:1-3
"[1] This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, [2] and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace." [3] Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever."
Thus, being a priest in accordance with the order of Melchizedek, Jesus is now forever our High Priest.
The second aspect of Jesus' priesthood to be learned through the foreshadowing of Melchizedek can be realized by seeing how great Melchizedek was. To do this we go to,
Hebrews 7:4-10
"[4] Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! [5] Now the law requires the descendants of Levi who become priests to collect a tenth from the people--that is, their brothers--even though their brothers are descended from Abraham. [6] This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. [7] And without doubt the lesser person is blessed by the greater. [8] In the one case, the tenth is collected by men who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living. [9] One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, [10] because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor."
In other words, since Abraham paid homage to Melchizedek and Levi was in the loins of Abraham, Levi also paid homage to Melchizedek. Thus, the priesthood of Melchizedek is superior to that of the priest from the loins of Levi. Since, Jesus is likened to the priesthood of Melchizedek the Bible is teaching us that Jesus' priesthood is far superior to that of the Levi's.
With this background in mind let us now go and read about this new priesthood from,
Hebrews 7:11-28
"[11] If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come--one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? [12] For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must also be a change of the law. [13] He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. [14] For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. [15] And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears, [16] one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life. [17] For it is declared: "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek." [18] The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless [19] (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God. [20] And it was not without an oath! Others became priests without any oath, [21] but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him: "The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: 'You are a priest forever.'" [22] Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant. [23] Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; [24] but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. [25] Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. [26] Such a high priest meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. [27] Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. [28] For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever."
Let us notice the following verses,
12-14 … To make the point clear that there has been a change of priesthood, God instituted a change of law. Through the law given to Moses the priesthood belonged to the Levites. However, it now belongs to Jesus Christ who came through the tribe of Judah.
16-17 … To be a Levitical priest that person had to be of the lineage of Levi. However, Jesus’ priesthood is based upon His indestructible life.
18-19 … The Levitical priesthood was set aside because the law never made anything perfect. The purpose of the law was to expose our sins and bring us to Jesus (Galatians 3:19-25).
20-28 … Jesus Christ is our High Priest and because He is alive forever more, His priesthood is an everlasting one.
With all the above in mind let us now read the following exhortation.
Hebrews 4:14-16
"[14] Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. [15] For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. [16] Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
Since the priesthood has changed and Jesus Christ is our High Priest the question arises as to: "What about the ordinary priests? What about the remaining descendents of Aaron? What happened to their ministry?" As we read the New Testament we discover that,
THE BORN AGAIN BELIEVERS ARE NOW THE ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
To see this let us first consider that we, the born again believer in Jesus Christ has become a child of God. This is recorded for us in,
1 John 3:1a
[1a] Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!
And,
Galatians 4:6
[6] And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”
As it was with the sons of Aaron, the High Priest; so it is with us. To see this let us read from,
1 Peter 2:9
"[9] But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
Thus, in place of animals, such as bulls, rams, goats, etc., we of the royal priesthood are to offer ourselves to God. To see this let us consider the following,
Romans 12: 1-2
"[1] Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. [2] Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will."
CLOSING
Let us now close our study by reading the testimony of John the Baptist concerning the arrival of our Lord and Savior, who is our High Priest.
John 1:29-34
"[29] The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! [30] This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' [31] I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel." [32] Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. [33] I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' [34] I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.""
Blessed be the Lord Forever!
Amen and Amen