The Ministry Of Thornes

*** The ministry of thorns has often been a greater service to humankind than the ministry of thrones.

min•is•try (m¹n“¹-str¶) n., pl. min•is•tries. 1.a. The act of serving; ministration. b. One that serves as a means; an instrumentality. 2.a. The profession, duties, and services of a minister.

*** MINISTER…

1. To attend to the wants and needs of others: See Synonyms at tend2. 2. To perform the functions of a cleric. --tr. To administer or dispense, as a sacrament. [Middle English, from Old French ministre, from Latin minister, servant.

2 Chr 33:10-13

10 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.

11 Wherefore the LORD brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.

12 And when he was in affliction, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,

13 And prayed unto him: and he was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD he was God.

(KJV)

Hosea 2:6-7

6 Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths.

7 And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now.

(KJV)

Mark 15:17-19

17 And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,

18 And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!

19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.

CROWN OF THORNS

(thornz) (akdnthinos stephanos): Three of the four evangelists mention the crown of thorns, wherewith the rude Roman soldiers derided the captive Christ . All speak of the akanthine (Acanthus) crown, but there is no certainty about the peculiar plant, from the branches of which this crown of cruel mockery was plaited. The rabbinical books. mention no less than twenty-two words in the Bible signifying thorny plants, and the word akantha in the New Testament Greek is a generic and not a specific term. And this word or its adjective is used in the three Gospels, quoted above. Some point to the Spina Christi… Its botanical name is Zizyphus Spina Christi, It is very common in the East. Its spines are small and sharp, its branches soft, round and pliable, and the leaves look like ivy, with a dark, shiny green color, making them therefore very adaptable to the purpose of the soldiers. Both Geikie (Life of Christ, 549) and Farrar (Life of Christ, note 625) point to the Nubk (Zizyphus lotus). Says the latter, "The Nubk struck me, as it has all travelers in Palestine, as being most suitable both for mockery and pain, since its leaves are bright and its thorns singularly strong.

HENRY E. DOSKER

(from International Standard Bible Encylopaedia, Electronic Database Copyright (C) 1996 by Biblesoft)