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NASB | John 16:7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 16:7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor--Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him (the Holy Spirit) to you [to be in close fellowship with you]. |
Bible Question:
Shalom everyone, I think this is my first question. I've watched this site for a number of years and have not seen this question before. It's one of those dreaded "why" questions...maybe I'll make it a "how come" question. :o) How come Messiah told His disciples that He had to go away for the Holy Spirit to come to them? The Holy Spirit was given in full measure to Moses, and then later to his 70 elders. It was the same Spirit, and the trinitarian doctrine teaches that the Spirit is a distinct personality of the Godhead, so Messiah's being on the earth or not being here should have nothing to do with whether the Spirit indwells or not? I'm just a bit confused over the having to "go away" and the infilling of the 70 along with Moses (and probably Aaron and Miriam too)? Thanks for the help. |
Bible Answer: Mr. Levin, I asked this question some time ago as well. It perplexed me as to why is was necessary for Jesus to ascend before the Spirit could come. Since then, the best I could reason is that since Jesus is the High Priest in the Heavenly Tabernacle (and not the Earthly one), He needed to ascend and serve as High Priest before the Spirit would be able to come and write the Law on the hearts of the Believers. That's still a bit less than a full answer, but the best I could conceive. If you find out more, let me know. Tim's quote of Barnes is also helpful but also opens up a few more questions as to how and why the Spirit could then come even for a short time prior to the Ascension? MJH |