Jesus' Answer to the Thief on the Cross.
By M. W. Howard
PERHAPS no words of Jesus are more blindly misconceived, while none need be more thrillingly simple, than "I say unto thee to-day, shalt thou be with me in paradise." None lay any claims to inspiration for punctuation, and with grammarians, the interrogatory indicative, is only the stronger affirmation; so any difficulty thus far can be set aside at once. Then the prayer of the dying thief, "Lord remember me, when thou comest into thy kingdom," implies an understanding of Christ's teachings concerning his kingdom, which many now who are learned in the schools would be wiser if they shared with him. And how soul-inspiring the answer when amplified into all its bearings, and we comprehend the full meaning of the reply, as if Jesus had said, not in his usual brief and comprehensive manner, but thus, The fondly cherished hopes of my followers are now crushed; and to all human appearances my bright expectations are being ended in contempt and ignominy. Yet to-day, even "to-day," when so gloomy a blight is settling upon my prospects, "I say unto thee, shalt thou be with me in paradise"—my kingdom. Many are there, who, could they only disentangle themselves from some of their long-cherished habits of thought, and take the Scriptures simply, without note or comment, seeking direction from Him who by James has said, "If any lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not," would be taught by the Spirit in a manner that would often astonish even themselves. Malone, N. Y., Nov., 1864.