The great significance of Jesus’ death on the cross & 30 pieces of silver. Zechariah 11:12-13c; “And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. 13 And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.”
Matthew 27:3-5; “Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. 5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.”
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Thirty pieces of silver thrown into the house of the Lord … Noteworthy in these passages are the customs of the people. In biblical times the shepherd was paid for his services at the end of his work and here we see the 30 pieces of silver being thrown into the temple near the end of Jesus’ life. The potter’s field is situated in the Hinmon Valley which is where child sacrifices were performed during the 1st temple period. In Jesus’ day it was known as a garbage dump and also the place where the poor buried their dead. This is where Judas hung himself.
In Mormonism you won’t hear about the fulfilled prophecies like this one today. Instead you’ll hear that Jesus paid for sins in the Garden of Gethsemane, was arrested, died on the cross and then rose on the 3rd day. Nary a word about the potter’s field is mentioned in the general teachings, or the 30 pieces of silver, as Mormons don’t recognize the significant events that took place during Holy Week. They’ll use random quotes from this part of the Bible, but it’s used in the context of promoting the agenda of the Church.
Ask a Mormon what they believe the 30 pieces of silver meant and share verses from the Bible, and historical customs with them! Also emphasize the significance of Jesus’ death on the cross.
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Conference Report, October 1953, p 35; “Jesus then went into the Garden of Gethsemane. There he suffered most. He suffered greatly on the cross, of course, but other men had died by crucifixion; in fact, a man hung on either side of him as he died on the cross. But no man, nor set of men, nor all men put together, ever suffered what the Redeemer suffered in the garden. He went there to pray and suffer’”. – Marion Romney, LDS First Presidency
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