Foxes Have Holes

The Bible is a book with lots of figurative language. The fact that it’s translated from another language into English adds another layer of complexity when attempting to get to the core of the original meaning or intent.

And even if you know in your head that you shouldn’t always interpret scriptures literally, many times, we fall into that trap of adopting the literal translation, without realizing that we’ve done just that. An example for me, is in the below portion of scripture.

And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, “Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest”. And Jesus saith unto him, “the foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.”

(Matthew 8:19-20, KJV)

In the verses prior to these, Jesus had been doing a lot of wonderful works. And this scribe, probably having seen all of that, decided that he wanted to be part of what Jesus was doing. I’d always understood that Jesus was warning this would-be disciple about the cost of discipleship. And He was really warning him about the cost of discipleship.

But I’d, until recently, always thought that that bit about “the Son of Man having nowhere to stay” was Jesus saying the work of the ministry was a hard one, and would involve homelessness at times.

However, when you consider that at the beginning of Matthew chapter 8, Jesus was ministered to like a king (that He is) after healing Peter’s mother-in-law, and that the gospels record several times that Jesus was hosted in people’s houses, it becomes clear that “having nowhere to lay His head” wasn’t meant to be translated literally.

What was the meaning then? Jesus was warning this star-struck scribe (and every other person who would decide to follow Him- which includes you and me), that Jesus would never be accepted by the people of this world because He heralded a system and Kingdom that was not of this world. Consequently, anyone who followed His way would receive the same treatment.

If you live in a place where the Christian faith is openly persecuted, you don’t need much of an explanation to understand not having a place to peacefully lay your head and practice your faith. For Christians who don’t live under the threat of constant, open persecution, there will be times when you’re shamed or made to seem outlandish because of a stand you’re making based on your faith.

In whichever of these categories you fall into, Jesus wants you to know that:

If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world… therefore the world hateth you.

(John 15:18-19, KJV, Paraphrased)

These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

(John 16:33, KJV)

If you’re facing persecution for the sake of the Gospel (and not for scripturally inaccurate reasons!), Jesus doesn’t want you to lose heart: that’s just what it costs to follow Him. And the good news is, you’re on the winning side. Jesus has overcome the world, and has bequeathed this victory to us as well.

If you’re passing through tough times because of your faith, don’t be discouraged: you’re doing something right!

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(Matthew 5:10, KJV)