Like a Thief In The Night

 I was often puzzled by the comment 'he will come like a thief in the night' and assumed it meant he was speaking of coming at a unknown time and we should be ready anytime. 

 Well this is true but as with everything in the Bible there is a back story from the Old Testament  that insist that the High priest must check each guard at the temple during the night to unsure he is at his post and awake. Particularly those that were tending the fire for the sacrifices that needed to burn all night. The High priest would walk from station to station with a torch lit (remember no flashlights right?) and he didn't get challenged by the guard inquiring who he was and was found asleep. He had a way of waking him up and humiliating him at the same time. He would take a coal from the altar and place it on the easily flammable clothes the Guard was wearing which would of course catch on fire leaving him running naked to prevent being severely burned. He would then have to go retrieve new clothing and I'm sure caught all kinds of trouble for sleeping on the job.

Ok, got it, so what does that have to do with a Thief in the Night? The High priest was thus known as the 'Thief in the Night' as he was looking to catch someone sleeping. So when scripture spoke of this in the new testament it was understood by the Jews and they knew the meaning of the parable. It literally means, Church do not let me come and find you asleep and not doing your job.

Just something I ran across and researched it a bit and surely, it was true. So much of what we think was one way often was something we didn't understand from their culture that was well understood by the Jew of the day. I thought it was worth blogging it. You may research it yourself, but I saw it referenced as such in many places. Interesting huh?