Justin Houtz

2 Samuel 20, Matthew 27

DateVersionReading Plan
October 14, 2025ESV (2016)OT/NT Plan 2025 – 2027

2 Samuel 20

Observation & Interpretation

2 Sam. 20:2 – Israel withdrew from David and followed Sheba, a worthless man, but the men of Judah followed David.

2 Sam. 20:4 – David → Amasa to call the men of Judah together to him and be there himself as well.

2 Sam. 20:8-10 – [Joab] advanced to meet Amasa, and as he did so his sword dropped to the ground. It seemed that he did this purposefully. He then picked up his sword and moved toward his unsuspecting cousin. With a great show of friendliness, Joab grabbed Amasa’s beard as if to kiss him, then killed him with one thrust of the sword. (BBC)

Matthew 27

Observation & Interpretation

Matt. 27:7 – The chief priests and elders used the thirty pieces of silver brought back by Judas to purchase the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers.

Matt. 27:5-51 – According to the Mishnah, [the curtain of the sanctuary] was sixty feet long, thirty feet wide, and as thick as a man’s palm. It was so heavy that it took three hundred men to lift it when it was wet (m. Shek. 8:5). That is was torn in two from top to bottom shows that it was torn by God. This signifies that Jesus’ death granted sinners new access to God (Heb. 6:19-20; 10:19-20). (CSB Notes)

Matt. 27:1-14 – Judas’s tragic effort to undo his betrayal of Jesus manifests the futility of attempts to do something to atone for one’s own sins…Bare remorse turns upward and brings condemnation, while repentance turns upward and brings God’s grace. (ESVEC – Response)

Matt. 27:32-44 – In Matthew’s narrative, physical abuse of Jesus’ body dominates the stretch between Pilate’s judgment and the crucifixion (vv. 26-34). But verbal abuse directed at Jesus’ spirit, dominates the hours on the cross (vv. 35-44). (ESVEC – Section Overview)

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