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2 Baruch

Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch

About this book
Chapter 51

1 And it shall come to pass, when that appointed day has gone by, that then shall the appearance of those who are condemned be afterwards changed, and the glory of those who are justified. 2 For the appearance of those who now act wickedly shall become worse than it is, as they shall suffer torment. 3 Also as for the glory of those who have now been justified in My law, who have had understanding in their life, and who have planted in their heart the root of wisdom, then their splendour shall be glorified in changes, and the form of their face shall be turned into the light of their beauty, that they may be able to acquire and receive the world which does not die, which is then promised to them.⁠ 4 For over this above all shall those who come then lament, that they rejected My law, and stopped their ears that they might not hear wisdom or receive understanding. 5 When therefore they see those, over whom they are now exalted, but who shall then be exalted and glorified more than they, they shall respectively be transformed, the latter into the splendour of angels, and the former shall yet more waste away in wonder at the visions and in the beholding of the forms.⁠ 6 For they shall first behold and afterwards depart to be tormented. 7 But those who have been saved by their works. And to whom the law has been now a hope, And understanding an expectation, And wisdom a confidence, Shall wonders appear in their time. 8 For they shall behold the world which is now invisible to them, And they shall behold the time which is now hidden from them: 9 And time shall no longer age them. 10 For in the heights of that world shall they dwell,⁠ And they shall be made like the angels, And be made equal to the stars, And they shall be changed into every form they desire, From beauty into loveliness, And from light into the splendour of glory. 11 For there shall be spread before them the extents of Paradise, and there shall be shown to them the beauty of the majesty of the living creatures which are beneath the throne, and all the armies of the angels, who are now held fast by My word, so that they do not appear, and are held fast by a command, that they may stand in their places until their time comes. 12 Moreover, there shall then be excellence in the righteous surpassing that in the angels. 13 For the first shall receive the last, those whom they were expecting, and the last those of whom they used to hear that they had passed away. 14 For they have been delivered from this world of tribulation, And laid down the burden of anguish. 15 For what then have men lost their life, And for what have those who were on the earth exchanged their soul?⁠ 16 For then they did not choose for themselves this time, Which, beyond the reach of anguish, could not pass away: But they chose for themselves that time, Whose outcomes are full of lamentations and evils, And they denied the world which does not age those who come to it, And they rejected the time of glory, So that they shall not come to the honour of which I told you before.’

Texts in conversation

Compare Matthew 16:26 and 2 Baruch 51:15

New Testament · Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

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Summary

Matthew 16 and 2 Baruch 51 share language based on Jewish traditions about the futility of gaining honor or abundance at the cost of your life. Both reflect a Jewish eschatological perspective where ultimate loss outweighs temporary gain.

Passages

Matthew 16:26

New Testament
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it. 26 For what does it benefit a person if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or what can a person give in exchange for his life? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. 28 I tell you the truth, there are some standing here who will not experience death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
70–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Matthew

2 Baruch 51:15

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses · Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch
13 For the first shall receive the last, those whom they were expecting, and the last those of whom they used to hear that they had passed away. 14 For they have been delivered from this world of tribulation, And laid down the burden of anguish. 15 For what then have men lost their life, And for what have those who were on the earth exchanged their soul? 16 For then they did not choose for themselves this time, Which, beyond the reach of anguish, could not pass away: But they chose for themselves that time, Whose outcomes are full of lamentations and evils, And they denied the world which does not age those who come to it, And they rejected the time of glory, So that they shall not come to the honour of which I told you before.’
70–135 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 2 Baruch

References

"... Matthew 16:25-26 ... The logic is relentless: ('for') begins verses 25-27. For the sense of verse 25, see 10:39. The orientation is eschatological: saving one's psyche ('life') now will result in losing it at the end, and losing it now will result in finding it at the end. Verse 26 (compare 2 Baruch 51:15) furthers the argument by asking twin rhetorical questions, showing the folly of possessing all created abundance and wealth at the expense of one's psyche. NIV here changes its rendering 'life' (verse 25) to 'soul' (verse 26). This is not necessarily wrong. The abrupt change from the physical to the spiritual is amply attested elsewhere (compare 8:22; John 4:10; 6:27); but the change in English is perhaps too sharp (compare Luke 9:25: 'his very self'). The focus is still eschatological, and the loss is the eternal loss of one's soul = life = self (on the afterlife, see 22:23-33). Terminology aside, the bargain is a bad one ..."
Frank Ely Gaebelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Pickering & Inglis, 1984), 379.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Matthew 16:26 and 2 Baruch 51:15

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