THE MESSIAH'S LIFE |
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Introduction: |
| Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 |
| Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 |
| Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | |||
| Chapter 19 | Chapter 20 | |||
| Chapter 23 | Chapter 24 |
CHAPTER 1[Luqa's Foreword]1. Seeing that many have taken in hand to compose an orderly narrative of the things that have been carried through to fulfillment among us, 2. considering the fact that those who from the beginning were given to be eyewitnesses and servants assisting the Word committed them to us, 3. it seemed appropriate to me likewise, having followed all [these] things accurately since the beginning, to write them to you in succession, O most illustrious lover of YHWH, Lover of YHWH: or more particularly, a proper name, Theophilus. James Trimm writes, “Theophilus… served as High Priest from 37 to 42 C.E. Theophilus was both a priest and a Sadducee. It would appear that the Gospel was intended to be used by others as well and was likely targeted at Sadducee [Tzaduqim] readers. Theophilus was the son of Annas and the brother-in-law of Caiaphas; as a result he grew up in the Temple. This explains many features of Luke. Luke begins the story with an account of Zechariah the righteous priest who had a vision of an angel at the Temple (1:5-25) he quickly moves on to an account of Miriam's purification and Yeshua's redemption rituals at the Temple (2:21-39) and then to the event of Yeshua teaching at the Temple at the age of twelve (2:46). Luke makes no mention of Caiaphas' role in Yeshua's crucifixion and emphasizes Yeshua's literal resurrection (24:39) (Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection of the dead). Both Luke and Acts are addressed to Theophilus ben Annas who served as High Priest from 37-41 C.E. Josephus records that in 37 C.E. Herod removed Jonathan from the High Priesthood and replaced him with his brother Theophilus (Josephus; Antiquities 18:5:3), then in 41 C.E. Herod removed Theophilus from office and replaced him with Simon ben Boethus who had given Herod a daughter to wed.”4. so that you might become thoroughly acquainted with how solid the [truthfulness is of the] teachings in which you have been instructed orally.
Elisheva: Gk., "Elisabeth", also the LXX transliteration of Elisheva in Ex. 6:23. It means "Elohim made an oath". Her husband's name (Zekharyah) means "YHWH remembers". Put together, their offspring is a beautiful picture of Elohim's faithfulness to His promise. Course of duty: The "rotation or class of the priests' service at the Temple, as distributed by families" (Strong), according to the 24 divisions that David had set up (1 Chron. 24:4ff; 2 Chron. 8:14). Each division discharged its duties for a whole week, and the courses ran twice a year. Aviyah's position was eighth (1 Chron. 24:10), but his descendants served on the tenth week of the first cycle since all of the divisions served on the third week (Feast of Unleavened Bread) and the ninth (Shavuoth). (J. Good)6. And they were both righteous in the sight of Elohim, adhering blamelessly to all the commandments and right-rulings of YHWH. 7. Yet they did not have [any] offspring, because Elisheva was sterile, and they were both far along in days. 8. But it came about that while he was performing his priestly functions before Elohim in the order of his division, 9. according to the prescribed custom of the priestly office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the Temple of YHWH, 10. and the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11. Now a messenger of YHWH appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12. And when he saw him, Zekharyah was troubled, and fear pressed in on him. Trimm writes, “One might expect him to be overjoyed to see an angel in the Temple… Pharisees and Sadducees differed as to how they believed the incense offering was to be made. Sadducees controlled the priesthood and the Temple (because most priests were Sadducees) but Pharisees were the majority and thus controlled the people and the courts. According to the Mishna (m. Yoma 1:5), the Pharisees would use the power of the Rabbinical courts to require the priests to agree to perform the Temple services according to the traditional method handed down by the elders and not to alter it based on Sadducee understandings and interpretations by bringing the incense into the Holy of Holies… because a Sadducee Priest had once taken it upon himself to alter the service, and… ‘an angel had come and struck him down on his face [to the ground] and his brethren the priests came in and they found the trace as of a calf's foot on his shoulder, as it is written: And their feet were straight feet, and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot.’ (b.Yoma 19b) In light of this passage it is clear why Z'kharyah was troubled and fearful when the angel appeared to him in the Temple after he had offered incense. Z'kharyah was almost certainly aware of this story and thus must have been worried that he had somehow offered the incense incorrectly and that the angel had appeared in order to strike him down.”13. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zekharyah, because your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elisheva will bear you a son, and you shall call his name Yochanan. Yochanan: Short form of Yehochanan, which means "YHWH has been gracious" or "shown favor". Allowing for Elisheva's two weeks of purification, the normal gestation period would bring us to Passover. Interestingly, this is the time when Jewish people to this day expect the Eliyahu of promise (Mal. 4:5) to appear, and Y’shua said that Yochanan fulfilled this at least partially (Mat. 11:10; cf. v. 17 here). Your prayer: The specific prayer he would have been praying asks for Eliyahu to return, bringing the Messiah, Son of David.14. "And to you he will be the occasion of joy and extreme gladness, and many will rejoice over his birth, 15. “because he will be eminent in the sight of YHWH, but by no means may he drink wine or an intoxicating beverage, but he will be filled with the Spirit of Holiness all the way from his mother’s womb. 16. "And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back toward YHWH their Elohim. Sons of Israel: The full impact of the meaning is missed if we equate “Israel” here with the Jews as so many do. On the contrary, after King Shlomo, during the divided Kingdom and beyond, “Israel” is contrasted with Yehudah until the two are again rejoined, which is only beginning to occur in our day. Thus his readers would think “the dispersed Northern Kingdom” when they saw “Israel”.17. "That is, he will precede Him in the spirit and power of Eliyahu, ‘to return the hearts of fathers to [their] children’, even noncompliant ones with the wisdom of the righteous, to get ready a people who have become prepared for YHWH. A people: a unified nation. ... 26. Now in the sixth month the angel Gavriel was sent by Elohim into a city of the Galil named Natzereth This would bring them to the time of Chanukkah. (See notes 9, 11.) Nine months would bring her to the festival of Sukkoth (note on 2:7).27. to a virgin who had been betrothed [Mat. 1:18] to a man named Yoseyf; now the virgin's name was Miryam. Miryam means "rebel". Not that she herself was a rebel, but her name correlates with the promise that the seed of the woman who was responsible for man's fall would provide the very solution (Gen. 3:15), highlighted here as Miryam conceives without the aid of a man. (A woman normally has no seed except as given by her husband.) This redemption is pictured in the Jewish liturgy as a woman is always the one to light the candles of the Sabbath, which pictures the light being restored to mankind through the seed of the rebellious woman. ... 35. In response, the angel addressed her, telling her, "The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow you. Consequently, then, the holy one who will be brought forth from you will be called the Son of Elohim … In ancient times the prayers used at Sukkoth were also prayed at Hanukkah, since both festivals had eight days and only the former was actually prescribed by YHWH. (The Maccabbees instituted Hanukkah, and Y'shua recognized it as per Yochanan 10:22) Sukkoth, like Hanukkah, was also called the Feast of Dedication, since King Shlomo dedicated the first Temple at that time. (2 Chron. 7:8, 9) The prayer prayed in the sukkah on the first night of the feast begins, "May it be Thy will, O YHWH my Elohim...to let Thy divine presence abide among us. Spread over us the canopy of Thy peace...O surround us with the pure and holy radiance of Thy glory that is spread over our heads..." (See also note on. v. 38.) It continues, "Make me worthy to dwell trustingly in the covert of Thy shadowing wings..." Son of Elohim: A title for the Messiah in His role as the king of Israel (Psalm 2:7); here he explains how and why. ... 38. And Miryam said, "Behold, the handmaid of YHWH! May it take place for me in agreement with your word." And the messenger departed from her. She echoes Aviga’il, who spoke thus to David. (1 Shmu’el 25:41) CHAPTER 2... 7. There was no room for them in the inn. The registration would be implemented only over a period of several months due to the difficulties of travel and to allow all the citizens to harvest their crops before being required to pay taxes; thus Beyth-Lechem would not have been overcrowded for that reason alone. As a suburb of Yerushalayim, however, it would overflow with people during the three pilgrim festivals, of which Sukkoth was one. Yoseyf, needing to go to Yerushalayim for the festival, would probably have saved an extra trip by reporting for the census in nearby Beyth-Lechem at the same time. (J. Good)8. And in the same region there were shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping guard over their flocks by night. Micha 4:8 identifies the place where "it would happen" as Migdal Eder, the "Tower of the Flock", toward Rachel's tomb (Gen. 35:16), between Beyth-Lechem and Yerushalayim. The Mishnah identifies this tower as the outermost boundary of a circle encompassing Yerushalayim within which all Passover lambs had to be born. Thus Y’shua, to qualify as Messiah, the Lamb of Elohim who would be the fulfillment of Passover (1 Kor. 5:7), could not have been born in Natzereth. Thus it becomes clear why the angels first announced His birth to these shepherds in particular. They were the ones raising the Passover lambs, and thus were the first to know that the fulfillment of the picture they were living out for their whole lives was soon to be fulfilled! The flocks were brought out after the spring rains and kept there until the late fall, when the weather would become bitterly cold and the latter rains would begin. Thus this could not have taken place in late December. (Ben-David) Copious other evidence points to Y’shua's birth being during the feast of Sukkoth, which falls in early autumn. (See notes on v. 7, 10, 12) The prayer welcoming the Sabbath (a complementary picture of the Kingdom along with Sukkoth) ties its light and the resurrection of its inhabitants to the "hour of the Beyth-Lechemite's birth". (L'cha Dodi) … 10. And the messenger told them, "Don't be afraid, for, behold! I am announcing to you gladnews, a great joy, which shall be for all the people— Great joy: The festivals of Passover, Shavuoth, and Sukkoth are called the "joyful festivals" as opposed to the solemn ones, but Sukkoth is called the "Season of Our Joy", marking it as the time of supreme joy. The ninth day of the festival is called the day of "Joy in the Torah", a time of great festivity and dancing, but in the days when the Temple still stood it was celebrated on the eighth day. Y’shua is the "Torah made flesh", and His flesh was circumcised on the eighth day. All the people: Sukkoth is also called the "Festival of the Nations" since a total of 70 animals are sacrificed throughout its eight days. Jewish sages have regarded this as a petition for the redemption of all nations since Deut. 32:8 links the number of the sons of Yaaqov (70 in Ex. 1:1-5) with the boundaries and inheritance of the nations.11. because today a Savior, who is Messiah, the master, was born for you in David's hometown! 12. And this is a sign for you: you will find an infant swathed in strips of cloth, lying in a fodder-crib for animals. Strips of cloth: This was a common custom for infants. The only time it would be a sign is at Sukkoth, when the used garments of the priests were torn into strips and soaked in oil to act as wicks for the four great lights in the Temple (only at Sukkoth), which constituted what was known as "the Light of the World". On a later Sukkoth, Y’shua said that this title represented Himself. (Yoch. 8:12) Fodder-crib: The animals would undoubtedly be sheltered in a stable like the ones Yaaqov built for his flocks, which in Hebrew are called sukkoth (Gen. 33:17), another indication of the correlation with this festival by the same name. … 21. And when the eight days marking the appointed time to circumcise the child had been concluded, He was given the name Y’shua, as prescribed by the angel prior to the time He was conceived in His mother's womb. The eighth day in Scripture always symbolizes a new beginning after a complete cycle of seven. The eighth day of Sukkoth is called "the eighth conclusion", encore, or affectionate farewell. Y’shua was thus saying “farewell” to His fleshly life and fully taking His place as a son of Israel. CHAPTER 3Trimm writes: “Although there was only one High Priest at a time, and the office was supposed to be for life, this was not the case at this time. There was only one High Priest at a time but he was appointed by Rome and replaced at the will of Herod. Thus Annas was an ex-High Priest and Caiphas was the current High Priest. Luke mentions these by name because they are Theophilus' Father and brother-in-law. Moreover Luke dates these events based on who was High Priest because Theophilus himself was a High Priest.” ... 23. And Y’shua Himself was commencing His high priestly service when He was about thirty years, being (as was supposed), a son of Yoseyf, the son of Heyli, Commencing: See note on Mat. 3:15. As was supposed: Or "by law" (Strong). He was not actually Yoseyf's physical offspring (being "the Seed [only] of the woman", Gen. 3:15), but by being the firstborn of Miryam, Yoseyf's betrothed, upon his adoption He legally inherited the rights of the throne of David. (See note on Mat. 1:11 to learn why this is significant.) Son of Heyli: This disagrees with Mat. 1:16, leading to the conclusion that Heyli must have been Miryam's father, though she is not mentioned here. If a man had no sons, but his daughter married within her tribe (as Miryam, daughter of Yehudah, v. 33, in this view, did), his inheritance was passed on through her. (Num. 26:33; 27:1-11; 36:2-12; Yehosh. 17:3-6; 1 Chron. 7:15) The claims of Messiah as a firstborn in Heyli's line depend on this particular exception granted to the family of Ts’lafkhad. (Scofield) CHAPTER 4 1. Then Y’shua was led by the Spirit up into the desert to be tempted by the Adversary.
At left, the Judean Desert, where Yahshua was tested. ... 16. And he entered Natzereth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day, as was his custom, he went into the synagogue, and stood up to read. As was his custom: If we say we are followers of Y’shua, yet are in Church on Sunday instead of the synagogue on the Sabbath, we are deceiving ourselves.17. And he was given the scroll of Yeshayahu the prophet, so he unrolled the scroll and found the location where it was written, 18. “[The] Spirit of Master YHWH is upon me, in answer [to the fact that] YHWH has anointed me to proclaim glad news to the humble. He has sent me to bandage the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, the complete untying of those who are bound, 19. “to proclaim the year of YHWH’s favorable acceptance.” 20. Then he closed the scroll and handed it to the attendant, and sat down, and the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed intently on him. 21. So he commenced by saying to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” He was announcing that the Yovel year (Lev. 25:9-10), which had not been kept for generations, was now beginning and should be kept, and he would do his part in bringing that about. Thus he was speaking either on a Yom T’ruah (Rosh haShanah, the beginning of the year), or Yom Kippur (the day on which this release is to be proclaimed. What he left out, when reading from Yeshayahu 61, was the next phrase, “the Day of our Elohim’s vengeance”, for it was not yet the year for that to be fulfilled, but that yovel year will come. His vengeance will bring a full sense of satisfaction to all who have been unjustly bereaved.22. And all who witnessed the same were amazed at the words that had come out of his mouth, and said, “Isn’t this the son of Yoseyf?” There is a double entendre here, because while Yahshua’s father or adoptive father was named Yoseyf, “son of Yoseyf” is an idiom for the first of two Messiahs commonly understood by Jews even at that time to be the logical explanation of why prophecy seemed to say the Messiah would suffer and die and that the Messiah would also be a king who conquered the whole world. The first was called “Messiah ben Yoseyf”, because of the analogy with Yoseyf’s suffering in Egypt, and the second was called “Messiah ben David”, because he was such a successful warrior. On other occasions we see Yahshua addressed as “Son of David”, and this is why. ...[Still being translated] ... 27. And after these things he went out and contemplated a tax collector, Levi by name, [as he was] seated at the toll-house, and said to him, “Accompany Me!” 28. So, leaving everything behind, he got up and accompanied Him. Everything: in this case, all the taxes collected for the Romans—possibly even leaving the toll-house vulnerable to robbery.29. And Levi made Him a big reception-banquet at his own house, and there was a great crowd of tax collectors and others who were with them, having reclined [at the table]. 30. But their scribes and [the] P’rushim were grumbling in undertones in regard to His disciples, saying, “For what purpose do you eat and drink with tax-gatherers and sinners?” 31. So in response Y’shua said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need of a physician, but rather those who have an illness. 32. “I haven’t made [My] appearance to call the guiltless, but only sinners, to repentance.” 33. But they said to Him, “Why do Yochanan’s disciples fast diligently and observe privations [in order to ask something from YHWH] in the same way those of the P’rushim also do, while You eat and drink?” 34. So He said to them, “You can’t make the sons of the bride-chamber fast while the bridegroom is with them! Sons of the bride-chamber: those whose task it was to prepare in advance whatever was needed for the nuptials.35. “But the days will indeed come when the bridegroom is taken away from them; then they will fast—in those days.” The Torah tells us [and that only indirectly] to fast on Yom Kippur; prophets tell us to fast when calamity is coming so as to avert it through repentance. Fasting, to these people, was becoming mere rote and repetition, and had lost its meaning; Y’shua reminds them that there is a time and season for everything to be a delight to heaven. We should fast in season, not out of season.36. So He even told them a parable [by which to compare]: “No one puts a patch from an unused garment over a worn garment; otherwise the new one will tear, and the piece from the new [one] will not match with the old [one] either. 37. “And no one pours new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the wineskins and itself be spilled, and the bottles rendered useless. 38. “Rather, new wine must be put into new wineskins; then both are preserved. The traditions by which men consider one another righteous could not contain the fuller meaning of the Torah that He was bringing out (Mat. 5-7). The rabbinic rulings could not contain the revelation and joy that He was bringing to the world thereby.39. “Also, no one who has been drinking old [wine] wants new [wine] right away, because he says, 'The old is better.’” Indeed, the new wine that was necessary in order to regather the tribes was not as potent as the original Torah, and once we taste it again, we must agree that, once we are back in the right context, it is better. CHAPTER 8... 43. And a woman who had suffered from a hemorrhage for twelve years and had spent her entire living on physicians but couldn't be cured by any of them, 44. came up from behind and touched the [tasseled] fringe of His garment—and instantly the hemorrhaging ceased! From behind: She tried to hide what she was doing because she was in a state of ritual impurity, and she touched the most holy part of His garment, the tzitzit which YHWH had required to fringe every Israelite's outer garment to remind him to obey His commands (Num. 15:37ff). She would have normally rendered Him impure, and thus anyone else He touched would have become impure (Haggai 2:11-13).45. And Y’shua said, "Who just touched Me?" And when everyone denied doing so, Kefa and those with him said, "Master, the crowds are pressing and jostling against You, and You're asking whether someone touched you?!" 46. But Y’shua said, "Someone deliberately touched Me, for I knew power was going out from Me." 47. And, seeing that she couldn't hide, the woman came trembling to Him fell down in front of Him, and declared to Him in front of all the people the reason she had touched Him, and how she had been instantly cured. 48. And He said to her, "Daughter, be encouraged. Your faith has healed you; go in peace." Faith: Not just in general, but in a specific promise. (J. Good) The tzitziyoth (see. note on v. 44) are to be hung on the extremities—actually nicknamed the "wings"—of the four-cornered (or scalloped) shawl-like overgarment [Milgrom]. (Num. 15:38) Malachi 4:2 says that the Sun of Righteousness would rise "with healing on His wings". She was thus showing that she believed He was the Messiah and could heal her! (See also notes on Mat. 9:20, 21) He actually desired to heal all of Yerushalayim in this way, but they were not ready. (Mat. 23:37) CHAPTER 9CHAPTER 105. "And into whatever house you may enter, first say, "Peace be unto this household."6. "And if a son of peace truly turns out to be there, your peace will settle upon it; otherwise it will return to you." Son of peace: A Hebrew idiom for a harmonious, cordial, generous, and hospitable person who gets along well with other people. Your peace: The blessing pronounced upon arrival. A similar blessing used by the sages was "Shalom to you, shalom to your family, and shalom to everything you own." Shalom has more meanings than "peace": it can often mean "safety" or "security" (11:21), or "good health". To have a disciple lodging with someone was thought to guarantee him protection against injury and illness, especially since they were sent out to heal, so the blessing was very real and tangible. Return to you: I.e., withdraw your blessing and move to another house. (Bivin) ... 31. It turned out that a certain priest came down … A certain priest: “Most cohenim (priests) were Sadducees (Tzadduqim) and …Sadducees rejected the Oral Law, using only the written Law... These men were forbidden to come into contact with a dead body, even to prepare, carry and bury it, unless the person was one of the close relatives mentioned in Lev. 21:2-3. Coming to the aid of a man abandoned on the street ‘between death and life’ would have potentially violated this commandment not to allow himself to become defiled through contact with a dead body. The Spirit of the Law as expressed in the Oral Torah, however, would have required these men to assist this man.” (J. Trimm) Come down: He was not on his way to the Temple, but returning from already having completed his service there, so it would not matter if he were to become ritually defiled and be unable to return to the Temple that day. The correct pattern is “go up to the Temple to be taught; descend from the Temple to serve the rest of Israel.” Therefore, they were indeed operating in the wrong spirit.
Little: Though you are small, this will not prevent YHWH's promises from being fulfilled; and do not imagine that you will miss out on anything you need if you focus on His interests rather than your own. To give: Or "Your Father approves of giving..." Kingdom: An allusion to the then-popular apocalyptic 1 Enoch 48:7, which reads, "He [the Son of Man, the Fountain of Righteousness, which does not become depleted, 48:1, 2] has revealed the wisdom of the Master of the Spirits to the righteous and holy ones, for He has preserved the portion of the righteous because they have despised this world of oppression [cf. v. 31]and hated all its ways of life and its habits in the name of the Master of the Spirits; and because they will be saved in His name and it is His good pleasure that they have life." ... [Still being translated] ... 41. And as He drew near and saw the city, He wept over it, 42. saying, "If only you—and especially you—had known, particularly in this day of yours1, the things pertaining to your peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. 43. "For the days will come upon you, and your enemies will raise up a siege ramp into you, and will surround you and hem you in on every side, 44. "and will tear you down—you and your children within you—and will not leave one stone upon another, since you did not recognize the time of your visitation." "This day of yours": see note on v.44. "Things pertaining to your peace": the "glorious things" Elohim has in store particularly for Tzion (Ps. 87:3). But now they had to wait until a future age (see note on Mat. 11:14). The time: Y’shua had often said, "My time has not yet come" (cf. Yoch. 2:4, etc.), but now it had come. What He was referring to was the time decreed by the prophet Daniel (9:24ff) for Messiah to be revealed. It had to be "69 weeks" of years (483 years) after the decree that Yerushalayim be rebuilt. The Jewish lunar calendar has 360 days in each year, and this was the time it came to. This is the first time Y’shua ever let Himself publicly be acclaimed as the Messiah. Before that He had told His disciples (and the demons!) to keep quiet about it. Now that the leaders had effectively taken sides against Him (for the same prophecy said He had to be "cut off", or killed), He let it be known, right on time. "One stone upon another": This actually refers chiefly to the Temple, as Y’shua clarified in another context (See note on Mat. 24:2)45. And, entering into the Temple, He began to throw out the ones who were selling and buying inside it, 46. telling them, "It has been written, 'My house is a house of prayer, but you made it a robbers' den'." Robbers’ den: He was referring to Yeshayahu 56:7—and fulfilling Yirmeyahu 7:11-15. In regard to its timing, see note on Mark. 11:12-17.47. And day after day He was teaching in the Temple. The chief priests and the scribes, however, were seeking an opportunity to kill Him, 48. But they hadn't found a way to do it, for all the people were hanging on His every word.
2. and said to Him, "Tell us by what authority you do these things. And who gave you that authoirity?" 3. And He answered them, "I will also ask you one question: Tell Me, 4. "Yochanan's immersing: was it from Heaven, or from men?" 5. And they deliberated among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From Heaven', then He will say, 'Why didn't you believe it, then?' 6. "But if we say, 'From men', all the people will stone us to death, since they are convinced that he was a prophet." 7. So they answered that they did not know from where it came, 8. And Y’shua said to them, "Very well, then neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things." ...
... 46. "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." This is a phrase from a liturgical prayer prayed just before one goes to sleep at night, which is a picture of death. We trust YHWH to "give our soul back to us" when we awaken. For Y'shua it was no mere metaphor. Never before had a truly innocent person died. It was an act of faith for him to trust that his descent into She'ol would not be permanent, and that his "deal" with death would indeed be honored and not only would he spring many others from their prisons, but he himself would be brought back to life. CHAPTER 24... [Still being translated] |
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