Introduction
With Christmas fast approaching, I realized that I can now listen to Matthew's 4th CD.
The theme that year was Christmas songs, which was nice as a Christmas present but can be rough to listen to in July. I usually exclude that CD from my playlists for 99% of the year. Then on Christmas Eve, I play it. However, most of the popular Christmas Carols were written well after the Bible. For example Away In A Manger probably originated from German Lutherans around 1885. So, I wasn't sure how good of a topic that would have made.
However, since I was on the music theme, it reminded me of my goal to attend 50 concerts. This goal came about after some high school friends, John Principe and Ken Allen, challenged me to share my top 50 concerts. I failed. The failure was mainly due to the fact that I only went to concerts during a small window from when I could drive to when I went to college and never made it to 50. As an adult, I am trying to correct the error of my ways and get to, at least, 50 concerts.
However, we already did a study on Music at Solomon's Colonnade. So, that was out. The good thing is that the 50 concerts reminded me of my goal to spent a night in all 50 states. This goal came about after my mom needed an ice breaker for a business meeting. She gave a prize to the employee who had slept in the most states, which not only got everyone chatting about where they had been, but also made my mom realize she was only a couple of states away from getting all 50. When I went with her to Alaska to get her 50th state, the quest became mine.
Here is a chart about how the family is doing with sleeping in each state. Mom is the only one to sleep in North Dakota and Vermont.
With the ideas of Christmas, music, and sleeping dancing in my head, I figured I had landed on a topic that could have enough verses in the Bible for a study and kind of relates to the month of December.
Away in a manger
No crib for a bed
The little Lord Jesus
Laid down His sweet head
The stars in the bright sky
Looked down where He lay
The little Lord Jesus
Asleep on the hay
~ circa 1885
Here are my top 12 verses on Places People Slept:
Jesus On Places People Slept
Matthew 8:20 King James Version
20 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.
Mark 4:38-39 King James Version
38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
Luke 22:45-46 King James Version
45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow,
46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.
John 11:11-13 King James Version
11 These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
12 Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well.
13 Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
Places People Slept In The New Testament
Matthew 27:52-53 King James Version
52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.
Luke 9:30-32 King James Version
30 And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias:
31 Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.
32 But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him.
Acts 12:6 King James Version
6 And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.
Acts 20:9 King James Version
9 And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead.
Places People Slept In The Old Testament
Genesis 2:21 King James Version
21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
Judges 4:21 King James Version
21 Then Jael Heber's wife took a nail of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.
Psalm 4:8 King James Version
8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.
Jonah 1:5 King James Version
5 Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.
Conclusion Of The Whole Matter
There are a lot of choices to pick from on the sleep theme. However, many of them equate sleep with death. For example, most of the slept verses in the Old Testament are about the deaths of the Kings of Israel, as each one died and "slept with his fathers." I tried to steer away from those verses and stick with ones that seemed to indicate an actual place of rest, like the Garden of Eden, a tent, safe places, and even a boat. I got a kick out of the fact that both Jonah and Jesus could sleep on a boat while all the other passengers were going crazy.
Most of the New Testament verses about sleep also relate to death. Perhaps the idea is to remind us that death is just a temporary period between life and afterlife. In any case, it was nice that Luke included some actual sleeping, helping me get 4 verses from the New Testament. Most of the sleep verses are in the Old Testament except when it come to being asleep, then the New Testament dominates.
88 Bible results for “sleep” from King James Version.
- Old Testament (61)
- New Testament (27)
49 Bible results for “slept” from King James Version.
- Old Testament (44)
- New Testament (5)
16 Bible results for “asleep” from King James Version.
- Old Testament (4)
- New Testament (12)
32 results for “sleep” from previous Solomon's Colonnade studies.
11 results for “asleep” from previous Solomon's Colonnade studies.
3 results for “slept” from previous Solomon's Colonnade studies.
Scripture contributions for December 2021 by: Paul Anderson, Matthew Anderson
