Theme: The motherly compassion of the Christ

Exegetical note
The verb in verse 35 rendered in English as "had compassion" means literally to have one's "guts" wrenched, vis-a-vis either the bowels or, oddly enough, the womb. What we have on Jesus' part here, then, is the kind of deeply felt, profound love for "harassed and helpless" children usually associated with motherhood, which may well have been its reference in the original Ararnaic.

Call to Worship
Leader: As mother's heart aches when a child is harassed …