“deute!”

“deute“

This was the call I heard as I laid awake at 3:45 am one Friday morning at some point in the early days of the pandemic. No, I don’t know Greek, but I stumbled upon this word that is often translated as “come” or “come now” as I was poking around in Matthew 11. I found myself processing what it looked liked to live these words in the middle of pandemic, in the middle of some of the hardest most stressful days of my job, in the middle of exhaustion and loneliness:

There it was right at the very beginning.

Duete. Come.

With sleep clearly not happening that very early morning, I got up and “came” not really sure where God was calling me to. As I searched more about this word, I discovered Jesus used this call quite often throughout His days on earth. In the verses above and in Mark 6 we see this as a call to come away and rest, but that’s not the only “come”.

In Matthew 4 and Mark 1, “duete” is the “follow me” used by Jesus to call His disciples into ministry.

Matthew 25 documents the parable of the sheep and the goats. The goats are told to “depart from” him, sent away to eternal punishment. The sheep though? “duete” … come … inherit the Kingdom.

After the resurrection, the disciples are out on a boat fishing and they hear a voice call out, “Come and have breakfast” and suddenly, maybe because of the repeated use of this word, they know it is the Lord. “duete”

How beautiful to see all the ways Jesus used this word. Jesus didn’t just call his disciples to the hard work before them of ministry. He also called them into rest, into meals, into His Kingdom. Each aspect of those callings just as important as the other.

In this weary, worn season that never seems to end, what could our life look like if each day we woke up and listened for Jesus’ “duete” call. Maybe today that call looks more like caring for yourself, getting away and being restored. Or perhaps he’s asking you to walk into challenging situations. Maybe he just wants to sit down and have breakfast with you. No matter what, the call is clear… “Come. Be near me. Do this with me. See what I have in store for today.”

Jesus isn’t the only one who uses this word in scripture though. Others often use it when pointing to Jesus.

The Samaritan woman invites her whole community to “Come and see a man who told me all that I ever did!” “duete”

And the angels at the empty tomb… “Come and see the place where he lay.” “duete”

In these two instances it didn’t stop with “come”. The come was followed with “then go”:

Come and see.

Come and rest.

Come and have breakfast.

Come!

Then go!

Go and tell!

Go and teach!

Go and share!

Go and echo Jesus’ call …