Journeys Home: The Bible in a Year

The Bible in a Year

Bible in a Year:

Notes on the Bible for

My Blog “Journeys Home”

Paul Stroble

Introduction

A few years ago, I made an effort to deepen my Bible study. I wanted to study comparatively unfamiliar areas of the book, and I especially wanted to gain a better sense of its canonical interconnections (prophecies, allusions, historical connections, etc.).

The major result of this enjoyable time of study was my book Walking with Jesus through the New Testament (Westminster John Knox Press, 2015), and also some short-term blogs where I posted my reflections and notes, including an informal survey of the whole Bible.

I like to do year-long series on my “Journeys Home” blog–they help me stay spiritually focused amid life’s busyness–but I hadn’t yet found a new series for 2017. Meanwhile, though, I missed in-depth Bible study, which I’d neglected since finishing my book manuscript

I got an idea: a series of weekly summaries of Bible material through the course of the year. I Googled the number of chapters in the Bible, and discovered there are 1189. Divided by 52 weeks, that is about 22 chapters a week. So I began to read the Bible (and consult some of my commentaries) at a rate of about 22 chapters a week, more or less, and record here what I learn.

Eventually, I dropped this plan and studied entire Bible books at a time. As the project developed, I followed my curiosity into both Christian and Jewish interpretation of the Old Testament, and also the reasons why the New Testament, though mostly written by Jews, seems so anti-Jewish (and became the root of later anti-Semitism). I also tried to show the many interconnections and contrasts among Bible books and sections.

I decided to put all the posts together into one place, which turned out to be 215 single-spaced manuscript pages, gosh. Here are all those posts are arranged from Genesis to Revelation, instead of the backward way that posts necessarily appear in a blog. They are very informal studies--note-taking that I enjoy whenever I read and study the scriptures.

To start with: after the cat moved, I read an interesting discussion in my Harper’s Bible Commentary about the “primary and secondary histories” of the Old Testament (pp. 75ff)

The primary history is the material from Genesis through Kings, which takes us from from Creation to the beginning of the Exile. Interestingly, the history begins with great promise—God’s pledge to Abraham of many descendants and a land–but it ends sadly, with ten of the twelve tribes of those descends disappeared with the 722 Assyrian conquest, and the other tribes conquered by the Babylonians in the 500s. Nearly all the leadership of the accompanying historical periods are ineffective. Is it strange that the Bible contains this long narrative that culminates in failure?

The secondary narrative is Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, which also begins with Creation (Adam and his descendants), continues to the Exile, but also considers the post-exilic time of restoration in the Land (Ezra and Nehemiah) and the lives of Jews in the Diaspora (Esther, although one could also include Daniel here). The Secondary History ends on more positive notes, with the people newly settled in the land and Diaspora Jews establishing the faith as well. In the case of Daniel, we also get an apocalyptic account of God’s ultimate victory.

Learning this material is part of the enjoyment of Bible study: when you begin at Genesis, you embark on a long journey through the experiences of God’s people, and then once 2 Kings ends, you start again on a shorter but also important journey through the same history and a couple centuries more. Putting all this together, you start to gain a sense of the richness (and by no means uniformity) of the biblical witness, and the contrasting viewpoints and theologies of the biblical writers.

You could consider the New Testament a corresponding history, and not just new scriptures. The New Testament, after all, contains passages that begin at the Beginning (John’s prologue, and Col. 1:15-20), and then reinterprets the experience of the Old Testament people, and the great institutions of their kingdom and religion, via the life of Jesus. Plus, this corresponding history opens to a new future where Gentiles are grafted onto the people of God thanks to God’s grace and mercy (Romans 11:16-24).

But the New Testament is characterized by all-too-human failings, too, with writers like Paul, the Hebrews author, and John of Patmos scolding their congregations for sins, errors, and shaky faith. The very last New Testament book has the context of conflict and uncertainty within the addressed congregations, while at the same time depicting God’s ultimate victory as well. So although the New Testament covers a much shorter history than the Old Testament, the ambiguities of human experience are present there, too. In the Bible, as in all of life, the glory is God’s alone, and we rely upon God’s mercy and kindness.

*****
Genesis 1-22

Beginning my year-long reading of and note-taking about the Bible, about 20 or so chapters each week, I “open at page one,” to quote that old Jethro Tull song about the ill-fated train engineer.

I read somewhere that Genesis “feels” and reads differently than the rest of the Torah, because God is not yet the savior and law-giver of Israel. God is working with people and making connections, so to speak, accompanying the Hebrew ancestors as they begin a history in the land promised to Abraham.

Chapter 1-11 is a block of material prior to the Bible’s main story that begins with Abraham. Of course, we first study the two creation accounts: the “priestly” narrative of 1:1-2:4a and the “Jahwist” narrative of 2:4b-3:24. I’ve also read how the Genesis stories “demythologize” other ancient Near Eastern stories. For one thing, the creation story has a covenantal purpose: Genesis 1 links over to Exodus 31:12-18, where the Sabbath is part of God’s eternal covenant with Israel, based in God’s own rest from creative activity. We Gentiles, mulling over the literalness or symbolism of the seven days, miss the very key point of the Sabbath (not so named in Genesis) that becomes Israel’s “sanctuary in time” (Heschel).

Other aspects of “demythologizing”: Even though God seems anthropomorphic, walking in the garden, not much is made of this in the narrative, and there is certainly no “birth” account of the deity, nor does Eve function as a fertility goddess or demigod like Asherah. There is a “trickster” entity who deceive the first couple, which introduces sin into God’s creation and separation from the deity, although notice that God helps the couple make clothing before they leave the garden!

A theme that we find in much literature, inspired by the Bible story, is the way children continue the sin of their parents, and of course Cain takes the almost careless sin of his parents and multiplies its horror, killing his own brother. The genealogies that follow his story show the one way that human beings were faithful to God—being fruitful and multiplying. Otherwise, without getting into theological theories of free will vs. original sin, the narrative moves along human moral decline. The Noah stories, which evidence an editing of the J and P sources, anticipate later biblical themes: God’s eventual judgment against sin, and also God’s demand for purity and purification.

The remainder of the Genesis 1-11 block is filled with genealogical information of the descendants of Noah moving out into the world. See the map at bible-history.com/maps/images/genesis_shem_ham_japheth.jpg ) I read somewhere (I need to take better notes!) that the narrative of Acts, intentionally or not, follows in reverse order the Table of Nations in showing how the Holy Spirit came to people around the ANE and eastern Roman Empire. Here, however, the genealogies include a narrowing of focus: to a particular family, that of Abram (Abraham).

The Abraham stories—which as I say is the crucial beginning of the biblical story—fill 12:1-25:18. I think I’ll take these notes through chapter 22. At the end of chapter 11 and into chapter 12 and following, we meet Abraham and his family, learn of God’s call and promise to the patriarch, and read of some of his adventures: his gaining of property during a sojourn in Egypt, during which he’s caught in a well-intentioned lie; his separation from his nephew Lot and his flock; his rescue of Lot during an intertribal conflict; and his meeting with the king of Salem, Melchizedek, who worships and serves the one God. This last story connects with the history of Jerusalem, which we’ll read about much later, and also with Jesus, who is praised by the author of Hebrews as a priest like Melchizedek.

There is ugliness and sorrow in the Abraham stories. The expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael is tragic (21:-34), though it gives the Lord a change to bless both son and mother. Hagar, in fact, has more of a role in praising and naming God than any woman in the narrative up to this point. We also have the narratives of Lot, of Sodom, and the incest perpetrated by Lot’s daughters. There is a subtle point in the narrative that the children of the daughters are ancestors of Moabites and Ammonites, two of Israel’s enemies in later centuries.

There is beauty, though, in the way Abraham openheartedly beseeches God to spare the city if there be a few righteous people to save. It is a classic story of how God may respond to prayers of intercession on behalf of persons about whom we care, for whom we hope for God’s compassion and help.

The Harper’s Bible Commentary (p. 99) notes that 20:1-22:24 are stories of the Elohist source (that makes use of the general name Elohim for God, rather than the sacred name YHWH, but is not the Priestly source which also uses Elohim). The commentator writes that the stories have the same structure: “God instructs Abraham to initiate a course of action that will involve mortal danger to another family member (Gen. 20:12; 21:12; 22:2); the patriarch obeys (20:1-2; 21:14; 22:3); the threatening situation is about to be realized (20:1, 18; 21:16; 22:9-10); and God intervenes to prevent the expected outcome (20:6-7, 17; 21:19-20; 22:11-13)” (p. 99). Little wonder that Abraham becomes the great paradigm of faith in three major world religions—the Abrahamic religions—because of the extraordinary commands of God and his extraordinary, often wordless and distressing obedience.

I remembered a post from a couple years ago on my now-seldom-updated “Changing Bibles” site: the Pentateuch, another name for the Torah or the first five biblical books, has interesting theological and textual issues, revealing contrasts of view points and challenging insights. Some of the issues pertain to Genesis’ relation to the other books: http://changingbibles.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-pentateuch.html

Parshah Torah Haftarah
Bereishit Genesis 1:1-6:8 Isaiah 42:5-43:11 (Isaiah 42:5-42:21)
Noach Genesis 6:9-11:32 Isaiah 54:1-55:5 (Isaiah 54:1-10)
Lekh Lekha Genesis 12:1-17:27 Isaiah 40:27-41:16
Vayeira Genesis 18:1-22:24 II Kings 4:1-4:37 (II Kings 4:1-4:23)

*****

Genesis 23-45

This week, we have the remaining chapters of Abraham and Sarah’s stories (23:1-25:18), the “Jacob cycle” (25:19-36:43), and the Joseph narrative, which is 37:1-50:26 but this week I’m stopping at the stories’ climax, chapter 45.
This is the end of Abraham’s stories, though the beginning of the long story of God’s promise to him. In 23:1-20, we read of the only part of the promised Land that Abraham actually owned by legal contract: the tomb and field where he will bury Sarah. Abraham and the Canaanite Ephron strike a deal, and there Sarah is buried, and eventually Abraham (25:1-18) and later Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah. If I remember correctly, this is the last time we meet Ishmael in the story, when he joins Isaac in burying their father.

I remember reading in one of Brevard S. Childs’ Old Testament studies, that the paucity of Isaac stories raises the question of whether there once was a cycle of his stories as long as those of his father and son. I also remember reading, in Torah: A Modern Commentary, that Isaac seems passive in the stories: things happen to him, rather than him taking initiative. He goes along with the near-sacrifice in chapter 22, and with the selection of Rebekah in chapter 24, and is sadly victim to his son’s and wife’s scheming in chapter 27.

The long chapter 24 gives of the story of the wooing of Rebekah, where the servant of Abraham helps gain her as Isaac’s wife. We have a series of rich interconnections in these chapters. The Harper’s Bible Commentary author notes that chapter 24 is structured similarly as Abraham’s call in chapter 12, with the repeating of key words “bless” and “go,” and chapter 24 also forms a frame for the chapter 12 promise. Rebekah, after all, is essential for the promise and enters the family as Isaac’s wife. (Sadly compare the expulsion of Hagar in chapter 21 with the acceptance of Rebekah, though Ishmael’s descendants are provided a genealogy, 25:12-18). The initial “barrenness” of Rebekah (25:21) also provides a narrative connection back to Sarai/Sarah.

The Harper’s commentary points out other connections. Conflict and deception are themes through the Abraham stories and now both the Jacob and Joseph cycles—mostly familial strife, though Jacob contends with the mysterious challenger in 32:24-32, and we can remember Abraham’s verbal contention with God over the fate of Sodom in chapter 18. Not to mention, chapter 26 has the story of Isaac, Rebekah, and Abimelech, where (like his father’s two deceptions about Sarah) Isaac does not want it known that Rebekah is his wife, and in the meantime gains substantial property (again, similar to his father’s experience in chapter 12, and Jacob a bit later).

The fraternal twins Jacob and Esau have trouble right away, with Jacob pushing Esau to despise his birthright (chapter 25), and the more elaborate deception of chapter 27. The Harper’s commentary makes an interesting point: that the resourcefulness of Rebekah to ensure her son’s future is similar to the story of Moses’ mother in Exodus 2:1-10. There are other interesting connections, like Jacob’s outrage at Laban’s deception–he who was the deceiver has now been deceived—and Laban’s own deceptive advocacy of his daughter Leah, which echoes Rebekah’s advocacy of Jacob (chapter 29).

We can also make connections to the sacred place of Bethel, the site of Jacob’s dream of the ladder/stairway and God’s retelling to Jacob of the promise to Abraham. Bethel was an alternative sacred place (1 Kings 12:26-33, Amos 7:1-13) while Salem/Jerusalem (Genesis 14) became the city of the Temple and the southern kingdom. Another significant place for Jacob is the location in Genesis 32 where he wrestles… who? An angel? A human adversary? Although the sacred site is given the name Penuel, the more significant change is Jacob’s, who gains the name Israel, “one who contends with God.”

I always love the story of Jacob meeting Esau, because how many times have I anticipated something with deep dread but it turned out alright, and even very well! Sometimes it takes years for situations to work themselves out. Although many of us turn our troubles over to God, we always should remember that we may not get quick answers and easy solutions—but God does hear our prayers! Although Esau is used as a negative example in Hebrews 12, here he seems open and magnanimous toward his deceitful brother and welcomes him as a brother. We learn of Esau’s descendants in chapter 36, and as the Harper commentary tells us, we find later references to those descendants (“Edom”) in 2 Sam. 8:14, 1 Kings 11:14-22, 2 Kings 8:20-33, and elsewhere.)

Jacob’s children were (with wife Leah), Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Diana. With maidservant Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali. With maidservant Ziplah: Gad and Asher. With wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. Of course, these sons became the founders of the tribes of Israel. I found an interesting site that considers the background of Jacob’s genealogy:http://thetorah.com/how-the-israelite-family-was-put-together-the-twelve-sons-of-jacob/

The terrible story of Diana’s rape and her subsequent avenging connects to a later story of David’s daughter Tamar in 2 Samuel. I recommend the article “Women in Genesis” in the Harper’s commentary (pp. 116-118) that discusses the relationship of mothers and children in Genesis; contrasts the voiceless Diana with the resourceful Tamar and Rebekah; discusses the contrasting emotional situations of Leah and Rachel; points out that the rejected Hagar is given a theophany of God; notes the double standards that we find amid the Genesis stories (Lot sins, but only his wife is punished; both Abraham and Sarah laugh, but only Sarah is scolded for her laughter, etc.), and so on.

The stories of Joseph are so well known: we’ve read them in Sunday school and perhaps can sing along to the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice musical! They have several parts:
37:1-36, Joseph’s relationship with his brothers and father, his brothers’ cruel plan first to kill and then to sell Joseph, and his forced journey to Egypt.
39:1-30, Joseph’s first experience in Egypt and his unjust imprisonment.
40:1-41:-57, Joseph gains favor as an interpreter of dreams and becomes a significant official in Pharaoh’s government, planning for the anticipated famine.
42:1-45:28, the wonderful stories of Joseph’s meeting with his brothers, their failure to recognize him, the way Joseph “messes” with them for a while, and finally his tearful revelation of himself to them and their reconciliation.

Chapters 46-50 also deal with Jacob and Joseph and the brothers. I’ll read those chapters next week.

I love these Joseph stories in part because God is hardly mentioned in them—and I don’t mean that in a negative way. God does not appear in theophanies and miracles in these stories, but the providential guidance of God is assumed. To me, this is a very realistic narrative about ways God may work in our lives, though obviously with different life experiences than Joseph’s. We, too, experience painful times, suffer injustice, struggle through periods of difficulty but eventually we turn the corner from those periods into times of well-being again. We still have questions for God: why did I have to suffer so long in that situation, and why couldn’t God have shortened the pain (as Joseph languished in prison for two years)? But we rejoice when we do, indeed, see (often in hindsight) how God was guiding us all along.

I didn’t mean to skip the dark story of Judah and Tamar, which is inserted not the text (chapter 38) just as Joseph is being carried off to Egypt. Tamar, the daughter in law of Judah, loses her husband before she had children. By the laws and the customs of the time, the husband’s brother was obligated to impregnate her, but he withdrew before ejaculation—and shortly died! Again, according to the views of the time, semen was considered spiritually unclean outside the body, and he also had declined a serious obligation—for Tamar was a widow with no children, a bad situation in which to be. But Judah refused to offer her his remaining son, and so Tamar deceives Judah into impregnating her instead. There’s that theme of advantageous deception that we find throughout Genesis. Like Rebekah, Tamar has twins, Zerah and Perez.

My commentary points out that Judah’s first son and also these two sons become important tribes within the larger tribe of Judah—in fact, Judah is the primary surviving tribe following the Exile, and Perez is an ancestor of Jesus himself. Again, the strange providence of God amid very complicated, painfully human circumstances.

****

Chayei Sarah Genesis 23:1-25:18 I Kings1:1-1:31
Toldot Genesis 25:19-28:9 Malachi 1:1-2:7
Vayeitzei Genesis 28:10-32:3 Hosea 12:13-14:10 (Hosea 11:7-12:12)
Vayishlach Genesis 32:4-36:43 Hosea 11:7-12:12 (Obadiah1:1-1:21)
Vayyeshev Genesis 37:1-40:23 Amos 2:6-3:8
Miqeitz Genesis 41:1-44:17 I Kings 3:15-4:1
Vayigash Genesis 44:18-47:27 Ezekiel 37:15-37:28Genesis 46-Exodus 18

Genesis 46-Exodus 18

This week, I’m finishing Genesis and covering Exodus 1-18, which brings us to the point where Moses and the people arrive at Mount Sinai in chapter 19. These chapters from Exodus are among the most important in the entire Bible!

Genesis 45 is really the climax of the Joseph stories, where Joseph revealed himself to his brothers—-after he’d “messed” with them for a while—-and their reconciliation. The rest of Genesis, though, is important, too. In chapter 46, Jacob departs for Egypt, assured by God that God’s covenant will not be broken if he travels there (46:2-4). Jacob’s family accompany him. We had last seen Jacob at the beginning of the Joseph stories in chapter 37, and now we conclude his long story. My Jewish Study Bible (Oxford, 1999) explains that Jacob had two periods of 17 years each with Joseph, the beginning of Joseph’s life and the end of Jacob’s 147-year lifetime (p. 93).

There is an interesting section (47:13-27) that I’d overlooked before: the fact that Joseph’s policies saved the lives of Egyptians but also enslaved them. This injustice sets the stage for Exodus, where a new Pharaoh in turn enslaved the Hebrews.
In chapters 48 and 49, Jacob adopts Joseph’s sons, and we have a long section of Jacob’s blessings and predictions for his sons. Christians have especially focused upon the words concerning Judah (49:8-10), understood to connect to Jesus. Who are the ancestral heads of the tribes of Israel?

Children of Jacob and Leah: Diana the daughter (not a tribal leader), and sons Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun.
Sons of Jacob and Zilpah: Gad and Asher
Sons of Jacob and Bihah, Dan and Naphtali
Sons of Jacob and Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin
Sons of Joseph, adopted by Jacob: Ephraim and Manasseh.

Here (http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-twelve-tribes-of-israel) is an interesting website that explains the tribes and the locations of their settlement after the conquests of Joshua. The Levites had no land because Moses set them apart for priestly duty (Leviticus 3:1-4). The idea of the “ten lost tribes,” which is not a biblical phrase per se, comes from 2 Kings 17:6, concerning the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom. The tribes of the southern kingdom, which survived the Babylonian exile, were Judah (which eventually included the tribe of Simeon), Benjamin, and also Levi.

Genesis wraps up in chapter 50, with Joseph mourning his father’s death, the preparation (via Egyptian embalming) of Jacob’s body, and his burial back at the cave of Machpelah, which Abraham had purchased. Joseph, not vengeful toward his brothers as they feared (50:15ff), returned to Egypt, where he lived till the age of 110.

Now we come to Exodus. Chapters 1-15 provides a block of material from the establishment of Hebrew enslavement to the song of liberation following the splitting of the sea. But Exodus 13-18 is also a block of material that depicts the Israelites’ journey out of Egypt into the wilderness to the foot of Mount Sinai.

Also, the narrative of Exodus-Joshua can be understood as a narrative (though with different traditions within it) from Egyptian slavery to the conquest of the Land that had been promised to Abraham and his descendants. Of course, when you add Genesis to the front of this block, you have the whole story up till the conquest. The difference is that Genesis depicts the patriarchs within the land, more or less at harmony with the land’s peoples. God is less concerned about the holiness of the patriarchs than establishing with them promises and providential guidance. With Exodus and afterward, Israel’s story is focused upon the establishment of the the identity of Israel as a people—descendants not only of Abraham but of the Twelve Tribes—and as a people they journey, receive the covenant, are guided, punished, declared God’s holy people, and given victory as a people.

We skip over a lot of history in chapter 1: traditionally counted, the Hebrews were in Egypt over 400 years. Exodus begins with the familiar story of Moses’ salvation from the murderous fears of Pharaoh. The narratives of Jesus’ infancy draw upon these narratives. Once Moses is an adult, he witness the suffering of an Israelite and kills the bully, which caps the first third of his life and sends him into exile for the second third of his life. In chapters 3 and 4, he meets the God of his ancestors in the form of a theophany, a voice form the burning but unconsumed bush. This is the great revelation of God’s name YHWH, God who declares “I AM WHO I AM.” After giving God numerous reasons why he (Moses) shouldn’t take on the divine task, God sends him on his way.

The story continues:
Moses and Aaron meet with Pharaoh, who instead adds to the Israelites’ burdens. Moses beseeches God. (Chapter 5)
God reiterates his promise to God by the divine name. Moses tries to encourage the people (unsuccessfully), and he and Aaron return to Pharaoh. We additionally learn of the family genealogy (Chapter 6).
Again, the brothers meet Pharaoh. Aaron’s rod turns into a serpent, “magic” that the Egyptian sorcerers likewise do, but their serpents are swallowed by Aaron’s. Yet Pharaoh’s heart is heartened. Next the river is turned to blood (Chapter 7).

More plagues: frogs, and then gnats and flies (Chapter 8). Pharaoh won’t relent, and more plagues happen: the death of livestock, boils, hail, and fire (Chapter 9). Pharaoh almost decides to release the Israelites when threatened by locusts, and then darkness covers Egypt (Chapter 10). God instructs the Israelites to borrow their neighbors’ silver and gold, and Moses threatens the king with the death of Egypt’s firstborn (chapter 11).

Chapter 12 and 13 establishes Pesach (Passover), the meaning of the rites, and the importance and meaning of the hoy day. The firstborn are killed, and the Israelites are at last released. God does not send them the straight way, where they would reach the land via Gaza, but an alternate way that would send them into what we call the Sinai peninsula. God guides them in pillars of cloud and fire.

In chapter 14, Pharaoh pursues the Israelites, to the fearful response of the people. God instructs Moses, who raises his staff and the Sea splits, allowing the Israelites to pass through to safety, while the pursuing Egyptian forces are drowned as the waters return.

Chapter 15 contains what scholars consider one the oldest song of the Hebrew tradition: the song of Moses, Miriam, and Israel on their deliverance. The people set out into the wilderness, but “murmur” because they’re thirsty. God sweets the bitter water at Marah, but it is a temporary respite for the perennially unhappy Hebrews.

They make camp at Elim, a location with wells and palm trees, but when they proceed on, they murmur because they want bread. This is the famous story of the manna and the quails; God provides for them all the days of their journey with the sweet bread-like substance called “What is it?” (the meaning of the word “manna”) (chapter 16).

They travel on to a place called Rephidim, where they murmur for water again. God strikes the rock that in turn produces water for them, but the place is called Massah and Meribah (“test” and “quarrel”). In what is perhaps a Deuteronomistic insertion into the story, the Israelites fight Amalek and his forces, who are cursed by God (chapter 17).

In chapter 18, Moses is reunited with his father-in-law Jethro. Jethro gives Moses a good solution to the problem of the many people coming to Moses for help and decisions.

The Harper’s Bible Commentary author on Exodus—a professor I knew at University of Virginia years ago—points out that the pre-exilic community would have known the Exodus story via the J narrative (p. 131), which “presents the departure from Egypt as a continuation of the theme of the double promise made by Yahweh to the patriarchs. Israel is to be a great nation in a productive land” (p. 129). For the post exilic community of the Second Temple, the story would’ve been known through the P history, and thus would’ve taken comfort in the continuity of religion from the Mosaic times through the Sinai covenant down to that post exilic time (p. 131).

From that same book, I learned that Psalms 78 and 105 also refer to the plagues, although their order and number are different. While Exodus has the ten—blood, frogs, gnats, flies, cattle, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and the firstborn—-Psalm 78 has blood, flies, frogs, locusts, hail, cattle and firstborn, while Psalm 105 has darkness, blood, frogs, flies, hail, locusts, and firstborn. Bible trivia!

We may think of the splitting of the sea as the movie-worthy climax of this overall story, with the covenant and Ten Commandments an important addendum. Actually the covenant is the great event toward which these great stories move. God is Savior (Rescuer) but God is also a covenant-maker. He has created and rescued the Israelites in order to establish a holy, eternal agreement with them—a partnership, if you will, for the sake of the world.

If you’re a Christian, and if I asked you what is the most important event in the whole Bible, you might say Jesus’ death and resurrection (or the interrelated passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and Pentecost gift of the Spirit). But the Exodus is not only the focal event of the whole Old Testament, but it is the “model” on which the New Testament narratives and theologies of our salvation are based! I write more about this on another blog: https://bibleconnections.wordpress.com/the-exodus-and-our-faith/

The site “My Jewish Learning” has a wonderful essay on the significance of the Exodus for Jews as well as all humankind: http://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-exodus-effect/

The Jewish Study Bible contains these insights: “Many of the fundamental beliefs and practices of Judaism are rooted in Exodus. The first of the book’s two central events, the exodus itself, is recounted daily in Jewish prayers, It and the other central event, the proclamation of the Decalogue at Mount Sinai, are celebrated and retold on Jewish festivals [Pesah and Shavuot] ever year” (p. 106). The author goes on to say that the covenant, the Jewish way of life, the encounter of the people with God at Sinai, the Sabbath, and other aspects of Exodus are foundational for Judaism (p. 106-107). In our own time, the movement of Jews to Palestine echoed for many the Exodus journey of the Israelites (p. 107). The exodus has also captured the imagination of Gentiles, especially the image of Moses leading people to freedom. The early British settlers of North America had that image in mind, as did African Americans seeking to gain their freedom (p. 107).

It’s also worth noting a couple more connections to the New Testament. The Pascal lamb is connected to Jesus (Ex. 12:11, 1 Cor. 5:7), and (in next week’s readings), the ratification of the covenant (Ex. 24:3-8) is connected to the Eucharistic words of institution (Mark 14:22-25, 1 Cor. 11:25).

*****

Vayigash Genesis 44:18-47:27 Ezekiel 37:15-37:28
Vayechi Genesis 47:28-50:26 I Kings 2:1-12
Shemot Exodus 1:1-6:1 Isaiah 27:6-28:13; 29:22-29:23 (Jeremiah 1:1-2:3)
Va’eira Exodus 6:2-9:35 Ezekiel 28:25-29:21
Bo Exodus 10:1-13:16 Jeremiah 46:13-46:28
Beshalach Exodus 13:17-17:16 Judges 4:4-5:31 (Judges 5:1-5:31)
(Shabbat Shirah)
Yitro Exodus 18:1-20:23 Isaiah 6:1-7:6; 9:5-9:6 (Isaiah 6:1-6:13)

*****

Continuing my Bible studies from my “Journeys Home” blog…. This post concerns Exodus 19-40.

“At the third new moon after the Israelites had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day, they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They had journeyed from Rephidim, entered the wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness; Israel camped there in front of the mountain” (Ex. 19:1-2). There they stay, until Numbers chapter 10. In Exodus 19-40, God’s greatness is everywhere apparent with the beginning of the covenant (19-23); its confirmation (chapter 24, a ceremony which becomes the basis of Jesus’ Last Supper covenant); the authorization of the Ark of the Covenant, the Altar, Priesthood, and Tabernacle and the sanctity of the Sabbath, (25-31), the incident of the Golden Calf (32-34), and the creation of the Ark and Tabernacle and furnishings (35-40). Something I read indicated that we have a great lesson in God’s faithfulness in that the work of creating a sanctuary carries on after the people had sinned so seriously.

The Sinaitic Covenant is established in 19:1-24:11, and as the Jewish Study Bible author notes, “The moments encounter with God at Sinai is, for the Torah, the defining and seminal moment in Israel’s relationship with God” (p. 145). But Chapter 19 is a very confused chapter,; the Lord’s voice comes form the fire, or from the thunder, and Moses seems to go up and then down and then up again the mountain. Aside from textual challenges arising from ancient sources edited together, the theophany depicted in chapter 19 is momentous and sets the stage for the coming covenant.

The Decalogue, or the Ten Commandments, begin God’s revelation (20:1-17):
1 Then God spoke all these words:
2 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3you shall have no other gods before me.
4 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, 6but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
8 Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. 9For six days you shall labour and do all your work. 10But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
12 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
13 You shall not murder.
14 You shall not commit adultery.
15 You shall not steal.
16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor (NRSV)

The remainder of chapter 20 notes that only the Commandments were told to the people directly; they were fearful of the divine voice and insisted that Moses mediate for them.

The section 20:22-23:33 is called the Covenant Code, or the Book of the Covenant. I’ve an interesting book by a Presbyterian minister, William J. Doorly (1931-2011), called The Laws of Yahweh: A Handbook of Biblical Law (Paulist Press, 2002). Doorly describes the four pre-canonical law collections that were incorporated into the Torah text after the exile:
The Book of the Covenant (Exodus 21-23)
The Deuteronomic Law Code (Deuteronomy 12-26)
The Holiness Code (Leviticus 17-26)
The Priestly Code (spread through Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers)

The Book of the Covenant contains cultic laws about altars and images, 22 secular laws about restitution, bodily injury, and property, 20 cultic and social laws (including God’s demand for justice) and finally 6 more cultic laws, including three festivals (p. 12). While not the oldest laws, they may be associated with the reform work of Hezekiah and then were preserved by the Aaronic priests during the exile from the Jahwist and Elohist sources (J and E) (pp. 7-9).

Doorly points out the presence of the Priestly Code that has been edited into the Torah text in ancient times. He notes that the Priestly Code is found in Ex. 12-13, 25-30, Lev. 1-7, 10-15, 27, Num 5-6, 9-10, 18, 27-30, and 35-36. This code includes laws about Passover (Ex. 12-13), the tabernacle (Ex. 25-30), offerings and sacrifices (Lev. 1-7), priests (Lev. 10), dietary laws (Lev. 11), diseases and discharges (Lev. 12-15), vows, tithes and offerings (Lev. 27), uncleanness (Num. 5-6), Passover (Num. 9-10), priestly laws (Num. 18), inheritance laws, festivals, and vows (Num. 27-30), and Levitical towns, more inheritance laws, and laws concerning murder (Num. 35-36) (p. 65). So all these passages are interconnected. This code was probably laws intended for the Jerusalem temple priests (p. 49). While some scholars believe the Aaronic priests preserved these laws in order to assert their superiority to the Levitical priests, Doorly believes that both the Aaronic and Levitical schools sought to preserve laws in light of their creative rewriting of Israel’s history, with the Levites beginning with the events of Deuteronomy, and the Aaronids beginning with the time of the Exodus (pp. 72-73).

If you’re a Christian, unaccustomed to meditating on the laws, you might overlook their deeper meanings. My NRSV Harper Study Bible (p. 274) gives a list of “major social concerns of the covenant.” Here are some from the Covenant Code:
* Personhood: everyone should be secure: e.g. Ex. 21:16, 26-31, etc.
* No woman should be taken advantage of: Ex. 21:7-11, 20, etc.
* Everyone’s property rights should be secure (Ex. 21:33-36, etc.)
* Everyone is to share produce of the ground (Ex. 23:10-11, etc.)
* Everyone should rest on the Sabbath, including servants and resident aliens and animals (Ex. 20:8-11, etc.)
* Everyone deserves a fair trial (Ex. 23:6, 8, etc.)
* No one should be exploited or oppressed, including the impoverished and disabled (Ex. 22:21-27, etc.).
* Animals well being should be protected (Ex. 23:5, 11, etc.).

So we should not look and these laws and think: this is just ancient stuff that we can ignore. Precious to Jews, they have much to teach us Christians, too. How we interpret all the laws and their spirit (originating in ancient agricultural and monarchical society) in our contemporary, technological and liberal capitalist societies is the ongoing challenge of biblical interpretation for both Jews and Christians.

The section 24:12-31:18, and the section 35:1-40:38, concern the Tabernacle. I found an interesting article at this site, that provides quite a bit of information about the Tabernacle, which was the portable sanctuary that serve God’s people in the Wilderness and beyond: http://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-tabernacle/ My Harper’s Bible Commentary has a chart about the Tabernacle and its furnishings and functions, providing the correspondence in the text between God’s commands and the resulting actions (p. 150):

“The contribution: commanded in 25:1-9, executed in 35:4-29.
The Ark: commanded in 25:10-22, executed in 37:1-9
The table: commanded in 25:23-30, executed in 37:10-16
The lamp stand: commanded in 25:31-40, executed in 37:17-24
The tabernacle: commanded in 26:1-37, executed in 36:8-38
The sacrificial altar: commanded in 27:1-8, executed in 38:1-7
The tabernacle court: commanded in 27:9-19, executed in 38:9-20
The lamp: commanded in 27:20-21, executed in Numbers 8:1-4
The priestly garments: commanded in 28:1-43, executed in 39:1-31
The ordination ritual: commanded in 29:1-49, executed in Lev. 9:1-9:24
The incense altar: commanded in 30:1-10, executed in 37:25-28
The bronze laver: commanded in 30:17-21, executed in 38:8
The anointing oil: commanded in 30:22-33, executed in 37:29
The incense: commanded in 30:34-38, executed in 37:29
The craftsmen: commanded in 31:1-11, executed in 35:30-36:7
The Sabbath: commanded in 31:12-17, executed in 35:1-3”

Before I conclude with aspects of the significance of the Tabernacle, I want to think about 32:1-34:35, the breaking of the covenant and its renewal, otherwise known as the story of the Golden Calf. The Harper’s Bible Commentary notes (p. 153-154) the irony of the calf: “The people’s demand is for ‘gods who will go before us’; that is, they want palpable assurance of the divine presence among them on their march. This, however, is precisely what the tabernacle will provide. Thus the irony in the situation is that the thing the people are demanding is exactly what is being prepared for them on the mountain [by the Lord through the mediation of Moses]. Seen in this light, the manufacture of the golden calf is a travesty of the tabernacle just authorized.” As we all know the story, Moses’ brother Aaron is a leader in the effort to construct the idol (a fertility idol, for the calf or young bull symbolizes virility). When Moses returns from the mountain, he smashes the tablets, and yet only the intercession of Moses saves the people and makes possible the renewal of the covenant.

Exodus 34:29-35 tells us that Moses’ face shone with light as he returned from the mountain. 2 Corinthians 3 Paul interprets this passage in a supersessionist way to stress the glory of the New Covenant. If you ever wondered why Moses is sometimes artistically depicted as having small horns (Michelangelo and others), it comes from this Exodus passage. The Hebrew root qrn can be translated “horn” or “radiant light.” I suppose you could thereby discern Moses from among other robed and bearded biblical heroes.

I’ll double-check these references, but I find on good ol’ Wikipedia that, after the Joshua conquest, the Tabernacle was located at Shiloh (the area of Joshua’s Ephraim tribe), where is was located during the 300 years of the Judges. (See Joshua 18:1; 19:51; 22:9; Psalm 78:60, and 1 Kings 6:1; Acts 13:20), but the tabernacle with the Ark was located at Bethel, too (Judges 20:26-28), and Saul moved it to Nob (1 Samuel 21-22) and later it was located at Gibeon (1 Chronicles 16:39; 21:29; 2 Chronicles 1:2-6, 13). Then the Ark itself came to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:17; 1 Chronicles 15:1), while the Tabernacle stayed Gibeon (1 Chronicles 16:39; 21:29; 1 Kings 3:2-4). Finally Solomon brought it and its furnishings to the Jerusalem Temple (1 Kings 8:4). The Ark and furnishings are never mentioned in the scriptures after the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem.

Why is so much space given in the narrative to the authorization, description, and construction of the portable sanctuary and its furnishings? Is it only for historical purposes?

A favorite book, The Torah: A Modern Commentary (edited by W. Gunther Plaut, UAHC, 1981) provides some possibilities. For one, the deity of ancient religions had to have a personal house, and this is the story of Israel’s (p. 598). But specially for Israel, the Tabernacle was the presence of God, in a portable sanctuary. The great Jewish philosopher Franz Rosenzweig saw the Tabernacle as the high point and “pinnacle” of the Penteteuch, which “concretized [the Israelites’] freedom. For even as God ‘made’ the world so Israel now ‘makes’ the sanctuary in a new act of creation, and the same words used in the opening chapters of Genesis characterize the creation of the Tabernacle” (p. 598).

In the text, the Tabernacle is connected to the Sabbath, which the great Jewish teacher Abraham Joshua Heschel calls Israel’s sanctuary in time. The institution of the Sabbath begins the authorization and the construction of the Tabernacle (31:12-17, 35:1-3; Plaut, p. 666), and the Sabbath has endured for the Jews as a faithful “place.”

The Tabernacle also forms an connection back to the beginning of Exodus: “The erection of the shrine was the symbolic conclusion of the Exodus tale. The latter had begun with the ‘absent’ God during the years of enslavement and now ends with the ‘present’ God who will lead His people to the Promised Land” (Plaut, p. 688). With the end of Exodus we read through Leviticus, which is primarily laws, but is its own kind of narrative that continues Israel’s ancient story. Next week I’ll study Leviticus 1-22.

***

In the Jewish tradition, the weekly passage from the Torah is called the parshah, each with a name coming from the Hebrew text. The corresponding reading from the Prophets is called the Haftarah. Here are the readings (from the Judaism 101 site), with the haftarah in parentheses indicating the Sephardic readings:
Mishpatim Exodus 21:1-24:18 Jeremiah 34:8-34:22; 33:25-33:26
Terumah Exodus 25:1-27:19 I Kings 5:26-6:13
Tetzaveh Exodus 27:20-30:10 Ezekiel 43:10-43:27
Ki Tisa Exodus 30:11-34:35 I Kings 18:1-18:39 (I Kings 18:20-18:39)
Vayaqhel Exodus 35:1-38:20 I Kings 7:40-7:50 (I Kings 7:13-7:26)
Pequdei Exodus 38:21-40:38 I Kings 7:51-8:21 (I Kings 7:40-7:50)

*****

Leviticus 1-22

Some folks will say, “Don’t read the commentaries, read the Bible!” But commentaries clarify and explain the Bible content, and you still have the Spirit and your own intellect and emotions to help you gain insight. So I have six or seven of my commentaries and study Bibles on hand to help me with all these readings.

For instance, the Berit Olam series has a volume devoted to Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy (see note 1 below). The author reminds us that Leviticus is the heart of the Pentateuch, and is precious for Jews; yet Christians regard the book with less esteem, for instance, only nine verses appear in the three-year Lectionary (p. 4). I don’t know how many books of Christian theology I’ve read that refer to “Jewish legalism,” a misunderstanding of the Torah (see note 2 below).

If Christians could appreciate the Torah from the Jewish point of view, and then understand the Torah’s significance in the New Testament, we could learn much and cherish these books, too. I’m reading the Jewish Study Bible this week; the introduction to Leviticus reminds us that the book is part of the long narrative, from Exodus 25 to Numbers 10, which could be called “When the Tabernacle Stood at Sinai” (p. 203). That period is less than a year, and Leviticus, though lacking much narrative material, is a critical part of that overall story. We saw last week how important the Tabernacle authorization and construction is, occupying the last 16 of Exodus’ 40 chapters.

Following immediately from that material, Leviticus contains the mitzvot, the priesthood, the aspects of worship, and foundations for Israel’s and Judaism’s history (p. 203).

Purity and holiness are key concepts to all of the mitzvot of Leviticus, underlying our readings this week that relate to sacrifice, the priesthood, the Day of Atonement, kosher food, and other laws. Once the Temple, sacrifice, and priesthood ceased in Judaism, the dietary laws, certain festivals, family ritual, and other mitzvot remain aspects of ongoing Jewish life and are based on the same foundations of holiness. (Orthodox, conservative, and Reform Jews approach these mitzvot differently.) And rather than being “picky” laws, they are rooted in the Jewish concern to be in service to other people and to witness to God (p. 205).

I’m also reading Harper’s Bible Commentary this week, which discusses the three realms of being in the Israelites’ world view: the holy, the everyday, and the unclean. Think of being an Israelite: we live in the everyday realm. The unclean realm include things like dead bodies, bodily fluids that are now out of the body, non-kosher living things, and so on. We come into contact with the unclean realm but can perform ritual acts to clean themselves (Lev. 12-15, for instance) to make us able to approach and properly worship the holy. Although everyday people cannot fully enter the realm of the holy, people can worship the Lord, do the rituals, sacrifice, and honor the Sabbath, and those of the priesthood are set apart and ordained for divine service to the holy on behalf of the people. This three-level worldview is the foundation for the Torah mitzvot. To bring the unclean into proximity with the holy, without the sanctifying rituals, was dangerous, as shown by the tragedy of Nadab and Abihu in chapter 10 (pp. 167-168).

Importantly, Leviticus also connects us back to Genesis, for as God sought friendships among the ancestors of the Israelites in the post-Eden world, God now defines a close relationship with the people and returns them, if not to Eden itself, to proximity to God through covenant and mitzvot. My NRSV Renovaré Spiritual Formation Bible notes that the tabernacle, which Leviticus presupposes, has several symbols of creation, while Leviticus 11-16 “instruct in how to restore the created order in the tabernacle” (p. 153).
This material has additional relevance for Gentile Christians. The Berit Olam author shows that there are numerous allusions to Leviticus in the New Testament, some negative expressions of the particular law, others positive adoption of the laws and the imagery. Most of these apply to the chapters I’m reading this week (pp. 5-7). Leviticus is foundational for aspects of New Testament theology, in ways many of us don’t realize:

Lev 1:2, the first of several verses that uses the expression “bring near,” is echoed in Eph. 2:13, Heb. 7:19, James 4:8
Lev 1:4, the word translated “be acceptable” is alluded to in Rom. 15:16 and 1 Peter 2:5
1:9 and several subsequent verses has the expression “a pleasing odor,” which is echoed in Phil 4:18, Eph. 5:2, Rom. 12:1
Lev. 4:12, 21, 8:17, 9:11 — Heb. 13:11
Lev. 4:25, 34, 5:9, 6:30, 16:15, 27 — 1 John 1:7, Eph. 1:7, Rom. 3:25
Lev. 5:11 — Luke 2:24
Lev. 6:16, 18, 26, 7:61 — 1 Cor. 9:13
Lev 6:2 — Heb 7:23
Lev 7:20 — Rom. 11:22
Lev 10:10, 11:47, 20:24-26 — Gal. 2:12
Lev 11 — Acts 10:25
Lev 11:4 — Matt. 23:24
Lev. 14:1-32 — Matt 8:4, Luke 17:14
Lev. 15:25 — Matt. 9:20
Lev. 16:1-15 — Heb. 10:19, 9:12
Lev. 16:29 — Acts 27:9
Lev. 17:10-14 — Acts 15:20
Lev. 18:16, 20:21 — Matt. 14:4
Lev. 18:22, 20:13 — Rom. 1:27
Lev. 19:23-25 — Luke 13:7
Lev. 20:10 — John 8:5
Lev 21:1 — Luke 10:31
Lev 21:10 — Matt 26:65
Lev. 21:18 — Matt. 11:5
Lev 24:5-9 — Matt. 12:4
Lev 25:10 — Luke 4:19

The Christian name of the book (which means, pertaining to the Levites) is misleading, because he Levites only appear in two verses, and even the priests are not the only focus of the book (Berit Olam, p. 3), for the book is addressed to Israel as a whole. The Hebrew title is the first word of the text, Vayikra, “He [God] called [Moses].” Although there are only a few stories in the book, the whole book can be thought of as a kind of narrative, as it looks to the past (Israel’s salvation from Egypt), stresses obedience in the present, and sets up conditions for the future faithfulness of the people (p. 12). It is also a kind of narrative because numerous laws set up a problem, which in turn is addressed and solved by the mitzvah (see pages 3-44 for an in-depth discussion).

As I also said in last week’s post, the Holiness Code (Lev. 17-26) is one of the four pre-canonical law collections that were incorporated into the Torah text after the exile. The Priestly Code, another pre-canonical collection, is spread through Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers; in Leviticus, the code includes offerings and sacrifices (Lev. 1-7), priests (Lev. 10), dietary laws (Lev. 11), diseases and discharges (Lev. 12-15), vows, tithes and offerings (Lev. 27). Here is an outline of this week’s chapters:

The primary offerings (chapters 1-7)
The burnt offering (chap. 1)
The grain offering (chap. 2)
The fellowship offering (chap. 3)
The sin offering (4:1-5:13)
The guilt offering (5:14-6:7)
Other regulations concerning offerings (6:8-7:38)
The ministry of Aaron and his sons (chapters 8-10)
Their ordination (chap. 8)
Their ministry (chap. 9)
The deaths of Nadab and Abihu, and other regulations (chap. 10)
Cleanness and uncleanness (chapters 1-15)
Food (chap. 11)
Purification after childbirth (chap. 12)
Skin diseases (13:1-46)
Midweek (13:47-59)
Skin diseases (14:1-32)
Discharges (15)
Day of Atonement and the scapegoat (16)

At this point, the “narrative” of Leviticus shifts from the Tabernacle to the land. Although chapters 21-22 concern the priesthood, the section 17-26 focuses overall on the land and the importance not to introduce uncleanness to the land via unholy actions, lest the Lord eventually expel the people from the land.
Holy living (17-26)
Prohibition of eating blood (17)
Unlawful sexual relations (18)
Other laws about holy living (19)
Punishments for sin (20)
Priestly regulations (21:1—22:16)
Acceptable and unacceptable Sacrifices (22:17–33)
… and I’ll continue with the remainder of this block of laws next week.

Interestingly, the sacrifices of chapters 1-3 are voluntary responses to God’s goodness, while those of 4-6 are required.

Chapters 8-10 concern the consecration of the priesthood of Aaron. But the story ends with the death of the two sons Nadab and Abihu, who brought pans of burning incense into the holy place and the fire of God’s presence consumed them. The Jewish Study Bible explains, “[T]he sin of the two brothers was not simply that they went too far in their misguided super-piety. Rather, they acted in utter disregard for the deity. God intended that the manifestation of His Presence would ignite the altar fire, marking His acceptance of His people’s devotion. Their intent was for the divine fire to ignite their own pans; that is, they were attempting to arrogate control of the deity to themselves” (p. 227).

Chapter 11 are the famous laws of kosher (acceptable) food. The Judaism 101 site has a wonderful explanation: http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm Interestingly, no plants are considered non-kosher.

That site also explains the significance of Yom Kippur, http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday4.htm In Leviticus 16, the day is a cleansing of the Tabernacle to remove the effects of impurity and unintended sin, and then the day is named in Leviticus 23:27, 28, 25:9.

Chapter 18 concerns prohibited sexual unions, which are also “abominations of the Canaanites” (Jewish Study Bible, p. 249). Lev. 18:22, regarding homosexuality, addresses not the sexual orientation that we understand today, but forceable intercourse that degrades and humiliates (p. 251). When people cherry-pick this verse to condemn gays, they ignore the underlying assumptions and context of the verse.

Chapter 19 addresses individual holiness. The Ten Commandments are echoed throughout 19:1-18, culminating in that verse 19:18, which many rabbis, and Jesus as well, regarded as one of the greatest commandments, implicitly summarizing all the others.

Lev. 19:33-34 has been cited a lot in recent days, with President Trump’s executive order concerning refugees. God commands hospitality and care for the stranger among Israelites, “for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (vs. 34).

Chapters 20-22 address other issues of holiness and concludes with God’s admonition not to profane God’s name so that God may be sanctified among the people—-the people whom God rescued from Egypt 22:31-33).

In synagogue readings (according to the Judaism 101 site), the parshah and haftorah readings are:
Vayiqra: Leviticus 1:1-5:26, Isaiah 43:21-44:23
Tzav: Leviticus 6:1-8:36, Jeremiah 7:21-8:3; 9:22-9:23
Shemini: Leviticus 9:1-11:47, II Samuel 6:1-7:17 (Sephardic: II Samuel 6:1-6:19)
Tazria: Leviticus 12:1-13:59, II Kings 4:42-5:19
Metzora: Leviticus 14:1-15:33, II Kings 7:3-7:20
Acharei Mot: Leviticus 16:1-18:30, Ezekiel 22:1-22:19 (Sephardic: Ezekiel 22:1-22:16)
Qedoshim: Leviticus 19:1-20:27, Amos 9:7-9:15 (Ezekiel 20:2-20:20)
Emor: Leviticus 21:1-24:23, Ezekiel 44:15-44:31

Notes:
1. Stephen K. Sherwood, C.M.F., Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Berit Olam Studies in Hebrew Narrative and Poetry (Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 2002).

2. My NRSV Renovaré Spiritual Formation Bible has this: “One may recall how the book relates to what comes before in Exodus. Leviticus is part of the Sinaitic covenant instruction. The book is a gift from God instructing in the structuring of this covenant community. It is not legalistic in the sense that it provides the people with a means of earning God’s favor; rather, it is a multi-faceted response of the people to God.”

*****

Leviticus 23 through Numbers 19

The material from Exodus 25 to Numbers 10 reflects the time when the Israelites sojourned at the foot of Mount Sinai. But as they moved northeast toward the land of Moab, at the outskirts of the Promised Land, the Israelites lost their chance to enter the Land and camped for many years at Kadesh-Barnea. The Bible seldom dates anything, so it’s good to realize that, when we begin Numbers 20-22, we’ve jumped over 38 years to the near-conclusion of the wilderness period.

Numbers has many more stories than Leviticus, but legal material spreads across Numbers and continues from Leviticus. As I wrote about in previous posts, the Priestly Code, a hypothesized pre-canonical collection of mitzvot, is found in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. The code includes offerings and sacrifices (Lev. 1-7), priests (Lev. 10), dietary laws (Lev. 11), diseases and discharges (Lev. 12-15), vows, tithes and offerings (Lev. 27). Continuing into Numbers, the Priestly Code includes the passages on uncleanness (Num. 5-6), Passover (Num. 9-10), priestly laws (Num. 18), inheritance laws, festivals, and vows (Num. 27-30), and also Levitical towns, more inheritance laws, and laws concerning murder (Num. 35-36). So all these passages are interconnected, and they also connect back to the Sinai covenant and the Tabernacle (see my Exodus 19-40 post.)

Here is the outline for the remainder of Leviticus—including the block of laws that begin with chapter 17.
Holy living (17-26)
Prohibition of eating blood (17)
Unlawful sexual relations (18)
Other laws about holy living (19)
Punishments for sin (20)
Priestly regulations (21:1—22:16)
Acceptable and unacceptable sacrifices (22:17–33)
Annual feasts (23)
Use of oil and bread in the Tabernacle (24:1–9)
Punishment for blasphemy (24:10–23)
The Sabbath and Jubilee years (25)
Covenant blessings and curses (26)
Regulations for Offerings Vowed to the Lord (ch. 27)

My Harper’s Bible Commentary indicates that the chapter 20 laws have two purposes: inculcating the obedience that protects the land from uncleanness/defilement, which in turn ensures that the people won’t be expelled from the land. God has set aside the people from others of the land, so they would be a holy people. The priests are to be particularly holy, even lacking physical abnormalities (chap. 21). The single narrative in this section, the execution of the blasphemer (chapter 24), illustrates the concern in Leviticus for removing unholiness from among the people.

Chapter 23 reiterates the importance of the Sabbath and also provides the mitzvot for Peach, ‘Omer Reshit, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. Mitzvot for the Sabbath of the land and the Jubilee year, both very important for social equality and ecological renewal, continue in chapter 25. http://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/sabbatical-year-shemitah-and-jubilee-year-yovel/

Chapter 27 forms an additional section to the other mitzvot, this one concerning holy things devoted to God. Chapter 26, however, is a divine speech that could summarize the book, wherein God reiterates the possibility of judgment—in quite fierce terms—but also promising compassion and restoration to those who turn back to God.

Leviticus 26 contains difficult theology: the connection of piety and virtue with earthly rewards, the connection of wrongdoing and retribution, the idea that the people would proper or suffer together, and the idea that morality alone brings prosperity or disaster. As The Torah: A Modern Commentary notes, the book of Job provides a corrective to these ideas; although good and bad actions do lead to corresponding results, good people do suffer while many evil people do seem to prosper. Likewise, whole peoples have suffered terribly in spite of their virtue (for instance, Native Americans, victims of Soviet persecution, Holocaust victims, and others) (pp. 954-956). The straightforward theology of this chapter, meaningful in its early context, requires ongoing prayer and reflection. But, as that same writer points out, Leviticus 26 also stresses that faithfulness and morality are among the keys to an upright society, and also that hope is always available even in difficult circumstances! God never abandons his people Israel and never will (p. 956)

Here is the outline for Numbers 1-19, taking us to the end of the old generation.
Israel prepared to depart for the Land (1:1-10:10)
The census (1-4)
The commands concerning purity of the people (5:1—10:10), which includes among other things the Nazarite vow and the Aaronic benediction (6), the observance of the Passover (9:1-14).
The Journey from Sinai to Kadesh (10:11—12:16)
The journey commences (10:11–36)
Fire and quail (11)
The sin of Miriam and Aaron (12)
Israel at Kadesh, and God’s judgment (13:1—20:13)
The report of the spies (13)
The people’s rebellion and defeat (14)
Several laws on offerings, the Sabbath, tassels on clothing (15)
Korah’s rebellion (16)
The budding of Aaron’s staff (17)
More laws about the priests (18)
The red heifer (19)

The Hebrew title of the book translates, “In the wilderness,” which is perhaps a more comprehensive title than “Numbers,” which comes from the census that dominates chapters 1-4, with lists of the adult males—those who can go into battle—among the twelve tribes. But the transition from the old to the new generation is nevertheless a theme of the book, and the initial census forms an arc over to chapter 26, the census of the new generation. As Israel sojourns at Sinai and then moves toward the land, their experience of wilderness is critical, as I write about in another post: http://paulstroble.blogspot.com/2017/01/bible-road-trips-long-sojourn-at-sinai.html
The section 5:1-6:21 gives us more laws, also regarding purity as the people begin their approach to the promised land. 6:22-27 gives us the beautiful priestly blessing used in many Jewish and Christian traditions.

The Israelites’ approach to the land includes the guidance of God through the cloud (Numbers 9:15-23, which echoes Exodus 13:21-22), the sounding of the trumpets (10:1-10), and then the march toward the land, nineteen days after the census and eleven months after the people had arrived at Sinai (Num. 10:11).

But then chapters 11-14 is a terrible “twist” in the story. After all the preparation to ensure the people’s faithfulness and holiness, the people rebel and are punished. First there is a general complaining about misfortunes (11:1-3), then there is controversy among the people for variety of food (11:4-35). In chapter 12, even Miriam and Aaron speaking ill against Moses because of his foreign wife. Miriam is stricken with leprosy for seven days, so that she stayed outside the camp. The Torah: A Modern Commentary suggests that although Aaron was not similarly cursed, he may have suffered the psychological pain (arguably worse than some kinds of physical pain) in having to submit to his younger brother. (On the other hand, it may also be a case of patriarchy: in the thinking of the time, Aaron was too important to be exiled from the camp for a week, but being a woman Miriam was more expendable.)

God authorizes Moses to send spies into the land to gather information (13:1-14:45). One man from each of the twelve tribes set out, and forty days later they return with a favorable report of the land, but with a fearful report about the strength of the inhabitants. Only Caleb and Joshua recommend that the people trust God. (Some of my books point out that two ancient sources underlie this story, one in which Caleb is the faithful one, and the other in which both Caleb and Joshua are the heroes.)

In response to the fearful report, the Israelites rebel and plan to find a leader which will help them return to Egypt. As the Harper Bible Commentary discusses, this is a far worse sin than the golden calf, for that sin was “only” a way to represent God in a familiar image, while the rebellion struck at the heart of all of God’s promises and preparation. If you read the Bible from Exodus 19 through Numbers 14, you do get a sense of the tragedy of the people’s rebellion after so much preparation and guidance by God.

So…. the people were afraid to die at the hands of the Canaanites, and instead they must die at the threshold of the land. Of the first generation, only the faithful Caleb and Joshua will enter the land. And yet, God’s promise endures. While God could have wiped the people out (cf. Num. 16:38-50), the second generation will endure and will live in the land.

At this point, the major part of the first part of the wilderness journey ends, but we also have the story of the rebellion of Korah and 250 laymen, and the subsequent rebellion that results in a divine plague. The Korahites complain: If the people are holy, a “nation of priests,” why can’t non-priests bring incense to the tabernacle? It is actually a very good question, pushing the envelope concerning holiness and identity. Norah and his people claim the status of holiness and resent Moses’ and Aaron’s leadership.

Things end badly for the rebels—-and in the Numbers story, that’s what they were, rejecters of God’s chosen intermediary and shepherd, Moses. But somewhere in Karl Barth’s Church Dogmatics, the great theologian comments that although Korah and his followers perish in God’s judgment, the Korahites are honored later in scripture, as singers (2 Chronicles 20:19), and as authors of Psalms 42, 44-49, 84-85, and 87-88. Barth sees therein a subtle affirmation of Korah’s original concern: what does it mean to be a holy people?

Other laws in this section emphasize priesthood and validates the Aaronic priesthood and the service of the Levites (17-18). The section ends with the strange mitzvot about the Red Heifer. Once such a heifer is sacrificed and burned, its ashes purify from uncleanness—and yet the ashes confer short-term uncleanness upon him who handles them! In the Jewish tradition this is a famously difficult mitzvot, making Solomon himself despair of his own wisdom (The Torah: A Modern Commentary, p. 1149). The placement of the mitzvot at this point in Numbers forms “a literary bridge that now binds the red heifer ritual with the concern for uncleanness from the dead” (Harper Study Bible, p. 196). Tragically, death will be a concern for the next 38 years, as the old generation dies.

Here are the parshah and haftarah (from the Judaism 101 site):
Emor Leviticus 21:1-24:23 Ezekiel 44:15-44:31
Behar Leviticus 25:1-26:2 Jeremiah 32:6-32:27
Bechuqotai Leviticus 26:3-27:34 Jeremiah 16:19-17:14
Bamidbar Numbers 1:1-4:20 Hosea 2:1-2:22
Nasso Numbers 4:21-7:89 Judges 13:2-13:25
Beha’alotkha Numbers 8:1-12:16 Zechariah 2:14-4:7
Shelach Numbers 13:1-15:41 Joshua 2:1-2:24
Qorach Numbers 16:1-18:32 I Samuel 11:14-12:22
Chuqat Numbers 19:1-22:1 Judges 11:1-11:33

Numbers 20 through Deuteronomy 6.

I apologize that this post is nearly twice as long as the others, but I include some material on Deuteronomy that connects that book to the other four Torah books, and also considers the way Deuteronomy looks ahead to the history in Joshua through 2 Kings.
When we arrive at Numbers 20-25, we enter the last year or two of the Wilderness period. When I was a little kid, I learned that the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years, and I thought they were on the move and lost all that time! Actually the people remained at Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran, near the edge of the Land. Miriam dies here (20:1), as does Aaron (20:21-29). Though the priesthood continues under his son Eleazar, the founding high priest and his sister pass away short of the Promised Land.

And, of course, Moses is forbidden to enter the Land after the incident of Numbers 20:1-29. In a tragic parallel to the incident of Exodus 17, the people complain for the lack of water, and in anger, Moses strikes the rock rather than (as God required) speaking to it. Moses’ sin does not seem severe enough to warrant God’s judgment. The Torah: A Modern Commentary seeks a possible explanation: Moses does not go to God and intercede for the people as he did in the past; he is more passive and then angry, indicating that he has become wearied in his leadership. But furthermore, the entry into the land requires a warrior-leader like Joshua, whereas Moses has been primarily the prophet and shepherd.

The narrative turns positive in chapter 21, when the people have successful conquests over Arad (21:1-3) and Sihon and Og, 21:10-35), but yet another rebellion occurs 21:4-9, over the quality of food that God provides. Here we find the famous story of the bronze serpent; God sends snakes to torment the people, but anyone who looks at the bronze snake will live (21:4-9, cf. 1 King 18:4). The bronze serpent has been called a type of Christ, as anyone who looks up to Christ will be spiritually healed and live.

In all these stories, the Israelites must trust in God, and if they do, things will go well; if not, disaster follows. This is difficult theology, as I mentioned last week, for we know in our experience that things sometimes go poorly for the best people. We have to remember the context of the scripture, where God is shepherding a resistant people through dangerous circumstances and also teaching them a covenant relationship with God. Our own painful situations aren’t sent by God, but God is close by, loving, and helping.

The section 22:1-24:25 is the well known story of Balak the king of nearby Moab, and the seer Balaam. As the Harper’s Bible Commentary points out, this story happens apart from the Israelites, who don’t realize how God is protecting them from the threat of a curse. Balak sends Balaam to curse the Israelites, which Balaam attempts three times, but each time God allows him to bless the people, making Balaam a kind of prophet of the Lord. Like many kids, I learned the story of Balaam’s donkey at an early age; it’s a kind of folk tale wherein the donkey perceived God’s angel before Balaam, and God allows the ass to speak and testify to God’s presence to his irritated master.

Sadly, chapter 25 is another story of rebellion, this one involving Israelite men who have relations Midian women. The women, in turn, invite them to worship Midian gods, especially Baal of Peor. One of my commentaries comments that this story is placed right after the Balaam stories for ironic effect, showing how the people were unfaithful to God right after God had saved them (see note 1 below). The Baal-peor story is an early example of the connections of idolatry, cult prostitution, and the metaphoric “harlotry” of worshiping gods other than the Lord—a theme that we’ll see in the Prophets. In our own time, we’d call it a very “patriarchal” story, with the women and their sexuality portrayed as negative influences.

The Israelite Phineas takes the initiative and slays the Midianite Cozbi and the Israelite Zimri; since he kills them with a single spear, the two are presumed to be engaging in sex when they are killed. The savagery and divine jealously of this story are troubling; God is like a spurned lover for whom punishment against his beloved is justified. And although he is not to be emulated as a lesson, Phineas’ actions are praised! Where I live, there was a recent news story where a husband killed his wife and then himself, and so these kinds of biblical stories, wherein God is like an enraged husband, are troubling.

In this story, Phineas’ slaying of Zimri and Cozbi stop the plague that God sent agains the Israelites. The 24,000 who die in the plague are likely the end of the old generation.

Now we are on a new generation. Numbers 26 is a census of the twelve tribes, connecting back to the census that opens the book. But this census sets up the concern for how the land will be distributed among the people. The Harper’s Bible Commentary notes that there are correspondences in this concluding section and the earlier chapters, like the celebration of the passover (chapters 9 and 28), the provision for the Levites (chapters 18 and 35), legal issues for women (chapters 5 and 27), and others.

The last long section, chapters 26-36, has a variety of material. Mitzvot about inheritance, sacrifice, and vows (27:1-11, 28:1-30:16) are provided along with the succession of leadership from Moses to Joshua. But Joshua will not have the direct interaction with God that Moses had; as the Harper book reminds us, Moses is a unique leader whose stature in Israel’s history is never reached by subsequent prophets. In the New Testament, the book of Hebrews discusses Jesus’ superiority to Moses, but that also indicates the unique and high place of Moses; only God’s Son can supersede him.

The victory of the Israelites over the Midianites is another savage story. In the context of the narrative, it illustrates the fact that the new generation trusts God as they should, and the debacles of Numbers 13-14 and 25 are reversed. The story of Reuben and Gad also serves to illustrate the right path that the new generation is taking. These two tribes requested to settle outside the boundaries of the Land, that is, on the east side of the Jordan River. The request troubles Moses, who fears a negative response on the part of the people (as in Numbers 13-14), but a compromise is successfully achieved.

Chapters 33-36 conclude Numbers—and would conclude the whole story of the Bible so far, before we even get to Deuteronomy. Chapter 33 summarizes the travels of the Israelites from Egypt and all their campsites. Chapter 34 provides the boundaries of the Land as God gives the tribes this place to live. Chapter 35 establishes cities of refuge and the Levitical cities. Chapter 36 has more material on the daughters of Zelophehad, providing (as the Harper book indicates) a frame for the section of chapters 27-36.

I like to find “story arcs” in the Bible. Good commentaries are essential for me, because otherwise I wouldn’t notice the connections. Exodus 29, which concerns priestly ordination, connects to Leviticus 8-9. The covenant of the Sabbath, Exodus 31:12-17, connects back to Genesis 1: the God who created all things has created a beloved people whose very lives reflect God’s pattern of creation. The laws of Leviticus connect back to the events of Mount Sinai in Exodus 19-24.(16) The stories of the spies and the rebellion of Israel in Numbers 12-14 connect us forward to the book of Joshua and set the stage for the long sojourn in the wilderness. The story of Numbers 20 connects us back to Exodus 17, two similar rebellions of Israel. Of course, the very promise of the Land connects us to Genesis 12 and God’s promise to Abram and his family.

The conclusion of Numbers circles back even further, for as commentators note, the passage describing the land of Canaan and its settlement (chapters 34-36) belongs to the Priestly Source that is also the source of Genesis 1. Thus the promise of land for God’s people reflects God’s love of all creation and God’s desire for new human relationships (see note 2 below).

In the upcoming Deuteronomy: In chapters 29-30 Moses reiterates the covenant to the people and promises that God’s word is not remote in time and space but always very near (Deut. 30:11-14, and chapters 29-30). The reminder and promise of the covenant takes us back to the beginning of the covenant (Ex. 19-24).But Deuteronomy circles back to Genesis as well. “A wandering Aramean was my father,” says Deut. 26:5, meaning Jacob, and the passage 29:5-10 remembers Egyptian bondage, God’s salvation, and circles back again to the promise of the land, which the Israelites are about to enter.

The story could end with Numbers, for the people are about the enter the land and new leadership has been established with Moses’ impending death. It’s interesting to me that these hypothesized ancient accounts like the Priestly Source and others provide this shape of the overall story. We already saw how the Priestly Code is found throughout this material.

With Deuteronomy, we begin a section of the Bible that will extend to the end of 2 Kings Scholars hypothesize a “Deuteronomistic history” that now forms the basis of all this material (see note 3 below).

The Deuteronomistic history continues the theme of the earlier Torah books: the keeping of the covenant. God will reward faithfulness and will eventually punish wickedness and apostasy. So the connection of the historical books and the Torah is, at one level, the failure of the Israelites to keep their part of the covenant faithfully; thus God’s judgment in the form of the Babylonian conquest and exile at the end of 2 Kings. But throughout these centuries, God has remained faithful.

The land is another ongoing theme that we’ll find through the upcoming historical books—the land promised to Israel since Abram in Genesis 12. God guides his people, establishes his covenant with them, gives them his law, and leads them to the Land under the leadership of Moses and then Joshua. Holding and keeping the Land, though, remains a challenge across the centuries: the campaigns and conquests of Joshua are far the end of the story (see note 4 below).

Eventually we’ll get to the history of the monarchy and the great figure of David, whom we can connect to Moses as the Land’s greatest king, though not a prophet like Moses.
Deuteronomy contains another hypothesized, ancient source of law, the Deuteronomic Code, which is much longer than the Book of the Covenant that we saw earlier. This code stretches across Deut. 12-26 and includes laws about the destruction of Canaanite holy places (ch. 12), apostasy (p. 13), food and tithes (ch. 14), sabbatical year (ch. 15), annual pilgrimage festivals (Passover, Pentecost, and Shavuot, ch. 16), and many other laws about Levites, cities of refuge, rules of warfare, murder, livestock, and so on. While some laws (especially Deut. 13) seem cruel (and were not known to have been carried out), many laws reflect justice issues protecting people’s rights and encouraging social interdependence (32-33). My Harper’s commentary points out aspects that indicate Deuteronomy’s likely authorship during the time of the monarchy, perhaps the reign of Josiah: the indication of a monetary rather than agricultural/barter economy, the fertility rites that tempted God’s people during a later time, the importance of a just judiciary, and the overall importance of reform (pp. 209-210).

There are differences among the laws compared to similar ones in other parts of the Torah. There are also differences in the conception of the priesthood—another connection among all these Scriptures. One of my teachers, Brevard Childs, discusses the distinction of Aaronic and Levitical priests. Childs notes that in Ex. 28-29 and Lev. 8-10—where we find much information about the biblical priests—Aaron and his sons are consecrated to an eternal priesthood. The Aaronic priests performed cultic rites while Levites were responsible for maintenance of the tabernacle (e.g. Num. 1:47ff). But, Childs notes, we don’t find that distinction in Deuteronomy, which describe “Levitical priests” who have cultic responsibilities. We also find no Aaronite clergy in Judges and Samuel; Eli is the chief priest but he is from the Ephraim rather than the Levi tribe. When we get to Chronicles, we return to the separation of priest and Levites that we saw in Exodus and Leviticus. Scholars like Julius Wellhausen explains the discrepancies in terms of the time period of the material: Ex. 25-40, Leviticus, and Numbers are post-exilic, while Deuteronomy is pre-exilic (i.e., late monarchy, from the time of Josiah), but Childs sees the historical development of the priesthood as largely irretrievable background history for the canonical text, in which the post-exilic form of priesthood has become normative. (See note 5 below).

The ten paragraphs above are from another informal Bible study that I did a few years ago: https://bibleconnections.wordpress.com/connections-2/ Now, back to the text!
Deuteronomy reflects a common practice of covenant renewal and is presented as a long, farewell speech from Moses, who will soon die at the edge of the Land. In the beginning section, chapters 1-3, Moses begins with a recounting of the journeys of the Israelites. The Harper author notes, “Even before Israel left Mount Horeb, it was structure into a society shaped by God’s justice” (p. 213), and this opening section certainly reminds the Israelites of the importance of justice for Israelite and stranger, powerful and powerless alike. It is a timely message for many time periods and many circumstances! Moses also reminds the people of the importance of trust in God, compressing the disaster of Numbers 13-14 and the success of Numbers 21 and 29 (cf. Psalm 136:17-22).

Moses promises God’s faithfulness, recounting the richness of the land and the protection that God provides when the people are obedience (3:12-29, 4:1-40). The section 4-11 (I’m reading 4-6 this week) is a sermon about the mitzvot. Moses preaches about the Ten Commandments and connects them to God’s faithfulness, the Sabbath, the Covenant, and the importance of worship of God alone and of justice.
Chapter 6 is worth quoting as a whole, as it relates to so much else, and it contains the beloved Shema (Hear, O Israel).

“Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that the Lord your God charged me to teach you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, so that you and your children and your children’s children may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life, and keep all his decrees and his commandments that I am commanding you, so that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe them diligently, so that it may go well with you, and so that you may multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

“When the Lord your God has brought you into the land that he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—a land with fine, large cities that you did not build, houses filled with all sorts of goods that you did not fill, hewn cisterns that you did not hew, vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant—and when you have eaten your fill, take care that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. The Lord your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name alone you shall swear. Do not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who are all around you, because the Lord your God, who is present with you, is a jealous God. The anger of the Lord your God would be kindled against you and he would destroy you from the face of the earth.

“Do not put the Lord your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah. You must diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and his decrees, and his statutes that he has commanded you. Do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, so that it may go well with you, and so that you may go in and occupy the good land that the Lord swore to your ancestors to give you, thrusting out all your enemies from before you, as the Lord has promised.

“When your children ask you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the decrees and the statutes and the ordinances that the Lord our God has commanded you?’ then you shall say to your children, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. The Lord displayed before our eyes great and awesome signs and wonders against Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his household. He brought us out from there in order to bring us in, to give us the land that he promised on oath to our ancestors. Then the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our lasting good, so as to keep us alive, as is now the case. If we diligently observe this entire commandment before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us, we will be in the right’” (NRSV).

Here are the parshiyot, Torah readings, and haftarot readings.
Chuqat   Numbers 19:1-22:1   Judges 11:1-11:33
Balaq   Numbers 22:2-25:9   Micah 5:6-6:8
Pinchas   Numbers 25:10-30:1   I Kings 18:46-19:21
Mattot   Numbers 30:2-32:42      Jeremiah 1:1-2:3
Masei   Numbers 33:1-36:13   Jeremiah 2:4-28; 3:4 (Jeremiah 2:4-28; 4:1-4:2)
Devarim   Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22   Isaiah 1:1-1:27
Va’etchanan Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11   Isaiah 40:1-40:26

Notes:
1. Stephen K. Sherwood, C.M.F., Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Brit Olam Series, Studies in Hebrew Narrative and Poetry, COllegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 2002), 180-181.
2. Thomas B. Dozeman, “The Book of Numbers,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, volume II (Nashville, Abingdon Press, 1998), 267-268.
3. The first of several books on this subject is Martin Noth, The Deuteronomistic History (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002; originally published in 1943).
4. An excellent study is Walter Brueggemann, The Land: Place as Gift, Promise, and Challenge in Biblical Faith (second edition, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002).
5. Brevard Childs, Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992), 145-150, 152-153.

*****

Deuteronomy 7-34

This week, I’ve been studying Deuteronomy 7-34, thus concluding the book and also the Torah. But Deuteronomy is also the beginning book of the so-called Deuteronomistic History, the hypothesized source that extends through 2 Kings. So we’re ending the section of the Bible most sacred for Jews and also opening to what Jewish Bibles name “the Former Prophets.”

I wrote a lot about the book last week (above). The Jewish Study Bible introduction points out that significant aspects of Judaism derive from Deuteronomy, like the tzitzit, the teffilin, the mezuzah, the Shema, and of course the covenant itself (p. 358). Deuteronomy is written as Moses’ reiteration of the covenant, the mitzvot, and final admonitions as he and the people stand on the plains of Moab just outside the Promised Land—a land that Moses, the last of the generation who fled Egypt, will not enter. The word Deuteronomy means “second law.”

The Deuteronomic Code of chapters 12-26, much longer than the Book of the Covenant in Exodus, includes laws (some new, some found in other Torah books) about the destruction of Canaanite holy places (ch. 12), apostasy (p. 13), food and tithes (ch. 14), sabbatical year (ch. 15), annual pilgrimage festivals (Passover, Pentecost, and Shavuot, ch. 16), and many other laws about Levites, cities of refuge, rules of warfare, murder, livestock, and so on (chs. 29-30). While some laws (especially Deut. 13) seem cruel (and were not known to have been carried out), many laws reflect justice issues protecting people’s rights and encouraging social interdependence (chs. 32-33).

Deuteronomy likely existed independently of other law codes and narratives that we now find in the other four Torah books. The narrative of Josiah’s reforms (2 Kings 22-23) is a key to its origins and eventual canonical shape. (Josiah was king in 641–609 BCE). The book may have originally consisted of the laws of chapters 12-26 along with an introduction and an oath of loyalty (chapter 28) (Jewish Study Bible, p. 358-359). The king hoped to renew the covenant and preserve religious and social traditions in light of a dual threat: the Assyrians, who had already conquered the northern Israelite kingdom, and also the growing threat of Babylon to the east. Among Josiah’s reforms, sacrifices were restricted to one site instead of several: previously sacrifices were made at Bethel, Mitzpah, Gilgal, Mount Carmel, and other places, but Deuteronomy 12 authorizes one place, i.e. Jerusalem (p. 357).

When Babylon did indeed conquer Judah in 586 BCE, material of Deuteronomy was likely added to the “Deuteronomistic history” of Joshua through Kings, and all of it expanded with other traditions. Then, in the period after the Exile, Deuteronomy was added to Genesis through Numbers, which already form a unit from Creation to the outskirts of the Land (pp. 357-359). Further transformation of the text reflects the needs of the post exilic Second Temple period, including the unequivocal monotheism of the Shema (pp. 360-361).

That same essay points out that the book, in effect, has Moses speaking to each new generation. The long monologue delays entry into the Land, which Moses himself cannot enter—and the fact that the Torah itself closes outside of the land has the effect of keeping readers outside the land, too (p. 359). There is a story arc connecting us back to Genesis. Abram was promised the Land to his descendants (Genesis 12), but Abram (Abraham) himself only owned a small area of land as a grave for his wife. Moses does not even have that, and he is buried in an unknown location in Moab near Beth-peor (Deut. 34:6). “Ancient editors have deliberately defined the Torah as a literary unit so as, first, to accommodate the addition of Deuteronomy and, second, to sever it from its logically expected fulfillment. The possession of the land is diverted instead into the next literary unit, which is to say, into the future. So profound a reconfiguration both of the patriarchal promise and of the overall plot is conceivable only in light of the historical experience of exile, which profoundly called the possession of the land into question. Had possession of the land remained central to the covenant, Israelite religion would have collapsed. The fulfillment of the Torah is thus reductional redefined as obedience to the requirements of covenantal law rather than the acquisition of a finite possession” (p. 359).

Deut. 1:1-4:43 is the first discourse of Moses, reviewing the historical circumstances and urging the people to obey the Lord. Deut. 4:44-28:68 is Moses’ second discourse, which contains the “legal corpus” of chapters 12-26. Moses recounts the Ten Commandments (chapter 5), expounds on the first commandment (6:4-25). This week, I’ve studied:
Chapter 7: The war of conquest and the special status of Israel
Chapter 8-10: Moses urges the people not to be proud and self-centered as they live on the land; God has shown many past mercies, even when the people broke the covenant; and so obedience is required for living in the land.
Chapter 11: Additional reminder to practice and teach God’s commandments, for the sake of blessing and not of curse.
The Deuteronomic Law Code for the people’s future
Chapter 12: Sacrificial worship in a single place of worship (rather than multiple places)
Chapter 13: Loyalty to the Lord rather than idolatry
Chapter 14: Clean and unclean animals, and the tithe of produce
Chapter 15: Laws relating to slaves and the poor: economic justice
Chapter 16:1-17: The Passover and other festivals, which also have roots in justice and in God’s blessing.
Chapter 16:18-17:20: Laws concerning courts and an eventual king
Chapter 18: Priests and Levites
Chapter 19: Criminal laws
Chapter 20: Laws of war
Chapter 21-26: Various laws
Conclusion:
Chapters 27-30: The renewal of the covenant
Chapters 31-34: Moses’ final words, Moses’ song, his death and burial, the people’s grief.
Among these laws are major social concerns: protection against false accusation (Deut. 5:20, 19:15-21); protection for women (Deut. 21:10-14, 22:13-30); protection of property (Deut. 22:1-4); everyone should get the fruit of their labor (Deut. 24:14, 25:4); everyone should have a fair trial (Deut. 16:18-20); people should not be oppressed if they are in property or disabled (Deut. 23:19, 24:6), and other protections and guarantees. My NRSV Harper Study Bible has a list of all these social concerns with references to several Torah mitzvot (p. 274).

This week I studied a book I really love, Rabbi Joseph Telushkin’s Biblical Literacy: The Most Important People, Events, and Ideas of the Hebrew Bible (New York: William Morrow, 1997). Here are a few of his insights.

Commenting on Deuteronomy 6:4-9, he writes, “To study Judaism is a moral imperative, because to be good one has to know what one’s duties are and what goodness entails… and this requires study” (p. 489). I wish more Christians considered study as an imperative! So many of us Christians have a high opinion of the Bible as God’s word, which in effect substitutes for actual knowledge of Bible content. We also get our views about society from our politics–as if being a Christian and a Republican or Democrat were identical–rather than studying biblical commandments and social models to inform our world views.

Deuteronomy 16:20 reads, “Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue” (NRSV). Telushkin writes that the emphasis on “justice” in this sentence reflects God’s will expressed in the Torah. He notes that although this mitzvah is particularly directed at judges, “‘Pursuing justice implies that one should become personally involved when hearing about an injustice that one is capable of ameliorating” (p. 492).

Deuteronomy 21:15, 17 et al. stipulates that certain advantages go to the firstborn son—and yet this is not borne out in biblical stories. Think of Bible heroes who were not firstborn sons: Isaac, Moses, David, Solomon and Joseph (the eleventh son). Also, think of Bible heroes who weren’t sons at all! “As in the case of polygamy, it is clear that although the Bible occasionally acquiesces in a deeply rooted tradition (such as favoring the firstborn), when it find such a tradition to be morally dubious, it finds a way to make its disapproval known” (p. 498).

Deuteronomy 22:6-7 et al. adjoins the humane treatment of animals. Telushkin notes that we find this compassion right away in the Bible: Genesis 24, when both Eliezer and Rebecca express concern for camels. Although humans are allowed to eat animals beginning with the end of Noah’s flood, kindness toward animals is urged throughout the Torah, as in Leviticus 22:28, Deut. 25:5, Jonah 4:11, and elsewhere (pp. 500-501).

“Most people associate biblical law primarily with rituals. Few are aware that one of the Torah’s 613 laws obligates homeowners to make sure that their roofs are safe.” referring to Deut. 22:8. He likens this to putting a fence around a pool: we’re being faithful to the Bible when we ensure that our homes are safe places!

Telushkin notes that some Torah laws are problematic, notably those regarding rape. “Torah law is much less severe regarding rape than modern sensibilities would expect. Although the Torah never adopted the sexist view that a sexually abused woman was in some way ‘asking for it,’ it also did not impose a particularly harsh punishment on the rapist” (p. 505). But the violent responses of family members in Genesis 34 and 2 Samuel 13 reflect “considerably less equanimity” toward rapists than we find in the law itself (p. 505). It is a horrible crime that requires justice and support for the victim.

Regarding the charging of interest (Deut. 23:20-21), he notes that Jews are forbidden to charge interest on loans to follow Israelites though not to foreigners, but the Torah warns against harassing people who are laid in paying, and being cruel to people in need (Deut. 24:10-14, also Lev. 25:35-36). The rabbi comments that Shakespeare’s Shylock is a slander toward Jews.

The Torah contains a traditionally numbered 613 laws. A rabbi friend of mine tells me that about 300 can still be followed today, and all are studied and reflected upon. Here is a site that lists them: http://www.jewfaq.org/613.htm The 613 laws of the Torah are set forth and discussed in Telushkin’s book (pp. 513-592 and passim), and in William J. Doorly, The Laws of Yahweh: A Handbook of Biblical Law (New York: Paulist Press, 2002).

Here are the parshiyot, Torah readings, and haftarot readings.
Va’etchanan Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11 Isaiah 40:1-40:26
Eiqev Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25 Isaiah 49:14-51:3
Re’eh Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17 Isaiah 54:11-55:5
Shoftim Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9 Isaiah 51:12-52:12
Ki Teitzei Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19 Isaiah 54:1-54:10
Ki Tavo Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8 Isaiah 60:1-60:22
Nitzavim Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20 Isaiah 61:10-63:9
Vayeilekh Deuteronomy 31:1-31:30 Isaiah 55:6-56:8
Ha’azinu Deuteronomy 32:1-32:52 II Samuel 22:1-22:51
Vezot Haberakhah Deuteronomy 33:1-34:12 Joshua 1:1-1:18(Joshua 1:1-1:9)

In my own reflections on these scriptures, I think of an odd connection: Deuteronomy and Revelation. Deuteronomy concludes the Torah with a stirring call for Jews to keep faithful to the commandments and to remind future generations of God’s mighty works of salvation. Meanwhile Revelation concludes the New Testament with arcane and impenetrable symbols that invite all kinds of wheel-spinning speculation about the end times.

And yet Revelation also calls future generations to faithfulness. Revelation proclaims God’s mighty work of salvation, too (7:10, 11:15, 19:6), and so, in an analogous way to Deuteronomy, we know that there is no ultimate reason for us to lose heart. In the Christian affirmation, although Christ’s final victory lies in the future, that victory is assured. In a variety of ways, the Old and New Testaments affirm God’s own faithfulness! So we can follow God with confidence.

Torah, Prophets, and Haftarah

The Torah is such a rich section of the Bible. Although I finished Deuteronomy in the previous post, here are a few more thoughts about the Torah, gleaned from some of my other blog sites.

The author of the “Judaism 101” site writes, “Each week in synagogue, we read (or, more accurately, chant, because it is sung) a passage from the Torah. This passage is referred to as a parshah. The first parshah, for example, is Parshat Bereishit, which covers from the beginning of Genesis to the story of Noah. There are 54 parshahs, one for each week of a leap year, so that in the course of a year, we read the entire Torah (Genesis to Deuteronomy) in our services. … We read the last portion of the Torah right before a holiday called Simchat Torah (Rejoicing in the Law), which occurs in October, a few weeks after Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year). On Simchat Torah, we read the last portion of the Torah, and proceed immediately to the first paragraph of Genesis, showing that the Torah is a circle, and never ends.

“In the synagogue service, the weekly parshah is followed by a passage from the prophets, which is referred to as a haftarah. Contrary to common misconception, ‘haftarah’ does not mean ‘half-Torah.’ The word comes from the Hebrew root Fei-Teit-Reish and means ‘Concluding Portion’. Usually, haftarah portion is no longer than one chapter, and has some relation to the Torah portion of the week.”

This is from http://www.jewfaq.org/readings.htm , which also has the list of weekly Torah and Haftarah readings. This site, https://www.hebcal.com/sedrot/ , also provides the daily and weekly readings for recent and upcoming years according to how Simchat Torah falls.

Remember that in Judaism, “the prophets” is not only Isaiah through Malachi, but also Joshua through II Kings, or the later and former prophets, respectively. The Ketuvim, or writings, have no formal cycle of readings, although the Five Megillot (Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther) are read on particular festivals, and Psalms are found throughout the Siddur (prayer book).

The Torah may be the most ambivalent portion of the Bible for Christians. Some Christians won’t touch the statutes with the proverbial long pole—unless, of course, some of the laws are suitable to prove a point, and the laws become God’s eternal word which other people have violated.

We Christians should remember a few things about the Torah. The first is that much of material was not originally meant to be applicable for us Gentiles (Acts 15, Gal. 3:3-5). These are laws for Jews to do God’s will and to set them apart as God’s people. The distinction you often hear—the moral laws are applicable for Christians but the ceremonial laws are not—is not a biblical distinction at all, because in the Torah, all of life—worship, legal translations, daily behavior, diet, and so on—are of a whole piece. In his love, God has given the Hebrews a precious expression of his will. God shares this religious heritage with us Gentiles because of his love and this material is part of our religious heritage because of God’s favor (Rom. 11:17-24).

In contrast to Paul’s theology about the law in Romans and Galatians, Judaism has not historically viewed the law as a means of self-justification and self-salvation; the law has been God’s wonderful gift to follow. Paul, however, was adamant that the laws were unnecessary for Gentile converts to Christianity; even more than the moral law, he stressed the law of the guidance of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-26). Now, we see the law through Christ, who fulfilled all righteousness and took the consequences of our law breaking onto himself (2 Cor. 5:21). But Paul upholds the law (Rom. 3:31), to show how Christ’s perfect (law-keeping) life is now a gift of life to us; thanks to Christ, the Torah is precious to us Gentiles, too.

Arguing thus, Paul stayed within the Torah and went back before Moses to Abraham to show how God’s favor touches people through their faith apart from the law (Rom. 4). (Jesus did a similar thing, going prior to Moses to God’s first intentions: Matt. 10:2-9). The question remains for Christians: how does the law still apply? A classic solution is to view the law in three ways: as a restraint to the wicked (the political use), as the law that brings us to Christ’s salvation (Gal. 3:24, the theological use), and then the “third use of the law,” which is to give content to the love of Christ which we display as we’re transformed by the Spirit (Gal. 6:2).

Furthermore, the Torah is foundational for Christians in other ways so obvious that we take them for granted. A Bible explorer will discover interesting “arcs” and connections between the Torah and the New Testament. One is the idea of the covenant, for now God has extended his covenant to include non-Jews (Rom. 3:29-30). Another is the idea of blood for atonement forgiveness of sins (Rom. 3:25). Christ’s blood was shed and now there is no longer need for sacrifice (Heb. 9:11-14).

Still another idea is the faithfulness and righteousness of God, a Torah theme strongly defended in Romans 3 in Paul’s preaching of Christ.

Here are a few additional connections:
The Creation and New Creation (2 Cor. 5:17, Rev. 21:1)
Adam and the Second Adam (Rom. 5:12-21)
The faith of Abraham, in some important ways the key to the whole Bible (Gen. 12:1-3, Rom. 4, Heb. 11:8-22)
The manna in the wilderness and the Eucharistic bread (Ex. 16:1-21, John 6:25-40).
The covenant, the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and the Eucharist (Ex. 24:3-8; Lev. 7:12, 22:29, Ps. 107:22, 116:17, Amos 4:5, Mark 14:22-25 and parallels, 1 Cor. 11:25)
The healing serpent and the healing of Christ (Num. 21:8-9; John 3:14-15)
The condemnation in Deuteronomy of a condemned criminal “hanging on a tree” (Deut. 21:22-23; John 19:31, Gal. 3:13)
The salvation of Noah’s ark (1 Peter 3:20-21)
The role of Moses (Heb. 3:1-6, 11:23-28)
Moses’ shining face (Ex. 34:29-35, 1 Cor. 3:12-18)
The drink offering (Ex. 29:38-41, Lev. 23:12, 13, 18, Phil. 2:12-18, 2 Tim. 4:6-8)
The priesthood of Aaron (Heb. 7:11-14, 9:1-10:18)(20)
The “rest” of the Promised Land (Heb. 3:7-4:13)
The Pascal Lamb (Ex. 12:11; 1 Cor. 5:7)
The two great commandments (Deut. 6:4-5, Lev. 19:18, Mark 12:28-34, Gal. 5:14).

Also: Deuteronomy’s authorization of and limitations on role and authority (under the Torah) of the king, which in turn shapes the later prophetic theologies concerning the righteous Davidic king of Israel—which in turn shapes Christians’ vision of Jesus. (I found an interesting article about the Deuteronomistic theology of the monarchy: http://www.academia.edu/218248/_The_Reconceptualization_of_Kingship_in_Deuteronomy_and_the_Deuteronomistic_Historys_Transformation_of_Torah_)

*****

Back in 2015 (http://changingbibles.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-pentateuch.html), I took notes from the enjoyable article on the Pentateuch in the New Interpreter’s Bible Dictionary. The author, R. W. L. Moberly, discusses issues of interpretation and content. For instance, narrative tensions can be found throughout the various books. Isaac’s blessing of his two sons (Genesis 27) implies that Isaac was near death; but Isaac died years later, after Jacob returns from his fourteen years with Laban (Genesis 29:15-30, 35:27-29) (p. 432). The number of Israelites who left Egypt seem to be a comparatively smaller group—that can be accommodated by twelve springs and by water produced from a rock (Ex. 15:27, 17:6). But elsewhere the narrative describes the group as 600,000 men on food, not including women and children, or nearly two millions people (p. 433).

Another contrast is the status of women: Exodus 20:17 places “wife” after “house,” while the corresponding commandment in Deuteronomy (5:21) places wife before house. Similarly, Deuteronomy 22:22 makes a woman accountable for her actions, although in Genesis, when Sarah is taken into Pharaoh’s harem (and later Abimelech’s), it is Abraham who is accountable (Genesis 12:18-19, 20:10) (p. 433).

Still another contrast is the difference between the Ten Commandments, usually in small details, but notably in the difference between the Exodus and Deuteronomy versions of the Sabbath commandment, where two different reasons for the commandment are given (Ex. 20:11, Deut. 5;15) (p. 433).

The article lists several similar examples, reflecting the different traditions that have been brought together in the writing and editing of what became the canonical text. But I was particularly interested in points made in the section “Genesis as ‘the Old Testament of the Old Testament’” (p. 434-435). The focus is on the fact that, in Exodus 3:13-15, God reveals the divine name to Moses as a new name, and in Exodus 6:2-3, it is stated that the patriarchs knew God, not as YHWH but as El Shaddai. But in Genesis, God uses the divine name (Gen. 15:7, 28:13), and the name is frequently used throughout the book (p. 434).

A possible explanation is that, for the hypothesized writers named as the Elohist and the Priestly sources, the divine name was made known to Moses but not before, while the source called the Jahwist used the divine name all along, in Genesis 2, in Gen. 4:26, and so on. Still, these different traditions were preserved together when Genesis was written. (Another explanation is that the divine name was familiar to the authors and used in the text, even if it is anachronistic: p. 435.)

Moberly writes that the divine name becomes attached to the covenant of Moses and therefore to holiness and exclusivity (as in Exodus 12, where the Egyptians did not know the true God.) And yet, the Lord named by the divine name YHWH is traditionally called the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—Moses’ forebearers. As Moberly puts it, “The one God can apparently be known in markedly different ways. This poses the ancient problem: how should one recognize as religiously authoritative material that is full of religious practices different from or even forbidden by Mosaic torah (compare, e.g., Jacob’s setting up a pillar in Gene. 28:18 with the strong prohbition of such in Deut. 16:22)?” (p. 435).

Moberly suggests that the patriarchs “become types and/or figures of Israel” for instance, Abraham’s journey to Egypt. The Abraham stories aren’t rewritten to reflect later religious realities but they remain authoritative heritage for Israel. Christians, of course, do the same thing in their interepretation of Abraham, Moses, and other aspects of the Old Testament (p 435).

Another interesting point made in the article concerns the Shema, not only Deut. 6:4-5 but also Deut. 6:6-9. Christians tend to ignore 6-9 as Jewish practices. Yet Christians feel scriptural obligations to follow other teachings of scripture (as in the “do this” of 1 Cor. 11:23-26, et al.). It’s just that Christians have appropriated other practices for their own heritage. “Of course, some Christians traditionally have practiced equivalent to those of Deut. 6:6-9, most obviously int he regular recital of the Lord’s Prayer and in the display of the prime Christian symbol of the cross—often on a necklace but also over the gates of critics in the historic Christian empire of Byzantium, where they symbolically depicted the identity and allegiance of the place one was entering, just as Deut. 6:9 envisages the working of the Shema doing for Israel’s homes (private space) and cities (public space). Deuteronomy does not envisage the recital and display of an equivalent to the Shema, but of the Shema itself. Yet Christians only receive Deuteronomy as part of the larger canon of Scripture… and that makes the difference” (p. 437).

I often fuss about Christians who declare that the Bible shouldn’t be interpreted, only obeyed. It’s such an uninformed if well-intentioned declaration about the Bible, a book with richness and contrasting viewpoints that reward ongoing study and interpretation.

The Torah is read in a yearly cycle in synagogue worship (the weekly portion or parshah), accompanied by a related reading from the Prophets (the haftarah). This week I went back to the lists of those readings to learn their meaningful connections, perhaps unexplored by most Christians. The following is gleaned from W. Gunther Plaut, The Haftarah Commentary (Central Conference of American Rabbis, 1996): first the name of the parshah, then the Torah portion, then the haftarah. I focused on the Ashkenazic readings; in a few cases, Sephardic congregations have different haftarot.

Bereishit
Genesis 1:1-6:8: the creation story
Isaiah 42:5-43:11: the creation of Israel is linked to creation of the universe
Noach
Genesis 6:9-11:32: the punishments and redemption during the time of Noah
Isaiah 54:1-55:5: the redemption from punishment and exile is at hand
Lekh Lekha
Genesis 12:1-17:27: stories of Abraham
Isaiah 40:27-41:16: God remembers and cares for Israel, children of Abraham
Vayeira
Genesis 18:1-22:24: God promises Abraham and Sarah a song
II Kings 4:1-4:37: Elijah’s miraculous help for the Shunammite woman
Chayei Sarah
Genesis 23:1-25:18: Abraham looks for a wife for Isaac
I Kings1:1-1:31: David’’s need for a suitable successor
Toldot
Genesis 25:19-28:9: the struggles of Jacob and Esau
Malachi 1:1-2:7: a reiteration of the primacy of Jacob over Esau
Vayeitzei
Genesis 28:10-32:3: Jacob’s sojourn in Aram
Hosea 12:13-14:10: Hosea’s use of that story
Vayishlach
Genesis 32:4-36:43: Jacob and the angel
Hosea 11:7-12:12: Hosea’s use of that story as a metaphor for his home and for the nation
Vayyeshev
Genesis 37:1-40:23: Joseph is sold into slavery
Amos 2:6-3:8: Amos’ Israelite contemporaries would sell out an innocent person
Miqeitz
Genesis 41:1-44:17: Pharaoh’s dream
I Kings 3:15-4:1: Solomon’s dream
Vayigash
Genesis 44:18-47:27: reconciliation of Joseph and his brothers
Ezekiel 37:15-37:28: the reunited stick
Vayechi
Genesis 47:28-50:26: Jacob gives his last words to his sons
I Kings 2:1-12: David gives his last words to Solomon
Shemot
Exodus 1:1-6:1: Israel’s enslavement in Egypt
Isaiah 27:6-28:13; 29:22-29:23: Israel’s sins and troubles
Va’eira
Exodus 6:2-9:35: the plagues of Egypt
Ezekiel 28:25-29:21: the coming humiliation of Egypt, which had forsaken Israel
Bo
Exodus 10:1-13:16: Pharaoh vs. God
Jeremiah 46:13-46:28: Pharaoh Necho, who killed King Josiah, will be defeated
Beshalach (Shabbat Shirah)
Exodus 13:17-17:16: Defeat of the enemy Egypt and the people’s song
Judges 4:4-5:31: Deborah’s song of the defeat of Canaanite enemies
Yitro
Exodus 18:1-20:23: The Sinai revelation
Isaiah 6:1-7:6; 9:5-9:6: the revelation of God to Isaiah
Mishpatim
Exodus 21:1-24:18: release of the Hebrew slaves
Jeremiah 34:8-34:22; 33:25-33:26: Jeremiah’s response when Judah rulers would not free slaves
Terumah
Exodus 25:1-27:19: construction of the Tabernacle
I Kings 5:26-6:13: construction of the Temple
Tetzaveh
Exodus 27:20-30:10: the Tabernacle altar
Ezekiel 43:10-43:27: the future Temple sanctuary
Ki Tisa
Exodus 30:11-34:35: the Golden Calf
I Kings 18:1-18:39: the priests of Baal
Vayaqhel
Exodus 35:1-38:20: building a sanctuary
I Kings 7:40-7:50: building a sanctuary
Pequdei
Exodus 38:21-40:38: the craftsman Bezalel who worked on the Tabernacle
I Kings 7:51-8:21: the craftsman Hiram who worked on the Temple
Vayiqra
Leviticus 1:1-5:26: sacrifices
Isaiah 43:21-44:23: the proper sacrifices
Tav
Leviticus 6:1-8:36: sacrifices
Jeremiah 7:21-8:3; 9:22-9:23: sacrifice alone cannot please God, who also demands righteous deeds
Shemini
Leviticus 9:1-11:47: deaths of Aaron’s sons when they approach the Holy Fire improperly
II Samuel 6:1-7:17: the death of Uzzah who touches the holy Ark improperly
Tazria
Leviticus 12:1-13:59: skin diseases
II Kings 4:42-5:19: the story of Elisha and Naaman
Metro
Leviticus 14:1-15:33: skin diseases
II Kings 7:3-7:20: the story of the four lepers
Acharei Mot
Leviticus 16:1-18:30: forbidden sexual relations
Ezekiel 22:1-22:19: denouncing sexual licentiousness
Qedoshim
Leviticus 19:1-20:27: ethical requirements, with warnings
Amos 9:7-9:15: Amos’ warnings to the kingdom
Emor
Leviticus 21:1-24:23: priestly duties
Ezekiel 44:15-44:31: priests of the future Temple
Behar
Leviticus 25:1-26:2: family titles to land
Jeremiah 32:6-32:27: Jersmiah buys a parcel of land
Bechuqotai
Leviticus 26:3-27:34: blessings and curses
Jeremiah 16:19-17:14: Jeremisah’s assurance of blessings
Bamidbar
Numbers 1:1-4:20: census in the wilderness
Hosea 2:1-2:22: the people will be as numerous as sands of the sea
Nasso
Numbers 4:21-7:89: Nazarites
Judges 13:2-13:25: Nazarites
Beha’alotkha
Numbers 8:1-12:16: the Tabernacle candlestick
Zechariah 2:14-4:7: vision of the candelabrum of the Temple
Shelach
Numbers 13:1-15:41; the spies
Joshua 2:1-2:24: the spies
Qorach
Numbers 16:1-18:32: Korah’s attempt to replace Moses
I Samuel 11:14-12:22: the people’s seeming attempt to replace God with a human king
Chuqat
Numbers 19:1-22:1: Moses’ request to the Amorite king
Judges 11:1-11:33: Jephthah’s negotiations with the Amorites
Balaq
Numbers 22:2-25:9: King Balak (Balaq) wants Balaam to curse Israel
Micah 5:6-6:8: Micah remembers this incident.
Pinchas
Numbers 25:10-30:1: Phineas (Pinchas) and his reward
I Kings 18:46-19:21: the heroism of Elijah
Mattot
Numbers 30:2-32:42: God’s punishment
Jeremiah 1:1-2:3: Jeremiah’s call to preach warnings
Masei
Numbers 33:1-36:13: punishments
Jeremiah 2:4-28; 3:4: the prophet’s warnings about idolatry
Devarim
Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22: Moses
Isaiah 1:1-1:27: punishments
The next seven haftarah are haftarah of consolation (Shabbat Nachamu) and all come from Second Isaiah. They are all messages of hope for God’s people Israel. The first is read on the Shabbat after Tisha b’Av, which is the fast that commemorates the Temple’s destruction in 587 BCE. The others are read on successive Sabbaths until the seventh, which is read on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah. Thus, as Moses urges faithfulness to the Lord and obedience to his Torah, the Isaiah passages express God’s promises to liberate and provide for Israel.
Va’etchanan
Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11
Isaiah 40:1-40:26
Eiqev
Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25
Isaiah 49:14-51:3
Re’eh
Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17
Isaiah 54:11-55:5
Shoftim
Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9
Isaiah 51:12-52:12
Ki Teitzei
Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19
Isaiah 54:1-54:10
Ki Tavo
Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8
Isaiah 60:1-60:22
Nitzavim
Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20
Isaiah 61:10-63:9
This haftarah is usually read on the Sabbath between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Vayeilekh
Deuteronomy 31:1-31:30
Isaiah 55:6-56:8: seek the Lord when God is near
Ha’azinu
Deuteronomy 32:1-32:52: Moses’ farwell song
II Samuel 22:1-22:51: David’s song
Vezot Haberakhah (read on Simchat Torah, when the year’s Torah readings are concluded, and the new year of readings begins)
Deuteronomy 33:1-34:12: death of Moses
Joshua 1:1-1:18: the beginning of Joshua’s leadership

The Judaism 101 site also gives the special Parshiyot and Haftarot for Jewish holidays:http://www.jewfaq.org/readings.htm

The Judaism 101 author provides this information: “Each week in synagogue, we read (or, more accurately, chant, because it is sung) a passage from the Torah. This passage is referred to as a parshah. The first parshah, for example, is Parshat Bereishit, which covers from the beginning of Genesis to the story of Noah. There are 54 parshahs, one for each week of a leap year, so that in the course of a year, we read the entire Torah (Genesis to Deuteronomy) in our services. During non-leap years, there are 50 weeks, so some of the shorter portions are doubled up. We read the last portion of the Torah right before a holiday called Simchat Torah (Rejoicing in the Law), which occurs in October, a few weeks after Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year). On Simchat Torah, we read the last portion of the Torah, and proceed immediately to the first paragraph of Genesis, showing that the Torah is a circle, and never ends.

“In the synagogue service, the weekly parshah is followed by a passage from the prophets, which is referred to as a haftarah. … The word comes from the Hebrew root Fei-Teit-Reish and means ‘Concluding Portion’. Usually, haftarah portion is no longer than one chapter, and has some relation to the Torah portion of the week.

“The Torah and haftarah readings are performed with great ceremony: the Torah is paraded around the room before it is brought to rest on the bimah (podium). The reading is divided up into portions, and various members of the congregation have the honor of reciting a blessing over a portion of the reading. This honor is referred to as an aliyah (literally, ascension)… ”

Working on this post, I discovered that there are yearly and triennial cycles of readings. A rabbi friend explained that the Masoretes (the 6th-10th century CE scholars who helped established the definitive text of the Hebrew Bible) set up the cycle of yearly readings, and other scholars of the Land of Israel established a three-year cycle. The Wikipedia site reads:

“The Triennial cycle of Torah reading may refer either a) to the historical practice in ancient Israel by which the entire Torah was read in serial fashion over a three-year period, or b) to the practice adopted by many Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist and Renewal congregations starting in the 19th and 20th Century, in which the traditional weekly Torah portions were divided into thirds, and in which one third of each weekly ‘parashah’ of the annual system is read during the appropriate week of the calendar.

“There are 54 parashot in the annual cycle, and 141, 154, or 167 parashot in the triennial cycle as practiced in ancient Israel, as evidenced by scriptural references and fragments of recovered text. By the Middle Ages, the annual reading cycle was predominant, although the triennial cycle was still extant at the time, as noted by Jewish figures of the period, such as Benjamin of Tudela and Maimonides. Dating from Maimonides’ codification of the parashot in his work Mishneh Torah in the 12th Century CE through the 19th Century, the majority of Jewish communities adhered to the annual cycle.

“In the 19th and 20th Centuries, many synagogues in the Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist and Renewal Jewish movements adopted a triennial system in order to shorten the weekly services and allow additional time for sermons, study, or discussion.”

I wonder if we Christians might appreciate the Torah more if we not only delved into the passages themselves but also saw them in relation to Old Testament stories and teachings with which we may be more familiar. It has certainly improved and blessed my knowledge of the books of Scripture that Jews hold especially dear.

Oral Torah and Talmudic Traditions

Continuing my “Bible in a Year” posts from my “Journeys Home” blog.

In upcoming posts about the Bible, I’ll write about the Jews’ return to the land, the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple during the post-exilic years 539-432 BCE (Ezra and Nehemiah), the reaffirmation of the covenant during those years, the survival of exiled Jews in Persia (Esther), and the victory of Jews over the Seleucids who tried to establish Greek worship at the Second Temple during the 2nd century BCE (1 and 2 Maccabees).

It’s important to remember the ways that Judaism continued to survive and remain faithful to the Lord during the subsequent decades and centuries, often amid Christian persecution of Jews. The following is a brief explanation of the Talmud, the writings which have been central for Rabbinic Judaism, the mainstream form of Judaism since the 500s CE. Tragically, as that linked article discusses, Talmud and its study have been the focus of anti-Semitic attacks over the centuries, with material taken out of context or completely fabricated. See also this site concerning Christian persecution of Talmud study.

As Judaism developed during the post-exilic period, the canonization of the Scriptures was one crucial development. The writing and editing of the Jewish Tanakh likely began just prior to and then during and after the exile, while canonization was a process that happened between the Hasmonean period and the 200s CE. (Canonization of the Christian Old Testament was a much longer process; in addition to the weighing-in of other councils, the councils of Carthage [397] and Trent [1546] established the Roman Catholic canon, as did Eastern authorities concerning the Orthodox Christian canon; but Martin Luther [1534] removed deuterocanonical OT books to an appendix, useful for reading but non-scriptural.)

By the first century CE, the term rabbi (“my master”) became common to refer to a learned Jewish teacher. Also by that time, competing factions existed in Judaism: the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Zealots. An ascetic group, the Essenes, also lived during this time, said to be successors of the Zadokite priests that began in the times of David and Solomon. Here is an explanation of differences among these groups: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/pharisees-sadducees-and-essenes Early Christianity emerged during this time as well.

After the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE) and the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, Jews found themselves in a traumatic situation that rivaled the disaster of 586 BCE. How would the faith survive without a temple? Without a priesthood? How would Jewish traditions survive? The Zealots all died at Masada in 73; the Sadducees faded from history; and the the Essenes also disappeared. The Christian sect became a predominantly Gentile religion, retaining Jewish scripture and reconfiguring aspects of Jewish theology. Jewish vitality remained with the Pharisees, who saw Jewish law as the focus of Jewish life, and they helped shift the focus from temple offerings to tzedakah, study, and synagogues.

In this situation, a tradition called the Oral Torah had to be compiled and written down. The Written Torah was the scriptural five books of Moses, but an oral tradition attributed to Moses’ teachings had been passed down over the centuries; Orthodox Jews believe that this tradition was safeguarded through the Judges and Prophets and Second Temple-era sages. After the unsuccessful revolt of Simon Bar Kochba (132-136 CE), Romans forbade Jews from returning to Jerusalem—further exiling Jews, and further necessitating a way to preserve Jewish faith and traditions. By about 200 CE, Pharisaic Judaism had segued into Rabbinic Judaism as a rabbi named Judah ha Nasi (Rabbi Judah the Patriarch) began to edit these oral traditions and discussions about Jewish law into a readable form during the early 200s CE.

The first compilation and written/edited form of the Oral Torah is called the Mishnah. Rather than a law code, it is a study book (or rather, several books) containing the varieties of discussions and opinions of the sages. Rabbi Judah drew from many sources in his compilation and recorded discussions in a way to help with memorization. These are by no means uniform opinions. If the sages differed on when morning prayers should begin, what defines a Jewish marriage, and many other topics, the differences are recorded. Here are some sample passages: https://people.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/TalmudMidrash/MishnahSamples.html

The Mishnah has six orders (sedarim): agriculture (Seder Zeraim), sacred times (Seder Moed), women and personal status (Seder Nashim), damages (Seder Nezikin), holy things (Seder Nodashim), and purity laws (Seder Tohorot). Each order is divided into tractates, and each tractate has chapters, and each chapter contains halakhot (laws) of the Tannaim, who were the sages from the era of the Mishnah (like Rabbis Akiva, Hillel, Shammai, and many others: see this site).

The word Tosefta means “addition,” and the Tosefta is a body of material that further explains Torah laws, details about laws, and provides extra material to the Mishnah. The Tosefta is three times as large as the Mishnah, although it is also structured with six orders. There are different theories as to whether the Tosefta is older than the Mishnah and was originally and independent body of opinion, or whether it was compiled and written later in order to broaden the material of the Mishnah, which does not include rabbinic discussions preserved in the Tosefta. Editions of the Babylonian Talmud provide the Tosefta at the end of each tractate.

What is the Talmud? Talmud is the comprehensive collection of the Oral Law that encompasses the Mishnah (200s CE) and the Gemara (500s CE). Talmud is discussion of the Mishnah but also the Mishnah itself.

The word Gemara (from the word gamar study) refers to the rabbinic commentary discussions about the Mishnah. You could say that the Talmud is the Mishnah plus Gemara, with material from the Tosefta as well. The sages of the Gemara (the period 200-500 CE) are referred to with the term Amoraim (see this site); the Amoraim expounded on and explained the Oral Law transmitted by the earlier Tannaim.

The site “My Jewish Learning” has this: “Although it is organized in accordance with the structure of the six orders of the Mishnah, mishnaic teaches are, for the Gemara, the launch pad for diverse topics: prayer, holy days, agriculture, sexual habits, contemporary medical knowledge, superstitutions, crumble and civil law. The Germara contains both Halakhah (legal material) and Aggadah (narrative material). [My emphasis] Aggadah includes historical material, biblical commentaries, philosophy, theology, and wisdom liberature. Stories reveal information about life in ancient ties, among Jews and between Jews and their neighbors, and folk customs. All of these genres are blended together with the halakhic material, in what is sometimes described as a stream-of-conscious fashion filled with meaningful tangents and digressions… [T]he Gemara … explains unclear words or phrasing [in the Mishnah]… provides precedents or examples to assist in application of the law and offers alternative opinions from sages of the Mishnah and their contemporaries [Tannaim]. Whereas the Mishnah barely cites biblical verses, the Gemara for every law discussed introduces these connections between the biblical text and the practices and legal opinions of its time. It also extends and restricts applications of various laws, and even adds laws on issues left out of the Mishnah entirely…. Multiple opinions of sages are weighed against one another, often without presenting a conclusion.” myjewishlearning.com/article/gemara-the-essence-of-the-talmud

There are two versions of the Talmud; the second and later one is the more comprehensive. Scholars of the Land of Israel (especially the Galilean cities of Tiberias and Caesarea) published what is now called the Talmud Yerushalmi (Jerusalem Talmud) during the period 350-400 CE. Unfortunately, Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor, persecuted Jews and the Jerusalem Talmud remained incomplete. Meanwhile, scholars at Jewish academies in Sura, Pumbedita, and Mata Mehasia published their own discussions in about 500 CE: this material is called the Talmud Bavli, or the Babylonian Talmud. Usually, the words Gemara and Talmud refer to the Babylonian Talmud. The language of the both Talmuds are dialects of Hebrew and Aramaic.

Long after the Amoraim, rabbinic commentators continued to discuss the law and the opinions of the sages, and so the Talmud was never a “finished” body of work. Not surprisingly, it is a vast work, running several volumes, and has been translated into English. Here is a site that provides the Bavli in Hebrew and English translation: https://www.sefaria.org/texts/Talmud Notice how it’s organized according to the Mishnah sedarim that I listed above: agriculture (Zeraim), sacred times (Moed), women and personal status (Nashim), damages (Nezikin), holy things (Kodashim), and purity laws (Tohorot).

Different bodies within Judaism today view the Talmud differently. To generalize: Orthodox Jews consider the Oral Torah as inspired and authoritative, of Mosaic origin; Conservative Jews also honor the sanctity of Oral Torah and view Talmud as complementary to Torah study; Reform Jews retain Talmud studies in rabbinical seminaries but do not consider the Talmud as binding today.

Another, smaller body of material is the Pirkei Avot (“Ethics of Our Fathers”), a text which is often published separately and found in many prayer books, and which has inspired its own commentaries. Technically, the Pirkei Avot is part of the Mishnah, specifically the ninth tractate (with six chapters) in the Seder Nezikin, which in turn is the fourth order of the Mishnah. The Pirkei Avot is popular because it provides ethical principles of the rabbis and give us a sense of who they were and their devotion to Torah. “The worldview espoused by the rabbis quoted here emphasizes learning, service of God, discipleship, ethical behavior, humility, and fair judgment… A rabbi is introduced, often, but not always, as a disciple or son of the preceding rabbi, and the text then offers one or more teachings by this rabbi” (myjewishlearning.com/article/pirkei-avot-ethics-of-our-fathers/ )

For all of this material, I relied upon the helpful articles at the site My Jewish Learning (myjewishlearning.com). Subsequently I made a donation to the site. More detailed articles on the Mishnah and Talmud can be found at jewishencyclopedia.com and jewishvirtuallibrary.org/mishnah. My grateful thanks goes out to an esteemed Jewish friend and colleague who read and commented on the essay; any remaining errors are mine.

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It’s a depressing coincidence, that King Louis IX of France (St. Louis) was a persecutor of Jews who ordered Talmud scrolls confiscated (see this site), while the German ship the MS St. Louis (named for the city) carried Jewish refugees from Germany in 1939 but was turned away from the U.S., Canada, and Cuba, and many of those Jews perished in the Holocaust (see this site). On the other hand, St. Louis City and County has a strong and diverse Jewish community today.

Here is a wonderful statement that explains the devotion to study (which, after all, is based on words of God, Deut 6:7): http://www.aish.com/atr/Why_Study_Torah.html

(originally posted at my “Journeys Home” blog)

Judges

This week, I’m studying Judges. We’re moving along through biblical history and are now about seven or eight hundred years after Abraham, in the time between the conquests of Joshua and the rise of David. It’s worth noting that Jerusalem, first mentioned by name in Joshua 10, is mentioned in Judges as a city where Jebusites live along with Benjaminites; Jerusalem is not yet completely claimed by the Israelites (Joshua 15:63, Judges 1:8, 1:21), and neither government nor cult is centered there.

The Hebrew word translated “judge” is shofet, plural shofetim. These leaders were non-hereditary chieftains who led Israelite tribes in the years between the Conquest and the beginning of the Monarchy, a span probably of a century and a half or so, although a literal reading of the book implies 400 years (note 1 below). Such a long period of time is unlikely if we date David’s reign as beginning about 1000 BCE and the Exodus in about the 1300s BCE.

The shofetim were champions whom the Lord raised up to help God’s people, following periods when the people forgot the Lord, worshiped Canaanite deities, and then suffered God’s punishment in the form of foreign domination and military oppression. Twelve such champions are named: Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Gideon, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, and Samson. The last two judges, whom we meet in 1 Samuel, are Eli and Samuel; it is the unsuitability of Samuel’s sons, Joel and Abiah, to function as judges that precipitate calls for an Israelite king. The biblical text does not generally describe these leaders as “a judge” but uses the verb form: they “judged Israel”.

The Jewish Study Bible‘s introduction to Judges makes note of differences between this biblical book and other Deutereonomistic literature. The book was edited at some point, probably after the Assyrian conquest of the North in 722 BCE, and now is part of the Deuteronomic narrative (pp. 509-510). But although Judges fits into that overall worldview, Deuteronomy calls for a centralized worship for Israel and is critical of human monarchy for a people properly ruled by God–but Judges has no similar interest in a centralized cult and expresses regret, over and over, that the people had no earthly king to guide them.

The author of Judges perhaps had a point of view about who should be Israel’s king. Gordon J. Wenham (Story as Torah: Reading Old Testament Narrative Ethically, Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2000) sees evidence of “anti-Saul” and “pro-David” attitudes in Judges. For instance, chapters 19-21 are sharply critical of the Benjaminites, in particular the towns of Gibeah and Jabesh-Gilead. But according to 1 Sam. 11:4, 31:11-13, these are Saul’s hometown and burial place, respectively. Wenham notes that other places in Judges could be “anti-Saul polemic,” and the more praising depiction of the tribe of Judah as well as the story of Othniel seem more pro-David, since of course Judah is David’s tribe (p. 70). And the horrifying brutality and with which Judges ends can be read as an illustration of why Israel needs a new kind of leadership and a new way of life in Canaan–exactly what David provided (p. 69).

Judges begins with a dual introduction. The first (1:1-2:5), recounting the conquests by the tribes of Judah and Simeon and the incomplete conquests of Benjamin, Joseph, Manasseh, Ephraim, Zebulun, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan. It is a different picture of the conquest, one of tense cohabitation with the non-Israelites peoples, than we get in Joshua which implies a swift and decisive occupation of the land. In Judges, it is the southern tribe of Judah that has the most success against their enemies.

The second introduction (2:5-3:6) tells of the death of Joshua and the death of his generation. But the new generation “did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and worshipped the Baals” (2:10-11). Thus begins the cycles of apostasy, attacks from the non-Israelite peoples against then, the Lord’s deliverance through the shofetim, and the years of peace that followed. These narratives comprise Judges 3:5-16:31, and refer to the leaders of particular tribes and locales. (Hebrews 11:32 mentions Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah as heroes of faith: why didn’t that author include Deborah???)

1. Othniel (3:7-3:11). He was the only judge from the tribe of Judah.

2. Ehud, a Benjaminite (3:12-3:30. He was able to assassinate the fat Moabite king Eglon by sinking a sword into Eglon’s enormous stomach.

3. Shamgar (3:31), who killed 600 philistines with an oxgoad (cattle prod).

4. Deborah, a prophetess, who judged Israelite form the Ephraim hill country, and who along with Barak of the Naphtali tribe subdued several Canaanite groups (chapters 4-5). Rabbi Telushkin (see note 2) calls Deborah a kind of Joan of Arc for Israel, although Deborah survived her own conflict and made possible forty years of peace. She is certainly one of the notable women of the Bible!

5. Gideon, of the Manasseh tribe who lived at Ophrah. His stories of faith are certainly ones that I learned in childhood Sunday school, and much later I was surprised to learn how “dark” the other Judges stories are (chapters 6-8).

Chapter 9 concerns Abimelech, Gideon’s son, who killed his seventy brothers (with the exception of Jothan, who fled in time), so that he (Abimelech) could set himself up as king of the Manasseh tribe at Shechem. He was not a judge in the sense that God’s Spirit raised him to lead the people, but rather he took over through murder and intrigue. His ambitions ended in battle and his death. Rabbi Telushkin notes that Jothan is the author of the Bible’s first parable, his story of the bramble.

Back to the legitimate judges:

6. Tola, of Ephraim (10:1-2)

7. Jair, a Gileadite (10:3-5)

8. Jephthah, another Gileadite (10:6-12:7). We perhaps remember him best because of the awful story of his daughter—and Rabbi Telushkin notes that, under Torah law, his vow was actually invalid. From the Jephthah stories, we also get the famous story of shibboleth, during the armed conflict between his forces and the Ephraim tribe.

9. Ibzan of Bethlehem (12:8-10)

10. Elon, a Zebulunite (12:11-12)

11. Abdon (12:13-15). “He had forty sons and thirty grandsons, who rode on seventy donkeys” (12:14).

12. Samson, of the tribe of Dan (chapters 13-16). His stories are so well known!

After the stories of Samson, the judges are no longer mentioned, and the book ends with a dual conclusion. First, the story of Micah the Ephraimite, who made his own idols, who also had a Levite as his priest, all of which the Danites took from him (chs 17-18).

The second conclusion is surely the darkest section in the whole Bible, with the gang-rape of the Levite’s concubine by men of the Benjamite tribe, and the Levite’s subsequent dismemberment of the woman. War among the Israelite tribes ended with the slaughter of many Benjaminites. The book concludes with surviving Benjaminites abducting women from a festival at Shiloh, so that they could have wives.

If we continue reading into 1 Samuel, the story keeps going, because Eli (1 Samuel 1) is both the high priest at Shiloh and the next-to-last judge of Israel—and then Samuel becomes the final judge of Israel and makes possible the transition of Israelite rulership from judges to kings.

Fortunately, we get an interlude: the book of Ruth, which I’ll study next week. At this place in the canon, Ruth provides both a happy story from the era of the judges, and provides a genealogical bridge to the upcoming stories of David.

But the stories of Samuel are also great sources of hope—because the Israelites needed help in turning things around. “Never has the Israelite religion so clearly been in danger of dying. Something radical, it is clear, must occur if this fate is to be avoided. And something radical does occur. God sends a prophet, a man named Samuel. It is he who is charged with ensuring that Abraham and Moses’ vision not be extinguished (note 3).

Judges also has an overall message that is a source of hope for any age. J. Clinton McCann, who teaches at Eden Seminary where I’m an adjunct, writes, “The people reap what they sow. But just as in Judges God repeatedly delivers the people, so beyond Judges God continues to try. God never fails to be with his people, and God continues to will for them and for all humanity a with-God life. Hence, by demonstrating the destructive consequences of disobedience, Judges calls the People of God in all times and places to the worship and submission that promise life” (note 3).

Note: 1. 1 Kings 6:1 refers to 480 years between the Exodus and the fourth year of Solomon’s reign. See “Judges: Introduction from the NIV Study Bible”, https://www.biblica.com/bible/online-bible/scholar-notes/niv-study-bible/intro-to-judges The Jewish Study Bible notes that this chronology disagrees with a tabulation of years expressed in Judges: about 299 years of judgeship and 111 years of foreign subjugation. As with Joshua, archeological evidence has so far not agreed with either chronology. 2. Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, Biblical Literacy: The Most Important People, events, and Israels of the Hebrew Bible (William Morrow, 1997), the chapter on the Judges.

3. Telushkin, p. 187.

4. Renovaré Spiritual Formation Bible (HarperSanFrancisco, 2005), p. 344.

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We are moving along through biblical history. Here is an approximate timeline:

c. 1800-1600: Abraham and his family through Jacob’s children (Genesis)
c. 1600-1200s: Egypt, Exodus, and conquest of the Land (Exodus through Joshua)
1200s-1000: Period of the Judges (Judges, Ruth)
1000-922: The united monarchy (Saul, David, Solomon), (1 and 2 Samuel, 1 Kings 1-11, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles 1-9)
922-722: The divided monarchy (1 Kings 12 to 2 Kings 17).
722 -586: The kingdom of Judah (2 Kings 18-25, 2 Chronicles 10-36)
586-539: The exile
538-332: Judah during Persian rule (Ezra and Nehemiah)

Between the Old and New Testaments:
332-165: Judea during Hellenistic Rule
165-63: The period of the Maccabees and Hasmoneans

The New Testament period:
6 BCE – 135 CE: The Roman provence of Judea

It was also during the era of Hellenistic Judaism and the Roman occupation that Judaism as we know it began to develop, including the fixing of the canon. Rabbinic Judaism developed for the needs of diaspora faith after the Second Temple was destroyed; the Mishnah, for instance, dates from about 200 CE and the Gemara from about 500 CE.

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Ruth

If we continue reading from Judges straight into 1 Samuel, we get a more or less continuous narrative, because Eli (1 Samuel 1) is both the high priest at Shiloh (where we left off in Judges with the Benjaminites’ rape of the women at Shiloh) and the next-to-last judge of Israel. After Eli, Samuel becomes the final judge of Israel and makes possible the transition of Israelite rulership from judges to kings. We find this narrative continuity in the Jewish Bible, wherein Ruth appears near the end of the canon.

In the Christian Old Testament, Ruth is placed between Judges and 1 Samuel. At this place in the canon, Ruth becomes both a lovely contrasting narrative from the era of the judges (allowing for the marriage practices of the time), and also provides a genealogical bridge to the upcoming stories of David.

The story is familiar to many of us. Three women—the Israelite Naomi and her Moabite daughters in law Ruth and Orpah—find themselves widowed. (The Moabites, whose land was just outside the Land, are biblical characterized as descendants of the union of Lot and his oldest daughter, Gen. 19:37-38.) When Naomi decides to return to Bethlehem, Orpah returns to Moab but Ruth chooses to stay with Noami. There follows a familiar story, with some suspense, of how Naomi and Ruth work together to gain the favor of Boaz, a kinsman to Naomi. Boaz goes along with the plan. Although another kinsman is closer in relation (and thus more eligible to marry Ruth), Boaz fulfills legal requirements and they are able to marry. The book concludes with a reminder that their child Obed was the grandfather of David, and that Boaz was a descendant of Perez (whom we met back in Genesis 38).

I forget where I read that the book of Ruth provides a counterpart to other Bible passages where Hebrew marriages to non-Hebrew women were frowned up. In Ezra 9-10, for instance, the man were ordered to divorce their foreign wives. But in Ruth, a Hebrew man marries a Moabite woman—and they’re forebears of King David himself!

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1 Samuel

One of the theological themes of Deuteronomistic theology is that God is the true Lord and King of Israel. This was established in the Exodus covenant and reiterated in Deuteronomy 29 and Joshua 24. The writer of Judges laments, over and over, that “everyone did as he saw fit” because Israel had no king. But the irony is that Israel had a king—the Lord—and turned instead to Canaanite deities and, at the end, the society degenerated into war among the tribes.

Here are some notes that I took a few years ago, which has significance for this upcoming section of Bible reading. In his book Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1986, p. 115), Brevard S. Childs (whom I had as a professor in 1979) notes that the OT scholar Julius Wellhausen identified a “promonarchial source in 1 Samuel 8-12, specifically 9:1-10:16 and 11:1-5. Those texts affirm the new Israelite monarchy, while 8:1-22, 10:17-27, 12:1-25 “regarded the rise of the kingdom as a rejection of God’s true rain”…and saw it as an act of disobedience which emulated Israel’s pagan nations.” Later, the OT scholar Gerhard Von Rad reinterpreted those passages as complementary rather than contradictory. Following Von Rad but also looking to the canonical shape of the text, Childs believes that the anti-monarchical source “brackets the earlier source at both beginning and end (p. 116), but that the pro-monarchical source still has power because “God is still deeply involved in the rise of the monarchy even when it was not according to his original plan for Israel (p. 116). Thus Israel has to choose for God or against God, whether ruled by a king or not (p. 117).

Even though the anti-monarchical source questions the properness of an Israelite king—because Yahweh is Israel’s true king, and the previous rulership of Israel had been the shofetim(judges)—the career of David becomes significant for Israel’s messianic hope: for instance, Isa. 9:6-7, Jer. 23:5ff, and Psalms like 45, 72, and 110 (Childs, pp. 119-120). Thus, even though the monarchy was not according to God’s original plan, God incorporated the monarchy—and specifically King David—as a “type of God’s kingdom.” (In another example, Childs further argues, with von Rad in mind, that the “succession narrative 2 Samuel 9-20 and 1 Kings 1-2 has not been artificially broken up by 2 Samuel 21-24, but that those four chapters places David’s career in context with the messianic hope of Israel, precisely as David’s speech in chapter 22 echoes Hannah’s song in 1 Samuel 2: p. 118.)

All kinds of interesting connections there! Of course, in New Testament affirmation, David and his kingdom become precursors and “types” of Christ (the great descendent of David and member of David’s tribe, Judah) and his kingdom.

1 Samuel begins when the ark of the covenant was at the sanctuary at Shiloh. I suppose you could say that Samuel and Jesus are the only two biblical figures whose stories begin prior to their births and extend after their deaths. As the book opens, Hannah, one of the two wives of Elkanah, could not have children and she tearfully beseeched the Lord to let her have a male child, whom she would dedicate to the Lord. Eli, the judge and high priest, blessed her, and the Lord in turn granted her prayer.

(Dr. Laurel Koepf-Taylor, who teaches at Eden Seminary where I’m an adjunct, has written a fascinating book, Give Me Children or I Shall Die: Children and Communal Survival in Biblical Literature (Fortress Press, 2013). She discusses the way that we read the Bible with modern eyes and thus can overlook economic aspects of the narrative, for instance, the fact that in the ancient world a child had economic value. The promised gift of Samuel to God provides God with a replacement leader when Eli’s sons are problematic, and in this “barter,” God opens the womb of Hannah, who because she devoted the “first fruits” to God has an abundant “harvest”: more children after Samuel. See pages 45-46. )

The child Samuel served the Lord with Eli and grew in the spirit (in contrast to the sons of Eli, who were terrible people). The Lord punished Eli and the sons while raising up Samuel to be the new high priest. His fame as a prophet preach through Israel (1:1-3:31).

As the Israelites engaged the Philistines in battle near Ebenezer, they carried the ark with them. But the Philistines routed the Israelites, captured the ark, and killed the two sons of Eli. Hearing the news, Eli himself fell and died. Eli’s daughter-in-law went into labor, and as she died, she named the child Ichabod, meaning “the glory is gone from Israel” (referring to the ark) (chapter 4).

But the presence of the ark, set up at the Philistine temple of Dagon at Ashdod, was dangerous for them, causing damage to the idol itself and causing, of all things, hemorrhoids among the Philistines (chapter 5). Some commentators speculate that the ailment was more like a plague of some kind. In a memorable story, the Philistines put the ark on a wagon and let God providentially guide two cows to pull the ark back to the Israelites. The cows did so, and the ark arrived at Beth-shemesh, where its dangerous holiness caused more casualties (chap. 6). The Israelites subsequently took the ark to Kiriath-jearim, where it remained for twenty years (7:1-4).

(Why wasn’t the ark returned to Shiloh? This is a mystery in the biblical record. Ambiguously referenced in Genesis 49:10, Shiloh was the place where Joshua had set up the Tabernacle, where it remained during the Judges period. But did the Philistines destroy the city when they took the ark? Apparently not, because about two hundred years later, a prophet named Ahijah lived in Shiloh (1 Kings 11, 14). On the other hand, Jeremiah refers to Shiloh as a desolate location (Jer. 7:12-15; 26:5-9). Psalm 78:60 says that the Lord forsook the Tabernacle at Shiloh. One of my seminary profs, B. Davie Napier, commented that the loss of Shiloh was apparently too painful for even Scripture to describe.)

Samuel returned Israel to the Lord. He assembled them at Mizpah, where they ceremonially repented to God, allowing them to route the Philistines. Samuel set up the famous Ebenezer memorial (7:14) and made the rounds each year from his home in Ramah to Bethal, Gilgal, and Mitzvah to judge Israel (chap. 7). Samuel’s sons Joel and Abijah, however, were dishonest and unsuitable as judges. Somehow God did not punish Samuel for lax parenting as God had punished Eli, and the Israelites beseeched Samuel for a king. Samuel advised against it, but the Lord allowed it (chapter 9). Samuel found the handsome Benjaminite Saul and installed him as Israel’s first king (not including the wicked and self-proclaimed monarch Abimelech of Judges) (chapters 9-10). Saul had initial success as a military leader, against the Ammonites (chap 11). Samuel still regretted the new monarchy as a sign of disobedience to God, the true king, but Samuel urges the people to follow and respect Saul, and promises to pray for them (chap. 12).

Saul, and now his son Jonathan too, faces another threat from the Philistines. Samuel stipulated that Saul wait for seven days at Gilgal, when Samuel would make sacrifice. When Samuel didn’t show up, Saul presented the burnt-offering himself. At that point Samuel arrived and pronounced a curse upon Saul’s dynasty (chapter 13). This passage always implied to me that Samuel acted in a very petty way, setting up Saul for failure because he (Samuel) disapproved of the new monarchy.

Sadly for Saul, his missteps continue. In another battle, Saul placed a curse on anyone who ate food before nightfall. But Jonathan, not realizing, had already eaten, and some other troops at as well, all of which withdrew divine favor from the battle (chap. 14). In a battle against the Amalekites, Saul spared the Amalekite king, Agag, and the animals of most value—a violation of God’s holy war stipulations—and then he blames the troops. Samuel scolded him and announced the withdrawal of God’s favor. After that, Samuel and Saul never saw each other again (chap. 15).

These chapters always frustrate me—as if both Samuel and the Lord chose Saul and then let him fail. I’m reading through modern eyes, of course, with leadership philosophy and workplace dynamics in mind.

God instructed Samuel to go among the Bethlehemites to find a new king. Interestingly, God gave him an excuse to use, just in case Saul learned of the errand (16:1-2). Samuel met the sons of Jesse, and while the older brothers were promising, God told Samuel to anoint the youngest son, David. David continued to work as a shepherd but also had a role in the king’s service, wherein he at first had good relations with Saul (chap. 16).

The Israelites face another threat from the Philistines, presented by the enormous soldier Goliath who taunts the opposing forces. The story (apparently another ancient narrative edited into the history) reintroduces David, who expressed concern about Goliath’s taunts about Israel and its God. David told Saul that he (David) had killed lions and bears from attacking his father’s sheep and so he could manage Goliath, too. Saul gives David armor, which doesn’t fit. So David abandoned army, and set out to the battlefield with just his sling and some stones. We all know how this story turns out! (chap. 17).

*****

Last week I mentioned that the fate of the sacred town of Shiloh is a mystery. So are the Urim and Thummim, holy objects that appear in a few Old Testament readings like today’s.

This website reads: “The Urim (‘lights’) and Thummim (‘perfections’) were gemstones that were carried by the high priest of Israel on the ephod / priestly garments. They were used by the high priest to determine God’s will in some situations. Some propose that God would cause the Urim and Thummim to light up in varying patterns to reveal His decision. Others propose that the Urim and Thummim were kept in a pouch and were engraved with symbols identifying yes / no and true / false…. [But] No one knows the precise nature of the Urim and Thummim or exactly how they were used … They are first mentioned in the description of the breastplate of judgment (Exodus 28:30; Leviticus 8:8). When Joshua succeeded Moses as leader over Israel, he was to receive answers from God by means of the Urim through Eleazar the high priest (Numbers 27:21). The Urim and Thummim are next mentioned in Moses’ dying blessing upon Levi (Deuteronomy 33:8). The following Scriptures likely also speak of the Urim and Thummim: Joshua 7:14-18; 1 Samuel 14:37-45; and 2 Samuel 21:1.” This site also notes that they are referred to one last time in the Bible, in Ezra 2:63.

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The Jewish Encyclopedia has a much longer section on the oracles, as does this site. The objects also mentioned in the Book of Mormon and in LDS theology. The words themselves could translate Lights and Perfections, or Lights and Truth, or Divine Doctrines and Truth. The phrase “light and truth” (Lux et Veritas) became the motto of both Indiana University, where I used to teach, and also Yale University, where I got my masters degree. The Yale shield has the Hebrew words with the Latin phrase. That’s where I first learned about these sacred objects once so important for the Israelites, and so I become nostalgic for New England as I write all this.

*****

Back in Deuteronomy 17:14-20, the narrative has Moses warning the Israelites concerning a king. 1 Samuel reflects both pro- and anti-monarchical viewpoints; 12:17 even attributes the demand for a monarchy to the people’s wickedness! The selection, anointment, and then divine rejection of Saul seems to attribute ambivalence even to God. Saul, “little in his own eyes” (1 Sam. 15:17) and afflicted with distress (16:14) nevertheless leads Israel for forty years in campaigns against the Philistines and others.

After David killed Goliath (chapter 17), the rest of 1 Samuel reflects contrasting and intersecting narratives of Saul and David. Saul offered David his daughter Michal, for whom David paid the gory bridal price (18:20-29), but Saul was jealous of David’s battlefield success and subsequent fame. Both Michal and Jonathan—who of course is David’s dear friend—helped David escape from Saul. At one point David was cared for by the priest Ahimelech, and Saul has the priest and eighty-five others killed in retaliation. We have two contrasting stories where David was in a good position to kill Saul but did not, and Saul affirmed David’s greater righteousness (chapters 24, 26).

Among these adventures, we also find the story of David, Abigail, and Nabal; Nabal was foolish and surly and refused to cooperate with David, while the much wiser Abigail assisted him. She became one of his wives following Nabal’s death (chap. 25). (I don’t know if you’re like me in taking some comfort in encountering a family name among the Bible stories: my mother’s grandmother was named Abigail, although she spelled it Abagail, and that was also my mother’s middle name.)

Samuel died, and his death is announced twice in the Bible (25:1, 28:3). While David went into Philistine country to continued raids with his men against several enemies of Israel, Saul—who was unable to gain direction from God through various means–sought the advice of the spirit of Samuel via a medium. Samuel’s spirit only predicts Saul’s upcoming death at the hands of the Philistines (chap. 28). While David and his troops continued successful attacks against the Amalekites (chap. 29-30), Saul’s three sons (Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua) were killed and the badly wounded Saul took his own life rather than become prisoner of the Philistines (chap. 31).

David was heartbroken at the news of the deaths and the Israelites’ defeat. An Amalekite messenger had come to David and falsely reported he had killed Saul at Saul’s request–and David puts him to death for slaying the Lord’s anointed king.

(As someone with lifelong mild depression, never suicidal but sometimes downcast and always cheered by music, I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for Saul for a long time. He had no precedent to follow as king, he certainly had no solid person to turn to—Samuel fails utterly on that regard; his pronouncements of God’s rejection surely made Saul’s condition worse—and Saul spent much of his reign in warfare, a psychologically battering experience to say the least. Here is an interesting article that speculates on Saul’s psychology.)

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From: http://www.biblenews1.com/maps/maps.html

2 Samuel

In a series of stories of conquest and unification efforts (2 Samuel 1-8), David achieved what even Joshua couldn’t quite do: united the northern and southern tribes.

He mourned Saul and Jonathan, lamenting them in a song that he taught to the people (chapter 1). He was anointed king of the house of Judah (2:1-7). Meanwhile, Saul’s son Ishbaal began to reign over Israel and reigned two years, kept in power by the army commander Abner, while David was king at Hebron over Judah (2:1-7). A battle ensued, wherein the forces of Abner were beaten—and in that context we’re introduced to Joab, Abishai, and Ashahel, who are David’s sister’s sons. Asahel foolishly pursued Abner and was killed. For the time being, the other two brothers make peace with Abner.

Civil War between the royal houses of David and Saul continued. Abner aspired to the kingship himself and sought a covenant with David, and the king and Abner made peace. Joab, though, was frustrated with David and went out and assassinated Abner on his own. David pronounced a curse upon Joab and his family but, as we will see in upcoming chapters, David retained him as commander of royal forces. (Joab seems to me a character like Luca Brasi in The Godfather, a faithful ally who is also a really, really dangerous person to be handled carefully.) Though David lamented Abner’s death, I wonder if that was at least partly a ploy to keep the covenant with Ishbaal intact. But Ishbaal’s own days were numbered; he was slain and beheaded, and David had the brothers who killed him executed (chapters 3-4). This assassination, too, worked to David’s advantage.

The ten northern tribes of Israel made covenant with David and anointed him king of all the tribes. He remained seven years in Hebron, then he was able to capture Jerusalem from the Jebusites and established that place as the City of David. Repelling the subsequent attack from the Philistines, David had the ark brought to Jerusalem, where he famously danced before the ark, losing most of his clothes in the process. One man died in the process of the ark coming to Jerusalem, because the ark was improperly carried on a wagon and the man came into direct contact with it (chapter 6).

Glad that the ark was in the city, and likely overwhelmed by his successes and power, David worked through the prophet Nathan to seek God’s permission to build a house for the Lord. God declined—God had not needed a house up till that time after all—but God promised to David a dynasty, and a successor to David would build God a house. David’s prayer of submission is often cited as a model of humility to the Lord’s will (chapter 7). Chapter 8 recounts the way God gave David continuing victories over several groups: Philistines, Moabites, Edomites, Ammonites, and others. Joab was military commander, Jehoshaphat was recorder, Zadoc was priest, and others comprised the king’s government that “administered justice and equity to all his people” (chapter 8).

I’m stopping here because I’ve read my weekly goal, but also because the upcoming 2 Samuel 9-20 and 1 Kings 1-2 have long been called “the Succession Narrative,” a hypothesized early narrative that demonstrates both David’s legitimacy as king and Solomon’s legitimacy as heir (though Solomon was not David’s first born, not even close).

But here’s just a little more about Jerusalem. David captured the city from the Jebusites during his reign (2 Sam. 5:6-10), in about 998 BC. The word Yerushalayim actually means “city of peace.” The city first appears in Joshua 10, and this 2 Samuel passage is the first biblical reference to the word Zion (ziyon), of uncertain meaning but perhaps “citadel”. David brought the ark to Jerusalem, thus sanctifying Zion Hill (2 Sam. 6:10-12). Solomon built the Temple in Jerusalem on the proximate Mount Moriah, which meant that the name Zion was applied not only to the particular hill named Zion but also the temple mount (Isa. 8:18, 18:7, 24:23, Joel 3:17, Micah 4:7), and eventually all of Jerusalem (2 Kings 19:21, Ps. 48, 69:35, 133:3, Isaiah 1:8, and others. The name Zion came to also apply to God’s people (Ps. 126:1, 129:5, Isa. 33:14, 34:8, 49:14, 52:8), and in the New Testament, for heaven (Heb. 12:22). All this is from a book my grandmother gave me forty-six years ago, the Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary, page 914. See my blog notes, here, for more Bible references to Jerusalem.

*****

In biblical studies 2 Samuel 9-20 and 1 Kings 1-2 are called the Succession Narrative, because the material is mostly concerned with the successor of David and the warfare among David and his sons. 2 Samuel 21-24 fills out the narrative with other events of David’s reign. Next time, I’ll do all of 1 Kings.

I thought back to Moses and wondered about their family; it’s interesting that Moses’ and Zipporah’s children have little role in the Bible. They were the sons Gershom and Eliezer (Exodus 18:3 and 1 Chronicles 23:15), and daughters, if any, aren’t mentioned. David, on the other hand, had numerous sons and perhaps more daughters via several wives and concubines. (Although concubines did not have the privileges of full wives, children of concubines were equal in the family to children of the wives.) In 2 Samuel 2, we have the short list of David’s sons, and later, 1 Chronicles 3:1-9 provides this longer list:

“These are the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron:
the firstborn Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelite;
the second Daniel [Chileab], by Abigail the Carmelite;
the third Absalom, son of Maacah, daughter of King Talmai of Geshur;
the fourth Adonijah, son of Haggith;
the fifth Shephatiah, by Abital;
the sixth Ithream, by his wife Eglah;
six were born to him in Hebron, where he reigned for seven years and six months. And he reigned for thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
These were born to him in Jerusalem: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon, four by Bath-shua [Bath-sheba], daughter of Ammiel;
then Ibhar, Elishama, Eliphelet, Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine.
All these were David’s sons, besides the sons of the concubines; and Tamar was their sister [she was daughter of Maacah, full sister of Absalom].”

Chileab (aka Daniel) is not mentioned again in the Bible. The players for succession are Amnon and Absalom, and later Adonijah and Solomon.

David still has family members of Saul to contend with. Chapter 9 tells of David’s kindness to the lame Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan and grandson of Saul; David restored Saul’s land to Mephibosheth, who technically was heir to the throne. The story forms a connection with earlier stories of Saul and also the stories at the end of 2 Samuel, when David must condemn the sons of Saul.

David also tried to show kindness to Hanun, the new king of the Ammonites, because of his father Nahash’s earlier kindness to David. Hanun, however, did not accept David’s envoys, resulting in a combined force of Ammonites and Arameans against the Israelites. Joab cleverly divided his forces and defeated both—and the Arameans no longer assisted the Ammonites (chapter 10).

Hanun’s refusal to accept David’s offered peace was quite fateful for David (the story telling skill of the biblical authors!), because in the ongoing conflicts with the Ammonites, Uriah the Hittite was among the Israelite fighting forces and thus was absent from his wife, Bathsheba—-and we all know the chain of events that happened when David noticed Bathsheba bathing (chapter 11-12). My Harper’s Bible Commentary (p. 293) points out that one might assume that David’s greatest threats come from outside the kingdom, but the greatest threats are actually in his own life.

A pastor friend helpfully pointed out in one of her reflections that Bathsheba’s “voice” in the story (and in the famous Psalm 51) is virtually non-existent. She is raped and widowed, and loses the child she carries to term, but the story’s focus is almost wholly upon David. Even in Psalm 51, the injustice done to her is in the background of David’s sorrow vis-a-vis God.

Nathan’s parable and accusation is one of scriptures most dramatic and effecting moments (2 Samuel 12:1-14). David repents of his horrible crimes, but God responds with a promise that “the sword shall never depart from your house” (2 Samuel 12:9). Family troubles begin after some years, when David’s son Amnon fell in love with his half-sister Tamar. Using the apparently trusting David, Amnon set up the situation for Tamar to visit him, where he raped her and then angrily sent her away. Tamar was further betrayed by her father, who would not punish Amnon, who was his firstborn. (Compare this story with that of Diana in Genesis 34.)

Another son, the handsome and longhaired Absalom, tricked David into allowing Amnon and other sons to accompany him on a task, giving Absalom the opportunity to kill Amnon in revenge for his sister’s rape (chap. 13). Absalom fled, was brought back to Jerusalem by Joab, but two years later Absalom, who had gained a following, began a revolt against David to take the throne for himself. David, beseeching God to do as God willed in the situation (15:26), fled Jerusalem, which might have given Absalom the chance to kill him. But Absalom takes the advice of Hushai (who was actually David’s friend) to not do so, giving David a chance to gather his own forces (chapters 14-17). Interestingly, Ahitophel, who had deserted David in favor of Absalom, gave better advice.

Conflict ensued between David’s and Absalom’s forces, and although David wanted Absalom spared, Joab take the opportunity to kill Absalom–the famous story—when Absalom was caught in the branches of a tree (chap. 18). Consumed with grief, David had to be confronted by Joab, who scolded him for ignoring the loyalty of the royal troops (chapter 19). Here again, we see the dangerous Joab acting on his own initiative yet staying committed to the king. A subsequent revolt by a Benjaminite named Sheba was put down by Joab and his forces (chapter 20).

In the so-called appendix, chapters 21-24, David addressed what God identified as the bloodguilt on Saul and his house, because Saul had slain the Gideonites. No further explanation is given in the narrative. David spared Mephibosheth, as he had earlier vowed, but turned over seven of Son’s sons to the Gibeonites, who impaled them on the mountain. Saul’s concubine Rizpath, the mother of two of the men, kept the birds and animals away from the bodies until David gave them a decent burial (chapter 21).

We had met Rizpah back in 2 Samuel 3. The Harper’s Bible Commentary notes that, much like Saul’s daughter Michal (given in marriage to David), Rizpah functions in the story in a voiceless way, like properly exchanged. Later, Michal protests David’s shamelessness and is punished for her confrontation (2 Samuel 6). Here in 2 Samuel 21, Rizpah and her grief at least moves David to do the right thing. The Harper’s book notes: “Both [Michal and Rizpah] remind us that however much the Abners, Joabs, and Davids protest their loyalty, good faith, or piety, it is a soldier’s world in which they seek to wield power” (p. 291).

So often, we read these stories and take away lessons about the piety of David and other characters in this drama. They are good lessons—but we might thereby forget that David and his kingdom were brutal, and women were treated as property to be seized and exchanged.

2 Samuel 22:1-23:7 contain David’s songs of praise to God (virtually identical with Psalm 18), along with the names of David’s warriors (23:8-39), concluding with Uriah. The book ends with a strange story of a census: God was angry at the people for some unexplained reason and incited David to take a census. (In the corresponding story in Chronicles, Satan incited David.) A census would likely result in greater tax revenue for the kingdom. But God did not actually want such a census, and David failed to consult God about it first. A remorseful David accepted God’s punishment, which was a pestilence agains the people, averted finally when David made offerings to God on the altar constructed on the threshing floor of the Jerubite Araunah. One thinks of plagues that God sent to the Israelites in the Torah stories.

The song of David, though, provide an arc back to Hannah’s song in 1 Samuel 2, praising God for saving God’s people. Remember that Hannah’s song was not only an expression of her happiness at the birth of Samuel, but also introduces us to the stories of Samuel and Kings with its messianic themes.

****

I was rereading Brevard Childs’ book, Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture (Fortress, 1979). In his chapter on Samuel, he reminds us of overlapping periods of biblical narrative: the period of the Judges is from Judges 2:6 to 1 Samuel 12; then we have the rise of the Israelite kingdom, 1 Sam. 7-15; the story of Saul, 1 Sam 13 to 2 Sam 2, overlapping with the rise of David, 1 Sam 15 to 2 Sam 8. David ascends to the throne, but he is not secure: the “succession narrative” of 2 Sam 9-20 with 1 Kings 1-2 are concerned with David’s sons contending to be king (p. 267).

Citing Gerhard von Rad, Childs also points out the connection of both Samuel and Kings to the prophets. The Jewish Bible calls Joshua through Kings “the former prophets” after all, and in the Jewish Bible, 2 Kings is followed by Isaiah and the rest of the prophets. But reading the Christian Old Testament, where the prophets are placed several books after Kings, it’s good to be reminded of the way prophets are a major aspect of Samuel and Kings alike. Prophecy announces the house of Eli (1 Sam. 2:27-36), and the prophecy of Nathan is vitally important in David’s kingdom. When we get to Kings, we have not only Nathan but Elijah, Elisha, Shemaiah, Micaiah, Jonah, Isaiah, Huldah, and other prophets. As Childs explains, “the prophetic element does not lie simply in the predictive nature of the oracle, but in its integral connection with the whole historical process in which divine judgment and salvation unfolds” (290). Thus, Samuel and Kings are called prophetic books, too.

Childs also points us ahead to the rediscovery of the book of the law in 2 Kings 22-23, and to the destruction of the kingdom and the beginning of the exile in 2 Kings 25. The discovery of the book of the law connects this material back to the Torah and the covenant (pp. 291-292), while the destruction of Jerusalem represents the end of the kingdom, and yet, but “because the writer of Kings does not restrict the presence of God to either the temple or the land, the possibility of renewed blessing is left open to the hope of future generations” (294). Remember that Deuteronomy leaves us on the outskirts of the land, which has the same effect.

In their book An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination (2nd edition, WJK Press, 2012), Walter Brueggemann and Tod Linafelt also write the end of 2 Kings is sufficiently positive that the Deuteronomistic writer aims to connect us back to Nathan’s prophecy of the salvation through the house of David is still open. That, in turn connects us to exilic texts like Isa. 55:3, Jer. 23:5-6, 33:14-16, Ez. 34:23-24, and others that are influenced by messianic hope—and of course, Jesus (p. 190). But all this makes for very unusual history of a royal dynasty, because David’s life and legacy are aspects of God’s sometimes strange plan of salvation. Brueggemann and Linafelt write:

“It is contended.. that the harsh divine judgment visited upon Jerusalem in 587 BCE is not the final word, though it is in context a decisive word. That word of judgment could not be otherwise, given the nonnegotiable requirements of the Torah, so clearly advocated by the historian, so vividly championed by Joshua, and so boldly enacted by Josiah. In this horizon, kings live in a world of Torah. That is attested by the historian; and when kings are weak on Torah, initiative for public leadership gravitates elsewhere, to such odd characters as Elijah, Elisha, and Micaiah ben Imlah, always an alternative in Israelite imagination to kings who negate the Torah. Readers should in the end notice by an odd royal history this is, intended to be precisely that odd!” (p. 190).

*****

A while back I read an article that made an interesting point: we have a positive impression of David from Chronicles and the Psalms, but if we only look at David from the standpoint of 2 Samuel and 1 Kings 1-2, our impression might not be so favorable! He is a flawed hero, for sure. Walter Brueggemann has written a book about the contrasting narratives about David and his place in Israel’s imagination. Here is an excerpt: http://fortresspress.com/product/davids-truth-israels-imagination-and-memory-second-edition

*****

1 Kings

The book covers roughly 110 years of history, from the ascendency of Solomon, through the division of the kingdom, to the deaths of King Jehoshaphat of Judah and Ahaziah of Israel.

Writing in The New Interpreter’s Bible (Vol. 3, Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1999), Choon-Leong Seow writes (p. 6), “Arguably the most challenging task for the interpreter of Kings is to make sense of it in one’s own day and age.” He notes that there are heartwarming stories like Solomon’s wisdom and justice (1 King 3:4-15, 3:16-18), and also the compelling stories of Elijah and Elisha (1 Kings 18:1-46, 2 Kings 5:1-19). But more difficult to interpret—and make applicable for the present day–are the lists of kings, details about the temple, administrative material, and also very violent material (e.g., 2 Kings 9:1-10:36, strange stories (e.g. Elisha and the axe head: 2 Kings 6:1-7), and ethnically difficult material, like the succession narrative (1 Kings 1:1-2:46).

As the book opens, David was old and in poor health. The family enlisted the young Abishag to keep him warm. Son Adonijah, who after all is the next in line for the throne, prepared to succeed his father, supported by Joab and Abiathar but opposed by Zadoc, Nathan, Shimei, and others. Nathan and Bathsheba intervened in favor of Solomon, whom David chose—-and Solomon is anointed (chapter 1). David charged Solomon to be faithful to the Lord and keep the commandments—-but also Solomon should also deal with Joab because of the bloodguilt of the deaths of Abner and Amasa (2 Samuel 16), and handle other matters. When David died, Solomon had Joab killed, and also Adonijah, who betrayed his own plot to seize the throne via his request to marry Abishag (chapter 2).

Solomon reigned with God-given wisdom, brilliantly settling the matter of the two mothers (chapter 3). He appointed court officials, to the benefit of Israel and Judah and spread the kingdom as far as the Euphrates and down to the border with Egypt (chapter 4) He prepared for the building of the temple, using forced labor from among the people (chapter 5), and when the temple was completed it was a truly magnificent edifice (chapters 6-7). The ark was brought to the temple, and the glory of the Lord filled the place. Solomon offered a prayer before the altar of God and established the worship of God and festivals at the temple (chapter 8). God gave a conditional covenant with Solomon, echoing the Deuteronomistic theology of God’s continued blessings to the people as long as they remained faithful (9:1-9).

Solomon’s fame spread (9:10-28), and his wealth and splendor increased (10:14-29), and he was visited by the famous Queen of Sheba (10:1-13). She has a surprisingly small “walk on” (her story is repeated in 2 Chr. 9:1-12), considering that she’s also mentioned in the New Testament (Matt. 12:42, Luke 11:31), the Qur’an (27:23-44), and is the subject of artwork, music by Handel and Gounod, and many cultural references. The unnamed monarch captured the popular imagination over the centuries!

But Solomon took foreign wives and earned God’s disapproval; in response, God promised to divide the kingdom after Solomon had died. God also raised up adversaries against Solomon, who eventually died after forty years on the throne. His son Rehoboam succeeded him (chapter 11), but the new king alienated the northern tribes when their representative Jeroboam unsuccessfully sought relief from Solomon’s heavy taxes. The northern tribes broke from the Davidic dynasty and established their own, northern kingdom (Israel, sometimes called Ephraim in prophetic books), leaving the tribe Judah (in combination with Benjamin) as the remaining tribe that comprised the southern kingdom (Judah) Jeroboam became the new king, and established calf worship at Bethel and Dan (chapter 12).

Spoiler alert: The northern kingdom fell to the Assyrians in 722 BCE and the people were assimilated into Assyrian society, with some of the people eventually becoming the Samaritans. (Samaria is the central region of the land, earlier associated with the tribes Ephraim and Manasseh.) “The ten lost tribes of Israel” is not a biblical phrase but it does come from the Assyrian conquest. The southern kingdom, Judah, lasted until the Babylonians conquered them and destroyed Jerusalem and the temple in 586 BCE. This history is found in 2 Kings.

The stories of the divided kingdom extend from 1 Kings 12 through 2 Kings 17, while the stories of the southern kingdom continue to the end of 2 Kings. In the north, there were nine dynasties: Jeroboam and Nadab; Baasha and Elah; Zimri; Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah, and Joram; Jehu, Jehoahaz, Jehoash (Joash), Jeroboam II, and Zachariah; Shallum; Menahem (Gadi) and Pekahiah; Pekah, and Hoshea. Jeroboam set the stage for the history of apostasy and idolatry in the northern kingdom, dooming it across its two-hundred year existence. The southern kingdom did have good, reform-minded kings like Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, and later Hezekiah and Josiah. But as Choon-Leong Seow points out, the sins of King Manasseh (Hezekiah’s successor) were so terrible that God’s judgment upon Judah became inevitable, too (Choon-Leong Seow, “The First and Second Books of Kings,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. III (Abingdon Press, 1999), 4-7).

The southern kingdom had only one royal dynasty, that of David and Solomon. Thus, although the monarchy ended with the exile, the hope for a restored Davidic monarchy continued—and became a basis of New Testament theology about Jesus.

Here are the kings through the end of 1 Kings. I’ve read that the chronology of Kings is difficult to untangle, but these approximate dates come from charts in Bernhard W. Anderson, Understanding the Old Testament (third edition, Prentice Hall, 1975).

Jeroboam of Israel (922-901), 13:1-14:20
Rehoboam of Judah (922-915), 14:21-31
Abijam of Judah (915-913), 15:1-8
Asa of Judah (913-873), 15:9-24
Nadab of Israel (901-900), 15:25-31
Baasha of Israel (900-877), 15:32-16:7
Elah and Zimri of Israel (877-876), 16:8-20
Omri of Israel (876-869), 16:21-27
Ahab of Israel (869-850),16:28-22:40
Jehosphaphat of Judah (873-849), 22:41-50
Ahaziah of Israel (849), 22:51-53

During Ahab’s reign (with his memorably evil wife Jezebel), we have the remarkable career of the prophet Elijah, perhaps the most important prophet of all. He appears on the scene in 17:1 without fanfare or background. We have several incidents in his life, and a few more in 2 Kings.

The drought and Elijah’s miracles, 17:1-18:19
The confrontation with the prophets of Baal, 18:20-40
The miracle of the rain, 18:41-46
Elijah flees to Mount Horeb and hears the “still small voice” of God and is returned to service, 19:1-18
Ahab and the vineyard of Naboth, 21:1-29
Here is a nice summary of Elijah’s career: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/elijah

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from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kings_of_Israel_and_Judah

Some other aspects of these chapters:

* Rabbi Telushkin points out aspects of the “unwisdom” of Solomon: his thousand women, the fact that he—-the builder of God’s Temple—-became a follower of the gods Ashtoreth and Milcom (1 Kings 11:4-5), his forty thousand horses (1 Kings 5:6, compare Deut. 17:16-17), the forced labor he imposed on his subjects, and other aspects: the wisdom that God gave to Solomon in the beginning was lost as Solomon’s reign went on (Biblical Literacy, 248-249). Unfortunately, his son Rehoboam lacked Solomon’s earlier wisdom, or else the division of the kingdoms might not have occurred (p. 253).

* Rabbi Telushkin notes that the temple was apparently 180 feet long, 90 feet wide, and 50 feet high, likely with a massive surrounding area. The most important room was the Holy of Holies that housed the ark and the Ten Commandments tablets, into which only the high priest could enter. David could not build the temple because hew as a man of bloodshed (1 Chronicles 28:3), leaving the work to Solomon, involving over 3000 overseers (1 Kings 5:27-30) but resulting in heavy indebtedness (1 Kings 9:1). “To this day, Orthodox Jews pray three times a day for the Temple’s restoration and the reinstitution of the sacrifices offered there” (p. 251) but not all Jews do, and the fact that the Dome of the Rock is built on the site, a new Temple is very unlikely (ibid., pp. 250-251).

* What is the purpose of the strange, ethically ambiguous story of the two prophets in 1 Kings 13? The theologian Karl Barth puts the moral implication of the story in the background—the lies of the prophet from Bethel—and focuses upon the objective nature of God’s word, which is true and trustworthy regardless of human behavior (Brevard S. Childs, Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1986), 142-143).

* Asa of Judah (15:9-24) is one of the few good kings among these, for he eliminated aspects of foreign worship. Other kings are considered in shorter narratives—except for Ahab, whose evil exploits are “exemplary of the kind of behavior that led finally to the destruction of the Northern Kingdom” (Harper’s Bible Commentary, p. 318). Of course, the adventures of Elijah find their context in the prophet’s opposition to the king and queen.

* Elijah is an angry, confrontational prophet in the scriptures. But in Jewish folk tales, he is kind and lovable; Rabbi Telushkin writes, “Countless generations of Jewish children have waited expectantly at the Passover Seder for him to make a secret appearance to sip wine form the cup (kos Eliyahu) prepared for him. Jewish tradition also teaches that he appears at every circumcision, where a special chair (kissei Eliyahu) is set aside for him… [in] many folk tales… he appears miraculously to save poor Jews and those threatened by antisemites” (Biblical Literacy, p. 254).

* As a result of the evil plot to get rid of Naboth so that the king could have his vineyard, the Lord passes judgment upon the king and queen and their sons. The sentences do come to pass, though not right away. Ahab is killed by a randomly shot arrow (22:29-38), Jezebel dies in the predicted gruesome way (2 Kings 9:30-37), and their sons are all killed (2 Kings 10:1ff). These are examples of the numerous places in the Bible where the reader may connect the dots between God’s word and the result.

* Finally: somewhere in my childhood TV watching, I heard the oath, “Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat!” It sounds like something Yosemite Sam would’ve said, but I’m not sure. I looked it up, and learned that it’s an oath (substituting for “Jesus!”) that can be traced to the 1800s: http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-jum2.htm

*****

2 Kings

The book covers over 260 years, from the death of King Ahaziah of Israel through the fall of the northern kingdom to the fall of the southern kingdom.

This book is the conclusion of what scholars have called the Deuteronomistic history, beginning with Deuteronomy and including Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings. The hypothesized source for the narrative provides a theological explanation for the fall of Judah, as well as a bridge to a return from exile. Remember that these books (Joshua through Kings) are called the Former Prophets in the Jewish Bible, because the prophets are important figures among these narratives, and the upcoming prophetic books speak to the historical and theological circumstances of the kingdoms.

My Renovaré Spiritual Formation Bible points out some important aspects of 1 and 2 Kings. One is that the narratives not only including kingly history but stories of everyday people affected by government policies. Notice how both Elijah and Elisha take the time to help those in need.

Another aspect: true power lies not in the kings, but in the word of God expressed in the prophets (p. 482-483). In fact, the narratives express a suspicion of power, whether used for good or bad purposes (p. 484).

Still another aspect is that God is involved in public life as well as the hearts of individuals (p. 484).

And also, the books express the reality that security is of God alone—not even the sources of the people’s trust, like the Davidic kingdom and Solomon’s temple, are secure if God is not safeguarding them (p. 532).

As with interpreting the Torah, one must seek faithful ways to interpret narratives and provisions from an ancient time. An Iron Age monarchy and society differs from our contemporary technological society and representative democracy. But the books of Kings “suggest that a life that recognizes and confesses vulnerability is a life of well-being an power through God… a life that involves releasing our tight grip on all our arrangements for power so that God may inaugurate hopeful newness. For the Church, that is a familiar message. It is the witness of the cross, ever challenging, ever compelling” (ibid., p. 533).

*****

Here are highlights of 2 Kings. Some of my books indicate that the chronologies of the text are difficult to reconcile. These approximate dates of the prophets and the kings’ reigns come from chronological charts in Bernhard W. Anderson, Understanding the Old Testament (third edition, Prentice Hall, 1975).

The first block of material is the history of the divided kingdom to the revolt of Jehu.

* Death of Ahaziah of Israel (849), 1:1-18; he beseeches Baalzebub for help instead of the Lord.

* Elijah and Elisha, 2:1-25: Elijah is taken into heaven in a fiery chariot, and Elisha assumes his mantle and embarks on his prophetic ministry—beginning with his famous curse of 42 little boys who called him “baldhead.” For more on Elisha’s “adventures,” see for instance http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/elisha

* Jehoram of Israel (849-842), 3:1-27, and his successful campaign against the Moabites.

* Miracles and other works of Elisha, 4:1-8:15. Among his miracles, he promised a son to the Shunammite woman and later raises the son from the dead and otherwise helps her; he made poisonous stew edible; he healed the Gentile Naaman of his leprosy; he fed a hundred people with a little food; he makes man’s iron ax head float so that he could recover it; and others.

* Jehoram of Judah (849-842), 8:16-24
Ahaziah of Judah (842), 8:25-29
Jehu of Israel (842-815), 9:1-10:1-36. Elisha anionts Jehu, who with his men kill Jezebel, and then Jehoram, and Ahaziah was also mortally wounded. Jehu and his men subsequently kill all of Ahab’s family, avenging the death of Naboth (9:21, 25, 26), and also massacre worshipers of Baal. Jehu’s faithfulness to God resulted in a substantial dynasty (15:12) but Jehu did not continue to follow God’s laws (10:31), and so the Lord trims off parts of Israel (10:32-36).

* Athaliah and Joash of Judah (842-837, 837-800), 11:1-21
Joash’s reforms, 12:1-21. He repairs the temple and also uses temple gold to make Hazel of Aram withdraw from Jerusalem.

* Jehoahaz of Israel (815-801), 13:1-9
Jehoash/Joash of Israel (801-786); Elisha’s death, 13:10-13:25.
Amaziah of Judah (800-783), 14:1-22, who warred against Israel.
Jeroboam II of Israel (786-746), 14:23-29, who did evil, but God saved the kingdom for the time being.

About here, it should be noted that the prophets Amos and Hosea prophesied to the Northern Kingdom in about the 740s and 750s.

* Azariah/Uzziah of Judah (783-742), 15:1-7, who did what was right but also did not remove the foreign altars and so God struck him with leprosy.
Remember that the northern prophet Isaiah dated his prophetic call to the year King Uzziah died (Isaiah 6:1).

* Chapter 15: stories of horrible violence, bribery, conspiracy, idolatry, and assassination, though ending with the reign of Uzziah’s son Jothan, who like his father was righteous yet did n’t remove the false offerings.
Zechariah of Israel (746-745), 15:8-12
Shallum of Israel (one month in about 745), 15:13-16
Menahem of Israel (745-738), 15:17-22
Pekahiah of Israel (738-737), 15:23-26
Pekah of Israel (737-732), 15:27-31
Jotham of Judah (742-735), 15:32-38

* Ahaz of Judah (737-715), 16:1-20, who was an evil ruler, but he saved Judah from the threats of Aram and Israel by paying tribute to Assyria’s ruler Tiglath-pileser.

* Finally the northern kingdom is attacked and conquered by Assyria during the reign of the last king, Hoshea of Israel. 17:1-6. The Deuteronomistic historian comments extensively on the sins that led to Israel’s fall (17:7-23), and describes the resettlement of the area. Among the new settlers were the people who became known as Samaritans. (Samaria is the area of the land’s central region, earlier associated with the tribes Ephraim and Manasseh.)

Here are Assyrian reliefs from that time period, in the British Museum. (My photos from a 2011 visit)

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* From chapter 18 to the end of 2 Kings, the kings are of Judah:
Hezekiah (715-687), 18:1-8-20:1-21. Hezekiah was righteous and also tore down the high places, false idols, and other idols. Even the bronze snake of Moses’ time had become an idol, and he destroyed it (18:4). But he faced the challenge of the Assyrians, too, who besieged Jerusalem. The mockery of Assyrian representatives hastens the divine deliverance. (2 Kings 19 is identical to Isaiah 37, and that prophet is a key focuser in both.)

* Manasseh (687-642), 21:1-18, Hezekiah’s son, was very wicked and did much evil. This is the last straw. Although 2 Chronicles 33:11-19 records the king’s repentance, God’s judgment against Judah was now certain because of Manasseh’s idolatry and violence.

* Amon of Judah (642-640), 21:19-26, was also evil, but

* Josiah (640-609), 22:1-25:30, was a righteous king who prepared the temple, and in doing so recovered the book of the law (probably the text of Deuteronomy 12-26) and with great sorrow sought to renew the covenant and to initiate reforms throughout the kingdom. Sadly, God’s wrath was still kindled against Judah, and Josiah was killed in an unfortunate meeting with Pharaoh Neco.

The prophets Zephaniah (about 628-622), Jeremiah (about 626-587), Habakkuk (about 605), and Ezekiel (about 593-573) are from this general period, while 2 Isaiah was exilic: about 540.

* Jehoahaz (609), 23:31-33, briefly reigned, but he was taken captive by the Pharaoh. His successor Eliakim/Jehoiakim (609-598, 23:34-24:6, also did evil in God’s sight, as did Jehoiachin (598-597), 24:7-12. In his eighth year as king, he was taken prisoner by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who looted Jerusalem and carried away many inhabitants. Nebuchadnezzar installed Jehoiachin’s uncle Zedekiah as king. But Zedekiah rebelled against Babylon, resulting in the destruction of Jerusalem and the terrible end of Zedekiah and his sons (25:1-7). Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple was burned, demolished, and looted. Nebuchadnezzar appointed the ill-fated Gedaliah to be governor of the land of Judah (25:22-26).

Remember all the history of the tribes of Israel in Genesis, Joshua, and Judges? That all comes to an end in 2 Kings, with only Judah, Benjamin, and the priestly tribe Levi remaining. Is the promise of God to Abraham–many descendants, and a land of their own–finished, too?

The conclusion of the book is a sign of hope: the Judahite ruler Jehoiachin (who is, of course, of the family of David) is freed from prison and is well treated for the rest of his life (25:27-30). Tragic as the situation is for God’s people, this is a sign of hope that God has not abandoned his covenants with Abraham, Moses, and David. Yet–as we saw with the conclusion of Deuteronomy–faithfulness to God will likely continue without attachment to the land.

****

One of my older books comments this way about the end of 2 Kings: “Whilst there is life, there is hope; we may not despair. God can turn the dungeon, when he pleases, into a palace. When our friend the great King shall sit on the throne of his kingdom, then he shall loose the bands of death, change the prison garments of his saints, clothe them with immortality, and placing their throne next his own, make them sit down with him, and reign in glory everlasting” (Rev. Thomas Haweis, The Evangelical Expositor; or, a Commentary on the Holy Bible, Vol. 1 (Glasgow, Blackie & Son, 1834), p. 678).

*****

It would be good to recap the historical books that we’ve traversed, make some connections, and to look ahead. The following material is from one of my other blogs.

* The historical books Joshua through Kings have several major themes. One is the keeping of the covenant: God will reward faithfulness and will eventually punish wickedness and apostasy. A recurring reminder is the way God redeemed his people from Egypt (e.g., 1 Kings 6;1, 8:9, 16, 21, 51, 53; 9:9; 12:28; 2 Kings 17:36; 21:15), a reminder which is of course a significant aspect of the Torah. So the historical books connect back to the Torah in narrating (1) God’s faithfulness across the centuries, and (2) the people’s failure to keep their part of the covenant—especially because their kings have failed.

* Another major theme is experience of the Land (ha-aretz)—the land promised to Israel since Abram in Genesis 12. As we saw in the Torah, God guides his people, establishes his covenant with them, gives them his law, and leads them to the Land under the leadership of Moses and then Joshua. Holding and keeping the Land, though, remains a challenge across the centuries: the campaigns and conquests of Joshua are only the beginning of that story.(1)

* Connected to the Land is the history of the monarchy. Commentators like Anderson note that while the tribal confederacy of the Judges period had problems with faithfulness and idolatry, those problems were different from other nations in that they were defined by their covenant to the Lord. But once Israel had a king, an additional temptation was added: becoming a nation like any other nation. Certainly God’s power was operative, for instance, in the selection of Saul and David and the ongoing life of the people, especially in light of the Philistine threat. But, as Anderson notes, the true successors of the judges were the prophets rather than the kings: “the religious faith of the Confederacy [the Judges] survived its collapse and found new expression in Israel’s prophetic movement. Israel was not allowed to identify a human kingdom with the Kingdom of God, for Yahweh alone was king.”(2)

Unfortunately, that meant that Israel and Judah had eventually to collapse, as warned by the prophets, in order that the remnant could become truly faithful to the covenant.

When we explore the stories of David and his successors, we notice difficulties building. Although Israel became a renowned kingdom (occasioning the famous Queen of Sheba’s visit in 1 Kings 10:1-10), we also hear of the horror of the hanging of Saul’s seven sons (and the tragic figure of the concubine Rizpah: 2 Sam. 21:1-14), continued conflict with the Philistines (2 Sam. 21:15-22), terrible results of David’s census (2 Sam. 24), the rebellions and difficulties within David’s own family (2 Sam. 9-20 and 1 Kings 1-2), the many stories of violence and idolatry and corruption among the narratives of the kings, and eventually the division of the kingdom following Solomon’s death.(3)

On the other hand, the possibilities of monarchy gave rise to the hope for a future king who would reunite the people and regain and surpass the possibilities of peace and prosperity—as we read in the famous messianic passages that we specially embrace during Advent and Christmas: Isaiah 7:10-17, 9:2-7, and 11:1-9.

Thus, within these stories, David emerges as a kind of “typology” for God’s rule.(4) The two mountains, Sinai and Zion, stand for the two covenants of God, and Nathan’s prophecy (2 Samuel 7) links David’s descendants to God’s Sinai covenant. All earlier ambivalence about a monarchy changes to a confidence in God’s rulership through David’s line–God’s remarkable commitment to his people via David. And since David is identified with Jerusalem (Zion) in his selection of that place as capital, Zion became identified as God’s own city, the city of God’s peace (Ps. 46, 48, 76, and others).(5)

Of course, the line of David, also celebrated in the psalms (2, 20, 31, 45, and others) connects to the later messianic hope that grows in Israel’s history and, for Christians, finds fulfillment in Jesus.

* Another theme of these biblical books is the Jerusalem temple. The Temple, promised to David and constructed during Solomon’s reign, is connected to the history of the Tabernacle before it (Ex. 35-40) and, of course, to the Land itself. David’s hope for a great, permanent house in the Land for God is not fulfilled, but his son Solomon constructs the facility (2 Sam. 7, 1 Kings 5-8). Like the monarchy, the Temple did not survive the collapse of Judah and Jerusalem in 586 (1 Kings 25:8, 9, 13-17), but the Temple serves in Israelite memory through the exile in, for instance, the dynamic vision of a restored Temple in Ezekiel 40-48. Following the exile, the high priest Jeshua and the governor Zerubbabel, helped by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, supervise the rebuilding of the temple (Ezra 3-6). After the Old Testament period, Herod the Great began work on a restored temple in 20-19 BC, a building effort still going on during Jesus’ time. Herod’s temple was finally completed, ironically, just a few years before the Romans destroyed it in 70 AD.

* The fall of Jerusalem in about 586 BC and the subsequent exile of the people in Babylon in 586-536 BC (2 Kings 24:18-25:30 and Jer. 52:1-34) are key events for the entire Bible.(6) Even if you’re a regular Bible reader you may miss the tremendous significance of the exile; the whole Bible radiates before and after that catastrophe.(7) We know little about the forty years in the wilderness (passed over in silence between Numbers 17:13 and 20:1), and we also have comparatively little history in the Bible about the exile itself, besides 2 Kings 25, Jeremiah 52, Lamentations, Psalms 79 and 137.(8) But the whole biblical history beginning with God’s promises to Abraham comes to a catastrophic turning point at the exile; much of the prophetic writings in the Bible reflect issues before, during, and after the exile; and the promises of God to David for a future Davidic monarchy become a great hope of Israel following the exile. The upcoming books of Ezra and Nehemiah record the post-exilic efforts to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple and to reestablish the people on the Land. (9) That post-exilic hope is understood in the New Testament as being fulfilled in Christ.(10)

In addition to these themes and connections, we find numerous other connections within the biblical books:

* The connection of Noah’s curse of Canaan (Gen. 9:25-26) with the Canaanite tribes who figure throughout the historical books.(11)

* The ongoing theme of the Amalekites (Ex. 17:8-16, Num. 13-14, Deut. 25:17, 19, Judges 3:13, 1 Sam. 15, et al.), connecting Joshua with Saul and later Hezekiah (1 Chr. 4:41-43).(12)

* The ongoing theme of Bethel (Josh. 18:21-22, Judges 1:22-26, 20:18, 26-28, 1 Sam. 7:16, 1 Kings 12:26-32, 2 Kings 17:27-28, 2 Kings 23:15-23, Ezra 2:28, Neh. 7:32, 11:31).(13)

* The connection of the places Gilgal (Josh. 4:19-5:12, 1 Sam. 11:15, 13:1-10) and also Gibeon (Josh. 9:3-27, 2 Sam. 2:12-3:1. As one commentator puts it, “The story [of Gibeonites] signals radical Davidic centralization by highlighting Joshua’s fulfillment of Yahweh’s command.” But also these Joshua stories connect to the law of herem (Deut. 7:1-6, 20:16-18), wherein God requires the annihilation of the people and prohibits the taking of spoils, a requirement at which Saul failed in his handling of the Amalekites.(14)

We also find interconnections of the historical books with the New Testament. Anyone struggling with the relevance of the historical books with Christian faith can take comfort that these books are foundational for our faith.

* The great themes of Yahweh’s covenant and salvation. The name “Joshua” is in Hebrew the same name as “Jesus,” meaning “Yahweh saves.”

* The theme of the Land. The Land is not spiritualized in the Old Testament the way that it tends to be in the New. In the Old, we speak of the actual land and its possession. Deutero-Isaiah begins to move in a more spiritual direction (Isa. 44:24ff, 49:14ff), and in the New Testament, Jesus himself becomes the “place” where God dwells (John 1:14).(15)

* The theme of the Kingdom of God. The phrase is not used in the Old Testament, but the kingdom of God is the principle theme of Jesus’ preaching and connects with God’s sovereignty through Israel’s history. As Graeme Goldworthy puts it, “While the Old Testament is everywhere eloquent in describing the sovereignty of God in history to work out his purposes, Jesus declares that he is the goal of that sovereign working of God.”(16)

* The theme of a new kind of monarchy under David’s descendant, Jesus. In his person and work, Jesus brings themes like the Lamb of God, the sufferings of David, and the suffering servant of Isaiah into the theme of the king of Israel: thus, when Jesus is killed, the charge against him is “king of the Jews.”(17) But in his suffering and death is victory over sin and death, and the ambiguities of the Israelite monarchy are understood to be resolved.

* The theme of the Temple. The New Testament never explicitly mentions the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD, an odd omission. Jesus quotes Jeremiah concerning the Temple, and he himself is understood to be the new temple (John 2:20-22). Paul, in turn, calls each of us “temples of the Holy Spirit” in that God’s presence dwells within us (1 Cor. 6:9-10).

* The realities of post-exilic Judaism provide a more subtle connection. Groups like the Pharisees and Sadducees , as well as the Essenes and Zealots, formed in response to the needs of the people during the post-exilic time, as did institutions like synagogues, Sabbath requirements, and festivals to which Jews—many living in different parts of the world after the exile—came to Jerusalem (e.g., John 11:55 and also Acts 2:5-11).

* Not only is the exile a decisive turning point for the whole Bible—a climax of a long drama but also a new beginning for Jews and later for Christians—scholars hypothesize that the compilations and editing of law codes and historical materials happened as during and after the exile. Thus, the exile and the restoration necessitated the composition of the Bible itself!

* Of course, the Jews who became the first Christians were post-exilic Jews who, like other Jews, looked to another kind restoration of Israel’s fortunes. The Christians saw that restoration and monarchical fulfillment in the Jew Jesus, and they based that hope upon exilic texts like Isaiah 40-66.

* It is worth noting that exilic language flavors many Christian hymns, especially those that refer to our heavenly home to which we live in hope. In childhood Vacation Bible School I learned that peppy song “Do Lord” with its evocation of “Glory Land.” I also learned “Bringing in the Sheaves,” based on the post-exilic Psalm 136 and the struggle of returning exiles to reestablish agriculture.

Notes:

1 An excellent study is Walter Brueggemann, The Land: Place as Gift, Promise, and Challenge in Biblical Faith (second edition, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002).

Gordon J. Wenham writes, “The [book of Genesis] begins with the triumphant account of God creating the world in six days and declaring it ‘very good’, and it ends with Joseph confidently looking forward to his burial in the promised land. Judges by contrast opens with the rather ineffective efforts of the Israelite tribes to conquer that land and closes after a most dreadful civil war with the gloomy reflection, ‘In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes’ (21:25).” Story as Torah: Reading Old Testament Narrative Ethically(Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2000), 45.

2 Anderson, Understanding the Old Testament, 162-163. Brevard S. Childs notes that the Old Testament has a presumed “pro-monarchial” source in 1 Sam. 8-12, specifically 9:1-10:16 and 11:1-5, compared with anti-monarchical sources (1 Sam. 8:1-22, 10:17-27, 12:1-25) that view a human king as an act of disobedience to God, the true monarch. Childs looks at the texts’ canonical shape and concludes that, although some of the biblical traditions were hostile to a monarchy, the final form of the text affirms God’s involvement in the monarchy, even though a monarchy was not part of God’s original plan (Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context [Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1986], 115). Furthermore, he continues, the career of the greatest monarch, David, becomes deeply significant for Israel’s ongoing hope in God’s redemption (Isa. 9:6-7, Jer. 23:5ff, Ps. 45, 72, 110, and the way David’s speech in 2 Sam. 22 echoes Hanna’s song in 1 Sam. 2). In his Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992), Childs sees a similar tension regarding the book of Judges. The book itself connects the moral decline of the period to the lack of a king (18:1, 21:25), but in the anti-monarchical passages of 1 Samuel (e.g. 12:12ff), the office of judges rather than a monarch was God’s intention for Israel. Yet the future hope of Israel lay not in a judge but a Davidic king (150-151).

3 Anderson, Understanding the Old Testament, 184. Under the kingship of Solomon’s son Rehoboam (1 Kings 12) the kingdom divides between the northern (Israel) and the southern (Judah). A succession of kings rule Israel for the subsequent two hundred years until the Assyrians conquer that land in about 722 BC (2 Kings 12). The later Babylonians did not compel the resettlement of conquered areas but the Assyrians did. Consequently, the deportation of the tribes in the northern kingdom resulted not only in “the lost tribes of Israel” but also the beginning of the Samaritan (2 Kings 17:1-6, 24-41, 18:9, 1 Chr. 5:26). Later, those from the southern kingdom who returned from Babylonian exile came into conflict with Samaritans in the years following (Hag. 2:10ff, Ezra 10:2ff, Neh. 4:1ff). See Childs, Biblical Theology, 162.

4 A helpful book to me was Walter Brueggemann, In Man We Trust: The Neglected Side of Biblical Faith (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1972), on the freedom of David.

5 Childs, Biblical Theology, 154-55.

6 Ralph W. Klein, “Exile,” The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2007), 367-370.

7 As commentator Choo-Leong Seow notes, Judah was destroyed because of persistent disobedience. (2 Kings 17). The righteous Hezekiah forestalled this judgment (2 Kings 20), but his son Manasseh was the worst of all the kings, on par with the northern king Jeroboam. Even Josiah’s reforms could not reverse God’s judgment following Manasseh’s sins (2 Kings 22:1-23:30). Choon-Leong Seow, “The First and Second Books of Kings,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume V (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1999), 5, 6.

8 See Childs, Biblical Theology, 161-163, for several aspects of the period from biblical sources.

9 A book I enjoyed in seminary is Peter R. Ackroyd, Exile and Restoration: A Study of Hebrew Thought in the Sixth Century B.C. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1968).

10 Although Israel’s hope is understood to be fulfilled in Christ, themes of the exile still shape the Bible. As Peter-Ben Smith points out, a key biblical theme, beginning with the Garden Eden, is that we are all in exile and long to be redeemed from exile. He points out that the Christian liturgical traditions are filled with the language of exile, and also the exile functions in theologies of liberation (the struggle for freedom amid oppression) and other contemporary theologies. The biblical language about Jesus’ death and resurrection connects to Passover, which of course concerns the earlier exile of Egyptian slavery. Peter-Ben Smith, “Ecumenism in Exile,” World Council of Churches’ website, http://www.oikoumene.org/en/programmes/the-wcc-and-the-ecumenical-movement-in-the-21st-century/relationships-with-member-churches/60th-anniversary/contest/essay-ecumenism-in-exile.html. Accessed 2012.

11 These and the following scripture references are from Robert B. Coote, “The Book of Joshua,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume II, (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998), 559.

12 Coote, “The Book of Joshua,” 561.

13 Coote, “The Book of Joshua,” 562.

14 Coote, “The Book of Joshua,” 562, 566 (quotation on page 562)

15 Brueggemann, The Land: Place as Gift, Promise, and Challenge in Biblical Faith, chapter 10.

16 Goldworthy, Preaching the Whole Bible, 52-53.

17 Goldworthy, Preaching the Whole Bible, 53.

1 Chronicles

This week I’ve been studying 1 Chronicles, a book that I’ve read very little! The two Chronicles aren’t among the more popular Bible books. For Christians, they pertain more directly to post-exilic Judaism, while we tend to see post-exilic Judaism as the background and “backdrop” for Jesus. Even the ancient rabbis tended to neglect Chronicles because of the perception of an idealized past. As my Jewish Study Bible notes, “Jews of antiquity accepted the version of the accounts preserved in the earlier Deuteronomistic sources of Samuel and Kings over that of Chronicles” (p. 1714).

Walter Brueggemann and Tod Linafel write: “[T]he text makes a wondrous sweep of the entire past and drives it freely and imaginatively into the historical specificity of post exilic Judaism upon which the text wants to reflect and to which it wants to bear witness. Thus the books are a revised version of Israel’s memory in the context and under the impact of the Persian context of Judaism; in the context of Persia as a dependent colony of the empire, Judaism’s only chance for freedom of thought, faith, and action is through the maintenance of a liturgical practice and sensibility”(1). So we Christians shouldn’t see post-exilic Judaism only as Jesus’ background but as the living and ongoing faith that bears witness to us, too.

The Harper’s Bible Commentary points out that Genesis through 2 Kings is the primary history of the Bible, telling the long story from Creation to the fall of Judah. But Chronicles, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Esther form an important secondary history, carrying the biblical story from Creation into the early post-exilic era when the Jews were allowed to return to the land and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple during the Persian era. “The OT presents us, then, with two alternative tellings of the history of the Israelite people. Their difference in outlook does not necessarily make either of them unreliable; it only reinforces the fact that the telling of any story or any history must be selective and must reflect the intentions of some person or group” (p. 80).

“The narrative of the Primary History may be described as one of fair beginnings and foul endings” (p. 75). That is, the promise to Abraham of descendants and land comes to an end with the Babylonian exile. All the leaders of that long story had problems. “There is not a lot of difference between Genesis 6:5-7 and 2 Kings 17:18-23; when God sees that humankind’s thoughts are ‘only evil continually,’ he is sorry that he created them and determines to ‘blot’ them out of the face of the ground by a great food. Things are not very different when the Israelite people over many generations do ‘wicked things, provoking the Lord to ‘anger’ (2 Kings 17:11)” (p. 78). Whether or not 2 Kings ends on a note of hope is open to debate.

Admittedly, 1 Chronicles distills the long story of Adam to David into nine chapters of genealogies. But the Secondary History, coming from the post-exilic time and written for Jews struggling with a new era, is more hopeful. Emphasizing King David fits the author’s purpose: in Chronicles, “[t]he history of the monarchy… seems to be primarily a history of the establishment and maintenance of the worship of God,” a concern that carries over into Ezra and Nehemiah as the people rebuild the temple and Jerusalem (p. 79). Although Esther is set in Persia rather than the land, that book affirms the providential continuation of the Jewish people even in foreign lands (p. 79). Even the genealogies are implicitly hopeful, demonstrating the continuity of God’s people from ancient times. It makes sense, then, that these books conclude the Jewish canon, effectively pointing to Jews toward their remarkable future.

(The history of God’s people continues with the book of Daniel–probably from the 100s BCE–in apocryphal books like Maccabees, then in the Mishnah and Talmud, as Second- and Post-Temple Judaism transformed into Rabbinic Judaism, and all the history and witness of the Jews during the subsequent two millennia. The New Testament provides scriptural history of the messianic subgroup of Jews known as Christians, a faith that eventually became prominently Gentile.)

1 and 2 Chronicles have numerous differences with Samuel and King—contrasting narratives and theologies that emerged from different historical circumstances and different audiences. I feel impatient with folks who say things like “Every word of the Bible is true” and “You shouldn’t interpret the Bible, you should obey it.” Both ideas neglect the wonderful complexity of the Bible. Here are a few contrasts that I learned this week:

* Negative aspects of David and Solomon are largely omitted.

* Chronicles focuses on the temple and worship and less on governmental issues. The Levites, mentioned very seldom in Samuel and Kings, figure strongly in Chronicles.

* Chronicles notes the division of the kingdom but mostly leaves out the northern kings, focusing instead on the Davidic kings of Judah. Chronicles aims to demonstrate the continuity of God’s providence for the people, while the break-off northern kingdom was illegitimate and ended after two hundred years.

* About half of Chronicles is “new” material, found nowhere else in the Bible. In fact, another name of the book is Paralipomenon, meaning “things left to the side” or “things omitted.” For instance, Chronicles mentions 13 prophets who don’t appear in Samuel or Kings.

* A major contrast with Samuel and Kings is theological: God’s rewards and punishments happen more quickly. Each generation experiences the consequences of its actions. This in turn encourages each new generation to stay faithful to God and the covenant.

(For more comparisons, see: http://markhaughwout.com/Bible/Kings_and_Chronciles_comparison.htm, sbsinternational.org/resource-material/chronicles/?wpdmdl=1034&ind=6 http://thecenterforbiblicalstudies.org/resources/introductions-to-the-books-of-the-bible/1-and-2-chronicles/)

1 and 2 Chronicles has four sections. 1 Chr. 1-9 are genealogies that connect post-exilic Jews all the way back to Creation. 1 Chr. 10-29 move briefly through Saul’s life (leaving out all the drama between Saul and David) and narrate the reign of David, ending with the ascendency of Solomon. 2 Chr. 1-9 tell us of Solomon’s reign, especially focusing upon the temple. The last section, 2 Chr. 10-36 tell of the southern kingdom, its fall, and the early restoration(2).

* Early genealogies, 1:1-54, which we also find in Genesis.

* Genealogies of the 12 Tribes, 2:1-9:44
As the Harper’s Bible Commentary points out, it’s notable (and consistent with the Chronicler’s purpose) that Judah and his descendants are listed first, because it’s the tribe of David. Otherwise Judah, who was not the oldest son, would have been down the list. Some of the names are not found elsewhere in the Bible, and the nine generations between Judah and David are too few, given the 900 years between the two men (p. 345). Similarly, the care given to the descendants of Benjamin (chapter 8), one of the surviving tribes. Chapter 9, which is related to Nehemiah 11, provides key people in the post-exilic time (p. 348-349).
If you’re looking for biblical names for your children, you might (or might not) consider some of the names in these chapters, like Phuvah (1 Chr. 7:1), Anub (1 Chr. 4:8), Koz (1 Chr. 4:3), Ziph (1 Chr. 2:42), and Hazelelponi (1 Chr. 4:3).

* The deaths of Saul and his sons, 10:1-14.

* David’s kingdom, 11:1-12:40. With none of the preceding drama between David and Saul, David rises quickly with the approval of “all Israel,” and takes Jerusalem. Many names listed in these chapters are only found here (p. 350).

* The Ark of the Covenant, 13:1-14, 15:1-16:43. Significantly, the priest and Levites are indicated to be part of the effort (p. 351).

* David’s military campaigns, 14:1-17, 18:1-20:8. Again, the account leaves out some of David’s more brutal actions—omitting his crimes with Uriah and Bathsheba, giving only a small attention to the war with Absalom, and others.

* God’s covenant with David, 17:1-27. As the same book notes, this passage along with 2 Samuel 7 are among the Bible’s most significant sections, where God blesses David and promises the kingdom to him and his descendants (p. 352).

* David’s census, 21:1-30. In Chronicles, Satan rather than God incites David to authorize the census.

* Beginning of the temple, 22:1-19. Chapters 22, 28, 29 basically unite the work of David and Solomon (p. 353), and we have none of the intrigue of succession that we find at the beginning of 1 Kings.

* Divisions of the Levites, 23:2-26:32, and more of David’s officials, 27:1-34. Again, the Levites and priests are important in the story because they have provided continuity of worship from Davidic times to the post-exilic era.

* David’s final words to the people, 28:1-29:19, 29:26-30. Remember that, in 1 Kings, we have different kinds of “last words” from David—urging the death of Joab, etc. In 1 Chronicles, his final speech and blessings are beautiful words, full of psalm-like petition and thanksgiving.

* Solomon begins as king, 23:1, 29:20-25.

Although it runs to 36 chapters, next week I’ll study all of 2 Chronicles.

Notes:

1. Walter Brueggemann and Tod Linafelt, An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination (2nd edition, Westminster John Knox Press, 2012), 409.

2. Ibid., 411-413.

*****

2 Chronicles

See my last post for general information about both books. This book continues the history of Israel under Solomon, notes the the division of the kingdom into Israel (Ephraim) and Judah, and then focuses on the history of Judah and its kings.

The first section, chapters 1-9, tell of the reign of Solomon:
His wisdom, 1:1-17
The construction and furnishing of the Temple, 2:1-5:14
Solomon’s prayer, and God’s glory fills the sancturary, 6:1-7:22
Other aspects of Solomon’s reign, chapters 8-9

The section, short section tells of the division of the Kingdom under Rehoboam and Jeroboam, chapters 10 through 12.

The third, long section is the history of Judah, chapters 13 through 36
Abijah, chapter 13
Asa, chapters 14 through 16
Jehoshaphat, chapters 17 through 20
Jehoram, chapter 21
Ahaziah, 22:1-9
Athaliah usurps the throne, 22:10-12
Joash, chapters 23 and 24
Amaziah, chapter 25
Uzziah, chapter 26
Jotham, chapter 27
Ahaz, chapter 28
Hezekiah, chapters 29 through 32
Manasseh, 33:1-20
Amon, 33:21-25
Josiah, chapters 34 and 35
Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah of Judah, 36:1-16
The end of the southern kingdom, 36:17-21
The decree of Cyrus of Persia, 538 BCE, 36:22-23

The Harper’s Bible Commentary has several interesting points:

* “While agreeing with the Deuteronomistic historian that the Temple is not God’s dwelling (1 Kings 5:3) but the place where his name dwells, emphasis [in 2 Chr. 2-8] falls primarily upon the Temple as a place of worship and sacrifice” (pp. 357-358). But also, “the terminology associated with the building of the Temple and with Huramabi is heavily dependent upon the tabernacle narrative [in Ex. 28 and 35],” with Huramabi becoming a hero along with Bazalel and Oholiab (Ex. 31) (p. 358). Another connection with the Torah, along with the placing of the Ark inside the sanctuary, is the dating of the temple from the 480th year since the Exodus (2 Chr. 3:1-5:10), and the identifying of the site not only with Araunah’s threshing floor at the end of 2 Samuel but also with Mt. Moriah in Gen. 22:2 (p. 358).

* 2 Chr. 7:14 is a very famous verse, which I’ve seen applied to the United States. The original context is, of course, the confidence that the Chronicler wants to inculcate in the returning exile. “It has been observed that, especially in the words of vs. 14, four avenues of repentance are uncovered (to humble oneself, pray, seek, turn) that will lead to God’ hearing, forgiving, and healing of people and land and that such a theology is meant to proclaim to the exiles that no circumstances are too formidable to prevent God from fulfilling his promise. These terms are indeed the heart of the writer’s theology from this point on and point to the dedication of the Temple as the beginning of a new era in Israel’s history” (p. 359).

* The portrayal of Solomon omits negative aspects of Solomon that we find in 1 Kings (pp. 359-360). In the post-Solomonic history, the good and bad kings of Judah reflect the evaluations of 2 Kings, although with some expansions and omissions. Stories like Abijah’s successful battles against the forces of Jeroboam reflect the Chronicler’s theology that faithfulness to God brings success, and evil brings defeat (p. 361). Similarly, the reign of Asa, well-respected by the Deuteronomistic historian, is characterized by the successes of faithfulness and the difficulties resulting form his lapses (p. 362). Similarly Josh, a little later, while Jehoshaphat’s reign is highly regarded.

* It’s worth noting that the Syro-Ephraimite War (about 735-732 BCE), found in 2 Kings 15:5-6 and 2 Chr. 28:5-8, will connect us later to Isaiah chapter 7, where that prophet spoke to circumstances in the northern and southern kingdoms (p. 367). The northern kingdom (sometimes called Ephraim as well as Israel) tried to break away from Assyrian influence. Syria and Israel (then under King Pekah) invaded Judah but failed to depose King Ahaz and failed to conquer Jerusalem. But idolatry spread through Judah during Ahaz’s reign, and Ahaz even paid the Assyrian ruler Tiglath-Pileser III with treasures from the temple.

* In 2 Chronicles as well as 2 Kings, Hezekiah and Josiah are lauded as wonderful kings, although the Chronicler gives the most space and praise to Hezekiah (p. 368). As in 2 Kings, Josiah labored under the shadow of his evil predecessor Manasseh. Yet Manasseh, too, gets grace; the Chronicler states that Manasseh humbled himself and prayed to God, and God restored him. If even the horrible Manasseh regains God’s grace, there is hope for all of us! (In the Apocrypha, “the Prayer of Manasseh” is a moving prayer dating from the 2nd or 1st centuries BCE: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Prayer+of+Manasseh&version=CEB)

* 2 Chronicles omits numerous details about the last kings of Judah but has the interesting story that the land law fallow for seventy years following the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem (2 Chr. 36:17-21), a necessary sabbath rest that connects us back to Lev. 26:34-39 and ahead to Jeremiah 25:11-13 and 29:10-14 (p. 371).

* Finally, the edict of Cyrus of Persia allows the return of the people to the land, and 2 Chr. 36:22-23 is repeated almost verbatim in the next book, Ezra (1:1-3a) (p. 371):

“In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in fulfilment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he sent a herald throughout all his kingdom and also declared in a written edict: ‘Thus says King Cyrus of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the Lord his God be with him! Let him go up.’” (NRSV)

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Brueggemann and Linafelt point out that these are the final verses of the Jewish Bible—since the Jewish Bible concludes with 2 Chronicles. The two authors invite us to compare those verses with Malachi 4:5-6, which are the final verses of the Christian Old Testament:

“Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.” (NRSV)

“Both endings concern futures—but futures staged very differently. It is important that this difference be honored and taken seriously, Judaism in a particular focus on land and Torah, Christianity with its focus on a Messiah for both Gentiles and Israel… In the midst of that difference, however, our judgment is that Jews and Christians must read together as long as we are able and as far as we can… Because both Malachi 4:5-6 and 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 end in anticipation… [i]t remains for us to keep reading, aware of distinctions, respectful of differences, grateful for what is held in common, a future with many shapes given by the God of all futures.” (Walter Brueggemann and Tod Linafelt, An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination (2nd edition, Westminster John Knox Press, 2012), 416.)

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Leslie C Allen’s introduction in the New Interpreter’s Bible(1) has an interesting section on the way “exile” functions both literally and metaphorically in Chronicles. In literal terms, the Chronicler interprets the history as a series of exiles (corresponding to different deportations at the end of the pre-exilic period). But the Chronicler also envisioned two different kinds of literal restorations: the return of the people to the land, and also the return of the Davidic monarchy (p. 301).

The Chronicler also thinks of the exile in metaphorical terms. This metaphorical use is crucially important for the ongoing history of Judaism and the beginning of Christianity. We find this metaphorical sense in other places of the Bible: the hope reflected in Psalms 85 and 126, the prayers in the upcoming Ezra 9 and Nehemiah 9, and the way Daniel 9 depicts the exile as lasting not 70 years but 70 times 7. Prof. Allen notes that the Chronicler uses three biblical texts to teach hope in God’s restoration: (1) 2 Chr. 36:21 connects to Lev. 26:34-35 to describe the land’s desolation as a sabbath rest, (2) Jer. 29:10-19 is referenced by the Chronicler to emphasize God’s promised restoration, and (3) Ezekiel 18 is a moral counterpart to the Chronicler’s “teaching of immediate retribution” with “each generation…controlling their own destiny, free to start again with or against the Lord” (pp. 302-303, quotation from page 303).

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Professor Allen calls Chronicles “the Bible’s best-kept secret,” absent from the Revised Common Lectionary, and less often explored than Samuel and Kings. The forbidding 1 Chr. 1-9 may be one reason, he writes. But once you get past the genealogies (which do have a theological purpose of their own), a Bible explorer can begin to dig into the wonderful, pastoral theology that emphasizes God’s grace, forgiveness, and an always hopeful future (pp. 299, 301)

Notes:

1. Leslie C. Allen, “The First and Second Books of Chronicles,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. III (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1999).

*****

As I was studying 2 Chronicles, the following passage stopped me, and I remembered a word study that I made a few years ago.

Now when the priests came out of the holy place (for all the priests who were present had sanctified themselves, without regard to their divisions), all the levitical singers, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, their sons and kindred, arrayed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps, and lyres, stood east of the altar with one hundred and twenty priests who were trumpeters, it was the duty of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard in unison in praise and thanksgiving to the Lord, and when the song was raised, with trumpets and cymbals and other musical instruments, in praise to the Lord,
‘For he is good,
for his steadfast love endures for ever’,
the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God(2 Chronicles 5:11-14).

That word “glory” has rich meanings, back to passages we’ve looked at and forward to the New Testament. The word can mean honor/renown, or beauty/magnificence, or heaven/eternity itself. St. Ignatius’s famous motto was Ad maiorum Dei gloriam, “to the greater glory of God.” I always took this to mean, “to increase God’s renown (through our devotion and service),” but the Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner notes that we also share in God’s own life as we serve God.[1]

When I was a little kid, we learned that catchy song “Do Lord”, with its image of sharing God’s life eternally.

I’ve got a home in Glory Land that outshines the sun
I’ve got a home in Glory Land that outshines the sun
I’ve got a home in Glory land that outshines the sun
Way beyond the blue.

I was little and misunderstood what “outshines” means. Instead of “shines brighter than the sun,” I thought it mean “sunny outside.” So I had an image of Heaven as being outdoors and pleasant, like summer days with no school.

If you “go deep” into Bible study, it’s fun sometimes to take a word or a theme and see how it is used among Bible passages. When I first wrote this, for instance, I found this now-broken link, http://members.cox.net/decenso/Glory%20of%20God.pdf, which provided many Bible references to God’s glory, including references to the departure of God’s glory (e.g. 1 Samuel 4, when the ark was captured), the promise of God’s presence and manifestation, the presence of God’s majesty in creation (Ps. 97:6), and the glory of God that we know and see in Jesus (Heb. 1:3, Col. 1:19, Col. 2:9, 1 Cor. 2:8, Rom. 9:23 Eph. 1:18, Col. 1:27 Acts 2:3).

Carey C. Newman, writing in The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of The Bible (pages 576-580) notes that the biblical words for “glory” are kavodh and doxa; that second word provides the root for “orthodox” and “doxology.” Newman states that the word applied to God can mean appearance or arrival, as at Sinai or the Tent of Meeting or the Temple. This is the special Presence of God (Shekinah), sometimes depicted in “throne” visions (as in the famous Ezekiel 1 and Daniel 7, and also the non-canonical 1 Enoch 14), and also the presence of God which dwells in the tabernacle (as in the Priestly history, e.g. Exodus 40:34-38).[2] Moses and Aaron are able to mediate between the people and God, because at this point in the biblical history, God’s glory is dangerous, as in Lev. 9, when the sons of Aaron are killed, and also the later story in 2 Samuel 6, when well-meaning Uzzah touched the ark when it was being carried improperly on a wagon. The presence of God is also associated with the cherubim and the mercy seat (Ex. 25:22, Num. 12:89, Deut. 33:26, 1 Sam. 4:4, Ps. 18:10, Ezek. 9:3, 10:4, Heb. 9:5).

God’s glory dwelled in Solomon’s Temple (2 Chr. 5:13-14), and frighteningly departed from it prior to the Babylonian conquest (Ezekiel 8-11). Biblical scholar Jacob Milgrom likens Solomon’s Temple to Dorian Gray’s picture: the people’s sins “collected” there, necessitating periodic sin offerings in order to remove the uncleanness. Gammie notes, though, that the people’s sins became so dire, numerous and ongoing, that these offerings no longer sufficed, even those of the Day of Atonement. Thus, the result of which was the loss of God’s Shekinah and inevitable foreign conquest of Judah and Jerusalem.[2]

Glory is not the same thing as holiness, but God’s glory and God’s holiness are closely connected as attributes of God and aspects of God’s manifestation—as well as the discipleship we pursue “for the glory of God.” It is difficult to find a modern analogy to the biblical idea of holiness: something powerful and necessary to handle properly (like fire or electricity) but also something “contagious,” from which one must be cleansed through prescribed means. One had to perform purity rites when one touched something unclean/unholy, like blood or a dead body. One had to perform sacrifices and priestly activities in a prescribed way, not to endure nit-picky rules but in order to handle something very powerful in a safe way.

The holiness of God is reflected in Israel’s life in the Torah’s distinctions between unclean and clean, holy and common, and sacred and profane. We may wonder about the ideas of cleanness and uncleanness because of texts like Acts 10:9-16, but in Israel, these were God-given parameters for how to live and how to relate properly to God, not only according to God’s expressed will but according to God’s revealed nature, the Holy God who dwells in Israel. (cf. Zech. 2:13-8:23; 14:20-21). As we read in Ezra and Nehemiah, these God-given parameters were crucially important for the people’s faithfulness and well-being.

God stipulates holiness on the part of his people because he desires to create Israel as his own people and to be in covenant with them. To be associated with God is a call to be pure and clean as well. I become impatient when people isolate the Ten Commandments from other biblical material (as, for instance, important statements in the history of law, or as general moral guidelines). The commandments function as those things, but you must notice that they are first given in context with God’s covenant with the people of Israel. God first gathers the people at Sinai and makes a covenant with them (Ex. 19), and only then gives them laws. Within those laws, in turn, God provides means for repentance and atonement for sin. In other words, God’s grace and love always precedes and encompasses the ethical aspects of God’s will, not vice versa; you could say his glory is revealed in love.[3]

Holiness not only has distinctions of clean and unclean, but also justice and righteousness—again, reflecting the glory of God as the just and righteous Lord. Holiness is never understood (properly at least) as only a concern for right ritual, cleanness, and restoration from uncleanness. Israel also witnesses to God through acts of justice, provision, and care for the needy (Lev. 19; Ps. 68:5). As the Baker Dictionary puts it, “it is the indication of the moral cleanness from which is to issue a lifestyle pleasing to Yahweh and that has at its base an other-orientation (Exod. 19:6; Isa. 6:5-8). Every possible abuse of power finds its condemnation in what is holy. Those who live in fear because of weakness or uselessness are to experience thorough protection and provision based on the standards of righteousness that issue from God’s holy reign (Exod. 20:12-17; Lev. 19; Ps. 68.:5).”[4]

Among other aspects of God’s glory, there is also a “royal theology” of glory, e.g. the books of Chronicles and also Psalm 24, where God’s glory, the human king, and the establishment of the Jerusalem sanctuary are all connected. As Newman states, “The regular enjoyment of Yahweh’s divine presence, his Glory, forms a central part of Temple liturgy and democraticizes the unqualified blessing of God upon king, Temple, nation, and world. Glory in a royal context assures of Yahweh’s righteous and benevolent control over all.”[5]

Newman continues: the biblical concept of Glory also has to do with judgment, as in Jer. 2:11-13, Hosea 10:5-6, and others. God demands holiness from his people and eventually God must deal with sin. But God’s glory also connects to forgiveness, restoration, and hope—notably in the poetry of Second Isaiah: “The arrival of Yahweh [in the transformed Jerusalem] not only restores what once was—the glories of a Davidic kingdom—but also amplified. Mixing Sinai with royal imagery, the prophet [Second Isaiah] speaks of a day when the Lord will once again “tabernacle” in Zion. This time, however, Yahweh will “create” a new (and permanent) place for his Glory to rest.[6] (p. 577).

According to Newman, there are several important aspects of the New Testament theology of glory.[7] All these references are worth looking up and thinking about.

* The continued use of glory to mean God’s appearance and presence (Acts 7:55, Heb. 9:5, etc.)

* The Son of Man theme is connected to glory and the throne of glory (Mark 8:38/Matt. 16:27; 19:28; Luke 9:26; Mark 13:26/Matt. 24:30; 25:31; Acts 7:55, 2 Peters 1:17).

* The many depictions of glory as an eschatological blessing: Jude 24, Heb. 2:10, Rev. 15;8, Rev. 21:11, et al.) As Paul says, the glories of redemption make present day suffering pale in comparison (Rom. 5:2, Rom. 8:18, also 1 Pet. 4:13 and 5:1). At that time we will share in glory (2 Thess. 1:9-10, etc.).

* But this future glory is not just a long-from-now time, but also something we share in Christ now, as in Col. 1:17, 3:4, Titus 2:13)

* Also glory as resurrection, as in Rom. 6;4, 1 Cor. 15;25, Phil. 2:5-11, 1 Tim. 3:16, 1 Peter 1:21, Rev. 5:12-13, et al. Hebrew 2:9 applies Ps. 8 to Jesus even though it is not a “messianic” psalm.

* And glory and Christology, as in the beautiful Heb. 1:1-14.

* Paul also calls Jesus the Lord of Glory (Eph. 1:17) and connects Jesus to the glory of god in 2 Cor. 4:6, and 2 Cor. 3:18.

We can see two aspects of the powerful quality of holiness in Jesus’ life and death. Notice that when certain people (and demons) in the Gospels encounter Jesus, they want him to go away (Matt. 8:34, Mark 1:23-25, Luke 8:37, even Luke 7:6). That’s not because he was unpleasant; it was because they perceived that he was holy—and holiness is dangerous for mortals to encounter, as we’ve seen in some of the Old Testament stories. People thought that Jesus had to be approached in a way befitting God’s powerful holiness.

As God’s glory “dwelled” in the tabernacle and temple, now that glory dwells in Jesus: John 1:14 doesn’t just mean that Jesus lived among the people of his time, but that the glory of God itself was visible and present in Jesus (also Heb. 1:1-4). If blood has a power (related to cleanness, uncleanness, and holiness) powerful enough to cover people’s sins in the days of the tabernacle and temple, the shed blood of Jesus (in traditional theology about the Atonement) is powerful enough to cover people’s sins, 2000 years later and beyond.

Ideas of holiness that reflects God’s glory are strong New Testament themes, too. The purity and justice to which Christians are called are Spirit-given gifts and, as such, are God’s own holiness born within us which empower our witness to others (e.g., 2 Cor. 5:21, 2 Pet. 1:4). As one writer puts it, “[God’s] character unalterably demands a likeness in those who bear his Name. He consistently requires and supplies the means by which to produce a holy people (1 Peter 1:15-16).”[8]

God’s glory and holiness extends to the sanctification of believers, who are called hagioi, “saints” or “holy ones,” over 60 times in the NT. As one writer puts it, the outward aspects of holiness in the OT are “radically internalized in the New Testament believer.” “They [the believer/saints] are to be separated unto God as living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1) evidencing purity (1 Cor. 6:9-20; 2 Cor. 7:1), righteousness (Eph. 4:24, and love (1 Thess. 4:7; 1 John 2:5-6, 20; 4:13-21). What was foretold and experienced by only a few in the Old Testament becomes the very nature of what it means to be a Christian through the plan of the Father, the work of Christ, and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.”[9]

Thus, New Testament ideas of glory stress Jesus’ dwelling among us, and the gift of the Holy Spirit in believers. If you appreciate the Old Testament passages about the in-dwelling of God’s glory, you may be taken aback by the idea that the Lord God Almighty, whose glory was so dangerous to approach, is present in us NOW through the Holy Spirit.

In fact, as a spiritual exercise, read biblical passages that reflect a very “majestic” view of God’s glory (e.g., Exodus 40:34-38 and Deut. 5:22-27), in conjunction with passages like Romans 3:21-26, Heb. 1:1-4, and Heb. 4:14-16. Don’t think that the more “scary” passages about God’s glory have been superseded by the New Testament; think instead about how the same God who dwelt among the Israelites now dwells with you in the Holy Spirit—exactly the same God upon whom you call when you’re desperate and in trouble, who will help you!

(This post is adapted from an earlier post on another blog: http://changingbibles.blogspot.com/2012/04/ill-be-moving-these-posts-to-journey.html)

Notes:

1. Karl Rahner, “Being Open to God as Ever Greater,” Theological Investigations, Vol. VII, Further Theology of the Spiritual Life 1 (New York: Seabury Press, 1977), pp. 25-46.

2. Carey C. Newman, “Glory,” The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of The Bible, D-H, Vol. 2 (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2007), pp. 576-580.

3. For all this discussion, see John G. Gammie, Holiness in Israel (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989), 38-41.

4. “Holiness,” in Walter A. Elwell (ed.), Baker Theological Dictionary of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1996), page 451.

5. Newman, 577.

6. Newman, 577.

7. Newman, 578-580.

8. “Holiness,” 340-344.

9. “Holiness,” 343.

I also found this interesting article via Twitter: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roger-isaacs/how-did-the-biblical-glor_b_905944.html

*****

Ezra and Nehemiah

Originally one book, they tell the story of Judean exiles returning to the land following Cyrus’ decree, from about 539 BCE to about 432 BCE. The final verses of 2 Chronicles, about Cyrus’ decree, are repeated almost verbatim as the first verses of Ezra—so the story continues.

We are now about 1500 years after Abraham–and God’s promise to give him and his wife many descendants and land. What a history followed!–years of Egyptian slavery, escape from Egypt, the Sinai covenant, the construction of the tabernacle, the years of wilderness, the conquest of the land under Joshua, the uncertain period of the judges, establishment of a monarchy, the adventures of David, the establishment of Jerusalem as David’s city, Solomon’s construction of the temple, the divided kingdom and the conquest of Israel, the ministry of the prophets, King Josiah’s reforms, the destruction of the temple and the exile of the people, and now the restoration of the people to the land thanks to the Persian king’s decree.

It’s important to realize how great is Cyrus in biblical imagination: he was considered mashiach, “anointed one” or Messiah, in some of the early post-exilic traditions. Isaiah 44:28 refers to him as “[God’s] shepherd” and as mashiach in 45:1. A rabbi friend tells me that Jews of the time considered Cyrus as such a king because he overthrew the people’s enemies (the Babylonians), facilitated the people’s return to the land and the restoration of their religion, and also he set the stage for their eventual self-rule on the land under a Davidic king.

It’s also important to realize that the Jews saw their exile and restoration in both literal and metaphorical ways. For instance, the Chronicler interprets the history as a series of exiles (corresponding to different deportations at the end of the pre-exilic period), and two different kinds of literal restorations: the return of the people to the land, and also the return of the Davidic monarchy (Leslie C Allen, in the introduction to Chronicles in the New Interpreter’s Bible, p. 301). But the Chronicler also thinks of the exile in metaphorical terms: as the symbolic homelessness of a faithful remnant, that will be followed by a glorious restoration. We find this metaphorical sense in other places of the Bible: the hope reflected in Psalms 85 and 126, the way Daniel 9 depicts the exile as lasting not 70 years but 70 times 7, and the prayers in Ezra 9 and Nehemiah 9 (pp. 302-303). This metaphorical use is crucially important for the ongoing history of Judaism and the beginning of Christianity.

But the Chronicler and the authors of Ezra-Nehemiah depict differently the characteristics of this faithful remnant. For the latter, the Judeans must be a separate people focused upon obedience to the Lord’s Torah; for instance, the men must divorce their foreign wives and send them and their children away. The Chronicler has a more inclusive vision, often referring to “all Israel” that includes the break-off northern tribes and lauding Hezekiah’s efforts at reunification. Yet the Chronicler also affirmed Jerusalem as the place of true worship, so “the chronicler steered a middle course between separatist and assimilationist parties…” (pp. 305-306, quotation on 306).

*****

The following is based on my article, “Ezra and Nehemiah: Bringing a People Home” in Adult Bible Studies, 11:4 (June-July-Aug. 2003), 2-4. Many thanks for the editor at the time, Eleanor Moore.

The two books contain Ezra’s memoir (7:27-9:15), third person stories about him, and Nehemiah’s memoir (1:1-7:73a, 11:1-2, 12:27-43, 13:4-31). Interestingly, although the two men are mentioned together in Neh. 8:9, their memoirs have little or no acknowledgment of one another, making some scholars wonder if, somehow, the chronology of the biblical text has become confused. It’s also interesting that, although personal letters are such a major part of the New Testament, the Old Testament has very few, with the exception of Ezra and Nehemiah, where we find some of these texts.

The book of Ezra begins with Cyrus’ decree that allowed the Judea’s to return to the land from exile. Chapter 1-2 provide an encapsulated account of the members of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and Levites with some of the Temple vessels and utensils. According to Ez. 2:64, 42,360 exiles, plus singers, servants, and livestock, returned, lead by Sheshbazzar and then Zerubbabel and the priest Jeshua. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah particularly extol Zerubbabel* as a great Davidic king, although in Ezra-Nehemiah, he disappears from the narrative after a few chapters. The people give thanks to God, and construction on a new temple begins (2:68-3:13). Samaritans offered to help with the temple construction, but the Judea’s refused their help, and construction ceased for a while. By about 520 BCE, however, construction resumed, and it was dedicated in about 515 BCE (Ez. 4-6).

Priest and scholar Ezra himself came upon the scene in about 458 BCE, with a new group of Judeans. Ezra was a descendant of Aaron and of Zadok (Ez. 7:1-5) and was the son of Seraiah (2 Kings 25:18-21). On arriving to the land, Ezra was heartbroken that so many of the men have foreign wives. He calls the people to confession at the temple, and in time, the foreign wives and the children are sent away (Ezra 7-10). Seemingly Ezra was so eager to make this happen, that the people had to remind him that they were all standing in the rain listening to him and had to devote additional time to set these divorces in motion (Ez. 10:17). As Rabbi Telushkin points out (Biblical Literacy, 389), it’s too bad no one seems to have thought to allow the wives and children into the community through conversion.

Back in Babylon, Nehemiah is a cupbearer to the king. While Ezra as an outstanding, trustworthy and pious leader (Ez. 8:16-18, 25-34), Nehemiah is also a noticeably prayerful leader, constantly offering his work to God and seeking God’s guidance. Prayers like Neh. 1:8-10 are lovely in their intercessory concern and humility. Nehemiah asks King Artaxerxes for permission to go to Jerusalem to help rebuild Jerusalem and its walls. The king does indeed allow him to return. Nehemiah arrives in about 445 BCE and begins his work. (The events of chapter 13 are a little later, from about 432 BCE.) In spite of opposition and economic distress, Nehemiah and the people are able to rebuild the city walls (Neh. 3-7). Chapter 7 recaps the many people who returned from exile—with variations of names and numbers compared to the account in Ezra chapter 2. We find more names in Neh 11-12.

Other good things happen in these two books. Ezra reinstated festivals like Pesach (Ez. 6:19-22) and Sukkoth (Neh. 8:13-18). Nehemiah reinstated the Sabbath (10:31, 13:15-22), support of the priests (Neh. 13:10-14), support of the temple (10:32-39) and related reforms. The reading and subsequent study of the scroll of Teaching (Neh. 8) is one of the great moments in Bible history.

So is the construction of the Second Temple on the place of Solomon’s. The new temple marks a new era for God’s people, wherein they refocus upon devotion to God—and become a people characterized by worship, righteousness, and mitzvot rather than the rulership of a monarchy. The new era isn’t without poignancy, as we read in Ezra 3:10-13.

“When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments were stationed to praise the Lord with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, according to the directions of King David of Israel; and they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord,

‘For he is good,
for his steadfast love endures for ever towards Israel.’

And all the people responded with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. But many of the priests and Levites and heads of families, old people who had seen the first house on its foundations, wept with a loud voice when they saw this house, though many shouted aloud for joy, so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted so loudly that the sound was heard far away.”

An African American preacher, whom I heard a few years ago, calls this passage, “the Gospel shout and the blues moan.” In such situations, both are necessary–praise for the blessings of God, and grief at what has passed.

****

In the Protestant Old Testament, Nehemiah is followed by Esther, then Job. It’s worth noting that, at this point in the Bible, some churches include additional, apocryphal books. In the Roman Catholic Old Testament, Nehemiah is followed by Tobit and Judith, then Esther, and 1 and 2 Maccabees. In the Eastern Orthodox Old Testament, the order is 1 Esdras, 2 Esdras, Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, and Esther, then 1, 2, and 3 Maccabees.

Ezra is so significant, that other books carry his name. The apocalyptic book 2 Esdras is called 4 Esdras in the Roman Catholic apocrypha. Although this 2 Esdras/4 Esdras is an apocryphal book, some Roman Catholic Bibles refer to Ezra and Nehemiah as 1 and 2 Esdras. To make things more confusing, Eastern Orthodox Bibles name Ezra-Nehmiah as 2 Esdras, with 1 Esdras being an ancient Greek version that is nearly the same text as Ezra (which, as part of the Hebrew Bible, is originally Hebrew and Aramaic)—and this Greek 1 Esdras is called 3 Esdras in the Roman Catholic apocrypha.

Ezra is crucially important for Judaism. The faith of Judaism (the faith of Judah) really begins at this time: the faith devoted to Yahweh via the Torah. Ezra was a priest but also “a kind of proto-Rabbi who also has the authority of a prophet,” establishing priniciples of Torah interpretation that are “at the heart of rabbinic interpretation” (Jewish Study Bible, 1670). See also these informative articles: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-babylonian-exile
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/after-the-babylonian-exile The Talmud states that “Ezra would have been worthy of receiving the Torah for Israel had not Moses preceded him” (Sanhedrin 21b), and his public reading of the Torah “democratized” Judaism’s heritage, “making it as much the posses of the common laborer as of the priest” (Biblical Literacy, 388)

My Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible also contrasts Ezra and Nehemiah as biblical examples of professional religious workers and faithful laity. The prayerfulness and humility of Nehemiah–who doesn’t necessarily seek appreciation but does want to be remembered—is also a lovely example for all of us (p. 683).

Finally: a personal shout-out to a distant relative, Ezra Griffith (1789-1860), one of the early settlers of my home area around Brownstown, Illinois. https://paulstroble.wordpress.com/2016/07/24/twin-pumps-on-the-national-road/ I’ve never met anyone named Ezra but at one time it wasn’t an uncommon first name. One of Ezra’s descendants, Chester Griffith, was a Brownstown friend of my grandmother’s and got me interested in Sunday school attendance as a kid because he (Chester) had fifty years of perfect attendance.

* Although the genealogies of Mathew and Luke are from different sources than 1 Chronicles, Zerubbabel is listed in both gospels as an ancestor of Jesus.

*****
I decided that as long as I’m undertaking all this extra Bible studying each week, I should also study the Apocrypha—because these are books that I’ve barely studied at all, if ever.

The Apocrypha are books that Protestant Old Testaments lack, because these books are not found in the Jewish Bible (that is, the Masoretic text, the Hebrew and Aramaic text of the Tanakh as accepted in Rabbinic Judaism). The Apocrypha is Tobit, Judith, Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Baruch (including the Letter of Jeremiah), and 1 and 2 Maccabees, plus extra material in Esther and Daniel. (The additions to Daniel include the story of Susanna, the Prayer of Azariah, and the Song of the Three Holy Children.) Roman Catholics include these books as deuterocanonical, “second canon.”

The Eastern Orthodox Old Testament includes these books plus 1 Esdras (see my last post), the Prayer of Manasseh, and 3 Maccabees. Orthodox Christians use the word Anagignoskomena (“worthy to be read”) for the deuterocanonical books–and, like the Catholics (and unlike the Protestants) integrate the books among the canonical books rather than placing them in a separate section. One or two Orthodox traditions include 4 Maccabees, the Book of Odes, and Psalm 151.

It’s interesting to read the history of the selection of biblical books. There is no mystery or intrigue about it, no “suppressing” of bombshell texts, but the history is long and involves several councils of the church and rabbinical decisions within Judaism. As my Harper Bible Commentary describes them, the Apocrypha includes historiography (1 and 2 Maccabees), historical fiction (Tobit, Judith, and 3 Maccabees), an apocalypse (2 Esdras), sapiential works (Sirach, Wisdom of Solomon), exhortations (4 Maccabees and the Letter of Jeremiah), and prayers (Prayer of Manasseh and Prayer of Azariah) (p. 760). The Book of Odes is a collection of songs and prayers from both Testaments, and Psalm 151 is an Eastern Orthodox canonical work found in the Septuagint but not the Masoretic text.

For these informal notes, I’ll mostly stick with deuterocanonical books of the Roman Catholic Bible, with reference to the Anagignoskomena. In these Bibles, the book of Tobit follows Nehemiah.

As the story begins, Tobit is one of the Jews deported by the Assyrians to Ninevah, during Shalmaneser’s reign in about 721 BCE. He was of the tribe of Naphtali, married Anna, and they had a son Tobias. He was devout in his faith even in the foreign situation. For instance, he buried his kinsman who had died because of the king. Burial of the dead made one spiritually unclean because of contact with the corpse, but it was also a great act of love and righteousness, providing care and dignity to someone who obviously cannot thank you. When Sennacherib died, the new king appointed Tobit’s nephew as chief minster, and so Tobit—with Tobias’ help—continued to do good. Unforunately, as Tobit slept outdoors one night, he was blinded by sparrow droppings that fell into his eyes.

Meanwhile, as Tobit prayed for the restoration of his sight, a widowed woman named Sarah prayed for a husband. All her new husbands had been killed by the demon Asmodmus. Scholars note the similarity of Tobit’s story with folktales like “the Grateful Dead” and “the Deadly Bride.” In this case, the angel Raphael comes to the rescue as God hears the prayers of Sarah and Tobit in their separate situations.

Disheartened and thinking that death is near, Tobit sent Tobias to retrieve some money left in the care of a man named Gabael who lived off in Media. Tobias goes, accompanied by companion Raphael, whom Tobias doesn’t realize is an angel. At one point, Tobias washes in the Tigris river and a fish bites his foot. Raphael tells him to gut the fish and save its heart, liver, and gall.

Tobias and Raphael stay at the house of kinsman Raguel—who happens to be the father of widowed Sarah. Tobias asks to marry her but is warned about her husbands who had died. But Raphael instructs Tobias to use the fish’s heart and liver with incense, that that drives the demon away, saving Tobias from death.

Following the wedding celebration, Tobias receives the money from Gabael and, with Sarah, returns to Tobit and Anna. Again with Raphael’s instruction, Tobias places the fish’s gall on Tobit’s eyes, and he regains his sight.

Tobit offers Raphael some of the money in gratitude, but Raphael reveals his true identity as an angel. Tobit prays to God in thankfulness for God’s mercies.

In his later years, Tobit blesses his son and dies, ages 158 years. Tobias eventually dies, too, aged 127.

The book of Judith, which follows Tobit in the Deuterocanonical/Anagignoskomena order, purports to tell of events in the Assyrian era of Israel’s history but is likely from the era of the Maccabees. We are alerted that this is a fictional story, because King Nebuchadnezzar is said to be the Assyrian king—but he was actually the Babylonian ruler.

In part 1 of the book of Judith (chapters 1-7), Holofernes is the commander of Assyrian armies that attack Israel. The king ordered the attacks—not only against Israel but other nations—in response to their refusal to join his campaign against the Medes. Holofernes lay siege to the Israelite town of Bethulia, through which he could advance to Jerusalem. He is advised that the Israelites cannot be conquered unless they first sin against God—but after a month’s siege, the Bethulians are about to surrender. Fortunately, a local header named Uzziah is able to effect a five-day postponement.

Judith appears in Part 2. She was a widow, and strongly objected to the five-day compromise. Honoring God with a prayer for help, she basically asks God to help her lie effectively. She goes to the enemy camp, lies her way in to see Holofernes, and deceives him as well. Smitten with her, and eager to seduce her, he invites her to a banquet. But before he can make any moves, so to speak, he becomes very drunk and passes out. Judith takes his sword, beheads him with two blows, and she and her maid leave the camp with his head in a bag. Returning to Bethulia, Judith showed everyone the severed head, praised God for his help and protection, and urged the men to attack the Assyrians the next day. They do so, successful.

Judith is a hero and sings praises to God. Never remarrying, she lives to the age of 105.

Perhaps because of her feminine sexuality combined with her bold, male-shaming heroism, Judith has been depicted by many artists: Donatello, Botticelli, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Titian, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Caravaggio, Gentileschi, Klimt, Stuck, and numerous others. Beth and I saw the Klimt at the Belvedere in Vienna a few years ago.

The Jewish Women’s Archive Encyclopedia, https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/judith-apocrypha , has a good summary of the book of Judith. You can certainly see the connection of Judith with the judge Deborah, also a fearless champion of her people, and with David, too, in the way she decapitates a dangerous enemy. The author notes that several women of the Bible told lies that had positive consequences—which is an interesting aspect of the Bible narratives! Besides Judith the women are Rebekah, Tamar, the midwives Shiphrah and Puah, Rahab, and Jael.

My Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible notes, that Judith “is a joyous and triumphant book. It revels in the unexpected way the People of God is delivered.” Judith’s fidelity to God along with her confident use of her own feminity–as her ability to deceive believably–makes it a wonderfully compelling story (p. 1472).
*****

Esther

A few posts ago, I said that Chronicles, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Esther form an important secondary history within the Bible, carrying the biblical story from Creation into the early post-exilic era when the Jews were allowed to return to the land and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple during the Persian era. These books are not by the same presumed authors, just as the primary history (Genesis through Kings) was written and edited by multiple people. While the primary history ends on a note of uncertain hope, the secondary history, coming from the post-exilic time and written for Jews struggling with a new era, is more hopeful. In Chronicles, “[t]he history of the monarchy… seems to be primarily a history of the establishment and maintenance of the worship of God,” a concern that carries over into Ezra and Nehemiah as the people rebuild the temple and Jerusalem (Harper’s Bible Commentary, p. 79). Although Esther is set in Persia rather than the land, that book affirms the providential continuation of the Jewish people even in foreign lands (p. 79).

Of course, it became crucially important for Judaism to be a faith observed in lands other than the Promised Land. When I studied Deuteronomy in that earlier post, I learned how the long pause with which the Torah ends—the speech of Moses as the people are poised to enter the Land—had the literary effect of delaying entry into the land—and ensuring that God’s covenant and commandments were not confined to one geographical region (Jewish Study Bible, p. 359). The Book of Esther illustrates the wonderful fact that the Jewish people will endure no matter where they live, even amid Gentile hostility and violence.

This source discusses that Esther gives confidence to diaspora Jews to be able to survive and even thrive in foreign lands, and thus she is similar to Tobit, Daniel, and Nehemiah. The fact that she is a woman makes her heroism especially noteworthy. Haweis writes, “[Esther] contains a narrative of a horrid plot, to cut off at a stroke, all the Jews who were dispersed through the provinces of Babylon; but God disappointed the wicked design, and turned it to the destruction of the contriver…. the finger of God is evidently seen, extricating the Jews from their difficulties, and encouraging by their example, the faith and hope of his people in their deepest distresses; showing how attentive he is to their prayers, and that, as he exalteth the lowly, those who walk in pride he is able to abase” (Rev. Thomas Haweis, The Evangelical Expositor; or, a Commentary on the Holy Bible, Vol. 1 (Glasgow, Blackie & Son, 1834), 814)

My wife Beth and I enjoyed studying Esther a few years ago with our Sunday school class in Akron, OH. As the book opens, King Ahasuerus of Persia (aka Xerxes I, 485-465 BCE) held a big feast, and while he was drunk, he commanded that his queen Vashti come and show the guests her great beauty. Although the text doesn’t say, he may have expected her to visit the feast nude. Vashti refused his order, and so Ahusuerus, on the advice his wise men, ordered Vashti deposed, setting in motion a kind of contest for a new beautiful queen. After so viewing many young women, the king selected Esther, whom unbeknownst to him was a Benjaminite Jew living in exile. An orphan, she lived with her older cousin Mordecai, who looked after her. Soon she became the new queen.

After a while, Mordecai learned of a plot to assassinate the king—information he relayed to the king through Esther. It resulted in the execution of the conspirators. Not knowing the background of his own queen, the king became influenced by his vizier, Haman the Agagite, that Jews were a threat and should all be killed. Mordecai had accidentally set in motion that threat: Haman had demanded that Mordecai prostrate himself before Haman in respect, but Mordecai had refused. Agagites, after all, were descendants of the Amalakites, long time enemies of the Jews (as we’ve seen in other writings).

While Mordecai urged other Jews to fast, he also planned with Esther to deal with the situation. At an opportune time, Esther approached the king with a request, that he and Haman attend a banquet she was planning.

That night, the king couldn’t sleep and called for the nation’s chronicles to be read aloud. He remembered than that Mordecai had not yet been rewarded for his service in exposing the assassination plot, so he asked Haman about a proper reward for one loyal to the king, and Haman suggested the royal insignia and apparel. Haman thought he himself was going to be the honoree.

At the banquet, the king was quite smitten with his queen—he had already allowed her to come uninvited into his presence, a potentially fatal move on her part—and during this banquet, she courageous revealed that she was a Jew and that Haman was plotting to kill at the Jews. Her and Mortecai’s risky plan worked: the king promptly ordered that Haman be hanged (on the gallows Haman had built for Mordecai), the Jews were saved, and Mordecai became prime minister.

Rabbi Telushkin makes an interesting connection of Mordecai to Joseph: Hebrews who gained a powerful position in a non-Jewish government, and who accomplished the betterment of his people (Biblical Literacy, p. 378.

Interestingly, God is never referred to or named in the book of Esther, although the practice of fasting presumes a religious orientation. The absence of God doesn’t mean an ontological absence of God; the Bible doesn’t always spell out God’s ways. The apocryphal/deuterocanonical “Additions to Esther” do add more explicitly religious elements to the book.

On the other hand, Rabbi Telushkin notes that Esther’s name is a variation of the Near Eastern goddess Astar (her Hebrew name was Hadassah), and she married a non-Jew (the king), indicating that she may have been an assimilated Jew. But she certainly took the side of her people when the time came (Biblical Literacy, 375-376).

Esther is one of “the Five Scrolls” (“Five Megillot”). Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther are grouped together among the final, Writings (Ketuvim) section of the Jewish Bible. Each book is read during certain Jewish holidays: Song of Songs on the Sabbath of Passover, Ruth on Shavuot, Lamentations on the Ninth of Av, Ecclesiastes on the Sabbath of Sukkot, and Esther on Purim.

The minor festival of Purim is one of the great legacies of the book. The word “purim” means “lots,” which is what Haman threw in order to select a date for the death of the Jews—so the festival’s very name scoffs the antisemite’s failed attempt. One of my favorite sites, Judaism 101, http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday9.htm, has this:

“The primary commandment related to Purim is to hear the reading of the book of Esther. …It is customary to boo, hiss, stamp feet and rattle gragers (noisemakers) whenever the name of Haman is mentioned in the service. The purpose of this custom is to ‘blot out the name of Haman.’

“We are also commanded to eat, drink and be merry. According to the Talmud, a person is required to drink until he cannot tell the difference between ‘cursed be Haman’ and ‘blessed be Mordecai,’ though opinions differ as to exactly how drunk that is. A person certainly should not become so drunk that he might violate other commandments or get seriously ill. In addition, recovering alcoholics or others who might suffer serious harm from alcohol are exempt from this obligation.

“In addition, we are commanded to send out gifts of food or drink, and to make gifts to charity. The sending of gifts of food and drink is referred to as shalach manos (lit. sending out portions). Among Ashkenazic Jews, a common treat at this time of year is hamentaschen (lit. Haman’s pockets). These triangular fruit-filled cookies are supposed to represent Haman’s three-cornered hat. …”

That site also calls attention to interesting, thought-provoking connections of Purim with the Nuremberg War Crime trials and also the death of Stalin—who, if he hadn’t had died (near Purim) in 1953, would have carried out a plan to deport Jews.

*****

1, 2, 3, and 4 Maccabees

1 Maccabees is a deuterocanonical book in the Roman Catholic (the term for Easter Orthodox Bibles is Anagignoskomena). 1 Maccabees is found in the Greek Septuagint but not in the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible, nor in Protestant Old Testaments. Canonical or not, it is an important account of this period of Second Temple Judaism, the decades of Judean independence prior to the Roman occupation, and is the source for the minor Jewish festival Hanukkah. (Here is a good Catholic site about the book. Some Catholic Bibles place 1 and 2 Maccabees after Esther, while other Catholic Bibles place the books at the end, after Malachi.)

1 Maccabees covers about forty years, 174 to 134 BCE. It might be good to see a biblical chronology again:

– Patriarchs: about 1800-1500 BCE (Genesis)
– Exodus, Wilderness, and Conquest: about 1500-1200s BCE (Exodus-Joshua)
– Period of the Judges: 1200s-1000 BCE (Judges)
– The monarchy (Saul, David, Solomon): 1000-922 BCE (1 and 2 Samuel, 1 Kings 1-11, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles 1-9)
– Divided monarchy: 922-722 BCE (1 Kings 12-17, and also Isaiah, Hosea, Amos, and Micah)
– Kingdom of Judah: 722-586 BCE (2 Kings 18-25, 2 Chronicles 10-36, and also Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, and Habakkuk)
– Exile: 586-539 BCE (Lamentations, Psalm 139, et al.)
_ Judah under Persian rule: 539-332 BCE (Ezra-Nehemiah covers about the years 539-432 BCE, while Esther is set during the reign of Xerxes I, who reigned 486-465 BCE. Also, the prophets Second Isaiah, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi)
– Judah during the Hellenistic rule: 332-165 BCE (3 Maccabees, Daniel)
– The Maccabean/Hasmonean period: 165-63 BCE (1, 2, and 4 Maccabees)
– Judea under Roman rule: 63 BCE-135 CE (during which time we have the life of Jesus, the first two generations of the church (30-120 CE), the writings of the New Testament (about 50-100 CE), and the beginnings of Rabbinic Judaism, after the Temple’s destruction in 70 CE).

Our upcoming scriptures, the Prophets, date from the end of the Northern Kingdom in the 700s BCE (Isaiah) down to the 400s BCE of the Persian period (Malachi), while parts of Daniel probably date from the Maccabean period. So the Jewish Bible and Protestant Old Testament end historically with the 400s of the Persian period, with apocalyptic writings in Daniel dating from the Maccabean era, while the churches with deuterocanonical books carry the Old Testament history solidly into the 100s BCE.

Back to 1 Maccabees: At the time, Judah (by now called Judea) is ruled by the Seleucid Empire, the Greek domination that followed Alexander the Great’s empire. Greek culture was influential for Judaism, including the translation of the Bible into Greek; but Greek disrespect for Jewish practices lead to the Jew’s revolt against the Greeks, which is the subject of the book. 1 Macc. 1:1-9:22 concerns the rule of Mattathias, aka Judah the Maccabee (the word means “hammer”), aka Judas Maccabeus. 1 Maccabees 9:23-12:53 focuses on the rule of Judah’s successor Jonathan, and chapters 13-16 concern the rule of Simon.

Antiochus IV Epiphanes, one of the villains of Jewish history, was the Seleucid emperor who launched a bloody attack on Jerusalem, taxes the people, forbids Jewish practices, and then desecrates the Jewish temple by establishing pagan rituals there, including the slaughter of non-kosher animals.

Judas leads the people in ultimately successful campaigns against the Greeks, though at a high cost in casualties. When the temple is retaken and reconsecrated, Judas and his brothers and the whole assembly established a festival of the 25th day of Chislev (Hanukkah) to commemorate the dedication (1 Macc. 4:59).

(Here are good source concerning Hanukkah: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/hannukah and http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday7.htm. I was surprised to learn that the famous story of the lamp–which burned for eight days with only one day of oil–is from the Talmud [Shabbat 21b] rather than Maccabees: http://cojs.org/babylonian_talmud_shabbat_21b-_the_significance_of_hanukkah/ )

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Hasmonean Kingdom at its height. From:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasmonean_dynasty

Judas’ brother Jonathan becomes high priest and succeeds him. He gains an alliance with Sparta and seeks positive relations with Rome. Later, Simon succeeds him, both as high priest and priest of Judah. He has a successful period of rule until he is murdered by the Greek governor of the region. Simon’s son John Hyrcanus succeeds Simon. This “Hasmonian dynasty” was not a Davidic dynasty but did bring about independence for Jews in the land—encompassing much of the earlier territories—for about a hundred years, first in semi-autonomous relations with the Seleucids and then fully independent until conquered by the Romans in 63 BCE.

(Here is a famous song from Handel’s oratorio Judas Maccabeus.)

2 Maccabees does not, as you might think, continue the history. It begins with letters written by Palestinian Jews to Egyptian Jews, and then becomes an abridgment of a now-lost history by Jason of Cyrene about the Maccabean revolt under the leadership of Judas Maccabeus. The book also includes the stories of Jewish martyres Eleazar, seven brothers, and their mother, under Antiochus’ reign. As this site indicates, it is a very laudatory book toward Judas and Jewish heroism; it includes information not found in 1 Maccabees, and it references Esther. 2 Maccabees is also part of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox canon.

Here is a good Jewish site about the book. That author writes: “One important fact to be noted is the writer’s belief in the bodily resurrection of the dead (see vii. 9, 11, 14, 36; xiv. 16; and especially xii. 43-45). This, together with his attitude toward the priesthood as shown in his lifting the veil which I Maccabees had drawn over Jason and Menelaus, led [scholars] Bertholdt and Geiger to regard the author as a Pharisee and the work as a Pharisaic party document. This much, at least, is true—the writer’s sympathies were with the Pharisees.” (Here is another good site.) Because of the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, 2 Maccabees also provides an important theological bridge to the New Testament period.

In fact, 2 Maccabees may be alluded to in the New Testament, especially Hebrews 11:35, “Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection” (NRSV). This does not fit any Old Testament story but does fit the story of the seven brothers in 2 Maccabees 7, a fact that this author uses to defend the canonicity of the deuterocanonical books.

3 Maccabees is found in the Eastern Orthodox canon but not in the Jewish, Protestant, and Roman Catholic canons. 3 Maccabees is not set during the Maccabean age at all but shares with those books the wonderful intervention of God on behalf of God’s people. In this book, Egyptian Jews are persecuted by another Seleucid ruler, Ptolemy IV Philopator, who reigned in 221-203 BCE). Again, Jews are hated because they don’t worship foreign gods, in this case Dionysus, but the story includes a different kind of Gentile persecution: letting inebriated elephants trample imprisoned Jews to death! Ptolemy’s inconsistency, however, and also the intervention of two angels, allow the Jews to be spared. (Here is a good site.)

4 Maccabees is not canonical in any Jewish tradition, nor in any Christian canon except the Georgian Orthodox Church. Another important text for understanding the Second Temple period, the book is a homily to encourage Hellenistic Jews to stay devoted to Torah (18:1) and to hold courageously to “devout reason” that is “sovereign over the emotions” (e.g., 16:1). A sizable portion of the book describes (in gruesome detail) story of 2 Maccabees 6:18-7:42: the martrydom of Eleazer, and the seven brothers and their mother. Stories of martyrs are important in many religions, to help build courage to believers in times of trial. In Judaism, martyrdom is one example of Kiddush HaShem, “sanctification of the name” (of God) through holiness and witness.

Interestingly, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s Bible contains three books–1, 2, and 3 Meqabyan–not found in any other Christian canon, which are different in content from the Maccabees books. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meqabyan

Prophets

After the Writings (Job through Song of Songs, or Job through Ecclesiasicus in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles), we have the Old Testament prophetic books: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, and “The Twelve”, which are Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

These are not the only prophets in Israel’s history: for instance, Moses himself, Miriam, Deborah, Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, Elisha, and several others. Here is a general-knowledge site that lists them: https://www.gotquestions.org/prophets-in-the-Bible.html

Here (from another of my blogs) is a summary:

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Sargent, “Frieze of the Prophets”
Micah, Haggai, Malachi, and Zechariah.

Isaiah: The first 39 chapters contain words of judgment about the Northern Kingdom, as well as other nations, and also words of promise. Chapters 40 and following seem to be another prophet, or possibly two, writing during 500s BC, as God, acting through the Persian king, restored the people. Here we find wonderful poetry of assurance concerning God’s redemption.

Jeremiah: The prophet preaches judgment upon the Southern Kingdom, and also promises of a renewed covenant in the future. We find tremendous pathos in Jeremiah, as also reflected in the following book.

Lamentations is a short, poetic book, attributed to Jeremiah and written in sorrowful response to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by the Babylonians. (Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions add Baruch and the Epistle of Jeremiah as deuterocanonical/anagignoskomena books.)

Ezekiel: A prophet (also a priest) of the time before and during the exile. Ezekiel has weird visions and prophet actions bordering on, and sometimes crossing over to, the perverse. But the book also has lofty moral theology concerning problems such as human accountability.

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Sargent, “Frieze of the Prophets,”
Zephaniah, Joel, Obadiah, and Hosea

Daniel: The book focuses on events in Daniel’s life and also apocalyptic visions of God’s kingdom, the “Son of Man,” and the last days, though many of the visions deal with the time of Antiochus IV, the evil Greek ruler who persecuted Jews. during the 100s BCE. This book is included in the last section of the Jewish canon rather than among the prophets.

Hosea: A Northern Kingdom prophet of the 700s, Hosea used his own family crises to describe the unfaithfulness of Israel and, in
addition to words of judgment, the heartache and tenderness of God. (Hosea and the eleven prophets after this book are called “The Minor Prophets” because the books are short. These are considered one book in the Jewish Bible and, together, have interrelated themes, as I write about at http://changingbibles.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-twelve-minor-prophets.html)

Joel: Joel has aspects of both prophecy and apocalyptic, because he speaks of the Lord’s judgment against sin (in whatever time period he’s writing) as well as the last days. We get the wonderful prophecy of the coming of the Holy Spirit here (2:28-29).

Amos: A Southern prophet who spoke to the sins of the North; he speaks judgment against the kingdom of Israel: their apostasy, wealth, and oppression of the poor. His classic call for justice and righteousness is well known (5:21-24).

Obadiah: A short little book, by a prophet about whom we know little. The Edomites were descendants of Esau who were enemies of Judah, and Obadiah’s prophecies are directed at them.

Jonah: Unlike other prophetic books, this one is a story, like a parable. The fish is not the point of the story, but rather God’s patience and forgiveness as well as Jonah’s reluctant prophetic work, which was surprisingly and highly successful.

Micah: A contemporary of Isaiah and Hosea. His two themes are doom and promise, and his statement about Bethlehem (5:2), his lovely depiction of God’s kingdom where swords will become plows (4:1-4), and his requirements of anyone who loves the Lord (6:8) are also well known.

Nahum: A counterpart to Jonah; Nahum pronounces doom upon Nineveh.

Habakkuk: An interesting book in that the prophet “dialogues” with God about the classic question: why do wrongdoers prevail? God may use an evil nation like the Chaldeans to accomplish his purposes, but they, too, will suffer the consequences. Habakkuk 2:4 is a classic text; Paul quotes it in Romans 1:17 as a beginning of his argument about the primacy of faith.

Zephaniah: The last minor prophet prior to the exile, Zephaniah preaches judgment and wrath, but also hope for the future.

Haggai: His topic is the rebuilding of the Temple following the end of the exile. Not a lofty writer, he straightforwardly urges the Temple’s completion. Interestingly, he praises the great king by name, Zerubbabel, who eventually disappears from the record.

Zechariah: He also discusses the rebuilding of the Temple, but he writes with visions, symbols, and images of the coming messianic age.

Malachi: The last Old Testament prophet, from the 400s, who (with his interesting question-answer format) also posed Habakkuk’s question, why do the wicked prosper and the good suffer? Malachi’s innovation: his announcement that a messenger will herald the last days. From Malachi’s announcement, we segue into the New Testament.

It might be good to see a biblical chronology again, to see where these writings fit into the overall text.

– Patriarchs: about 1800-1500 BCE (Genesis)
– Exodus, Wilderness, and Conquest: about 1500-1200s BCE (Exodus-Joshua). Moses: the greatest of the Old Testament prophets.
– Period of the Judges: 1200s-1000 BCE (Judges)
– The monarchy (Saul, David, Solomon): 1000-922 BCE (1 and 2 Samuel, 1 Kings 1-11, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles 1-9)
– Divided monarchy: 922-722 BCE (1 Kings 12-17, and also Isaiah, Hosea, Amos, and Micah)
– Kingdom of Judah: 722-586 BCE (2 Kings 18-25, 2 Chronicles 10-36, and also Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, and Habakkuk)
– Exile: 586-539 BCE (Lamentations, Psalm 139, et al.)
_ Judah under Persian rule: 539-332 BCE (Ezra-Nehemiah covers about the years 539-432 BCE, while Esther is set during the reign of Xerxes I, who reigned 486-465 BCE. Also, the prophets Second Isaiah, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi)
– Judah during the Hellenistic rule: 332-165 BCE (3 Maccabees, Daniel)
– The Maccabean/Hasmonean period: 165-63 BCE (1, 2, and 4 Maccabees)
Judea under Roman rule: 63 BCE-135 CE (during which time we have the life of Jesus, the first two generations of the church (30-120 CE), the writings of the New Testament (about 50-100 CE), and the beginnings of Rabbinic Judaism, after the Temple’s destruction in 70 CE).

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Some wisdom from Walter Brueggemann (1):

In the Jewish Bible, the Former Prophets are Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings, while the Latter Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and The Twelve (with Ruth, Lamentations and Daniel placed toward the Bible’s end). The Former and Latter Prophets are placed together. Theologically they belong together, too. Walter Brueggemann points out that, in the case of the Former Prophets, the word prophet “refers to the material itself and not to specific prophetic personalities. What is prophetic is the capacity to reconstrue all of lived reality—-including the history of Israel and the power relations of the known world of the ancient Near East—-according to the equally palpable reality (in this reading) of the rule of YHWH” (p. 131).

Thus, Israel’s history is ready through “the singular unrivaled [monotheistic] reality of YHWH” (p. 131). The Christian tendency (that I’ve followed in these notes) to call the Former Prophets “history” misses not only the question of the material’s historical reliability (not always very strong: for instance, in the case of Joshua) but also its prophetic interpretation of Israel’s history (p. 131). Brueggemann continues: “In the Former Prophets, ‘history’ has been transposed into a massive theological commentary on Israel’s past. In the Latter Prophets what began as personal proclamation has been transposed into a theological conviction around YHWH’s promise for the future. both theological commentary… and theological conviction..became a normative, but at the same time quite practical, resource for a commentary living in and through the deep fissure of deportation and displacement… Seen in this way, the prophetic canon that testifies to YHWH’s governance of past, present, and future is an offer of a counterworld, counter to denial and despair, counterrooted in YHWH’s steadfast purpose for a new Jerusalem, new torah, new covenant, new temple—-all things new [and he quotes Isaiah 43:16-21]” (pp. 136-137).

He goes on to note that current scholarship tends to view the Torah and the Former Prophets as a “Primary Narrative” from Promise to Exile, of “land gift” and “land loss,” with the Jordan River functioning as a geographical as well as literary-canonical -theological marker (p. 296). Then, continuing to the Latter Prophets, that material speaks to “land loss” but now, also, to future hope (p. 298).

Furthermore, he continues, we can link prophetic traditions back to the Torah, with Ezekiel linked to the Torah’s priestly traditions, Jeremiah to the Deuteronomistic tradition, the Isaiah to the Yahwist tradition in the sense that the Abrahamic Yahwist material lead to the David-Zion traditions to which Isaiah holds. The Twelve (the minor prophets) in turn, coming from the entire period of the 700s-300s BCE, take us from judgment through exile to future promise (pp. 300-301).

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The following are notes that I first posted here. The prophets can be difficult reading, with their seemingly random collections of proclamations, oracles, stories, sermons, and sometimes, enacted prophetic signs. Layers of traditions are often challenging to discern.(2) The prophets use metaphors, allusions, and shifts of narration, which makes good commentaries essential for the modern Bible explorer. The prophets are also difficult in their tone and themes. The prophets express God’s anger at the Israelites, who have broken the covenant; in chapter after chapter, we find descriptions of wrongs, promises and descriptions of dreadful punishment, but also tender words and promises for the future.

One of the basic literary units of the prophets is the proclamation: God announces judgment or salvation. These proclamations are addressed to God’s people but sometimes also to neighboring nations. The proclamations in turn made use of different kinds of discourse: indictment and verdict, hymns and songs, collections of sayings, and others. Later prophets also use longer kinds of writing like sermons and narratives. The prophets also record visions, and some include descriptions of their own call.(3)

Because the prophets preached during the time of the historical books (Former Prophets), we find familiar themes in the prophets: the land and the covenant, the threatened loss of the land, the failures of the monarchy, the role of the Temple (and, in Jeremiah and Ezekiel, its loss), and others. The prophets connect back to God’s promises in Abraham and also the exodus, and also to the promise of David and of Jerusalem as they (the prophets) preached about God’s kingship and covenant.(4)

The relationship of the prophets and the law is complex and is debated by scholars. I cited Brueggemann about some of the connections of traditions. We Christians are liable to read prophetic passages like Jeremiah 7, think of Jesus’ criticisms of the religious leaders of his time, and dismiss the law as “Jewish legalism”, a term I hate.

The prophets, however, do not deny the law but sharply warn that religious ritual must go hand in hand with justice, mercy, righteousness, and the repudiation of idols. Deuteronomy defines the role of prophets (13:1-5, 18:15-22) and upholds Moses himself as the greatest of the prophets (34:10). Even passages that seem very “anti-law” (like Ez. 20:25, Jer. 7:21-26, and Jer. 8:8) do not abrogate the law and the covenant but call for a deeper faithfulness.(6)Within Judaism, the view has prevailed that “the primary role of the prophet was to serve as a vital link in the transmission of the law from Moses down to the present.”(5)

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One critically important aspect of the Prophets is the concern for social justice. Here is a good site that connects the Prophet’s teachings with other biblical narratives. “To speak about God and to think about theology are wonderful pursuits, but the cause of theology is justice for human beings. Loving your neighbor is a sweet sentiment, but doing right by your neighbor will change the world.”http://www.aju.edu/Media/PDF/Walking_With_Justice-The_Prophets_and_Social_Justice.pdf

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In addition to the prophets’ messages of warning, grace, and justice, we also find many connections of the prophets and the New Testament. Prophetic scriptures became crucial for understanding who Jesus is and how his coming fits within and fulfills God’s plans of salvation. A Bible explorer can spend months and years tracing and delving into the prophetic roots of the New Testament. Here are just a few.(7)

• John the Baptist (Isa. 40:3-5, Mal. 4:5-6, Mark 9:1, Luke 1:17)

• Jesus’ birth (Isa. 7:14, 9:6-7, 11:1-5, Mic. 5:2, Matt. 2:6, Luke 1:30-33.

• Jesus’ authority and teaching (Isa. 6:9-12, 9:1-2, Matt. 4:14-16, 13:14-15)

• Jesus the shepherd (Ez. 34:11-16, John 10:7-11)

• Jesus’ ministry (Isa. 32:3-4, 35:5-6, 33:22, 42:1-4, 61:1-2, Matt. 9:32-35, 12:17-21, Luke 4:17-21)

• Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem (Zech. 9:9, Matt. 21:4-5)

• Jesus’ sufferings, betrayal, and death (Isa. 52:13-53:12, Zech. 11:12-13, 12:10, 13:7, in addition to Ps. 22, 69, and others)

• Jesus’ resurrection (Ez. 37:1-14, Jonah 1:17, Matt. 12:40, and among the psalms Ps. 16:10 and Ps. 110:1)

• The New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34, Matt. 26:26-29, Rom. 11:26-36, Heb. 8:8-12)

• The Temple in relationship to Jesus (Isa. 56:7, Jer. 7:1, Mark 11:15-18, John 2:13-23, Acts 7:47-51)

• “The righteous shall live by faith” (Hab. 2:4, Rom. 1:17)

• The Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28-29, Acts 2:16-21)

• The redemption of all nations (Isa. 2:1-4, 1 Peter 2:10)

• Related to the redemption of the nations: the metaphor of marriage between God and his people (e.g., Hos. 1-3, Rom. 9:25-26, 1 Pet. 2:10, Eph. 5:25, 32, Rev. 19:7, 21:2, 9)(8)

• The end times (Daniel 7:1-12:13, much of the book of Zechariah, Ez. 38-39). In fact, in a previous chapter I noted several Old Testament references in Revelation and noted that no other New Testament book quotes or alludes to the Old Testament as often.

• The issue of the covenant becomes a key for Paul as he preaches about Jesus and the law. For Jews today, the prophetic criticism of faithlessness remains a call for contemporary faithfulness, as I said above; the prophet’s stress upon justice and suitable worship are as timely a Word of God today as in the ancient world. Paul understands faithless as a more basic flaw in both human nature and the law; we cannot keep the law faithfully, and thus we need Christ (Rom. 3:21-26). A passage such as Jeremiah 7:21-26 points to the need for new beginnings (Jer. 31:31-34).

• The prophet’s concerns for the poor and for justice are not as apparently strong in the New Testament but are certainly there. In both the Torah and the prophets, God is a God of justice. (The Greek word dikaiosunê, corresponding to tzedakah, means “righteousness” and “justice.”) God takes the side of the poor, downtrodden, and powerless. Luke’s gospel and Matthew 25:31-46 very much echo God’s care for the needy. You could also think this way: in the Old Testament, God demands justice for the poor, outcast, and powerless. In the New Testament, God also takes the side of those who are spiritually impoverished, the Gentiles, bringing them into the circle of blessing.

• Although Christians are quick to stress that Jesus is “more than a prophet,” he was frequently understood to be a prophet–in fact, the hoped-for prophet referred to by Moses (Matt. 21:11, Mark 6:15, 8:28, Luke 7:16, 24:19, John 4:19, 6:14, et al.). Jesus possessed the Spirit in a way that people considered prophetic (Matt. 12:28, Mark 3:28-29, Luke 4:18-20, et al).

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Notes:

1 Walter Brueggemann, An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination (Westminster John Knox Press, 2003).

2 James L. Mays, general editor, Harper’s Bible Commentary (New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1988), 534-539.

3 Childs, Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992),, 178.

4 Childs, Biblical Theology, 177

5 Harper’s Bible Commentary, 540. The Haftarah Commentary (see my next post) has an essay on Micah 5:6-6:8: “In the concluding verse [6:8] Micah defines the essence of religion: God requires not sacrifice but righteous living. Does Micah thereby suggest that sacrifice (and, by implication, all ritual) was unnecessary, and that the real essence of Judaism was expressed by justice toward others, by loving and caring relationships, and by suitable modesty? The answer is ‘no,’ just as it is for the other prophets who inveighed against mere external observance. It istin the nature of oratory and moral harangue to employ extremes of speech in order to make essential points. Micah does not advocate the abolition of the Temple worship; rather, he censures external observance by persons who lack devotion to social and ethical principles. Judaism has always been an integrated system of form and substance of ritual and spirituality, for neither is viable without the other.” (p. 393).
The writer continues by citing the famous passage of the Talmud, Makkot 23b-24a, where Rabbi Simla’i taught that the Torah contains 613 mitzvoth, 248 positive and 365 negative. Then, Psalm 15 condenses them to 11, and Isaiah 33:15-17 to 6, Micah to 3, and Habakkuk 2:4 to just 1. Some of the sages insisted that the commandments should be kept, but nevertheless the commandments can be distilled to a few principles. The writer concludes: “Basing ourselves on the verse in Micah, we would say: Observe as much as you can, and do it in the spirit of the threefold objective of justice, mercy, and modesty. It is not one or the other, but rather both: one in the spirit of the other” (p. 393).

6 Harper’s Bible Commentary, 540.

7 One handy list of biblical messianic prophecies is found at http://www.scripturecatholic.com/messianic_prophecies.html

8. Graeme Goldsworthy, Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 172-173.

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When I studied and posted about the Torah earlier this year, I learned that the Torah is read in a yearly cycle in synagogue worship (the weekly portion or parshah), accompanied by a related reading from the Prophets (the haftarah). This week I went back to the lists of those readings to learn their meaningful connections, perhaps unexplored by most Christians. The following is gleaned from W. Gunther Plaut, The Haftarah Commentary (Central Conference of American Rabbis, 1996): first the name of the parshah, then the Torah portion, then the haftarah. I focused on the Ashkenazic readings; in a few cases, Sephardic congregations have different haftarot.Bereishit
Genesis 1:1-6:8: the creation story
Isaiah 42:5-43:11: the creation of Israel is linked to creation of the universe

Noach
Genesis 6:9-11:32: the punishments and redemption during the time of Noah
Isaiah 54:1-55:5: the redemption from punishment and exile is at hand

Lekh Lekha
Genesis 12:1-17:27: stories of Abraham
Isaiah 40:27-41:16: God remembers and cares for Israel, children of Abraham

Vayeira
Genesis 18:1-22:24: God promises Abraham and Sarah a song
II Kings 4:1-4:37: Elijah’s miraculous help for the Shunammite woman

Chayei Sarah
Genesis 23:1-25:18: Abraham looks for a wife for Isaac
I Kings1:1-1:31: David’’s need for a suitable successor

Toldot
Genesis 25:19-28:9: the struggles of Jacob and Esau
Malachi 1:1-2:7: a reiteration of the primacy of Jacob over Esau

Vayeitzei
Genesis 28:10-32:3: Jacob’s sojourn in Aram
Hosea 12:13-14:10: Hosea’s use of that story

Vayishlach
Genesis 32:4-36:43: Jacob and the angel
Hosea 11:7-12:12: Hosea’s use of that story as a metaphor for his home and for the nation

Vayyeshev
Genesis 37:1-40:23: Joseph is sold into slavery
Amos 2:6-3:8: Amos’ Israelite contemporaries would sell out an innocent person

Miqeitz
Genesis 41:1-44:17: Pharaoh’s dream
I Kings 3:15-4:1: Solomon’s dream

Vayigash
Genesis 44:18-47:27: reconciliation of Joseph and his brothers
Ezekiel 37:15-37:28: the reunited stick

Vayechi
Genesis 47:28-50:26: Jacob gives his last words to his sons
I Kings 2:1-12: David gives his last words to Solomon

Shemot
Exodus 1:1-6:1: Israel’s enslavement in Egypt
Isaiah 27:6-28:13; 29:22-29:23: Israel’s sins and troubles

Va’eira
Exodus 6:2-9:35: the plagues of Egypt
Ezekiel 28:25-29:21: the coming humiliation of Egypt, which had forsaken Israel

Bo
Exodus 10:1-13:16: Pharaoh vs. God
Jeremiah 46:13-46:28: Pharaoh Necho, who killed King Josiah, will be defeated

Beshalach (Shabbat Shirah)
Exodus 13:17-17:16: Defeat of the enemy Egypt and the people’s song
Judges 4:4-5:31: Deborah’s song of the defeat of Canaanite enemies

Yitro
Exodus 18:1-20:23: The Sinai revelation
Isaiah 6:1-7:6; 9:5-9:6: the revelation of God to Isaiah

Mishpatim
Exodus 21:1-24:18: release of the Hebrew slaves
Jeremiah 34:8-34:22; 33:25-33:26: Jeremiah’s response when Judah rulers would not free slaves

Terumah
Exodus 25:1-27:19: construction of the Tabernacle
I Kings 5:26-6:13: construction of the Temple

Tetzaveh
Exodus 27:20-30:10: the Tabernacle altar
Ezekiel 43:10-43:27: the future Temple sanctuary

Ki Tisa
Exodus 30:11-34:35: the Golden Calf
I Kings 18:1-18:39: the priests of Baal

Vayaqhel
Exodus 35:1-38:20: building a sanctuary
I Kings 7:40-7:50: building a sanctuary

Pequdei
Exodus 38:21-40:38: the craftsman Bezalel who worked on the Tabernacle
I Kings 7:51-8:21: the craftsman Hiram who worked on the Temple

Vayiqra
Leviticus 1:1-5:26: sacrifices
Isaiah 43:21-44:23: the proper sacrifices

Tav
Leviticus 6:1-8:36: sacrifices
Jeremiah 7:21-8:3; 9:22-9:23: sacrifice alone cannot please God, who also demands righteous deeds

Shemini
Leviticus 9:1-11:47: deaths of Aaron’s sons when they approach the Holy Fire improperly
II Samuel 6:1-7:17: the death of Uzzah who touches the holy Ark improperly

Tazria
Leviticus 12:1-13:59: skin diseases
II Kings 4:42-5:19: the story of Elisha and Naaman

Metro
Leviticus 14:1-15:33: skin diseases
II Kings 7:3-7:20: the story of the four lepers

Acharei Mot
Leviticus 16:1-18:30: forbidden sexual relations
Ezekiel 22:1-22:19: denouncing sexual licentiousness

Qedoshim
Leviticus 19:1-20:27: ethical requirements, with warnings
Amos 9:7-9:15: Amos’ warnings to the kingdom

Emor
Leviticus 21:1-24:23: priestly duties
Ezekiel 44:15-44:31: priests of the future Temple

Behar
Leviticus 25:1-26:2: family titles to land
Jeremiah 32:6-32:27: Jersmiah buys a parcel of land

Bechuqotai
Leviticus 26:3-27:34: blessings and curses
Jeremiah 16:19-17:14: Jeremisah’s assurance of blessings

Bamidbar
Numbers 1:1-4:20: census in the wilderness
Hosea 2:1-2:22: the people will be as numerous as sands of the sea

Nasso
Numbers 4:21-7:89: Nazarites
Judges 13:2-13:25: Nazarites

Beha’alotkha
Numbers 8:1-12:16: the Tabernacle candlestick
Zechariah 2:14-4:7: vision of the candelabrum of the Temple

Shelach
Numbers 13:1-15:41; the spies
Joshua 2:1-2:24: the spies

Qorach
Numbers 16:1-18:32: Korah’s attempt to replace Moses
I Samuel 11:14-12:22: the people’s seeming attempt to replace God with a human king

Chuqat
Numbers 19:1-22:1: Moses’ request to the Amorite king
Judges 11:1-11:33: Jephthah’s negotiations with the Amorites

Balaq
Numbers 22:2-25:9: King Balak (Balaq) wants Balaam to curse Israel
Micah 5:6-6:8: Micah remembers this incident.

Pinchas
Numbers 25:10-30:1: Phineas (Pinchas) and his reward
I Kings 18:46-19:21: the heroism of Elijah

Mattot
Numbers 30:2-32:42: God’s punishment
Jeremiah 1:1-2:3: Jeremiah’s call to preach warnings

Masei
Numbers 33:1-36:13: punishments
Jeremiah 2:4-28; 3:4: the prophet’s warnings about idolatry

Devarim
Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22: Moses
Isaiah 1:1-1:27: punishments

The next seven haftarah are haftarah of consolation (Shabbat Nachamu) and all come from Second Isaiah. They are all messages of hope for God’s people Israel. The first is read on the Shabbat after Tisha b’Av, which is the fast that commemorates the Temple’s destruction in 587 BCE. The others are read on successive Sabbaths until the seventh, which is read on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah. Thus, as Moses urges faithfulness to the Lord and obedience to his Torah, the Isaiah passages express God’s promises to liberate and provide for Israel.

Va’etchanan
Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11
Isaiah 40:1-40:26

Eiqev
Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25
Isaiah 49:14-51:3

Re’eh
Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17
Isaiah 54:11-55:5

Shoftim
Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9
Isaiah 51:12-52:12

Ki Teitzei
Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19
Isaiah 54:1-54:10

Ki Tavo
Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8
Isaiah 60:1-60:22

Nitzavim
Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20
Isaiah 61:10-63:9

This haftarah is usually read on the Sabbath between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Vayeilekh
Deuteronomy 31:1-31:30
Isaiah 55:6-56:8: seek the Lord when God is near

Ha’azinu
Deuteronomy 32:1-32:52: Moses’ farwell song
II Samuel 22:1-22:51: David’s song

Vezot Haberakhah (read on Simchat Torah, when the year’s Torah readings are concluded, and the new year of readings begins)
Deuteronomy 33:1-34:12: death of Moses
Joshua 1:1-1:18: the beginning of Joshua’s leadership

The Judaism 101 site also gives the special Parshiyot and Haftarot for Jewish holidays:http://www.jewfaq.org/readings.htm

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Childhood Bibles: mine, my wife Beth’s,
and her deceased first husband Jim’s.

One more post about how the prophets can linked to other Bible passages. Prophetic scriptures became crucial for understanding who Jesus is and how his coming fits within and fulfills God’s plans of salvation. A Bible explorer can spend months and years tracing and delving into the prophetic roots of the New Testament. Here are just a few.

• John the Baptist (Isa. 40:3-5, Mal. 4:5-6, Mark 9:1, Luke 1:17)

• Jesus’ birth (Isa. 7:14, 9:6-7, 11:1-5, Mic. 5:2, Matt. 2:6, Luke 1:30-33.

• Jesus’ authority and teaching (Isa. 6:9-12, 9:1-2, Matt. 4:14-16, 13:14-15)

• Jesus the shepherd (Ez. 34:11-16, John 10:7-11)

• Jesus’ ministry (Isa. 32:3-4, 35:5-6, 33:22, 42:1-4, 61:1-2, Matt. 9:32-35, 12:17-21, Luke 4:17-21)

• Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem (Zech. 9:9, Matt. 21:4-5)

• Jesus’ sufferings, betrayal, and death (Isa. 52:13-53:12, Zech. 11:12-13, 12:10, 13:7, in addition to Ps. 22, 69, and others)

• Jesus’ resurrection (Ez. 37:1-14, Jonah 1:17, Matt. 12:40, and among the psalms Ps. 16:10 and Ps. 110:1)

• The New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34, Matt. 26:26-29, Rom. 11:26-36, Heb. 8:8-12)

• The Temple in relationship to Jesus (Isa. 56:7, Jer. 7:1, Mark 11:15-18, John 2:13-23, Acts 7:47-51)

• “The righteous shall live by faith” (Hab. 2:4, Rom. 1:17)

• The Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28-29, Acts 2:16-21)

• The redemption of all nations (Isa. 2:1-4, 1 Peter 2:10)

• Related to the redemption of the nations: the metaphor of marriage between God and his people (e.g., Hos. 1-3, Rom. 9:25-26, 1 Pet. 2:10, Eph. 5:25, 32, Rev. 19:7, 21:2, 9)(8)

• The end times (Daniel 7:1-12:13, Ez. 38-39, much of the book of Zechariah).

• The issue of the covenant becomes a key for Paul as he preaches about Jesus and the law. For Jews today, the prophetic criticism of faithlessness remains a call for contemporary faithfulness; the prophet’s stress upon justice and suitable worship are as timely a Word of God today as in the ancient world. Paul understands faithless as a more basic flaw in both human nature and the law; we cannot keep the law faithfully, and thus we need Christ (Rom. 3:21-26). In New Testament theology, a passage such as Jeremiah 7:21-26 points to the need for new beginnings (Jer. 31:31-34).

• The prophet’s concerns for the poor and for justice are not as apparently strong in the New Testament but are certainly there. In both the Torah and the prophets, God is a God of justice. (The Greek word dikaiosunê, corresponding to tzedakah, means “righteousness” and “justice.”) God takes the side of the poor, downtrodden, and powerless. Luke’s gospel and Matthew 25:31-46 very much echo God’s care for the needy. You could also think this way: in the Old Testament, God demands justice for the poor, outcast, and powerless. In the New Testament, God also takes the side of those who are spiritually impoverished, bringing them into the circle of blessing.

• Although Christians are quick to stress that Jesus is “more than a prophet,” he was frequently understood to be a prophet (Matt. 21:11, Mark 6:15, 8:28, Luke 7:16, 24:19, John 4:19, 6:14, et al.) and possessed the Spirit in a way that people considered prophetic (Matt. 12:28, Mark 3:28-29, Luke 4:18-20, et al).

Here is a list of many passages from the prophets, psalms, and Torah, used in the New Testament to demonstrate the necessity of Jesus’ suffering and death: http://changingbibles.blogspot.com/2016/03/maundy-thursday-and-good-friday.html

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Here are some notes that I took a few years ago:

As we begin on the prophets, it’s worth realizing that New Testament eschatology relies very strongly upon the Old Testament, especially the prophets. The book of Revelation cites the Old Testament more than any other New Testament book and is filled with images from the prophets.

I found an interesting article, “The Old Testament and the Book of Revelation” at the StudyJesus.com site. I liked the article because it gave straightforward biblical references without the speculations and polemics that one finds in some analyses of Revelation. Perusing that article as well as my notes in my old RSV and the references in my NRSV, I developed a very incomplete list of references to prophetic passages that one finds in Revelation. That article gives many more references and other research about John’s compelling visions and style of writing.

The prophetic idea of The Day of the Lord is found in Isaiah 2:12, Joel 2:31-32, Amos 5:18-20, Daniel 12:12, and becomes part of New Testament eschatology in Matthew 24:29-31, Acts 2:20, 2 Peter 3:8-10, Rev. 6:12-17.

The image of “the son of man” in Daniel 7:13-14 connects to Rev. 1:7.

The image of “the kingdom of priests” in Exodus 19:6 and Isaiah 61:6 connects to Rev. 1:6.

Ezekiel’s vision of four living creatures and four wheels in chapter 1, and also Isaiah 6:1-4, connect with Revelation chapter 4, wherein the living creatures give God honor and glory.

The dwelling of God in the new heaven and earth in Isaiah 65:17ff connects to Rev 21:1-2. Also, Michael the archangel (Dan. 12:1) connects to Rev. 12:7-12.

The condemnation of Deuteronomy 29:19-20, with the image of being blotted out of the book of life, connects to Rev. 21:19. In fact, that article indicates: “Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15, 21:27 are based on Exodus 32:32-33; Psalm 69:28; Daniel 12:1,” and also Ps. 56:8 and Malachi 3:16. All these have to do with the them of God writing a book containing the names of the faithful.

The differently colored horses of Zechariah 1:7-17 and 6:1-8 connect to Revelation 6:1-8.

The eating of the scroll in Ezekiel 2:8-3:33 and Jeremiah 15:16 connect to Rev. 10:8-11.

Much of Joel 1-2, with its descriptions of plagues, droughts, and the coming day of the Lord, connects to the various events in Revelation: e.g., the locusts in Rev. 9.

Some of Ezekiel’s images of the restored temple in chapters 40-48, as well as Zechariah chapter 4, connect to Rev. 11:1-6 et al. Also, the restored Jerusalem in Ezekiel 48:30-35 connect to Rev. 21:12-14.

Genesis 49 lists the twelve tribes of Israel, in the context of Jacob’s death: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Dan, Naphtali, Joseph, and Benjamin. Jacob adopted Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, and thus they became heads of tribes. Rev. 7:1-8 describes how angels sealed the number of God’s servants out of “every tribe of the people of Israel,” and then lists the twelve tribes. Instead of the tribe of Dan we have the tribe of Manasseh, and the tribe of Joseph rather than that of Ephraim is mentioned.

The cities of refuge are described in Numbers 35:9-34. They were places where a person who had accidentally killed someone could flee and when the high priest died they could return home without fear of being killed out of revenge. The cities were Kedesh, Golan, Ramoth Shechem, Bezer, and Hebron. Although Rev. 12:6 doesn’t mention “cities of refuge” per se, the concept of a safe place prepared by God is there: for instance, the woman with child (representing God’s people) flees to a safe place in the wilderness where she will be nourished for 1260 days.

Daniel has a vision of four beasts in Dan. 7:1-8, which connects to Rev. 13:1-7, where beasts emerge from the sea. As that article indicates, the fourth beast represents Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the terrible Greek ruler of the Maccabean period.

Ezekiel 38-39 describes the prince Gog of the land of Magog. In Rev. 20:7-10, Gog and Magog become nations who are enemies of God’s people.

The famous story of Balaam and his donkey (or Balaam’s ass, as we Sunday school kids laughed about) is found in Numbers 25:1-9, as well as 31:16. This story is echoed in Rev. 2: 14 where God scolds the church at Pergamum.

Rev. 14:14-20 tells of the angel reaping a grape harvest with a sickle and putting the harvest into the winepress of God’s wrath, producing copious blood. Of course, this is the reference for a line in “Battle Hymn of the Republic” as well as the title of the novel, The Grapes of Wrath. The image comes from Joel 3:13 and Isaiah 63:1-6.

As that article indicates, Isaiah 65:17, 66:22, refer to the blessings of God upon the exiles who return from captivity in Babylon. These promises connect to a passage near the conclusion of Revelations, 21:1.

With that reference, we return once again to the subject of the Exile. The Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, the Exile, its connection to the land, and the post exilic hope of future redemption are events and themes that permeate the entire Bible. In this case, the book of Revelation brings together stands of biblical history and theology to show the final consummation of centuries of divine promises.

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Isaiah

I wrote most of this post a few years ago during an Advent season. I had been listening to Handel’s “Messiah” and realized that the piece cites Isaiah most often among the Bible’s books (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structure_of_Handel%27s_Messiah). Several Advent lectionary texts are Isaiah passages, too. I forget which of my three seasonal study books for Abingdon Press contained a meditation on one of Isaiah’s servant songs.

One source that I found indicates that Isaiah is the second longest biblical book in terms of chapters (after the Psalms, if consider each psalm a “chapter”), the fourth longest in terms of verses (after Psalms, Genesis, and Jeremiah), and the fifth longest in terms of words (after Psalms, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Genesis). I’m not taking the time to verify this information, LOL. The point is, Isaiah is a long book!

It is also an essential book for both Jews and Christians*, spanning over two hundred years of Israel and Judah’s history, from the last days of the Divided Kingdom to the beginning of the Post-Exilic era.

This site provides a basic outline of the book:

Words of judgment (1-39):
Prophecies about Judah and Jerusalem (1-12)
Oracles against the nations (13-23)
World-wide judgment and deliverance (24-27)
Oracles against Samaria, Jerusalem, and Assyria (28-33)
More prophecies of world-wide judgment and deliverance (34-35),
Historical material (36-39)

Words of comfort (40-66):
Prophecies of redemption and restoration (40-48)
Prophecies of God’s servant (49-55)
Prophecies of consummation (56-66)

See that site for a more detailed outline, too.

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Isaiah himself lived in the 700s. He was called in the year of the death of King Uzziah (Isaiah 6), or about the year 740 BCE. He lived during the difficult time of Assyria’s regional dominance under the monarchies of Tiglath Pileser III, Shalmaneser V (who defeated and deported the Northern Kingdom in 722 BCE), Sargon II, and Sennacherib. He also lived during the Syro-Ephraimite War that rocked the region at the end of the century. The Mishna and also Justin Martyr give us the traditions that Isaiah was killed during Manasseh’s reign (which began about 699 BCE), perhaps by being sawed in half. Hebrews 11:37 may or may not be an allusion to his death. If Isaiah died during Manasseh’s reign, he thus survives Senacherib’s siege of Jerusalem in 701 BCE.

The author of that another online source (bibleencyclopedia.com) states, “For versatility of expression and brilliancy of imagery Isaiah had no superior, not even a rival. His style marks the climax of Hebrew literary article Both his periods and Genius and descriptions are most finished and sublime. “He is a perfect artist in words. Beauty and strength are characteristic of his entire book. Epigrams and metaphors, particularly of flood, storm and sound (1:13; 5:18, 22; 8:08; 10:22; 28:17, 20; 30:28, 30), interrogation and dialogue (6:8; 10:8, 9), antithesis and alliteration (1:18; 3:24; 17:10, 12), hyperbole and parable (2:7; 5:1-7; 28:23-29), even paranomasia, or play upon words (5:7; 7:9), characterize Isaiah’s book as the great masterpiece of Hebrew literature. He is also famous for his richness of vocabulary and synonyms…. Jerome likened him to Demosthenes; and a poet: he frequently elaborates his messages in rhythmic or poetic style (12:1-6; 25:1-5; 26:1-12; 38:10-20; 42:1-4; 49:1-9; 50:4-9; 52:13-53:12; 60-62; 66:5-24); and in several instances slips into elegiac rhythm, e.g. in 37:22-29 there is a fine taunting poem on Sennacherib, and in 14:4-23 another on the king of Babylon. As Driver observes, ‘Isaiah’s poetical genius is superb.’”

The distinguished biblical scholar Brevard S. Childs was my Old Testament prof during the fall semester 1979, just when his book Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture appeared (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1979). I had him autograph my copy. This week I pulled the book from my shelves to recall his canonical approach to Isaiah.

I also studied my Harper’s Bible Commentary (New York: HarperCollins, 1988). There, the biblical scholar Gerald T. Sheppard notes something well known: that 1-39 and 40-66 are noticeably different sections. During the 8th century when Isaiah prophesied, Assyria and not Babylon was the major threat, but those later chapters of the book (from an unknown prophet) deals with the situation of those who have been in exile following the 6th century Babylonian conquest—exiles for whom “new things” can be announced (40:21, 41:4, 27, 42:9) (Sheppard, p. 543).

In other words, 40-66 are not only stylistically different from 1-39 but also concerns a situation 150 years after the historical Isaiah died. Childs notes that the theory of dual authorship of Isaiah dates to the work of Doederlein and Eichhorn in the later 1700s. By the 1900s, there was wide unanimity in the acceptance of a break between chapters 39 and 40 (Childs, pp. 317-318). In one of my Jewish sources (and how I’ve misplaced it), medieval Jewish scholars also made note of the “break” between 39 and 40.

Sheppard, however, writes that after many years of scholarly study of the two sections, biblical scholars have more recently been interested in how the sections make a whole (for instance, the way Isaiah 13 and 21 connect to the Babylon judgments later in the book), and the fact that 40-66 does not seem to have ever existed independently of 1-39 (p. 543). Also, chapter 66 return to themes of chapter 1, God’s word to his people and to Jerusalem (Sheppard, p. 544).

Childs writes that Duhm’s 1892 commentary showed that Isaiah 1-39 was itself not a historical or literary unity. For instance, it is divided into sections like 1-12, 13-23, 24-27, and so on, with some writings as late as the Maccabean period (p. 318). Childs summarizes the work of Mowinckel, Scott, and others who detailed the different sections of 1-39 and postulated the origin and layering of traditions, including “an Isaianic core” of material, with nevertheless both pre- and post-exilic material (Childs, p. 319).

So, Isaiah is not simply a two-part book, with 1-39 originating from Isaiah’s time and 40-66 originating from the exilic and post-exilic years. The whole book contains writings from different periods and has been skillfully edited.

Duhm was the scholar who isolated the oracles 42:1-4, 49:1-6, 50:4-9, and 52:13-53:12, the “servant songs,” and it was who referred to chapters 55-66 as “Trito-Isaiah,” because the focus of those chapters was the post-exilic community in Jerusalem, with references to sabbath and sacrifice. Childs notes that many scholars have agreed with Duhm, though not whether 55-66 is a unified or edited composition (Childs, pp. 322-323).

Childs’ view is that although chapters 40-66 seem to be addressed to the exiles in or returning from Babylon, “the present canonical shape of the book of Isaiah has furnished these chapters with a very different setting. Chapters 40ff. are now understood as a prophetic word of promise offered to Isaiah by the eighth-century prophet, Isaiah of Jerusalem” (Childs, p. 325). Thus, the “the canonical editors of this tradition employed the material in such a way as to eliminate almost entirely those concrete features and to subordinate the original message to a new role within the canon” (Childs, p. 325).

For instance, chapters 40-66 have no special attribution to another prophet, nor historical situations (other than references in Cyrus in 44:28-45:1) compared to the specific circumstances to which Amos addressed his message. Even the famous opening of chapter 40 can be read, within this new context, as a general promise and not specifically to the returning exiles (Childs, p. 325). Consequently, the promises of forgiveness and redemption have a new theological context for Israel following the oracles of judgment that we find in the earlier chapters (Childs, p. 327, 330). The “former things” of Second Isaiah now refer to the earlier prophecies of judgment in First Isaiah, thus confirming the truth of the latter (p. 329-330: for instance, notes Childs, we can connect 1:7ff and 62:4, 11:6, 9 with 65:25, 13:17 with 41:25, and so on. The plan announced in 28:24ff becomes clear in Second Isaiah).

Further, Childs notes that the editing of Isaiah 1-39 provides theologian meanings through the skillful connection of oracles. For instance, the oracles against the nations (chapters 13-23), which date from different time periods, are interpreted by the oracles of a redeemed community in 24-27, where the nations are said to be able to worship together at Jerusalem. Further, the oracles of 34-35 portray a future redemption from the judgments proclaimed earlier—-and the idiom of 34-35 connects forward to that of Second Isaiah (Childs, p. 332).

Sheppard shows how the work of 2-39 has been edited so that promise oracles frame judgment oracles, like the promise oracles 2:2-24 and 4:2-6. The parable of chapter 5 precedes a section of oracles related to the Syro-Ephraimite war (7:1-9), but these oracles have been fitted and edited within a longer set of oracles (6:1-9:7). Following these we have a new set of “promise oracles to Judah and judgments against Assyria” in 10:5-11:16, and then a transitional “song” in Isaiah 12 which includes a motif of “comfort” that, of course, we see again in Isaiah 40. That song is a transition into the oracles of judgment against the nations in chapters 13-23. In turn, those oracles are followed by “a group of promissory eschatological oracles” in chapters 24-27, which “take up a number of themes and motifs from the first part of the book and project them into a vision of future restoration,” i.e., connecting to 40-66. Isaiah 28-32 in turn contain more judgment oracles against Zion and Judah, and then more promise oracles in 33-35. Chapters 34 and 35 in particular anticipate material in 40-66 (Sheppard, p. 545). In turn, the narrative material of 36-39 refers to the Assyria siege of Jerusalem, in 701 BCE several years after the earlier war. This historical material connects with the narrative of 2 Kings 18 and 2 Chronicles 32, and here, the material appears “remarkably suitable to the larger purpose of the book of Isaiah, with its concern for the restoration of Jerusalem. They explore the way in which human responses move God to leave a blessing when one might expect only a curse” (Sheppard, p. 569).

The “suffering servant” songs of Second Isaiah raise other exegetical issues, because (Childs argues) the figure does not seem to be connected (by the canonical editors) to the royal figure of 9:1ff and 11:1ff, nor to any particular historical individual. He argues that the text is even silent on whether the figure represents Israel as a whole; the canonical editors have allowed the questions and tensions to remain and perhaps “to receive its meaning from the future” (Childs, pp. 335-336). My rabbi friends here in town told me that, in Jewish interpretation, the servant songs do refer to the Jewish people and their witness.

Interestingly to me, the great messianic text Isaiah 7:14 falls within the oracles that concern the unrest in Judah in 735-733 BC and the Syro-Ephraimite War. “Occasionally, ordinary public activities of prophets could carry extraordinary significance… Just as Hosea’s marriage constituted a symbolic act of prophecy, so Isaiah’s children by their very names, carried a message throughout their lives” (Sheppard, p. 555). The child Emmanuel, about whom no other historical information is given, is the sign Isaiah gives when King Ahaz says he does not want a sign at all. Within that section, the Northern Kingdom will fall and later disaster will also eventually happen to the Southern Kingdom, but the name of the child, “God with us,” provides ongoing hope (Sheppard, p. 555).

Sheppard writes about how this messianic texts also tie together the times of Isaiah with the post-exilic faithful. “The unusual name … now harbors in it prophetic implications for the destruction of Judah as well as Syria and Ephraim (8:6-8) and, finally, for the nations in the future that will so threaten Judah (8:9-10). The ‘child sign’ seems to continue in 9:1-7, where the birth of a child (9:6) portends a comparable claim of God’s presence with Israel (9:4) in the period after the Exile, when ‘the people walked in darkness’ (9:2). Even if the original tradition of 9:1-7 was once an independent, nonmessianic ‘royal psalm,’ its present context in the book invites a messianic interpretation. So too Isa. 7:14 has similarly engendered messianic expectations among both Jews and Christians, expectations based on the warrants of the text’s ‘scriptural’ context in 7:1-9:7” (Sheppard, p. 556).

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* In my earlier post about the Sidra and Haftarah readings, Isaiah is quoted 19 times among the Haftarot, 1 and 2 Kings 16 times, Jeremiah 9 times, Ezekiel 10 times. It has been a very central book for Judaism! (Jewish Study Bible, p. 780).

So, too, for Christianity. This site gives 20 times that the book is quoted in the New Testament. The passages that we associate with the Advent season (chapters 7, 9, and 11), and especially the Suffering Servant song of 52:13-53:12 are crucially important for the New Testament writers in preaching Jesus. It is hard to imagine Jesus’ own self-understanding AND apostolic preaching about Jesus without the Suffering Servant song.

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Here is a meditation about an Isaiah prophecy of international peace. http://paulstroble.blogspot.com/2016/08/bible-road-trips-highway-of.html

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Jeremiah

Jeremiah is the second of the three major prophets. Here are two websites that provide a lot of background and detail about this book:http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8586-jeremiah
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Catholic_Encyclopedia_(1913)/Jeremias_(the_Prophet)Jeremiah (Yeremiyahu in Hebrew) began his prophetic career in about 626 BCE, the 13th year of Josiah’s reign, across four more kings to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 586 BCE. So he preached and ministered during the worst crisis time in Judah’s history, and Jeremiah’s famous sorrowfulness and distress reflects his involvement in his people’s fate. He was the son of a priest (kohen) named Hilkiah from a Benjamin village (Jer. 1:1-3). As the Jewish Study Bible points out, “Thus, like Moses, who was of Levitical descent, Jeremiah is a priest and prophet who guided his people for forty years–often in the fact of stiff opposition–but, unlike Moses who led the people from Egypt into the promised land, Jeremiah saw the exile of his people form that same promised land and lived out his own days in Egypt.” Jeremiah’s assistant, who conveyed his teachings, was Baruch ben Neriah.

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from: http://www.myjewishlearning.com/
article/judah-israel-a-divided-monarchy/

It might be helpful to remember the history of the several kings of Israel and Judah, and how the prophets fit into the history according to an approximate chronology. All the references are to 2 Kings.

Jeroboam II of Israel (786-746). The prophets Amos and Hosea prophesied to the Northern Kingdom in about the 740s and 750s.

Azariah/Uzziah of Judah (783-742), 15:1-7, who did what was right but also did not remove the foreign altars and so God struck him with leprosy. Isaiah dated his prophetic call to the year Uzziah died.

Zechariah of Israel (746-745), 15:8-12

Shallum of Israel (one month in about 745), 15:13-16

Menahem of Israel (745-738), 15:17-22

Pekahiah of Israel (738-737), 15:23-26

Pekah of Israel (737-732), 15:27-31

Jotham of Judah (742-735), 15:32-38

Ahaz of Judah (737-715).

Hoshea of Israel. 17:1-6. The Deuteronomistic historian comments extensively on the sins that led to Israel’s fall (17:7-23), and describes the resettlement of the area. Among the new settlers were the people who became known as Samaritans.

And kings of Judah:

Hezekiah (715-687), 18:1-8-20:1-21.

Manasseh (687-642), 21:1-18, Hezekiah’s son, was very wicked and did much evil. This is the last straw, God’s judgment against Judah was now certain because of Manasseh’s idolatry and violence.

Amon of Judah (642-640), 21:19-26, was also evil, but

Josiah (640-609), 22:1-25:30, was a righteous king who prepared the temple, and in doing so recovered the book of the law (probably the text of Deuteronomy 12-26) and with great sorrow sought to renew the covenant and to initiate reforms throughout the kingdom. *The prophets

Zephaniah (about 628-622), Jeremiah (about 626-587), Habakkuk (about 605), and Ezekiel (about 593-573) are from this general period, while 2 Isaiah was exilic: about 540.

Jehoahaz (609), 23:31-33, briefly reigned, but he was taken captive by the Pharaoh. His successor

Eliakim/Jehoiakim (609-598), 23:34-24:6, also did evil in God’s sight, as did Jehoiachin (598-597), 24:7-12. In his eighth year as king, he was taken prisoner by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who looted Jerusalem and carried away many inhabitants. Nebuchadnezzar installed Jehoiachin’s uncle Zedekiah as king. But Zedekiah rebelled against Babylon, resulting in the destruction of Jerusalem and the terrible end of Zedekiah and his sons (25:1-7). Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple was burned, demolished, and looted. Nebuchadnezzar appointed the ill-fated Gedaliah to be governor of the land of Judah (25:22-26).

*****

The prophet Isaiah began his ministry in 742, and as we saw last week, portions of 1-39 come from the 600s, while 40-66 are from around 540 and later. Jeremiah profited during the period 626-587, and although we don’t know when he died, he was exiled in Egypt at the time. Our next book Ezekiel, is from 593-573. In his book Biblical Literacy, Rabbi Telushkin comments that the northern kingdom had no prophetic voices of hope—but the southern kingdom had words of hope from 2 Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. So the tribes of the northern kingdom disappeared into history, while the the tribes Judah, Benjamin, and Levi in the south remained and were recipients of God’s promises.

The call of Jeremiah is well known:

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,
‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’
But the Lord said to me,
‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”;
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you.
Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.’
hen the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,
‘Now I have put my words in your mouth.
See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to pull down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.’ (1:4-11)

John Bracke (1), recently retired from Eden Seminary where I’m an adjunct, points out three important perspectives about God of special importance within Jeremiah:

1. God is sovereign. “God’s word changes history through judgment—plucking up and pulling down—and through restoration—building and planting” (p. 7). The people who had been rescued from Egypt and given a precious land had broken God’s covenant and strayed from God’s law, and therefore they must go into exile. But God is also faithful and merciful and will restore the land and the temple and will establish a new covenant (pp. 7-8).

2. Along with the anguish of the people of Judah, God “also experiences hurt and disappointment” (p. 8). God is a rejected husband and a rejected parent. Although God punishes his people, God is also in tremendous pain because of their pain and anguish (p. 8).

3. God is ultimately interested in “building and planting” (1:10), although at the end of Jeremiah this is promised rather than fulfilled (p. 9).

If you’ve ever read or browsed Jeremiah, you know that the book is complex, lacking chronological order and with different genres, styles, voices, and theological perspectives. Writing in The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible (Vol. 3, Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2008), Louis Stulman writes, “Despite the enormous influence it has exerted on the history of Jewish and Christian interpretation, Jeremiah is one of the most difficult books in the Bible to read” (p. 220; the whole article is pages 220-235). Even the prose material alone is written in different styles. Some of the material is likely from Jeremiah himself, other material from Jeremiah’s scribe, Baruch. The book has also been edited, and reflects a theological outlook in keeping with the “Deuteronomistic history,” that is, the troubles of Judah are God’s judgment against them for their sins.

*****

A basic outline of the book is:

Chapters 1-10, condemnations toward Judah.
Chapters 11-28: warnings of the destruction of Judah.
Chapters 29-38: the promise of the New Covenant.
Chapters 39-52: events concerning the fall of Jerusalem.

Stulman has also sketched groupings of material, reflecting theological themes within the book. He argues that the book has two sections, 1-25 and 26-52, forming a “two-part prophetic drama,” each with five acts (p. 221).

He calls the first part, “Dismantling Judah’s cherished social and symbolic categories.” This part’s five acts are:

Introduction (1:1-19)
1 The basis for God’s judgment (2;1-6:30)
2 Dismantling the Temple (7:1-10:25)
3 Dismantling the Covenant (11:1-17:27)
4 Dismantling “insider privileges” (18:1-20:18)
5 Dismantling the monarchy (21:1-24:10)
Conclusion, “the world under divine judgment” (25:1-38)

The second part is “Restoration and hope amid the wreckage: a survivor’s manual.” The five parts are:

Introduction, on hope (26:1-24)
1 “Conflicting theologies of hope” (27:1-29:3)
2 “The book of hope” (30:1-33:26)
3 “Moral instruction for the new community” (34;1-35:19)
4 “Traces of hope amid the wreckage” (36:1-45:5)
5 “God’s reign on earth signaling hope for Judean refugees in Babylon (46:1-51:64)
Conclusion: “Jehoiachin’s restoration as embryonic hope” (52:1-34)

One of Shulman’s summary statements is interesting: “Jeremiah is ‘guerilla theater,’ a text of resistance that reimagines symbol systems and reframes and social realities. It reenacts or performs the fall and rise of Judah as well as the defeat of the geopolitical power structures responsible for Judah’s mistreatment. it attempts to convince Jewish refugees in Babylon that economic-military domination is not the final word and that God is an unflinching advocate for those devastated by war and exile. In effect, the book of Jeremiah is a liturgical act that creates a quite particular world, one that stands in stark contrast to ‘other worlds’ where absolute power, autonomy, and economic exploitation reign… [T]he text ennobles those on the margins to protest and dissent, ridicule and revel, and imagine a counter …world order. The prophetic script empowers broken people with the will to survive and the resolve to act with courage And ultimately Jeremiah functions as a dangerous ‘weapon of hope’ that will not knuckle under to political aggression, military might, or relentless despair” (pp. 234-235).

*****

Among the stylistic forms of Jeremiah, we frequently find personal complains. The Harper’s Bible Commentary lists several: 11:18-12:6, 15:10-21, 1714-18, 18:18-23, 20:7-18. We think of the psalms of lamentation and complaint (p. 597) and find similarities in Jeremiah’s expressions of sorrow.

Two other forms are prose sermons and third personal narratives about Jeremiah. Among the biographical passages are 19:1-20:6, 26:28-29, 36:37-45, 51:59-64. Among the sermons are 7:1-8:3, 11:1-14, 16:1-13, 17:19-27, 18:1-12 21:1-10, 25:1-14, 35:1-19. (HBC, p. 598) The sermons often reflect that Deuteronomistic theology: Judah’s punishment is linked to their sins.

We also find more symbolic prophetic actions—the special kind of performance art that we find in some of the problems–in Jeremiah. There are a few in Isaiah, like the symbolically named children of chapters 7 and 8 (Shear-jashub, Immanuel, and Maher-shalal-hash-baz), and Isaiah’s nudity that warned of Egypt of Assyrian slavery (chapter 20). Here is a site that provides several of Jeremiah’s symbolic actions: http://www.bibleteachingnotes.com/clientImages/29183/BTNMiscFiles/jeremiahsymbolicacts.pdf

The Jewish Study Bible concludes: “In the end, the book of Jeremiah is the product of a debate within Jewish circles from the late monarchy and the exilic periods concerning the question of theodicy or the righteousness of God. Although fully aware of the theological problems posed by the destruction of the Temple and the exilic of the Jewish people, the book affirms God’s existence and righteousness as well as the future of the restored nation Israel on its land” (p. 920).

Note:

1. John M. Bracke, Jeremiah 1-29 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2000); and his book, Jeremiah 30-52 and Lamentations (same date and publisher).

****

Here are a few more thoughts and notes about Jeremiah.

As I write on one of my other blogs: When I was a young person, in Sunday school in our small town church, I pictured the long biblical text in an unusual way: as if it was a landscape for exploring. My dad was a truck driver who hauled gasoline and fuel oil, and so images of travel and “the open road” come naturally to me. (The Bible contains 66 books, and Dad regularly drove Route 66 in Illinois … how providential!) Perhaps I was also inspired by the well-used maps at my church of Bible lands, maps which seemed as interesting as the folded maps, free at filling stations, in the glove compartment of our family car. I imagined the Bible as a large area, not of Palestine, but of sections of landscape, like states, laid out for more or less eastbound travel—even if you began with the New Testament but then backtracked to the Old, as I’ll do in a moment. (When I read my favorite translation of the Torah with its Hebrew text, I begin to imagine the right-to-left text as westbound.)

At the Bible’s beginning, the “scenery” is interesting from Genesis through about 2/3 of the way through Exodus. A few places become tedious—the genealogies, for instance—but the reading moves along, peaking in cinema-ready excitement with the Red Sea crossing, the Ten Commandments, and the Golden Calf. The reading slows as you journey through Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. But you’ve encountered some of the Bible’s high points: the Creation, the Flood, Abraham’s call, Egyptian slavery, the Exodus, and the revelation at Sinai.

You continue on a varied landscape though the historical books: some good parts, some dry. Judges and 1 and 2 Samuel contain violence and intrigue. Beyond, as you pass through the books of Kings and Chronicles, the “travel” becomes tougher again. Do I really need to know all those kings—who sinned and how badly—and lists of names, in order to be saved, to love the Lord?

But in this landscape, too, we find high points: the conquest of the Land, the establishment of the monarchy and kingdom (with David and Solomon as the key figures), the destruction of Jerusalem, the Exile, and the Restoration. Understanding the Bible requires some grasp of these events.

After the historical books, the journey becomes more interesting again. Among the writings, the Psalms alone are worth many revisits; Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs, too. Then you embark on journey through the prophets. The prophets contain fascinating material, but without the narrative structure of the historical books, and without a clear chronology, the prophets’ writings can seem scattered and hard to grasp. A person can lose her bearings there.

You reach the New Testament, which—again, in my young imagination—I pictured as a wonderful landscape that gradually narrows. That’s because the New Testament books tend to become shorter and shorter. Little-bitty 2 John, 3 John, and Jude have only one chapter each, compared to Matthew’s 28. It was as if God was focusing your spiritual travels toward the end times and salvation, the subject of the longer, finally book of Revelation.

I think of some of these longer biblical books in “landscape” imagery. Isaiah, with its several oracles about Isaiah, Judah, and the nations, begins really to feel like a “map” of poetry and images, until we get to chapters 40-66, which I imagine in terms of a lovely and sunny, blue sky. (See, for instance, 60:19-21!)

Jeremiah “feels” like a more rugged landscape, with cisterns and broken pots, yokes, cities destroyed or promised to be destroyed, bitter wailing, finally a scroll weighed by a stone and cast into the sea.

In his book Biblical Literacy, Rabbi Telushkin calls Jeremiah “the loneliest man of faith.” Like Moses and David, we learn a lot from the Bible about his desolate moments, but also, he “is the only character in the Bible who is denied a family. Early in his career, God decrees that Jeremiah is to live alone: ‘the word of the Lord came to me. You are not to marry and not to have sons and daughters in this place’ (16:1-2).” This is because of the violence to come (Biblical Literacy, pp. 293-294). Tragically, Jeremiah also had to see his predictions come true (p. 295).

******

Among the well-known passages of this prophet is Jeremiah 20:7-18, a text that I first discovered in div school. Here is the NRSV:

O Lord, you have enticed me,
and I was enticed;
you have overpowered me,
and you have prevailed.
I have become a laughing-stock all day long;
everyone mocks me.
For whenever I speak, I must cry out,
I must shout, ‘Violence and destruction!’
For the word of the Lord has become for me
a reproach and derision all day long.
If I say, ‘I will not mention him,
or speak any more in his name’,
then within me there is something like a burning fire
shut up in my bones;
I am weary with holding it in,
and I cannot.
For I hear many whispering:
‘Terror is all around!
Denounce him! Let us denounce him!’
All my close friends
are watching for me to stumble.
‘Perhaps he can be enticed,
and we can prevail against him,
and take our revenge on him.’
But the Lord is with me like a dread warrior;
therefore my persecutors will stumble,
and they will not prevail.
They will be greatly shamed,
for they will not succeed.
Their eternal dishonour
will never be forgotten.
O Lord of hosts, you test the righteous,
you see the heart and the mind;
let me see your retribution upon them,
for to you I have committed my cause.

Sing to the Lord;
praise the Lord!
For he has delivered the life of the needy
from the hands of evildoers.

Cursed be the day
on which I was born!
The day when my mother bore me,
let it not be blessed!
Cursed be the man
who brought the news to my father, saying,
‘A child is born to you, a son’,
making him very glad.
Let that man be like the cities
that the Lord overthrew without pity;
let him hear a cry in the morning
and an alarm at noon,
because he did not kill me in the womb;
so my mother would have been my grave,
and her womb for ever great.
Why did I come forth from the womb
to see toil and sorrow,
and spend my days in shame?

Like some of the psalms, this passage mixes despair directed at God, with praise at God’s ability to rescue and prevail. Unfortunately, Jeremiah also feels that God has prevailed over him, in gifting him as a prophet and thus giving him over to a life of misery, rejection, and shame.

Verse 7 is particularly strong language directed at God. Years ago I wrote in my margin that the Hebrew word pata (deceive or entice) also means “seduce,” while the word yakol (prevail) has a strong sexual connotation. The sense is that God seduced and then raped Jeremiah.

When we discussed this passage in div school, our interests were in a feminist reading (1)—the language of sexual violence that we find here and elsewhere in some of the prophets, particularly Ezekiel—and also a pastoral reading—what does it mean to be called to ministry but then feel deceived by God?

Look at verses 14-18. To use a crude expression, Jeremiah declares, in effect, “F my life.” He wishes he’d never been born. Loathing of himself and fury at God are two sides of the same experience. And don’t forget—these are words of the Bible, God’s word for us!

Jeremiah expresses anger and despair both at God and toward his own sense of self-worth. And yet he remains true to his calling. Part of his despair is, indeed, that he is committed to this life of faith and will not deviate from it, even though, in his perception, God has treated him in the worst possible way.

I can’t fail to call attention to topics of date-rape and “rape culture.” I found the following blog helpful: the author and some commenters discuss issues of gender, gendered emotional response, and sexual violence that this passage implies: http://theroundearthsimaginedcorners.blogspot.com/2012/06/god-and-images-of-rape-in-jeremiah.html

*****Some of our memorable New Testament imagery comes from Jeremiah, for instance, 31:31-34.

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know the Lord’, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

“New Testament” is a synonym for “new covenant”–so the very name of the Christian portion of the Bible derives from Jeremiah.

I discuss this passage in my book Walking with Jesus through the Old Testament (pp. 78-80). There I quote Walter Brueggemann, “The ground of the new covenant is rigorous demand. The covenant requires that Israel undertake complete loyalty to God in a social context where attractive alternatives exist” (“The Book of Exodus,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, vol. 1 (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994), 951).

We also have a lovely passage from 23:5:

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

The sorrow of Rachel, evoked in 31:15-17, is used by Matthew in his narrative of the massacre of the innocent (2:13-19).

Jeremiah’s sermon about the Temple, 7:8-15, is cited by Jesus as he (Jesus attacks the money changers at the Temple. As I discuss in my book (p. 117), the reference to “a den of robbers” has less to do with the honesty of the traders, than with Jeremiah’s original metaphor: Jeremiah’s contemporaries believed God would protect them as long as they worshiped at the Temple, but Jeremiah likened that idea to a group of thieves who thought they were safely in hiding but were not.

*****

A verse from Jeremiah cut me to the heart when I first learned it, during a life changing divinity school class taught by B. Davie Napier. As I write this, we are in a national crisis situation concerning the well-being of non-documented immigrants and their children.

He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me? says the Lord (Jer. 22:16).

Wow. If we love God but are uncaring toward the needy and begrudge them help, we’re fooling ourselves. We not only fail in loving God, we don’t even know God! King Josiah, though, knew God, according to Jeremiah. This verse dovetails well with Micah 6:6-8, and 1 John 4:20b, as well as Matthew 25:31-46 and James 2:14-17. So why don’t more of us step up and care for the poor, with such a plain scriptural teaching? Even the straightforward verse John 3:16 implies helpfulness to the needy, for if you believe in Christ as John 3:16 instructs, you respond to “the least of these” (Matt. 25:40).

The pleasures of Bible reading often return me to this theme, because if you want to know a set of “characters” that pervades the scripture, it is the people variously and generally called the poor, the widow and orphan, the needy, the oppressed, the alien, and the stranger. With my Topical Bible and other sources, I’ve “collected” a very small selection of the total: Exodus 22:22; Leviticus 19:10, 15; Deuteronomy 10:19, 14:28-29; 15:7-8; Job 29:12; Psalms 14:6, 82:3-4; Proverbs 14:21, 14:31, 17:5; Isaiah 58:6-7; Ezekiel 16:49; Matthew 19:21, 25:35; Luke 4:18, 12:33, Acts 9:36, 10:4; Galatians 2:10; James 1:27; 1 John 3:17-18. My book Walking with Jesus through the Old Testament has a lesson on this subject.

I’ve been inspired by Jewish friends and their concern for tzedakah, “righteousness” or “charity,” which has replaced the biblical sacrifices as a response to God. Many Jews are quick to “give back to the community” and to take the side of the needy (not necessarily the Jewish needy!) in their donations and political convictions.On the other hand I’ve known Christians, including some pastors, who love the Lord to the point of becoming teary-eyed about God’s blessings, and yet those same Christians express a harsh political outlook toward the poor. How many times have I heard Christians speak disdainfully of the poor, as if all poor people were lazy, out to cheat the system. I feel shame when I think of my own hard-heartedness toward the poor: for instance, a time when I became silently impatient in a grocery line as a young couple up ahead paid for their groceries with food stamps.

I believe there are many ways to know God, because we all have different personalities, talents, abilities, cultural backgrounds, and experiences. The variety of the Bible’s theological perspectives attests to the importance of variety among people’s religious walks. But this way to God haunts me and always has, from which my conscience can never escape: the trumpet call of Micah 6:8, that rhetorical question of Jeremiah 22:16, the clear words of Matthew 25:40.

(This last section is from another blog of mine, theloveofbiblestudy.com, chapter 1).

*****

Lamentations and Baruch

This week I’m reading Lamentations, along with the apocrypha book Baruch.The Book of Lamentations, traditionally ascribed to Jeremiah, is found in the Jewish Bible and all Christian Old Testaments. In the Jewish tradition, the book (entitled “Eichah,” “How,” the first word), is one of the Five Scrolls and is recited on the fast day of Tisha B’Av, the holiday that remembers the destruction of the First and Second Temples.

In Christian traditions, the book follows the book of Jeremiah. Passages are read during Tenebrae of the Holy Triduum.

Both Jeremiah and Lamentations share a terrible sorrowfulness. Here are just a few verses that cry out concerning the desolation of God’s people in the wake of the destruction of Jerusalem, and God’s seeming absence amid the horrifying suffering. In his commentary on Jeremiah and Lamentations (1), John Bracke of Eden Seminary points out that the book is open enough to reflect a variety of terrible circumstances, which makes the book sadly timeless. (p. 187).

How lonely sits the city
that once was full of people!
How like a widow she has become,
she that was great among the nations!
She that was a princess among the provinces
has become a vassal.

She weeps bitterly in the night,
with tears on her cheeks;
among all her lovers
she has no one to comfort her;
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her,
they have become her enemies (1:1-2).

Arise, cry out in the night,
at the beginning of the watches!
Pour out your heart like water
before the presence of the Lord!
Lift your hands to him
for the lives of your children,
who faint for hunger
at the head of every street.

Look, O Lord, and consider!
To whom have you done this?
Should women eat their offspring,
the children they have borne?
Should priest and prophet be killed
in the sanctuary of the Lord? (2:19-20)

Those who feasted on delicacies
perish in the streets;
those who were brought up in purple
cling to ash heaps.

For the chastisement of my people has been greater
than the punishment of Sodom,
which was overthrown in a moment,
though no hand was laid on it (4:5-6).

Lamentations has five poems. Chapters 1, 2, and 4 have 22 verses that begin with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, those forming an acrostic. Chapter 3, with its 66 verses, thus have three acrostic poems. Chapter 5 has 22 verses but is not an acrostic. The Harper’s Bible Commentarynotes that, in the first four poems, the first line is usually longer than the second line. “Such imbalance produces a falling rhythm that is said to ‘limp,’ ‘choke,’ or ‘sob’ in sympathy with the mournful contents.” (p. 646). “The aim of the acrostic-building poet(s) seems to have been to foster a comprehensive catharsis of grief and confession linked to an inculcation of faith and hope, to be accomplished literally by covering the subject ‘from A to Z’” (p. 647).

John Bracke points out Nahum 1:2-8, Proverbs 31:10-31, and Psalms 9-10, 25, 34 37, 11, 112, 119, and 145 have an alphabetical arrangement as well (p. 183). Furthermore, Lamentations also reflects the kind of psalm that scholars call “communal lament,” such as 74, 97, and 137 (p. 185).

The Harper’s Bible Commentary continues, “Lamentations, in its final form, exhibits a striking and innovating amalgam of prophetic, Deuteronomistic, and wisdom notions that subordinates and neutralizes Davidic-Zion traditions without rejecting them outright” (pp. 648-649).

Bracke has this helpful summary: “As we read the book of Lamentations, we should not expect the book to provide answers about suffering. instead, the book of Lamentations gives us words with which to address God about suffering… Our culture is optimistic and values certainty and confidence. to speak of suffering is a sign of weakness and pessimism, out of character in ‘can-do’ America… [but] The book of Lamentations invites us to speak honestly before God of the pain that afflicts us as we live in communities. Lamentations is a book to be prayed because in those communities where we live there is suffering of which God needs to know even if it is not immediately evident that God is paying attention or cares. Perhaps, as we pray through Lamentations, we may discover anew God’s reign even when God seems absent” (pp. 188-189).

Note:

John M. Bracke, Jeremiah 30-52 and Lamentations (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2000), and his Jeremiah 1-29 (same date and publisher).

*****

Book of Baruch, Letter of Jeremiah.

In Roman Catholic and Orthodox Bibles (though not in the Jewish Bible and the Protestant Old Testament), the Book of Baruch (or 1 Baruch) follows Lamentations. The ascribed author is Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch ben Neriah, but the book was probably written during or after the Maccabean period. The five chapters concern the history of Israel and the crisis of exile.

Chapter 6 of Baruch is called the Letter (or Epistle) of Jeremiah and is addressed to exiles in Babylon. Orthodox Bibles has this letter as a stand-alone book that follows Baruch, while in Roman Catholic Bibles the letter is the last chapter/ appendix of Baruch.

*****

Ezekiel

This week, I’m studying Ezekiel, a book that I was dreading, because it can be so weird and angry, but at the same time it is so profound and concerned.In his book Holiness in Israel(Fortress Press, 1989), John G. Gammie writes: “[N]ot only was Ezekiel a priestly prophet and theologian of the divine holiness, he was also a pastor and superb moral theologian. His homilies of divine judgment on the unfaithful shepherds (chap. 34) and of divine hope for the exiles who considered themselves as dead as dry bones in a dry valley (chap. 37) certainly rank among the best-known homilies from all of Scripture. Ezekiel spoke with the eye of a pastor to the needs of those in exile” (pp. 49-50).

Daniel Block describes other aspects of Ezekiel:

“Nor surprisingly, Ezekiel has been the subject of numerous psycho-analytical studies. While prophets were known often to act and speak erratically for rhetorical purposes, Ezekiel is in the class of his own. The concentration of so many bizarre features in one individual is without precedent: his muteness; lying bound and naked; digging holes in the walls of houses; emotional paralysis in the face of his wife’s death; ‘spiritual’ travels; images of strange creatures, of eyes, and of creeping things hearing voices and the sounds of water; withdrawal symptoms; fascination with feces and blood; wild literary imagination; pornographic imagery; unreal if not surreal understanding of Israel’s past; and the list goes on. It is no wonder that Karl Jaspers found in Ezekiel an unequaled case for physiological analysis. E. C. Broome concluded that Ezekiel was a true psychotic, capable of great religious insight but exhibit g series of diagnostic characteristics: catatonia, narcissistic-masochistic conflict, schizophrenic withdrawal, delusions of grandeur and of persecution. In short, he suffered from a paranoid donation common in many great spiritual leaders. This psychoanalytic approach has been rejected by commentators and psychiatrists alike (quoted in Brueggemann, An Introduction to the Old Testament, 2nd edition, 223-223).

Block rightly dismisses this approach, but his comments do illustrate the strangeness of this particular prophet, even among the strange individuals who were gifted with prophecy in Israel’s history.

Ezekiel was not only a prophet but a priest of Zadoc—the priests appointed by Solomon for the Temple, 1 Kings 2:35 (Jewish Study Bible, p. 1042) This priesthood has an interesting history. Not surprisingly, Ezekiel’s prophecies have a focus of purity and priestly faithfulness. The years of his prophetic office seems to coincide with the twenty years stipulated for priests (Numbers 4:23, 39; JSB, 1044. The purpose of the book is to announce and describe judgment on Judah and to urge repentance. Set during the Babylonian captivity, the book was likely written in about 571 BCE, according to one source.

But Ezekiel’s concern to be a watchman is also a very pastoral duty. As Gerhard von Rad points out (Old Testament Theology, Vol. II [Harper & Row, 1965], p. 2320, his prophetic role made him go out among the people and minister to them (pp. 230-231). These words are very famous and are often taken to heart by pastoral leaders:

At the end of seven days, the word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, I have made you a sentinel for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die’, and you give them no warning, and do not speak to warn the wicked from their wicked way, in order to save their life, those wicked persons shall die for their iniquity; but their blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked, and they do not turn from their wickedness, or from their wicked way, they shall die for their iniquity; but you will have saved your life. Again, if the righteous turn from their righteousness and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling-block before them, they shall die; because you have not warned them, they shall die for their sin, and their righteous deeds that they have done shall not be remembered; but their blood I will require at your hand. If, however, you warn the righteous not to sin, and they do not sin, they shall surely live, because they took warning; and you will have saved your life (3:16-21)

This commission of God’s for Ezekiel is reiterated in chapter 33 as well.

*****

The book is more chronological and orderly compared to Jeremiah. Here is a basic outline:

Chapters 1-3, the Lord commissions Ezekiel and gives him visions and messages concerning Judah.

Chapters 4-24. Ezekiel proclaims his message, not only in oracles but also in symbolic actions and parables.

Chapters 25-32 concern God’s judgment against the nations: Ammon, Edom, Philistia, Moab, Sidon, Egypt, and Tyre.

Chapters 33-48 contain the prophets messages of salvation and restoration. This section contains the famous vision of the valley of dry bones, the oracle of Gog and Magog, and finally the vision of the restored Temple.

The Jewish Study Bible identifies thirteen major blocks, from the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile in 593 to the vision of the restored temple in the 25th year:

Ezekiel’s inaugural vision and resulting oracles (1:1-7:27)
Oracles concerning the departure of God from the Temple (8:1-19:14)
Oracles about Israel’s punishment (20:1-23:49)
symbolic actions about Jerusalem’s destruction and the condemnation of neighboring nations (24:1-25:17)
Oracles about Tyre (26:1-28:26)
Oracles concerning Egypt (29:1-32:1-6)
Oracles about the nations; Ezekiel’s role as watchman (32:17-33:20)
Oracles about Israel’s restoration (33:21-39:29)
Vision of the restored temple (40:1-48:35) (paraphrased from JSB, 1045).

*****

God’s holiness is a major theme of the book. Ezekiel expresses God’s desire that God, or the Name of God, shall be known. The phrase “that you (they) may know that I am the Lord” occurs at least 63 times in Ezekiel (Gammie, p. 45).

Also, the Name of God is theological important in Ezekiel. “My holy name” and “for the sake of my holy name” are also frequent phrases in the book (p. 47)

Ezekiel chapter 20 provides the story of Israel, where the people are delivered “for my name’s sake”). Then they are given the Sabbaths and the laws where Israel may know the Lord and sanctify God’s name. The wilderness generation rebelled, too, but God acted again for the sake of God’s name” (p. 46).

Ezekiel also is a theologian of God’s “glory” (kabod). The book begins with a vision of glory: the weird vision that inspired that spiritual, “Ezekiel Saw the Wheel,” perhaps my first acquaintance with this Bible book. In chapters 8-11, the prophet depicts the departure of God’s glory from the Temple, and also the return of God’s glory to the restored Temple (Ez. 40-48).

Gammie further notes that 18:5-9, 10-13, 14-18 is an outline “for a moral theology that may justifiably be called a theology of the ethical requirements of holiness” (p. 50). For instance, 18:5-9:

If a man is righteous and does what is lawful and right— if he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbour’s wife or approach a woman during her menstrual period, does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment, does not take advance or accrued interest, withholds his hand from iniquity, executes true justice between contending parties, follows my statutes, and is careful to observe my ordinances, acting faithfully—such a one is righteous; he shall surely live, says the Lord God.

Gammie connects Ezekiel chapter 18 with Leviticus 19 as the Bible’s high points of ethical reflection—-but also the Temple passage in chapters 40-48. Here, too, we have a lofty theology of ethics and holiness in the framework of God’s glory (pp. 52-59). Although the Temple vision does not depict the ark or incense or other aspects of the cultus that we find in the Torah, we do have these requirements of holiness:

1 A newly built Temple (40-42)
2. Removal of memorials of kings (43:7-8)
3. Removal of foreigners from the sanctuary (44:6-9)
4. Demotion of the Levites along with an elevation of the Zadokite priests (44:10-27)
5. Social reforms 45:9-12)
6. The people bring sacrifices to offer (45:13-17)
7. The sanctuary is cleansed (45:18-20)
8. The passover is kept (45:21-25)
9. The holiness of the inner rooms are safeguarded (44:19, 46:19)
and the land is apportioned to the prices, prince, and Zadokites, with the Temple in the center (chapter 48). (Paraphrased from Gammie p. 56)

That author goes on to discuss ways this depiction differs with or complements other scriptures about the priesthood and holy places (pp. 56-57), and also similarities with Ezekiel’s conception of holiness with that of the Chronicler (Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah), pp. 58-69.

In An Introduction to the Old Testament, Brueggemann also points out the way the repentance of the people Israel is not a matter of ethics alone, but also (for the priest Ezekiel) a regaining of God’s holiness after the ritual contamination (36:23-28). The theological focus of Ezekiel is the priestly care for the divine presence as well as the honor of the name of the sovereign God. When Jerusalem falls, then (in Ezekiel’s theology) God’s dishonored name has been vindicated (pp. 228-229). Thus the first portion of the book ends at chapter 24, with Jerusalem’s fall, and then with chapter 25 and following, he prophet teaches of God’s hope. Not only the fall of Jerusalem but the defeat of the nations (e.g, chapters 25-28, and the vision of Gog and Magog in chapters 38-39) also serve to illustrate the sovereignty of God (pp. 230-231, 234-235).

Gerhard von Rad reminds us that, during Ezekiel’s two decades of prophecy, there was yet no Deuteronomistic theology that interpreted theologically the reasons for the disaster that has befallen upon Judah. Is God weak? Is God unfaithful and uncaring? Some of the working-out of problems that Gammie points out, as well as some of the extremity that Block discusses, is Ezekiel’s effort—crude and unpoetic as he may sometimes be—-to preach the reasons for Judah’s exile. For instance, the untoward eroticism and terrible violence of the parables of chapters 16 and 23—where God’s people are depicted as a sexually insatiable, faithless wife violently punished by her jealous and wounded husband/God—is unacceptable by our contemporary standards but, in the context of the time, illustrates the intimacy of the bond between God and his people and the wounded quality and dishonor God feels when God’s people have been unfaithful to the covenant.

The unfaithfulness that Ezekiel depicts as “whoring” refers both to cultic apostasy as well as Judah’s attempts to gain the help of powerful neighboring nations (pp. 229ff). Marc Zvi Brettler (How to Read the Jewish Bible, Oxford 2007, p. 191), notes that the prophet uses the root זנה (znh), “to whore,” thirteen times in chapter 16 and seven times in chapter 23. A good book on Ezekiel’s themes, which I’ve studied but can’t find in my library at the moment, is Jerusalem in the Book of Ezekiel: The City as Yahweh’s Wife by Dr. Julie Galambush (Scholars Press, 1992). She discusses more about the marital and covenantal images in the prophet.

A significant aspect of Ezekiel’s moral loftiness is his refutation of the idea of intergenerational guilt. For instance, chapter 18 begins:

The word of the Lord came to me: What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? As I live, says the Lord God, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. Know that all lives are mine; the life of the parent as well as the life of the child is mine: it is only the person who sins that shall die.

Marc Zvi Brettler paraphrases that proverb, “The parents eat Snickers® and the children get cavities.” He interpret’s Ezekiel’s daring affirmation of individual responsibility as reflecting his ability to listen to the worries of the exiles and to offer the right words to his fellow people (pp. 188-189).  After all, the Ten Commandments themselves (see Exodus 20:5) presumes intergenerational guilt, and stories like Sodom presume communal guilt; these are ideas we’ve often seen in the scriptures so far. “Ezekiel is arguing against two beliefs found in a variety of biblical texts—intergenerational punishment, and corporate (communal) responsibility and retribution. That is why he needs to make his point so forcefully” (p. 190). Thus the repetitiveness of chapter 18 and also chapter 14.

Ezekiel’s theology of the law provides a potential link to Paul’s theology—-although Paul does not quote Ezekiel in this content. Von Rad writes: “Ezekiel brings a new direction to the old prophetic task of exposing sin. He is, perhaps, more concerned than his predecessors were to demonstrate its total dominion over men. These excursuses on the history are intended to make clear that it is not a matter of separate transgressions, nor simply of the failure of one generation, but of a deep-seated inability to obey, indeed of a resistance to God which made itself manifest on the very day that Israel came into being. What makes Ezekiel’s pictures of Israel’s history so unvarying is that in his eyes the end is no better than the beginning. There is no difference, no moment of suspense—the same state of affairs exists in every age of her history.” Thus God departs Israel (p. 230) but restores Israel for the sake of his name, which includes the nations (p. 236-237). “The final goal of the divine activity is therefore that Jahweh should be recognized and worshipped by those who so far have not known him or who still do not know him properly.” (p. 237).

Also, according to von Rad, although Jeremiah does not unify the traditions of Sinai and of a future Davidic king, Ezekiel does in 37:24, though for Ezekiel the Sinai mitzvot are still uppermost. (p. 236). When we get to the New Testament texts I’ll try to remember to connect this particular prophetic theology to Paul.

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I had some material from one of my other blogs about the glory of God, so I thought I’d bring it over here because it is one of Ezekiel’s major themes. In fact, Ezekiel begins his book with his vision of God’s glory.When I was a kid, first learning simple Bible stories, we learned that catchy song “Do Lord”:

I’ve got a home in Glory Land that outshines the sun
I’ve got a home in Glory Land that outshines the sun
I’ve got a home in Glory land that outshines the sun
Way beyond the blue.

That word “glory” stuck in my mental nostalgia. Glory can mean honor/renown, or beauty/ magnificence, or heaven/eternity itself. St. Ignatius’s famous motto was Ad maiorum Dei gloriam, “to the greater glory of God.” I always took this to mean, “to increase God’s renown (through our devotion and service),” but the Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner notes that we also share in God’s own life as we serve God.[1]

There are many biblical references to “glory.” You can spend hours looking up passages from Nave’s Topical Bible or some other source (like the ones I’ve used and footnoted here), that provide insights into the biblical material. I found this website, which also provides many Bible references to God’s glory, including references to the departure of God’s glory (e.g. 1 Samuel 4, when the ark was captured), the promise of God’s presence and manifestation, the presence of God’s majesty in creation (Ps. 97:6), and the glory of God that we know and see in Jesus (Heb. 1:3, Col. 1:19, Col. 2:9, 1 Cor. 2:8, Rom. 9:23 Eph. 1:18, Col. 1:27 Acts 2:3).

Carey C. Newman, writing in The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible (pages 576-580) notes that the biblical words for “glory” are kavod and doxa; that second word provides the root for “orthodox” and “doxology.” That same source indicates that, among other usages, the word applied to God can mean appearance or arrival, as at Sinai or the Tent of Meeting or the Temple. This is the special Presence of God (Shekinah), sometimes depicted in “throne” visions (as in the famous Ezekiel 1 and Daniel 7, and also the non-canonical 1 Enoch 14), and also the presence of God which dwells in the tabernacle (as in the Priestly history (e.g. Exodus 40:34-38).[2] Moses and Aaron are able to mediate between the people and God, because at this point in the biblical history, because God’s glory is dangerous, as in Lev. 9, when the sons of Aaron are killed, and the later story in 2 Samuel 6, when well-meaning Uzzah touched the ark when it was being carried improperly on a wagon. The presence of God is also associated with the cherubim and the mercy seat (Heb. 9:5, Ex. 25:22, Num. 12:89, Deut. 33:26, 1 Sam. 4:4, Ps. 18:10, Ezek. 9:3, 10:4, Heb. 9:5).

Later, God’s glory dwells in the Temple (2 Chr. 5:13-14), and frighteningly departs from it later (Ezekiel 8-11). Biblical scholar Jacob Milgrom likened Solomon’s Temple to Dorian Gray’s picture: the people’s sins “collected” there, necessitating periodic sin offerings in order to remove the uncleanness. Gammie notes, though, that the people’s sins became so dire, numerous and ongoing, that these offerings no longer sufficed, even those of the Day of Atonement. Thus, the result of which was the loss of God’s Shekinah and inevitable foreign conquest of Judah and Jerusalem. [2]

Glory is not the same thing as holiness, but God’s glory and God’s holiness are closely connected as attributes of God and aspects of God’s manifestation, as well as the discipleship we pursue “for the glory of God.” It is difficult to mind a modern analogy to the biblical idea of holiness: something powerful and necessary to handle properly (like fire or electricity) but also something “contagious,” from which one must be cleansed through prescribed means. One had to perform purity rites when one touched something unclean/unholy, like blood or a dead body. One had to perform sacrifices and priestly activities in a prescribed way, not to endure nit-picky rules but in order to handle something very powerful in a safe way.

Holiness not only has distinctions of clean and unclean, but also justice and righteousness—again, reflecting the glory of God as the just and righteous Lord. Holiness is never understood (properly at least) as only a concern for right ritual, cleanness, and restoration from uncleanness. Israel also witnesses to God through acts of justice, provision, and care for the needy (Lev. 19; Ps. 68:5). As the Baker Dictionary author puts it, “it is the indication of the moral cleanness from which is to issue a lifestyle pleasing to Yahweh and that has at its base an other-orientation (Exod. 19:6; Isa. 6:5-8). Every possible abuse of power finds its condemnation in what is holy. Those who live in fear because of weakness or uselessness are to experience thorough protection and provision based on the standards of righteousness that issue from God’s holy reign (Exod. 20:12-17; Lev. 19; Ps. 68.:5).”[4]

Among other aspects of God’s glory, there is also a “royal theology” of glory, e.g. Psalm 24, where God’s glory, the human king, and the establishment of the Jerusalem sanctuary are all connected. As Newman states, “The regular enjoyment of Yahweh’s divine presence, his Glory, forms a central part of Temple liturgy and democraticizes the unqualified blessing of God upon king, Temple, nation, and world. Glory in a royal context assures of Yahweh’s righteous and benevolent control over all.”[5]

Newman continues: the biblical concept of Glory also has to do with judgment, as in Jer. 2:11-13, Hosea 10:5-6. Of course, God demands holiness from his people and eventually God must deal with sin. But God’s glory also connects to restoration and hope especially in Second Isaiah: “The arrival of Yahweh [in the transformed Jerusalem] not only restores what once was—the glories of a Davidic kingdom—but also amplified. Mixing Sinai with royal imagery, the prophet speaks of a day when the Lord will once again “tabernacle” in Zion. This time, however, Yahweh will “create” a new (and permanent) place for his Glory to rest.[6] (p. 577).

According to Newman, there are several important aspects of the New Testament theology of glory.[7] All these references are worth looking up and thinking about.

* The continued use of glory to mean God’s appearance and presence (Acts 7:55, Heb. 9:5, etc.)
* The Son of Man theme is connected to glory and the throne of glory (Mark 8:38/Matt. 16:27; 19:28; Luke 9:26; Mark 13:26/Matt. 24:30; 25:31; Acts 7:55, 2 Peters 1:17).
* The many depictions of glory as an eschatological blessing: Jude 24, Heb. 2:10, Rev. 15;8, Rev. 21:11, et al.) As Paul says, the glories of redemption make present day suffering pale in comparison (Rom. 5:2, Rom. 8:18, also 1 Pet. 4:13 and 5:1). At that time we will share in glory (2 Thess. 1:9-10, etc.).
* But this future glory is not just a long-from-now time, but also something we share in Christ now, as in Col. 1:17, 3:4, Titus 2:13)
* Also glory as resurrection. As in Rom. 6;4, 1 Cor. 15;25, Phil. 2:5-11, 1 Tim. 3:16, 1 Peter 1:21, Rev. 5:12-13, et al. Hebrew 2:9 applies Ps. 8 to Jesus even though it is not a “messianic” psalm.
* And glory and Christology, as in the beautiful Heb. 1:1-14.
* Paul also calls Jesus the Lord of Glory (Eph. 1:17) and connects Jesus to the glory of god in 2 Cor. 4:6, and 2 Cor. 3:18.

We can see two aspects of the powerful quality of holiness in Jesus’ life and death. Notice that when certain people (and demons) in the Gospels encounter Jesus, they want him to go away (Matt. 8:34, Mark 1:23-25, Luke 8:37, even Luke 7:6). That’s not because he was unpleasant; it was because they perceived that he was holy—and holiness is dangerous for mortals to encounter. People thought that Jesus had to be approached in a way befitting God’s powerful holiness.

As God’s glory “dwelled” in the tabernacle and temple, now that glory dwells in Jesus: John 1:14 doesn’t just mean that Jesus lived among the people of his time, but that the glory of God itself was visible and present in Jesus (also Heb. 1:1-4). If blood has a power (related to cleanness, uncleanness, and holiness) powerful enough to cover people’s sins in the days of the tabernacle and temple, the shed blood of Jesus is powerful enough to cover people’s sins, 2000 years later and beyond.

Ideas of holiness that reflects God’s glory are strong New Testament themes, too. The purity and justice to which Christians are called are Spirit-given gifts and, as such, are God’s own holiness born within us which empower our witness to others (e.g., 2 Cor. 5:21, 2 Pet. 1.4). As one writer puts it, “[God’s] character unalterably demands a likeness in those who bear his Name. He consistently requires and supplies the means by which to produce a holy people (1 Peter 1:15-16).”[8]

God’s glory and holiness extends to the sanctification of believers, who are called hagioi, “saints” or “holy ones,” a term used over 60 times in the NT. As one writer puts it, the outward aspects of holiness in the OT are “radically internalized in the New Testament believer.” “They [the believer/saints] are to be separated unto God as living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1) evidencing purity (1 Cor. 6:9-20; 2 Cor. 7:1), righteousness (Eph. 4:24, and love (1 Thess. 4:7; 1 John 2:5-6, 20; 4:13-21). What was foretold and experienced by only a few in the Old Testament becomes the very nature of what it means to be a Christian through the plan of the Father, the work of Christ, and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.”[9]

Thus, New Testament ideas of glory stress Jesus’ dwelling among us, and the gift of the Holy Spirit in believers. If you appreciate the Old Testament passages about the in-dwelling of God’s glory, you may be taken aback by the idea that the Lord God Almighty, whose glory is dangerous to approach, now is present in us through the Holy Spirit.

In fact, as a spiritual exercise, read biblical passages that reflect a very “majestic” view of God’s glory (e.g., Ezekiel 1, Ezekiel 8-10, Exodus 40:34-38 and Deuteronomy 5:22-27), in conjunction with passages like Romans 3:21-26, Heb. 1:1-4, and Heb. 4:14-16. Don’t think that the more “scary” passages about God’s glory have been superseded by the New Testament; think instead about how the same God who dwelt among the Israelites now dwells with you in the Holy Spirit—exactly the same God upon whom you call when you’re desperate and in trouble, whom you trust will help you.

Notes:

1. Karl Rahner, “Being Open to God as Ever Greater,” Theological Investigations, Vol. VII, Further Theology of the Spiritual Life 1 (New York: Seabury Press, 1977), pp. 25-46.

2. Carey C. Newman, “Glory,” The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of The Bible, D-H, Vol. 2 (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2007), pp. 576-580.

3. John G. Gammie, Holiness in Israel (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989), 38-41.

4. “Holiness,” in Walter A. Elwell (ed.), Baker Theological Dictionary of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1996), page 451.

5. Newman, 577.

6. Newman, 577.

7. Newman, 578-580.

8. “Holiness,” 340-344.

9. “Holiness,” 343.

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Daniel and its Additions

Daniel is the five of the prophetic books in the Old Testament, and is the second-to-the-last book of the Jewish Bible (if you consider Ezra-Nehemiah and Chronicles as single books). The different positions reflect different interpretations of the book. The Jewish Study Bible notes that Daniel was an important prophetic book for the Qumran community, and the book influenced Jewish liturgy. But “because prefigurations of Christ and Christian resurrection were seen in Daniel by the early church, the rabbinic tradition hesitated to embrace the visions of Daniel. The Rabbis denied that Daniel was predicting events after the Maccabean revolt, and especially not the end of time, and assigned him a role as seer, not prophet” (p. 1642).

The JSB also indicates that the book is probably the latest composition in the Tanakh, likely written in about 164 BCE, although the stories of Daniel is set during the 6th Century BCE when Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon (pp. 1640-1641). Interestingly, Daniel 1:1-2:4a and 8-12 are in the Hebrew language but 2:4b-7:28 are in Aramaic, although the natural break in the book comes between chapters 6 and 7.

These stories are surely among the first Bible lessons I learned as a kid, pushed by my mom to attend Sunday school. Key personalities of those stories include Daniel, Hananiah, Mishel, and Azariah, renamed Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—and of course Nebuchadnezzar. The stories do make teachable lessons concerning God’s protection and faithfulness. We’re familiar with how Daniel and his friends kept their integrity first by eating proper foods. Like Joseph of earlier centuries, Daniel has skill in interpreting the dreams of his Gentile ruler, which at first pleased the king. But because the young men would not bow before the king’s golden statue, they sentenced to die in the fiery furnace. Of course, they survived, joined in the flames by a mysterious fourth person.

Subsequently, we read the famous story of the ghostly fingers that wrote Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin upon the wall of the palace as King Belshazzar and his household partied. Daniel interpreted the words as meaning the end of the king’s reign—-and sure enough, Belshazzar was slain that night and Darius of the Medes soon became king.

But when Daniel petitioned God contrary to a royal order, Darius had him cast into the lions’ den. Of course, God sent an angel to shut the lions’ mouths, and the faithful Daniel was saved again.

Chapter 7 through 12 change from third-person narrative to first-person, apocalyptic visions. This material, too, dates from the Maccabean period and symbolically convey events when the Maccabans revolted against the blasphemous Seleucid king. The New Interpreter’s Study Biblecalls Daniel “the only full-blown apocalypse… in the [Old Testament]” (p. 1231); Ezekiel and Zechariah have more limited apocalyptic content. An outline of this material:

The four beasts, and what they mean (7:1-28)
The ram and goat, and what they mean (8:1-27),
Prophecy of the seventy weeks (9:1-27),
The Tigris River and the persecution of Israel (10:1-12:13)

The prophecy of the seventy weeks has captured interest and imagination over the centuries. Good ol’ Wikipedia has a nice account of that chapter’s interpretation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prophecy_of_Seventy_Weeks The prophecy of the ten-kingdom confederacy is another such prophecy: here is a link that I’ll read later: https://bible.org/article/prophecy-ten-nation-confederacy

Daniel was important in Jesus’ own discussion of the end times: look up Dan 3:6 and Matt.13:42, 50; Dan 7:13 and the parallel passages Matt 24:30, 26:64, Mark 13:26, 14:62, Luke 21:27,22:69; Dan 9:27 and Matt 24:15; Dan 11:31 and Mark 13:14. The image of “the son of man” in Daniel 7:13-14 connects to Rev. 1:7, and the vision of the four beasts connect to Rev. 13:1-7, where beasts emerge from the sea.

I agree with writers who see in these visions the incidents of the Maccabean era, then transformed in the New Testament to the era after Jerusalem’s fall to the Romans. Apocalyptic biblical material always fascinates, though, and there will always be folks who see in those passages reflections of the contemporary time. Before these blog posts end I’d like to delve into this visionary material again.

*****

As I’ve been studying the Bible this year, I’ve also studied material not found in the Protestant Old Testament (nor in the Jewish Tanakh), but are found in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox canons.  The Septuagint (i.e., Greek) translation of Daniel contains the following additional material.

The Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Jews (or the Three Holy Youths) appear after Daniel 3:23 as verses 24-90. This section provides more material on the incident of the fiery furnace.

Susanna is chapter 13 of Daniel: the virtuous Susanna is falsely accused of promiscuity and sentenced to death. But Daniel confronts her accusers, and when their stories do not match up, they are sentenced to death instead.

Bell and the Dragon is chapter 14 of Daniel in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles. First Daniel berates the priests of the idol Bel. Then Daniel kills a dragon (a living dragon!) that the Babylonians revered: Daniel concocts a poisonous recipe that causes the beast to burst open. For that, Daniel was again sentenced to die in the lions’ den, and again he survived through God’s great help.

That is the last of the material in the Protestant Apocrypha. We have twelve books of the Old Testament to go, but in the Jewish Bible they are grouped together as The Twelve. I’ll study them that way.

Michelangelo’s Zechariah
from royal-paintings.com

The “minor prophets”of the Bible are “minor” in the sense that they’re short, compared to the major prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. In the Jewish Bible (Tanakh), they are one book, Trei Asar or the Twelve, and as such, the Twelve are the last book of the Neviim, or prophets, which in turn is the middle section of the Tanakh. (http://www.ou.org/about/judaism/treiasar/) In the Christian Old Testament, these prophets are separated into twelve separate books and are the last books of the testament. That’s how many of us are accustomed to reading them, if we do indeed study them.

Altogether, the Twelve have 67 chapters, which is only one chapter longer than Isaiah. Like the major prophets, the Twelve are concerned with the events of the Israelite kingdoms following the division (afterSolomon’s death) into the northern kingdom Israel and the southern kingdom Judah. Israel is conquered by the Assyrians in 722-721 BCE, and Judah is conquered by the Babylonians in 587-586 BCE, who also destroy Jerusalem and take the people into exile. After the Persians conquer the Babylonians, many of the people are able to return to the land and rebuilt Jerusalem and the Temple (as recounted in Ezra and Nehemiah).

Any of the prophetic books can be tough reading. Our Sunday school class in Akron, OH tackled Hosea for a while. Then we got depressed at all the difficult and discouraging prophetic pronouncements so we switched to something more cheery: Lenten scriptures! Any of the prophetic books demand a good commentary or study book to help you know what’s going on. On the other hand, once you dig into the material, you appreciate their beauty and witness. One Jewish website (http://www.ou.org/jewishiq/treiasar/1.htm) has these words: “The voices of the Trei Asar, taken as a group, were like a great symphony, of dramatic and powerful movements. Or, using a visual metaphor, they were like a rainbow; a most appropriate metaphor, because their prophecies encompassed all the colors of the rainbow, from darkest to lightest, from the most somber to the most serene.”

Recently I purchased the Berit Olam set of Old Testament commentaries published by Liturgical Press. I decided to start leafing through the two volumes (published in 2000 and 2001) on the Twelve, both by Marvin Sweeney, who teaches Hebrew Bible and the History of Judaism at Claremont. I was interested in learning about the themes and concerns of the Twelve, if we were to study them together as one long book. How do they interrelate, written as they were by a dozen prophets over a 300 year span? I took the following notes from Sweeney’s interesting texts.

Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant Bibles order the twelve minor prophets following the order of the Hebrew text of the Tanakh (that is, the Masoretic text): Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. Many Orthodox Bibles, following the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Tanakh), have a different order of the first six of the twelve: Hosea, Amos, Micah, Joel, Obadiah, and Jonah. The reason for the different ordering is not clear. As Sweeney notes, the LXX has the benefit of common themes: Hosea, Amos, and Micah concern the norothern kingdom of Israel, especially as an example for the southern kingdom of Judah, while Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, and Habakkuk concern the foreign threat to Judah and Jerusalem, and lastly, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi speak to the restoration of Jerusalem. Also, Joel—which is difficult to place historically—becomes, in the LXX order, a general statement of God’s restoration that provides a segue point between the first three (northern) prophets and the rest of the prophets, with their themes of Judah and Jerusalem (p. 148).

To say more about the themes of the books: Hosea portrays the crisis of Israel as an example for Judah, then Joel provides a framework of punishment and restoration for Jerusalem on “the day of the Lord.” Joel also cites Amos, Obediah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, and Zephaniah, thus providing a continuity among the books that follow. With that framework and connection in mind, we move to Amos, wherein the punishment of the northern kingdom Israel is the opportunity to restore the monarchy of David. Then Obadiah preaches against Edom (the kingdom south of the Dead Sea) for threatening Jerusalem. Jonah depicts God’s mercy for Assyria. Micah also portrays the fall of the north as a framework for Jerusalem’s fall and restoration. Then Nahum condemns Assyria for its actions against Jerusalem. Habakkuk similarly condemns Babylon. Then Zephaniah preaches about the purification of Jerusalem; Zephaniah addresses the rebuilding of the Jerusalem Temple; Haggai preaches about the restoration of Jerusalem; Zechariah is concerned with that process of restoration, and then Malachi is concerned with the city’s final purification (pp. 148-149).

Hosea. Hosea reflects the 8th century rise of Assyria and the text depicts conflicts with the Assyrians

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A late 1st cen. BCE or early 1st Cen CE fragment
of the Septuagint minor prophets,
from wikipedia

(pp. 3-4). Sweeney writes that although Hosea is by Rabbinic tradition called the oldest of the twelve, Amos mentions Jeroboam and Uzziah and Hosea mentions the chronologically later Ahaz and Hezekiah (p. 3). Also Amos writes during the rise of Assyria before it had definitely threatened the northern kingdom. But still, he writes, “Hosea seems to be particularly well suited for its position at the head of the Twelve on thematic grounds. It employs the metaphor of Hosea’s marriage to Gomer and the bird of their children as a metaphor for YHWH’s relationship with Israel” (p. 3). That is, as Gomer is divorced because of harlotry, so the Lord condemns Israel for abandoning its covenant with God—Israel’s figurative “adultery.” But Hosea takes his wife back, and the Lord also restores Israel following punishment from gentile nations. Sweeney notes that the Lord’s disdain for divorce in Malachi connects back to Hosea (p. 3).

Joel. The book has no definite references to its historical circumstance, and the threatened “Day of the Lord” seem to refer to natural calamities. But, “[w]ithin the MT version of the Book of the Twelve, Joel presents the paradigm for Jerusalem’s punishment and restoration as a fundamental question to be addressed within the Twelve as a whole” (p. 149).

Amos. The theme of locusts connects Amos and the previous book Joel (Joel 1-2, Amos 7:1-3), as does the theme of the restoration of fertility and agricultural prosperity (Joel 3:18, Amos 9:11-15). Amos also connects to the subsequent book, Obadiah, in the need for Edom to be pushed (Amos 1:11-13, 9:12). Furthermore, Joel, Amos, and Obadiah are connected because of the theme of the day of the Lord (Joel 1:15, Amos 5:18-20, Obadiah 15). In the LXX order of the books, Amos connects with Hosea in identifying the Beth El sancturary as a specific problem of God’s anger depicted in Hosea, and then Amos connects to Micah in their mutual depiction of God’s punishment and restoration (p. 191). Also, Hosea, Amos, and Micah are all the 8th century prophets among the Twelve (pp. 191-192).

Obadiah. This short book has in common with Amos the restoration of the Davidic kingdom, as well as the theme of the day of the Lord (p. 279).

Jonah. This book depicts God’s mercy toward Nineveh of Assyria, thus connecting to the mercy God shows in restoring Israel and Judah as depicted in the next book, Micah. Jonah balances Obadiah’s prophecies against Edom, but it also contracts with the book after Micah, Nahum, which shows the punishment of God toward the ultimately unrepentant Assyrians (p. 305). Jonah also addresses the question of God’s mercy and trustworthiness following the Babylonia exile, for the themes of creation and the Exodus are brought in, functioning to tie together earlier scriptures about God’s power and faithfulness (pp. 306-307).

Micah. The restoration of Zion amid the nations is a major theme of Micah (chapters 4-5). As the sixth book in the Masoretic order of the Twelve (the order most of us are used to), Micah bridges God’s judgment and mercy to the nations in Obadiah and Jonah, with themes of the next three books: the fall of Ninevah, the Babylonian threat, and God’s call to his people to repentance. As the third book in the LXX, Micah’s perspective of the punishment of the northern kingdom Israel has ramifications for the experience of Jerusalem and Judah as well as the nations, including Micah’s vision of Zion as the center of God’s world peace (p 339). “Overall, the book of Micah is esigne to address the future of Jerusalem or Israel in the aftermath of the Babylonian exile,” even though Micah himself was 8th century (p. 342).

Nahum. Concerned in part with the divine judgment against Nineveh, the book follows Jonah, indicating that the repentance of Nineveh was temporary. But the book is also the beginning of the long process of God’s judgment against the nations, as well as against Judah and Jerusalem, which are the subjects of the subsequent five books (p. 420).

Habakkuk. Like Nahum, Habakkuk affirms the Lord’s control of world events, and the Lord’s use of the nations in the divine purposes. The two books contrast in affirming the fall of Assyria (Nahum) and looking forward to the fall of Babylon (Habakkuk) (p. 453). “This prepares for Zephaniah, which calls upon the people to make their decision to observe YHWH’s requirements or suffer punishment if they refuse to do so (p. 454).

Zephaniah. Zephaniah links with Habakkuk in the prophecies about Babylon (the agent of Judah’s fall) and with subsequent Haggai, who looks to the rebuilt Temple and the hoped-for restoration of the Davidic monarchy (p. 493). But the beginning of Zephaniah locates the prophets career during Josiah’s reign, thus connecting with the pre-exilic reforms of that righteous king. The call for repentance and purity of Josiah’s reforms have a new urgency in the post-exilic times (pp. 493-494).

Haggai, Zechariah. Both are prophets who appear in the account of Ezra. Haggai’s concern with the Temple and the restoration connect with Zephaniah’s themes and with the next book, Zechariah, who affirms the Temple and restoration but also looks beyond the Temple to God’s cosmic purposes (pp. 529, 561).

Malachi. The last book of the Twelve calls the people to “to take the action that is necessary for Jerusalem and the Temple to fill” the role depicted in the previous books: Israel and the Temple as “the holy center” of God’s peace for the nations and the cosmos. As Sweeney noted elsewhere (in my notes above), the Lord’s disdain of divorce circles us back to the divorce and return of Gomer and Hosea in the first book of the Twelve (p. 713).

In this biblical book “The Twelve,” we have history of God’s people from the 8th to the 5th centuries, but we also have a beautiful vision of God’s peace for the world, centered at Jerusalem. We also have a vision of God’s universal purposes. Many Christians, of course, interpret some of these texts as referring to Christ and his kingdom, and we understand more about Christ and his person and work by appreciating his place and context within God’s purposes with Israel. We also find among the Twelve, classic Bible passages that always inspire and call us, like Micah 6:8, Habakkuk 2:4, Amos 5:24, and others.

*****

As a Christian who participates in interfaith groups with esteemed Jewish colleagues, I think this is a wonderful quotation (copied under fair use principles), by Walter Brueggeman, Theology of the Old Testament: Testimony, Dispute, Advocacy(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1997), 734-735.

“Theological interpretation… is conducted by real people who are concretely located in the historical process… preoccupied with an ancient text in a particular circumstance….

If we are to interpret the Old Testament in our circumstance, it is clear that Jewish faith and actual Jewish community must be on the horizon of Christians. More specifically Old Testament theology as a Christian enterprise most be done in light (or darkness!) of the Holocaust and the unthinkable brutality wrought against the Jewish community in a society with Christian roots… Christian interpretation of the Old Testament and its characteristic supersessionism and a long distance removed from the Holocaust. Yet the thinking behind and around supersessionism, of which Christian Old Testament theology has been one aspect, is indeed linked to the Holocaust. Therefore Christian Old Testament theology… must make important and generous adjustment sin our convention and uncritical exclusivist claims on the Old Testament…. If Christian appropriation of the Old Testament toward Jesus is an act of claiming the elusive tradition toward a Jesus-Circumstance, we can recognize that other imaginative appropriations of this elusive tradition are equally legitimate and appropriate. We have yet to decide how christological exclusivenesss is to be articulated so that it is not an ideological ground for the dismissal of a co-community of interpretation. Thus our most passionate affirmation of jesus as the ’clue’ to all reality must allow for other ‘clues’ found herein by other serious communities of interpretation. And of course this applies to none other so directly as it does to Judaism.

"Thus Christians are able to say of the Old Testament, ‘It is ours,’ but also say, ‘It is not ours alone.’ This means to recognize that Jewish imaginative construals of the Old Testament text are, in Christian purview, a legitimate theological activity. More than that, Jewish imaginative construal of the text is a legitimate theological activity to which Christians must pay attention. … I do not imagine that attention to this primate alternative construal of the text will lead to an abrupt overthrow of distinctive Christian claims. But I also do not imagine that such attention would leave Christian claims untouched, certainly not untouched in their fearful, destructive aspects, but also not untouched in good-fain exclusively, rooted in a text that remains as elusive as its Subject that relentlessly resists closure."

New Testament Survey

Here's a summary of the New Testament, that I wrote a few years ago. Like many Christians, I tended to turn first to the New Testament as I began serious Bible studies. Leafing now through my old Bible that I've used since I was twenty, I find all my jottings from college and seminary when I studied the Bible (on my bed rather than at a desk), with commentaries to study, too. I can scarcely convey my excitement I felt when I discovered that the gospels contained evidence of early oral traditions, possible antecedent written sources, and intentional compositional ordering of material about Jesus. I poured over the book Gospel Parallels, which lays out the Synoptic Gospels—Mathew, Mark, and Luke—in order to show textual similarities and differences.(1)

I learned that over 90% of Mark’s gospel is also found in Matthew and Luke, and that the latter two gospels have material in common that is not found in Mark: the so-called “Q” material. Matthew and Luke also have material unique to their own gospels, implying other sources that they used. I hadn’t doubted Jesus’ historical existence, but I was fascinated by the shaping of the material, the use of sources of Jesus’ words and deeds to put forward theological convictions. That the Gospels were not straightforward biographies, factual in all chronology and detail, didn’t matter to me in the least.(2)

Gospels and Acts

In Matthew, Jesus addresses his mission to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” (15:24). It seems the most Jewish Gospel but also the most angry in terms of the Jewish leadership. We get Jesus’ bitter diatribe in Matthew 23, but we also get strong connections of Jesus with the Jewish scriptures and traditions. Jesus by no means repudiates the Torah, but interprets it by his own authority. At the same time, Jesus provides hope for Gentiles, too (12:18, 15:28, 24:14, etc.), and among the gospels only Matthew uses the word “church” (ekklēsia). Matthew retains Mark’s basic geographical framework (the Galilean ministry, chapters 4-18; the journey to Jerusalem, 19-20; and the week in Jerusalem, 21-28:15), but unlike Mark, Matthew includes a birth narrative (including the stories of the Wise Men, the flight into Egypt, and the slaughter of the innocents). The gospel presents Jesus’ teachings in five discourses (chapters 5-7, 10, 13, 18, 24-25), and uniquely gives us teachings such as the wicked slave (18:21-35), the landowner (20:1-18), the ten virgins (25:1-13), the talents (25:14-30), and the narrative of the last judgment (25:1-46).

Mark opens with, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Hasty, simply written, the gospel contains a key verse, 10:45: “the Son of man …came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Who is this Jesus, though? As the gospel proceeds, Jesus’ friends don’t seem to “get” him. He confuses those closest to him. One of the saddest verses is 14:50, And they all forsook him, and fled. Meanwhile, the people on the “outside” identify Jesus right away: the demons, outcasts, and Gentiles. The first post-crucifixion person to “preach” Jesus is a Roman soldier who participated in his execution (15:39). And yet, for all its darker qualities, the gospel seems written to those already Christian for their guidance and comfort, as I’ve jotted in the margin. Mark’s gospel omits birth stories, devoting chapters 1 through 13 to Jesus’ ministry (chapters 1-9 in Galilee, chapter 10 on the way to Jerusalem, and 12-13 in Jerusalem), and then chapters 14 through 16 for Jesus’ passion.

Luke, the only Gentile author in the New Testament, wrote two accounts, both addressed to person named “Theophilus,” which means “God-lover.” (That was Mozart’s middle name: “Amadeus” is the Latin translation.) In the gospel, Jesus addresses his concerns for the poor and disadvantaged; Jesus’ quotation of Isaiah 61:1-2 (Luke 4:18-19) doesn’t spiritualize the blind, oppressed, and imprisoned, but he proclaims liberty and release to them. “Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God (Luke 6:20)—not “poor in spirit” which you and I might be able to claim. Unique to Luke’s gospel are the story of the good Samaritan (10:25-27), the story of Mary and Martha (10:38-42), the parables of the lost coin and the prodigal son (15:8-32), the story of the rich man and Lazarus (16:19-31), not to mention the stories at the Gospel’s beginning: the birth of John the Baptist, the Magnificat, the Benedictus, the song of Simeon, the shepherds in the field, the story of young Jesus in the Temple.

How is John related to the other gospels? Is it a different historical tradition or does it assume the traditions of Mark? This is a debated subject; the basic outline and facts of Jesus’ life are there, but the stories are different: the water into wine, the Samaritan woman, the raising of Lazarus. John focuses on seven “sign” miracles, five of which are not found in the other Gospels. John’s is a “high” view of Jesus, a view that helps us understand him theologically. We don’t find parables and pericopes here, but rather long reflections and dialogues. While Jesus’ Synoptic parables do not deal directly with Jesus’ identity, John’s gospel contains numerous “I am” sayings. While the other gospels announce the Kingdom of God, in John, Jesus’ announces the Spirit that will guide Jesus’ followers.

Acts provides stories of the first (approximately) thirty-five years of the early church. Peter dominates the first portion of Acts, Paul the second half. Luke frames the stories of Acts with affirmations about God’s kingdom (1:3, 28:1); Jesus had preached the kingdom, and after his ascension, the life-power of Jesus is given to people through the Holy Spirit, and so for Luke, the kingdom of God exists wherever people accept that ever-available life-power(3). Thus the disciples are instructed not to fret about the signs and portents of Jesus’ second coming, they have what they need for the present time, the Spirit promised in Joel’s prophecy (Joel 2:28-32, Acts 2:17-21).

In spite of its connection to Luke, I tended to think of Acts as a stand-alone historical account between the gospels and the epistles. But eventually I realized that Acts is as important as the gospels because the book provides the way that we know Jesus today. We’ll never know Jesus in the flesh—and judging from Jesus’ own words, we shouldn’t even long to have known him in the flesh (John 16:5-15). Now, Jesus is now fully present to us through the Holy Spirit.(4) Jesus’ story continues, if not in a scriptural way, in the innumerable book-length stories of us, his disciples (cf. John 21:25).

An explorer of these books will notice the way different gospels accounts are shaped, and how placement of stories and teachings elucidate meaning (4). She’ll learn about God’s love from the many “pictures” of God (Mt. 18:10-14, 35, 19:13-15, Luke 7:36-50, 15:3-32, and others). She’ll try to regain a sense of childlike openness and wonder (perhaps lost in adulthood), which Jesus says is essential for understanding him (Mark 10:13-16). She’ll understand that those who are good, upright, Ten Commandments-following people are often the ones who can’t or won’t follow Jesus, and the sinners and strugglers may get into the kingdom first (Matt. 21:31-32, Mark 10:17-31, Luke 15:11-32).

The explorer should try not to isolate Jesus as a teacher and healer from Jesus as risen Lord upon whom she can call for help and guidance. Jesus’ teachings had characteristics of healing and vice versa. When Jesus taught, he aimed not just at ethical standards but also at the healing of our hearts. When Jesus healed people, he not only showed a concern for people’s physical needs but also wanted to teach people about God’s hope and salvation (Matt. 12:15-21).(5)

Letters

The Bible has many different kinds of literary genres.(6) In the two testaments you find history, poetry, legal codes, prophecy, songs, letters, sermons, gospels, and even one book of erotic poetry. Ideally, we should understand the different genres as we read, and genres overlap within books. Ezra contains autobiography, letters, and history; several of the prophets contain oracles and narratives. The gospels and Acts are history, but they’re also preaching. Hebrews is a sermon with an epistolary conclusion (though no epistolary greeting). Of course, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy form a long history and contain accounts of individual incidents, but the books also encompass legal codes and cultic (worship) instructions, while ancient Christian catechesis and liturgy, as in the Didache, are later than the canon.

We find very few letters in the Old Testament, but letters form the largest body material in the New Testament. The canon includes letters of James, John, Peter, Jude, the author of Hebrews, and Paul. Paul’s several letters are arranged in order of length, although 1 and 2 Thessalonians were probably the earliest letters, and Philippians and 1 and 2 Timothy seem valedictory. All these letters were written to individuals or churches in order to address particular issues, to deal with needs and problems, to convey information and greetings, and to communicate feelings. Although not intentionally written in an epigrammatic way, we can lift epigrams, slogans, and promises from the letters for our own needs, for within these letters are treasures of biblical proclamation and pearls of wisdom. If I were to give someone a single Bible book to convey the Gospel, I’d tell them to read Romans or Ephesians. Galatians is also excellent for communicating the Gospel, although it was written in frustration and anger; if you’ve a good commentary to help you, Galatians might help renew your faith.

The letters have different purposes and viewpoints. Like the Gospels, they’ve changing facets in which God’s light beautifies, changes, and illuminates. Reading in turn through my various marginal notes and scribbling:

Romans is Paul’s self-introduction to a church he wished to visit soon. He argues that God accounts us righteous by faith rather than works of the law. The righteousness of God is revealed in God’s justification of sinners through the atonement of Christ.

1 and 2 Corinthians is largely Paul’s words of teaching, advice, and reprimand to a congregation swayed by impressive teachers, confident in their own wisdom, and yet lacking in love and spiritual maturity.

Galatians is Paul’s frustrated letter to a Gentile church. Paul points out that the Galatians already evidence of God’s power and acceptance in their lives through the gifts of the Spirit. They must not add anything on to God’s work, including traditional Jewish rites like circumcision.

Ephesians and Colossians are similar letters, written (if Paul did write them) while he was imprisoned. He shows the sufficiency of Christ and God’s free salvation. In Christ we are built up as a church; Christ has removed barriers between God and us.

Philippians, another “prison letter,” is a joyful letter, warm and affirming for a congregation Paul clearly feels gratitude.

1 and 2 Thessalonians concern the second coming of Christ and the need to be watchful, though the first letter is warm and the second letter, though also warm, contains more admonishment.

1 and 2 Timothy concern the qualities of church leaders and provides advice and encouragement to Paul’s young colleague. Titus also deals with church leaders and the need to deal with false teaching.

Philemon concerns a runaway slave, Onesimus, whom Paul has helped convert, and so Paul writes Onesimus’ master about the matter, hinting strongly that Onesimus should be freed.

Hebrews is an epistolary sermon by an unknown author to an unknown group of people. The title, which is a latter addition, is based on the fair assumption that the original audience consisted of converts from Judaism, who, more than a Gentile group, would have grasped all the many references to the Hebrew scriptures and traditions. Although its supersessionism demands contemporary reinterpretation, the sermon is beautiful, intricate, and argues the sufficiency of Christ compared with the angels, the prophets, and the temple.

James stresses the validity of one’s faith through the good works of one’s personal growth and one’s relationships with others. The book only mentions Jesus twice and is similar in style to Old Testament wisdom literature.

1 and 2 Peter concern the steadfastness of one’s faith in times of persecution and also in regard to false teachers.

1, 2, and 3 John all provide glimpses into the lives of the early church. 1 John, especially, teaches the need to demonstrate one’s faith through love.

Tiny little Jude, which quotes a non-canonical writing (1 Enoch 1:9), is closely related textually to 2 Peter and is concerned false teachers and apostasy.

After these brief epistles, we come to the final book, Revelation, which concerns the final times. It’s actually a letter, too (1:4), to seven Asian churches. John must be a different man than the apostle, for the book’s style is dissimilar from the gospel and the letters, and this author does not identify himself as an apostle. The book chronicles the many signs of the end times and is written in symbolic language that harkens back to Old Testament prophecies.

The letters, like the gospels, aren’t just “about” Jesus but also witness to his living reality. “From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once regarded Christ from a human point of view, we regard him thus no longer,” Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:16. This verse used to bother me; aren’t Jesus’ life and teachings important? They are, but Jesus’ life and teachings can’t be disconnected with his death and resurrection, and his earthly life cannot be disconnected with the eternal life that he now shares with us, And so it is not inappropriate that much of the New Testament deals not with specifics about Jesus’ life and teachings (the letters scarcely quote Jesus’ teachings explicitly) but the grand fact of his salvation and gifts of the Spirit. Now, as readers of this material, we too receive the first-century preaching of the Gospel of Jesus, and our lives, too, become guided and maintained by the Spirit.

*****

We should also be humbled by the way the Bible witnesses to the imperfection of human efforts, including (perhaps especially) religious efforts, and God's compassion for us. The Israelites, in their centuries of life with God, provide example after example of doubt, complaint, loss of faith, idolatry, wrongdoing, and judgment. A knee-jerk Christian reaction might be, “Oh, those faithless Hebrews.” But look closely at the New Testament. Those scriptures reflect a much shorter time period than the Old Testament (fewer than a hundred years, depending on the conjectural dating of some of the epistles, compared to 1600 years between Abraham and Nehemiah), and so we don’t see the same kind of patterns of sin-judgment-repentance in the New compared to the Old. But in the New Testament, the early Christian congregations also struggled with problems: divergence from sound teachings (2 Tim. 4:1-5), the threat of apostasy (Heb, 6:1-8), factions (1 Cor. 1:10-17), unchastity (1 Cor. 6:12-20, 1 Thess. 4:1-8), incest (1 Cor. 5:1-5), lawsuits (1 Cor. 6:1-7), disrespect of the Eucharist (1 Cor. 11:17-22), and others. All seven of the churches of Revelation received a scold or a warning or both. Thank God for God's steadfast love and loving kindness!

*****

Notes:

1. Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr., ed., Gospel Parallels: A Synopsis of the First Three Gospels (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1973).

When we study the Gospels, it’s difficult not to mentally harmonize the material. For instance, we think of the “seven last words of Jesus,” but no single Gospel contains all seven; we mentally conflate the material. In fact, a second century Christian named Tatian harmonized the content of the four gospels into a continuous life, called the Diatessaron, which we now know through variant versions of ancient copies. Howard Clark Kee, Jesus in History: An Approach to the Study of the Gospels (second edition, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1977), 281-292.

2 I still have some of my favorite seminary paperbacks like Günther Bornkamm, Jesus of Nazareth (New York: Harper & Row, 1960); The Crucified Messiah and Other Essays(Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1974), Studies in Paul (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1977) and Jesus in the Memory of the Early Church (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1976), all by Nils Alstrup Dahl; and Klee, op. cit. Also Richard A. Buridge, Four Gospels, One Jesus? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmanns, 1994); Luke T. Johnson, The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1986), and Bart D. Ehrman, The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings (New York: Oxford University Press, 1997).

3 Brevard S. Childs, Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1993), 643.

4 William H. Shepherd, who has published several good books about preaching (CSS Publishing Co.) has also written the book The Narrative Function of the Holy Spirit as a Character in Luke-Acts (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 1994).

5 I make this point in my book, What’s in the Bible About Jesus? for the series What’s in the Bible, and Why Should I Care? (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2008), 43.

6 An introduction to the Bible’s types of writings is Margaret Nutting Ralph, And God Said What? An Introduction to Biblical Literary Forms (New York: Paulist Press, 1986, 2003).

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Artist's imagining of the Second Temple,
from http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-second-temple

New Testament Anti-Judaism?

What a joy to focus Bible study upon the Old Testament! Studying those Bible books during these past several months, I've made so many wonderful discoveries. I particularly enjoyed using Jewish study materials for the Tanakh (the proper word for the Jewish Bible: "Old Testament" is of course a Christian term). I cherish my friendships and collegial relationships with Jews and love to understand the Scriptures through Jewish as well as Christian scholarship.

A Jewish friend points out that the New Testament is, to a Jew, quite unlike the Tanakh. We Christians are taught that the New Testament grows self-evidently from the Old, but different aspects of those scriptures resonated differently among Jews and early Christians. As one of my professors puts it, “certain chords were sounded by Jeremiah and Deutero-Isaiah which resonated strongly in the New Testament (new covenant, vicarious suffering, new creation, suffering servant).” Meanwhile, though, “other notes grew in intensity on which rabbinic Judaism sought to construct its faith (temple, cult, priesthood, law).”(1) Judaism had to survive the Roman destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, and so the leadership of the Pharisees, segueing into the leadership of the Rabbis and Sages, preserved the scriptures and traditions of Judaism.

The New Testament also contains numerous negative depictions of Jews and Judaism. In subsequent posts, I'll be using a favorite book, The Reluctant Parting by Dr. Julie Galambush (HarperSanFrancisco, 2005). A divinity school classmate, Julie takes each New Testament writing and explains its context within the first century Judaism, when the Jesus believers and other Jews became into conflict. Julie discusses how the anger focused toward Jews in the New Testament is often an expression of hurt and discouragement among Jews toward fellow Jews—and not Gentiles expressing hostility toward Jews. But the New Testament “taught” centuries of Gentiles exactly that: hostility toward Jews and Jewish faith.

And yet almost everything in Christian doctrine originates from the Jewish scriptures and traditions, refigured though those ideas may be. Major exceptions include the afterlife and last judgment (ideas that began to be debated within Judaism after the biblical period; the Eucharistic consumption of blood, very contrary to Torah kashrut teachings; and the Cross, a Gentile way of killing people. Early Christians (who were Jews) managed to make Old Testament connections even to these.

Here is an earlier blog post where I list several Old Testament passages that became important for New Testament writers. Christians' teachings about Jesus took them deeply into the Jewish scriptures, though in ways difficult to accept by other Jews. https://bibleconnections.wordpress.com/the-road-to-emmaus/

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The Old Testament ends with Malachi, probably written in the 400s BCE, although Esther is from that time or later, and Daniel and also the apocrypha books of the Maccabees are from the 100s BCE. Thus, the Old Testament ends with the community establishing Jewish faith and identity both in the land and in the diaspora. See my earlier post on the Talmud for the development of Rabbinic Judaism.

During this time of crisis and development for Judaism, Christianity emerged. Jesus, a Galilean Jew from Nazareth, was born about 4 BCE and died around 29 or 30 CE. Among the most famous Mishnah sages whose lives overlapped with Jesus, Hillel lived in about 100 BCE-10 CE. The sage Rabbi Akiva was born after Jesus died, living in about 50-135 CE. Some scholars believe that 1 Thessalonians, from about 50 CE, may be the earliest New Testament book.

This past week I heard a presentation by Lawrence Schiffman, Professor Hebrew and Judaic Studies at New York University. Subsequently I ordered his book From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism (Hoboken: Ktav Publishing House, 1991). He has a good summary of the background of Christianity (pp. 149ff). After Herod's death in 4 BCE, Judea was ruled by Roman procurators, the first few of whom were wise, but Pontius Pilate--who of course ordered Jesus' execution--was an unwise ruler insensitive to Jewish customs, resulting in years of conflict and economic decline. Early Christianity began in this climate, "firmly anchored in the heritage of Second Temple sectarianism" (p. 149). This was a time of several other messianic movements. Jesus himself likely learned from among the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders of the time, although of course he and Pharisees had disagreements and discussions.

Eventually, as Schiffman writes, "Jesus' teachings apparently raised the ire of some of the Hellenized Jews in the leadership of the high priesthood, as well as of the Romans, who decreed his crucifixion. It is impossible from the incomplete accounts [apart from the Gospels] we have to determine exactly what led to the execution of Jesus, yet we know the tragic results of the widespread Christian assumption that the Jews were responsible for it" (p. 152).

The separation of Judaism and Christianity took about a hundred years, Schiffman writes. On the Christian side, we can see in New Testament traditions that the believers in Jesus' resurrection began to see Jews as "the other", with whom Jesus (though himself a Jew) disputed (p. 153). The New Testament writings reflected bitterness of Jesus-believing Jews toward other Jews.

In the very early days, Schiffman writes, Christians and Jews might still discuss the Hebrew Bible, but tensions arose and grew. On the Jewish side, tannaitic Judaism became the dominant kind of Judaism after the unsuccessful Jewish revolt against the Romans during the last third of the first century CE. (See my earlier post about the Talmud.) The Pharisees were the only survivors of the several groups that had existed during and right after Jesus' lifetime. As the Tannaim (sages of the Mishnah period) standardized Jewish beliefs, Jews who believed in the messiahship of Jesus were perceived as minim, or Jews with wrong beliefs. The Tannaim also developed laws to separate other Jews from commerce and interaction with the Christian minim (p. 153). By the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-135 CE), which effectively prevented Jews from returning to the Land, the Tannaim forbade Christian writings.

The situation became complicated because, in the Apostle Paul's churches, Gentiles---that is, persons outside the purview of Talmudic halacha, or Jewish law---were becoming the dominant kind of Christian, and the minim, Jews who combined Jesus-belief with Torah-observance--faded away (p. 154-155)

When religion and politics combine, someone gets very hurt; in this case, in the 300s, the Roman empire became increasingly Christianized, eventually resulting in attacks on Jews and synagogues and other expressions of anti-Semitism (pp. 155-156). Legislation of the Christianized empire "set the stage for the tragic history of Jewish-Christian relations in medieval and modern times" (p. 156). James Carroll's book, Constantine's Sword: The Church and the Jews, A History (New York: Mariner Books, 2001) is a long and thorough account of this history.

I keep coming back to this eternal promise to the Jewish people:

Thus says the Lord,
who gives the sun for light by day
and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord of hosts is his name:
If this fixed order were ever to cease
from my presence, says the Lord,
then also the offspring of Israel would cease
to be a nation before me for ever (Jeremiah 31:35-36).

Note:

1. Brevard S. Childs, Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1993), 176.

Judaism and Christianity and the Afterlife

This calendar year, I’m reading through the Bible and taking informal notes on the readings. Since we so often read verses and passages of the Bible without appreciating context, I’m especially focusing on the overall narrative and connections among passages.

The following is a blog post from a few years ago, that delves into more connections between the Old and New Testaments.

One of my seminary professors was R. Lansing Hicks (1922-2008), whose obituary can be found at : http://www.yale.edu/opa/arc-ybc/v36.n16/story21.html He was my prof in spring semester 1980, after I had Brevard S. Childs for a class. Over the years I appreciated more and more Prof Hicks' lectures on the Christian use of the Old Testament. A few years ago, I emailed him stating this. I forgot about my note until Hicks’ son-in-law emailed me, stating that Hicks had been ill during his last year and hadn’t read his emails, but the son-in-law had found my note and communicated it to Hicks shortly before his death.

The moral of this story is, IF YOU WANT TO EXPRESS GRATITUDE TO SOMEONE FOR SOME KINDNESS OR HELPFULNESS, DON’T DELAY, DO IT NOW. This was the third or fourth time in my life that I sent a thank-you note to someone who died not long thereafter.

The moral of the rest of this post is: if you want to deepen your faith, finding connections and insights in the Bible is an excellent way. A few months ago I found a short book by Hicks: Forms of Christ in the Old Testament: The Problem of the Christological Unity of the Bible, the William C. Winslow Memorial Lectures of 1968 at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary. Several years ago I read Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture by Graeme Goldsworthy, and at about the same time, something at our church reminded me how little many of us know or appreciate the Old Testament and how it relates to the New. Consequently I’ve been interested in renewing my own Bible reading, and in helping people discover themes and passages that unify the testaments.

I wrote the original post for Trinity Sunday, an appropriate time to think about the identity of God among the scriptures. Again: these are simply my notes from an interesting book: find a copy on interlibrary loan for more insights! At the beginning of the book, Hicks quotes Gerhard von Rad’s question: “how far can Christ be a help to the exegete in understanding the Old Testament, and how far can the Old Testament be a help to him [or her] in understanding Christ?” (p. 6) Hicks offers a form-content approach which, by the end, also give us a stronger appreciation of the Old Testament and provides ideas for ecumenical and interfaith dialogue.

First, we look at form, specifically the forms of words, actions, and a coalescence of both. (p. 9).

Forms of words. There are “words of suffering” (Job 16:18-17:2, 23; Ps. 22:1-2, 6-8, 14-18; 69:4-21; 116; Isaiah 53:3-9; Lamentations 3:1-24; and cf. Zechariah 12:10f), in which Christians perceived the form of Christ’s suffering (Matt. 8:17; Acts 8:32-35; 1 Peter 2:24f). There are words of forgiveness (Isaiah 40:2; 51:5f; Jer. 31:34; Hosea 14:4-7; Micah 7:19f; Zech. 13:1), in which Christians perceive the form of Christ’s pardon (Mark 2:5; Romans 10;5-13). There are words of salvation (Isa. 43:14-; 61:1-4; Jer. 23:5f; 31:2f; Ez.34:11-16; Zech. 8:13; cf. Ps. 20:30f), and words of life (Deut. 30:15-20; Isa. 25:6-8 [cf. Matt. 27:51; heb. 6:19; 10:20]; 26:19; Isa. 55:3; Amos 5:14); in which Christians perceive Christ’s power, too (Luke 20:37f; John 10:10; 11:25f; Heb. 11:17-19) (pp. 9-10).

Forms of action. There are forms of intercession: Abraham’s prayers for Sodom (Gen. 18:20-33), Moses’ prayers for the Israelites (Ex. 32:11-14, 31f), and the Servant’s actions (Isa. 42:2; 50:4-9; 52:13-53:13), in which Christian’s perceive the form of Christ’s self-oblation and intersession. There are forms of sacrifice, especially the binding of Isaac (Gen. 22:1-18), certainly a text readable as a very Christological text. There are also forms of God’s self-limitation: God’s covenant with Noah never to flood the earth again (Gen. 9:8-17); God’s covenant agreements with Israel (Ex. 34:10-28); God’s selection of a place where God can be met (Ex. 25:8f, 17-22; Deut. 12:10-14; 1 Kings 5:3-5; 8:20f, 29; Ps. 132:14; Ez. 37:26f). In all of these examples of divine self-limitation, Christians perceive the divine self-emptying in Christ (John 1:14; Phil. 2:6f; Col. 1:19f.) (pp. 10-11).

Coalescence of words and actions. Hicks cites Ex. 3:7f as a good combination of God’s verbal promises and God’s saving activity (pp. 11-12) We also look at content. It’s not always the case that the Old Testament provides the form and the New Testament the content. There are reciprocal movements between the testaments:

1. It is Christ’s nature to expose sin, and thus, whenever the Old Testament exposes sin (e.g., Micah 3:8, or the law as understood by Paul in Rom. 7:7-12), “it shares in the work of Christ. “

2. It is Christ’s nature to forgive sins, and thus the Old Testament “knows Christ” where there is forgiveness of sins (Lev. 16:29f; Micah 7:18-20; Isaiah 55:6).

3. Similarly Christ’s suffering for sin, and the Old Testament knows this kind of suffering (Ex. 32:31-32; Jer. 20:7-18; 37-38; Isa. 53:4-6).

4. And also Christ’s redemption from sin (Isa. 40:1-4; 53;12; Ps. 22:30-31; 130:7-8).

5. We also see the Old Testament providing the content of redemption, as in Hosea 3:1-3, in which we see the form of Christ’ s work (pp. 11-14).

Forms of intention. In the Old Testament, we see God’s intention of salvation: Cain (Gen. 4:15ff, Noah (5:29; 8:21f), Abraham (12:1-3, 15:7-21; 17:1-8), as well as the Exodus and Sinai covenant, and God’s many promises like Isa. 1:16ff and 43:4. The divine intention of salvation of course continues into the New Testament as a mutual binding of the two testaments. “And where salvation is offered, there is Christ.” (pp. 15-16). Intention cannot be separated from certain other forms, such as the offering of the innocent for the salvation of the guilty (p. 16).

Forms of Coordinates. Hicks gives the example of Isaiah 45:21f, where “a just God” and “a saving God” are not contrasted but yoked as co-ordinates: God is both just and saving. God’s justice and righteousness, in fact, are showed in Isaiah’s several depictions of the Lord as comforter, vindicator, healer, preserver, and sanctifier (pp. 17-18).

Other examples of coordinate terms are Moses’ writings and Christ’s words (John 5:46f), “the way, truth and life” of John 14:6, the “Son of God” and “life” in 1 John 5:15; and the perfection and gifts of the law in Ps. 19:7-9. All these are coordinates which are also perceived in Christ (Matt. 11:28, John 1:4-9; 8:12; 11:25f) (pp. 19-20).

In an interesting second half of the book, Hicks makes several points. One is that “When reading the Old Testament, early Christians recognized in its words and acts forms of the divine salvation and knowing that there is one salvation, not two, confidentially believed them to be forms of Christ.”As the New Testament affirms the life given through Christ (Romans 10:9, John 14:6), so the Old Testament affirms the living giving power of God (Deut. 30:15; 32:39, Amos 5:6). “[T]he Jew of the Old Testament… was saved no less lovingly or fully than those Jews who encountered Jesus ‘in the days of his flesh’ or we today who profess the Christian faith. In these Old Testament affirms we meet ‘soteriological content.’ The form of each passage quoted differs from the others just as each differs from the form in which Paul makes his declaration [in Romans 10:9]. But the content is the same, and so is the intention—the gift of life abundant; and that life, wherever or whenever offered, is life with Christ and in Christ” (pp. 26-27).

Another point: “Recent editions of Nestle’s Greek New Testament offer an index of Old Testament verses either cited or alluded to in the New Testament which runs to more than 1400 items. Not only the number of citations but their scope also is noteworthy: the list contains all the books of the canonical Old Testament with the exception of four–Ruth, Ezra, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. This is not to imply that the New Testament authors saw Christ in virtually every book of the Old Testament; but these impressive statistics for the frequency and range of Old Testament quotations do indicate beyond reasonable doubt that early Christian writers found material of specific value to them as Christians in every section of the Old Testament…” (pp. 30-31).

These are not “proof texts” and not all are what we would call “Old Testament prophecies”: for instance, Zechariah 9:9 is not a prophecy or a proof-text when used in Matthew 21:4f. But this is part of a drama in Zechariah, in which Matthew found a form for elucidating Christ. Likewise using in Zech. 11:12-13, 12:10, and 13:7b, Matthew could “delineate the form of divine action in Christ’s passion and show its intention” (pp. 33-34, quote on p. 34). Similarly Matthew’s use of Hosea 11:1, which is not a promise but a form of the divine action (pp. 35-36). And also: Matthew’s use of Jeremiah in Matt. 2:17f, a word of sorrow which connects us with the divine words of salvation and restoration in Jeremiah 31 (pp. 32-33).

Hicks sees this form-content approach as helpful in Jewish-Christian conversation. We can better understand the variety and intentions of God’s works in both testaments, and we can affirm the uniqueness of Christ without denigrating God’s other works as somehow lesser, or simply preliminary to Christ. Hicks quotes James Sanders: “The Christian will not, even privately, ask why the Jew does not accept Christ as Messiah, and the Jew will not, even privately, ask why the Christian does not accept the Old Testament as Jewish. Each will respect the historic claim on the Bible the other represents….” Hicks adds that the purpose of conversation “is not merely to encourage Jews to converse with us for their own profit but to bring us Christians to ‘the point of such a full and genuine encounter that we are lead into the depth of the Christian Presence amid Judaism’” (p. 38). [Here, Hicks quotes P. Schneider's The Dialogue of Christians and Jews, who continues: "Is it not possible that we have been blind to the further depths in which Jesus is made manifest in the travails and triumph of the Jewish people and faith throughout the ages? This is a dimension of the Lord Christ that Christians have yet to discover" (p. 177, in note 50 of Hicks, p. 45).]

Another way to put it is by N. T. Wright in his article “Paul’s Social Gospel: In Full Accord” (Christian Century, March 8, 2011, 25-28), where he writes, “There’s a swath of Western thought which…has said in effect that since the first plan has gone wrong, God has decided to do something quite different, to send his own Son to die for sinners, so we can forget about all that Isreael stuff….That is to misread Romans and to misunderstand Paul at his very heart. Instead, Paul declares in Romans 3:21 that God’s covenant faithfulness has now been revealed through the faithfulness of the Messiah for the benefit of all those who are faithful. He, the Messiah, is ‘Israel in person’” (p. 29).

Altogether, Professor Hicks, writes, “Herein the identification of Old Testament forms can contribute significantly to our understanding of the scope of Christ’s work through space and time. It widens the perspective through which we are helped to view the totality of Christ’s work. Does this not open further doors of understanding today? … Should not we extend this same affirmation to all works of redemption and deliverance? If so, we face the future of ecumenical discussion of with both confidence and anticipation and we turn eagerly toward dialogue with ‘secular [person]‘ in our ‘post-Christian’ age” (p. 39)

The Tanakh ends with books that, in the Christian Old Testament, are positioned earlier: Ezra-Nehemiah, which provides history of the return from exile and the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Temple; and 1 and 2 Chronicles, which recapitulate Israelite history and emphasizes the Jewish worship and temple. In this way, the Tanakh opens to the future of Jewish life and worship. The Christian Old Testament ends with Malachi and the prophecy of Elijah’s arrival prior to the Messiah. And so, moving from Old to New, we proceed immediately to Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus, which connects Jesus to Hebrew history.

Back in my post about 1 Chronicles (April 19, 2017), I noted (from the Harper Bible Commentary) that Genesis through 2 Kings can be called the primary history of the Jewish Bible, telling the long story from Creation to the fall of Judah. But Chronicles, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Esther form an important secondary history, carrying the biblical story from Creation into the early post-exilic era when the Jews were allowed to return to the land and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple during the Persian era. As the Harper Bible Commentary puts it, “The OT presents us, then, with two alternative tellings of the history of the Israelite people. Their difference in outlook does not necessarily make either of them unreliable; it only reinforces the fact that the telling of any story or any history must be selective and must reflect the intentions of some person or group” (p. 80).

The Primary History does not end on a hopeful note, with the people defeated and exiled, and Jerusalem destroyed. The Secondary History, coming from the post-exilic time and written for Jews struggling with a new era, is more hopeful. The Chronicler emphasizes King David and focuses upon both the monarchy and the Temple, so that “[t]he history of the monarchy… seems to be primarily a history of the establishment and maintenance of the worship of God,” a concern that carries over into Ezra and Nehemiah as the people rebuild the temple and Jerusalem (HBC, p. 79). Although Esther is set in Persia rather than the land, that book affirms the providential continuation of the Jewish people in foreign lands (p. 79). Even the genealogies are implicitly hopeful, demonstrating the continuity of God’s people from ancient times. It makes sense, then, that these books conclude the Jewish canon, effectively pointing to Jews toward their remarkable future.

Because two of the Gospels begin with genealogies that take us back to Adam and Abraham, we can think of the New Testament as a third great telling of Israelite history (or fourth, if you want to consider the Prophets as a different kind of retelling of God's relationship with the people). The New Testament does not literally narrate Israel’s history, but those books refer so often to the Scriptures—by one count, nearly 1400 Old Testament quotations, references, or allusions—that we have a another summary of the history, this one in reference to Jesus.

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More on the New Testament and Judaism

Why—again-- does the New Testament seem to be so anti-Jewish, and why have so many Christians over the centuries been anti-Jewish or antisemitic? (Here is a Jewish site that gets into some of that tragic story: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/mel-gibson-and-the-gospel-of-anti-semitism)

The short answer is: Christians should not be, and the fact that we have been is a tragedy and a shame upon our religion. The longer answer is that the New Testament reflects a time Christianity was a primarily Jewish phenomena, with Jews struggling and discussing with other Jews how Jesus-belief should affect the faith of Judaism and, indeed, what defines being Jewish. When critical or nasty things were said about Jews in the New Testament, it was among fellow Jews—-the way some of my St Louis Cardinals friends talk about the Chicago Cubs and their fans. There is rivalry but no notion that the Cubs are playing some other, bogus game besides baseball.

But after the New Testament period, Christianity was a predominantly Gentile religion, and what seemed to be the anti-Jewishness of the New Testament became actual anti-Jewishness: “those” people (not only a different religious group but now a different ethnic group besides my own) should believe in Jesus and they don’t, so I condemn them, as my holy scriptures apparently do.

There is nothing wrong with realizing how circumstances change after biblical times and with understanding the biblical authors' intentions. Those are aspects of good and responsible interpretation of the scriptures. In this case, we must realize that the supersessionist theology that many of us Gentile Christians have adopted is NOT the theology of New Testament, which is written predominantly by Jews about what they are considering a new Judaism that fulfills their post-exilic Jewish hope in an unexpected way: through the crucified and resurrected Messiah Jesus. That is, there is no rejection in the New Testament of Judaism as such—but to appreciate this fact requires study and openheartedness. (I’ll write more about this in a few weeks.)

My classmate Julie Galambush has written a wonderful book, The Reluctant Parting: How the New Testament's Jewish Writers Created a Christian Book (HarperOne, 2006), which I’ll continue to quote as I study the New Testament in these posts. And---to finally return to my original point, LOL---I've been studying David L. Turner’s book, Israel’s Last Prophet: Jesus and the Jewish Leaders in Matthew 23 (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2015). Turner expounds on one of the most notoriously anti-Jewish-sounding chapters in the New Testament and puts it in context of first century Jewish belief.

Many Christians are accustomed to saying, “Oh, Jesus was more than a prophet, he was God’s Son.” But this seems to me another way of overlooking Jesus’ Jewish and scriptural heritage. As I write in my Walking with Jesus through the Old Testamentbook (p. 50), Jesus was often understood to be a prophet (Matt. 21:11; Mark 6:15; 8:28; Luke 7:16; John 4:19; 6:14; Acts 2:30), possessed the Spirit in a way that people considered prophetic (Matt. 12:28; Luke 1:76-77; 4:18-20; 22:64), and elicited people’s excitement as a prophet, even the great prophet foretold by Moses (Deut. 18:15-18; see John 4:19; 6:14; 7:40-41). The people of Jesus' time weren't just hoping for a messiah, they were also looking to a new prophet like Moses.

All along in these posts, I’ve been interested in finding continuities between the Old and New Testaments. Part of the perceived hostility toward Jews and Judaism in the New Testament comes from an aspect of continuity between the two testaments: the theology of the Deuteronomistic History (the hypothetical ur-text of Deuteronomy through 2 Kings) is very much part of the New Testament thought-world. Turner cites the scholar O. H. Steck (Israel und das gewaltsame Geschick der Propheten, 1967) who describes the characteristic Deuteronomistic structure:

“1. Israel’s history is portrayed as one of habitual disobedience.
2. God patiently sent Israel prophet after prophet to urge them to repent.
3. Israel rejected these prophets, often killing them.
4. Thus God punished Israel through the Assyrians and Babylonians.
5. But God promises restoration to exiled Israel and judgment on Israel’s enemies if Israel will repent” (Turner, p. 5).

Turner points out that Neh. 9:26-30 reflects this structure, and that the theme is often found in the Tanakh and other Jewish writings of the late Second Temple period (pp. 5-6). As Second Temple-era documents, too, the New Testament stresses #3 more than #2, and #1 less so yet (p. 9). These themes very much reflect the Jewishness of the New Testament, and in this case Matthew particularly (often called the most Jewish of the Gospels). As I discussed in my Matthew post in November, the community to which Matthew wrote considered itself a persecuted group within the Judaism of its time. Consequently, the background of the Gospel’s “anti-Jewish” passages is not anti-Judaism as such, let alone antisemitism, but a deeply Deuteronomistic outlook about the rejected quality of Israel’s prophets (p. 9). Thus, in Matthew 23, Jesus scolds the Jewish leaders in the way that Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other prophets confronted leaders of their times—but not to reject them as Jews.

Turner writes: “No one can doubt that the language of Matthew 23 is several, and that it castigates certain first-century Jewish religious leaders in terms that make people with modern sensibilities extremely uncomfortable. And no one can deny that during the intervening centuries many Christians have used this language as a confirmation of anti-Semites attitudes and, worst yet, inquisitions, pogroms, and even the Shoah. But to the extent that Matthew 23 has been involved in these horrors, it has been misunderstood. Christian misunderstanding of Matthew 23 is born out of the arrogance against which Paul warned in Rom. 11;18-21. Such arrogance ignores the Jewishness of Jesus’ woe oracles and his concerns about hypocrisy and the rejection of the prophets. Jesus’ denunciation of the religious leaders in Matthew 23 is in keeping with both the spirit of th prophets and the rhetoric of the times. This denunciation should not be minimized by denying its essential historicity, but neither should it be extrapolated to apply to the Jewish people as a whole, either then or not” (pp. 379-380).

Turner goes on to note that the chapter serves as an excellent “Christian character check” (p. 380). The qualities that Jesus condemns in the Pharisees et al. are qualities of Christians, too, and throughout the Gospel Jesus warns his own followers to be on guard about these sins (p. 380). Turner sees this character check not only as a matter of Christian growth but also as a starting point of Jewish-Christian friendship and relationship (pp. 380ff). Turner’s book is a excellent study of these and other points of interpretation.

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Caravaggio, "The Calling of Saint Matthew"

Matthew

This weekend I'm studying Matthew. As I wrote a few posts ago, a favorite book from my college religion courses was Burton Throckmorton's Gospel Parallels, which lays out the Synoptic Gospels—Mathew, Mark, and Luke—in order to show textual similarities and differences. Over 90% of Mark’s gospel is also found in Matthew and Luke, and the latter two gospels have material in common that is not found in Mark: the so-called “Q” material (likely meaning “Quelle,” the German word for “source”). Matthew and Luke also have material unique to their own gospels, implying other sources that they used.

(Here is a site, based on another book, that provides the parallels of texts among the three Synoptics: http://www.bible-researcher.com/parallels.html)

If you’re reading the Old Testament through to the New, Matthew’s gospel provides a segue by starting with a genealogy back to Abraham, reminding us of the genealogies of Genesis and 1 Chronicles, as well as the census material in the Torah. Matthew’s genealogy does omit some generations, but also likes Jesus to the tribe of Judah through the families of David, the Davidic kings of the southern kingdom through the deportation to Babylon and the post-exilic period.

Matthew gives us half of what I think of as the “total” Christmas story: the Magi from the east, Herod’s murderous rage and Joseph and Mary’s escape with their son to Egypt, reminding us of the birth narrative of Moses. The linkage of Jesus with the Emmanuel prophecy (Isaiah 7:14) announces God's presence among the people in Jesus, which continues across the gospel (18:20, 25:34-45, 28:20).

We’ve no accounts of Jesus’ childhood or young adulthood until he presents himself for baptism to John the Baptist, connected to Second Isaiah’s exilic declarations of hope and promise (Isa. 40:3). As with many heroes in religion and mythology, Jesus undergoes a time of testing before he begins the main journey of his life (chapter 4). Jesus dwelled in Capernaum, a mix of Jewish and Gentile heritage as reflected in Isaiah’s words (4:15-16). Gathering disciples and crowds, he taught on the side of the mountain (Chaps. 5-7), and continued to teach while also performing miracles of care and healing (chaps. 8-9). Needless to say, the mountain setting of Jesus' sermon, along with Jesus' teachings of Torah and faithfulness, give us a very Moses-like image.

Matthew arranges Jesus’ teachings in five discourses (chapters 5-7, 10, 13, 18, 24-25), and uniquely gives us teachings such as the wicked slave (18:21-35), the landowner (20:1-18), the ten virgins (25:1-13), the talents (25:14-30), and the narrative of the last judgment (25:1-46). Although Mark contains no birth narratives, Matthew otherwise retains Mark’s basic geographical framework (the Galilean ministry, chapters 4-18; the journey to Jerusalem, 19-20; and the week in Jerusalem, 21-28:15). Jesus' teachings are filled with Jewish themes of lovingkindness, mercy, prayer, faithfulness to God, God's radical faithfulness to his people, the idea of having a minyan (quorum) for prayer, and others. In announcing the kingdom of heaven, Jesus signals a coming fulfillment of God's promises, as do people's identification of him as the prophet promised by Moses and/or the Son of David. Jesus himself prefers the name Son of Man (ὁ υἱὸς τοὺ ἀνθρώπου) that reminds us of Daniel's apocalyptic passages. But Jesus also links these themes to his own person, sometimes cryptically.

Here are ways that Matthew frames the material:

10: The meanings of servanthood and discipleship

11-12: Implications of Jesus’ own servanthood

13: Parables of the kingdom

14-17: Jesus’ own signs of the kingdom, e.g., the miraculous feedings, Peter’s confession, the Transfiguration, and others.

18: Teachings on humility and the community (ekklesia)

19-23: Jesus’ humble entry into Jerusalem and the controversies (his anger at the Temple moneychangers, his anger at the Pharisees, his anger at the fig tree, parables of his approaching death

24-25: The Olivet Discourse on sufferings of the end of the age, and the coming of the Son of man.

26-27: The trial and execution of the Son of man.

28: Jesus’ resurrection and Great Commission.

In his Writings of the New Testament, Luke T. Johnson considers Matthew as instruction for a community trying to distinguish itself from the Pharisaic tradition in the Judaism of that time. Jesus becomes not only the authoritative interpreter of Torah but also the fulfillment and personification of Torah (pp. 183-190). This is not a rejection of Torah, however (p. 185) but a call to understand Torah via Jesus. Helpfully, Johnson calls the Sermon on the Mount “a sketch, not a system” for interpreting Torah (p. 188). Being a disciple (student) of Jesus will require ongoing study, prayer, and service.

Helpfully, too, Johnson compares the personification of Jesus as Torah to something already done in Scripture: the personification of Torah as Sophia (Wisdom) in Proverbs and the Wisdom of Solomon, not to mention the Mishnah’s Haggadic traditions (p. 189).

In Matthew, Jesus addresses his mission to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” (15:24). It seems the most Jewish Gospel but also the most angry in terms of the Jewish leadership. We get Jesus’ bitter diatribe in Matthew 23, but we also get strong connections of Jesus with the Jewish scriptures and traditions. Jesus by no means repudiates the Torah, but interprets it by his own authority. At the same time, Jesus provides hope for Gentiles, too (12:18, 15:28, 24:14, etc.), and among the gospels only Matthew uses the word “church” (ekklēsia).Yet (likely reflecting tensions within Matthew’s community) the Gospel is also a little hostile toward Gentiles, for Jesus frequently criticizes or makes light of the practices of non-Jews (Johnson, p. 191).

Matthew’s desire to distinguish his community of Jesus-following Jews from the Jewish leadership of his (rather than Jesus’) time, had far-reaching results. In her book The Reluctant Parting, Julie Galambush discusses the bitterness of Jesus’ and Matthew’s language toward Pharisees and other leaders (e.g., pp. 72-77). For instance, the seven “woes” of chapter 23 “is disturbing in its rancor and has long provided fodder to those seeking proof that Jews are legalistic, hypocritical, and self-serving” (p. 73). But this and other bitter passages reflect heightened tensions between Jesus’ followers an the Pharisees in Matthew’s period, not Jesus’. But the prophecy of the temple’s demise—an event that had taken place within the reader’s memory—serve to underscore Jesus’ credibility in the debate” (p. 74).

Tragically, Matthew’s gospel has provided generations of Christians with material to become anti-Jewish or antisemitic— as well as to feel self-righteous and persecuted whenever someone disagrees with them. Galambush continues, “Read through the lens of Christianity’s triumph over the entire Western world, Matthew’s predictions [of persecution of Jesus-followers by Jews] appear grandiose and self-serving. Anything Christians suffer is proof of their righteousness and a produce to eternal exaltation over everything and everyone else. Such a reading... ignores the reality of Matthew’s original social and historical setting” (p. 74). So we must not accept Matthew’s portrayal of the Pharisees as “self-serving religious bullies” but understand, instead, that Matthew was a leader who trying to maintain the community in an embattled time when its future was very unclear (p. 74). (Think of the way you think about the rival sports team of you own favorite team.) During the last third of the first century, Pharisees themselves were struggling, too, hoping to save an embattled and persecuted Judaism.

While keeping in mind Matthew's reasons for his more bitter passages (and repenting if we have our own prejudices toward Jews), we also turn to this gospel for rich teaching. Luke Johnson (who also discusses Matthew’s characterization of Jews) notes that Matthew contains more homiletical material than Mark: Matthew is “broadly catechetical” for his community because it contains instructions for the community about piety, church discipline, and instructions for missionaries (p. 176).

Matthew also connects to Judaism in positive ways, as I noted above: for instance, he makes over seventy references to the Scriptures, fewer than Mark. Like the other gospel writers, he recognizes that the suffering and death of the Messiah was not an expected outcome---and yet it was, if one mines the rich Scriptures about Jewish suffering and hope and understands therein predictions and patterns of Jesus' own experience. (See my list here.)

Another, more subtle connection to the scriptural heritage (and another reason not to be anti-Jewish), is the way the gospel describes human failure in the face of God's wonderful works, just as the Old Testament does. This is something we'll see throughout the New Testament. Remember how the Israelites failed again and again as they traveled through Wilderness? If the Pharisees and others didn't "get" Jesus, Jesus' own followers failed to "get" him, too, missing the point of his teachings, disappointing him in his darkest hour---and, of course, Judas sold him out and Peter denied him. (Peter doesn't get rehabilitated in this Gospel, although it's surely assumed.) Mark's gospel is even darker in this regard. The Bible is very truthful about God's nature and human nature alike.

I'm thinking about Jesus’ parting words: "Go and make disciples [students] of all nations." How do you be Jesus' follower and student? Telling people about Jesus is one way, of course, but also by acting in the ways of humility, mercy, and service that Matthew's very Jewish Jesus teaches throughout the gospel. Circling back to Matt. 25:31-46, we know Jesus is already among those who are in need, whoever and wherever they may be. To tell people about Jesus, is also to be where Jesus already is.

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This

Mark

This week I’m studying Mark. Back in the fall of 1981, I was a grad assistant for a lecture course on Mark at Albertus Magnus College, a women’s college at the time. The margins of my old Bible are filled with interesting insights that the professor offered during that course.

I had not thought of Mark, for instance, as a rather “dark” gospel. The story is framed by two declarations of Jesus as the (or a) Son of God, the first verse, and … the regretful declaration of the centurion who watched Jesus die (15:39). If you knew nothing about Jesus, you might ask, What kind of “good news” (1:1) is this?

Furthermore, Jesus’ identity is a matter of some mystery. Very early in the account, the powers that be want to destroy him (3:6), and his own friends and family consistently fail to understand him. Those who are on the “outside” (the demon-possessed, other Gentiles like that Roman soldier) do understand him. Some would like to proclaim Jesus, but he tells them to stay quiet (3:12), reflecting a theme of what scholars have called “the Messianic secret” in Mark (1:25, 34, 44, 3:12, 5:19, 43, 7:36, 8:30, 9:9, 16:7). Nearly from the beginning of the Gospel, Jesus creates misunderstanding and confusion.

At the end, Jesus’ own followers let him down. “And they all forsook him, and fled,” reads 15:50. (During that 1981 class, I wrote in the margin, “Now they understand!” That is, they realized that following Jesus would indeed involve suffering and possibly death, and at this stage they fled such a prospect.) Like the other gospels, Jesus’ women friends and relatives are most loyal to him (15:40). But the gospel ends with them, too, running away in fear (16:8). The somewhat abrupt beginning of Mark is framed with an abrupt ending.

Of course, we know now that the risen Jesus did appear to his followers and friends, male and female, and they gained new faith and courage. But if you just read Mark “cold” for the first time, you might scratch your head at the gospel’s sadness and irony. In her book The Reluctant Parting, Julie Galambush suggests that Mark's community may have been in a crisis situation during the dark times of the revolt against Rome in 67-73 CE.

As I wrote a few posts ago, a favorite book from my college religion courses was Gospel Parallels, which lays out the Synoptic Gospels—Mathew, Mark, and Luke—in order to show textual similarities and differences. Over 90% of Mark’s gospel is also found in Matthew and Luke, and the latter two gospels have material in common that is not found in Mark: the so-called “Q” material (likely meaning “Quelle,” the German word for “source”). Matthew and Luke also have material unique to their own gospels, implying other sources that they used.

A basic outline of Mark:

The beginning of Jesus’ story, John the Baptist, Jesus’ baptism, and the wilderness temptation (1:1-13). There are no “Christmas stories” here.

Jesus’ ministry in Galilee (1:14-9:50)
Jesus’ miracles of healing
His teaching about the Sabbath, fasting, his true kindred
His parables (chapter 5)
Other miracles like the thousands fed, the walk upon the sea, the healing of the Gentile woman’s daughter, and others
The Transfiguration, and Jesus’ teachings about his death and resurrection

Jesus and his group journey to Jerusalem (10:1-52)

Jesus’ final week (11:1-16:8)
The Palm Sunday entry
The cursed fig tree
The temple incident
Disputes with Sadducees and Pharisees
The Apocalyptic Discourse
The Last Supper and Gethsemane
Jesus’ arrest, trial, execution, death, and resurrection

A later addition to Mark’s gospel, including extra teaching to the disciples by the risen Jesus (16:9-20)

In his Writings of the New Testament, Luke T. Johnson points out that we don’t really know Mark’s identity's community, and the reasons why he wrote (p. 148). While we an figure out that Mark was the major source for Matthew and Luke, we don’t know Mark’s sources (p. 149). My old Harper’s Study Bible suggests the traditional idea that Peter the disciple who informed Mark, and that Mark may have been the young man strangely referred to in 14:50-51.

Johnson (I keep wanting to call him “Luke,” because that’s what all of us students of his call him) notes that Mark has an triadic “architectonic principle”: things appear in threes, like the three seed parables (4:3-32), three sets of public opinion (6:14-15, 8:27-28), three predictions of Jesus’ suffering (8:31, 9:31, 10:33-34), and of course Peter’s three details (14:66-72) (p. 151).

Johnson discusses several aspects of Mark’s structure (pp. 151-153). But one very key turning point is the declaration of Jesus’ identity by Peter (8:27-30), followed by the Transfiguration (9:1-7). At this point in the story, the assurance that Jesus is the Son of God connects with the opening verse, the centurion’s realization, and also Jesus’ own declaration in 14:62 (pp. 152-153).

The original ending of Mark seems to be 16:8, attested to by the earliest manuscripts. The longer ending of 16:9-20 does give us a famous verse about snake-handling.

I like Johnson’s ideas about Mark’s gospel: “Mark’s readers would naturally, as we still do, identify themselves with the disciples. Mark therefore uses that relationship to teach his readers. The message is mainly one of warning against smugness and self-assurance. He seems to be saying ‘If you think you are an insider, you may not be; if you think you understand the mystery of the kingdom and even control it, watch out; it remains alive and fearful beyond your comprehension. If you think discipleship consists in power because of the presence of God, beware; you are called to follow the one who suffered and died. Your discipleship is defined by his messiahship, in terms of obedience and service’” (p. 158).

A wonderful, always timely warning and reminder.

Luke

This calendar year, I’m reading through the Bible and taking informal notes on the readings. Since we so often read verses and passages and passages of the Bible without appreciating context, I’m especially focusing on the overall narrative and connections among passages.

This week I’ve been studying Luke. Luke is likely the only Gentile author among the New Testament writers. He wrote this book and Acts to someone named Theophilus (“lover of God”) in order to provide an account of Jesus’ life and of the early church. But is Theophilus a particular person, or anyone who loves God?

As I wrote a few posts ago, a favorite book from my college religion courses was Gospel Parallels, which lays out the Synoptic Gospels—Mathew, Mark, and Luke—in order to show textual similarities and differences. Over 90% of Mark’s gospel is also found in Matthew and Luke, and the latter two gospels have material in common that is not found in Mark: the so-called “Q” material (likely meaning “Quelle,” the German word for “source”). Matthew and Luke also have material unique to their own gospels, implying other sources that they used. Unfortunately, we do not know what sources Luke used for the first fifteen chapters of Acts (that is, up to the point where Luke himself subtly and personally joins the story).

(Here is a site, based on another book, that provides the parallels of texts among the three Synoptics: http://www.bible-researcher.com/parallels.html)

While Matthew gives us the Wise Men and Herod’s murderous rage and the flight to Egypt, Luke gives us “the rest” of the Christmas story: the stories of John the Baptist and his family, Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, the Magnificat, the Benedictus, the journey to Bethlehem and the manger, the shepherds, the angels. We also have Jesus’ circumcision, his presentation at the Temple, and the praise of Simeon and Anna. The only canonical story from Jesus’ growing-up years is found in Luke: the accidental abandonment at the Temple. Thankfully we have a positive story of the Jewish teachers at the Temple: not only did they enjoy his company but they also must have fed him and tucked him into bed at night for three days. Luke genealogy is different from Matthew’s.

There are several passages—-some of them quite beloved—that are unique to Luke’s gospel: Jesus’ first rejection at Nazareth, the stories of Mary and Martha, Zacchaeus, the widow’s son, the Walk to Emmaus, the brief story of the widow and her small contribution, the saying about the narrow door, and also the parables of the rich fool, the Prodigal Son, the Good Samaritan, the friend at midnight, the Pharisee and the tax collector in contrasting prayer, and others. Little wonder that Luke is a favorite among the gospels for many people, including myself. While in Dublin several years ago, I purchased a pewter goblet featuring Luke's symbol, the ox.

Here is a good outline of Luke’s gospel: http://www.crivoice.org/books/luke.html In his book The Writings of the New Testament, Luke Johnson points out that Luke together with Acts occupied about a fourth of the entire New Testament in terms of chapters—though the writing style is not verbose and is a high quality Greek.

Analogous to 1 Chronicles, Luke-Acts actually begins with Adam (in the genealogy of Jesus) and through the abbreviation of genealogy gives us a vision from the beginning of biblical history to Luke’s own time, when the apostle Paul was still alive and preaching. The narrative itself covers about sixty years.

Luke’s gospel lacks the darkness and irony of Mark and also the xenophobia of Matthew (Johnson, p. 202). The Romans and other Gentiles are not portrayed so negatively, and neither are Jews (although the Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes are, as usual, criticized by Jesus). Luke’s gospel seems to depict Christians as no political threat to Rome, and to depict Jesus’ life, teachings, suffering, and death as part of Israel’s history and consistent with the Hebrew scriptures (Johnson, pp. 202-203). But Luke-Acts also offer to Jewish contemporaries a chance to follow Jesus, and when many do not, Gentiles acceptably become part of the new community.

In her book The Reluctant Parting, Julie Galambush points out that Luke’s theology of the fulfillment of scripture (and Matthew’s, too) has given Gentile Christians assurance of being part of God’s promises to Israel—and, in fact, the authentic kind of Judaism, to the exclusion of the broader community of Jews. Again, we are dealing with Christianity not as a major religion that looks disdainfully at its parent religion, but as a tiny sect that considers itself still Jewish and compares itself to other Jews. In her interest in showing how early Christianity and rabbinic Judaism went their separate ways, Galambush notes Luke’s gospel has been a popular source of religious validation for Gentile Christians, as well as for messianic Jewish movements (which, she points out, are not considered religiously Jewish by the larger Jewish community) (pp. 90-91).

One characteristic of Luke’s gospel is his concern for the poor (see, for instance, 6:3-4, 6:20-25, 16:22, 18:22, 21:1-3). In my study book, What’s in the Bible about Life Together? (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2008), I reflected on Luke 6:20-25:

“If you feel disdain for poor people, avoid Luke’s Gospel. one of Luke’s themes is the blessedness of the poor, to just ‘the poor in spirit’ (Matthew 5:3). The gospel is good news preached to the poor (Luke 1:52-53; 4:1-19)… God has special love for the por. When the kingdom of God comes, the poor will be redeemed, given pride and joy. The hungry will have food; the sorrowful will find happiness.

“What about the rich? According to Jesus, the tables will turn on them in the Kingdom if wealth is at the center of their lives and concern or the poor is lacking… A lack of money is a terrible source of heartache and worry… It’s tough to hang on to God’s promises when you’re choosing between paying for your medicine and buying food or when you made a financial decision that seemed sensible but now is failing. An abundance of money is a source of heartache, too, because in times of prosperity, we still worry… (p. 39). Luke gives those of us who are financially better-off to consider our uses of money and the devotions of our hearts.

(I'll return to these informal studies in a few weeks, after I delve into several books of Bible scholarship that I purchased this week at the Society of Biblical Literature meeting.)

John, Part 1

My 1500th post on this blog!

This week I'm studying John. This post is based on my article, “John, the Different Gospel,” in Adult Bible Studies (Teacher), March-April-May, 1999), 2-5.

Here's an outline of the gospel:

1: Introduction. The Word is with God and the Word is God, and the Word became flesh. John the Baptist is not the Word but came to bear witness.

2:1-5:47: Speeches, miracles, and incidents: the wedding at Cana, the “cleansing” of the Temple, the meeting with Nicodemus, the meeting with the Samaritan woman, healing opportunities, and conflicts with authorities. Of course, this is where we find the famous John 3:16.

6:1-10:42: Miracles like the feeding of the five thousand, the healing of the man born blind; Jesus’ Temple teachings, and more conflicts. Chapter 10 has some of the gospel’s most famous phrases: “I am the gate [or “door”]. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture” (vs. 9). “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (vs. 10b). “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (vs. 11). “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold” (vs. 16). “The Father and I are one” (vs. 30). “…the scripture cannot be annulled [or “broken”]… (vs. 35b).

11:1-12:50: The raising of Lazarus, foreshadowing of Jesus’ “hour”, the anointing by Mary, and the entry into Jerusalem. “I am the resurrection and the life” (11:25). The appearance of Greeks (i.e. Gentiles) in chapter 12 is a bit of foreshadowing, that Jesus will be executed by Gentiles and also that his message will eventually go out into the Gentile world.

The content of John's Gospel turns toward Jesus' last days in Jerusalem.

13:1-17:26: The washing of the disciples’ feet, his farewell speech to them, and his “high priestly prayer.” “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (14:6).

18:1-19:42: Jesus’ arrest, trial, death, and burial.

20: Jesus’ resurrection appearances and an allusion to his ascension.

21: His resurrection appearance at the sea.

Anyone who has read the Gospels know that John is both similar to and quite different from the Synoptic Gospels. The Synoptics, of course, were likely written as part of shared traditions, with Matthew and Luke reliant upon Mark and other sources. John shares with the Synoptics the basic outline of Jesus’ ministry: the work of John the Baptist; the call of the disciples; Jesus’ ministry of healing, teaching, and controversy; the entry into Jerusalem; the Last Supper; Jesus’ trial, passion, and death; and the Resurrection. John and the Synoptics also share several stories: the incident at the Temple, the healing of the son of the official, the feeding of the five thousand, the sea miracle, the confession of Peter, and the anointing at Bethany.

The Synoptics has stories that John lacks, like infancy stories, and the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. While Jesus teaches in parables in the Synoptics, he teaches in longer discourses in John.

The Synoptics seem to have a one-year ministry for Jesus (that is, they only mention one Passover); but John mentions three Passovers (2:13, 6:4, 11:55). In John, Jesus journeys to Jerusalem three times (2:13, 5:1; 7:10), but in the Synoptics, Jesus’ ministry is mostly in Galilee and its vicinity, and Jesus only goes down to Jerusalem at the end.

John has stories that the Synoptics lack: the miracle of the wine; the Samaritan woman; the healing at Beth-sada; the healing of the man born blind; and the raising of Lazarus. Although the story of the woman caught in adultery is not in the oldest manuscripts of John, it did become added to John later, and it is not found in the Synoptics.

In John, Jesus died the day before Passover (18:28; 19:14), which was on a Friday, while in the Synoptics, Good Friday was the first day of Passover.

In John, the disciples have less of a role, compared to Matthew, Mark, and Luke—although Nathaniel (chapter 1) and Thomas (chapter 20) have significant appearances, and Peter is important in all four Gospels. John’s gospel refers to “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” whom church tradition back to Irenaeus has identified as John. If John was not the actual author, his testimony is the foundation of the narrative (21:24).

While John has a few parables and proverbs, Jesus talks less about the kingdom of God than of themes like light and life, in longer monologues, dialogues, and stories. Jesus’ speech is John 14-17 is a little longer than his other long speech, the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7).

While in the Synoptics Jesus uses third-person references to the Son of Man, and Jesus also tells people not to say anything about their experiences of his healing, etc. But in John, Jesus speaks more boldly about himself; he refers to his unity with God the Father, and the fact that Jesus does the work of the Father (5:17, 5:38, 6:45, 8:29, 14:6, and others. John's gospel is more of a theological reflection upon the meaning of Jesus.

Certainly the prologue of John is unlike anything we’ve seen so far in the New Testament. The Gospel author affirms that Jesus is the creative glory of God, who has now become human and dwells among the people. That word “dwells” makes us think of the “dwelling” of the glory of God in the Temple.

Although Jesus refers to God’s Holy Spirit in the other Gospels, John chapter 14 has Jesus teaching more about the parakletos, or “Paraclete,” which means counselor, comforter, advocate in different translations. The Spirit will continue Jesus’ ministry after Jesus is no longer physically present with his followers.

John’s Gospel also affirms a very present presence of Christ, not just in the end times (5:24, 12:31, 14:30, 17:3-4, and others). The “ruler of this world” is already condemned, and God’s life is already given to believers (5:24). We are thus called to believe and have confidence even though we have not experienced Jesus’ physical presence (20:29b, 31).

In a way, the very last verse of John includes all of us, as we have our own stories of the living Christ that we can tell, and all the books in the world could scarcely contain all of our testimonies from all the centuries.

John, Part 2

I’m continuing my study of John. Unfortunately, John is the most anti-Jewish-sounding Gospel, and that has been a tragedy for Jews over the centuries. My friend of blessed memory, Rabbi Albert Plotkin of Phoenix, wrote in his memoirs: “I am always concerned about religious anti-Semitism because unless the New Testament is interpreted correctly, you get a very hostile picture of Jews in the Gospel of John. He was not very friendly to us. Of course, John is the heart of Christian theology. John’s thinking and John’s teachings became the central focus in the historical development of Christianity. That was the one Gospel that took center stage, and all the Christian theological thinking and all of the passion plays come from John… The other Gospels are pro-Jewish… We have to overcome that hostility in some way. That is why I have worked hard at interfaith programs. i really feel that the answer has to come from greater communication between us. We need to understand one another… We need dialogue for many purposes because there are many non0Jews who do not understand Judaism, who have certain stereotypes about Jews and Jewish thinking and Jewish ideas about who we need to educate our community” (Rabbi Plotkin, Tempe: ASU Libraries, 1992, p. 123).This is a helpful site that illustrates the anti-Judaism in John’s Gospel. John uses “the Jews” 71 times (compared to 16 in the Synoptics), almost always in a negative way, linking Jews to the devil (8:44), blaming them for Jesus’ death (18:3, 19-24, et al.), and holding them at a distance (21:13, 11:55, et al.) as if Jesus and his disciples weren’t observant Jews, too! The author notes that it’s hard to read John as a criticism of Jews as an ethnic group, and not what John’s Gospel was, a group of Jews who had been removed from the synagogue and felt oppressed as a new, “inside” group of Jews.Here also is a helpful article, by D. Moody Smith, “Judaism and the Gospel of John." Smith has a number of good points about this problem. Toward the conclusion of the article, he reminds us that both Judaism and the new Christian movement were in a time of stress and entrenchment at the time (late first century). In the aftermath of the Roman War of 66-73 CE, in which the Temple were destroyed, the Jewish leadership addressed the future of Judaism (see my earlier summary of the Talmud) which, in turn, omitted sectarian groups from the character of Judaism. The Johannine community, on the other hand, was zealous about Jesus and Jesus Faith, and they saw themselves as possessors of the true kind of Judaism. (I’ve met Christians, fresh from an energizing spiritual retreat, who return to their congregations and think everyone is far less “spiritual” than they. These “newly spiritual” people can be quite intolerant and divisive!)

Smith writes: “Historical circumstances have changed, and continue to change. The setting of modern Judaism is in many respects both more diverse and more hopeful than that of its late first-century counterpart. Yet the continued threat to the existence of modern Israel is almost universally viewed by Jews as a threat to Jewish survival. The Holocaust, of recent and bitter memory, represented a more dire threat to Judaism than the Roman war. After all, the Romans only wanted the Jews to be reasonable--by Roman standards, of course; they did not want to destroy the Jewish people or their religion. The Nazis wanted to destroy both.

“There is something in the Johannine blacklisting of the Jews, the consigning of them to this world and to Satan, that in Jewish eyes foreshadows the Holocaust or the annihilation of Judaism. Such a dire, negative view of Jews and of the whole world is undeniably present in John. But, paradoxically, it is precisely John's Gospel that presents the motivation, meaning, and effect of God's revelation in Jesus as love. Furthermore, the love of God finds its true response in reciprocal human love that will lead to the unity of the community of love. It is a concept of revelation and response that is in principle universal. In the course of the vagaries and vicissitudes of history, the universal goal was jeopardized, and the dualistic division between truth and falsehood, light and darkness, seemed to be the last word.”

Smith continues that although we shouldn’t characterize the Johannine Community and Pharisaic Judaism as “liberal” and “conservative”—labels that oversimplify the situation—they do represent opposites, demanding loyalty to their respective positions—but opposites WITHIN THE JEWISH TRADITION. We Christians no longer need to feel competitors with Jews but can and should be friends and partners in witnessing to God.

John, Part 3

One more set of notes about the Gospel of John. I’m always interested in discovering connections between the Old and New Testaments. At the recent Social of Biblical Literature meeting, I found a fascinating book by Brian Neil Peterson, John’s Use of Ezekiel: Understanding the Unique Perspective of the Fourth Gospel (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2015). Those are two books I’d never thought to connect!

In his first chapter, Peterson summarizes several of the differences between John’s gospel and the Synoptics—including the fact that John seems to allude to or quote the Old Testament less often than the Synoptics (27 times, compared to 124 for Matthew). But Peterson argues that Ezekiel was a major influence for John. Some of the connections include:

The vine imagery in Ezekiel 15 and John 15 (p. 13).

 The shepherd imagery in Ezekiel 34 and John 10 (p. 13).

The emphasis in Ezekiel upon God’s majesty and holy name, compared to passages in John like chapter 1, and Jesus’ self-identification with God (pp. 14-15).

Ezekiel’s use of extended oracles, and Jesus’ longer speeches (instead of the Synoptics’ pericopes and parables) (p. 15).

The ministry of Ezekiel in a foreign land, and the “foreignness” of Jesus who relates to people outside the usual circles (pp. 15-16).

The way both John and Ezekiel begin with a vision of majesty (John 1 and Ezekiel 1-3) (chapter 2).

The way the John emphasizes Jesus’ miracles as “signs,” and Ezekiel’s several sign acts (chapter 3).

The departure of God’s Glory from the Temple (Ez. 8-11) connects to Jesus’ “cleansing” of the Temple, and John’s early placement of the event in Jesus’ ministry (chapter 4).

Ezekiel’s vision of a restored Temple (Ez. 40-43), and Jesus’ own teaching of a restored Temple—in his own person (chapter 7).

Ezekiel’s frequent use of the expression “that they/you will know that I am Yahweh”, compared to Jesus’ several “I am” statements in John’s Gospel (chapter 5).

Ezekiel’s vision of the dry bones (Ez. 37), and Jesus’ teaching of resurrection and unity, particularly John 17 and Ez. 37:15-28, and John 20 with Ez. 37 (chapter 6).

Overall, the setting of Ezekiel is the destruction of the Temple in 586 BCE and the hardships of the aftermath, while the background of John (likely a late first-century document) was the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE and the hardships faced by Jews and Christians (p. 205). Ezekiel—whose prophetic-priestly ministry required personal suffering—became a useful prophet that shaped John’s vision.

Peterson makes numerous interesting points of analysis in this book, recommended for your study!

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Acts

This week---after my cat Saki moved off my Bible—I studied Acts of the Apostles (in Greek, Πράξεις τῶν Ἀποστόλων, "Práxeis tôn Apostólōn" or "deeds of the Apostles." "Praxis" is a Greek word that has moved into English). I wrote most of this post on Dr. King’s birthday, thinking about ways we are faithful to the Gospel today.

Acts gives us the account of the spread of Jesus-Belief from Jerusalem to Rome, in the course of a little over thirty years. Luke addresses “most excellent Theophilus,” who is possibly an important person of some kind who had questions about Jesus and his followers, but who was receptive to the new Christianity. Although Philip, Barnabas, Apollos, and others are important characters in the story, Peter dominates the first part of the story, Paul the second.

My seminary classmate William Shepherds wrote a good book describing the Holy Spirit as a "character" in Luke-Acts. As one reads these biblical books, it's helpful to think of God's Spirit as the major figure in the narrative.

The"journeys of Paul" is one of those blocks of biblical geographical material---like post-Noah migrations of Genesis 10-11, the tribal allotments in Joshua, and the Israelite kingdoms of 1 and 2 Kings---which can be rewarding to study. I read somewhere (and didn’t note the source) that Acts implicitly connects us back to Genesis 10-11. In Genesis, the generations following Noah spread into the world, with an accompanying confusion of languages. In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit creates understanding of the Gospel among persons of many languages, and consequently the message of Christ goes out into the world.

The author of this site, https://bible.org/article/study-outline-acts, points out that Acts stresses the unity of the church (2, 4, 15, 20) and provides “progress reports on how the church advanced through the world (2:47; 6:7; 9:31; 12:24; 16:5; 19:20; 28:30, 31). Theophilus would have thus understood how a Jewish sect in Jerusalem reached Rome within a generation. (Acts and Joshua and quite different Bible books, but they both tell a story of a unified purpose and notable success thanks to divine grace and guidance.)

Acts opens with the last days on earth of Jesus in his visible, resurrected body. He ascends to Heaven, but it’s easy to overlook the importance of the Ascension in the overall drama taking place (Christ’s passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and promised gift of the Holy Spirit).

The disciples replace Judas. As they’re gathered together a little later, they are filled with God’s Spirit which allows them to speak and be understood in different languages, impressive for Diaspora Jews who have traveled to Jerusalem for Pentecost (Shavuot). Peter’s sermon results in a positive response from pilgrims, with 3000 becoming the first assembly of unified Jesus Believers.

Peter heals a lame man, for which he is detained for a while, and he takes the opportunity to preach another sermon to his opponents. As the assembly of Jesus Believers grows, they face different kinds of struggles, like the deceit of Sapphire and Ananias, opposition of religious leadership, and tensions between Hellenistic and Hebraic Jews. The later is addressed when the apostles establish a more organized ministry to assist widows. One of the selected assistants, Stephen, becomes a noted preacher, too—-but his sermon results in his impromptu execution on the charge of blasphemy. As we saw in Matthew’s gospel, too, Stephen has a “deuteronomistic” attitude toward the religious leadership, viewing them through the history of the rejection of God’s prophets. But Stephen also alludes to Psalm 110:1, a favorite verse throughout the New Testament, that envisions Jesus as sitting with God in the position of power. As he died, Stephen offered prayers of intercession and forgiveness (Acs 7:60), a lesson for all of us.

Although the church becomes scattered around Palestine and Syria as a result of Stephen’s death, Philip has a notable ministry in and around Samaria, including his conversation with the Ethiopian eunuch, presumably the first Gentile convert to Jesus Belief.

Saul, a diaspora Jew and Pharisee also known by his Roman name Paulus, becomes a crucial figure in the movement in chapter 9, when the feared persecutor has an experience of the risen Jesus, is ministered to by Ananias, and becomes a preacher of Christ.

The story returns to Peter in chapters 9, 10, 11, and 12, which tell of his healing ministry as well as his meeting with Cornelius (a meeting which the Holy Spirit had set up). Another turning point in the story of the gift of the Spirit to the gentile soldier and his family. James dies and Peter is imprisoned during a time of persecution, but Peter is saved through God’s intervention.

Paul is the major figure in Acts 13 on. First, he and Barnabas travel to Cyrpus, Pisidian Antioch, and Iconic to Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe. They return to Antioch, but meanwhile the issue of Gentile inclusion in the predominantly Jewish sect required attention. The Jerusalem Council of the church (chapter 15) ruled that just a few Jewish mitzvot were required for Gentile converts, but not circumcision for the men. (The following six paragraphs are from an earlier post.)

I took down a favorite book that my grandmother gave me when I was 14: The Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary, Merrill C. Tenney general editor (Zondervan, twelfth printing 1971). In the center of the book, following page 624, there is a section called "The Journeys of St. Paul," with clear plastic pages that you can place over the map of Greece and Asia Minor, to see the approximate routes of Paul's travels.

That same section has summaries of Paul's travels. This is a lot to quote, but I copied the material here for my own interesting:

"First Journey of St. Paul. Acts 13:1-14:28. The church at Antioch 'set apart' Paul and Barnabas for 'the work whereunto I have called them' and they sailed to Salamis on Cyprus, Barnabas' native island. Assisted by John Mark, they preached at Salamis and then journeyed across to Paphos, from which port they sailed to Perga in Pamphylia where Mark left them. From this point they invaded Asia Minor, touching Antioch in Pisidia, Iconic, Lystra, where Paul was stoned and left for dead, and Derbe. Retracing their steps, they further instructed the converts and organized them into churches with properly selected leaders. Sailing from Attalia, they returned to their starting point in Syrian Antioch.

"Second Journey of St. Paul. Acts 15:36-18:22. Because of contention with Barnabas over John Mark, Paul chose Silas as his companion on the second journey. Leaving Antioch, they visited churches in Syria on their way to Derbe and Lystra. Here Timothy joined them and they traveled throughout Phrygia and Galatia. At Troas they received the call to Macedonia where churches were founded at Philippi, Thessalonica and Berea. Moving on to Athens, Paul delivered his great sermon before the Stoic and Epicurean philosophers on Mars Hill. Leaving thens, they journeyed to Corinth and founded the church there before going on to Ephesus. From there Paul sailed to Caesarea and visited Jerusalem.

"Third Journey of St. Paul. Acts 18:23-21:16. Departing once more from Antioch, Paul 'strengthened the disciples' in Galatia and Phrygia on his way to Ephesus where he spent two years and three months teaching and preaching. It was here at Paul's preaching provoked violent conflict with the silversmiths, and the financially-prompted riot led by Demetrius brought his ministry to an abrupt end. After a stay of three months in Greece, Paul sailed from Philippi to Troas and then on to Miletus where he had his meeting with the Ephesian elders. From Miletus Paul took a ship to Tyre, and after a brief delay he continued on to Jerusalem.

"Fourth Journey of St. Paul. Acts 21:17-28:31 Following Paul's arrest in Jerusalem and the exposure of the plot to kill him, he was moved under heavy protective guard to Caesarea, where he remained in prison for some two years. During this period Paul's case was heard first by Felix, then by Agrippa. But because of his appeal to Caesar, he, accompanied by Luke and Aristarchus, was displayed on a ship to Rome. At Myra they transferred to an Alexandrian grain ship bound for Italy, but after riding out a typhoon for fourteen days, the ship was wrecked on Malta. Three months later they continued on to Rome, where Paul was placed in custody. He probably was set free and had a further unrecorded ministry. According to tradition he was executed in Rome in A.D. 66 or early 67."

*****

I’ve been thinking more about ways the New Testament communicates an unintentional anti-Judaism that evolved over time to overt prejudice and persecution of Jews. Acts depicts Jesus-believing Jews and Gentiles as the true Israel, and since Jews opposed the Christians, sometimes violently, they become enemies of the Gospel. Unfortunately, Christians begin to adopt anti-Jewish or antisemitic attitudes for their own time and place. In his Writings of the New Testament, my seminary prof Luke Johnson indicates that in Acts 16-28, the term “Jew” is used about 70 times to refer to opponents to Paul’s message (p. 237), although Acts does include Gentile hostility to Paul as well. This is not meant to be a rejection of Judaism or the Jewish scriptures, but a new time in Israel’s history, and Paul understood himself to be a teacher of Judaism (p. 237).

Johnson reminds us that “God had always willed in principle that Israel’s blessing should be extended to the Gentiles as well” (p. 228). This is a theme that begins back in Luke, with the allusion to Isaiah 42:6 in Luke 2:32, as well as the citation of Isaiah 40:5 in Luke chapter 3 (p. 228). Luke 24:47 and Acts 1:8, as well, teach Jesus’ command to preach to all the world (p. 228).

Acts depicts an important process that is still part of the church’s life: how do we perceive God’s work in something new that is happening? How do we know it is the Spirit at work? How do we address resistance to our message? How do we both show and tell people about Christ in a positive, helpful way, that is truly the good news of which Jesus spoke back in Luke 4:16-21?

Romans

I love Judaism and have been influenced and inspired by Jews, Jewish devotion, and the Jewish commitment to “repair of the world” (tikkun olam).

So I feel sad when I read my own sacred scriptures when Jews and Judaism are caricatured and harshly labeled, depicted as a legalistic and substandard religion. Many Christians to this day think that Judaism is a religion in which one must earn God’s mercy via rigorous observance of laws---something no religion has ever taught, let alone Judaism.(1) Such scriptural language reflects the intense discussion of the first century, what defines a Jew and Judaism in light of belief that Jesus is the Jewish mashiach, or "Messiah".

The frequent Old Testament characterization of the Hebrews as “stiff-necked” and perennially disobedient fit within the early Jesus Believers’ narrative: God's people were rejecting their prophet and messiah just as their ancestors had always done.

But for Jews, Jesus just didn’t fit. If he was the messiah, nothing seemed changed and, if anything, things were worse for Jews because of Jesus belief. The Christians (a new term then, perhaps not yet widespread) looked disdainfully at Jews and, in time, would oppose and persecute Jews---in spite of the teachings of love and service that their own Christian scriptures taught. Jews responded with rejection and sometimes violence, which was a reason some of the New Testament authors write painfully of fellow Jews.

Further, even if the Christian movement were considered a Jewish sect (as it still was in the first century), Gentiles were being welcomed into fellowship with no obligation to follow Torah. Nor did Christians support Jews during the Roman war and the Bar Kokhba period---and, in fact, considered Jewish suffering as something they’d earned from disobedience. (2)

So (as Lawrence Stiffman discusses), the halakhah and the work of the Tannaim sages of the Mishnah preserved Jewish identity and heritage.(3) People like Paul were vitally concerned with Jewish identity, too—but they struggled with how to define a Jew now that Gentiles, unconverted to Judaism and unconfirmed to halakhic definitions of Judaism, joined with some Jews within the Jesus-Belief community. In his historical situation, the New Testament is not about Gentiles who thought Jews should convert; the New Testament reflects an intense discussion of what defines Jewishness if Jesus is the Jewish messiah, believed in by more and more non-Jews for whom the Jewish religion had previously just been another odd religion among many.

Of course, the Old Testament has many depictions of Gentiles eventually coming to Jerusalem to worship God. Some of the most beautiful are in Isaiah. The God of the Jews would become the God of the whole world. Early Christians thus combed the scriptures for indications that Jesus was the true Messiah, that he would open blessings for Gentiles--and that his suffering and execution, as well as his spiritual power that was being spread through preaching rather than (for now) cosmic events--were always subtle but true aspects of Old Testament witness. (Shameless plug: my little book, Walking with Jesus through the Old Testament, discusses many of the scriptures used in the New Testament to elucidate the meaning of Jesus.)

Mark D. Nanos points out tensions in Paul’s life and writings that made him such a key in the eventual separation of Judaism and Christianity. Paul faulted Jews who did not embrace his gospel and who opposed him. Yet Paul himself (famously) needed a vivid supernatural experience to convince himself.(4)

So Paul was also not anti-Jewish, nor anti-Torah. He was upset that what he believed should be happening was not happening. The Messiah had come; the worldwide power and redemption promised in the Torah and Prophets were happening through the Holy Spirit in powerful experiences among his and other congregations. For him, it was a great thing that non-Jews were becoming children of Abraham via God’s love and power! He hoped deeply that the message of his and other preachers (the true preachers, anyway: there were many false preachers with unsound doctrine) would soon bring about the worldwide redemption of Jews and Gentiles alike. Thus, the urgency of Paul’s message, his frustration at those who opposed his message, his very emotional entreaties in his several letters.

Yet Paul’s work helped drive a deeper wedge between Jews and Christian Gentiles and (something that would horribly distress Paul, if he could know) led to Christian mistreatment of Jews over the ensuing centuries. Many Jews and Christians have rejoiced together that, in the twentieth century, Nostra Aetate document of Vatican II and powerful interfaith dialogue experiences (I’m part of two local groups) have helped bring into fellowship two groups that, in Julie Galambush’s phrase, so reluctantly parted centuries ago.(5)

There is much writing about Paul and Judaism. Here are some books that I've been studying this winter:

E. P. Sanders, Paul the Law, and the Jewish People (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1983).

E. P. Sanders, Comparing Judaism and Christianity: Common Judaism, Paul, and the Inner and the
Outer in Ancient Religion (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2016).

E. P. Sanders, Paul and Palestinian Judaism: A Comparison of Patterns of Religion (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017)

Lawrence H. Schiffman, From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism (Hovoken: Ktav Publishing House, 1991).

Larewence H. Schiffman, Who Was a Jew? Rabbinic and Halakhic Perspectives on the Jewish-Christian Schism (Hovoken: Ktav Publishing House 1985).

Mark D. Nanos, Reading Paul within Judaism (Eugene, OR: Casade Books, 2017)

A. Andrew Das, Paul and the Stories of Israel: Grand Thematic Narratives in Galatians (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2016)

And there are many more! This doesn't even scratch the surface.

On finally to Romans.

Romans is among Paul’s last letters but is certainly a magnum opus. While in seminary, I had a mini-spiritual experience of God’s great love and acceptance as I wrote a modest teaching outline of the book for a Sunday school class that I was teaching. I felt so loved and redeemed by Christ!

Paul wants to visit the congregation in Rome, has not yet done so (Acts provide some of the narrative of Paul’s eventual journey to Rome), and in the letter, he discusses his plans to meet the people and, after a while, to go to Spain. He hopes the Romans will support his planned travels.

He begins with an affirmation of the Gospel and its power. He describes the world’s need of God. The Gentiles can potentially be faithful to God via the majesty of the cosmos and their own consciousnesses; but many do not, and God gave up on them. But he continues in chapter 2, that even those who follow moral law are prone to be more tolerant of their own sins and those of others; and so their moral law ends up condemning them, too.

As far as the Jews are concerned: Paul is proud of his own Jewishness and heritage, and praises them as those who have God’s law and covenant. Jews have a wonderful gift of the Torah, which in turn is precious. But they, too, may fall into disobedience and break the covenant. Ultimately, Psalm 14:1-3 says it well: no one is righteous before God, neither Jew nor Gentile.

THUS, God’s gift of Christ is so precious. God is righteous—but God’s righteousness is understood in the way God helps sinners. Via faith in Christ, people have a rich redemption and salvation.

The Torah is wonderful, but Paul tells his readers not forget that God views all people impartially. Just look at Abraham: he lived over 400 years before the Torah, and God declared him righteous, and Abraham responded in faith. So faith is always primary. As for us, God’s gift of Christ was provided when people were still in sin—either through breaking the moral and religious law, or through Gentile rebellion. God did this while all were “enemies” of God—-further showing how wonderful is God’s love and salvation. Audaciously, Paul even declares that the salvation of Christ is greater than Adam’s sin; for Christ’s righteous multiplies the power of grace more significantly than Adam’s sin.

In the middle of the letter, Paul makes a subtle connection to the Exodus—the great story of God’s rescue. Those who are in sin are slaves (the unspoken allusion is to Egyptian slavery), but and the outcome (“wages”) of the “work” of slavery is only death. But the outcome of God’s rescue of us through Christ is life and prosperity.

But there is still struggle. He does not refer to the struggles of the Israelites in the Wilderness, so my connection may be tenuous. The great blessing of God doesn’t prevent us from struggling with sin and the downsides of human nature. Romans 7:7-25 is surely a favorite passage for many of us because we recognize our own frailty and futility in Paul’s words. But he comes back to God’s righteousness—God delivers us while we are sinners.

Chapter 8 is another favorite for many of us as Paul describes the wonderful blessings of Christ: the Spirit, the possibility of holy living, the future glory, the help that is available to us in time of need and crisis, the guarantee that God loves us no matter what.

This is Paul’s message that he plans to continue bringing to the Gentiles; but what of the Jews who have not believed? In chapter 9-11, Paul hopes that as he (and other preachers and teachers) can continue to bring the Gospel of the Jewish Jesus to non-Jews, then Jews will see what is happening in the Gentile world and will believe in Jesus, too. As he said earlier, God’s Torah and covenant are great blessings to Jews, and God has by no means rejected his ancient covenant with the Jews.

Paul finally says that God will have mercy on us all, and that God’s ways and wisdom are deep and unsearchable (11:32-36). His urgency to spread the Gospel, though, has motivated Christian missionaries for the history of the faith.

Paul next turns to ethical teaching. He calls believers to surrender to God and be transformed by God’s grace. He explains the proper use of divine gifts, and Christians’ conduct in personal relations, as well as Christians’ conduct to the secular authorities. He returns to the theme of judging: we should not pass judgment on one another! (How often have many of us used Romans 1:26-27 out of context to harshly judge LGBTQ persons, never thinking about the irregularities of our own sexuality!) Romans 14:13-23 is a condensed version of what he discusses more fully in the earlier 1 Corinthians: we should try not to make others “stumble” in their faith.

He concludes with more affirmation of Christ in his own ministry, and of his future hoped-for plans. In chapter 16, he greets several people by name—-interestingly, because he hasn’t yet visited this church—but either these are people at another church, to which these greetings have been appended to Romans, or he just knows a lot of the folks through his networks. It's worth noting that Paul greets several woman leaders in the church. As history moved on, Christian leadership would turn into an all-guys group--but fortunately that has changed in many Christian denominations.

Notes:

1. E. P. Sanders, Comparing Judaism and Christianity: Common Judaism, Paul, and the Inner and the Outer in Ancient Religion (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2016). 237.

2. Lawrence H. Schiffman, Who Was a Jew? Rabbinic and Halakhic Perspectives on the Jewish-Christian Schism (Hovoken: Ktav Publishing House, 1985) 75-78.

3. Ibid.

4. Mark D. Nanos, Reading Paul within Judaism (Eugene, OR: Casade Books, 2017), 46-50.

5. Julie Galambush, The Reluctant Parting, How the New Testament's Jewish Writers Created a Christian Book (New York: HarperOne, 2006).

*****

When my post about Romans went over 2000 words, I decided to make a second post, LOL.

What are some Old Testament connections in Romans? If you want to make a big story “arc,” you could draw one from Adam to Romans 5, where Paul writes how Christ’s grace is greater than Adam’s sin. Christ “recapitulates” Adam, to use the traditional theological term.

Another “arc” is Abraham to Christ. Abraham is a key figure for Paul, not only as the father of the Hebrew people (among whom, of course, are Jesus and Paul and Peter and all the rest) but also as an example of how God blesses faith. Similarly to Jesus, Paul goes to the Torah but goes back before Moses to Abraham. Because the Lord blessed Abraham’s faith long prior to the Mosaic mitzvoth, God blesses the faith of non-Jews through Christ, even though they don’t fit the halakhic definition of a Jew.

The faith of Abraham connects us to Habakkuk, from which Paul draws so much theological inspiration.

See, the enemy is puffed up;
his desires are not upright—
but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness (Hab. 2:4)

Psalm 14, a song of David, is another key passage for Paul:

Fools say in their hearts, ‘There is no God.’
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
there is no one who does good.
The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind
to see if there are any who are wise,
who seek after God.
They have all gone astray, they are all alike perverse;
there is no one who does good,
no, not one.

As Paul builds a case for the necessity of Christ, he emphasizes that Jews and Gentiles alike are in sin: this is no “diss” on Jews, but it is a dilemma for Jews and Gentiles alike. Paul explains how necessary is Christ, to save human beings from the morass of sin in which we’re all caught.

My Harper Bible Commentary (p. 1137) notes that Amos 1:2-2:16 is a prophetic condemnation of the Gentiles that turns back to Israel and Judah. Paul follows a similar pattern in Romans 1-3.

That same book (p. 1136) notes that “the wrath of God” is depicted in the Old Testament as a manifestation of God’s holiness that has been provoked by human wrongdoing (1 Samuel 5:6, 2 Samuel 6:7, and also 1 Enoch 91:7, Wisdom of Solomon 5:17-20). Although God’s actions are sometimes uncertain and although God may seem silent, God is understood not to be arbitrary. God’s wrath is connected with God’s love, and God’s righteousness is the way God helps and saves sinner.

Certainly the faithfulness of God—God’s hesed, or steadfast love/lovingkindness—is an Old Testament theme that finds exposition here in Romans because of Christ and his death and resurrection. So does the theme of the covenant with God with his people Israel---which will never been revoked.

As I said in the other post, the pattern of the Exodus—the rescue that God achieves from the slavery of Egypt/slavery of sin to the freedom of the Land/freedom of Christ---can be seen here in Romans, if not explicitly.

Romans 13:1-7 has always been a difficult passage. What if the state requires criticism and opposition? Paul isn’t setting out a thorough theology of the state; he’s simply urging the congregation to do their civic duties. My Harper Commentary (p. 1163) notes that this passage reflects a deeply Jewish idea that all authority ultimately derives from God (Isaiah 41:1-4, 45:1-3, Dan. 2:21, Prov. 8:15, Sirach 10:4, 1 Enoch 46:5, and others).

Some of my favorite passages from Romans? They’re the old standbys:

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘The one who is righteous will live by faith (Rom. 1:17).

But now, irrespective of law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus (Romans 3:21-26)

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:21-25).

Pretty much all of chapter 8, and its lovely ending:

What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
‘For your sake we are being killed all day long;
we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.’
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:31-39).

Corinthians

In 2017 and into Lent 2018, I’m reading through the Bible and taking informal notes on the readings. Since we so often read verses and passages of the Bible without appreciating context, I’m especially focusing on the overall narrative and connections among passages.

I'm studying 1 and 2 Corinthians. I’ve sometimes wondered what Christianity would be like if Paul had been more like a serene, Buddhist teacher, calm in his approach. He is quite emotional in some of his letters, 2 Corinthians and Galatians being two examples. Like Paul, I wear my heart on my sleeve sometimes, so I can't criticize him for that---plus, he didn't know he was writing letters that would become sacred scripture!

But the God of the Old Testament is no aloof deity or spiritual principle; God is deeply involved with his people and with the well-being of creation.

Corinth was a metropolitan center, and the Corinthian church had a tendency to factionalism. They were impressed with people of importance and with “showy” displays of faith. Now THERE are two qualities that we still find in many congregations! Paul has to deal with them through visits, reports, and his letters.

In 1 Corinthians Paul exhorts them to be unified not divided: all Christian workers have an important function in the church, and Christian wisdom is a gift from God rather than a human quality for which people may boast. (“Boasting” is a theme in these letters.) He tries to teach them that the apostles strive to be humble coworkers, whose ministry is judged by God alone. Being taught or baptized by any particular minister makes no special difference.

Paul scolds them for tolerating incest in the congregation (there was a man who was sleeping with his stepmother); for going to court instead of settling grievances as a congregation; for using their Christian freedom as an opening to visit prostitutes (5-6).

His teaching about marriage is famously unenthusiastic about the institution: he'd just as soon everyone stay single as he is, but "it is better to be married than to be aflame with passion." His advice on marriage and celibacy is based on his conviction that the times are short and Christ will soon return, so being focused on Christ is better for those times (chap. 7).

Continuing his teaching about Christian freedom, he cautions them about eating food that had been offered to idols—-a common practice in Greece of the time the availability of meat in the markets that had been butchered at the temples. He argues that, since the idols are nothing and so the meat is alright to eat, but church folk should be careful; no one should become a “stumbling block” to a person whose (immature) faith is upset by such things (8-10). Similarly, the veiling of women in church.

1 Corinthians 11:17-34 deals with the Lord’s Supper. Some of the church had been crowding out the poor people and making the ceremony into a kind of party. I wish Paul had expressed himself a little differently when he writes “any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself”—-I’ve known a few people who were thereby afraid to take communion because they felt unworthy!

1 Corinthians 12 famously concerns the use of spiritual gifts and the importance of unity in diversity. Even more famously, 1 Corinthians teaches that love is more important than anything else: if you’re good at doctrine, using spiritual gifts, and understanding, it’s all noise and emptiness if you don’t love. Chapter 14 deals specifically with the gift of glossalalia—certainly a gift that still divides congregations.

Chapter 15 are lovely thoughts about the Resurrection: its necessity, its mysterious logic, its assurance, and its bodily rather than disembodied quality. A song in Handel’s “Messiah” always comes to mind when I read this passage.

Chapter 16 concludes with a reminder about Paul’s itinerary and his project of collecting money to support the church in Jerusalem.

Some favorite passages that I've long had highlighted in my old Bible:

For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.’
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength (1:18-25)

Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord' (1:18-31)

I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labour of each. For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building (3:6-9)

So let no one boast about human leaders. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God (3:21-23). Paul Tillich preached a wonderful sermon, "All is Yours!" found in one of his sermon collections (I forget which one.)

Chapters 12 and 13 and 15 are filled with wonderful words, as well, but I shouldn't quote whole or nearly whole chapters. :-)

Paul's Corinthian correspondence invites textual questions. He refers to an early letter (see 1 Cor. 5:9) but this has not survived, though my old Harper Study Bible intro indicates that 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1 may be a portion of that letter. Because of the change in tone between 2 Cor. 1-9 and 10-13, scholars have also speculated that 10-13 is all or part of the “stern letter” that Paul refers to in 2 Cor. 2:3, 7:8, et al.

My Harper Bible Commentary (pp. 1191-1192) takes this view about the Corinthian correspondence: The letter referred to in 1 Cor. 5:9-11, in which Paul counsels them about immorality, is a lost "Letter A," written about 51 or 52. Then as Paul sent Timothy to them to help them, he also sent "Letter B", which is 1 Corinthians. Paul also sent a "tearful letter," which he refers to in 2 Cor. 2:4, after Paul had visited the church and it was not a good experience. This is a "Letter C," the "tearful letter." Some commentators (according to that same source, p. 1191) identify 2 Cor. 10-13 as the "tearful letter," and 2 Cor. 1-9 was written as a reconciliation. Others (including the HBC author), believe that 2 Cor. 1-9 is "Letter D" that followed the "tearful letter", and then 2 Cor. 10-13 is "Letter E" that responded to Titus' report of persons in the Corinthian church that undermined Paul's authority.

2 Corinthians is a long defense of Paul's ministry, too. He explains the circumstances for Paul’s change of itinerary and discussing the several aspects of his ministry (chapters 1-7). He returns to the subject of the Jerusalem church, urging them to contribute out of love rather than shame.

Paul’s tone grows more sharp in 10-13 when he turns to the subject of teachers who had been swaying the Corinthians and turning them against Paul. He gets really upset as he talks about all the ways he has sought to be faithful—-including his struggles with the unnamed “thrown in the flesh” (an illness, or something else that caused him pain) through which God has worked.

At the end of the letter, he repeats to them all the blessings of God to him and to them and urges them to support him and one another.

2 Corinthians may be easy to summarize as it is focused on Paul's self-defense in the face of criticism and opposition, there are some wonderful passages that are old favorites:

Not that we are competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our competence is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of letter but of spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (3:5-6)

So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day (4:16)

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (5:16-21)

For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces death (7:10)

The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (9:6-7)

On behalf of such a one I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. But if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I will be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think better of me than what is seen in me or heard from me, even considering the exceptional character of the revelations. Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given to me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.’ So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong (12:5-10)

Galatians and Ephesians

Shameless plug: I wrote a short study book on Galatians for Abingdon Press, published in 2000 and still in print. What a fascinating epistle!

Galatia was a section of central Asia Minor. As I remember from researching that book, the Celts in Ireland and the Gauls in France were part of the same ancient peoples who settled different regions--but in this case, a group went all the way to what's now Turkey. The predominantly Gentile congregation had received the Holy Spirit, a wonderful sign of God's salvation and blessing! But now they believed they had to bolster their faith with Jewish practices like circumcision. Paul writes this sharp and sometimes sarcastic letter, reminding them that God has already favored them, and so they were really showing a lack of faith by adding Jewish rites—-just to make sure God was pleased enough, so to speak.

Paul even dispenses with the conventional words of thanksgiving at the beginning of the letter, right away to accuse the Galatians of “deserting” Christ. Again—Paul SOUNDS like he is hating on Judaism, but he is not. Rather, the Galatians are starting to believe that they must adopt circumcision for the men as an aspect of their faith in Jesus, and that's why Paul is so upset.

He reminds them that he is a Jewish teacher to the Gentiles, accepted by the church as such. He even scolded Peter for avoiding Gentiles in some circumstances. This is so important because it strikes at the heart of Christ’s gifts and, indeed, at the example of father Abraham.

Galatians is a more sharply-word complement to Romans, where Paul also discusses Abrahamic faith and Christian freedom. As the non-Hebrew Abraham was declared righteous by God, over 400 years before the Mosaic law, so God is blessing non-Hebrews (like the Galatians!) through Abraham’s descendant Jesus. Thus Paul argues: while Jews have the Mosaic law, Gentiles are gathered by God into a new though related covenant fellowship. It serves no purpose for Gentile Christians to practice Judaism, because that’s not the nature of Christ’s covenant.

Paul becomes quite sarcastic and rather crude. We might think of Ezekiel (especially his chapters 16 and 23) as an Old Testament example of an attempt to shock. Paul writes that the teachers of circumcision (those who are visiting the Galatian congregation in Paul’s absence) are (in effect, if not literally) just showing off their circumcision to prove how spiritual they are, and Paul wises they’d just go ahead and castrate themselves if they’re so keen on genital surgery!

Jews follow the Mosaic Law, but what do Gentile Christians follow? Interestingly, Paul doesn’t specify Jesus’ teachings but teaches that the Holy Spirit provides gifts of love, patience, kindness, self-control, and others that guide morally and ethically, as well as being transformative (Gal. 5:16-25). We might think of Matthew's gospel as a complement to Paul, where Jesus' own Sermon on the Mount teaches his own approach to Torah.

A favorite verse:

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (2:19b-20).

The King James has a wonderful cadence: "nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me".

Galatians 3:28, about the oneness of people in Christ, is surely my favorite verse of this letter. In one of my seminary classes a few years ago, we kept spontaneously coming back to this verse as a theme and agreed that, today, "gay and straight, white and black" would be part of the inclusive vision.

There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

The oneness of people in Christ is also a theme of Ephesians. What a beautiful letter, perhaps my favorite New Testament book. The letter may have been written during Paul’s imprisonment in Rome, and yet the polished style of the Greek (compared to the restless and sometimes tangential way other letters are written) and the comparative absence of personal points have caused scholars to think that the letter is is pseudonymous, perhaps a summary of Paul's teachings written by one of his students as a tribute. On the other hand, the author does display some of Paul’s writing style, for instance, the way he breaks off at 3:1 to make a long point about God’s grace, and then resumes at 4:1. Even if it is written by a disciple of Paul, it is lovely.

 The letter begins with a long affirmation of the wonders of Christ (1:3-14 is a single sentence in the Greek). A prayer for the congregation is followed by an encouragement for the building up of the church. Because of Christ’s elimination of barriers and divisions (chapter 2), the church witnesses to Christ in all his reconciling wonder.

The unity to the church is reflected in the way that the aspects of the church work together, and the way the church people support and “equip” on another in their gifts (4:11-16)

Paul urges the church to uphold moral standards, to be imitators of God and walk in love, and put alway not only the “serious” sins but the everyday foolishness as well (4:17-5:20).

He urges certain relationships within the family, drawing an analogy between the family members and Christ and the church (5:21-6:10).

Another well-known passage is 6:10-17, where he makes metaphors of pieces of military armor to the gifts and Gospel of God.

Some favorite passages:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast (2:8-9)

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God (2:19-22).

THERE is a very key connection to the Old Testament: a new kind of Temple theology wherein the Spirit of God dwells in the "holy place" of believers.

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen (3:20-21). I have considered asking my survivors to place all or part of this verse on my tombstone. God's ability to accomplish"abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine" is a truth to which I can witness in my and my family's lives!

There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all (4:5-6)

The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knitted together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love (4:11-16). "Equipping the saints" has certainly been a theme of many church-ministry studies over the past several years.

Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger (4:26) I've told this verse to myself many times! I tend to nurse hurts and slights, which is not a good trait!

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At the conclusion of chapter 6 of his book, Comparing Judaism and Christianity, E. P. Sanders writes (p. 195), "...[A]t the very point where Paul seems to break so decisively with everything for which Judaism stands, when he states that God gave the law to condemn and enslave, and that one must die with Christ to escape, he was being very Jewish. He was facing the problem caused by monotheism and providence: the theology that whoever happens is the result of the will of the only God. Why Paul picked on the law, instead of the circumstances of history, is another question. If we pursued it, we would see that even this choice shows that he stayed within the framework of Jewish problems and solutions. Since he thought that the climatic revelation of God came in Jesus, he naturally had to ask about the status of the principal prior revelation, the giving of the law. His eye, that is, was fixed on Heilsgeschichte rather than on ordinary Geschichte, on the history of salvation rather than on political, military, social, and individual circumstances. But in charging God with the present evil state, and in looking to death as the way out, he was as good a Jew as he could be, once one grants that the recent revelation to him gave him a new lens, through which he viewed all else."

Philippians and Colossians

Philippians is one of the “Prison Epistles” along with Colossians, Ephesians, and Philemon, because of the way Paul identifies his situation. Unlike Colossians and Ephesians, there is no question about Paul’s authorship. In his Theology of the New Testament, the great New Testament scholar Rudolf Bultmann called Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon the "undoubtedly genuine letters of Paul" (vol 1, p. 190). Paul’s ministry in Philippi is narrated in Acts 16:12-40, and it was a church dear to his heart. My old Bible’s introduction indicates that “joy” and “rejoice” are used fourteen times in the comparatively short leter, and it is full of gratitude and love, starting with the opening prayer and thanksgiving (1:3-11).

Paul is glad that, although he is imprisoned, the Gospel has spread among the guards. He senses that his life may be nearing an end, but he is torn between wanting to be with Christ or (if it is up to him) living longer so that he could continue to minister to people as dear as the Phiippians. He sings Christ’s praises (2:1-11), and reminds them to conduct themselves in a good manner.

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure (2:12-13).

Although very proud of his Jewish heritage, nothing is as great to him as gaining Christ (3:8-16). Again--he is is not dismissing Judaism, only affirming that even his identity and heritage, the most important things to him, cannot be held onto if he thereby loses Christ:

More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead (3:8-11).

Once I had a student proudly ask me in class, "Dr. Stroble, did you know that 'shit' is in the Bible?" Fortunately I'm hard to rattle, and I did know the answer! The word "rubbish" above is a strong word that means, if not "shit", something to discard as garbage. He uses this forceful language to contrast all our dearest things in comparison to the worth of Jesus Christ.

He continues in this beloved passage:

Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you(3:12-14).

Other beloved passages include 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

And 4:8-9:

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

A long-time Baptist minister in my hometown, Dr. Archie Brown, had a column in our local paper, which he always concluded, THINK ON THESE THINGS.

4:10-13 is another wonderful passage:

I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. In any case, it was kind of you to share my distress.

Although it may not be one of Paul's final letters, Philippians has a very valedictory tone.

Colossians, which is in Asia Minor, is another of the four prison epistles. He writes to counter some kind of Gnosticism that did not have a “high” enough view of Christ. As my old Study Bible introduction has it: “Formulated in a Jewish framework [this Gnosticism] deprived Jesus Christ of his unique status as the Son of God and Savior, and reduced him to only one, albeit in an exalted place, of a series of created divine beings emanating in a graduated scale from the Godhead.” He also wrote to counter the Gnostic rites and ascetic practices that went along with this philosophy.

Thus Colossians is very concerned with a high theology of Christ and his place only in the Godhead but also in the Cosmos.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross (1:15-20).

Thus Christ is sufficient for these Gentile believers who needn’t convert to Judaism, embrace an unsound doctrine, or practice rites and festivals characteristic of the "mystery religions" of the time. But what a passage on which to meditate: not only in light of Old Testament passages about the cosmos (Gen. 1, Psalm 19, 104, Job 38-41, and others) but possibly about religion and science as well. (I say this as a VERY pro-science person.)

Other notable verses:

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving (2:6-7).

So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory (3:1-4).

"Your life is hidden with Christ in God" is one of my favorite Bible verses. How wonderful to think of being safeguarded in Christ--of knowing that Christ's love protects us. It is a wonderful complement to Romans 8:38-39.

Here is another Colossians passage:

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (3:12-17).

He also urges a model of the Christian family: wives should be subject to husbands, husbands should love their wives, children should obey their parents, fathers should not provoke their children, slaves should be obedient as well, and slave owners should treat their slaves fairly (3:18-4:1).

The Greco-Roman hierarchical family structure of the time is not the family structure of our own time--and not only because of slavery. My wife is a university president, and if I started to insist that she be subject to my instructions, she'd rightly laugh at me. People will say things like "Every word of the Bible is true" without stopping to think about the passages that reflect the culture of the writers. Recognizing this, and interpreting the Bible for our own time, are not only necessary, but exciting and enjoyable!

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In chapter 8 of his book Comparing Judaism and Christianity, E. P. Sanders notes that many scholars have called Colossians pseudonymous; but most of the non-Pauline elements are in the first two chapters, and the whole letter does show literary dependence of the letter upon Paul's genuine letters.’

Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, Philemon

1 Thessalonians may be Paul’s earliest letter. As the introduction of my old Harper Study Bible indicates, the letter seems to fit into Paul’s second missionary tour, during a time when he stayed in Corinth (49-51 CE; Acts chapter 17). Thessalonica was the capital of Macedonia.

Paul loves these people and the letter is filled with words of love and thanksgiving. He thinks about his work with them, and about Timothy’s news from them (chapters 2 and 3). He urges the church to refrain from unchastity (4:9-11), and to work at their own affairs in a way as to earn respect.

One major purpose of the letter is to give them assurance about the coming of Christ. For one thing, they shouldn’t be idle as they await Christ. Also, just because some people among them have died, doesn’t mean that Christ has failed. Salvation is certain, and although Christ will come suddenly, we can still have confidence in his grace. The famous idea of a “rapture” of the church is found in 4:15-18.

Also famous is 5:16-17: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing (or “constantly”), give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

2 Thessalonians is another statement of encouragement to the people; although the letter is a little less warm than the first, Paul wants to make sure the people endure in their faith amid hardship. He writes in more length about the day of the Lord (2:1-17) and also encourages the people not to stop working just because Christ may soon return.

3:10 is one of those “clobber verses” that folks quote in a scolding way: “Anyone unwilling to work should not eat”—-or, in a contemporary context, people who don’t work are just lazy and therefore shouldn’t have social safety nets. It’s a cold way to perceive the poor, and contrary to the MANY verses of the Bible where we’re enjoined to take the side of the poor.

1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are called “The Pastoral Epistles” because of their practical teachings. Among New Testament scholars, the epistles are considered pseudonymous because of differences in style and vocabulary from other Pauline letters, because they don't fit easily not the Acts narrative, and because the concerns of the letters and descriptions of church structure seem to come from a later time period.

In the first letter, Paul warns about unsound doctrine at the Ephesian church—-and the dubious character of those who teach such doctrines. Public prayer should be for all (2:1-7). Women should be modest and stay silent as they learn (2:8-15). He discusses the offices of bishop and deacon (chapter 3), and again encourages Timothy to be on guard against false doctrine and to continue in faithful living (chapter 4). Among other practical admonitions are the need to honor and help widows; to let certain men of integrity to be elders; to ensure that slaves honor their masters; and that wealthy people not be haughty (chapters 5-6).

Some famous verses:

The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life (1:15-16).

while physical training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come (4:8)

for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it (6:7)

for the love of money is a root of all evils (6:10, RSV)

2 Timothy is a similar exhortation for the young disciple to keep his faith strong, to avoid people who are gossipy and foolish in their conversation, to be firm but gentle in addressing unsound doctrine, and to preach true teachings. Although apostasy and hard times are coming, the strong will hold to Christ and do well.

Some famous verses:

For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline (1:6-7).

holding to the outward form of godliness but denying its power (3:5-6; I remember the old KJV wording: having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness (3:16). Remember that the author is probably referring to the Old Testament!

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (4:7)

Titus was serving on the island of Crete. In the letter, Paul covers very similar ground as the other Pastorals, discussing with Titus the topics of church organization, false teaching, immoral living, gentle rebuke, and exhortation.

An undoubtedly genuine letter of Paul's, the brief epistle Philemon concerns the slave Onesimus, who had fled his master Philemon in Rome but had converted to Jesus Faith through Paul. The letter is actually to Philemon’s wife Apphia as well, and to a minister name Archippus. Paul wants Philemon to accept Onesimus back, hinting that Philemon should free him from slavery. Paul remarks that Onesimus was more “useful” (the meaning of his name in Greek) as a brother of Christ than of a slave. Paul also adds that he’d love to have Onesimus as his colleague in ministry, if Philemon would allow it.

Slavery of the Ancient Near East and the Greek and Roman empires was different from American race-based slavery. But to recognize that Scripture accepts an institution that we now consider immoral, alerts us again to the need to interpret scripture for our own time---not to toss out slogans like "Every word of the Bible is true" or "You can't pick and choose", but to wrestle with and pray about Scripture's meaning, using our intelligence, experience, common sense, and tradition to increase our understanding--and to enjoy the Bible!

In the post that I wrote a year ago (March 1, 2017), I quote from Rabbi Joseph Telushkin's Biblical Literacy: The Most Important People, Events, and Ideas of the Hebrew Bible (New York: William Morrow, 1997). Commenting on Deuteronomy 6:4-9, he writes, “To study Judaism is a moral imperative, because to be good one has to know what one’s duties are and what goodness entails… and this requires study” (p. 489). What a wonderful goal for us Christians, too!

Before Lent is over, I'll find some good quotations about the relationship of the Old and New Testaments.

Hebrews

In 2017 and into Lent 2018, I’m reading through the Bible and taking informal notes on the readings. Since we so often read verses and passages and passages of the Bible without appreciating context, I’m especially focusing on the overall narrative and connections among passages.

This post is about the Epistle to the Hebrews. I left off with Acts, so what happened to Paul? I’m still reading about the Jewish background of Paul’s letters, so I’m putting Paul on hold at the moment and skipping over to the non-Pauline, final epistles of the New Testament. Paul will make a good project for Lenten devotion, and then I'll have studied the whole Bible in a little over a year.

Parts of this post are based on my lessons “Encouraged to Be Faithful” in the June-July-August 2004 issue of Daily Bible Study. Many thanks to the editor at the time, Eleanor Moore, who retired with that issue after 41 years with the United Methodist Publishing House.

Hebrews is a fascinating book that assumes knowledge of certain Torah traditions like the Temple, priesthood, and sacrificial system. I’m always interested in ways that the New Testament connects to and depends on the Old Testament, and Hebrews has a wealth of connections.

But  Hebrews is one of the more supersessionist writings of the New Testament: that is, it contends that Christianity has superseded Judaism. We still (and always) must remember that the New Testament authors were not Gentiles who disdain Jews who don't believe in Jesus, but rather they were (except for Luke) Jews writing among other Jews, struggling with Jewish belief and identity, and thinking of Jesus Belief as a new kind of Judaism.

Hebrews was likely written in the 60s, prior to the destruction of the Temple in 70 and the end of its priesthood and “cultus.” The author writes about those things as if they still existed, and surely would’ve written differently had they already been destroyed. Thus the author urges his congregation to keep looking to Christ who himself is priesthood and sacrifice.

Early church traditions are not unanimous about the author, perhaps (but likely not) Paul, or Apollos, and another possibility. Nor do we know to whom the letter was written. “Hebrews” is a title added by scribes because of its many Old Testament references. The audience seems to be Jews, living in a now unknown location (perhaps Italy) who have converted to Christianity and are second-generation Christians who are experiencing serious but not yet life-threatening persecution. Thus the author’s alternately encouraging and stern admonitions to stay faithful in their belief in Christ.

Hebrews begins like a sermon but ends like a letter. The opening sentence in the original Greek makes skillful use of alliteration (verse 1, transliterated, is Polymerōs kai polytropōs palai ho Theos lalēsas tois patrasin en tois prophētais), and all the letter is a well-written and rhetorically effective writing. The author affirms that God has spoken through forebears and prophets but now speaks through a Son, who is the “exact imprint of God’s very being.” Throughout the letter, the author uses a midrashic arguments for his point: in this case, setting Psalm 2:7, 2 Samuel 7:14, Deut. 32:43, Ps. 104:4, Ps. 45:6-7, Ps. 102:25-27, and Ps. 110-13 together to prove Christ as king and eternal son.

The letter alternates between deeply Jewish theological reflection and those stern admonitions. An interesting rhetorical device is the announcement of a theme prior to the author’s exposition: e.g., the reference to Melchizedek in 5:6 and 5:10 and then the main connection of Jesus to Melchizedek in chapter 7.

Here is an outline:

Introduction: Christ is God’s final revelation (1:1-3).

Jesus is Son of God and thus better than the angels (1:4-2:18). There must have been some discussion in the congregation about Jesus’ connection to the angels or to the power of angels, but Christ is true man, true sacrifice, and the Davidic King who has power to help us (2:18), none of which are true of angels.

Christ is superior to Moses and Joshua (chapters 3 and 4). This is not to disparage either man, but they were servants while Jesus is a Son. The author makes a sometimes difficult to follow, midrashic connection of Jesus to the Promised Land; while the first generation of the Israelites lost the chance to gain the “rest” of the Land (that is, the peace and prosperity of living there, also connected to the rest and worship of the Sabbath), because of their hard hearts and rebellion, Christ now provides a lasting “rest” for those who believe. The author uses the rebellion and later regret of the Israelites to admonish the congregation to stay faithful (e.g., 3:12, 4:11-13).

Suddenly the author calls Jesus the great high priest (4:14-16), in one of my favorite passages of Scripture:

Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Thus changing the subject from Sabbath and land to priesthood, Hebrews 4:14-7:28 concerns the priesthood of Christ. As the Temple priests sacrifice for the people through concern and compassion, so Christ intercedes for people through his divine compassion. A problem with the Aaronic priesthood, though, is that the priests were mortal and must be replaced periodically. The Hebrews author makes a connection to Melchizedek (Genesis 10), who appears in scripture without a genealogy, giving him a symbolic kind of immortality—plus, Melchizedek’s greatness is displayed in the fact that even father Abraham deferred to him and paid him a tithe. For the Hebrews author, Jesus’ priesthood is of the order of the "eternal" Melchizedek rather than of Aaron. (Perhaps someone in the congregation wondered how Jesus could be a priest if he was of the tribe of Judah rather than of Levi.) The author also uses Psalm 110:1-3 to make this connection. Of course, typical of the letter, this section also contains warnings and encouragements to the congregation.

Hebrews 9:1-10:18 concern the old and new covenants, drawing from prophetic promises (Second Isaiah and Jeremiah in particular) for a new covenant for the future. The author also connects Jesus to the sacrifices themselves. The sacrifices had to be done over and over again—because people always sin—as the blood was laid upon the sanctuary altar. But Jesus offered his own blood, and because he is the eternal Son and priest, his blood is an offering that is eternal, once for all.

Hebrews 10:19-12:29 follows on that: the author reminds the congregation that Christ is the foundation of our faith and hope, and they must endure in order to gain Christ’s benefits and blessings. Chapter 11 is a famous reiteration of heroes of faith who did remain faithful to God even in terrible circumstances. With this great “cloud of witnesses” in mind and heart, we must “run with perseverance” and keep our eyes on “Jesus the pioneer and perfecto of our faith” who know sits at God’s right hand (position of power) (12:1-2).

The author reminds the congregation that they have not yet been persecuted in ways that involve bodily harm (12:3) and encourages them about God’s discipline. I don’t believe that one should consider all hardship as correction and discipline sent by God; some hardships are just awful things that God does not want us to suffer. But opportunities for faith and strength can be found in hard circumstances. In 12:18-29, the author makes a penultimate warning against giving up faith, for the benefits of Christ are too wonderful to lose.

13:1-25 is the epistolary conclusion, warning them one more time (12:7-17) but also asking for prayers (13:18-19), asking them to be actively faithful, as well as empathetic and helpful to those who are suffering (13:3). The next to last verse, “Those from Italy send you greetings,” may or may not suggest that the congregation is in Italy and the author, who is elsewhere, knows believers who are also from Italy.Here is another summary and discussion of the epistle, which has a good concluding reminder: "In a changing world, where the old landmarks disappear and old standards are no longer recognized, the only constant point of reference is the unchanging, onward-moving Christ, 'the same yesterday and today and for ever' (13:8); the path of wisdom is to face the unknown with Him. Our author anticipates Herbert Butterfield in finding here 'a principle which both gives us a firm Rock and leaves us the maximum elasticity for our minds; the principle: Hold to Christ, and for the rest be totally uncommitted' (Christianity and History [1950], 146)."

James, Peter

Somewhere on my bookshelves is a notebook that has my word-by-word translation of the Epistle of James. This was my project for third-semester-Koine Greek, which was my final college class, spring 1979. There were only two of us and the professor, but it was a fun class!

In the Harper's Bible Commentary, my seminary prof, Luke T. Johnson, discusses traditions about the epistle's authorship. Traditionally, James is identified as the brother of Jesus. The author doesn't identify himself as such. We don't know the letter's time period because it speaks to no obvious historical circumstance.

The author portrays himself as a wise teacher, and his advice has to do with practical religious living. The epistle is very much in the tradition of Old Testament Wisdom Literature, but not only that. Johnson writes: “James is remarkable for its positive appropriation of Torah, whose separate aspects it mediates to the messianic community… The short exhortations concerned with practical behavior resemble and incorporation elements of the wisdom tradition. Since wisdom is by nature cosmopolitan, James shows traces of Hellenistic moral philosophy as well as of the biblical books of Proverbs and Ecclesiasties. James also conemporizes the voice of the prophets. His attack on oppression echoes the accents of Isaiah and Amos (5:1-6). James also affirms the Law, calling it the ‘Law of Liberty’ (2:12). He does not mean ritual observances but the moral teaching of Torah, summarized by the Decalogue and the ‘law of love’ (Lev. 19:18; cf. 2:8-11) (p. 1272). Short as it is, James provides us with rich connections to Old Testament traditions.

The letter also provides an interesting contrast to the very christocentric Hebrews (and to Paul’s letters), because James only mentions Jesus twice (1:1 and 2:1) and contains helpful teaching about religion, faith, and wisdom that could be universally applied. He does reflect some of Jesus’ sayings (1:6, 2:8, 5:12), as Johnson notes.

Here is a brief outline: James teaches that true religion is evidenced by perseverance and patience during temptation and difficult times. But true wisdom and faith are from above, and God will grant our prayers for wisdom (1:2-27).

True and pure religion is evidenced in an ability to keep one’s tongue, to control one’s anger, to visit orphans and widows, to keep oneself “unstained” from the world (1:19-27).

If you truly hear God’s word, you will be a doer and not just a hearer (1:22). Several years ago, my daughter participated in her choir’s performance during the noon Mass at the St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stefansdom) in Vienna. I noticed on the lectern a banner, containing the words: Seid aber Täter des Worts und nicht Hörer allein. My German was rusty so I needed two or three seconds to recognize James 1:22. The combination of several things—the stunning sanctuary, the music of the choir, the wonders of Vienna itself, and the fact that in translating I had to mentally engage the verse—gave me a deep sense of peace and assurance. Having faith in Christ is a very good thing, but faith isn't just intellectual assent or even simply trust in God, it is also an active, loving, service-oriented thing.

True faith is evidenced by impartiality toward persons: don’t defer to and praise the rich person while refusing also to honor the poor person. Those who are merciful and impartial do God’s will (2:1-13).

Famously, James asserts that faith without works is dead faith. Faith cannot save unless expressed in deeds of service to others (2:14-26).

Just as famously, James asserts that we need to control our mouths, because “the tongue is a fire” with great destructive power. He connects this kind of self-control and carefulness not only to being a general believer but also to being a teacher (3:1-12).

True wisdom is peaceful, gentle, merciful, sincere, peace-making, and other positive qualities from and commended by God, while false wisdom is bitter, jealous, and selfish (3:13-4:18). Friendship with the world is expressed in fighting and wars, but that makes one an enemy of God (4:1-10). Similarly slander (4:11-2) and false confidence (4:13-17). I've always loved the perspective on our lives expressed in 4:13-15.

James continues to criticize friendship with the world by despising worldly fortune (5:1-6) and by the careless swearing of oaths (5:12). But those with true faith and wisdom are patient and steadfast; they avoid grumbling; they pray for the sick and confess their sins to one another (5:7-11, 13-18). 5:16 is another favorite verse: “The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective,” or in the old KJV, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous [person] availeth much.”

The final verse, 5:20, is still another favorite: “you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

Although I've not read the Qur'an extensively, James' emphasis on faith and works reminds me of verse 177, sura 2 of the Qur'an, found here in different translations. There, too, God approves of our faith when expressed in kindness, service, patience in times of trouble, and trust.

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According to the Harper Bible Commentary, 1 Peter addresses concerns of Asia Minor Christians during the latter part of the first century. Because of this, and because persons named in the letter like Silvanus and Mark (5:12-14) were more Paul’s friends than Peter’s, the letter is likely pseudonymous (p. 1279). But pseudonymous authorship was common in those days and needn’t detract from the letter.

1:3-9 is a lovely opening blessing, encouraging the audience of the glories of Christ, and though they are being persecuted, their pain is like the refinement of gold. The author continues to encourage them by reminding them that they have experienced Christ’s Spirit, something that the prophets predicted (1:10-12). Thus, they can be focused upon living holy lives (1:13-2:3). Quoting passages from Isaiah, Hosea, and the Psalms, the author praises Christ and reminds the congregation of their own holiness, using images from the Old Testament about God’s people (2:9).

In 2:11-4:11, the author reminds the congregation of various ways to show themselves as faithful: to have good conduct (2:11-12), to be good citizens of the state and honor others (2:13-17), to be respectful to a master if one is a servant (2:18-20), reflecting the example of Christ himself (2:21-25); to have a domestic home life reflecting of the times (3:1-7); to bless those who persecute you and to have a tender heart and humble mind (3:8-12); to endure persecution mindful of Christ’s own sufferings (3:13-22), and to generally do one’s duty, to love one another and practice hospitality, and practice other virtues according to God’s will (4:1-11). The last section, 4:12-5:11, is another exhortation to remain steadfast and faithful.

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2 Peter is written in the testament style, that is, the author--"Simeon Peter"---gives instructions in light of his impending death. It is a fictional genre used to convey true teachings but under pseudonymous authorship (HRC, 1286). My seminary notes in my old Bible indicate there are apocryphal writings of the 100s CE that are also under the name of Peter, who was killed in the 60s. My notes also indicate that the letter takes for granted canonical writings like the Synoptic Gospels and Paul’s letters, which were likely gathered long after the historical Peter's death. Many verses in chapter 2 are echoed in the epistle of Jude.

The letter focuses first on true knowledge, which his readers must seek and treasure for they around founded in Jesus Christ himself (1:3-21). There are, after all, many false teachers around, but their fate is scary—God did not spare even the angels who sinned (2:1-10a), and will not spare the deceivers. One can know the false teachers by their bad character, though, and they will come to a bad end (2:10b-22).

In chapter 3, the author assures his people of the comfort of Christ’s coming, which he connects to the Old Testament “Day of the Lord.” But for God a thousand years is as one day (3:8), and God’s seeming slowness is for the sake of people’s repentance.

The letter ends with a recommendation to read Paul’s letters, though they’re not always easy to understand—but the unstable Christians will twist them, and so Peter’s readers should be mindful to stay steady and steadfast, and stay faithful to Christ.

Expectation of the end is a theme among these letters. Until Christ returns, there will always be some folks who expect him to return in their lifetime. Thus, New Testament teachings and warnings about the end times will seem to them contemporary. To me, James 4:13-15 is a reminder that's always applicable: we just don't know what's ahead in life, ever, and so it's better to trust God and acknowledge God in all our life and work.

1, 2, and 3 John and Jude

We come to the three short letters of John and the letter of Jude. 1 John has no introduction or conclusion, and so we don’t know its audience. Tradition has always attributed it to the Apostle John—and it does echo the Gospel, with its light-darkness contrasts, emphasis on love, the eternal nature of Christ, the joy of Christ, the need to abide in Christ, and other aspects.

In the passage 1:5-2:6, which I long ago yellow-highlighted in my old Bible, the author explains righteousness, asserting that we all sin but Christ forgives and cleanses us, and so we can count on Christ and keep his commandments.

In 2:7-17, John reminds his readers that they should not love worldly things, but to focus on Christ and Christ’s love—for a person who hates another person lives in darkness. But to abide in Christ, who run less risk of being deceived—important because this is the last hour,. The end is coming soon (2:18-29).

In a seeming contrast to what he wrote earlier, John says that no one born of God commits sin, for sin is of the devil, and no one who abides in Christ sins (3:1-10). He seems to be contrasting a life of habitual lawlessness with a life in which Christ is continually trusted to remove our sin, to help us and forgive us.

Anyone who loves God must love one another in Christ-like love, for no one who hates a brother or sister can say s/he loves God (3:11-18).

But when we are of the truth, we have assurance if our hearts condemn us, for God is greater than our hearts and gives to us freely. It's another reason to abide in Christ (3:19-24)! John continues to urge readers to love and to have faith: as there is no hatred for others if one loves God (4:19-20), there is no fear, for God helps us with fear and casts it out through the divine love (4:18). Anyone who has faith in God through Christ has overcome the world and has God’s life within (5:1-12).

 The letter concludes with similar injunctions (5:13-21). John may be redundant, but they are lovely teachings about which to be redundant.

2 and 3 John and Jude are one-chapter letters. John calls himself not by name but by the title “elder” and writes to “the elect lady and her children.” Is this a particular mother, or a congregation? The author writes about the importance of love, and the importance of right doctrine about Christ and God. One should not even show hospitality to a teacher of wrong doctrine: this is serious! The author promises to talk in person soon.

3 John is also by the “elder,” written to Gaius. The author courages Gaius in showing service, hospitality, and love, and commends Demetrius. But look out for Diotrephese, who puts himself first and doesn’t acknowledge the elder’s authority. (How many churches have at least one Diotrephes, who insists on his/her own way against the minister!) The author promises to talk in person soon.

Jude identifies himself as a servant of Christ and a brother of James, so he may be a brother of Jesus, too, or another Jude. The audience is very general (verse 1). The letter is harsh toward false teachers, connecting back to Korah’s rebellion against Moses (Numbers 16), and even to Cain himself. False teachers are often depicted as having really bad morals, and such is the case here.

Much of Jude is also found in 2 Peter, which may make it a second-century work.

Interestingly, Jude quotes a noncanonical book, 1 Enoch, in order to condemn these false teachers. 1 Enoch, from about the first century BCE, can be found in collections of Old Testament Pseudepigrapha but is not canonical for Jews and Christians, except for the Ethiopic Orthodox Church. In Jude’s time, its canonical status was still debated.

Like some of the other epistles, Jude warns that the time is short, and one must keep the faith in these end times. More on that in the final New Testament writing!

Revelation

You might not realize it, but Revelation is very rich in connections to the Old Testament. The letter opens with John stating that God gave him this revelation (apokálypsis, which means uncovering or unveiling), and he greets the seven churches that are in Asia (1:1-8). He states that he was on the island of Patmos when the Spirit came to him and ordered him to write down these visions and send them to the churches at Ephesus, Smyma, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. Thus Revelation is an epistle, though a unique one in eschatological, apocalyptic visions.

John sees “one like a son of man” among seven golden lamp stands. The vision reminds us of Daniel’s and Ezekiel’s visions of heavenly realities.

The words to each of the seven churches, with different kinds of warnings, praises, and commands, fill chapters 2 and 3. The Old Testament has many depictions of faithlessness on the part of Israel, and the New Testament—though covering a much shorter time period—does not hold back on criticizing aspects of the early church, as well. We find a notorious bit of anti-Judaism in 2:9, but again, we must remember that John is Jewish and writes in a Jewish milieu; he is not a Gentile who hates Jews. The warning about the lukewarm quality of the Laodicean church is also famous (3:15-16), but so is Christ’s words to that church, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock” (3:20).

The remainder of the book (4:1-22:5) area various visions and depictions of the future. We have a depiction of the throne of heaven and the living creatures that give God glory (chapter 4). A prelude to the opening of the scrolls describes the slain Lamb of God who is declared worthy to open the scroll’s seals.

Rev. 6:1-8:1 is the Opening of the Seven seals:
First reveals the white horse and its rider (Rev 6:1-2)
Second reveals the red horse and its rider (Rev 6:3-4)
Third reveals the black horse and its rider (Rev 6:5-6)
Fourth reveals the pale horse and its rider Death, with Hades nearby (Rev 6:7-8)
Fifth reveals the martyrs under the altar (Rev 6:9-11)
Sixth reveals earthquakes and cataclysms.(Rev 6:12-17)

Chapter 7 is an interlude, about the sealing of the 144,000 (12,000 from each tribe of Israel), and the heavenly multitude.

The opening of the seventh seal results in a time of silence in heaven (8:1). The the seven angels who had seven trumpets made their sounds:
The first trumpet, a third of the world’s vegetation is destroyed (8:7)
The second trumpet, a third of sea creatures and a third of ships are destroyed as a third of the sea turns to blood.
The third trumpet, a star named Wormwood falls, and a third of rivers and waters turn bitter.
The fourth trumpet, a third of the sun, moon and stars are struck.  The fifth trumpet, the bottomless pit is opened, with locusts and the angel Abaddon are released (9:1-11).
The sixth trumpet, an four angels kill two hundred million people.

In an interlude, John eats the scroll (certainly a reference to a similar sign in Ezekiel), and two witnesses provide more visions of the end.

The seven trumpet, and Christ’s victory and Kingdom are announced, and the heavenly temple with the ark of the covenant are revealed (chapters 10-11).

Chapters 12-14 tell of seven mystic creatures: the woman with child, the dragon, the male child, the angel Michael, the beast from the sea, the beast from the earth (and the beast’s number is 666), and the Lamb on Mount Zion. Chapter 14 ends with a well-known vision of the winepress of the wrath of God, into which the grapes of the earth are pressed, resulting in deep blood.

Chapters 15-16 tell of the seven bowls of wrath: sores of people, the bloody sea, the bloody rivers and fountains, the sun’s fierce heat, the darkness, the foul spirits that prepare for Armageddon, and the earthquake.

Rev. 17:1-19:10 are visions of the great harlot Babylon, “mother of earth’s abdominations” who is drunk with the blood of saints and martyrs. Though Babylon will fight against the Lamb, Babylon’s soon is sure, though the evil world may mourn the city’s fall. At last, the marriage supper of the Lamb is announced, with great rejoicing in Heaven.

When the beast and false prophet are defeated, they are thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur (19:11-21). Satan and the dragon are bound and sealed in the bottomless pit for a millennium, and Christ will reign in peace with the resurrected faithful (20:1-6). Satan, though, will emerge and gather forces for battle at Gog and Magog (another Ezekiel reference), but Satan will then be thrown into the fiery lake as well.

Finally, the great white throne appears and judge all the death according to the Book of Life (the Book of Life is very much a Jewish image). Death and Hades will be destroyed for good at this point (20:11-15), and a new heaven and new earth will be established; the blessed will be with God, and the rest will be thrown into the fiery lake, which is the second death (21:1-8).

The final vision of Revelation very much harkens back to Ezekiel’s vision of the restored Temple (Ez. 40-48). The new Jerusalem will be a bright, golden and jeweled, beautiful and bright place. As the Bible began with the Tree of Life in Eden, the Bible ends now with the restored Tree of Life as the faithful will be in God’s light forever (21:9-22:5).

Revelation concludes with warnings about the end times—which, the author believes, will occur soon—and while visions should not be added to the book, these words will bring blessing to those who keep them (22:6-21).

Regarding the various millennial interpretations of Revelation, I found this interesting site, http://www.religioustolerance.org/millenni.htm, that discusses these views in helpful detail.

“The Rapture”--when believers in the end times will rise into the air to meet the Lord---is not part of Revelation, but 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18, where Paul is reassuring the congregation about the certainty of Christ's return. For being such a brief passage in the New Testament (discussed nowhere else therein, and never called “the Rapture”), it has certainly captured the imagination of many conservative Protestant Christians, who import it from Paul’s letter into the overall eschatology of Revelation.

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Here is more about Revelation, originally posted here. http://changingbibles.blogspot.com/2012/07/book-of-revelation.html

The Book of Revelation contains more references to the Old Testament than nearly any other New Testament book. I read that there are nearly 200 references, allusions, and images. I’m not keen on interpreting the book's arcane and violent symbolism to gain knowledge of our present times. But I appreciate the book all the more as the concluding portion of Christian scripture, which ties together many theological strands from the whole of the Bible.

If you really want to dig into Revelation, you might first spend a year or so reading the Old Testament and books about biblical theology. Then, you can appreciate how Revelation reaches deeply into the Old Testament and connects those scriptures (and therefore the whole of God's saving activity since ancient times) to Christ and his final victory.

I found an interesting article, “The Old Testament and the Book of Revelation” at the StudyJesus.com site. I liked the article because it gave straightforward biblical references without the speculations and polemics that one times in some analyses of Revelation. Perusing that article as well as my notes in my old RSV and the references in my NRSV, I developed a very incomplete list of references to Old Testament passages that one finds in Revelation. These are just my notes from these sources, to set up ongoing studies. That article gives many more references and other research about John's compelling visions and style of writing.

The image of “the son of man” in Daniel 7:13-14 connects to Rev. 1:7.

The image of “the kingdom of priests” in Exodus 19:6 an Isaiah 61:6 connects to Rev. 1:6.

Ezekiel’s vision of four living creatures and four wheels in chapter 1, and also Isaiah 6:1-4, connect with Revelation chapter 4, wherein the living creatures give God honor and glory.

The dwelling of God in the new heaven and earth in Isaiah 65:17ff connects to Rev 21:1-2. Also, Michael the archangel (Dan. 12:1) connects to Rev. 12:7-12.

The condemnation of Deuteronomy 29:19-20, with the image of being blotted out of the book of life, connects to Rev. 21:19. In fact, that article indicates: “Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15, 21:27 are based on Exodus 32:32-33; Psalm 69:28; Daniel 12:1,” and also Ps. 56:8 and Malachi 3:16. All these have to do with the them of God writing a book containing the names of the faithful.

The differently colored horses of Zechariah 1:7-17 and 6:1-8 connect to Revelation 6:1-8.

The eating of the scroll in Ezekiel 2:8-3:33 and Jeremiah 15:16 connect to Rev. 10:8-11.

Much of Joel 1-2, with its descriptions of plagues, droughts, and the coming day of the Lord, connects to the various events in Revelation: e.g., the locusts in Rev. 9.

Some of Ezekiel’s images of the restored temple in chapters 40-48, as well as Zechariah chapter 4, connect to Rev. 11:1-6 et al. Also, the restored Jerusalem in Ezekiel 48:30-35 connect to Rev. 21:12-14.

Genesis 49 lists the twelve tribes of Israel, in the context of Jacob’s death: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Dan, Naphtali, Joseph, and Benjamin. Jacob adopted Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, and thus they became heads of tribes. Rev. 7:1-8 describes how angels sealed the number of God’s servants out of “every tribe of the people of Israel,” and then lists the twelve tribes. Instead of the tribe of Dan we have the tribe of Manasseh, and the tribe of Joseph rather than that of Ephraim is mentioned.

The cities of refuge are described in Numbers 35:9-34. They were places where a person who had accidentally killed someone could flee and when the high priest died they could return home without fear of being killed out of revenge. The cities were Kedesh, Golan, Ramoth Shechem, Bezer, and Hebron. Although Rev. 12:6 doesn’t mention “cities of refuge” per se, the concept of a safe place prepared by God is there: for instance, the woman with child (representing God’s people) flees to a safe place in the wilderness where she will be nourished for 1260 days.

Daniel has a vision of four beasts in Dan. 7:1-8, which connects to Rev. 13:1-7, where beasts emerge from the sea. As that article indicates, the fourth beast represents Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the terrible Greek ruler of the Maccabean period.

Ezekiel 38-39 describes the prince Gog of the land of Magog. In Rev. 20:7-10, Gog and Magog become nations who are enemies of God’s people.

The famous story of Balaam and his donkey (Balaam's ass, as we Sunday school kids laughed about) is found in Numbers 25:1-9, as well as 31:16. This story is echoed in Rev. 2: 14 where God scolds the church at Pergamum.

Rev. 14:14-20 tells of the angel reaping a grape harvest with a sickle and putting the harvest into the winepress of God’s wrath, producing copious blood. Of course, this is the reference for a line in “Battle Hymn of the Republic” as well as the title of the novel, The Grapes of Wrath. We find the earlier image in Joel 3:13 and Isaiah 63:1-6.

As that article indicates, Isaiah 65:17, 66:22, refer to the blessings of God upon the exiles who return from captivity in Babylon. These promises connect to a passage near the conclusion of Revelations, 21:1.

With that reference, I thought of my earlier post about the biblical theme of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, the Exile, its connection to the land, and the hope of future redemption that the Exile inspires. Although the Bible isn't exactly “about” the Exile, the Bible is about the history of God’s people on the land in the centuries before the Exile, and then their post-exilic hope in God’s redemption. As I explain there in my notes, the exilic experience pervades the Bible in many unappreciated ways. (The psalms, for instance, which so many of us esteem for our daily faith, deeply reflect the post-exilic hope of God's people.) For Christians, the New Testament describes the fulfillment of that post-exilic hope, and the Book of Revelation brings together stands of biblical history and theology to show the final consummation of centuries of divine promises.

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The book of Revelation is an endless source of fascinating questions for many people. I never quite shared an eagerness to decode the book. When I was in high school in the 1970s, barcodes began to appear on grocery products, and I heard someone express concern that barcodes were connected to the Antichrist as predicted in Rev. 13:17. I thought (privately) that was kind of silly.

Then a few years ago, my wife Beth and I led a study on the book of Revelation. We used Bruce Metzger’s Breaking the Code: Understanding the Book of Revelation, a wonderful book that delves into the Old Testament background and first century roots of the book. The first Sunday, we had a crowd. “I think the Lord has led me to this study,” declared a young woman that first time. During the next few Sundays, our group dwindled down to a faithful core. Where did the others go, including the woman pleased at God’s guidance? Beth and I didn’t attempt to interpret Revelation’s signs and symbols to our contemporary time, and so I’m sure we disappointed folks present at our initial gathering.

The notion that Revelation has a secret meaning about current events, in spite of scriptural caveats about predicting the end (e.g., Matt. 24:36), will always give the book qualities of mystery and urgency. In my experience, though, folks are certain that the book has contemporary meaning, are liable to become frustrated if you imply otherwise, and yet don't necessarily know what that meaning is. It's one of those unexamined opinions people swear to.

Of course, many attempts have been made through history to predict the end times via biblical symbols: George Rapp, leader of the Harmonist sect, William Miller, founder of the Millerites, Charles Taze Russell and the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and others. To me, the numerous failed efforts to connect Revelation to contemporary history advises against the effort---as does Jesus' own caution that only God knows history's final timetable.

Although Revelation is typical of the apocalyptic genre of writing (there are several such Jewish writings not included in the Old Testament, for instance), Jesus’ own end-time teachings aren’t so typical. While concerned about warning people, Jesus isn’t interested in tabulating and predicting the end times in a vengeful way.[1] Jesus’ teachings are not focused on divine retributation against evildoers and Gentiles, but upon God’s salvation, e.g. Luke 4:16ff. We have to balance the visions of Revelation with the example of Jesus himself.

In portions of his teachings, Jesus warned that people would miss the kingdom of God and would be cast into outer darkness or into the fire (Matt. 24:45-51, Matt. 25:1-13, 30, 46). He warned that people would call him “Lord” who would be excluded from the kingdom if they didn’t do his will (Matt. 7:21-23). The stories of people who followed Jesus, though, are overwhelmingly happy. People who discovered Jesus became filled with joy. Not only had they escaped God’s wrath, but they had abundant, loving power from God in their lives that would carry them all the way through life and death to eternal life. They had escaped Hell because Jesus suffered condemnation in their place. Jesus addressed the seriousness of sin with his love and blood.

Jesus also promised to return. According to Hebrew 9:28, Christ “will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” At that time he’ll be king over all earth and heaven (Rev. 11:15), will completely destroy the power of death (1 Cor. 15:25, 26), will bring about the resurrection of the dead (1 Thess. 4:16-17) and the final judgment (Rev. 20:11-13). He will come suddenly (Mark 13:36). Some people expect Jesus to return in our lifetime. Others point to the fact that Jesus discouraged speculation about the timetable of his return (Mark 13:32). Paul told people to stay alert (1 Cor. 16:13, 1 Thess. 5:1-11), but also warned that we shouldn’t become idle and neglect our daily responsibilities (2 Thess. 3:6-13). Whenever Jesus returns, one thing is for sure: we will all die someday. God will reward us for our faith whether we came to Jesus early or late in life (Matt. 20:1-16), but we do need to be ready (Mark 13:33-37)! We need to commit to a relationship with Jesus, however small our faith-steps may be. Readiness means believing in him, following him, trusting his power … and trusting his merciful desire to save us regardless of all our sins and failures!

Here is a very odd pair of books to connect: Deuteronomy and Revelation. Deuteronomy concludes the Torah with a stirring call for Jews to keep faithful to the commandments (reiterated for many chapters) and to remind future generations of God's mighty works of salvation. Meanwhile Revelation concludes the New Testament with arcane and impenetrable symbols that invite all kinds of wheel-spinning speculation about the end times.

And yet Revelation also calls future generations to faithfulness. Revelation proclaims God's mighty work of salvation, too (7:10, 11:15, 19:6), and so, in an analogous way to Deuteronomy, we know that there is no ultimate reason for us to lose heart—or to lose our faithfulness. Although Christ’s final victory lies in the future, he already has defeated Satan. In light of that victory, he calls us to follow him with confidence.

Notes:

1. Points made by Brevard S. Childs in his Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1993), page 68.

Reading the Old Testament

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Journeys Home

The contents of this blog are my personal views and opinions and are not in any way representative of my employers, publishers, or any associations or organizations with which I'm affiliated.

All pictures not drawn or taken by me are copied here under fair use principles. Please contact me to remove any such pictures.

Welcome to this blog, which I've been keeping since 2009. Please feel free to browse the contents, or follow it for updates. Check back as often you'd like!

Lately, this blog has included a variety of odd things that interest me as I go along--including music and art. Several previous posts were year-long series on subjects in religion and spirituality, each undertaken as an enjoyable discipline to keep my own spiritual life on a positive path. In 2014, I listened to and wrote about Bach's sacred cantatas on or near the Sundays and special days for which they were written. In 2015, I wrote about special days celebrated by different world religions. In 2016, I studied the lives of saints and faithful persons honored on different Christian liturgical calendars. In 2017-18, I studied the entire Bible (including the Apocrypha) and posted my notes.

Throughout this blog, I've written about a number of subjects, including Bible-based reflections, spirituality and religion, interfaith concerns, my hometown, favorite roads and places, current events, the funny and weird moments of life, favorite music and art, and so on. But I've always had three interrelated themes in mind. One is the joy of making everyday connections as we move through our lives. Another is "the journey," including the spiritual quest, in which we struggle for understanding and assurances and look to God in hope. The third is "home": the places and circumstances that anchor us, the goals of our journeys, and the heavenly home that the Lord prepares for us (John 14:2)

My hometown area, Fayette Co., IL, is always an anchor and "conceptual continuity" for me. The header photograph is from that area, near Brownstown, the vicinity where my maternal ancestors settled before the Civil War.

All original material copyright 2009-2023 by Paul E. Stroble. All Bible quotations in this blog are from the New Revised Standard Version unless otherwise indicated. The New Revised Standard Version Bible is copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.

A word about my Bible notes

At about the time I turned 50 in 2007, I made an effort to deepen my Bible study. I wanted to study comparatively unfamiliar areas of the book, and I especially wanted to gain a better sense of its canonical interconnections (prophecies, allusions, historical connections, etc.). I had a then-30-year-old Bible that was a worse-for-wear hodgepodge of notes, jottings, and cross-references. I had also purchased a new NRSV. My old and new notetaking comprised both a midlife resolution and an enjoyable, renewed devotion to study.

Eventually, I incorporated my notes into a Blogspot site, “Changing Bibles,” and three WordPress sites, “The Love of Bible Study,” “Psalm 121,” and “Bible Connections.”

Then, the notetaking evolved into my book, "Walking with Jesus through the New Testament" (Westminster John Knox Press, 2015).

THEN, in 2017-2018, I did another series of notetaking as an effort to study the Bible start to finish. I posted those notes on my main blog, “Journeys Home.” Once finished, I put the notes into one file (215 pages!) and posted that file onto “Journeys Home” and “Changing Bibles.” I think I also shared these notes onto my other eclectic blog, “Grace, Place, and the Like” on WordPress.

My initial resolution to read the Bible as a midlife project clearly got out of hand, but in a good way.

Some of my books.

High on the Okaw's Western Bank: Vandalia, Illinois, 1819-1839 (University of Illinois Press, 1992)
The Social Ontology of Karl Barth (International Scholars Publications, 1995)
Journeys Home (Self-Published, 1995)
"The Kentucky Council of Churches, 1947-1997," manuscript in the Filson Club, Louisville, KY.
Life and Letters of Paul: Galatians (Abingdon, 2000)
Mystery: Exploring the Mystery of God (Abingdon, 2002)
What Do Other Faiths Believe? (Abingdon, 2003)
You Gave Me a Wide Place: Holy Places of Our Lives (Upper Room Books, 2006)
What about Religion and Science (Abingdon, 2007)
What Does the Bible Say about Jesus (Abingdon 2008)
What Does the Bible Say about Life Together (Abingdon, 2008)
Celebrate the Newborn Jesus (Abingdon, 2009)
Walking with Jesus through the Old Testament: Devotions for Lent (Westminster John Knox Press, January 2016)
Faithful Citizen (principal author), FaithfulCitizen.net (Logos Productions, 2011).
Dreaming at the Electric Hobo, poetry chapbook (Finishing Line Press, 2015)
Little River, poetry chapbook (Finishing Line Press, 2017)
Small Corner of the Stars, poetry chapbook (Finishing Line Press, 2017)
Backyard Darwin, poetry chapbook (Finishing Line Press, 2019)
Walking Lorton Book, poetry book (Finishing Line Press, 2021)
Four Mile, poetry book (Finishing Line Press, 2022)
Galapagos Joy, poetry chapbook (Finishing Line Press, 2023)

Books and studies to which I've contributed.

Vandalia Bicentennial 1819-2019
Vandalia Remembered: Celebrating a City with a Capital Heritage, 1819-1994. Leader-Union Publishing Co., 1994.
Encyclopedia of Louisville. University Press of Kentucky, 2000
Becoming the People of God: Living Faithfully as Friends and Family. Abingdon Press, 2001.
Becoming the People of God: Caring for God's Earth. Abingdon Press, 2002.
Becoming the People of God: Walking Humbly, Doing Justice. Abingdon Press, 2002.
Becoming the People of God: Forming a Global Family. Abingdon Press, 2003.
Becoming the People of God: Opting for Virtue in Public Life. Abingdon Press, 2003.
Becoming the People of God: Working Together: Sharing the Bounty. Abingdon Press, 2003.
Living by the Word. Chalice Press, 2005.
Connecting Faith & Life in Hard Times: A FaithLink Feature. Abingdon Press, 2009.
FaithLink Feature: The Sandy Hook Shootings, 2012

My Other Sites

Although "Journeys Home" is my primary blog, I also have these sites:

My Instagram page is https://www.instagram.com/paulstroble/

"Grace, Place, and the Like," paulstroble.wordpress.com, is an "annex" of this "Journeys Home" site.

These sites are infrequently updated but hopefully are still interesting:

"Psalm 121," http://hundredtwentyfirstpsalm.com are my reveries and notes around my favorite psalm.

"Changing Bibles," changingbibles.blogspot.com are brief notes and informal studies of the Bible.

"Bible Connections," bibleconnections.wordpress.com, are essays that trace themes and connections across the Bible's books.

"The Love of Bible Study," theloveofbiblestudy.com are essays about the seasons when I perused the pages of my beat-up, 35-year-old Bible.

"I Will Dwell in the House of the Lord For Ever," a Tumblog of vintage postcards of church buildings. http://paulestroble.tumblr.com