Chapter 29 - Jeremiah and the Fall of Jerusalem

More doom... *heavy sigh*

Jeremiah lived during the reign of Josiah...

From wikipedia: "Nebuchadnezzar engaged in several military campaigns designed to increase Babylonian influence in Syria and Judah. An attempted invasion of Egypt in 601 BC was met with setbacks, however, leading to numerous rebellions among the states of the Levant, including Judah. Nebuchadnezzar soon dealt with these rebellions, capturing Jerusalem in 597 BC and deposing King Jeconiah, then in 587 BC due to rebellion, destroying both the city and the temple, and deporting many of the prominent citizens along with a sizable portion of the Jewish population of Judea to Babylon.[6] These events are described in the Prophets (Nevi'im) and Writings (Ketuvim), sections of the Hebrew Bible (in the books 2 Kings and Jeremiah, and 2 Chronicles, respectively)."

Ishmael and the rebels kill the governor, flee into Egypt taking Jeremiah, and flourish eventually responsible for the creation of the Septuagint.

The abuse of Jeremiah: in stocks, behind bars, down a cistern, sent to Egypt.

Why has the way of the wicked prospered? Why are all those who deal in treachery at ease? (assuming that God inevitably brings a curse to disobedience and a blessing to obedience)

Jeremiah lets it all come out: "Therefore, give their children over to famine
and deliver them up to the power of the sword; and let their wives become childless and widowed. Let their men also be smitten to death, their young men struck down by the sword in battle. May an outcry be heard from their houses, when You suddenly bring raiders upon them; for they have dug a pit to capture me and hidden snares for my feet. Yet You, O LORD, know all their deadly designs against me; do not forgive their iniquity or blot out their sin from Your sight but may they be overthrown before You; Deal with them in the time of Your anger!" (ouch)

Interesting opportunity here: The people are being hauled off to Babylon (now I have Bob Marley running through my head - oh well...). The people have become very attached to their land (country and city) and their temple. They should be attached to their God. The exile forces them to understand this: YHWH is not restricted to a place. YHWH will go with them and be with them wherever they go... even into Babylon.

The Law will be an inner reality, instead of an external code. ...an inner reality ...an external code. ...and external code: In God We Trust? ...an inner reality: respect the dignity of every person.

"Israel would never again be coterminous with any political unit or geographical area." -> until post-WWII when the new Israel is created. (I may sound anti-Israeli but I am more frustrating with their actions than anything)

Chapter 28 - The Deuteronomic Reform

Micah and the Book of Deuteronomy

Micah and Isaiah contemporaries. Micah from the country and Isaiah from the city.

The evil is in the cities: Samaria was responsible for the fall of Israel and Jerusalem is responsible for the sin of Judah.

Micah could be talking about the people of Wall Street: big business USA.

to do justice, to love kindness, to walk humbly with your God... sounds so simple.

Chapters 12-26 - archaeological discovery? The Book of the Law. It speaks to current conditions.

The speaking of an oracle versus the written word. The Lord was in the moment and now said to be in the written words. "Shattering significance"

Passover - ceased to be observed. Hard to imagine this. Passover is reestablished.

Book of Deuteronomy:
1. introduction 1-11
2. Deut. Code 12-26
3. appendix 27-30
4. continuation of the story of Israelite's march to Canaan 31-34

Probably from the north (displaced Israelites) into Judah. Probably based on older material.

Deuteronomy, "the gospel of the Old Testament" - often quoted in the New Testament.

Moses is speaking to the people of today: the covenant is not an event long past but a present relationship.

Sabbath: because of creation or because of redemption? Judaism becomes a religion in which social justice, equity, and decency occupy a central position (except when dealing with Palestinians in their own country)

6:4-5 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength."

שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָד - Shema Yisra'el YHWH Eloheinu YHWH Echad

The Gospel of Mark 12:29 mentions that Jesus considered the Shema the beginning exhortation of the first of his two greatest commandments: "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one." (NIV).

Necessity for purity: Israel must not be contaminated with the religions of other lands. Israel is commanded to destroy utterly the nations she finds in the land of Canaan (modern Israel is doing its best to carry this out - how sad)

Older law is stated in its original form and then amended to fit the new Deut. scheme.

The monarchy in ancient Israel was 'constitutional' where the Torah was the constitution and God was the King of Kings.

Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach... No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.

See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction.

Chapter 27 - Isaiah of Jerusalem

Amos and Hosea in the northern kingdom and, somewhat later, Isaiah and Micah in the southern kingdom.

Moral decay, oppression of the poor, arrogance of the wealthy...

Historical context: II Kings 15:1-20:19 (In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah began to reign...)

Syro-Ephraimitic War - war between Judah and the allies, Syria and Ephraim (Israel)

Ahaz (Judah) asks for Assyria's assistance against the Syro-Ephraimitic alliance and becomes a vassal of Assyria. Hoshea (Israel) wants an alliance with Egypt but Assyria (Shalmaneser) takes out Israel first... puts an end to Israel as a separate nation forever.

The Samaritans become a symbol to Jews of all that is vile, polluted, and contemptible and yet Samaria was the capital of Israel. Samaritans are neither Israelites nor pagans.

Hezekiah does a cleaning... religious reforms, high places torn down, Canaanite symbols destroyed, etc.

Isaiah: chapters 1-39, 40-55, 56-66 = I Isaiah, II Isaiah, III Isaiah

I Isaiah - pre-exilic writings

1st major division:1-12, 2nd major division: 13-23, 3rd major division: 28-31 - 24-27 an apocalyptic section from later, 34-36, 36-39 a Deut. history that duplicates II Kings 18:13-20:19.

...The ox knows his master, the donkey his owner's manger, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand. Stupid people!

Ah, sinful nation, a people loaded with guilt, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! Bad people!

Why should you be beaten anymore? <- I've been whacking on you for some time now but it ain't getting through.

Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.

parthenos versus almah - virgin versus young woman

The gift of a son - this one, unlike the one who was born of the "young woman," is a messianic figure. Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace - God made flesh? No.

Interesting to read this through Jewish eyes instead of Christian eyes.

YHWH is the reason for being and YHWH is the one whom we should trust.

No reference to the covenant with Moses. All attention directed to the covenant with David.

Chapter 26 - Amos and Hosea

I keep reading the title and wanting to say "Amos and Andy" ...oh well.

The role of prophecy - an ethical dimension - denouncing social injustices.

Religious syncretism. Religious syncretism!

God's justice demands the destruction of the people, but God's love for them invigorates a hope for their salvation.

Israel gets a major slap in the face: oppressions of the poor, violation of the family, wholesale social immorality... profanation of religious acts.

There are showy displays of religiosity for all to see... worship for the glorification of the people... scrupulously correct worship done in a spirit of blasphemy...

To seek YHWH means to seek justice and righteousness...

Some things never seem to change: let's put the word GOD on our money and in our public lives and let's put scripture here and there but justice and righteousness? Pffft.... as long as I have my health care I don't want to pay more taxes for someone else to have health care.

Prepare to meet you God! It will be as though a man fled from a lion only to meet a bear!

I cannot stand your assemblies... I will not accept your offerings... I will have no regard for your offerings... I will not listen to the music of your harps...

But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!

Pretty harsh stuff here.

Amos doesn't hold back anything: 'Your wife will become a prostitute in the city, and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword. Your land will be measured and divided up, and you yourself will die in a pagan country. And Israel will certainly go into exile, away from their native land.'

As I read this I was reminded of how much we like to quote scripture that proves our point and how much we tend to ignore scripture that might actually have something to tell us.

Amos slams the Capitalists: "When will the New Moon be over that we may sell grain, and the Sabbath be ended that we may market wheat?" — skimping the measure, boosting the price and cheating with dishonest scales, buying the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, selling even the sweepings with the wheat.

The above makes me think of recent Wall Street activities.

So YHWH will tear it all down in order to build it all back up again.

"The days are coming," declares the LORD, "when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman and the planter by the one treading grapes. New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills. I will bring back my exiled [g] people Israel; they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them," says the LORD your God. <- although these are not the words of Amos.

* * * Hosea * * *

Idolatry is evil not simply because it is idolatry but because of the moral BLINDNESS it produces in the people.

When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.
...it was I who healed them...and bent down to feed them...all my compassion is aroused...
I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim. For I am God, and not man — the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath.

God's grace.

Chapter 25 - Elijah and Elisha

...brought to Judah by Israelites fleeing from the Assyrians.

Micaiah - oracle (inquire) "religious sanction for a political move"

Call
Speech
Action
Inspiration

Elijah, ranked second only to Moses.

YHWH is to come to the people to reclaim them, to establish himself as God and to turn their hearts back (repentance).

Elijah and Fire.

Elisha as Elijah's successor.

YHWH reaching outside of Judah and Israel to other nations: Syria.

Elijah & Elisha: prophets of the 9th century
Amos & Hosea: prophets of the 8th century

Hmmm... I expected more from a chapter about these two guys. I confess I am disappointed.

Chapter 24 - The Divided Kingdom

"In reading the book of Kings, we encounter an interpretation of events which sees all that happens to the nation as the result of its faithfulness or unfaithfulness to YHWH."


Solomon...

- breaks down tribal loyalties
- defines twelve administrative districts
- builds national structure
- imposes unbearable burdens on the people for the support of the royal court

Contrast: David versus Solomon

"The narrator cannot imagine that anything as important as ... could occur for merely political reasons or because of the foolishness of one imprudent individual."

IT MUST BE GOD'S WILL!

North - tribal - conservative. South - monarchy or "royal theology" - novelty.

What kinds of changes are necessary and permissible to preserve religious heritage in the face of changing circumstances?

Chapter 23 - David The King

(I have fallen behind on my reading and posting)

I am "enjoying" this chapter. I can relate the concepts of Father & Son and King and People to Christian meanings. YHWH & David and the YHWH & Solomon. Interesting to watch how the realities of life (politics - monarchy) interfere with the theology.

Love the physical temple versus temple in the hearts of the people discussion. God's people on the march versus Israel, the preservers of an immovable and changeless shrine. Is this modern Israel's current problem?

The house was wrong for David but it is in order for Solomon: theological shifts.

Good reading