From Genesis to Revelation

Ezekiel 1-12: Ezekiel Makes a Case for Performing Arts?

2010-10-05T13:02:00.000-04:00

So now we skip to Ezekiel. At this point in my reading, I was relieved because Jeremiah was so depressing, and Ezekiel starts on a high note, what with the awesome visions of God and the cherubim and everything. But it goes downhill from there.

Okay, so the visions. There are two of them, and they very closely mirror John's vision of the throne of God in Revelation. I've heard that ancient Jewish boys were not allowed to read Ezekiel until they were 30 because these visions were considered way too transcendent to be grasped by the young mind or something like that, but I'm not sure if that's true. Most of what Ezekiel describes, interestingly enough, is not the appearance of God but the appearance of the cherubim. They are weird freaky creatures! They have four faces and four wings and are covered with eyes and have something like hands under their wings and there are these wheel things with them that move when they do, and somehow their spirits are contained within the wheels. It kind of makes me want to try drawing a picture of it just so I can get an idea of what he's talking about, because I'm really not sure how the wheel idea works. Fortunately, though, I don't have to, because a bunch of other people already did. I did a Google Image Search for "Ezekiel cherubim" and found some interesting stuff. Most of them forgot to add the eyes though.

Now when God calls Ezekiel to be a prophet, it's pretty interesting what He says. He tells Ezekiel to speak to the house of Israel whether they will listen or not (2:7 and 3:11). But then He says that at some point He will tell Ezekiel -not- to speak to anybody. Apparently, our responsibility to do what God tells us does not depend on the immediate results we get.

The other interesting thing about these chapters, to me, is the stuff God has Ezekiel do to get his message out. First he tells Ezekiel to build a model of Jerusalem and lay siege against it, to show that Jerusalem will be under siege soon. Then he has him lie down next to it and not get up for 390 days (he makes food ahead of time), and then again not for 40 days, corresponding to the number of years that Israel and Judah (respectively) have been walking in iniquity, as best as I can figure. And during that time he's supposed to eat his food baked using human, um, excrement. Ezekiel is really grossed out by this and God says he can use animal dung instead. But ew! all the same. Then later, God tells Ezekiel to pack up and dig through a wall and go out into exile to show Jerusalem that's what's going to happen to him.

Can you imagine if you saw a grown man make a Lego model of your town and then start attacking it? That would be weird. Or if he lay in the dirt for over a year, eating only what he had brought with him? That would be disturbing. That was Ezekiel's job.

The neat thing about this is that God is using something besides just preaching to get a message across. He's using visual representation and physically acting out the prophecy in a symbolic way. Hey, that sounds an awful lot like drama! Ezekiel has become, in a very weird sense, a performing artist prophet.

This probably isn't the number one thing you're supposed to get out of reading Ezekiel 1-12, but for me, as a performing artist, it really stuck out. There is a growing movement in the Western Church to use creative elements to worship God or to spread the gospel or to teach a biblical lesson. I think the reaction to it so far has been pretty mixed. Drama is probably the most accepted art form (next to music, obviously, although there are denominations which don't believe in using musical instruments); visual art and dance, on the other hand, are a little iffy. Don't believe me? Go to a Catholic or high-tradition Protestant (like Lutheran or Episcopal) church and look at how much visual material there is (stained glass windows, etc.). Then go to a lower-tradition Protestant church (such as Baptist or non-denominational) and look at how much visual material is there - I'm guessing that the most you'll see in the sanctuary is a cross somewhere. This is, of course, because of the 2nd commandment - don't make an image to represent God so that you have something physical to worship. Ever since the Iconoclast Controversy in the Catholic church, many Christians have been concerned that all that visual material leads to worship of that material.

Dancing, though, is probably the most iffy art there is for Christians. For so many centuries it was denounced by the Church or important leaders within the Church, although there were always some who objected to demonizing the art as a whole. A few years ago I read an article that's actually fairly recent arguing that dance, while not inherently evil, probably always leads to bad things - the author claimed that it was the Israelites' dancing that angered Moses and caused him to break the original 10 Commandments, and even blamed Michal's anger at David's behavior on David! As a dancer, I found this incredibly disturbing. Fortunately, I think that with the rise of dance ministries (more than even the rise of Christian dance companies), people in the church are beginning to see dance as simply a visual, physical way of expressing an idea or emotion, and that expression can be worship.

Anyway, so back to Ezekiel. It's just comforting to see that the things we're just now figuring out, Ezekiel was commanded by God to do. He was using art, as it were, to tell a story or to present a message. That is the purpose of art - not to be worshiped or even to draw attention to itself, but to tell you something about real life. Art has a way of breaking down barriers. A lot of people will not listen to a sermon, or if they hear something that starts to sound like one, they'll just close their ears. The arts have the ability to reach beyond our defenses and speak straight to our hearts, sometimes without us even knowing it at first. That's why they're so powerful, and maybe that's why God had Ezekiel do this.

Or, you know, maybe He was saying it's okay to let your kids play in the dirt.

Jeremiah 46-52: Prophecies against Other Nations

2010-09-21T13:01:00.000-04:00

What's interesting to me about the prophets is that they have prophecies to other nations (that is, besides Israel and Judah) at all. After all, Israel and Judah are the nations God sent them to. So I think in a way these prophecies were for their benefit, to show them that God wasn't just picking on them, and also that the nations around them who were corrupt or whatever would get punished too. Also there are asides in some of these that are directly for the Jews - for instance, at the end of the prophecy against Egypt God tells his own people that even though he's going to destroy Egypt, he's going to save the nation of Israel - they're going to be punished, but not wiped out completely.

The other interesting thing to me about these prophesies are that sometimes God says he's going to completely destroy a nation - such as Kedar and Hazor and Babylon - but with some of the other nations, God promises eventual restoration. He says, "I will restore the fortunes of _____" sometime in the future, and he says it of Moab, Ammon, and Elam. I have no idea who Elam is, but Moab and Ammon were the sons of Lot's daughters (and also of Lot . . . eww), so they were kind of cousins to the Israelites. So that's kind of neat I guess.

In the prophecy against Babylon, God promises to return Judah to the promised land and that in those days "search will be made for the iniquity of Israel, but there will be none; and for the sins of Judah, but they will not be found; for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant."

The wording at the end of that sentence is very important for Christians, I think - "for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant." I have been reflecting recently on the difference between a pardon and an exoneration in legal terminology. When a defendant is exonerated, it means that it is officially declared they did not commit the crime and therefore cannot be charged for it; they are innocent. A pardon is when a person who has already been convicted of a crime is forgiven of that crime. It's still understood that they were guilty of the crime, but they no longer have to serve the consequences of doing it (jail time or whatever it is).

When we are saved, we are not exonerated. God, for whatever reason, doesn't remove our pasts and make it so that we never sinned. He also doesn't pretend like we never sinned (God doesn't pretend, I don't think). Instead he gives us a pardon: he says "yes, you did these crimes against me, but you are no longer responsible for the punishment - I'll take care of that." He frees us from our prisons and lets us live again. And it's not because we deserved it.

Some people might think it's unjust of God to pardon criminals, especially if they don't do anything to deserve that pardon. God is just - he does require that the debt be paid - but it was paid by Jesus when he shed his innocent blood in our place. God is just, but he is also merciful, and he loves us so much that he made a way to come to us when we lacked the strength to go to him. The great thing about God is, and Jeremiah 51 makes this point, nobody can tell God he did the wrong thing and get him in trouble for it. When I was in college, my history professor was the chair of the history department. He would cancel class from time to time when he was going to visit his grandchildren out of state or something like that. And nobody could tell him not to, because he was the head of his department (I guess the dean or vice president or president could've told him not to, but on the other hand he'd been there longer than any of them put together so they pretty much let him do things the way he wanted). There's nobody above God. He gets to make the rules. That would be a scary thought if you didn't trust God. If you believe that God is good and just, then it's a comfort.

In chapter 52, the fall of Jerusalem is described again, including the blinding of Zedekiah and the murder of his sons (not in that order). But at the very end it says that Jehoiachin, who was the king of Judah before Pharaoh put Zedekiah up, finds favor with the king of Babylon (this is after Nebuchadnezzar), and the king restores him to his former title, although he stays in Babylon, and he gets to eat at the king's table the rest of his life. I don't really know why the king of Babylon did that or what affect it had on Jehoiachin or the people of Judah, but I think it's a nice note to end such a depressing book on.

Jeremiah 39-45: Consequences of Disobedience

2010-09-07T12:48:00.000-04:00

We've now reached the part of the story where it all hits the fan, and a lot of the stuff Jeremiah has been warning and prophesying about, happens.

First, the wall of Jerusalem is finally breached after a siege that lasted over a year. Nebuchadnezzar's men overtake the city; King Zedekiah and his whole army try to sneak out, but the Chaldeans capture them.

Now let's review what Jeremiah advised Zedekiah to do: give yourself to the King of Babylon, basically surrender, and you'll be okay. Zedekiah did not do that. So now what happens is actually worse, I think, than just dying would have been: Nebuchadnezzar kills Zedekiah's sons right in front of him, and then blinds Zedekiah. Imagine that - the last thing he saw was his children being brutally slaughtered. That is harsh. And Zedekiah is chained up and carried into captivity with just about everybody else. Then the walls of Jerusalem are broken down and the city is burned.

Jeremiah, for some reason, is treated differently. Nebuchadnezzar tells Nebuzaradan, the captain of his bodyguard, to do to Jeremiah whatever Jeremiah says he should. So Jeremiah asks to remain in Jerusalem with the new governor-type guy of Judah that Nebuchadnezzar has appointed. His name is Gedaliah.

Now I think Gedaliah is an okay guy. He tells the Israelites what Jeremiah was telling them all along: don't be afraid of being under the Chaldeans (that's Babylon, remember); just stay here (the few who were not taken into exile) and things will go well for you. So a bunch of Jews who had run off actually returned to the land.

But now there's this guy named Ishmael. I don't know who he is, but some guy named Johanan confides in Gedaliah that Ishmael is planning to assassinate him (Gedaliah), but Gedaliah thinks it's a lie so he doesn't do anything about it. And sure enough, Ishmael goes and kills him a short time later. He also kills a bunch of other people and takes captive all the people who are left in Jerusalem and starts to take them to Ammon. I have no idea why. Was Ishmael an Ammonite, or just really screwed up? But Johanan, the guy who had warned Gedaliah, takes some men and chases after Ishmael and gets all the captives back. So that's good at least.

But now the people who are still in Judah are a little freaked out at what's happening. They think it will be a really good idea to go to the one country that's been their ally for quite some time, Egypt (isn't that ironic after Exodus?). And when you think about it, that does sound like a good idea. Jerusalem has been burned; there's basically nothing and almost nobody left in the whole country, and the ones who are there are poor and helpless and now leaderless because their king has been exiled and the leader left to replace him has just been murdered, and who knows who's going to lead them now. Egypt is rich and prosperous and they figure they can hide out there until things are going better in Judah and they can return.

So they ask Jeremiah if this is a good idea, and promise - actually they vow - to do whatever God says they ought to do, whether it's what they want to do or not. Kind of weird that now they say they're going to listen to God. What I find interesting about the exchange between the Israelites and Jeremiah is that they petition him to ask "the LORD your God," as if He's not their God too, and Jeremiah replies that he will pray to "the LORD your God," as if he's reminding them that He is. I don't know if that's the reason for the "yours" or if that's just the way they happened to say it, but I find it interesting nonetheless.

God's response to the go-to-Egypt scheme is, don't do it. Stay where you are and I'll take care of you, but if you go to Egypt, the enemies of Egypt will invade and you're going to die. That is a pretty straightforward answer. Now remember that oath the Jews just took to do whatever God said? Yeah, they totally ignore that and say they're going to do what they want to do, because they think the reason all this bad stuff has happened is because they stopped sacrificing to pagan gods. So they go down to Egypt anyway, and Jeremiah goes with them, and while in Egypt, Jeremiah prophesies the conquest of Egypt and destruction for the Jews who are there. The only person whose promised life is Baruch, the guy who wrote Jeremiah's prophesies down a few chapters ago. But that's about all he's going to get.

In light of what happened to Zedekiah and Jerusalem, you'd think the people would listen to Jeremiah. After all, he's been right so far. And I think they go to him for help because deep down they know he's right. The trouble is, sometimes when we've made up our minds to do something, it doesn't matter whether we know we're right or wrong; we're going to do what we want to do and nothing can stop us. I'm starting to think this is a bad attitude to have.

The other thing I learned from this story is, sometimes God calls us into dangerous and unpleasant situations. It made sense to go to Egypt. It would seem, from a practical standpoint, like the wise, prudent, and safe thing to do. But God's wisdom confounds ours, and sometimes the things He wants us to do seem like foolishness to us and those around us. Apparently God's not concerned with whether His ideas pass our test of "this makes sense." He wants our obedience whether obedience makes sense or not, and whether it seems like a good idea or not. The consequences of obedience may not be fame and prosperity and riches - they certainly weren't for Jeremiah and Baruch. But the consequences of disobedience are far, far worse.

Jeremiah 30-38: More of the Same

2010-09-04T12:52:00.000-04:00

There are two main points to this passage: 1) the future deliverance of Israel and Judah, and 2) Jeremiah gets in trouble for telling people that Babylon is going to conquer Jerusalem. It's kind of a recurring theme in this book, if you haven't noticed.

I really like this one passage in chapter 30 though. Check this out:
"For thus says the LORD, 'Your wound is incurable, And your injury is serious. There is no one to plead your cause; No healing for your sore, No recovery for you. . . . Why do you cry out over your injury? Your pain is incurable. Because your iniquity is great And your sins are numerous, I have done these things to you. . . . I will restore you to health, And I will heal you of your wounds,' declares the LORD" (30:12-13, 15, 17a).

Basically every religion or philosophy in the history of religion has treated sin/evil as a problem that we need to overcome in order to be acceptable to God. A lot of them treat it as something caused by something external to us - pleasure, society, ignorance, lack of resources, etc., and if we could just eliminate those things, we would be perfect. But that's really wishful thinking. Sin is a problem that is inside of us, inside of me. I can remove myself from situations that tempt me to sin, but I cannot remove sin from within me. In short, I can't make myself perfect. Neither can you. You can try all you want, but I promise you'll never succeed. And here the Bible says this problem, this "wound," is incurable. That's depressing, right? But then it says that God will heal us, will remove the sickness. Christianity - true Christianity - is the one religion in which it is God who makes man acceptable, not man who cleans himself up for God. God chose to meet us where we are - not halfway or three-fourths of the way or almost there - He came all the way to where we are, broken and bleeding and utterly sick inside, touched us as we were in that state, and took the plague on Himself so we could be free of it. That's the gospel.

There's a lot in this passage about God restoring Israel, about His faithfulness to her, including the famous verse "I have loved you with an everlasting love" (31:3a). God promises to make a new covenant with His people, putting His laws within them in their hearts, and forgiving all their sins. Once again, the problem of sin is addressed - God gave people the Law, but they didn't follow it. Was there something wrong with the Law? No, the problem was with the people. The Law was outside them, and in their hearts they were still lawless. We don't need more laws or new laws, we need new hearts. That is what God gives us when we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

Now, this is the part where it switches gears. In chapter 32, King Zedekiah gets really fed up with Jeremiah and imprisons him, probably because Jeremiah was telling everybody that Nebuchadnezzar would conquer them and they should surrender, and now Jerusalem is under seige. Jeremiah calls out to God, and God responds by telling him again what He is going to do - Nebuchadnezzar is going to capture the city and burn it, this is a punishment for all the sin of Judah, there is going to be a remnant preserved, and God will restore them to the promised land and set up a righteous King over Judah (pretty sure He means Jesus). But in the mean time, he tells Jeremiah to tell Zedekiah what's in store for him: he's going to be captured, but not killed by Nebuchadnezzar (although honestly, what happens to him is probably worse than dying).

Oh, there's an interesting story in here that I want to mention. God tells Jeremiah to invite some people over and serve them wine. Jeremiah does so, but they say they can't drink wine because their whole family from generations back is under an oath not to drink wine or live in houses or grow vineyards, and they've all kept it. God blesses these people (they're called Rechabites) for their obedience and uses them as a foil, of sorts, of Israel. Here you have a bunch of people whose ancestors gave an oath to their father not to do some arbitrary stuff that isn't even wrong to do, and they've kept it all these years. Israel, on the other hand, took a similar oath to obey God, and not do stuff that was actually bad, and they haven't kept it all no matter how hard God has tried to steer them back on track. It's not like it was impossible to follow God's laws - the Rechabites have illustrated that it is possible to keep an oath your ancestors made - they just didn't do it.

So then there's another run-in with Zedekiah. Jeremiah has this other guy named Baruch (Baruch is one of the few Hebrew words I know; it means "bless" or "blessed") write all his prophecies in a scroll, take it to the temple, and read it. Some officials overhear him and want to take the message to the king, but they tell Baruch to hide while they take the scroll to Zedekiah. It's a good thing they told him to do this, because when Zedekiah hears the scroll read, he cuts it up and throws it into the fire and gives orders to seize Baruch and Jeremiah. Luckily they stay hidden.

I wonder if the officials who heard Baruch really thought Zedekiah would listen to the scroll? After all, he had just thrown Jeremiah in prison.

Later, Jeremiah is trying to take a trip, and he's captured because a guard thinks he's defecting to the Chaldeans (that's Babylon). They put him in jail, but King Zedekiah sends for him. This is where things get interesting. Zedekiah is the guy who threw Jeremiah in prison and burned up his scroll, but now it starts to seem like Zedekiah actually wants to listen to Jeremiah. The two men talk, and Zedekiah gives Jeremiah a little bit more freedom (confines him to the guardhouse) and commands him to be given a ration of bread for as long as there's any bread in Jerusalem. Then later, some guys hear Jeremiah preaching and throw him into a cistern, which is basically a well that's gone dry (well, mostly dry). But some guy finds out and reports it to Zedekiah, and Zedekiah orders him to be taken out of the well and has another interview with him. We find out that Zedekiah is really just afraid of the Jews. Some of them have gone over to the Chaldeans and Zedekiah is afraid that if he surrenders to Nebuchadnezzar, he's going to be turned over to them. Jeremiah tells him that won't happen and that it'll be in his best interests to surrender now. Zedekiah sounds like he believes him, but he makes Jeremiah promise not to tell anybody what they've talked about, and he doesn't follow Jeremiah's instructions because he's afraid of his officials.

I think I know what's going on here. See, Zedekiah is not actually the rightful king of Judah. He was set up by Nebuchadnezzar in place of Josiah's son Jehoiachin, but Jehoiachin is still alive. I think Zedekiah is worried that if he does anything to upset the delicate balance that is Jerusalem right now, he's going to get fired, either by Nebuchadnezzar or by his own people. I think he's worried that the people haven't fully embraced him as the real king and that if he surrenders to Nebuchadnezzar that will be even more proof of weakness. I think that is why he's acting like this.

The trouble is, decisions that are motivated by fear are rarely wise, especially if you know that they aren't the right decisions. I'm pretty sure Zedekiah knew Jeremiah was right, based on what I read in this passage. But he was afraid to do the right thing, and to me, that means he was a weak king and didn't deserve his throne. Doing the right thing is usually very difficult and sometimes brings about lots of opposition. Sometimes our circumstances are such that it's also risky to do the right thing. But easy or not, safe or not, wise or not, God calls us to obedience, and God blesses obedience like he blessed the Rechabites. Maybe if Zedekiah had more faith in God, he would've had the courage to obey Him.

Jeremiah 20-29: Jeremiah in Danger

2010-08-08T19:38:00.000-04:00

Once again, apologies for the hiatus. When I get really far ahead in my reading I'm further discouraged from posting, so I've started just rereading the part I'm supposed to blog about until I get to blogging. Smart, eh? We'll see.

So this is the part where we learn a little bit about Jeremiah's life. And it's not a very fun life. Some priest named Pashhur puts Jeremiah in the stocks in chapter 20, and in chapter 26 people actually try to kill him. Between those events, he apparently has to take his message of impending doom to other nations besides Israel and Judah, and I can only imagine that he wasn't entirely well received. All in all, I think Jeremiah got a pretty raw deal as far as career satisfaction goes, and he knew it. In chapter 20 he gives this long complaint to God, and it actually starts by claiming that God deceived him. It talks about all the crap he has to endure from all the people who won't listen to him, and just about the terrible nature of the prophecies he's been commanded to speak. But somehow in all that, Jeremiah finds the courage or faith or perseverance or something to say this:

"But the LORD is with me like a dread champion; Therefore my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. . . . Sing to the LORD, praise the LORD! For He has delivered the soul of the needy one From the hand of the evildoers." From there he goes on to wish that he'd never been born and stuff like that, but still, that he can somehow praise God in the midst of what he's been going through, is pretty amazing to me.

The other main thing that stuck out to me in this passage was that after all God has said about destruction and punishment and judgment and wrath, we get a very clear message that He is willing - wanting - to relent. First all we see is that God promises to spare the people if they will flee Jerusalem and give themselves over to Nebuchadnezzar. I can understand how the Israelites would not have taken that message well; it kind of sounds like treason, really. I think that God wanted to cleanse not just the people but the land of Israel. If you remember way back to the Law, the people were supposed to let the land lie fallow every seven years to rest, and apparently Israel did that about . . . zero times . . . which, if you know anything about agriculture, isn't actually good for the soil. Part of the reason (not the main reason) Israel went into exile was to give the earth a chance to replenish itself.

But then if you flip over to chapter 26, God tells the people that if they repent and turn away from evil, he will not cause all the destruction He is planning. Jeremiah tells this to the people again when they've seized him and want to kill him. This message reminds me of 2 Chronicles 7:14, which states that if the people do evil and reap all the curses God promised in the covenant, then if they will just repent, God will hear and forgive them and heal the land. They could have avoided the 70 years in exile, not to mention all the horrific things that happened during the conquest of Judah, if only they had repented and started following God's laws. Why did they need to follow God's laws so much, you ask? Because they made a covenant with Him to do so. And this covenant was binding to all generations, not just the people who stood before Mt. Sinai. The people fully expected God to keep up His end of the bargain - they went to the temple to ask Him to save them from Nebuchadnezzar and so forth - but they didn't have any intention of keeping their end of the covenant, which was service to God. I think this is very applicable to the way we treat God today. We ask Him for stuff, we ask for His help, we ask for His blessing, but we do it sometimes without any intention of changing the things in our lives that we know He doesn't like. How is that fair?

Now, since Israel has not listened to God, God is going to send them into exile, but that doesn't mean their lives have to be miserable there. This is something I find weird and interesting: God tells the people to pray for the welfare of the city where they are living in exile, because "in its welfare you will have welfare." I think that for those of us who are trying to understand the place of patriotism or nationalism in light of being citizens of the kingdom of heaven, this is really relevant. This world is not our home, and the country and city we're living in isn't our home either (at least not permanently), but God has placed us here for a time, for a reason, and while we're here we are to desire the good of the place we're living.

There are a few Messianic prophesies in this passage. The first (chapter 23) uses a shepherd metaphor, and I love the language that is used in verse 4. In contrast to the current leaders of Israel who are destroying the flock (the people) and causing them harm, God promises one day to raise up shepherds who will care for the flock and watch over them so they won't be afraid anymore, and none of them will be missing. I don't know if this specifically is a Messianic reference or not, because it uses a plural for "shepherds," but I just love that idea of sheep - who are one of the most paranoid animals ever (like, they're afraid of running water) - not being afraid anymore. And also how sheep have this tendency to wander off, but none of them will be missing. But right after this it talks about raising up a righteous Branch who will reign as king over Israel and whose name will be "The LORD our righteousness." I love that name (without looking it up, I think that it is Jehovah Tsikendu.) And later in chapter 24, it says that God will give the people a heart to know Him, and that they will be His people and He will be their God. This is important because God has done just about everything conceivable to make Himself known to Israel, but so far nothing has worked, at least not for long. The problem is that we need a new heart, a heart that seeks God.

I have to mention chapter 29 because it has one of the most famous verses in Jeremiah, Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the plans I have for you . . . plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Now He's talking specifically to Judah here, and even more specifically, He's referring to what will happen after their 70 years of exile are over. But I'm sure that this verse still has bearing to all of God's people anyway. But what I love even more are the verses that come immediately after verse 11. Starting in verse 12 it says, "'Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you,' declares the LORD." Right now, the people do not seek God, although they do seek His blessing, and they don't serve Him with their hearts, although they do with their mouths. God promises that the exile, this punishment for sin He is brining, will cause them to turn around and become a people who seek God wholeheartedly. I think that sometimes God causes unpleasant and even bad things to happen to us to get our attention, but even more than that, to change us inside, to make us more into the kind of people we need to be to have a relationship with Him. We have to seek Him and call on Him and pray to Him and search for Him, not just say we belong to Him and expect Him to show up like a genie whenever we're in trouble. So maybe when bad things happen to us, instead of necessarily praying for the bad stuff to end, we should pray for God to teach us or change us or do to us whatever He's trying to accomplish through the bad stuff.

Finally, I want to mention one other thing that is underlined in my Bible. And incidentally, they all have something to do with knowing God. The first is 22:15-16, which states: "'Did not your father eat and drink And do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He pled the cause of the afflicted and needy; Then it was well. Is not that what it means to know Me?' Declares the LORD." This reminds me of a verse in Micah that we'll get to eventually. It sounds like in God's perspective, knowing Him is as simple as doing the right thing (do justice and righteousness, plead the cause of the afflicted and needy) as you live your life (eat and drink). Sometimes we over-complicate matters, I think. We think that God's will is this abstract, really obtuse thing that we have to be super spiritual to understand. Maybe sometimes things can be simple. Just do the right thing, and that will bring you closer to God. I like that.

Jeremiah 11-19: Brokenness

2010-07-13T01:19:00.001-04:00

I feel really bad about getting so behind on these things. It's just hard to blog about the prophets, like I said before. I feel like I'm saying the same thing over and over. I wonder if God felt that way when saying all this stuff to the prophets?

Chapter 11 is about how Israel has broken their covenant with God. Covenant were an ancient oath ritual thing, very formal contracts that had specific terms and often very harsh consequences for breaking the covenant. Israel has broken their terms of covenant, which were to remain faithful to God and worship Him only, basically. Not only this, but the people actually refuse to listen to God or turn back to Him. They don't want to be part of the God of Abraham's people anymore. For this reason, God tells Jeremiah that he is not even supposed to grieve for the destruction that will come on Israel and Judah. That would be very hard for me to obey.

Meanwhile, some people think it would be way more fun if Jeremiah weren't around, so there are some plots against his life, but God is protecting him from anything serious so far.

In chapter 12, we see again God's disgust with his chosen people who have rejected Him. He says He is actually going to abandon them and forsake them - whoa, what? The Bible actually says that? Yes, it actually does. God uses some very harsh language in the prophets, because He is flipping fed up with chasing after people who want nothing to do with Him. So He's going to uproot them, cut them off, make their land desolate.

But . . .

The story doesn't end there. After God does all this, He is going to bring them back, restore them, and bless them. And when He does, then they will follow Him whole-heartedly. I don't know if this is a reference to the coming of Christ, or to the eventual and ultimate restoration of Israel in the Day of the Lord. Because Messiah has come, and the people of Israel didn't recognize or accept Him.

I think that we know more about Jeremiah as a person than we do about any other prophet who wrote a book. Jeremiah (the book) is full of prayers of Jeremiah (the person), either laments over the state of his nation, or pleas with God to remember him and deliver him from his enemies, etc. We find out about some of the plots against him, and we also find out that God didn't let him get married or have kids. Bummer. There are some people in the world that it seems God calls to live a really hard life. Jeremiah did not have a fun life. Jeremiah did not have a lot of friends. His only delight was in God. He says in chapter 15, "Your words were found and I ate them, And Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart, For I have been called by Your name." If we had no joy in life, would we be able to find delight in God? That is something I wonder about myself. Do I give praise to God because He makes my life fun and happy and successful, or because He is goodness and joy itself?

God uses some harsh words about Israel and Judah, like I said before. He says that even if Moses and Samuel (the epitome of obedience to God, right?) were to plead with Him on behalf of the Jews, God would not listen or have compassion on them. And this is saying a lot because Moses did plead with God on behalf of Israel more than once, and in each of those cases God relented from the punishment He was about to give. So Judah is in a pretty bad state right now if not even Moses can change His mind.

But . . .

There is something that could change God's mind, and that something is repentance. He says, "If you return, then I will restore you." No matter how far gone you are - even if you've become so corrupt that Moses himself could't argue a case for you - God will forgive you in a heartbeat if you simply turn away from a life of rebellion and submit to Him. It's that simple. Why don't we do that more often?

Chapter 17 has a famous verse about the heart: "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; Who can know it?" My translation, the NASB, says that the heart is "desperately sick." I think this is a better word image than what the KJV gives for the condition of our hearts. We have a disease; it is called sin. No matter what we do, we cannot rid ourselves of this inner illness, and what's worse, it is terminal. Our sin is going to kill us.

But . . .

There is a cure. There is one Doctor who knows how to treat this disease, a miracle surgeon who can take out all the nasty cancerous blackness and replace it with something good. "Heal me, O LORD, and I will be healed; Save me and I will be saved," says Jeremiah. There is only one way not to die of sin, and that is to die to sin by subjecting ourselves to the rule of God in our lives. What does that look like? Well, it kind of looks like clay being shaped into a pot, and God gives Jeremiah a visual of this by sending him down to a potter's house. The potter is making a pot, and as sometimes happens in pottery, the thing just isn't turning out . If you've ever tried your hand at pottery, you've experienced this - sometimes for whatever reason, the shape becomes such that you really can't fix it no matter what you do. So you have to smash the clay back into a ball and star over. This is what happens with the potter Jeremiah watches - the pot is ruined, so the potter starts over with the clay and makes something new, and that works. This is what God is going to do to Israel. They've become spoiled; they can't be repaired or patched or reshaped anymore because it's just patches on patches and sticking your finger in a dike, so to speak. It's not going to work. So God has to bring Israel down to the lowest possible point - He has to break her - in order to remake her into something new.

That is the gospel. Sin has screwed us up beyond the point of repair; you can't slap a bandaid on an amputee and expect it to help. If we are ever to become whole, we actually first have to become broken. It's like when you break a bone, and it heals improperly, so then you go to the doctor to get it set and he has to re-break the bone in order to put it where it belongs. It's a horrible, painful procedure, but it is the only treatment. Brokenness is the only means to our cure. That is what God is doing with Israel and Judah here - He's not just saying all this stuff about forsaking and destroying because He's done with them and is going to leave them in a pile of bones somewhere. All this doom and gloom stuff has a purpose, and the purpose is to break Israel and Judah of their pride so they will return to following God. And it actually worked; after the exile to Babylon, Israel remained monotheistic. It was in Babylon that the Old Testament was compiled and copied. To this day, the Jews have a strong attachment to their religion and the God of their fathers. Unfortunately, as a whole they missed God's biggest blessing to them, their long-awaited Messiah.

Finally, one more broken thing. God has Jeremiah take a jar out in the open and break it to foretell that destruction is coming to Jerusalem. Another nation will come in and conquer the city and the nation, and they will demolish Jerusalem.

What do we learn about this passage? First of all, there is a punishment for turning your back on God. God is serious when He lays down consequences; He really means it when He says bad things will happen to you. Think about that before hastily agreeing to follow Him - because He's going to ask a lot of you.

Secondly, though, we learn that God is merciful, and that in spite of all His anger and frustration with these crazy people, He is willing and even eager to forgive them; in fact, everything He is doing to punish Israel is for the purpose of restoration.

I wrote in my journal once that we are like broken pieces of glass, and God can take all those broken pieces and shape them into something new and beautiful. It's not something we can do ourselves (we're the broken pieces, remember?) - it's something only God can do. And the amazing thing is, no matter how broken you were when you started, the thing He will make you into will actually be better than what you started as. And that's a pretty awesome thing.

Jeremiah 1-10: A Book of Bad News, Mostly

2010-06-15T02:02:00.000-04:00

I know, I know; I'm so behind. But I'm in the prophets, and the prophets are so depressing that it's hard to want to write about them. Jeremiah is no exception.

I like the way Jeremiah starts. The first thing that God says to Jeremiah when He calls him is "before I formed you in the womb I knew you; And before you were born I consecrated you." Even though immediately Jeremiah protests that he's only a kid and doesn't know how to speak (sound familiar?), God says that He is going to send him and tell him what to say and put the right words in his mouth. Do you ever pray for God to put words in your mouth? I do, because half the time I feel like I have no clue what is the right thing to say. A lot of the stuff God tells Jeremiah is to encourage him, which I think was really necessary, because 1) like the rest of the prophets, Israel and Judah didn't listen to him at all, and 2) Jeremiah is not only a depressing book, but he was a very sad person. He is called the "weeping prophet" because he was so heartbroken over what happened to Israel and Judah. Imagine, on top of that, having to tell all the people why their homeland is being destroyed, and them not listening to you! I would have been a weeping prophet too, I think.

Here are some of the notes I wrote in my margins:

2:27 - the context of this verse is saying that people will make up an idol that they form with their own hands and believe that it created them, but then when trouble comes they turn to God and ask Him to save them. At least I think that's what this particular verse means. What I wrote in my margins was the date 9/11/2001. When the Twin Towers were attacked on September 11, a lot of people turned to God. But it didn't seem to me like that lasted very long. We think about God whenever a disaster strikes - whether we turn to Him in repentance or anger, in genuine faith or in a temporary shift of focus, it seems like bad things can't happen without us acknowledging God in some way.

3:5 says that "you [Israel] have done evil things, and you have had your way." In my notes I wrote: "God does not force our obedience - he'll let us do what we want - have it 'our way' - if we so choose." This, to me, is a sobering thought. Sometimes I think that God won't let me do what's not in His plan for me. But I think the truth is that if my heart is really focused on doing what I want - which is a state of rebellion toward God - sometimes He will just let me have what I want, even if it's bad for me. And maybe that is because I am unteachable when I'm like that, and maybe getting what I want and finding out it wasn't right, will put me back on the right path. But that doesn't sound like a way I want to go. So right now I am praying that instead of God doing what I want to do, that God will make all my desires and all my will line up with what He wants for me. It seems like a much better way to go.

Here is a passage of hope. 3:12ff is God's call to Israel to repent. He says, "I will not look upon you in anger. For I am gracious . . . I will not be angry forever." It goes on from there. The note I wrote was: "God wants us! Here He's practically begging Israel to return to Him. History is the story of how God tried time after time to have a relationship with people - finally it was accomplished - through Jesus." Unfortunately, every appeal God made to Israel fell on deaf ears. It's just like that parable where the master sent servants to his vineyard to get the profit or whatever, and the people working the vineyard mistreated the prophets, so finally the master sent his own son to do the job. Of course, it didn't work out so well for that son, but at least Jesus rose from the dead.

I don't have any more margin notes in this passage. But basically God tells Judah to repent, and tells them what will happen if they don't - destruction and judgment. Jeremiah is overcome with anguish for the fate of his people. So God tells Jeremiah to go through the streets of Jerusalem and try to find one person - just one - who "does justice, who seeks truth," and then He will pardon the whole city. Remember Sodom and Gomorrah? This is why I think if Abraham had asked God to spare Sodom for the sake of one righteous man, He would have. But apparently Jeremiah doesn't find anybody. That's pretty sad. So yes, destruction is coming, and the people of Jerusalem are warned to flee the city to save their lives.

What is really difficult for me to grasp is that God tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people of Israel because He isn't going to hear. Sometimes, the things we want are actually against God's will, and sometimes God even tells us not to pray for something or not to pray the way we would want to pray. That is tough to think about. Also, I don't think we can change God's mind when He is going to do something. We can't force or manipulate or bargain God into doing what we want. And finally, whether or not Israel survived didn't depend on Jeremiah, but on the rest of the people, and they had no intention of listening to God, apparently.

Jeremiah writes a lament for Zion, but then he acknowledges the greatness of God and the wickedness of people. In spite of his own sorrow, Jeremiah is committed to the will of God and he knows that God does what is right, in the end. I like this verse here, 10:23 - "I know, O LORD, that a man's way is not in himself, Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps." Like I said above about wanting God to change my will - I really don't think that I have the ability to make the best decisions for myself. Certainly not at 23. I can't see ahead the way God can. A few years ago I had an amazing job opportunity that I didn't take because, after thinking a lot about it, I didn't think I was ready for it and I wasn't sure I could commit to it. The other day my mom mentioned that part of her wished now that we had gone for it (we, because I would have required my parents' help). Did I do the right thing in not taking it? I don't know right now; I'm not really sure I can know from where I'm standing. I think several years from now I'll look back and see how God has directed my steps, and I'm sure I'll also see where I went astray. It's hard to tell what straight is when you're up close to it. That's why I need God to guide me, because only He has the perspective to tell where I need to go.

So apparently there is stuff to be learned from Jeremiah, both the book and the person, in spite of it's being an overwhelmingly sad book most of the time. I'll try to be more regular about updating this. . . . In my reading I'm almost to the end of Ezekiel (which is what I read immediately after Jeremiah).

Isaiah 52-66: Restoration for the Transgressors

2010-05-26T16:10:00.000-04:00

Okay, I know I dropped the ball again for a while on this blogging thing. It's difficult to blog about these prophetic books because they kind of say the same thing over and over and while that's not a bad thing, it makes it difficult to feel like I'm saying anything new. So my next several posts may be a bit shorter and cover larger passages, because I'm really trying to just point out what sticks out to me.

Anyway, so in chapter 52 Isaiah starts talking about the exalted servant of God. And then in chapter 53 he talks about the suffering servant. Jews believe these are two different people, whereas Christians believe both passages are referring to the same person: Jesus the Messiah. I have always wondered what the Jews think about chapter 53, because the language is that of sacrificial atonement - that our sins, sorrows, transgressions, etc., are placed on this person, that he is a guilt offering, that somehow this bearing of our iniquities justifies us. For Jews who believe that justification comes through keeping the Law and making animal sacrifices, what does this passage mean to them?

Recently, the thing that has struck me about Isaiah 53 is that it's not just our wickedness that Jesus atoned for. Verse 4 says "Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried." In the margin of my Bible I wrote this: "Not just our sins, but our sorrows - not just our wrongs, but also our hurts. Jesus knows what all of our pains, griefs, shame, trauma, feel like, because He carried it. It, too, was nailed to the cross, which means it, too, will be redeemed." To me, that is a very comforting thought.

The next three chapters are pretty positive: God's lovingkindness and covenant of peace can never be shaken, God offers mercy freely, God's boundless mercy is incomprehensible because God Himself is incomprehensible, being obedient to God will yield blessing, etc.

Following this are three chapters of warnings and judgments and stuff like that. There's an indictment of rulers who don't acknowledge God as higher than them, and there's a call to fasting so that God will hear. But as it is, the text says, God doesn't hear because the people's sins have created a barrier between themselves and Him. I find the juxtaposition of these two verses very telling: 59:1 says, "Behold, the LORD's hand is not so short That it cannot save; Nor is His ear so dull That it cannot hear." Then the very next verse says, "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear." So it's not that God can't hear, but that He doesn't - I think He's waiting for repentance - He's waiting for us to turn from our wickedness in order to truly seek Him. Because the thing is, people would cry out to God and stuff, but at the same time they were holding on to these idols and sinful practices and stuff, so it wasn't really God that they wanted; they just wanted a bailout. And I think this is what I do too. What I pray for the most is help when I'm in trouble. I think I need to seek God for His own sake, not just to be my cleanup crew.

Chapters 60-66 cover a few different ideas, but I think they all are built around the central theme of the Day of the Lord, the restoration of Zion, and the redemption of man. Someof the language is very messianic (or at least was used by Handel in writing Messiah): "Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you." Some of the language sounds like the book of Revelation: "No longer will you have the sun for light by day; Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; But you will have the LORD for an everlasting light, and your God for your glory," and, "the days of your mourning will be over," and (chapter 65) "behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind." Chapter 61 opens with the passage that Jesus read in the synagogue when He began His ministry: "The Spiri of the Lord God is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted . . ."

But at the same time that all this happy glorious stuff is going on, God also says that at this time He will judge the nations and will pour our His wrath on those who are wicked. But to those who follow God, God will show mercy and compassion and will save them.

Chapter 65 reminds me of the book of Romans (actually it's quoted in the book of Romans), because it talks about God being found by people who didn't seek Him, while at the same time He is pursuing people who want nothing to do with them. Paul says that this is referring to the Gentiles compared to the Jews. All this time, God has been making appeal after appeal to the Jews, and they really couldn't care less what He has to say. But when the gospel is brought to the Gentiles, they accept this brand new God that they didn't even know before. But in this future time that Isaiah keeps referring to, the time when God makes a new heaven and earth, everyone will acknowledge God and everything will be great. Even lambs will be safe in the company of animals that used to be their predators. It just now struck me that this is the context of the verse, "Before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear." Does that mean that this verse doesn't apply to right now? Because it seems to me that God does and has answered prayers before they were prayed or even at the same time. So if God is already doing that now, I wonder what this verse will mean about what things will be like in the future.

Anyway, so the chapter ends basically with a comparison between the future state of the righteous and the future state of the wicked. It's very clear that everybody ultimately will see and know who God is and will bow before Him, but only some will share in His glory and joy. For those who persisted in transgression, there is only agony and death, which really sucks.

I think the message is clear - the message of this whole book - that God extends mercy and forgiveness to everybody (because He makes intercession for the "transgressors," who are the wicked people - that's all of us), but not everybody is going to participate in that. Ultimately, God is going to come down and give everybody what they really want, and it's either going to be Him, or it's going to be Not Him. It's a message to take God seriously, to take repentance seriously, and not to be complacent about the thought of God's judgment, because it's real, and it's coming. It's a sobering thought, but only if you're living outside God's mercy.

Isaiah 40-51: God Is Great, God Is Good

2010-05-05T17:51:00.001-04:00

This passage is one of my favorites in the whole Bible. It contains verse after verse describing God's greatness, His power, His supremacy, His mercy, His love, his faithfulness, His constancy. If you are ever in a dark place, I recommend you read these twelve chapters.

I think instead of offering commentary - because let's face it, the content of these chapters is essentially the same as the content of the last 39 - I'm going to quote the verses that stood out to me the most. By the way, somebody at my small group pointed out that Hebrew literature is full of what is called chiastic structure, which is something I learned about in theology class. It's a way of organizing topics symmetrically so that the first topic and last topic are the same. For instance, if the writer had two topics to talk about, topic A and topic B, in a chiastic structure he would talk about A, then B, then B, then A. If he had three topics he would order it ABCCBA, and so forth. So that is why Isaiah is so back-and-forth all the time.

Now on to my verse highlights. I'll organize them by topic. All verses are from the NASB, all emphases mine.

God's Greatness

40:8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.

40:10 Behold, the Lord GOD will come with might,
With His arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His reward is with Him
And His recompense before Him.

40:12-13 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
And marked off the heavens by the span,
And calculated the dust of the earth by the measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD,
Or as His counselor has informed Him?
With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge
And informed Him of the way of understanding?

40:25-26 "To whom then will you liken Me
That I would be his equal?" says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars,
The One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power,
Not one of them is missing.

40:28 Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is inscrutable.

41:4b I, the LORD, am the first, and with the last. I am He.

42:8-9 I am the LORD, that is My name;
I will not give My glory to another,
Nor My praise to graven images.
Behold, the former things have come to pass,
Now I declare new things;
Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.

43:10-13 "You are My witnesses," declares the LORD,
"And My servant whom I have chosen,
So that you may know and believe Me
And understand that I am He.
Before Me there was no God formed,
And there will be none after Me.
I, even I, am the LORD,
And there is no savior besides Me.
It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed,
And there was no strange god among you;
So you are My witnesses," declares the LORD,
"And I am God.
Even from eternity I am He,
And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?"

44:6-8 Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:
"I am the first and I am the last,
And there is no God besides Me.
Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it;
Yes, let him recount it to Me in order,
From the time that I established the ancient nation.
And let them declare to them the things that are coming
And the events that are going to take place.
Do not tremble and do not be afraid;
Have I not long since announced it to you and delcared it?
And you are My witnesses.
Is there any God besides Me,
Or is there any other Rock?
I know of none."

44:24 Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb,
"I, the LORD, amd the maker of all things,
Stretching out the heavens by Myself
And spreading out the earth all alone."

45:5-7 I am the LORD, and there is no other;
Besides Me there is no God.
I will gird you, though you have not known Me;
That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun
That there is no one besides Me.
I am the LORD, and there is no other,
THe One forming light and creating darkness,
Causing well-being and creating calamity;
I am the LORD who does all these.

46:9-10 Remember the former things long past,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is no one like Me,
Declaring the end from the beginning,
ANd from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, "My purpose will be established,
And I will accomplish all My good pleasure."

God's Love, Provision, and Care

40:11 Like a shepherd He will tend His flock,
In His arm He will gather the lambs
And carry them in His bosom;
He will gently lead the nursing ewes.
40:28-31 He gives strength to the wear,
And to him who lacks might He increases power.
Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.

41:10 Do not fear, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

41:13 "For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand,
Who says to you, 'Do not fear, I will help you,'
Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel;
I will help you," declares the LORD, "and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel."

43:1b-5 Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name; you are Mine!
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
For I am the LORD your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I have given Egypt as your ransom,
Cush and Seba in your place.
Since you are precious in My sight,
Since you are honored and I love you,
I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for your life.
Do not fear, for I am with you;
I will bring your offspring from the east,
And gather you from the west.
44:21 Remember these things, O Jacob,
And Israel, for you are My servant;
I have formed you, you are My servant,
O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me.

46:4 Even to your old age I will be the same,
And even to your graying years I will bear you!
I have done it, and I will carry you;
And I will bear you and I will deliver you.
49:15-16 Can a woman forget her nursing child
And have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.
Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;
Your walls are continually before me.

51:12-13 I, even I, am He who comforts you.
Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies
And of the son of man who is made like grass,
That you have forgotten the LORD your Maker,
Who stretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth,
That you fear continually all day long because of the fury of the oppressor,
As he makes ready to destroy?
But where is the oppressor?

God's Mercy and Forgiveness

40:1-2 "Comfort, O comfort My people," says your God.
"Speak kindly to Jerusalem;
And call out to her, that her warfare has ended,
That her iniquity has been removed,
That she has received of the LORD's hand
Double for all her sins."

44:22 I have wiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud
And your sins like a heavy mist.
Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.

48:9 For the sake of My name I delay My wrat,
And for My praise I restrain it for you,
In order not to cut you off.

50:2b Is My hand so short that it cannot ransom?
Or have I no power to deliver?

God is truly amazing, and it is amazing to read all these declarations. As you can see, some of the verses span many topics so it was kind of hard to categorize them, because the truth is that part of what makes God great His love and care for His people, His grace and forgiveness. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading all that if you made it this far. :)

Isaiah 32-39: More Prophecies and a History Lesson

2010-04-19T17:03:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I'm behind again, but only a little. The great thing about Isaiah is I can lump a lot of chapters together pretty easily because it's a lot of words about a few key ideas.

And the first key idea in this passage is what the heading in my Bible calls "The Glorious Future." As before, this is describing a time in the future when there will be a righteous king and basically the world will be the way it should be - people will listen to the truth, understand what's right, and cheaters really won't prosper, and that sort of thing. But then he switches gears again and talks about trouble that is coming, and it seems to me that this time he gives a deadline: about one year from when he is speaking is when things are really going to go downhill and Jerusalem will be abandoned. But then it says that the Spirit will be poured out on us, and everything will become good again.

So then Isaiah talks more about the judgment that's to come, and how basically the instruments of judgment will be judged themselves because they aren't righteous either. And then he describes the God who is doing all this, how God is going to be exalted in all this, how He is the source of security, and how those who live according to His laws are the ones who will be able to stand the judgment because God will save them.

Then it talks about a more universal judgment (I think the last chapter was talking about Judah specifically) and how God is going to judge all the nations for their wickedness and the whole earth - the whole of creation - will be affected by it, even to the mountains and the sky. I think this is describing the Day of the Lord - the final day of judgment - but Isaiah specifically mentions Edom in this particular chapter and says that it's going to be completely uninhabitable for men and that only wild animals will live there.

And once again, there's a full-circle effect when Isaiah talks again about a future time of peace and prosperity for Judah. This has another favorite verse of mine, verse 4, which says: "Say to those with anxious heart, 'Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.'" There's a song based on this verse that we sang in church when I was little, and I really liked it. In my Bible, whenever I read a line that I know from a song, I put a little music note mark next to it. It's so neat to see where the songs I know from church originated.

Then there's a history lesson, and I think it's almost word-for-word from 2 Kings. It's the story about Sennacherib invading Judah during the reign of Hezekiah, and how the army commander taunts the people, but they don't say anything back, and how Hezekiah prays and asks God to deliver them, and He does. What I didn't mention last time was that Isaiah was involved in this story. See, when Hezekiah hears what's happening, he sends for Isaiah and asks him to pray for the people who are left in Jerusalem. Isaiah tells them not to be afraid of Sennacherib or of Rabshakeh (that's the name of the army commander, I think it's funny) because God will make them leave and Sennacherib will die in his own land. That's basically all Isaiah says, and it happens just as he predicted. We see Hezekiah's prayer again and God's response and the aftermath, how Sennacherib departed from Judah and was later killed by his own sons while worshiping a false god at home. Kind of ironic, isn't it? Sennacherib's commander bragged on and on about the powerlessness of all these other nations' gods and the might of Sennacherib. Well, in the end, neither Sennacherib's own might nor his own god were able to save his life.

Then we have the story of Hezekiah's sickness again, and it's the same story again except for this time there's a poem that Hezekiah writes after his recovery about being sick and God healing him. And finally, the story that makes me cringe, about the king of Babylon paying a courtesy visit to Hezekiah and Hezekiah showing him all the valuable stuff that the king of Babylon thinks would look great in his own house. And of course, since we've already read Kings, we know exactly what's going to happen. But in case we didn't, Isaiah tells us.

So what I think is cool about this passage is that after a bunch of prophecies about what's going to happen someday, we see a story about some of Isaiah's prophecies coming true. So we know he's not just making all this up, and I think this story is to sort of silence the nay-sayers.

This was probably my shortest entry in a while, but I am saving the next passage for next time, because it's one of my favorites.

Isaiah 24-31: Present Suffering, Future Glory

2010-04-10T16:13:00.000-04:00

I took my advice and found a book to help me understand the stuff I'm reading a little better, and it's been very, well, helpful. The book is called Eerdman's Handbook to the Bible and it's a 1992 edition so I don't know how accessible it is today, but I really like it because it gives a lot of background historical information and, at least in what I've read so far (just Isaiah), it summarizes the verses without trying to add a slant to them like some commentaries do.

So we left off in chapter 24. Chapter 24 is about the final judgment of the earth and everything basically being completely destroyed in in. One of the things it says that I have a question about is in verse 21, where it says "the LORD will punish the host of heaven on high." That refers to the angels, right? I don't think it's a reference to heavenly bodies, because of course they're amoral, and because the next line refers to judging the kings on earth. So maybe this is when Satan and his angels are thrown into the lake of fire.

But then in chapter 25 there is a song of praise to God, which kind of seems weird after a chapter of death and destruction, but it's because the judgment makes way for restoration, healing, and everlasting peace. I think it's like what Isaiah said about Egypt, that the LORD strikes, "striking but healing." It's as if the two go hand in hand, like you can't get healed unless you first clean up the mess - like if you break a bone, you have to get it set for it to heal properly. For some reason, this is the way God likes to work.

One of my favorite passages is in chapter 26, which continues praising God for His preservation, providence, goodness, and majesty. It goes like this (I memorized it in KJV): "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee. Trust thee in the LORD forever, for in the LORD Jehovah is everlasting strength" (26:3-4). This is one of those "anchor" type verses for me. What I mean is, it's one of those things that just reminds me to trust in God and anchors me to Him, so to speak, because not only is He the source of my strength, but He is also the source of my peace. And that's very important, as I've been discovering lately.

It says in this chapter that God's hand is clearly at work in the world, but some people just don't see it. It says that our own efforts are futile when we try to do things ourselves, but God can make even the dead live - it's God who makes all our efforts and actions produce something real.

Next it talks about Israel being delivered and restored, that through their suffering they'll turn to God and be forgiven, and they'll return to the land and worship God.

Chapter 28 goes back to the bad news. After dwelling on the wonderful result, Isaiah focuses for a while on the events that must happen to produce the result - the conquer and captivity of Israel. This was written just before the fall of Samaria, but not very much before. And at the time, the people of Judah are continually following the example of Israel, so Isaiah's message is really for them, telling them what's going to happen to Israel and warning them that they're next if they continue on that path. Judah is acting like a teenager right now - teenagers think they're indestructible. They can't imagine ever getting in a car accident, or becoming deathly ill, or anything like that. Judah is thinking that whatever bad stuff comes their way, it won't really hit them, but there's absolutely no reason for them to have that security because they're not hiding in God, and they know it. The warning continues through chapter 29. It sounds like the people of Judah are following God on a superficial level - claiming YHWH as their God, following the traditions God established way back in Exodus, etc., but there is nothing behind them. It says "their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote" (v.13). It reminds me of a line in Romeo and Juliet, in which Father Lawrence criticizes Romeo's "love" for Rosaline, saying "thou didst read by rote that could not spell" - somebody who pretends to read something that they actually have memorized, because they can't even spell. In other words, there's no mental process, no comprehension, no analyzing or even thinking about what is being done; it's just a routine, like washing your hands. That's all God is to them. But God knows that a day will come when these spiritually blind and deaf people will see and hear and worship God from their hearts.

Chapter 30 describes a current event. Judah has made an alliance with Egypt during the Assyrian invasion of Samaria, and they think that means they're safe. This chapter starts off with something I think is very important - it says, "woe to the rebellious children . . . who execute a plan, but not Mine: (v.1). Sometimes we - and I'm talking about Christians now - make a plan that we think is very sound and reasonable (Egypt was still a major world power, probably a good ally), but just because you are a Christian and you made a plan, doesn't mean it's God's plan. Just because you're a Christian and you're doing something, doesn't mean you're acting on God's behalf. Like, all this talk about judgment and vengeance and the wrath of God? If you act in those ways, and you're a Christian, it doesn't mean you're executing God's justice and vengeance and wrath. It says that Judah went to Egypt without even consulting God. Do we really take time to seek God's will before making a decision, or do we simply make a decision based on what we've already decided we believe about what God wants? This is a very relevant warning, I think, and I mean that for myself too.

So basically, God says the alliance will fail and Judah will be humiliated. But then there's great news. Verse 18 says, "Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a god of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him."

That verse is like a breath of fresh air to me. It tells me two things about God: first, that God is patient with us. I know I've mentioned this before, but one of my favorite parts in the Bible is 2 Peter 4:9, where it says God "is patient with you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to be brought to salvation." God is waiting on us. Just like in My Fair Lady where the dad says "I'm willing to tell you; I'm wanting to tell you; I'm waiting to tell you!" God is willing, wanting, waiting to lavish His grace and compassion on us. Why is He waiting? Because He wants us to want it, I think.

The second thing this verse tells me is that compassion is just. People make a big deal out of the supposed dichotomy between justice and mercy (or grace, or love). In God's reality, they are the same thing. God isn't 1/2 Justice and 1/2 Mercy, or mostly mercy with a little bit of justice, or something like that. This verse says that God is gracious and compassionate because He is a God of justice. Isn't that amazing?

So once the people wise up and realize this, then things will be just fine. God Himself will be the teacher of the people and all those idols are going to be thrown away forever, and even the land and the animals will be blessed, and the light - the light! The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sun will be seven times brighter than it is right now. Why? Because God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). It sounds glorious to me.

But then Isaiah reminds us of what else is going to happen - judgment against the wicked and the proud. Listen to this - "burning is His anger and dense is His smoke" (v.27, I thought it sounded cool) - fire, overflowing torrent, consuming fire, cloudburst, downpour, hailstones. And God says Assyria will be terrified - they better be!

Finally, God condemns the Jews for trusting in Egypt and not in Him, because Egypt itself is going to fall, and it's God who will be the deliverer in the end. The chapter (and this passage) ends with a call: "return to Him from whom you have deeply defected," because when the rubber hits the road, every other defense is going to fall.

Isaiah 13-23: Judgments Against Other Nations

2010-04-05T16:35:00.000-04:00

Okay, I know this is a huge chunk of chapters, but I'm going to catch up to where I've read today (although I'm a little behind in my reading). Basically, I'm lumping these chapters together because they all have something in common: they are (mostly) not about Israel and Judah. These are prophecies about the falls of other nations.

The first one to be named is Babylon. Basically it says that God is going to use Babylon to carry out his judgment against Judah, but then it says that God will judge the whole earth. Isaiah mentions something that becomes a common theme in prophetic books: the day of the LORD. It's the day when God will judge the earth once and for all, and it will be so terrifying that even the sun, the moon, and the stars will not shine. Then going back to Babylon, Isaiah says next that Babylon will fall to the Medes. I wonder what the state of the Mede empire was at this time. They're from Persia, I think. And Isaiah talks about Israel, once it's been restored, taunting Babylon once it's been conquered

This is where there's that famous line where it calls Babylon "star of the morning" and "son of the dawn." In Hebrew, those nicknames are pronounced Lucifer. I'm not sure when the idea that Lucifer was Satan, the devil, first came about, but this is one of the two passages of Scripture that mention this name (the other uses it to describe the king of Tyre). Scripture never actually says that Lucifer = Satan, so this passage may or may not be referring to him. I just wanted to point that out.

Next there's a quick judgment against Assyria and one against Philistia. Following this is a longer judgment against Moab and another long one about Damascus, which was in Aram. Basically, they're all going down. Then there's a prophecy about Ethiopia, but I don't really get it. I'm not sure whether it's saying that bad things are going to happen to them or not, but it seems to say that the Ethiopians will serve God. And you know, Ethiopia was one of the first Christian nations.

Then Isaiah talks about Egypt, and it's basically the same story - they'll be conquered by somebody else, all the proud people will be humiliated, the land will be desecrated, etc., but it says that the affliction will make Egypt return to God, and then God will heal them. In fact, he talks about Egypt almost the same way that he talks about Israel: it says God will send a Savior to deliver them, that God will make himself known to Egypt and they will know him, they will worship Him, etc. I know that Egypt was a Christian nation for a time, before it became Muslim.

There's a short break here - God tells Isaiah to go around naked and barefoot for three years, to serve as a sign against Egypt and Cush (Ethiopia) because they will be taken captive by Assyria. I find all this really interesting, actually. Did these other nations hear Isaiah's prophecies about them? Did he travel to them or send messages so they would know what was going on? God sent the prophet Jonah to Ninevah; I wonder if he sent other prophets to other nations, especially since it seems he is very concerned with them.

Then he talks again about Babylon falling, and then there's a really short one about Edom, but I don't know what it means. It's just somebody asking "Watchman, how far gone is the night?" and the watchman replying "morning comes but also night. If you would inquire, inquire; come back again." I don't really know what that means. Any ideas? And then another short one about Arabia, and I don't so much get that one either. I think it's saying that Arabia will lose its splendor and suffer some kind of loss.

Then there's a prophecy about something called "the valley of vision." I don't know where that is, but they are going to be in mourning and suffering, but then God will set up somebody named Eliakim and put him over Judah, so I guess the valley of vision is something to do with Judah or Jerusalem. But he's going to fall too.

Finally there's a judgment against Tyre. I'm not sure where Tarshish is in relation to Tyre, but it's mentioned a lot too. Like all the other places, it's going to be destroyed, but only for 70 years. Then it will rise again and be just as bad as it was before.

So from reading this passage, I learned that I don't know very much about what's happening here. I know a pretty good amount about Israel, but when it comes to all these other places, I don't have a clue. I don't know if these prophecies came true or if we're still waiting for at least some of them. I always thought I knew a lot about the Bible, but I've found an area where I need more study.

Isaiah 1-12: Bad News, Good News

2010-04-05T03:03:00.002-04:00

All right, so now we move into Isaiah. I'm going to put up a sidebar that lists the books of the Old Testament in the order they appear in the Tanakh, so you know that I'm really not being arbitrary.

Isaiah was written during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah - who, if you remember, were really good, good, really bad, and really good, respectively. So this was right around the time of Israel's fall. The prophecies in Isaiah are mostly about Judah and Israel, but there are some about other nations too.

The beginning prophecies are about Judah and Jerusalem, and they are condemning the sin of the people. Now this is interesting to me, because this was written mostly during the time of good kings. But if you remember, the high places were still in place all the way until the reign of Hezekiah. What it sounds like to me is that the people were basically following the law, sacrificing to God and observing the feasts (with the exception of Passover) and whatnot, but they were also serving other gods and just not doing good. So God says that he doesn't even like their sacrifices or feasts or any of the things they do "for" him, so that he's not even going to listen to their prayers anymore.

The first several chapters go back and forth between good news and bad news. The bad news is, God is going to destroy Jerusalem and Judah to judge them for their wickedness and idolatry. The good news is, he is going to restore Jerusalem and people will worship God from their hearts. The bad news is, first will come a day of judgment against all the people who are proud, adulterous, who don't take care of the poor and needy, who take bribes and permit sin, and against the leaders and rulers who are corrupt. The good news is, there will always be a remnant of the faithful. Even though God is not going to punish Judah, he is not going to leave them alone forever. He's going to make sure that Judah never entirely forsakes him, and he's not going to forsake them either.

Then Isaiah describes a vision that he has during the year that Uzziah died. He has a vision of the throne of God, what Paul calls the "third heaven," and he sees these angels called seraphim gathered around God's throne. These seraphim are so high up on the angel hierarchy that they are actually in the direct presence of God, standing before his throne all day and night, and yet even they must cover their eyes with two of their wings. And all day long they say to each other, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory."

What I understand about the Hebrew language is that they don't have comparative or superlative suffixes like English and other languages do. That is, we add the "er" and "est" suffixes of words to show degrees of how extreme something is. Hebrew doesn't have that; instead, the word would be repeated - twice for the comparative, three times for the superlative. (Another way to state a superlative would be to say "X of Xs," as in "king of kings" and "song of songs.") So it would be like, instead of saying "better," they would say "good good," or "good good good" for "best." That is what they are doing here. As my old Bible teacher said once, "God is not 'holy.' God is not 'holy, holy.' He is 'holy, holy, holy.'"

When Isaiah sees God like this, he is completely overwhelmed by the holiness, the perfection, the goodness, the righteousness, the otherness, the un-humanness of God. God is holy - holy, holy, holy - and Isaiah knows that he is not. He does what every thinking, feeling person does when they encounter God: he falls flat on his face. Then he does the second thing every thinking, feeling person does when they encounter God: he acknowledges his sin. But then, amazingly, one of the seraphim takes a burning coal from the altar and touches it to Isaiah's lips. Now, it doesn't say so, but I have to imagine that this would hurt, even in a vision. Don't you think? But the coal cleanses him. And then God asks for a messenger to send, to speak on his behalf - as if he really didn't know who he was going to send. And Isaiah, quite unlike Moses, volunteers to be sent wherever God wishes him to go. I find it interesting that it's only after Isaiah's been cleansed that he mentions being sent. I don't think this means we have to overcome our sin and become perfect in order for God to use us, though. Remember, Isaiah didn't actually do anything to become clean - he just acknowledged his uncleanness, and it was God who declared him clean. I think this means that in order to receive God's calling on our lives, we have to acknowledge our sin and accept his cleansing forgiveness. And I think that the process of cleansing may not be painless. I don't think it was for Isaiah.

One thing I have always wondered is whether this vision took place before Isaiah received the prophecies recorded in chapters 1-5, or if the whole thing is written chronologically. It seems as if this story is the beginning for Isaiah, but I don't know.

Then it goes back to prophecy, and this time there's a specific context: Ahaz, the bad king, is at war, and God tells Isaiah to tell Ahaz not to be afraid because Judah is going to win. God invites Ahaz to ask him for a sign to know that this is true, but he says he will not test God. But God says he will give a sign himself, and guess what it is? "A virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel." Immanuel means "God with us" - this is the first time Isaiah references Messiah, I think. I wonder if Ahaz knew that this sign was not really related to his little battle. Because then God goes on to tell about more bad things that are about to happen to Judah, and also, that Israel and Samaria are going to fall. That happened during the reign of Hezekiah, from what I understand, so it must have been pretty close to the time.

Then there's another Messiah prophecy. After a bunch of talk about gloom and darkness and destruction, it says that the gloom is going to end, that the people who are walking in the darkness will see a great light, and the light will shine on them. Deliverance is going to come in the form of a child, who will be given the throne of David, but he's more than just another king. It says he will be called Mighty God and Eternal Father - somehow, this child is going to be God. I wonder what the Jews think about these names, what they thought at the time this prophecy was written. Obviously they are holding on to the part where it talks about him reigning over David's kingdom, but what about the part where it calls him God?

But for now, Israel is not doing so hot. I think this next prophecy is against the ten tribes that now form the nation of Israel, specifically, because it mentions Ephraim. Ephraim is only one tribe but its name becomes synonymous with the nation of Israel. God says they are proud and they do not seek God, that the teachers are leading the people astray. There's a repeating phrase in the next several paragraphs: "His anger does not turn away, and His hand is still stretched out." Basically Israel is acting wickedly, even in tribe fighting against tribe. So God says that Assyria is his instrument for justice and judgment. But, don't forget, Israel was God's instrument of judgment against Canaan, and now they're getting busted for their own sin. Well, the same thing is going to happen to Assyria, because they're not good either. So basically God is saying that after he's done with Israel, Assyria is going to be judged as well.

But then there's more good news: another Messianic reference, and it talks about a time of paradise - the wolf dwelling with the lamb and the leopard with the goat and things like that. When that happens, the remnant of the Jews will be restored from all the countries where they will be scattered to.

So this has been kind of a cyclic passage - good news, bad news, and super good news - the news of a coming Savior. The thing is, Israel has gotten itself really screwed up, screwed up beyond repair. God wants his people to return to him, but their hearts are so hardened that it's going to take something really drastic to repair the damage that's been done. For almost the first time, we're getting a glimpse of what God has planned.

2 Kings 21-25: The End of Judah

2010-04-03T23:46:00.000-04:00

Now we've come to my third favorite king (David is my second): Manasseh. However, I'm not going to tell you why he's my third favorite king, and it's not going to make sense either unless you've read 2 Chronicles, because Manasseh is bad. He is arguably the most evil king of Judah, because it is Manasseh's evil acts that move God to decide to hand Judah over to Babylon, and do it soon. Manasseh rebuilds the high places that Hezekiah had just gotten rid of, he puts altars to false gods in the temple, he worships heavenly bodies, he sacrifices his son, he practices witchcraft and divination, and so forth. It says that "Manasseh seduced them [Judah] to do evil more than the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the sons of Israel." Remember that when the Hebrews took the promised land, they were not just fulfilling God's promise to give the land to Abraham; they were executing God's judgment against the sins of the Canaanites. The Canaanites were so evil and so unrepentant for so long that God decided to wipe them out. Judah, under the reign of Manasseh alone, becomes even more evil than the people they destroyed. That is bad.

And this is all that the book of Kings has to say about Manasseh. I find that really odd, because there is a lot more to his story than this, but since the Tanakh puts Chronicles at the very end, you won't find out the twist for a long while. So you'll just have to sit there and wonder why the heck this evil evil person is my third favorite king of Judah.

Manasseh's son Amon becomes king, and he is evil like Manasseh. His servants conspire against him and assassinate him, but the people of Judah round up the conspirators and execute them, and put Amon's son Josiah on the throne. Josiah is a mere eight years old at the time, the second youngest king in Judah's history (Joash was 7). Josiah is a good king, a very good king. While some of his servants are sprucing up the temple, they find the book of the Law and bring it to Josiah and read it to him. When Josiah hears the words - the words of Moses, the first five books of the Bible - he tears his clothes. He is totally convicted - and this is a good king already, remember. He wants to know what is going to happen to his country because they have not kept God's laws, so he sends people to ask this prophetess named Huldah, and she tells them that God's wrath is burning against Judah, but because Josiah heard the words of the LORD and paid attention to them, the destruction God has planned for Judah is not going to happen during his lifetime. So then the king gathers all Judah together and reads the entire Torah to them and makes a covenant with them before God to keep the Law and follow Him with heart and soul. Then he institutes a bunch of reforms, and chapter 23 lists all the bad stuff that he eradicated from Judah, and it's cool. Josiah did not do things halfway, I'm thinking. He gets rid of all the altars everywhere to every god and goddess, he destroys the place where people burned their sons and daughters, he tears down the houses of the male cult prostitutes, he defiles the high places that had been rebuilt by his grandfather, he executes all the priests to false gods, and basically just goes on a rampage throughout his whole country, destroying everything that had been an idol for Judah. Finally, he goes back to Jerusalem and reinstitutes Passover, which has not been observed since the days of the judges. That means even David and Solomon did not observe Passover - this book has been lost for a long time.

And just like Hezekiah, the author of this book tells us that "before him there was no king like him who turned to the LORD with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to the law of Moses; nor did any arise after him." Hezekiah, it seems, followed the LORD from the beginning. It seems almost like Josiah turned to God because of the Torah that was found in the temple. Maybe if that book hadn't been found, he would have just been okay. I really believe that the Bible, even though it was written a long time ago and each book was written specifically for a particular group of people in a certain time and place, is relevant to every generation and every culture. The Torah was already old when Josiah heard it for the first time, and he realized that those words were for him. I think we should have the same response to God's Word that Josiah did.

Unfortunately, God has already made up his mind about Judah, and he is still going to let them get conquered by Babylon - but not just yet. Just like he did with Canaan, he is waiting until they are past the point of no return.

Josiah's son Jehoahaz becomes king, and dangit, he's evil. After having such a great dad, I'm at a loss as to why Jehoahaz turned away from all the good that had been accomplished in the preceding chapter. It just goes to show you, people are individuals. I don't know what kind of dad Josiah was, but there comes a point at which you can't guarantee the outcome of your child's life, I guess. I'm not a parent yet, and that's already a scary thought to me.

Up to this point, it seems like Judah has had a fairly okay relationship with Egypt, but now the pharaoh imprisons Jehoahaz and sets up a different son of Josiah, Eliakim, in his place. Jehoahaz, unfortunately for him, is held captive in Egypt and dies there. Eliakim, meanwhile, is renamed Jehoiakim by Pharaoh, and has to pay him tribute. He is also bad, by the way. It's starting to look like all the good that Josiah did, was for nothing. It only lasted one generation!

So now Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, starts encroaching on Judah. At first Judah becomes kind of a vassal state or something, because it says that Jehoiakim serves him for three years. But then he rebels, and so marauders from a bunch of different nations - Chaldeans, Aramenas, Moabites, and Ammonites - start attacking Judah, and the author tells us it was at the command of God, to carry out his judgment because of the sins of Manasseh. Man, how would you like to be held responsible for the downfall of your whole entire country? It just goes to show you, leaders and authority figures are held to a higher standard of accountability than everybody else, because they are examples, and they can influence people to follow God or not.

Jehoiakim dies and his son Jehoiachin becomes king (you can tell a country is nearing its end when the names become less and less creative). Egypt has all but fallen to Babylon by now, Jehoiachin is only 18, also does evil in God's sight, and he only lasts three months before Nebuchadnezzar sends his army to Jerusalem. Jehoiachin surrenders and is taken captive along with his family and a ton of people from Judah - the brave, the strong, the skilled, the talented, the educated. Nebuchadnezzar sets up I guess Jehoiachin's uncle? Mattaniah as king, renaming him Zedekiah, who is also evil, and he tries rebelling against Nebuchadnezzasr. So Nebuchadnezzar marches again against Jerusalem and pretty much just demolishes the city. He kills Zedekiah's sons in front of him, then brings him to Babylon bound, and the whole of Jerusalem is burned. Some random person named Gedaliah is appointed as governor over what's left of the people of Judah, who advises the people to serve Nebuchadnezzar - because as long as they paid tribute to him, he really was a pretty reasonable guy I think. But a bunch of people flee to Egypt, although I'm pretty sure it was also under Babylon's control to some extent.

Remember Jehoiachin? He's still in Babylon in prison, but he gets released and Nebuchadnezzar puts him back on the throne of Israel and treats him nicely, because he knows that Jehoiachin is going to be submissive. And it works out pretty well for Jehoiachin after that. He stays under Nebuchadnezzar's thumb, but he gets to keep his life, and his job, and he actually gets paid to be king for the rest of his life. And that is the end of the story.

So man! Judah sure went out with a bang. I have to wonder, all those kings who tried rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar, it doesn't say any of them tried seeking God during that process. And what I wonder is, if they had turned to God, would things have turned out differently? God had already made up his mind to destroy Judah because of Manasseh, but because Josiah was repentant, he delayed the destruction. I really think that if any of the successive kings had been good like Josiah, God would not have brought the destruction so soon. But I think God knew what was going to happen. It's sad, because Josiah tried so hard to turn the country around, but in the end it didn't work. I don't know why. In the end I guess that the people of Judah had hardened their hearts, and when you get to that point, it's very hard to turn back.

Believe it or not, from here the Tanakh goes to Isaiah. So when next I write, we will be hearing from the Prophets.

2 Kings 16-20: The Fall of Israel; Hezekiah

2010-04-03T03:17:00.001-04:00

After Judah's stunning string of good kings, Jotham has a son named Ahaz, who is not just as bad as all the Israelite kings, but arguably even worse, because he practices human sacrifice with his son. Now for me, the inference that I've gotten from my reading of the Bible so far is that sacrificing one's child is one of the most detestable and evil things that a person could do in God's eyes. And I don't think there needs to be any explanation as to why. Humanly, spiritually, socially, in just about every conceivable way, this is an evil act and you have to be really screwed up to do it, I think. I mean, we're talking about taking your living breathing child whom you have raised from birth, and setting them on fire. People like that deserve to have their fingernails and toenails pulled off one by one, then their fingers and toes chewed off one by one, and . . . well, you get the picture.

Then Aram and Israel combine forces and attack Ahaz in Jerusalem, and this is weird - he asks for help from Assyria. I'm thinking this was a bad move, but he didn't know what Assyria was going to become. Oh, and also, he sends more of the treasures in the temple to Assyria. I'm surprised there's anything left in that place, because it seems like at least every two or three generations it's getting cleaned out for some kind of tribute. You'd think it would be drained by now.

Thank goodness, Ahaz dies shortly after this story, and his son Hezekiah becomes king. More about him later.

Meanwhile, Israel's next king is named Hoshea. If that name looks kind of familiar to you, I think it must be a variant of Hosea. I wonder if it is also a variant of Joshua or Yeshua (the Hebrew name of Jesus). I don't need to mention that he's evil, but in his reign the king of Assyria rises up against him, so Israel pays tribute to him, but then Hoshea conspires against Assyria with the king of Egypt somehow and stops paying tribute, so the king of Assyria throws him in prison. Then they invade Israel, besiege Samaria for three years, eventually capture it, and carry the people into exile. And that is the end of the nation of Israel.

In another rare moment, the author of this book launches into a commentary here and talks about why Israel fell, apparently because he wanted us to learn a moral lesson from this story - that's what ancient history books were all designed to do, by the way. He writes that the exile happened not because Israel's kings weren't strong enough leaders or made bad political moves, but because the people sinned and turned their backs on God and trusted in other gods. These are the main things that Israel did wrong, according to this passage here: 1) they worshiped other gods, built idols, etc., 2) they evil things that provoked God, 3) they did not listen to the prophets' warnings, 4) they followed the example of the nations around them, 5) they practiced human sacrifice, divination, and sorcery, 6) they led Judah into sin by example.

What happens next is that the king of Assyria brings foreigners into the land of Israel after he's taken a bunch of people out and into exile. I think the idea was to mix the cultures by intermarriage, thus diminishing a sense of nationality, thus lessening the risk of a future uprising. And the plan worked: the ten tribes of Israel are no longer distinguishable today, although a few of their mixed-blood descendants remain in the land, even to this day. They are called Samaritans, and we will not hear about them again for a very long time.

Anyway, when these transplant people come in, they make up their own gods and sort of add the true God into the mix, into the pantheon as it were. God did not appreciate this. He doesn't want to be one of many revered objects in our lives. You can't put him next to anything; I think it has to be just him and nothing else beside him or above him.

Back to Hezekiah. Hezekiah, I will let you know, is my favorite king. The first thing it says about what he did as king is that he broke down the high places! He is the only one out of all the good kings to have done this! He broke all the idols that the people were worshiping, even the bronze snake that Moses made for the people in the wilderness, because they were worshiping that. Note: sometimes we can take a really good thing, a God-given thing, and make an idol out of it. In contemporary terms, these things might be going to church, or religious practices, or service, or even, to some extent, the Bible (because the Bible is not actually God, although it was written by him). Anything that we put before God himself, no matter how good it is, must be broken down and removed until nothing stands between us and him. That is a freaky thing to think about, because there are an awful lot of things in my life that I value very much.

Now, everybody talks about how great David and Solomon were, but get this: Hezekiah was better. The Bible says so! It says, "He trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel; so that after him there was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among those who were before him. For he clung to the LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses."

Reread that phrase up there, "He clung to the LORD." That brings such a powerful image to my mind. It's one thing to keep something next to you, another to hold onto it; to cling to something is another matter entirely. Here is how one dictionary defines that word:

To hold fast or adhere to something, as by grasping, sticking, embracing, or entwining: clung to the rope to keep from falling; fabrics that cling to the body.
To remain close; resist separation: We clung together in the storm.
To remain emotionally attached; hold on: clinging to outdated customs.

To me, the word "cling" conjures up the impression of a life-and-death situation. Like clinging to a life preserver when you're lost at sea, or something like that. It's not a casual action; it is . . . a desperate, committed action. When you cling to something, there is no way you are going to let go, ever.

So Hezekiah is my favorite king.

It's during Hezekiah's reign that Assyria conquers Israel and carries everybody off into exile, and they go after Judah too. In fact, it says Hezekiah rebels against the king, which I guess means he stopped paying the tribute, and that really ticks off the king. He's already conquered Israel so he goes after Judah next. Hezekiah gives him more stuff from the temple but that's not good enough. The Assyrian army lays siege to Jerusalem, and the commander of the army comes out to taunt Judah and insult both Hezekiah and the God he so faithfully serves. Luckily, Hezekiah's people keep their heads. The soldiers ask the Assyrian dude to talk in Aramaic instead of Hebrew, because I guess the regular people didn't speak Aramaic that well and they didn't want them to hear. And when the guy keeps threatening them and jeering and stuff, none of the people give him any kind of response, because Hezekiah had told them not to say a word. To have that kind of self-command tells me that Hezekiah must have been held in very, very high esteem. I think the people believed in him. I hope they also believed in God.

But Hezekiah is not nearly as confident at this point. He hears what's going on outside and tears his clothes and puts on sackcloth.

Okay, so I have to make a sidenote here about tearing clothes. There have been a couple references to clothes so far - the clothes worn by the Israelites in the wilderness didn't wear out for 40 years, Samson bet his fiancee's friends so many changes of clothes for answering his riddle, and part of the gift Naaman offered Elisha was a change of clothes. I get the impression that these people did not have a lot of changes of clothes, if any. The king probably had a few more sets than the regular people, but still, it had to have been expensive. Understanding that gives a very new meaning, to me, to the custom of tearing one's clothes when one was in mourning. It was not comparable to me tearing up my clothes, because I have lots of clothes and I can replace them pretty quickly and easily. It seems to me, this would be more like me smashing my computer. Yipes.

But then a prophet comes and encourages Hezekiah. You might know him; his name is Isaiah. He says that God will take care of the army without even fighting, and Jerusalem will be okay. Hezekiah prays for deliverance - and what's awesome is that he doesn't pray because he wants to save his skin, or preserve his kingly power, or even to save the lives of all his people, although I'm sure all those things were important to him. What he asks is for all the kingdoms around the world to know that the LORD is God. Hezekiah was a good king because he valued God's reputation above his own, when both were being threatened. And he knew what Israel was about, I think, that it was supposed to be a light to the Gentiles, a revelation of the character of God.

I think the next thing that happens is cool. God sends an answer to Hezekiah through Isaiah, and this is the answer that's given to the army commander. It's basically God slapping Assyria in the face and saying, "everything that you think your bad self did, that was actually me, and I am going to kick you to kingdom come." And then he does, because the angel of the LORD strikes 185,000 soldiers by night and kills them, so they go home. Somebody needed to show that Sennacherib who was boss, and God was the perfect person for the job (because he is the boss).

Hezekiah is doing just awesome, so awesome that what happens next doesn't make sense. He gets sick. Just like Uzziah, the good king who got struck by leprosy, Hezekiah becomes mortally ill, and Isaiah even tells him he's going to die. I feel so sorry for Hezekiah. His response to this news is very short, so short I can quote it for you. It says, "Then he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, saying, 'Remember now, O LORD, I beseech You, how I have walked before You in truth and with a whole heart and have done what is good in Your sight.' And Hezekiah wept bitterly." That's all.

I don't know much about prayer, I have to admit. Sometimes I feel like the more I pray, the better chance I have of God hearing and answering me. And while I think there's certainly a biblical precedent for ceaseless prayer, sometimes all it takes is one sentence. And Hezekiah didn't really even ask God to heal him. He just asked God to remember him. The image of this strong, wise, courageous king rolling over in his bed to face away from the prophet and just crying his eyes out, breaks my heart. And I think it broke God's heart too, because Isaiah hadn't even gotten out of Hezekiah's house before God told him to turn around and tell Hezekiah that he was going to live for 15 more years, and moreover, God would totally deliver Jerusalem from Assyria.

I don't know why Hezekiah got sick, honestly. God healed him pretty quickly after this incident, and it's not like Hezekiah was needing to be turned around or anything before he got sick. Sometimes the things God does are inexplicable to me. But I think what I learned from Hezekiah's story is that, while serving God may not prevent bad stuff from happening to you, when bad stuff does happen to you, it is good to find yourself on his side, because then he is on your side as well.

I love Hezekiah, but he does one stupid thing in his life (we're all entitled to something, I guess). The king of Babylon sends him a get-well card and a care package, and once he's better, he comes over for a visit. And Hezekiah is so hospitable to this king that he shows him all the valuable stuff in his whole entire kingdom. Does the name "Babylon" ring a bell to you? We'll be hearing from them again soon. Now, Hezekiah must have trusted in God to protect Judah, and therefore thought there was no harm in showing Babylon exactly what they would get if they happened to conquer his nation. But just because God is our protector, doesn't mean he gave us a license to be stupid. I think God wants us still to make wise decisions, and Hezekiah's mistake will come back to haunt Judah - not in Hezekiah's own lifetime, thankfully, but sooner than you think.

2 Kings11-15: Polarization of Judah and Israel

2010-03-31T00:13:00.000-04:00

I'm going to tell you in advance, in this passage we have a series of good Judean kings and bad Israelite kings. Actually, not to spoil the surprise for you or anything, but all Israel's kings are bad. I think Jeroboam set a precedent. Jehu apparently was the closest thing they had to a good king.

So remember that witchy Athaliah? When her son (Ahaziah) dies, she sets herself up as ruler of Judah, and moreover, she goes on a rampage and kills all the possible heirs to the throne - I'm guessing she was planning on living forever? - except one escapes. Ahaziah's sister takes Ahaziah's son Joash and hides him for six years. He was about a year old when he was hidden, by the way. For some reason, God has the priest, Jehoiada, proclaim Joash king when he is seven. The people probably don't like Athaliah, because when they see that Joash is king they put her to death. Jehoiada makes a covenant between God and the people and the new baby king, and the people go tear down all the altars of Baal. So Joash's reign starts off on a good solid foot, and we find out that he follows God for as long as Jehoiada lives. That's kind of a bad omen to me, because these priest guys tend to be old, and if he's going to stop following God when Jehoiada is gone, it means that, like possibly Solomon, Joash didn't have his own relationship with God. Instead his relationship with God depended on somebody else, or else he was just content to let another person make his decisions for him.

But for now Jehoiada is alive, and so Joash has the temple repaired. It takes 23 years for the work to actually get started, and that's when Joash has the bright idea of asking people to provide money to pay for the repairs. But then Hazael, the king of Aram (remember the guy that Elisha anointed?) comes and threatens Jerusalem, so Joash sends all the valuable stuff that's in the temple to him so he'll leave. It works, but it sucks. He just spent 23 years trying to get the temple looking nice again, and now he's emptied it out to ward off an enemy. You'd think he could ask God for some kind of miraculous deliverance, right?

In his later days, Joash became very unpopular; in fact, he was assassinated by his own servants. But then his son became king so I don't know what good it did.

Meanwhile, Jehu's son Jehoahaz becomes king of Israel, and like his father before him, he does evil. As a consequence, Aram is constantly beating them. So I think that is fulfilling God's word to Elijah that Hazael would kill the people Jehu didn't kill. Jehoahaz dies, and his son Jehoash becomes king. Now, Jehoash is synonymous with Joash, and the names are used interchangeably for the kings of both Judah and Israel. To keep them separate, I'm calling Judah's king Joash and Israel's king Jehoash. He also does evil and is also succeeded by his son, who is named Jeroboam (my header calls him Jeroboam II). It doesn't seem like either of these kings does anything really significant, compared to Joash over here who is repairing the temple.

Okay, so here is where we find out about the death of Elisha. Elisha actually dies of natural causes, remarkably - that is, he dies of an illness rather than by being murdered. Before he dies, he tells somebody to shoot an arrow out the window and that represents victory over Aram, and then he tells him to hit the ground, and that represents how many times they'll beat Aram, but the guy doesn't know that so he only hits the ground 3 times, which means Israel will prevail over Aram only 3 times. We don't hear anything about Elisha's actual death except that when he is getting buried, some dead guy gets thrown into his grave, and when he touches Elisha's bones he revives and gets up. So I think that's a final sign that to the very end - and I mean the very end - the same Spirit of the LORD that resided in Elijah, was present in even greater measure in Elisha.

Joash's son becomes king of Judah next. His name is Amaziah, and he s also a good king. The high places are still around, but nobody else has taken them away either. He kills the people who killed his father, probably a good idea in case they didn't want him on the throne, but he doesn't put their sons to death because that's against the Law of Moses, which says that people cannot be punished for the sins of their fathers, but only for their own sins. It's nice to see somebody actually following this law. That leads me to believe that whenever God does some kind of generational punishment, like when he wiped out all Jeroboam's family, it probably was because they were all just as bad as him.

Amaziah wants to fight against Jehoash for some reason, but Jehoash sends him some flowery message that basically says "no." But Amaziah goes out against him, so Jehoash fights back, and Israel wins. Sorry Amaziah. Just because you're not serving idols doesn't mean God necessarily will give you a military victory, especially since it doesn't appear that God had any desire for this battle to happen, and in fact he was the one who had said Judah and Israel should not fight against each other. But then Jehoash captures Amaziah and also takes all the gold and silver and stuff that's in the temple, so now all of Joash's work has really been undone I think.

But Jehoash doesn't kill Amaziah; Amaziah actually outlives him, but when he dies (he's actually assassinated like his father was), his son becomes king. Like both Joash/Jehoashes, Amaziah's son has two names too. The name my Bible gives right here is Amaziah, but the name he's best known by is Uzziah. If you know Uzziah's name, you probably know that, like his father and grandfather, he was a good king. Meanwhile, Jeroboam II has just become king, and no surprise, he's a bad king, just like his namesake. Interestingly though, God gives Jeroboam II some military victories or something because he's able to restore some of Israel's land that had been lost before. Why would this happen, you ask? Fortunately the Bible gives us the answer right here. It says, "For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, which was very bitter; for there was neither bond nor free, nor was there any helper for Israel." Elijah and Elisha, remember, were prophets specifically for Israel; they didn't do much work in Judah. Even though Israel had crappy kings, God still loved the people of Israel; they were still his chosen people, and it was actually hard for him to see them suffering because of their bad decisions and the bad decisions of their leaders. This just reinforces the teaching of Peter that God doesn't want anybody to perish but all to come to repentance, and that God is patient with us.

Meanwhile, Azariah/Uzziah is a good king, and guess what happens to him? He becomes a leper. He has a super-long reign, but he doesn't have his health. To me that almost seems backwards - Israel, under a bad king, enlarges its border, while Judah's king serves God and gets leprosy. Sometimes bad things happen to good people, and God doesn't even always give us an explanation why. See, the good and bad things that happen to us aren't necessarily the consequence of our actions. Suffering and grace alike can be completely undeserved.

Meanwhile, Israel gets a bunch more kings. The first is Zechariah, and he is the fourth of Jehu's descendants to rule, so just like God promised, he is the last of his line. A guy named Shallum kills him and becomes king, but he only lasts a month before a guy named Menahem kills not only him, but also all the pregnant women in the city! I already don't like him. He rules for ten years and is, as you probably guessed, evil. During his reign Assyria starts creeping in, and Israel begins to pay them tribute. Amazingly, nobody kills Menahem, and his son Pekahiah becomes king. A guy named Pekah kills him and becomes king, and during his reign Tiglath-pileser of Assyria captures some of Israel's cities. Slowly, Israel is beginning to crumble. Think it has anything to do with the fact that every single one of their kings has not followed God? Personally I sure do. God gave them a bunch of chances, and he even showed them grace by restoring their border, and they kept screwing up. I think God is withdrawing his blessing from Israel now. I think he is going to let them go their own way and see what life without him really is like. Sometimes God does that too. Pekah also gets assassinated by a guy named Hoshea.

Okay, so Uzziah's reign didn't cover quite all that time. Around the same time Pekah came to the throne, Uzziah's son Jotham became king in Judah. And guess what? He was also good! We've had five whole chapters of good kings in Judah - four in a row! I think that is a record, and that is why I am stopping at chapter 15, because the one after Jotham will break the trend. Anyway, Jotham rebuilds some part of the temple, the upper gate. Still nobody has taken away the high places, but the fact that Israel has managed to stay more or less on track for four generations is really amazing to me.

I think that up till now it's been kind of even between Israel and Judah, as far as who was following God and who wasn't. Sure, Israel had all the bad kings and Judah had a few good ones, but Israel had some kick-awesome prophets to keep the people on track. But now things are kind of going chaotic in Israel, and Judah is on a roll in the right direction, or at least they're trying to be. So it's not surprising that Israel is the one succumbing to Assyria as the empire begins to move toward the Holy Land.

2 Kings 6-10: The Final Prophesies of Elisha

2010-03-29T00:43:00.001-04:00

Okay, so I didn't exactly finish chapter 6 last time. The Arameans beseige Samaria, and the people inside run out of food, to the point that inflation skyrockets and people start cannibalizing their children, and when the king hears about it he blames Elisha (don't ask me why) and wants to kill him. But then, in chapter 7, Elisha prophesies that food will be plentiful the next day. What happens is that some lepers go out to the Aramean camp thinking that since they're about to die anyway, they might as well throw themselves at the mercy of the enemy. They discover that the Arameans have abandoned their camp - God apparently made them hear the sound of an approaching army - and left all their stuff. At first the lepers take stuff and hide it, but then they feel bad and tell the people of Samaria. So the people go and find food and riches and stuff, and then Elisha's prophecy comes true - awesome, and totally unexpected. Good thing the lepers had consciences.

But apparently the famine continues, because Elisha goes to that Shunamite woman and tells her that her family should take a vacation to another country, so she lives with the Philistines, who I assume aren't much of a problem anymore, for seven years. When she comes back, the land where she lives is now occupied by somebody else, so she appeals to the king and tells him about how Elisha gave her a son and then resurrected him and all that, so the king says she should get her land back. I take it from this story that the woman's husband has now died.

Remember at the end of 1 Kings, when God told Elijah to anoint 3 people? - Hazael as the new king of Aram, Jehu as the new king of Israel, and Elisha as the new prophet? The only person he anointed was Elisha. I don't know if that was okay with God or not that he didn't do it, but God never reprimanded him for it or anything. But anyway, now Elisha goes and finishes the job. But he's really upset over anointing Hazael because he foresees all the destruction he's going to bring to Israel. So then Hazael goes and murders the current king of Aram, who was very sick at the time, and becomes king. Reminds me of Macbeth.

Jehoshapat's son Jehoram now becomes king in Judah, and since two generations of good kings was apparently too good to be true, Jehoram is pretty much like all the kings of Israel, probably because he marries Ahab's daughter (and I'm sure she was the spitting image of dear mother Jezebel). Maybe helping out Ahab and Ahaziah wasn't such a good idea, eh Jehoshapat? Now, if you're confused, yes, you have heard the name Jehoram before - he's the brother of Ahaziah who is now the king of Israel. Get this - when Jehoram of Judah dies, his son becomes king, and guess what his name is? Ahaziah. And you thought all the Henrys of England and Louis (Louises?) of France were confusing. Anyway, he's also bad, but even worse is his mother. Her name is Athaliah. That name makes me cringe, because one time a guy told the story of Athalia and Ahaziah and his son, and to make it more interesting he said Athaliah's name in a high-pitched, freaky, cackly voice. So I always remember her name, and it sounds like fingernails on a chalkboard.

Then Elisha anoints Jehu. In another stroke of irony, Jehu's father was named Jehoshaphat. He basically tells him that he's going to destroy Ahab's family. So Jehu gets right to business: he tells his people what Elisha said, and they proclaim him king right then and there. Only then do they go about killing the current king. Jehu makes short work of Jehoram. Then he has Jezebel thrown out the window, and he basically runs her over with horses. Then he kills all the males in Ahab's family after tricking them into coming to him under the pretense of peace.

Jehu is a pretty tricksy character. He pretends to be a devoted Baal-worshiper and gathers all the priests and worshipers of Baal together for a big sacrifice, but he kills them all. It almost looks like he's going to follow God, right? Wrong. He still worships other gods, he just has a thing against Baal apparently. God commends him for destroying the altars of Baal and the house of Ahab, and promises that he'll have four generations of sons on the throne, which I don't totally get because Jehu was still bad. He even brought out the golden calves that Jeroboam made and worships those. Do you ever notice yourself making a really big deal about getting rid of one evil in your life, while ignoring others? God, it seems, is amazingly patient with us, but unless we tear down all the altars in our lives and eradicate all the false gods from our hearts, we will not really accomplish anything good in the end.

So what did we learn in this passage? I think this passage was mainly about fulfilling God's prophecies through Elisha. It's sort of tying up loose ends, because I think this is the last we hear about Elisha. I don't know how he died or anything, although I'm pretty sure he was killed (all the prophets were, except obviously Elijah). I think we'll have to wait until Chronicles to find out. Anyway, so we find out that God is serious about what he promises, whether it's for good or for bad. He provided food as he promised to Samaria, and he also executed judgment on Ahab's family as he promised. And he was pretty gracious with Jehu, and Jehu is the only Israelite king who was promised a legacy (although Jeroboam was offered a lasting legacy in the beginning). Sometimes God's promises are unconditional, like the food for Samaria in the midst of the famine. But sometimes they're based on what we do, like how Jehu destroyed the altars to Baal and killed off Ahab's family. He doesn't always act exactly in the same way, so don't try to predict him, but he does always keep his promises, so you can definitely count on him.

2 Kings 4-6: There Can Be Miracles When You Obey

2010-03-27T20:45:00.002-04:00

It's time for more stories about Elisha! One day Elisha meets a widow who is broke, and about to lose her sons to slavery, so Elisha makes her fill up a bunch of pots with oil, and all she has is a tiny little jar, but it fills every pot and jar and jug that she owns or could borrow from her neighbors, so she can pay off her debts and keep her sons. Now, what I find interesting is that when this woman came to Elisha, he didn't make a sack of gold drop from heaven, or the creditor drop dead. He made her do something. And the miracle only happened because she did what she was told. Sometimes when we look for miracles, I think we assume a miracle happens when we sit back and do nothing, when in reality, God is often calling us to do something that he will use in a miraculous way.

Now we meet another woman, and Elisha's always passing through her town of Shunem, so she invites him to dinner whenever he comes through, and then she convinces her husband to prepare a guest room for him so he'll have a place to stay. Elisha is so grateful that he asks her what he can give her as a thank-you, but she says she is perfectly fine. Elisha asks his servant what he should do, and his servant, Gehazi, points out that her husband is old and they don't have any kids. So Elisha tells her she'll have a son, and she does. Then when the son gets older, he gets sick and dies. She runs for Elisha and tells him what happened. First Elisha sends Gehazi off with his staff to see if that will cure the kid, while he follows the woman back. Gehazi is unable to resurrect the child with Elisha's staff, so when Elisha gets there, he goes into the room and prays and lies right on top of the kid, then stands up and walks around, then repeats, and the kid sneezes seven times and is fine. Talk about a funny resurrection story! Maybe he had a posthumous allergic reaction to Elisha's beard.

Next there's a famine, and some people make a stew, but it's poisonous. Elisha happens to be passing by and asks for meal, and he throws that into the stew and tells the people to eat it. Now, I don't know much about cooking, and I'm guessing these people didn't either since they made something poisonous, but I don't think that adding more ingredients typically cancels out a poisonous one, and I'm pretty sure the people knew that. So this was a very counter-intuitive move, and probably took a lot of faith in Elisha to obey. I mean, what if he was wrong? But they ate it, and sure enough, it was fine. Once again, in this case, obedience was required for a miracle to take place.

Another famous story happens in chapter 5. Remember that country Aram, that Israel's been fighting for the last several chapters? Well, there's a guy in the Aramean army who has leprosy, named Naaman. His wife has a little girl slave who's an Israelite, a captive from a raid. Now first of all, the fact that the Bible calls her a "little girl" tells me that she really is a little girl. Girls were women around 13 (and boys were men at the same age). Anyway, this little girl is so beautiful to me. She's been taken away from her mommy and daddy to be a slave to some pagan woman and her husband in a foreign land, and her master has a disease which, in her homeland, people got banished for, and yet she has compassion on him. Is that amazing or what? I love this little girl. She says she wishes that Naaman could be with the prophet in Israel (Elisha) because he could be healed. And Naaman, far from simply patting the girl on the head and saying "isn't that nice," actually goes to the king of Aram and tells him about it.

Now remember, Israel and Aram have been at war for the last several chapters, spanning a few generations at least. Yet for some reason the king says Naaman should go find this prophet guy – not only that, he volunteers to write a letter himself to the king of Israel, who, remember, is his enemy.

Now, the king of Israel isn't quite as cucumber-cool as the king of Aram. He sort of freaks out when he reads the letter because he thinks the king of Aram is demanding that he heal Naaman, or something like that I guess. He thinks it's another incitement to war. But Elisha hears about it – seems like word traveled fast in Israel, even without the Internet – and he sends a message to the king to invite Naaman over.

Anyway, you know the story. Naaman comes and Elisha sends a messenger to tell him to wash in the Jordan River seven times. Apparently the Jordan is really muddy and gross. Naaman gets angry because he wanted to see the real prophet and get a magic show. But one of his servants, who seems to be more sensible than Naaman, points out that if the prophet had asked Naaman to do something really hard, Naaman would have done it. So why can't he do something retardedly easy? So he does, and he gets healed! And a third time, the miracle was a result of obedience. And from what I can tell, Naaman wasn't 1/7 healed after his first dip, then 2/7, and so forth. He had to completely finish, and then he was completely healed – more than that, his skin became baby smooth! Seriously, it says his skin became like the "flesh of a little child."

Okay, so this is my favorite part. Naaman offers to give Elisha a present, but Elisha doesn't want anything. Naaman asks for some dirt, I guess to make an altar? Because from now on he is only going to sacrifice to the LORD and not to the pagan gods of Aram. Can you believe it?! Naaman didn't come here to be converted or to encounter God; he just wanted to get rid of his leprosy and go on with his life. But having been healed, Naaman has also been washed on the inside. He even goes on to explain that he helps the king into their temple to worship and he has to bow down for the king to lean on him, so he asks for God's pardon when that happens. I just can't believe the change in Naaman. He was angry before that Elisha didn't come out himself to see him and wave his hands and pull birds out of his hat. Now he seems really humble and grateful. I can see why he was well respected in Aram though; he's a dedicated guy.

Anyway, remember how I said Elisha doesn't want anything? Well, his servant Gehazi does. He goes out behind Elisha's back and asks for the gifts that Naaman had offered, lying and saying they're for somebody else (the sons of the prophets again, to be exact). Naaman gives him twice what he had offered to Elisha (also a very generous guy), and Gehazi takes it. But Elisha knows he took it, so he fires him, and more than that, he gives him Naaman's leprosy. Greed doesn't pay.

Then there's a short weird story about the sons of the prophets. They are building a new neighborhood, and while they're cutting down trees, somebody's axe head flies off the handle and sinks into the water, and he freaks out because it was borrowed. Have you ever lost something that you borrowed from somebody else? It is the worst feeling in the world. Especially when it was something important or valuable. But Elisha is a really nice guy and he makes the axe head float up to the top of the water so the guy can get it back. I wish that would happen to me when I lost something.

Okay, so now we go back to the Arameans. The king of Aram – Naaman's boss, the guy who sent him to Elisha – is at war with Israel already again. Israel is winning so badly that the king things there's a traitor among his servants. But his servants are like dude, that prophet in Israel, he can hear the things that you whisper in your bedroom and tell them to the king of Israel. Remember when Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah's spirit? I think this story confirms that he's got it. The king tries to capture Aram, but he can't because Elisha asks God to let them see all the angelic warriors who are surrounding Samaria, and then he makes them go blind and leads them right into the middle of the city so they can get captured. But he doesn't let the Israelites kill them. On the contrary, he feeds them and sends them home, and they never come back – at least, not the "marauding bands" of the Arameans.

Once again, I'm going to stop early because this is just going to be too long. I think I've made the main point of my post clear: miracles are not just the result of believing something good can happen. Sometimes they are the result of doing what God tells you to do. Sometimes they require doing things that are illogical, like the woman with only enough food for her and her son, or downright stupid, like washing in a river that's dirtier than you are. I think the point is, if God asks you to do something, you should do it, because you never know what will happen. Sometimes God does miracles when we don't do anything, like the Shunamite woman who got a son just because she was nice to Elisha. Contrary to the popular belief that "there can be miracles when you believe," I think that there can be miracles regardless of whether you believe or not, because if God wants to do a miracle, I think he's just going to. However, it sure does seem to help if you believe, because belief leads to obedience, and God blesses obedience.

I think we have also learned that it's best not to borrow or lend something valuable to another person, unless you have a prophet handy to recover it when it gets lost.

2 Kings 1-3: The Rise of Elisha

2010-03-26T15:21:00.004-04:00

Now we're on to 2 Kings. Ahab has died and his son is on the throne, but he's gotten sick. He wants to know whether he'll recover, so he sends somebody to ask of some random god, Baal-zebub (is this the good later known as Beelzebub or Belzebul in the New Testament, a synonym for the devil?). God tells Elijah to say to King Ahaziah, are you asking Baal-zebub for help because there is no God in Israel? And also, you're going to die. Elijah sends the message, and Ahaziah sends fifty men to go bring Elijah to him. This is really funny. The captain of the fifty says to Elijah, hey man of God, come down right now. And Elijah says, if I'm a man of God, fire will come down and burn you up. And it does. So then Ahaziah sends another fifty men, and the same thing happens. He sends another fifty men (whatever happened to "fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me?), and the captain of the third fifty really doesn't want to die, so he goes to Elijah and bows down and begs for his life and the lives of his men. Smart guy. So Elijah knows this guy is going to show him respect and not kill him, so he goes with them. And he tells the king exactly what he already told him. Ha! I like Elijah. And of course, Ahaziah dies, but he doesn't have a son, so his brother, Ahab's other son, becomes the king.

As far as we know, only two people have ever made it out of this world alive. One was named Enoch. The other was Elijah. I wonder why these two are the ones who never died, and why not anybody else. Ever wonder about that? Well, the Bible doesn't tell us why. But Elijah knows ahead of time that it's about time to go, and so apparently does everybody else. Now, there's this group of guys collectively called "the sons of the prophets." I don't know who they are or why they all hang out together, but they show up from time to time in these books. When Elijah and Elisha pass by them, the sons of the prophets say to Elisha, "do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?" and he says, yes I know; shut up. I like him already. Elijah and Elisha cross the Jordan with a cool river-parting move, and then Elijah asks Elisha if there's anything he wants. Elisha asks for a double portion of Elijah's spirit to be given to him. I don't know if he meant Elijah's supernatural power, or his ability to speak with God, or his courage, or his vitality, or something like that, but apparently he gets it. And a fiery chariot – I'm thinking that Elijah rode in style, like a stretch limo chariot – comes down from heaven and takes Elijah up.

After Elisha can't see his master anymore, he takes Elijah's coat that he dropped, and he says something funny. He says, "Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?" Why on earth did he say that? He just saw Elijah get taken up to heaven, so obviously God is pretty close by. What did he mean by asking that? But anyway, he touches the water of the Jordan River with Elijah's mantle, just like Elijah had done to get the water to part on the way over, and the river parts again. Now, to me, when they crossed over the first time, I thought that was a totally pointless stunt. "Hey Elisha, look what I can do!" something like that. But now that Elijah is gone, Elisha needs to know that God really is with him and Elijah wasn't just speaking off the cuff. When he is able to do the same miracle Elijah did, maybe he knows that God truly is with him. And maybe that answers his question.

So Ahaziah's successor, Jehoram, is just as bad as he and their dad were. But when Moab rebels against Israel, he goes to king Jehoshapat (who is good, remember) for help, and Jehoshapat says he'll help again. Now, we haven't heard a whole lot about Jehoshaphat, mostly just a paragraph saying he was good, and a little anecdote about him and Ahab fighting Aram together, but I'm inclined to like him. He wants peace between Judah and Israel, because remember, God wanted peace between Judah and Israel. Every time a king of Israel asks for his help, this is what he says: "I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses." In other words, your battle is my battle because we are all God's chosen people. He isn't uppity and elitist like "no, you Israelites seceded from Judah, so we don't want to have anything to do with you. We're the good side and you're the bad side." That's not the way it is, and Jehoshapat knows it. This, I think, is how we should treat other Christians, even the ones who belong to churches we may not fully agree with. I'm not talking about cults or living in sin or anything like that (although that would more accurately describe Israel); I mean other people who are believers, just as the Israelites were just as much God's chosen people as the people of Judah. At least, that's what I take away from this.

So they go, and the king of Edom joins them, and they get stuck in a place without water. So they need to call a prophet for help, and somebody suggests Elisha, the former servant of Elijah. So far, Elisha is kind of an unknown – the person has to say that he was Elijah's helper or nobody would know who they were talking about. Anyway, Elisha doesn't want to talk to the kings of Israel or Edom, and only does so because of Jehoshapat, but he won't prophesy to them. Instead he makes a minstrel do it, and the spirit of the LORD comes on the minstrel. Weird! Anyway, so they go into battle, and Moab is losing, and so the king of Moab sacrifices his oldest son as a burnt offering, which is gross and evil, but then a great wrath comes against Israel – super freaky. Maybe because Israel didn't follow God, they were not protected from the dark forces that Moab served. Now, up to this point in the story (meaning the whole Bible), pagan gods have been portrayed as relatively impotent. God made a mockery of Egypt's gods, the gods of Canaan were powerless to save them from destruction, the Philistine idol of Dagon can't even stay upright in the presence of the ark of the covenant, and 6+ hours of screaming and cutting doesn't arouse the attention of Baal. For pretty much the first time, here we see a result, and it comes from what God depicts as one of the most heinous acts a person can do, human sacrifice. These people may just be serving blocks of wood and stone, but there are other powers in this world than good and other supernatural beings besides God and the angels. The darkness is real and so is its power. And that, I believe, is why God wanted Israel to stay far, far away from it. This is a scary part of the story to me.

I was going to go through chapter 8, but this seems like a good place to stop to me.

1 Kings 17-22: Ahab v. Elijah!

2010-03-25T14:23:00.002-04:00

Ready to hear about a prophet you've actually heard of? Well, look no further, because Elijah the Tishbite is here! Now, I think "Tishbite" is a really funny word. But even people with funny names can serve God and do awesome things. Check this out. The first thing Elijah does ans go to Ahab and tell him that there is not going to be rain or even dew unless he says so, and that it's going to last a few years. Luckily, God has a secret hiding place for Elijah where he can get food and water. First God uses ravens to give Elijah food, but later he uses more traditional means, namely, a person. There's a widow in a place called Zarephath that God wants to provide for him. But when Elijah finds her, she's getting ready to bake the very last food she has in her house, and there's only enough for her and her son, and after that they're just going to starve to death. So Elijah says something really inconsiderate considering that: he asks the widow to make food for him first, and then for her and her son, and he tells her that she won't run out of flour or oil.

Now, if I were in this widow's position, I would probably think this was a crazy guy. Maybe she knew who Elijah was. But amazingly, she immediately does exactly what Elijah asked, and sure enough, her flour and oil jars don't run out for the entire length of the drought. You know how I said maybe she knew who Elijah was? I'm not sure, because once the miracle happens, then she says "Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth." She didn't know that for certain before, but she still obeyed. Now, I have a feeling that if she'd made food for herself and her son first, and then for Elijah, the results would not have been the same. What do you think? Also notice that the miracle allows the widow to continue making bread, but nothing else. Elijah doesn't promise for a stray deer to wander onto her property, or for a vegetable truck from the future to slip through a wormhole and land on her doorstep. Sometimes God's miracles are overwhelmingly huge, and sometimes God's miracles are just keeping us alive.

Now three years have passed, and God tells Elijah that he's finally going to send rain, but first he's got a project. On his way to tell Ahab, Elijah runs into Obadiah. Obadiah is one of Ahab's people, but he worships the true God and even saved the lives of 100 prophets when Ahab's wife Jezebel (we'll hear more about her; she's a real gem) is killing them all. Remember that fact, by the way. So anyway, Elijah has Obadiah tell Ahab that he's on his way, and very reluctantly, he does. Elijah tells Ahab to assemble all the people of Israel, including the prophets of Baal (all 450 of them) and the prophets of Asherah (all 400 of them) on Mount Carmel. So he does, except the prophets of Asherah don't show up for some reason.

This is my favorite story in this book. Elijah calls the people out and says they need to decide whether to follow the LORD or Baal, and they're going to have a test to see which one is the true God.In true Mythbusters fashion, Elijah sets up identical experiments: two altars, two oxen, no fire. The god who sends fire from heaven to burn the offering, is really God.

The prophets of Baal spend all day long trying to get Baal to answer him. They take so long, in fact, that Elijah starts making fun of them. They even cut themselves because they believed that Baal was drawn to the scent of blood (part shark?). But the Bible tells us "there was no voice, no one answered, and no one paid attention." Whatever celestial beings may be up in heaven, Baal is not one of them.

Then it's Elijah's turn, and he tips the scales against his favor by dousing the entire altar with several gallons of water. He prays one time, in two sentences, and immediately fire comes from heaven and not only burns the offering, but also burns the wood, the stones, and the run-off water that Elijah had poured on the altar. That would have been freaky. The highly intelligent people of Israel immediately cry, "The LORD, He is God!" I'm glad they came to that conclusion given the evidence. So then Elijah takes all 450 prophets of Baal down the hill and kills them, and he tells Ahab that it's going to rain pretty hard soon.

Ahab goes home to the wife and tells him what the big mean prophet did to him. Now, Jezebel is a witch. She's not even Jewish. Jezebel sends a sweet little note to Elijah that basically says, what you did to the prophets of Baal, may the gods do all that and more to me if I don't kill you by tomorrow. Now, Elijah has been pretty tough up to this point. He's faced down 450 prophets of Baal and an evil king without so much as flinching. He knows God is on his side. But one telegram from the wicket witch of Israel, and Elijah runs for his life. He runs to Beersheba, and then he goes into the wilderness, and finally he walks all the way down to Mt. Sinai (also known as Horeb). So it's no wonder that when he gets there, the first thing God says to him is, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Elijah whines that he's done everything for God and Israel has been bad and has killed all the prophets and he's the only one left and they're trying to kill him too.

Now, remember that guy Obadiah? Thanks to him, there are at least 100 prophets of God alive still. Maybe Elijah just doesn't know about them. But the person who wrote this book knew about them, so somebody knows what he did. Do you ever feel like you're the only one of your kind? Like you're the only person in the world trying to do the right thing and follow God and you're all by yourself? I've felt like that. But the truth is, you're not alone. Chances are, there are other people in the exact same situation, but you might have to look for them. This is why I think that it's important for Christians to be part of some kind of church.

God does something interesting next. He tells Elijah that he's going to pass by. There's a huge earthquake, but God's not in the earthquake. Then there's a fire, but God's not in the fire. And after that there's a tiny, tiny wind - my Bible says "a gentle blowing," and others call it a "still, small voice." When Elijah hears it, he knows that it is God. Now, I don't know exactly why God did this, but I think it means that God doesn't always appear with a band, like He did at Mt. Carmel. Maybe God is telling Elijah that He's going to provide for him the same way He provided for the widow at Zarephath - not with a lot of fanfare and bells and whistles, but by just quietly keeping him going.

So God doesn't even answer Elijah's pity party, except to say that when all is said and done, there will still be 7000 in Israel loyal to Him. Instead of a "poor baby" and a pat on the back, God tells Elijah to go all the way back to Israel, and stop in Damascus to anoint a new king over Aram (not part of Israel), a new king of Israel, and a new prophet/apprentice for himself. God says that Hazael (new king of Aram) will kill a bunch of people, and the people Hazael doesn't kill, Jehu (new king of Israel) will kill, and the people Jehu doesn't kill, Elisha (new prophet) will kill, and after all that there will still be 7000 followers of God left. So Elijah goes back and does those things.

In the next chapter, Israel has a couple wars with the aforementioned country of Aram. At the time, the king is named Ben-hadad. Ahab actually wins, and Ben-hadad escapes. His servants tell him that the Israelite kings are merciful. Isn't that cool, that even though Israel has turned bad, they still have a good reputation? Anyway, so Ben-hadad goes groveling to Ahab, and Ahab makes a covenant with him and lets him live. But then a prophet tells Ahab that he was supposed to kill Ben-hadad and now he and Israel are going to be in trouble because of it.

Next, we have a lovely story about Ahab. It seems there's this guy named Naboth who has a vineyard near Ahab's palace. Ahab wants the vineyard, not because it's a good vineyard - he wants to turn it into a vegetable garden - he just wants it because it's close to his house. Naboth says no, because it's his inheritance. That might not make a lot of sense to us today - I mean, I were Naboth, and the king offered me money and a better vineyard for it, I would say sure! but inheritance and land were really important to people back in the day. They were things you just did not give away.

So Ahab goes home to mope, and delightful Jezebel hears the story and says she will get the vineyard. Unlike Ahab, though, Jezebel is not a fair player. She just sets up for Naboth to be murdered, and that's what happens. So then Ahab gets his precious vineyard. But then Elijah comes back and tells Ahab that, like Jeroboam and Baasha before him, every male in Ahab's family is going to be cut off, and that dogs are going to eat Jezebel's body. Then the Bible has rare bit of commentary: "Surely there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do evil in the sight of the LORD, because Jezebel his wife incited him." How would you like that legacy? Ahab, it seems, didn't so much set out to do evil, as he let evil happen and didn't say a word. He married a woman who served false gods, he let her set up 850 false prophets who ate at her table, he let her go after Elijah, and he had to have known what she was going to do to Naboth. Ahab sold himself to the devil so that he could plant a vegetable garden next to his house. What a dip.

Fortunately for Ahab, he realizes he's a dip. When Elijah tells him this, he tears his clothes and puts on sackcloth and fasts. Beloved Jezebel probably kicked him and told him to get up and be happy, but if she did, he finally didn't listen to her. Anyway, God is so impressed by Ahab's humility that He decides to be merciful and not to cause this rampant destruction in Ahab's days, just in the days of his son.

Finally, another war with Aram. Israel and Judah go out together. The king of Judah at this time is Jehoshaphat, who's a good guy, and he wants to ask one of the LORD's prophets whether they'll win. All the other prophets in the world are telling them that they're going to win. But along comes another prophet, named Micaiah, and he says they're going to lose. What's weird about this story is that the people act like it's Micaiah's decision for Aram to win. When he comes to the king, the messenger tells him to prophesy favorably because that's what everybody else has been doing. And when he does otherwise, Ahab tells Jehoshaphat, see, I told you he'd say something negative. And he has him thrown in prison until his safe return. But I guess he's going to stay there a while, because just like Micaiah said, Aram wins - I assume the king of Aram is the same one that Ahab let live - and Ahab gets randomly shot and killed.

Last of all we hear more about this Jehoshaphat guy. He was the son of Asa, a good king, remember? Jehoshapat is also a good king. Finally! Asa has succeeded where so many other leaders of Israel have failed, in raising a godly son. So Judah is on the mend. In contrast to that,. Ahab's son becomes king, and he's bad just like his father. Ahab's humiliation may have been sincere, but the text doesn't say anything about repentance or about Ahab serving only the LORD after this point, so in the end, nothing changes in Israel.

1 Kings 12-16: DIvision of the Kingdom

2010-03-20T13:53:00.001-04:00

When Solomon dies, his son Rehoboam becomes king. The people of Israel tell him that they were pretty heavily taxed during the days of Solomon (probably to pay for the temple and the palace), and if the new king will just lighten the load a little, they'll faithfully serve him forever. Rehoboam initially responds well to this request; he calls the elders who had been on Solomon's advisory panel and ask them what they think. But when they tell him to listen to the people, he doesn't seem too impressed. So then he calls in his friends, the young spoiled rich kids who grew up with young spoiled Rehoboam. They tell him, no way man! You should tax them even harder, and make a wisecrack about your dad to boot! Oh yeah, that comment about "my little finger is thicker than my father's loins"? That was probably a lewd comment intended to mock his father's masculinity, if you don't know what I mean (if you don't, know that the word translated "loins" could have been translated to mean what's between the legs).

So Rehoboam turns out to be a jerk, because this is his response to the people. A word of advice: when you're in a leadership position, try not to do something that will make the people under you quit, because they can. And they do. Ten out of Israel's twelve tribes secede and form their own country, and do you know who they make king? That's right, Jeroboam from last time. Now remember, God had told Jeroboam that he would become king of Israel, and promised him that if he followed God, he would have basically the same deal that was promised to David: a descendant on the throne forever.

Anyway, so as soon as Israel secedes, the people of Judah and Benjamin prepare to go to war - you know, your typical civil war situation. But God tells a random prophet (ever hear of Shemaiah?) that the Jews can't fight against their own people. They've never made a habit of listening to God before, but this time they do.

Let's go see how Jeroboam is doing as king. Oh look, he's commissioned two golden calves and altars on the high places, and appointed non-Levite priests, and set up holidays to honor his calves. What happened was, he was afraid that if the people continued to follow the LORD, they would be continually going to Jerusalem to sacrifice, and that would eventually reunite the kingdom - in spite of what the LORD himself promised Jeroboam. So he created an alternative religion for his people so that they would stay out of Judah, thereby securing his reign - or so he thought. See, there's a problem whenever we think that we can secure our own future. God had already offered Jeroboam as good of a deal as anybody can have, and instead of trusting God to keep his word, he sets up his own security system. But God wants to give him a second chance, so an anonymous man of God visits him and warns him that there is impending doom because of his idolatry. Jeroboam stretches out his hand to order that the man of God be seized, but God strikes his hand so that some weird affliction happens to it (my text says it "dried up" but I don't know what that would have looked like). So of course, then Jeroboam begs the prophet to pray to God so his hand would be healed. Now, if I were the man of God, I would say, no way! You just tried to kill me, and you aren't going to listen to God. Why should I help you, since I'm about to die anyway? But this guy is a better guy than me, apparently, so he prays to God and Jeroboam's hand is healed. Oh joy. So then Jeroboam invites the prophet to come back to his house and get a "reward." Now the prophet wises up and says no way man, there is nothing on earth that could make me go with you or eat your food. Well, it's actually because God had told him not to eat any food or drink any water until he gets home. So he goes home.

But on the way home something really weird happens. There's this old prophet in Bethel, and his sons tell him the story above about Jeroboam and the man of God, so the old prophet goes out and meets the first prophet and invites him home to dinner. The prophet at first says no way, but then the old prophet lies and tells him that God had spoken to him and told him to invite the first prophet to dinner. So he does, but because he's disobeyed God, God tells him that he won't be buried in his father's grave. And sure enough, on his way home, he's attacked by wild animals, dies, and gets picked up and buried in Bethel instead of his hometown. Remember how serious the Jews were about death? Being buried not in your family's grave, apparently, is kind of a disgraceful thing.

So basically, I think this story has a valuable lesson to teach us: that is, you can't always trust when somebody else tells you God has spoken to them. Especially if it contradicts what you know God has told you. Keep in mind, the guy who lied was also a prophet - he was a guy who spoke the words of the LORD that he heard directly from the Big Guy. But prophets are not infallible, nor are they above doing something presumptuous and stupid like this guy. You can't just rely on a person's reputation as a follower of God, a prophet, or a pastor, or on their word that God spoke to them, especially if you don't know the person very well. You have to listen to God yourself.

Now we go back to Jeroboam. Jeroboam's son has gotten sick, so he sends his wife in disguise to another prophet, named Ahijah. Is it just me, or are there an awful lot of prophets in this country? Anyway, this prophet is blind, so he wouldn't have been able to recognize Jeroboam's wife anyway, but God tells hm that she's coming so it doesn't matter. Anyway, so Ahijah tells the wife that because Jeroboam rejected God's word and caused Israel to sin by building idols and high places, God is going to cut off all the males in Jeroboam's whole family and put somebody else on the throne in his place. And moreover, as soon as the wife re-enters the city, her son will die. Now, if I were a mother, and God told me that, I would stay out of the city for the rest of my life. But this woman is none too bright; she goes straight home, and of course her son dies right away.

So later Jeroboam himself dies, and his son reigns in his place. But we don't find out about him yet because now the text switches over to Rehoboam.

Now, as much bad as Jeroboam did to keep Israel away from God, Rehoboam and Judah do just as much and even worse. They build up the high places and put Asherim on every big hill and under every big tree. Asherim are a kind of idol, by the way.Moreover, they have male cult prostitutes in the land. So then the king of Egypt comes against Jerusalem and makes off with all the treasures that were in the temple - remember all the riches of Solomon? They're all gone now. Rehoboam replaces Solomon's gold shields with bronze shields. And finally, we find out that there is war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually, in spite of what God had said. And that's all the significant stuff that happened in Rehoboam's reign. In other words, he was a flop.

So then his son Abijam becomes king, for only three years, and he's pretty much the same as his dad - idolatry, war with Israel, etc. But then when he dies, his son Asa becomes king, and Asa is as good as Rehoboam and Abijam were bad. He got rid of the cult prostitutes and removed all the idols, and he de-throned his mother because she had made an Asherah (female deity) image, and he also destroyed that. He didn't take down the high places, which I don't understand, but it says that his heart "was wholly devoted to the LORD all his days." He also put silver and gold back into the temple. Unforutnately, there was war between him and the king of Israel (who by this time is a guy named Baasha - we'll hear about him soon). Asa forms a treaty with Aram to prevent Israel from attacking him anymore, and it works.

So Jeroboam's son only lasts two years, and he does evil, and then he gets assassinated by Baasha, the guy we just heard of, who then becomes king. And Baasha not only kills Nadab, but he also kills every male related to Jeroboam, just like God has said. And Baasha is just as bad as Nadab and Jeroboam, so God sends the same prophecy (by another new prophet named Jehu) to Baasha that he gave to Jeroboam's wife:
every male in Baasha's family is going to be cut off. And that's what happens. Baasha gets murdered by one of his army commanders named Zimri, who kills everybody in Baasha's family. But he only lasts for seven days - then a guy named Omri is set up as king, and he beseiges Tirzah, which is where Zimri was living, so Zimri actually sets his own house on fire so that he won't be killed by somebody else. Omri reigns for twelve years, and dies, and his son Ahab becomes king. Does that name ring a bell? It should. We're going to hear a lot about him next time. For now, just know that he is just as bad and even worse than all the kings who have been before him, and it says that "he did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him." This guy sets the new record for bad. So it's time for God to send in the big guns - no more little prophets who speak up once and then disappear forever (well, that's probably not true; it just seems that way). God's about to raise up the biggest prophet since Moses. Tune in next time to see how that plays out.

1 Kings 5-11: The Reign of Solomon

2010-03-19T16:26:00.001-04:00

King David got a whole book to describe his reign; Solomon reigned just as long and gets seven chapters. This This is because ancient biographers were not concerned with chronicling every detail of a significant person's life, but only with recording the parts of the person's life that made them significant. I wish that modern biographers would take this approach; I hate reading biographies.

Anyway. The most significant event of Solomon's life, as we all know, was the building of the Temple. This was a huge undertaking, and to accomplish it, Solomon had to get outside help from the king of Tyre, a guy named Hiram. Solomon bought cedar and cypress timber from Hiram in exchange for lots of food. Solomon also hires some of Hiram's servants in addition to his own tens of thousands of laborers. It took this many people, I suppose, because they had to transport the materials, and that could not have been easy. Solomon, being a smart dude, had 30,000 people divided into 3 rotating shifts - each shift of 10,000 would work 1 month and be home for 2 months, which is a pretty nice deal I think. I don't know what his other workers' hours were.

Anyway, the book gives general specs on the building - dimensions, materials, rooms, some of the decorations, etc. But it's not a blueprint, so we don't know exactly what it looked like, although a lot of people have made good educated guesses. Wikipedia has an article about it. The point is, this was supposed to be the most beautiful building in Israel - just about everything in it was overlaid with gold, and there were cherubim statues and engravings of palm trees, flowers, and more cherubim. It took seven years to build and all 38 verses of chapter 6 plus 39 verses of chapter 7 to describe.

In the next chapter Solomon builds himself a house, which is much smaller and much less impressive, and only takes 12 verses to describe. Clearly, the house of God was more important to Solomon than his house was, and that is as it should be.

Then the ark is brought into the temple, and Solomon addresses the people to tell them why he built the temple, and gives a very long prayer of dedication, asking God to hear the prayers of His people and have mercy on them when they are in distress or when they have turned from Him and then repent. He finishes with a benediction and then a really huge sacrificing party - 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. I don't know how long it took to sacrifice each animal, but using a little bit of basic math I figured out that they definitely needed multiple priests sacrificing at once or they'd be there for like a week.

Now God appears to Solomon again, like he did before when Solomon asked for wisdom. God tells Solomon again that if he lives as David did and follows God all his life, his throne will be established forever and everything will be good; but if he doesn't, the land will be taken away from him and the temple will be destroyed. That makes me wonder, if Israel had never sinned, and if all the kings had been good, would Jesus have been born in a palace?

Now that all the temple work has been completed, Solomon gives fellow king Hiram twenty cities in Galilee, just to have. I think that is really generous, because remember he's also been giving him food for the last 7 years. But Hiram doesn't like the cities he got (maybe he doesn't like Galilee). This, to me, is kind of like looking a gift horse in the mouth, don't you think? But we don't know if Solomon did anything to make him more grateful. We just know that those 20 cities were nicknamed Cabul, meaning "as good as nothing," and that Hiram sent Solomon 120 talents of gold.

Earlier, we heard that kings came from around the world to meet with Solomon because he had a reputation of being so wise. Now the queen of Sheba comes to visit Solomon. Sheba is apparently where Ethiopia is today. The queen and Solomon seem to hit it off, to the point that many people believe the queen returned to her country carrying Solomon's child. And to this day, I believe the Ethiopians claim to be descendants of the queen of Sheba and Solomon, to some extent. And maybe that's why they accepted Christianity so readily. I don't know.

Now we get a description of how rich Solomon was - the armor, the chariots, the armies, the goblets, etc. Apparently Solomon made Israel so rich that silver because a common metal. How would you like to live in a land where there was as much silver as gravel!

Unfortunately, the other thing Solomon has a lot of is women. 300 wives and 700 concubines - seriously, that's disgusting. How is it that the wisest ruler in the world is probably the stupidest husband? Well, God didn't say he'd give Solomon wisdom for everything in life, just for ruling. I don't believe that Solmon was the overall wisest person ever to live, because he made really foolish mistakes in his relationships - namely, that he had so many. And guess what? Since Israel apparently ran out of single women for Solomon to collect, he started turning to foreign women, including women from countries and religions that God said never to intermarry with. And wouldn't you know it, all those women eventually turned Solomon's heart away from God. If your heart is divided among 1000 women, I think it's only natural to suppose that it would become divided from God sooner or later as well. Really, really stupid idea, wise guy.

So of course, trouble starts to come, and it comes from Israel's cousin, Edom. Edom rebels against Solomon, and there was strife between the two nations for the rest of Solomon's life. Now God tells a prophet named Ahijah that he's going to divide the kingdom between David's descendants and another guy named Jeroboam, and he'll even give Jeroboam the majority of the kingdom. Ahijah tells Jeroboam that if he follows God, things will go well for him and he'll have a descendant on the throne of Israel forever - kind of like what God said to Solomon. God doesn't want to destroy Israel, but he is going to use it as an illustration of what a heart divided looks like. But out of love for David, God's decided to wait until after Solomon's death to do this.

Solomon dies, and I don't know what the state of his heart was. God told Solomon himself that he's going to take the kingdom away from him, and we don't hear whether Solomon repents or not. That's kind of discouraging, because God had been so important to him before - or maybe it was that he was preoccupied with David's vision, without ever making it his own. I suppose we'll never know on this side of heaven. Either way, it's clear that the old saying is true: God doesn't have grandchildren. Just because David followed God wholeheartedly, doesn't mean that Solomon could do whatever he wanted. Maybe Solomon was basing his relationship with God off his father's relationship, figuring that being the son of David was good enough to keep him in God's good graces. And you just can't do that.

1 Kings 1-4: The King Is Dead; Long Live the King!

2010-03-15T17:40:00.001-04:00

We start 1 Kings with David being on his death bed, or at least very near it. He's very old and he gets really cold just lying around in bed all day. So his advisers advise that they find a virgin to take care of David and sleep in his bed to keep him warm. Now, my question is, where are all David's wives? He's got at least eight, but none of them volunteer to take care of him - not even Abigail, the smart one. Guess we know how committed those relationships are. So they hire some pretty girl to be David's nurse, and good boy, he doesn't sleep with her (in that sense). Maybe he's finally learned his lesson.

Then Adonijah, one of David's sons sets himself up as king - before David is even dead - even though David had already declared that Solomon would be king after him. So the prophet Nathan talks to Solomon's mom Bathsheba and tells her to talk with David to make sure Solomon becomes king. Sure, now the loving wife wants to spend time with her husband. But David doesn't really mind too much; he declares that Solomon is going to be king, and he orders Nathan to set up a party anointing Solomon. So they do.

Oh yeah, guess who else was behind Adonijah's becoming king? That's right, Joab. Finally, David tells Solomon not to let Joab die in peace, but he doesn't kill him himself (though I wish he would've). So David dies, Solomon becomes king, and Adonijah wants to keep his place in the land of the living, so he surrenders to Solomon, or rather to Bathsheba, and says all he wants is David's nurse, the cute girl who David fortunately didn't sleep with. Bathsheba asks Solomon's permission, but Solomon isn't too thrilled with the idea - actually he says that Adonijah must be put to death. He also fires the priest, since he was in cahoots with Adonijah, and apparently he's a relative of Eli - remember him from 1 Samuel? God told Eli that He would judge his house.

Then finally - finally - Solomon order his new army commander to kill Joab, who has run away, and he does. Solomon also kills the guy who had cursed David that David had let go. Now all the resistance has been put down and Solomon's rule is secured.

Then God appears to Solomon in a dream and tells him to ask for something. Solomon, wisely, asks for wisdom to rule. God is really pleased with this request, so in addition to giving Solomon wisdom, He promises him wealth and long life and rest from his enemies, as long as he continues to be devoted to God. Then we have an example of Solomon making a really wise decision - two women claim the same baby and Solomon figures out whose kid that baby is.

The next chapter basically tells us Solomon's kingly stats: who his officials are, what the extent of his territory is, and how his reputation as a wise ruler grows. Solomon had 3000 proverbs, 1005 songs, and knew about trees, animals, birds, and all kinds of stuff basically. And you thought your parents were know-it-alls.

So things are going well for Solomon. His country has grown and it's at peace, he's got lots of money, and he's making good decisions for his people. That means only one thing: It's time for a project. But we'll find out about it next time.

2 Samuel 22-24: David's Last Days

2010-03-14T21:18:00.000-04:00

We're coming to the end of another book, and at the same time we're coming to the end of David's reign. He's just returned to Jerusalem after Absalom chased him out and after the other guy revolted against him, so he sings a psalm praising God for delivering him from all his enemies, from Saul onward. The song is also found in Psalm 18, by the way. The heading in my Bible calls it "David's Psalm of Deliverance," and it's all about the faithfulness of God, the greatness of God, and all the ways that God has saved David. It talks about how God delivered David because David was righteous and kept God's commands. This kind of runs contrary to what we're generally told about how God deals with people, that it's not about how good we are. And when it comes to our eternal salvation, that's true, because nobody is beyond needing to be saved. But with life's problems, the truth is that it pays to do the right thing. God does reward obedience - he rewarded the Israelites, he rewarded David, and He rewards us too, although we don't always know when or how it'll happen.

Next, David sings a song declaring the greatness of God and rejoicing in God's covenant with him. Things are good.

Then the story shifts to talking about David's "mighty men." These are the heroes of David's army, the bravest of the brave and the strongest of the strong. It lists all the names of the Thirty (there are 37 of them), but it talks in greater detail about the Three, who are the bravest of the bravest of the brave and the strongest of the strongest of the strong, and it briefly mentions each of their military exploits. But then it tells about another adventure they had that was of a different nature - one time when they were at war, David said something about wishing for water from the well at his hometown, and his three mighty men sneak through the Philistine ranks and risk their necks to get David some of the water. When they come back and present him with the water, he is too overwhelmed with their sacrifice to drink the water, and he pours it out as an offering to God. This might sound like a really ungrateful thing to do, but I think offering it to God was really a way of honoring the men for what they did - kind of like, just saying thank you would not have been enough. One time in college, I wasn't feeling too well. I tend to crave apples when I'm not feeling well, but our college cafeteria only had icky mushy apples. My favorite apples in the world are Galas. I said something at dinner about wishing I had a Gala apple. A few moments later Justin left the table without a word. He returned an hour later with a giant bag of Gala apples. I was so grateful that I think I was speechless for a minute. Unlike David, though, I ate the apples.

Then something weird happens: David takes a census of Israel. What's weird is, I don't understand this first sentence of chapter 24. It says, "Now again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and it incited David against them to say, 'Go, number Israel and Judah." What did Israel do to make God mad, and why did David's anger give him the idea to take a census? Was that such a miserable experience that he thought it would teach them a lesson or something? I have no idea. But David tells Joab to do it, and Joab warns David that it's not a good idea, but David wants to do it anyway so they do. For some reason God doesn't like this, and David feels guilty about it. I'm not sure why - maybe God doesn't want David to know the size of his army, kind of like the Gideon situation where he wanted the people to know God was the one who won their victories. Whatever the reason, God gives David a choice of 3 punishments for his actions. The choices are basically between natural disasters or or being chased by enemies. David says he'd rather fall into the hands of God than men, so God sends a plague. Then David feels guilty because a bunch of people are sick and dying for his stupid mistake, so he prays and builds an altar, and God hears him and ends the plague. And that's how this book ends. Kind of a sudden ending, huh?

I think the idea with this last passage is the faithfulness of God in spite of the faithfulness of man. That is to say, David acted righteously, and God was faithful. Then David acted unrighteously, and God was still faithful. It's like that verse that says that when we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

So it pays to do the right thing, but the truth is that we don't always do the right thing. Even when we mess up, though, we can turn to God and rely on His mercy.

2 Samuel 11-21: Things Go Downhill

2010-03-13T23:23:00.000-05:00

In an effort to catch up to where I've read, I'm doing a very large section today. The good news is there's a theme to these 11 chapters: bad stuff happens.

Now, I am going to disagree with the heading my Bible has for chapter 11. It calls this chapter "Bathsheba, David's Great Sin." I would like to inform Zondervan that Bathsheba was not a sin, she was a person; David sleeping with her and murdering her husband, was a sin. Remember what I said about David and his relationship with women? This is the part where we see what happens when power goes to a guy's head and when he gets into the habit of having any woman he wants, no matter how recently widowed she is (Abigail) or who else she's currently married to (Michal, although to be fair she was David's wife first). As much as I love David, at this point he's gotten kind of fat and lazy. He's supposed to be out at war (apparently it was a regular yearly function for kings, maybe like the Olympics?). But he stays home - mistake #1. He's checking out his view and he sees a lady on the roof taking a bath. Why she was taking a bath on the roof, I have no idea. Now, I don't want to be too hard on David. I'm sure it would have been hard not to look. But he was a married guy - actually a multiply-married guy - and he could look at any of them any time he wanted. But instead of remembering that, he kept looking at Bathsheba - mistake #2. Then he asked about her and found out she was married, to one of his best soldiers, no less (he's listed at the end as one of the "mighty men"), which should have been a major red light, but no, he invites the married woman to his house - mistake #3. He sleeps with her, mistake #4. When she gets pregnant, he tries tricking her husband into sleeping with her, but he is too honorable to have a good time while his fellow soldiers are at war. Uriah is a more righteous dude than David is at this point. So David arranges with dear Joab for Uriah to die in battle - mistake #5.

Now David's got a dead guy and a pregnant widow on his hands; at least he has the decency to marry her after her period of mourning is over (a courtesy he didn't make with Abigail, but her husband was a jerk and it doesn't say anything about mourning him).

Anyway, you know what happens. His pastor comes and tells him a story to get David to realize what an idiot he is; he wises up and repents. God forgives him, but there is a consequence: Bathsheba's baby dies.

But since Bathsheba isn't David's only marital sin, she's also not his only problem. Some time after that, one of his sons falls in love with one of David's daughters (they're half-brother and sister) - yet another reason why polygamy is a bad idea. He rapes her and sends her away in disgrace. The woman's name is Tamar - ironically, the last Tamar we saw in the Bible was also a victim of incest - and she happens to have a big brother named Absalom. Ring a bell? It should. Absalom kills his half-brother (Amnon) for raping his sister, and then he gets banished. But clueless David only cares about how much he misses Absalom, so he mopes around until Joab convinces him to un-banish Absalom. Then Absalom starts a conspiracy to take over the crown.

Absalom gets pretty much all Israel (minus Judah) to support him, and things get tense to the point that David has to evacuate Jerusalem and go into hiding again. David goes on the run once more.

Remember our friend Meph from last time? He has a servant - well, he was really Saul's servant - named Ziba. Ziba comes to David and tells him that Meph has stayed in Jerusalem thinking he was going to reclaim Saul's throne. David then decrees that all Meph's property will go to Ziba. This story really discouraged me because I liked Meph, but the story isn't over yet; there's a twist later on.

David passes some city and a guy curses him. One of his followers requests permission to impale him, but David says to just let it go. Around this time, Absalom enters Jerusalem. It looks like he's going to become king.

Then Absalom's people get advice from two counselor-type people. One of them, who is like a really important prophet , tells Absalom to sleep with David's concubines, and so he does - in view of all the city. This is actually a fulfillment of something God told David would happen as a result of his sin with Bathsheba. But this prophet also tells Absalom to send an army after David's men until they run away and David is left alone. Absalom considers this, then gets advice from another guy. The other guy says David's men will never desert, and that Absalom himself should ride in battle with everyone in the whole country and basically overwhelm David's tiny crew. Absalom decides this advice is better. Then the author gives us a little commentary: he says that the first guy's advice was actually better, but that God was planning to thwart the good advice and bring calamity on Absalom.

Then the second guy who gave advice goes and warns David about the advice he gave, so David is prepared ahead of time. He tells all his soldiers to spare Absalom for his sake, and everybody knows everybody hears it. Then somebody tells Joab that Absalom got stuck in a tree and is hanging there. Joab tells the guy he should've killed him but the guy says no way, you heard David. So what does our pal Joab do? He finds Absalom and sticks him with three javelins, then has his minions finish the job.

David finds out about this, and of course he is really sad. Joab mouths off to David and tells him not to mope about his son's brutal murder, and does Joab get in trouble? No! David actually listens to Joab and tries to brighten up to improve his P.R. But finally, when David gets back to Jerusalem, he replaces Joab with another army commander. Maybe he doesn't know Joab killed his son.

Then we hear from Meph again. We fight out that Ziba is a dirty liar and Jerusalem only didn't leave with David because, well, apparently he couldn't. He's crippled, remember? So David has Meph and Ziba divide Saul's property - I'm not sure why, because Ziba lied. Maybe David couldn't tell who was telling the truth. But Meph actually offers for Ziba to take all the land, because all he cares about is that David is home safe. I like Meph. I think he's a good guy.

So, we think that things are going to settle down now, but some random person revolts against David. Amasa, the new army commander, takes all the people out. But Joab, the little weasel, goes up to Amasa to hug him, and whilst hugging him, he stabs him with a sword and kills him. What a jerk! And so Joab assumes command over David's army, just like he did before.

Finally, there are some Gibeonites who have a grudge because Saul tried to kill them all, so David says he'll give them whatever they want. They want seven men from Saul's family to be given to them to kill them, and David says okay. What? I don't know why that's okay, but there you go. He doesn't give them Meph, but apparently there are 7 other relatives of Jonathan that David didn't provide for. I find that really interesting.

So almost everything that could have gone wrong for David, has gone wrong now. The moral of this story is, what goes around comes around. David was messed up in his relationships with women, and it came out in his children's relationships with him and with each other. The other moral of this story is, Joab is a jerk and he should be fired! I am really upset that he's still alive right now. Hopefully that won't last for long.

2 Samuel 7-10: Things Are Looking Up

2010-03-12T16:09:00.001-05:00

So now that the ark of the covenant is back in Jerusalem, David wants to build a temple for it. I guess he felt bad that he was living in a big cedar house and "God" was "living" in a tent. Silly David, God lives in heaven - which I've never seen, but I hear it's much nicer than cedar. Anyway, David tells the prophet Nathan, who basically acts as David's pastor in this book, and Nathan tells David to go for it. But then God tells Nathan that was a bad idea and that He never actually asked for a house for Himself. But then God says that David will have a son who will build God a house, I guess as sort of a compromise since He could tell David really wanted to do it and had good motives and all. So Nathan gives David the message. We humans have a tendency to speak too hastily - even pastors and prophets and people like that. Just because somebody is really close to God doesn't mean they're above speaking presumptuously, and that means you and me too.

David takes the news well and says a really long prayer praising God and thanking Him for His faithfulness to him.

The next chapter is about all David's military victories, and it says that Joab becomes the army commander - bet he was happy about that - and then it says who the priests and so forth were.

The next chapter is one of my favorites. At this point David thinks about how Saul has been killed, Jonathan's been killed, and even I.B. has been killed, and he asks if there is anybody else alive in Saul's family that he can be nice to before ~~Joab~~ somebody kills them. And somebody tells them that there is one guy, named Mephibosheth, who is one of Jonathan's sons. Mephibosheth, on top of having the world's worst name (seriously, it means "exterminating the idol" - what kind of name is that?), is completely lame in both feet because his nurse was a klutz and dropped him when he was a baby. So Mephibosheth - I'ma call him Meph - is really freaked out to see King David, knowing that most of his relatives have been killed already. So when David tells Meph that he's going to treat him like a son for the rest of his life, it probably rocks his world. David kept his covenant with Jonathan after all these years and in spite of all the destruction that's happened in his family so far. And Meph is grateful - David has won himself a lifelong ally.

Finally, another military story. David's feeling pretty good about this being nice to others stuff, so he sends a big gift package to the newly crowned king of the Ammonites, whose father has just died, because the king's daddy was friends with King Saul. But the new king treats David's messengers pretty scandalously, so David sends goes and beats the tar out of them.

So basically these last two chapters tell two stories of doing the right thing, doing something nice for somebody who needs it. Sometimes when we do the right thing, it works out for us. The other person is grateful and we get a big happy feeling inside for being generous. But sometimes when we do the right thing, it's not appreciated. Sometimes when we do the right thing, people treat us like crap, and there's nothing we can do about it. Well, we can go beat the tar out of them, but I don't think that's the best thing to do in every situation (or in most situations). But I think we still have to do the right thing anyway, regardless of how it's going to be taken.

Just don't go to war against people if they're not grateful for your kindness.

2 Samuel 6: The Ark

2010-03-11T18:32:00.000-05:00

Somehow in writing this blog I got stuck on chapter 6, so I'm going to stick with it. I know I'm behind (I'm reading 1 Kings now), but this passage stuck out to me.

Remember the ark of the covenant? It's been sitting in a guy's house up on a hill for a while. Well, now David is going to bring it into Jerusalem to stay permanently. What they do is they put the ark on a cart, hitch the ark up to some oxen, and move it down the hill that way. If you've ever ridden in a wooden cart over a dirt road, you know that this can get bumpy. Well, it did, and so the ark started rocking pretty precariously, so this guy named Uzzah, who lived in the house where the ark was staying, reached out and touched it. God struck him and he died.

At this point you might be thinking, what the heck? Well, let's back up. I remember reading in the Law about the ark of the covenant and how it was supposed to be made. It had these four rings on the bottom with poles that ran through them so the ark could be carried. And God specifically said that the rings were to remain in the ark and never be taken out. The Levites would carry the ark, like they did when they crossed the Jordan; they were the only people who were supposed to handle it, as far as I remember. And this is how it always was carried, up until it was stolen by the Philistines. Remember that? When the Philistines returned the ark, they put it on a cart and shipped it off to Israel.

So when the ark is being carried into Jerusalem, I see a few problems already. First is that the Israelites know the proper mode of carrying the ark, and they have the proper means - the poles are, presumably, still in the ark. Second is that not only are they breaking the rule, they're copying the Philistines. Since when is that a good idea? Third, for the past 20 years it's been in a guy's house. If I'm not mistaken, it's supposed to be in the tabernacle. And if I'm also not mistaken, the ark of the covenant played a very significant role in the sacrificial system - what with the sprinkling blood on the mercy seat and all that. I wonder how that's been working out for the past 20 years? I don't know who Abinadab is; it doesn't say whether he's a Levite or not.

Anyway, so what happened here? I think that Uzzah and family, having the ark in their house for 20 years, kind of lost their sense of reverence for it. Remember, the ark of the covenant was the earth's one physical dwelling-place of the presence of the Most High God. The golden carved cherubim on the top of it had their faces covered because the angels who stand in God's presence cannot even see His face. The ark is not a mascot, which is how they're treated it in the past; and it's not a pet, to be taken care of. So when the ark is being toted down the hill on a cart and it starts to tip over, Uzzah feels like he has to take care of it. He reaches out and touches, as it were, God, the God that cherubim in heaven don't even have the guts to look at. So that's why Uzzah died. It's not that God has a thing for arbitrary rules of transportation; it's about reverence.

I think this is what happens to us sometimes. We know what God expects of us, we have the means of obeying, but we think somebody else's stupid method is better than what we know we're supposed to do. And sometimes, our idea of God gets really mutated. We think that God is a lucky charm, a lamp to rub when we need something. Or we think that God is a fragile little trinket that we have to protect, like if we don't, He won't be able to take care of Himself. God is none of that, and we shouldn't treat him that way.

After Uzzah dies, the ark stays at another guy's house for three months (presumably he lived close to where Uzzah was killed). Then David tries to bring the ark into Jerusalem again. This time they have people carry it, and more than that, every six steps they stop and David sacrifices two animals. They do this all the way to Jerusalem. And nobody dies this time. David is so psyched that the ark is coming to Jerusalem and nobody's dying that he has a party in the street as they go. He and some girls start dancing, and David for some reason isn't wearing tons of clothing, and well, you can imagine how that would go. His beloved wife Michal sees him from her window and gets really put off seeing her husband dancing the way he is. I think she would rather the King of Israel be a little more dignified (maybe like her own father, although we all know how his reign turned out). They have a fight, and David tells her that worshiping God is not about being dignified, and he would be even more of a disgrace if that's what worshiping God meant. And guess what, we find out that David has kids with every woman in Israel, except Michal. Either God made Michal barren, or Michal gets to sleep on the couch for the rest of her life.

Sometimes we get really caught up in what we look like, especially around other people, and sometimes we let that matter more than our love for God. Actually, I'm going to back that up. I think that if we look down on people who are so free in their worship in adoration of God, maybe it's because we are not free in our worship of God. Have you ever noticed that the things that bother us the most about other people, are often things that we ourselves are guilty of? I've noticed that about myself. How lame is it to criticize other people for the way they worship God? And if I do, maybe it's not their problem, but mine. So maybe the next time somebody does something that really bothers me, instead of deriding them for it, I should check my own heart.

2 Samuel 1-5: David Is King!

2010-03-09T00:13:00.001-05:00

When I said last time, the book ends with Saul's death and the valiant men recovering the body of him and his sons, that wasn't entirely true. I mean, that's how 1 Samuel ends, but the original Book of Samuel was not divided into parts like it is today; it was just written on two scrolls. So now we're on the second scroll.

It starts out with an Amalekite coming up to David - who's in his house in Philistia still - and telling him that Saul and his sons are dead. David asks him how he knows, and the Amalekite says that he killed Saul himself. Now, this might be true - Saul might not have killed himself immediately when he fell on his sword, and he might've seen the passing Amalekite and asked him to finish the job - or, the Amalekite might be lying in order to get some kind of reward from David for killing his mortal enemy and paving the way for him to become king. Not so! David is so mad that he has the guy killed on the spot, and all David's people fast and mourn and weep all day long. David sings a dirge for Saul and Jonathan. This is where that famous saying, "How the mighty have fallen" comes from. I didn't know that.

Now one line in this dirge thing is interesting. David says that Jonathan's love was better than the love of women. Considering the kind of relationships David had with his wives and concubines, I find that really easy to believe. Jonathan and David had a friendship based on mutual respect and a commitment to one another; David's relationships with his wives were not really based on much of anything. The exception to this, I think, is Abigail, whom David seemed to admire for her brain and her graciousness, but the others? not so much (otherwise, why would he keep taking more wives?). But we'll find out more about David's wives later.

So David then asks God if he should go to Judah, and God tells him to go to Hebron. Hebron is one of those major cities during this time, by the way. David goes there, and the people of Hebron anoint David king over them.

But meanwhile, Saul's army commander Abner anoints one of Saul's other sons, Ish-bosheth, king of Israel. Ishbosheth was not one of the sons of Saul who was killed in battle, so either he was lucky that day, or he was too young to fight. Either way, he lasts two years, but meanwhile all the people of Judah are following David - no surprise, because David is from that tribe.

Then Abner and Joab, who takes on the role of head of David's army, start a fight to see who will be king. Joab's side is winning, and Abner runs away.

Then we get a list of the kids David has had during this time: there are six of them, and each of them is from a different woman. Go figure.

Meanwhile, Abner gets really angry at Ish-bosheth, hereafter I.B., because I.B. accuses Abner of sleeping with one of Saul's concubines. So for that reason alone, Abner decides to follow David and turn the whole army of Israel over to him. David says great, just give me back my wife (Michal, who's been living with some other guy this whole time that David's been gone). So they do.

Now, Joab doesn't like this turn of events. I think it's because Abner is the commander of the army, and now that he's on David's side, he's probably going to be the commander of David's army, and Joab was just starting to take the title for himself. Also, Abner killed Joab's brother earlier in that battle. So Joab and his brother kill Abner. David mourns him, which is good for his PR with the people of Israel - the ones who have been following I.B. When I.B. hears about all this, he gets really freaked out that he's going to be next - and he's right! Some people come in the middle of the night and murder I.B. by cutting his head off while he's in bed. Now, can you get much lower than killing a guy in his own bed? I don't think so. They take I.B.'s head to David, for some reason thinking he'll be happy - weren't they paying attention this whole time? Didn't they see what happened to the Amalekite when Saul died? Yeah. Big surprise, David kills them too.

So at last, with I.B. out of the way, David becomes king over all Israel, and it's David who moves the capital city to Jerusalem. People build David a house, and David takes even more wives and concubines - because apparently six isn't enough - and he has eleven more sons and some number more daughters. Now, I know David is a man after God's own heart, but this is really not what God had in mind when he invented marriage. God made one Adam and one Eve, not one Adam and twelve Eves, and when He gave instructions in the Law for kings, He specifically said they weren't supposed to take a bunch of wives. David has done that, and it's going to get him into trouble eventually.

Finally we have one more battle with the Philistines. David may be crummy with women, but he is consistent when it comes to asking God about war. God tells him to go up against the Philistines, and they win.

Wow, so it really took a long time to get to this point. David has really grown up from the puny adolescent who had the guts to mouth off a giant. He's experienced many joys and many sufferings, but one thing has remained constant: his devotion to God. Unlike Saul, who started to drift away after not very long, David is always seeking God's will when he makes executive decisions as king. Being in a position of leadership is tough, because you are responsible not just for you, but for everybody under you. Leaders are held to a higher standard of accountability for that reason. Saul didn't get that; David, for all his faults, does.

1 Samuel 27-31: David in Philistia?

2010-03-08T23:40:00.000-05:00

That's kind of like the ultimate irony, isn't it? David got famous by killing Goliath, champion of the Philistines, and now, having been chased by Saul for some time (apparently he didn't put too much hope in Saul's second moment of clarity, as discussed in the last post), he runs away to Philistia. Go figure. But it works - Saul stops looking for David. And David does well in Philistia for about a year and four months. At first the Philistines are pretty leery of him - can't for the life of me think why - but then David tells them that he's killed some people from around Judah and the surrounding area (in reality it was the Amalekites and some of those), and that makes the Philistines think David and his people are on their side and they think he's going to be on their side for the rest of his life, which would be a major plus, as evidently he's pretty handy with a weapon.

Then the Philistines go to war with Israel - big surprise, right? and Saul is scared because there are a lot of them. So he does something majorly wrong. You know how I said before that whenever David was about to attack someplace, he inquired of God to see if he should or not? Saul does almost the exact opposite; he goes to a medium. We know from the Law that mediums were not supposed to be allowed even to live in Israel, so somebody clearly hasn't been doing their job because there's at least one, and Saul goes to her. He wants to talk to Samuel. Remember, the last time Saul asked God something, God didn't answer him, so Saul is probably thinking Samuel is the only person who would listen to him, except he's dead.

Now, apparently opinions are divided as to whether or not this woman really conjured up the spirit of Samuel. I have heard that the word for "medium" in Hebrew is the same as the word for "ventriloquist," although I don't know if there were such things as ventriloquists in ancient times. Also, if you read the passage, Saul doesn't see Samuel. He asks the woman who she sees, and she replies that she sees an old man with a robe, so then

Saul immediately believes it's Samuel. Like, really? How would you describe Abraham then?

But let's say, for the sake of argument, that it really is Samuel. Samuel gives Saul a mini-lecture for calling him up just because he can't get a hold of God, and tells him the Philistines are going to win and he and his sons are going to die. Considering that this is exactly what happens, it just might have been really Samuel.

Meanwhile, the Philistines start to mistrust David again, probably because they're going to war with his people, and they think that David's going to turn on them. So the guy who's basically David's boss tells him that he can't go into battle with them. David acts all sad like he wants to fight against Israel, but then he goes back to his Philistine home while the Philistines all go out to battle.

When they get there, though (they meaning David's people), they find that the Amalekites have raided their city and burned it and taken all the women and children (cuz those are the only people who were there once everybody went to battle) captive. So David and his people go and get them back. They run into an Amalekite deserter (well, he was actually left behind), who tells them where his people have gone in exchange for his life, and some of David's people get too tired to go after them so they stay behind with the stuff while the rest of the people go get the women and children and spoils. When they come back, there's an argument over whether the tired people should get any of the spoils or not, since they didn't help fight. David says they should because they were protecting their stuff, so they still deserve a reward. The moral of this story is, don't leave the stuff you care about unprotected, or somebody will steal it. Also, staying behind and defending what you have can be just as important as going out after what you've lost/what you don't have.

So then we shift focus back to Israel, fighting against the Philistines. Three sons of Saul die, including our beloved Jonathan. It's hard for me to picture Jonathan dying in battle like that. He was the guy who sneaked out and killed Philistines for fun, after all. And we don't even find out how he died, just that he did.

Saul has been hit by archers, his sons are dead, and his army is losing. Rather than go out in a blaze of glory, Saul commits the ultimate act of cowardice: he asks his armor-bearer to kill him. But his armor-bearer is like, no way. So Saul falls on his own sword. His armor-bearer, seeing that his master is dead, does the same. That, to me, is like the ultimate act of loyalty, although I don't necessarily think it was the right thing to do.

The Philistines take Saul's body and his sons' bodies and cut their heads off and basically put the bodies on display for all the Philistines to mock. But then the valiant men of Jabesh-gilead hear about it, and they steal the bodies of Saul and his sons and burn them, but then bury the bones and fast for seven days. And that's the end of the story. Really, that's how the book ends.

The Jews were pretty much rotten people for most of their history, but they were good when it came to one thing: honor. Saul may have not been a very good king, and he may have lost the battle, but the valiant men - those are like the knights - would not allow his body to rest in dishonor. They risked their lives to bury their dead king. That's pretty amazing to me. And I guess that's why the Bible calls them valiant. Valor goes beyond mere bravery; it's (according to Dictionary.com) "boldness or determination in facing great danger, esp. in battle; heroic courage; bravery." These men were heroes, and it was the heroes who respected the dead so tremendously. I don't know what to say about that, but it's something to think about.

1 Samuel 21-26: David on the Run

2010-03-01T18:49:00.000-05:00

Now that David knows for sure Saul's out to kill him, he takes off. First he comes to a place called Nob, and there's a priest there named Ahimelech. David asks him for food, but all he has is the consecrated bread that only priests are allowed to eat. David tells him Saul has sent him on a secret mission, which is not true, and also that he has a bunch of companions waiting just outside town, which I don't think is true. But I'm not entirely sure because Jesus, in Matthew 12, makes a reference to this story and specifically says that David "and his companions" ate the bread. I know that later on David has about 600 guys following him; maybe some of them are already with him?

Anyway, so one of Saul's servants, a guy named Doeg, overhears this whole conversation. Remember that because we'll see him again shortly. And David also asks for a weapon, and the only thing available is Goliath's sword - kind of ironic, eh? So David takes that.

In the next chapter, David goes to a cave somewhere, and a bunch of people join him, including his family and people who are in debt or distressed circumstances. I think it's pretty cool that David's brothers join him; the last time we saw one of David's brothers, he was telling David to go home because war is no place for little boys. I guess the brothers realize that David is a grown-up now (and David probably is a grown-up now, being married and all; I don't know how many years have passed between when he killed Goliath and now). Then David goes to Moab and the king lets his family stay there. You might wonder, why is the king of Moab suddenly being nice to an Israelite? The last time we heard from Moab, they were not on friendly terms with Israel. Well, if we were reading the Bible chronologically, we would have seen already that David's father Jesse is the son of a guy named Obed, and Obed is the son of a man named Boaz, whose wife was named Ruth. Ruth was from Moab. Anyway, then David leaves because a prophet tells him to.

Meanwhile, Saul is trying to track David. He asks people where David is, and who should volunteer information but Doeg, who happens to be around. Doeg tells Saul about Ahimelech giving David food, so Saul summons him and tells his guards to kill him, but the guards are intelligent enough to see that it's a bad idea to kill a priest. So Saul tells Doeg to do it, and Doeg kills not only Ahimelech, but 85 priests total in that one day, plus pretty much every living being in the city of Nob - men, women, children, babies, and animals.

What is up with this Doeg guy? First he rats on David, then he kills priests? Is he trying to get a raise or something and thinks that's the way to do it? He seems pretty unscrupulous and shady to me. I don't like him at all.

Now, while David's on the run, he's not so busy hiding that he doesn't have time to help people. There's this town that's at war with the Philistines, and David consults God and then goes and helps them out. Now what I love about David is that before he goes and fights someone, it always says that he inquires of God and asks him whether he should go or not, and then whatever God tells him to do is what he does. I think that's a smart battle plan.

Now Saul is actually out following David's tracks, and he catches up to him. Saul's men take a pit stop, and they don't know it, but they park outside the very cave where David and his men are hiding. Saul thinks the cave is a bathroom so he goes inside, and all David's people tell David to kill him. But David refuses because Saul is the Lord's anointed. I find this really intriguing. David knows that he is also God's anointed, and he probably knows that God has rejected Saul, or at least that His Spirit has left Saul. David could probably convince any judge or jury that he was acting in self-defense if he killed Saul, and I bet nobody would think the worse of him for doing so. I mean, the guy's already responsible for the deaths of 85 priests plus who knows how many hundreds or thousands of lives on top of that - all just because he was jealous. But David refuses to harm Saul. Why?

I think, honestly, that David likes Saul. The guy is his father-in-law, after all, and before the Goliath thing it seemed like they had a really good relationship. And David is best friends with Jonathan. I'm sure that for Jonathan's sake alone he wouldn't do anything to hurt his dad. David knows Saul will die someday, but he doesn't want it on his conscience. David chooses to be above reproach. And more than that, he tries to repair his relationship with Saul by showing him that he spared his life. And Saul appears to have a moment of clarity. It's like there's this dark cloud hovering around Saul, and for a moment the sun breaks through and he comes to his senses. He goes back home.

Very briefly, the text says that Samuel dies and all Israel gathers together to mourn for him. I wonder if Saul and David were there - especially if they were there together. But the author doesn't want to dwell on this, probably so they can get back to the action of David, who moves again, this time to a place called Paran.

Next there's a story that I really like, about Nabal and Abigail. They're a rich couple who live near a place called Carmel (not Caramel). David and his people are staying out in the wilderness where Nabal's sheep graze, and apparently David's people are kind of watching out for Nabal's flocks and shepherds and stuff, making sure nothing bad happens to them while they're around. So then David wants to move on, but first he wants to get some provisions, so he sends messengers to Nabal to ask him. Nabal is a jerk; he basically thumbs his nose at David's messengers. David gets really mad that his people were insulted, so he's about to go desecrate this guy's house. But before he can, Nabal's wife gets wind of what happened, and she shows incredible domestic powers by somehow coming up with a ton of food and bringing it out to David and apologizing very gracefully for her husband. So David doesn't go desecrate Nabal's house after all, and he's very grateful to Abigail for preventing him from doing something stupid. A few days later, Nabal gets struck by God and dies. David hears about it and proposes to Abigail, so she goes and joins him. David already has another wife by this time named Ahinoam. We don't really know anything about her. We also find out that Saul has given David's first wife, Michal, to somebody else. I didn't know that was allowed.

Remember Saul's moment of sun breaking through the clouds? It's over now. He hears where David is and goes out after him. And almost the same thing happens that happened before: David has the opportunity to kill Saul, and he doesn't, and afterward he calls out to Saul - only this time he yells at the King's general for not guarding his king better. Saul has another moment of clarity; he blesses David and goes home.

I think Saul is really troubled. Whether it's this evil spirit or he's just really twisted his heart around, I don't know, but he is absolutely paranoid. Even when he sees that David clearly does not want to kill him, he can't accept that; he is determined to think that David is against him and needs to be stopped. Sometimes when we get a false perception of a situation or a person, we get obsessed with that idea, and it becomes really hard to let go of it even when it's proven to be false. I think we should pray to see things through God's eyes so we will not misjudge situations or people so badly like Saul did.

1 Samuel 16-20: David

2010-02-28T00:00:00.001-05:00

Now we've reached the part of the story where David enters the scene. This is a story that I think everybody knows, but it's really pretty fun to read because there's a lot of action in it. It starts with God telling Samuel to stop mourning for Saul and to go anoint the next king, who turns out to be David, the youngest of eight sons. At first Samuel thinks that one of the older sons is the chosen one - probably because Saul was a tall handsome guy, and Jesse's oldest son is a tall handsome guy too, but God says that he's looking at the heart.

Right after David is anointed as the next king, Saul has really problematic mood swings. It says that an evil spirit from the LORD torments him. I've always been confused as to what this means. Is it referring to a fallen angel type being, a creature that is evil but is under God's control, as all things are? Or is it more like the angel of death, a good being but one that causes destruction? I have no idea. And if it's a demon, then is it God Himself who's telling the demon to torment Saul, or is it more indirect than that? Why is Saul getting tormented by a spirit at all just because God's Spirit has left him? These are my questions. But anyway, it's pretty ironic that they look for a musician to help soothe Saul, and it turns out to be David, the guy who's just been appointed to replace Saul someday. By the way, I think this makes an important statement about the power of music and the arts, even the spiritual power of art.

Next is everybody's favorite story: David and Goliath. When I read this story this time, I was struck by the fact that out of Jesse's eight sons, only three of them are at war. Now what that says to me is that only those three are of fighting age. From what I learned reading Numbers, fighting age is ages 20 and up, so there are 4 sons between age 19 and whatever David's age is. The absolute oldest David can be in this story is 16, and that's like if his mom had a kid every 9 months. My little brother is 17. I can totally picture him in David's role here. He is super cute, super smart, and super opinionated. He would have no problem going up to some hotshot gigantic Philistine and telling him to shut the heck up. He's the kind of kid who really stands up for what he believes in, you know? I picture David like that, only not blond. My brother is blond.

Can you just picture a little 14- or 15-year-old kid who hasn't hit his growth spurt yet, running out to meet this 9-foot-tall Yao Ming on steroids? Yao growls at the kid, who shouts back at him with his voice cracking, I'm going to cut your head off! Then everybody here will know that there is a God in Israel! You would think, what a punk! Goliath probably thought David was a punk, and he probably thought that right up until he died.

Thing is, David didn't give himself credit for what he did to Goliath. It's clear he was pretty confident - he even told Saul that he'd armwrestled a bear and a lion before and won, but he wasn't claiming credit for those victories either. He said that God was the one who delivered David from those enemies, and God was the one who would kill Goliath. David had a lot of faith and a lot of courage, but not in himself - it was all in God. What a dude. No wonder all the screaming fangirls of Israel fell in love with him after that day.

Saul now goes through a wicked stepmother, "who's the fairest in the land" phase. He doesn't like being #2 to this punk kid who can't even fit into his armor. He tries various methods of getting him accidentally killed - send him on a dangerous mission, make him marry his daughter, throw a spear at him - but none of these subtle techniques seem to work. That's partly because David has an inside man. It's Jonathan, the honey-eater from earlier. Jonathan and David are BFFs. This is where we get a clue about what a great guy Jonathan is, because he knows full well that David is going to be king someday, and that is the job that he, Jonathan, has been brought up for all his life. But he doesn't resent David. In fact, it's his idea to make a covenant with David, swearing allegiance to each other all the days of their lives. That's pretty hardcore. So when David is afraid Saul is going to kill him, Jonathan finds out so he can warn David.

David has another inside man, actually an inside woman: his wife Michal. Michal is Saul's daughter. At first Saul tried to get David to marry his older daughter Merab, but David didn't feel worthy of the honor of being the king's son-in-law. But Michal was violently in love with him, and Saul wanted him to kill a bunch of Philistines to marry her, so that made it okay. Michal also helps David escape one time when Saul is trying to kill him, and I think it's pretty big of her to stand up to her dad when he comes looking for her. Unfortunately, this is the last good thing I'm ever going to say about Michal.

So back to Jonathan. Jonathan comes up with a plan to warn David if he finds out that Saul wants to kill him. Saul is really furious with Jonathan for being David's friend, and I kind of see why. Jonathan is Saul's son; he's supposed to be on his dad's side. Making Jonathan king after him represents everything they've been working for, all of Jonathan's life. To see Jonathan so willing to give that up to some kid who smells like sheep is an even bigger blow than the son who doesn't want to go be a football player at his jock dad's alma mater because he would rather pursue a degree in musical theatre.

So you can guess what happens: Jonathan warns David, they have a very tearful farewell because they probably know they'll never see each other again, and David takes off running. He's going to be running for quite some time.

So I think at this point we've seen Saul reach pretty much his all-time low. I had really really liked him at first, and it makes me sad to see him turn into such a jealous paranoid freak. I like David though, and Jonathan, and the friendship that David and Jonathan have. I love the faith that David has in God to protect him in whatever circumstances he faces. He's going to need that faith for the next several chapters.

1 Samuel 8-15: Saul

2010-02-23T12:00:00.001-05:00

I'm doing a bunch of chapters together so I can start to catch up to where I've read again. But this whole passage is about Israel's first official king, Saul.

We start in chapter 8 with the people demanding a king. See, Samuel's sons are almost as big of jerks as Eli's sons were - why is it impossible for a godly person to have godly children in this country? - and the people knew they were jerks, so they want a king "like the other nations" instead of another judge. It really sounds like when kids ask their parents for some ridiculous new toy for no other reason than because "all the other kids have one." I really wish Samuel had said "If all the other nations jumped off a cliff, would you do it too?" Of course they'd probably say yes.

Surprisingly, God tells Samuel to listen to the people. Actually it's not surprising. Remember back in Deuteronomy when God gave them rules for their kings when they finally demanded one? God knew this was going to happen, so at least He prepared for it.

So after lecturing the people and warning them about what a king is going to do, to which the people respond that they totally don't care, we transition to the man God has chosen to be king, only we don't know it yet. His name is Saul, and his father's name is Kish, and he's lost his donkeys so Saul and his servant are traipsing all around the country to look for them - apparently for several days. The servant says they should go ask Samuel where the donkeys are since he's a prophet - kind of like going to the mall psychic, I guess? so they do.

Then we find out that God has already told Samuel this was going to happen, and that Saul is the person he has chosen to be king. So Samuel meets Saul, tells him the donkeys have already found their way back home, but invites him to stay and come to this party he's throwing, kind of hinting that he's about to become king. Saul kind of goes, whoa man, I'm just a regular lowly guy, why are you talking like this? Then Samuel sends him back home by a certain route, where he meets some prophets and starts prophesying because the Spirit of God comes on him. After that he goes home.

Then Samuel calls all the people of Israel to Mizpah to publicly announce that Saul has been chosen king - only he can't find him, because he's hiding. When Samuel finds him and finally gets him to stand up, Saul is a head taller than anybody in the assembly. Now, something my pastor said once, is that Saul is the only Hebrew in the whole Bible who is described as "tall." The people of other nations are generally described as tall, but Jews tended to be short (poor Zacchaeus must have been really short). So when they asked for a king "like other nations," God gives them exactly what they want - he even looks like the other nations' kings.

Anyway, so at first some of the people aren't too keen on Saul being their king, but then Saul leads an army against the Ammonites and defeats them. Then the people want to kill the guys who didn't want Saul to be king, but I love what Saul says in response - he says, "Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the LORD has accomplished deliverance in Israel." This is a far cry from Gideon, who went through two cities and tore them to pieces just because they wouldn't give him any food.

The picture I am getting of Saul so far is that he's kind of bashful, hiding by the dumpster so Samuel won't make him stand up in front of everybody, that he's got a good enough dose of humility to know that he's nothing particularly special to be chosen as king, and that he's not vengeful. Sounds like a good guy so far. But if you know anything about the Bible, you know that things are going to go downhill, and that makes me really sad because right now I like Saul.

Next, Samuel addresses Israel and very briefly rehashes their history from Moses through the judges to today, tells them again that they're being really stupid by demanding a king, but here he is anyway, and exhorts them to fear God and serve him, and then things will be okay. But if they don't obey God, they and their king will be "swept away" - in other words, their king won't be able to save them from God's judgment.

Then Israel goes to war with the Philistines, and we see Saul's first mistake. He's waiting around for Samuel to show up to offer a sacrifice, and Samuel is running a little late, so rather than waiting even an extra day or something, Saul goes ahead and makes the sacrifice himself, which apparently is a really big no-no. I don't know what kind of offering it was so I don't know if there are some kinds that only priests can offer, or something like that, but when Samuel shows up he gets really ticked and says that for this mistake alone, his descendants are not going to be kings. I don't know why that happened after only his first mistake; you'd think God would give him more chances. But maybe since God didn't want Israel to have a king in the first place, the stakes have been raised.

Then we meet Saul's son Jonathan. He's a pretty cool guy, eager to go the extra mile and kill a few extra Philistines, but it gets him in trouble because while he and his men are out killing Philistines, his father is commanding the people not to eat anything until they've defeated the Philistines on pain of death, which sounds like a really stupid battle strategy to me. On the first day of volleyball practice in seventh grade, I passed out because the coach's assistant told me not to eat before practice, so I didn't. Food is good for you. So it keeps saying that the people are exhausted, because they haven't eaten, but Jonathan, who hasn't heard about this stupid order, eats some honey and gets a sugar rush. So anyway, then Saul is asking God (good idea) whether they should go down and attack the Philistines by night, but God doesn't answer him, so he knows that somebody's broken his rule. He finds out it's Jonathan and, very reluctantly, is about to kill him, but thankfully the people convince him not to.

Then Samuel tells Saul to go to war with the Amalekites and completely destroy them, like the people did to Jericho and some of the other cities when they were taking over the promised land, as judgment. I wonder why the Amalekites got extra time? Hmm. Anyway, so they go out and defeat them, but rather than destroying everything and everyone, Saul takes the king alive and saves the best of the livestock and basically everything that's good, and only destroys the crummy stuff. Samuel comes and gets really mad at Saul, and Saul tries to excuse himself by saying it's a sacrifice to God, and then by saying the people did it, not him, but finally he confesses that he has sinned and begs forgiveness.

It's at this point that it says God regrets making Saul king, and Samuel knows it, so after this day he doesn't see Saul again, and instead he goes home and mourns over Saul. I think Samuel really liked Saul in spite of all his lecturing him and everything. Sometimes people who love us are the worst lecturers, because they're just concerned about us.

I'm really sorry for Saul. He started out so well, but his inability to follow directions really got him in trouble. I guess if you're the king, you're taking the place of the judges - you're basically the guy standing between the people and God, except for the priests. So it must be really important to be totally obedient to God when He specifically tells you to do something - I mean, it's important for everybody, but when you're in a leadership position it's even more important because your example alone can influence so many people for good or for bad.

One thing I don't really understand is where it says God regretted making Saul king. Does that mean God thought He had made a mistake? That he wished He had appointed somebody else? Or just that He was sad? We say that everything God does is perfect and He never makes mistakes, and the Bible says God never changes, but sometimes - especially here in the Old Testament - there are statements that seem to contradict it. It reminds me of Genesis when it says God was sorry he had made humans.

So this story, like so many others, ends on a sad note. Poor Saul, if he had just followed directions he would have seen his son become king, and his grandson, and so on down the line. But don't worry, he'll cease to be a cause for pity soon enough.

1 Samuel 1-7: Samuel

2010-02-22T15:24:00.000-05:00

I have to say, this book starts off on a way better note than Judges ended. We find out, thankfully, that there are still some people in Israel who follow God. One of them is a man named Elkanah, and he has two wives: Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah has children and Hannah doesn't, which in that culture was a HUGE disgrace. Peninnah is also a bit of a witch to Hannah because she always ridicules her for not having kids - and this is why polygamy is a bad idea, by the way - although Elkanah loves Hannah more than he loves Peninnah - which is also why polygamy is a bad idea.

Remember the last time this happened? Rachel, the beloved wife, didn't have any kids and Leah, the unloved wife, had a ton, so Rachel and Leah got in this war and Rachel tried everything from verbally abusing her husband to trying fertility drugs in order to get even. Fortunately, Hannah is a way better person than Rachel. Check this out. When the family goes to Shiloh (which is where the center of the priesthood was at the time), she goes to the temple and prays so long and so hard that the priest, Eli, sees her and thinks she's drunk. Can you say intense?

I like Hannah. All she wants is one kid, and she even promises to give her child back to God if He answers her prayer. Even though Peninnah (I don't know what the technical term is . . . co-wife?) constantly pesters and belittles her, she doesn't want to get even or to get revenge, she just wants one little kid, and she's even willing to give him up. And instead of whining to her husband or digging up roots or doing anything else stupid, she goes straight to God, and only to God.

So God answers her prayer and gives her a son. Remember what Rachel named her son Joseph? "I want another one." Hannah names her son "I asked God for him." Isn't that beautiful? I have a friend who prayed and prayed for a kid for several years with her husband, and finally they had a son, and she named him Samuel, just like Hannah did. And Hannah is true to her word and gives Samuel to the temple, and she worships God and sings a long song of thanksgiving because she is so happy to have a son, even though she's only going to see him once a year. I don't know if I could do that. But it's so cute that the text goes through the trouble of saying that each year when they go to Shiloh, Hannah makes him a new outfit and brings it to him. She's a good mommy. I would like to be like Hannah, although I hope I don't have to give my son away.

But guess what! After Samuel is born, God gives Hannah five more children, three sons and two daughters. And it's not because she asked and pleaded and went to drastic measures or made any more deals. She was perfectly happy with Samuel, and I believe God blessed her for her thankfulness.

But I titled this blog entry "Samuel," and I am going to try to write about 7 chapters, so I should move on. The priest at this time is a man named Eli. Now he seems like an okay guy, but his sons are awful - which, by this point in the game, is no surprise to me. Just about every good adult has rotten kids in Israel. Except Hannah. Samuel is not a rotten kid. In fact, God tells Eli that since his own sons are so rotten, he's going to raise up a faithful priest instead of them.

So that's what happens. God calls Samuel when he's still a little boy, and Samuel grows up knowing, obeying, and listening to the Lord. And everybody in Israel knows it, too.

Next what happens is that Israel is at war with the Philistines again, and they're getting pretty badly, so they have a great idea: let's take the ark of the covenant into battle with us! This strikes me as a form of manipulation, or maybe idol worship. The presence of God dwells in the ark, so they're thinking, if we bring God to the battle, He'll have to make us win. God doesn't have to do anything, ever. Sometimes we assume that we know how God will act if we make the circumstances right, as if He's a chemical formula. God is a person, not a formula. We can't always assume we know what he's going to do.

So God doesn't let the Israelites win, and the Philistines take the ark with them. But God's not about to be manipulated by them either; all sorts of havoc starts to break out as soon as the ark gets to one of their towns. But I have to say, may favorite thing that happens is when they put the ark in the temple of their god Dagon, and the next day when they go inside the idol of Dagon has fallen on its face in front of the ark. Ha! Even false gods which cannot see or hear or speak bow before the Living God.

Anyway, the Philistines get all kinds of plagues, so they keep moving the ark from city to city, and eventually they've had enough and they decide to send it back to Israel along with a bunch of offerings, which is kind of a nice thought in the morning. But when Israel gets it back they don't put it in Shiloh again, they leave it at Kiriath-jearim at this guy's house, and it stays there for 20 years.

So then Samuel, who is a grown-up now, tells Israel that what they need to defeat the Philistines is not to bring the ark of the covenant with them into battle but to serve God wholeheartedly - duh. So they get rid of all the idols and serve God, and guess what? They beat the Philistines.

So I think this passage clearly illustrates the importance of being straight with God. If you have a request, just ask Him. Don't be like the stupid Israelites who thought they could manipulate God into doing what they wanted, when they weren't even serving Him at the time. Be like Hannah who prayed diligently, sacrificed, and was thankful. I believe God honors wholehearted devotion and sincere worship.

The Parallel Structure of the Bible

2010-02-21T13:41:00.003-05:00

I'm taking a small time-out to explain that the next book in this series is not Ruth. In my Bible, that is the book that comes after Judges, and I'm willing to bet it's that way in yours too, since that is how every Christian Bible is (I think). But that is not the way it always was.

Originally, the Old Testament was arranged in a thematic order and divided into three sections: the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. Here is a list of how the books appeared:
The Law

Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy

The Prophets - Former Prophets

Joshua
Judges
Samuel (originally 1 book on 2 scrolls)
Kings (originally 1 book on 2 scrolls)

The Prophets - Latter Prophets

Isaiah
Jeremiah
Ezekiel
The Twelve (Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi - originally considered 1 book)

The Writings

Psalms
Proverbs
Job
Song of Solomon
Ruth
Lamentations
Ecclesiastes
Esther
Daniel
Ezra & Nehemiah (originally 1 book, I guess)
Chronicles (originally 1 book on 2 scrolls)

And this is the way it still is in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Scriptures.

Why did this change? When Jerome translated the Bible into Latin, the manuscript we know as the Vulgate, he rearranged the books into more of a chronological order, because he thought it would make more sense to the audience of his day - which was his aim in writing the Vulgate (the word means "common") in the first place: to make it intelligible to the common, non-scholarly man. This was before Latin became a dead language, obviously.

So why is any of this important? Well, I believe that this structure parallels the structure of the New Testament. This isn't my idea, by the way - this came from a Sunday school class in college one time, but I haven't seen it written out anywhere else, which is unfortunate because I no longer have my notes. So this is all from memory.

Genesis begins with three major stories, a prologue of sorts: the creation of the world, the union of Adam and Eve, and the fall of man. After that, we have the Law - God's instructions to man on how to be in a right relationship with God - and the establishment of God's covenants with man.

The Prophets trace the history of Israel, God's chosen people, largely through the eyes of the people He called to be his witnesses to Israel and the nations - the prophets.

Lastly we have the writings, which can more or less be divided by books that were written in the promised land (Psalms through Ecclesiastes), and books that were written outside the promised land (Esther through Chronicles). They give us examples of how to live out God's laws and be in a relationship with Him, whether we are in the land He promised, or living in exile.

The Old Testament ends with Chronicles, which seems kind of random. Chronicles is basically a re-telling of what's in the book of Kings, and it ends with a call to the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple - with Cyrus saying, "Whoever there is among you of all His people, may the LORD his God be with him, and let him go up." The end.

But then we have the book of Matthew, and in a way we see Cyrus' call being answered by Christ, who goes up to Jerusalem, whose temple is destroyed and rebuilt after three days.

Now here's the parallel part. The first four books of the New Testament, the Gospels, introduce to us a new Law, the law of grace, and a new covenant, the everlasting covenant of Christ's blood. It tells us how to have a relationship with God.

The book of Acts is the history of the early church, particularly seen through the eyes of a few men whom God called to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth: the apostles.

Then we have the epistles, which are letters to the believers telling them how to live as a citizen of the kingdom of heaven - the true promised land - while currently in exile, as an alien and stranger on earth.

Finally, the book of Revelation acts as an epilogue, ending with three major stories: the creation of a new heaven and a new earth, the wedding of the Lamb, and the fall of Satan.

Cool, huh?

The Bible is full of parallels. You can see it from the structure of the Creation story to the repetitive lines of poetry in the Psalms and elsewhere. I think it is really beautiful.

What does this tell us? For me, personally, it's an additional confirmation of the canon of Scripture. I've studied that subject a little bit, so I'm aware of the historical factors involved, but seeing this parallelism sort of says to me, this really isn't arbitrary and random. There is a purpose behind these books here. Another thing this says to me is that the canon of Scripture is complete from Genesis to Revelation - hence the name of this blog. I believe that God told us everything humanity needed for a relationship with Him in these books, and that He faithfully preserved them through time so that we could understand today what was written so many centuries ago. I believe that God still speaks to people today, and that He still reveals things to us individually through the Holy Spirit, but I don't believe that any new gospels or new prophetic books fit in with the Bible.

Anyway, so when I learned about this, I decided that the next time I read through the Bible, I would read the books in this order. It's taken me this long to get to it. So basically, all this is to say that I'll pick back up tomorrow with 1 Samuel. :)

Judges 17-21: It's All Downhill from Here

2010-02-20T12:32:00.000-05:00

Okay, I've received a few comments from people who read this blog on Facebook, since I'm staying off Facebook for Lent, saying "I thought you were giving up Facebook for Lent but you're posting!" Facebook people, what you are reading is called an RSS feed and it comes from my site on Blogger, http://zoesbibleblog.blogspot.com. I set the feed well over a month ago, and since I'm not logging in to Facebook, I'm also not going to turn the feed off. Satisfied?

Okay, we're finishing up Judges, and I have to warn you: it is really chaotic and there is basically nothing good that happens in the rest of the book. God kind of disappears from the equation, or at least very clearly disappears from people's consciousness.

It starts with a story about a guy named Michah, who steals a bunch of silver from his mom, who doesn't seem to mind when he tells her, and makes an idol with it. Then a Levite - these are the ones in charge of keeping the people serving God, remember? - comes along and Micah hires him to be the priest of his little idol thing.

Next, the people of Dan - who, if you remember, got run out of their own territory by the people they failed to evict - are wandering around looking for a place to stay, and they send out scouts who wander into Micah's house. They keep going and find an area of land that they want to invade so they can live there, so they send for the rest of their people, who also come to Micah's hosue. The people get Micah's priest to come with him and also steal all his idols. Then all Micah's neighbors go out after the Danites to fight and get the stuff back, but the people of Dan are stronger so they just go away. The Danites invade the city and they win because it's really far away from everything else, so there's nobody to come help the people in the city. They set up Micah's idol and set up a Manassehite as priest of it, and apparently everything stays like that for the Danites until Israel goes into captivity under Assyria.

That's the first story.

In the second story, there's a Levite who has a concubine, and the concubine runs off to have an affair, but he goes and wins her back, so then they go stay at her dad's house. The dad convinces them to stay way longer than the Levite intended, and finally they start going home, and travel to Gibeah, which is in Benjamin, to spend the night, because the Levite says they should stay with Israelites, so they get there and it's pretty late. But since it's so late they can't find anywhere to spend the night, so they sit down in the road until a guy comes and invites them home. So they go, and then they have a party. While they're having a party inside, a bunch of people from the city (also called "worthless fellows") by my Bible start pounding on the door wanting the Levite to come up so they can sleep with him. Does that sound familiar? The host offers his own daughter and the man's concubine as a compromise, but the people don't listen. Instead they seize the concubine and raper her all night long until she dies. The Levite doesn't know she's dead until the next morning when he's ready to go home, and when he sees that she's dead he takes her home, cuts her body into 12 pieces, and sends the pieces to each of the 12 tribes of Israel. And they freak out.

So then men from all the tribes, including the ones in Gilead, come together at Mizpah to have a conference about what they should do. They decide to march against Mizpah - or rather, for 1/10 of them to march, because there's a lot of them - so they do, but when they get there and demand for the worthless guys to be delivered up, the rest of the people won't listen. So Israel goes to war with Benjamin. For the first few days, Benjamin kicks butt. But finally Israel sets up an ambush, and they win.

Finally, once all this is over, the rest of Israel starts to feel sorry for Benjamin, because they've all decided that none of them can let their daughters marry Benjamites, and they took a vow and everything. Now, I don't know what happened to the women in Benjamin, but apparently there aren't any, and the people are afraid that there will only be 11 tribes. So they go attack a random city and kill everybody except the virgin women, but there aren't enough to go around, so they tell the Benjamites who still don't have wives to go to Shiloh, when they're having some sort of celebration and all the women are dancing, and they basically ambush the woman and carry them off so they can have wives, and so that's what they do and everybody goes home happy.

I have three words to say in response to these two stories: What the heck?

These chapters are where we see the famous line from Judges - "In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes." And that sentence or part of it is repeated throughout these chapters, and these chapters only.

So what do we learn from these stories and why are they even in the Bible at all? I think we learn that when we take God out of the picture, we screw everything up. Also, when there's no accountability, no law, there is nothing to prevent rampant crime and vigilante revenge. It's a bad situation.

I think we can see that the great idea of theocracy is not working, because that can only work when everybody's heart is set on following God, and that has clearly not been the case at almost any time in Israel's history thus far. And I don't think the problem is necessarily the system - it's the people. If you think about it, every form of government could work out really well, if only everybody involved was a good person who had everybody else's best interests in mind. But since that is almost never the case, governments have this tendency to fail miserably, some worse than others.

I think we see God taking a different approach with Israel: letting them do what they want. Maybe He's waiting for them to hit rock bottom again, or maybe He's waiting for the right person to come along and judge Israel again. I guess we'll find out.

Judges 13-16: Samson, or Proof that God Can Use a Doofus

2010-02-19T12:39:00.000-05:00

You're going to tell me that I'm giving Samson a hard time, but I have a hard time liking this guy, and it's not just because of Delilah. All the good things he did were the result of his own stupidity. Let's look at his life.

So we begin in chapter 13 with the age-old story of Israel doing evil, and the Philistines oppress them for 40 years. Then an angel appears to a woman who has no children and tells her she's going to give birth to a son who will deliver Israel from the Philistines, but there's a catch: he is to be a life-long Nazarite.

If you remember from reading the Law, "Nazirite" referred to a certain type of vow that a person would take for a period of time, and during that time they could not drink wine or any other strong drink, and they couldn't cut their hair either. Normally the vow and its conditions were temporary, something that an adult would choose to do. Samson's the only person I know of who was a Nazirite his whole life. Pretty cool.

I like Samson's parents, I think. Or at least, I'm glad that this story's not all about Samson but that we get to see a little bit of them. After the angel visits the woman, whose name we don't even know, she tells her husband what happened, and he prays to God that the angel will come again so that he can tell them how to raise their kid. Isn't that great? First of all that he believes his wife right off the bat, and secondly that the reason he wants to see the angel is not because it would be really cool, but because he wants advice. This guy's name, by the way, is Manoah. I like Manoah.

So guess what? The angel does come again, and Manoah gets to meet him. He doesn't know that it's the angel of the LORD; he seems to think he's a regular person because he keeps referring to him as "man." So he asks the angel some questions, which the angel really doesn't answer directly. Then Manoah asks the angel what his name is, and we get another clue that the angel of the LORD may be the LORD himself, a theophany: he responds, "Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?" the "wonderful" there means "incomprehensible." That immediately brings my mind to Isaiah, where he prophesies the birth of Christ and says His name shall be, among other things, Wonderful.

So then Manoah wants to make dinner for the angel, and he gets some food and puts a burnt offering and a grain offering on a rock, and God sends a flame of fire down from heaven and the angel ascends in it, or something like that. So then or told them stuff or shown them stuff. Manoah knows who he's just been talking to and thinks he and his wife are going to die for seeing God, but she says if they were going to die He wouldn't have accepted their offerings Smart lady.

Okay, so now it's Samson's turn. Samson gets born and grows up. One day he sees a Philistine girl and without talking to her or anything, he goes home and tells his dad he wants to marry her. His father says, are the pickings really that bad amongst our own people that you want to marry a Philistine? Samson's response? "She looks good to me." I just have this picture of Samson talking like a stereotypical caveman and grunting. Whatever happened to people like Isaac who trusted his dad to find him a wife, and loved Rebekah his whole life?

So finally Samson goes back and talks to her, and what does the text say? "She looked good to Samson." I don't think he really got much out of talking to her, personally.

Next, we find out that Samson is also kind of a pushover. He's throwing a wedding party, because he really is going to marry this girl, and he tells all her friends a riddle that they can't guess, promising them new clothes if they can guess, but demanding new clothes from them if they can't. I think he is purposely trying to trick them so that he'll get 30 new outfits. They talk to the bride and tell her to coax the answer out of him or else they'll burn her father's house down. So she goes and pesters him for a whole week, and finally he cracks and tells her, so she tells the men, so they can answer Samson's riddle. Apparently he doesn't have any extra clothes because he goes out of town and kills 30 Philistines so he can take their clothes and give them to his new wife's friends. And he's so angry that he doesn't even go back to his own wedding, and guess what? His bride is given to Samson's friend. Ouch! Can't say I'm surprised though.

So Samson waits a few months before thinking he wants to be a husband, and then he goes to visit the girl he is supposed to be married to, and her father doesn't let him see her. He offers Samson a different daughter though. So Samson gets angry, but he doesn't want people to blame him for killing Philistines again, so he go rounds up 300 foxes - do not ask me how - and ties two foxes at a time together with a torch between their tails, and lets them go right by the grain fields, which is ready to be harvested at this time. So the Philistines go to Samson's non-wife and burn her and her father to death.

Samson says "I will surely take revenge on you, but after that I will quit." What a nice guy. So he just goes on the rampage and kills we don't know how many of them. Then he goes and lives in a cave, until the Philistines come looking for them, and then he takes the jawbone of a donkey and kills 1000 men with it. By the way, click here to see how this would actually have worked.

Next is the story we're all familiar with: Delilah. But first he goes and sleeps with a prostitute, a Philistine prostitute at that. Why can't Samson live with his own people and just go kill Philistines on the weekends or something? Then he meets Delilah, who is also a Philistine, and falls in love with her. Apparently the feeling isn't mutual because the Philistines pay her to find out the secret to Samson's strength. You know the story: the first three times she asks him, he tells her something totally bogus, but the fourth time he tells her that his hair has never been cut, and so she cuts his hair off, he becomes normal, and he gets captured by the Philistines. They gouge his eyes out, which is really really really gross to me, and parade him around at one of their parties.

Finally, finally Samson does something intelligent. He prays. In this story, we've seen the Spirit of God come upon Samson to endow him with strength, but we haven't seen Samson acknowledge God, in spite of being a Nazirite and everything. In fact, he seems to be the most un-Israelite Israelite we've yet met: he doesn't live with his own people, he doesn't appear to have any kind of communication with God, and the only women he's interested in are Philistines, whom the Israelites are forbidden from intermarrying with. But now, at rock bottom, Samson turns to God and prays that God will give him strength one last time. True, Samson seems concerned only with avenging himself because the Philistines took his eyes, but God listens to him, and Samson pulls an entire giant house down, killing well over 3000 Philistines - and Samson.

It seems to me like Samson was really motivated by hormones, and that both got him into trouble and caused him to kill a bunch of Philistines, which was what he was born for. And that brings me to the title of this blog. Samson may have been a total Neanderthal without an ounce of gentleman in him, and he may have been really hormonal and made stupid rash decisions, but God used those things to do what He had always intended to do with Samson, in delivering Israel from the Philistines. God can even turn our foolishness and our stupidity into something useful to Him. Isn't that crazy?

Judges 10-12: Jephthah

2010-02-18T14:55:00.001-05:00

I know what you're thinking. Jephthah? Why does he get his own blog post? Isn't he a little blurb like Othniel and Shagmar? Acutally no, his story actually does have three whole chapters.

Well, the first chapter of Jephthah's story isn't about Jephthah, it's about the Philistines and Amorites oppressing Israel. The Philistines and Amorites keep popping up all over the place - we're going to be seeing them for a while, and the Philistines will actually become more and more prominent the further on we go. Isn't that great.

So what we learn in chapter 10 is that there are a couple judges after Abimelech's death and before Jephthah comes into play: Tola the son of Dodo (I know! it's even better than Joshua son of Nun) and Jair the Gileadite. So after they're both gone, Israel again does evil, and then the Amorites and Philistines kind of take over. Israel cries out to God, and God says, I delivered you from everybody else, but you still left me to serve other gods, so I'm not going to save you this time (how about I'll leave the quotes off unless I'm directly quoting the Bible - that way there's no confusion). But the people of Israel say something very interesting: "We have sinned, do to us whatever seems good to You; only please deliver us this day." I think that when you can surrender yourself to God and say "do whatever you want," you've reached a good place to be. But Israel is pretty desperate here, apparently.

I love what the next verse says: the Israelites got rid of all their foreign gods and served the LORD - and remember, this is before God delivers them or even raises up a judge. And then it says, "and He [God] could bear the misery of Israel no longer." Doesn't that statement amaze you? When we are suffering, God's not up there rubbing His hands together saying "aha, finally they are good and miserable!" It grieves God - I think He hurts when we hurt, because He loves us. He would really not have any of this bad stuff happen to people, but remember, God is on a mission here. He is on a mission to save the whole world, and He's going to do whatever it takes to accomplish it. What does that have to do with anything? Well, if Israel stops following Him and does its own thing for the rest of history, how do you suppose He's going to bring the Messiah into the world in the first place? It seems clear to me that God wanted Jesus to be born and grow up in a place where the LORD was known and served.

So anyway, enter Jephthah, hereafter Jeph because Jephthah is too long to type.. Jeph is an interesting person right off the bat because he's the son of a prostitute. But interestingly enough, we know who his father was, a guy named Gilead - in fact, it appears that Jeph was raised in his father's house. Gilead has a wife, and he and his wife have sons, and when they grow up they drive Jephthah out of the house because he's an illegitimate son. Now, if I remember my Torah right, people who had illicit sex were supposed to be killed or else made to marry if they were both single consenting adults, so technically this situation shouldn't exist. But sometimes God takes things that shouldn't be, and does something really cool with them. Bad stuff happens, and we can't always just get rid of it, but God can do something even better than erasing it - He can redeem it.

So Jeph is an outcast living in a place called Tob, and some guys who are apparently real losers hang out with them (seriously, my Bible calls themn "worthless fellows"). But Jeph must've been one heck of a fighter or something, because when the Ammonites start going to war with Israel, the elders from Jeph's hometown go out and find him and say, hey, we want you to be our chief so you can fight these Ammonites. Jeph says, Um, didn't you guys kick me out? Name one good reason why I should listen to you just because you're in trouble. The elders say, because you'll become our chief. So Jeph goes with them.

Jeph has an interesting battle tactic. He sends a message to the king of Ammon saying, why the heck are you guys fighting us anyway? The king replies, because you guys took our land away and we want it back. Jeph says, No way dude, that's not how it happened. And he tells them the story that we already know from Numbers: how Israel asked very nicely to pass through Moab, and Moab wouldn't let them, so they had to go around, and they had to go by Ammon, and they asked very nicely to pass through Ammon, and Ammon not only wouldn't let them, but went out to war against them. Is this all coming back?

Anyway, Jeph's point is that after all this, God gave the land of Ammon to the Israelites, so the Ammonites lost their right to live there; they can live in whatever land their own god gives them (nice touch). But he might as well not have said anything, because the king doesn't listen.

So of course, Ammon and Israel go to war, and Jeph does something really stupid. He makes a vow that if they win, he'll give whatever walks out of his door first as an offering to God. So of course Israel wins because God is with them, and Jeph goes home, and what - or should I say, who - walks out his door first? His daughter.

Okay, so I think scholars are probably divided on what actually happens to Jeph's daughter, because the Law forbids human sacrifice of any kind. In fact, we learned all about the redeeming of the firstborn sons, since firstborn animals were offered as sacrifices, but instead of doing that with their children they would offer an animal in the son's place. Now, the text says that Jeph's daughter goes into the mountains to mourn being a virgin her whole life, not that she goes to mourn being about to die, and when she comes back the text says that she had no relations with a man, so I think that what actually happened is that she just lived a celibate life, and maybe she spent the rest of her life in the Lord's service or something, kind of like what Hannah did with Samuel. Here, I found a little article that explains it in further detail: http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/2320

Anyway, so those Ephraimites once again are really miffed that they weren't invited to join the battle. What is up with Ephraim? Every time the people on the other side of the Jordan get in a fight, they want a piece of it. Only this time the Ephraimtes tell Jeph they're going to burn his house down because he didn'task them to fight. Jeph tells them that he did call Ephraim and ask for their help and they just didn't give it. That part wasn't in the story already, so we didn't know about it. Then Ephraim and the people of Gilead fight each other, and Jeph's team wins. It kind of looks to me that what has happened is exactly what these people's ancestors were worried about when they made their memorial altar - that there would be a rift between the Israelites to the west of the Jordan and those living in Gilead, and that the people in the main part of Israel would say that the other guys weren't really part of them. Ephraim says to the people in Gilead, "You are fugitives of Ephraim, O Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and in the midst of Manasseh." I don't know what that means, but it sounds like it means "You're not real Israelites." Their ancestors tried to prevent that from happening, but it happened anyway.

Oh, but this is really funny. After this battle, there's a kind of lingering feud between Ephraim Gilead, and when crossing the Jordan the people all have to say the password: Shibboleth. See, Ephraimites apparently couldn't make a "sh" sound, and they would say "Sibboleth," and then the Gileadites would know the person was an Ephraimite. I think that's funny.

The end of this chapter just mentions all the people who judge Israel after Jeph, but the most significant ting about any of them is that the judge named Isban has thirty sons and thirty daughters, and another judge named Abdon has forty sons and thirty grandsons who rode on seventy donkeys.

Jeph's story is kind of a weird one, but I think he was a cool guy overall. I really don't think he killed his daughter. I like that he attempted diplomacy. And I love that we see the heart of God in this story.

Judges 6-9: The Original 300

2010-02-17T13:39:00.003-05:00

Okay, before I start, I just wanted to say about the Spartan 300 that when the Persian army was approaching, somebody said they were so numerous that when they shot their arrows, they blotted out the sun. One of the Spartan warriors replied to this, "Good, then we will have our battle in the shade." I love Sparta.

*clears throat* But that's not the 300 I'm talking about in this passage. No, these chapters are about a little guy named Gideon.

Unlike the Spartan warrior, Gideon does not strike me as a very brave, valiant, "it's a good day to die" type of guy. When we meet him, he is threshing wheat in a winepress. What? Well, it's because the Midianites are oppressing Israel right now, and since the winepress was kind of a pit (maybe like an empty swimming pool?), he was threshing wheat in there to hide from the Midianites. Normally, threshing wheat was a community event, maybe like a party - we'll see that when we get to Ruth - poor sad little Gideon is all by himself, hiding from the school bullies so he doesn't get his milk money taken. Okay, so maybe I'm not being fair to him. I'm just saying all this to make a point: Gideon is not the kill-a-few-hundred-people-with-an-oxgoad warrior, or even the shove-a-tent-peg-through-a-guy's-temple-while-he's-asleep sneaky assassin that we saw in the last passage. He's just a regular guy trying to thresh his wheat.

So the angel of the LORD appears to Gideon, and it seems he hasn't been informed that Gideon isn't like Othniel and Shagmar and all them, because he says right off the bat, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior!" Can you picture Gideon turning around to see who's behind him that the shiny man is talking to? Well anyway, Gideon's response to the angel is really interesting. He says "Oh yeah? If God is with us why am I threshing my wheat in a pit? What happened to all the miracles that we heard about that used to happen?" (my paraphrase)

Note: I don't know if Gideon just hasn't read the Torah or something, but I believe that if an angel appears to you, a miracle of some kind is very soon going to happen.

In all seriousness, though, I think it's really interesting that Gideon is saying that miracles don't happen anymore, O woe is me, etc., right when God is calling him to do something miraculous. Gideon seems to have excluded himself from that possibility. When the angel tells him that God is going to deliver Israel from Midian through him, what does he say? "Who me? God is going to make me a mighty warrior like Shagmar the Oxgoad-Wielder and miraculously defeat the Midianites through me? Awesome, I can't wait!" No, he says "I'm sorry, the warriors are in the third winepress on your right. I happen to be the resident wimp from a family of wimps. God must have been mistaken."

I think sometimes we have such grand, idealized ideas about the heroes of the Bible that we put them in a separate camp from ourselves. It's like we think there's a special "hero pool" that God pulls people from, and we're not in it. Reading through the Bible so far, though, I've become convinced of one thing: there's only one pool, and that's the pool you and I were in. Now, there's two ways to look at that: one way is to think that means we're all in the hero pool, and that the same amazing stuff that was in Moses and Gideon is in us, and so we are capable of doing just as amazing things as they were. The other way of looking at it is to think that all the heroes are in the "regular person" pool with the rest of us, and that they are just as unremarkable as the rest of us, but that God did amazing things through them because He is remarkable, and God can do amazing things through us too if we just get up when He calls us. You can even look at it both ways; I'll let you decide though.

Anyway, so I'll stop ragging on Gideon because I think the "sign" thing is kind of a cool idea. I don't know if it's because he was doubtful or because he just wanted to be sure - I mean, just because a guy is shiny doesn't mean they're the angel of the LORD - but he asked God for a total of three signs during the course of this story. The first one is right now, when he prepares an offering for the angel, which the angel burns up. The second and third signs are after Gideon has already gathered an army together.

Now, I heard a sermon about Gideon recently, so this next bit comes fromn that pastor, not me. He said that when you're asking God for a sign, you'd better be already committed to doing whatever it is God's asking you to do. When Gideon asked for the signs with the fleece and the dew, there were 32,000 people in his backyard playing football or something, ready to go to battle as soon as somebody said the word. Gideon wasn't about to contest the results of the sign if it proved true.

So then God does one of his plot twists and trims down the army just a little - from 32,000 to 300 men. I think it's interesting, though, that he didn't just tell Gideon to count off or have them pull straws or something, but that it appears He really was looking for a certain group of people, rather than a certain number. First, God has all the people who are afraid go home. Then he has the people who drink water in a more "refined" fashion go home. I think God is trying to zero in on the people who are really committed no matter what, and ready and raring to go, like they're sitting there chomping at the bit and stuff. Maybe God was looking for these people so that when He cut the army so absurdly small they wouldn't all get afraid and back out. I mean, what if God hadn't eliminated the scared people? There might be some fraidy-cats in the final 300, and they would freak out and say "no way are we going to win," and run off. Or maybe if He hadn't done the drinking thing, there would be some people in the final 300 who were kind of slow and wanted to take their time and enjoy the scenery en route to the enemy's camp. I dunno.

So we all know what happens - the 300 people surround the Midianite camp, Gideon sneaks down and overhears some guy saying that Israel is totally going to win, and then they get pots and torches and basically just make a lot of noise, and Midian is so jumpy that they think they're being attacked so, in the confusion of night, they all start killing each other. So Israel wins, but that's not actually the end of the story.

First of all, the Ephraimites get miffed that Gideon didn't invite them to the battle. Gideon says Ephraim has already done a bunch of cool stuff and his little victory is no comparison, so the Ephraimites feel better about themselves and don't push it. After that, Israel pursues Midian all over the place. They are really tired and they stop at a place called Succoth and ask for food. The elders of Succoth say "yeah right, whatever," so Gideon says that when he comes back he's going to beat the tar out of them. Then he goes to a place called Penuel and the same thing happens, so he tells them he'll tear down their tower. So he does - he captures the kings of Midian, whose names both start with Z, and returns to Succoth and beats up the elders, and then goes to Penuel, tears down the tower, and kills all the men in the city. Now, I don't know that this was really necessary, but it appears that suddenly Gideon has become a mighty warrior - so mighty that he kills the kings of Midian himself, after asking a kid to do it and the kid was too scared - and also so mighty that Israel asks him to be their king. But Gideon hasn't let all the gore and glory go to his head - he says no way, God should rule over you, not me.

At this point it seems that things are going rather well. But then weird stuff happens - yeah, it's still not over. Gideon asks for the people to give him earrings, so they do, and he makes an ephod out of the gold and takes it home with him. Okay, no biggie, but apparently the people of Israel - including Gideon! - start using it in some kind of idolatry. Sheesh! Are there no decent guys in Israel?

But then we have a short story about Gideon's kids, who are really precious. Gideon has 70 sons (from many different mothers, thank goodness), and one of them, Abimelech, wants to be king, so he goes and kills all 69 of his brothers - well actually 68, because on escapes - and the people of Shechem make him king over them for 3 years. But then some other guy named Gaal challenges his authority, and apparently Shechem decides they like him better than Abimelech. So they go to battle and - get this - Abimelech wins! And he burns down the tower of Shechem with about 1000 people, men and women, inside! At this point I'm really just waiting for this guy to die. But then, the most awesome thing ever happens.He's marching against some tower in a place called Thebez, and as he's standing under the tower, some woman who doesn't even get her name put in throws a milstone at Abimelech's head, which crushes his skull (ouch). Only he has another guy run him through with a sword so that people won't say that a woman killed him. But too late! It's already in the Bible! Man, that Abimelech guy really bugged me. I'm glad he got killed by a girl throwing a rock on his head.

Then everybody goes home, end of story.

After all the awesomeness of Gideon's story, it looks like no amount of miraculous deliverance is going to cause permanent change in Israel. It also looks like no matter how great a person like Gideon is, he can't for the life of him raise kids who follow the Lord. I'm getting really frustrated with these people and their lack of good parenting. Is it too much to ask for two successive generations of obedience? But Gideon himself sort of turned against God with that ephod thing, so in spite of judging Israel and having 40 years of peace, it doesn't look like Israel is really following God that closely at any point in this story, after Midian was defeated.

Last night I said to a friend that I think the reason people live so long is because we learn so slowly. The history of Israel is really a picture of each of us, or at least those of us who are normal. Maybe some people follow God whole-heartedly and never turn away their whole lives, and are dramatically and permanently changed after witnessing a miracle, but I tend to repeat the same stupid stuff I've always done regardless of what God is doing. And maybe stories like this one are in the Bible to remind me that I can't slack off after a major victory; I have to stay committed to following God or all kinds of stuff will get in the way, and I don't want that to happen.

Judges 1-5: Dynamite Dudes and Deadly Dames

2010-02-16T15:18:00.003-05:00

Now we're in Judges, which is, in my opinion, one of the Bible's most frustrating books. The cycle of obedience, disobedience, oppression, repentance, and deliverance, is going to be repeated many times, and by the time we get to the end of the book things are just chaotic. But there is some really cool stuff in this book too; in fact, a few of my favorite people are in this book.

So Judges begins more or less where Joshua ended, with Joshua having just died and the people of Israel wondering what to do about the Canaanite cities that have not yet been captured. So they start to go after some of them, and Caleb even offers his daughter as a reward for whoever will capture Kiriath-sepher. Things seem to be going well, but then we find out that the Benjaminites don't drive out the Jebusites in Jerusalem, and that there are people among Manasseh, Ephraim, Zebulun, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan that are not conquered or not driven out - in fact, the people of Dan get driven into the hills by the Amorites and they essentially lose their land. So the angel of the LORD comes and rebukes the people for not obeying Him by not driving out all the people, and warns them that those people are going to become a snare to them.

Here's when things really start to go downhill. We read again about how Joshua died and the people served God while he was alive and while his successors were alive, but then we read a very ominous verse: "All that generation also were gathered to their fathers; and there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD, nor yet the work which He had done for Israel."

Time out. Wasn't there a big push in the Law for the people to talk about the LORD constantly with their kids? What happened? From Abraham all the way till now, we have seen so few examples of good parents that I'm starting to think parenting skills are a genetic deformity with Israel. So surprise surprise, Israel serves the Baals, which is the collective name for the pagan gods of the Canaanites. And guess what? those people who didn't get driven out of the land, and a few people outside the land that God had given Israel peace with at the end of Joshua, they now are not so peaceful.

First the king of Mesopotamia oppresses Israel for 8 years. God sends a dude named Othniel to deliver them, and for forty years things go well. But once again, Israel is unable to make a good thing last more than one generation, because history repeats itself. Only this time it's Moab who oppresses Israel, for 18 years this time.

Enter one of my favorite people in the Bible: Ehud, a leftie. He stabs the king of Moab, whom the Bible describes as "a very fat man," so deep that his blade gets lost in the king's stomach. That's just gross, but the story is also really funny. And after Ehud's display of left-handed cleverness, there are 80 years of peace - I think that's the longest period of rest that the nation is going to have during this whole book, so don't get too comfortable.

Next is a guy named Shagmar. He only gets one sentence in the Bible, unfortunately. He killed 600 Philistines using an oxgoad I didn't know what an oxgoad was so I looked it up. According to Wikipedia, "The goad is a traditional farming implement, used to spur or guide lifestock, usually oxen, which are pulling a plough or a cart; used also to round up cattle. It is a type of a long stick with a pointed end, also known as the cattle prod. Though many people are unfamiliar with them today, goads have been common throughout the world. Goads in various guises are iconographic device, and may be seen in the hand of Neith and the 'elephant goad' or 'ankusha' (Sanskrit) in the hand of Ganesha, for example."

Now I don't know anything about Shagmar, but he sounds pretty cool just from that. I wonder why he didn't use a sword though?

After Ehud dies (so apparently Shagmar's oxgoad feat was during Ehud's lifetime), we have a really cool lady named Deborah, a prophetess. She's not the judge - a guy named Barak is. But she tells Barak to go fight Canaan, who is the current oppressor of the last 20 years. Barak says he'll only go if Deborah goes with him. I'm really not sure why; I guess he thought having a prophetess around would help him with strategy? So Deborah tells him that Sisera, the army commander, will be given into the hands of a woman. I thought that meant Deborah was going to get the credit for Canaan's defeat, but that's not at all what she's talking about. She means, literally, that a woman is going to kill Sisera. Her name is Jael.

Jael is probably the coolest lady in the Bible. First, she has a cool name. But more importantly, when Barak defeats the Canaanites and Sisera runs away, he comes to her tent, and she convinces him that she'll hide him, because apparently her husband's people has a peace treaty with the king of Canaan. So he hides there and falls asleep, and Jael takes a tent peg and hammers it through his temple. That's way grosser than what Ehud did. Jael rocks!

The next chapter is a song that Deborah and Barak sing, and Jael has her own stanza.

So what do we learn about God from this passage? One, that God is serious when he says there will be bad consequences for sinning. Two, that God is also serious about forgiveness, and serious about keeping His covenant with Abraham. I mean technically, God's already fulfilled the covenant; He kept His terms. But He continues to keep it even after Israel has broken it over and over and over. Why? I guess because God has a plan that's bigger than Israel. And He'll do what it takes to see that plan through, because ultimately it will save us all.

Joshua 13-24: Dividing the Land

2010-02-15T14:22:00.000-05:00

Sorry I got behind again! I'm going to finish Joshua today, but I might take a little more time with Judges.

So what happens now is that the promised land starts to get divided among the twelve tribes. And that takes seven chapters.

In chapter 13 we see a list basically of what people/places have been conquered and driven out of the land, and which have not. So there are some pagan cities and peoples who have not even been touched yet. We also review that Moses promised land in Gilead to Gad, Reuben, and half the people of Manasseh, which they can now go back to because they kept their promise to help the rest of Israel fight the Canaanites.

In chapter 14, Caleb asks Joshua for a certain piece of land. I really appreciate Caleb here. He is basically Joshua's number 2 guy, although not officially (I don't think), and he's the only other person Joshua's age who's still alive because he was the guy who thought they could take on Canaan way back when the 12 spies were sent out and 10 of them were chicken. I'm sure he does have a right to his choice of land. Now, I get the feeling that if this had been Aaron or Miriam, they'd have griped and complained behind Moses' back by now, but Caleb doesn't do that. He just goes to Joshua and makes his request. Simple, bold, radical - the direct approach is generally always best.

So then for the next several chapters, we read what the borders of each of the territories are, and what cities are included in them. I have to admit, this part got pretty dry. I mean, do we really need to know exactly what Judah's western border is in explicit detail? Well, I guess Judah needed to know. Maybe it was written down like this so they wouldn't have border disputes later on, or maybe they just liked to record things. Anyway, I'm sure there's a good reason as to why all this is in the Bible; it's just not very interesting for me to read. I suppose if I were an archaeologist, it would be much more interesting because I would know what all these places are. Kind of like how the genealogies are a little more interesting for me to read because I'm something of a genealogy buff.

By the time we get to chapter 20, all the land's been divvied up, and now it's time to designate six cities of refuge (we've read about those several times now). I wonder why there are only six of them? I guess they were planning on not having a whole lot of manslaughter-ers in the area, or maybe this just made it easier to keep track of who could and couldn't go where. Anyway, in chapter 21 we see that there are 48 cities total that are just for the Levites to live in, and those are spread across the whole nation since Levi doesn't have their own section of land.

There's a great little addendum at the end of this chapter, once all the land has been given out: it says that the LORD gave Israel all the land He promised them, and that He gave them peace all around, and that not one of His promises to them failed to come true. Isn't that just lovely to read? I think it is. This stuff that we've been reading about since Genesis about promised land and a nation as numerous as the stars and all that - for the first time, it actually exists. The nation of Israel is now more than a theoretical concept. All the laws that God's been giving them for the last three books about "when you enter the land, do this," they can now do. It's great.

So then something weird happens. Once the tribes that live on the east side of the Jordan go back to their places, they rig up an altar. Now, if you remember from a few entries ago, they weren't supposed to sacrifice stuff just any old place but only in the place God said. So all the other tribes get really freaked out about it and march on Gilead. What? Well, for once the people are really concerned about doing things God's way, that's what. They've just barely settled into the land, and they don't want anybody screwing it up for them. Luckily, there's nothing to worry about. The Reubenites and Gadites and Manassehites (?) have only put this altar thing up as a memorial to remind them that they belong to Israel, and so that their descendants and the other tribes' descendants will know that they're really part of each other and serve the same God, although there's a big river in between them. So the other tribes say "false alarm!" and go back home. I just find this really interesting. After more than 40 years of people doing things their way and not giving a rip about what God wants, this generation is really committed to keeping God's laws. If only it would last.

By this time, Joshua is an old dude. He knows it's just about his time to go, so he gathers the elders together for a farewell address, like Moses did. He urges them, just like Moses did, to remember the LORD and obey Him and teach their children to do likewise. He reviews their history - everything that God has done, all the battles He's won for them and the good land that He's given them. This is where that famous verse is: "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." And the people respond to this, "We'll serve the LORD too!" Joshua says "yeah right, you're going to turn away from Him." The people say "No, we really will serve God." So Joshua says "Okay, don't say I didn't warn you." And he writes, presumably, the book we are now reading.

Finally, Joshua dies at age 110, which means the last paragraph wasn't written by Joshua. We find out that Israel did indeed serve the LORD all during Joshua's lifetime, and during the lifetime of the people who immediately succeeded Joshua. I don't know if that is when this little postscript was added, or if it was written later, because it doesn't tell us what Israel does after Joshua's successors die. We'll find out very soon though, as we move into Judges.

Joshua 7-12: Six Chapters of War

2010-02-03T02:16:00.003-05:00

Jericho is the first of many cities in the area of Canaan to be destroyed by Israel, and once it gets flattened, the Hebrews are chomping at the bit to go on to the next city. But if you're at all familiar with the story, you know that they jumped the gun on this one. It's a little town with a little name: Ai.

What happens is, in the case of Jericho (and several of the other cities), God told the people that they couldn't take anything from Jericho. Not just that all the people had to die, or even that all the people and all the animals had to die, but they couldn't even take gold or silver out of the city. So along comes this guy named Achan, and I'll give you three guesses what he does. Yeah. To be specific, he takes a lot of something: a mantle, two hundred shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weight fifty shekels. A shekel is 9.56 grams, or a little over a third of an ounce. 200 shekels is a little over 4 pounds, and fifty shekels is about one pound. Now, I don't know what the subjective value of these things would have been to that society, but right now, gold is being traded at over $1000 per ounce and silver at over $16 per ounce. So if Achan had taken that amount of gold and silver today (I have no idea what a mantle is), it would amount to about $18,783 in gold and $1125 in gold that he stole. That's if it were today.

So math aside, Achan screwed up, so after being found out and confessing, he is stoned to death - and not just him, but his family too. Why is that? I looked up some commentaries and one of them pointed out that Achan is the fifth generation after Judah, making him one of the older Israelites, maybe in his 50s at this time. Based on that and the fact that God had previously commanded that no child was to be killed for the sin of their father, I think it is a safe inference to make that Achan's children 1) are adults, and 2) along with Achan's wife, knew about his sin and hid it from Joshua. Being an accomplice to an evil - or just not saying anything - is sometimes as bad as doing the crime yourself.

So after this matter gets cleared up, so to speak, Israel goes on to defeat every tribe that is in the land God has promised them. Different people try different things to defeat them, including making a sneaky promise, banding together with other tribes, and so forth, but nothing works. A total of 31 kings, including the ones we've already learned about in Numbers and earlier in this chapter, are defeated by the Hebrews.

One of the kings mentioned, one of five actually who join forces in an attempt to stop Israel in its tracks, is named Adoni-zedek, and can you guess what city he is king of? Jerusalem. If you know any Hebrew at all, you probably know that the word "Adonai" means "lord," and you may also know that "zedek" means "righetousness." Put those words together next to Jerusalem, and does this name sound familiar to you at all? It sounds frighteningly close to Melchizedek, the guy Abraham met waaaaaaaay a long time ago in Genesis. But this guy appears to be bad and definitely not in Israel's side. Descendant? Unrelated coincidence? I have no idea but it's really weirding me out.

What do we learn about God in a chapter that basically is one war story after another? I think we learn first of all that he was faithful to Abraham and the covenant he made with him and Isaac and Jacob. I think we also learn that God is punishing the sins of the Canaanites. Depending oon what city they go to, there are different levels of destruction that must be brought to the city; in some, every living thing is killed. In others, every living thing is killed and none of the spoil can be touched. In some, only the people are killed, and in the ones outside the promised land, only the men are killed. I read this and I recall a passage way back in Genesis that I will paste here for you:

Genesis 15:13-16 "God said to Abram, 'Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquty of the Amorite is not yet complete.' "

In other words, God had already given the land of Canaan to Abraham and his descendants, but he was going to give the pagan people in the land four hundred more years to repent and turn from their ways. It seems from the context like they were just doing things a lot more immoral than what was going around in the surrounding areas, because God didn't call for any kind of conquest or judgment on any other tribes. And I really believe that if these nations had turned to God, he would have forgiven them.

And this in turn brings a passage to mind from 2 Peter. Read it with the Canaanites in your mind:

"[B]y the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance" (3:5b-9).

God is patient with us - he is literally waiting for us to repent, and sometimes he withholds judgment in anticipation of that. But there is evidently a point at which the time is up, when you either have repented or you are not going to. The Bible says that today is the day of salvation - not tomorrow, not someday when you get around to it. We don't know what exactly the Canaanites were doing that God disliked so much, but we do know that everybody does things that are wrong, and I even think everybody does things that are in rebellion of what we know is right. And in the end, all sin separates us from God. You cannot endure his presence unless you are no less than perfect. I don't think it's because God is an Adrian Monk germ-freak afraid to get his clothes dirty; I think it's because our God is a consuming fire and everything that is not pure and holy already will be scorched when it comes into contact with him. That's a problem, and that problem is what the nation of Israel was created to demonstrate. The only way for us to enter God's presence is for something completely innocent to stand in our way - and friend, you and I will never be that. No matter how good you become in your life, you can't erase the bad things you've done. Only one person can do that, and his name is Jesus. His blood is the only detergent that can wash the stain of our sins completely away. All you have to do is take your dirty laundry to him and ask him to clean you. The Canaanites had four hundred years to get things straight with God, and they missed the opportunity. Don't let it pass you by.

Rewind - Genesis 3: Sin Entered the World . . .

2010-02-01T15:22:00.001-05:00

Note: In reading over my blogs I've noticed a few chapters that got overlooked somehow here and there. Genesis 3 is one of them. I think I'm going to make separate posts for each of these (I've only noticed one other so far).

Genesis 3 is about sin entering the world - the serpent deceives Eve and she eats, and then Adam eats, and the rest is history. This is a loaded chapter.

First of all, there's a tension between seeing and hearing - God gave a verbal command to Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree, but then Eve looks at the tree and sees that it appears good, so she goes with that. We as humans, I think, are much more likely to believe our eyes than our ears.

Secondly, did you know that according to Jewish belief, Satan hasn't fallen yet at this point in the story? They believe that Satan was specifically created to tempt man, so that he would have free will - the idea being that without options, you can't really be said to be making choices. Ever since I heard about that, I've wondered if it is true. The Bible doesn’t explicitly tell us who Satan is or what he was before he became God’s enemy; tradition tells us that he is Lucifer, the name Isaiah gives to the king of Babylon, but the text itself doesn’t say that, although it may well be true. All we know is that his name means “adversary.”

Thirdly, Adam and Eve realize they're naked. Donald Miller has an amazing chapter in his book Searching for God Knows What about the significance of this idea. To sum it up, nakedness represents complete vulnerability. We equate it with shame today, but it wasn't that way in the garden because Adam and Eve knew they were completely, wholly accepted by God and by each other; they had nothing to hide. We lost that at the fall, that security. Now we are always trying to cover up what we perceive to be our inadequacy; we're embarrassed of ourselves. You know this is all a double entendre, right? Nakedness is more than physical openness, it's every kind of openness. We try to hide who we are from each other because we fear rejection. In the same way, Adam and Eve tried to hide their nakedness from God in a symbol of their disobedience - they no longer could be completely open with Him; having broken His law, they had something to fear, and something to hide. God is not at all put off by that. And the beautiful thing is, He doesn't leave them like they are, even though they're being punished. He clothes them with animal skins. This is the first time in history that something has died, so it probably really freaked Adam and Eve out. Something innocent died to provide covering for them, when God had said that when they ate of the forbidden tree, they would be the ones who died. So they’re looking at the dead animals on their bodies and thinking, “Is this what was going to happen to me?”

What Adam and Eve did in the garden is what we all do. I don’t believe that in a mystical, vaguely-Eastern way all humans were pre-incarnately present inside Adam’s body and every one of us chose to eat the fruit. But I do believe that in each one of our lives, we take a shortcut – what we see over what we have heard, maybe – and we decide that our judgment is better than God’s. Then when we screw up and we know it, we feel ashamed, inadequate, guilty. We want to hide. We try to cover up our wrongdoing by various means – good deeds, religiosity, denial, indifference, materialism, you name it – those things are leaves. They’re a sloppy makeshift loincloth that is going to blow away at the slightest gust of wind, leaving us totally exposed. But along comes God who sees who we are and what we’ve done, and He makes provision for us. He doesn’t let us off the hook – no, when sin happens, something or someone has to die – and that someone was Jesus. His death should have been our death, and would have been our death. But now His body and blood give us covering for our shame and make us able to stand again. It’s something we didn’t have to do and certainly didn’t deserve to have done. In theological terms, that is called grace.

Joshua 1-6: We're Goin' to the Promised Land!

2010-02-01T13:24:00.005-05:00

Okay, does anybody else read the story of Jericho with the music to Veggie Tales' Josh and the Big Wall running through their mind? I do. "You silly little pickle, you silly little peas, you think that walking 'round will bring this city to its knees?" But more on Jericho later.

We begin with God commissioning Joshua, following the death of Moses, so this book picks up right where Deuteronomy left off. Then Joshua appears before Israel and they vow to obey him.

What interests me about this chapter, and also about the end of Deuteronomy, is the charge to Joshua to be "strong and courageous." Including Deuteronomy 31, Joshua is told to be "strong and courageous" seven times - first by Moses, then by God, then by the people of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh. It makes me wonder if Joshua was really not that strong and courageous of a person. Do you ever wonder why he was Moses' successor instead of Caleb? Caleb is mentioned more in Numbers - he's the one mentioned as speaking favorably about the promised land way back in Numbers 13, for example. He seems to be the strong and courageous type. But I think Joshua had been prepped to take over Moses' job because he was his assistant, and he even went up to Mt. Sinai with him. I think God wanted somebody who was as close to Moses as he could get. Moses wasn't strong or courageous either, and we all know how much that mattered to God. I think that you don't have to be brave to be brave . . . I think courage is something God can give you, and something that comes when you know you're on God's side.

In chapter 2, Joshua sends spies into Jericho kind of like Moses did earlier, but he only sends in two. Think that's a coincidence since only two of Moses' spies (including Joshua) gave a favorable report? I don't. Anyway, they meet a girl named Rahab; apparently she's a prostitute, although I've read that the word could also be translated as "inkeeper." Either way, she's hospitable and she hides the men while people come looking for them, and asks that Israel spare her life and the lives of all in her family in return. So they make a deal with her that if she puts a scarlet cord in her window, then everybody within her house will live, but if she doesn't have the cord in her window, the deal's off. Interestingly, it says she ties the cord in her window right when the spies leave.

Then Israel crosses the Jordan River, only they cross it by God cutting off the water upstream so the people can cross it on dry land. This seems like a completely useless miracle because we just saw mention in the last chapter of fords, meaning there is a part in the river that is really, really shallow and can be crossed without a bridge. I don't think that the point of the miracle was practicality, though. I think the point was to remind the Israelites of what happened at the Red Sea. I've noticed that God often does things in pairs (you'll hear more about this after I finish Judges) - for instance, Jesus feeds 5000 people, then he feeds 4000 people. I think it's a way of reinforcing or confirming the message. Joshua is new in charge, just as Moses was new in charge when he led the people out of Egypt 40 years ago. Both miracles were signs that the power of God was on this chosen leader, only Joshua didn't have 10 plagues already under his belt, which makes this miracle even more important. This is a way for God to show people that Joshua is the guy to follow. It's also, I think, a miracle for the sake of the people who didn't see the Red Sea parted - since, remember, that was 40 years ago. They've grown up hearing about it, and maybe this is a way for them to experience what it may have been like to see it happen.

Chapters 4-5 are more religious and less actiony. In chapter 4, God has Joshua make a memorial pile of stones taken out of the Jordan River - a stone to represent each tribe of Israel - so that in future generations, the descendants of these people will ask their parents why that pile of stones is there, and they'll tell their kids about the crossing of the Jordan. It says that the pile of stones is still there "to this day." More on that later.

In chapter 5, God tells Joshua to circumcise all the males in Israel. For some reason, nobody has been circumcised for the last 40 years while they were traveling. I'm really not sure why that is. Like, Moses didn't circumcise his kid either until an angel appeared on the road to Egypt about to kill one of them, and even then his wife did it. Did Moses just have a thing about circumcision, so he never told the people to do it? I don't know. Or was it like a travel concession - while you're on the road you can put it off. I have no idea. Anyway, that's what they do in chapter 5. But then something really cool happens.

Joshua goes outside one day and sees a guy with a drawn sword. Joshua asks him whose side he's on, and the guy says he's not on either side; he's the captain of the LORD's army. Cool! You can give me battle strategy advice, right? says Joshua. Well not really. Joshua falls on his face - which, for future reference, is the appropriate response when you're in the presence of the LORD, as it appears was the case here, because the angelic captain has Joshua remove his shoes. Then (moving into chapter 6) he tells Joshua how to win the battle. Basically he doesn't have to do anything except look weird, and God will take care of the rest. So that is what they do.

Pause for a second. Did the captain of the LORD's army just say he wasn't on Joshua's side? Now maybe by that he meant that he wasn't an Israelite, and that probably is what he meant. But I always felt like it meant something else too, that God is above the temporal divisions we humans make between ourselves. Just like we say today that God isn't a Republican or a Democrat, He's not an Israelite either, and he certainly isn't under Joshua's command. I think that it is not so important to have God "on our side" as it is for us to be on God's side. Think about that for a bit and see if those two perspectives lead to different conclusions. I think they do.

I love it when God's instructions don't make sense. Here, walk around this fortified city, as if you haven't been walking enough over the last 40 years. Walk a complete lap once every day for six days. On day seven, lap it seven times. Then blow trumpets and yell. Trust me, it'll work! Um . . . are the walls sensitive to sound waves? But they do it, and it does work. When they start shouting and blowing their trumpets, the walls fall flat - that's what it says, like "timber!" fall down flat. They've found Jericho, by the way. It looks like it suffered from earthquake damage is what archaeologists say. Except for this one little spot along the wall which was left intact when the rest of the walls fell. That would be Rahab's house. Back to her.

So Rahab kept her promise, which means that the spies (and therefore all Israel) kept their promise, and when they destroyed everything in Jericho, they let Rahab and her whole family join up with them, not as slaves but as naturalized citizens. We later find out that Rahab marries a guy named Salmon and has a son named Boaz. We'll meet him later. Pretty cool, huh? And it says that "Rahab has lived in the midst of Israel to this day."

Now, you will find the phrase about something being somewhere "to this day" repeated a lot in this book, but we don't get any sense of when "this day" is until just now when it is used of Rahab. Notice that Rahab is a living person, so if she has lived in Israel to this day, it means "this day" is during her lifetime, dating the book of Joshua to within a few decades of this event. Also, I think I take back what I said about Joshua not writing the last part of Deuteronomy. Among other reasons, the wording about "to this day" is a repeated phrase that I've only seen in this book. So maybe Joshua did write it after all.

So that's where chapter 6 ends. I'm going to stop on the high note, because there's bad news and I want to save it for next time.

Deuteronomy 27-34: A Big Decrescendo before the Climax

2010-01-29T16:18:00.004-05:00

So here we are, the Law has been reiterated, Moses is about to die, and the Israelites are about to go into the Promised Land under the direction of Joshua. Everything builds up, and then there's this major let-down before the ending.

First of all, Moses tells the people that when they get to the Promised Land they are to go up to Mount Ebal and Mount Gerazim (which are conveniently right next to each other) and write down all the blessings of God on Gerazim and the curses of God on Ebal. Then there's a list of all the curses - e.g. ";Cursed is he who dishonors his father or mother.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'"

In chapter 28 we read the blessings that will be written on Mount Gerazim, which are the blessings for obeying God. It's pretty thorough. Then to counter that, we read all the curses that will happen if the people do not obey God; it's the reverse of every one of the blessings, plus some more elaboration.

In chapters 29-30, Moses makes a covenant with Israel to obey God, and he tells them again what will happen to the people who disobey God - and then tells them that they are going to disobey God as a nation pretty soon, but that when they turn back to Him, He will restore them from all the curses they're going to bring on themselves. He beseeches them to "choose life in order that [they] may live."

So here comes the let-down. In chapter 31, God tells Moses that the people are totally going to turn away from Him and that He is going to be angry with them and bring all those curses He promised on them, and He tells Moses to teach the people a song as a witness to them. He also has Moses write the words of the Law down at this point.

Chapter 32 is the song of Moses, which basically states the greatness of God and everything He did for His people Israel, and how they turned from Him and as a result, He removed His blessing from them, and how He avenges all of His enemies. At the end of that, God tells Moses to go up to Mount Nebo to see the Promised Land before he dies, and reminds him that he's not going in because of his own stubbornness and disobedience. Major bummer to be reminded of that right before you die, right?

So that's the low point. In spite of all the hype, God totally knows that Israel is not going to remain faithful. And Moses, being the smart cookie that he is, knows it too. The good thing is, God promises redemption and restoration; He's not going to turn His back on Israel forever.

In chapter 33, Moses blesses Israel tribe by tribe. Some of the tribes, like Levi and Joseph, get long blessings, and some of them, like Reuben and Dan, get really short two-liners. But each blessing is personal to that particular tribe, and it reminds me of when Jacob blessed his sons one at a time before he died.

So then Moses climbs Mount Nebo and God shows him the land he promised to Abraham. I have to think that this was a really incredible, beautiful sight to Moses. Imagine pouring more than forty years of your life into a goal, and finally being able to see it, even if you can't touch it.

What's really weird is what happens next. Moses dies up on the mountain, but it appears that God is the one who buries him - it just says "He buried him," and nobody else is mentioned as having gone up with Moses, and furthermore, it says that nobody knows where Moses' grave is.

A lot of people say that Joshua or somebody wrote this last part of Deuteronomy, but I don't really think so, because it's written as if it's been a long time since Moses died. Listen to this: "Since that time no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses." Doesn't it seem like there would have been a lot of prophets between Moses and the writing of this epilogue? I don't know, maybe Joshua wrote it when he was really old.

Anyway, remember how I thought Abraham and Aaron got good epigrams? Moses' is the best. Check this out:

"So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. And He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor; but no man knows his burial place to this day. Although Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died, his eye was not dim, nor his vigor abated. So the sons of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses came to an end. [. . .]

"Since that time no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, for all the signs and wonders which the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Etypt against Pharaoh, all his servants, and all his land, and for all the mighty power and for all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel."

Wow! That is a lot to be said about somebody, especially by God - since God inspired the Bible, including these words here. You know, Moses was kind of a screwy person sometimes. He didn't want the job God called him to do, and he fought and kicked against it; he appears to have had marital problems, and he had a bad temper that led him to disobey God once or twice. But you know, that stuff can be said about anybody. Moses was a great man not because he was a man without fault, but because he was a man God used. Face it, we all screw up. We all have personal problems and family problems and whatever other kinds of problems, but that doesn't mean that God can't use us. I guess what I've learned from the story of Moses is that when God decides to do something, He goes all the way. Just go with it. If God wants to use you for something, don't fight Him about it. You may not think you're qualified - and you may be right - but I don't think God particular cares what we're qualified for. Whatever holes we have in our resume, He is perfectly capable of filling. If we are on God's side, then even a problematic human like you or me or Moses can do extraordinary things.

Deuteronomy 20-26: Laws You Probably Didn't Know About

2010-01-26T13:30:00.003-05:00

In chapters 20-27, the oddly-organized explanation of laws continues. Here is the overview:

20:1-20 Laws about war
21:1-9 What to do if you find a dead person and don't know who killed him
21:10-17 Laws about wives
21:18-21 What to do with a rebellious son
21:22-23 Laws about hangings
22:1-4 Laws about your neighbor's animals
22:5-12 almost every verse has a different law that doesn't seem related to any of the others
22:13-30 Laws about marriage relations and marital abuse
23:1-8 Laws about who can't enter the assembly of the Lord
23:9-14 Laws about cleanliness whe away at war
23:15-125 every two verses is about something different
24:1-5 Laws about marriage and divorce
24:6-9 more one-liners
24:10-22 Laws about treating poor people well
25:1-3 Laws about court sentencing
25:4-10 Laws about widows remarrying
25:12-16 Laws about having fair weights
25:17-19 Get rid of the Amalekites
26:1-19 Laws about offering firstfruits

Reading these, I came across many very interesting laws that I didn't remember ever reading before. Here are my favorites:

1. The only people that the Hebrews were supposed to wipe out completely were the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites (the people living in the promised land, because of their immorality). Any other nation that they went to war against, they were first to offer them a peace treaty; if they didn't surrender and accept the terms, the people were to kill all the men (that is, the army) but none of the women, children, or animals.

2. When the people were besieging a city for a long time, they were not allowed to chop down trees to make siege weapons unless they knew for certain they weren't fruit trees. I even love what it says here - "For is the tree of the field a man, that it should be besieged by you?" Some people forget that God has more respect for nature than people do, being its creator and all. He wants us to take care of it and treat it with respect.

3. If somebody found a nest of clean birds (acceptable to eat), they could take the eggs or young birds but not the mother bird. If I remember right, this is a law that exists today for falconers who are allowed to possess endangered birds.

4. These aren't laws that surprised me, but I wanted to comment on them anyway. There are three weird laws about mixing things - don't sow your field with two kinds of seed, don't plow with an ox and a donkey together, don't wear clothes made of two kinds of fabric, etc. And those three are right together. I am wondering if the purpose of these laws was to symbolize the separateness of Israel from the other nations, how they weren't supposed to mix in with the others but be holy (cut off or separate).

5. If a slave runs away and enters a person's house, that person is not allowed to return the slave to his master; instead, the person is supposed to let him pick a house in town to live in and the person is not allowed to mistreat him. I think this is really interesting.

6. When people entered a neighbor's field or vineyard, they could eat whatever they wanted in it, as long as they didn't try to carry any of the stuff back home with them. This explains to me what Jesus and his disciples were doing in Matthew 12.

7. When a person took out a loan from another person, they were to give them their cloak as collateral. Here it says that if the guy taking the loan is poor, the guy he gets a loan from can't keep the cloak overnight - he has to return it to him so that he has something to keep him warm when he's sleeping. Also, an employer has to give the day's wages to his poor employees before sunset instead of making him wait till the next day.

8. This is great. So if a man died and his wife had no children, the man's brother (or nearest of kin) had to marry the woman, and her firstborn son would take the name of the late husband so that he would have an inheritance. Well, some brothers wouldn't want to do this. If the brother refused to marry the widow, she was to go in front of the elders of the city and have them talk to him. If he still won't do it, then in the sight of all the elders the woman was to take his sandal off and spit in his face, and then the whole country would refer to him as "the house of him whose sandal is removed." This explains what happened in Ruth 4. I was always told that giving your sandal to somebody was a symbol of an oath, but sandal-removing is never mentioned where the Law talks about oaths. Instead, here it seems to be a sort of humiliation.

Deuteronomy 11-19: You'd Think These Laws Would Be Organized Better

2010-01-25T16:19:00.003-05:00

I'm behind in my blogging again, so I'm going to lump several chapters together again. Deuteronomy turns out to be really interesting. The majority of the information has already been given in Exodus through Numbers, but there is stuff in here that I don't remember reading before (but then again, I don't even remember reading it from the last time I read Deuteronomy, so it could very well be in one of the other books and I just can't remember that far back).

Here's an overview of what goes on here:

11:1-32 Rewards for obedience
12:1-27 Instructions on where to offer sacrifices
12:28-32 Don't follow the religion of the other nations
13:1-18 Idolatry is punishable by death
14:1-22 Clean and unclean animals
14:23-29 Tithes
15:1-19 Slavery and the Sabbatic Year
15:20-23 Firstborn animals
16:1-17 Holidays
16:18-22 Appointing Judges
17:1-7 Punishing idolatry again
17:8-13 Difficult cases to be judged by Levites
17:14-20 Laws for appointing a king
18:1-8 Providing for the Levites
18:9-14 Sorcery, spiritism, witchcraft, etc forbidden
18:15-22 Prophets, true and false
19:1-13 Cities of refuge; manslaughter versus murder
19:14-21 False Witnesses

As you can see, those are a lot of different topics, and it really kind of jumps around a lot. There are a couple of one-sentence laws tucked in there too that I didn't list. As something of an organization freak, this sort of drives me crazy, and I wonder if there's a reason for ordering it all like this, or if Moses is just speaking as he remembers something, or what.

So here are some things that I find interesting:

1. Location of offering sacrifices. Burnt offerings, it appears, could not be offered just anywhere; the people would have to go to a designated location. Judging by the context, it seems that the purpose of this was to prevent people from using the pagan places of worship (and we'll find out why later on). They were supposed to completely destroy every pagan altar and votive and object of worship so they wouldn't be tempted to start using those things.

2. I think tithing, as it is described in the Bible, has been really misunderstood. In chapter 14 it says that the tithe is a portion of a person's harvest, which that person is supposed to take to the designated place of worship and eat, or if they couldn't carry it all, they could exchange the crops for money or oxen or wine or anything they wanted and take that to the designated place of worship and eat it there. Then every three years they were to take that tithe and give it to the Levites in their town for them to eat. That sounds very different to me from the 10% of our income given to the church every month that I've heard about all my life. I'm not saying it's bad to give money to the church - I think it's very important - I just don't think it's the same thing as a tithe.

3. Slavery. Slavery in ancient Israel, at least according to the Law, was really different from modern slavery like what we practiced before the abolition. Slavery among Hebrews was a temporary state; ever seven years, the slaves were to be set free - and more than that, their owners were supposed to load them with money and livestock so they wouldn't have to start over with nothing. Every time the Law mentions slaves and the poor and orphans and stuff like that, it says, "remember that you were slaves in Egypt." I think maybe God let Israel be in slavery so long so that they would learn to have compassion on the poor once they became rich. I don't know if it worked out that way, but that was the idea.

4. God knew that Israel was going to want to have a king eventually, so He even made provisions for that. He said the king wasn't supposed to accumulate wealth or possessions or wives or anything that would turn his heart away from God or make him think he was better than his countrymen. Yeah, none of those rules were kept. It also says that the king was supposed to have the Law written on a scroll to be kept next to him so he could read it every day his whole life - now if that rule had been followed, maybe the Hebrew monarchy would have turned out better than it did.

Deuteronomy 1-10: Let's Review

2010-01-20T13:06:00.004-05:00

Hurray, we made it through another book! Now we are in Deuteronomy, which means "second law." It's called that not because there is a second law, but because this is the book where Moses gives the Israelites the Law for the second time. So pretty much everything in this book will be stuff we've already heard before, and hopefully that reinforces it in our minds better. And actually, this book repeats some parts of Israel's history more than once.

In chapter 1-4 Moses recounts what happened in Numbers - how the people left Mt. Sinai and came close to Canaan but chickened out from going in, and then had to wander around for 40 years. Then in chapter 5, he backs up and tells them about the commands God gave him on Mt. Sinai, starting with the Ten Commandments, and reviews the incident with the golden calf and Moses' breaking the stone tablets and having to get new ones.

In the middle of that story, in chapters 6-9, he goes into a bunch of warnings and admonitions. This is where the Shema, the most important commandment, is found: "Hear, O Israel, the LORD your God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might." Moses tells the people to keep God's words so close to them that they talk about them all the time, that they write them down and tie them to their door frames and even to their hands and foreheads - and later on they actually will literally do that. He warns Israel against intermarrying with any of the foreign people because they would lead them away from God. Now, as a clarification, a foreigner could join the Jews, be circumcised if he was a male, and become a sort of naturalized citizen, and then I think it was okay to intermarry (we'll see that later on). But no Jew could marry a foreigner while they were still a worshiper of other gods and did not follow the Law.

Moses tells the Israelites not to be afraid of going into Canaan because God has promised to drive the people out before them, and if they just follow Him wholeheartedly, they will have a really good life. Listen to these promises: "He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your herd and the young of your flock . . .You shall be blessed above all peoples; there will be no male or female barren among you or among your cattle. The LORD will remove from you all sickness; and He will not put on you any of the harmful diseases of Egypt which you have known." Sounds like a pretty sweet deal. But in order to get this deal they have to completely remove all temptation. They have to destroy the altars to pagan gods and not even use the gold and silver the idols are made with.

Moses reminds the people of how God has provided for them over the last 40 years. I think it's great that he makes a point of saying that for all these years, their clothes and shoes haven't even worn out. That's something I would have wondered about.

Then Moses turns back to the story of the Ten Commandments, and about the golden calf and all of that. And Moses' point here seems to be that God didn't choose Israel because they were a great nation or because they were a good nation - in fact, Moses says they've been rebellious for as long as he's known them, and that's certainly the truth. But God is blessing them anyway, because He loves them and because He made a covenant with Abraham that He will always keep. God doesn't go back on His word, and He also doesn't bestow favor on us conditionally - that is, based on how good or great we are.

I think one of the main points in recounting Israel's history this way is to impress upon them what God has already done for them, so they will have courage and trust in what He is about to do for them. The people might still have some fear about going into Canaan - except for Midian, this is the first time that they have been the ones going out on an offensive war, and the people they're going against are giants who live in fortified cities. Moses wants them to have faith in God and be confident that if God could do everything He did over the last 40 years, taking Canaan will be cake for Him.

Another main reason for saying all this again is that some of the people are actually hearing it for the first time. Keep in mind that this is the second generation: the person here, other than Moses and Caleb and Joshua, can be no older than 59. These people were children, teenagers, or not even born yet when God first brought Israel out of Egypt. A lot of them don't remember what it was like to be slaves, so God makes special rules for treating slaves and foreign visitors well, saying "remember that you were aliens and strangers in Egypt." They don't remember how God miraculously delivered them from Pharaoh, so Moses is reminding them. They may have been too young to pay attention to what was happening on Mt. Sinai, so Moses is telling them the whole story. But some of them do remember, and Moses' goal is to make sure they don't forget like their parents consistently did.

Finally, I think Moses is telling Israel all these things to inspire love and devotion to God, as well as to keep them humble. He says to remember what God has done so that later on they don't think it was their power or strength that make them rich. Moses says, "You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth." Everything we have is a gift of God - even the things we make for ourselves, we can only make because God gives us the ability to do so. I think it's important to remember that it is only by God's grace that we have whatever it is we have, so that we are always filled with gratitude and so that we appreciate what we have, instead of becoming prideful and greedy. Well, we'll see how the Israelites do with these lessons later on.

Numbers 33-36: Getting Ready to Go In

2010-01-19T12:24:00.002-05:00

We're going to finish Numbers today! I'm so excited. And tomorrow I think I'll get caught up to where I am in my reading. Yay.

So these final chapters are kind of a summary of what's already happened, along with a few final instructions on what to do with Canaan once the people get there. Chapter 33 is basically a roadmap - it tells where the Israelites traveled, where they camped, and to some extent when they were there. I would really love to see how many of these locations we know about for sure. Many Bibles (especially Zondervan Bibles like mine) have maps in the back, one of which shows a possible route from Exodus to Sinai to the conquest of Canaan; the only problem with this map is that we don't know where Mt. Sinai is. Many locations - I'm talking 30 or so - have been suggested at one point or another, and our current "traditional" location (Jebel Musa), the one that has a monastery on it and everything, we only consider to be Mt. Sinai because somebody claimed on their deathbed that it was, or something like that. It most likely is not Mt. Sinai because the physical description of the mountain and surrounding area in the Bible don't match up with it. Anyway, I've only read up on one other theoretical Mt. Sinai, Jebel al Lawz, in a very interesting book called In Search of the Mountain of God. I don't kno for sure if I think that is the real Mt. Sinai, but it is a very interesting book and the findings in that book, if it's all true, are very promising.

At the end of chapter 33, God gives the people a warning to drive out the Canaanites from the land when they go in, or else later on those people will get them in trouble and pull them away from God, and then God says that what He plans to do to them, He'll do to Israel if they don't obey this command. In the words of the immortal Strong Bad: "One, two, three, foreshadowing!"

So then we get into the rules for what they have to do when they get into Canaan. First of all God gives them the boundaries of their country so they know exactly how much land they have, which is probably a really helpful thing. Then he appoints leaders for each tribe, who will give out land to the people in their tribes once those borders are set.

The next chapter is about cities. Since the Levites didn't get their own chunk of land, and since they were the priests for the whole nation, they were supposed to get a few cities in each tribe in which to live, and a few of those cities were also to be cities of refuge. Now, I don't remember if these were described earlier. Cities of refuge were places where a guy could go if he had killed somebody accidentally - manslaughter - and be safe. The law was that if you murdered somebody, then you would be killed, and you could be killed by a relative of the person you murdered. If you killed somebody accidentally, the person's relatives might still want you dead, but if it was manslaughter, you could go to one of the conveniently spread out cities of refuge and as long as you stayed there, you were safe. If you left the city, the relative of the dead person could still kill you and not be prosecuted, so you had to stay there until the current high priest died, and then your term was up, so to speak, and you could go home and nobody could kill you. I have always thought this was a really interesting law. I think it works.

I have to say, I really like how this book ends. Remember Z's daughters? They're back. They know they're going to get a portion of land that would have belonged to their father, but now their problem is that when they get married, if they marry outside their tribe, their land will be absorbed into the other tribe. So they ask Moses what to do, and he asks God what to do, and he says that people in this situation just have to marry within their tribe, so that's what they do, and that way their inheritance stays within the family. I like that the book ends with a chapter about women. I also like that Z's daughters are an example of how the rest of Israel should have behaved when they had a complaint. Israel has spent the last forty years whining and griping about this and that, and it's gotten them plagues and snakes and the ground eating them up and not getting to go into the Promised Land. These girls had complaints, but they went to Moses to get his advice and propose their own solution, rather than saying "Woe is us, we are going to lose our father's inheritance! We should have died!" So the moral of this story is, don't be a drama queen when there is something wrong. Try to think of a solution, ask somebody else for help, and it will probably turn out that there is a way to fix your problem. Learn from Z's daughters.

Numbers 30-32: So This Is Weird

2010-01-18T17:39:00.003-05:00

I'm putting these three chapters together because they're all a little, well, unusual, especially at first glance. In fact I had to do some research on chapter 31 to understand what was going on better.

Chapter 30 is about making vows. Basically, if you say you're going to do something, if you make an oath, you have to keep it. What's interesting though is that if you're a girl and you make a vow, and your father (if you're unmarried) or husband (if you're married) tells you that's a dumb vow, you don't have to keep it. If the father or husband either doesn't say anything against the vow or, presumably, doesn't hear it, it's binding, but a woman could be released from a stupid vow by her father or husband. I wish that men could be released form stupid vows by their wives, but then again I suppose wives are always trying to get their husbands to keep their promises, so it's probably just as well.

Chapter 31 is the really weird one. God tells the Israelites to go kill the Midianites, so they fight them and kill all the men, but then Moses tells them to kill the women and the boys too, but not the children who are girls. There's also a mention of Balaam being killed - remember him? And then the rest of the chapter is about splitting up the spoils of war. So when I first read this, it really didn't sit well with me. I did some research and went over some of the text again and found out that there's a key verse in the middle of this chapter, verse 16, which tells us that Balaam - the guy who Balak hired to curse Israel - had incited these women to try to destroy Israel through immorality and idolatry back in chapter 25 - remember Phinehas? Apparently, when the Moabites and Midianites saw the Israelites coming and realized God was on their side in war, they put their heads together and tried to get God off Israel's side, and that's when Balak the king of Moab hired Balaam. When that didn't work, the Midianite and Moabite women went over to Israel to tempt them sexually and also invite them to start worshipping their gods, and it worked, or at least it came really close to working.

But if you're like me, you're wondering, where does Balaam fit into the story? At the end of chapter 24, it looks like he's headed home, which is to the northeast near the Euphrates River. But apparently he stuck around with the Midianites for a while, and that's where he was when Israel attacked. Now, Balaam confuses me. Here's a guy who seemed to have some kind of relationship with God - that is, he could hear God's voice and prophecy accurately, at least in Israel's case, although he and God don't seem to be on the best terms. But now he's going and plotting against them.

I still think it's sad that a lot of people died - I mean, I think dropping the atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was really sad - but now I see that it didn't just come out of nowhere.

Also, to clear up another common misunderstanding, the girls who weren't killed were not kept as wives. It was still illegal for Jews to marry non-Jews, so prisoners of war were kept as slaves.

Another interesting note is that not all the Midianites died here. We'll meet them again in Judges.

Finally, chapter 32. The tribes of Reuben and Gad decide they want to stay on the east side of the Jordan River instead of crossing into the Promised Land, because it's good pasture for their livestock. At first Moses isn't too keen on this, but they promise to help with the conquest and not to return to their new homes until after all the other tribes are settled in. So those two tribes, as well as some of the Manasseh people, end up building permanent settlements over on the east side of the Jordan but leaving their wives and kids there while conquering the land of Canaan. I guess they keep their promise to help out, because my map has their land marked as being right where it says they wanted to stay. So I suppose that's a good example of keeping vows, as written in chapter 30.

Numbers 26-29: A New Generation

2010-01-17T17:28:00.007-05:00

I'm kind of behind in my blogging so I'll try to lump several chapters together.

When we get to chapter 26, the forty years of wandering have now passed (I guess it's assumed that the last few chapters took place during those 40 years). So it starts out with a census of the new generation. The population of the Hebrews has grown by just about 1000, which is not very much. Upon closer inspection of the numbers, we find that some tribes have actually decreased considerably in size, while others have grown considerably. Check out this before and after:

Tribe------------Before -------------After
Reuben---------46,500-------------43,730
Simeon---------59.300-------------22,200
Gad------------46,650-------------40,500
Judah-----------74,600------------76,500
Issachar--------54,400-------------64,300
Zebulun--------57,400-------------60,500
Ephraim--------40,500-------------32,500
Manasseh------32,200-------------52,700
Benjamin-------35,400-------------45,600
Dan------------62,700-------------64,400
Asher----------41,500-------------53,400
Naphtali--------53,400------------45,400

Now, these numbers represent every male of fighting age - that is, 20 or older - not every person in each tribe. The Levites didn't fight and didn't have an inheritance in the promised land (a section of land allotted to them), so they weren't numbered in with the rest, but in this passage we find out that there are 23,000 males a month old and older. So they must be a much smaller tribe all around.

I think it's interesting that so many of the tribes shrunk in number. I wonder if it's that they just had a lot of old people and not a lot of kids, or that they had more girls than boys, or that a lot of them died in the plagues and things. This is supposed to be the new generation, though, so most of these people were either kids or not born yet when their parents were dying of plagues and things. But I guess a lot of people died in plagues who would have still had children, and by that means the number of births dropped.

Anyway, a cool thing happens in chapter 27. This guy named Zelophehad (hereafter Z) has died, although he wasn't one of Korah's rebels from chapter 16, and he has no sons - only five daughters, all of whom are unmarried at this point. They ask Moses to give them their father's inheritance (land in the promised land) to keep in his name. I am going to assume this was unheard of in these days. Even in modern times, land usually passed to the next direct male rather than the next direct person. That's the initial conflict in Pride and Prejudice, which takes place around 1810 - the Bennetts' estate Longbourn is entailed by default on heirs male, so their five daughters are going to get nothing when Mr. Bennett dies. Not every estate was handled this way (Miss Anne de Bourgh, only child of Sir Lewis and Lady Catherine, inherits all of Rosings Park), but it was common. But God tells Moses, when he asks him, that Z's daughters are right in saying they should have an inheritance, and makes a law that any man who dies with no male heir should give his property to his daughters, and if there are no children it goes to his brother and so forth. It's still primarily keeping the land to the male heirs, but I think it's really progressive and decent not to take a guy's land away from his family just because he doesn't have a son.

Then we find out that Joshua, Moses' assistant, is going to be the next Moses, and there's a ceremony for the transfer of power - kind of like what they did with Aaron and Eleazar, only in the sight of the whole congregation. I wonder why they didn't go up on a mountain. Maybe because Aaron went up the mountain to die and Moses wasn't going to die yet, or maybe because the people needed to see God put His stamp of approval on Joshua so they'd listen to him better than they listened to Moses. I don't know.

The next two chapters are laws again. In chapter 28, it sure sounds like there are a lot of sacrifices. It sounds like they had to sacrifice two male lambs every day as a burnt offering - a continual offering. Then every Sabbath there was an additional sacrifice of two lambs, and another burnt offering at the first of each month, and then the Passover lamb, and the sacrifices during the Feast of Weeks, and of course each of those had a drink offering and grain offerings to go along with the burnt offering. Additionally, there was a seven-day holiday during the seventh month, in which there were sacrifices to be offered every day, grain offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings and so forth. That's a lot of stuff! I suppose God had to bless them just so they'd have enough sheep to sacrifice every day. I suppose the reason for all this was, again, to point out the people's constant need for God. I think the idea behind the continual burnt offerings was to tell people that they were never in a state of perfect harmony with God - there was always a barrier between them and Him, and they always needed something to go between them and God. We're not just separated from God by our sinful actions; we're separated from God by our nature, because He is holy and we are not. God is not one of us, even though we are made in His likeness. I suppose in order to remove the need for those offerings - in order for man and God to have a direct relationship with nothing in the way, God would have to become one of us. But now I'm getting ahead of myself.

Numbers 21-25: Divide and Conquer

2010-01-14T02:49:00.007-05:00

There's a lot of stuff in these five chapters so I'm going to try to say as much as I can in as few words as I can. First, very quick summary.

Chapter 21: we see the Hebrews conquer their first city, Arad. The people get sick of walking around Edom (big country I guess) so they complain. God sends fiery snakes that bite the people, and then as a cure Moses has to make a statue of the snake that the people look at and then they don't die. Then we have two more military victories against the Amorites and Bashan.
Chapter 22: the king of Moab gets scared of Israel, so he sends for a prophet named Balaam to come put a curse on Israel so that he can beat them. On his way there, God puts an angel in Balaam's path that his donkey sees, but he doesn't see it. The donkey freaks out and Balaam doesn't know so he beats the donkey until suddenly it starts talking to him. After a heartfelt conversation with said donkey, Balaam decides that he'll tell the king whatever God says rather than whatever the king wants to hear.
Chapters 23-24: much to the Moabite king's dismay, all Balaam can do is bless Israel - three times. The king gets mad and fires him, and he goes home.
Once the Israelites start moving in on the Canaanite territory, they begin to adopt Canaanite religion. God gets really ticked off and there's a big meeting where Moses tells the people to kill the people who are not worshiping God. Then some guy crashes the meeting by walking through the tent with a Canaanite girl, on their way to, um, talk . . . and a guy named Phinehas (son of Eleazar, grandson of Aaron) kills them. Then God says nobody else has to die, and also there was a plague on the people, but it stops now because of Phinehas.

So here are my thoughts. First of all, the conquest of Canaan doesn't really start out like much of a conquest. In fact, with Arad, it's their king who decides to pre-emptively strike on them as they're coming through. Then with the Amorites, the Israelites send the same message to them that they sent to Edom: please let us pass through, we won't touch anything, we'll stay on the highway, we won't even stop for a drink break. The king says no way and goes out to war against them. And even after they were defeated, the king of Bashan decided to go attack the Israelites too. So far, they haven't even been the ones making the first move, because this part of the land is not the Promised Land. They're just trying to get through it to the other side.

Secondly, I love the story of Balaam. I just think it would be so funny to have your donkey all of a sudden start talking to you - well, maybe not funny at the time, but it's funny to read because Balaam talks back to his donkey! Now, I don't know if the text leaves out some details, like Balaam freaking out at his donkey talking to him, or if maybe this was something that he had experienced before, but it just makes me laugh to read that the donkey says to Balaamm, "What did I do to make you hit me?" and Balaam says right back "You're making me look stupid, that's what!" and she (the donkey is specifically a girl) says "Come on man, don't you trust me? Have I ever freaked out like this before?" and he says "no," and then God lets him see the angel standing in the way. And to top it off, God says to him, "why were you hitting the donkey? Dude, if she hadn't tried to turn the other way when she saw me, I would have killed you and not her."

Anyway, I do find it interesting that Balaam, who is not an Israelite, seems to know the true God. He even refers to Him as "the LORD [YHWH] my God." God speaks to Balaam and Balaam prophesies accurately - that is, he says exactly what God tells him to say. Now the third time he speaks, it almost seems like he's about to speak presumptuously, because it says that Balaam sees that it pleases the LORD to bless Israel, so the third time he doesn't go consult the LORD before speaking, as he did the first two times. So I am not sure if that was the right thing to do. But then it says that the Spirit of God came on him when he spoke, so I think his prophesy there was still real. Go figure.

Next, the Phinehas thing. So God has made it clear to the Israelites (see Exodus 20) that they are not supposed to worship any other gods, and that is exactly what they're doing for the first time since the golden calf. This is very serious - again, Israel was not supposed to be a model government, but an example to the world (and to future generations like us) of how to obtain a relationship with the one true God. Israel can't offer any kind of hope, any kind of message, to other nations if it is just like them. So anyway, while Moses is discussing this with the people, this couple walks by, and the next thing we see is Phinehas ramming a spear through them. Now, I always thought this was really harsh until my youth pastor asked this question: how do you kill two people with one spear at the same time? Answer: this couple is having sex right at this moment. They've just walked right past all these guys talking about the severity of Israel's sin against God - everybody sees them - and they apparently have the audacity to go do this in apparently the middle of the day, not even attempting to hide it. That is outright rebellion, the kind of sin described earlier in chapter 15 where we learned about unintentional sins versus sins of defiance. And even though I wish these two guys didn't die, it actually kept a bunch more people from dying.

I want to talk about snakes last, so let's back up. Now, these "snakes" may have been any of the various poisonous reptiles that inhabited these parts (or something supernatural); if so, we haven't heard a word about them until now, which means God was probably protecting the camp from them, and now He has obviously removed that protection. Once again, this was a punishment for whining. Now, you may wonder what is so bad about the gripe fest. I mean, it wasn't Israel's fault that they had to go around Edom; and I'm sure it wasn't pleasant to be always on the move. That's totally understandable to me. But what's not so cool is when the people say this: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food." That tells me that one, they have totally forgotten their distress in Egypt and how desperate they were to get out; two, they are totally ungrateful for all the miraculous ways God has provided for them; three, they are not acknowledging their own responsibility for being in the wilderness right now in the first place - they were the ones who decided they couldn't get into the Promised Land and would rather die in the wilderness than try - if they had just had faith in the first place, they would've been there by now instead of traveling around in a circle; and four, they would rather be slaves, with their sons all being murdered and being forced to work all day, in a land that they can never own, than trust that God was taking them somewhere. Ouch.

So about the bronze snake that Moses makes. That seems really weird, almost like he's making an idol - and in fact later on, we see that some of the Israelites start worshiping the snake statue. But the symbolism and meaning behind this odd method of healing is really profound, and I don't have time to do it justice - I'll direct you to the third paragraph of this commentary for a really good and thorough explanation. But basically, this serpent was a metaphor for Christ. Jesus Himself tells us in John 3 that "Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life" (vs. 14-15). The image Moses made was of a serpent, in the likeness of the thing that was destroying the people, because Jesus came to earth in the likeness of sinful man. Anybody who looked at the snake would live and not die from the bites, just as anybody who turns to Jesus receives forgiveness of sins and, rather than death, everlasting life. I think this is really awesome.