Archive for the ‘1 Chronicles 12-19’ Category
Above: Icon of Ezekiel
Image in the Public Domain
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READING EZEKIEL, PART X
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Ezekiel 17:1-24
Ezekiel 19:1-14
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For this post, O reader, we focus on two allegories.
Ezekiel 17 is the allegory of the eagles, the vine, and the cedar. For background, read 2 Kings 24-25; Jeremiah 21:14; Jeremiah 22:1-8, 20-30; Jeremiah 27-29; Jeremiah 34; Jeremiah 52; 2 Chronicles 36; 1 Esdras 1:43-58;
The allegory, by definition, uses symbols. The allegory tells the story of King Jehoiachin of Judah allying with Egypt against the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire, losing, and going into exile in 597 B.C.E. The allegory continues to describe King Zedekiah‘s failed rebellion, and his fate. The code of the allegory is as follows:
- The great eagle = King Nebuchadnezzar II of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire (r. 605-562 B.C.E.) (v. 3).
- Lebanon = Jerusalem (v. 3).
- The topmost branch = Jehoiachin (r. 597 B.C.E.) (v. 3).
- The land of merchants = Babylon (v. 4).
- The native seed = Zedekiah (r. 597-586 B.C.E.) (v. 5).
- Another great eagle = Pharoah Psammetichus II (r. 595-589 B.C.E.) (v. 7).
- The vine = the Davidic Dynastry (vs. 7-8).
Ezekiel 17:18f and 2 Chronicles 36:13 argue that Zedekiah had violated his oath of vassalage by rebelling against King Nebuchadnezzar II, and thereby sinned against God. These texts also argue that Zedekiah earned his punishment. This position is consistent with the importance of oaths in the Bible (Genesis 24:7; Genesis 26:3, 28-31; Genesis 50:24; Exodus 13:5, 11; Exodus 20:7; Exodus 33:1; Leviticus 5:1-4; Leviticus 19:12; Numbers 5:17; Numbers 14:16, 30; Numbers 32:11; Deuteronomy 1:8, 35; Deuteronomy 6:10; Judges 11:11-40; 1 Kings 8:31-32; 1 Chronicles 12:19; 2 Chronicles 6:22-23; Psalm 16:4; Isaiah 62:8; Isaiah 144:8; Hosea 4:15; Amos 8:14; Matthew 5:36; et cetera).et cetera
Ezekiel 17 concludes on a note of future restoration (vs. 22-24). One Jewish interpretation of the final three verses holds that the construction of the Second Temple, under the supervision of Zerubbabel, of the House of David, fulfilled this prophecy (Haggai 2:20-23). That interpretation does not convince me. The prophecy concerns the restoration of the Jewish nation. My sense of the past tells me that one may not feasibly apply this prophecy to the events following 142 B.C.E. and 1948 B.C.E., given the absence of the Davidic Dynasty in Hasmonean Judea and modern Israel.
The emphasis on divine power and human weakness defines the end of Chapter 17.
Ezekiel 19, which uses the metaphors of the lion (the tribe of Judah; Genesis 49:9) and the vine (the nation of the Hebrews), is a lament for the fall of the Judean monarchy. For Ezekiel, priests properly outrank kings (34:24; 45:7-8), so Kings of Judah are “princes.” The first cub (v. 4) is King Jehoahaz of Judah (r. 609 B.C.E.). The second cub may be either King Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, or Zedekiah of Judah. The identity of the second cub is vague, but the prediction of the destruction of the monarchy of Judah is clear.
Leaders come and go. Kingdoms, empires, and nation-states rise and fall. All that is human is transitory. But God lasts forever.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 28, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN GERARD, ENGLISH JESUIT PRIEST; AND MARY WARD, FOUNDRESS OF THE INSTITUTE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
THE FEAST OF CLARA LOUISE MAASS, U.S. LUTHERAN NURSE AND MARTYR, 1901
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PLUTARCH, MARCELLA, POTANOMINAENA, AND BASILIDES OF ALEXANDRIA, MARTYRS, 202
THE FEAST OF SAINT TERESA MARIA MASTERS, FOUNDRESS OF THE INSTITUTE OF THE SISTERS OF THE HOLY FACE
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM AND JOHN MUNDY, ENGLISH COMPOSERS AND MUSICIANS
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This is post #2550 of BLOGA THEOLOGICA.
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Above: The Vision of Ezekiel
Image in the Public Domain
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READING EZEKIEL, PART II
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Ezekiel 1:4-3:27
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Ezekiel 1 offers a glorious example of prose poetry when it describes the indescribable–the throne of God, surrounded by cherubim. The account of the vision includes allusions to the Temple in Jerusalem, the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies there (Exodus 25:10-22; Exodus 37:1-9; 1 Kings 9:19-28; 1 Samuel 4:4; 2 Samuel 6:2; 1 Chronicles 13:6), and mythological inhuman guardians of royal thrones, temples, and city gates–the cherubim–a common cultural motif in the region. Whereas Exodus 24:10-11 and Daniel 7:9 describe the divine presence as being corporeal, and Deuteronomy 4:15 argues that God is noncorporeal, Ezekiel 1:7 stakes out the middle ground. God, exceeding all human concepts thereof, was the God of the whole world, not a tribal deity.
Ezekiel, properly full of awe and wonder, flung himself down upon his face.
Ezekiel’s mission as a prophet of God was to speak to a rebellious people, already in exile. Ezekiel’s mission was to speak the truth and to function as a watchman, not to bring the people to repentance. Israel–in this case, the first wave of the Babylonian Exile–was a “rebellious breed.” People were going to do what they were going to do. Ezekiel’s mission was to speak for God, regardless of how anyone responded.
Being a Hebrew prophet must have been a frustrating and discouraging experience, based on readings of Hebrew prophetic books.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 21, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALOYSIUS GONZAGA, JESUIT
THE FEAST OF BERNARD ADAM GRUBE, GERMAN-AMERICAN MINISTER, MISSIONARY, COMPOSER, AND MUSICIAN
THE FEAST OF CARL BERNHARD GARVE, GERMAN MORAVIAN MINISTER, LITURGIST, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF CHARITIE LEES SMITH BANCROFT DE CHENEZ, HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JOHN JONES AND JOHN RIGBY, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS, 1598 AND 1600
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Above: Jeremiah
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART I
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Jeremiah 1:1-3
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The first three verses of the Book of Jeremiah identify the prophet, his father, the prophet’s hometown, and the timeframe of his prophetic ministry.
Jeremiah (“YHWH will exalt”) ben Hilkiah hailed from Anathoth, about three and a half miles northeast of Jerusalem. The father, Hilkiah, was a priest. Hilkiah and Jeremiah were outside of the priestly establishment in Jerusalem. Therefore, this Hilkiah was not the high priest Hilkiah (2 Kings 22:3-23:37) who found the scroll of Deuteronomy in the Temple, brought that scroll to King Josiah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.), and participated in Josiah’s religious reformation.
Hailing from Anathoth was significant. Anathoth was one of the cities assigned to Levitical priests in Joshua 21:18. After the death of King David, King Solomon had exiled the priest Abiathar (1 Samuel 22:20-22; 1 Samuel 23:6, 9; 1 Samuel 30:7; 2 Samuel 8:17; 2 Samuel 15:24, 27, 29, 35; 2 Samuel 17:15; 2 Samuel 19:11; 2 Samuel 20:25; 1 Kings 1:7, 19, 25, 42; 1 Kings 2:35; 1 Kings 4:4; 1 Chronicles 15:11; 1 Chronicles 18:16; 1 Chronicles 24:6; 1 Chronicles 27:34; Mark 2:26) to Anathoth for supporting Adonijah in the struggle for succession (1 Kings 2:26-27). Jeremiah, therefore, was also a member of a priestly family. He understood the ancient traditions of Israel, as well as the foundational character of the covenant in the life of Israel.
The superscription also defines the period during which Jeremiah prophesied: from the thirteenth year (627 B.C.E.) of the reign (640-609 B.C.E.) of King Josiah of Judah through “the eleventh year of King Zedekiah,” “when Jerusalem went into exile in the fifth month” (586 B.C.E.). We read in Chapters 39-44 that Jeremiah prophesied after the Fall of Jerusalem, too. The list of kings names Josiah, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah. That list omits Jehoahaz/Jeconiah/Shallum and Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah. Yet, as the germane note in The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014), points out, few of the prophecies in the Book of Jeremiah date to the reign of King Josiah.
Jeremiah prophesied during a turbulent and difficult period of decline–mostly after the fall of the Assyrian Empire (612 B.C.E. and before the Fall of Jerusalem (586 B.C.E.). In the wake of King Josiah’s death, Judah had become a vassal state of Egypt. Pharaoh Neco II had chosen the next two Kings of Judah. Jehoahaz/Jeconiah/Shallum (2 Kings 23:31-35; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4; 1 Esdras 1:34-38) had reigned for about three months before becoming a prisoner in Egypt. Then Neco II had appointed Eliakim and renamed him Jehoiakim (r. 608-598 B.C.E.; 2 Kings 23:36-24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:5-8; 1 Esdras 1:39-42). Jehoiakim was always a vassal while King of Judah. After being the vassal of Neco II of Egypt for about three years, he became a vassal of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire in 605 B.C.E. He died a prisoner in that empire.
Two more Kings of Judah reigned; both were vassals of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire. Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah (2 Kings 24:8-17; 2 Kings 25:27-30; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10; 1 Esdras 1:43-46) reigned for about three months before going into exile in that empire. The last King of Judah was Zedekiah, born Mattaniah (2 Kings 24:18-25:26; 2 Chronicles 36:11-21; 1 Esdras 1:47-58). He reigned from 597 to 586 B.C.E. The last events he saw before Chaldean soldiers blinded him were the executions of his sons.
The Book of Jeremiah is one of the longest books in the Hebrew Bible; it contains 52 chapters. The final draft is the product of augmentation and editing subsequent to the time of Jeremiah himself. In fact, Jeremiah 52 is mostly verbatim from 2 Kings 24:18-25:30. Also Jeremiah 52:4-16 occur also in Jeremiah 39:1-2, 4-10. Chronology is not the organizing principle of material in the Book of Jeremiah; jumping around the timeline is commonplace. For example, the Fall of Jerusalem (586 B.C.E.) occurs between Chapters 32 and 33, as well as in Chapters 39 and 52. Some ancient copies are longer than other ancient copies. None of the subsequent augmentation and editing, complete with some material being absent from certain ancient copies of the book surprises me, based on my reading about the development of certain Biblical texts. I do not pretend that divinely-inspired authors were mere secretaries for God.
Rabbi Abraham J. Heschel made a germane and wonderful point in The Prophets, Volume I (1962), viii:
The prophet is a person, not a microphone. He is endowed with a mission, with the power of a word not his own that accounts for his greatness–but also with temperament, concern, character, and individuality. As there was no resisting the impact of divine inspiration, so at times there was no resisting the vortex of his own temperament. The word of God reverberated in the voice of man.
The prophet’s task is to convey a divine view, yet as a person he is a point of view. He speaks from the perspective of God as perceived from the perspective of his own situation. We must seek to understand not only the views he expounded but also the attitudes he embodied: his own position, feeling response–not only what he said but also what he lived; the private, the intimate dimension of the word, the subjective side of the message.
Those paragraphs applied to all the Hebrew prophets. They applied to Jeremiah with greater poignancy than to the others, though.
I invite you, O reader, to remain with me as I blog my way through the book of the “weeping prophet.”
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 6, 2021 COMMON ERA
PROPER 5: THE SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF FRANKLIN CLARK FRY, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA AND THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA
THE FEAST OF SAINT CLAUDE OF BESANÇON, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, MONK, ABBOT, AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF HENRY JAMES BUCKOLL, AUTHOR AND TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS
THE FEAST OF JOHANN FRIEDRICH HERTZOG, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM KETHE, PRESBYTERIAN HYMN WRITER
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Above: King John Hyrcanus I
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JUDITH
PART III
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Judith 4:1-6:2
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Holofernes represented an oppressive violent power and an ego-driven monarch. The general had succeeded in his previous campaigns, even against people who had greeted his army with garlands, dancing, and the sound of timbrels (2:1-3:10). The Israelites were in dire straits as he turned his attention toward them.
Yet the Israelites worshiped God. They prayed to God. And, as even Achior, the Ammonite leader acknowledged, the Israelites’ power and strength resided in God. Yet Holofernes asked scornfully,
Who is God beside Nebuchadnezzar?
–Judith 6:2b, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
Achior found refuge with the Israelites, at least.
A refresher on the Kingdom of Ammon and on the Ammonites is in order.
- “Ammon” comes from Benammi, both the son and grandson of Lot (Genesis 19:30-38). Lot’s daughters had gotten their father drunk then seduced him. They gave birth to the founders of the Moabite and Ammonite peoples.
- The attitude toward the Ammonites in the Bible is mostly negative.
- The Kingdom of Ammon was east of the River Jordan and north of Moab.
- The Kingdom of Ammon, a vassal state of Israel under Kings David and Solomon. After Ammon reasserted itself, it became a vassal state of the Neo-Assyrian Empire then the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire. A failed rebellion led to mass deportations of Ammonites and the colonization of their territory by Chaldeans.
Anyone who wants to read more about the Ammonites in the Bible may want to follow the following reading plan:
- Genesis 19;
- Numbers 21;
- Deuteronomy 2, 3, 23;
- Joshua 12, 13;
- Judges 3, 10, 11, 12;
- 1 Samuel 10, 11, 12, 14;
- 2 Samuel 8, 10, 11, 12, 17, 23;
- 1 Kings 11, 14;
- 2 Kings 23, 24;
- 1 Chronicles 11, 18, 19, 20;
- 2 Chronicles 12, 20, 24, 26, 27;
- Ezra 9;
- Nehemiah 2, 4, 13;
- Psalm 83;
- Isaiah 11;
- Jeremiah 9, 25, 27, 40, 41, 49;
- Ezekiel 21, 25;
- Daniel 11;
- Amos 1;
- Zephaniah 2;
- Judith 1, 5, 6, 7, 14;
- 1 Maccabees 5; and
- 2 Maccabees 4, 5.
Back to Achior…
A close reader of Achior’s report (5:6-21) may detect some details he got wrong. Not all characters speak accurately in every matter. One may expect an outsider to misunderstand some aspects of the Israelite story.
At the end of the Chapter 6, we see the conflict between the arrogance of enemies of God and the humility of Israelites. We know that, in the story, the Israelites could turn only to God for deliverance. Anyone familiar with the Hebrew prophets ought to know that this theme occurs in some of the prophetic books, too.
In the context contemporary to the composition of the Book of Judith, Jews had endured Hellenistic oppression under the Seleucid Empire. Jews had won the independence of Judea. John Hyrcanus I (reigned 135-104 B.C.E.; named in 1 Maccabees 13:53 and 16:1-23) had ordered the destruction of the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerazim and forced many people to convert to Judaism. The persecuted had become persecutors. This was certainly on the mind of the anonymous author of the Book of Judith.
May we, collectively and individually, do to others as we want them to do to us, not necessarily as they or others have done to us.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 8, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE TENTH DAY OF ADVENT
THE FEAST OF WALTER CISZEK, ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSIONARY PRIERST AND POLITICAL PRISONER
THE FEAST OF SAINTS AMATUS OF LUXEUIL AND ROMARIC OF LUXEUIL, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONKS AND ABBOTS
THE FEAST OF ERIK CHRISTIAN HOFF, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN COMPOSER AND ORGANIST
THE FEAST OF JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER, U.S. QUAKER ABOLITIONIST, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARIN SHKURTI, ALBANIAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1969
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Above: Nathan Rebukes David
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART XXXIX
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2 Samuel 12:1-25
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Hide your face from my sins
and blot out my iniquities.
–Psalm 51:10, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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This story comes to us via 2 Samuel, in the context of the Ammonite war. 1 Chronicles 19-20 omits this story, which portrays David in an unflattering light. As a serious student of the Hebrew Bible ought to know, the Chronicler liked to make David look good.
King David had abused his power severely. He had violated a marriage, fathered a child out of wedlock, and used Bathsheba for his purposes. David had also attempted to cover up his sins in a manner that was far from subtle. When Uriah the Hittite, Bathsheba’s husband, had refused to play along, David had arranged for his death in combat. David had committed murder.
Was not David supposedly a man after God’s heart?
To David’s credit, however, he responded appropriately when Nathan the prophet confronted him. Nathan had courage; David could have had him killed, too. David’s hands were bloody before he heard of Uriah the Hittite, too. Yet David had enough integrity to confess his sins and repent.
David repented then received forgiveness. He did not, however, escape punishment for his sins. According to the Bible, many of the subsequent woes of David’s reign resulted from the events of 2 Samuel 11. Unfortunately, the innocent first child of David and Bathsheba also paid the price. That child died. The couple had another child, Jedidiah, also known as Solomon. And David showed some sensitivity to Bathsheba’s feelings. He took long enough!
I openly dislike David. I conclude that if David was a man after God’s heart, I do not want to know such a deity. I, however, hold that David was not a man after God’s heart, but that Josiah, one of David’s successors, was. (Read 2 Kings 22-23; 2 Chronicles 34:1-35:27; and 1 Esdras 1:1-33, O reader.)
Power carries many temptations. Power also enables people who have it to indulge certain temptations. Many of us may want to commit certain sins yet lack the opportunities and means to do so. I reject the false dichotomy between power corrupting and power revealing character. Both are accurate and applicable. Both are also evident in stories of King David.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
SEPTEMBER 1, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT DIONYSIUS EXIGUUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND REFORMER OF THE CALENDAR
THE FEAST OF DAVID PENDLETON OAKERHATER, CHEYENNE WARRIOR, CHIEF, HOLY MAN, AND EPISCOPAL DEACON AND MISSIONARY IN OKLAHOMA
THE FEAST OF SAINT FIACRE, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT
THE FEAST OF FRANÇOIS MAURIAC, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC NOVELIST, CHRISTIAN HUMANIST, AND SOCIAL CRITIC
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Above: Uriah the Hittite Answering King David’s Summon
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART XXXVIII
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2 Samuel 11:1-27
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Give judgment for me, O LORD,
for I have lived with integrity;
I have trusted in the LORD and have not faltered.
–Psalm 26:1, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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This story comes to us via 2 Samuel, in the context of the Ammonite war. 1 Chronicles 19-20 omits this story, which portrays David in an unflattering light. As a serious student of the Hebrew Bible ought to know, the Chronicler liked to make David look good.
King David was a native Israelite. Uriah the Hittite was not. He was also a loyal soldier in the Israelite army and a man of integrity. Uriah’s honorable behavior contrasted with David’s dishonorable behavior and contributed to the soldier’s death in combat against Ammonite forces.
The narrative indicates that Bathsheba was a tool of King David. It reveals her feelings only in regard to Uriah’s death. The Bible tells us that Bathsheba was not the first woman David used for his purposes. (That was Michal.)
The text does not tell us what Uriah’s suspicions may have been. I guess that Uriah was no fool. I think he did not fall of the ancient Israelite equivalent of a turnip truck. I suspect he know something was wrong, given how insistent David was.
David had abused his power severely. There was no turning back; this changed the course of his reign.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
SEPTEMBER 1, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT DIONYSIUS EXIGUUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND REFORMER OF THE CALENDAR
THE FEAST OF DAVID PENDLETON OAKERHATER, CHEYENNE WARRIOR, CHIEF, HOLY MAN, AND EPISCOPAL DEACON AND MISSIONARY IN OKLAHOMA
THE FEAST OF SAINT FIACRE, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT
THE FEAST OF FRANÇOIS MAURIAC, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC NOVELIST, CHRISTIAN HUMANIST, AND SOCIAL CRITIC
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Above: Icon of King David
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART XXXVII
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2 Samuel 10:1-19 and 12:26-31
1 Chronicles 19:1-20:8
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“Let us be strong and resolute for the sake of our people and the land of our God; and the LORD will do what He deems right.”
–Joab, in 2 Samuel 10:12, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
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King David’s Ammonite war frames the story of Uriah and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11 and 12), absent from 1 Chronicles.
Ammonite court politics caused the Ammonite war. Nahash, King of Ammon, had died. Hanun, listening to bad advice, mistook David’s official condolences for a spy mission then humiliated his envoys. David’s forces won battles, though. They did so against superior Ammonite-Aramean forces. The author meant for us to understand that God was on the side of Israel in this war.
1 Chronicles 20:4-8 tells of another war against Philistines. It seems that keeping Philistines down was difficult. This passage mentions Elhanan, who slew the brother of Goliath. This passage contradicts 2 Samuel 21:19, which says that Elhanan slew Goliath. This language in 2 Samuel 21:19 is very similar to that in 1 Chronicles 20:5. 2 Samuel 21:19, of course, also contradicts 1 Samuel 17, which tells us that David slew Goliath. If I were a Biblical literalist, this matter would bother me.
Back to the beginning of the Ammonite war….
David had kept faith/kindness (hesed) with King Nahash of Ammon, just as he did with Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 9. The text makes the connection between those two chapters. We readers are to think positively of David in his dealings, with Mephibosheth and his treaty partner, the King of Ammon, according to the text.
One translation of hesed is “kindness.” Kindness is absent from the end of the story; the forced labor of prisoners of war, although common in the region at the time, indicates the opposite of kindness. Kindness is also absent toward Uriah the Hittite in 2 Samuel 11.
David, in these and other cases, practices hesed selectively.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
AUGUST 31, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT NICODEMUS, DISCIPLE OF JESUS
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Above: King David
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART XXXV
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2 Samuel 8:1-18
1 Chronicles 18:1-17
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The LORD gave David victory wherever he went.
–2 Samuel 8:14b, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
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That sentence is a refrain in 2 Samuel 8. Both versions of the material describe the royal supremacy and military dominance of King David. The context tells us of the subjugation of the Philistines, previously pushed back into their territory in 2 Samuel 5:17-25. Acts of cruelty (such as those to Moabites and to horses) should disturb readers. (I have tried to be a pacifist, and cruelty to animals has always offended me.)
David, once a vassal, had vassals.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
AUGUST 30, 2020 COMMON ERA
PROPER 17: THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAINT JEANNE JUGAN, FOUNDRESS OF THE LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR
THE FEAST OF JOHN LEARY, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC SOCIAL ACTIVIST AND ADVOCATE FOR THE POOR AND THE MARGINALIZED
THE FEAST OF KARL OTTO EBERHARDT, GERMAN MORAVIAN ORGANIST, MUSIC, EDUCATOR, AND COMPOSER
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Above: Icon of Kings David and Solomon with the Madonna and Child
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART XXXIV
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2 Samuel 7:1-29
1 Chronicles 17:1-27
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The LORD has sworn an oath to David,
in truth, he will not break it:
“A son, the fruit of your body,
will I set upon your throne.
If your children keep my covenant
and my testimonies that I shall teach them,
their children will sit upon your throne for evermore.”
–Psalm 132:11-13, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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This is a familiar story. When reading a familiar story, one ought to read it closely, for one may not know it as well as one imagines.
I like wordplay, for I am a notorious punster. Imagine my delight, O reader, in the wordplay regarding bayit, or house. We read that King David dwelt in a bayit (palace), but God had no bayit (temple). Extremely attentive readers of the Hebrew Bible may recall the references to the House of the LORD in 1 Samuel 1. Nevertheless, 2 Samuel 7:6 has God deny ever having had a house. This is a minor matter, but one worth mentioning, for the sake of thoroughness. A note in The Jewish Study Bible points out that God had a house as well as a tent (Joshua 18:1; 1 Samuel 2:22), the tent indicating that
the LORD is not restricted to one fixed place.
The wordplay with bayit continues with God establishing a covenant and making David the founder of a house (dynasty). The texts allude to King Solomon presiding over the construction and dedication of the first Temple (See 1 Kings 6:1-8:66; 1 Chronicles 28:1-29:9; 2 Chronicles 2:1-7:22). One ought to know that hindsight is the lens through which people recall the past.
God changes the divine mind sometimes, according to scripture. One example is 1 Samuel 2:30-31. Keep the divine tendency to change the divine mind in your mind, O reader, when reading David’s prayer (2 Samuel 7:25-29; 1 Chronicles 17:23-27).
What am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my family, that You have brought me this far?
–2 Samuel 7:18b, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Covenants are not contracts. Covenants do not entail quid pro quos. Covenants do entail grace, which, in turn, imposes obligations. Many people are comfortable with quid pro quos and uncomfortable with grace. Perhaps grace reminds them of this unworthiness. Perhaps they prefer to have earned something. Perhaps the obligations that accompany grace put them ill at ease. Grace is free, not cheap.
I, having read the rest of the story of David and his dynasty, cannot reread these two versions of this portion of the narrative without feeling sadness over the wasted potential. I know the rest of the story. I know of the abuses of David and Solomon. I know that scripture gives most of their successors negative reviews. I know about the division of the kingdom and the fall of both successor kingdoms. I know that David’s lineage continued, but that the dynasty ended. And I, as a Christian, link this portion of the narrative (in two versions) with Jesus, not Just Solomon and the other Davidic kings.
We are all unworthy. Grace is our only hope. This realization may threaten our egos. On the other hand, this realization may prompt us to live gratefully and to seek to honor God in our own lives, as we relate to God and other human beings.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
AUGUST 30, 2020 COMMON ERA
PROPER 17: THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAINT JEANNE JUGAN, FOUNDRESS OF THE LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR
THE FEAST OF JOHN LEARY, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC SOCIAL ACTIVIST AND ADVOCATE FOR THE POOR AND THE MARGINALIZED
THE FEAST OF KARL OTTO EBERHARDT, GERMAN MORAVIAN ORGANIST, MUSIC, EDUCATOR, AND COMPOSER
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Above: David Dancing in the Presence of the Ark of the Covenant
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART XXXIII
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2 Samuel 6:1-23
1 Chronicles 13:1-14
1 Chronicles 15:1-16:43
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Great is the LORD, and highly to be praised;
in the city of our God is his holy hill.
Beautiful and lofty, the joy of all the earth, is the hill of Zion,
the very center of the world and the city of the great King.
God is in her citadels;
he is known to be her sure refuge.
–Psalm 48:1-3, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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The versions from 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles are similar yet different. The chronology differs; 1 Chronicles places the beginning of the moving of the Ark of the Covenant and the death of Uzzah (1 Chronicles 13 and 2 Samuel 6) prior to David’s defeat of the Philistines (1 Chronicles 14 and 2 Samuel 5). The account from 1 Chronicles also omits the material from 2 Samuel 6:20-23. The two versions also differ regarding the sacrifices in Jerusalem–an ox and a fatling (2 Samuel 6:13) or seven bulls and seven rams (1 Chronicles 15:26). Furthermore, 1 Chronicles adds material, such as list of Levites and musicians, as well as a psalm of Thanksgiving. Both versions have David dance in public while wearing only a small apron, as well as Michal seeing him and despising him.
At least seven points warrant consideration.
- Uzzah meant well. He was not responsible for the Ark of the Covenant being on an oxcart and for the oxen stumbling. The proper way to carry the Ark was on poles, over human shoulders. David was responsible for the manner of transportation of the Ark.
- Lethal holiness struck again. Getting too approximate to God was perilous. This constituted a change from the presentation of God in the beginning of Genesis, when God walked in the Garden of Eden and took strolls with Abraham.
- Michal loved David until she did not. No Biblical text indicates, however. that David loved her. David treated Michal badly.
- David’s dance was lewd.
- David’s psalm of thanksgiving includes a variety of universalism–God is the God of all the Earth, not a tribal or national deity. The case of Obed-edom, a Gittite (2 Samuel 6:9-11; 1 Chronicles 13:13-14) fits neatly with this theme.
- The removal of the Ark of the Covenant from Baalim/Baalam/Kiriath-jearim to Jerusalem bolstered David’s royal authority.
- The account in 1 Chronicles portrays David in a more flattering light than the version in 2 Samuel does. 1-2 Samuel offers more honesty about David’s flaws than 1 Chronicles does.
I arrive at a four-part summary.
- I dislike David.
- I sympathize with Michal.
- I sympathize with Uzzah.
- As much as I grasp reverence for God, I also affirm that the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity as Jesus of Nazareth contradicts lethal holiness.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
AUGUST 30, 2020 COMMON ERA
PROPER 17: THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAINT JEANNE JUGAN, FOUNDRESS OF THE LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR
THE FEAST OF JOHN LEARY, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC SOCIAL ACTIVIST AND ADVOCATE FOR THE POOR AND THE MARGINALIZED
THE FEAST OF KARL OTTO EBERHARDT, GERMAN MORAVIAN ORGANIST, MUSIC, EDUCATOR, AND COMPOSER
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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