READING SECOND ZECHARIAH, PART II

Above:  Woods, Ben Burton Park, Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, October 29, 2017

Photographer = Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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Zechariah 9:1-11:17

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Zechariah 9:1-8 may be the original portion of Second Zechariah.  This opening oracle names enemies of the Hebrews:

1. Aram (Zechariah 9:1-2a; Amos 1:3-5; Isaiah 17:1-14; Jeremiah 49:23-27);
2. Tyre and Sidon (Zechariah 9:2b-4; Amos 1:9-10; Isaiah 23:1-18; Ezekiel 26:1-28:26); and
3. Philistia (Zechariah 9:5-7; Amos 1:6-8; Isaiah 14:28-32; Jeremiah 47:1-17; Ezekiel 25:15-17).

One may read about the Jebusites (Zechariah 9:7) in Judges 19:10; 2 Samuel 5:6, 8; 2 Samuel 24:16, 18; 1 Kings 9:20; 1 Chronicles 11:4.

The development of Zechariah 9:1-8 is complicated.  The original version of it may predate the Babylonian Exile.  The reference to the rampart of the fortress (9:3) may allude to a military campaign of Alexander the Great in 333 B.C.E.  Zechariah 9:1-8 seems to have passed through various editorial hands before settling down into its current state.

Regardless of the number of editorial stages of development of all the segments of Zechariah 9:1-11:17, the final version is about an ideal future when the full-realized Kingdom of God is evident on the earth and when the Messiah, a descendant of King David, is triumphant and victorious.  The arrangement of material is odd.  YHWH is triumphant in chapter 9.  The promise of restoration fills chapter 10.  Chapter 11 concludes with the desperate situation extant in First Zechariah (chapters 1-8).  The editing seems backward, from a certain point of view.  Anyway, the present day of Second Zechariah, obviously far from ideal, has much in common with 2021.

Time passes.  Technology changes.  Social mores and norms change, also.  Locations vary.  Yet much remains the same.  False prophets abound (10:2).  [Note:  The reference to teraphim in 10:2 is to household cultic objects, as in Genesis 31:19, 30-35; Judges 17:5.  Deuteronomy 18:9-14 condemns divination.  Also, Deuteronomy 13:6 and Jeremiah 23:25-32 are suspicious of dreams.]  Many leaders–shepherds, metaphorically–are oppressors and predators (10:3; 11:4-17).  In this case, prophets and leaders are the same.  This makes sense; one is a leader if one has followers.  The text is sufficiently ambiguous to apply to those who are false prophets or predatory political leaders without being both, though.

Zechariah 11 concludes on a hopeful note:  Those leaders responsible for social ills will fall from power.  This is good news the metaphorical sheep.

I, as a Christian, pay especially close attention to Zechariah 9:9-10.  This is a vision of the Messiah, sometime in the distant future, approaching the glorious, restored Jerusalem after God’s victory.  The image of the Messiah–“your king”–triumphant, victorious, and humble, riding on a donkey, occupies the background in accounts of Christ’s Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday (Matthew 21:1-9; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:28-40; John 12:12-15).  Understanding Zechariah 9:9-10 helps one grasp the imagery of Christ’s self-presentation in the Gospels’ accounts of that event.

The placement of the oracles in Zechariah 9-11 in the future, without claiming,

Do x, and God will will do y,

in such a way as to date the prophecies, works.  One may recall that Haggai made the mistake of being too specific (and objectively wrong) in Haggai 1 and 2.  The prediction of the restoration of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel of Israel (9:17-10:12), therefore of the restoration of the unity of Israel and Judah, remains unfulfilled.  One may doubt that it will ever come to pass, but one cannot legitimately criticize the text for establishing a temporal marker already past (from the perspective of 2021) and being objectively wrong, by that standard.

Reality falls short of God’s ideal future.  Yet we may legitimately hope and trust in God.  Details of prophecies, bound by times and settings of their origin, may not always prove accurate.  So be it.  We moderns ought to read these types of texts poetically, not as what they are not–technical manuals for the future in front of us.  We should focus on major themes, not become lost in the details.  We ought not to try to match current events and the recent past to details of ancient prophecy.  The list of books whose authors did that and whom the passage of time has proven inaccurate is long.  One can easily miss the forest by focusing on the trees.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JULY 17, 2021 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM WHITE, PRESIDING BISHOP OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH

THE FEAST OF THE CARMELITE MARTYRS OF COMPIEGNE, 1794

THE FEAST OF BENNETT J. SIMS, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF ATLANTA

THE FEAST OF SAINT NERSES LAMPRONATS, ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF TARSUS

THE FEAST OF R. B. Y. SCOTT, CANADIAN BIBLICAL SCHOLAR, HYMN WRITER, AND MINISTER

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READING EZEKIEL, PART II

Above:  The Vision of Ezekiel

Image in the Public Domain

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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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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33

Above:  King Azariah/Uzziah of Judah

Image in the Public Domain

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PART XCV

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2 Kings 15:1-7

2 Chronicles 26:1-23

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Love righteousness, you rulers of the earth.

think of the Lord with uprightness,

and seek him with sincerity of heart;

because he is found by those who do not put him to the test,

and manifests himself to those who do not distrust him.

For perverse thoughts separate men from God,

and when his power is tested, it convicts the foolish;

because wisdom will not enter a deceitful soul,

nor dwell in a body enslaved to sin.

For a holy and disciplined spirit will flee from deceit,

and will rise and depart from foolish thoughts,

and will be ashamed at the approach of unrighteousness.

–Wisdom of Solomon 1:1-5, Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition (2002)

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King Amaziah of Judah (Reigned 798-769 B.C.E.)

King Azariah/Uzziah of Judah (Reigned 785-733 B.C.E.)

King Jotham of Judah (Reigned 759-743 B.C.E.)

King Jeroboam II of Israel (Reigned 788-747 B.C.E.)

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Again, the account in 2 Chronicles expands on its source material in 2 Kings.  This elaboration creates a different impression regarding the cause of the monarchs’ skin disease (“leprosy”–not what most of us think of when we hear that word) than 2 Kings 15 does.

Anyway, the skin disease made King Azariah/Uzziah ritually impure, thereby excluding him from the Temple and isolating him.  His son Jotham served as the regent.

The primary theme regarding King Azariah/Uzziah is hubris.  Strength leads to pride.  The lack of repentance for pride leads to punishment.  Willful disobedience has terrible consequences.  

The scene of the monarch’s hubris, impenitence, and willful disobedience may seem odd to many.  Perhaps one recalls that King Solomon burned incense in a priestly manner in 1 Kings 9:25.  The Chronicler’s perspective, informed by postexilic standards that only Aaronic priests may burn incense at the Temple, may be anachronistic.

Nevertheless, the example of King Azariah/Uzziah should serve as a reminder not to rest on one’s spiritual laurels.  If we think we are spiritual insiders, we may set ourselves up for the fall that comes after pride goes.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 5, 2020 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF ARTHUR AND LEWIS TAPPAN, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST BUSINESSMEN AND ABOLITIONISTS; COLLEAGUES AND FINANCIAL BACKERS OF SAMUEL ELI CORNISH AND THEODOER S. WRIGHT, AFRICAN-AMERICAN MINISTERS AND ABOLITIONISTS

THE FEAST OF BERNARD LICHTENBERG, GERMAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1943

THE FEAST OF SAINT HRYHORII LAKOTA, UKRAINIAN GREEK CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1950

THE FEAST OF JOHANN DANIEL GRIMM, GERMAN MORAVIAN MUSICIAN

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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33

Above:  The Tomb of King Hiram of Tyre, by Charles William Meredith von de Velde

Image in the Public Domain

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PART LXII

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1 Kings 10:1-29

2 Chronicles 9:1-28

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The earth, O LORD, is full of your love;

instruct me in your statutes.

–Psalm 119:64, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)

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I intend the quote from Psalm 119 partially as a counterpoint to the texts from 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles.

Sheba was Sabea, on the southwestern corner of the Arabian peninsula.  The strategically-located Sabea controlled access to the Sea of Aden from the Red Sea.  The queen was in Jerusalem to meet a potential trading partner. The story of her state visit flows from the end of 1 Kings 9 and 2 Chronicles 8, and flows into accounts of extreme wealth late in 1 Kings 10 and 2 Chronicles 9.  The story of the state visit also builds up King Solomon’s reputation before the turmoil of 1 Kings 11 and 12 and 2 Chronicles 10 and 11.

In ancient societies without a strong middle class, one could not accumulate extreme wealth without exploiting people and perpetuating their exploitation.  Biblical authors have already told us that King Solomon used slavery and forced labor.

King Solomon’s court does not impress me.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

OCTOBER 22, 2020 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF FREDERICK PRATT GREEN, BRITISH METHODIST MINISTER, POET, AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF EMILY HUNTINGTON MILLER, U.S. METHODIST AUTHOR AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF KATHARINA VON SCHLEGAL, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF PAUL TILLICH, GERMAN-AMERICAN LUTHERAN THEOLOGIAN

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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33

Above:  The Tomb of King Hiram of Tyre, by Charles William Meredith von de Velde

Image in the Public Domain

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PART LXI

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1 Kings 9:10-28

2 Chronicles 8:1-18

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I am filled with a burning rage,

because of the wicked who forsake your law.

–Psalm 119:53, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)

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We learn the following in this reading:

1. King Solomon partially paid King Hiram of Tyre with 20 towns that Hiram, displeased, described as “nothing.”
2. King Solomon used forced labor to construct the First Temple, walls, fortifications, supply cities, his palace, and the palace for the Egyptian princess.
3. King Solomon enslaved resident aliens, not Israelites.
4. King Solomon, having had Gezer burned and the Canaanites who lived there killed, gave Gezer to his Egyptian wife as a dowry.
5. King Solomon tended to religious duties, including maintaining the First Temple, offering incense, and offering burnt offerings and sacrifices.
6. King Solomon appointed priests, Levites, and gatekeepers.
7. King Solomon had a commercial fleet, built and maintained in conjunction with King Hiram of Tyre.

The combination of piety, violence, and exploitation is staggering.  The hypocrisy of King Solomon is evident.

Each one of us is guilty of hypocrisy on some scale.  Regardless of the scale of that hypocrisy, each one of us needs to repent.  We may also unwittingly be part of collective hypocrisy because of our membership in a society that perpetuates and exploitation.  Consider, O reader, the supply chains upon which our lifestyles depend.  Who made our clothes and towels, and under what circumstances?  Did those who made our clothes and towels earn a living wage?  And what about the supply chains for our groceries?  I could point to more examples, but I trust I have made my point.  As we go about daily life and mundane tasks, we may commit sins of commission and omission that harm others.  Sin is both collective and individual.  Sin infects institutions as well as individuals.

May God save us all from ourselves and each other.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

OCTOBER 22, 2020 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF FREDERICK PRATT GREEN, BRITISH METHODIST MINISTER, POET, AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF EMILY HUNTINGTON MILLER, U.S. METHODIST AUTHOR AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF KATHARINA VON SCHLEGAL, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF PAUL TILLICH, GERMAN-AMERICAN LUTHERAN THEOLOGIAN

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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33

Above:  King Solomon

Image in the Public Domain

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PART LX

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1 Kings 9:1-9

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Sustain me according to your promise, that I may live,

and let me not be disappointed in my hope.

Hold me up, and I shall be safe,

and my delight shall be ever in your statutes.

You spurn all who stray from your statutes;

their deceitfulness is in vain.

In your sight all the wicked of the earth are but dross;

therefore I love your decrees.

My flesh trembles with dread of you;

I am afraid of your judgments.

–Psalm 119:116-120, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)

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This passage from 1 Kings 9 is heartbreaking.  It comes from a time after the Fall of Jerusalem.  Imagine, O reader, a pious Jew either in exile or back in his or her ancestral homeland after the Babylonian Exile.  Imagine, O reader, the author reflecting on what had gone wrong, how a united monarchy had divided into two kingdoms, and how both kingdoms had fallen to conquerors.  And imagine, O reader, the author’s perspective on the future.

Whatever we have done wrong, we can still repent.  Whatever you, O reader, have done wrong, you can still repent.  Whatever I have done wrong, I can still repent.  Whatever we/you/I have done wrong, the best future entails repentance.  Learning from the past is the main reason to study and interpret it.  May we (individually and collectively) learn the proper lessons and move constructively into the future.  May we (individually and collectively) not be like proverbial generals fighting the last war.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

OCTOBER 21, 2020 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF GEORGE MCGOVERN, U.S. SENATOR AND STATESMAN; AND HIS WIFE, ELEANOR MCGOVERN, HUMANITARIAN

THE FEAST OF DAVID MORITZ MICHAEL, GERMAN-AMERICAN MORAVIAN MUSICIAN AND COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF JAMES W. C. PENNINGTON, AFRICAN-AMERICAN CONGREGATIONALIST AND PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, EDUCATOR, AND ABOLITIONIST

THE FEAST OF SAINT LAURA OF SAINT CATHERINE OF SIENA, FOUNDRESS OF THE WORKS OF THE INDIANS AND THE CONGREGATION OF MISSIONARY SISTERS OF IMMACULATE MARY AND OF SAINT CATHERINE OF SIENA

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Above:  Ancient Corinth

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-matpc-07406

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The Collect:

Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:

Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,

that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,

which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ,  who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236

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The Assigned Readings:

1 Kings 9:1-9, 11:1-13 or Ecclesiastes 8:1-17

Psalm 35

John 15:18-25 (26-27); 16:1-4a

2 Corinthians 12:11-21; 13:1-10 (11-13)

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One might suffer for any of a number of reasons.  One might, as did Solomon, suffer for one’s sins; actions do have consequences, after all.  Or one might suffer because of the sins of at least one other person.  This is one reason one might suffer for the sake of righteousness.  Or perhaps one might suffer for merely being at the wrong place at the wrong time.  On other occasions there might be no apparent reason for one’s suffering.

This is a devotion for Trinity Sunday.  Many attempts to explain the mystery of the Holy Trinity have resulted in heresy.  I have resolved to cease trying to explain it and to revel in the glorious mystery instead.  God is greater and more glorious than I can imagine; thanks be to God!

I do feel comfortable in making some comments, however.  For example, Jesus of Nazareth (the historical figure) was the incarnated form of the Second Person of the Trinity, God the Son.  I do not pretend to grasp the mechanics of the Godhead, but so be it.  Jesus suffered and died, but not because of any sin of his; he committed none.  God suffered due to human sinfulness and made something wondrous out of something brutal and base.

That extravagant grace imposes certain obligations on those who benefit from it.  Among these obligations is building each other up.  St. Paul the Apostle’s words on that topic remain as applicable today as they were in Corinth nearly 2000 years ago.  Christ Jesus is in me.  He is also in you, O reader.  He is also in those around us.  How will we treat them?  We have Jesus, a role model, to emulate.  Where would the human race be without him?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

DECEMBER 16, 2016 COMMON ERA

THE TWENTIETH DAY OF ADVENT

THE FEAST OF GUSTAF AULEN, SWEDISH LUTHERAN THEOLOGIAN

THE FEAST OF SAINT FILIP SIPHONG ONPHITHAKT, ROMAN CATHOLIC CATECHIST AND MARTYR IN THAILAND

THE FEAST OF MAUDE DOMINICA PETRE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MODERNIST THEOLOGIAN

THE FEAST OF RALPH ADAMS CRAM AND RICHARD UPJOHN, ARCHITECTS; AND JOHN LAFARGE, SR., PAINTER AND STAINED GLASS MAKER

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Adapted from this post:

https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2016/12/16/devotion-for-trinity-sunday-year-d/

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Above:  The Meeting of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba

Artwork from 1899

Reproduction Number = LC-USZC4-5226

Copyright by The U.S. Printing Co.

Image Source = Library of Congress

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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning:

Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,

that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life,

which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

–The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236

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The Assigned Readings:

1 Kings 9:1-9; 10:1-13

Psalm 54 (Morning)

Psalms 28 and 99 (Evening)

2 Corinthians 5:1-21

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The story of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba reaches its peak in 1 Kings 9-10.  God talks to him, the monarch is fabulously wealthy, and the Queen of Sheba visits.  1 Kings 9:1-9 provides foreboding foreshadowing:  Disobedience to God will lad to national disaster.  One needs to be careful here, lest one blame natural disasters frustrated by foolish human decisions (often regarding infrastructure or where to live) on homosexuality, not on the climate and what we humans are doing to change it.  But 1 Kings 9:1-9 addressed political forces, not natural ones.  Those verses date from a time after which people had experienced national collapse and exile, so they constitute hindsight also.  They come from a place of loss and introspection, of being humble before God and of grieving over losses.

Yet, as Paul reminds us, our life is in God.  Our only proper boasts are in God–in Jesus, specifically.  (That part about Jesus did not apply in the BCE years, of course.)  And our confidence is properly in God, in whom we have reconciliation not only to God but to each other.  So there is always hope in God, who seeks us by a variety of means over time.

Our decisions matter.  Although nobody is the captain of his or her soul, our decisions matter greatly.  How we respond to God is important.  Here I take my cues from Hebrew Prophets:  Will we commit idolatry?  Will we condone and/or practice economic exploitation?  Will we condone and/or condone corruption?  Will we become so enamored of ourselves and our institutions that we will fall into hubris?  Or will we recognize the Image of God in each other and serve God by serving each other?  Society is concrete, not abstract; it is merely people.  Societies can and do change.  So the choice is ours.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

DECEMBER 14, 2012 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT VENANTIUS HONORIUS CLEMENTIUS FORTUNATUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF POITIERS

THE FEAST OF CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH, COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MYSTIC

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Adapted from this post:

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2012/12/14/devotion-for-august-27-lcms-daily-lectionary/

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