Archive for the ‘2 Chronicles 7’ Category
Above: Haggai
Image in the Public Domain
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READING HAGGAI-FIRST ZECHARIAH, PART IV
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Haggai 2:1-9
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Many of the priests and Levites and heads of families, who were old enough to have seen the former house, wept and wailed aloud when they saw the foundation of this house were laid, while many others shouted for joy at the tops of their voices. The people could not distinguish the sound of the shout of joy from the weeping and the wailing, so great was the shout which the people were raising, and the sound could be heard a long way off.
–Ezra 3:12-14, The Revised English Bible (1989)
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But [the shouts] of the priests, Levites, and heads of families who were old enough to have seen the former house came to the building of this house with cries of lamentation. Though many were shouting and sounding the trumpets loudly for joy–so loudly as to be heard from afar–the people could not hear the trumpets for the noise of lamentation.
–1 Esdras 5:63-65, The Revised English Bible (1989)
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The Second Temple, again under construction, was not going to be as large and impressive as the First Temple, destroyed in 586 B.C.E. (See 1 Kings 5:1-6:38; 1 Kings 7:13-51; 2 Chronicles 2:1-4, 22.) In Jerusalem, on October 17, 520 B.C.E., the question in many anxious minds was:
Will the Second Temple be good enough?
God answered affirmatively. Also, God was with the people building the Second Temple. That temple would be good enough because God would make it so. God would fill the Second Temple (built on a more modest budget) with wealth and splendor acquired by the divine “shaking” of the nations. The Second Temple was to be grander than the First Temple.
Jerusalem, October 17, 520 B.C.E.–the seventh day of Sukkot, the Festival of Booths (Leviticus 23:33-36, 39-43; Numbers 29:12-38). The festival, eight days long, was rich with meaning. It, a harvest festival, celebrated divine, sustaining care. Sukkot also commemorated the arrival of the Ark of the Covenant into the First Temple, as well as the dedication of the First Temple (1 Kings 8:1-13, 62-66; 2 Chronicles 5:2-7:22). Furthermore, the festival commemorated the divine liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, and their dwelling in boots as they traveled to Sinai (Leviticus 23:42-43). The festival of Sukkot, 520 B.C.E., was replete with meaning.
Compared to God, all human beings and efforts are subpar and inadequate. That does not mean that we should do nothing, of course. No, we ought to trust in God and do our best–collectively and individually–for God’s glory. God will take care of the rest.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 12, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JASON OF TARSUS AND SOSIPATER OF ICONIUM, COWORKERS OF SAINT PAUL THE APOSTLE AND EVANGELISTS OF CORFU
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Above: Dedicating the Temple
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 LIX
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1 Kings 8:1-66
2 Chronicles 5:1-7:22
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The LORD is King;
he has put on splendid apparrel;
the LORD has put on his apparel
and girded himself with strength.
He has made the world so sure
that it cannot be moved.
From since the world began, your throne has been established,
you are from everlasting.
The waters have lifted up, O LORD,
the waters have lifted up their voice;
the waters have lifted up their pounding waves.
Mightier than the sound of many waters,
mightier than the breakers of the sea,
mightier is the LORD who dwells on high.
Your testimonies are very sure,
and holiness adorns your house, O LORD,
for ever and for evermore.
–Psalm 93, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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Many ancient historians wrote long speeches they attributed to various people, most of them dead already. These historians knew they were not writing transcripts. The best ancient historians, however, summarized what those figures had said.
The prayer of King Solomon at the dedication of the First Temple probably contains material from the actual prayer, about 500 years after the Exodus. However, the prayer, in its final form, contains material from as late as the postexilic period. The petitions for divine pardon certainly fit the postexilic period.
The First Temple existed, religiously, to house the Ark of the Covenant (the throne of God on the Earth) and to function as the site of ritual sacrifices. Politically, the First Temple helped to legitimize the Davidic Dynasty. The First Temple, not a figurative box for God to fit into, nevertheless became a political site, as the Second Temple did. There was no separation of religion and state in ancient Israel, Judah, and Judea.
Our readings for this post refer to the mystery of God, manifest in a cloud that filled the Temple. The imagery of the divine cloud went back to the period immediately following the Exodus from Egypt. God remained other yet nearby. God remained dangerous to get too close to yet nearby. The Holy of Holies was always dimly lit, for seeing the Ark of the Covenant was supposedly perilous.
That understanding of God is foreign to my theology. I, as a Christian, affirm the Incarnation. I state without a doubt that Jesus, the incarnate form of the Second Person of the Trinity (however that worked) ate meals with people. Jesus dining in a home is an image that undercuts the lethal holiness of God in 1 Kings. God, I affirm, is untamable. God refuses to fit into our theological boxes, which serve primarily to reinforce our psyches. And God is approachable. God seeks us. God pursues us not to condemn us but to embrace us.
Do we want to embrace God in return? The choice is ours many times daily.
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: 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: The First Temple at Jerusalem
Scan by Kenneth Randolph Taylor
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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:
2 Chronicles 7:1-22 or Haggai 1:15b-29
Psalm 41
Matthew 26:20-35 or Mark 14:17-31 or Luke 22:14-38
Colossians 3:18-4:18 or 1 Peter 2:1, 11-18 (19-25); 3:1-12
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The First Temple at Jerusalem–when it was new and after it had become ruins–occupies the focus in the two options for the First Reading. God–in the Ark of the Covenant–was present there, faith affirmed. With that faith came the obligation to, in the words of Psalm 41, consider the poor and the needy. This was part of the covenant most of the population disregarded, to its detriment. Consistent with that ethic of caring for the poor and the needy was the example of Jesus, who modeled the teaching that the way to true greatness is servanthood.
As for the readings from the epistles, I must make some critical (in the highest sense of that word) comments about them. They do contain some sexism, but not as much as some think. The texts do speak of the responsibilities of husbands toward their wives, after all. The overall portrait is one of a high degree of mutuality. Also, the failure to condemn slavery disturbs me. That failure is a recurring theme in Christian history, from the first century to at least the nineteenth century. Christianity need not mean default contrariness, for not everything in society is wrong, but the Christian Gospel ought to lead one to oppose servitude and sexism. The Gospel is, after all, about liberation–freedom to serve God without the societal constraints foreign to God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 20, 2016 COMMON ERA
THE TWENTY-FOURTH DAY OF ADVENT
THE FEAST OF SAINT DOMINIC OF SILOS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL TAIT, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
THE FEAST OF SAINT PETER CANISIUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM JOHN BLEW, ENGLISH PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/devotion-for-proper-22-year-d/
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Above: Christ on the Cross, by Gerard David
Image in the Public Domain
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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:
Ezra 9:5-15 or Jeremiah 25:15-38 or 2 Chronicles 7:1-22
Psalm 88
Luke 23:(1-12) 13-49
1 Peter 4:(1-8) 9-11 (12-14) 15-19
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The readings for this day speak of fiery ordeals. In 2 Chronicles 7, Jeremiah 25, Ezra 9, and Psalm 88, they occur because of faithlessness to God. These ordeals–divine punishment–lie in the future for the first two readings and in the past and the present in the last two lections. In the first three readings he sins are collective, but they are individual in Psalm 88. When we turn to Luke 23 and 1 Peter 4 we find that the suffering does not constitute divine punishment. Faith tells us that Jesus did not sin, and the predicted fiery ordeals in 1 Peter 4 result from one’s righteousness and the lack of righteousness of others.
God is unpleasant in the assigned readings from the Hebrew Bible. Perhaps the most concise passage to this effect is Jeremiah 25:27 (The New Revised Standard Version, 1989):
Then you shall say to them, Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink, get drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of the sword that I am sending among you.
I reject Penal Substitutionary Atonement, the idea that Jesus died for my sins. That theory of the atonement portrays God as one in whom to stand in terror, not to love and respect. It depicts God as one who says,
I will not be content until some people torture and execute my innocent Son.
No, I am closer to the Classic Theory of the Atonement, or Christus Victor, of the Conquest of Satan. This theory of the atonement emphasizes the resurrection of Jesus. This makes sense to me because, without the resurrection, Jesus is dead. Dead Jesus cannot save anyone from anything–sins or damnation, especially. Actually, I propose that the entire earthly life of Jesus was the means of atonement. I prefer to leave the mechanics of the atonement vague, in full Eastern Orthodox style.
Good Friday is among the holiest days of the year. It is an occasion to reflect on the atonement and on social structures and institutions that kill the innocent. Good Friday is an especially appropriate day to pray for forgiveness for the evil we have done and the evil done on our behalf. Innocent people still suffer at the hands of other people. Scapegoating continues. State-sponsored violence is not just a matter of the past. The prayer of our Lord and Savior (“Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.”–Luke 23:34a, The Jerusalem Bible, 1966) remains relevant. Furthermore, sometimes they (we) do not know what they (we) are doing.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 10, 2016 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHANN NITSCHMANN, SR., MORAVIAN MISSIONARY AND BISHOP; DAVID NITSCHMANN, JR., THE SYNDIC, MORAVIAN MISSIONARY BISHOP; AND DAVID NITSCHMANN, THE MARTYR, MORAVIAN MISSIONARY AND MARTYR
THE FEAST OF CECIL FRANCES ALEXANDER, POET AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN LUDWIG BRAU, NORWEGIAN MORAVIAN TEACHER AND POET
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JOHN LEONARDI, FOUNDER OF THE CLERKS REGULAR OF THE MOTHER OF GOD OF LUCCA; AND JOSEPH CALASANCTIUS, FOUNDER OF THE CLERKS REGULAR OF RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS
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Adapted from this post:
https://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2016/10/10/devotion-for-good-friday-year-d/
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Above: Solomon’s Wealth and Wisdom
Image in the Public Domain
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The Collect:
Almighty God, in signs and wonders your Son revealed the greatness of your saving love.
Renew us with your grace, and sustain us by your power,
that we may stand in the glory of your name,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 25
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The Assigned Readings:
2 Chronicles 7:12-22
Psalm 41
3 John 2-8
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Happy are those who consider the poor….
–Psalm 41:1a, The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
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In the Law of Moses, among purity codes and rules about when to stone people, one finds commandments about caring for people–from strangers to neighbors. That ethic was apparently strong in the Christian community which received 3 John. King Solomon, however, exploited his subjects economically. Thus he violated a divine condition for the perpetuation of the Davidic Dynasty in 2 Chronicles 7:17-22.
Some themes recur in the Bible. Among these are God’s concern for the poor and displeasure at the mistreatment of them. This is a point I can repeat in only a few ways, for it falls under the heading of what I, for the purpose of determining what does and does not constitute plagiarism, call the Green Grass Rule:
There are only a few ways to write that the grass is green.
So, O reader, how do you treat people, ranging from strangers to neighbors?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 2, 2014 COMMON ERA
THE THIRD DAY OF ADVENT, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF SAINT BRIOC, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT; AND SAINT TUDWAL, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF CHANNING MOORE WILLIAMS, EPISCOPAL BISHOP IN CHINA AND JAPAN
THE FEAST OF JOHN BROWN, ABOLITIONIST
THE FEAST OF SAINT OSMUND OF SALISBURY, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
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Adapted from this post:
https://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2014/12/02/devotion-for-thursday-before-the-seventh-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-b-elca-daily-lectionary/
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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