Archive for the ‘2 Kings 23’ Category
Above: Jeremiah Tells the King That Jerusalem Shall Be Taken
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART XIII
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Jeremiah 21:1-22:30
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For God’s sake, let us sit upon the ground,
and tell sad stories of the death of kings….
–William Shakespeare, Richard II, Act 3, Scene 2
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Jeremiah 21-25 consists of oracles in the last years of Jerusalem. Zedekiah (born Mattaniah) in the regnant monarch named in 21:1. The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014), lists his reign as having spanned 597-586 B.C.E. Outside of the Book of Jeremiah, one can read about King Zedekiah in 2 Kings 24:18-25:26; 2 Chronicles 36:11-21; and 1 Esdras 1:47-58.
Passhur the priest (21:1) was a different person than Passhur the priest (20:1), just as Zephaniah the priest (21:1) was a different person than Zephaniah the prophet (Zephaniah 1-3).
The theme of divine retribution in exchange for rampant, persistent, and systemic social injustice recurs.
There was bad news all around.
- Jerusalem was fall to the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire in 586 B.C.E.
- King Zedekiah (r. 597-586 B.C.E.) would suffer an ignominious fate.
- King Jehohaz/Jeconiah/Shallum (r. 609 B.C.E.; 2 Kings 23:31-35; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4; 1 Esdras 1:34-38), would die in exile in Egypt.
- King Jehoiakim (r. 608-598 B.C.E.; 2 Kings 23:36-24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:5-8; 1 Esdras 1:39-42) either died peacefully in his palace (2 Kings 24:6), became a captive in Babylon (2 Chronicles 36:5-8; 1 Esdras 1:40), or died outside the walls of Jerusalem in 598 B.C.E. and received no burial (Jeremiah 22:19; 36:30-31).
- King Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah (r. 597 B.C.E.; 2 Kings 24:8-17; 2 Kings 25:27-30; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10; 1 Esdras 1:43-46) would become a prisoner in Babylon, too.
I detect odd editing, without regard to chronology. Follow my reasoning, O reader:
- Zedekiah was the last King of Judah. Material concerning him establishes the present tense at the beginning of Chapter 21.
- The material concerning Jehoahaz/Jeconiah/Shallum would have been contemporary to the Zedekiah material.
- Yet the material concerning Jehoiakim comes from during his reign.
- Likewise, the material concerning Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah comes from during his reign.
The divine condemnations of rulers who did not try to govern righteously remain relevant, sadly.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 11, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BARNABAS THE APOSTLE, COWORKER OF SAINT PAUL THE APOSTLE
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Above: Icon of Jeremiah
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART XII
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Jeremiah 17:1-20:18
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The Hebrew prophetic books are repetitive. When one reads the genre methodically, one realizes this. Pardon me, therefore, O reader, for not explaining every repeated theme in Jeremiah 17:1-20:18.
Jeremiah 17:1-4 uses powerful imagery to condemn illegitimate worship at cultic sites. Proverbs 3:3 and 7:3 refer to the tablet of the heart, on which the divine commandments are inscribed. Yet in Jeremiah 17:1, those tablets are inscribed with the guilt of Judah instead. Such a heart symbolizes disobedience to God in Ezekiel 2:4 and 3:7. Eventually, God will make a new covenant, one inscribed on the hearts of the people (Jeremiah 31:31-34). For now, however, repentance is not an option. The sins of Judah, not the reparation blood (Leviticus 4:1-7, 13-20), are on the stones of the altar.
2 Kings 22-23 tells of the religious reformation of King Josiah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.). One may read Jeremiah 17:1-4 and surmise that 17:1-4 predates those reforms or that his four successors presided over a rollback of those reforms. Either option is feasible. The second option may be more likely.
God is faithful and forever. Even the most pious and benevolent people, those who keep the covenant, are not forever. The Book of Jeremiah focuses on God and on those who are neither pious nor benevolent, though.
Returning to the imagery of the human heart in 17:9-10, we read that the human heart is crooked and deceitful. The germane Hebrew word, suggestive of deceit, means “crooked.” The human heart is the most crooked thing, we read. This is a spiritual and moral pathology.
Jeremiah 17:11 speaks for itself.
Jeremiah’s desire for vengeance (17:18) was predictable. I have known the same desire under less severe circumstances. Maybe you have, also, O reader.
The Deuteronomic perspective in the Book of Jeremiah and other Hebrew prophetic books teaches that the (northern) Kingdom of Israel and the (southern) Kingdom of Judah declined and fell because of persistent, unrepentant, collective disregard for the moral mandates of the Law of Moses. This is the perspective written into much of the Old Testament, from the perspective of the editors after the Babylonian Exile. Jeremiah 17:19-27 singles out violations of the Sabbath (Deuteronomy 5:14)–especially commercial transactions–as being emblematic of widespread, systemic disregard for the covenant.
Sabbath-keeping has long been a feature of Judaism and Christianity. Keeping the Sabbath–a sign of freedom in the Law of Moses–has been a way of emulating God. On the seventh day, in mythology, God created the Sabbath (Genesis 2:1-3). Sabbath-keeping has always been challenging, in practical terms. Stopping all work on that day (however one defines it) has always been impossible. Certain work has always been crucial to perform on the Sabbath, and members of the clergy have had to take their Sabbath some other time in the week. The Hasmoneans, zealous keepers of the Law of Moses, bowed to reality and engaged in defensive combat (1 Maccabees 2:31-48; 1 Maccabees 9:23-73; 2 Maccabees 15:1-19). If they had done otherwise, they would have lost battles and lives needlessly.
Sabbath-keeping works to the benefit of people. Everyone needs to take time off to live. One should work to live, not live to work. Structural economic factors may restrict one’s options in keeping the Sabbath as one would prefer to do. Also, the common good requires, for example, that public health and safety continue on the Sabbath. Time off is a mark of freedom. Slavery assumes many forms; one can be a wage slave.
The prophecy of the potter (Jeremiah 18:1-12) is familiar, and popular with lectionary committees. I have written about it while blogging through lectionaries. I bring your attention, O reader, to a key point: God, the Creator, is free to handle His creation as He sees fit. I am a piece of pottery, not the potter.
People kept plotting against Jeremiah. Had I been Jeremiah, I would have complained to God, too. I would have prayed to God to show no mercy on the plotters, also. I, too, may have rued the day of my birth. Jeremiah was only human. God knew that before calling Jeremiah to be a prophet.
Jeremiah made no allies by following God’s instructions in Chapter 19 and symbolically smashing a jug. That act led to a flogging and a brief incarceration. Jeremiah suffered intensely and briefly, but Passhur the priest was going to experience “terror all around.” Judah was failing; nobody could change that.
Many people in authority like to maintain their power. Some of them peacefully resign themselves to the realities of age, health, constitutional term limits, and election results; others do not. Many people in authority are servant leaders; others are tyrants or would-be despots. I suppose that nobody in authority wants to hear that the institution, nation-state, kingdom, empire, et cetera, is doomed. Yet how one handles that news is a test of character. Besides, power reveals a person’s character. And, as Heraclitus said,
A man’s character is his fate.
I wonder how Passhur the priest felt in 586 B.C.E., after the Fall of Jerusalem. I wonder if he remembered the words of Jeremiah and wept bitterly.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 10, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT JAMES OF NISIBIS, BISHOP; AND SAINT EPHREM OF EDESSA, “THE HARP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT”
THE FEAST OF FREDERICK C. GRANT, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND NEW TESTAMENT SCHOLAR; AND HIS SON, ROBERT M. GRANT, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND PATRISTICS SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF SAINTS OF GETULIUS, AMANTIUS, CAERAELIS, AND PRIMITIVUS, MARTYRS AT TIVOLI, 120; AND SAINT SYMPHROSA OF TIVOLI, MARTYR, 120
THE FEAST OF SAINT LANDERICUS OF PARIS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF THOR MARTIN JOHNSON, U.S. MORAVIAN CONDUCTOR AND MUSIC DIRECTOR
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Above: Statue of Jeremiah, Salisbury Cathedral
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART V
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Jeremiah 7:1-8:3
Jeremiah 26:1-24
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Jeremiah 7:1-20:18 consists of oracles primarily from the reign (608-598 B.C.E.) of Jehoiakim (born Eliakim) of Judah. For more about Jehoiakim, read 2 Kings 23:36-24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:5-8; 1 Esdras 1:39-42.
The Assyrian Empire had consumed the (northern) Kingdom of Israel in 722 B.C.E. then the Kingdom of Aram in 720 B.C.E. In 612 B.C.E., the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire had conquered the Assyrian Empire. In 608 B.C.E., Judah was struck between two powerful neighbors–Egypt and Babylonia, themselves enemies. After the death of King Josiah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.) in combat against Pharaoh Neco II of Egypt (r. 610-595 B.C.E.), Judah had become a vassal state of Egypt. Neco II had appointed the next King of Judah, Jehoahaz, also known as Jeconiah and Shallum (2 Kings 23:31-35; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4; 1 Esdras 1:34-38). Jehoahaz had reigned for about three months in 609 B.C.E. before Neco II had replaced him with another son of Josiah and taken him into captivity in Egypt. Neco II had also appointed Eliakim and changed his name to Jehoiakim in 608 B.C.E. He served as an Egyptian vassal until 605 B.C.E., when he became a Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian vassal.
Jeremiah spent most of his prophetic career speaking difficult truths to a nation under foreign domination. This context was extremely politically dangerous.
This sermon is thematically consistent with Hosea 6:4-6; Micah 3:9-12; and Amos 2:4-6. It is also thematically consistent with many other passages of Hebrew scripture. The link between idolatry and social injustice (especially economic injustice) is clear. Sacred rituals, even those the Law of Moses mandates, are not talismans. The joining of lived collective piety and justice on one hand and sacred ritual on the other hand is imperative. The combination of social injustice and sacred ritual makes a mockery of sacred ritual.
Mend your ways and your actions,
Jeremiah preached at the Temple. Then he unpacked that statement:
…if you execute justice between one man and another; if you do not oppress the stranger, the orphan, and the widow; if you do not shed the blood of the innocent in this place; if you do not follow other gods, to your own hurt–then only will I [YHWH] let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers for all time. See, you are relying on illusions that are of no avail….
–Jeremiah 7:5-8, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Pay attention to 7:11, O reader:
Do you consider this House, which bears My name, to be a den of thieves? As for Me, I have been watching–declares the LORD.
—TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
This is an allusion in Jesus’s mouth during the Temple Incident/the Cleansing of the Temple in Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; and Luke 19:46. Notice that Jeremiah predicted the destruction of the First Temple.
Chronology is not the organizing principle in the Book of Jeremiah. The Temple Sermon of Jeremiah is a case in point. We return to it and read of its aftermath in Jeremiah 26:1-24.
Idols abound. They may be tangible or intangible. If an activity, idea, or object functions as an idol for someone, it is an idol for that person. Money is one of the more common idols. Greed contributes greatly to economic injustice, and corruption is one of the major causes of institutionalized poverty. Obliviousness to participation in the violation of God’s moral commandments, including mutuality, will not shield us from the consequences of those sins any more than keeping sacred rituals will do so.
Circa 608 B.C.E. God was still holding out the possibility of repentance, prompting the cancellation of divine punishment, according to Jeremiah 26:3. This contradicts other passages from the Book of Jeremiah and other Hebrew prophetic books composed or begun prior to the Book of Jeremiah. Perhaps one reason for the contradiction is the addition of later material to the early Hebrew prophetic books, as late as the Babylonian Exile. I suppose that maintaining the hard line of the time for repentance having passed was difficult to maintain after the Fall of Babylon (539 B.C.E.).
The priests and prophets said to all the people, “This man deserves the death penalty, for he has prophesied against this city, as you yourselves have heard.
–Jeremiah 26:11, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Jeremiah prophesied against a government and a population under foreign domination. There was no separation of religion and state either. The prophet worked in a dangerous milieu.
Jeremiah had allies, though. Some cited the example of Micah, who had issued a dire prophesy (Micah 3:12) and had not received a death sentence. Fortunately for Jeremiah, the court’s sentence remained unfulfilled. Ahikam, a high-ranking royal official (2 Kings 22:12), saved him. Ahikam was also the father of Gedaliah, the assassinated governor of Judah after the Fall of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 40:1-41:18).
Uriah ben Shemiah, from Kiriath-jearim, was not as fortunate as Jeremiah was. Uriah, also prophesying in the name of YHWH, said what Jeremiah proclaimed. Uriah fled to Egypt for safety because King Jehoiakim wanted him dead. Royal agents found Uriah in Egypt and returned him to Judah, to die.
One may legitimately wonder why God protected Jeremiah from threats to his life yet did not spare faithful Uriah ben Shemaiah.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 7, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MATTHEW TALBOT, RECOVERING ALCOHOLIC IN DUBLIN, IRELAND
THE FEAST OF SAINT ANTHONY MARY GIANELLI, FOUNDER OF THE MISSIONARIES OF SAINT ALPHONSUS
THE FEAST OF FREDERICK LUCIAN HOSMER, U.S. UNITARIAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF HUBERT LAFAYETTE SONE AND HIS WIFE, KATIE HELEN JACKSON SONE, U.S. METHODIST MISSIONARIES AND HUMANITARIANS IN CHNA, SINGAPORE, AND MALAYSIA
THE FEAST OF SEATTLE, FIRST NATIONS CHIEF, WAR LEADER, AND DIPLOMAT
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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: Icon of Habakkuk
Image in the Public Domain
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READING HABAKKUK, PART I
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Habakkuk 1:1
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The situation for Judah had become worse since the days of the prophet Nahum, shortly before the Fall of Nineveh (612 B.C.E.). King Josiah of Judah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.; 2 Kings 22:1-23:30; 2 Chronicles 34:1-35:27; 1 Esdras 1:1-33; Ecclesiasticus/Sirach 49:1-6) had died in combat against Pharaoh Neco II (r. 610-595 B.C.E.). The Egyptian leader had sought to establish power in Syria; Judah was between Egypt and Syria. The Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire had terminated Neco II’s plans for Syria.
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 Habakkuk exists within the context of three years–605, 598/597, and 586 B.C.E.–and two Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian invasions of Judah. The book, in its original form, dates to closer to 605 and 598/597 B.C.E. than 586 B.C.E.
The superscription tells us almost nothing about the prophet. “Habakkuk” derives from an Arabic word meaning “dwarf.” He may have been a cultic prophet. The superscription does not even reveal the name(s) of the King(s) of Judah when Habakkuk prophesied.
The Book of Habakkuk contains fifty-six verses in three chapters. The Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) gives short shrift to the book, assigning only eight verses once every third years. Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4 is one of two options for the Old Testament reading on Proper 26, Year C. The lectionary includes:
the righteous live by their faith
(2:4b), taken out of textual context.
I invite you, O reader, to join me as I read all of the Book of Habakkuk, in historical and textual context.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 5, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT DOROTHEUS OF TYRE, BISHOP OF TYRE, AND MARTYR, CIRCA 362
THE FEAST OF BLISS WIANT, U.S. METHODIST MINISTER, MISSIONARY, MUSICIAN, MUSIC EDUCATOR, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR, ARRANGER, AND HARMONIZER; AND HIS WIFE, MILDRED ARTZ WIANT, U.S. METHODIST MISSIONARY, MUSICIAN, MUSIC EDUCATOR, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF INI KOPURIA, FOUNDER OF THE MELANESIAN BROTHERHOOD
THE FEAST OF MAURICE BLONDEL, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC PHILOSOPHER AND FORERUNNER OF THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL
THE FEAST OF ORLANDO GIBBONS, ANGLICAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER; THE “ENGLISH PALESTRINA”
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Above: Icon of Zephaniah
Image in the Public Domain
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READING ZEPHANIAH, PART II
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Zephaniah 1:2-2:3
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Certain ambiguities exist in the Hebrew text. These give rise to competing scholarly and theological interpretations. Yet the text is clear about other matters: God was mad, idolatry continued to be rampant and intolerable, divine judgment on the people and the royal family was on the way, social injustice (especially economic injustice) was ubiquitous and still intolerable to God, and there was still no time to repent. This last point contrasts with First Isaiah (Isaiah 6), in which the time to repent had passed. Overall, the imagery of Zephaniah 1:2-2:3, set in the context of the Day of the LORD, should be familiar to one who has recently read Hosea, Amos, Micah, and First Isaiah recently.
Certain details require explanation:
- Milcom (1:5) was the chief deity of the Ammonite pantheon (1 Kings 11:5, 7, 33; 2 Kings 23:13).
- The alternative translation to “Milcom” is “Malcam,” or “their king.” This may be a human monarch, YHWH, or a false god.
- “The king’s sons” (1:8) refers to the royal family, the House of David. Those responsible for leading the people astray bear greater accountability before God.
- Idolatry is apparent in 1:4-6, 8-9.
- People are foolish and sinful to commit fraud, exploit others, and be complacent.
- Another theme from earlier in Hebrew prophetic literature repeats: Circumstances may seem good and pleasant. The kingdom may be faring relatively well. Nevertheless, the circumstances are about to get very bad.
- 1:14-16 is the basis of the Latin Dies Irae, formerly part of the Roman Catholic Requiem Mass.
- The imagery of the Day of the LORD is vivid. The powerful language addresses a situation of long-term, collective, and unrepentant violation of the Law of Moses, despite many messengers of God having called for repentance. Divine patience is not infinite. Neither is divine judgment.
Seek the LORD,
all you humble of the land,
who have observed his law;
Seek justice,
seek humility;
Perhaps you will be sheltered
on the day of the LORD’s anger.
–Zephaniah 2:3, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
That “perhaps” is ominous.
The Hebrew text in 2:1-3 is somewhat ambiguous and, in scholarly terms, corrupt. Therefore, an exegetical debate about the identity of the “shameless nation” (2:1) is robust; the text is vague. 2:1-3 sits between a section condemning Judah and a section condemning foreign nations. Also, the Hebrew word translated as “shameless” can also mean “not desiring God” or “not desired by God.” Circumstantially, the position of The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014), that Judah is the addressed nation makes sense to me. Yet other study Bibles I consult interpret 2:1-3 to apply to foreign nations instead.
This ambiguity does not disturb me. Even if I err in interpreting 2:1-3 to have applied to Judah, my ultimate point remains unaltered. These texts, in the Hebrew language, indicate editing that has created confusion about historical interpretation. I acknowledge this reality; I do not ignore or seek vainly to reconcile the irreconcilable. Yet I remain focused on the text’s meanings for today. When is too late to repent? And why might not repentance shelter people from the wrath of God?
Certainly, one person’s actions affect other people. Also, membership in a society means that one suffers and benefits based on what other members of that society do or do not do. This may seem unfair. It may even be unfair.
Stating the obvious may answer a question partially. Such a partial answer may prove unsatisfactory. So be it. I wrestle with the two questions I asked:
- When is too late to repent?
- Why might not repentance shelter people from the wrath of God.
Certainty is antithetical to faith. I, as an Episcopalian, welcome doubt, my old friend, and greet questions warmly. I affirm that “I don’t know,” is frequently the best and most honest answer. Faith is about walking humbly with God, not knowing the answers. My model of faith is Jewish, not Muslim. Jews get to wrestle and argue with God; Muslims submit to God.
I agree that repentance should shield one from the wrath of God. It does not always do so, however. I also argue that no time should be too late for repentance. I disagree with Isaiah 6 in so doing.
God calls people and peoples into a positive relationship with each other and Him. God does not call us to shut down our minds. No, God calls us to bring ourselves to the relationship. God calls us to trust Him, acknowledge our complete dependence on Him, and take care of each other. Trusting does not entail a lack of arguments and misunderstandings. We can know of God what God has revealed. The fullness of God, however, is a glorious mystery. The proper response includes awe.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 3, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN XXIII, BISHOP OF ROME
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN GOTTFRIED GEISLER AND JOHANN CHRISTIAN GEISLER, SILESIAN MORAVIAN ORGANISTS AND COMPOSER; AND JOHANNES HERBST, GERMAN-AMERICAN ORGANIST, COMPOSER, AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF FRANCES RIDLEY HAVERGAL, ENGLISH HYMN WRITER AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF OLE T. (SANDEN) ARNESON, U.S. NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF WILL CAMPBELL, AGENT OF RECONCILIATION
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Above: Zephaniah Addressing People
Image in the Public Domain
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READING ZEPHANIAH, PART I
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Zephaniah 1:1
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The text of the Book of Zephaniah reveals little about Zephaniah ben Cushi. We read that he prophesied during the reign (640-609 B.C.E.) of King Josiah of Judah. One can read about Josiah’s reign in 2 Kings 22:1-23:30; 2 Chronicles 34:1-35:27; 1 Esdras 1:1-33; and Ecclesiasticus/Sirach 49:1-4. King Josiah’s religious reformation, prominent in his positive evaluation in the Hebrew Bible, seems not to have occurred yet in the Book of Zephaniah. For this reason, dating the Book of Zephaniah to early in King Josiah’s reign–between 630 and 620 B.C.E.–is commonplace.
The prophet, whose name meant, “YHWH protects,” was an aristocrat, perhaps a descendant of King Hezekiah (r. 727/715-698/687 B.C.E.), the last religious reformer monarch prior to Josiah. Zephaniah was a prominent resident of Jerusalem who had connections to the Temple and the royal family.
The original form of the Book of Zephaniah is not the version in Bibles. The final version, a product of the time after the Babylonian Exile, contains obvious evidence of editing after the time of Zephaniah ben Cushi. I know about this matter in the Books of Hosea, Amos, and Micah, as well as the First Isaiah material from the Book of Isaiah, based on recent blogging through Hebrew prophetic books. When I encounter obviously subsequently edited texts, I acknowledge their nature. I do not try to rationalize away the objectively accurate state of affairs.
The geopolitical situation had changed since the days of Hosea, Amos, Micah, and First Isaiah, about seven decades prior. The Assyrian Empire had entered terminal decline. The Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians were rising. The (Cushite/Nubian) Twenty-Fifth Dynasty of Egypt, which had encouraged regional rebellion against Assyria, had fallen.
Zephaniah was a contemporary of Nahum, Habakkuk, and Jeremiah.
My immediate plan is to blog through Zephaniah (of course) then the other short books of Nahum and Habakkuk, each one with three chapters. Then I intend to blog my way through the (long) Book of Jeremiah, with fifty-two chapters.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 2, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BLANDINA AND HER COMPANIONS, THE MARTYRS OF LYONS, 177
THE FEAST OF ANDERS CHRISTENSEN ARREBO, “THE FATHER OF DANISH POETRY”
THE FEAST OF CHRISTOPH HOMBURG, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF MARGARET ELIZABETH SANGSTER, HYMN WRITER, NOVELIST, AND DEVOTIONAL WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT STEPHEN OF SWEDEN, ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSIONARY, BISHOP, AND MARTYR, CIRCA 1075
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Above: Map of the Assyrian Empire and Neighbors
Scanned from an Old Bible
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READING HOSEA, PART VII
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Hosea 9:1-17
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I am convinced that references to Egypt in the Book of Amos may date to the Judean editing of the text. History tells me that, in the days of the prophet Hosea, Aram, not Egypt, was the main rival to the Assyrian Empire. History also tells me that, when the (southern) Kingdom of Judah was waning, Egypt was the main rival to the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire, successor to and conqueror of the Assyrian Empire. I also recall 2 Kings 23:31f, in which the Pharaoh, having killed King Josiah of Judah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.) in battle, selected the next two Kings of Judah–Jehoahaz (a.k.a. Jeconiah and Shallum; reigned for about three months in 609 B.C.E.) and Jehoiakim (born Eliakim; reigned 608-598 B.C.E.). (See 2 Kings 23:31-24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:1-8; and 1 Esdras 1:34-42.) References to returning to Egypt make sense on a literal level after the beginning of the Babylonian Exile, given the events of Jeremiah 42:1-44:31. On a metaphorical level, “returning to Egypt” stands for abandoning freedom in God and returning to captivity, thereby reversing the Exodus from Egypt (Exodus 13:17-14:31).
As for eating unclean food in Assyria (9:3), just replace Assyria with Babylonia, and that statement applies to the late Judean reality, too. 2 Kings 24:1-25:30 tells of the fall of the (southern) Kingdom of Judah. That portion of scripture also tells us that the last three Kings of Judah were Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian vassals.
Editing the original version of the Book of Hosea to describe the plight of the (southern) Kingdom of Judah required little effort. For example, Hoshea (r. 732-723 B.C.E.), the last King of Israel, was a rebellious vassal of Assyria. His rebellion triggered the fall of Samaria (2 Kings 17). Likewise, King Zedekiah (born Mattaniah; reigned 597-586 B.C.E.) was a rebellious vassal of Babylonia. His rebellion triggered the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. (2 Kings 24:18-25:26; 2 Chronicles 36:11-21; 1 Esdras 1:47-58)
A sense of divine sadness pervades Hosea 9:1-17. One can feel it as one reads God, filtered through Hosea and perhaps subsequent editors, asking:
Why did my people make such terrible, destructive choices?
The chapter concludes on a somber note:
My God rejects them,
Because they have not obeyed Him….
–Hosea 9:17a, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Cultures, societies, and individuals have the choice to obey or to disobey the moral mandates from God. Well-intentioned people who seek to obey God may debate how to do so. The situation in the Book of Hosea, however, is that the debate does not take place. The Book of Hosea describes a society in which disregard for those moral mandates was endemic. Judgment for trying and failing to fulfill these moral mandates differs from judgment for not caring enough to try.
My late beloved was mentally ill. Immediately prior to the end of her life, I told her that I accepted that I had moral obligations to her, but that I did not know in the moment what they required me to do. I was attempting, in a terminal crisis, to behave morally. Perhaps I made the wrong choice. Maybe I committed a sin of omission by avoiding the difficult and proper course of action. Perhaps she would have done differently in a counterfactual scenario. But I proceeded from a morally correct assumption, at least.
I live in a conflicted state. I tell myself that I sinned by what I did not do, not what I did. On the other hand, I tell myself that I could, at best, have delayed, not prevented her death by means other than natural causes. I tell myself, too, that I had already delayed her death by means other than natural causes for years. I tell myself that I carry survivor’s guilt, and that God has forgiven me for all sins of commission and omission vis-à-vis my late beloved. I have yet to forgive myself, though.
I wonder what exiles from Israel and Judah felt as they began their captivity and that exile dragged on. I wonder how many of them “saw the light” and repented. I know that the Ten Lost Tribes (mostly) assimilated, and that their descendants spread out across the Old World, from Afghanistan to South Africa. Knowing this adds poignancy to Hosea 9:14b:
And they shall go wandering
Among the nations.
—TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
We human beings condemn ourselves.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 17, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THOMAS BRADBURY CHANDLER, ANGLICAN PRIEST; HIS SON-IN-LAW, JOHN HENRY HOBART, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF NEW YORK; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM HOBART HARE, APOSTLE TO THE SIOUX AND EPISCOPAL MISSIONARY BISHOP OF NIOBRARA THEN SOUTH DAKOTA
THE FEAST OF SAINT CATERINA VOLPICELLI, FOUNDRESS OF THE SERVANTS OF THE SACRED HEART; SAINT LUDOVICO DA CASORIA, FOUNDER OF THE GRAY FRIARS OF CHARITY AND COFOUNDER OF THE GRAY SISTERS OF SAINT ELIZABETH; AND SAINT GIULIA SALZANO, FOUNDRESS OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE CATECHETICAL SISTERS OF THE SACRED HEART
THE FEAST OF CHARLES HAMILTON HOUSTON AND THURGOOD MARSHALL, ATTORNEYS AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS
THE FEAST OF DONALD COGGAN, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
THE FEAST OF SAINT IVAN ZIATYK, POLISH UKRAINIAN GREEK CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1952
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Above: Doves (Hosea 7:11)
Image in the Public Domain
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READING HOSEA, PART VI
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Hosea 6:7-8:14
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Understanding this reading in textual context requires backing up to at least Hosea 6:4. For a refresher, I refer you, O reader, to the previous post in this series.
Hosea 6:7-8:14 contains some references from a later period, after the Fall of Samaria in 722 B.C.E. These references to Judah (6:11, 8:14) relate to the text to the (southern) Kingdom of Judah when it was declining.
According to this and other prophetic texts, alliances with powerful and dubious neighbors constituted infidelity to and treason against God. The references to the Egyptians were odd, given that the (northern) Kingdom of Israel entered into alliances with Aram and Assyria. At the time of Hosea 1:1, the main regional conflict was Aram versus Assyria. However, Judah did become a vassal of Egypt (2 Kings 23:31f).
That matter aside, divine chastisement, designed to bring about repentance, had not done so. Therefore, the time for punishment had arrived.
Hosea 7:3-7 makes sense if one considers royal succession in the (northern) Kingdom of Israel during the final quarter-century of the that realm:
- Jeroboam II (r. 788-747 B.C.E.) had died. (See 2 Kings 14:23-29.)
- Zechariah (r. 747 B.C.E.), his son, succeeded him. Zechariah reigned for about six months. (See 2 Kings 15:8-12.)
- Shallum (r. 747 B.C.E.) overthrew Zechariah then reigned for about a month. (See 2 Kings 15:13-16.)
- Menahem (r. 747-737 B.C.E.) overthrew Shallum. (See 2 Kings 15:17-22.)
- Pekahiah (r. 737-735 B.C.E.), his son, succeeded him. (See 2 Kings 15:23-26.)
- Pekah (r. 735-732 B.C.E.) overthrew Pekahiah. (See 2 Kings 15:27-31.)
- Hoshea (r. 732-722 B.C.E.) overthrew Pekah and became the last King of Israel. (See 2 Kings 17:1f.)
Two dynasties and four kings of Israel fell in twenty-five years. Six Kings of Israel came and went. Two kings without dynasties fell. The (northern) Kingdom of Israel did not endure.
They sow wind,
And they shall reap the whirlwind–
Standing stalks devoid of ears
And yielding no flour.
If they did yield any,
Strangers shall devour it.
–Hosea 8:7, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Assyrians did devour it.
The two calves of Samaria, at Bethel and Dan (1 Kings 12:26-33), dated to the reign (928-907 B.C.E.) of Jeroboam I. (See 1 Kings 11:26-14:20.) King Jeroboam I, for political reasons, did not want any of his subjects making pilgrimages to the Temple in Jerusalem, the capital of the (southern) Kingdom of Judah. The two calves, therefore, were substitutes for the Temple in Jerusalem.
I reject your calf, Samaria!
I am furious with them!
Will they ever be capable of purity?
For it was Israel’s doing;
It was only made by a joiner,
It is not a god.
No, the calf of Samaria shall be
Reduced to splinters!
–Hosea 8:5-6, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Hosea 8:1-14 may, in its final form, be the product of Judean editing of an extant text. One feasible interpretation of 8:3-6 is that all the kings of the (northern) Kingdom of Israel (from Jeroboam I to Hoshea) were as illegitimate as the golden calves at Bethel and Dan. One who has read of the northern monarchs may recognize the pattern of dynasties rising and falling. I hold open the possibility that the original version of the Book of Hosea included at least some of this material. The final version of 8:14, bearing the stamp of Judean editing, updated for a new (now ancient) context, provided no comfort.
Israel has ignored his Maker
And built temples
(And Judah has fortified many cities).
So I will set fire to his cities,
And it shall consume their fortresses.
—TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
It happened twice, in 722 and 586 B.C.E.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 17, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THOMAS BRADBURY CHANDLER, ANGLICAN PRIEST; HIS SON-IN-LAW, JOHN HENRY HOBART, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF NEW YORK; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM HOBART HARE, APOSTLE TO THE SIOUX AND EPISCOPAL MISSIONARY BISHOP OF NIOBRARA THEN SOUTH DAKOTA
THE FEAST OF SAINT CATERINA VOLPICELLI, FOUNDRESS OF THE SERVANTS OF THE SACRED HEART; SAINT LUDOVICO DA CASORIA, FOUNDER OF THE GRAY FRIARS OF CHARITY AND COFOUNDER OF THE GRAY SISTERS OF SAINT ELIZABETH; AND SAINT GIULIA SALZANO, FOUNDRESS OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE CATECHETICAL SISTERS OF THE SACRED HEART
THE FEAST OF CHARLES HAMILTON HOUSTON AND THURGOOD MARSHALL, ATTORNEYS AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS
THE FEAST OF DONALD COGGAN, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
THE FEAST OF SAINT IVAN ZIATYK, POLISH UKRAINIAN GREEK CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1952
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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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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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