Archive for the ‘Jeremiah 17’ Category
Above: Lamentations
Image in the Public Domain
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READING LAMENTATIONS, PART V
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Lamentation 4:1-22
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The main bright ray of hope in the Book of Lamentations is in Chapter 3. Theological whiplash continues as the readings revert to…lamentations. Chapter 4 describes the siege of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E.. as well as the suffering and degradation of the city’s residents at the time.
Some points require explanation:
- In verse 1, gems and gold represent people. They are precious yet discarded.
- Jackals (verse 3) had a reputation as despicable scavengers.
- Ostriches (verse 3) were supposedly cruel and neglectful parents (Job 39:13-18).
- Starving children were too weak to cry in verse 4. (Ezekiel 3:16; Psalm 137:6; Job 29:10)
- The inhabitants of Sodom died quickly (Genesis 19:24-25), but the inhabitants of Jerusalem suffered a long agony.
- Coral and sapphire were colors associated with vigor in verses 7-8. Those colors have disappeared.
- Fire represented divine wrath (Lamentations 2:3 and 4:11; Deuteronomy 32:22; Isaiah 10:17; Jeremiah 17:27). There was also the literal fire that destroyed Jerusalem, of course.
- Contrary to popular belief (Psalms 46 and 48), Mount Zion was not inviolable. The belief that God would not let Mount Zion fall came from foreigners (Lamentations 4:12).
- Shedding blood (verses 13 and 14), in this case, referred to committing idolatry (Ezekiel 22:1-5; Psalm 106:37-40). The people most closely associated with purity were the most impure. Those once among the most respected in society had become as impure as lepers (verse 15).
- The Poet spoke in verses 1-16 and 21-22. The Community spoke in verses 17-20.
- The tone in verse 21 is ironic. Edom comes in for condemnation here and in Amos 1:11-12; Isaiah 21:11-12; Obadiah; Jeremiah 49:7-22; Ezekiel 25:12-14; and Ezekiel 35:1-15.
- Verse 22 offers a glimmer of hope. The Babylonian Exile will end, we read. Justice will prevail because punishes sins, we read.
I ponder the idea of a world in which justice prevails because God punishes sins. I think about the world as it is and perceive that it bears little resemblance to God’s ideal world. The disparity between reality and the ideal is discouraging. Were I more poetic, and if I had the desire to compose a set of lamentations for the world and United States of America in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, I would do so.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 19, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHN DALBERG ACTON, ENGLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC HISTORIAN, PHILOSOPHER, AND SOCIAL CRITIC
THE FEAST OF ADELAIDE TEAGUE CASE, EPISCOPAL PROFESSOR OF CHRISTIAN EDUCATION, AND ADVOCATE FOR PEACE
THE FEAST OF MICHEL-RICHARD DELALANDE, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF VERNARD ELLER, U.S. CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN MINISTER AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM PIERSON MERRILL, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, SOCIAL REFORMER, AND HYMN WRITER
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Above: King Zedekiah of Judah
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART XIV
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Jeremiah 23:1-40
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I like wordplay. The Hebrew Bible is replete with it. In Jeremiah 23, for example, puns on the Hebrew root letters resh and ayin move from ro’in (“shepherds,” in verses 1-4) to ra’ah (“evil,” in verses 11, 12, 14, 17, 22), mere’im (“evildoers,” in verse 14), and re’im (“each other,” in verses 27, 30, 35). Also, in verses 5-6, we find a pun on the name of Zedekiah, the last King of Judah. “Zedekiah” means “YHWH is justice.'” The true branch of David’s line, however, will be “The LORD our justice.” we read. This text tells us that Zedekiah did not live up to his regnal name.
The imagery of kings as shepherds exists in Ezekiel 34, also.
The promise of a messianic royal branch, in reference to an ideal ruler, occurs also in Isaiah 11:1 and Zechariah 3:8. This promise contradicts facts from the historical record.
As with other parts of the Book of Jeremiah, Chapter 23 contains layers of authorship. Verses 7-8, repeated nearly verbatim from Jeremiah 16:14-15, probably date to a period after Jeremiah–most likely during or after the Babylonian Exile.
False prophets abounded. Some prophesied in the name of Baal Peor; they led people astray. Other prophets claimed to speak on behalf of God; they led people into violations of the covenant. The people and the false prophets paid a high price. In more wordplay, massa (“burden”) meant a message from God (also in Deuteronomy 1:12; Jeremiah 17:24, 27; Isaiah 13:1; Isaiah 15:1; Nahum 1:1; Habakkuk 1:1; Malachi 1:1; Isaiah 22:1; Zechariah 9:1; Zechariah 12:1), as well as a judgment from God. The language of the “burden of the LORD,” as an oracle, was more common in reference to Gentile nations than to Israel and Judah. In Jeremiah 23, the population that had requested an oracle received a judgment instead.
A difficult and germane question remains unanswered: Without the benefit of hindsight, how can one discern who is a false prophet? Each of us may correctly classify some figures as false prophets and wrongly categorize others, based on a belief system. In hindsight, identifying false prophets is easier than doing so in real time. If, for example, a self-proclaimed prophet predicts that Jesus will return by a certain date, one may reasonably classify him or her as a false prophet. One may be certain, however, if that date comes and goes without the Second Coming having occurred. On a mundane level, someone may offer a pronouncement that may be difficult to evaluate on the true prophet-false prophet scale in real time. This person may even be a false prophet while imagining himself or herself to be a true prophet. I accept Jeremiah as a true prophet, with the benefit of hindsight and faith. Yet I admit that, had I lived when he was prophesying, I may have thought he was crazy.
May rulers be good and prophets be true.
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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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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1 Samuel 2:18-26 or Jeremiah 17:5-10
Psalm 102:18-28
Romans 6:12-23
Luke 12:1-12
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In the context of the balance of divine judgment and mercy, an evergreen Biblical theme, we read another evergreen Biblical theme: Be your best selves in God. This applies both individually and collectively. Be your best self in God. Be the best family possible in God. Be the best congregation possible in God. Be the best ____ possible in God.
Fearlessness, grounded in faith and bound by mutual responsibility, is part of achieving human potential in God. May we be fearless in loving our neighbors as we love ourselves in good times and during crises. May we build up each other fearlessly. May we speak and hear the truth in love, fearlessly. May we proclaim Christ in words and deeds, fearlessly. May we eschew all bigotry, fearlessly. May we hold irresponsible authority figures to account for the common good, fearlessly. May we fearlessly cooperate with God in building societies that are more just, especially for the vulnerable and the impoverished.
May we remember and act fearlessly on the truth that we are precious to God and should, therefore, be precious to each other.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 21, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ROMAN ADAME ROSALES, MEXICAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1927
THE FEAST OF SAINT CONRAD OF PARZHAM, CAPUCHIN FRIAR
THE FEAST OF GEORGE B. CAIRD, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST THEN UNITED REFORMED MINISTER, BIBLICAL SCHOLAR, AND HYMN WRITER AND TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF GEORGIA HARKNESS, U.S. METHODIST MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, ETHICIST, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT SIMEON BARSABAE, BISHOP; AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS, 341
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2020/04/21/devotion-for-proper-17-year-c-humes/
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Above: Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery, by Guercino
Image in the Public Domain
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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 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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Jeremiah 32:36-44
Psalm 119:73-80
2 Corinthians 1:3-11
John 7:53-8:11
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Judgment and mercy exist in balance in the Bible. In Jeremiah 32:36-44, for example, we read that the Babylonian Exile will come yet will also end. The author of Psalm 119 understands that God, whom he trusts, has humbled him. In 2 Corinthians 1 the emphasis is on mercy, via Christ.
Judgment and mercy also coexist in John 7:53-8:11, a frequently misunderstood and subtle passage with some ambiguity. It has been part of the Johannine Gospel since the 200s and is actually of Synoptic origin–probably from the Gospel of Luke. It flows naturally in some manuscripts from Luke 21:37-38 and into Luke 22. John 7:53-8:11 us a free-floating pericope; I treat it as such. Indeed, one can skip over it, reading 7:52 then 8:12, and not miss a beat.
Certain religious leaders set a trap for Jesus. This was quite a pastime in the canonical Gospels. These particular officials, in setting this trap, violated the Law of Moses. First, the man and woman involved in adultery were subject to the death penalty (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22). Where was the man? Second, there were supposed to be witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6 and 19:15). The Roman authorities had deprived the Jewish authorities of the right to execute under the Law of Moses (John 18:31), so there was probably a political element to the trap–Rome or Torah? (Those who set the trap were Roman collaborators.) Jesus, being intelligent and perceptive, recognized the trap for what it was. He reversed the trap. What did he write with his finger? Some Patristic exegetes suggested Jeremiah 17:13:
LORD, on whom Israel’s hope is fixed,
all who reject you will be put to shame,
those who forsake you will be inscribed in the dust,
for they have rejected the source of living water, the LORD.
—The Revised English Bible (1989)
But we cannot be sure.
Also, the witnesses were to be the first to stone the adulteress (Deuteronomy 17:7):
Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.
–John 8:7b, The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
The woman’s accuser, of course, left the scene. Jesus, instead of condemning her, instructed her to repent.
Then, if we accept the Lukan placement of the pericope, the chief priests and scribes plotted the death of Jess that fateful Passover week.
(Aside: I have heard a Roman Catholic joke based on the pericope. After John 8:11 Jesus and the woman were standing together. Then a stone came, seemingly from nowhere. Jesus exclaimed, “O, mother!”)
In God exists judgment and mercy. Mercy includes opportunities to repent–to turn one’s back on sin. God likes repentance, I keep reading in the Bible. There is hope in repentance.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 19, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF CHARLES COFFIN, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF CHARITIE LEES SMITH BANCROFT DE CHENEZ, HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM PIERSON MERRILL, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, SOCIAL REFORMER, AND HYMN WRITER
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2017/06/19/devotion-for-proper-19-ackerman/
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Above: Baal
Image in the Public Domain
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The Collect:
Living God, in Christ you make all things new.
Transform the poverty of our nature by the riches of your grace,
and in the renewal of our lives make known your glory,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 24
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The Assigned Readings:
Jeremiah 17:1-4
Psalm 1
Luke 11
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Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked,
nor lingered in the way of sinners,
nor sat in the seats of the scornful!
Their delight is in the law of the LORD,
and they meditate on his law day and night.
They are like trees planted by streams of water,
bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither;
everything they do shall prosper.
It is not so with the wicked;
they are like chaff which the wind blows away.
Therefore the wicked shall not stand when judgment comes,
nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.
For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked is doomed.
–Psalm 1, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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The theme of idolatry unites the main two pericopes. It occupies the core of the reading from Jeremiah 17, where idolatry will lead to destruction. The lesson from Luke 11 concludes a narrative in which some critics have accused Jesus of being in league with Satan, prompting our Lord and Savior to respond with his “house divided” discourse. Christ’s critics in that account could not recognize God incarnate in their presence.
An idol is anything–a thought, a practice, an object–which prevents one from recognizing God where God is present. One person’s idol might be another person’s icon–through which one sees God. The difference between an idol and an icon is how one uses it. Among my favorite words is bibliolatry, which means treating the Bible as an idol. That is an unfortunate reality for many who seek God. Their desire for something concrete leads them astray as they seek the invisible God.
May we, as we seek God, avoid all idols, by grace.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 14, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ALL CHRISTIAN MISSIONARIES
THE FEAST OF SAMUEL ISAAC JOSEPH SCHERESCHEWSKY, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF SHANGHAI
THE FEAST OF THOMAS HANSEN KINGO, DANISH LUTHERAN BISHOP, HYMN WRITER, AND “POET OF EASTERTIDE”
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Adapted from this post:
https://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2015/10/14/devotion-for-saturday-before-the-sixth-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-c-elca-daily-lectionary/
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Above: The Appalachian Trail
Photographer = Carol M. Highsmith
Image Source = Library of Congress
(http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2011631216/)
Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-highsm-13022
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The Collect:
O God, we thank you for your Son,
who chose the path of suffering for the sake of the world.
Humble us by his example,
point us to the path of obedience,
and give us strength to follow your commands,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 46
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The Assigned Readings:
Jeremiah 17:5-18
Psalm 17
Matthew 12:22-32
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Keep me as the apple of your eye;
hide me under the shadow of your wings,
From the wicked who assault me,
from my enemies who surround me to take away my life….
Arise, Lord; confront them and cast them down;
deliver me from the wicked by your sword.
–Psalm 17:8-9, 13, Common Worship (2000)
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That Psalmist and the prophet Jeremiah shared the sentiment.
Let my persecutors be shamed,
And let not me be shamed;
Let them be dismayed,
And let not me be dismayed.
Bring on them the day of disaster,
And shatter them with double destruction.
–Jeremiah 17:18, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
That reminds me of some of my prayers at severe periods of my life. I am glad to report truthfully that I never arrived at the spiritual place of Psalm 137:
O daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy the one who repays you
for all you have done to us;
Who takes your little ones,
and dashes them against the rock.
–Verses 8 and 9, Common Worship (2000)
To be fair, some people were trying to kill Jeremiah. And, regarding Psalm 137, vengeance is an emotion common to oppressed people. Revenge is a seductive spiritual toxin.
Today we have readings about enemies and rejection. YHWH, speaking in Jeremiah 17:11 (TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures), says:
Most devious is the heart;
It is perverse–who can fathom it?
I the LORD probe the heat,
Search the mind–
To repay every man according to his ways,
With the proper fruit of his deeds.
This brings me to the lesson from Matthew. In the Hellenistic world the widespread assumption regarding the causation of a variety of disorders and diseases was demonic possession. Thus, most (if not all) of the demoniacs in the New Testament actually had conditions with down-to-earth causes–biological or just too much stress. Brain science, which tells us much in 2014, did not exist two thousand years ago. In fact, modern science is only about five hundred years old. Nobody should, therefore, expect the Bible to function as a scientific text or a psychological or medical diagnostic manual. Anyone who does is pursuing a fool’s errand.
Jesus, in his cultural context, conducted what people called exorcisms of “evil spirits” which had caused everything from epilepsy to multiple personalities. In his cultural context this demonstrated power over evil itself. Jesus, in his cultural context, faced opposition from people as being of divine origin. Therefore they preferred to say (if not believe wholeheartedly) that he cast out demons by the power of Satan–a statement ridiculous inside its cultural context. Their sin–blasphemy against the Holy Spirit–was being unable to tell the difference between good and evil when good stood in front of them and performed great and mighty acts. Theirs was a voluntary spiritual blindness.
Why did they do it? Perhaps they were so attached to their social status and religious traditions that admitting that which was manifest in their presence was the genuine article proved threatening. At stake were matters of identity and livelihood, after all, and Jesus, by his mere presence, called those into question. His words and deeds constituted even more of a threat. So these Pharisaic opponents in the reading from Matthew decided to pursue an illogical and spiritually dangerous course.
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit–a sin which requires much effort to commit–is the unpardonable sin because it is deliberate spiritual blindness. For most of us all our sins flow from either ignorance or weakness. We either do not know that what we do or do not do is wrong (perhaps due to cultural programming) or, like St. Paul the Apostle, we know what is right yet discover that we are too weak to do it. In these cases we are either blind spiritually because of what others have taught us or we have clear vision of the moral variety. But to see clearly in the moral sense, recognize intellectually that good is present, and choose to call it evil because that is the convenient course of action is worse. One might even lie to oneself and persuade oneself that good is evil. And how is one supposed to follow God then?
Following God can prove difficult under the best of circumstances. It is possible by grace, however. May each of us be willing to cooperate with God in the path God has established. When God points to an area of spiritual blindness, may we accept the correction. Such a walk with God will entail times of discomfort, but that is part of the growth process. Our identity ought to be in God. Our chief end, the Westminster Catechisms tell us correctly, is to enjoy and glorify God forever. The specifics of pursuing that goal properly will vary from person to person. May we support each other in our journeys.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 20, 2014 COMMON ERA
PROPER 11: THE SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAMUEL HANSON COX, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND ABOLITIONIST; AND HIS SON, ARTHUR CLEVELAND COXE, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF WESTERN NEW YORK, HYMN WRITER, AND TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS
THE FEAST OF SAINT ANSEGIUS OF FONTANELLE, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF ELIZABETH CADY STANTON, AMELIA BLOOMER, SOJOURNER TRUTH, AND HARRIET ROSS TUBMAN, WITNESSES TO CIVIL RIGHTS FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS AND WOMEN
THE FEAST OF SAINTS FLAVIAN II OF ANTIOCH AND ELIAS OF JERUSALEM, ROMAN CATHOLIC PATRIARCHS
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Adapted from This Post:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2014/07/20/devotion-for-wednesday-after-proper-17-year-a-elca-daily-lectionary/
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Above: An Oasis in the Sahara Desert
Image Source = Library of Congress
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Jeremiah 17:5-11 (Revised English Bible):
These are words of the LORD:
A curse on anyone who trusts in mortals and leans for support on human kind,
while his heart is far from the LORD!
He will be like a juniper in the steppeland;
when good comes he is unaware of it.
He will live among the rocks in the wilderness, in a salt, uninhabited land.
Blessed is anyone who trusts in the LORD, and rests his confidence on him.
He will be like a tree planted by the waterside,
that sends out its roots along a stream.
When the heat comes it has nothing to fear;
its foliage stays green.
Without care in a year of drought,
it does not fail to bear fruit.
The heart is deceitful above any other thing, desperately sick;
who can fathom it?
I, the LORD, search the mind and test the heart,
requiting each one for his conduct and as his deeds deserve.
Like a partridge sitting on a clutch of eggs which it has not laid,
so is he who amasses wealth unjustly.
Before his days are half done it will leave him, and he will be a fool at the last.
Psalm 1 (Revised English Bible):
Happy is the one who does not take the counsel of the wicked for a guide,
or follow the path that sinners tread, or take his seat in the company of scoffers.
His delight is in the law of the LORD; it is his meditation day and night.
He is like a tree planted beside water channels;
it yields its fruit in season and its foliage never fades.
So he too prospers in all he does.
The wicked are not like this; rather they are like chaff driven by the wind.
When judgment comes, therefore, they will not stand firm,
nor will sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
The LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked is doomed.
1 Corinthians 15:12-20 (The Jerusalem Bible):
Now if Christ raised from the dead is what has been preached, how can some of you be saying that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, Christ himself cannot have been raised, and if Christ has not been raised then our preaching is useless and your believing it is useless; indeed, we are shown up as witnesses who have committed perjury before God, because we swore in evidence before God that he had raised Christ to life. For if the dead are not raised, Christ has not been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, you are still in your sins. And what is more serious, all who have died in Christ have perished. If our hope in Christ has been for this life only, we are the most unfortunate of all people.
But Christ has in fact been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of all who have fallen asleep.
Luke 6:17-26 (The Jerusalem Bible):
He [Jesus] then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples with a great crowd of people from all parts of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured, and everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all.
Then fixing his eyes on his disciples he [Jesus] said:
How happy are you who are poor; yours is the kingdom of God.
Happy are you who are hungry now; you shall be satisfied.
Happy are you who weep now; you shall laugh.
Happy are you when people hate you, drive you out, abuse you, denounce your name as criminal, on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice when that day comes and dance for joy, for then your reward will be great in heaven. This was the way their ancestors treated the prophets.
But alas for you who are rich; you are having your consolation now.
Alas for you who have your fill now; you shall go hungry.
Alas for you who laugh now; you shall mourn and weep.
Alas for you when the world speaks well of you! This was the way their ancestors treated the false prophets.
The Collect:
O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Some Related Posts:
Prayer of Praise and Adoration:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/01/04/prayer-of-praise-and-adoration-for-the-sixth-sunday-after-epiphany/
Prayer of Confession:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2010/08/24/we-fail-to-correct-injustice-prayer-of-confession-for-the-sixth-sunday-after-epiphan/
Prayer of Dedication:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/01/04/prayer-of-dedication-for-the-sixth-sunday-after-epiphany/
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The theme of trusting in God unites the readings.
When one is reviled and persecuted for the sake of righteousness, what does one have? God. When one is poor, hungry, and sorrowful, what does one have? God. In particular, in reference to 1 Corinthians 15:12-20, one has the Resurrected Christ, without whom we Christians
are of all people most to be pitied. (19b, New Revised Standard Version)
Self-reliance will not suffice, for the wealthy, full, and laughing ones, plus those held in esteem all receive woes in our Lord’s Sermon on the Plain.
That is a profoundly counter-cultural message. Woe to the respected, wealthy, full, and laughing? Let me count the seconds before a Republican pundit or politician cries “class warfare!” (I am flying my liberal flag.) But reliance on God is the key, and such reliance contradicts conventions about self-made men and women. All that we have comes from God. All tat we can be is due to God. Our stewardship of those resources is a great spiritual matter.
Trusting in God can be difficult; I know. It is still hard for me much of the time. On the other hand, it has become easier. But it is all that I have, really. Everything else is transitory, but God is everlasting. Everything else is a collection of means to various ends, hopefully positive ones. Yet God is the greatest end. In that mystery called God I find my destiny, whatever that will entail. May you, O reader, find your destiny there also, whatever that will entail.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 13, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT HERMENEGILD, VISIGOTHIC PRINCE AND ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
THE FEAST OF SAINT HUGH OF ROUEN, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP, ABBOT, AND MONK
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARTIN I, BISHOP OF ROME
THE FEAST OF MIKAEL AGRICOLA, FINNISH LUTHERAN BISHOP OF TALLINN
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Adapted from this post:
http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2012/04/13/sixth-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-c/
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Above: Lazarus and Dives
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Collect and lections from the Episcopal Lesser Feasts and Fasts Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints
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Follow the assigned readings with me this Lent….
Kenneth Randolph Taylor
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Jeremiah 17:5-11 (Revised English Bible):
These are words of the LORD:
A curse on anyone who trusts in mortals and leans for support on human kind,
while his heart is far from the LORD!
He will be like a juniper in the steppeland;
when good comes he is unaware of it.
He will live among the rocks in the wilderness, in a salt, uninhabited land.
Blessed is anyone who trusts in the LORD, and rests his confidence on him.
He will be like a tree planted by the waterside,
that sends out its roots along a stream.
When the heat comes it has nothing to fear;
its foliage stays green.
Without care in a year of drought,
it does not fail to bear fruit.
The heart is deceitful above any other thing, desperately sick;
who can fathom it?
I, the LORD, search the mind and test the heart,
requiting each one for his conduct and as his deeds deserve.
Like a partridge sitting on a clutch of eggs which it has not laid,
so is he who amasses wealth unjustly.
Before his days are half done it will leave him, and he will be a fool at the last.
Psalm 1 (Revised English Bible):
Happy is the one who does not take the counsel of the wicked for a guide,
or follow the path that sinners tread, or take his seat in the company of scoffers.
His delight is in the law of the LORD; it is his meditation day and night.
He is like a tree planted beside water channels;
it yields its fruit in season and its foliage never fades.
So he too prospers in all he does.
The wicked are not like this; rather they are like chaff driven by the wind.
When judgment comes, therefore, they will not stand firm,
nor will sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
The LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked is doomed.
Luke 16:19-31 (Revised English Bible):
[Jesus said,]
There was once a rich man, who used to dress in purple and the finest linen, and feasted sumptuously every day. At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, who was covered with sores. He would have been glad to satisfy his hunger with the scraps from the rich man’s table. Dogs used to come and lick his sores. One day the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and there, far away, was Abraham with Lazarus close beside him. ‘Abraham, my father,’ he cried out, ‘take pity on me! Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water, to cool my tongue, for I am in agony in this fire.’ But Abraham said, ‘My child, remember that the good things fell to you in your lifetime, and the bad to Lazarus. Now he has his consolation here and it is you who are in agony. But that is not all: there is a great gulf fixed between us; no one can cross it from our side to reach you, and none may pass from your side to us.’ ‘Then, father,’ he [the rich man] replied, ‘will you send him [Lazarus] to my father’s house, where I have five brothers, to warn them, so that they may not come to this place of torment?’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them.’ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he replied, ‘but if someone from the dead visits them, they will repent.’ Abraham answered, ‘If they do listen to Moses and the prophets, they will pay no heed even if someone should rise from the dead.’
The Collect:
O Lord, strong and mighty, Lord of hosts and King of glory: Cleanse our hearts from sin, keep our hands pure, and turn our minds from what is passing away; so that at the last we may stand in your place and receive your blessing; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Dr. Vernon Johns, Dr. Martin Luther King’s immediate predecessor at Dexter Street Baptist Church, Montgomery, Alabama, preached to an affluent congregation of African-American professionals. They did not want press for civil rights, and Johns disagreed with them. The deacons fired Johns after a few years and called a the young Rev. Dr. King, whom they thought would not be an activist. Ironically, King, as pastor at Dexter Avenue Church, became prominent nationally for his involvement in the Montgomery Bus Boycott in the middle 1950s.
In a sermon at Dexter Avenue Church Vernon Johns preached on this day’s Gospel text. Johns stated that the rich man’s fault was not his wealth, but his acceptance of segregation, in this case, along economic lines. Then, of course, the pastor made the link to acceptance of racial segregation. And the implications of that analogy were clear and unpopular.
Johns understood the parable correctly. In life the rich man (Dives) knows about the presence of Lazarus at his gate, and does care about him. Dives does not lift so much as a finger to help the desperately poor man outside his home, and he can help Lazarus, at least. And in death Dives considers Lazarus no better than a servant.
Please, Abraham, send Dives to cool my tongue. What? He can’t cool my tongue? Can he warn my family, at least?
God sees us as we are, not as others see us. This is good news for some and bad news for others. Fortunately, by grace, there is hope for redemption. And our exercise of free will plays a part, too.
The parable of Dives and Lazarus is a cautionary tale. May all of us learn its lessons and act on them.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 23, 2010 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT TIRIBIUS OF MOGROVEJO, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF LIMA
THE FEAST OF SAINT GREGORY THE ILLUMINATOR, PATRIARCH OF ARMENIA
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Adapted from this post:
http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2010/10/28/fourteenth-day-of-lent/
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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