Archive for the ‘Nehemiah 9’ Tag
Above: Nero
Image in the Public Domain
Deceptive Appearances
SEPTEMBER 25, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Genesis 16:1-15 or Nehemiah 9:5-38
Psalm 139:1-18, 23-24
Revelation 13:11-18
John 12:1-11
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
As I wrote in the previous post in this series, the author (“John,” whoever he was) of the Revelation depicted the Roman Empire as being evil.
When we–you, O reader, and I–turn to Revelation 13:11-18, we read of the Antichrist–perhaps Nero (“666” in Greek), originally. Anyhow, the reference is to a Roman Emperor. To make matters especially confusing, some of the Antichrist’s works are legitimate and wondrous. In other words, appearances can deceive.
The reading from Nehemiah 9 speaks of faithful acts of God and of faithless, oblivious people. It also mentions penitent people. Genesis 16 follows up on the covenant in Genesis 15. Genesis 16 sets up a series of unfortunate events in subsequent chapters. One may draw the conclusion the text invites one to make: Wait for God to fulfill divine promises. Do not act to make them happen. Have faith. Trust God.
Yet one may also wonder how to know which works come from God. Appearances can deceive, after all. Besides, one may not expect God to act in a certain way (such as the Incarnation or the crucifixion). Therefore, one may see God act and fail to recognize what God has done and is doing.
I offer no easy answer to this difficult question. I have only one answer: pray. Prayer consists primarily of listening and watching, actually. The best definition of prayer I can muster is the heightened sense of awareness of being in the presence of God. As Psalm 139 tells us, we can never leave the presence of God. We can, however, be oblivious to it or be aware of it.
May God help us to identify correctly all that is of God. And may we pay attention.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 25, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE CONVERSION OF SAINT PAUL THE APOSTLE
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/25/deceptive-appearances/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Tear Ducts
Image in the Public Domain
The Tears of the Christ
SEPTEMBER 11, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Genesis 13:1-16 or Ezra 1:1-7; 3:8-13
Psalm 136:1-9, 23-26
Revelation 7:9-17
John 11:1-3. 16-44
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jesus wept.
–John 11:35, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
They will never hunger or thirst again; neither the sun nor scorching wind will ever plague them because the Lamb who is at the throne will be their shepherd and will lead them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away all tears like their eyes.
–Revelation 7:16-17, The Jerusalem Bible (1966)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I could take so many paths through the assigned readings for this week. These readings are rich texts. I will take just one path, however.
Before I do, here are a few notes:
- Abraham waited for God to tell him which land to claim. Abraham chose well.
- Lot chose land on his own. He chose poorly. However, at the time he seemed to have chosen wisely; he selected fertile land.
- I agree with Psalm 136. Divine mercy does endure forever.
- The chronology of the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah weaves in and out of those books. I know, for I blogged my way through them in chronological order at BLOGA THEOLOGICA last year.
For the record, the chronological reading order of Ezra-Nehemiah follows:
- Ezra 1:1-2:70; Nehemiah 7:6-73a;
- Ezra 3:1-4:5;
- Ezra 5:1-6:22;
- Ezra 4:6-24;
- Nehemiah 1:1-2:20;
- Nehemiah 3:1-4:17;
- Nehemiah 5:1-19;
- Nehemiah 6:1-7:5;
- Nehemiah 11:1-12:47;
- Nehemiah 13:1-31;
- Nehemiah 9:38-10:39;
- Ezra 7:1-10:44; and
- Nehemiah 7:73b-9:38.
I take my lead in this post from the New Testament readings. Tears are prominent in both of them. Tears are on my mind during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are also on my mind as I continue to mourn the violent death of my beloved. Her departure from this side of the veil of tears has left me shaken and as forever changed me.
The full divinity and full humanity of Jesus are on display in John 11. We read that Jesus wept over the death of his friend, St. Lazarus of Bethany. We also read of other people mourning and weeping in the immediate area. We may not pay much attention to that. We may tell ourselves, “Of course, they grieved and wept.” But two words–“Jesus wept”–remain prominent.
There is a scene in The Gospel According to Saint Matthew (1964) that fits this theme. At the time, Hollywood studios had recently released technicolor movies about a Jesus who had no tear ducts yet had an impressive command of Elizabethan English while resembling a Northern European. Yet Pier Paolo Pasolini, who committed about half of the Gospel of Matthew to film, presented a Jesus who had tear ducts. Immediately after the off-camera decapitation of St. John the Baptist, the next shot was a focus on Christ’s face. He was crying. So were the men standing in front of him.
Jesus wept.
We weep. Jesus weeps with us until the day God will wipe away all tears of those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 23, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN THE ALMSGIVER, PATRIARCH OF ALEXANDRIA
THE FEAST OF CHARLES KINGSLEY, ANGLICAN PRIEST, NOVELIST, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF EDWARD GRUBB, ENGLISH QUAKER AUTHOR, SOCIAL REFORMER, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JAMES D. SMART, CANADIAN PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND BIBLICAL SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF PHILLIPS BROOKS, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF MASSACHUSETTS, AND HYMN WRITER
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/23/the-tears-of-the-christ/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Effects of Acid Rain on a Forest in the Czech Republic, 2006
Photographer = Lovecz
The Sins of the Fathers
OCTOBER 6, 2024
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Exodus 34:1-10 or 1 Kings 22:29-43
Psalm 62:1-8, 11-12
Hebrews 5:12-6:12
Mark 9:30-37
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The key mark of discipleship is servanthood.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Some themes recur in the readings for this week:
- God is faithful.
- Trust in God.
- Do not commit apostasy.
- People reap what they sow.
- Christ is the exemplar of the type of service that defines greatness.
Exodus 34:7 requires unpacking. The principle that God punishes or forgives members of subsequent generations based on the sins of an ancestor exists also in 1 Kings 21:29, Nehemiah 9:17, Deuteronomy 5:9, Numbers 14:18, Psalm 103:8, Joel 2:13, and Jonah 4:2. Yet we read the opposite view–individual moral responsibility–in Ezekiel 18 and Jeremiah 31:29-30. The Bible contradicts itself sometimes.
The best explanation for the opinion we read in Exodus 34:7 comes from Professor Richard Elliot Friedman: effects of one’s actions are apparent generations later. I recognize ways in which actions of two of my paternal great-grandfathers influence me indirectly. This is one example of something, that, from a certain point of view, looks like intergenerational punishment and reward by God.
The decisions of others influence us. Some of them even restrict our options. We may suffer because of the decisions of those who have preceded us; we may suffer because of their sins. This is the way of the world. Yet we are morally responsible for ourselves and each other, not those who have died. No, they are responsible for their sins, just as we are responsible for ours.
May we–individually and collectively–refrain from visiting the consequences of our sins on those who will succeed us. We owe them that much, do we not?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 25, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT JAMES BAR-ZEBEDEE, APOSTLE AND MARTYR
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2019/07/25/the-sins-of-the-fathers-part-ii/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: The Destruction of Jerusalem, by David Roberts
Image in the Public Domain
Leaving the World Better Than We Found It
NOVEMBER 25-27, 2021
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Stir up your power, Lord Christ, and come.
By your merciful protection alert us to the threatening dangers of our sins,
and redeem us for your life of justice,
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 18
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Nehemiah 9:6-15 (Thursday)
Nehemiah 9:16-25 (Friday)
Nehemiah 9:26-31 (Saturday)
Psalm 76 (All Days)
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 (Thursday)
1 Thessalonians 5:12-22 (Friday)
Luke 21:20-24 (Saturday)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For all those who hope in you shall not be ashamed:
but only those who wantonly break faith.
–Psalm 25:2, A New Zealand Prayer Book (1989)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
One message from the Hebrew Bible is that God liberated the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and gave them orders to live in a just society. Yet, as prophets attested, rebellion against God became the norm, not the exception to the rule. Consequences ensued and God showed both judgment and mercy to the Hebrews.
The Jews of Nehemiah 9 were returned exiles living in a province (a satrapy, technically) of the Persian Empire. They were home, but circumstances did not live up to high expectations and they lived in a foreign empire. Living under occupation remained the reality of Jews in Judea for most of the time during the following centuries. In the time of Jesus of Nazareth the occupying power was the Roman Empire, against whom many Jews fought a war from 66 to 73 C.E. The writing of the four canonical Gospels occurred in the context of the First Jewish War, shaping the telling of stories of Jesus. Certainly that context influenced the understanding of Luke 21:20-24. Jesus might have said something similar to those words, but the destruction of the Temple in 70 C.E. by Roman forces made that text poignant after the fact.
In 1 Thessalonians, which St. Paul the Apostle probably dictated circa 50 C.E., about four decades prior to the composition of the Gospel of Luke, apocalyptic expectations were alive and well. Some members of that community either used the hope that Jesus would return quite soon as a reason or an excuse to refrain from good works and necessary, even mundane tasks. The Apostle’s sage advice was to keep working. That remains wise counsel, for Jesus has yet to return as of the writing of this sentence, and the necessities of life continue to exist. Waiting for God to act is a poor excuse not to work for justice and to attempt to leave one’s corner of the world better than one found it. The world might not resemble the best hopes for it, but that fact is a reason to continue working, not to become lazy or to give into apathy or hopelessness. God will save the world, but we have a moral imperative to leave it better than we found it.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 10, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHANN SCHEFFLER, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF GEORG NEUMARK, GERMAN LUTHERAN POET AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHN HINES, PRESIDING BISHOP OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2015/07/10/leaving-the-world-better-than-we-found-it/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: The Flight with the Torah (1986), by Willy Gordon, outside the Great Synagogue, Stockholm, Sweden
Image in the Public Domain
Living in Community, Part II: Peace
AUGUST 23 and 24, 2021
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Holy God, your word feeds your people with life that is eternal.
Direct our choices and preserve us in your truth,
that, renouncing what is evil and false, we may live in you,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 45
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Nehemiah 9:1-15 (Monday)
Nehemiah 9:16-31 (Tuesday)
Psalm 119:97-104 (Both Days)
Ephesians 5:21-6:9 (Monday)
Ephesians 6:21-24 (Tuesday)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
How I love your law!
All day long I pore over it.
Psalm 119:97, Harry Mowvley, The Psalms Introduced and Newly Translated for Today’s Readers (1989)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
One reason for the public confession of sin in Nehemiah 9 was that, for a long time, the majority of the Hebrew people had not loved and pored over God’s law. One principle (with culturally specific examples) of the Law of Moses was that the people had no right to exploit each other. They were responsible to and for each other, dependent upon each other, and completely dependent upon God. The testimony of Hebrew prophets confirmed that exploitation and other violations of the Law of Moses occurred frequently.
Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.
–Ephesians 5:21, The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
It is a glorious passage, one which sets the context for 5:22-6:9. Unfortunately, the author of the Letter to the Ephesians (as did the Law of Moses) accepted patriarchy and slavery. Over time many people have cited the Law of Moses and parts of Ephesians 5:21-6:9, often quoting them selectively in the service of prooftexting, to justify the morally indefensible. To be fair, nothing in Ephesians 5:21-6:9 gives anyone carte blanche to abuse anyone. The opposite is true, actually. Yet the acceptance of slavery and sexism, although not unexpected, due to the cultural settings from which these writings emerged, contradicts the Golden Rule.
A community will be a peace when its members respect the dignity of each other, acknowledge how much they depend upon each other, and act accordingly.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 1, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAMUEL STENNETT, ENGLISH SEVENTH-DAY BAPTIST MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER; AND JOHN HOWARD, ENGLISH HUMANITARIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT JUSTIN MARTYR, APOLOGIST
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PAMPHILUS OF CAESAREA, BIBLE SCHOLAR AND TRANSLATOR; AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
THE FEAST OF SAINT SIMEON OF SYRACUSE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2015/06/02/living-in-community-part-ii/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Ezra
Image in the Public Domain
Nehemiah and 1 Timothy, Part IV: Performing Good Deeds at Every Opportunity
SEPTEMBER 22-24, 2023
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
–The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Nehemiah 7:1-4 (September 22)
Nehemiah 8:1-18 (September 22)
Nehemiah 9:1-21 (September 23)
Nehemiah 9:22-38 (September 24–Protestant Versification)
Nehemiah 9:22-10:1 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox Versification)
Psalm 67 (Morning–September 22)
Psalm 51 (Morning–September 23)
Psalm 54 (Morning–September 24)
Psalms 46 and 93 (Evening–September 22)
Psalms 85 and 47 (Evening–September 23)
Psalms 28 and 99 (Evening–September 24)
1 Timothy 5:1-16 (September 22)
1 Timothy 5:17-6:2 (September 23)
1 Timothy 6:3-21 (September 24)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
–Psalm 51:18, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
These days’ readings speak of lamenting sins and of vowing to reform errant ways. They also offer culturally specific advice as to how to do the latter. I, as a Christian, do not follow the Law of Moses, for Jesus has fulfilled the Law. And I read 1 Timothy 5-6, my jaw dropping because of the sexism and the failure to condemn slavery. I, when pondering Old and New Testament moral advice, find the following statements helpful:
Identifying general principles is important because the real purpose of the Law is to inculcate general principles and values and to apply them in specific instances. This is done by stating general principles and by illustrating, with specific examples, how general principles can be applied in specific cases.
–Richard Bauckham, The Bible in Politics: How to Read the Bible Politically, 2d. Ed. (Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 2011, pages 24-25)
The best moral advice I have located in these days’ readings is to preform good deeds
at every opportunity.
–1 Timothy 5:10d, The Revised English Bible
What that looks like depends on the opportunities. May we focus on that principle and not become bogged down in legalistic details.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 17, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF DANIEL SYLVESTER TUTTLE, PRESIDING BISHOP OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARY EUPHRASIA PELLETIER, FOUNDER OF THE CONTEMPLATIVES OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD
THE FEAST OF PARDITA MARY RAMABAI, SOCIAL REFORMER IN INDIA
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROBERT OF CHAISE DIEU, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/nehemiah-and-1-timothy-part-iv-performing-good-deeds-at-every-opportunity/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ORDINARY TIME DEVOTIONS 
You must be logged in to post a comment.