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A Sabbath Day's Journey

By: Rev. Paul Landgraf
What is a Sabbath day's journey? First of all, it is a Jewish expression. We measure distances in meters or yards. The Jews had a certain distance that they could walk on Saturday before it would be considered work. So their synagogues that they went to on Saturday could not be very far away. The word appears only in Acts 1:12 and indicates a distance of about three-quarters of a mile.

With that in mind, I think it is important to remember the origins of Christianity. Just because we have an Old Testament, it does not mean that we call it the 'Outdated Testament'. Much of the Old Testament has a literary structure that we are not aware of because of our modern emphasis on chapter and verse divisions. Within many of these blogs, I try to get the reader to see a bigger picture, a larger perspective that often includes the Old Testament and the environment that was present when the New Testament was seeing the Light of the day.

Second, a Sabbath day's journey is intentionally short. These 'journeys' with a text, almost always one of the three readings for that Sunday, are deliberately brief discussions. This blog was never designed to be a comprehensive look at any text. Sometimes a specific word is studied in detail. But, as a whole, a blog entry, by itself, is meant to be quite brief.

Finally, since the term 'Sabbath day's journey' appears in Acts, it is meant to appeal to a wide variety of people. This blog is meant for those who cannot come on Sunday mornings. And it is also for those who do come on Sunday mornings but would also like a further study of the text. It is also for those who live somewhere else in the world (besides Drake and Freedom, Missouri, USA) and would simply like a further study of the text. It was meant to get these different groups of people to start thinking about the biblical texts. Part of the reason for this blog is that I am not able to have a bible class on Sunday mornings with either congregation, and so, to have a blog like this seemed like a good idea. I hope it is helpful for you, in whatever situation you may be.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. And thank you for taking the time to read this!

May 1st, 2021

5/1/2021

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The Fifth Sunday of Easter continues with the First Reading from the book of Acts, this time from chapter 8[:26-40]; and the texts will continue to move toward the end, until the last Sunday of Easter, when we will go back to chapter 1 to prepare for Pentecost. The gospel text is again from the Gospel according to John; this time it also progresses farther along in Jesus’ life [15:1-8], and Jesus is about to be arrested.

The differences between the first three gospel accounts and the Gospel according to John have, for a long time, been the source of some long discussions. Questions related to this issue are difficult to answer because the issue has recently been framed with a chronological question, rather than a theological, literary, or even a general historical one. Usually the question is asked, ‘Which account was written first?’ Unless there is some exceedingly strong evidence, it will always be hard to answer that question.

It is also very hard to say when the writing of the four accounts started. Perhaps just one or two of Jesus’ disciples were adept at writing. Jesus certainly was! (See John 8:6 & 8.) And since he was literally the ‘perfect teacher’, he certainly could have taught ALL of his disciples how to write. But that is not in ANY text.

There MAY be a hint of something being written down in Acts 6. William Farmer writes about this ‘principle’ in his book, The Formation of the New Testament Canon:

The first evident need for writing down the words of the Lord may have been in connection with the need for the oral tradition to be translated in a reliable way into languages other than that spoken by Jesus, or other than that spoken by Christian prophets speaking in the spirit and name of Jesus [William R. Farmer and Denis M. Farkasfalvy, The Formation of the New Testament Canon: An Ecumenical Approach, New York: Paulist Press, 1983; page 50].

The first thing to note is that the author writes that the words of the Lord MAY have been written down at this particular point. There is no guarantee of this. But, within Acts 6, it looks like there is a desire for the words of the Lord in the Greek language.

This is the start of talking about the ‘seven’ who helped the twelve. From the names of the seven, it looks like they were Greek, or at least they had some Greek connections. How these ‘seven’ got started is given in the following verses [6:1-4], and this is in a somewhat-literal translation:

And in these days, the disciples being multiplied, there was a murmuring of the Hellenists toward the Hebrews, because the widows of them were overlooked in the service, the daily one. And the twelve, having called the multitude of the disciples, said, ‘Not pleasing it is for us, leaving the word of God to serve tables. But look out, brothers, for men from you, being witnesses to seven full of Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint over this office. But we, ourselves, will keep to the prayer and to the service of the word.

Usually it is thought that these Hellenistic widows were overlooked in terms of receiving food. While that was probably the case, the way in which they were overlooked could have been more multifaceted.

The twelve said that they did not want to be leaving the word of God to serve tables. The phrase ‘word of God’ is used here and tends to appear more in the first part of Acts; it also has more of a Jewish connection; the phrase ‘word of the Lord’ will become more popular in the latter part of the book of Acts, and that phrase has a more Gentile connection. (You might wish to note a gradual transition from the use of the word ‘God’ to ‘Lord’ in Acts 8.)

With all that in mind, perhaps you can imagine what it might have been like for one of the twelve to visit a Greek widow. While at the Jewish widow’s house, this man who followed Jesus around for three years may have related a lot of things that Jesus did, but for the Greek widow, that person may have basically just dropped the food and left; he may not have even stepped inside of the house. Very little was probably said, especially if it was spoken in Greek. Very little COULD be said, especially since the numbers of followers were increasing dramatically. There was very little time to do anything. So this may be what was meant by ‘to serve tables’.

A Greek widow who was a follower of Christ would no longer have a man as the spiritual leader of her household, and these Greek men could have been placed into that role. And these seven may have been asked by these widows for some of the things that Jesus said and did. These men would want to get the details correct, and so, some of these events and words of Jesus MAY have been written down in Greek.

The false witnesses that speak against Stephen, later in the chapter [6:13-14], say this about him; this, again, is a somewhat-literal translation:

This man does not cease speaking words against the place, the holy one, and the law. For we have heard him saying that this Jesus, the Nazarene, will destroy this place and will change the customs which Moses delivered to us.

It seems that the message he was preaching was about Jesus. If he had just continued to deliver the food and kept his mouth shut, it seems like there would have not have been any trouble. But there will always be trouble for the Lord's Church ... until the Final Day.​
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April 24th, 2021

4/24/2021

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On this, the Fourth Sunday of Easter, with this Sunday also having the name of ‘Good Shepherd Sunday’, you might think that all the texts have something to do with sheep. But that is not the case when it comes to the text from Acts. In the text from Acts for this week, in chapter 4[:1-12], Peter is coming down hard on some of the religious leaders of the day [for a detailed list of them, see 4:5-6]. Perhaps it was because they were not being very good shepherds of the people.​

Peter basically told them that ‘you crucified … Jesus Christ, the Nazarene … [verse 10].’ And he basically has made this same statement before. In his first two sermons in Acts 2 and 3, both are to the Jews in Jerusalem, and he covers the same point. But he describes the crucifixion somewhat differently.

It might be helpful to compare those sermons in the book of Acts to other similar speeches that show up later. I think that something particularly interesting is the description of the crucifixion in each of those sermons, as the speaker lays out some of the immense ramifications of what this God-man, Jesus, did with that relatively small piece of wood. What follows are somewhat-literal translations of the crucifixion sections of those four ‘sermons’:

Acts 2:23         …this man, in the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, was given up through the hands of lawless men, fastening, you did away with him….

Acts 3:14-15a  But you, yourselves, denied the holy and righteous one, and you asked for a man, a murderer, to be granted to you, and the originator of life you killed….

Acts 10:39       And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the country of the Jews and Jerusalem; whom also they did away with, hanging him on a tree.

Acts 13:28-29  And no cause of death finding, they asked Pilate for him to be done away with; and as they finished all the things concerning him having been written, taking down from the tree, they placed him into a tomb.

In essence, here are some of the basic crucifixion statements within each of the above quotations:

You did away with him, fastening … you killed the originator of life … they did away with him, hanging on a tree … they finished all the things concerning him having been written.

Obviously, there is a significant amount of variety in those statements. The greatest variety is within the statements of ‘you’ or ‘they’, who actually did the crucifying. As was said before, in the first two, the words are being spoken to the people in Jerusalem, quite soon after the crucifixion. In the last two, the words are spoken to others. In the third one, Peter is speaking within the house of Cornelius. (And it certainly took a while for Peter to feel comfortable in the house of a Gentile.) But the end result of Peter’s talk is quite similar to the day of Pentecost [see 10:44-45]. In the fourth one, Paul is in a synagogue in Pisidian Antioch—quite a distance from Jerusalem—and he is giving those gathered there a word of exhortation.

I like the variety within these four summaries of Jesus on the cross, and this variety even reminds me of the variety within the four gospel accounts, especially when it comes to the crucifixion and the progression to that event within the gospel accounts. Here are some of the connections that I have found that connect these four sermons to the normal order of the four accounts. Perhaps you may come up with even more:

In Acts 2, there is an emphasis on God’s knowing beforehand, and the Gospel according to Matthew has a strong connection to the Old Testament and what God did in the past among his people, Israel. Also, when describing the crucifixion, the word ‘fastening’ is used, and this is an extremely rare word. At the base of this word is the word ‘to build’, and even this word is rare in the New Testament! It is something that a person usually constructs or puts together (but see Hebrew 8:2). Also connected to this word is the idea of being firm. And after the soldiers are described as crucifying Jesus, they are uniquely described as ‘sitting’ and guarding him there [Matthew 27:36]. One may see a few references to people within this particular crucifixion-description, and that happens in the Gospel according to Matthew with all the teaching that is happening.

In Acts 3, a different word for the crucifixion is used, a much stronger word, a word clearly connected to killing. And regarding the person of Jesus, the first definition in the dictionary for that word here is ‘one who has a preeminent position’ [A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Christian Literature, third edition, University of Chicago Press, 2000; page 138]. One can see this ‘preeminent’ position given to Jesus within the Gospel according to Mark in some different ways. The disciples of Jesus are not portrayed very positively here, especially when compared to other accounts, and Jesus therefore tends to stand out more. For a good example of this, see Mark 10:32.

In Acts 10, the word ‘hanging’ is used, and this is also used in Acts 5:30 in the speech of Peter and the apostles to the Sanhedrin. But it only appears in the four gospel accounts to describe a crucifixion in Luke 23:39, when it describes those who were ‘hanged’ with Jesus. And the fact that Jesus was hanging is within a larger statement that Peter is one of the witnesses to what Jesus did, and such a statement is quite clearly made in Luke 24:48.

Acts 13 has by far the most unusual description of the crucifixion. To ‘finish’ all the things having been written concerning him does not clearly mention death. Here, again, seems to be an oblique reference to the Old Testament, and the Gospel according to John does go back to the very beginning at its start.

The closest mention of death in this section of Acts 13 is that the people asked for Pilate literally to ‘take away’ Jesus, and it is the same word used in the other cases. In the same way, Jesus’ trial is described in a somewhat similar fashion in this account to the way it is described in the other accounts.

Another thing to note is that the word ‘finish’ comes up in some surprising ways near the very end of Jesus’ life in the Gospel according to John. Here is a somewhat-literal translation of this interesting section:

After this, Jesus knowing that now all things have been finished, that the scripture might be finished [usually this phrase uses the verb ‘to fulfill’], says, “I thirst.” A jar of vinegar, full, was set; a sponge, therefore, full of the vinegar, putting around a hyssop, they brought it to his mouth. When, therefore, he took the vinegar, Jesus said, “It has been finished,” and bowing his head, he delivered up the spirit [John 19:29-30].

Even if there were no connections between these statements and the four gospel accounts, there is still a significant amount of variety within those above four statements. And why is that? The easy way that this question was answered was that the different writers wrote at different times in different places in different situations. While that could be true, it also could be true that the thing written about is so important that it takes a few different perspectives to explain adequately what is happening and what are the huge ramifications of such an all-important thing.

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April 17th, 2021

4/17/2021

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On this, the Third Sunday of Easter, the pattern continues of looking at the so-called ‘Acts of the Apostles’ for the First Reading. Last week the text was from Acts 4. This time the text is from Acts 3[:11-21]. On the Day of Pentecost, we will obviously be looking at chapter 2. The book itself has a chronology, a progression, but that is not always followed in the readings.

It might be helpful to go back to the very beginning. The title of this book is ‘The Acts of the Apostles’, and apostles are those who are sent out. The work starts with Jesus essentially sending out the apostles in Jerusalem, and it ends with Paul, also one of the apostles, who just made it to Rome.

Paul is essentially called an apostle in Acts 14:4 and 14, and some would say that this chapter is near the transition between the focus of those apostles talking to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. In a way, this is most certainly true, but in the very last chapter of the book, Paul is still speaking to the Jews in Rome. There is a more theological (God’s word) emphasis at this middle point within the book. And one way to find that emphasis may be to look at the words that people are speaking.

One thing that many people have commented on is the large number of speeches within this book. When someone speaks, those words could all be written down, or those words could be summarized. There is a large number of speeches that are laid out within the text, and they make that text significantly longer.

Although this may take a little while (a little longer than my usual length), it might be helpful to look at some of the ‘reactions’ (and perhaps it would be good to lay out that word in this way: re-Act-ions) within this book. What follows is a list of the words that occur after some of the longer sections of essentially quoted words in this book. Looking at these may help to see what is most important. To be somewhat consistent, groups of words that made up three or more verses were chosen, and these texts are somewhat-literal translations.

At the end of Peter’s speech to the ‘brothers’ in Acts 1:

(verse 23-26) ‘So they set two: Joseph, the one called Barsabbas, who was also named Justus, and Matthias. And praying … and they cast lots for them, and the lot fell upon Matthias, and he was added to the eleven apostles.

At the end of Peter’s speech to the Jews who had gathered in Jerusalem for Pentecost in Acts 2:

(verses 37-41) And hearing this, they were stung in the heart, and they said to Peter and the remaining apostles, ‘What may we do, men, brothers?’ And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized, each one of you ….’ …and there were added in that day about 3000 souls.

At the end of Peter’s speech (while he was with John) to the people in the porch of Solomon in Acts 3:

(chapter 4, verses 1-4) And while they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people … and the number of men became about 5000.

At the end of Peter’s speech (while he was with John) in Acts 4 to the Jewish leaders:

(verse 13-14) And beholding the boldness of Peter and John, and perceiving that they were unlettered men and laymen, they marveled and … they had nothing to say against them.

At the end of the believers’ prayer in Acts 4:

(verse 31) And as they were making their request, the place in which they were gathered was shaken, and all were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness.

At the end of Peter’s speech (with the apostles) to the Sanhedrin in Acts 5:

(verse 33-35) And those hearing this were cut and intended to kill them. But a Pharisee named Gamaliel … said to them….

At the end of Gamaliel’s speech to the Sanhedrin in Acts 5:

(verse 39-41) And they obeyed him. And having called the apostles, they were beating them and they commanded them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and they released them. And they went rejoicing from the face of the Sanhedrin….

At the end of Stephen’s speech to the Sanhedrin in Acts 7:

(verse 54) And hearing these things, they were cut to their hearts, and they gnashed their teeth at him.

At the end of Peter’s speech in Acts 10:

(verse 44-45) While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all the ones hearing the word. The circumcised believers who came with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out also on the Gentiles.

At the end of Peter’s speech to the circumcised believers in Acts 11:

(verse 18) When they heard this, they were silent and glorified God saying, ‘Then also to the nations God gives repentance into life.’

At the end of Paul’s word of exhortation (with Barnabas) at the synagogue in Acts 13:

(verse 42) As they were going out, they exhorted them that these words be spoken on the next Sabbath….

At the end of Paul’s speech (with Barnabas) in Lystra in Acts 14:

(verse 18) And saying these things, they barely restrained the crowds not to sacrifice to them.

At the end of Peter’s speech at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15:

(verse 12) And all the multitude was silent, and they heard Barnabas and Paul relating the signs and wonders that God did among the nations through them.

At the end of James’ speech at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15:

(verse 22) Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with all the church, to send to Antioch chosen men of them with Paul and Barnabas, Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brothers….

At the end of Paul’s speech in Athens in Acts 17:

(verse 32) And hearing of the resurrection of the dead, some, on the one hand, scoffed, but some, on the other hand, said, ‘We will hear you also again concerning this.’

At the end of the city clerk’s speech at Ephesus in Acts 19:

(verse 41-chapter 20, verse 1) After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly. And after the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples, and, after exhorting and leaving them, he went out to go into Macedonia.

At the end Paul’s speech to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20:

(verse 36) And having said these things, placing his knees with all of them, he prayed.

At the end of Paul’s speech to the crowd in Jerusalem in Acts 22:

(verse 22) And they heard him as far as this word, and they lifted up their voices saying, ‘Take this man from the earth, for it is not fitting for him to live!’

At the end of Tertullus’ presentation of the case against Paul before Felix in Acts 24:

(verse 9) And also the Jews joined in asserting these things to be thus.

At the end of Paul’s reply to Felix in Acts 24:

(verse 22) And Felix postponed the things, knowing more exactly the things concerning the Way....

At the end of Festus’ discussion with the king regarding Paul’s case in Acts 25:

(verse 22) And Agrippa said to Festus, ‘I would like to hear the man myself.’

At the end of Paul’s speech to the leaders of the Jews in Acts 28:

(verse 21-22) And they said to him, ‘We ourselves have not received letters about you from Judea, nor has arrived any of the brothers who have told or spoke anything evil about you. But we think it is worthy to hear what things you think from you, concerning this sect, known to us; it is everywhere spoken against.’

At the end of Paul’s ‘final statement’ in Acts 28:

(verse 29 is only in some manuscripts and 30-31) After having said these things, the Jews left, having a large argument among themselves. And he remained a whole two years in his own rented place, and he welcomed all the ones coming to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, unhindered.

It could be said that there is a lot of Act-ivity after these speeches. There are some very significant actions—some people were significantly changed, for better or worse; some are stung, some are cut to the heart, some are ready to kill. At the end of a very long speech, if it took a lot of room—and a lot of money to get it on the papyrus—then you might expect a big reaction. Perhaps you have heard of this saying: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. A big action USUALLY has a big reaction.

Our Lord, though, does not have to prove himself. His words always do what they say, but not always in a big way. A big reaction may draw more attention, but that is usually the way of power and not the way of love.

I think it is significant that there is some ‘silence’ after two of these speeches, in Acts 11 and 15—although at the end of that first speech, there ends up being some talking by glorifying God. (And it seems significant that the Acts 15 crowd is described as a ‘multitude’.) I also think that it is significant that these two speeches are more theological ones. They are speeches dealing with the salvation going to the Gentiles as well. And that, I think, should interest you.
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April 10th, 2021

4/10/2021

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You probably know that the season of Easter continues after Easter Sunday, and perhaps you also already know that, during the Easter season, the first of the three readings for each Sunday comes from the book of Acts instead of the Old Testament. This will continue until the Day of Pentecost, when the second reading, instead of coming from the Epistles, will come from the second chapter of Acts.

The Old Testament is certainly an important part of the Bible, but the book of Acts is also important. The title of this blog, ‘A Sabbath Day’s Journey’, meaning a short ‘journey’ with a few words of scripture, is a phrase that comes from the book of Acts. And that description, in a way, connects both testaments together.

The decision for the early church to start writing the New Testament was certainly a significant one. They just experienced the One who, as promised, would crush the serpent’s head [Genesis 3:15]. This was also the One who would follow the messenger, John the Baptist, the ‘way-preparer’ [Malachi 3:1]. The entire Old Testament, basically from beginning to end, spoke of this Jesus, this Savior. How could they NOT write something down?

Imagine, though, if one chapter in Acts would have the following description:

And the remaining apostles all got together and decided that Matthew should write one account about Jesus, that Mark—with the help of Peter—should write another, etc.

I think that, with such a text, there would be too much of a focus on both the apostles and the writers. And the texts would end up becoming history lessons.

There is, instead, a lot of focus on action in Acts. That point should be clearly made, despite how obvious that may be from the title. But, along with that, there is a correspondingly small focus on writing. And the combination of both those things, working together, may help the reader or listener to focus ultimately on Jesus.

The book of Acts, actually called the Acts of the Apostles, may also be thought of the Acts of the risen and ascended Lord among his people. To be more specific, the final words of the book describe this happening in Rome through the mouth of Saint Paul: He was…

proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness unhindered [Acts 28:31].

The way in which the Acts of the Apostles has a small focus on writing may be an interesting aspect upon which to contemplate. In today’s society, communication by actions is seen as more important than communication by words. It may be helpful to see the great value in words once again, and, in this case, the value of written words. You may have a lot of thoughts in your brain, but when there’s a thought that you are willing to take the time and write it down, that action makes that thought quite important. And although there are a few written words in front of you, they are important, and all words are very important. They were very important, literally, from day one.

The book of Acts starts out with an interesting focus, not on writing, but definitely on Jesus. Here is a somewhat-literal translation:
​
The first word I made concerning all things, O Theophilus, which the Jesus began both to do and to teach, until which the day having given orders to the apostles, whom he chose, through Holy Spirit, he was taken up…[Acts 1:1-2].

The Gospel according to Luke, according to the above statement, is only a word that describes what Jesus BEGAN to do. This is similar to the Gospel according to Mark with its description at the start of the ‘beginning of the gospel’. This two-fold emphasis on Jesus and the beginning of his work may be the reason that there are so many emphases on various actions and so few on writing within Acts.

Here is a very brief overview of written things in Acts (but perhaps you would like to study this more on your own):

There, of course, is an obvious emphasis on the writings of the Old Testament. This is seen almost immediately in Acts 1[:16] with a fulfillment of something in the Old Testament. In 1:20, Peter says that something is WRITTEN in the Psalms. (A lot of the other quotations from the Old Testament are described in SPOKEN terms. See Acts 2:16, 25, 31, 34; 3:18, 22; 4:25, etc.) Again, with the speech of Stephen to the Sanhedrin, there is talk about what was written in the prophets, specifically Amos [Acts 7:42], and Saint Paul makes the same point in his word of exhortation, the first of his quotations, this time also from the Psalms [Acts 13:33]. The next time a written Old Testament passage is given is during the Jerusalem Council, and James is quoting from the prophets, again from Amos [Acts 15:15].
​
Another obvious emphasis is when letters are included within the text of this book. This happens twice within this book. The second time this happens is at Acts 23:25, and it is interesting that, right before the letter, there is this phrase: ‘…writing a letter, having this pattern….’ I would suggest you not trust the content of THAT letter! The first time is the most famous time, at the Jerusalem Council, and there is no indication there this is a pattern or type [see Acts 15:23]. At the Jerusalem Council is where they are dealing with the gospel, and that is a most-important topic.
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April 4th, 2021

4/4/2021

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You probably already knew that this Sunday is a very special Sunday, Easter Sunday. This is the Sunday when we ESPECIALLY celebrate the resurrection of our Lord. And the Old Testament text is somewhat appropriate, although its location within the entire book may make it unfamiliar.

The Old Testament text for Easter Day for this year is from Isaiah 25[:6-9]. The latter chapters (40-66) are about twice as popular for an Old Testament text, but there are some wonderful gospel messages in the first several chapters of the book as well.

This particular text talks about death being swallowed up forever. The specific text is found in verses 7 and 8, and the following is a somewhat-literal translation:

And he will destroy, on this mountain, faces of the shroud, the one covering over all the peoples and the sheet, the one covering over all the nations; he will swallow the death into perpetuity….

The Greek translation of this book was probably made that first century before Jesus’ birth, and having to wait for such a long time for some good news may have made the translator not so optimistic regarding this eternal swallowing of death. One could read the Greek translation of that final Hebrew phrase in this way: ‘The death has prevailed and swallowed up.’

Is death devouring or being devoured? Admittedly, there is conflicting evidence based on what we see in our own lives and in what we see in some of these beautiful gospel texts of scripture.

A wonderful promise that is a bit easier to see has to do with God’s promises regarding mountains. Another picture that is put forward before the mention of death is that of being on a mountain, and this is a frequent picture within the Old Testament. Whether dealing with Israel or another nation, with a mountain comes power. Those who stand on it in battle have a distinct advantage when fighting those who are lower.

Although in this text our attention is turned toward Jerusalem and Mount Zion, other nations would certainly understand this illustration. In fact, the context of this text brings up many other nations. Chapters 13-23 are full of judgments against the nations, and some of them are worse than others. And some of them are also ‘closer to home’ than others.

Here are their basic groupings according to chapter—they are included to give you an idea of those who were being condemned, and there are frequent references to height within these chapters (hill, mount, high places, to ‘go up’, etc.; and please note that a VALLEY is condemned when it comes to the people of Israel near the end of this section):

13-14   Babylon and Assyria
14        Philistia
15-16   Moab
17        Damascus (Aram) and Israel
18        Cush
19-20   Egypt and Cush (and Assyria)
21        Babylon
21        Dumah (Edom)
21        Arabia
22        Valley of Vision (Jerusalem)
23        Tyre

After these chapters comes another interesting section, and it is also the place from where our text comes. It is a concluding section, a mixture of condemnations and blessings, and it is in a song-like structure. The tone of the words starts out with a lot of condemnation as the LORD promises to destroy the earth, but eventually there is also some good news that some will definitely be saved. And the use of the word mount or mountain within this section is interesting.

The entire concluding section for chapters 13-23 is from chapters 24 through 27. There is one mention of a mount in chapter 24, at the last verse, and then somewhat nearby, in chapter 25, at verses 6, 7, and 10. And then there is only one other mention at the very end of this section, at the last few words of chapter 27. 

The last mention may be a help to point out a significant, middle part of the previous section, since the original text did not have the divisions of chapter and verse. And it certainly would be appropriate to remind the readers/listeners about these important mountains in the middle of an important section. And this is especially true when a person thinks that God, ‘the One above’, has been silent.
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March 27th, 2021

3/27/2021

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This Sunday is Palm Sunday, and it is also called the Sunday of the Passion, and this year the perspective is from the Gospel according to Mark. Although there is no mention within this gospel account of the Old Testament text from Zechariah [9:9-12] with the importance of Israel’s king coming on a donkey/colt, the way Jesus gets that animal is certainly significant, and the people in Jerusalem are certainly making a big deal when Jesus enters that way (Mark 11:1-10).


Perhaps within this event there is a reference back to the only Old Testament reference given by the writer of this gospel account, only in the third verse of the entire account: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord….’ And perhaps that is why this is only the ‘beginning’ of the gospel (Mark 1:1).


There was also a much more recent event that is causing some people to make a big deal of it. Within the Dead Sea Scrolls, there was a significant find, two verses of Zechariah 8[:16-17]. These verses are just a few verses ahead of the text for this Sunday from Zechariah 9. Here is a link to an article about this that appeared on the Christianity Today website:


www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2021/march-web-only/new-dead-sea-scrolls-discovery-bible-translation-israel.html


One of the interesting things that is noted in this article is the way that the special name for God is written. The author states that the name is in older lettering and in letters, instead of the normal way from left to right, these letters are written in the Hebrew way, from right to left. This is obviously a very special way to write a very special name. And it is sort of the opposite of the historical present, in saying that something is happening, in a sense, right now. Sometimes things that happened a long time ago are also extremely important. And sometimes this fact is being overlooked in today’s modern society.


Another recent publication that is more academic (but still very helpful) is the book, The Formation and Significance of the Christian Biblical Canon: A Study in Text, Ritual and Interpretation. It was written by Tomas Bokedal [T & T Clark, Bloomsbury Press, 2014], and he happens to be a Lutheran who lives in the UK. He devotes an entire chapter to the idea of ‘nomina sacra’, the fact that some very special words were abbreviated in the early New Testament manuscripts in some special ways. In that chapter (‘The nomina sacra: Highlighting the Sacred Figures of the Text’) he includes a chart (pages 89-90) that groups the special words into four different levels of frequency:


1. The primary group (99%-100% nomina sacra forms in the singular): God, Christ, Jesus, Lord


2. The secondary group (89%-95% nomina sacra forms) Cross, Spirit,


3. The tertiary group (23%-62% nomina sacra forms) Crucify, Father, Human being, Jerusalem, Son, Israel, Spiritual


4. The quaternary group (0%-5% nomina sacra forms) Heaven, Mother, David, Saviour (sic).
​

How interesting that the words relating to the cross are so frequent. Also mentioned within the same chapter is that a two-letter abbreviation for Jesus, along with a Greek letter that looks like the cross has a numerical value of 318, and this number was important for some early Christians. (For more detail, see pages 106-7.) With that in mind, having the Sunday of the Passion does not seem at all inappropriate.
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March 20th, 2021

3/20/2021

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This Sunday is the last Sunday in Lent before Palm Sunday, the Sunday of the Passion. And this year it is the first Sunday in Lent when the Old Testament text is not from the first five books. The text is still an important one, since it is from the prophet Jeremiah [31:31-34]. And the book of Jeremiah is a good reminder that the message of salvation is more important than a lesson from history.

In other words, it is a good thing to remember that the oracles of Jeremiah are not in chronological order. The Concordia Self-Study Bible even makes a point of this in its introduction to the book—see page 1120 for more detail. This Sunday’s text from Jeremiah is an important part of the so-called ‘Book of Comfort’, and this is placed near the middle of the entire book. This importance of a middle point is especially seen later in time with the Gospel according to Matthew. It may also be seen earlier in time with the first five books of the Old Testament.

To be more specific, there seems to be a significant midpoint and an endpoint within some of these important books. The structure of a book is, by all means, a very multi-faceted thing, but there are certain similarities among these books, and a certain message may be given from their texts, but one may also be gleaned from these structures. After sin came into the universe, God still seems like he wants to get involved with his people in some different and truly significant ways. And can you believe that he sometimes even wants to be in the middle of things? So, it might be helpful to have a somewhat broader view of some of these books, rather than simply have a closer look at a small text within these books.

Within the book of Genesis, when the family of Jacob was getting bigger, Rachel his wife was still unable to have a child, and so she pleads with her husband, and he responds, in Genesis 30:2, with the words ‘Am I in the place of God?’ This is echoed by Joseph near the very end of the book when his brothers come to him, regretting what they had done, in Genesis 50:19 (although you may wish to note that the Greek translation at this point is significantly different).

Within the book of Exodus, the glory of the LORD is mentioned for the first time in Exodus when the children of Israel start to receive the manna from heaven in chapter 16. But they see the glory in a very significant way the second time in chapter 24, near the middle of the book, when the glory ‘settles’ or ‘dwells’ on Mount Sinai. At that time, the glory looks like a ‘consuming fire’ [Exodus 24:16-17]. And at the very end of the book, the cloud and the glory of the LORD fill the ‘tabernacle’—the ‘settling’ or ‘dwelling’ place. Then the fire of the LORD is there at night and the cloud of the LORD is there during the day, to lead the children of Israel in their travels [Exodus 40:34-38]. That the LORD settles and dwells with his people is certainly significant.

Within the book of Leviticus, there are two very negative events, the deaths of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu [chapter 10], and the one (whose name is never mentioned) who ‘blasphemes the Name [chapter 24]’. These two events are more at one-quarter and three-quarter points within this book, but in their special placement they bring the reader/listener into a closer relationship with God who is responsible for all things. This closer relationship may be seen in the descriptions of how and when the LORD says something. This is especially seen in the middle of the book with that very special Day of Atonement, and this chapter starts with this somewhat-literal description: ‘And Yahweh said to Moses after the death of two of the sons of Aaron when they approached the face of Yahweh, and they died [16:1].’ A special phrase of Yahweh speaking is also seen near the end of the book with this unique description: ‘And Yahweh spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai [25:1].’ Although Yahweh speaks many times to Moses within this book, this is the only time that description is given in that way. Through the events of this book, the reader/listener in a way joins Moses on Mount Sinai.

The book of Numbers is often divided geographically, by the location of the children of Israel as they make their way to the Promised Land. But a somewhat-better way to see the events of the text may be to see the connections between what happens in the middle and near the end, in somewhat the same way as the tabernacle is laid out with the place for offering—where something is sacrificed—and then that special place where the LORD would meet with the priest, and this is a way in which the previous books have been somewhat laid out as well. One of the problems is that, in the book of Leviticus, there were only two negative events, but in Numbers there are lots more!

In Numbers 14:22 the LORD numbers TEN times that the children of Israel tested him, but it seems like this list goes back even to the book of Exodus [the Concordia Self-Study Bible also has a note about this]. After the children of Israel make the significant move of leaving Sinai in Numbers 10, there seem to be several (perhaps seven?) ‘test-like’ events which approach the middle of the book:

11:1-3 the people complaining/fire

11:4-35 the ‘rabble’ [literally ‘the gathered ones’] wailing/elders/quail & plague

12 Miriam and Aaron talk against Moses/leprosy

13-14 the people rebel after Canaan is explored

15:1-31 Offerings for sin

            15:32-36 Sabbath-breaker put to death

            15:37-41 Tassels on garments to remember the commands

16:1-35 Korah’s rebellion with the Levites

16:36-50 The rebellion after the rebellion and the making of the censers

17 The budding of Aaron’s staff

These last three tests seem to be connected to the priests. And after the budding of Aaron’s staff, there is talk about the priests and their duties and how they are supported.

The above events could probably be organized in a variety of ways, but a significant test seems to be the one in the center, the fourth one of the seven, with the punishment being to wander in the desert for forty years. And it would make sense that other important things which should be mentioned come up after this significant event.

It does not seem, though, like those three indented things that follow should fit together. How can offerings, a sabbath-breaker, and tassels be connected? In Leviticus, two bad events brought people closer to the LORD. In the same way, in the tabernacle, it was often the death of an animal that brought people closer. (And, in the New Testament, it was the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross that brings us closer.) Offerings have something being sacrificed, the sabbath-breaker dies, and I also think that the tassels fit in well here because of their visual similarity to the flame of a fire at a sacrifice.
​
Offerings are also mentioned again, in the first part of chapter 28, near to the end of the book, and this includes offerings for the Sabbath. These two special placements of offerings may point out that special theme that something bad leads to something good. And our Lenten theme for this year has supported that: ‘It’s a Matter of Death and Life'.
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March 14th, 2021

3/14/2021

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​This Sunday we continue in the Pentateuch for the Old Testament reading. ‘Pentateuch’ is a Greek word for the first five books of the Old Testament. And this Sunday we are in the book of Numbers [21:4-9], and this is also a title that comes from the Greek translation of the Old Testament. The actual title in Greek is ‘arithmoi’, a word that sounds a lot like ‘arithmetic’. Does that make the book seem even more interesting? Some people avoid math like the plague.

And speaking of plagues, it is good to remember that numbers are important in the Old Testament. In the Hebrew language, the connection between numbers and letters is extremely close. Their letters were also numbers. In the book of Exodus, there were ten plagues against the Egyptians while the Israelites were slaves. In the book of Numbers [14:22], the LORD speaks of ten tests that were part of the difficult times that the Israelites went through when they were making their way to the Promised Land. A possible list of those ten tests is given in the notes of the Concordia Self-Study Bible, and that list goes from Exodus 14 to Numbers 14 and does not include the text for this Sunday. But the note also indicates that the number ‘ten’ could simply mean ‘many times’ [Published in 1986 by Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, Missouri; page 210].

In the introductory section on the theological teaching in the book of Numbers, the Concordia Self-Study Bible has some great things to say about the account of Balaam in chapters 22-24. It is called ‘one of the most remarkable sections of the Bible [Concordia Self-Study Bible, page 185].’

One thing in terms of numbers that is sometimes misunderstood regarding the retelling of the Balaam event is that his FINAL prophecy is seen as the one ultimately predicting the Savior. It is actually the middle of seven prophecies, the fourth one. And the first four are simply longer than the last three. Seven is an important number, combining the things of God—the number three points to the three persons of the Trinity—with the things of man—the number four points to the four ‘corners’ of the world.

And speaking of four corners, although the earth is round, four corners may be seen in the important constellations that appear overhead at regular intervals in the year. I should point out at the beginning that this is NOT a discussion of astrology, where a person is said to predict what will happen because of the positions of the stars or planets. A better understanding of this is that it is one aspect of THEOLOGY, where IN THE BIBLE, at the creation account, the stars are said to rule [Genesis 1:16-18]. And the LORD’s throne in both the Old Testament and the New [Ezekiel 1 and Revelation 4] is said to have four living creatures, and these creatures may be connected to some of the constellations. The living creature of a man could be connected to Aquarius (the water carrier), a lion is obviously connected to Leo, and an ox, to Taurus. And the eagle may be shaped in a similar way to Scorpio, and these four constellations are at regular intervals in the year.

People have been always interested in the future. More important than many future events are a few of the most critical events in the past. And these four living creatures testify to the LORD’s glory that has been manifested on the earth at certain, important times. One helpful Bible verse to keep things in perspective is a small portion of the start of the Epistle to the Hebrews: ‘…but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son [1:2].’ And I do not think it is a coincidence that his Son has spoken to us in four gospel accounts.

The different ways Jesus worked in these four accounts may also be seen in the ways the angel of the LORD showed up in the Old Testament. In the account of Balaam, the angel of the LORD is definitely ready for battle. [See Numbers 22:22; the Hebrew word used to describe that angel’s task is actually our source for the name ‘Satan’.]

That battle-perspective is also given in the Gospel according to Mark. There are no stories of Jesus as a baby or even a young boy. At the beginning of this account, he stands ready for battle. And that is definitely a good thing, because he really does win in the end. You have his word [see Mark 16:7].
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March 6th, 2021

3/6/2021

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This time the Old Testament reading for the Third Sunday in Lent is arguably one of the most familiar texts within the entire Old Testament, the text of the Ten Commandments. There are actually two times that these Ten Commandments appear, and this also testifies to their importance. The first time is in Exodus 20:1-17 (the text for this Sunday), and the second time is in Deuteronomy 5(:6-21). This second time was spoken about forty years later, and Moses is going over what had happened previously.

Much could be said about any or all of these commandments. One of the first significant and interesting differences between these two texts is in the commandment concerning the Sabbath day. Here are somewhat-literal translations from both books:

Exodus 20:8     Remember the day of the Sabbath to sanctify it.

Deuteronomy 5:12      Guard the day of the Sabbath to sanctify it, as he commanded you, Yahweh your God.

One might think that the word ‘remember’ should be used forty years later and not ‘guard’. But you might remember that the word ‘remember’ is a very special word, one that is often used at important, turning-point places within the book of Genesis. It is used to describe an action of God rather than a person’s. (See Genesis 8:1, 19:29, and 30:22).

When God remembers a person, that makes all the difference. Near the beginning of the book of Exodus (2:23f), the text says that God heard the groaning of the children of Israel while they were enslaved, and he remembered his covenant with them. And then Moses shows up. Since sin pushed Adam and Eve away from the presence of the LORD, it is wonderful that he still remembers his people, people who deserve to be forgotten! Our remembering in this commandment, therefore, comes from his remembering.

The word ‘guard’ in the Deuteronomy text shows the seriousness of such a command. The word in the Greek translation of this text is very close to the word ‘phalanx’, a type of Greek soldier. Guards are important because the thing that they are guarding is usually important. As our Lenten preaching series this year points out, what God did as Jesus and what he continues to do among us is most certainly ‘a matter of death and life’.

It should probably also be said that Martin Luther, in his German translation of the Small Catechism, also has some significant changes to this command, as well as to others. Each command begins with the words ‘Du solt….’, and, although a good translation of these words is ‘You should….’, a better translation may be ‘You are to….’ It shows the seriousness of the situation.

Also in this commandment, the word ‘Feiertag’ is given instead of ‘Sabbath’. This is a word meaning ‘holiday’, and it speaks to the present time. The woodcuts that accompanied the Small Catechism depict some of the ancient biblical texts, but the people have clothing that they would have had in Luther’s day. That also points to the present time. The woodcut that appears below is the one connected to the Third Commandment. This appears in the following work: A Facsimilie of Luther’s Small Catechism: Wittenberg, 1531; published by Concordia Publishing House; St. Louis, Missouri, 1979; page 20f. I hope you enjoy it.

Picture
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February 28th, 2021

2/28/2021

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This week, with the Second Sunday in Lent, the Old Testament reading is quite close to the reading of the previous week. Last week’s reading was from Genesis 22; this one is slightly before that, from Genesis 17[:1-7, 15-16]. Both texts are about Abraham.

When the verse immediately after this text is included [verse 17], there are some interesting similarities and contrasts. In both verse 3 and verse 17, the text says that he fell on his face. I would imagine that he also stood up somewhere in between—since he falls down twice—although the text does not point that out. One contrast between these two verses is that, in verse 3, the text says that Abram fell on his face. In verse 17, the text says that Abraham fell on his face. His name was changed in the verses in between [see verse 5]. Another contrast is that, in verse 3, God spoke to Abram. In verse 17, the text says that Abraham ‘said in his heart.’

Once again, the Greek translation of the text brought out something that I had passed over in the past. The Greek translation says that Abraham said in his ‘thought’.

This text is a good reminder of the wide range that this Hebrew word ‘heart’ really has. In Holladay’s ‘concise’ lexicon, the definition of this word that is usually translated as ‘heart’ could be called lengthy. Here are some of the main parts of the different sections to this definition:

heart

physical organ

seat of vitality

inner self, seat of feelings & impulses

mind, character, disposition, inclination, loyalty, concern

determination, courage, (high) morale

intention, purpose

mind, attention, consideration, understanding

mind & mood in its totality, the self

conscience

(metaphorically) interior, middle

organizing power of the life/person [William L. Holladay, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1971; pages 171-2.]

The word obviously covers a wide range of things related to the human body. Since we are in the first book of the Bible, it might be an even better idea to see how this word is used before this text.

It only appears four times before this. The first time the word ‘heart’ appears in the Old Testament is at the start of the Flood story. And it is interesting that the first time it appears, it points to the evil of man. The second time it appears, it points to the hurt of the LORD—because of the evil of man. Here are somewhat-literal translations of the Hebrew, and they are quite similar in the Greek.

Genesis 6:5      And Yahweh saw that great was the evil of the man on the earth, and all the shaping of the thoughts of his heart were only evil all the day.

Genesis 6:6      And Yahweh was sorry that he made man on the earth, and he was hurt to his heart.

The next time the word ‘heart’ appears, it is at the end of the Flood story. The word appears twice within this verse, Genesis 8:21, and it starts out by being very similar to Abraham’s saying something in his heart—although this is the LORD doing it this time.

And Yahweh smelled the smell of the pleasant, and Yahweh said in his heart, ‘I will not add to curse again the ground for the sake of the man, that, shaping of the heart of the man is evil from his youth, and I will not add again to destroy all living things as I did.

Here is a Greek translation of that verse, also somewhat literally. Notice that it also uses the word ‘thought’ instead of ‘heart’ both times.

And Lord the God smelled a smell of sweetness. And Lord the God said, having thought, I will not still continue to curse the earth, because of the works of the men; because the thought of the man is carefully bent upon the evil from his youth; therefore, I will not continue to strike all living flesh, as I did.

There is a big difference between the heart and the mind, as any doctor would point out. It is interesting that, after a focus on the evil of the man, the focus was on the hurt of the LORD. It is easy to continue to focus either on the heart or the mind, especially if one of those things has something wrong with it. The LORD would have us focus on something even more important.
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