December 6th, 2020

This Sunday, the Second Sunday in Advent, continues to look at the words of the prophet Isaiah for the Old Testament reading, but this Sunday takes us back to the beginning of the ‘gospel’ section of that book, chapter forty [verses 1-11]. And right at the beginning of this section there is the phrase—translated differently in different versions of course—‘says your God’. You might be familiar with the phrase, ‘Thus says the Lord.’ And you may not think so, but there is much that could be said about such a phrase.

This is not an appeal to be thankful for your grade school English teacher, but the tense of a phrase is an important thing. The above words are not just describing something that was true and happened in the past; they are also describing something that remains true and is important in the present.  

The purpose of the scriptures is not just to say what God did and said in the past, but it is also important to know what he NOW does and says. This is especially true as we look forward to the end of time, when there will be a new heaven and new earth. We are like the people of the Old Testament, looking back at what happened in the past, but we are also looking forward to what has been promised in the future.

The Old Testament texts, originally written in the Hebrew language, were translated into the language of the New Testament, the Greek language, sometime after Alexander the Great. And it is interesting to note that there were times in that translation when the text was originally in the past tense, but it was translated into Greek and appeared in the present. This is called the ‘historical present’. The above example (‘Thus says the Lord’) does not apply because, in both languages, the text is in the present.

Here is an example of an historical present that seems to be the closest one to the beginning of the Old Testament (Genesis 15:1ff; the first paragraph is a somewhat literal translation of the Hebrew; the second, of the Greek):

After these words the word of Yahweh was to Abram in the vision to say, ‘Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you, your reward will be very great.’ And Abram said to the Lord Yahweh, ‘What will you give to me, and I am walking childless, and a son of the inheritance of my house, he is Damascus Eliezer.’

And after these things a word of the Lord happened to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not fear, Abram, I am shielding you; your reward will be very great.’ And Abram says, ‘Master, Lord, what will you give to me? I am departing childless; and the son of Masek, my home-born, this is Damascus Eliezer.

There are obviously some small differences. A big difference to note is the change from Abram ‘said’ to Abram ‘says’. And it seems that the translator used the present tense because of what just came before. The Lord had just said ‘I am a shield to you.’ And the ramifications of being a shield are great.

The event having ramifications cannot be the only factor for having an historical present. If that were true, they would be much more frequent in that translation of the Old Testament. But being in the presence of the Lord is also an important factor and has significant ramifications for a sinful world. And the Lord’s presence is an issue when these special verbs appear.

The ramifications of the Lord’s presence in Jesus are also great. Most people see the four accounts as four historical documents from different perspectives, and this is most certainly true. But they are also four theological documents that describe the different and significant ramifications of what Jesus said and did.

The four accounts of Jesus have different historical presents, and that makes sense as well. The four accounts of Jesus have been connected to the four living creatures of the Lord’s throne, and a throne is a significant statement regarding the king’s presence. A throne shows both the king’s authority and his glory.

Both ‘authority’ and ‘glory’ have a chance to be misunderstood. Authority can have a negative connotation, and glory can be simply connected to Christmas, something that the angels mention when they are singing.

The word ‘authority’ is really a positive word; it directs us to the proper source. And the word ‘glory’ really means heaviness. Therefore, the significance or the weight of each account is important and slightly different. And all four accounts work together to make sure they are able to help a Christian in any difficulty. And they are to point us to our proper source.

This is a time in the three-year series when all four accounts are given within only five weeks. The Gospel text for the Last Sunday of the Church Year was from the Gospel according to Matthew. For the First and Second Sunday in Advent, the text is from the Gospel according to Mark. For the Third Sunday in Advent is from the Gospel according to John, and the text for the Fourth Sunday in Advent is from the Gospel according to Luke. It may be a good time to reflect on the four different and wonderful gifts that we have.

‘Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.’ The repetition is for emphasis.