heroes

June 23, 2018

They will kill the prophets (Mt 23:34-23:34)

“Therefore,

I send you

Prophets,

Sages,

And Scribes.

You will kill some.

You will crucify some.

You will flog some

In your synagogues.

You will persecute some

From town

To town.”

 

διὰ τοῦτο ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἀποστέλλω πρὸς ὑμᾶς προφήτας καὶ σοφοὺς καὶ γραμματεῖς· ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀποκτενεῖτε καὶ σταυρώσετε, καὶ ἐξ αὐτῶν μαστιγώσετε ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς ὑμῶν καὶ διώξετε ἀπὸ πόλεως εἰς πόλιν·

 

There is something similar in Luke, chapter 11:49, about the killing of the prophets, but there is nothing about scourging and persecuting them from town to town.  Jesus said, via Matthew, that he was going to send them (διὰ τοῦτο ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἀποστέλλω πρὸς ὑμᾶς) prophets (προφήτας), sages or wise men (καὶ σοφοὺς), and scribes (καὶ γραμματεῖς), the heroes of the Old Testament Mosaic Law.  However, instead of respecting them, they were going to kill (ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀποκτενεῖτε) some, crucify (καὶ σταυρώσετε) some, and flog or scourge some in their synagogues (καὶ ἐξ αὐτῶν μαστιγώσετε ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς ὑμῶν).  They were going to go from town to town persecuting (καὶ διώξετε ἀπὸ πόλεως εἰς πόλιν) some also.  Jesus had mentioned the possibility of death or crucifixion for his followers earlier in chapter 16:24-25.

January 28, 2017

The shame of Moab (Jer 48:13-48:15)

“‘Then Moab

Shall be ashamed

Of Chemosh,

As the house of Israel

Was ashamed

Of Bethel,

Their confidence.

How can you say?

‘We are heroes!

We are the mighty warriors!

The destroyer of Moab

With his towns

Has come up.

The choicest

Of his young men

Have gone down

To slaughter.’

Says the King,

Whose name is

Yahweh of hosts.”

King Yahweh was speaking about Moab, since it was going to be ashamed of their national god Chemosh since his towns were going to be destroyed. Chemosh was compared to the northern Israelite worshiping place of Bethel, the competing place with Jerusalem for worshippers, before the northern kingdom collapsed. There may even have been some Chemosh worshippers in Jerusalem. However, Moab with its heroes and mighty warriors would not be able to withstand the coming attack. Many of its best young men would be slaughtered in the coming invasion.

November 1, 2015

The call to listen (Ps 78:1-78:4)

A Maskil of Asaph

“O my people!

Give ear to my teaching!

Incline your ears

To the words of my mouth!

I will open my mouth in a parable.

I will utter dark sayings from of old.

These are the things

That we have heard and known.

Our ancestors have told us these things.

We will not hide them from their children.

We will tell them to the coming generation.

These are the glorious deeds of Yahweh,

These show his might.

These are the wonders that he has done.”

Psalm 78 is one of these long didactic psalms that relate the whole history of the Israelite people, like Psalms 105 and 106 as well as Psalms 135 and 136. This psalm is also a maskil of Asaph as the others in this series. We will learn the lessons of Israelite history, with a special emphasis on particular favorite heroes. There is an initial call to listen with care to the teaching of this psalmist, Asaph. He was going to speak in parables like the wisdom writers. These are the stories that were passed on to him by his ancestors. Now he was not going to hide it from the current children and the generations yet to come. All this shows the glorious deeds of Yahweh and his strength in the wonders that he has done for Israel.