{"id":402,"date":"2012-10-19T09:00:19","date_gmt":"2012-10-19T14:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/?p=402"},"modified":"2024-05-05T23:14:23","modified_gmt":"2024-05-06T04:14:23","slug":"october-19-october-26","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/2012\/10\/19\/october-19-october-26\/","title":{"rendered":"October 19 – October 26"},"content":{"rendered":"

Friday, October 19<\/strong><\/p>\n

Galatians 4:1-20: Not least among the striking features of this text is the apostle\u2019s use of exactly the same verb to speak of the sending forth of both the Son and the Holy Spirit. In each case he says, \u201cGod sent forth His Son . . . God sent forth the Spirit of His Son.\u201d This is a summary of how we know God: We know Him because He has revealed Himself by His sending forth of His Son and Holy Spirit. God\u2019s double sending forth is thus related to two orders of knowledge: the categorical, empirical order–the historical events of the salvific ministry of His Son—and the internal order of immediate perception—the gift of the Holy Spirit. These are the two dimensions of the knowledge of God, two inseparable aspects of the Gospel: the sending of the Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit.<\/p>\n

In the revelation given to us in His Son, God transforms the knowability of the empirical, historical, categorical order, and all of God\u2019s speaking in history is determined by, and to be interpreted with reference to, his revelation in the Son. From the very first time that he uttered a human word, God started to become incarnate. By speaking this word in history, God transforms the knowable structure and content of history.<\/p>\n

Of the Revelation God has given to us in the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Paul had already written in the very first chapter of the earliest of his epistles: \u201cFor our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit, and in complete certainty (plerophoria polle<\/em>)\u201d (1 Thessalonians 1:5). In context, this expression descriptive of Christian knowledge, plerophoria polle<\/em>, is contrasted with \u201cin word only.\u201d<\/p>\n

That is to say, this \u201ccomplete certainty\u201d in the Holy Spirit is not described as information about<\/em> but as knowledge of<\/em>. It is not merely referential; it is real, not only notional. It is not merely nominal (\u201cin word only\u201d). It consists, not simply in discerning the meaning<\/em> of the words proclaimed, but in perceiving the truth<\/em> of that meaning. It is not simply an assent to what is declared, but the reality of what is perceived.<\/p>\n

Nehemiah 6: The local opposition to Nehemiah\u2019s building project next took a new and unbelievably clumsy tack, which he resisted with high disdain (verses 1-4). Failing this, his opponents then sent a letter with an implicit threat of denunciation (verses 5-7), but Nehemiah remained unimpressed (verse 8).<\/p>\n

The story found here in verses 10-13 is not necessarily part of the chronological sequence but may have been put here because of its affinity to the two preceding stories.<\/p>\n

Even before Shemaiah was in the employ of his opponents, Nehemiah smelled something wrong. He sensed that he was being invited to take a step he would regret. We observe him here, nonetheless, maintaining his composure under pressure, controlling his emotions, especially the emotion of fear, so as not to obscure his assessment of the situation (verse 14).<\/p>\n

The wall, begun in the late summer, was finished fifty-two days later, in mid October (verse 15). About six months had passed since Nehemiah\u2019s arrival in Jerusalem, and less than a year since his friends had come with sad news to Babylon. Once again, Sanballat and his friends learned of the wall\u2019s completion only by rumor (verse 16).<\/p>\n

Saturday, October 20<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nehemiah 7: Here is the largest census in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah (verses 6-72). For its compilation Nehemiah used an earlier source (verse 5), probably to be identified with that in Ezra 2. The difference between that earlier list and the present list is one of purpose and context. The list in Ezra 2 established the continuity with Israel\u2019s past, especially with a view to validating the claims of the returning exiles with respect to their possession of the Holy Land. In the present chapter, however, the list is set in the context of Jerusalem\u2019s new enclosure. It is the census of a city, not a mere list of returning exiles. It is a municipal instrument, which will serve as a format for taxation and civic service. It is a document of the community\u2019s restoration and renewal. Consequently, it is included between the completion of the walls (verses 1-3) and the ceremony of renewal (chapters 8\u201410).<\/p>\n

The long census transcribed in this place, precisely because it says so little that engages the imagination, allows the reader leisure to reflect on these more interesting aspects of Nehemiah.<\/p>\n

All through this memoir we find Nehemiah a most engaging man. His steady, cool demeanor sat atop the cauldron of his emotions which, on occasion, found brief expression (cf. 1:4; 5:12; 13:8,25). Surely, however, those emotions did much to drive his highly effective style of energy, skill, and organization. Nor was Nehemiah entirely free from tooting his own horn from time to time (2:10,18; 5:15; 6:11).<\/p>\n

Trained as an executive and diplomat, Nehemiah\u2019s rhetorical skills were economic, efficient, and to the point (2:17; 5:7; 13:25). Whatever his fears, they were under control; we never find him acting in panic. He was also a reflective man, much given to short, frequent, and fervent prayers that are interspersed in the narrative (2:8,10,20; 3:36-37; 4:9; 5:13,19; 6:14,16; 13:14,22,31,39).<\/p>\n

Although the walls of Jerusalem were completed in record time, Nehemiah did not rush things. Before ever arriving at Jerusalem, he had made the proper arrangements for the materials to be used in the construction, and before even calling a meeting for the project, he inspected the site in detail and formulated a plan.<\/p>\n

In the next chapter our attention will turn once again to the figure of Ezra, who had arrived in Jerusalem earlier than Nehemiah. Ezra was a priest and scholar, Nehemiah a practical man of affairs. Both together were responsible for the spiritual maintenance of Jerusalem in the fifth century before Christ. In this respect, their joint vocation mirrored that of Zerubbabel and Jeshua late in the previous period.<\/p>\n

Sunday, October 21<\/strong><\/p>\n

Galatians 5:1-15: According to Paul—verse 14—all the Christian\u2019s social obligations may be summed up in the love of one\u2019s neighbor as one\u2019s self. Paul later elaborates this thesis in Romans:<\/p>\n

Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, \u201cYou shall not commit adultery,\u201d \u201cYou shall not murder,\u201d \u201cYou shall not steal,\u201d \u201cYou shall not bear false witness,\u201d \u201cYou shall not covet,\u201d and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, \u201cYou shall love your neighbor as yourself.\u201d Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law (13:8-10)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Nehemiah 8: We come now to the renewal of the covenant (chapters 8\u201410). The story begins with the public reading of the Law.<\/p>\n

In modern church parlance this chapter describes a “revival,” or a “parish renewal,” or even a “Life Alive Weekend.” We are apparently still in October of 445 (7:73), the season associated with the Feast of Tabernacles. While Nehemiah has only recently arrived, Ezra has been in Jerusalem for thirteen years, and maybe he figured that the place could use a good dose of “old time religion.”<\/p>\n

Ezra, as we reflected earlier, had been engaged in editing the Torah, and the people wanted to hear it (verses 2-3). They gathered to the east of the city (verse 1), not a normal place for gathering. Given the mystic symbolism of this site (the panorama of the Kidron Valley and the Mount of Olives) in two of Israel\u2019s most recent prophets (Ezekiel and Zechariah), their choice of this place to gather was surely significant. It was morning, and the sun was rising over the Mount of Olives when they began.<\/p>\n

There was a lengthy proclamation of the Word (verses 4-5), along with prayer and devotion (verse 6). As Ezra read the text in Hebrew, which by now was only a scholar\u2019s language, running translations were provided in the common spoken language, Aramaic (verses 7-8). Such Aramaic (and later Greek) translations and paraphrases of the Old Testament are known as Targumim<\/em> or Targums, which in modern biblical research constitute a special area of study.<\/p>\n

It was a scene of great emotion, with the experiences of conversion, remorse, and rejoicing mixed together (verses 9-12). All of this took place in the context of the Feast of Tabernacles (verses 14-18; cf. John 7:2). The observance of this feast was an initial act in the maintenance of the Law.<\/p>\n

Monday October 22<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nehemiah 9: Most of this chapter is filled with a long “narrative prayer” similar to several psalms that recount Israel\u2019s formative history (e.g., Psalms 78 [77], 105 [104], 106 [105]). One will likewise observe sustained similarities to Deuteronomy 32, the Canticle of Moses, which immediately preceded Israel\u2019s entrance into Canaan. From the perspective of textual history these similarities are hardly surprising, if we remember that Ezra was an editor of the Pentateuch. The great bulk of the narrative in the present chapter is devoted to the themes from the Exodus, the desert wandering, and the conquest, but the period of the Judges and some of the later history are also treated.<\/p>\n

The prayer here is important in the context of the later events with which the books of Ezra and Nehemiah are preoccupied, namely, the events connected with the nation\u2019s re-founding. For both men, Ezra and Nehemiah, the restoration of Israel was precisely that \u2014 a restoration. Israel could not be started again from scratch. The new Israel would go nowhere unless it came from somewhere, and the present prayer serves as a reflection on where Israel had come from.<\/p>\n

From Israel\u2019s earlier history, furthermore, the nation was to learn important lessons about historical causality, particularly the relationship of later events to earlier decisions. Israel would be instructed on how infidelity and punishment are tied together by history. Israel, according to this prayer, was to learn its history, not so much that the people might imitate their fathers, but in order to discourage them from imitating their fathers! They were to reflect on the mistakes of the past so as not to repeat them in the future. Such meditation on history is an important aspect of biblical prayer, as we see in so many of the Psalms devoted to that theme.<\/p>\n

Indeed, there is considerable irony in the idea that the fathers are to teach their children in order that the children do not become like the fathers: \u201cFor He established a testimony in Jacob, ?\/ And appointed a law in Israel,? \/ Which He commanded our fathers,? \/ That they should make them known to their children<\/em>; \/ That the generation to come might know them,? \/ The children who would be born,? \/ That they may arise and declare them to their children<\/em>, \/ That they may set their hope in God,? \/ And not forget the works of God,? \/ But keep His commandments; \/ And may not be like their fathers<\/em> (Psalm 78:5-8).<\/p>\n

Tuesday, October 23<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nehemiah 10: This chapter, which begins with a fragmentary archival record (verses 1-27), goes on to mention certain features of social and religious discipline that would serve to make Israel a clearly distinguishable people, distinctive by reason of its special customs and rituals—to be, in fact, a people very different from every other. These customs and rituals included a prohibition against marriage with outsiders (verses 28,30), strict adherence to the newly edited Torah (verse 29), observance of the Sabbath (verse 31), financial and other support of the prescribed worship (verses 32-34), sacrificial offering of first fruits (verses 35-37), strict tithing (verse 38), and other offerings (verse 39). We will find Nehemiah dealing with these very matters all the way to the last chapter of this book.<\/p>\n

Israel, now returned to the Holy Land, would strive to become what Israel in Babylon, if it wanted to survive, had been forced to be–namely, a people set apart, distinct, and very unlike its neighbors by reason of its special consecration to God. God\u2019s distinctive people, that is to say, really had to be distinctive. That adjective had to be a reality, and not just a word.<\/p>\n

This fact may be read as the guiding motif of the books of Ezra and Nehemiah and the very reason why both of these books go to such lengths to describe the building of walls, whether the walls of the temple in Ezra, or the walls of the city in Nehemiah. By their very nature, walls divide the world into inside and outside. Walls stand as a sturdy barrier between the two. This image of walls, therefore, as giving shape to an exclusive space, serves as an ongoing model for the great theological preoccupation of these two books: the holiness, the separation of the people of God.<\/p>\n

This emphasis was needed. Prior to its recent re-education during the Captivity, Israel had largely lost that sense of exclusive dedication. Its separation from the world had massively disintegrated over the centuries. Instead, by endeavoring to become just like the nations round about them, Israel\u2019s spiritual walls had been badly penetrated—by idolatry, by syncretism, by compromising political alliances. These last were sometimes sealed by marriages joining the people\u2019s leadership to the very worst qualities represented in the other nations.<\/p>\n

The building projects described in these two books, therefore, were the external manifestations of Israel\u2019s recently rediscovered self-understanding. The renewed Israel was determined to be ex<\/em>clusive, building walls, establishing clear lines of separation on top of firm and unshakable foundations, uncompromising and unbending about its own identity.<\/p>\n

Wednesday, October 24<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nehemiah 11: We have already seen the theological significance of the sort of census data that we have in this chapter. The present list comprises the names of those within the walls that have been constructed. They are the separated people, the “insiders,” symbolic of the inner identity of the holy nation.<\/p>\n

All through these two books we have watched the outsiders<\/em> trying to get inside–or at least to have access to the inside–exercising a sustained harassment of those inside. We saw the response of Zerubbabel, for instance, to the suggestion, in Ezra 4:1-3, that there be no distinction between insider and outsider, because Israel\u2019s pre-captivity history had already taught him the dangers of not insisting on that distinction. The outsiders, thus rebuffed, have spent the rest of these two books trying to prevent the separating walls from being constructed. As the enemies of Jerusalem\u2019s walls, they were attempting to keep Israel from being Israel. They perceived that the walls symbolized exclusiveness, and they resented being outsiders.<\/p>\n

This is a curious phenomenon. Why, after all, should they care? If Israel wanted to be exclusive, why should that preference bother anybody else? In fact, nonetheless, Israel\u2019s exclusiveness was deeply resented. Israel\u2019s claim to be a special and holy people, a claim that laid special moral responsibilities on Israel, was simply more than other people could endure. Consequently, Israel\u2019s adversaries have spent much of these two books in a genuine and aggressive snit.<\/p>\n

The one place where Israel was truly threatened, however, was not in its building programs, but in the construction of its families, the formation of its homes. Thus, intermarriage with outsiders, which so incensed both Ezra and Nehemiah, was the single path by which Israel could be most effectively led astray.<\/p>\n

These lists of Jewish families, therefore, are very pertinent to the general preoccupation and theme of these two books. These genealogies are spiritual walls, designed to protect the identity of God\u2019s chosen people.<\/p>\n

The provision permitting one-tenth of its citizens (chosen by lot) to live in the Holy City established a kind of tithe, as it were, of the entire nation. Those who otherwise chose<\/em> to live there represented a corresponding \u201cfree will offering\u201d of the nation.<\/p>\n

Thursday, October 25<\/strong><\/p>\n

Luke 16:19-31: In this parable Jesus names one of the characters. I believe this is the only time Jesus ever does this. He gives the poor man the name of his friend Lazarus, whom He did, in fact, raise from thee dead. This is significant.<\/p>\n

In the parable, the rich man asks Abraham, \u201cI beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father\u2019s house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.\u201d To this, Abraham answers, \u201c\u2018If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is exactly what happened when Lazarus was, in fact, raised from the dead. St. John tells us: \u201cNow a great many of the Jews knew that [Jesus] was there; and they came, not for Jesus\u2019 sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Jewish leaders were religious, God-fearing men, but they had lost the correct perspective about what God expected of them, and this loss led them to unbelief and hardness of heart. Indeed, it led them to perfect foolishness. They actually plotted to kill someone who had already been raised from the dead! This is insane. The insanity stands forever as a warning. It informs us just how far gone<\/em> it is possible to go<\/em>! This story warns us about what sorts of thoughts we must not permit to find refuge in our heads. One avoids insanity by not thinking insane thoughts.<\/p>\n

Nehemiah 12: This chapter, which begins with another genealogical list of priests and Levites (verses 1-26), indicates the importance that proper and verifiable “succession” enjoys in the biblical theology of institutional ministry (as distinct from prophetic ministry).<\/p>\n

Next comes an account of the solemn dedication of the wall (verses 27-47) and all that that wall represented by way of the symbolisms we have been discussing.<\/p>\n

It is reasonable to understand the narrative\u2019s return to first person singular in verse 31 as an indication that we are once again dealing with the memoir of Nehemiah, on which so much of this book is based.<\/p>\n

According to 2 Maccabees 1:18, the event narrated in this chapter took place, not in September, but in December, falling very close in the calendar, in fact, to the date of the Maccabees\u2019 own purification of the temple (recorded in 1 Maccabees 4:60). Both events—the dedication of the walls under Nehemiah in the fifth century and the purification of the temple under Judas Maccabaeus in the second century—are called “Hanukkah,” meaning inauguration or dedication (verse 27; John 4:22). (Only the latter event, however, was incorporated into the Jewish liturgical calendar and is celebrated by Jews each December even today.)<\/p>\n

Nehemiah saw to it that the city was ritually circled by two simultaneous processions conducted on top of the walls, complete with trumpets. The dedication of the walls is portrayed, therefore, as an event of worship. The simultaneous procession of the two groups, marching in opposite directions, constituted what one commentator calls \u201ca stereophonic presentation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Friday, October 26<\/strong><\/p>\n

James 1:1-11: James, in a series of apparently unsystematic exhortations, begins with patience, prompting the careful reader to recall that St. Paul, too, when he commenced his description of Christian love, began with the succinct thesis, \u201cLove is patient\u201d–Charitas patiens est<\/em> in the Vulgate. James\u2019 word for \u201cpatience,\u201d hypomone<\/em>–verses 3,4) will later appear when James speaks of the example of Job (5:11). He begins and ends this work, then, on the need of patience in the time of trial (verses 2,12,13,14).<\/p>\n

The English reader, as he reads \u201cwhen you fall into various trials,\u201d may not suspect the skillful play of sounds in James\u2019 original Greek: perasmois peripesete poikilois<\/em>. In fact, James displays such verbal flourishing right from the start, going from \u201cgreetings\u201d (verse 1) to \u201call joy\u201d (verse 2)–chairein pasa charan<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The theme of rejoicing in times of trial is a common one in the New Testament (Matthew 5:10-12; Acts 5:41; 1 Thessalonians 1:6). This active attitude toward the experience of trial, as distinct from a merely passive endurance, brings about a kind of perfection, an ergon teleion<\/em> (verse 4), perfection being a quality of great interest to James (verse 17,25; 3:2).<\/p>\n

Nehemiah 13: The dedication of the wall was the occasion for some more reading from the Torah, including the prescription found in Deuteronomy 23:4-5, which excluded the Ammonites and Moabites from the congregation of Israel (verse 1). As long as Nehemiah was on the local scene, such exclusions were taken seriously (verses 2-3). When he left to make a brief visit back to Babylon (verse 6), however, events turned for the worse. On his return to Jerusalem Nehemiah learned all sorts of unpleasant things.<\/p>\n

He learned, for instance, that a member of the priestly family had become the son-in-law of his old foe, Sanballat (verse 28). In former days, when Sanballat tried to impede the construction of the wall, Nehemiah had held him off. Now, nonetheless, Sanballat was suddenly inside<\/em> the walls! What he had been unable to do by force of arms, he managed to accomplish by the simple means of marrying his daughter to a priest! This serious breach in Jerusalem\u2019s spiritual wall once again put at peril Israel\u2019s very existence as a holy nation, a people set apart.<\/p>\n

In addition, Nehemiah discovered that the high priest himself had provided lodging within the temple for one of those who had opposed Nehemiah\u2019s very mission (verses 4-5). Other things had gotten out of hand, as well, such as the failure to observe the Sabbath, whether by Jews themselves or by pagans who came to sell their wares in the city (verses 15-22).<\/p>\n

Nehemiah set himself to put everything straight again (verses 7-13). The major problem, however, continued to be the disposition of the people to intermarry with non-Jews (verses 23-27), in contravention to the Torah (Exodus 34:16; Deuteronomy 7:3). Nehemiah found it a very tough job to maintain those walls!<\/p>\n

Recalling those great efforts, Nehemiah prayed that God would not forget<\/em> them, \u201cRemember me, O Lord\u201d became his refrain (verses 14,22,29,30).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Friday, October 19 Galatians 4:1-20: Not least among the striking features of this text is the apostle\u2019s use of exactly the same verb to speak of the sending forth of both the Son and the Holy Spirit. In each case he says, \u201cGod sent forth His Son . . . God sent forth the Spirit … Continue reading October 19 – October 26<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=402"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":410,"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402\/revisions\/410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.touchstonemag.com\/daily_reflections\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}