ZEP 3.14-20; IS 12.2-6
The OT passages present the exegete/homilete with a dilemma offering three levels of difficulty in choice: 1] Ignore them. 2] Go with their detached form and preach only comforting good news. 3] Put them in canonical context as addressed to people on the verge of abandoning faith because of extreme suffering and oppression (i.e.: national corruption or disappointment in the failure to materialize of glowing promises of return).
Zephaniah's brief tract originated in a time of spiritual and moral corruption, probably before the Josianic/deuteronomic reformation of 621 BCE. The bulk of the message begins, "I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth, says the LORD" (1.2) and ends "...in the fire of my passion all the earth shall be consumed" (3.8). The message contains such frighteningly graphic descriptions of sin and judgment that the Vulgate rendering of "the Day of Wrath" in 1.15 provides the classic title for the lament "Dies Irae." The conclusion, our pericope 3.14-20 offering comfort and hope, shows unmistakable signs of post-exilic composition. Those to whom it was addressed had passed through the fires of purificaton.
The details of judgment focus A] on the power elite of Judah/Jerusalem (1.4-9; 3.1-7), extend to B] the whole people (1.10-2.3), and finally embrace C] all the nations (2.4-15; 3.8). The message of hope reverses the order of judgment. C] "I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call on the name of the LORD and serve him with one accord" (3.9, a hint of Pentecost and universal turn to YHWH); B] the exiles will return to a land purified of "proudly exultant ones" where a humble, morally upright remnant survive (3.10-13); and C] then Zion can rejoice according to the terms of the message of hope, (3.14-20).
Brevard Childs [Introduction to the OT as Scripture] says the present, carefully constructed form, presents a theological essay on "the nature of God and his work," consisting of judgment followed by promise. He points out that "the new period of promised salvation actually begins with the conversion of the nations which precedes the promise to Israel...The universalism of the threatened judgment is closely paralleled by a universal redemption" [460-61].
We should note, however, that universalism gets meager attention, and the book (and our pericope) ends with emphasis on the LORD's exclusive relation as "King of Israel" (3.15); "warrior who gives you victory" (3.17); "will deal with all your oppressors" (3.19) "will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth" (3.20). At this point OT theology is still stuck in the pre-monotheistic view of YHWH as but one God (albeit the "best") among many gods, as Israel is one people among many. Unfortunately too many Christians haven't gotten much beyond that view. "My god can beat up your god" still underlies a lot of unspoken belief.
Few if any of those in our congregations on Third Advent will be on the verge of abandoning hope because of suffering and oppression. Perhaps a few may be "humble and lowly" (3.11). Perhaps some of them may be like those whom Zephaniah described as "people who rest complacently on their dregs" (1.12). George Adam Smith speaks of this attitude as "the criminal apathy of the well-to-do classes sunk in ease and religious indifference...The great causes of God and Humanity are not defeated by the hot assaults of the Devil, but by the slow, crushing, glacier-like mass of thousands and thousands of indifferent nobodies. God's causes are never destroyed by being blown up, but by being sat upon" [The Minor Prophets, Vol 2, p 53-4].
According to Christopher Seitz (INTERPRETATION), Is 1-12 comprise a general summary of God's word through the prophet covering the historical period from near the end of Uzziah's reign in Jerusalem until after Assyria's destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of Hezekiah.
This section declares that God uses Assyria to punish the faithless nation, but that judgment will fall on Assyria in turn. Zion will become the spiritual center of the earth's peoples, and the natural realm will be pacified. Under the leadership of the "shoot from the stump of Jesse" a restored Israel will prevail over the little nations who inhabit the area between Egypt and Assyria, and the exiles will return home.
Ch 12 forms the climax of this section and includes a psalm of thanksgiving. The speaker is not specified [assumed to be God?], but declares: "You [masc sing, not otherwise specified; Israel personified?] will say in that day: 'I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, and you comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid.' Then he continues, 'for [literally] my strength and might (are) YH YHWH and he has become for me for salvation.'" This last declaration is an exact rendition of Ex 15.2a except that where Isaiah has YH YHWH Exodus has only YH.
Is 12.3: apparently the original speaker (God?) continues speaking but now addresses "you all" (masc plu): "With joy you all will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you all will say in that day, 'Give thanks to the LORD etc..' (12.4-5) also addressed to you all (masc plu). Finally, we see another change in person at 12.6, calling upon "royal Zion" [fem sing] to shout aloud, "for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel."
Of course, in historical fact, there was no "return" of northern Israel after the Assyrian exile, so if this material actually did circulate in Isaiah's own day, it was not fulfilled.
Chapter 12 brings to a conclusion the first discernible major section of the complete book, which some contemporary scholars (like Watts of WORD) say reached its present form centuries later. According to Watts, the first readers/hearers of Is 1-12 would be people in and around Jerusalem about 435 BCE, during a very low point in the Jews' existence. The temple had been rebuilt under Zerubbabel and Joshua (with encouragment from Zechariah and Haggai), but the messianic hopes which sprang up with that accomplishment were cruelly disappointed. Zerubbabel, called "my signet ring" chosen by God and promised to be exalted after the shaking of the nations (Hag 2.20-23) simply disappears. Watts (Word in Isaiah) speculates Zerubbabel is the Suffering Servant. Before the governorship of Nehemiah, the Jews had become discouraged and divided, and this is the background of the completed document of Isaiah.
Despite the puzzling change of speaker and addressees in Is 12 (and other places as well) and the equivocal or ambivalent historical contexts, God's people up to the present have continually drawn comfort and inspiration from this great document. We can continue to draw water from the wells of salvation with great joy, for our salvation is God, not any effort of our own, however strong or feeble. Seitz points out that the Hebrew word for salvation [yeshu`ah] appears rather infrequently in the early chapters of Isaiah. Except for three times in 12.2-3, the next occurrence is in 25.9. But the prophet's own name [yesha`yahu] means "The LORD (is) salvation." If not the man himself in person, perhaps the final compiler/editor/arranger of the book inserted these little clues pointing to the man whose personality remains little more than a shadow in the background of the message whose real author is He who alone is Salvation.
Lots of folks quote 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I will say, Rejoice." Somebody has even set it to music as a chorus. No problem. So the pericope starts with this verse, and we naturally take off from where we happen to be at the moment we plug in to this verse. But take a moment to start at the logical beginning of this section:
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Think about these two early Christian women: Paul attests that they have struggled together with him, literally "in the gospel" along with others whose names are in the book of life. Where and when did these women struggle along with Paul "in the gospel"? We just don't know! As always Paul honors them with one of his "with" words [Gk "syn"] -- they "with- struggled" [synethlesan]. Paul never uses any term concerning any associate which implies any degree of inferiority. Clement and the others Paul calls "with-workers" [synergon]. Another unnamed person is a "loyal with-yoke-person" [syzyge]. So these are two outstanding women. For some reason or other they have had a disagreement. Certainly not something inconsequential, because it has to do with matters "in the Lord." Paul doesn't undertake to judge between them; probably a lot could be said in favor of either one. What does Paul suggest? "Rejoice in the Lord always...let your gentleness be known to everyone."
Think how much controversy and bitterness we could avoid if we spent more time rejoicing in the Lord and demonstating gentleness! Maybe Paul offers this advice remembering that he and Barnabas had split, perhaps because at the time they didn't rejoice and failed to show gentleness.
"The Lord is at hand," Paul goes on to say. In his immediate time, the idea probably had much more urgent implications than it might to those of us who are not obsessed with the idea of "the second coming" and the "rapture" and "left behind." Paul really seemed to believe Jesus might come back at any moment. After 2000 years and Jesus hasn't come back in the way expected, I'm inclined to think He's not coming in just that way. "ho kyrios eggys" can just as correctly mean "The Lord is here" right now! -- here in the person of brother and sister believers; here in the fellowship of the body, the church; here in "one of the least of these;" here in the person of other people of whatever race, gender, religion, others like us made in God's image. "The Lord is here/near."
So we can get over quarrels, get rid of worries, fears, and anxieties by being thankful as well as rejoicing in the Lord, and freely telling God all our requests. That should better enable us, with heart and mind, to come under the guardianship of the peace of God in Christ, which passes all understanding. In that condition, we'll be more likely to "be of the same mind in the Lord" (4.2b).
Today's pericope follows directly on that of last week: Lk's adaptation of the opening of Mk's gospel, with his own editorial details making John appear like a typical OT prophet. John appeared as prophet heralding "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." Today's pericope gives a sample of John's preaching, a mixture of Mk, Q, and L. Perhaps appearing just at the time of harvest, John comes across as very harsh. He condemns everybody alike as a bunch of snakes slithering to escape the fires set by farmers to cleanse their fields after bringing in the sheaves (Matt applies the snake epithet to scribes and Pharisees). John's attitude and the general response appear to imply a belief in the approach of the dreaded "Day of the Lord."
John says, "Get right by repentance and baptism. If you think I'm tough, this is nothing compared to what you may expect when the Greater One comes!" Continuing the metaphor of harvest, John says that just as farmers toss their flailed grain up so the wind can blow away the light chaff while the heaver grain falls, so the Coming One will separate good from evil with a divine wind. And as the farmer then stores the grain but burns the chaff, so will the Coming One mete out different fates to good and evil. "I baptize only with water," says John. "HE will baptize with wind and fire!" And not only so, he's ready to chop down and burn up every unfruitful tree.
If John really believed he was preparing the way for the coming of the LORD God in judgment as so often intimated in the OT (eg Mal 3.2-3), he was mistaken. But the post resurrection church adapted John's message to fit Jesus. For Jesus had not come in judgment to stand shoulder to shoulder with John against the people, but in solidarity with the people, and to accept John's baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
The early church had to reckon with the problem of Jesus' baptism and the reputation of John, the authentic prophet, whom even their teacher and master, Jesus, admired so highly. So we see in the final records an intentional downgrading of John in comparison with Jesus. Luke has John specifically deny that he is Messiah. And if we had only Luke's gospel, we couldn't be certain that Jesus had been baptized by John at all. Luke records Jesus' baptism only after he has got John off scene in Herod's prison. And the "wind and fire" of John's threatened judgment, which Jesus did not enact, become now the post resurrection gift of the Spirit, which in his second volume Luke describes in a material metaphor of rushing wind and flaming fire.
When the people asked John what they must do, he didn't stop with baptism. He gave them practical advice on behaviours which would lift them out of their own concerns for safety and security and put them in the way of service. These people were mostly poor already, but John says, "If you have two coats, there's somebody with none, so give one away." John says, "If you have food (i.e., any at all) share with the hungry."
Note that Luke, writing from post resurrection hind sight, concludes his account of John's urgent judgment against the snakes and his exhortation to works of benevolence with these words: "So with many other exhortations he proclaimed the good news to the people."
ADVENT: Coming? or Presence? Of whom? For what purpose? Good news or bad? Judgment? Punishment? Comfort? Inspiration? Incentive? Self satisfaction?
(Comments to Arch at arch.taylor@ecunet.org.)