2019, January 27 ~Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10; and 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a
Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10
The Babylonian Exile ended in 539 BCE when the Persians defeated the Babylonians. Cyrus the Great then directed the Judeans to return to Jerusalem. Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Babylonians in 587 BCE, and the reconstruction of Jerusalem took more than 90 years.
Ezra (mentioned in today’s reading) was sent to Jerusalem by the Persian King in 458 BCE. According to the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah, he was a priest with direct lineage to Aaron (the brother of Moses), and a scribe (a highly educated person). Many Biblical scholars conclude that Ezra was the final “redactor” (editor and combiner) of the four literary sources (called J, E, D and P) from which the first five books of the Bible (the Torah) were derived.
Nehemiah was a Jew who was cupbearer to the King of Persia. In 445 BCE, the King sent Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem and its walls. Nehemiah was a capable administrator, and accomplished his tasks in a little more than a year.
Today’s reading recounts the first reading of the “book of the law of Moses” (the Torah). It was read aloud by Ezra in 443 BCE to all the people to celebrate the restoration of Jerusalem, and was done “with interpretation” (v.8) so the people would understand it.
During the period of Persian rule over Judea (539 to 333 BCE), Judea generally prospered, and the Judeans reconstituted themselves as “People of the Book.” During this time, many books of the Hebrew Bible were codified in what was close to their final form.
1 Corinthians 12:12-31a
Corinth, a large port city in Greece, was among the early Jesus Follower communities that Paul founded. Its culture was diverse and Hellenistic. Corinthians emphasized reason and secular wisdom. In addition to Paul, other Jesus Followers taught in Corinth, sometimes in ways inconsistent with Paul’s understandings of what it meant to be a Jesus Follower. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians was written in the 50’s (CE) and presented his views on many issues that were controversial in this Jesus Follower Community.
Today’s reading is a continuation of last week’s reading in which Paul emphasized that all spiritual gifts come from God and are manifestations of the Spirit for the common good. In the continuation, Paul emphasized unity through the Spirit between Jewish Jesus Followers and Gentile Jesus Followers (“Jews or Greeks”). He analogized the Jesus Follower Community to the human body (vv.14-24) and rejected a separatist or individualistic attitude by any part of the body to other parts. He noted that all members have different gifts and roles to play in the Jesus Follower Community, just as each of our body parts functions as part of one human body.