During the 2017 Pentecost Season, alternative readings from the Hebrew Bible are offered. Scripture in Context will discuss both readings and the reading from the Christian Scriptures.
Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Today’s reading is the conclusion of the story of how Abraham’s servant – not named in Chapter 24, but thought to be Eliezer of Damascus (Gen. 15:2) – obtained a wife for Isaac by going back to Haran, the land from which Abraham came.
Because of the emphasis on Isaac’s not taking a wife from the Canaanites (v.37) and the references to God as YHWH (“LORD” in the NRSV), the story is attributed to the Deuteronomic writers (650 to 550 BCE).
Abraham’s servant did what everyone looking for a wife does – he went to a well where women draw water. (Jacob and Moses also met their wives this way.) He encountered Rebekah, who was Isaac’s first cousin, once removed. (Her father, Bethuel, was Isaac’s first cousin.) Rebekah answered Eliezer’s questions satisfactorily (v.46) and he brought her to Isaac to be his wife (v.67).
Zechariah 9:9-12
The Book of Zechariah is the longest and most obscure of the “Minor Prophets” (so called because their books are much shorter than the three “Major Prophets” – Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. It has 14 chapters, and Chapters 9 to 14 are referred to as “An Oracle” – the superscription at the beginning of Chapter 9.
Today’s reading is one of the many (sometimes contradictory) descriptions of the anticipated Messiah found in the Hebrew Bible. The image here is a king who brings peace and rides on a donkey rather than on a war-horse. The king’s dominion is not only over Israel, but is from sea to sea, from “the River” (the Euphrates in northern Syria) to the ends of the earth (v.10).
The Hebrew Bible contains many parallelisms, and the description of the king “on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (v.9) is intended to describe one animal. The Gospel of Matthew (unlike Mark and Luke) treats the phrase as describing two animals (Matt.21.5).
Romans 7:15-25a
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and most complex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about ten years before the first Gospel (Mark) was written.
Today’s reading is part of Paul’s extended discussion of the law, sin, the flesh, and the Spirit. As a First Century Jew, Paul saw the Jewish Law as “spiritual” (v.14). But as a Jesus Follower, he recognized that mere obedience to the Law would not lead to wholeness/salvation. Without the Spirit, even outward obedience to the Law could be a manifestation of “the flesh” (our human tendency towards self-centeredness and self-interest) that is grounded in sin (our personal egoism). Paul says it is through the Spirit that we can be rescued from “this body of death” (v.24).
2017, July 16 ~ Genesis 25:19-34, Isaiah 55:10-13 & Romans 8:1-11
/in Uncategorized /by Thomas O'BrienDuring the 2017 Pentecost Season, alternative readings from the Hebrew Bible are offered. Scripture in Context will discuss both readings and the reading from the Christian Scriptures.
Genesis 25:19-34
Today’s reading comes after the burial of Abraham by his sons Ishmael and Isaac, and a list of the 12 tribes descended from Ishmael residing in the deserts on both sides of the Red Sea.
The birth of Jacob and Esau is an etiology, a story of origins (in Greek, “etio” means a beginning and “logo” is a story). An anthropomorphic (humanlike) YHWH tells Rebekah she has two nations in her womb (v.23). Jacob (whose name means “supplanter”) will become the father of the 12 tribes of Israel, and Esau (whose name means “red”) will be the father of the Edomites, traditional enemies of Israel.
In the story, the younger son Jacob buys Esau’s “birthright” (blessing, family leadership and a double share of inheritance when Isaac dies) for a bowl of stew. Esau is presented as dull-witted, willing to give up his birthright because he is hungry. This is a slap at the Edomites whom Israel dominated during the reigns of David and Solomon (1005-930 BCE), and who pillaged Jerusalem during the middle years of the Babylonian Exile (587-539 BCE).
Isaiah 55:10-13
The Book of Isaiah is a composite of writings from three distinct periods in Israel’s history. Chapters 1-39 are called “First Isaiah” and were written by “Isaiah of Jerusalem” in the 20 years before Jerusalem was under direct siege by the Assyrians in 701 BCE. “Second Isaiah” is Chapters 40 to 55 and brings hope to the Judeans during the time of the Exile in Babylon (587 to 539 BCE) by telling them they have suffered enough and will return to Jerusalem. “Third Isaiah” is Chapters 56 to 66 and gives encouragement to the Judeans who returned to Jerusalem after the Exile.
Today’s reading is the closing verses of Second Isaiah. It emphasizes the effectiveness of YHWH’s word (v.11) and the joy the people will experience (v.12) when the Exile ends with the conquest of the Babylonians by Cyrus the Great of Persia in 539 BCE and the Return to Jerusalem.
Romans 8:1-11
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and most complex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about ten years before the first Gospel (Mark) was written.
Today’s reading continues Paul’s extended discussion of law, sin, the flesh, and the Spirit. For Paul, “the flesh” is our human tendency towards self-centeredness and self-interest. “Sin” is our personal egoism that leads to “death” (both spiritual and physical). (Paul takes literally the story of Adam’s disobedience as the cause of human mortality.) Life in the Spirit leads to wholeness and Eternal Life. Paul uses “law” in diverse ways – in some places, it means the Jewish Law, but in other contexts it means a “way of living” as in “the law of the Spirit in the life of Christ Jesus” and “the law of sin and death” (v.2).
2017, July 9 ~ Genesis 24:34-38,42-49,58-67; Zechariah 9:9-12; Romans 7:15-25a
/in Uncategorized /by Thomas O'BrienDuring the 2017 Pentecost Season, alternative readings from the Hebrew Bible are offered. Scripture in Context will discuss both readings and the reading from the Christian Scriptures.
Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Today’s reading is the conclusion of the story of how Abraham’s servant – not named in Chapter 24, but thought to be Eliezer of Damascus (Gen. 15:2) – obtained a wife for Isaac by going back to Haran, the land from which Abraham came.
Because of the emphasis on Isaac’s not taking a wife from the Canaanites (v.37) and the references to God as YHWH (“LORD” in the NRSV), the story is attributed to the Deuteronomic writers (650 to 550 BCE).
Abraham’s servant did what everyone looking for a wife does – he went to a well where women draw water. (Jacob and Moses also met their wives this way.) He encountered Rebekah, who was Isaac’s first cousin, once removed. (Her father, Bethuel, was Isaac’s first cousin.) Rebekah answered Eliezer’s questions satisfactorily (v.46) and he brought her to Isaac to be his wife (v.67).
Zechariah 9:9-12
The Book of Zechariah is the longest and most obscure of the “Minor Prophets” (so called because their books are much shorter than the three “Major Prophets” – Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. It has 14 chapters, and Chapters 9 to 14 are referred to as “An Oracle” – the superscription at the beginning of Chapter 9.
Today’s reading is one of the many (sometimes contradictory) descriptions of the anticipated Messiah found in the Hebrew Bible. The image here is a king who brings peace and rides on a donkey rather than on a war-horse. The king’s dominion is not only over Israel, but is from sea to sea, from “the River” (the Euphrates in northern Syria) to the ends of the earth (v.10).
The Hebrew Bible contains many parallelisms, and the description of the king “on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (v.9) is intended to describe one animal. The Gospel of Matthew (unlike Mark and Luke) treats the phrase as describing two animals (Matt.21.5).
Romans 7:15-25a
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and most complex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about ten years before the first Gospel (Mark) was written.
Today’s reading is part of Paul’s extended discussion of the law, sin, the flesh, and the Spirit. As a First Century Jew, Paul saw the Jewish Law as “spiritual” (v.14). But as a Jesus Follower, he recognized that mere obedience to the Law would not lead to wholeness/salvation. Without the Spirit, even outward obedience to the Law could be a manifestation of “the flesh” (our human tendency towards self-centeredness and self-interest) that is grounded in sin (our personal egoism). Paul says it is through the Spirit that we can be rescued from “this body of death” (v.24).
2017, July 2 ~ Genesis 22:1-14, Jeremiah 28:5-9 & Romans 6:12-23
/in Scripture in Context /by Thomas O'BrienDuring the 2017 Pentecost Season, alternative readings from the Hebrew Bible are offered. Scripture in Context will discuss both readings and the reading from the Christian Scriptures.
Genesis 22:1-14
Today’s reading is the story of the Near Sacrifice of Isaac, known to Jews as the Akedah (the Binding – based on verse 9). In the Quran, the same story appears, but the son whom Abraham was called to sacrifice was Ishmael, not Isaac.
Isaac’s age is not known. He is old enough to carry the wood (v.6) and discuss what will be sacrificed (v. 7). In some translations, he is called Abraham’s “only” son (vv.2 and 12), but in other translations, the word “only” is omitted and Isaac is referred to as Abraham’s “beloved” son. This recognizes that Abraham had another son, Ishmael, by Hagar (Sarah’s servant).
Abraham is described as having the “fear of God” (v.12). In the Hebrew Scriptures, this is generally understood as active obedience to the will of God (as one best discerns God’s will).
Jeremiah 28:5-9
After the righteous King Josiah was killed in battle in 609 BCE, the fortunes of Judea took a sharp downward turn. Babylon threatened Judea’s existence, and Judea had a series of hapless kings from 609 until Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Babylonians deported some Judean leaders in 597 and a larger number of them in 586 (the beginning of the Babylonian Exile). Jeremiah’s prophesying (i.e. speaking for Yahweh) began around 609 and continued until 586 BCE when he died in Egypt.
Today’s reading is set in the period from 597 to 594 BCE. A false prophet, Hananiah, prophesied that the treasures from the Temple that were taken as spoils by the Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar, would be returned soon – even though Judah had not repented and Babylon was as strong as ever. In today’s verses and the ones that follow, Jeremiah says he hopes Hananiah’s prophesies would come true, but then denies that Hananiah has a commission from God and asserts that the Babylonians will enslave the Judeans.
Romans 6:12-23
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and most complex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about ten years before the first Gospel (Mark) was written.
Today’s reading continues Paul’s discussion of the effects of Baptism (which joins us in the death of Christ Jesus and unites us with him in overcoming death through resurrection). In speaking of “sin” (rather than “sins”), Paul is referring to the human propensity to assert our own ego and power rather than living as “instruments of righteousness” (v.13) i.e. living in right relationships with God and others. When Paul refers negatively to “the law,” he expresses the view that mere obedience to rules will not bring about human wholeness or salvation or righteousness or Eternal Life, terms which Paul uses interchangeably.
2017, June 25 ~ Genesis 21:8-21, Jeremiah 20:7-13 & Romans 6:1b-11
/in Scripture in Context /by Thomas O'BrienDuring the 2017 Pentecost Season, alternative readings from the Hebrew Bible are offered. Scripture in Context will discuss both readings and the reading from the Christian Scriptures.
Genesis 21:8-21
The word “Genesis” means “origin” and the Book of Genesis starts with Creation and concludes with the death of Joseph (Jacob’s son) in Egypt. The Book is an amalgam of religious traditions, some of which are dated to about 950 BCE and some as late as 450 BCE.
The verses before today’s reading tell of the conception of Isaac by the 90+ year old Sarah and his birth. (Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian slave, bore Abraham’s first son, Ishmael, 13 years earlier.)
Today’s account is part of an “etiology” – a story of origins – of non-Jewish Semitic peoples who claim their ancestral fatherhood through Ishmael. In the story, God says, “I will make a great nation of him” to Abraham (v. 13) and to Hagar (v.18).
Even though God urges Abraham to acquiesce to Sarah’s demand that he cast out the slave woman and her 15-year old son (v. 10), God hears Hagar’s lament (“Ishmael” means “God hears”) and protects both Hagar and Ishmael.
Muslims, based on the Quran, trace their religious roots to Abraham through Ishmael.
Jeremiah 20:7-13
After the righteous King Josiah was killed in battle in 609 BCE, the fortunes of Judea took a sharp downward turn. Babylon threatened Judea’s existence, and Judea had a series of hapless kings from 609 until Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Babylonians deported some Judeans in 597 and a larger number in 586 (the beginning of the Babylonian Exile). Jeremiah’s prophesy (i.e. speaking for Yahweh) began around 609 and continued until 586 BCE when he died in Egypt.
Today’s reading is one of Jeremiah’s laments in which he claims YHWH exerts such irresistible power over him that he cannot help but proclaim the unpopular message that unless the king and people reform, they will be overcome by Babylon and be in captivity. Notwithstanding his lament, Jeremiah expresses confidence in God’s protection for those who rely on YHWH (v. 13).
Romans 6:1b-11
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and most complex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about ten years before the first Gospel (Mark) was written.
Today’s reading is a discussion by Paul of the effects of Baptism. In Baptism, we are united with Christ Jesus in his death, we will be united with him in resurrection (v. 5), and we should consider ourselves “dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (v.11). For Paul, “sin” (as contrasted with “sins”) can be understood as our human propensity to put ourselves and our egos in first place rather than (as Jesus did) having the good of others as our primary focus.
2017, June 18 ~ Genesis 18:1-15, Exodus 19:2-8a & Romans 5:1-8
/in Scripture in Context /by Thomas O'BrienDuring the 2017 Pentecost Season, alternative readings from the Hebrew Bible are offered. Scripture in Context will discuss both readings and the reading from the Christian Scriptures.
Genesis 18:1-15
The word “Genesis” means “origin” and the Book of Genesis starts with Creation and concludes with the death of Joseph (Jacob’s son) in Egypt. The Book is an amalgam of religious traditions, some of which are dated to about 950 BCE and some as late as 450 BCE.
Today’s reading is the account of three “men” (also identified as YHWH in verse 13) who came to Abraham’s tent at Mamre (whose oaks were regarded as oracles). They predicted that Sarah (who was over 90 years old) would have a son in a year. Sarah’s laughed. This anticipated the name of her son, Isaac (which means “he laughs”). Abraham’s hospitality to the three sacred figures was overwhelming: an entire calf and three “measures” of flour (about 63 quarts of flour).
Exodus 19:2-8a
Exodus, the second book of the Bible, covers the slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh (around 1250 BCE, if the account is historical), the Exodus itself, and early months in the Wilderness.
Today’s reading is from the Priestly writer – shown by the emphasis on precise dates. The events occurred “on the very day” of the third new moon after leaving Egypt, the day the Israelites reached Sinai. (The holy mountain is called “Horeb” by other writers – for example, Ex. 3:1.)
YHWH proposed a conditional covenant to Moses and the Israelites (“If you obey my voice” v.5), and all the people responded that they would do all that YHWH had spoken (v.8). This event is the basis in Judaism for the Feast of Pentecost (Ex. 23.16).
Romans 5:1-8
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and most complex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about ten years before the first Gospel (Mark) was written.
Paul uses some words that are difficult for us. He says we are “justified” in verse 1. This means living in “righteousness” or in a right relationship with God and others – being “justified” as a page of type is “justified” when the margins are square on both the left and the right.
Paul’s use of “faith” (v.1) is better understood as “faithfulness” because the Greek word has an active aspect. Today, “Faith” is often understood as intellectual assent to one or more propositions. “Faithfulness” is active living into one’s beliefs through grace and trust in God.
Paul was a Jew who became a Jesus Follower (the term “Christian” hadn’t been invented in his lifetime). All during Paul’s life, animal sacrifices at the Jerusalem Temple were a way Jews were reconciled to YHWH. This continued until the Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE – after Paul’s death. It is therefore not surprising that Paul uses “sacrifice” language to interpret the meaning of the Crucifixion: “Christ died for us” (v.8); we are “justified by his blood” (v. 9).
2017, June 11 ~ Genesis 1:1-2:3 & 2 Corinthians 13:5-14
/in Uncategorized /by Thomas O'BrienGenesis 1:1-2.3
The word “Genesis” means “origin” and the Book of Genesis starts with Creation and concludes with the death of Joseph (Jacob’s son) in Egypt. The Book is an amalgam of religious traditions, some of which are dated to about 950 BCE and some of which were developed as late as 450 BCE.
Today’s reading is the First Creation Story. (The Second Creation Story begins at 2.4 and tells of YHWH’s forming the earthling – adam – out of the fertile earth – adamah – and breathing life into the earthling.) Even the name of God is different in the Second Creation Story.
The First Creation Story is structured as seven days in which God — Elohim (literally, “the gods”) in the Hebrew – brings order (Shalom) to all reality by separating its component parts. It is noteworthy that creation is not presented as a creation out of nothing but rather an ordering of the earth, the waters, light and time. (The already-existing earth is described as formless and darkness covers the already-existing waters in verse 2.)
This Story is very similar in structure to the seven-day Babylonian Creation Story which the Jewish People encountered during the Babylonian Captivity (587-539 BCE). For this reason and because of the emphasis on the Sabbath on the seventh day, scholars agree that this First Creation Story was composed by the “Priestly” authors in the period from 550 to 450 BCE.
This reading is selected for Trinity Sunday because (among other things) the name of God in Hebrew in this account (Elohim) is a plural word (Hebrew words ending in “im” are plural) and because Verse 1:26 says “Let us make humankind in our image.” Christian interpreters have sometimes also seen “the wind from God” (v.2) as the Spirit of the Trinity.
2 Corinthians 13:5-14
Corinth, a large port city in Greece, was among the early Jesus Follower communities that Paul founded. Its culture was Hellenistic and emphasized reason, secular wisdom and a hierarchical structure in society. Paul’s relationship with the community was often strained.
Most scholars believe that the letter is a composite of several letters because Paul’s tone shifts so significantly within the letter. It moves from conciliatory (Chapter 2) to argumentative (3 to 5), to reconciling (6 and 7), to appealing for funds (8 and 9), to attacking “super-apostles” (11), to defensive regarding accusations he has enriched himself from the collections (12). Today’s reading is the concluding part of this Second Letter and is a mix of scolding and exhortation. For example, 13:2 and 13:10 are scolding and 13.11-12 are an appeal for good behavior on the part of the Corinthians.
Acts 2:1-21, 1 Cor. 12:3b-13 & Num. 11:24-30
/in Scripture in Context /by Thomas O'BrienActs 2:1-21
The book, “The Acts of the Apostles,” was written by the author of the Gospel According to Luke around 85 to 90 CE. Today’s reading is an account of the giving of the Holy Spirit to the disciples on Pentecost. (Another account is given in John 20.22 when the resurrected Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit upon the disciples on the evening of Easter.)
Pentecost was a well-established Jewish Feast ordained by Lev. 23 to celebrate the spring barley harvest 50 days after Passover. It was also known as the Feast of Weeks and Jewish tradition held that the gift of the Law was given on this day. It was one of the three feasts in Judaism that called for Jews to come to Jerusalem. For this reason, Jews and proselytes (full converts to Judaism) gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast.
The “violent wind” (v.2) is likely a reference to the “wind from God” that swept over the waters in the First Creation Story (Gen. 1:2) and recognizes that breath is the sign of life, as when YHWH breathed life into the earthling in the Second Creation Story (Gen. 2:7).
In describing the disciples speaking other languages, the author signifies a reversal of the confusion caused by the multiplicity of languages “resulting” from the Tower of Babel story in Genesis 11.
1 Cor. 12:3b-13
Corinth, a large port city in Greece, was among the early Jesus Follower communities that Paul founded. Its culture was Hellenistic and emphasized reason, secular wisdom and a hierarchical structure in society.
In today’s reading, Paul emphasizes diversity in unity, and uses the metaphor of the body as unifying the members and their different gifts of the Spirit (vv. 12-13). This discussion is a basis for his exhortation in the verses that follow (vv. 14-20) that even an individualistic attitude by any member would not make it any less a part of the whole body.
Num. 11:24-30
Numbers is the fourth book of the Torah (Hebrew meaning “teaching” or “Law”), known in Greek as the Pentateuch (“Five Books”). It describes the time of the Israelites in the Wilderness before entering the Promised Land. If the time in the Wilderness is historical (no archeological evidence has ever been found to support it), this would have been around 1250 BCE.
Most of the book of Numbers was written by the “Priestly Source” during the Babylonian Exile (587-539 BCE) and the 100 years after the Exile.
Today’s reading describes imparting the spirit of “prophesy” (ability to speak for God) on 70 elders. This sharing of the spirit causes concern among some of Moses’ followers, and Moses reassures them that the spirit of YHWH may be shared. The story reflects the Hebrew Bible’s ambivalence about prophesy generally.
2017, May 28 ~ Acts 1:6-14 & 1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11
/in Scripture in Context /by Thomas O'BrienActs 1:6-14
Last Thursday was Ascension Thursday, and today’s reading presents an account of the Ascension of Jesus the Christ.
Even though Acts of the Apostles was written around 85 to 90 CE by the same person who wrote the Gospel According to Luke, the Gospel locates the Ascension on the Day of Easter (Luke 24:51). Acts, however, says Jesus was with his disciples for 40 days (1:3) – and this has become the traditional period between Easter and the day for observing the Ascension.
The opening verse of today’s reading shows that the disciples still did not “get it” that Kingdom of God did not mean restoring the temporal Kingdom of Israel. Jesus, the resurrected Christ, gently disabuses them of their limited approach, and promises the Holy Spirit will come upon them.
Jesus then ascends from Mount Olivet, which is described as “a sabbath day’s journey” away from Jerusalem. In the First Century, this was about half a mile – the maximum distance a devout Jew was permitted to walk on the Sabbath (an interpretation of Exodus 16.29).
In Luke and Acts, unlike the other Gospels in which the disciples go to Galilee, they remain in Jerusalem to await the promised coming of the Holy Spirit. According to Acts, the coming of the Spirit occurs on Pentecost, a celebratory day that was also known as the Feast of Weeks in First Century Judaism.
1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11
In the First Century, it was not uncommon to write something in another person’s name so that the writing would have extra “authority” – particularly when the writer believed he knew what the “authority” (in this case, Peter) would have said.
The First Letter of Peter was written in the last decade of the First Century, long after Peter’s death. It was written in sophisticated Greek and resembles the form of Paul’s letters. Its focus is not on the earthly life of Jesus of Nazareth, but on the Resurrection and the affirmation that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah.
Today’s reading emphasizes that suffering is witnesses to the truth of the faith of the Christian community. (This letter is one of the three places in the Christian Scriptures that refers to Jesus Followers as “Christians.” Acts 11:26 notes that the first use was in Antioch, and the term is used again in Acts 26:28.)
The reading concludes with a final exhortation to trust in the power of God.
2017, May 21 ~ Acts 17:22-31 & 1 Peter 3:13-22
/in Uncategorized /by Thomas O'BrienActs 17:22-31
The book, “The Acts of the Apostles,” was written by the author of the Gospel According to Luke around 85 to 90 CE. The second half of Acts (Chapters 16 to 28) recounts Paul’s Missionary Journeys.
Just before today’s reading, Paul was at a synagogue where he would have focused his conversion efforts on Gentiles who were sympathetic to Jewish Law (called “God Fearers”). (The Jesus Follower Movement was part of Judaism until the Destruction of the Temple in 70 CE and for some years thereafter.)
In today’s reading, Paul is presented as making an address to the Athenians at the Aeropagus (a hill west of the Acropolis and a place associated with Socrates). Modern persons would likely call Paul’s audience “pagans,” but in the First Century, most persons worshiped many gods and even regarded Jews as non-theists because they worshiped only one god.
The Athenians and the Romans had local gods, gods for activities such as farming and war, and gods for their homes. “Care” of the gods was performed through cult practices (including prayer and sacrifices) and was considered very important to the good functioning of society. (“Cult” is derived from a Latin word meaning “care” as in the word “agriculture” – care of the fields.)
Although an inscription to an unknown god has never been found in Athens, the author of Acts has Paul present the argument to the Athenians that their statue to the “unknown god” shows how religious they are (likely an ironic statement). He presents a God unknown to them who creates and gives life to all, allocates the boundaries of nations, commands all persons to repent, will have an appointed man judge the world in righteousness, and gives assurance of all this by raising the man from the dead.
1 Peter 3:13-22
In the First Century, it was not uncommon to write something in another person’s name so that the writing would have extra “authority” – particularly when the writer believed he knew what the “authority” (in this case, Peter) would have said. The First Letter of Peter was likely written in the last quarter of the First Century, long after Peter’s death.
In today’s reading, the author urges his audience to be willing to suffer for doing what is right, just as Jesus suffered for doing good. He summarizes the Christian Faith as hope (v.15) and notes that Jesus The Christ was “put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit” (v.18).
He presents the Flood in Noah’s time as prefiguring Baptism which is “an appeal to God through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” (v.21)
2017, May 14 ~ Acts 7:55-60 & 1 Peter 2:2-10
/in Scripture in Context /by Thomas O'BrienActs 7:55-60
The book, “The Acts of the Apostles,” was written by the author of the Gospel According to Luke around 85 to 90 CE.
Today’s reading presents the death by stoning of Stephen, the first martyr.
Stephen’s story began in Chapter 6 when the apostles appointed Stephen as one of the first seven deacons (based on a Greek word “to serve”) to distribute food to the widows of Jewish Jesus Followers and Gentile Jesus Followers.
Stephen is portrayed as performing signs and wonders. His opponents, however, seized him, brought him before a council, and falsely accused him of speaking against the Temple and the Law. He responded by giving a lengthy account of the stories of Ancient Israel including Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua and David. (Some aspects are different from the stories in the Hebrew Bible because the author of Acts relied on the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible called the Septuagint.) Stephen concluded by accusing his opponents of being “stiff necked” and failing to follow the law.
In today’s reading, as Stephen is facing death, he has a vision of “the Son of Man” standing at God’s right hand. “Son of Man” is a term found both in Daniel and in Ezekiel, and is best understood as “THE Human Being” — the best that a human can be. The reading concludes by noting that the witnesses to Stephen’s death laid their coats at the feet of Saul – the Jewish version of the Roman name “Paul.” Saul’s “Damascus Road Experience” is recounted in Chapter 9 of Acts, and Paul is the main character in Chapters 15 to 28 of Acts. As Stephen dies, he asks God not to hold the sin against his executors, an echo of Luke 23:34 (“Father, forgive them”) – words found only in the Gospel According to Luke.
1 Peter 2:2-10
In the First Century, it was not uncommon to write something in another person’s name so that the writing would have extra “authority” – particularly when the writer believed he knew what the “authority” (in this case, Peter) would have said.
The First Letter of Peter was likely written in the last quarter of the First Century, long after Peter’s death. It was written in sophisticated Greek and resembles the form of Paul’s letters. Its focus is not on the earthly life of Jesus of Nazareth, but on the Resurrection and the affirmation that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah.
Today’s reading contains the last (of five) directives to the Jesus Followers: to long for the means of spiritual nourishment. It emphasizes that we are all part of “a holy priesthood” (v.5) and that the Christian life is communal, not individual (“a chosen race, a holy nation, God’s own people.” (v.9)