Jeremiah 38:14-28

See the text and comments for October 14, one week ago.

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

See the text and comments for October 14, one week ago.

Matthew 11:1-6

See the text and comments for October 14, one week ago.

Ezra 3:1-13

The Altar Set Up at Jerusalem

3:1 When the seventh month came, and the Israelites were in the towns, the people gathered together in Jerusalem. 2 Then Jeshua son of Jozadak, with his fellow priests, and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel with his kin set out to build the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as prescribed in the law of Moses the man of God. 3 They set up the altar on its foundation, because they were in dread of the neighboring peoples, and they offered burnt offerings upon it to the LORD, morning and evening. 4 And they kept the festival of booths, as prescribed, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number according to the ordinance, as required for each day, 5 and after that the regular burnt offerings, the offerings at the new moon and at all the sacred festivals of the LORD, and the offerings of everyone who made a freewill offering to the LORD. 6 From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD was not yet laid. 7 So they gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and food, drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the grant that they had from King Cyrus of Persia. (Ezra 3:1-7, NRSV)

The seventh month, Tishri [not named in scripture], is September-October. After the initial preparations for the return are described (Ezra 1:5-11), and the returnees are listed (2:1-67), and they arrived in Jerusalem (2:68a), there were offerings for rebuilding (vv. 68b-69). This must have taken several weeks, if not months. But it appears that building an altar was the first order of business (3:2-3), for it was needed for sacrificial worship. Beginning with the first day of Tishri (v. 6), they began to offer “burnt offerings . . . morning and evening (v. 3). “They kept the festival of booths,” which occurs in Tishri, and offered the required burnt offerings daily (v. 4). It is reported that they resumed regular worship with its “regular burnt offerings, the offerings at the new moon and at all the sacred festivals” (v. 5). This could be done without a temple once the altar was erected. It appears that they made initial plans to rebuild the temple (v. 7)

Foundation Laid for the Temple

8 In the second year after their arrival at the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their people, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to have the oversight of the work on the house of the LORD. 9 And Jeshua with his sons and his kin, and Kadmiel and his sons, Binnui and Hodaviah along with the sons of Henadad, the Levites, their sons and kin, together took charge of the workers in the house of God.

10 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests in their vestments were stationed to praise the LORD with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, according to the directions of King David of Israel; 11 and they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the LORD,

"For he is good,

for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel."

And all the people responded with a great shout when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. 12 But many of the priests and Levites and heads of families, old people who had seen the first house on its foundations, wept with a loud voice when they saw this house, though many shouted aloud for joy, 13 so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people's weeping, for the people shouted so loudly that the sound was heard far away. (Ezra 3:8-13, NRSV)

About seven months later, “in the second year . . . in the second month” (Ezra 3:8), that is ‘Iyyar (not named in Scripture), they “made a beginning” on the task of rebuilding the temple. One would expect the “second year” to be the second year of Cyrus, that is 537 or 536 B.C., but Haggai puts this activity, or some of it, in 520 B.C. (the “second year of King Darius, in the seventh month,” Haggai 2:1). Perhaps there was an early abortive attempt to rebuild the temple, but failure to follow through immediately, which occasioned Haggai’s criticism. “Why [the meagre harvest], says the LORD of hosts. Because my house lies in ruins, while all of you hurry off to your own houses” (Hag. 1:9). For the (resumed?) attempt described in Ezra, Zerubbabel and Jeshua are named as leaders “together with the rest of their people, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity” (Ezra 1:8). There clearly was a good beginning, but also delays and setbacks. The rebuilt temple in the early post-exilic period was a far cry from the magnificent structure associated with Herod’s repairs and additions.

or Jeremiah 43:1-13 (Presbyterian Tradition)

In Egypt Jeremiah Warns of Judgment

43:1 When Jeremiah finished speaking to all the people all these words of the LORD their God, with which the LORD their God had sent him to them, 2 Azariah son of Hoshaiah and Johanan son of Kareah and all the other insolent men said to Jeremiah, "You are telling a lie. The LORD our God did not send you to say, 'Do not go to Egypt to settle there'; 3 but Baruch son of Neriah is inciting you against us, to hand us over to the Chaldeans, in order that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon." 4 So Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces and all the people did not obey the voice of the LORD, to stay in the land of Judah. 5 But Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces took all the remnant of Judah who had returned to settle in the land of Judah from all the nations to which they had been driven- 6 the men, the women, the children, the princesses, and everyone whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah son of Ahikam son of Shaphan; also the prophet Jeremiah and Baruch son of Neriah. 7 And they came into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD. And they arrived at Tahpanhes.

8 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah in Tahpanhes: 9 Take some large stones in your hands, and bury them in the clay pavement that is at the entrance to Pharaoh's palace in Tahpanhes. Let the Judeans see you do it, 10 and say to them, Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: I am going to send and take my servant King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon, and he will set his throne above these stones that I have buried, and he will spread his royal canopy over them. 11 He shall come and ravage the land of Egypt, giving

those who are destined for pestilence, to pestilence,

and those who are destined for captivity, to captivity,

and those who are destined for the sword, to the sword.

12 He shall kindle a fire in the temples of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them and carry them away captive; and he shall pick clean the land of Egypt, as a shepherd picks his cloak clean of vermin; and he shall depart from there safely. 13 He shall break the obelisks of Heliopolis, which is in the land of Egypt; and the temples of the gods of Egypt he shall burn with fire. (Jeremiah 43:1-13, NRSV)

Jeremiah urges Johanan and his followers to remain in Judah, but his advice is rejected. “You are telling a lie. The LORD our God did not send you to say, 'Do not go to Egypt to settle there'; but Baruch son of Neriah is inciting you against us, to hand us over to the Chaldeans, in order that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon” (Jer. 43:2b-3). And when he is reluctantly taken to Egypt with them, he continues to warn of judgment (vv. 8-13).

1 Corinthians 16:10-24

Timothy and Apollos

10 If Timothy comes, see that he has nothing to fear among you, for he is doing the work of the Lord just as I am; 11 therefore let no one despise him. Send him on his way in peace, so that he may come to me; for I am expecting him with the brothers.

12 Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to visit you with the other brothers, but he was not at all willing to come now. He will come when he has the opportunity. (1 Corinthians 16:10-12, NRSV)

Final Greetings

13 Keep alert, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong. 14 Let all that you do be done in love.

15 Now, brothers and sisters, you know that members of the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints; 16 I urge you to put yourselves at the service of such people, and of everyone who works and toils with them. 17 I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have made up for your absence; 18 for they refreshed my spirit as well as yours. So give recognition to such persons.

19 The churches of Asia send greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with the church in their house, greet you warmly in the Lord. 20 All the brothers and sisters send greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

21 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. 22 Let anyone be accursed who has no love for the Lord. Our Lord, come! 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. 24 My love be with all of you in Christ Jesus. (1 Corinthians 16:13-24, NRSV)

Paul commends a number of his fellow workers to the Corinthians and is grateful for the fellowship with representatives from Corinth who have come to see him. “I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have made up for your absence; for they refreshed my spirit as well as yours. So give recognition to such persons” (1 Cor. 16:17-18). Paul has attempted to correct various problems at Corinth with this letter, but the rather calm way in which he closes the letter apparently does not anticipate the issues that were to call out his strenuous defense of his apostolic ministry in 2 Corinthians.

Matthew 12:22-32

Jesus and Beelzebul (Mk 3.19b-30; Lk 11.14-23)

22 Then they brought to him a demoniac who was blind and mute; and he cured him, so that the one who had been mute could speak and see. 23 All the crowds were amazed and said, "Can this be the Son of David?" 24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, "It is only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons, that this fellow casts out the demons." 25 He knew what they were thinking and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26 If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27 If I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own exorcists cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. 29 Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his property, without first tying up the strong man? Then indeed the house can be plundered. 30 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 Therefore I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. (Matthew 12:22-32, NRSV)

The occasion when Jesus was accused of casting out demons by Beelzebul appears in three Gospels (Mt. 12:22-30; Mk. 3:22-27; Lk. 11:14-23), and the accusation that he has a demon occurs as well in Matthew 9:32-34; John 7:20; 10:20; 8:48, 52). These passages are set side by side in a separate file Jesus and Beelzebul. Luke has the story in a different context than Matthew and Mark, as apart of his extended “Travel Narrative” (Lk. 9:51-18:14), which includes many of Jesus’ teachings with parallels in Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount and elsewhere, and which includes parables found only in Luke (e.g. the Good Samaritan, Lk. 10:29-37; the Rich Fool, 12:16-21; the Prodigal Son, 15:11-32; and the Rich Man and Lazarus, 16:19-31). As for the parallels between Matthew and Mark, it seems that much of Matthew’s narrative of the early Galilean ministry comes later than the parallels in Mark, but though many of these stories are placed after the Sermon on the Mount, they still generally follow Mark’s sequence. With the Beelzebul story a sequence of close parallels between Matthew and Mark resumes: the Sin against the Holy Spirit (Mt. 12:31-37; Mk. 3:28-30), Jesus’ True Family (Mt. 12:46-50 [after the Sign of Jonah, 12:38-42 and the Return of the Evil Spirit, 12:43-45]), the Parable of the Sower (Mt. 13:1-9; Mk. 4:1-9) and the series of parables in Matthew 13 and Mark 4 (cf. Lk. 8). Even here Matthew brings in related material from other sources.

In spite of the generally parallel sequences in Matthew and Mark, the specific context of the Beelzebul controversy is different. Matthew begins with the healing of a blind and mute demoniac (Mt. 12:22; cf. 9:32–a mute demoniac–and Lk. 11:14), which becomes the occasion of the Pharisees’ accusation. Mark “sandwiches” the story between two parts of an account of Jesus’ relation to his family (Mk. 3:19b-21, 31-35). Some take Mark 3:21 to mean that Jesus’ family thought he was “out of his mind,” as in the New International Version, “When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind.’” But the two instances of “they” are indefinite–third person verb endings, sometimes the equivalent of an indefinite pronoun–and the NRSV distinguishes the first “they” (the family) from the second: “When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people [NIV’s ‘they’] were saying, ‘He has gone out of his mind.’” If, as many believe, Mark is one of Matthew’s sources, Matthew chose to pass over this comment in silence. If Matthew 12:47 (missing in some manuscripts) is an original part of Matthew’s text, their accounts of what Jesus said about his true family (Mt. 12:46-50; Mk. 3:31-35); are very similar.

Dale C. Allison, Jr., comments on Jesus’ response to the charge that he casts out demons by Beelzebul:

Jesus first responds by appeal to common sense (vv. 25-6). But vv. 27-8 are difficult. If v. 27 urges that two similar activities (exorcisms of Jesus, exorcisms of others) should not be assigned to radically dissimilar sources (Beelzebul, God), v. 28 goes on to make a claim whose logic has seemed to many unclear. Why should Jesus’ exorcisms signal the coming of the kingdom? By his own reasoning should not the same be signaled by the exorcisms of others? But the questions miss the implicit Christological claim. Jesus accepts the miracles of others but holds his own to be of different import because of his identity as the Messiah. What matters is not the exorcisms but eh exorcist (‘if I cast out demons’). The Messiah has come as victor over evil forces, so the kingdom is already establishing itself. (Dale C. Allison, Jr., The Oxford Bible Commentary, 861, on Mt. 12:22-37).

The concluding reference to blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Mt. 12:31-32; Mk. 3:28-29; Lk. 12:10) is more elaborate in Matthew, but not substantially different. Mark’s wording, “can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” (Mk. 3:29b) becomes “will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” (Mt. 12:32b). In the light of other biblical teaching, I believe it is true to say that if a person is concerned about it, he or she has not committed “the unpardonable sin,” because the concern is a part of the Holy Spirit’s dealing with this person.

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

rworden@houston.rr.com