Ezra 5:1-17 or Lamentations 1:1-5 (6-9) 10-12

See the text and comments for October 25, one week ago.

Revelation 4:1-11

See the text and comments for October 25, one week ago.

Matthew 13:1-9

See the text and comments for October 25, one week ago.

Some comments on these readings for today have been taken or adapted from comments in my devotional email of Monday, November 3, 2003, for the readings of Tuesday, November 4, 2003.

Nehemiah 12:27-31a, 42b-47

Dedication of the City Wall

27 Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with rejoicing, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres. 28 The companies of the singers gathered together from the circuit around Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites; 29 also from Beth-gilgal and from the region of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem. 30 And the priests and the Levites purified themselves; and they purified the people and the gates and the wall.

31 Then I brought the leaders of Judah up onto the wall, and appointed two great companies that gave thanks and went in procession.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

And the singers sang with Jezrahiah as their leader. 43 They offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. The joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.

Temple Responsibilities

44 On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the law for the priests and for the Levites from the fields belonging to the towns; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered. 45 They performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the command of David and his son Solomon. 46 For in the days of David and Asaph long ago there was a leader of the singers, and there were songs of praise and thanksgiving to God. 47 In the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah all Israel gave the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers. They set apart that which was for the Levites; and the Levites set apart that which was for the descendants of Aaron. (Nehemiah 12:27-31a, 42b-47, NRSV)

It’s time to celebrate! Especially in the reading from Nehemiah. We know from other parts of the book that there was a dark side, but in Tuesday’s reading it’s party time! The shadows appear in the other readings, “the beast from the bottomless pit,” the “Dragnet” that separates people at the judgment, but celebration breaks through in the praise of the elders for God, who is in control, and the immeasurable value of the Treasure and the Pearl. For those who have suffered the loss of loved ones or other seeming defeats–hurricanes, or whatever–God has promised that he can bring good out of “all things” (Rom. 8:28). It may still be time to celebrate the presence of loved ones with the Lord, according to his promise. There may be other hidden values in our experiences. I pray that it may be so.

We read of “the dedication of the walls, with music, purification, procession, and sacrifice” (Neh. 12:27-43) and of “arrangements for temple revenues” (vv. 44-47); A. Jeffery, J. J. Collins, NOAB, 2^rd ed.). It sound like they had a real party–a real celebration–in Jerusalem: “they sought out the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with rejoicing, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres” (v. 27).

They also had “a meeting for business,” to borrow a Quaker phrase. Men were appointed for various tasks, gathering and sorting the various tithes and offerings (v. 44). Provisions were made for the priests and Levites, and the singers and gatekeepers as well, to perform their services (v. 45). Historical precedents for these services were cited, or attributed, to the days of David and Asaph (v. 46) and the days of Zerubbabel and the days of Nehemiah (v. 47). The reference to “the days of Zerubbabel and . . . Nehemiah” is interpreted by Tamara Cohn Eskenazi as “from the beginning of the return (Ezra 2) to Nehemiah” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Neh. 12:47).

or Ezra 4:7, 11-24

For comments on Ezra 4:7, 11-24, see the comments for Saturday, October 22, 2005.

Revelation 11:1-19

The Two Witnesses

11:1 Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, "Come and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample over the holy city for forty-two months. 3 And I will grant my two witnesses authority to prophesy for one thousand two hundred sixty days, wearing sackcloth."

4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone wants to harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes; anyone who wants to harm them must be killed in this manner. 6 They have authority to shut the sky, so that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have authority over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.

7 When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that is prophetically called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. 9 For three and a half days members of the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb; 10 and the inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and celebrate and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to the inhabitants of the earth.

11 But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and those who saw them were terrified. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here!" And they went up to heaven in a cloud while their enemies watched them. 13 At that moment there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

14 The second woe has passed. The third woe is coming very soon.

Today’s reading completes the interlude between the sixth (Rev. 9:13-21) and seventh (11:14-19) trumpets (noted in yesterday’s comments, but concludes with the passage on the seventh trumpet. The scene is getting more complex, with John measuring the temple and the altar and those who worship there (11:1). He is told, however, not to “measure the court outside the temple” which “is given over to the nations, and they will trample over the holy city for forty-two months” (v. 2). The measuring of “the sanctuary and those who worship there” is “with a view to their preservation (as in Zech. 2:1-5); compare Ezek. 40:3-42:20)” (Bruce M. Metzger, NOAB, 2^rd ed., on Rev. 11:1). This protection is not granted to “the nations” which “will trample over the holy city” (v. 2). “Two witnesses” have “authority to prophesy for one thousand two hundred sixty days, wearing sackcloth” (v. 3). They are “unnamed but resembling Zerubbabel and Joshua (Zech. 3:1-4:14) as well as Elijah (vv. 5-6; 2 Kings 1:10) and Moses (v. 6; Ex. 7:17, 19),” says Metzger, who further suggests that the “sackcloth” is “a sign that their prophecy was of repentance” (Metzger, on v. 3). Their authority brings judgment on the earth (v. 6), but draws them into conflict–war--with the “beast from the bottomless pit” (v. 7). They lie dead “in the street of the great city that is prophetically called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified” (v. 8). “The great city is identified here prophetically, i.e., allegorically or spiritually rather than literally by its proper name. While the majority of scholars understand the city as Jerusalem [so Metzger, NOAB, 2^rd ed.], others suggest that the city is Rome, as is Babylon in 17:1-6" (Jean-Pierre Ruiz, NOAB, 3^rd ed., on v. 8). Of course, “the Lord was crucified” in Jerusalem, not Rome (unless that phrase is also meant allegorically). But the two witnesses are brought to life again when “the breath of life from God entered them” (v. 11), and they ascend to heaven “while their enemies watched them” (v. 12). But “a great earthquake” caused “a tenth of the city” to fall, killing “seven thousand people” (v. 13).-

The Seventh Trumpet

15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying,

"The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord

and of his Messiah,

and he will reign forever and ever."

16 Then the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 singing,

"We give you thanks, Lord God Almighty,

who are and who were,

for you have taken your great power

and begun to reign.

18 The nations raged,

but your wrath has come,

and the time for judging the dead,

for rewarding your servants, the prophets

and saints and all who fear your name,

both small and great,

and for destroying those who destroy the earth."

19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail. (Revelation 11:1-19, NRSV)

When the seventh trumpet is blown, the twenty-four elders worship God and sing, “We give you thanks, Lord God Almighty,/who are and who were,/for you have taken your great power/and begun to reign “ (vv. 16-17). So, in spite of the beast and the woes, God is in control, and there is blessing for those who belong to Him. The “time for judging the dead” is also a time “for rewarding your servants,/the prophets/and saints and all who fear your name,/both small and great” as well as a time “for destroying those who destroy the earth” (v. 18).

Matthew 13:44-52

Three Parables

44 "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; 46 on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.

47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; 48 when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous 50 and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The series of parables in Matthew chapter 13 concludes with the Parables of Hidden Treasure (v. 44, cf. Gospel of Thomas 109), the Pearl of Great Value (vv. 45-46, cf. Gospel of Thomas 76), and the Dragnet (vv. 47-51, cf. Gospel of Thomas 8). There are no parallel versions of these parables in the other Canonical Gospels. The Parable of the Dragnet refers to “the end of the age” at which time “the angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous” (Mt. 13:49. The evil will be thrown “into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (v. 50). This theme of eschatological judgment is not found in the Gospel of Thomas 8:

And he said: Man is like a wise fisherman who cast his net into the sea (thalassa); he drew it out of the sea (thalassa) when it was full of little fishes. Among them the wise fisherman found a large good fish. The wise fisherman cast all the little fishes down into the sea (thalassa) (and) chose the large fish without (chōris) difficulty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. (Trans., Bruce M. Metzger)

The Parables of the Treasure and the Pearl represent the immeasurable value of the Kingdom of Heaven. The Treasure, perhaps, provides a “catchword” connection to the following saying.

Treasures New and Old

51 "Have you understood all this?" They answered, "Yes." 52 And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old." (Matthew 13:44-52, NRSV)

Jesus praises the value of “every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven” because he “is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old” (Mt. 13:52). Given the origin of Christianity from the matrix, so to speak, of the Hebrew Bible and the Judaism of Jesus’ time, a scribe, a specialist in the Hebrew Bible and its interpretation would have much to contribute as a member of the early Christian community. Matthew, the “tax collector” (Mt. 10:3), may have had training as a scribe (cf. J. Andrew Overman, NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Mt. 13:51-53, with reference to 23:34).

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

rworden@houston.rr.com