These readings remind us that, even in the midst of terrible judgment, God holds out the possibilities of repentance and mercy. Christians at Smyrna are commended for holding fast, and encouraged to be faithful in times of suffering. We all are called to give priority to justice, mercy and faith. (Comments repeated from December 10, 2003, for December 11, 2003)

Amos 9:1-10

The Destruction of Israel

9:1 I saw the LORD standing beside the altar, and he said:

Strike the capitals until the thresholds shake,

and shatter them on the heads of all the people;

and those who are left I will kill with the sword;

not one of them shall flee away,

not one of them shall escape.

2 Though they dig into Sheol,

from there shall my hand take them;

though they climb up to heaven,

from there I will bring them down.

3 Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel,

from there I will search out and take them;

and though they hide from my sight at the bottom of the sea,

there I will command the sea-serpent, and it shall bite them.

4 And though they go into captivity in front of their enemies,

there I will command the sword, and it shall kill them;

and I will fix my eyes on them

for harm and not for good.

5 The Lord, GOD of hosts,

he who touches the earth and it melts,

and all who live in it mourn,

and all of it rises like the Nile,

and sinks again, like the Nile of Egypt;

6 who builds his upper chambers in the heavens,

and founds his vault upon the earth;

who calls for the waters of the sea,

and pours them out upon the surface of the earth–

the LORD is his name.

7 Are you not like the Ethiopians to me,

O people of Israel? says the LORD.

Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt,

and the Philistines from Caphtor and the Arameans from Kir?

8 The eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom,

and I will destroy it from the face of the earth

--except that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,

says the LORD.

9 For lo, I will command,

and shake the house of Israel among all the nations

as one shakes with a sieve,

but no pebble shall fall to the ground.

10 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword,

who say, "Evil shall not overtake or meet us." (Amos 9:1-10, NRSV)

In the fifth vision, Amos sees the LORD himself "standing beside the altar" (Amos 9:1) and "giving orders for the total destruction of the people" (G.M. Tucker, HarperCollins Study Bible). An exception is made for "the house of Jacob" (v. 8), which has been seen as a reference to Judah (Tucker). God is still God, the creator (vv. 5-6), and even in this "total destruction," in which "not one of them shall escape" (v. 1), there is a place for a "sieve" (v. 9), which suggests a sifting process, "separating the sinners from the others" (Tucker). (Comments repeated from December 10, 2003, for December 11, 2003)

Revelation 2:8-17

8 "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of the first and the last, who was dead and came to life:

9 "I know your affliction and your poverty, even though you are rich. I know the slander on the part of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Beware, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison so that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have affliction. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. Whoever conquers will not be harmed by the second death.

12 "And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword:

13 "I know where you are living, where Satan's throne is. Yet you are holding fast to my name, and you did not deny your faith in me even in the days of Antipas my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan lives. 14 But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the people of Israel, so that they would eat food sacrificed to idols and practice fornication. 15 So you also have some who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Repent then. If not, I will come to you soon and make war against them with the sword of my mouth. 17 Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give a white stone, and on the white stone is written a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it. (Revelation 2:8-17, NRSV)

John next presents the letters to the churches of Smyrna (Rev. 2:8-11) and Pergamum (vv. 12-17). Both churches are commended and encouraged, Smyrna for enduring "affliction and . . . poverty . . . slander" and Pergamum for "holding fast to my name" even though they "are living where Satan's throne is," perhaps an altar to Zeus in Pergamum or a worship center for the imperial cult (D. E. Aune, HarperCollins Study Bible). They have endured the loss of a Christian brother "executed or lynched" (Aune, cf. v. 13). But the Pergamum church is also rebuked and called to repentance for tolerating false teachings (vv. 14-15), whereas the Smyrna church is encouraged to remain faithful in further suffering (v. 10). "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." (Comments repeated from December 10, 2003, for December 11, 2003)

Matthew 23:13-26

13 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in, you stop them. 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cross sea and land to make a single convert, and you make the new convert twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

16 "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the sanctuary is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by the oath.' 17 You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that has made the gold sacred? 18 And you say, 'Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on the altar is bound by the oath.' 19 How blind you are! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 So whoever swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it; 21 and whoever swears by the sanctuary, swears by it and by the one who dwells in it; 22 and whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by the one who is seated upon it.

23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

25 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean. (Matthew 23:13-26, NRSV)

Jesus criticizes Pharisees because they "tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith" (Mt. 23:23). They are "blind guides" who "strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!" (v. 24). They "clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence" (v. 25). "The Talmud's 'he that kills a flea on the Sabbath is as guilty as if he killed a camel' (Shab. 12a) gives the background to this saying, which is more natural in Aramaic where 'camel' and 'gnat' are similar in pronunciation" (K. Stendahl, Peake's Commentary). Who among us has not, at time, been confused about values and priorities? We all need to hear the call to focus on the weightier matters: justice, mercy and faith. (Comments repeated from December 10, 2003, for December 11, 2003)

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

rworden@houston.rr.com