Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 50:1, 11-24

50:1 The leader of his brothers and the pride of his people

was the high priest, Simon son of Onias,

who in his life repaired the house,

and in his time fortified the temple. (Ecclesiasticus 50:1, NRSV)

11 When he put on his glorious robe

and clothed himself in perfect splendor,

when he went up to the holy altar,

he made the court of the sanctuary glorious.

12 When he received the portions from the hands of the priests,

as he stood by the hearth of the altar

with a garland of brothers around him,

he was like a young cedar on Lebanon

surrounded by the trunks of palm trees.

13 All the sons of Aaron in their splendor

held the Lord’s offering in their hands

before the whole congregation of Israel.

14 Finishing the service at the altars,

and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty,

15 he held out his hand for the cup

and poured a drink offering of the blood of the grape;

he poured it out at the foot of the altar,

a pleasing odor to the Most High, the king of all.

16 Then the sons of Aaron shouted;

they blew their trumpets of hammered metal;

they sounded a mighty fanfare

as a reminder before the Most High.

17 Then all the people together quickly

fell to the ground on their faces

to worship their Lord,

the Almighty, God Most High.

18 Then the singers praised him with their voices

in sweet and full-toned melody.

19 And the people of the Lord Most High offered

their prayers before the Merciful One,

until the order of worship of the Lord was ended,

and they completed his ritual.

20 Then Simon came down and raised his hands

over the whole congregation of Israelites,

to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips,

and to glory in his name;

21 and they bowed down in worship a second time,

to receive the blessing from the Most High. A Benediction

22 And now bless the God of all,

who everywhere works great wonders,

who fosters our growth from birth,

and deals with us according to his mercy.

23 May he give us gladness of heart,

and may there be peace in our days

in Israel, as in the days of old.

24 May he entrust to us his mercy,

and may he deliver us in our days! (Ecclesiasticus 50:11-24, NRSV)

The following comments are repeated here from November 5, 2004 (Friday of the week of the Sunday closest to November 2, Year Two):

Ben Sira concludes his long list of the “praises of famous men” with reference to Simon son of Onias, who was the high priest in Jerusalem from 219 to 196 B.C. Simon “in his life repaired the house [i.e. the temple], and in his time fortified the temple” (Ecclus. 50:1). The synonymous parallelism, a common feature of Hebrew poetry, explains the double reference to the temple. The reading skips over details of Simon’s building and fortifying activities to his priestly service at the altars in respect to the daily whole offering (vv. 12-21). “Finishing the service at the altars, / and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty, / he held out his hand for the cup / and poured a drink offering of the blood of the grape; / he poured it out at the foot of the altar,, / a pleasing odor to the Most High, the king of all” (vv. 14-15). Others participate in the ceremony, and Simon closes the service with a blessing (vv. 20-21). Simon was a contemporary of Ben Sira, so one wonders whether the list of heroes breaks off here because Ben Sira anticipated subsequent developments with disapproval. A later Simon, Simon Maccabeus, was acknowledged as the Jewish High Priest by the foreign (Hellenistic Syrian) rulers, but rejected bo some, including those who wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls

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Zephaniah 3:8-13

Punishment and Conversion of the Nations (Cp Gen 11.1-9; Acts 2.1-11)

8 Therefore wait for me, says the LORD,

for the day when I arise as a witness.

For my decision is to gather nations,

to assemble kingdoms,

to pour out upon them my indignation,

all the heat of my anger;

for in the fire of my passion

all the earth shall be consumed.

9 At that time I will change the speech of the peoples

to a pure speech,

that all of them may call on the name of the LORD

and serve him with one accord.

10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia

my suppliants, my scattered ones,

shall bring my offering.

11 On that day you shall not be put to shame

because of all the deeds by which you have rebelled against me;

for then I will remove from your midst

your proudly exultant ones,

and you shall no longer be haughty

in my holy mountain.

12 For I will leave in the midst of you

a people humble and lowly.

They shall seek refuge in the name of the LORD-

13 the remnant of Israel;

they shall do no wrong

and utter no lies,

nor shall a deceitful tongue

be found in their mouths.

Then they will pasture and lie down,

and no one shall make them afraid. (Zephaniah 3:8-13, NRSV)

The following comments on Zephaniah 3:8-13 combine comments with revision and supplement from comments on Zephaniah 3:1-13 of November 24, 2005 (Thanksgiving Day, Thursday of the week of the Sunday closest to November 23, Year One) with notes adapted from earlier (Nov. 27-28, 2003), and from November 24, 2005 (Thursday of the week of the Sunday closest to November 23, Year One):

To this point most of Zephaniah has presented oracles of judgment against Judah (chap. 1), and her neighbors (chap. 2), and again against Jerusalem (3:1-8). But with this reading, we find the theme turning to salvation for Israel. Rex Mason comments on the transition here, saying that verse eight

is a totally unexpected denouement. One would expect vv. 1-7 to culminate in the announcement of God’s judgement against Jerusalem for all her sins, but instead, v. 8 appears to switch to the theme of the announcement of his judgement against the nations. If originally it was his intention to gather nations to act as his agents of judgement (a familiar prophetic theme, e.g. Ob. 1; Zech. 14:2) we would expect the verse to read ‘to pour out upon you,’ an emendation some have suggested (e.g. Renaud 1987: 243). Roberts (1991: 215) suggests that the verse is addressed to ‘the faithful’ and the “them’ on whom YHWH is to pour out his wrath are the faithless, corrupt officials of vv. 3-4. (The Oxford Bible Commentary, 2001, p. 606 on Zeph. 3:1-8)

When the LORD gathers the nations (v. 8), he says, “At that time I will change the speech of the peoples / to a pure speech, / that all of them may call on the name of the LORD / and serve him with one accord” (v. 9). The nations, apparently (or is it the dispersed Israelites?), will come to Jerusalem to worship “from beyond the rivers of Ethiopia,” says the LORD; “my suppliants, my scattered ones, shall bring my offering” (v. 10). Gregory Mobley notes that the promise of “pure speech” (v. 9) “removes the curse of Babel (Gen. 11:9).” He suggests that “the theme of a universal pilgrimage” is also found elsewhere, for example, Ps. 68:31 (with Ethiopia), Isa. 2:2-4; 60:5-6, 11; Mic. 4:1-4" (NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Zeph. 3:9). Israel will “not be put to shame,” says the LORD, “because of all the deeds by which you have rebelled against me” (v. 11a, b). The shame would be in allowing the nations to see Israel in her former rebellious state, but the LORD will remedy that, “for then I will remove from your midst ‘ your proudly exultant ones, / and you shall no longer be haughty / in my holy mountain” (v. 11c, d, e, f). God “will leave in the midst of you / a people humble and lowly,” a remnant (v. 12a, cf. 13). “They shall seek refuge in the name of the LORD-- / the remnant of Israel; / they shall do no wrong / and utter no lies...no one shall make them afraid” (vv. 12b-13).

Revelation 17:1-18

The Great Whore and the Beast

17:1 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great whore who is seated on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and with the wine of whose fornication the inhabitants of the earth have become drunk.” 3 So he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication; 5 and on her forehead was written a name, a mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of whores and of earth’s abominations.” 6 And I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the witnesses to Jesus.

When I saw her, I was greatly amazed. 7 But the angel said to me, “Why are you so amazed? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the inhabitants of the earth, whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will be amazed when they see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.

9 “This calls for a mind that has wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; also, they are seven kings, 10 of whom five have fallen, one is living, and the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain only a little while. 11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. 12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. 13 These are united in yielding their power and authority to the beast; 14 they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

15 And he said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the whore is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. 16 And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the whore; they will make her desolate and naked; they will devour her flesh and burn her up with fire. 17 For God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by agreeing to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.” (Revelation 17:1-18, NRSV)

The following comments are combined with revision and supplement here from November 5, 2004 (Friday of the week of the Sunday closest to November 2, Year Two) and from comments on Revelation 17:1-14 from November 5, 2005 (Monday of the week of the Sunday closest to November 2, Year One):

Following an Old Testament pattern of describing godless cities, John pictures Rome as “the great whore” (Rev. 17:1; D. E. Aune, Harper-Collins Study Bible, on Rev. 17:1-18, and B.M. Metzger, NOAB, 2^rd ed., on Rev. 17:1). “Come,” says one of the angels, “I will show you the judgment of the great whore who is seated on many waters” (Rev. 17:1b). The waters are explained as “peoples and multitudes and nations and languages” (v. 15). The reference to “fornication” which “the kings of the earth have committed” with her (v. 2), refers to “sexual misconduct applied metaphorically to the city’s international commercial and political dealings, which are judged illicit and unjust” (Jean-Pierre Ruiz, NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Rev. 17:2). John is shown “Babylon the great, mother of whores and of earth’s abominations” (v. 5) “sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names” (v. 3). The blasphemous names are “divine titles given to Roman emperors.” (Metzger on v. 3). The Scarlet Beast is the Roman Empire, who “combines the powers of the four beasts of Dan., ch. 7" (Metzger, on Rev. 13:1-10). The angel tells John that “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to destruction” (17:8a). This beast “now represents the Emperor Nero, commonly expected to return to life and power (v. 11)” (Metzger, on v. 8). Richard Bauckham elaborates:

Revelation takes up the popular expectation that the emperor Nero, thought not to be dead but to have fled secretly east to the Parthian empire, would return, with allies from the east, to wreak vengeance on Rome. This expectation, kept alive by a series of pretenders claiming to be the returning Nero, was a matter of eager hope for many in the eastern part of the Roman empire, who saw it as the resurgence of the power of the east against the west. The expected returning Nero was thus a kind of messianic figure. By alluding to this myth, Rev. 17 can take in a different direction the Christological parody which was a feature of the portrayal of the beast in ch. 13. Whereas there the healing of the wound the Roman power suffered at the death of Nero parodies the resurrection of Jesus, here the return of Nero parodies the parousia of Jesus. Thus in v. 8 the beast is twice described in terms which echo one of Revelation’s key designations for God: ‘the one who was and is and is to come’ (1:4-8). The description of the beast differs in that the middle term is negative: ‘is not’. Unlike God, the beast is not eternal. (The Oxford Bible Commentary, p. 1300)

The angel adds that “the inhabitants of the earth, whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will be amazed when they see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come” (v. 8b). The beast and his cohorts, the “ten horns,” the “kings for one hour” (v. 12), “will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful” (v. 14). Metzger describes this as “the victory of Christ over the empire of the Antichrist” (on v. 14). The “then horns” of the scarlet beast (v. 3), along with the beast, “will hate the whore; they will make her desolate and naked; they will devour her flesh and burn her up with fire” (v. 16). This, explains the angel, is because “God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by agreeing to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled” (v. 17). “By divine over-ruling,” says Metzger, “the forces of iniquity fulfill the purposes of God” (on v. 17).

Luke 13:31-35

The Lament over Jerusalem (Mt 23.37-39)

31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. 33 Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ 34 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35 See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’” (Luke 13:31-35, NRSV)

The following comments are combined with revision and supplement here from November 5, 2004 (Friday of the week of the Sunday closest to November 2, Year Two), and from May 19, 2005 (Thursday of the week of the Sunday closest to May 18, Year One):

When Jesus is warned by Pharisees that Herod Antipas wants to kill him, :Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you” (Lk. 13:31), he calls Herod “that fox” and asserts that his own work will be finished. ‘Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work” (v. 32). It’s not in the divine plan for him to be killed “outside of Jerusalem” (v. 33). But that thought leads to Jesus’ lament over the city of Jerusalem. Anticipating his passion in Jerusalem, Jesus says, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord’” (34-35).

Eric Franklin sees this passage as the “climax” of “the first half of the journey [to Jerusalem]” which “actually prefigures the events of Palm Sunday (19:29-44)” (The Oxford Bible Commentary, 946). As for the lament over the city (v. 34), Franklin says that Jesus

sees her rushing onwards to complete her history of refusal of God’s agents. She will choose instead to follow a path that will lead to her own destruction. Jesus is often understood here as speaking as God’s wisdom who reaches out to Israel with a tenderness that expresses her feminine concern (e. g. Wis. 6:12-20). He reflects her gentleness and dsesire to draw humanity into relationship with God. Jerusalem rejects him. When he enters the holy city, only his disciples, and not her people, will acknowledge him (19:37-40). Her acknowledgment must await another day.

It is noteworthy that the warning about Herod’s desire to kill Jesus is given to him by Pharisees (v. 31). Although Luke includes references to the Pharisees’ criticism of Jesus (e.g Lk. 5:21; cf. Mk. 2:6; Lk. 6:2; cf. Mk. 2:24), he is invited to dinner by Pharisees (Lk. 7:36; 11:37, cf. Mk. 7:1-9, which does not mention a dinner invitation; Lk. 14:1). Jesus’ critique of the Pharisees develops gradually as Luke’s narrative progresses. Jesus and the Pharisees would have agreed on much of their common biblical and religious heritage, but in the end they would go separate ways.

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

rworden@houston.rr.com