Ezra 1:1-11

End of the Babylonian Captivity (2 Chr 36.22-23)

1:1 In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he sent a herald throughout all his kingdom, and also in a written edict declared:

2 "Thus says King Cyrus of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Any of those among you who are of his people-may their God be with them!--are now permitted to go up to Jerusalem in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel--he is the God who is in Jerusalem; 4 and let all survivors, in whatever place they reside, be assisted by the people of their place with silver and gold, with goods and with animals, besides freewill offerings for the house of God in Jerusalem."

5 The heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites--everyone whose spirit God had stirred--got ready to go up and rebuild the house of the LORD in Jerusalem. 6 All their neighbors aided them with silver vessels, with gold, with goods, with animals, and with valuable gifts, besides all that was freely offered. 7 King Cyrus himself brought out the vessels of the house of the LORD that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. 8 King Cyrus of Persia had them released into the charge of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. 9 And this was the inventory: gold basins, thirty; silver basins, one thousand; knives, twenty-nine; 10 gold bowls, thirty; other silver bowls, four hundred ten; other vessels, one thousand; 11 the total of the gold and silver vessels was five thousand four hundred. All these Sheshbazzar brought up, when the exiles were brought up from Babylonia to Jerusalem.

The following comments are repeated here with minor editing from October 20, 2005 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year One):

Cyrus the Persian had conquered territories as far west as south central Asia Minor before he bothered to invade and conquer neighboring Babylon, whose empire was clearly on its last legs, so to speak. Persia is modern Iran and Babylon is modern Iraq. Cyrus’ military victories “began with the conquest of Media (549), followed by Lydia (546) [in south central Asia Minor], and Babylonia (539)” (Harper’s Bible Dictionary, s.v. Cyrus II). So Nebuchadnezzar’s Neo-Babylonian Empire lasted less than a century, 625-539 B.C. Cyrus could act in brutal ways to maintain his power and authority, but his empire is remembered as treating conquered peoples more humanely than the Assyrians and Babylonians had done before him. Conquered peoples were allowed to practice their own religions, a policy that is reflected in the decree of Cyrus which allows Jewish persons to return from captivity to Jerusalem and Judea. The text of this decree, recorded by Jewish scribes and reflecting the Jewish perspective, is found in 2 Chronicles 36:23 (the last verse of 2 Chron.) and also in Ezra 1:2-4 (the longer version). Both accounts date the decree “in the first year of King Cyrus of Persia” (2 Chron. 36:22; Ezra 1:1), which is understood to mean 538 B.C., the first year of his domination of Babylon, which followed the earlier conquests of Media and Lydia.

The initial return of Jews from Babylon under “Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah (Ezra 1:8) was a good beginning, with “with silver vessels, with gold, with goods, with animals, and with valuable gifts, besides all that was freely offered” (v. 6) as provided in the decree (v. 4), including “the vessels of the house of the LORD” which “King Cyrus himself brought out” (v. 7). They apparently made a beginning in rebuilding the temple (cf. vv. 2-3, 5), but this task was aborted and the temple site lay in ruins (Haggai 1:9) until “the second year of King Darius (i.e. 520 B.C.). But the initial enthusiasm surely was appropriate after decades of exile and reflection on the destruction caused by the Babylonians. The reading concludes with an “inventory” of the vessels (Ezra 1:9-10), which came to a total of “five thousand four hundred” vessels of gold and silver which “Sheshbazzar brought up, when the exiles were brought up from Babylonia to Jerusalem” (v. 11).

or Jeremiah 42:1-22 (alternative reading, Presbyterian and Lutheran traditions)

Jeremiah Advises Survivors Not to Migrate

42:1 Then all the commanders of the forces, and Johanan son of Kareah and Azariah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, approached 2 the prophet Jeremiah and said, "Be good enough to listen to our plea, and pray to the LORD your God for us–for all this remnant. For there are only a few of us left out of many, as your eyes can see. 3 Let the LORD your God show us where we should go and what we should do." 4 The prophet Jeremiah said to them, "Very well: I am going to pray to the LORD your God as you request, and whatever the LORD answers you I will tell you; I will keep nothing back from you." 5 They in their turn said to Jeremiah, "May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act according to everything that the LORD your God sends us through you. 6 Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, in order that it may go well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God."

7 At the end of ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah. 8 Then he summoned Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest, 9 and said to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your plea before him: 10 If you will only remain in this land, then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I am sorry for the disaster that I have brought upon you. 11 Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, as you have been; do not be afraid of him, says the LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to rescue you from his hand. 12 I will grant you mercy, and he will have mercy on you and restore you to your native soil. 13 But if you continue to say, 'We will not stay in this land,' thus disobeying the voice of the LORD your God 14 and saying, 'No, we will go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war, or hear the sound of the trumpet, or be hungry for bread, and there we will stay,' 15 then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: If you are determined to enter Egypt and go to settle there, 16 then the sword that you fear shall overtake you there, in the land of Egypt; and the famine that you dread shall follow close after you into Egypt; and there you shall die. 17 All the people who have determined to go to Egypt to settle there shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; they shall have no remnant or survivor from the disaster that I am bringing upon them.

18 "For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Just as my anger and my wrath were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You shall become an object of execration and horror, of cursing and ridicule. You shall see this place no more. 19 The LORD has said to you, O remnant of Judah, Do not go to Egypt. Be well aware that I have warned you today 20 that you have made a fatal mistake. For you yourselves sent me to the LORD your God, saying, 'Pray for us to the LORD our God, and whatever the LORD our God says, tell us and we will do it.' 21 So I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in anything that he sent me to tell you. 22 Be well aware, then, that you shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place where you desire to go and settle." (Jeremiah 42:1-22, NRSV)

The following comments are repeated here with editing and supplement from October 20, 2005 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year One):

As we see from yesterday’s “alternative” reading, Johanan and his group have already begun their migration to Egypt. They have “set out, and stopped at Geruth Chimham near Bethlehem, intending to go to Egypt” (Jer. 41:17). Their former leader, Gedaliah, has been killed (41:2), and they fear the Chaldeans (Babylonians) (v. 18). But before proceeding, Johanan, the commanders and the people turn to the prophet Jeremiah for advice (42:1). “Be good enough to listen to our plea,” they say, “ and pray to the LORD your God for us–for all this remnant. For there are only a few of us left out of many, as your eyes can see” (v. 2). They specifically ask for the LORD’s guidance. “Let the LORD your God show us where we should go and what we should do” (v. 3). Jeremiah agrees to do as they have requested. “Very well,” he says; “I am going to pray to the LORD your God as you request, and whatever the LORD answers you I will tell you; I will keep nothing back from you” (v. 4). And they vigorously affirm their intention to follow the LORD’s direction in this matter, “whether it is good or bad” (v. 6): “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act according to everything that the LORD your God sends us through you. Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, in order that it may go well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God” (vv. 5-6).

After ten days Jeremiah an answer for them, “the word of the LORD” (v. 7). He summons Johanan’s group (v. 8) and says,

Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your plea before him: If you will only remain in this land, then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I am sorry for the disaster that I have brought upon you. Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, as you have been; do not be afraid of him, says the LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to rescue you from his hand. I will grant you mercy, and he will have mercy on you and restore you to your native soil. (Jer. 42:9-12, NRSV)

So Jeremiah’s advice to Johanan, as earlier to Zedekiah, is to submit to the Babylonians and live in the land under tolerable conditions. But he warns against going to Egypt:

But if you continue to say, 'We will not stay in this land,' thus disobeying the voice of the LORD your God and saying, 'No, we will go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war, or hear the sound of the trumpet, or be hungry for bread, and there we will stay,' then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: If you are determined to enter Egypt and go to settle there, then the sword that you fear shall overtake you there, in the land of Egypt; and the famine that you dread shall follow close after you into Egypt; and there you shall die. (vv. 13-16)

The disaster that will come upon them for disobeying is emphasized. “All the people who have determined to go to Egypt to settle there shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; they shall have no remnant or survivor from the disaster that I am bringing upon them” (v. 17). Jeremiah compares their fate if they go to Egypt to the recent destruction of Jerusalem. “For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,” says Jeremiah, “Just as my anger and my wrath were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You shall become an object of execration and horror, of cursing and ridicule. You shall see this place no more” (v. 18). The LORD has warned this “remnant of Judah” not to go to Egypt (v. 19), which would be “a fatal mistake,” and contrary to their earlier vow. “For you yourselves set me to the LORD our God,” says Jeremiah, saying “Pray for us to the LORD our God, and whatever the LORD our God says, tell us and we will do it” (v. 20). Jeremiah anticipates their refusal to obey (chap. 43), as he says, “So I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in anything that he sent me to tell you” (42:21). And he concludes with a final warning. “Be well aware, then, that you shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place where you desire to go and settle” (v. 12). As we know from looking ahead, just as with Zedekiah earlier, Johanan and his people did not follow Jeremiah’s advice. The future of Israel lay with the Judeans in Babylonian exile, not with the people left behind.

1 Corinthians 16:1-9

The Collection for the Saints

16:1 Now concerning the collection for the saints: you should follow the directions I gave to the churches of Galatia. 2 On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside and save whatever extra you earn, so that collections need not be taken when I come. 3 And when I arrive, I will send any whom you approve with letters to take your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.

Plans for Travel (Cp Acts 19.21)

5 I will visit you after passing through Macedonia–or I intend to pass through Macedonia– 6 and perhaps I will stay with you or even spend the winter, so that you may send me on my way, wherever I go. 7 I do not want to see you now just in passing, for I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits. 8 But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, 9 for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. (1 Corinthians 16:1-9, NRSV)

The following comments are repeated here with some editing from October 20, 2005 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year One):

Paul’s collection for the saints was his way of fulfilling his agreement with leaders in Jerusalem (Gal. 2:10). Here he gives instructions to the Corinthians about collecting money for this project. Instructions continue in 2 Corinthians, chapters 8 and 9, but in Romans 25:15-19, he reports that the collection is completed and he is ready to take the money to Jerusalem. At this point, however, he urges the Corinthians to participate. “Now concerning the collection for the saints: you should follow the directions I gave to the churches of Galatia” (1 Cor. 16:1). He explains the directions. “On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside and save whatever extra you earn, so that collections need not be taken when I come” (v. 2). Paul plans to have representatives of the Corinthian church go with letters and take their gift to Jerusalem (v. 3). “If it seems advisable,” he says, in something of an understatement, he will go with the those appointed from Corinth to go (v. 4). Having representatives of Corinth accompany Paul, is an appropriate measure for responsible accounting. Richard A. Horsley notes that the collection “indicates the economic dimension of this international movement” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., on 1 Cor. 16:1-12).

Paul outlines some of his travel plans with a promise to visit the Corinthians. “I will visit you after passing through Macedonia–or I intend to pass through Macedonia–and perhaps I will stay with you or even spend the winter, so that you may send me on my way, wherever I go” (vv. 5-6). According to Ben Witherington III, “The second part of v. 6 may be seen as an attempt to meet the Corinthian desire to give Paul some financial support. He will not accept support for preaching there or an offer of patronage that would make him someone’s in-house teacher or rhetor, but he will accept provisions and aid so that he can get to his next destination, thus not violating his plan to offer the gospel free of charge” (Community & Conflict in Corinth, 1994, p. 316, on 1 Cor. 16:1-12). However, he doesn’t want his projected visit to be brief. “ I do not want to see you now just in passing, for I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits” (v. 7). And for now, he plans to stay in Ephesus, for as he says, “ I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries” (vv. 8-9). As we learn later, there were some changes of plans with regard to his visiting Corinth. In a later communication, he says, “I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send me on to Judea” (2 Cor. 1:16). At some point there was a change of plans. “Was I vacillating,” he asks, “when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans according to ordinary human standards, ready to say ‘Yes, yes’ and ‘No, no’ at the same time?” (v. 17). After claiming God’s leading in these matters (cf. vv. 18-22), he says, “But I call on God as witness against me; it was to spare you that I did not come again to Corinth” (v. 23). So one trip to Corinth was cancelled, but there was another visit. “So I made up my mind not to make you another painful visit” (2:1), and the unhappy circumstances of the painful visit likely led to the cancellation of another visit. But all of this is in the future at the writing of 1 Corinthians. And Luke’s account in Acts does not spell out all the comings and goings, but apparently simplifies with a general report. Acts 19:21 states that Paul had plans (1) “to go through Macedonia and Achaia,” (2) “and then to go on to Jerusalem” (cf. 1 Cor. 16:5). Here he adds that he will visit the Corinthians “after passing through Macedonia.

Paul’s reference to “many adversaries” at Ephesus (1 Cor. 16:9) probably refers to the difficulties recounted in Acts 19:23-41, perhaps even imprisonment at Ephesus. No New Testament text mentions imprisonment of Paul at Ephesus, but scholars have suggested that one or more of the “Prison Epistles” (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon) was written from Ephesus rather than from Rome. The various travels back and forth mentioned in Philippians would favor imprisonment closer to Philippi, as in Ephesus, rather than in Rome. Onesimus, the runaway slave from Philemon of Colossae, may well have headed for the nearest large city, Ephesus, about 110 miles from Colossae. The “far more imprisonments” mentioned in 2 Corinthians 13:23 would not include the imprisonments of Paul that we know of in Jerusalem, Caesarea or Rome. Of what we know, only the night that Paul and Silas spent in the Philippian jail would precede Paul’s reference to “far more imprisonments” here.

Matthew 12:15-21

God's Chosen Servant

15 When Jesus became aware of this, he departed. Many crowds followed him, and he cured all of them, 16 and he ordered them not to make him known. 17 This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

18 "Here is my servant, whom I have chosen,

my beloved, with whom my soul is well pleased.

I will put my Spirit upon him,

and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.

19 He will not wrangle or cry aloud,

nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.

20 He will not break a bruised reed

or quench a smoldering wick

until he brings justice to victory.

21 And in his name the Gentiles will hope." (Matthew 12:15-21, NRSV)

The following comments are based on comments from October 20, 2005 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year One), and comments on Matthew 12:14-21 from January 6, 2006 (Epiphany, Year 2). For recent comments on the parallel passage in Mark 3:7-19a, see the comments in the Archive for July 20, 2007 (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to July 13, Year One).

Following two accounts in which Pharisees accuse Jesus of sabbath-breaking, but Jesus gives priority to human need, they "went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him" (Mt. 12:14; cf. Mk. 3:6; Lk. 6:11). Matthew then summarizes more of Jesus' healing ministry (Mt. 12:15-16; cf. Mk 3:7-12; Lk. 6:17-19). In so doing, Matthew passes over most of the details in Mark’s summary account of many healings of people from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon (Mk. 3:8, cf. vv. 7-12). Matthew condenses this to the following: “When Jesus became aware of this, he departed. Many crowds followed him, and he cured all of them, and he ordered them not to make him known (Mt. 12:15-16). The omission of reference to Gentile territories may fit Matthew’s understanding of Jesus’ mission as focused only on Israel (Mt. 10:5-6), but in the quotation from the Hebrew Bible which follows, there are two references to the “Gentiles” (Mt. 12:18, 21). As one of his “formula quotations (i.e. Mt. 1:22-23; 2:17-18; 4:14-16, etc.), Matthew cites Isaiah 42:1-4, 9 (cited in Mt. 12:17-21). The citation has no parallel in Mark or Luke. The quotation supplies a kind of description of Jesus’ ministry. The Spirit of God is upon Jesus as he proclaims “justice to the Gentiles” (v. 18). He will be peaceful (v. 19) and gentle, but will bring “justice to victory” (v. 20). According to Dennis C. Duling, “Isa. 42:1-4 is here freely rendered from Hebrew, emphasizing major themes in Matthew” (HarperCollins Study Bible, 2^nd ed., 2006, on Mt. 12:17-21 The words "my chosen, in whom my soul delights" (Isa. 42:1b) become "whom I have chosen, my beloved, with whom my soul is well-pleased" (Mt. 12:13), echoing the words from heaven at Jesus' baptism (Mt. 3:17). Reference to the Spirit, justice, not crying aloud and not breaking a bruised reed reflect Isaiah's language. Proclaiming "justice to the Gentiles" (Mt. 12:18) reflects bringing forth "justice to the nations (goyim)," and reminds us of Matthew's great commission, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (panta ta ethne)" (Mt. 28:19). Healing for the nations is not the whole Christian gospel, but in recent times that have seen many major catastrophes–fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, not to mention wars–one takes special note of the connection Matthew made between the healing ministry of Jesus and the passage from Isaiah 42. “He will bring forth justice to the nations” (Isa. 42:1d).

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net