Ezra 5:1-17

Resumption of Rebuilding the Temple (Hag 1.1; Zech 1.1)

5:1 Now the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. 2 Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak set out to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem; and with them were the prophets of God, helping them.

3 At the same time Tattenai the governor of the province Beyond the River and Shethar-bozenai and their associates came to them and spoke to them thus, "Who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish this structure?" 4 They also asked them this, "What are the names of the men who are building this building?" 5 But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until a report reached Darius and then answer was returned by letter in reply to it.

6 The copy of the letter that Tattenai the governor of the province Beyond the River and Shethar-bozenai and his associates the envoys who were in the province Beyond the River sent to King Darius; 7 they sent him a report, in which was written as follows: "To Darius the king, all peace! 8 May it be known to the king that we went to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. It is being built of hewn stone, and timber is laid in the walls; this work is being done diligently and prospers in their hands. 9 Then we spoke to those elders and asked them, 'Who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish this structure?' 10 We also asked them their names, for your information, so that we might write down the names of the men at their head. 11 This was their reply to us: 'We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished. 12 But because our ancestors had angered the God of heaven, he gave them into the hand of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house and carried away the people to Babylonia. 13 However, King Cyrus of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, made a decree that this house of God should be rebuilt. 14 Moreover, the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem and had brought into the temple of Babylon, these King Cyrus took out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor. 15 He said to him, "Take these vessels; go and put them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site." 16 Then this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem; and from that time until now it has been under construction, and it is not yet finished.' 17 And now, if it seems good to the king, have a search made in the royal archives there in Babylon, to see whether a decree was issued by King Cyrus for the rebuilding of this house of God in Jerusalem. Let the king send us his pleasure in this matter." (Ezra 5:1-17, NRSV)

The following comments are repeated with editing and supplement here from October 25, 2005 (Tuesday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 26, Year One), when some material was used from an earlier email, sent Monday, October 27, 2003, based on readings for October 28.

In the last reading from Ezra (Sat., Oct. 27), we read of correspondence between the enemies of those attempting to rebuild the Jerusalem temple with King Artaxerxes (Artaxerxes I, 465-424 B.C.; Ezra 4:7, 11-24). But now the Ezra story returns to 520 B.C., the time of Haggai, Zechariah, Jeshua and Zerubbabel (Ezra 5:1-2). We are told that “Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak set out to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem; and with them were the prophets of God, helping them. But a problem arises. Before building the temple can proceed, however, they have to get the “building permit” cleared with “City Hall,” so to speak. In this case, City Hall is hundreds of miles to the East in Babylon. Tattenai is governor of the province Beyond the River (Ezra 5:3a), which means that part of the Persian Empire west of the Euphrates River, of which Judah was a small part. (In the Gospels, the phrase “beyond the Jordan” (peran tou Iordanou) means the area east of the Jordan [Mt. 4:25; Mk. 8:13], called Peraia, Lk. 6:17, a few witnesses, including x.) Tattenai, Shethar-bozenai and their associates challenge the right of the Jews to build: “Who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish this structure?” (Ezra 5:3a). In what seems like a formal investigation, if not a threat, they also ask for “the names of the men who are building this building” (v. 4). But the narrator sees here the help of divine providence. “But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews,” we are told, “and they [i.e., Tattenai and his associates] did not stop them [i.e., the Jewish elders] until a report reached Darius [i.e. Darius, I, who reigned 522-486 B.C.] and then answer was returned by letter in reply to it” (v. 5).

David J. A. Clines, raises a question here. “Strangely,” he says, “Zerubbabel is not mentioned here or at the completion of the temple (6:14-18), despite Zechariah’s assurance that ‘his hands shall also complete it’ (“”Zech. 4:9). Had Zerubbabel died or fallen out of favor with the Persians?” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Ezra 5:5). We note that Joshua and “the prophets of God,” named in verse 2 with Zerubbabel, are not named again in verse 5 either. Is it clear that the phrase, “the elders of the Jews” (v. 5) would exclude Joshua, the priest, and Zerubbabel, the heir apparent to the throne of David? Neither is named in 6:14-18, either. But the Judeans who returned from Babylonian captivity were unable, of course, to reestablish a monarchy with a Davidic king. One reading of Zechariah would suggest that, for a time, hopes for a restoration of the Davidic dynasty were focused on Zerubbabel, but that these hopes were frustrated, and what emerged instead was Judah as a part of the Persian Empire with considerable self-governance by the priests. In Zechariah’s fourth vision, “the angel of the LORD assures Joshua, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my requirements, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here’ ” (Zech. 3:6-7). The next verse mentions “the Branch,” a term from Isaiah for “the coming Davidic ruler” (Isa. 11:1; cf. W. Sibley Towner, HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Zech. 3:8, who refers also to Jer. 23:5; 33:15). Zerubbabel is named in Zechariah’s fifth vision, about the lampstand and the olive trees (Zech. 4:1-14, esp. vv. 6-10), which concludes by interpreting “the two branches of the olive trees” (v. 12) as “the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth” (v. 14). But in the later account of the coronation of the Branch (6:9-15), the crown made of silver and gold is to be “set on the head of the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak” (v. 11). Zerubbabel’s name is conspicuous by its absence. Joshua is to be addressed as follows:

Thus says the LORD of hosts: Here is a man whose name is Branch: for he shall branch out in his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD. It is he that shall build the temple of the LORD; he shall bear royal honor, and shall sit upon his throne and rule. There shall be a priest by his throne, with understanding between the two of them. And the crown shall be in the care of Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Josiah son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of the LORD. (Zeph. 6:12-14, NRSV)

It seems likely that Jewish hopes for a restoration of the Davidic dynasty focused on Zerubbabel were soon frustrated by the heavy hand of Persian rule. The Persian ruler Cambyses (530-522 B.C.) was a weak ruler as compared to his father, Cyrus the Great (559-530 B.C.). Under him there were rebellions throughout the far-flung Persian Empire, that his successor, Darius I (522-486) put down with an iron hand. During the period of Persian weakness, the Judeans perhaps saw reason to expect a rapid restoration of the Davidic dynasty, but found their hopes crushed under Darius.

The letter of Tattenai and his associates is sent to King Darius (Ezra 5:6-7a), as follows “To Darius the king, all peace! May it be known to the king that we went to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. It is being built of hewn stone, and timber is laid in the walls; this work is being done diligently and prospers in their hands” (vv. 7b-8). The letter reports the interrogation of the Jewish leaders (vv. 9-10), and the extended narrative response of the Jews that they are rebuilding (v. 11) what was destroyed as divine judgment on Judah by the Babylonians (v. 12). As the letter continues to report the answer of the Jews, they are quoted as referring the decree of King Cyrus “that this house of God should be rebuilt” (v. 13). They report that the gold and silver vessels taken to Babylon were “delivered to a man named Sheshbazzar , whom he [Cyrus] had made governor” (v. 14). Specific instructions from Cyrus called for the return of the vessels and the rebuilding of the “house of God,” that is, the temple (v. 15). The Jews report that “Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem, and from that time until now it has been under construction, and it is not yet finished” (v. 16). The letter to Darius concludes by asking for an investigation “in the royal archives there in Babylon, to see whether a decree was issued by King Cyrus for the rebuilding of this house of God in Jerusalem” (v. 17). The result of that investigation will come in tomorrow’s reading.

or Lamentations 1:1-5 (6-9) 10-12 (alternative reading, Presbyterian and Lutheran traditions)

See the text and comments one week ago (October 23, 2007), when this was the primary reading for the three traditions..

Revelation 4:1-11

Worship in Heaven

4:1 After this I looked, and there in heaven a door stood open! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." 2 At once I was in the spirit, and there in heaven stood a throne, with one seated on the throne! 3 And the one seated there looks like jasper and carnelian, and around the throne is a rainbow that looks like an emerald. 4 Around the throne are twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones are twenty-four elders, dressed in white robes, with golden crowns on their heads. 5 Coming from the throne are flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and in front of the throne burn seven flaming torches, which are the seven spirits of God; 6 and in front of the throne there is something like a sea of glass, like crystal.

Around the throne, and on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: 7 the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with a face like a human face, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle. 8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and inside. Day and night without ceasing they sing,

"Holy, holy, holy,

the Lord God the Almighty,

who was and is and is to come."

9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to the one who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall before the one who is seated on the throne and worship the one who lives forever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne, singing,

11 "You are worthy, our Lord and God,

to receive glory and honor and power,

for you created all things,

and by your will they existed and were created." (Revelation 4:1-11, NRSV)

The following comments are based on comments on Revelation 4:1-8 from December 14, 2005 (Wednesday in the week of the Third Sunday of Advent, Year Two) and comments on Revelation 4:9-5:5 from December 15, 2005 (Thursday in the week of the Third Sunday of Advent, Year Two). There is some comparison with comments of October 25, 2005 (Tuesday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 26, Year One) and of August 27, 2006 (the Sunday closest to August 24, Year Two).

John's visions of heaven begin with God's throne (Rev. 4:2), pictured with precious gems that describe "the glory of the divine presence" (B.M. Metzger, NOAB, 2^nd ed., on v. 3). God's throne is surrounded by twenty-four elders seated on twenty-four thrones (vv. 4-5). Other aspects of the vision, including "the sea of glass, like crystal” and the four living creatures" (v. 6), remind us of the throne-chariot vision described by Ezekiel. Over the heads of Ezekiel’s “four living creatures (Ezek. 1:5, cf. vv. 5-14, 15, 19, 20, 21, 22, etc.) “there was something like a dome, shining like crystal, spread out above their heads” (v. 22). In Ezekiel’s vision the throne was above this dome (v. 26); in Revelation the “sea of glass, like crystal” is “in front of the throne” (Rev. 4:6), which “suggests the distance between God and his creatures, even in heaven” (Metzger on v. 6). Ezekiel’s four living creatures each have four faces (Ezek. 1:6): “As for the appearance of their faces; the four had the face of a human being, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle” (v. 10). The four living creatures in Revelation are”full of eyes in front and behind” (Rev. 4:6), and “full of eyes all around and inside” (av. 8), which would suggest more than one face for each, but they are described as “the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with a face like a human face, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle” (v. 7). Later Christian symbolism would identify the human being with Matthew’s Gospel, the lion with Mark’s, the ox with Luke’s and the eagle with John’s. In Revelation their song is, “Holy, holy, holy, / the Lord God the Almighty, / who was and is and is to come” (v. 8). “Holy, holy, holy, The Trisagion, or ‘thrice-holy,’ occurs first in Isa. 6:3 and frequently in Jewish and Christian liturgies” (David E. Aune, HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Rev. 4:8).

As the worship in heaven’s throne room continues. “And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to the one who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall before the one who is seated on the throne and worship the one who lives forever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne, singing” (vv. 9-10). “You are worthy, our Lord and God,” says the song of the twenty-four elders, “to receive glory and honor and power, / for you created all things, / and by your will the existed and were created” (v. 11). Aune notes that the term “worthy, a term applied to God as the creator, [is] also applied to the Lamb in two hymns (5:9, 12)” (Ibid., on v. 11).

Matthew 13:1-9

The text of this reading is presented, along with the parallel passages in Mark and Luke, in the following table:

The comments which follow are based on the comments of October 25, 2005 (Tuesday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 26, Year One), with editing and supplement. For detailed comments on this parable based on Mark’s version, see the Archive for July 23, 2007; for Luke’s version, see the Archive for October 13, 2006. In those comments, the Parable of the Sower (Mt. 13:1-9; Mk. 4:1-9; Lk. 8:4-8), the Reason for Speaking in Parables (Mt. 13:10-17; Mk. 4:10-12; Lk. 8:9-10), and the Interpretation of the Parable of the Sower (Mt. 13:18-23; Mk. 4:13-20; Lk. 8:11-15) are all part of the day’s reading. In this instance, the three parts are presented as the readings for three consecutive days, today, Wednesday, and Thursday (Oct. 30, 31, and Nov. 1).

In Matthew and Mark the context continues the context of episodes in which Jesus is accused of exorcizing demons by the power of Beelzebul (Mt. 12:22-30; Mk. 3:22-27; Lk. 11:14-15, 17-23), his sayings about the Sin against the Holy Spirit (Mt. 12:31-37; Mk. 3:28-30; Lk. 12:10), and the sayings about Jesus’ true family (Mt. 12:46:50; Mk. 3:31-35; Lk. 8:19-21). Matthew also includes within this larger context Jesus’ sayings about the Sign of Jonah (Mt. 12:38-42; cf Mt. 16:1-2a, 4; Mk. 8:11-12; Lk. 11:16, 29-32), and the Return of the Evil Spirit (Mt. 12:43-45; Lk. 11:24-26). “That same day,” says Matthew, “Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea” (Mt. 13:1; cf. Mk. 4:1). Luke has told the story of the sinful woman forgiven at the house of a Pharisee named Simon (Lk. 7:36-50; cf. Mt. 26:6-13; Mk. 14:3-9; Jn. 12:1-8), the note about the women who provided for Jesus and the disciples (Lk. 8:1-3), setting a different context. But he, too, describes “a great crowd” who were “gathered” and present to hear the parable (Lk. 8:4).

Matthew’s version of the parable follows Mark’s version closely, with minor variations in wording. In English, Matthew has “seeds” where Mark and Luke have “seed” (singular), as in Matthew 13:4 (cf. Mk. 4:4; Lk. 8:5) and Matthew 13:5, 7, 8 (cf. Mk. 4:5, 7, 8). Remarkably in all of these instances where the English text as “seed” or “seeds,” the Greek text uses a noun for “seed” only once: “A sower (ho speirōn) went out to sow (tou speirai) his seed (ton sporon autou) (Lk. 8:5a). In other instances the English translation infers “seed” from the verb “to sow” (speirō) or the pronouns used: ha men (plural, “some seeds,” Mt. 13:4), alla de (plural, “other seeds,” vv. 5, 7, 8). In the first three of these instances, Mark’s text has the singular pronoun: ho men (singular, “some seed,” Mk. 4:4), kai allo (singular, “other seed,” vv. 5, 7). In the final instance, Mark’s term is plural, kai alla (v. 8), literally “and others,” though translated “Other seed” (NRSV), or “Still other seed” (TNIV). For this series, Luke has singular terms as well, without using “seed” or “seeds”: ho men (singular, “some,” Lk. 8:5b), kai heteron (singular, “some,” vv. 6, 7, 8). The obstacles to good growth are similar in the three versions: “the path,” or rather, “the birds” (Mt. 13:4; Mk. 4:4; Lk. 8:5), “rocky ground” (Mt. 13:5; Mk. 4:5) or “the rock” (Lk. 8:6), and “thorns” (Mt. 13:7; Mk. 4:7; Lk. 8:7). The result from the good soil is also similar: “grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (Mt. 13:8); but in reverse order, “yielding thirty and sixty and a hundredfold” (Mk 4:8). Luke simplifies the result: “and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold” (Lk. 8:8b).

There is a version of the Parable of the Sower in the Gospel of Thomas, an early non-canonical gospel with certain Gnostic tendencies. The following is from the Gospel of Thomas, no. 9 (trans. Bruce M. Metzger, in Kurt Aland, ed., Synopsis Quattuor Evangeliorum, 10^th ed., 1978, p. 518):

Jesus said: Behold, the sower went out, he filled his hand, he sowed (the seed). Some (seeds) (+ mevn) fell on the road. The birds came (and) gathered them up. Others fell on the rock (pevtra) and did not send a root down into the earth, and did not send an ear up to heaven. And others fell among thorns. They choked the seed, and the worm ate it (lit. them). And others fell among thorns. They choked the seed, and the worm ate it (lit. them). And others fell upon the good earth; and it brought forth good fruit (kavrpo~) up to heaven. It bore sixty-fold and one hundred and twenty-fold.

We note that here as in the Canonical Gospels, the term “seed” or “seeds” appears to be implied, and is usually referenced, as in Matthew, by plural forms: “Some (seeds) . . . them . . . Others . . . others . . . the seed . . . it (lit. them) . . . others . . . the seed . . . it (lit. them) . . . others . . . it . . . It.” The result is similar but closer to that of Matthew and Mark, “It bore sixty-fold and one hundred and twenty-fold..”

As indicated above, in the Canonical Gospels, the Parable of the Sower is followed by an explanation of the purpose of parables (tomorrow’s reading, Mt. 13:10-17; Mk. 4:10-12; Lk. 8:9-10) and an interpretation of the Parable of the Sower (Wednesday’s reading, Mt. 13:18-23; Mk. 4:13-20; Lk. 8:11-15). There is no similar statement of the purpose of parables or interpretation of the parable of the Sower in the Gospel of Thomas, which in any case is mainly a series of sayings of Jesus introduced simply by “Jesus said,” or variations such as “and he said.” Occasionally a question from the disciples leads into the saying, but there is no narrative as such to speak of. There are a few who regard the version of the parable in the Gospel of Thomas as more original, that is, closer to what Jesus actually said. If so it varies little from the parable as such in the Canonical Gospels. (The phrase “up to heaven” might suggest an interpretation with spiritual overtones.) These would consider the interpretation in the Gospels (Mt. 13:18-23; Mk. 4:13-20; Lk. 8:11-15) something added later in the light of actual experience within the early Christian community. But there is no reason to think that Jesus would not have anticipated such responses to the Christian gospel; indeed, he was meeting such responses during the course of his earthly ministry. The plural references to “seeds”–stated or implied–would suggest that, like Matthew’s version, the version of the parable in the Gospel of Thomas is later than that of Mark. It is likely that the compiler or compilers of the Gospel of Thomas didn’t see the interpretation of the parable as agreeing with their religious ideas, or fitting the format of their collection of sayings. It is likely that Jesus uses the parable to describe various responses to his own ministry and message, and that he anticipated similar responses to the ministry of his disciples.

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net