Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 11:2-20

2 Do not praise individuals for their good looks,

or loathe anyone because of appearance alone.

3 The bee is small among flying creatures,

but what it produces is the best of sweet things.

4 Do not boast about wearing fine clothes,

and do not exalt yourself when you are honored;

for the works of the Lord are wonderful,

and his works are concealed from humankind.

5 Many kings have had to sit on the ground,

but one who was never thought of has worn a crown.

6 Many rulers have been utterly disgraced,

and the honored have been handed over to others.

Deliberation and Caution (Prov 18.13)

7 Do not find fault before you investigate;

examine first, and then criticize.

8 Do not answer before you listen,

and do not interrupt when another is speaking.

9 Do not argue about a matter that does not concern you,

and do not sit with sinners when they judge a case.

10 My child, do not busy yourself with many matters;

if you multiply activities, you will not be held blameless.

If you pursue, you will not overtake,

and by fleeing you will not escape.

11 There are those who work and struggle and hurry,

but are so much the more in want.

12 There are others who are slow and need help,

who lack strength and abound in poverty;

but the eyes of the Lord look kindly upon them;

he lifts them out of their lowly condition

13 and raises up their heads

to the amazement of the many.

14 Good things and bad, life and death,

poverty and wealth, come from the Lord.

17 The Lord’s gift remains with the devout,

and his favor brings lasting success.

18 One becomes rich through diligence and self-denial,

and the reward allotted to him is this:

19 when he says, “I have found rest,

and now I shall feast on my goods!”

he does not know how long it will be

until he leaves them to others and dies.

20 Stand by your agreement and attend to it,

and grow old in your work. (Ecclesiasticus 11:2-20, NRSV)

On October 27, 2006 (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year Two), comments were repeated with some revision and supplement from October 22, 2004, (Friday of the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year two). The revised comments are repeated here with editing and supplement:

Ben Sira presents a series of common sense instructions, mostly prohibitions, sometimes followed by explanatory observations, for example, “Do not praise individuals for their good looks, / or loathe anyone because of appearance alone. / The bee is small among flying creatures [and beautiful, one might say, only to the queen bee], but what it produces is the best of sweet things” (Sirach. 11:2-3). Harold C. Washington finds “similar analogies between human conduct and animal behavior” in Proverbs (NOAB, 3^rd ed., 2001, on Sirach 11:3, with ref. to Prov. 6:6-8; 30:15-19, 24-31). Ben Sira warns against boasting about one’s clothes (Sirach 11:4a), and about “exalting yourself when you are honored” (v. 4b), and the reason comes later; even kings have been dishonored and disgraced: “Many kings have had to sit on the ground, / but one who was never thought of has worn a crown. / Many rulers have been utterly disgraced, / and the honored have been handed over to others” (vv. 5-6). Is that one of the wonderful “works of the Lord” that are “concealed from humankind” (v. 4c, d)? “Handed over,” says Washington, means “in defeat as war captives” (ibid., on v. 6). These admonitions conclude a section that he has called “true honor” (ibid., on 10:19-11:6).

Six prohibitions are presented against acting in haste. “Do not find fault before you investigate; / examine first, and then criticize” (v. 7). “Do not answer before you listen, / and do not interrupt when another is speaking” (v. 8). “Do not argue about a matter that does not concern you, / and do not sit with sinners when they judge a case” (v. 9). Burton L. Mack, revised by Benjamin G. Wright III, see here “a reflection on patience aimed at instilling confidence that the Lord will reward piety in his time” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Ecclus. 11:7-28).

According to ben Sira, one should not busy himself with many matters or multiply activities (v. 10a, b). One can “work and struggle and hurry” and still be “so much the more in want” (v. 11).. The Lord helps some “who are slow and need help, / who lack strength and abound in poverty” (v. 12:a, b); he looks “kindly upon them; / he lifts them out of their lowly condition” (v. 12c, d), “and raises their heads / to the amazement of the many” (v. 13b). The Lord is the source of the good things in life, as well as the bad (v. 14). On Ben Sira’s assertion of “God as the source of all human conditions,” say Mack and Wright, compare “Job 1:21; Isa. 45:7” (ibid., on v. 14). Later witnesses to the text have included an elaboration. “Other ancient authorities add as verses 15 and 16, Wisdom, understanding, and knowledge of the law come from the Lord; affection and the ways of good works come from him. Error and darkness were created with sinners; evil grows old with those who take pride in malice” (NRSV text note a). Ben Sira encourages trust rather than anxiety, and appreciation of the Lord’s gift. “The Lord’s gift remains with the devout, / and his favor brings lasting success” (v. 17). Mack and Wright note here that “Ben Sira accepts the Deuteronomic view that the faithful prosper. See, e.g., Deut. 6:1-3, 17-19” (ibid., on v. 17).

One observation, while perhaps echoing Ecclesiastes 2:20-21; 6:1-2, also anticipates the theme of Jesus’ parable of the Rich Fool (Lk. 12:13-21). “One becomes rich through diligence and self-denial, / and the reward allotted to him is this: / when he says, ‘I have found rest, / and now I shall feast on my goods!’ / he does not know how long it will be / until he leaves them to others and dies” (vv. 18-19). To the words, “leaves them to others and dies,” Washington compares “Ps. 49:;7-12; Eccl. 2:18-22; 6:1-2” (op. cit., on v. 19).

Micah 6:1-8 (Presbyterian and Lutheran traditions–see the comments for Sunday, October 12, 2008, twelve days ago.)

Revelation 9:13-21

13 Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, 14 saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” 15 So the four angels were released, who had been held ready for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, to kill a third of humankind. 16 The number of the troops of cavalry was two hundred million; I heard their number. 17 And this was how I saw the horses in my vision: the riders wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur; the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. 18 By these three plagues a third of humankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. 19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they inflict harm.

20 The rest of humankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands or give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their fornication or their theft. (Revelation 9:13-21, NRSV)

On October 27, 2006 (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year Two), comments were repeated with some revision and supplement from October 22, 2004, (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year two); they are repeated again here with some editing and supplement:

For the context of the sixth trumpet plague, the sixth of seven, see yesterday’s comments. “Then,” says John, “the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God” (Rev. 9:13). “The four horns,” according to David E. Aune, are “the raised corners of the altar, typical of Israelite and Canaanite altars” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Rev. 9:13). The “voice” from the altar instructs “the sixth angel who had the trumpet, ‘Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates’ ” (v. 14). “The Euphrates,” says Jean-Pierre Ruiz, “marked the eastern border of the Roman Empire, where invasion by its enemies the Parthians was feared” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., 2001, on Rev. 9:14; cf. Bruce M. Metzger, , NOAB, 2^nd ed., on Rev. 9:13-21). According to Aune, “the bind/release terminology (20:2; Tob, 3:17) suggests that these are evil angels who lead demonic armies,” and he adds that the “Euphrates [is] a Mesopotamian river symbolizing the enemies of Israel (see Isa. 7:20; 8:7; Jer. 46:10).

“So the four angels were released,” says John, “who had been held ready for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, to kill a third of humankind” (Rev. 9:15). John’s graphic picture of the ensuing invasion is, to say the least, terrifying. “The number of the troops of cavalry was two hundred million; I heard their number. And this was how I saw the horses in my vision: the riders wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur; the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths” (vv. 16-17). After noting that, “by these three plagues”–three in one, as it happens–“a third of humankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths” (v. 18). Another detail is their tails. “For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they inflict harm” (v. 19). According to Ruiz, “These fire-breathing, lion-headed, serpent-tailed monsters are composite creatures, like the Chimera of Greek and Roman mythology.” And Ruiz adds, “Also see the description of conquering soldiers in Jer. 46:22-23)” (op. cit., on v. 16-19). As for the terms, “fire and sulfur,” Aune, who says, “see also 14:10; 19:20; 20:10” calls them “stereotypical means of terrifying divine punishment first mentioned in the Bible in connection with the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah (see Gen. 19:24; Ps. 11:6; Ezek. 38:22)” (op. cit., on v. 18). “As with the locusts [9:1-12],” says Metzger, “the details regarding the two hundred million cavalry are not to be understood literally” (op. cit., on vv. 16-19). But nevertheless, the picture John paints is terrifying indeed.

At the end of this reading, we are told that, in spite of these terrors, “the rest of humankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands or give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk. And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their fornication or their thefts” (vv. 20-21). Metzger compares this to “the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart despite the plagues (Ex 8:15, 19)” (op. cit., on vv. 20-21). Ruiz follows Metzger here, explaining that “the trumpet plagues fail to provoke the repentance that is their purpose” (op. cit., on vv. 20-21). Aune, who holds a similar view, adds that “Demons, in Jewish thought [are] the supernatural beings represented by idols and believed to inhabit them (Deut. 32:17; Ps. 96:5; 1 Cor. 10:19-20).

Luke 10:38-42

38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. 40 But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; 42 there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42, NRSV)

On May 25, 2007 (Friday in the week of the Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year One), comments were repeated from October 27, 2006 (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year Two), when comments were combined with some revision and supplement from October 22, 2004 (Friday of the week of the Sunday closest to October 19, Year Two), and from May 13, 2005 (Friday of the week of the Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year One). They are repeated again here:

Luke reports the visit of Jesus to the home of Martha and Mary (Lk. 10:38:42). We learn more about Martha and Mary from two accounts in John, about the death of their brother Lazarus, whom Jesus raises from the dead (Jn. 11:1-44), and about the anointing of Jesus’ feet by Mary (Jn. 12:1-8; cf. similar episodes in Mt. 26:6-13; Mk. 14:3-9; Lk. 7:36-50). This account of Jesus at the home of Martha and Mary has no parallel in Matthew or Mark, and comes between other passages found only in Luke (the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Lk. 10:29-37; the Importunate Friend at Midnight, Lk. 11:58), or passages from a different context in other Gospels (e.g. the Lawyer’s question, which in Luke introduces the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Lk. 10:25; cf. Mk. 12:28-34; Mt. 22:34-40; and the Lord’s Prayer, Lk. 11:1-4; cf. Mt. 6:9-13). We may conclude that the Martha and Mary episode comes from Luke’s “special material,” as they say, perhaps from some of his investigating (Lk. 1:3), and is included early in his “travel narrative” (9::51-19:27).

In the home of these women, Mary “sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying” (Lk. 10:39). In the meantime, “Martha was distracted by her many tasks” (v. 40a), details of hospitality, no doubt, perhaps including the preparation of a meal. She appeals to their guest, ““Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me” (v. 40b). This brief account is just long enough to set up the point of the story, which comes in Jesus’ response to Martha. “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her” (vv. 41-42). The story thus serves to emphasize the need for Christian disciples to listen to Jesus and learn from him. It also demonstrates “Jesus’ openness to and acceptance of women among his followers” (Marion Lloyd Soards, NOAB, 3^rd ed., 2001, on Lk. 10:38-42).

One should not read Jesus’ words to Martha as a judgmental rebuke. Her dutiful efforts are good, but “Mary has chosen the better part” (v. 42). Catherine Clark Kroeger says:

The Third Evangelist’s story is about fundamental priorities. A woman may find great satisfaction and much appreciation for her skill in the culinary arts. Nevertheless she is not ultimately defined by the excellence of the table she spreads but on spreading her heart open to God’s Word (cf. 2 Cor. 6:11). The perfect housekeeper may not be the one most receptive to the voice of God. Jesus supports Mary in her role as disciple and invites Martha also to hear his teaching. How often narrowly prescribed roles have obstructed the calling of women! Neither social custom nor rabbinic tradition can be allowed to deprive them of their divinely ordained and courageously chosen right to learn. (The IVP Women’s Bible Commentary, 2002, p. 575 on Lk. 10:38-42)

Vera M. Sinton, writing in the same commentary, reminds us that “learning to respect each other’s differences can be hard,” but “Each of these women, in her own way, is an evangelist. Both their gifts are needed if the death and resurrection of Jesus is to be made known.” Martha’s gift is in “taking the lead where action is required” (The IVP Women’s Bible Commentary, 2002, p. 575-576, in a separate section on Mary and Martha). Ms. Sinton has in mind Martha’s going to meet Jesus after Lazarus’ death, as well as her “culinary arts” that are demonstrated in Luke’s story.

Kroeger also notes that “Mary has seated herself at the feet of Jesus in the position of a learner (cf. Acts 22:3),” adding

In Jewish tradition, this was ordinarily not an option for women. A much quoted proverb declared that it was better to give the Torah to be burned than to teach it to a woman. Martha’s demand may be based as much on her discomfort at her sister’s unconventional behavior as on her need for assistance. We may suppose that there may also have been an element of jealousy. While she fulfilled the appropriate role of a traditional woman, her sister was seated with the male disciples. Mary was afforded an opportunity to learn that was denied to Martha. Luke will later demonstrate the importance of instructing women in order to make them faithful witnesses. (loc. cit.)

She draws further conclusions:

The Third Evangelist’s story is about fundamental priorities. A woman may find great satisfaction and much appreciation for her skill in the culinary arts. Nevertheless she is not ultimately defined by the excellence of the table she spreads but on spreading her heart open to God’s Word (cf. 2 Cor 6:11). The perfect housekeeper may not be the one most receptive to the voice of God. Jesus supports Mary in her role as disciple and invites Martha also to hear his teaching. How often narrowly prescribed roles have obstructed the calling of women! Neither social custom nor rabbinic tradition can be allowed to deprive them of their divinely ordained and courageously chosen right to learn. (Ibid.)

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net