Isaiah 51:9-16

9 Awake, awake, put on strength,

O arm of the LORD!

Awake, as in days of old,

the generations of long ago!

Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,

who pierced the dragon?

10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,

the waters of the great deep;

who made the depths of the sea a way

for the redeemed to cross over?

11 So the ransomed of the LORD shall return,

and come to Zion with singing;

everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;

they shall obtain joy and gladness,

and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

12 I, I am he who comforts you;

why then are you afraid of a mere mortal who must die,

a human being who fades like grass?

13 You have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,

who stretched out the heavens

and laid the foundations of the earth.

You fear continually all day long

because of the fury of the oppressor,

who is bent on destruction.

But where is the fury of the oppressor?

14 The oppressed shall speedily be released;

they shall not die and go down to the Pit,

nor shall they lack bread.

15 For I am the LORD your God,

who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar-

the LORD of hosts is his name.

16 I have put my words in your mouth,

and hidden you in the shadow of my hand,

stretching out the heavens

and laying the foundations of the earth,

and saying to Zion, “You are my people.” (Isaiah 51:9-16, NRSV)

On Easter Sunday, Year One and Year Two, one of the suggested Old Testament readings is the beginning (Isa. 51:9-11) of today’s reading (Isa. 51:9-16) The following comments are based on those of March 23, 2008 (Easter Sunday, Year Two), and of previous Easter Sundays. But they are also based on the comments of January 28, 2007 (the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year One):

In yesterday’s reading we heard the LORD’s voice, speaking through the prophet with the promise of future salvation. Today, we hear the voice of the people, again through the prophet. This voice calls upon the Lord: “Awake, awake, put on strength, / O arm of the LORD! / Awake, as in days of old, / the generations of long ago!” (Isa. 51:9a, b, c, d). On Easter Sunday, the call comes for the Lord to awake in resurrection, a dramatization of what we believe Easter celebrates. But in the Isaiah context, the LORD is reminded of his past victories for Israel. “Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces, / who pierced the dragon? / Was it not you who dried up the sea, / the waters of the great deep; / who made the depths of the sea a way / for the redeemed to cross over?” (vv. 9e, f, 10). The call to the LORD to awaken comes in the context of the “good news part of Isaiah, which earlier had addressed the people: “Go out from Babylon, flee from Chaldea . . . say ‘The LORD has redeemed his servant Jacob!’ ” (Isa. 49:20), while some issues remain (cf. 55:7, “let the wicked forsake their way,/and the unrighteous their thoughts”). If the awakening call is addressed to the LORD in Isaiah 51:9, it is addressed to Zion in 52:1, to “Jerusalem, the holy city.” The analogy with Christ’s resurrection fits. So we have heard the LORD’s voice, speaking through the prophet with the promise of future salvation. Now, we hear the voice of the people, again through the prophet. According to Joseph Blenkinsopp, this reference to the LORD’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt uses “the Israelite version of the combat between a deity and monsters representing chaos and disorder–a contest ending with the creation of the world and humanity. . . . As Rahab is elsewhere identified with Egypt (30:7; Ezek. 29:3), so here the primordial victory is associated with the rescue of Israel from Egypt at the Red (Reed) Sea (Ex. 14-15)” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., 2001, on Isa. 51:9-11). The plea is for the LORD to “Do it again!” The result will be that “the ransomed of the LORD shall return, / and come to Zion with singing; / everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; / they shall obtain joy and gladness, / and sorrow and sighing shall flee away” (v. 11).

John N. Oswalt comments:

Isaiah 51:9-11 presents the question and 51:12-26 gives the Lord’s answer. The opening verses have some of the characteristics of a community lament in that they express both doubt and hope. There is the hope now and even the confidence (v. 11) that the Lord will intervene and redeem his people from their sin and its effects. The despair and the hopelessness seen in 40:27 and 49:14 have been somewhat mitigated. Yet there remains the nagging question, ‘Why hasn’t the Lord acted on our behalf long before now?’ After all, he was the One who redeemed Israel from Egypt, so there is no question of his ability. None of the powers of evil in the world can stop him, so it is time for that mighty arm (cf. 51:5) to swing into action. (Isaiah, The NIV Application Commentary, 2003, p. 570, on Isa. 51:9-16)

The LORD responds with further assurance. Given who God is, why should his people be afraid of human beings? “I, I am he who comforts you; / why then are you afraid of a mere mortal who must die, / a human being who fades like grass?” (v. 12). They seem to have forgotten that God is the creator and sustainer of the world, and also of them. “You have forgotten the LORD, your Maker, / who stretched out the heavens / and laid the foundations of the earth” (v. 13a, b, c). Instead they have focused on the threat and fury of their oppressor. “You fear continually all day long / because of the fury of the oppressor, / who is bent on destruction” (v. 13d, e, f). But given who God is and the promises he has made, there is no need to fear the oppressor. “But where is the fury of the oppressor? / The oppressed shall speedily be released” (vv. 13g, 14a). God’s people “shall not die and go down to the Pit, / nor shall they lack bread” (v. 14b, c). “There is no point,” says Oswalt, “in focusing on the ‘oppressor’ (51:13), because he will soon be gone. He may be ‘bent on destruction,’ but he is not the ruler of the world, and the One who does rule asserts that the ‘prisoners . . . will not die in their dungeon’ (51:14)” (op. cit., p. 571). The LORD is the one who controls the powers of nature. “For I am the LORD your God,” he says, though the voices of the LORD and the prophet seem mingled here, “For I am the LORD your God, / who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar– / the LORD of hosts is his name” (v. 15). “If the LORD, creator of the world, is with them,” says Blenkinsopp, “if they are the LORD’s people, no oppressor need be feared. This is a common Isaian theme (cf. 31:3)” (op. cit., on Isa. 51:12-16). According to Oswalt, “The way in which God’s creative power and election love will come together to redeem Zion from her sin can be seen in the Servant. As elsewhere in the book, the Servant’s ministry is to reveal God. He will declare God’s words, and nothing will be able to thwart those plans for him” (loc. cit.). The final verse is full of promise and reassurance, though one might wonder whether the LORD is addressing the “Servant,” the prophet, or the people. “I have put my words in your mouth, / and hidden you in the shadow of my hand, / stretching out the heavens / and laying the foundations of the earth, / and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people’” (v. 16).

Hebrews 11:8-16

The Faith of Abraham (Gen 15.1-6; 21.1-7; 22.1-14; 48.8-16; 50.22-25)

8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old–and Sarah herself was barren-because he considered him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, “as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.”

13 All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them. They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth, 14 for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them. (Hebrews 11:8-16, NRSV)

The following comments are based on those of January 28, 2007 (the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year One), when comments were included from January 30, 2005 (the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year One), and from January 30, 2006 (Monday in the week of the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year Two); they are also based on relevant comments from January 2 and 3, 2009 (Friday and Saturday in the week of the First Sunday after Christmas, references for January 2 and 3, Year One), when the readings were Hebrews 11:1-12 and vv. 13-22, comments that were repeated with some editing and supplement from January 30, 2006 (Monday in the week of the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year Two).

The reader has perhaps noticed that the Daily Lectionaries use a series of selected passages from the Epistle to the Hebrews on Sundays during the period following the Epiphany (in Year One, the current year). In Year Two (e.g. 2006, 2008), the readings for weekdays and Saturday cover the whole Epistle beginning with Monday in the week of the First Sunday after the Epiphany and concluding on Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany. The result for this year is that the daily Epistle readings for Sundays offer a series of selected readings from Hebrews; other readings from Hebrews follow on some weekdays in Lent and Easter.

For today one passage from the “heroes of faith” chapter (Heb. 11) is selected to honor the faith of Abraham and Sarah, who, despite their advancement in years, trusted God and received the promised son Isaac. The record starts when Abraham is still in Haran (Gen. 11:31-12:3). “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going” (Heb. 11:8; cf. the call, Gen. 12:1-3, and his journey to Canaan, vv. 4-5). The record in Hebrews sums up much of Abraham’s lifetime in Canaan briefly. “By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise” (Heb. 11:9, omitting the period in Egypt (Gen. 12:10-13:1; the pursuit of the kings of the east (Gen. 14), and the like, but focusing on matters directly related to the faith of Abraham and Sarah, including notice of the extension of the promises to Isaac and Jacob (v. 9). According to the writer to the Hebrews, Abraham “looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God” (v. 10). . According to Harold W. Attridge, “the city with divine foundations was traditionally Jerusalem; see Ps. 87:1; Isa. 54:11. Hebrews reinterprets such language in terms of a ‘heavenly’ reality; see 12:22)” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Heb. 11:10). Cynthia Briggs Kittredge agrees, saying “the city [is] the heavenly Jerusalem” and its “foundations [are] contrasted with tents (v. 9)” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Heb. 11:10). This theme anticipates the “new Jerusalem” of Revelation, and St. Augustine’s characterization of “the City of God” over against “the city of this world.”

The glorious city of God is my theme in this work, which you, my dearest son Marcellinus, suggested, and which is due to you by my promise. I have undertaken its defence against those who prefer their own gods to the Founder of this city,—a city surpassingly glorious, whether we view it as it still lives by faith in this fleeting course of time, and sojourns as a stranger in the midst of the ungodly, or as it shall dwell in the fixed stability of its eternal seat, which it now with patience waits for, expecting until “righteousness shall return unto judgment,” and it obtain, by virtue of its excellence, final victory and perfect peace. (From the opening paragraph of Augustine’s City of God, in the Christian Classics Ethereal Library on the Internet at http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf102.iv.ii.i.html, accessed January 30, 2009)

Although the major example of faith is Abraham (11:8-12, 17-19), major tests of faith relate to Isaac: “Abraham received power of procreation, even though he was too old” (v. 11), and, when tested by God, he “offered up Isaac” (v. 17). We should not overlook Sarah’s faith. According to Kittredge, “In some manuscripts, Sarah is the subject of the sentence: ‘By faith, Sarah received the power of procreation . . .’ Sarah’s faith in the unseen is parallel to Abraham’s, and she is one of the heroic people of faith” (op. cit., on Heb. 11:11). Kittredge thus defends what we might call the “traditional reading”: “Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised” (Heb. 11:11 AV/KJV). F. F. Bruce defends the view that Abraham, not Sarah, is the subject of the sentence (op. cit., pp. 294-296, on Heb. 11:11), listing several reasons, but concluding “The one firm argument against taking v. 11 as a statement of Sarah’s faith lies in the fact that the phrase traditional rendered ‘to conceive seed’ just does not mean that; it refers to the father’s part in the generative process, not the mother’s” (pp. 295-296). But other translators apparently side with Kittredge in seeing the verse as a reference to Sarah’s faith. The Revised Standard Version, second edition (1971) makes Sarah the subject, the one whose faith is described. The New International Version (1978/1984) makes Abraham the subject. But later editions of each reverse the interpretations of their respective earlier translations, for Today’s New International Version (2001) makes Sarah the subject, whereas the New Revised Standard Version (1989) makes Abraham the subject. The variety of manuscript readings leads the United Bible Societies’ Greek New Testament editors to rate their reading at this point “D,” showing “a very high degree of doubt concerning the reading selected for the text” (UBS Greek New Testament, 3^rd ed., 1975, on Heb. 11:11, cf. p. xiii). Bruce M. Metzger notes “the difficulties of this verse [that] are well known” and quotes a majority of the Committee to understand Abraham (v. 8) as the subject, “By faith, even though Sarah was barren, he [Abraham] received power to beget . . .”; though he also presents the alternative, “By faith he [Abraham] also, together with barren Sarah, received power to beget. . . .” And Metzger cites several major commentaries on each side of this issue (A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament, 1971, on Heb. 11:11). In any event, whether the grammar and vocabulary refer here to the faith of Abraham or Sarah, one cannot deny her part in the matter. But the following verse clearly refers to Abraham, as the writer describes a miracle. This faith in the possibility of a child born to elderly parents for whom, in merely human terms, it would be impossible, amounts to faith in the resurrection of the dead–life from that which is not alive. “Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead (nenekrwmevnou, nenekrōmenou), descendants were born, “as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore” (v. 12; cf. Rom. 4:18-25).

Hebrews moves on to emphasize the faith of all of his Old Testament heroes of faith. “All of these,” says the writer, with reference to Abel (Heb. 11:4), Enoch (v. 5), Noah (v. 7), Abraham (vv. 8-12), and, with preliminary reference to Isaac (v. 9, cf. v. 20) and Jacob (v. 9, cf. v. 21), “died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them” (v. 13a). This statement probably anticipates those to be mentioned later, Joseph (v. 22), Moses (vv. 23-28) and the others down to and including the Maccabean martyrs (v. 36, cf. 2 Macc. 7:9, 14). As the writer continues, he (or she) stresses the way these heroes of faith from the Hebrew Bible and the Apocrypha anticipated but did not receive “the promises.” “They confessed that the were strangers and foreigners on the earth, for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland” (vv. 13b, 14). To this we may compare what was said earlier about Abraham, who “looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God” (v. 10).

Hebrews offers proof that the people of faith in ancient Israel were looking forward to a heavenly homeland. The primary reference appears to be to Abraham. “If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind [i.e., ‘Ur of the Chaldeans,’ and Haran, Gen. 11:31; 12:1], they would have had opportunity to return” (v. 15). Returning to Mesopotamia as captives of the Babylonian empire in the 6^th century B.C. would of course not count–rather that would be totally foreign to what the writer to the Hebrews is thinking. The writer infers that these ancient Israelites of faith desired “a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore,” he concludes, “God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them” (v. 16).

John 7:14-31

14 About the middle of the festival Jesus went up into the temple and began to teach. 15 The Jews were astonished at it, saying, “How does this man have such learning, when he has never been taught?” 16 Then Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine but his who sent me. 17 Anyone who resolves to do the will of God will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own. 18 Those who speak on their own seek their own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and there is nothing false in him.

19 “Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why are you looking for an opportunity to kill me?” 20 The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who is trying to kill you?” 21 Jesus answered them, “I performed one work, and all of you are astonished. 22 Moses gave you circumcision (it is, of course, not from Moses, but from the patriarchs), and you circumcise a man on the sabbath. 23 If a man receives circumcision on the sabbath in order that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because I healed a man’s whole body on the sabbath? 24 Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

25 Now some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is not this the man whom they are trying to kill? 26 And here he is, speaking openly, but they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Messiah? 27 Yet we know where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” 28 Then Jesus cried out as he was teaching in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I am from. I have not come on my own. But the one who sent me is true, and you do not know him. 29 I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” 30 Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. 31 Yet many in the crowd believed in him and were saying, “When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?” (John 7:14-31, NRSV)

On August 28, 2008 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to August 24, Year Two), comments on John 7:14-36 were repeated from March 12, 2007 (Monday in the week of the Third Sunday of Lent, Year One), when comments were repeated from August 31, 2006 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to August 24, 2006, Year Two), when they were combined and revised from comments on John 7:14-31 from January 30, 2005 (the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year One), comments that were repeated from February 28, 2005 (Monday of the week of the Third Sunday in Lent, Year One) and from February 4, 2006 (Saturday in the week of the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year Two). Compare the comments of January 28, 2007 (the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year One), comments also repeated from some of the above dates. The revised combined comments are repeated again here.

John’s narrative of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee, surprisingly brief as compared to the other Gospels, concludes with the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus walking on the sea, and the discussion on the bread of life in chapter six. Apart from the post-resurrection appearance in Galilee in the final chapter, beginning in chapter seven Jesus’ activities are all in or around Jerusalem (at Bethany, 11:1-44; 12:1-11; at Ephraim, 11:54). The public ministry of Jesus in Jerusalem is reported in connection with a series of Jewish festivals, often emphasizing their significance in pointing to Jesus as the Messiah (Christ). At Passover time, Jesus cleanses the temple (Jn. 2:13-22), and the conversation with Nicodemus follows (3:1-21). The healing of the lame man at the pool of Beth-zatha (5:1-18) was during “a festival of the Jews” (5:1). When he fed the five thousand, this in Galilee (6:1), “the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near” (6:4). Festival of Booths themes (7:1) appear in the discussions of chapters seven (water) and eight (light). The festival of the Dedication (Hanukkah) (10:22) also involved lights. “Then they offered incense on the altar and lit the lamps on the lampstand, and these gave light to the temple” (1 Macc. 4:50). Healing the blind man (chap. 9), and the Pharisees’ question, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” (9:40) also relate to the lights of Booths and Hanukkah. In John’s account, Jesus’ crucifixion takes place on “the day of Preparation for the Passover” (19:14), so the Last Supper (chaps. 13-17), not called a “Passover” (cf. Mk. 14:12, 16; Mt. 26:18, 19; Lk. 22:8, 11, 13, 15), is not specifically tied to the Seder meal, unless a different calendar is being followed.

The fact that so much of John’s narrative takes place in Jerusalem may serve to explain the presence of extended heated debates with “the Jews” (Jn. 7:15, and throughout these debates), a term which probably means a small group of Jewish leaders located there. In today’s reading, discussion continues between Jesus and “the Jews,” that is, the group of Jewish leaders who were hostile to Jesus. They appear briefly at the time of Jesus’ cleansing of the temple (Jn. 2:18, 20). The discussion, better the rather hostile debating, begins in chapter five after the healing of the lame man–“the Jews started persecuting him because he was doing such things on the sabbath” (5:16), and “was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself equal to God” (v. 18)–and continues through that chapter. “The Jews” make an appearance, apparently in Galilee after the feeding of the 5000, in the discussion of Jesus claim to be “the bread of life” (6:35), and so the debate continues through chapter eleven with interruptions, mainly miracles (“signs”), which provoke further challenges and debates.

In chapter seven, though Jesus comes to Jerusalem for the Festival of Booths “as it were in secret” (Jn. 7:10), he begins to teach openly in the temple (v. 14). He continues the discussion of his relationship to the Father: “My teaching is not mine but his who sent me” (v. 16). A person of good will, “who resolves to do the will of God” will recognize that Jesus’ teaching is from God (vv. 17-18). Jesus condemns the Jews “because of their desire to kill him, ostensibly for healing on the sabbath (5:15-18), when the law enjoins circumcision even if the eighth day falls on a sabbath. If circumcision, why not healing?” (Obery M. Hendricks, Jr., NOAB, 3rd ed., 2001, on vv. 19-24). Controversy ensues. Some of the people, hearing that the leaders want to kill Jesus (v. 25), ask, “Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Messiah?” (v. 26). (Note the distinction made here between the people, Jewish people who are not believers in Jesus, and “the authorities,” that is, “the Jews”–an important distinction for a proper understanding of John’s Gospel.) Jesus’ public assertion, “You know me, and you know where I am from. . . . I know him [the one who sent me], because I am from him [God], and he sent me” (vv. 28-29), leads to an attempt to arrest him, which failed because “his hour had not yet come” (v. 30). John points out that “many in the crowd believed in him and were saying, ‘When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?’ ” (v. 31).

Next Sunday’s reading continues from verse 37, so we may take note of the intervening verses. The crowd’s ambiguous, indecisive attitude toward Jesus (vv. 25-27, 31) alarms “the chief priests and Pharisees,” who send temple police to arrest Jesus (v. 32), but these are stumped by Jesus’ enigmatic assertion: “I will be with you a little while longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come” (vv. 33-34). They don’t understand that he is going to “my Father’s house” (14:2), and so they speculate: “Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?” (7:35), providing another example of John’s sense of irony. By the time the Gospel was written and published, the Christian mission to convert the Gentiles (the “Greeks”) was well established, but these–the police?–are clueless about that. They ponder what Jesus means. “What does he mean,” they ask, “by saying, ‘You will search for me and you will not find me’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” (v. 36; cf. 14:3 addressed to the disciples). Here, as often throughout John’s Gospel, the central question is the identity of Jesus, and whether people will respond to him in faith, or become hostile and resist him. The intense encounters of Jesus with key Jewish leaders as described by John put the Christian claims about Jesus in bold relief–and we have responded accordingly–but these encounters should not be misused to foster anti-Jewish attitudes. The New Testament describes sin as the condition of all human beings, and all human beings as equally in need of God’s redemption.

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net