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2018, November 18 ~ 1 Samuel 1:4-20; Daniel 12:1-3; Hebrews 10:11-25

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In some denominations, two different readings from the Hebrew Bible are available, and one is chosen to be read.

Track 1 – 1 Samuel 1:4-20

The Book of Samuel is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings. These books emphasized that God controls history, and when the people (and their kings) worshiped YHWH properly, good things happened to them. When they worshiped false gods, however, bad events overtook them.

At the end of the Book of Judges, Israel was in political and moral disarray. Today’s reading begins to introduce Samuel, one of the most important persons in the Hebrew Bible. Samuel was a transitional figure – the last of the judges and the first of the prophets. The circumstances of his birth were extraordinary – his mother, Hannah, was barren until the priest Eli told her that God heard her petition. Samuel was a kingmaker – he anointed the first king, Saul, and even when Saul was still king, he found David in Bethlehem and anointed him as king.

Hannah designated Samuel as a nazirite – a person consecrated to God who did not drink alcohol, did not cut his hair and refrained from actions that would make him ritually unclean such as touching a dead body. The other named nazirite in the Hebrew Bible was Samson (who did not fulfill his vows). In the Christian Scriptures, John the Baptist is presented in Luke 1:15 as a nazirite.

Track 2 – Daniel 12:1-3

The Book of Daniel has two distinct parts. Chapters 1 to 6 are stories of Daniel in the Court of the Babylonian Kings and the Persian Kings just before, during and just after the Babylonian Exile (587-539 BCE). Because the kings in the stories were presented as ignorant (but not malevolent), scholars date these six chapters to the 4th Century BCE when Judea was under the generally benevolent rule of the Persians (539-333 BCE) and the Greeks (333 to 281 BCE). Chapters 2 to 7 of the Book were written in Aramaic rather than in Hebrew.

Chapters 7 to 12 were written later – during the oppression of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-164 BCE) whose desecration of the Temple led to the Maccabean Revolt in 167 BCE.

These later chapters present an apocalyptic vision – a situation so dire that an external intervention (such as by God) was needed to put things right. Like other apocalyptic writings, the Book of Daniel used images to describe the conflict between good and evil.

In today’s reading, at the time of the final victory over evil forces, Michael is presented as the great prince who will battle on behalf of Judea and God. The reading refers to a “book” in which human deeds are recorded, and is the first explicit reference in Scripture to the ideas of Resurrection, final judgment and afterlife.

Hebrews 10:11-14, 19-25

Although the Letter to the Hebrews is sometimes attributed to Paul, most scholars agree that it was written sometime after Paul’s death in 62 CE, but before 100 CE. The letter introduced a number of important theological themes.

The letter emphasized that Jesus (as high priest) is able to sympathize with our weaknesses because he (as a human) had been tested as we are. The presentation of Jesus as high priest in the Letter to the Hebrews is unique in the Christian Scriptures and reflects the continuing process in early Christianity of developing images to describe who and what Jesus of Nazareth was (and is).

Today’s reading concluded the theme of Jesus of Nazareth as the great high priest and the once-and-for-all sacrifice. The humanity of Jesus is the means for approaching God, and the author encouraged hearers of the letter to maintain their hope (undergirded by their faith) as they await the Second Coming (the “Day”).

2018, January 14 ~ 1 Samuel 3:1-20; 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

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1 Samuel 3:1-20

The Book of Samuel is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings. These books are a “didactic history” that covers the period from just before the entry into the Promised Land (c.1220 BCE, if the account is historical) to the beginning of Babylonian Captivity (586 BCE). The books were written in the period from 640 BCE to 550 BCE and continued to be revised even after that.

The Deuteronomists emphasized that YHWH controls history, and when the people (and their kings) worshiped YHWH properly, good things would happen to them. When they worshiped false gods, however, bad events would overtake them.

The Book of Samuel (to the extent it may be historical) covers from the end of the Time of the Judges (c.1030 BCE) to the last years of the Reign of David (c. 965 BCE).

Today’s reading describes the call by YHWH of young Samuel (whose name means “God [el] has heard’). Samuel is described as the last of the Judges and the first of the great prophets of Israel. He is a towering and admirable figure in the Hebrew Bible. His mother, Hannah, was barren until YHWH “remembered” her in response to her prayers. He was dedicated by Hannah to YHWH as a “nazirite” (1 Sam.1:9) — one who would never cut his hair and or touch wine or strong drink. Two other nazirites in Scripture were Samson (who did not fulfill his vows) and John the Baptizer.

Among his significant acts, Samuel (at YHWH’s direction) anointed the first two kings of Israel (Saul and David). The Book of Samuel is ambivalent about whether having a king was good for Israel (it united the tribes politically against their enemies) or bad because Israel ceased to be a theocracy (governed by YHWH through priests).

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Corinth, a large port city in Greece, was among the early Jesus Follower communities that Paul founded. Its culture was diverse and Hellenistic, and Corinthians emphasized reason and secular wisdom. In addition to Paul, other Jesus Followers also taught in Corinth, sometimes in ways inconsistent with Paul’s understandings of what it means to be a Jesus Follower. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians was written in the 50’s (CE) (likely while Paul was in Ephesus) and presented his views on several issues.

Today’s reading appears to be in response to a letter received from Corinth, as shown by the Hellenistic (“enlightened”) statements in verses 12 and 13 that Paul quotes (and refutes) in today’s reading. Paul discusses the human body and rejects fornication, not on the basis of the Law, but on the bases that Jesus Followers are members of Christ (v.15) and united to the Lord (v.17) so that one’s body is a temple/sanctuary (v.19). Paul concludes that one should glorify God in one’s body (v.20).