It has been 70 years that the people of Israel have been without their land and without their temple. But Cyrus, the king of Persia, finally decrees they may return and rebuild their altars. So the remnant returns, despite opposition, and begins to rebuild. It is a time of both sadness and joy. Sadness and weeping for those old men who remembered the past glory of the temple. Joy and shouting for those who saw the hope of the new start. And the sounds of weeping and shouting mixed together and could be heard far away.
After the temple was finished, another group of exiles returned, led by Ezra. Ezra, we are told at least three times, was well versed in the Law of Moses. He would need to use his knowledge to lead the returned people to live well in their new old home. One of the first major issues is that some of the Israelites had married people from the surrounding nations. So after prayer, fasting and counsel, they led the Israelite men to put away their foreign wives.
This story rankles with many, especially since for many people, Christianity consists of or at least very closely aligns with the respectable family - man, woman and kids. Also, love (and society in general) should be 'colour-blind', and the nationality of the other person should not make a difference in how they should be treated. How can we faithfully look at Ezra's instructions? Do we need to enfoce the divorce of any mixed-race couples we see?
First of all, we need to be clear that marriage at that time was not the same as it is today, legally or socially. The language of men that 'have taken some of their daughters as wives' may well be literally true, in that it was common for a man to see a woman, and think 'mm good child-bearing hips, I should give her dad some cows and take her home'. The woman is like property to be purchased. This is in marked contrast to the western modern view which is much more egalitarian and based on mutual feelings.
The main difference between the two contexts is in what it means to be a member of God's people. Under the old covenant, God's people consisted of those who were descendants of Abraham. They were offered God's righteousness, made possible by sacrifices made in the temple. Along with the sacrificial system for dealing with sin, there was the day-to-day living in righteousness, achieved by separation from unclean and unholy "other" objects and actions.
The new covenant was a fulfillment of this old covenant, in that it 'fills it up' and expands its reach. Life under the new covenant is again characterised by living in righteousness, and avoiding outside and unholy things. The sacrificial system is still in place, but it is completed, since Jesus Christ was and is the perfect sacrifice. So personal and repeated animal sacrifices are gone. Finally, the boundaries of 'God's people' have shifted outwards. It is no longer only hereditary descendants of Abraham, but spiritual descendants "grafted in" to the family tree through Jesus Christ (the grafting metaphor comes from Romans 11).
Under the old covenant, the Israelites were warned against intermarrying with other people in the land. This was because the others were not holy or covered by the covenant. For a start, they are unholy simply by virtue of the fact that they are not of God. But they also have their own gods and traditions which would lead the Israelistes into abandoning God and into idolatry. Joining the holy with the unholy makes the holy unholy (except in exceptional circumstances. See: Jesus).
Under the new covenant, our primary heritage is no longer our ancestors but our spiritual heritage, that is, Jesus Christ. Galatians (3:26,28) reads 'For in Christ Jesus you are all sons (and daughters) of God, through faith. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Jesus Christ'. So the great news is that people of every race, tribe and nation can be and are a part of God's family. Thus they are legal marriage material (and there are many couples breathing a sigh of relief).
As I try to apply this passage to today's world, I find myself on shakier ground, as I feel very unqualified to give marriage advice. I think that the modern analogue of of Ezra's situation would be marriages between people of different faiths. If you are a Christian aiming to follow in Christ's footsteps, why would you unite yourself with someone who is not? The situation gets muddied when we consider those who are already married when one comes to faith. The New Testament writers (and I'll include Jesus under this umbrella) were opposed to divorce except for adultery, and in fact Peter even encourages wives to remain in marriage to an unbelieving husband (1 Peter 3:1). But they also are clear about eliminating anything that leads to unrighteousness and/or hinders your walk with God (eg If your eye causes you to sin, pull it out). But then again there's the need for grace and acceptance of "sinners". So, it requires discernment for each situation.
Ezra covers the return of the Israelites to their land, and the re-establishment and re-alignment of their lives according to God's word.
Sunday, 9 February 2014
Saturday, 8 February 2014
Days 2-6, Genesis 10-50: Sojourners on earth, trusting Him
The history of people after the flood is a familiar story of self-importance and rejection of God. God's direct intervention by the creation of different languages struck to the heart of the ideal of unity and togetherness that they held. It is a reminder that unity of purpose is only a good thing when you are following the right path.
Moving on to the patriarchs, the narrative changes from an overview of world events to the tale of individuals and God's plans worked out through them. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, all have very different personalities, and all interact with God in different ways. In their lives we see failures, we see successes, we see faith, and we see some hints of the Redeemer to come. It is primarily a history of the ancestors of the Israelites, the origin of their customs, their people, their purpose, and their interactions with the One True God.
The life of Abraham is noted in Hebrews as one of faith. His tale is not without its low points of faith, but his reputation stands as faithful despite the failings. God, on the other hand, is faithful always. Abram's faith is seen in his willingness to leave to a country that he didn't know, in reliance upon God.
There are times of discouragement, where he tries to rely upon himself and his own cleverness. The main examples are his two experiences in Egypt, where he deceives the king because of his fears for his safety and that of his wife, and his attempt to fulfil God's promise of an heir by lying with Hagar.
His examples of faith stand clear. Despite his attempt to fulfil God's promise by Hagar, he did still have faith in God both before and after that God would fulfil the promise. His faith is so strong that even when God tests that faith by asking Abraham to sacrifice Isaac on the altar, he is sure of having hiers through Isaac, even to the point of trusting God to resurrect Isaac.
God's demonstration of faithfulness is even more clear. The sealing of His covenant with Abram in chapter 15 is a very visual demonstration of this. Usually the weaker of the two covenant pairs would pass through the path between the split animals - a pledge to fulfil the covenant or he would pay the price the animals paid. Here however, the stronger party passes through between - God represented by the flaming pot. And indeed, the heir is provided, and we know from history that many nations food come from Abraham, and the people were given the promised land after the foretold time in 'a land not their own'. His provision of a substitute for Isaac gives us a picture of Christ.
Even in Abraham's failings God is faithful. He prevents the kings of Egypt from committing evil because of Abraham's deceit, and cares for Hagar and Ishmael. With Lot, God keeps him and his daughters safe when Sodom and Gomorrah are destroyed for their sin - even though Lot had chosen to live in the wicked city.
It reminds me that even though we fail often and make poor decisions, God is ever gracious to us.
With Isaac we see a quiet life lived for God, but a lack of communication in the household led to divisions. The first we see him is as a sacrifice. Uncomplaining in the face of death. His wife also is brought by faith, faith of a father, a servant, and Rebekah herself.
Jacob we see first as a deceiver. He values the right things, possibly from listening to his grandfather - Jacob was around the tents more than his brother. This he values the birthright and blessing highly. He goes about it in the wrong way, however, and must learn to trust God the hard way. He does learn though. Beginning with the dream at Bethel, setting God's protection during the years with Laban, ridding his household of idols, and culminating with the wrestling with God, he learns patience and trust.
The example of Jacob's wives shows how God doesn't always work in the way we expect. In a Hollywood tale Jacob and Rachel seem to be the start crossed lovers, with the elder sister getting in the way due to tradition and interference of the father. Yet it seems it is Leah that is more favoured by God. The reason we are given is that He saw she was hated - so we see his heart of compassion for the downtrodden. However we also have hints of other things. In particular, Rachel is recorded as hiding stealing idols and hiding them.
In terms of the deceit, Leah seems chosen by God as Jacob's wife. She was the eldest, teaching Jacob respect for the tradition of the eldest. She was also the mother of the messianic line, and buried with Jacob in the family tomb.
Joseph is the one patriarch about whom nothing evil is recorded. Again we have a type of Christ, suffering unjustly and redeeming the people. His short also provides a fitting bookend to the patriarchs. Abram was told by God in the beginning of this section that his descendants were to be a blessing to all the nations. Israel never truly lived up to this purpose during their history, but here before the nation was founded we see Joseph providing physical blessing, as Christ later fulfilled the purpose of being a spiritual blessing to all people. His life is a testimony of doing the right thing, whether wrong or not, and always giving credit to God for the wisdom and interpretation of the dreams. Yet he was not a pushover - he did test his brethren to confirm that they were truly changed from the time they were about to kill him and sent him away as a slave.
There are many other stories in this book, many other characters - particularly of Jacob's sons - that can be considered. Through them all though, God is true. Some stories are just recorded as history - good nor evil is said of them, and God is not directly mentioned. In others He takes a direct role. Consequences are sometimes not seen, or may come late - as with Reuben, who forfeited his birthright because of his immorality (the birthright [double portion] went to Joseph, which is why we have the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, rather than the tribe of Joseph).
Finally, the book concludes with both blessing and faith. Blessing has characterised much of the lives of the patriarchs - blessing from God, and blessings handed from father to son. Faith too, is an essential theme - concluded here by both Jacob and Joseph assuring their descendents that God would return them to the land.
It is good to remember that faith in God is important. Faith may require patience - trying to accomplish the promise by our own efforts may fail (as with Abraham), or may succeed (as with Jacob's blessing), but both learnt that the best way was to wait on God's timing. God does not give us faith flippantly, either - He strengthens our faith by putting us in situations where we can practice our faith.
Moving on to the patriarchs, the narrative changes from an overview of world events to the tale of individuals and God's plans worked out through them. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, all have very different personalities, and all interact with God in different ways. In their lives we see failures, we see successes, we see faith, and we see some hints of the Redeemer to come. It is primarily a history of the ancestors of the Israelites, the origin of their customs, their people, their purpose, and their interactions with the One True God.
The life of Abraham is noted in Hebrews as one of faith. His tale is not without its low points of faith, but his reputation stands as faithful despite the failings. God, on the other hand, is faithful always. Abram's faith is seen in his willingness to leave to a country that he didn't know, in reliance upon God.
There are times of discouragement, where he tries to rely upon himself and his own cleverness. The main examples are his two experiences in Egypt, where he deceives the king because of his fears for his safety and that of his wife, and his attempt to fulfil God's promise of an heir by lying with Hagar.
His examples of faith stand clear. Despite his attempt to fulfil God's promise by Hagar, he did still have faith in God both before and after that God would fulfil the promise. His faith is so strong that even when God tests that faith by asking Abraham to sacrifice Isaac on the altar, he is sure of having hiers through Isaac, even to the point of trusting God to resurrect Isaac.
God's demonstration of faithfulness is even more clear. The sealing of His covenant with Abram in chapter 15 is a very visual demonstration of this. Usually the weaker of the two covenant pairs would pass through the path between the split animals - a pledge to fulfil the covenant or he would pay the price the animals paid. Here however, the stronger party passes through between - God represented by the flaming pot. And indeed, the heir is provided, and we know from history that many nations food come from Abraham, and the people were given the promised land after the foretold time in 'a land not their own'. His provision of a substitute for Isaac gives us a picture of Christ.
Even in Abraham's failings God is faithful. He prevents the kings of Egypt from committing evil because of Abraham's deceit, and cares for Hagar and Ishmael. With Lot, God keeps him and his daughters safe when Sodom and Gomorrah are destroyed for their sin - even though Lot had chosen to live in the wicked city.
It reminds me that even though we fail often and make poor decisions, God is ever gracious to us.
With Isaac we see a quiet life lived for God, but a lack of communication in the household led to divisions. The first we see him is as a sacrifice. Uncomplaining in the face of death. His wife also is brought by faith, faith of a father, a servant, and Rebekah herself.
Jacob we see first as a deceiver. He values the right things, possibly from listening to his grandfather - Jacob was around the tents more than his brother. This he values the birthright and blessing highly. He goes about it in the wrong way, however, and must learn to trust God the hard way. He does learn though. Beginning with the dream at Bethel, setting God's protection during the years with Laban, ridding his household of idols, and culminating with the wrestling with God, he learns patience and trust.
The example of Jacob's wives shows how God doesn't always work in the way we expect. In a Hollywood tale Jacob and Rachel seem to be the start crossed lovers, with the elder sister getting in the way due to tradition and interference of the father. Yet it seems it is Leah that is more favoured by God. The reason we are given is that He saw she was hated - so we see his heart of compassion for the downtrodden. However we also have hints of other things. In particular, Rachel is recorded as hiding stealing idols and hiding them.
In terms of the deceit, Leah seems chosen by God as Jacob's wife. She was the eldest, teaching Jacob respect for the tradition of the eldest. She was also the mother of the messianic line, and buried with Jacob in the family tomb.
Joseph is the one patriarch about whom nothing evil is recorded. Again we have a type of Christ, suffering unjustly and redeeming the people. His short also provides a fitting bookend to the patriarchs. Abram was told by God in the beginning of this section that his descendants were to be a blessing to all the nations. Israel never truly lived up to this purpose during their history, but here before the nation was founded we see Joseph providing physical blessing, as Christ later fulfilled the purpose of being a spiritual blessing to all people. His life is a testimony of doing the right thing, whether wrong or not, and always giving credit to God for the wisdom and interpretation of the dreams. Yet he was not a pushover - he did test his brethren to confirm that they were truly changed from the time they were about to kill him and sent him away as a slave.
There are many other stories in this book, many other characters - particularly of Jacob's sons - that can be considered. Through them all though, God is true. Some stories are just recorded as history - good nor evil is said of them, and God is not directly mentioned. In others He takes a direct role. Consequences are sometimes not seen, or may come late - as with Reuben, who forfeited his birthright because of his immorality (the birthright [double portion] went to Joseph, which is why we have the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, rather than the tribe of Joseph).
Finally, the book concludes with both blessing and faith. Blessing has characterised much of the lives of the patriarchs - blessing from God, and blessings handed from father to son. Faith too, is an essential theme - concluded here by both Jacob and Joseph assuring their descendents that God would return them to the land.
It is good to remember that faith in God is important. Faith may require patience - trying to accomplish the promise by our own efforts may fail (as with Abraham), or may succeed (as with Jacob's blessing), but both learnt that the best way was to wait on God's timing. God does not give us faith flippantly, either - He strengthens our faith by putting us in situations where we can practice our faith.
I am trusting Thee, Lord, Jesus,
Trusting only Thee;
Trusting Thee for full salvation,
Great and free.
Trusting only Thee;
Trusting Thee for full salvation,
Great and free.
I am trusting Thee for pardon;
At Thy feet I bow;
For Thy grace and tender mercy,
Trusting now.
At Thy feet I bow;
For Thy grace and tender mercy,
Trusting now.
I am trusting Thee for cleansing
In the crimson flood;
Trusting Thee to make me holy
By Thy blood.
In the crimson flood;
Trusting Thee to make me holy
By Thy blood.
I am trusting Thee to guide me;
Thou alone shalt lead;
Every day and hour supplying
All my need.
Thou alone shalt lead;
Every day and hour supplying
All my need.
I am trusting Thee for power,
Thine can never fail;
Words which Thou Thyself shalt give me
Must prevail.
Thine can never fail;
Words which Thou Thyself shalt give me
Must prevail.
I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus;
Never let me fall;
I am trusting Thee forever,
And for all.
Never let me fall;
I am trusting Thee forever,
And for all.
Friday, 7 February 2014
His Steadfast Love Endures Forever. 2 Chronicles
2 Chronicles covers many of the same stories as in 1 and 2 Kings, from Solomon through to the time of exile. The focus however is on the kings of Judah, that is, the descendants of David. By contrast, Kings follows both Israel and Judah, but Chronicles mentions the king of Israel only when they directly inpact the history of Judah.
The book follows the ups and downs of the kings, their good and bad times. There were times of repentence and renewal as God's Law was found and followed. There were times of idolatry and pride. This was in a sense foreseen by Solomon, in his prayer of dedication for the temple (1 Chronicles 6). He makes a plea to God to listen to the prayers of his people, at all times. If (or when) a man sins against his neighbour, when Israel is defeated in battle, when there is no rain, when there is famine or pestilence or plague, when a foreigner enters, when anyone sins against God, when they are carried into exile - If any of these happen, and the people pray to God, then hear them and answer their prayers. Solomon knew that the people would sin ('for there is no one who does not sin') and that these disasters would come because of their sin. Yet he also knew that people would repent and turn back to God. And so they did. It's like Jesus speaking to Peter before his denial, "when you have turned again...". He knew that Peter would deny him, but he also knew that Peter would return ("when"). I guess this gives me, not a justification to sin, nor a casual acceptance of sin, but the comfort that my sin is not a surprise to God, and nor is it the end of the story. Time and time again, we see God restoring his people who repent.
This lineage (the kings of Judah) was the fulfilment of God's covenant with David, found in 1 Chronicles 17. "I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. I will not take my steadfast love from him, but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever." There were many times when it looked like this line would come to an end, when the king and their brothers and sons seemed to be all killed in one fell swoop, or invasion and assassination appeared immanent. But God continually kept the line alive.
Once I finished reading 2 Chronicles, I went forward to the first chapter of Matthew. And there again was this (now) familiar line of fathers and sons. God continued his work, and it culminated in the birth of Jesus Christ, in and from this very lineage. God fulfilled his promise to David, not because of the deservingness of the descendants and followers whose heads turned every which way and only occasionally back to God. But because of his great love and purpose. So, the oft repeated cry of Chronicles, 'Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His steadfast love endures forever!'
The book follows the ups and downs of the kings, their good and bad times. There were times of repentence and renewal as God's Law was found and followed. There were times of idolatry and pride. This was in a sense foreseen by Solomon, in his prayer of dedication for the temple (1 Chronicles 6). He makes a plea to God to listen to the prayers of his people, at all times. If (or when) a man sins against his neighbour, when Israel is defeated in battle, when there is no rain, when there is famine or pestilence or plague, when a foreigner enters, when anyone sins against God, when they are carried into exile - If any of these happen, and the people pray to God, then hear them and answer their prayers. Solomon knew that the people would sin ('for there is no one who does not sin') and that these disasters would come because of their sin. Yet he also knew that people would repent and turn back to God. And so they did. It's like Jesus speaking to Peter before his denial, "when you have turned again...". He knew that Peter would deny him, but he also knew that Peter would return ("when"). I guess this gives me, not a justification to sin, nor a casual acceptance of sin, but the comfort that my sin is not a surprise to God, and nor is it the end of the story. Time and time again, we see God restoring his people who repent.
This lineage (the kings of Judah) was the fulfilment of God's covenant with David, found in 1 Chronicles 17. "I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. I will not take my steadfast love from him, but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever." There were many times when it looked like this line would come to an end, when the king and their brothers and sons seemed to be all killed in one fell swoop, or invasion and assassination appeared immanent. But God continually kept the line alive.
Once I finished reading 2 Chronicles, I went forward to the first chapter of Matthew. And there again was this (now) familiar line of fathers and sons. God continued his work, and it culminated in the birth of Jesus Christ, in and from this very lineage. God fulfilled his promise to David, not because of the deservingness of the descendants and followers whose heads turned every which way and only occasionally back to God. But because of his great love and purpose. So, the oft repeated cry of Chronicles, 'Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His steadfast love endures forever!'
Wednesday, 5 February 2014
He Tangata. 1 Chronicles
The first chapters of 1 Chronicles are some of those genealogies that make my eyes glaze over. In fact, this whole book contains the highest proportion of names that I've seen in any text outside a phone book. Every so often you'll get to one that you recognize: Look, there's Boaz who married Ruth, or there's Caleb who spied out the land. But mainly they seem to be unknowns, who lived out their lives without much hue or cry. Yet this was enough to be included in "all Israel", God's people. Because people matter. An old Maori proverb goes: "He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata! He tangata! He tangata!" What is the most important thing in the world? It is people! It is people! It is people!
Now I don't know if this is exactly how it went down, but maybe David got to a point where he decided 'I don't care about the individuals any more; I just want to find out how many people there are'. Maybe that's why God' response was 'When you reduce the people you are leading to just a number, you're missing the point', and he sent pestilence as punishment.
Many bible stories focus on the big personalities, the movers and shakers, like the judges or the kings. Chronicles shows the worth and even the necessity of the 'ordinary' folk. Those who work the pastures and raise their families during the span of the genealogies. Those who sing and play instruments. The workmen: 'stonecutters, masons, carpenters and all kinds of craftsmen'. Those 'having the care of the courts and the chambers, the cleansing of all that is holy'. Those whose role was to 'assist with the showbread, the flour, the wafer, the baked offering'. Those who kept the gates, and those who kept the money, and those who kept the divisions of soldiers in order (and those soldiers themselves). All these people and more served God. In fact, 'every willing man with skill in any kind of service' was of service the Solomon, God's king.
So then, how can we hold back the skills that we have? David prays 'For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you'. This 'all things' refers to both the talents of money, and the talents of skill. We can offer what we have no matter how small or large we think it is, for the service of God and people.
One more application: We can pray for, thank and encourage those who are serving faithfully behind the scenes in church and in the community, living 'ordinary' lives for an extraordinary God.
Now I don't know if this is exactly how it went down, but maybe David got to a point where he decided 'I don't care about the individuals any more; I just want to find out how many people there are'. Maybe that's why God' response was 'When you reduce the people you are leading to just a number, you're missing the point', and he sent pestilence as punishment.
Many bible stories focus on the big personalities, the movers and shakers, like the judges or the kings. Chronicles shows the worth and even the necessity of the 'ordinary' folk. Those who work the pastures and raise their families during the span of the genealogies. Those who sing and play instruments. The workmen: 'stonecutters, masons, carpenters and all kinds of craftsmen'. Those 'having the care of the courts and the chambers, the cleansing of all that is holy'. Those whose role was to 'assist with the showbread, the flour, the wafer, the baked offering'. Those who kept the gates, and those who kept the money, and those who kept the divisions of soldiers in order (and those soldiers themselves). All these people and more served God. In fact, 'every willing man with skill in any kind of service' was of service the Solomon, God's king.
So then, how can we hold back the skills that we have? David prays 'For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you'. This 'all things' refers to both the talents of money, and the talents of skill. We can offer what we have no matter how small or large we think it is, for the service of God and people.
One more application: We can pray for, thank and encourage those who are serving faithfully behind the scenes in church and in the community, living 'ordinary' lives for an extraordinary God.
Day 1, Genesis 1-9: His-story of our beginning
A bit of a pun in the title there. One of the favorite sayings of a beloved mentor of mine was that history is His story. Given that we are now considering the beginning of His story, the pun seemed appropriate.
Genesis, with the name meaning beginning, is indeed a book of beginnings. The foundation of all of the teaching of the Bible can be found in the beginning chapters of Genesis. God's perfect creation, our rejection of Him, the promise of a Redeemer, the necessity for the shedding of blood, the temptation both within and without, the creativity and ingenuity of man (made in the image of a Creator, after all), and the devastation of righteous Divine judgment.
The editor of Genesis is accepted to be Moses, inspired by God to collate and write this book, quite possibly on Mount Sinai itself. It also seems apparent from the style of some of the early stories particularly that they were recorded by people close in time to the events, and so there was definitely a history handed down through the generations perhaps orally, perhaps in written form. We don't know the details of the means of human authorship, but as with all the Bible, we can be sure of the Divine authorship.
I have always enjoyed reading the story of Creation. Trying to picture what the earth would look like 'formless and void', trying to visualise the stretching out of the heavens and the separation of waters! They are unknowns in many ways, because we have no real experience to compare them to. Yet they show us the hands-on nature of God's approach to Creation, while other aspects show the instant nature of His power. Sometimes He hovers over the water, sometimes He gathers land together, other times He speaks and it is done. His power and Majesty are on display, preparing a home suitable for man, whom He makes in His own image. There is order and regularity - He could have 'snapped His fingers' and everything could have been done instantly. He could theoretically have done it over millions of years - here a bit, there a bit. But He chose to do it in six days. He sets an example for us to imitate in designing and creating. He sets a pattern for us to work for six days and rest on the seventh day. He shows satisfaction at a job completed - all was good at the end of each day, but only when all six days and thus the whole of Creation were complete was everything 'very good'.
In the second chapter we get further insight into the sixth day of Creation. Here we see the importance of relationships established - the relationship of God with man, the insufficiency of animals or the rest of Creation to fill that position as 'complement and help-meet to male human'. God always intended to make a women - so why didn't He make them a pair like He seemed to all the others? I think it was to make that point that relationship with other people is a good thing. The joy at seeing that perfect match for himself was all the greater for knowing the absence of it. We see God's care, in His forming a garden and making the trees that bore fruit to eat grow in the garden. We see His sustaining hand under all of Creation, especially humans, through the life breathed into man's nostrils. We see the perfect equality of male and female, and yet a distinctness between them - they are complements, not clones - the material that formed Adam was taken to form Eve, and yet she was formed very different. Just on the subject of one formed from the other, I was thinking of an old quote when I read this passage, and thought I should share it here for others to enjoy:
Continuing into chapter three, we see all the good from before broken. The relationship between husband and wife becomes one where the temptation is to conflict - the wife to usurp rule of the husband, the husband to abuse authority and power. The relationship between man and the ground is broken - where work was previously easy and pleasant (for there was still work before the curse), it now required hard labour and sweat and pain. Pain also comes to the women through childbirth, and yet the blessing of a promises comes through also, that her seed would be their Redemption. Most importantly, the relationship between God and man is broken. He was in the habit of walking with them in the garden, having a close and intimate relationship with them, but with their sin - their rejection of Him - His holiness and righteous justice would destroy them just by His presence. They are evicted from the specially crafted garden, and blood is shed to cover their shame - yet again a promise in a way, a sign of Christ coming to cover the shame of the world with His blood.
Moving on a bit quicker now, as it is getting late! We see in the story of Cain and Abel the unfortunate consequences of the evil of their parents - imperfection cannot produce perfect, and so sin is handed down the generations. Cain, though warned of God that sin 'desires to have him' - incidentally the same word for desire as in the curse pronounced on Eve - still listened to his sinful nature rather than God, and committed the first murder. Again, we have a story of fall, and then hope - at the end of the chapter, Eve gives birth to Seth, and after the story of Lamech who broke the design set by God of one man with one woman, we see his descendents as the fathers of nomadic life, of intricate musical instruments and tools - no bronze age or iron age here!
In chapter five, we have the all important record of history - generations. A means to trace ancestry back. It is sobering to think that each of the names recorded in this chapter was my ancestor. It is also enlightening to realise that the dates in this chapter tell us that this covers about 1/4 of Earth's history! We have that snippet of info about Enoch - a Godly man, who was taken by God, because he walked with God. Oh to have that simple testimony of one's life - "........... walked with God"!
In chapters 6-9 we have that well-known story of the Flood. Again a sobering read. I remembering watching the Titanic when I was maybe 12 years old. I had read in history books and in school work about the sinking of the Titanic, and I wasn't bothered at all. Seeing it brought to life on film was another thing, though. Fortunately I had grown out of my tendency for nightmares, but that film gave me many nights before I went to sleep contemplating the reality of so many people dying and being helpless to do anything about it. How much more terrifying to know that the whole world was going to perish! Noah preached to the people, as we learn from the New Testament, but only his sons and their wives joined him and his wife on the ark. God's intolerance of evil comes out clearly in the passage - and the horrific nature of judgment from our rejection of Him. It is coming again - not by water, but by fire. Like Noah, we are God's witnesses to a perverse world. Unlike Noah, we are not alone, and there are people listening, by the grace and work of God.
Just a few more comments on Noah - obviously we have the type of Christ seen with the ark as a protection from judgment - protection from sure death through trust in God. We also have God's control seen and ownership of the situation - He shut the door, not Noah.
Also, we see that even the most righteous people on earth also fall prey to sin. Noah falls prey to drunkenness - some have called it survivor's guilt, perhaps it was, we don't know. Ham disrespects his father by mocking him, sinning also. Shem and Japheth remedy the situation instead, trying to minimise consequences, and are blessed for it. It is curious to note that Ham is not cursed, but Caanan is. An interesting commentary I heard on that recently explained that Ham was a believer in God - evidenced by his willing presence on the ark, and with Ham 'protected' by his genuine faith in God, the curse fell on his descendent who did not believe in God.
So to sum up, we have God manifesting His Creative goodness and design in making the world, His forming personally man and wife in a private garden, with great stress laid on the importance of relationship between humans and between humans and God. Our rejection broke the goodness that He created, and began suffering, but hope and promise of redemption was provided. We see man's creativity, the majority of men rejecting God, and a few choosing to walk with God. We see the just devastation of the world, and the mercy of God in saving those who accept His salvation. Praise the Lord for His bountiful goodness towards us all!
Genesis, with the name meaning beginning, is indeed a book of beginnings. The foundation of all of the teaching of the Bible can be found in the beginning chapters of Genesis. God's perfect creation, our rejection of Him, the promise of a Redeemer, the necessity for the shedding of blood, the temptation both within and without, the creativity and ingenuity of man (made in the image of a Creator, after all), and the devastation of righteous Divine judgment.
The editor of Genesis is accepted to be Moses, inspired by God to collate and write this book, quite possibly on Mount Sinai itself. It also seems apparent from the style of some of the early stories particularly that they were recorded by people close in time to the events, and so there was definitely a history handed down through the generations perhaps orally, perhaps in written form. We don't know the details of the means of human authorship, but as with all the Bible, we can be sure of the Divine authorship.
I have always enjoyed reading the story of Creation. Trying to picture what the earth would look like 'formless and void', trying to visualise the stretching out of the heavens and the separation of waters! They are unknowns in many ways, because we have no real experience to compare them to. Yet they show us the hands-on nature of God's approach to Creation, while other aspects show the instant nature of His power. Sometimes He hovers over the water, sometimes He gathers land together, other times He speaks and it is done. His power and Majesty are on display, preparing a home suitable for man, whom He makes in His own image. There is order and regularity - He could have 'snapped His fingers' and everything could have been done instantly. He could theoretically have done it over millions of years - here a bit, there a bit. But He chose to do it in six days. He sets an example for us to imitate in designing and creating. He sets a pattern for us to work for six days and rest on the seventh day. He shows satisfaction at a job completed - all was good at the end of each day, but only when all six days and thus the whole of Creation were complete was everything 'very good'.
In the second chapter we get further insight into the sixth day of Creation. Here we see the importance of relationships established - the relationship of God with man, the insufficiency of animals or the rest of Creation to fill that position as 'complement and help-meet to male human'. God always intended to make a women - so why didn't He make them a pair like He seemed to all the others? I think it was to make that point that relationship with other people is a good thing. The joy at seeing that perfect match for himself was all the greater for knowing the absence of it. We see God's care, in His forming a garden and making the trees that bore fruit to eat grow in the garden. We see His sustaining hand under all of Creation, especially humans, through the life breathed into man's nostrils. We see the perfect equality of male and female, and yet a distinctness between them - they are complements, not clones - the material that formed Adam was taken to form Eve, and yet she was formed very different. Just on the subject of one formed from the other, I was thinking of an old quote when I read this passage, and thought I should share it here for others to enjoy:
“Eve was not taken out of Adam's head to top him, neither out of his feet to be trampled on by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected by him, and near his heart to be loved by him.”
Continuing into chapter three, we see all the good from before broken. The relationship between husband and wife becomes one where the temptation is to conflict - the wife to usurp rule of the husband, the husband to abuse authority and power. The relationship between man and the ground is broken - where work was previously easy and pleasant (for there was still work before the curse), it now required hard labour and sweat and pain. Pain also comes to the women through childbirth, and yet the blessing of a promises comes through also, that her seed would be their Redemption. Most importantly, the relationship between God and man is broken. He was in the habit of walking with them in the garden, having a close and intimate relationship with them, but with their sin - their rejection of Him - His holiness and righteous justice would destroy them just by His presence. They are evicted from the specially crafted garden, and blood is shed to cover their shame - yet again a promise in a way, a sign of Christ coming to cover the shame of the world with His blood.
Moving on a bit quicker now, as it is getting late! We see in the story of Cain and Abel the unfortunate consequences of the evil of their parents - imperfection cannot produce perfect, and so sin is handed down the generations. Cain, though warned of God that sin 'desires to have him' - incidentally the same word for desire as in the curse pronounced on Eve - still listened to his sinful nature rather than God, and committed the first murder. Again, we have a story of fall, and then hope - at the end of the chapter, Eve gives birth to Seth, and after the story of Lamech who broke the design set by God of one man with one woman, we see his descendents as the fathers of nomadic life, of intricate musical instruments and tools - no bronze age or iron age here!
In chapter five, we have the all important record of history - generations. A means to trace ancestry back. It is sobering to think that each of the names recorded in this chapter was my ancestor. It is also enlightening to realise that the dates in this chapter tell us that this covers about 1/4 of Earth's history! We have that snippet of info about Enoch - a Godly man, who was taken by God, because he walked with God. Oh to have that simple testimony of one's life - "........... walked with God"!
In chapters 6-9 we have that well-known story of the Flood. Again a sobering read. I remembering watching the Titanic when I was maybe 12 years old. I had read in history books and in school work about the sinking of the Titanic, and I wasn't bothered at all. Seeing it brought to life on film was another thing, though. Fortunately I had grown out of my tendency for nightmares, but that film gave me many nights before I went to sleep contemplating the reality of so many people dying and being helpless to do anything about it. How much more terrifying to know that the whole world was going to perish! Noah preached to the people, as we learn from the New Testament, but only his sons and their wives joined him and his wife on the ark. God's intolerance of evil comes out clearly in the passage - and the horrific nature of judgment from our rejection of Him. It is coming again - not by water, but by fire. Like Noah, we are God's witnesses to a perverse world. Unlike Noah, we are not alone, and there are people listening, by the grace and work of God.
Just a few more comments on Noah - obviously we have the type of Christ seen with the ark as a protection from judgment - protection from sure death through trust in God. We also have God's control seen and ownership of the situation - He shut the door, not Noah.
Also, we see that even the most righteous people on earth also fall prey to sin. Noah falls prey to drunkenness - some have called it survivor's guilt, perhaps it was, we don't know. Ham disrespects his father by mocking him, sinning also. Shem and Japheth remedy the situation instead, trying to minimise consequences, and are blessed for it. It is curious to note that Ham is not cursed, but Caanan is. An interesting commentary I heard on that recently explained that Ham was a believer in God - evidenced by his willing presence on the ark, and with Ham 'protected' by his genuine faith in God, the curse fell on his descendent who did not believe in God.
So to sum up, we have God manifesting His Creative goodness and design in making the world, His forming personally man and wife in a private garden, with great stress laid on the importance of relationship between humans and between humans and God. Our rejection broke the goodness that He created, and began suffering, but hope and promise of redemption was provided. We see man's creativity, the majority of men rejecting God, and a few choosing to walk with God. We see the just devastation of the world, and the mercy of God in saving those who accept His salvation. Praise the Lord for His bountiful goodness towards us all!
Tuesday, 4 February 2014
Good King, Bad King, King of Kings. 2 Kings 10-25 Or, On the Interpretation of Scripture.
The classic detective story trope is that of 'Good Cop, Bad Cop'. Here in the book of 2 Kings there are instead cycles of Good King, Bad King. It covers several generations and decades of history of two nations (Israel and Judah). But for many kings, all we get is a paragraph as epitaph, containing bulletpoints of their deeds and a thumbs up or down from God. The good kings, including Jehu, Hezekiah and Josiah, bring the nation to repentance and cut back at the idolatry in the nation. The bad kings either simply continue what their 'bad' fathers did, or seek out new ways to displease God, like setting up new altars to idols and the gods of the surrounding peoples. And in the end, the bad outweighed the good, and God's judgement on his people finally came, and first Israel and then Judah were taken into captivity and exile.
See, here's my problem: How do we faithfully interpret this? By this I mean many of the history books in general, but particularly thinking of Jehu tricking and slaughtering the prophets of Baal (2 Kings 10), which is followed by the Lord's proclamation 'you have done well in carrying out what is right in my eyes'.
For a start, we could say it's just a story of what happened long ago. And if it's just 'what happened' then it transfers just facts, with no need for action or response. But then 1 What is it doing in the Bible? and 2 We could follow that reasoning and ignore pretty much everything else in the Bible (and every other book we've ever read).
At the other end of the spectrum is the reasoning that the story is an example and we should do the same. So it becomes ludicrously specific and thus impractical - OK, next time I happen to find myself in the position of king over an ancient Middle Eastern nation, I'll be sure to destroy all the idols and altars I can lay my hands on. But since we'll never be royals (roooyals), we again reject any sort of action. So we take a step back from the context, and conclude that OK, I need to burn down that Buddhist temple just down the block from my house. I'm sure that you will reject that conclusion, on any number of grounds, including that I can't picture Jesus doing that. And since I call myself a follower of Jesus and not a follower of Jehu, that's pretty important.
What then, do we split God up into Good God, Bad God, the nasty Old Testament God of Judgement and the nice New Testament God of Grace? Is God schizophrenic? The problem is that this leads us to ignore most of the Bible (OT is approximately 80% of the text), and gives us a too convenient excuse to ignore the bits that we don't like.
Maybe we can simply say that the moral of the story is Be Good. That makes sense; be good and God will be happy, don't be bad because that will make God angry. But I'm dissatisfied with that. I'm not saying it's wrong, just that it's lacking. The moral Be Good I can get from practically anywhere; a school assembly, a fortune cookie, a bedtime story. Any religion will tell you to Be Good, with only superficial differences between what 'good' is. I don't need the Bible to tell me to Be Good. Doesn't it seem reasonable that, assuming that the God of the Bible is the true God, his word is somehow distinctive and different to the rest?
Surely we know from our view of the world that Be Good doesn't work? Being Good doesn't guarantee reward in this lifetime. Be Good (good enough to get into heaven) doesn't bring hope to people struggling with guilt and shame. Nor does Being Good trick God into letting us into heaven. Christianity is not about Being Good, nor following XYZ rules, but about the love and grace of God. Our reasoning and formulae fall short when we are met with the grace of God.
So then, in light of these pitfalls and blind alleys, how do we interpret scripture?
I want an interpretation that is faithful to: The God revealed through the whole scope of scripture. The revelation of God personified in Jesus Christ and his life and teachings. The cross of Christ, and the grace it brings. The context of the original text, and the context of my active interpretation.
Bullet points to make my emphasis clear: God - all scripture. Jesus - the person (embodiment of God), +action, +teaching. Cross - grace. Context - Then, now.
And permeating and enabling all of this is the Spirit of God.
Paul writes to the Corinthians about the history of the people of Israel. Look at the kings who followed idols, and were led into exile. "These things took place as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did... they were written down for our instruction... Therefore flee from idolatry." 1 Cor 10: 6, 11, 14 (and you may want to check for yourself if I've done a legitimate cherry picking of verses). The picture is of life in the middle, with temptations all around. Paul's question is why would you go there? Why would you follow these other paths, when you know where they lead? Why would you follow these paths away from the centre, where you have found freedom?
It's a similar picture with interpreting scripture. In the middle, there's this big area of freedom, of grace, of questions and tensions, where we can wrestle with things, and disagree and get confused and frustrated. But around the edges there are many paths which lead away from truth and away from grace. Why would we follow these dead ends?
Now obviously I've merely touched the tip of the iceberg of approximately 79 different tangents. So there's plenty of room for refinement, expansion, clarification, discussion and disagreement in this centre space.
See, here's my problem: How do we faithfully interpret this? By this I mean many of the history books in general, but particularly thinking of Jehu tricking and slaughtering the prophets of Baal (2 Kings 10), which is followed by the Lord's proclamation 'you have done well in carrying out what is right in my eyes'.
For a start, we could say it's just a story of what happened long ago. And if it's just 'what happened' then it transfers just facts, with no need for action or response. But then 1 What is it doing in the Bible? and 2 We could follow that reasoning and ignore pretty much everything else in the Bible (and every other book we've ever read).
At the other end of the spectrum is the reasoning that the story is an example and we should do the same. So it becomes ludicrously specific and thus impractical - OK, next time I happen to find myself in the position of king over an ancient Middle Eastern nation, I'll be sure to destroy all the idols and altars I can lay my hands on. But since we'll never be royals (roooyals), we again reject any sort of action. So we take a step back from the context, and conclude that OK, I need to burn down that Buddhist temple just down the block from my house. I'm sure that you will reject that conclusion, on any number of grounds, including that I can't picture Jesus doing that. And since I call myself a follower of Jesus and not a follower of Jehu, that's pretty important.
What then, do we split God up into Good God, Bad God, the nasty Old Testament God of Judgement and the nice New Testament God of Grace? Is God schizophrenic? The problem is that this leads us to ignore most of the Bible (OT is approximately 80% of the text), and gives us a too convenient excuse to ignore the bits that we don't like.
Maybe we can simply say that the moral of the story is Be Good. That makes sense; be good and God will be happy, don't be bad because that will make God angry. But I'm dissatisfied with that. I'm not saying it's wrong, just that it's lacking. The moral Be Good I can get from practically anywhere; a school assembly, a fortune cookie, a bedtime story. Any religion will tell you to Be Good, with only superficial differences between what 'good' is. I don't need the Bible to tell me to Be Good. Doesn't it seem reasonable that, assuming that the God of the Bible is the true God, his word is somehow distinctive and different to the rest?
Surely we know from our view of the world that Be Good doesn't work? Being Good doesn't guarantee reward in this lifetime. Be Good (good enough to get into heaven) doesn't bring hope to people struggling with guilt and shame. Nor does Being Good trick God into letting us into heaven. Christianity is not about Being Good, nor following XYZ rules, but about the love and grace of God. Our reasoning and formulae fall short when we are met with the grace of God.
So then, in light of these pitfalls and blind alleys, how do we interpret scripture?
I want an interpretation that is faithful to: The God revealed through the whole scope of scripture. The revelation of God personified in Jesus Christ and his life and teachings. The cross of Christ, and the grace it brings. The context of the original text, and the context of my active interpretation.
Bullet points to make my emphasis clear: God - all scripture. Jesus - the person (embodiment of God), +action, +teaching. Cross - grace. Context - Then, now.
And permeating and enabling all of this is the Spirit of God.
Paul writes to the Corinthians about the history of the people of Israel. Look at the kings who followed idols, and were led into exile. "These things took place as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did... they were written down for our instruction... Therefore flee from idolatry." 1 Cor 10: 6, 11, 14 (and you may want to check for yourself if I've done a legitimate cherry picking of verses). The picture is of life in the middle, with temptations all around. Paul's question is why would you go there? Why would you follow these other paths, when you know where they lead? Why would you follow these paths away from the centre, where you have found freedom?
It's a similar picture with interpreting scripture. In the middle, there's this big area of freedom, of grace, of questions and tensions, where we can wrestle with things, and disagree and get confused and frustrated. But around the edges there are many paths which lead away from truth and away from grace. Why would we follow these dead ends?
Now obviously I've merely touched the tip of the iceberg of approximately 79 different tangents. So there's plenty of room for refinement, expansion, clarification, discussion and disagreement in this centre space.
Monday, 3 February 2014
Day 30, Esther: Here for a time such as this...
Esther is an unusual book in many ways. It does not mention Israel, but the main plot is the plan to flippantly destroy the Jews. It does not mention God, and yet His presence permeates the pages. It is also one of only two books named after a woman, and predominantly about her story. Unlike Daniel (called Belteshazzar), whose prophecies are written under his Hebrew name, the story of Hadassah (called Esther) is known by her Persian name.
In regards to setting, the events of Esther took place between chapters 6 and 7 of Ezra, between the first return of the captives after 70 years, and the later return led by Ezra. So the Jews mentioned are the ones who have chosen to stay in the foreign lands, they are no longer there by compulsion.
There are four main characters in this book, and a number of minor characters. Reading through, I was given to think about the characters presented and how they responded to situations.
Beginning with a minor character, and yet a strong moral character - Queen Vashti. We know little, but her refusal to allow herself to be exploited as a showpiece to drunken dignitaries speaks highly of her. Admittedly, this is partly conjecture, as her reason is not recorded, but I do admire what seems to be a strong self-respect in this manner.
We also have the kings advisors - selfish, caring more about their own pride and concerns than the king or the nation, there is little f interest in their character seen. Haaman, though a major character, is almost identical to these advisors - a little more devious and vengeful, perhaps, but ultimately his actions are just a prideful and selfish heart sitting in a powerful position in the land. God frustrates his efforts - no one else apart from the Jews (whom he is targeting) seem concerned.
The king himself is seen as more complex, but ultimately self-concern seems to rule his life. He wanted to show off Vashti in a show of pride, then reacts in anger, gets revenge by shutting her out, and then is lonely - he doesn't act before he thinks. Similarly when Haaman presents the plot against the Jews, he seems fine with it - he gets more money in the treasury, and he is not concerned with the lives of a few foreigners living in the land. What's that saying 'a million is only a statistic'? Here it takes the statistic to take the face of someone close to him (his wife) before he regrets the command. He does show some 'good' characteristics. He seeks to repay Mordecai for saving his life, and he does allow Esther and Mordecai to provide a solution to the plot against the Jews - so he cares about those he likes, but ultimately he seems to be summed up as a powerful king that does as he pleases for himself and his friends, and doesn't consider God at all.
Mordecai is a far more interesting character to consider after these prideful and selfish people. He is protective, showing care and concern for Hadasseh/Esther as she grows up as his niece. His care for the his people is present from the first mention of his name, to the last chapter, with his reputation for seeking the welfare and peace of his people.
When Esther is taken as the king's wife, he looks out for her still. It would be interesting to know what would have happened if he hadn't warned her to keep her mouth shut about her ancestry. Was it wise caution, or over caution? We don't know, but again it shows his care - there was clearly some anti-Jewish animosity in the palace and in the land. He looks out not only for Esther, but also the king - showing respect and acknowledgement of the authority in power. Yet he refuses an order to bow before Haaman, because the king's law does not trump God's law.
His caution does not come above doing the right thing - he encourages Esther to go before the king, knowing the king could kill her on sight, rather than hide behind her unknown ancestry and position as queen. It is not so much his faith in Esther as his faith in God that comes through though - he encourages Esther to do it because it is the right thing, and she should do so - but he is confident that even if she does not, then God will still protect His people some other way. It is a reminder that though God places us in positions to be of use, and we should always do the right thing (of benefit to us spiritually, whether it is physically beneficial or not), but He is not limited by us - He can work His purposes with or without our cooperation.
Finally we come to the main character, Esther. In an unfamiliar environment, in a foreign country, married to a pagan king (who may turn against her on a whim), and finding herself in the middle of a plot against her people. Yet her strength of character also is strong. She listens to advice, and considers options carefully. Even when she is fearful of her life, she is willing to risk everything to do the right thing before God. She is wise, not asking the king directly about the plot to kill her people, but seeking to gain his interest and favour through the dinners (particularly important since he hadn't seen her in a month and she might have lost his interest). Most importantly, though, she is dependent upon God. Realising what she needs to do, her reaction is to fast and pray before God, and instructs not only the Jews to join her in seeking God, but her servants also join her in this. She was indeed put in place by God for that very time, and did not shrink from the occasion, but did what was right and came before the king with faith in God to protect her. She used the power and influence that she did have (which was not much - look how easily Vashti was thrust aside) - but what power and influence she had, she used for God. May our first reaction to a difficult situation also be to come in prayer before our King, reliant on Him for everything, including our safety. May we also be responsible with any power we are given stewardship for, and use it to work justice and righteousness for God, for the care and protection of all people, for all are precious in His sight.
Guide us, O Thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrims through this barren land.
We are weak, but Thou art mighty;
Hold us by Thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
Feed us now and evermore;
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
Feed us now and evermore.
Lord, I trust Thy mighty power,
Wondrous are Thy works of old;
Thou deliver’st Thine from thraldom,
Who for nought themselves had sold:
Thou didst conquer, Thou didst conquer,
Sin, and Satan and the grave,
Thou didst conquer, Thou didst conquer,
Sin, and Satan and the grave.
While we tread this vale of sorrow
May we in Thy love abide;
Keep us, O our graceous Saviour!
Cleaving closely to Thy side:
Still relying, still relying
On our Father's changeless love.
Still relying, still relying
On our Father's changeless love.
In regards to setting, the events of Esther took place between chapters 6 and 7 of Ezra, between the first return of the captives after 70 years, and the later return led by Ezra. So the Jews mentioned are the ones who have chosen to stay in the foreign lands, they are no longer there by compulsion.
There are four main characters in this book, and a number of minor characters. Reading through, I was given to think about the characters presented and how they responded to situations.
Beginning with a minor character, and yet a strong moral character - Queen Vashti. We know little, but her refusal to allow herself to be exploited as a showpiece to drunken dignitaries speaks highly of her. Admittedly, this is partly conjecture, as her reason is not recorded, but I do admire what seems to be a strong self-respect in this manner.
We also have the kings advisors - selfish, caring more about their own pride and concerns than the king or the nation, there is little f interest in their character seen. Haaman, though a major character, is almost identical to these advisors - a little more devious and vengeful, perhaps, but ultimately his actions are just a prideful and selfish heart sitting in a powerful position in the land. God frustrates his efforts - no one else apart from the Jews (whom he is targeting) seem concerned.
The king himself is seen as more complex, but ultimately self-concern seems to rule his life. He wanted to show off Vashti in a show of pride, then reacts in anger, gets revenge by shutting her out, and then is lonely - he doesn't act before he thinks. Similarly when Haaman presents the plot against the Jews, he seems fine with it - he gets more money in the treasury, and he is not concerned with the lives of a few foreigners living in the land. What's that saying 'a million is only a statistic'? Here it takes the statistic to take the face of someone close to him (his wife) before he regrets the command. He does show some 'good' characteristics. He seeks to repay Mordecai for saving his life, and he does allow Esther and Mordecai to provide a solution to the plot against the Jews - so he cares about those he likes, but ultimately he seems to be summed up as a powerful king that does as he pleases for himself and his friends, and doesn't consider God at all.
Mordecai is a far more interesting character to consider after these prideful and selfish people. He is protective, showing care and concern for Hadasseh/Esther as she grows up as his niece. His care for the his people is present from the first mention of his name, to the last chapter, with his reputation for seeking the welfare and peace of his people.
When Esther is taken as the king's wife, he looks out for her still. It would be interesting to know what would have happened if he hadn't warned her to keep her mouth shut about her ancestry. Was it wise caution, or over caution? We don't know, but again it shows his care - there was clearly some anti-Jewish animosity in the palace and in the land. He looks out not only for Esther, but also the king - showing respect and acknowledgement of the authority in power. Yet he refuses an order to bow before Haaman, because the king's law does not trump God's law.
His caution does not come above doing the right thing - he encourages Esther to go before the king, knowing the king could kill her on sight, rather than hide behind her unknown ancestry and position as queen. It is not so much his faith in Esther as his faith in God that comes through though - he encourages Esther to do it because it is the right thing, and she should do so - but he is confident that even if she does not, then God will still protect His people some other way. It is a reminder that though God places us in positions to be of use, and we should always do the right thing (of benefit to us spiritually, whether it is physically beneficial or not), but He is not limited by us - He can work His purposes with or without our cooperation.
Finally we come to the main character, Esther. In an unfamiliar environment, in a foreign country, married to a pagan king (who may turn against her on a whim), and finding herself in the middle of a plot against her people. Yet her strength of character also is strong. She listens to advice, and considers options carefully. Even when she is fearful of her life, she is willing to risk everything to do the right thing before God. She is wise, not asking the king directly about the plot to kill her people, but seeking to gain his interest and favour through the dinners (particularly important since he hadn't seen her in a month and she might have lost his interest). Most importantly, though, she is dependent upon God. Realising what she needs to do, her reaction is to fast and pray before God, and instructs not only the Jews to join her in seeking God, but her servants also join her in this. She was indeed put in place by God for that very time, and did not shrink from the occasion, but did what was right and came before the king with faith in God to protect her. She used the power and influence that she did have (which was not much - look how easily Vashti was thrust aside) - but what power and influence she had, she used for God. May our first reaction to a difficult situation also be to come in prayer before our King, reliant on Him for everything, including our safety. May we also be responsible with any power we are given stewardship for, and use it to work justice and righteousness for God, for the care and protection of all people, for all are precious in His sight.
Guide us, O Thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrims through this barren land.
We are weak, but Thou art mighty;
Hold us by Thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
Feed us now and evermore;
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
Feed us now and evermore.
Lord, I trust Thy mighty power,
Wondrous are Thy works of old;
Thou deliver’st Thine from thraldom,
Who for nought themselves had sold:
Thou didst conquer, Thou didst conquer,
Sin, and Satan and the grave,
Thou didst conquer, Thou didst conquer,
Sin, and Satan and the grave.
While we tread this vale of sorrow
May we in Thy love abide;
Keep us, O our graceous Saviour!
Cleaving closely to Thy side:
Still relying, still relying
On our Father's changeless love.
Still relying, still relying
On our Father's changeless love.
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