Ezekiel chapter 10

vs 1

I haven't even read the verse yet, but the supplied TNIV heading tells me God's glory is going to leave the temple.

When you're seeing thrones sitting above the ark of the covenant, you can be pretty sure God is involved. That's God's throne right there. I wonder if it being blue is important, or if lapis was just linked with royalty or something.

vs 2

I'm sure we'll learn what this all means in good time. This guy with the scribe equipment is really getting put to work though. Ezekiel's job is to just see it. Scattering fire around a city can't really be a good thing though.

vs 3

This cloud, I think we can infer, is the glory of the Lord. It does that from time to time - fills the temple.

vs 4

This sounds really awesome, right? Except... why is it moving to the threshold? No, God, you've lost your way. The holy of holies is in the other direction. You just go and camp in there like a good little God.

vs 5

That is fairly loud, because the temple is fairly big. I know it's not hyperbolic like, "You could hear it back in Susa" or something, but it gives a picture of grandiose...ness.

vs 6

Now we go back to linen man, who is standing beside a wheel, preparing to get some hot coals.

vs 7

If I have learned anything from angels, it's that you don't want to touch burning coals unless they've touched them first, because then you can generally handle them without a problem.

vs 8

Just in case you were wondering how the cherubim picked up the coals.

vs 9

Mmm, more precious stone. And mmm, more wheels, because we all know what the wheels mean. I like the idea of wheels meaning power, like referring to chariots, but it's so confusing to us we may as well just accept it means something awesome. Especially when blinged out in gemstone.

vs 10

So these are the same wheels from the first vision.

vs 11

These cherubim, and the living creatures before them, really do like to just stick to their one direction, don't they? Always travelling the straight path. I wonder if that is a picture of righteousness? Or just of order.

Ezekiel chapter 9

vs 1

Oh, this doesn't sound good. Weapons in hand. But God has shown full well why this is deserved.

vs 2

It's only six guys! No doubt they represent something, because I don't think six guys are going to cause the kind of judgment God is wanting. Seven guys, if we include the guy with the writing kit. In any case, these guys are in the temple, next to the bronze altar, so something is going to happen.

vs 3

This verse just flows happily along, but it contains an immense, incredible truth that is so vital to understanding this whole book, the whole exile. God's presence, which has lived in the temple for so long, even through all the wickedness, is now standing at the door, ready to leave.

vs 4

This guy doesn't write anything. He goes around marking people's foreheads, much in the way the Israelites marked their doorframes on the first passover. There are still people, you see, who wail and lament the horrible blasphemy that their leaders have accomplished. What's going to happen to them? Will they be saved?

vs 5

These six are to go through the city following the scribe guy, and kill people. This reminds me of the punishment Israel suffered when they made the golden calf - the Levites took swords and killed 3000 people. Certainly it's something similar.

vs 6

So, starting from the temple, they just kill anyone they meet, regardless of age, gender, marital status - the only thing that matters is whether they are mournful of the blasphemy their nation has wrought against God. Probably aren't many.

vs 7

God doesn't care if they defile the temple - it's not his any more.

vs 8

This seems an odd question, considering that there are people who are going to be specifically marked so as not to die.

Oh, and the term "While they were killing" is just priceless.

vs 9

You would hope the sin was exceedingly great. You wouldn't want God to say, "Oh, they didn't pay their tax this year, but other than that they've been fine - I'm leaving the temple, kill them all!" No, they have turned around in their wickedness and accused God of dropping the ball. Well, now he's going to drop it - on them.

vs 10

They want to play this game? Now they will see what it's like to ACTUALLY have God not listen. Yes, pardon the caps, I've been on the Internet too long.

vs 11

For the end of a chapter, that is rather ominous. I know Ezekiel didn't number it, but whoever split the chapter up did well. Ending with flair. Also, it didn't take long - Ezekiel had a one sentence conversation with God in this time. Does that mean there aren't many to mark?

Ezekiel chapter 8

vs 10

Not only are there idols in the temple - there are idols of unclean animals and creepy crawlies! We read about Antiochus Epihanes going into the temple and sacrificing a pig on the altar, and we think, "Wow, insensitive prick."

But the Israelites were building idols of unclean animals right in the middle of the temple! So who're the pricks now?

vs 11

So basically, all the leaders of Israel and some guy, who I don't know, are in there offering worship to idols. In the temple. To idols. Of pigs and crap. It's a wtf situation.

vs 12

So this is how it runs. The people of Jerusalem, God's people, have been living wicked lives. And then, when they pray, oddly enough God stops listening. So then, they conclude "God is not listening to us, so let's make idols and worship them instead." This is the equivalent of not putting petrol in your car, so when it breaks down you say, "Oh, my car isn't working for me any
more, I'm going to make a car out of cardboard boxes and paper plates and drive that to work every day instead."

vs 13

But wait, there' s still more. And it's not going to be steak knives.

vs 14

I don't know who Tammuz is, but I know who it isn't - Yahweh.

vs 15

And yet things get still worse.

vs 16

Sun worship. I mean, are you kidding? When did you leave Egypt, like a million years ago? Yes, I know, more people worship the sun than just Akhanaten, but still.

vs 17

I will admit I don't know what the branch on the nose thing is, but the rest of it - idolatry combined with violence, wickedness, and general stuff God hates. Is it trivial? Apparently not. Is God going to let it go? No.

vs 18

Funny - the people thinking that God isn't listening to them is going to be nothing compared to when God actually ignores them because he is too busy kicking their ass.

Ezekiel chapter 8

vs 1

So, this sounds like a new start for Ezekiel. This is prophecy number two. This seems to be about a year later. Can that be right? Isn't he still lying on one side if it's only a year later? I don't know, I'll let you do the maths.

vs 2

This sounds familiar. The man with the lower half that is all burning fire has made appearances before. So we can safely assume this is God.

vs 3

So Ezekiel goes for a bit of a hair-raising adventure! Get it? It doesn't seem clear to me whether this is an actual trip, or a vision, but it definitely looks more like a vision.

That idol at the gate doesn't seem to be getting a good wrap. But then, it is a vision from God, so it's to be expected.

vs 4

Those creatures, the wheels, that throne - damn confusing vision gets around.

vs 5

Repetition - idol must be important. Oh, wait, I didn't realise till now that this idol is not in the gate to Jerusalem, it's in the gate of the TEMPLE! Bad idol!

vs 6

There is an idol at the gate of the temple. Can you imagine how God feels about that? And yet they have done worse. This is the sort of thing driving God away.

vs 7

There's a hole in the wall.

vs 8

There's a door in the hole in the wall... is this like the sneaky way of getting Ezekiel into the inner temple? Isn't this a vision? Isn't he a priest anyway?

vs 9

So God wants Ezekiel to see the even worse things that are happening inside the temple. Setting up idols in God's temple, just for reference - makes him angry.

Ezekiel chapter 7

vs 19

God's people have screwed up over their treatment of wealth. No doubt this has made them rich but unjust, as is the common complaint in the prophets. So now God has put them in a situation they can't buy their way out of, to show them just how important their money is. Why did they turn their back on God again? Oh, for that useless gold and silver they're now throwing out of their houses, that can't even buy them food?

vs 20

This is of course a reference to coming out of Egypt, and the golden calf (Mooby, as we know him, thanks Kevin Smith). But no doubt it is referring to the situation since then as well - whereby people have gotten rich, and their minds and hearts have wandered, and they have sought to build themselves new detestable idols to worship in the way they like, not in the way God demands. Idolatry can so often start this way - it is something that humans need to fill their worship-gap. I know athiests and psychologists say this sort of thing all the time - and the thing is, they are 99.9% right! All the gods out there are a bunch of crap - except one. Lots of them are made up by people so they can make up their own way of worshipping (I will admit that I think some religions are orchestrated by the devil more directly - if you've ever read how the "angel Gabriel" appeared to Mohammad... well). But God isn't like that.

Of course when you see a million people worshipping a billion false gods, all gods start to look false. And believe me, there are plenty of people who call themselves 'Christian' but really worship an idol of their own making. No wonder people get confused. Just like these people living in Jerusalem would have called themselves "Israelites" but were really just idol-worshipping scum that God is going to kill now.

vs 21

...defile it as much as the people who own it currently are. No difference to God in that respect.

vs 22

God will hand over Jerusalem, including his temple, to the looters of the foreign armies. He doesn't care, he lives in heaven and the whole earth is his. The temple (and tabernacle before it) was a symbol to God's people that he dwelt with them. Now he doesn't, so tear the thing down for all he cares.

vs 23

Not sure what the chains are for. Putting people into slavery again? Tearing down walls? Not sure. But the rest of the message is pretty clear.

vs 24

Even the strongest of families in Israel will not be safe. No matter how rich, no matter how politically powerful or influential, they are all going down, and all their idol worshipping spaces will be smashed too. Will their idols save them? Nu-uh. And now it's too late to turn back to God.

vs 25

There is no peace to be had when God is at war with you.

vs 26

All of the original religious and leadership structures that God put in place are gone. The only prophet is Ezekiel, who will give you one message: "You're screwed." And with no temple the priests are pretty much useless. And the elders, well, I'm not sure. Perhaps they are all idol worshippers now, so their counsel is worthless.

vs 27

The king and prince are also useless, so the whole leadership structure is torn to bits, unable to protect the land from the foreign forces.

Now God judges them according to their conduct, which makes perfect sense. But he also says he will judge them according to their own standards. I'm guessing he means he will say, "Aren't wicked people who do injustice and treat people unfairly and turn their backs on relationships and family and agreements and who don't keep their promises deserving of punishment? Guess what Israel, that's you!"

Ezekiel chapter 7

vs 10

Did he just use the word 'doom' again? You'll note (or I'll note) that the TNIV has put a lot of this stuff into poetic form, which sounds right to me. It's already shocking that Ezekiel is talking about doom doom doom. It's got to be a poem.

Rod budding I assume refers to Aaron's rod budding, which was a sign that the Lord had chosen Aaron to help Moses, and to stop the Israelites grumbling. It was a continual sign, and that staff was actually put into the Ark. What does that mean? Only that the time is come, I'm assuming. That God is acting on his decision. This time arrogance is the blossom of the rod - perhaps this is the rod that God is going to beat his people with?

vs 11

Well, hey, look, the rod is going to be used to beat them. It's going to be more than just a beating too, it's going to be a mass extermination of people and their wealth and valuables. This is Jerusalem after all, we assume the richies live there.

vs 12

Buy or sell, both get punished. It's hard not to read these passages, with all their exclamation marks, and think that it's exciting. What it is really is admonishing. Got to keep that in mind.

vs 13

Why the buyers or the sellers? Why make that division? I wonder if it's because so often we can make that division about who is righteous between what people do with their money. But God is not drawing those lines. All have been wicked, all will get punished.

vs 14

God's wrath isn't something you can fight. The people of Jerusalem see an enemy at the gate, an army on the march, and they think that's their problem. So they get some warriors together, stick their armour on, and march out to meet them. But the problem for Jerusalem isn't the army. It's that God is against them, and you can't march an army against God. All you can do is lose.

vs 15

God in this way punishes them all. And the very, very lucky ones in the city who don't get immediately killed by the sword, who somehow sidestep the plague and who live through the famine by eating their children? Lucky isn't really the right word, is it?

vs 16

But even then, they will still be exiled. They will flee to the mountains. And then, I guess once they turn around and see their city burning, they will begin to moan and weep about their sins, and what has happened to them because of sin.

vs 17

Ezekiel doesn't pull punches. The language of this book is the language of God not pulling punches. Well, actually, the TNIV won't pull punches. All the others say that 'their knees will be as weak as water.' The TNIV says, 'They will piss themselves with fear.' I leave you to decide what Ezekiel really wrote.

vs 18

They will begin to mourn their sin, and realise their shame, and be filled with terror at the reality of the punishment of their sin. Probably wondering if those that were killed by the sword weren't lucky.

Ezekiel chapter 7

vs 1

And it will come again, and again, and every time Ezekiel is probably thinking, "What coming next?"

vs 2

I assume the land is the promised land, not the whole world. Even then, it's not the sort of thing you want to hear proclaimed. It does show how seriously God is taking his punishment of his people though.

vs 3

God isn't unnecessarily angry. It's more that he is punishing a long, long list of wrongs. God stayed his hand for a long time. But he doesn't forget iniquity unless asked for forgiveness, and his people as a nation have not turned back to him for a long time.

vs 4

Actually, if anything for most Christians a God that doesn't forgive, that doesn't have pity, that doesn't spare people, is hard to recognise as the Lord. But that's him all right, if you know your OT. Forgiveness is not a right, it's a privilege.

vs 5

Oh yes, it comes.

vs 6

Pretty passionate stuff. Ezekiel is going to have to wear a sandwich board and ring a bell at this rate. But all this repetition means God is serious about it. The end is really coming. Even though God will not forget his people, things won't be the same.

vs 7

I think this is the first time I've read the word 'doom' at the hands of a prophet, although people talk so much about their doom and gloom. If Ezekiel says 'gloom' too, he might end up my favourite prophet.

vs 8

Again, a repeat, but there really is no escaping this. For all the many, many times God has said he would do this, he is now saying, "You know all those times I said I'd do this. Well, I'm cracking open my can of whupass, and piling them all into one big, awful event.

vs 9

Again, more repetition. This idea of God's pity being at an end, and his wrath coming through in a very real and potent way is obviously a very important message that Ezekiel has here.

Ezekiel chapter 6

vs 1

Get used to that, Ezekiel. It's going to happen a lot.

vs 2

Now you might think, "Why the mountains? What crime did they commit? Isn't this between God and his people?"

vs 3

God is going to punish the high places of the mountains. Now obviously the mountains didn't put them there, but God is so angry wit Israel's idolatry, he is going to take it out on mountains too, just for holding the altars. That's the point.

vs 4

Your people, as if the people belong to the mountains. They are not God's people, these idol worshippers. God is one angry suzerain.

vs 5

Hence desecrating them. So God himself will desecrate the altars of these idols through the mass extermination he has planned.

vs 6

I think he's swapped halfway through the last verse to be talking about the people now, not the mountains. So even outside Jerusalem, in the outlying towns, he will show no mercy. It will all be smashed and broken, because this is the main reason God is crushing them - persistent idolatry which led them to ignore him.

vs 7

You hear this "you will know I am the Lord" a lot in this book. It's not usually a good thing.

vs 8

Huzzah? I suppose life is better than death, even at the enslaved hand of the nations.

vs 9

This is what needed to happen. It is an awful, terrible tragedy, but actions speak louder than words, and God alone knew what action needed to be taken to speak to his people about idolatry, and to turn their hearts from it. It took exile. That probably says more about the hardness of Israel's hearts than it does some meanness about God.

vs 10

He sure didn't threaten it in vain. Not only does he show that he keeps his promises - even if he is very, very slow to boil in anger, but he also shows them that they have done wrong, and does it in a way that makes them loathe their wickedness.

vs 11

Now, is this what Israel should do? Or is this what Ezekiel should do? I'm not sure. I think this is what God is telling Ezekiel to tell the people. They should do the stomping and clapping.

vs 12

When he says a third, a third, a third, you might recognise that this equals 100%. And yet we know that God doesn't kill everyone. Because measurements just weren't that precise then. God saves the remnant - the little bit that sticks to the scales, or falls on the floor out of the bags between measuring - but he saves it. That's the remnant. Those that survive are the margin of error.

vs 13

Knowing God is the Lord is apparently a much more difficult lesson than it should be. It involves wholesale slaughter and destruction of idols at the hands of a foreign power. I wonder how big a stick God has to use in some people's lives today.

vs 14

The land, the poor land, it's always been like the meat in the sandwich between God's relationship with his people. Because the Land was part of the promise, it is the land that so often bears the brunt of curses, plagues, famines, locusts, armies etc. And now it will too, just on top of all the problems of the people. Very, very bad. Not that it will matter greatly to Israel, because they won't be living there anyway. They'll be exiled.

Ezekiel chapter 5

vs 10

People eating people is generally a mark of a siege gone bad. Food has run out, and there's nothing else to eat. Then, once they are broken anyway, they are scattered, exiled. Interesting thing for God to say, though, that he's never done it before. I guess he's never done it to Jerusalem before - although it probably did happen

vs 11

I'm guessing that the 'shave' refers to the shaving Ezekiel did with the sword, and so God is going to 'shave' his people the same way, treat them the way that hair was treated.

vs 12

Because, see, this matches exactly what was done to the hairs. Ezekiel isn't just making this stuff up. God isn't just making idle threats. And the people who have already left Jerusalem are seeing that it's not really time to return yet, because it's getting worse.

vs 13

God knows that sometimes actions speak louder than words. So he 'has spoken' when his wrath has finally subsided and almost everyone is dead. A lot of people are going to die because God is really angry. He doesn't screw around.

vs 14

See, Ezekiel is already getting a taste of what it's like to be an object lesson - like "lie on your side for 390 days and eat bread cooked on poo". So now imagine, "have a good two thirds of your people killed and the others chased over the countryside with a sword, so people know I don't screw around."

vs 15

"You're such an Israel" doesn't really work, but "Don't mess with that God, he kills his own men" a la Mystery Men does apply.

vs 16

God is not messing around, he is making this clear. He is going to shoot to kill. With arrows of famine. Which, forgive me, sounds like a D&D magic item if ever I heard of one.

vs 17

This is all repeated from the curses God promised in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. It isn't new, in that way. But it is pretty shocking when you stop reading them as "This I will do if it ever comes to that", and start reading them as, "These are imminent, you are going to suffer really, really badly." Yes, I will admit that if I were an Israelite back in the promised land days, I wouldn't have taken those curses seriously when I first heard Moses speaking them.

Ezekiel chapter 5

vs 1

I swear, God is a consumate preacher. He loves his weird and wacky sermon illustrations. "It's like Israel shaved themselves with a sword, and then weighed up the hair!" Hopefully we'll learn what that means, because I've got no idea.

vs 2

Ah. The inhabitants of Jerusalem are the hair. A third will die inside. A third will die outside, and a third will be scattered to the wind. Just for your information, there were multiple exiles from Jerusalem, not just the one, so even though Ezekiel is up on the Kabar river or whatever, he can still make such predictions about the future. That's my understanding, at least.

vs 3

That's where you want to keep spare hair.

vs 4

So even the rest of Israel that is hidden elsewhere will not be safe from this fiery judgment. Very few hairs indeed will escape unsinged. God's not messing around. And the thing is, these hairs aren't just a sermon illustration. God is going to actually kill these people. Think about that.

vs 5

Which is both a blessing and a curse, I guess. Strong trade potential, also strong army highway potential a la Poland.

vs 6

Not just rebelled, you see. Rebelled more than the countries who aren't God's special nation have rebelled. They have become especially wicked. It's like they are trying to be evil, and outstripping evil nations at it. Going for evil Olympic gold.

vs 7

They couldn't even keep to the standards of the surrounding nations. I mean, if they had become just another nation, God would still have punished them. But they couldn't even do that! They have become totally abhorrent to God. It's not really till you read this that you see just how 'evil in the eyes of the Lord' they were. The chronicles don't really make this abundantly clear. God must be very upset to see this. It's like buying a candle, only to find that not only does the candle not produce any light, but it creates 10 times more acrid, awful smoke than all the other crappy candles.

vs 8

I'm the kind of person who thinks being judged by God is bad enough - and all the countries of the world were judged by God for their wickedness, no doubt through wars and plagues and the usual stuff. But God himself has taken a personal interest in Israel, and they have screwed up big time. So now, they are royally boned. God is going to make them the posterboys for, "Why not to mess with God."

vs 9

Gulp. This is a God who flooded the whole world saying there's something he's never done. You don't want to hear God say that, really.

Ezekiel chapter 4

vs 10

So not a whole lot, really. Not sure what the times of day were, but hey. We might find out as we go, or not.

vs 11

So about three glasses of water. If I lived in the middle east, I'd want more.

vs 12

Oh... lovely. Pooh bread, with baked in poohsmoke goodness. Lucky you, Ezekiel! You've been chosen to be a prophet!

vs 13

Oh, delightful. Talk about defiled food. I wonder if this counts as breaking the food laws? It's not even donkey do-do or camel crap. Human waste, we have laws about that! I wonder if it's his own? That's a beautiful circle of life, isn't it?

vs 14

In other words, "I followed the food laws all my life, I'm not eating food cooked on pooh." Ezekiel draws the line in the sand. He might want to keep the sand, though, just in case he needs it to cover up pooh. Because seriously, is Ezekiel taking on God here? Over God's own laws?

This is what I'm talking about - this is an extreme example of people thinking they are more holy than God.

vs 15

God is forever gracious, really. Cow dung. Woo. Now, I'd eat a meal that was cooked over cow dung. And the message is still kind of strong. See, here is God protecting his own holiness. No-one is going to look at Ezekiel and say, "That's the so-called prophet of God, but he ate food cooked on human pooh. How can he be a prophet?"

vs 16

Rationing - long before the second world war. Who knew? Jews, I guess.

vs 17

This is the picture of a siege. No-one wants to live in these conditions. You have to eke out a living, and every day your life gets worse, and every day the army waiting outside just gets angrier. Siege warfare is all about time. You keep doing things to waste the other side's time, but you have to have an endpoint - either the winter comes and the army goes home, or your allies turn up in chariots and drive them off, or something. I don't think Jerusalem had any friends left. So now they're just rationing food and weakening themselves.

Ezekiel chapter 4

vs 1

Now, honestly, what are you going to do when God tells you to grab some clay and draw a little Jerusalem on it? You're going to do it.

vs 2

Honestly, is God just feeding Ezekiel with a sermon illustration, or what? Some of us have to think long and hard, you know?

If anyone ever tells you that miniature wargaming is unChristian, tell them you are following the prophetic ministry of Ezekiel. Word up, my gaming homies.

vs 3

I assume the pan is to show a separation between Ezekiel and the city. As if it is God himself laying seige to Jerusalem. Possibly. Perhaps all will come clear.

vs 4

Okay, I'm not quite sure how one represents sin. Maybe he just has a blanket with the word 'sin' written on it? Anyway, another illustration given by God. It's hardly fair, really.

vs 5

Except that this one is a little bit more long-suffering, so you know what? Ezekiel can have it. 390 days, representing 390 years. So pretty much the whole time after David and Solomon?

vs 6

This is more interesting. Now only 40 days... what is that measuring? Did Judah only start sinning 40 years before the exile? I don't think so. I need to know my history better, obviously, to know what this is referring to.

vs 7

Bared arm? Again, at a loss. But it's obvious that he is wearing Judah's sin, and prophesying against Jerusalem. Which some might think is just a little late, what with the exile already having happened.

vs 8

So he lies there, for 40 days, prophesying against Jerusalem, and isn't allowed to leave till the seige is over. That's got to suck. I mean, I'd get sick of playing 40k for 40 days. He doesn't even have another person to pretend to try and protect Jerusalem.

vs 9

So not only does he have to lie there for OVER A YEAR, he has to bake his own bread... on his side? Man, that's hardcore. I thought I was hardcore when I used to have a toaster on my computer table for making food whilst computing.

Ezekiel chapter 3

vs 19

So their response is not in issue - it is the sharing of the message that is important. "Save yourself" is fairly strong language really. You are in trouble that is severe enough that you will save yourself from it by doing your duty. What is that exactly? It doesn't say. But being accountable for someone's death is pretty serious.

vs 20

The formula is followed again, but instead of the wicked doing what wicked always do and being wicked, the righteous can sometimes just stop being righteous and do a wicked thing. The responsibility is the same - they need to be told, just like the wicked. The accountability is also the same.

vs 21

Righteous people take warnings, and so they might actually respond and change their attitudes. Then, not only are you safe, but they are too. Huzzah!

vs 22

Because sometimes you need a change of scenery to hear a message, I guess.

vs 23

Once again, another vision.

vs 24

Because, of course, you can do your best preaching from inside your house.

vs 25

I assume God means that the people won't want to hear his message, and so will restrain him from sharing it.

vs 26

My opinion of this passage was that God was telling Ezekiel that, unlike other prophets, he didn't want Ezekiel to take the intercessory position of appealing to God for his people. He didn't want him to instruct them so much as send his message to them.

vs 27

See, God wants them to either listen or not listen, and to judge them on that basis. He doesn't want Ezekiel rebuking them into it, as it were. God will open Ezekiel's mouth when he wants it open.

Ezekiel chapter 3

vs 10

If you weren't listening hard already, after the vision, and the scroll, and the whole shebang, then honestly, I don't think you've got what it takes to be a prophet, Ez.

vs 11

His job is not to elicit a response. His job is to keep spreading the message regardless of the response.

vs 12

So the TNIV takes this and twiddles the Hebrew a little, and makes it say something different - that the glory of the Lord rose up from where he was. Most others have something about praising the Lord in his dwelling place. I don't know if this is a kere thing or if they are just being super smart people or what. I've got to say it reads better, although the NIV doesn't do a bad job of breaking out the praise bit and linking the noise from vs 12a to 13a.

The problem then of course is that the LXX might still say something about God's praise, and then you're somewhat stuck here. Anyway, either he hears a noise and feels the need to say, "Praise God!" or he hears a noise and the glory is on the move.

vs 13

By vs 13, regardless of your translation, there is definitely movement at the station.

vs 14

The 'but' of the KJV I think is an old school but, and does not indicate a dichotomous reading, so the 'and' of the other translations is equal in lack of force. Basically Ezekiel has eaten a scroll of wrath and woe, and now the anger is seeping out of his pores like the heat of a really good curry. And the Spirit leads him (somehow) to somewhere.

vs 15

Something I love about having 4 translations open is that you can see how people end up deciding on a slightly different approach. TNIV here says that Ezekiel was 'deeply distressed'. NIV says he was 'overwhelmed'. KJV has 'astonished'. But the NASB takes the cake by saying that he 'caused consternation among'! I would have thought that, was there a more causative indication in the word, the other translations would pick it up, so NASB loses today in my book. The others are all varieties on a theme. 'Distressed' I think makes a stronger value judgment, which correlates with Ezekiel's anger, I think.

vs 16

So for 7 days, a whole week, he just sits there in his astonished, overwhelmed, distressed daze (possibly causing consternation, but let's assume not).

vs 17

God finally speaks to Ezekiel (again) and says to him that his role is that of a watchman. Not like the movie, more like keeping watch for the enemy. Now, of course, the remnant have already seen the enemy come and go, and they've been defeated, and they've been exiled. So what enemy can he possibly be on the look out for? For God himself, who is the enemy of his people. Uh oh.

vs 18

This verse is the start of a section which basically builds a flowchart of responsibility. It starts by saying that if God tells you to tell someone who is wicked that they will die from their wickedness if they do not turn away from it, and you don't tell them, not only will they die, but you will be responsible. That, when you think about it, is actually a mammoth amount of accountability, but the responsibility is fairy succinct - the telling is the key, not their doing, as becomes clear later.

When we were discussing these verses last night and mourning the possibility that we could be charged each individually with telling every single person who comes within 20 metres of us, say, Penny said something quite smart - that actually, to fulfil your responsibility, you have to tell them the message in a way that they can understand and accept. So just shouting it from rooftops or in crowded trains may have its place, but the need to transfer information through a respected means so that it is more acceptable (friendship, for example, or a position of respect and authority on such matters) is probably more meaningful. So really, God will judge you for exactly the number of people you had the opportunity to reach meaningfully, not just tangentially or haphazardly. Still a big deal, of course. This is Penny's idea, but I like it, and so it gets my stamp of approval.

Ezekiel chapter 3

vs 1

And Ezekiel of course asked for tomato sauce. And God provided, because ask, and it will be given to you. I assume the vision of eating the scroll means taking on board its message. Simple enough.

vs 2

Yum. Tasty obedience. Although from the next verse, it looks like he opens his mouth, but God puts the scroll in his hands.

vs 3

So now God tells him again to eat it, and he does, and it tastes sweet. My bitter guess was wrong. God's wrath tastes sweet. Revenge is a dish best served with honey on a scroll.

vs 4

Now that you've eaten the scroll, you should be able to speak the words.

vs 5

Now this is an interesting verse. Does this mean that God was in the habit of occasionally sending prophets to strange people as well as to Israel?

vs 6

God is actually of the opinion that a strange foreign people would hear his message and respond to it. You can just tell that his opinion of Israel isn't going to be quite so high.

vs 7

And yet God still wants to talk to them. He could quite easily wipe them off the planet's surface - he has already punished them harshly - and yet God still thinks they aren't going to listen.

vs 8

So God fights stubbornness with stubbornness. Guess who wins? Whenever God fights, you know what the result is going to be. Here, he is strapping on the boxing gloves to Ezekiel. Note that he's not going to make it easy, he is only going to make Ezekiel not give up. Take a beating and keep on... something that rhymes with... eating! Because he keeps eating the scroll, of course.

vs 9

So, Ezekiel is meant to headbutt them? I say go for it, Ez, give 'em a Liverpool kiss.

Ezekiel chapter 2

vs 1

The TNIV has a fascinating note on the term ben adam in the Hebrew, noting that it literally means 'human being'. Of course, what it literally means is 'son of adam' and it depends whether you take the word 'adam' as meaning 'man' or as a proper name - I think there is a way to tell them apart, but nuts if I can remember. What actually interests me is that they felt the need to put this note in - and then say they were keeping Son of Man for its traditional associations.

What this vision of the glory of God says is that Ezekiel should stand up, and then they will talk.

vs 2

When God says stand up, you stand up. Is this the same spirit that was blowing around the creatures, I wonder?

vs 3

Well, that sets the tone, doesn't it? God is not happy. Israel to him at the moment is a nation of people who have screwed him around for ages and ages, and even though they are in exile, God is still upset with them.

vs 4

Which is, you know, how lots of prophecies begin, so if you didn't guess those words, then you really should have studied better at prophet school. But God is also warning him that he's not going to be listened to. This is the beginning of what is a quite terrible ministry for Ezekiel, as he attempts to get the attention of Israel in lots of various ways.

vs 5

God sends his messenger regardless of whether the message will be heard. He wants his people to know they've heard from him - whether they choose to listen or not is up to them. Now, at other times - Moses and Pharoah is an example - God tells Moses exactly how Pharoah is going to respond. But here, he leaves it open. Interesting.

vs 6

I don't know about you, but as soon as someone tells you not to be afraid, you start to wonder. "Well, I wasn't afraid before... but now, are you telling me there is something to fear?" Natural untrusting nature, perhaps. Also, briers, thorns and scorpions doesn't sound very nice. Also, being told that 'hey, I'm sending you to a bunch of people who don't listen to me, and I'm God. But they'll listen to you, because.... well, good luck' is not great for comfort. But it is comforting to know that God sends you, which means he'll keep you.

vs 7

They need to hear God's voice in this matter. Via Ezekiel.

vs 8

Erm... okay? We can assume that God chose Ezekiel because he is faithful. The eating thing, though... I mean, to say yes before you see it, that's just asking for mistrust or abuse. You really have to trust God here.

vs 9

Which of course, you hope is a flavoured scroll, because scrolls on their own are pretty bland.

vs 10

So that's a lot of lament and mourning and woe. It's probably going to taste bitter, then.

Ezekiel chapter 1

vs 19

Okay, so apparently the wheels represent chariots, which are another symbol of power in ancient times (certainly in the OT they are - numbers of chariots are often given of a king's army). Of course, chariots don't often fly, so these wheels' ability to follow the creatures around is a little strange. I also had some people at Bible study point out that the problem with my wheel design was that there was nowhere for an axle. Good point, but then it doesn't really say there is anything attached to the wheel.

vs 20

Yes, of course it was. The spirit of the living creatures... was in... the wheels... You could be forgiven for thinking they were robot animals, but I think that's reading too much in here.

Okay, the wheels followed them around, and the spirit of God was what they were following, I assume. And I assume that was represented by the wind.

vs 21

Come on. Not only is this verse a repeat, but it repeats all the things I don't understand, all in one go. My imagination is really more of a tornado - it's like they're all being blown around in this big storm by the wind.

vs 22

A large, awesome crystal vault. K.

vs 23

So they were standing with the vault sort of in the middle above them - so the creatures were both surrounding, but also below, the vault.

vs 24

It's quite a procession this thing makes - it is supposed to be giving off this aura of power and be scary, I reckon.

vs 25

A voice! Goodness me, you might even think there is a message in this vision. But first, more descriptions! So the voice comes from above the vault, above the creatures. From on high, you might say.

vs 26

Atop a throne of what the TNIV calls only lapis lazuli (like NASB), but the NIV suggests could also be sapphire (like KJV) - so what we really can assume is it's some blue stone - there is a man. Or something like a man. Obviously he's bloody important, because not even the king of Babylon rides this storm.

vs 27

So this man looks very bright and shiny and impressive. The metal gives the appearance of strength, the light of purity. Powerful and holy.

vs 28

And as the lips begin to move, and we think we might start to hear from the one whose radiance is surrounding him like rainbows... we get to the end of the chapter. I think if you did not bow down to this person when they turned up, you honestly have no idea. This person is so obviously powerful, that there is really nothing like it. He is in fact the likeness of the glory of God, we are told. Theophany? Is that even the right word? I think it is - the idea of God appearing in physical form. Now, this is a vision, so I don't think it's strictly theophany. But it is a vision of theophany. So there. God represented as a man is still a huge idea.

Sermon - Mark 14:43-72

I tell you, I am so glad to have this sermon done. Two sermons back to back is a bit of a burn at the best of times, but when they are on two completely different subjects? It's like changing gear without a clutch.

Huzzah, from Monday I can get back to Ezekiel!

PS You may recall that I say this occasionally - I include various notes and little frameworks and stuff that I use, and even anything I write but don't end up including into my sermons. So that note about "starting with something about truth" falls into that - it was there because I didn't start my sermon the usual way - I started sort of at the fourth paragraph. For this sermon I also printed out the passage and took it on the train to work with me and scribbled various things. There aren't that many, I'll type them below with verse references.

Also, I haven't timechecked this one before posting it (I usually do) so I might end up cutting some stuff out before I give it - but then, I would have included it all for you, the discerning reader, anyway.

Mark 14:43-72

- Judas betrays Jesus – putting this world first (think they are smarter than God)

- “Scripture must be fulfilled”

- trial by religious leaders – putting religion first (think they are holier then God)

- Peter's denial – putting himself first (know they are too weak for God)

v44 Why did Judas betray Jesus? -> Some people know the truth and don't want it.

v47 Why only half the story?

v48 Danger of Jesus' teaching

v49 Do you trust the Scripture so much?

vs51-52 Wtf?

v54 Not that far - perhaps how we know about the whole thing

v56 Ends justify means?

v61 Why answer a bad case? Asked a question again, but not this question

v63 What is blasphemy really?

v65 Hatred of ideology, need to embarrass

v72 Everyone deserted him, v50. Peter knows the truth, but denies it - cf Judas

Words

(start with something about the truth)

Have you ever had someone you think you can trust betray you? Have you ever had a friend let you down? Ever had a family member do something sinister behind your back? It is a terrible feeling when someone breaks trust – whether they tell a secret they promised they would keep, or lie to you about something important, or sometimes even worse. A friend of mine was the director of an organisation, and he was betrayed by one of his employees, who was rerouting his phone calls, answering his emails, taking speaking engagements and meetings with important people, and basically trying to usurp his authority with his other employees in the hope of stealing the position of director from him. At the very same time, his own brother was attempting to use an enduring power of attorney to try and steal the life savings and family home of their own mother and put it into overseas bank accounts. It is difficult to imagine the feeling of betrayal that this man must have felt, both at work and then at home as well.

This awful feeling of betrayal, however, does not prevent us from turning around and becoming a betrayer in some situations. I am not of course suggesting that anyone here would undermine their boss, or would try and steal from their own parents. But let me describe two situations where I have been accused of betraying someone, and see if you can relate to them. I have been on a panel of leaders where a close friend of mine has put up a detailed submission about an action that panel should take, and when it has come to a vote, I have voted against my close friend's submission. He felt that I had betrayed him because I had argued against him to vote down his submission that he had worked hard on. I have also witnessed a debate between my wife and another person, and when asked what my opinion was on the subject, disagreed with my wife. In this case I broke the cardinal rule that all married men know so well – always side with your wife.

Why did I do these things, commit these acts of betrayal, albeit minor, against people I love? I would have said that I was standing up for the truth, standing up for what I believe in, and that the truth is important. In reality, of course, what I was doing was just wanting to be right, and putting my own understanding of a situation or subject ahead of the understandings of others, wanting to throw in my two cents, have my say. They might say that I betrayed their trust by not agreeing with them, but the truth is that I didn't trust their ability to make a good decision on the one hand, or the force of their argument on the other.

As a church, you have been working through the book of Mark, except for one week where someone accidentally prepared a sermon on Luke and the triumphal entry. But I've been invited back, and this time I promise we will stick to the book of Mark. And you have come a long way in Mark, too. Jesus appears on the scene rather suddenly in Mark, announced by John the Baptist as the coming messiah. He travels the land doing miracles, teaching about God with authority, and winding his way slowly but surely to Jerusalem, where he predicts he is going to die. He does a little more predicting, too – actually predicting two things that happen in the passage we are looking at today. Those two things are the actions of two of his disciples. One of them, he says, is going to betray him. Once he is arrested, the rest are going to desert him. To which they all say, “No, we'd never do that!” One in particular, Simon, who Jesus called Peter, is particularly forceful, saying he'd rather die than disown Jesus. To which Jesus replies by predicting that Peter will in fact deny him three times before the morning has come and the rooster has crowed.

In Mark 14:43, all of these predictions come to a head. This section marks the beginning of the end of Jesus' preaching and teaching ministry, and starts him on the road towards the passion – towards his ministry as a sacrifice to God for our wrongdoing. In this section, we are going to see the attitude of three people towards Jesus, his ministry and his position as Messiah.

First, we see Judas betray Jesus. That is how our passage today starts. Judas sold Jesus out to his enemies, we are told elsewhere, for 30 pieces of silver. Jesus was quite popular with the crowds, as you may remember, and so the religious leaders, who were plotting to have him killed, couldn't just arrest him in the street in the middle of the day, or else the people would have been up in arms against them. So they needed someone to tell them where Jesus goes to be alone, so they can ambush him under cover of darkness. But why does Judas partake in this betrayal? We read earlier that Judas actually approaches the religious leaders and offers to hand Jesus over. It's not like they approached him in a dark alley and opened a suitcase full of money, and he was just tempted by greed. No, there was more to it than that. Just before this section, you might remember that a woman approached Jesus and poured expensive perfume over his head, and some of the disciples rebuked her, saying that it would have been better to sell the perfume and give the money to the poor. But Jesus rebuked them, saying that this was a great thing she had done, it was an anointing, it was special, because he was special.

Mark doesn't tell us specifically (although John does in his gospel), but he implies that at least one of the disciples that complained and rebuked the woman was none other than Judas Iscariot, the betrayer. This is implied by the fact that directly after telling this story, Judas goes off and finds the high priest and offers to betray Jesus. It is a phenomenal story – one of Jesus' closest disciples hands him over to his death. When Jesus says at the last supper that the one who dips bread in the same bowl as him, ancient eating customs tell us that he is talking about someone who is sitting right beside him. Judas sat right beside Jesus at the last supper, like a best friend or a close confidant. And then then that very evening he betrayed him.

I think Judas often gets dismissed as 'the one who sold Jesus out for a bag of coins'. But as I said, I don't think greed was the only issue here. Sure, we know that Judas occasionally stole from the communal purse that the disciples carried – John tells us that too. I can assure you that there have been, and still are, treasurers of churches who have dipped into the church funds. This just makes them sinners, and we're all sinners. After all, Judas hung around with Jesus a long time, and was in the group of twelve that he kept around him. He learned from Jesus, spoke in Jesus' name, drove out demons in Jesus' name. So why the betrayal? I think the straw that broke the camel's back for Judas was Jesus telling him off for wanting to help the poor. Not that he specifically cared about the poor, but that he got sick of being told by Jesus that he had it wrong.

Think of the number of times Jesus had to rebuke the disciples. When Jesus calmed the storm, he rebukes them and asks why they have no faith. When they ask him to send away the crowds to get food, Jesus tells them, “No, you give them something to eat.” When Jesus tells the Pharisees that their religious cleansing rights don't make them righteous, and the disciples ask him to explain, Jesus responds, “Are you so dull?” After he fed the four thousand and he warns them about the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod, they think he's admonishing them for not bringing enough bread, and he says to them, “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened?” “Do you still not understand?” They argue about who is the greatest, and he tells them they're wrong. They tell someone to stop driving out demons in Jesus' name, and he tells them they were wrong. The disciples drove away people who brought their children to Jesus, and Jesus rebuked them again. They tell the blind man Bartimaeus to be quiet, and Jesus stops them. When they are amazed at his cursing of the fig tree, he tells them to have faith in God. A disciple remarks at the wonder of the great temple to God, and Jesus replies that it will be destroyed. It gets annoying to be constantly told that you're wrong, and if you don't respect the authority of the teacher telling you that his is right and you are wrong, you grumble, and you think, “I'm not stupid. I'll show this so-called teacher.” And so Judas betrays Jesus, because Judas thinks he is right and Jesus is wrong. It is not a coincidence that in betraying Jesus with a kiss, Judas calls him “Rabbi”, or teacher.

Have you ever questioned how God does things? Have you ever thought, “Look at all this pain in the world. If I was in charge, I wouldn't do it this way. Why is that bad man allowed to earn lots of money and get into power, while good righteous people are mistreated? Why are murderers and rapists given God's grace and saved, when good people who are trying their best to help, but don't believe in Jesus, go to hell? Why is homosexuality a sin, when it doesn't hurt anyone? God, you're wrong.” These words are said by people every day, and lived out by them in every decision they make. We all say these same things – perhaps not so blatantly, but every time we do something we know is wrong, every time we let our anger get the better of us, or we spend money in things we don't need, or we judge someone, or we look at pornography, or whatever way we slip and stumble, we are saying to God, “I know better than you how to run my life.” We are betraying God, like Judas did. Selling God out for 30 pieces of silver. We are saying that we can run our lives better than God can, we know better what we need than God does, and we would rather the coins in our pocket than get told what to do by God.

Friends, if this rings a bell with you, listen up. You are wrong. God is perfect, and he knows exactly what we need. He knows the world is broken, and he is going to fix it – but he will take his time, until he has given all people a chance to hear his offer of peace and accept it or reject it. In heaven, there is no pain, no war, no hunger, no poverty, nothing bad at all. Yes, God tells you how to live your life. Yes, he will convict your conscience that you are doing the wrong thing, and yes, sometimes that stings, realising that you are doing wrong. But he also offers the solution – he offers to save you from your own imperfections, and to make you perfect in God's sight. We all know that the life of self-indulgence here on earth looks tempting, and it pulls at our desires. But it is not fulfilling, and ultimately, it leads to us being enemies of God. God is offering to make peace with us, to forget our crimes, and to lead us into heaven, where everything will be perfect. But you have to accept that God is in charge, and that he makes the decisions, not us.

Judas could not accept this, and so he betrayed Jesus into the hands of the High Priest and his followers, armed with swords and clubs. One of those standing near Jesus draws a sword and cuts off one of the men's ears. That's pretty nasty. Mark doesn't tell us the full story – Jesus heals that man. He wants us to feel the tension of the moment – two groups, armed, ready to fight. But Jesus shows that he is not prepared to let this encounter come to bloodshed. He asks the servants of the high priest how dangerous they really think he is, that they come with an armed mob to arrest him. He was in the temple courts teaching every day, and they never arrested him then. He then says, “But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” Jesus knows that his capture and his death are predicted in the Old Testament, and so he does not put up a fight. What do the disciples do? They run. The servants of the high priest probably outnumbered the disciples, they were tired, sleepy, and their leader had just given up. So they turn tail and flee. One young man is only dressed in his underpants – when the high priest's men grab him, he struggles and flees naked, leaving them holding his underwear. So you can see that the high priest's men weren't just after Jesus, they probably wanted to arrest the whole group. But in the dark (and in the ancient world night time was really dark) when a group of people runs off into the blackness, you're not going to catch them.

Here we see the second attitude to Jesus as they arrest him and take him to the high priest. The high priest is sure that Jesus has done something wrong. But no matter how hard he tried, no matter how many people they called in looking for evidence against Jesus of wrongdoing, they could not get any true statements. They got a bunch of false statements, but none of them agreed. They tried to twist his words, but even then they could still not agree on what he had said. The high priest asked him to answer these false and confused allegations, but Jesus just sat silently. Why even answer such obviously false testimony? So the high priest stops trying to trick Jesus with false testimony and lies, and asks him straight out the key thing that the religious leaders all fear so much, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” Jesus replies that he is, and that he will sit at God's right hand, in a position of authority.

This was the fear of the religious leaders of Jesus' time. They were in charge of all the religious trappings of the Jews at the time. If people wanted to know how to serve God, they came and asked these religious leaders, this high priest. Jesus was saying that they were wrong. So they wanted him dead. Again, it is not just a simple matter of money or power. They knew that Jesus was teaching something that didn't line up with the way they saw God, with the way they saw worship, and the way they saw people should act if they want to be right with God. In their eyes, Jesus had spoken against the Sabbath, spoken against ritual cleansing, spoken against the temple, and these were things that these religious leaders were sure were from God. They were sure that if they followed these practices, they would be holy and acceptable as God's people. But in all their concern about holiness and how to live correctly, they had actually forgotten the God who it was all meant to serve. The high priest and his followers were so sure that they needed to protect God and his holiness that they thought any means would justify that end – even bringing false testimony against an innocent man. When Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, and the Son of God, they accused him of blasphemy, and they would have been right about anyone else in the whole world. But Jesus was the Son of God. He was the Messiah. They could not believe that they were wrong about God and how people were to approach God. They thought when it came to holiness, they knew it all.

But Jesus was not like the religious leaders. He went and took God to the people who need him most – prostitutes, drunks, tax collectors (who were basically seen as thieves and traitors), poor people, sick people, widows. The high priest and religious leaders thought that God could not protect himself from sinners, as if his holiness and purity were somehow fragile and easily destroyed. They thought that they were holier than God, and could protect God from the evils of the world. But God doesn't need protection. God's holiness is not fragile. It is mighty. God's righteousness defeats all the evil of the world. God is in control, not evil. Jesus proved that time and time again by walking into the house of a prostitute, or a tax collector, or going to the crypts of the dead, or to the barren lands where the demon possessed lived, and every single time he came out clean, and it was the evil things that had been done away with. The high priest was so afraid of Jesus corrupting the way people came to God, that he used corrupt tactics to try and bring him down. But Jesus was so holy and righteous that he could have dinner with a prostitute and walk out of her house clean, and she was the one whose life changed.

For many of us in church, we are far more like the high priest than we are like Judas. We believe in God, we seek to serve him. We want to do the right thing. We want to live a holy life. But we get it wrong, because we get so tied up in how to be a good churchgoer, that we forget what it means to be a good servant of God. We instead start to serve our own idea of holiness, our own idea of righteousness, and we begin defending it, because lo and behold, it can't defend itself. And no wonder it can't defend itself, because it's probably wrong. We are not more holy than God. God is holy, and we are called to be holy because he is holy. We are to be holy like God, not some crazy made-up holiness that we create on our own. God's holiness can stand up against any evil or any corruption. In fact, God's holiness cleanses sinful people and makes them clean. But God's holiness is very confronting, because it is holy without being judgemental. It doesn't need to judge, because it knows what is right and what is wrong, so it just goes and does what is right. That is the spirit of righteousness and holiness that dwells within the Christian. How confident are you of God's holiness? Do you trust him to have the judgement and salvation of the world in hand, and so take part in it under his authority? Or do you think that you know what is really right and wrong, and so stand in judgement over people, and try to protect God's holiness by waging your own war against perceived evil?

Finally, in the midst of the high priest's trial of Jesus, we see Peter. Peter ran off with all the other disciples, but now he has found his way to the high priest's household, and is standing in the courtyard, warming himself by the fire as the trial takes place. But he gets spotted. The high priest's servants are still after Jesus' followers, so when Peter is confronted by them about being one of Jesus' disciples, he denies it and walks outside to the entranceway. But she sees Peter standing there, she says it again, and now more servants are around. Peter starts to feel the pressure, and he denies it once more. But the other servants are a bit wary now, and they say, “You must be, you've got the same country accent as Jesus,” and Peter is so upset now that he swears at them and curses them, “I don't know this man at all!” he says. Then the rooster crows, and Peter is reminded of Jesus' prediction concerning him, and he breaks down and cries.

Peter cries because he realises that in his weakness he has done exactly what he promised Jesus he would never do – desert him. Jesus was his teacher, his rabbi, his leader, his close friend, and also he was the Son of God, the Christ, the Messiah of his people. Peter realised this, and actually confessed it to Jesus. But now, Jesus has been captured by his enemies and is being tried and convicted of blasphemy. Jesus is going to die – and Peter ran. All the disciples did. Peter didn't have what it took to serve Jesus, and when Jesus needed him most, he ran. And then when Jesus was busy being put on trial for things he didn't do, Peter was out there denying he'd ever heard of him. Peter is a failure.

I am going to go out on a limb and say that it is Peter's response that we should seek to follow. We should not be like Judas, and think that we are smarter than God. We should definitely not be like the high priest, and think that we are holier than God. No, we should be like Peter, and realise that we are, in fact, too weak for God. We will fail all the time. But God shows his strength through our weakness. God's power is made perfect in weakness, Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 12:9. The weakness of God is stronger than humanity's greatest strength, says Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:25. Yes, we will all sin. We will all fall short of the glory of God, as it says in Romans 3:23. But as it goes on to say in Romans 3:24, “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Jesus is the strong one. It is with his strength that we are saved, with his grace that we are justified, and it is with his power that we go out to serve him.

How upset do you get when you fail at following Christ? Do you weep about it? Does it bring you to your knees, like it did Peter? He was devastated that he had let Jesus down. Are you? It should hurt us that we have disobeyed God. But so often, our attitude is so much like Judas, that we think we know better than God, or it is so much like the high priest that we think we are holier than God, that we actually don't even realise we have failed God, so it never effects us. But trust me, you are a sinner, and you have denied God just like Peter did, just like all the disciples did. Every single one – not one hung around to get persecuted with Jesus. They all did the runner. And so have you, and so have I. And we will do it again. That thought should cut us to the bone. But it should also make us cry out for joy that God forgives us, that he is the strong one so we don't need to be. Because Jesus was found guilty, even though he was innocent; because Jesus was beaten and mocked, ridiculed, stripped, whipped, and nailed to a cross; because God poured out his anger and his wrath on Jesus, we are safe. Even though we fail. Even though we are weak. We are safe. He will work in us, and through us, so that it will be his strength that accomplishes his will. He includes us because he is a great and gracious and merciful God. Not because we are smart. Not because we are holy. But because we are so weak, that by using us to accomplish his means, people will be amazed at the strength of God.

Let's give thanks and glory to God that he can use us, just like he used Peter.

Sermon: Cursing Psalms (Psalm 109)

Imprecatory psalms

Psalm 109

- the challenge of the cursing psalms and a loving God

- Why are they in the Bible? (cultural difference: honour/shame, magic)

- How should we read them? (the reality of evil, the need for justice)

- What use are they to us today? (persecution, justice)

Words

When I was at university, an email did the rounds of the internet asking a bunch of questions of Christianity. Actually, 'asking questions' is probably too light a term. The truth is, the email didn't want answers. It wanted to fire a cannon ball of hatred at God, expressing the anger and frustration of the unbeliever against a system of belief which they thought was to blame for all the pain and trouble in the world. Many non-Christians got this email and simply forwarded it on as a chain letter, and it no doubt appeared in millions of people's email inboxes. And among the vitriol was the question, “If God is so loving, why does he want people to dash babies against rocks in psalm 139? What kind of messed up, sick God is that? Read psalm 139, people.”

Now, there was a very simple answer to this particular question – can anyone tell me what it is? That's right, there is no mention of dashing babies against rocks in psalm 139! The writer of the email was obviously working on second-hand information, and had never bothered to open the Bible for themselves and check. Instead, they had simply grabbed a bunch of “Hard questions to ask Christians about their beliefs” from a list online, which in this case had a typographical error. Because of course we all know that the Bible doesn't mention dashing babies on rocks in psalm 139 at all – it talks about it in psalm 137 verse 9. The problem of course is that this answer just shifts the focus to the mistaken chapter and verse reference, but leaves the real question asked fundamentally unanswered. An answer to that question is a lot more difficult, because psalm 137 does indeed contain people praying to God about how happy those would be who take the babies of Israel's enemy, Babylon, and dash them against rocks. It's not wicked people talking about this, it's not the ungodly – it is God's people, Israel, praying to God, cursing their enemies with thoughts and images and requests and acceptance of violence against young children.

And this isn't the only time it happens, either. In fact, there is a whole group of psalms which can be called imprecatory, or cursing, psalms. These are psalms where God's people call out to him in a direct way to act against their enemies, and in doing so call for terrible, sometimes disturbing retribution. They are called cursing psalms because basically they involve God's people calling down curses on God's enemies. And let me tell you, the hate-filled vitriol of internet atheists has to work pretty hard to keep up with the vengeful savagery of the psalmists. There are some that I would simply not read publicly in church. The psalm we're focusing on today, Psalm 109, has been called a “raw, undisciplined song of hate” by some. There are some Christians, even theologians, who say that it has no place in the modern world, or in modern Christian churches. It doesn't talk about dashing babies against rocks, or bathing our feet in the blood of our enemies, some of the more disturbing language that one can find. But what it lacks in disturbing imagery, it makes up for in volume of spite.

So what does it say? Starting from verse 6, just let me look at what David, a man who sought to serve God in everything he did and said, requested God do to his enemies. Let me paraphrase and summarise them into everyday language. David wants his enemies to be ruled by a tyrant, and accused of wrongdoing by their friends. He wants them to be found guilty of wrong, he wants their very prayers to show they are guilty. He wants them to have only a short life, and for them to lose their position of importance. He wants them to die young so their children and wives are left without fathers and a husbands. He wants their families to be poor and ruined. He wants the debt collectors to come and clean out their houses. He wants people to ignore the needs of their poor, fatherless children as they beg on the street. He doesn't want these people's families to survive another generation. He wants their parents to be judged harshly by God, so that their whole family both above and below his enemies are blotted out from existence. He wants them cursed, he wants God to hold back blessings, he wants curses to never leave them, he wants his enemy wrapped in disgrace and shame forever.

Ouch. David, king of Israel, man of God's heart, is espousing a litany of hate against his enemies, and God sees fit to include this in the songbook of his people! We could probably be convicted of inciting hatred if we sung this sort of song today. How are we to understand this psalm of cursing? There really is a lot more to an ancient curse than we can easily understand from our modern viewpoint. Curses often included a list of complaints about the actions of another person, and why they deserve to be cursed. In this way, the public cursing of someone could bring shame upon them as the curser publicly voiced the real, or imagined, crimes of the cursee. We see this in psalm 109, where David complains in verse 2 that, “people who are wicked and deceitful have opened their mouths against me; they have spoken against me with lying tongues.” Again in verse 25 he says, “I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they shake their heads.” So in this way we can see something of a similarity with modern cases of defamation, where by slander and libel someone seeks to undermine another person's character in public. You may have heard the political saying, “Whenever you throw mud at someone, no matter how clean they are, some of it sticks.”

But there is much more to it. In ancient times, curses were seen as powerful words that could cause harm and injury to another person. Cast your mind back to the story of Balaam in the book of Numbers. Although we sometimes get distracted by the fact that Balaam had a talking donkey, the reason he enters the story of Israel at all is that Balak, king of Moab, summons him to come and put a curse on the Israelites. In Numbers 22 we read, “So Balak son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor, who was at Pethor, near the River, in his native land. Balak said: "A people has come out of Egypt; they cover the face of the land and have settled next to me. Now come and put a curse on these people, because they are too powerful for me. Perhaps then I will be able to defeat them and drive them out of the country."”

So you see a curse was more than just a list of obscenities or complaints about someone's character or actions. A curse was looked at like magic words that you could use to call down pain and suffering on an enemy, to weaken them. With a curse, Balak hoped to weaken his enemy, Israel, enough that he could then defeat them in battle. These were not idle words, any more than pointing a loaded gun at someone is an idle threat. If you point a gun at someone and pull the trigger, you don't hope a bullet flies towards them, you expect them to get hurt. In calling down a curse, you were doing more than wishing, you were expecting suffering to come that person's way. What are we left with, then, in psalm 109, or psalm 137 with the babies on the rocks, or the breaking of people's teeth in psalm 58? We are left with a smoking gun in the hands of God's people, who are pointing these curses at their enemies.

Now obviously God's people realised that cursing words in and of themselves are not as powerful as their mighty God, Lord of Hosts. So they just changed their language and called down the curses in God's name, called on God to make the curses happen, and so now God is also complicit in these events – he gave the Israelites the bullets for their smoking gun by accepting their curses as prayers.

By now, the question that should be ringing loud and clear in our minds as Christians is, “Where is the love?” How does these curses stack up alongside Jesus' call to love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you? We say that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, but does God really want prayers of cursing from his people today? How can we say we are loving our enemies when we are asking for their kids to wander the streets as beggars and not survive to the next generation? You can see the temptation here to try and drop these cursing psalms like a hot potato. The other curses in the Bible are a little more easily dismissed – the prophets curse Israel's enemies? Well, that's just specific to the historical context of the prophets. Curses are called down in the Law? We are not under law, we are under grace. Jesus Christ himself curses Jerusalem? Well, he's Jesus, he's allowed. But the psalms – the book of prayers and songs in worship of God – these cannot be so easily dismissed. These words are inspired and attested to by God, affirmed by him in his inclusion of them into the Bible, which we believe he has made perfect and inerrant. And the psalms are included as the songs and prayers for God's people to use – they teach us how to pray! We can't just ditch bits of the Bible because they make us feel uncomfortable. Otherwise, why not drop out “You shall not commit adultery” or “be perfect because I am perfect” or “with man it is impossible” or “the wages of sin is death”? Of course, we can't go too far the other way either. We have to be culturally sensitive to our own times. We are no longer restrained by the food laws established under the Jerusalem council in Acts 15, but we are still sensitive to people's needs. We don't anoint people with oil when they are sick, but we still care for them. We don't wash people's feet, but we still welcome them and serve them humbly in God's name.

So, where does a psalm of cursing fit in this balance? When is it right for us to curse our enemies in God's name? To answer this question, we need to discover three things. Firstly, in the context of Jesus words, “love your enemies”, can we do this cursing at all? Secondly, who are our enemies? Finally, what should we ask for, and what should we expect? The first question is a real obstacle. Jesus' words in Matthew 5:44 are crystal clear, “I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Well, there it is, folks. How can we love our enemies if we're calling on God to kill their children, or bring them into shame and despair, or cause them to be ruled by tyrants? Shouldn't we just knuckle down and get on our knees and pray to God for their salvation? Shouldn't we pray that God will change their hearts? The answer, of course, is yes. And you know what? David did this. Listen to David's words in Psalm 35:11-17: “Ruthless witnesses come forward; they question me on things I know nothing about. They repay me evil for good and leave me like one bereaved. Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered, I went about mourning as though for my friend or brother. I bowed my head in grief as though weeping for my mother. But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee; assailants gathered against me without my knowledge. They slandered me without ceasing. Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; they gnashed their teeth at me. How long, Lord, will you look on? Rescue me from their ravages, my precious life from these lions.”

David loved his enemies! He prayed for his persecutors! Even in psalm 109, where he is cursing them, he states from verse 3, “With words of hatred they surround me; they attack me without cause. In return for my friendship they accuse me, but I am a man of prayer. They repay me evil for good, and hatred for my friendship.” David loved his persecutors because he knew that is what God wanted. And we are quick to say that we acknowledge that God wants that too. And of course we are right – we should certainly not be quick to curse people, any more than we would be quick to shoot them in anger. God is a loving and forgiving God, and he calls on us, and empowers us, to be loving and forgiving to our enemies.


But King David knew what else God wants – God wants justice. God wants to see evil punished, he wants to see those that set themselves up as enemies of himself defeated. And for us, that can be a bitter pill to swallow. The idea of God as a loving God is one we cherish, and cling to. It's a warm, comforting truth, and it is true. But it's not the whole story, and we know it. For God is a just God, who desires to see justice meted out on those who disobey him, and rebel against him. This is a hard thing to say, but we have to come to terms with the truth of it. Hell is not empty. God sends people there. God hates sin. God wants justice. When people disobey God, ignore God, and refuse his authority as God, it is God's will that they are punished both in this world and in eternity. In psalm 109, David is putting voice to God's will to see the enemies of God punished, if they do not repent. The situation for us is no different. God still has enemies, God still loves justice, God will still bring down punishment on them. In praying for the punishment of sin and unrepentant sinners, we are praying in line with God's will. This is a hard teaching. Can you accept it? Do you accept that God's will means some people do not go to heaven? Can you accept that in the one hand God holds love, and in the other he holds judgement? Because this is the one true God.


No doubt you still struggle with this, and honestly I don't blame you. I think it's got a lot to do with our second question – that is, who are our enemies? How many of us today in the modern western world even really have enemies? I mean, I suppose technically we have troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, so I suppose they are our enemy in some sense. Perhaps you have an angry next door neighbour whose fruit always falls on your side of the fence, or plays his music too loud or something, or sends you angry letters. But seriously, how many of us have enemies that are like David's enemies – who spread lies about us, physically attack us, mistreat us or discriminate against us, and want everything we stand for and believe in destroyed? These are not just David's enemies, they are God's enemies. This is probably the reason why these psalms are so far from our understanding – we simply don't have people knocking on our door ready to kill us simply for coming here this morning. That idea for many of us is unfathomable. Perhaps we don't even see the enemies of God. So then are these psalms of any worth to us at all?


The answer is yes, but it means expanding our frame of prayer reference a bit. Will we pray against those who seek to undermine and destroy Christianity here at home? Those in positions of power and privilege who use their influence to try and attack God through his church, in whatever way they can? The Richard Dawkinses and the Peter Singers, and the university lecturers who go out of their way to give their Christian students a hard time, the atheist employers who won't give a Christian a job, those members of the sceptics societies or the atheist societies who lobby the government to deny right to Christians. God has no end of enemies. Remember too, there are Christians who live in fear. There are Christians who wait for that knock on the door, who receive threats in the mail, who are attacked, slandered and mistreated where they live. Do we feel the injustice when our brothers in Christ get sentenced to 15 years in jail simply for being a house church leader, like Alimujiang Yimiti was in October 2009? Do we feel for the families of three Christians who were killed, and many more injured, by Muslim bombing attacks on churches in Iraq over Christmas? Do we get angry when Christian women get raped, and are then forced to marry their rapists in countries like Egypt? The enemies of Christ are very real, and are striking harshly and evilly at God's people around the world. Will we pray for justice? Will we stand alongside our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ and pray for God to judge his enemies for their evil deeds?Even as we love these enemies, even as we pray for them as they persecute us or our brothers and sisters far away, there is a place for asking God to bring his judgement on those who wilfully seek to continually disobey and rebel against his rule.


Which brings us to the final question about how these cursing psalms relate to us. What is it we should be asking for, and what exactly should we expect from God in this matter? Are we really going to be praying for people's teeth to be knocked out? For their children to be killed, or their homes to be looted by debt collectors? To be honest, I just don't think we feel the anger for these crimes against God and his church to be able to muster up this sort of language. Maybe if our turn comes to feel the whip of persecution on our backs, we will change. But for now, we can at least pray for justice. We can pray that those who attack Christians will be defeated. On Christmas Day in Mosul last year a group of armed Muslim extremists stormed a church demanding to perform Muslim rites in the church building. They started shooting and the church guards – because over there churches need guards – returned fire. Who are we praying will win such a gunfight? May their rifles jam and their ammunition explode in their faces. May those who oppress and persecute churches in their country be discovered for their fraud or their adultery or their mistreatment of animals, and lose their important office. May those who seek to crush the spirit of Christ in our young people with militant atheism face depression and anxiety and sadness at their life's work.


But what we can not forget, what we must not forget, is that this justice only holds if they do not repent of their wrongdoing. It makes for a challenging prayer, to both pray for the salvation and judgement of wrongdoers. But that is what we must do. As Christian author John Day put it, loving prayer for repentance and salvation is the business as usual of God's church – but when evil men remain unrepentant, the godly call for God's extreme justice. Because God is faithful and just, and will forgive all sin of those who repent of it, who turn away from it and turn to God for forgiveness. Those people are no longer enemies, but friends, brothers, sisters, and we should welcome them with open arms. Just like Christ has done for all of us.


If these cursing psalms give us a greater appreciation of God's love and his justice, then we are already well served. If they assist us in praying and caring for our persecuted siblings in Christ, then they are a valuable tool. And if they enable us to recognise those enemies of God in our own midst, and pray for their salvation and judgement, then we can only be more effective in the places God has put us.

A Poem

This poem was written by a friend in NY (New York for you non-USA people) who heard my sermon on psalm 22 (listen to it yourself here), and was moved to write a song of complaint herself. I call her Pame. Enjoy.

Dear God

Why am I so alone, Dear God?

Is it because it's what I choose?

Is it because i'm afraid of what I might lose,

Because I am so selfish?

I question daily, what my purpose is, here.

If it is really mine, or something theirs,

And constantly I wonder if anyone cares,

Even You, the Lord.

Why do you test me,

Make a jest of me?

Then again it might not be them,

It might be You, it might be me,

Living in this space of uncertainty,

That You might exsist at all.

Who will catch me when I fall?

Seems like it always has to be me.

Where is someone supposed to be?

Where are You?

Am I to settle into a blanket of uncertainty,

Constantly?

Are You, God simply a crutch,

For when I feel I have done so much,

Or so little for those around me.

A simple figment of imagination,

Who shuns with complation?

Not just you God,

Why do they all forsake me?

Am I so weak as to,

Only use you to speak through,

When all is falling apart?

What are the real depths of my heart?

Where can I even start..

At the middle or the end?

Where do You bother to come in?

Why should I even believe?

Is there even room to comprimise,

What is Your disguise then?

What am I supposedly going to recieve?

Or should it be me the one I despise,

Not You?

Show me that my doubts are untrue!

It's as if I have lost my spine,

And all the promises,

That You have made,

Through other people's writing,

Is supposed to entwine

My faith, so simply.

Tell me how to behave,

And why I should enslave,

My soul to You.

Is it too late,

To believe?

I Pray,

Lift me up from this misery,

Take me in your arms and make it all

Blasphemy.

Take away my sufference for a day,

Make it all go away,

Just for one day,

Dear God.

I Pray.

Show me.