Job 29-42
Over the course of three chapters, Job defends himself one last time against his friends. He is in great pain, emotionally and physically, and they are of no help. All he wants is a word from God, and so far, he has received nothing. Job’s friends have nothing more to say, because as far as they’re concerned, he’s self-righteous. They’re not going to get through to him, they think. We then turn to chapter 32, and a new speaker is introduced, Elihu. He’s quite a bit younger than Job and his friends, so he has waited for an opportunity to speak. But because the friends have proven useless in identifying Job’s real problem, he thinks it is his time to speak up. Those men have little to no wisdom to impart. But Elihu doesn’t only go after the friends; he also has something to say to Job. Who is Job to demand anything at all from God? Man cannot understand in totality the justice of God. We will never have a complete grasp on what why he does what he does. That is not to insinuate there is any injustice in God. But what he has revealed is for us and our children; the secret things, however, belong to God (Deuteronomy 29:29). There is both a curiosity and a freedom in leaving ultimate things in the mind of God. In the same way a parent may not disclose all of his or her reasons for why things must be a certain way to a child, God does not disclose all of his reasons for why things are the way they are. That may frustrate proud creatures who think we’re entitled to certain knowledge, but it does not mean that God is cruel or unjust. As Elihu tells us, God is far greater than our puny, finite minds can comprehend. God may be our Father as believers, but there is still room to tremble in his presence. At the end of his speech, Elihu presents us with the only responses available to use when it comes to the justice of God: the wise will fear God, and the foolish will pretend to be wise. It may surprise us since God has been silent since chapter 2, but Job gets what he’s asked for. Beginning in chapter 38, God answers Job, but it’s not to give him the reasons for his suffering. It’s to shut him up and remind him of who created all of this. God begins by presenting himself to Job, demanding that Job stand up straight and listen. The book of Job began with God insisting how righteous Job was, and that has not changed. But God is not going to stand for insinuations that there is injustice on his part from one of his created beings. It’s telling that God is called YHWH in chapter 38, which is the covenantal name used by the Israelites. It’s the personal name God chose for himself that his people were told to use. So God is still in a relationship with Job, but he also speaks from a whirlwind, a sign of power and might. God loves Job and will not destroy him, but neither will God permit the charges of Job’s friends stand unquestioned. Chapters 38 and 39 are awe-inspiring reminders of God’s creative and providential power. He rules and controls all things, from animals to people to climate. After God’s first speech, Job does the only thing someone in his position should do—stop talking and put your hand over your mouth. But God tells him no, keep standing and answer my questions. God continues to remind Job that when he addresses Job, they are not in a relationship of equals. Imagine in your mind a man covered in sores and boils, who has no earthly possessions, on his knees with his hands over his mouth as the creator of everything speaks to him. The wise will fear God. All modern hesitation about such a spectacle is rooted in the ridiculous notion that we are in a relationship of equals with God. God concludes all he has to say to Job. What can Job do but repent? He demanded from God what God was not required to give him. God scolds Job’s friends for speaking lies about God in their speeches. What’s most incredible is that God tells Eliphaz that Job has spoken what was right about God. In all his frustration, Job never cursed God or blamed God for his suffering. He did in fact what answers and reasons, but in his pain, he never wanted vengeance against God. As Job was a priest for his family, he will now offer prayers and sacrifices on behalf of his friends. We see in Job a mediator for his friends so that God will judge the three men for their sin and folly. Before there is any restoration for Job, he makes his peace with the justice of God and restores his friends’ standing before God. Job does not love God any more or worship him any differently because of his restored family and wealth. God only restores those things after reconciliation takes place, and there is no sense in which Job’s restoration is caused by his repentance. It was simply God’s good pleasure to show Job that kindness. The book of Job teaches us that the justice of God may very well take place behind the scenes of reality. Therefore, there is often little that we will understand of it. God does in fact reveal much of his reasoning in his law and in his word. But that should not be seen as exhaustive. There is plenty which God does not communicate, the secret things. So the proper response of the believer is to seek God in suffering, knowing that all things work for his glory and our good. Knowing that God is responsible for all things is not the same as blaming him for evil. Sometimes suffering is clearly caused by our own sin and idiocy; sometimes there is more at work than we can ever realize. In those moments, place your hand over your mouth to keep yourself from saying too much. Proverbs 1-4 The book of Proverbs is written as a father imparting wisdom to his son. All truth, all wisdom, is founded upon one great truth: fear the Lord. It’s good to see the Mosaic law and the wisdom literature as two sides of a coin. The Mosaic law sets up the religious life and civil society of Israel. It’s tied to the old covenant because the Mosaic law is a series of stipulations and conditions of keeping the covenant. On the other hand, the wisdom literature of the Bible shows how being in a covenantal relationship with God, restored through forgiveness, changes the way a person lives. The Proverbs still call people to turn from sin, to seek wisdom, and to fear God. What one part of Scripture commands, another part illustrates. Often when we think of the Proverbs, we think of one-liners with good advice. There are in fact many of those. But there is also plenty of text that moves us to think more deeply about what wisdom really is in a fallen world. We should also not take a Proverb as a promise. When Proverbs 22:6 tells us that raising a child in the way of Lord prevents a child from turning from it, we should not then think that if our child backslides that we failed in raising our child. In general, when parents insist upon Christian education, model godly living at home, and equip their children to think wisely, they will see the beauty and majesty of God and the things of God, and they will not turn from him in the final chapter of their lives. The book opens by noting how enticing sin can be. Because of how deceptive temptation is, wisdom is all the more necessary. Training in wisdom should start as young as possible. At no point in life do we stop having temptations of any kind, so we must train hard. Wisdom brings blessing, not only because of the negative it brings, in that we do not yield as often to temptation. But it also brings positive change, such as greater success in what we do. If that does not mean financial wealth, it means a greater satisfaction knowing that we do is done in the service of God’s kingdom in his way. Once we start reading chapter five, we still begin to receive wise teaching it accordance with specific temptations, primarily sexual immorality. 1 Corinthians 4-9 Paul insists that apostles are called to build the foundation of the church, of which Christ is the cornerstone, but apostles are not worthy to be elevated to kingly status. Apostles were simply messengers of the gospel, not the gospel themselves. He goes so far as to say that it seems as though God has sentenced his apostles to death. Not just men, but even angels, laugh at and mock the apostles. The apostles are “scum”, but because the Corinthian Christians heard and believed Paul’s message, he hold them in high honor. Paul urges them, and us, to imitate him, but only so far as he imitates Christ. He now gets to the bad news in Corinth. There is a man who is sleeping with his stepmother, something that even the pagans hold in disrepute (though they surely practiced it, considering everything else they did). It appears the church had not dealt with this unrepentant man. Instead of holding him accountable though church discipline and calling him to repentance in order that he might be restored, they have turned a blind eye. Paul says that this unrepentant man ought to be removed from the church. This removal might very well be the means by which God calls him to repentance, so that on the day of the Lord this man might be spared. Like Jesus taught, a little leaven changes the whole lump of dough. Just a teaspoon can radically change the size of a loaf of bread. How much more, then, will a little sin tolerated in the church affect the rest of the people? Paul uses the gospel to show how the old ways that these former pagans celebrated is no longer permissible. The immorality of the temple cult cannot be used to worship Christ. In 5:9 we read about a previous letter that Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, which means 1 Corinthians is at least the second letter between them. But he laments that they are still struggling with sexual immorality. These things simply cannot be tolerated in the church. Let the sexual immorality of the world stay out there. Not only that, but brothers and sisters in Christ are bringing lawsuits against each other. Paul uses eschatology to determine how believers should settle disagreements. Why would believers bring their disagreements before pagans to let them decide? Don’t you know that believers will judge the world? So why are you letting them what is, by comparison, so trivial? Instead, like Christ, suffer some wrong instead of being defeated by the world. Besides, how often are we guilty of defrauding someone, even our fellow believers? That’s who we used to be. So if we feel defrauded, simply deal with your brother or sister personally. Don’t humiliate them and involve third parties in those trivial matters. And really be discerning in what is “trivial”. Remember, we were all cleansed from our past sins in the blood of Christ. Therefore, we flee those things that used to describe us. Since sexual immorality was (and is) such a problem, not only in the world, but in the church, Paul gives some principles for a Godly marriage. He again comments on a previous letter they wrote to him arguing that it is better for people not to marry, or at least be sexually intimate. Instead, Paul says to get married and save yourself from temptation. Our bodies are not our own, anyway. Some philosophies of the day said that the material world, including sexual intimacy, was evil. Paul corrects this misguided view and says that sexual intimacy is good and should be enjoyed between believing spouses. He does, though, argue that singlehood is not all bad. There are, in fact, benefits to being single, as there are to marriage. But marriage should be the normal, de facto way of life for most people. But however God calls you to live, live gladly in that calling. In 7:10 and 7:12, he includes these notes that he is giving this command, not Christ. Some have argued that his is evidence that not every word of Scripture is inspired. Some of the words are God’s, some are Paul’s, and we have to figure out which belong to who. Christ’s words carry more weight that Paul’s. This is a modern problem invented by modern skeptics. Paul is simply arguing from his own authority as an apostle. It is the same spiritual authority to write Scripture. Inspired means inspired, whether they come from Christ or from Paul. Paul continues addressing the concerns of the Corinthian Christians as he addresses food sacrificed to idols. What Paul is really addressing is conscience. Christians know in the mind that food sacrificed to idols is food sacrificed to nothing at all. There is only one, true God. While everyone should know this, there are Christians that Paul describes as weak who still have difficulty making peace with eating that kind of meat. The strong in the faith should never offend the weak in the faith just to prove a point. He then expands this thought to say that we do not use our freedom to satisfy ourselves. In fact, this is what Paul did in his apostleship. He did abuse his rights to offend new believers. Apostles, maybe above all people, have a right to earn their keep through their work. They can receive support from churches with a clear conscience. Instead, he rejected these things so that no one would see it as an obstacle in the way of the gospel. In general, those who preach and teach the gospel should be supported by those who receive the gospel in the same way that temple priests made their living through tithes and offerings. Paul, though, refused his right to ensure no one thought he was a swindler. Paul served as an example to the Corinthian church in this way. He urges them, then, to continue in their spiritual race. Don’t just meander through the race track, but run like you want to win.
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Job 2-28
Now that Satan is permitted by God to take good things from Job, he first takes his children and wealth. Chapter 2 begins by another scene where Satan and some angels (“sons of God” always refers to angelic beings) present themselves to God. God again presents Job as a pillar of uprightness in the world. Even with the loss of Job’s children and wealth, Job refused to blame God. Yet, Satan believes that if he is permitted to take Job’s health, Job will break. Again, God permits Satan to do his worst, with the exception of taking his life. When Job breaks out in painful sores, his wife thinks that he can find relief only in blaming and cursing God, which she knows will result in his death. He rightly calls her perspective foolish. Believing that God is responsible for all that takes place is not the same as blaming him for the actions of others. We must reckon with the fact that Job is pleased to accept both good and evil at the hand of God. God is of course not the doer of evil, but what do we make of Job expecting evil to take place in God’s good providence? This is a good question for reflection: what is it you deserve? Has God been unfair? Even in the midst of pain, temptation, difficulty, and persecution, do you still believe that God is good? Why or why not? Job’s friends are now introduced, and the majority of the book is a series of back-and-forth’s between Job and his friends. They bring a variety of perspectives to Job’s situation, some good and some bad. But in the end, they are all “worthless physicians (13:4) and “miserable comforters” (16:2). Though he never curses God, Job does not relent of his despair. He regrets ever having been born (ch. 3). Eliphaz speaks first, claiming that Job must not actually be innocent of any wrongdoing if all this has happened to him, because “who that was innocent ever perished?” (4:7). On its face, that is a ridiculous notion. The innocent perish all the time, which the Psalms make plain. If Job really loved the Almighty, then he should be glad to be undergoing God’s discipline (5:17), so says Eliphaz. We see a glimpse of why Job’s friends are miserable comforters; they speak the truth but without compassion. “Are you grieving the loss of your children? It’s just proof that God loves you!” Is that something that you would ever tell a grieving parent? It’s easy to see the foolishness of that on this side of the story, but how often have we said reckless things to those in the throws of grief? After each of his friends’ speeches, Job takes an opportunity to respond. If God is going to pierce him with arrows, then Job would rather that God simply crush him (6:9). He even calls out his friends for their lack of sympathy at such great loss (6:14-16). Life is just a breath, or a vapor as Ecclesiastes might say. So Job is not going to hold back in asking God the hard questions. Why does God send him such grief? Why has Job become such a burden to God, that God would seize him as such? As Bildad begins his first speech, he simply urges Job to repent. God is gracious, so why would Job not seek that grace? Again, we have truth without compassion. Failure to repent is just proof that we do not love God, which is true. But is that the root of Job’s pain? Remember, only we have the insight into the heavenly council, not Job or his friends. If Job would just repent, God would bless him again. But Job replies that no one can be right before God. Who can approach the throne of God and live? Job knows that he is not guilty of something to warrant such pain (9:15). In his pain, Job doesn’t even believe that God would listen, anyway. Otherwise, where is this coming from? Job’s problem is the human condition; we only see into the divine realm as far as God permits. In a prayer, Job asks God to explain himself. If he is guilty of sin, then God is just. If he is guilty, then he wants God to explain what his sin is. Zophar, the third friend, begins to speak. Again, there is truth without compassion. We cannot understand the deep things of God, but a wise man will still seek God. This is a form of the always helpful, “Maybe you just don’t understand what God is doing.” Promote that man to Major Obvious. Job insists he is not an idiot. Just look at the evildoers of the world; they seem to get by just fine. Why doesn’t God judge them? Why has he decided to take his wrath out on Job? Of course God has done this to Job; there is no one else to do so. God is sovereign, building up and taking down princes, has full knowledge of the depths, and he gives and takes away. But still, throughout the tearing down and taking away, Job knows that God is the one who gives life and takes it away. In the end, God will make all things right. There is great comfort in the fact Scripture models for us two great truths: our grief is legitimate, and God will right every wrong in the end. Sin is so wicked, how could we not grieve its consequences? In Eliphaz’s second speech, he argues that Job’s problem is that he talks too much. Job thinks too highly of himself, and if he thought soberly, he would understand God’s will. Job’s response? What a miserable comforter he is! What evidence is there that Job is proud? In the midst of his grief, when he should be learning about the providence of God with the help of his friends, all they do is scorn him. Bildad speaks again, and he reminds Job that what has happened to him looks an awful lot like how God punishes evildoers. Zophar will then remind Job that wickedness is what brings suffering, not righteousness (ch. 20). Eliphaz pulls out all the stops and just calls Job a wicked man. Might he think again about his innocence? In response to Zophar, Job says that, actually, the wicked have the appearance of success in this life. How does that relate to his situation? He reminds his friends that his grief is directed at evil, and that he knows God is responsible for all that happens in this world. His friends are searching for every possible way to blame Job for his misfortune. We are so prone to cast blame when that’s the wrong premise. We so need to see the reason behind the pain and suffering. But are we so investigative when it comes to the good in life? Job is a wise man, because he can accept both. Shall we not receive good and evil? Job needs to know that God is listening, which is why he wishes he knew were God was in all of this. Do you see this fine distinction? Job never blames God; he just wants answers. Job knows that God is good, but it’s hard to see the good in all of what he’s experiencing. After all, why do the wicked, those who move landmarks to steal land, steal livestock, and throw the poor off of their land, seem to go on in life without reprimand? Bildad’s short speech of chapter 25 recalls what he’s already said: who can be right with God? Job, you’re a maggot! Just admit it! But Job just mocks him. “You’re such a great helper, Bildad!” God is so great that the things we see, the observable universe, is just a whisper of who he is (26:14). Job is telling his friends to shut up. He doesn’t want their answers; he wants God’s answers. For all the nonsense his friends are spewing, Job will not stoop to their level of thinking. It’s time for them to listen to him. Mankind knows all about digging to find precious jewels and metals, but what about wisdom? Clearly, it’s not found in his friends or in the mind of man. Wisdom comes from God. Only God understands the way to wisdom. Instead of listening to these three men, Job wants to hear from God. Romans 13-16 It is not a coincidence that Paul moves from how Christians deal with evil and vengeance at the end of chapter 12 on to government at the beginning of chapter 13. A just civil government is a rarity in human history. But the governing body of a nation or a state is the appointed means by which God deals with evil. In Israel, one purpose of the king was to mete out justice. The various institutions of Israel worked closely together, but they were still separate entities. Everywhere else in the world, God appoints governments to keep mankind from seeking vengeance. Therefore, it is good to support those in civil offices. If we pay everything we owe, then we should owe no one anything. By keeping the commands, as summarized in the great commandments, the only thing we should ever owe anyone is more love and respect. Chapter 14 is incredibly helpful in matters we call adiaphora, or matters of indifference. There are many matters where there can be no disagreement, such as in the doctrine of God and of justification. To deny or to re-define those doctrines is to call in to question a person’s confession of faith. But other matters, such as we would call opinions, are nothing worth dividing over. The two most important distinctions for Israel, what set them apart from the rest of the world, was the Sabbath and their dietary restrictions. It should come as no surprise that Paul mentions food and holy days in a letter written to a church comprised of both Jews and Gentiles. We should all be convinced of our position, which means two things: 1) we should not be tossed here and there but should do the hard work of understanding; and 2) we should not make our position the litmus test for faithful Christianity. On these matters, we leave the judgment in God’s hands. If we insist on matters of indifference, we pass judgment on others who disagree with us. In fact, we might make a brother or sister stumble in their faith by raising tertiary matters to primary matters. So, while we do not value a weak conscience, neither do we use our freedom of conscience to make another believer falter. Paul’s context is almost surely the Jewish rites concerning food and holy days and the consciences of the Gentiles. Make no mistake, Paul calls those who with soft consciences weak. As those who believe in objective truth, we should strive for a strong conscience, molded by the word of God. But our great exemplar is Christ himself, who withstood far worse than minor discord. Even in our sin, Christ welcomed us. Therefore, we welcome the weak in faith, as we once were. In fact, it was to the weak that Christ became as a servant. As Paul begins to conclude his letter, he reminds the Roman believers once more of his purpose for writing. The Gentiles are a welcomed addition to the people of God. Christ has won them through his obedience, therefore, they should be as dearly loved as Israel themselves. Paul intends to get to Spain in his journeys. But it seems as though, tradition tells us, that his exploits end in Rome with his martyrdom. He wants several of dear associates and fellow believers greeted in his name. And as Paul concludes such a beautiful letter of divine truth, he simply cannot help but worship God with his pen one last time—to the only wise God be glory forever more through Jesus Christ! 1 Corinthians 1-3 Paul first lands in Corinth in Acts 18. Corinth was a metropolitan area, so it was a strategic ministry point. It was full of idolatry, so it was also ripe for preaching of the one, true God. Paul stayed there fore a year-and-a-half (Acts 18:11). As Paul left to plant churches and preach elsewhere, he received word that all was not well in Corinth. Sexuality immorality had crept in. Paul actually wrote (at least) four letters to the church at Corinth of which we have the second (1 Corinthians) and the fourth (2 Corinthians). You can see references to the other letters to Corinth in both of the letters we still have. There are several problems in Corinth. The first problem Paul addresses is division among believers. There were those who were claiming that the teacher they followed was the real deal, and other teachers were half-pints. There is one gospel, but people were beginning to act as though there were versions of it that were better than others, making themselves better than other people. There is no reason to argue for this-or-that teacher if they’re preaching the same gospel! It’s the age-old trope that everyone thinks they need to just stand out. One way we prop ourselves above other people is by appearing smarter than them. But the gospel is preached through the foolish and weak. If you understand the actual message of the gospel, you realize your own foolishness in seeking your own way to God. There is only one way to God, and he made it, not you. God has demolished the wisdom of this world. The only message that Paul preached was simple gospel of Christ crucified. That is the root of true wisdom, not worldly wisdom. In our flesh, before the Spirit indwells us, we do not accept the things of God. We see and understand them as foolish. If we still insist that we are wise, then we are infants in Christ. It is good to have many Bible teachers, but we should not prop them up as the ones who created the gospel. The Lord himself assigns people as Bible teachers. And regardless of the effort and success of the ministry of those teachers, it is always God who causes the growth. A farmer could scatter seed, water it, and harvest at all the right times, but if he scattered the seed on concrete, there’d be no reason to hope for any growth. God must prepare the heart. Paul planted the church in Corinth, established elders, and he is content to let them build upon what he has left. Whatever those teachers do will be judged on the last day. Some of what they have done is gold, and it will withstand the fire. Some of it is hay, and it won’t last for a moment. So don’t deceive yourself; we will all face that day, even our teachers. Nehemiah 9-13
Perhaps in a way we haven’t seen in a long time, the people are truly mourning their sin with a contrite heart. Fasting would involve primarily abstaining from food, save water. Sackcloth was the typical garb of mourning, in a similar way to how we wear black today. The sin for which they are repenting and mourning was the sin of intermarriage. Remember, the sin was not interracial marriage, even though that was perhaps the way it looked on the outside. The sin was marrying those who worshiped false gods; the sin was marrying people who hated the God you purported to worship. We see in this passage a picture of repentance. They devoted themselves to understanding the Book of the Law. Otherwise, do you know what you’re repenting of? They spent much of the day praying their confessions. The priests are leading the people in prayer and confession, which had been missing from Israelite life for generations. The prayer of the priests is a description of God’s redemptive behavior among the people. The gospel is worked out in history. In seeing the history of God’s faithfulness and the people’s faithlessness, we understand God’s justice and mercy. God was patient with his people, but as a loving father, he disciplines those whom he loves. The priests and civil leaders renew the covenant made at Sinai. It’s not a new covenant, but a renewal of the one they had broken time and time again. By signing their names to the covenant, they act as witnesses to the obligations each of them made that day. They commit to keeping the obligations faithfully. History is important to God’s people. We see various genealogies throughout Scripture, one of which is here toward the end of Nehemiah. This holds these individuals and families accountable to the renewal of the covenant. The people and their leaders have repented of their sins, and they are ready to dedicate the completed wall. They celebrate with music and purity rituals. There are singers and instrumentalists galore. The priests officially begin their priestly duties in the temple, according to their scriptural obligations. The rest of the foreigners are removed from Israelite life. But it’s not as if there is no sin in the camp. Nehemiah is off on business back in Babylon, and in his absence, two priests use sacred portions of the temple for their own housing. Instead of storing the offerings of the people, Tobiah was now using that room as his own living quarters. In his righteous anger, Nehemiah pitches all of Tobiah’s belongings out into the streets. He makes sure that every piece of the offerings are replaced. Not only that, but the Levites are not being provided for. They were supposed to stay in the temple area, but because they have to eat, they went to their homes to tend to their own fields. Nehemiah rights this wrong and fixes whatever system problem had led to this neglect. Beyond not caring for the priests, the people are not observing the Sabbath. Nehemiah shuts the gates on the wall so that no one can come in or out or do any kind of trade on the Sabbath. There are still those people who have not put away their foreign wives and children, and Nehemiah has just about had it. He has done all that he can, and his only plea is that God would remember his attempts at bringing righteousness to the city. Esther 1-10 The story of Esther is a remarkable demonstration of God’s providence. Part of this remarkable nature is that the name of God is never mentioned; he is at work behind the scenes. Does this not reflect our own lives? Esther, Mordecai, and all the rest go about their days simply trusting that all things work for the good of those who love God. We don’t receive direct revelation from the throne room of God; he speaks through his written word. Today, “we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed,” as Peter says (2 Peter 1:19). The book of Esther was probably written mid-to-late 400s B.C., which would be a short time after the events described in the book took place. The point of the book is to tell the story of how God, through select individuals, delivered his people from the wickedness of those who wanted to destroy them. This deliverance resulted in the festival of Purim, which some Jews still celebrate today. Until the temple is destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70, along with the entire city of Jerusalem, this is the final attempt to wipe out the Jews from the face of the planet. Haman, the antagonist, has his heart set to destroy them. Throughout the Old Testament, we read about the shadows, or the types, of the real things. All of these things makes the reader look forward to the coming of the Messiah. This is called typology (big surprise). Typology refers to any person, place, or event that is designed by God to lead the reader to see more of Christ’s person and work. One example is kingship; the dynasty of the Israelite kings is promised to Abraham, worked out in a covenant with David, all to create this expectation of a future king that would bring an end to sin and restore righteousness. If Haman eradicates the Jewish people, wouldn’t that nullify God’s promises to Abraham and covenant with David? Another theme throughout the book is that of a remnant. Esther is living during the time of the Persian exile. The Jews are in Persia (formerly Babylon) because of their sin and God’s wrath being poured out on them (see how often God says he will pour out his wrath and judgment on Israel in the book of Ezekiel). But God always promises that there will be a restoration, which he will bring about through a remnant, or a select group, of Jews. Esther will be a central figure in how God keeps a remnant alive. Perhaps the most famous line of the whole book is 4:14, “And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther’s uncle, Mordecai, is encouraging Esther to leverage her high position to help her people from perishing. We see in Esther a woman who is courageous and deeply devoted to the things of God. She responds, “Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish” (4:16b). There often comes a time when obeying God means disobeying men, even those men whom God has put in place as rulers. But that is almost never the first reaction a believer should take. Remember, up until this point in the story, Esther has been a faithful Jew living in the king’s court. Esther’s bravery and trust in God’s promises was all she needed to do the right thing, despite the uncertain outcome. That’s an important lesson. God expects us to live according his ways, and he also expects us to leave the outcome of living according to his ways in his hands. Esther and Mordecai prepare a plan to trap Haman in his own words and put an end to the edict to kill all the Jews. Their plan works, and king Ahasuerus revokes Haman’s decree. Esther is given Haman’s property, and Ahasuerus even lets Mordecai write the decree that will spare the Jews. Not only that, but the Jews are given permission to destroy anyone who attempts to follow Haman’s defunct decree. This institutes the festival of Purim, which is a word meaning “lots”. The name is an ironic take on the fact that Haman cast lots in Esther 3:7 to decide which date would be the destruction of the Jews. Today, Jews celebrate Purim to remember God’s deliverance from the wickedness of Haman. Job 1 Job may have been the first book of the Bible to actually have been recorded in writing. It never mentions any of the patriarchs, the Mosaic law, or anything related to Israel. The author does, however use the covenant name of God, YHWH. His wealth is counted in how much livestock he has, and he acted as a family priest instead of taking his family to a priest. This much tells us Job lived before or during the time of the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob), while the book was written afterward. There is even a paraphrase of Job, called a Targum, that was written about 200 years before Jesus. Job is an ancient book about an ancient person. The book focuses on the struggle of good and evil, how bad things can happen to good people, and most importantly, God’s role in evil. Perhaps most interesting is how Satan is able to present himself to God. How can this be? How is Satan able to speak with God? Didn’t he fall from heaven? We need to be ready to believe whatever Scripture puts before us. One of the subtle ways the Enlightenment continues to have an impact on faith is the way in which the church often avoids the supernatural realm. Another way is to flatten the supernatural realm into neat and tidy packages when Scripture is not as exhaustive as we wish it to be, as if the way we understand the scientific method can be applied to the realm of heaven. There are those who say that Scripture gives us a clear articulation of the fall of Satan in passages such as Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28, but I believe those are about the king of Tyre, which is exactly what those passages say. To make them an allegory about Satan when God tells the prophets that they are really about earthly kings is to remove from their proper context. Especially in the book Ezekiel, chapter 28 comes in a long line of “laments” about earthly kings God will judge because of their behavior toward Israel. Why is this particular lament pulled out to supposedly be about Satan while the rest are not? It is best to simply read Job at face value and see that the accuser, Satan, is given permission by God to take away all that Job loves. Not a single event in the book of Job takes place apart from the will of God. Not only is Satan in God’s presence, but it is God who actually brings up Job to Satan. Satan tells God that the only reason Job loves God is because God protects him against evil. To show that the accuser is wrong, God permits him to take all his belongings and his family, but he cannot take Job’s life. Job’s livestock are killed as collateral in a siege, and his children are killed in a natural disaster. Job begins to mourn, but he also begins to worship. In the beginning, Job is a good man who does not blame God for the works of Satan. Romans 8-12 Paul has concluded his inner monologue about the relationship of law and gospel. Only if we understand that the law cannot save but only condemn does 8:1 make sense: there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. The law of Moses condemns, but the law of the Spirits sets free. Therefore, those set free in the Spirit should live accordingly. The indwelling presence of the Spirit is the proof of regeneration. And if we have the Spirit, we will inherit future blessings even if we suffer in the present. And if we are aware of our future blessings, we will think differently about our present suffering. Suffering is likened to childbirth (no surprise there). It can feel like you’re falling apart from the inside out, but the end result is new life. Not only humanity, but all of creation is groaning as if in labor. But Paul says the most amazing thing—the pains of childbirth have been going on “until now” (8:22). The new creation has begun! The adoption paperwork has begun! We live in the overlap. There is yet to come a glory that makes our present sufferings seem like a hangnail. But God is not so cruel to tell us that our present sufferings aren’t real sufferings. He has sent the Spirit not only to give us our second birth but also to help us in our weakness and suffering. In Romans 8:29-30, we read what’s been called “the golden chain of redemption”. God’s foreknowledge leads to predestination, then to calling, then to justification, then to glorification. This is meant to be a comfort to believers, realizing that God has been at work in salvation since before the creation of the world. What will you possibly do to foil a divine plan that’s an eternity in the making when you’re just a blip on time’s radar? What could possibly separate us from the love of God? Beginning in Romans 9, we start to move into hotly debated territory. The question that Paul is now answering is, “What is Israel’s place today?” He has had an inner monologue about a Jew struggling with the law and the gospel, he’s assured his readers that the gospel is God’s plan, and now he’s addressing how God’s sovereign decree does not relegate the Jew to a nobody. What do we do with the fact that Israel has failed so many times? Paul assures us that physical descent does not assure anyone of regeneration. He argues this from biblical history. God promised Abraham a child, which would be Isaac. But Abraham got impatient and had a son with Sarah’s mistress. Ishmael was not promised anything, because God’s promise was through Abraham and Sarah. Even then, God chose to bless Jacob instead of Esau. The point in both of those stories is that God’s mercy is his divine choice. No one is owed mercy, otherwise it’s a payment. Divine election is as old as Genesis. So if God has made his decision, what role does free will play? Paul answers with a rhetorical question. Does a lump of clay get to tell the potter what to do? Doesn’t the potter have the right to make utensils for both the temple and the home, for sacred and for secular use? In the same way, God has in mind a way of bringing glory and honor to his name, as well as justice and mercy to his people. If the Jews were approaching the law in order to be made righteous, they simply proved themselves to be vessels for destruction. If they approached the law knowing that God saves by grace through faith, then they would not stumble. Christ, the object of faith throughout every generation, is the end of the law. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the law. That’s why Paul can say that everyone who approached Christ in faith is saved and is not under the law of Moses as a condition of the new covenant. Because the Jews had the law, the covenants, the kings, the sacrifices, etc., Paul says that they have had the gospel preached to them. “Have they not heard? Indeed they have.” They have heard from the prophets time and time again, yet they turned to their own ways. But God has always had remnant to which he would keep his promises. Paul reminds us that God has always preserved a segment, a remnant, for himself. Elijah believed he was the last true Israelite, but God tells him that he is one of 7,000. There is even now a remnant of Jews, and like the Gentiles, they were chosen by grace (11:5). Not everyone who has their lineage back to Abraham can claim spiritual heritage. Only the elect among the Israelites can hang their lives on those promises. There are two extremes when it comes to the relationship of the church and Israel. One extreme is called supercessionism, held primarily by those who also hold to covenant theology, and it says that the church has completely superseded Israel as God’s people. There is no further role for Israel to play in redemptive history. That position is difficult to maintain mainly because Paul is so adamant that there is a remnant left in Israel. And for Paul to argue that the Gentiles are included in Israel makes it seem that Israel is still a body of people. The other extreme is that the church and Israel are completely separate entities with no overlap whatsoever. This view is held almost entirely by dispensationalists. Classic dispensationalism teaches that the church is a pause in God’s plan, that Jesus offered the Jews the millennial kingdom during the time of the incarnation, but they rejected it, so Jesus wiped his feet of the Jews and began a ministry to the Gentiles. Hyper-dispensationalism even believes that Jews and Gentiles have a different eternal destiny, with the Jews on the earth forever and the church in heaven forever. I believe this position has zero warrant for the same reasons as supercessionism. Paul speaks of Gentiles being grafted in to the vine of Israel, meaning that the church receives the richness and glory of being an Israelite. There is a remnant of national Israel yet to be redeemed, and the church is considered part of the true Israel. Not all Israel is Israel, as Paul says. But also, by virtue of being in union with Christ, the true Israelite, the church becomes the Israel of God (Galatians 6:16). The church is not a pause in God’s plan of redemption, as if God didn’t see it coming. God is sovereign. But neither has the church supplanted Israel as God’s chosen people. There is only a “partial hardening” (11:25) of Israel until every elect Gentile is saved. For Paul, this was a reason for worship (11:33-35). The fact that not one believer, Jew or Gentile, will be lost or fall through the cracks means that we should worship God along with Paul. As the Jews worshiped through bloody sacrifices, so Paul tells us to be living sacrifices. We are a living sacrifice not by harming or killing ourselves but by living to God in perpetual renewal. Only then do we live lives that are pleasing to God. A living sacrifice, motivated by the generous salvation to both Jews and Gentiles, leads to serving the other believers, both Jews and Gentiles. That’s how we know we are dealing with a true believer, by seeing how we serve each other. We don’t return evil for evil, but good for evil. Good will overcome evil. Ezra 5-10
During the time that rebuilding the temple had ceased due to outside forces, God sends multiple prophets to urge the people to continue. Cowardice is no virtue. Two of those prophets are Haggai and Zechariah, whose writings are recorded in their own books of Scripture. Through their public exhortations, the people obey God rather than men and begin again in their rebuilding endeavors. Spines of steel always attract attention. In this case, the Jews are noticed by a local governor, Tattenai, who gathers his fellow governors together in an attempt to thwart any further rebuilding. By this time, Persia has overtaken Babylon, so the new king of the empire is Darius. This group of busybodies writes a flattering letter to Darius, asking him to investigate under whose authority the Jews are rebuilding the temple. Darius does indeed find that his predecessor Cyrus permitted the rebuilding of the temple. It’s noteworthy that no one finds another decree commanding the Jews to stop the building, which is how chapter 4 ends. But in God’s good providence, Darius permits the Jews to continue. The project will be financed by the Persian treasury. How do we make sense of the empire funding religious operations? Only in a postmodern humanist society does that pose a problem. What is keeping God from having his temple? Money? Why not have the empire oppressing the people pay for it? What sweet irony! Besides that, there aren’t a lot of connections between that situation and our own. In Ezra’s day, there were no atheistic people; it was nonsense. Contrast that with the fact that today to be an atheist is nearly always tied to a condescending attitude toward the religiously devout. The religion of scientism has simply become the de facto religion of the American people. Science has rituals and traditions, like any religion. Science must pass down its accepted institutions to the next generation, or they will be lost. We should not think that those who despise a relationship between the empire and religion necessarily have the moral high ground. Upon the completion of the temple, the priests gather the people together to dedicate it. Hundreds of animals are offered as sacrifices. There is even the note that the priests are serving God “as it is written in the Book of Moses” (6:18). The people are seeking to be faithful again. As toward the end of the book of 2 Chronicles, the celebration of the Passover receives special attention. The Jews are again celebrating an exodus of sorts. There is a drastic jump in time between Ezra 6 and 7, of nearly 60 years. Artaxerxes is now king of Persia. It’s possible Ezra was not born at the time of the return of the exiles and that he was born in Babylon/Persia. Either way, he is currently in Persia, and the king gives him permission to go to Judah and ensure the law of God is being kept, as well as settle civil issues. But Ezra’s primary purpose, personally, is to teach the law to the people so that they are able to obey it. Artaxerxes sends a letter to the people giving authority to Ezra to do all that he needs to accomplish his purposes. Again, we see the empire in service of God’s purposes. The exiles returned in three main stages, one of which was led by Ezra. We get a genealogy of that group in Ezra 8. Ezra gathers some priests together to prepare for the journey by prayer and fasting. For three days, they prepared themselves spiritually for the great work they were about to undertake. When Ezra and the exiles with him finally arrive in Jerusalem, they are told about the rampant intermarriage between the Jews and the surrounding pagans. Ezra has hoped that after a whole generation in exile, the people would have learned that yoking yourself to someone who hates your God would lead you to do so, as well. There were clear laws against marrying those who practiced pagan religions, such as Deuteronomy 7:1-5. Israel had a long history of this mistake. Ezra grieves such sin. He prays to God and confesses the sin of the people. He even lumps himself in with them. Ezra’s spiritual leadership brings the people to confess their sin personally. The usual words for “marriage” and “divorce” are not used here. This implies that these were not recognized as normal or regulated situations. We should not read more into the situation than is clearly articulated. There is no reason to think that the foreign wives and the children born from these unions were cast out to die in the wilderness. They were simply kept apart from the believing community. This was a clear breach of the law. Shecaniah speaks on behalf of the people as he speak with Ezra. He says that the people will do what Ezra has said, “according to the counsel of my Lord and of those who tremble at the command of our God”, which heavily implies that there were plans for these wives and children. For Christians today, we must see that we are not in the same situation as these Jews. If a Christian marries an unbeliever, that is not grounds for divorce. Paul clearly says in 1 Corinthians 7 that a believer does not divorce an unbeliever for that sole reason. There are situations where divorce is permissible though never commanded, and being unequally yoked may lead to those situations. However, being married to an unbeliever is not itself grounds for divorce. The books of Ezra and Nehemiah were likely originally one book, which is why Ezra ends somewhat abruptly. The narrative is picked up in Nehemiah 1. Nehemiah 1-8 Only about 50,000 Jews returned from exile to Judah. This left many more in Babylon/Persia who had followed Jeremiah’s word to build families and settle down. Like Ezra, Nehemiah may have been born and raised in Persia. He is now cupbearer to the king, which is a high and noble position. He is in a place to have influence on the king’s decision making. He gets word that the wall surrounding Jerusalem has been burned by fire. This could be referring to the initial destruction that took place before exile began, or it could be referring to some of the opposition that took place to stop the rebuilding process. Either way, Nehemiah is distraught. He prays to God, like Ezra, confessing his sins and the sins of the people that led them to be sent into exile. He knows that because of his high position, he might be someone able to make a difference back in Judah. Nehemiah approaches the king, and the king notices Nehemiah’s irregular disposition. As Nehemiah relays the situation in Jerusalem, Artaxerxes gives him permission to supply and restore rebuilding efforts. Again, the state is not “meddling” in religious affairs. Only in the contemporary period has this been seen as a conflict of interest. Nehemiah sees that the walls are in as bad a condition as he has heard. The walls of a city were no small matter; the walls were a city’s security. These walls could be several feet thick and made of stone. Cities were also often build on hills, as was Jerusalem. These walls could serve as armories and fortresses from invading forces. So for Jerusalem not to have walls or a standing army was to mean Jerusalem was extremely vulnerable. Even by the priests serving as leaders in rebuilding the city’s security measures, we see the interrelatedness of the religious and the secular. Until the Lord returns, we need both. Darius has permitted rebuilding to continue, as was Artaxerxes. But this does not stop all opposition. It is not entirely clear who Sanballat was, but he is some kind of official working on behalf of the Persian government. He is a type of administrator. Half of the wall is completed, and Sanballat organizes other administrators to plot against the Jews. The work of rebuilding the wall is exhausting, and the men are beginning to see their endurance fade. Between exterior opposition and interior exhaustion, Nehemiah will have his hands full. Sanballat had no official decree on his side. All he could do is threaten the Jews with death. Nehemiah, though, urges the men to continue the work. Half of them would work while the other have served as a kind of national guard. It did slow work down a bit, but it gave the men an advantage and an assurance of safety. Another related internal issue was usury. Jerusalem has hardly been rebuilt, and those who are not wealthy are borrowing from the wealthy to make ends meet, even up to mortgaging their land. The Jews also have to continue paying taxes to the king of Persia. Usury was strictly against Mosaic law. It was perfectly legal to lend money and help your neighbor. What was illegal was charging interest to your fellow Israelite. Nehemiah calls out the people, and they return the mortgaged land to the original owners. For all the faults of the people, they are quick to repent and do the right thing. Sanballat and his cabal are in no mood to see the Jews persevere. Sanballat calls for Nehemiah to come and meet with him through messengers. He sent messengers back to Sanballat saying that his work is more important than another meeting. Nehemiah is well aware of Sanballat’s intent, and he is not going to let one man stop him from doing the work of the Lord. Sanballat tries to coerce Nehemiah five times, and in each instance, Nehemiah stays focused on the task at hand. Sanballat tries to threaten Nehemiah with lies about the Jews’ intent to rebel, but he won’t fall for it. In less than two months, the wall is finished. The result was that the surrounding nations feared the Jews. Imagine what would have happened if Nehemiah had caved to Sanballat and his threats? Nehemiah is a temporary leader installed by Artaxerxes. Once the wall is completed, he installs Hanani as charge over the city. This whole time, the people had been living in tents. Now that the altar, temple, and wall are completed, the people can focus on their more pressing needs. There are not that many people living in the city. Nehemiah finds a book listing those who returned initially, and he continues the list. The people are resettling and are ready to live lives of religious observance. Ezra gathers the people together to read from the Mosaic law. As Ezra reads, priests interpret the text for the people. It was not enough to hear; they had to understand. It is not a day for mourning. They have much to celebrate: a new altar, a new temple, and a new wall, all of which was provided by God. Ezra and Nehemiah tells the people to eat all they want, drink to their fill, and save some for those who couldn’t make it—a proper potluck. Romans 2-7 Paul has set forth the argument that God’s wrath can be manifested by simply allowing sin to run its natural course. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth” (1:18). It is not a trifling matter that all have fallen short of God’s supreme, perfect, righteous standard, which is the definition of holiness. The very things we judge others for, we do ourselves. This itself is evidence of a debased mind, which God gives over to its desires. Not only is God’s wrath being meted out in the present, but continuing in sin is equivalent to building a rickhouse of God’s wrath for yourself in the future. Those who continue in unrighteousness will face that wrath, but peace is reserved for the righteous. The law of Moses was not a means of achieving salvation. That’s why Paul can say that regardless of whether a person was a Jew or a Gentile, regardless of a person’s relationship to the law, all people will be judged. There is also a standard set forth in nature, which all people recognize. There is of course the truth that all people suppress natural revelation, but that does not negate the fact that it is known. For example, on the surface, everyone says that murder is wrong. But when it comes time to stand for something, many recoil from understanding capital punishment is for murderers. Many hesitate to call abortion murder. Why? Because we suppress the truth revealed in nature. Everyone fails to practice what they preach. The Jews practiced circumcision to obey the law, yet their behavior proved their circumcision was purely an exterior ritual, not one of the heart. Jewishness is not a matter of rituals, rites, and family heritage. It is “a matter of the heart” (2:29). Therefore, one who keeps the law is a true Jew, or a true Israelite. There is only one true Israelite, Jesus Christ. But even if keeping the law does not save a person, surely there must still be a benefit from having the law at all. Paul assumes this question and assures the Roman Christians that there most certainly is a benefit from being kept from ignorance of the law. In the law, we see God’s holiness and our sinfulness. We can’t keep the letter of the law, nonetheless the spirit of the law. But the Jews were the people in whom God placed special revelation. It was not because of anything inherent in them, but it was the good pleasure of God to do so. What an honor! Therefore, the faithfulness of God is not dependent on the faithfulness of his people. The law is good because it comes from God, not because his people can or cannot keep it. Having said all that, we must recognize that the Jews have not been faithful to the special revelation, and the Gentiles have not been faithful to natural revelation. No one is righteous; no not one. The law, whether special or natural, will justify no one, because the law was given because of sin. We were sinners when the law of God was given. If we thought the law revealed how righteous God was, then we’re in for a treat when we hear about faith. Faith makes no distinction between Jew and Gentile. Faith and law are not two sides of a coin; they are completely different coins. Faith trusts in the promises of God; law trusts in human ability. But what about the lawbreakers? How does faith save lawbreakers? This is the doctrine of justification. The sacrifice of Christ is received by sinners as a gift. The sacrifice is complete, so receiving the gift is not a work that plays into our salvation. The Son, who is God, was sacrificed, so we can and should say that God received the punishment for sin back on himself instead of demanding that sinners pay the debt our sin created. That’s why Paul can say that God is justified in receiving the sacrifice paid for by himself, and God is justified in pardoning sinners. Many have argued that the atonement is “cosmic child abuse”. How could God let an innocent man, nevertheless his Son, die for bad people? And how could God force Jesus to go through with it? Besides being exegetically unsound, that argument refuses to see the glory of the Trinity. Jesus is fully God, so God paid the debt the he was owed. If we were to think of it in human terms, we would never think less of a man who simply forgave a monetary debt that he was owed by someone else. We would see that he absorbed that loss. In a similar way, but far more cosmic, God absorbed the debt of sin into himself through the incarnate Son of God. Salvation by grace through faith is not a concept first found in the New Testament. Paul shows that Abraham was saved by grace through faith. Long before the law was given, faith was required. Even once the law was given, because “a Jew is one inwardly,” faith was required. Without faith, circumcision is the same as uncircumcision; it is meaningless. Before the Sabbath, the festivals, and the sacrificial system, there was faith. Because God justifies through faith in the blood of his Son, we are at peace with God. That is a judicial fact based on God’s word, not experience or emotion. The gavel has been lowered; God’s decision stands. While we were still sinners, while we were weak, Christ did his great work. The same wrath that Paul said God is revealing from heaven back in chapter 1 he now says we have been spared from. God’s people are spared from his wrath in the midst of his wrath. How is it possible that one man, Jesus Christ, could possibly pay for the sins of all the elect? In the same way that all of humanity participates in Adam’s rebellion, the elect participate in Christ’s obedience. Death entered through disobedience; life enters through obedience. All of humanity is in one of two covenants with their creator: the covenant of works, established with Adam, or the covenant of grace, established with Christ. One of these two men is the covenant head for every individual. But even though our justification is an unbreakable or unchangeable decision by God, that does not imply that we can continue to live as though we still suppress the truth. In baptism, we are buried with Christ. But in the same way he was resurrected, we also walk in newness of life/resurrected life. Therefore, we do not continue living as we once did, as if we were still dead in our sins. We have been raised to new life! We are not dead! Live like it! Romans 7 sometimes poses problems of interpretation, because the lingering question is, “Who is Paul addressing? A Christian or a non-Christian?” That question comes about by a seemingly difficult relationship between the objective newness of life for the believer and yet continuing to recognize sinful patterns of behavior in ones life. I believe Paul is clearly addressing Christians, but a certain kind of Christian—a true believer who came from Jewish heritage. This is supported by Paul’s language, such as 7:1, where he calls his readers both “brothers” and “those who know the law”. I see no reason to arbitrarily change audiences at any point in Romans 7. I believe that what Paul is describing is a type of internal monologue a Jew would have with himself as he tries to make sense of seeing the law as fulfilled in Christ and no longer binding on himself as a condition of the new covenant. This Jewish Christian asks, “Did that which is good, then, bring death to me?” Did I follow the law just to be duped into thinking it could save me? No way! Paul tells this Jewish Christian that it was always the sinner that was the culprit, not the lawgiver or his law. The Gentile Christians were not having a debate about the place of the law in the new covenant. That took place among the Jews in the congregation. This Jewish Christian delights in the law of God. They always have! The Psalms begin by saying that the wise man delights in the law of God. Consider Psalm 119 and how many times the author says he delights in the law of God. The prophet Jeremiah says the words of God are delight for his heart (15:16). We can delight in the law of God while we wrestle with the flesh and sin. Hence why Paul cries out, “Who will deliver me from this body of death?” The law, as delightful as it is, does not produce life. That only comes as a gift of God. Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! |