Contemplative Bible Reading

John 19:13-15 (New Living Translation)

¹³ When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). ¹⁴ It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about noon.

“Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.

¹⁵ But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”

“Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.

“We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered.

Here is an exchange between Pilate, a political leader, and the chief priests, some religious leaders. Caught up in the excitement of the exchange or trying to make a point or something, note what the religious leaders proclaim:

Caesar is our king

Yikes.

Sometimes we have to pause and consider the words we use. In retrospect, our words can be damning. Some might say, “but that is just a figure of speech,” or “you know what I meant” or “don’t be so literal!” Perhaps I am too literal with this and with many of the things I hear people say, but the words come from somewhere.

Esther 5:14 (New Living Translation)

So Haman’s wife, Zeresh, and all his friends suggested, “Set up a sharpened pole that stands seventy-five feet tall, and in the morning ask the king to impale Mordecai on it. When this is done, you can go on your merry way to the banquet with the king.” This pleased Haman, and he ordered the pole set up.

I find a little twist to this story in the wording of the New Living Translation. The translation I had always read use the words describing a gallows and hanging a person until they are dead.

This translation, however, describes a tall pole with a sharp(er) point on the end and impaling the person whole on it. This is more gruesome to an American reader as we are somewhat accustomed to hangings (check out any western, just get a long rope and a tree).

We are not accustomed to impaling. Yikes.

And in the book of Esther we have Haman himself dying on the structure that he built for Mordecai. Gruesome.

Esther 2:8 (New Living Translation)

As a result of the king’s decree, Esther, along with many other young women, was brought to the king’s harem at the fortress of Susa and placed in Hegai’s care.

This verse has bothered me for years. Esther, the good Jewish woman, entered the king’s harem. Perhaps something is lost in translation or in history or something, but the first definition I find for harem is:

the separate part of a Muslim household reserved for wives, concubines, and female servants.

Esther enters the harem as a concubine?

Why would she do that? That is immoral, right? Why didn’t she and her family flee or go into hiding or something?

I know how the story ends: Esther is able to do great things for her people, but that is not how the story begins, and there is no guarantee at the beginning that the ending will be good. Still, this is what we have.

From a human perspective, which is quite lacking, how do we judge Esther on this verse? From a human perspective, still quite lacking, how do we judge anything?

2 Kings 11:12 (New Living Translation)

Then Jehoiada brought out Joash, the king’s son, placed the crown on his head, and presented him with a copy of God’s laws. They anointed him and proclaimed him king, and everyone clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!”

What would you give a seven-year-old King? That is the age of Joash here as he is anointed King.

When I was a child, maybe only five years old, my parents gave me one of those little books containing the New Testament and Psalms. They were small enough to fit in a pocket. I guess they still sell those today. Mine was light blue in color. I still have it.

Funny, I still have it. I don’t think I have anything else that I had when I was five.

The Holiday gift-giving season is upon us. What would you give a child? How about a copy of the word? Just a little thought. And by the way, live the word daily to show the child what it means.

Isaiah 1:24-26 (New Living Translation)

Therefore, the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
the Mighty One of Israel, says,
“I will take revenge on my enemies
and pay back my foes!
²⁵ I will raise my fist against you.
I will melt you down and skim off your slag.
I will remove all your impurities.
²⁶ Then I will give you good judges again
and wise counselors like you used to have.
Then Jerusalem will again be called the Home of Justice
and the Faithful City.”

The literal translation of “jerusalem” is “city of peace.” Yet, notice how the LORD wants people to know Jerusalem:

Home of Justice

Faithful City

Nothing in there about the home of music or the entertainment capital of the world or the place where what you do there stays there or any of those smart things we hear today about cities that want to promoted themselves.

What would you like people to call your town, the place where you live, the place where your local church sits?

Psalms 119:3 (New Living Translation)

I have recited aloud
all the regulations you have given us.

This is a good practice – reciting aloud.

Perhaps, in days gone by, we used to do this more than we do now. As a child attending a Christian elementary school, we memorized Bible passages and recited them.

Note Google’s definition of recite:

repeat aloud or declaim (a poem or passage) from memory before an audience.

The act of stating the verses before an audience. We did that in the old days. Well? Anything wrong with reviving this heritage?

Isaiah 5:7 (New Living Translation)

The nation of Israel is the vineyard of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
The people of Judah are his pleasant garden.
He expected a crop of justice,
but instead he found oppression.
He expected to find righteousness,
but instead he heard cries of violence.

Wonderful poetry here. The content is discouraging, though.

The poetic prophet sees Judah as the vineyard of the LORD with a wonderful crop expected. Reality, however, is not pleasant.

God wanted justice and righteousness – right and fair lives. The opposite occurred. Was God cruel to His people in His expectations? He wanted them to be different from the nations around them. He wanted His people to show the world His character – just, right, loving.

I think God wants the same of the Christ follower today. Show everyone the love, justice, and compassion of Jesus. Sometimes we do okay with this, sometimes not so good.

Isaiah 58:13 (New Living Translation)

“Keep the Sabbath day holy.
Don’t pursue your own interests on that day,
but enjoy the Sabbath
and speak of it with delight as the Lord’s holy day.
Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day,
and don’t follow your own desires or talk idly.

The Jews tripped often over violating the Sabbath. God gave it as a day of rest. Note what God told His people about the Sabbath through the prophet:

• Enjoy the Sabbath
• Speak of it with delight

The LORD gave His people a holiday, a fun day every week. Yet they complained and violated it. They refused to rest. They refused to enjoy it.

They refused a blessing from the LORD.

Us, today? We refuse God’s grace. We refuse God’s gift of salvation. We refuse God’s gift of happiness and contentment today and every day of our lives.

What is wrong with us?

Yet, God stays with us. He continues to bless us everyday in countless ways. Thank you God. Forgive me my obstinate refusal to enjoy Your gifts.

Zephaniah 2:3 (New Living Translation)

Seek the Lord, all who are humble,
and follow his commands.
Seek to do what is right
and to live humbly.
Perhaps even yet the Lord will protect you—
protect you from his anger on that day of destruction.

There isn’t much to comment on this passage. Tucked away in a short group of writings from a little-known profit are the instructions for life:

• Seek Jehovah God
• Follow His commands
• Try to do what is right
• Live humbly

What more can I add? What more need anyone add?

By the way, this is the first entry in this blog spurred by a verse in Zephaniah.

Jeremiah 7:4-5 (New Living Translation)

⁴ But don’t be fooled by those who promise you safety simply because the Lord’s Temple is here. They chant, “The Lord’s Temple is here! The Lord’s Temple is here!” ⁵ But I will be merciful only if you stop your evil thoughts and deeds and start treating each other with justice;

The prophet Jeremiah is relaying words from the LORD to His chosen people. It seems that some people felt that the LORD would always bless them because of some accident of real estate. These people lived in the same neighborhood as the LORD’s Temple. The logic, there is always some great human logic in these things, was simple:

The LORD would protect his Temple

If you lived in the same zip code, you would be protected as well.

The LORD corrects this logic via Jeremiah. Silly people back then. Today, well, uh, I guess we can be just as silly. If we live in a nation blessed by God, we will be blessed. If we went to the right college, we will be protected. If a preacher lives next door, well, you get the idea.

The LORD doesn’t bless people by real estate. Instead, He is merciful to those who

stop our evil thoughts and deeds and treat each other with justice

Well, there go the property values, and hopefully in come the values of God.