Contemplative Bible Reading

2 Kings 3:1-3 (New International Version)

¹ Joram son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned twelve years. ² He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, but not as his father and mother had done. He got rid of the sacred stone of Baal that his father had made. ³ Nevertheless he clung to the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.

Joram becomes king of Israel (the Northern Kingdom after the split from the Southern Kingdom of Judah). Joram’s father was Ahab. In verse 2, we learn that Ahab had made a stone of Baal, a sacred stone of Baal.

This fascinates me. You take a stone, chisel or polish or shape it in some way, then declare it to be “sacred.” How do you do that? How do you make a rock, just another plain old rock, sacred? Is there a special ceremony? Is there a special day of the year for making rocks sacred? Do you wear special clothes for the sacred-rock-making ceremony?

This all sounds pretty silly to me in this place at this time. Still, it made sense to Ahab and others in their time in their place. They made rocks sacred, and the rocks were … well, sacred.

I guess we do similar things today. The American flag cannot be desecrated. Soiling a Bible and throwing it in a trash can be would desecrating it. So maybe we do make some things “sacred” even to this day. Is our church building sacred? Is our house sacred? Is our family name sacred? Hmmm, maybe that Ahab guy wasn’t so far out after all.

God, help me to not spend my life making inanimate things “sacred.” You alone are sacred. Help me to keep it that way.

Jeremiah 9:9-11 (New International Version)

⁹ Should I not punish them for this?”
declares the LORD.
“Should I not avenge myself
on such a nation as this?”

¹⁰ I will weep and wail for the mountains
and take up a lament concerning the desert pastures.
They are desolate and untraveled,
and the lowing of cattle is not heard.
The birds of the air have fled
and the animals are gone.

¹¹ “I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins,
a haunt of jackals;
and I will lay waste the towns of Judah
so no one can live there.”

The Lord is speaking to His people through the prophet Jeremiah. Jerusalem and its people are to be punished. Jerusalem would be a heap of ruins, a waste, no one can live there, and a haunt of jackals.

What in the world is a haunt of jackals? In the New International Version, this phrase is used four times in Jeremiah, twice in Isaiah, and once in Psalms. Still, what is it?

Jackals are not the king of the jungle or a majestic beast or any of that. They are often thought of as scavengers, but that is not true. Still, people think of them that way. But a haunt of jackals. Sometimes haunt is used for “stamping ground” or “hangout.”

I suppose that if Jerusalem was to be a haunt of jackals it would be desolate of people. There would be nothing worthy of people – something like that. It sounds like a bad place, something that God’s people would not like to become of their homes.

2 Kings 2:23-25 (New International Version)

²³ From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some youths came out of the town and jeered at him. “Go on up, you baldhead!” they said. “Go on up, you baldhead!” ²⁴ He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the LORD. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the youths. ²⁵ And he went on to Mount Carmel and from there returned to Samaria.

It seems that Elisha was bald. We aren’t told that elsewhere in text, but some “youths” from Bethel certainly thought he was bald. They came out of town and poked fun or ridiculed Elisha about his baldness.

Elisha didn’t wash out their mouths with soap, or give them a stern lecture about respect for their elders. Instead, he

called down a curse on them in the name of the LORD

as a result

two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the youths

Several things here, first there were at least forty two of these youths ridiculing Elisha. Forty two! This wasn’t a few misbehaving kids. It was more like a mob of young, strong men.

Second, Elisha called down a “curse” on them. I’m not sure what this means. At one time Jesus “cursed” a fig tree and it died. We don’t use this kind of “curse” these days, not in our “modern” world.” It seems this is more in line with a  judgment from God. God, through the prophets like Elisha, often spoke of the consequences of disobedience.

Finally, we have the bears. There are places in the Old Testament where God threatens to have wild animals come and do the things that wild animals do. This is one case where that happened.

This (hi)story seems harsh to me today. Surely Elisha could have taught the youths a lesson, and everyone walk away happy and better for the experience. That wasn’t the case here. Elisha lived in a different place and a different time. I am happy to live in my time under the grace of God. I’m not wary of bears coming out of the woods to maul us.

1 Samuel 3:7 (New International Version)

Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD : The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.

This chapter in 1 Samuel describes the first calling of Samuel by the Lord, i.e., their first conversation. Samuel was to be a great prophet in Israel, someone with whom the Lord spoke directly.

I am concentrating on the word yet in these two clauses of the verse. Let’s look at a definition of yet:

yet: adverb, up to a particular time; thus far: They had not yet come. (dictionary.com)

In the first clause of the verse, Samuel did not know the Lord – yet. Samuel was smart enough, righteous enough, good enough, competent enough, and all other sorts of “enoughs” to one day know the Lord. Thus far, however, he didn’t know the Lord. All Samuel needed was a little time.

In the second clause of the verse we have a similar situation in that the word of the Lord had not been revealed to Samuel – yet. The Lord was going to reveal His word, and Samuel was going to receive it and live it. This merely had not happened thus far.

People are often impatient with other people. This is one of my main failings in life. When I know something, I expect other people, particularly other people who are above my in some chain of command or other, to know that something as well. I grow impatient when they don’t “get it.”

I have lived a blessed life. Many people I know haven’t enjoyed the same blessing I have. There are many concepts that I understand that they don’t – yet. If that sounds arrogant, it probably is arrogant. I don’t yet know how to express this without sounding arrogant. See, I have granted patience to myself in this respect.

The word yet and the virtue of patience seem to accompany one another. Samuel did not yet know God, but God was patient with Samuel. The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to Samuel, but God was patient with God and would reveal His word in due time.

God, there is much that I don’t know yet; there is much that I don’t do yet. Please continue to grant me patience in these matters. Also help me to have patience with my fellow man. I don’t have patience in full measure yet, but I trust that it will come with your grace and my obedience.

Genesis 20:1-10 (New International Version)

¹ Abraham left Hebron and traveled to southern Canaan where he stayed awhile between Kadesh and Shur. When he moved to Gerar,² he told people that his wife Sarah was his sister. Abimelech king of Gerar heard this, so he sent some servants to take her.³ But one night God spoke to Abimelech in a dream and said, “You will die. The woman you took is married.”

⁴ But Abimelech had not gone near Sarah, so he said, “Lord, would you destroy an innocent nation?⁵ Abraham himself told me, ‘This woman is my sister,’ and she also said, ‘He is my brother.’ I am innocent. I did not know I was doing anything wrong.”

⁶ Then God said to Abimelech in the dream, “Yes, I know you did not realize what you were doing. So I did not allow you to sin against me and touch her.⁷ Give Abraham his wife back. He is a prophet. He will pray for you, and you will not die. But if you do not give Sarah back, you and all your family will surely die.”

⁸ So early the next morning, Abimelech called all his officers and told them everything that had happened in the dream. They were very afraid.⁹ Then Abimelech called Abraham to him and said, “What have you done to us? What wrong did I do against you? Why did you bring this trouble to my kingdom? You should not have done these things to me.¹⁰ What were you thinking that caused you to do this?”

This is one of the (hi)stories of Abraham telling someone that his wife Sarah was not his wife but his sister. Abraham always did this because he felt someone would want Sarah for their own wife and would kill Abraham to have her. These were obviously not Abraham’s best moments of faith and courage. I mean, Abraham was giving his wife away to save his own life. Sarah could fend for herself.

So here is this King Abimelech. He is not in the line of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,  i.e., he is not one of God’s chosen to carry the message of the LORD to the world. Note, however, a few things about Abimelech:

• He did not take Sarah until Abraham said Sarah was his sister
• He recognized God speaking to him in a dream
• He called on the Lord proclaiming his innocence
• He listened to God in a dream and obeyed God
• He knew it was wrong to take another man’s wife
• He knew that doing wrong brought bad consequences
• He knew it was wrong to lie

I could go on about Abimelech. The main points:

Abimelech was not one of God’s chosen people

Abimelech knew much about right and wrong

Abimelech tried to live by what was right

Sometimes I think that we, i.e., the people with me, are right and are the only ones who know right from wrong. How could I be further wrong? God, remove this arrogance from my life. Help me to understand that you speak  to everyone and that truly the heavens declare your glory for all to see.

I don’t know how this all works in the end. I don’t know the state of salvation of natives living in isolation who have never seen a Bible and have never heard the name Jesus. I believe, however, that God provides them a way to know right and wrong and the choice to live either way. Just look at Abimelech.

1 Samuel 3:1 (New International Version)

The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.

Such is the lament about the state of life in Israel when Samuel was a boy. Prophets were not having visions; they were not telling people the word of the Lord.

To accept that this was a sad state of affairs means first to accept that people expected prophets to have visions. People expected the Lord to speak directly to this select group of people known as prophets. That is how they received word from the Lord. There was no other method.

Today, we have the printing press and this Internet. We have the Bible in countless English translations and hundreds of other language translations. I read my Bible on my cell phone. (Can you imagine the look someone would have given you several decades ago if you told them that one day they could read the Bible on their telephone?) Today, the word of the Lord is everywhere. It is so easier to ignore than ever before.

In the day of young Samuel, the word of the Lord was rare. People noted that scarcity; people longed for the prophets to have visions from God.

God, help me to understand the precious gifts I have from you. One of those is ready access to the word of the Lord. Help me to read it and handle it properly.

1 Kings 8:46-51 (New International Version)

⁴⁶ “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to his own land, far away or near; ⁴⁷ and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their conquerors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’; ⁴⁸ and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray to you toward the land you gave their fathers, toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name; ⁴⁹ then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. ⁵⁰ And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their conquerors to show them mercy; ⁵¹ for they are your people and your inheritance, whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace.

These are the words of Solomon. He is praying during the ceremony to dedicate the Temple in Jerusalem. Solomon isn’t telling God anything that God doesn’t know – the people will sin against God and turn their backs to God. Then, perhaps, the people will repent. They will turn to God and seek God in prayer.

Solomon pleads that when they people turn back to God that God will forgive them.

Forgiveness is not a big topic in the Old Testament. I have searched the Old Testament and haven’t found a place where God commands people to forgive one another (if you can find such commands, please let me know). There are examples of people forgiving one another such as Joseph forgiving his brothers (Genesis chapter 50). Commands to forgive? Well, I can’t find them.

In the New Testament, we are ask to forgive one another. If we don’t forgive one another, God will not forgive us (Matthew chapter 6).

I find this a bit odd.

Hosea 10:1-4 (New International Version)

¹ Israel was a spreading vine;
he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
he built more altars;
as his land prospered,
he adorned his sacred stones.

² Their heart is deceitful,
and now they must bear their guilt.
The LORD will demolish their altars
and destroy their sacred stones.

³ Then they will say, “We have no king
because we did not revere the LORD.
But even if we had a king,
what could he do for us?”

⁴ They make many promises,
take false oaths
and make agreements;
therefore lawsuits spring up
like poisonous weeds in a plowed field.

Israel is disintegrating. Years of worshiping stone and wood instead of worshiping the LORD have taken their toll on the people. In verse 3, they lament as they have no King to lead them. What, however, good would a King do them (verse 4)? Kings lie, and, as a result:

lawsuits spring up like poisonous weeds in a plowed field

Filing a suit in a court of law carries with it the belief that the court will act justly. At least there is still some belief in the justice of a court.

Filing suit also shows the collapse of the family. Remember, Israel is one great big family. The “nation” are all descendants of Jacob who was renamed Israel. Members of a family should talk with one another face to face, not through advocates in a court.

God, help Christians today to always talk to one another as the brothers and sisters in Christ that we are. Let us not collapse into speaking through advocates via lawsuits that are merely poisonous weeds.

2 Chronicles 31:20-21 (New International Version)

²⁰ This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. ²¹ In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.

Hezekiah was one of “the good Kings” of Judah. That made him a bit of an exception. Note the basis of Hezekiah’s actions:

he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly

Also notice the result:

And so he prospered.

Hezekiah’s life wasn’t all easy. He was challenged in war against overwhelming odds; he was challenged at home with generations of unbelievers. Still, he looked to God and did the best he could every day.

God, help me to me like Hezekiah.

Acts 4:8-10 (New International Version)

⁸Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! ⁹If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, ¹⁰then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.

Peter and John have just healed a crippled man. The rulers and elders of the people are not happy about this (not a good comment about the rulers and elders). They call Peter and John to explain what has happened.

Peter opens with the simple statement, “If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness…”

Imagine, having to explain an act of kindness. I guess this isn’t so unusual. Acts of kindness are unusual in some respects. In many situations, kindness draws suspicion. Why are you being so nice? What are you after? What is the catch? Things haven’t changed much in 2,000 years.