Proper 10
Preaching
Preaching And Reading The Old Testament Lessons
With an Eye to the New
The lectionary has a way of eliminating from a passage those sections that are considered distasteful to a congregation. Thus, the story of Uzzah's death upon touching the ark in verses 6--11, and the confrontation of David by his wife Michal, in verses 20--23, are not included in our text for the morning. The congregation is thereby left with little rationale for Michal's hatred of David in verse 16 or for its consequences in verses 20--23. But the fact that David no longer has conjugal relations with Michal, according to verse 23, forms the introduction to what follows in 2 Samuel-1 Kings 2, in which the central question is: Who will sit on David's throne after him? Similarly, the holy power connected with the ark of the covenant, which strikes Uzzah dead, is ignored, as is the implied revelation that the Lord needs no help from human beings. As a result, we are left with a passage that concentrates solely on the ark and David's ecstasy before it.
The ark of the covenant was one of the oldest cultic objects in Israel. It went before the Israelites in their wilderness wanderings and at their entrance into the promised land. It stood at the center of Israel's worship as a tribal federation in the time of the Judges. It accompanied Israel in her battles. And when it was captured by the Philistines, it caused the Philistine god, Dagon, to topple and inflicted tumors and panic on the Philistine populace (1 Samuel 5). That people could not wait to get rid of it (1 Samuel 6). When the Philistines returned the ark to Israel, however, it brought blessing upon the household where it was lodged (2 Samuel 6:11).
Our question is: "Why? What was it about the ark of the covenant that rendered it so powerful?" In most of the Old Testament, with the exception of Deuteronomy, the ark is understood to be the base of the Lord's throne, and he is invisibly enthroned above it. The ark had the form of a rectangular box, with rings on the side, through which carrying poles could be inserted. On top of the ark was a golden slab called the "mercy seat," where blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement. At each end of the gold slab was a cherub, with outspread wings, and above the cherubim was the throne of the invisible God (cf. 6:2). Thus where the ark was, there was God, with all of the power of his holiness, dwelling in the midst of his people.
David's desire to bring the ark to his capital city of Jerusalem was not prompted simply by his desire to gain the blessings that the ark brought to the household of Obededom, although that desire is mentioned in 6:12. David has further designs. David in his shrewdness has captured Jerusalem and made it his capital, to form a binding point between the traditionally separated North and South. But to consolidate his power as king over all of Israel, David wishes to give not only military and political but also religious sanction to his reign. He brings God's presence above the ark to Jerusalem and installs the ark in a tent (v. 17; the temple is not built until the following reign of Solomon). Thus David's kingship appears to have the approval of the Lord. Religious, political, and military power are now concentrated in David's hands. And he even appoints his own sons as priests to serve before the ark (2 Samuel 8:18).
David is shrewd and calculating. But as with all of us, his motives are very mixed, and we should not discount the religious devotion he possess as he dances in naked ecstasy before the ark as it is carried into Jerusalem (v. 14) or his commitment to the Lord as he offers sacrifices (v. 17). So filled is he with joy at the ark's presence that his devotion leads him to share celebratory food with his people (v. 19). Noteworthy, however, is the fact that he blesses the people in the name of the Lord (v. 18), a function usually given to a priest.
It is very dangerous when a ruler takes to himself absolute power, isn't it? Then he or she is liable to claim that any action taken is the will of God. Indeed, as we shall hear from our text next Sunday, the davidic royal line is guaranteed by God forever. But when any human being claims absolute authority, we must never forget that the one true God cannot be subject to any mortal. God remains as the true King, the one Lord over heaven and earth. David is not dealing with a servile deity here. He is subject to the will of the Lord, as every ruler and every despot and every one of us is subject, and he is bound to the terms and demands of the covenant with that God, as every one of us is bound. The Lord God Almighty reigns. That is always the check on our human will to power. But that is also the sure basis of our freedom from tyranny and our hope for good in this world.
Lutheran Option: Amos 7:7--15
Contrary to oft--repeated speculations, Amos was probably a wealthy landowner in the southern kingdom of Judah, who made his living from breeding and trading large herds of animals and from tending groves of sycamore fig trees that grew in the warm lowlands around the Dead Sea. About 760 B.C., however, Amos was jerked away from his commercial concerns by God and commanded to "Go, prophesy to my people Israel" in the kingdom in the North.
The message that Amos was given to deliver was that God was going to make an end of the northern kingdom. God had set a plumbline in Israel, which was a cord with a weight on the end that was used by carpenters. And Israel was revealed to be crooked, not upright, not square with her covenant God. Instead, under the reign of Jeroboam II (787/6--747/6 B.C.), many of the Israelites prospered economically, enjoying a dolce vita that gave them sumptuously furnished, elaborate dwellings, pleasant leisure, and wild merrymaking. They felt they lived in God's favor, because they loved to participate in a lavish cult. But they disobeyed God's covenant commands, because they were totally indifferent toward their poor neighbors, who suffered under debt and slavery, injustice in the courts, and cheating in the marketplace. God had forgiven Israel frequently in the past (cf. 7:1--6), but now his patience was at an end. He would "never again pass by them" (v. 8). King Jeroboam would die in battle and Israel would go into exile in Assyria. That was the message that Amos was sent to announce in, of all places, Bethel, where King Jeroboam had his royal chapel, with its two golden bulls that were supposed to represent the invisible Lord of Hosts. Amos' preaching therefore was a direct challenge to the rule of the king.
Amaziah, the priest at Bethel appointed by Jeroboam, knows that Amos' proclamation is subversive of the king's reign, as well as being upsetting to the populace and liable to cause riots. He therefore sends a message to King Jeroboam, informing the king of what Amos is preaching. But significantly, Amaziah does not attribute Amos' words to the Lord. He tells the king, "Amos is saying," thereby denying all divine authority to Amos' speech. In short, Amaziah does not believe that Amos has been sent by God.
Further, Amaziah tells Amos in so many words, "You visionary, go back home to Judah and earn your living by prophesying there. But do not ever again prophesy here at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary, and we do not allow such subversive words to be uttered here. Here the king is in charge, and he doesn't allow some wild--eyed seer to contradict his rule and upset the populace." State power versus divine power. The word of a human being against the Word of God. That is an age--old confrontation that is still present in our day.
Strangely, Amos' answer defends first his right to prophesy in the name of the Lord. He did not belong to some prophetic guild like the "sons of the prophets," and he is not a professional prophet, earning his living by prophesying. He is simply under a divine compulsion. God said, "Go, prophesy ..." and Amos obeyed. He then simply repeats his message (which our stated text has not included), verses 16--17. Amaziah and his household will be subjected to the Assyrian onslaught and Amaziah and all of the northern kingdom will be carried into exile. That is the Word of the Lord.
That Amos' words were fulfilled is one of the reasons his book is now preserved in our canon. Northern Israel was overrun by the troops of the Assyrian Empire and its people carried into exile in 721 B.C., to disappear forever from the stage of history. The message of the Book of Amos comes home to us, therefore, very clearly. Our prosperity in our land, our good life, our comparative comfort are no guarantee that God looks favorably on our ways of living. Nor is our frequent worship any shielding substitute for obeying the will of God. The Lord has given all of us Christians the responsibility of caring for our neighbors' life and welfare, for establishing justice in our courts and commerce, and for worshiping him sincerely and in truth as the Lord he is, rather than relying on our self--made idols. Time after time, our Lord has forgiven us through Jesus Christ, but we should remember that he also finally decided that he could not again "pass by" his first covenant people.
The ark of the covenant was one of the oldest cultic objects in Israel. It went before the Israelites in their wilderness wanderings and at their entrance into the promised land. It stood at the center of Israel's worship as a tribal federation in the time of the Judges. It accompanied Israel in her battles. And when it was captured by the Philistines, it caused the Philistine god, Dagon, to topple and inflicted tumors and panic on the Philistine populace (1 Samuel 5). That people could not wait to get rid of it (1 Samuel 6). When the Philistines returned the ark to Israel, however, it brought blessing upon the household where it was lodged (2 Samuel 6:11).
Our question is: "Why? What was it about the ark of the covenant that rendered it so powerful?" In most of the Old Testament, with the exception of Deuteronomy, the ark is understood to be the base of the Lord's throne, and he is invisibly enthroned above it. The ark had the form of a rectangular box, with rings on the side, through which carrying poles could be inserted. On top of the ark was a golden slab called the "mercy seat," where blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement. At each end of the gold slab was a cherub, with outspread wings, and above the cherubim was the throne of the invisible God (cf. 6:2). Thus where the ark was, there was God, with all of the power of his holiness, dwelling in the midst of his people.
David's desire to bring the ark to his capital city of Jerusalem was not prompted simply by his desire to gain the blessings that the ark brought to the household of Obededom, although that desire is mentioned in 6:12. David has further designs. David in his shrewdness has captured Jerusalem and made it his capital, to form a binding point between the traditionally separated North and South. But to consolidate his power as king over all of Israel, David wishes to give not only military and political but also religious sanction to his reign. He brings God's presence above the ark to Jerusalem and installs the ark in a tent (v. 17; the temple is not built until the following reign of Solomon). Thus David's kingship appears to have the approval of the Lord. Religious, political, and military power are now concentrated in David's hands. And he even appoints his own sons as priests to serve before the ark (2 Samuel 8:18).
David is shrewd and calculating. But as with all of us, his motives are very mixed, and we should not discount the religious devotion he possess as he dances in naked ecstasy before the ark as it is carried into Jerusalem (v. 14) or his commitment to the Lord as he offers sacrifices (v. 17). So filled is he with joy at the ark's presence that his devotion leads him to share celebratory food with his people (v. 19). Noteworthy, however, is the fact that he blesses the people in the name of the Lord (v. 18), a function usually given to a priest.
It is very dangerous when a ruler takes to himself absolute power, isn't it? Then he or she is liable to claim that any action taken is the will of God. Indeed, as we shall hear from our text next Sunday, the davidic royal line is guaranteed by God forever. But when any human being claims absolute authority, we must never forget that the one true God cannot be subject to any mortal. God remains as the true King, the one Lord over heaven and earth. David is not dealing with a servile deity here. He is subject to the will of the Lord, as every ruler and every despot and every one of us is subject, and he is bound to the terms and demands of the covenant with that God, as every one of us is bound. The Lord God Almighty reigns. That is always the check on our human will to power. But that is also the sure basis of our freedom from tyranny and our hope for good in this world.
Lutheran Option: Amos 7:7--15
Contrary to oft--repeated speculations, Amos was probably a wealthy landowner in the southern kingdom of Judah, who made his living from breeding and trading large herds of animals and from tending groves of sycamore fig trees that grew in the warm lowlands around the Dead Sea. About 760 B.C., however, Amos was jerked away from his commercial concerns by God and commanded to "Go, prophesy to my people Israel" in the kingdom in the North.
The message that Amos was given to deliver was that God was going to make an end of the northern kingdom. God had set a plumbline in Israel, which was a cord with a weight on the end that was used by carpenters. And Israel was revealed to be crooked, not upright, not square with her covenant God. Instead, under the reign of Jeroboam II (787/6--747/6 B.C.), many of the Israelites prospered economically, enjoying a dolce vita that gave them sumptuously furnished, elaborate dwellings, pleasant leisure, and wild merrymaking. They felt they lived in God's favor, because they loved to participate in a lavish cult. But they disobeyed God's covenant commands, because they were totally indifferent toward their poor neighbors, who suffered under debt and slavery, injustice in the courts, and cheating in the marketplace. God had forgiven Israel frequently in the past (cf. 7:1--6), but now his patience was at an end. He would "never again pass by them" (v. 8). King Jeroboam would die in battle and Israel would go into exile in Assyria. That was the message that Amos was sent to announce in, of all places, Bethel, where King Jeroboam had his royal chapel, with its two golden bulls that were supposed to represent the invisible Lord of Hosts. Amos' preaching therefore was a direct challenge to the rule of the king.
Amaziah, the priest at Bethel appointed by Jeroboam, knows that Amos' proclamation is subversive of the king's reign, as well as being upsetting to the populace and liable to cause riots. He therefore sends a message to King Jeroboam, informing the king of what Amos is preaching. But significantly, Amaziah does not attribute Amos' words to the Lord. He tells the king, "Amos is saying," thereby denying all divine authority to Amos' speech. In short, Amaziah does not believe that Amos has been sent by God.
Further, Amaziah tells Amos in so many words, "You visionary, go back home to Judah and earn your living by prophesying there. But do not ever again prophesy here at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary, and we do not allow such subversive words to be uttered here. Here the king is in charge, and he doesn't allow some wild--eyed seer to contradict his rule and upset the populace." State power versus divine power. The word of a human being against the Word of God. That is an age--old confrontation that is still present in our day.
Strangely, Amos' answer defends first his right to prophesy in the name of the Lord. He did not belong to some prophetic guild like the "sons of the prophets," and he is not a professional prophet, earning his living by prophesying. He is simply under a divine compulsion. God said, "Go, prophesy ..." and Amos obeyed. He then simply repeats his message (which our stated text has not included), verses 16--17. Amaziah and his household will be subjected to the Assyrian onslaught and Amaziah and all of the northern kingdom will be carried into exile. That is the Word of the Lord.
That Amos' words were fulfilled is one of the reasons his book is now preserved in our canon. Northern Israel was overrun by the troops of the Assyrian Empire and its people carried into exile in 721 B.C., to disappear forever from the stage of history. The message of the Book of Amos comes home to us, therefore, very clearly. Our prosperity in our land, our good life, our comparative comfort are no guarantee that God looks favorably on our ways of living. Nor is our frequent worship any shielding substitute for obeying the will of God. The Lord has given all of us Christians the responsibility of caring for our neighbors' life and welfare, for establishing justice in our courts and commerce, and for worshiping him sincerely and in truth as the Lord he is, rather than relying on our self--made idols. Time after time, our Lord has forgiven us through Jesus Christ, but we should remember that he also finally decided that he could not again "pass by" his first covenant people.
