Month: July 2010

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Old Testament

We are done with genealogies for now, but we apparently are not done with lists.

Today we get a brief narrative interlude describing how the people of Israel anoint David king. David and his troops then go on to capture Jerusalem. The rest of the post is a listing of David’s warriors (the Three and the Thirty), interspersed with some tales of their valor.

I am guessing that the legends about David’s warriors came about because the ancient Israelites, like most ancient cultures, had lots of myths about warrior heroes. In many cultures, the subjects of those myths attained an almost godlike statute. This was not appropriate for the monotheistic Israelites. To maintain their traditional legends without compromising their religious beliefs, these men became heroes in the time of legend, the time of David.

New Testament

Paul and the other voyagers spend the winter on the island of Malta. The locals receive them well, especially after Paul fails to die after being bitten by a snake and healing the sick. I find it interesting that Paul does not seem to preach to these folks despite their kind reception. Maybe he figures it is not a good idea to potentially upset the people is is trapped with for the winter.

When Paul arrives in Rome he starts preaching again. He meets with the local Jewish leaders and tries to convince them that Jesus was the Messiah.

[Paul] explained and testified about the Kingdom of God and tried to persuade them about Jesus from the Scriptures. Using the law of Moses and the books of the prophets, he spoke to them from morning until evening. Some were persuaded by the things he said, but others did not believe. And after they had argued back and forth among themselves, they left with this final word from Paul: “The Holy Spirit was right when he said to your ancestors through Isaiah the prophet, 

‘Go and say to this people:
When you hear what I say,
you will not understand.
When you see what I do,
you will not comprehend.
For the hearts of these people are hardened,
and their ears cannot hear,
and they have closed their eyes—
so their eyes cannot see,
and their ears cannot hear,
and their hearts cannot understand,
and they cannot turn to me
and let me heal them.’

As usual, the author of Acts does not bother telling of what Paul’s arguments actually are. Also as usual, Paul seems to have an inability to comprehend that people might just honestly disagree with him. Instead, he ends their conversation with a cheap shot implying that the only reason they do not believe them is because their hearts have been hardened.

I find it interesting that this same passage from Isaiah is quoted in the Gospel of Matthew which was written about the same time as Acts. Were they written from two different traditions, one of which attributed using this to Paul and another which attributed their use to Jesus? Or was the duplication intentional?

Psalms and Proverbs

This proverb seems awkward:

Better to be poor and honest
than to be dishonest and a fool.

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Old Testament

So all Israel was listed in the genealogical records in The Book of the Kings of Israel.

Well then, I’m glad we’re not reading The Book of the Kings of Israel. This way, we only get a subset of the genealogical records.

Speaking of which, today seems to be the last day of genealogy. We read the genealogy of the exiles who returned from Babylon, and then the narrative leaps back to the past and we read the genealogy of Saul (again) and about his death.

I did not realize until today how much familiarity made the previous readings of genealogies easier to read. Today’s genealogy is completely unfamiliar, and it was much more difficult to follow.

But yes, having just yesterday read Saul’s genealogy, today we get to read it again. They are exactly the same, including the introduction part which you might have expected to contain some variety of phrasing. Why oh why, oh author of Chronicles, do you feel the need to repeat yourself so soon?

Saul’s death, as far as I can remember, is reported pretty much the same as it was in the the books of Samuel.

New Testament

Paul goes on about how everything is going to be okay. Since he is the main character of the story, we know it will be. I find the message from the angel of Paul’s vision interesting:

Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.

It makes it sound as if the other people on the ship are only being saved because they happen to be on the same ship as Paul, who is special. All of those other people who die in shipwrecks? Whatever! At least in Paul’s case, he has a pretty legitimate case for why God would be especially protective of him. Most contemporaries of mine who use the “I was saved because of God.” argument and ignore everyone else who suffered do not have that justification.

The ship is wrecked and everyone aboard escapes safely to the shore. Again, this is another great scene for a movie about Paul.

Psalms and Proverbs

Today we have another one of those proverbs that reads less like wisdom and more like a statement of how things are:

The poor plead for mercy;
the rich answer with insults.

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Old Testament

More genealogy, this time with a focus on the familial yields of warriors.

Today’s amusing names of the day are the brothers Shuppim and Huppim. Back in Genesis we read about Benjamin’s sons Muppim and Huppim. Rhyming names entertain me. (Oh, and Jediael, who is listed among the sons of Benjamin here, is not listed among the sons of Benjamin there.)

Also,

[Beriah] had a daughter named Sheerah. She built the towns of Lower and Upper Beth-horon and Uzzen-sheerah.

There’s a story here, if only the authors of Chronicles had seen fit to tell it.

New Testament

The author of Acts shares the travel log of the ship that is transporting Paul to Rome.  On the way, Paul suspects that there is bad weather up ahead:

“I believe there is trouble ahead if we go on—shipwreck, loss of cargo, and danger to our lives as well.” But the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and the owner than to Paul.

Given that Paul is the hero of this story, you know that he going to be right and that going on was a bad idea (in fact, that becomes clear by the end of today’s reading), but I want to point out that, given the information he had, the offer’s decision was perfectly reasonable. If you were on a ship and a decision had to be made, who would you listen to, the captain or a random prisoner?

Psalms and Proverbs

Nothing of particular note.

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Old Testament

We get some respite from genealogy today. Our genealogical listings are interspersed with land allocation listings. It’s almost like our reading is getting interesting again.

We read about the genealogy of the priestly line. For some reason, this listing goes longer than the listing of Aaron’s descendants a couple paragraphs later. I am also trying to figure out how Eli and Samuel fit into all of this.

Eli’s sons were Phineas and Hophni. The son clearly lists these two as priests of the Lord. Phineas had a son, Ichabod. Other than Phineas, none of these names are found in the list of the priestly line.

As for Samuel, he is said to be the son of Elkanah, son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, son of Ephraim. Today’s reading has an Elkanah who has a son Samuel, but that cannot be the same Elkanah and Samuel because this Elkanah is a descendant of Levi then Kohath.

A bit later, another Elkanah with a son Samuel is mentioned. Going backwards we have, Elkanah, Jeroham, Eliel, Toah, Zup, Elkanah, Mahath, Amasi, Elkan, Joel, Azariah, Zephaniah, Tahath, Assir, Abiasaph, Korah, Izhar, Koahath, Levi. This is closer. Jeroham matches. Toah is like Tohu. Zup is like Zuph. but then the lines diverge.

The name Elkanah comes up a couple more times in Chronicles, but not in a way that shed light on this. If the genealogies for other Elkanah’s were not quite so close to that of the prophet Samuel’s father, I would just assume that Samuel’s lineage was not mentioned in Chronicles. However, it’s just close enough to make me think that these the books of Samuel and the books of Chronicles were written from different, disagreeing, genealogical sources.

New Testament

Paul defends himself by once again recounting his conversion story. He convinces the administrators that he has done no wrong, but they are reluctant to believe that what he is saying is true. Festus thinks Paul is crazy. Agrippa seems intrigued but not convinced. Both seem a bit annoyed that Paul is turning his defense into a chance to proselytize.

It continues to bug me how Acts mentions that the Old Testament prophecies support the idea of Jesus as the Messiah, but we do not get to hear examples of these supposedly intriguing arguments. If these appeals to the Hebrew scriptures are anything like the appeals in the gospels, then they are probably not as convincing as the author of Acts implies.

Psalms and Proverbs

Two good proverbs:

Wise words satisfy like a good meal;
the right words bring satisfaction.

The tongue can bring death or life;
those who love to talk will reap the consequences.

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Old Testament

More genealogy. The only interesting aspect is how some names seem familiar because they belong to people we have seen before and others seem familiar because they belonged to a different person we have seen before.

New Testament

Paul appears before Festus, the governor who succeeds Felix (he was a governor, right?). Festus finally gets around to hearing Paul’s case, but he cannot figure out what the Jews are going on about, so he accepts Paul’s appeal to the emperor. Paul is smart enough to know to stay away from Jerusalem for now.

Before that, Paul will get a chance to talk to King Agrippa (king of what?) so that they can try to figure out what to tell the emperor Paul was accused of.

Psalms and Proverbs

I notice that today’s psalm is attributed to David, but it seems like it cannot have actually been by him. In it, the psalmist says,

I will worship at your Temple with deepest awe.

But, according to the Biblical text, there was no Temple in David’s time.

Today’s proverb is a good one:

An offended friend is harder to win back than a fortified city.
Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with bars.

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Old Testament


More genealogy. Apparently, there are several more days of this.

It was interesting to learn that, according to this genealogy, Solomon was not even the oldest son of Bathsheba and David (assuming that this part of the list seems to follow the oldest to youngest convention of the rest). This also seems to contradict the story of Solomon’s birth in 2 Samuel which claims that Solomon was the second son (and first legitimate son) born to Bathsheba and David.


New Testament

Paul neither wins nor loses his case as presented before the governor, Felix, and ends up being stuck in prison for a couple of years. During the trial, the Jewish high priests alleges that Paul is a leader of the cult of the Nazarenes. It is worth noting that the common translation of the word translate as ‘cult’ here is ‘sect’, a word with much less negative connotations.

I have noted before that the author of Acts seems to sometimes undermine his own credibility by using what seem to be ad hominem attacks on those who do not accept Jesus. Today we get what seems to be another instance of that tactic.

After Paul’s trial, Felix and his wife Drusilla meet with Paul and listen to him talk about Jesus.

A few days later Felix came back with his wife, Drusilla, who was Jewish. Sending for Paul, they listened as he told them about faith in Christ Jesus. As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self-control and the coming day of judgment, Felix became frightened. “Go away for now,” he replied. “When it is more convenient, I’ll call for you again.” He also hoped that Paul would bribe him, so he sent for him quite often and talked with him.

That last bit, about hoping that Paul would bribe him, is the bit I take issue with. It seems that the author of Acts wants to give some excuse for why someone would not accept Jesus after talking regularly and deeply with Paul. The excuse that he lands upon is that Felix must be corrupt and trying to extract bribes.

Psalms and Proverbs

We have a bunch of terrible, but surprisingly relevant, proverbs today.

First, speaking of bribes…

Giving a gift can open doors;
it gives access to important people!

Flipping a coin [“casting lots” in Hebrew] can end arguments;
it settles disputes between powerful opponents.

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Old Testament

We have reached a new book: the Books of Chronicles. That means it’s time for another overview.

Chronicles summarizes and reviews the deuteronomic history of the foregoing books, adding only minor details here and there, and therefore does not “supplement” the history to any noteworthy degree.

However, the book provides a different perspective than the books of Samuel and Kings. The books of Chronicles have a more religious/moral perspective:

The principal aim of the writer appears to be to present moral and religious truth. He does not give prominence to political occurrences, as is done in the books of Samuel and Kings, but to religious institutions, such as the details of the temple service.

Chronicles was composed after the Babylonian captivity, that is, at least two to three hundred years after the latest of the events described in the books of Kings.

The time of the composition of the Chronicles is believed to have been subsequent to the Babylonian captivity, possibly between 450 and 435 B.C., though Martin Nothwas of the opinion that it dated from the 3rd century B.C.; and Gary Knoppers, while acknowledging that Chronicles theoretically could be written anywhere between 500 – 250 B.C., tends to see it as probably dating between 325 and 275 B.C.). The contents of Chronicles, both as to matter and form, correspond closely with this idea.

Often the Chronicles paint a somewhat more positive picture of the same events. This corresponds to their time of composition: Samuel and Kings were probably completed during the exile, at a time when the history of the newly wiped out Hebrew kingdoms was still fresh in the minds of the writers, a period largely considered a colossal failure. The Chronicles, on the other hand, were written much later, after the restoration of the Jewish community in Palestine, at a time when the kingdoms were beginning to be regarded as the nostalgic past, something to be at least partially imitated, not something to be avoided.

As for today’s content, it’s all genealogy. Dull, dull genealogy. Whose only purpose was to explain how “all” the people of the world were related.

New Testament

Has there been a movie made about Paul’s life? It seems like there must have been, but if not, there should be. Today’s reading is full of good movie fodder.

Because of a conspiracy against his life, Paul is taken by night to Caesarea. He gets this treatment because (a) he is a Roman citizen and (b) the Roman officials think that the accusations of the Jews are bunk. At the end of today’s reading, Paul is imprisoned at Herod’s headquarters in Caesarea.

Psalms and Proverbs

Intelligent people are always ready to learn.
Their ears are open for knowledge.

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Old Testament

Today we finish 2 Kings and tomorrow we start the books of Chronicles. It is worth noting that while Christian Bibles place the books of Chronicles right after the books of Kings, it is believed to have been composed two to three hundred years later (see Wikipedia). This is significant because it means that the books of Kings are a more reliable historical source.

I mention this today because today we get the last bit of genealogy from 2 Kings. If we recall the genealogies of Jesus, we see that Luke’s genealogy branches from the royal line right after David. Jesus is said to be descended from David’s son Nathan. Nathan is not mentioned as a son of David in Kings, only in Chronicles.

Matthew’s genealogy sticks with the royal line all the way up until the destruction of Jerusalem which we read about today. Jesus is said to be descended from Jehoiachin, a king we read about today, through his son Shealtiel. Shealtiel also does not show up in the books of Kings. However, since Jehoiachin was in exile for a long time after the events recorded in 2 Kings, this is, perhaps, not as surprising.

Now, the fact that these people are not mentioned in the books of Kings does not mean that they did not exist. the books of Kings were specifically concerned with the royal line, and any branches from that were, therefore, not particularly important. However, it should raise flags when characters who will become important in the future are not mentioned in the more historically reliable sources.

In any case, today Judah falls to Babylon, just as God is claimed to have decreed. Before this happens, Pharaoh Neco of Egypt imprisons King Jehoahaz. In his place he installs Eliakim, son of Josiah. The Pharaoh then decides that Eliakim needs to have his name changed to Jehoiakim. Why? Just to confuse us more, I suppose.

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon invades Judah. Judah alternately submits and rebels, and the royal line becomes a line of puppet kings. Nebuchadnezzar eventually banishes all of the elites of Jerusalem from the land. Zedekiah, the last king, is forced to watch his sons being killed in front of him before having his eyes gouged out. The only glimmer of hope at this, the end of Israel’s grand narrative of nationhood that has stretched from Genesis to now, is that the exiled king Jehoiachin is treated well, implying that the royal line has not been killed off completely.

New Testament

Paul’s speech about his conversion fails to convince the crowd in Jerusalem. He plays the Roman citizenship card to get out of some torture. He gets put on trial before the Jewish High Council. Finally, he cleverly divides the High Council by playing off of the conflicting beliefs of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

I continue to find it interesting how Paul’s life story continues to have such parallels to Jesus. It really is as if the author of Acts is trying to convey importance of Paul for bringing the new covenant to the Gentiles just as Jesus brought it to the Jews without crossing the line and implying that Paul is equal with Jesus. It’s a fascinating balancing act.

Psalms and Proverbs

Spouting off before listening to the facts
is both shameful and foolish.

Say that again!

Some people assert that the gospels have no contradictions. Others acknowledge that the authors of the gospels were each trying to convey different theological messages and adherence to the facts was not really something they were aiming for.

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Old Testament

Today we read about the religious reforms of Josiah. While the temple was being repaired, Hilkiah the high priest finds the Book of the Law in the temple. This causes King Josiah to engage in a number of religious reforms which, not surprisingly, involve killing those who do not follow his ways and desecrating their places of worship. (Yes, I understand that, for believers, Josiah had rediscovered the truth so he was doing the right thing. However, if you are a believer, imagine how you would feel if a Muslim ruler started desecrating churches and murdering Christian priests. This is likely like the followers of those other gods felt.)

According to Wikipedia, there are several possibilities for what this scroll actually was. First off, it was not the whole Torah. That would not have fit on a single scroll. Traditionally, the scroll was thought to be the book of Deuteronomy, or at least a significant portion of it. However, others believe that the priests at the time of Josiah wrote the scroll as a way of justifying Josiah’s consolidation of power (perhaps from existing fragments and/or oral tradition).

Either way, in the story related to us, Josiah certainly does use the scroll to consolidate his power. He violently destroys every competing form of worship, whether that be worship of other Gods or worship of Yahweh in other locations. He also read the scroll to “all” of people of Judah and Jerusalem and renewed the covenant with God.

King Josiah revives the Passover celebration.

There had not been a Passover celebration like that since the time when the judges ruled in Israel, nor throughout all the years of the kings of Israel and Judah.

In other words, the Passover had not been celebrated in the right way since the times of legend. Or, perhaps, in light of the fact that the scroll may have been written by the priests of Josiah’s time, the Passover was celebrated for the first time by Josiah.

Despite all of Josiah’s reforms, God still wants to destroy Judah because of his anger over the evil done by Manasseh.

New Testament

As Paul is being arrested, he recounts his conversion experience.

Psalms and Proverbs

Apparently we start the psalms all over again. I probably will not bother commenting on them much this time around.