Day 48
Exodus 21:1-22:31
(21 | 22)
These two chapters here cover social laws for the Israelites. A great deal of them don't sit very well with me. The law about what happens if you strike a slave, for example. (For the record, as long as they're able to walk after a day or two, it's fine.) Of course, a lot of the laws written here are only relevant in context, and wouldn't seem to apply any more.
That's not to say you shouldn't be held to account if you leave a bull prone to goring unattended and it gores a person to death. I'm not naïve enough to believe that slavery no longer exists, so the laws do still have some relevance. But outside of the culture and society of the time, they don't seem applicable. The thing that bothers me most about the laws is that they seem to rely heavily on a human judge to decide the cases, making the laws open to exploitation. That's still the case today, of course, but given how badly some of the laws (and particularly the penalties) sit with me, these laws are even more uncomfortable.
I should point out again that the fact that some of what's been written sits uncomfortably with modern readers doesn't make them entirely irrelevant. They do still bear some relevance, although they shouldn't necessarily be applied today. In any case, they make interesting reading, if for nothing else than historical study.
Mark 2:18-3:30
(2:18-28 | 3:1-30)
Several events in these passages have already been covered in Matthew. One such event is the people asking why Jesus' disciples aren't fasting when the disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees are. Jesus is also described as going and healing people, which is fairly standard. The sight of Jesus forces some demons out, but Jesus forbids them from saying who he is. Linked to that is the Pharisees accusing Jesus of being possessed by Beelzebub and driving out demons by the prince of demons. Jesus, of course, explains that this makes no sense as any house divided against itself will fall. Jesus then says that anyone blaspheming against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Jesus was driving out demons by the Holy Spirit, the third aspect of God. The Pharisees accusing Jesus of using the name of Beelzebub, and by working with an evil spirit, was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
The rest of what happens is new, however. Firstly the Pharisees accuse Jesus' disciples of breaking the law by picking ears of corn to eat on the Sabbath - surely that is working, and working on the Sabbath is forbidden. Jesus replies that the Sabbath was made for man, not the other way around - the Sabbath was made so that men could have a day of rest, men were not made to observe the Sabbath. Jesus also reminds the Pharisees of David and his followers eating consecrated bread in the temple - bread only priests were allowed to eat. In both cases, this only happened because they were hungry and in need.
The Pharisees are only looking at the case from a legal perspective. The law is meant to be a way of helping people live in relationship with God. But the Pharisees treat the law as a means to an end; a way to get to heaven, to appease God, and not as a way to get closer to God. That's not to say God is only interested in people who obey his laws. But by wanting to obey God's laws, to do his will and not your own, you naturally seek to grow closer to God. David and Jesus both lived in that relationship, so they knew what could be done. This story isn't meant to show that we can break the laws as and when it suits us, rather that being in relationship with God supersedes the law. God wants the best for us. How he wants that to happen is anybody's guess, but it can become clear to us on a case-by-case basis when we're close to him.
Anyway, that's quite enough of a tangent for one blog post. The final thing that happens is the naming of the twelve disciples as apostles. The names are given as: "Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder); Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus [the other Judas in some gospels], Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him" (3:16-19).
Proverbs 5:1-14
(5:1-14)
Solomon acknowledges that wisdom might not always seem like the best path. Wisdom has been personified as a woman in earlier passages. Here, the opposite of wisdom is personified as an adulteress. The words she speaks are tempting, but we're urged to not listen. We're told that, actually, she doesn't know that her path is leading her astray. We're urged not to follow her with the warning that, at the end of our lives, we'll come to realise what we've done wrong and regret not accepting wisdom, not accepting correction and discipline from God
Exodus 21:1-22:31
(21 | 22)
These two chapters here cover social laws for the Israelites. A great deal of them don't sit very well with me. The law about what happens if you strike a slave, for example. (For the record, as long as they're able to walk after a day or two, it's fine.) Of course, a lot of the laws written here are only relevant in context, and wouldn't seem to apply any more.
That's not to say you shouldn't be held to account if you leave a bull prone to goring unattended and it gores a person to death. I'm not naïve enough to believe that slavery no longer exists, so the laws do still have some relevance. But outside of the culture and society of the time, they don't seem applicable. The thing that bothers me most about the laws is that they seem to rely heavily on a human judge to decide the cases, making the laws open to exploitation. That's still the case today, of course, but given how badly some of the laws (and particularly the penalties) sit with me, these laws are even more uncomfortable.
I should point out again that the fact that some of what's been written sits uncomfortably with modern readers doesn't make them entirely irrelevant. They do still bear some relevance, although they shouldn't necessarily be applied today. In any case, they make interesting reading, if for nothing else than historical study.
Mark 2:18-3:30
(2:18-28 | 3:1-30)
Several events in these passages have already been covered in Matthew. One such event is the people asking why Jesus' disciples aren't fasting when the disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees are. Jesus is also described as going and healing people, which is fairly standard. The sight of Jesus forces some demons out, but Jesus forbids them from saying who he is. Linked to that is the Pharisees accusing Jesus of being possessed by Beelzebub and driving out demons by the prince of demons. Jesus, of course, explains that this makes no sense as any house divided against itself will fall. Jesus then says that anyone blaspheming against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Jesus was driving out demons by the Holy Spirit, the third aspect of God. The Pharisees accusing Jesus of using the name of Beelzebub, and by working with an evil spirit, was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
The rest of what happens is new, however. Firstly the Pharisees accuse Jesus' disciples of breaking the law by picking ears of corn to eat on the Sabbath - surely that is working, and working on the Sabbath is forbidden. Jesus replies that the Sabbath was made for man, not the other way around - the Sabbath was made so that men could have a day of rest, men were not made to observe the Sabbath. Jesus also reminds the Pharisees of David and his followers eating consecrated bread in the temple - bread only priests were allowed to eat. In both cases, this only happened because they were hungry and in need.
The Pharisees are only looking at the case from a legal perspective. The law is meant to be a way of helping people live in relationship with God. But the Pharisees treat the law as a means to an end; a way to get to heaven, to appease God, and not as a way to get closer to God. That's not to say God is only interested in people who obey his laws. But by wanting to obey God's laws, to do his will and not your own, you naturally seek to grow closer to God. David and Jesus both lived in that relationship, so they knew what could be done. This story isn't meant to show that we can break the laws as and when it suits us, rather that being in relationship with God supersedes the law. God wants the best for us. How he wants that to happen is anybody's guess, but it can become clear to us on a case-by-case basis when we're close to him.
Anyway, that's quite enough of a tangent for one blog post. The final thing that happens is the naming of the twelve disciples as apostles. The names are given as: "Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder); Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus [the other Judas in some gospels], Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him" (3:16-19).
Proverbs 5:1-14
(5:1-14)
Solomon acknowledges that wisdom might not always seem like the best path. Wisdom has been personified as a woman in earlier passages. Here, the opposite of wisdom is personified as an adulteress. The words she speaks are tempting, but we're urged to not listen. We're told that, actually, she doesn't know that her path is leading her astray. We're urged not to follow her with the warning that, at the end of our lives, we'll come to realise what we've done wrong and regret not accepting wisdom, not accepting correction and discipline from God
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