The following material was written by the Rev. John Shearman (jlss@sympatico.ca) of the United Church of Canada. John normally structures his offerings so that the first portion can be used as a bulletin insert, while the second portion provides a more in depth 'introduction to the scripture'.
INTRODUCTION TO THE SCRIPTURE
The Second Sunday of Advent - Year B
ISAIAH 40:1-11 With words of incredible insight and power
the unknown prophet of Israel's exile in Babylon, sometimes called Second
Isaiah, proclaims the good news God's people have been waiting long to
hear. Deliverance is at hand. God's people are to be brought home to
Jerusalem. It is God who is doing this, as a shepherd leads his flock
homeward at the end of the day. Anyone who has sung or listened to
Handel's "The Messiah" will recognize that he took the opening recitatives
for his majestic oratorio from this passage. The words of this Hebrew
poetry are music in themselves.
PSALM 85:1-2,8-13 The same theme is repeated in this psalm,
perhaps written during the same period when Israel's return from exile was
imminent.
2 PETER 3:8-15 It is improbable that this letter was written
by the apostle whose name it bears. More than likely, its author was some
unknown Christian elder, perhaps early in the second century AD. He
sought to encourage those of a later generation anxious that Christ had
not yet returned as promised and as the church had long been teaching.
The delay, this letter proposes, is due to God's patience so that no one
may perish, but come to repentance and faith in a renewed relationship
with God.
MARK 1:1-8 Mark's Gospel begins not with Jesus, but with
John the Baptist. Immediately he quotes from Isaiah 40, transferring this
reference to Israel's return from exile in Babylon in 639 BC to the coming
of the Messiah. The early church searched the Hebrew scriptures for every
possible prophecy about the coming of Israel's Messiah, no matter whether
they were relevant or not. They understood the coming of Jesus Christ,
the Son of God, into the world as the fulfillment of those prophecies.
Now that God's love and purpose for Israel are being fulfilled, John calls
everyone to prepare by repenting and being baptized.
A MORE COMPLETE ANALYSIS
ISAIAH 40:1-11 With words of incredible power the unknown prophet of
Israel's exile in Babylon, called Second or Deutro-Isaiah by scholars,
proclaims the good news God's people have been waiting long to hear.
Deliverance is at hand. God's people are to be brought home to Jerusalem.
It is God who is doing this, as a shepherd leads his flock homeward at the
end of the day.
Anyone who has sung or listened to Handel's "The Messiah" will recognize
that he took the opening recitatives for his majestic oratorio from this
passage. The words of this Hebrew poetry are music in themselves.
Yet the poem contains a panoply of references to Hebrew history and
theology. The opening words of comfort also contain the promise of
deliverance. The long period of incarceration in a foreign land is ending
and the prisoners are to be set free. Retributive justice has been
fulfilled, twice over (vs. 2). Ahead lies the yet another desert trek,
but on this road travelers will encounter no wandering as did the
Israelites of the Exodus long ago. Rather the high road leads straight
home to Jerusalem and traveling will be easy along level ground (vss. 3-4)
because this is the highway of Yahweh. This message comes direct from
Yahweh and is now revealed to everyone.
But there are still many questions. Is this message of comfort and
deliverance trustworthy? Are the Israelites themselves to be trusted?
Their loyalty has been as ephemeral as the grass and flowers of the field
which today blossom forth and tomorrow vanish (vss. 6-7). This is
Yahweh's word, however, and it stands forever; it can be trusted eternally
(vs. 8).
These good tidings must be broadcast from the highest point on Mount Zion
to all of Judea at the loudest possible volume: "Yahweh's glory is fully
revealed in these momentous events" (vs.9). What about to happen is like
the captain of a mighty army returning from a great victory bringing his
reward with him (vs. 10). No, not like that so much as a gentle shepherd
leading his flock home at evening carrying newborn lambs in his arms with
the ewe following faithfully behind.
It is not difficult to see why the early church turned to the poetry of
Second Isaiah contained in Isaiah 40-66 in search of prophecies of the
Messiah whom they knew as Jesus of Nazareth.
PSALM 85:1-2,8-13 The same theme is repeated in this psalm, perhaps
written during the same period when Israel's return from exile was
imminent or has already occurred. It may have had a liturgical function
at some national celebration.
The psalm consists of three rather distinct parts. Vss. 1-3 celebrates
Yahweh's initiative in Israel's history. Vss. 4-7 plead for forgiveness
based on the covenant relationship between Yahweh and Israel. Vss. 8-13
recite the blessings that come from the mutual faithfulness of the
covenant - forgiveness, righteousness, peace and prosperity.
Scholars debate whether this is a lament or a liturgical prayer. The Book
of Haggai suggests a pertinent time of economic and spiritual depression
when it could have been appropriate. Yet there are no certain historical
references. Moreover, the latter part of the poem can be just as easily
interpreted eschatologically. On the whole, the psalm deals with divine
initiatives which result in salvation, whether at a time of imminent
danger or at the end of time. For this reason it was chosen by the
authors of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer as the psalm for Christmas
Day.
In his *Everyday Psalms* (Wood Lake Books, 1994) Jim Taylor gives an
alternate paraphrase which brings out a different point of view. He gives
the psalm the title of "An Unfair World" and cites the situation of a
friend who contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion. Thus he paraphrases
the psalm as a lament by one who needs greater comfort than Job's
comforters could offer. At vs. 8, he silences all pious platitudes
because he needs to hear what God has to say. He ends this paraphrase
with these words: "Sorrow is holy ground; walk on it only with feet bared
to the pain of every pebble. Through the storm, the Lord of life comes
walking on the salt sea of tears."
2 PETER 3:8-15 Although some scholars still cling to the view that this
letter was written by the apostle Peter just prior to his death, this is
improbable. More than likely, its author was some unknown Christian
elder, perhaps early in the 2d century CE using Peter's name to give his
message authority. This type of pseudographia was common practice in
ancient times.
A case has also been made for dating it in the 80s and 90s of the lst
century as the second generation of Christians tried to come to terms with
two serious issues: the end of the apostolic leadership of the church and
the Hellenistic cultural milieu into which the church was moving even as
it severed its connections with the Jewish culture of Palestine. In *The
Oxford Companion to the Bible*, (Oxford University Press, 1993) Richard J.
Bauckman, professor of NT at St. Andrews University, Scotland, concludes
his article on the letter with these words: "The letter is a valuable
witness to Christianity's difficult transition from a Jewish to a
Hellenistic environment, and provides an instructive example of how the
message of the gospel was preserved through the process of cultural
translation."
The brief three chapters appear as a testament or farewell discourse in
the form of a letter. Its purpose was to remind the reader's of the
apostle's teaching and defend against false teachers who are casting doubt
on the Second Coming of Jesus and advocating immoral behavior. Four
separate sections can be read as the author's testament interspersed with
three apologies for the true faith and two exhortations to godly living.
The present reading is taken from the third apologetic section and the
final exhortation. It deals specifically with the reason for the delay in
Christ's return. This is due to God's patience so that no one may perish,
but come to repentance and faith in a renewed relationship with God (vs.
9). There follows a reiteration of the typical eschatological message
found throughout the NT: The day of the Lord will come unexpectedly. One
can hypothesize that the repeated reference to destructive fire (vss. 10 &
12) may reflect the possible provenance of the letter in the Roman church.
Tradition holds that the persecution of Christians for the great fire set
by Nero in 64 CE was the occasion for Peter's martyrdom. Even a
generation later, this would be lively memory in the Roman Christian
community.
Whoever the author was and whenever he wrote, he sought to encourage his
audience to lead "lives of holiness and godliness while for and hastening
the coming of the day of God" (vs. 12). The certainty of the Parousia
necessitated such holy living. To accomplish this, moral effort on their
part would required, exemplified by peace and purity (vs. 14). They are
to regard the patience of God as their salvation, not a source of
spiritual frustration (vs. 15).
This reading should probably end before the sentence in modern versions
(RSV; NRSV) which make reference to Paul. The NEB, however, includes all
of vs. 15 in that reference: "Bear in mind that our Lord's patience with
us is our salvation, as Paul, our friend and brother said when he wrote to
you with inspired wisdom." This may well be a reference to Paul's letter
to the Romans and intended as proof that this letter is from Peter himself
who knew that Paul had written to the Roman church. More likely, however,
it confirms the pseudographical character of the letter. No church leader
of the 2d century made any reference to 2 Peter. Origen (217-251 CE) did
not regard it as canonical. The 3rd century historian Eusebius linked it
with James, Jude, 2 and 3 John as "disputed, nevertheless familiar to the
majority."
While such scholarly intricacies may be of little consequence to most
modern readers, a document such as 2 Peter can be very helpful to our own
time and generation as we move from the age of Christendom to the culture
of pluralistic globalism in the third millennium of the Christian era.
Orthodoxy such as this letter exhibits can be an early casualty of any
transitional period in church history.
MARK 1:1-8 Mark's Gospel begins not with Jesus, but with John the
Baptist. Immediately he quotes from Isaiah 40, transferring this
reference to the prophet of Israel's return from exile in Babylon in 639
BC to the coming of the Messiah. Obviously, he intended that the Baptist
be seen as the prophet who prepared the way for Jesus, the Christ/Messiah.
This was an intentional use of the OT scriptures for a serious theological
purpose. The early church searched the Hebrew Scriptures for every
possible prophecy about the coming of Israel's Messiah, no matter whether
they were relevant or not. They understood the coming of Jesus Christ,
the Son of God, into the world as the fulfillment of those prophecies.
Mark makes no mention of the condemnation which John's message included as
Matthew and Luke reported. He concentrated instead on the repentance John
called for as the appropriate preparation for the coming of the Messiah
(vs. 4). He also downplayed his role and pointed instead to the one who
would baptize the people with the Holy Spirit instead of water.
Much scholarly discussion still surrounds the character of John and his
mission. It would appear that he was recognized as one of the OT prophets
whose habits were such as to draw attention to his ministry. His call for
baptism, however, must have seemed unusual to most Jews of his time. The
custom of baptizing proselytes cannot be attested prior to 100 CE. If it
was practiced as early as John's ministry (ca. 28 CE), it would have been
regarded as an affront to Jewish self-consciousness. There were limited
baptismal movements in Judaism such as the Essenes of Qumran in the last
centuries before the Christian era. Some Hellenist sects also practiced
baptism as initiation into their communities. No final proof has yet been
discovered to link John directly with any of these, although with notable
differences he most resembles the Essenes.
The essential point of John's message was that all assumptions based on
election and ethnicity was no longer valid. Only a new beginning
symbolized by passing through the waters of Jordan, as God had led Israel
out of Egypt and across the Jordan, would suffice to restore Israel's
relationship with God. In the immersion of baptism these presumptions and
the whole of old ways of life would be washed away. Now that God's love
and purpose for Israel are being fulfilled, John calls everyone to prepare
by repenting and being baptized.
Perhaps most surprising to us - and perhaps to his audience too - was the
fact that John's style and teaching can be found in eschatological
passages in Isaiah. Mark 1:8 had its parallel in Isaiah 32:15. His
dwelling in the wilderness had its parallels in Isaiah 35:1-10, 40:3,
41:18-19, 43:19-20. The one who followed him endowed with the Spirit had
its parallels in Isaiah 11:2-3; 42:1-4 and 61:1. Was this the result of
the exhaustive searching of the OT by the apostolic church, especially in
the book of Isaiah, rather than historical actuality?
Walter Wink states in *The Oxford Companion to the Bible* (Oxford
University Press, 1993. 372) John "burst on the scene as a virtual
mutant." His rite of baptism symbolizing rebirth had no precedent in any
Jewish source. This suggests that the story of John may be a theological
metaphor pointing to the discontinuity of the Jewish and Christian faith
traditions. Wink further states: "The evangelists each employ the
traditions about John in the service of the proclamation of Jesus. Each
handles him differently, but all see him as the one who stands at the
beginning of the gospel story, demanding of the hearer a beginner's mind
and jettisoning all previous securities, so that the new word can be
heard."
copyright - Comments by Rev. John Shearman and page by Richard J. Fairchild, 2006
please acknowledge the appropriate author if citing these resources.
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