Category: More Than Bread

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EZEKIEL 16:42-17:24 | HEBREWS 8:1-13 | PSALM 106:13-31 | PROVERBS 27:7-9

The wrath of the Lord remains unabated, and Ezekiel continues to receive instruction in his vision for what he is to tell the erring people of Israel on what is to befall them.  Using an allegory of two eagles and a vine, Ezekiel is told of what he must tell his people.  He says:  ¹¹ Then the word of the LORD came to me: ¹² “Say to this rebellious people, ‘Do you not know what these things mean?’ Say to them: ‘The king of Babylon went to Jerusalem and carried off her king and her nobles, bringing them back with him to Babylon. ¹³ Then he took a member of the royal family and made a treaty with him, putting him under oath. He also carried away the leading men of the land, ¹⁴ so that the kingdom would be brought low, unable to rise again, surviving only by keeping his treaty. ¹⁵ But the king rebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt to get horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Will he break the treaty and yet escape?  The answer,  of course, is a deafening no!

We turn now to our reading of the book of Hebrews, and see the writer continuing in the same line of thought:  Jesus Christ is the perfect high priest, and replaces every human priest in the Jewish tradition.  This is all for the benefit of the new believers to the Christian faith who have a Jewish heritage and are accustomed to following the Jewish practices of worship.  The writer of this letter, most likely a Jew himself, is now challenging every Jewish tradition– asking that the reader either look at the practice diferently, or get rid of it altogether.

Keep your practices, only view it in a different light, the writer seems to say.  You know of the priest and his functions in the temple; well, here is a more superior priest, nay a high priest, who supercedes every human priest, and offers you direct access to God, the father– put away your old notions, and boldly approach this high priest who will intercede on your behalf, who is himself, God, and who appeared to you as Christ Jesus incarnate.  Are you able to comprehend and accept these truths, the writer seems to say.  To further elaborate on this point, the writer says:  ¹ Now the main point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, ² and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.

The writer wishes to take his time to explain this slowly and clearly– so there is no room for doubt.  He says:  ³ Every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices, and so it was necessary for this one also to have something to offer. ⁴ If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are already priests who offer the gifts prescribed by the law. ⁵ They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.” ⁶ But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

New covenant, better promises– these are the new concepts that the Jewish person of the first century had to reconcile himself/herself to.  You mean to say that I don’t need to offer up animal sacrifices anymore?  In fact, I don’t even need to go to the temple anymore?  Yes, that’s right, you don’t need to do anything but believe– believe in this new covenant of faith that God has offered to you by way of the plan of sending his own son in the person of Jesus Christ, who was made to be the sacrifice for all mankind, once and for all.

Furthermore, under this new covenant, both Jew and non-Jew are entitled to the free gift of salvation, i.e., a saving of your soul for eternity, by simple faith in the grace of God extended to you, and if you should accept this gift, you need do nothing more– nothing more to earn it, that is.  But you would WANT to do everything you possibly can in order to reflect the same love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness that you have received from God to your fellowmen.  Would it not then give you a personal satisfaction to do unto others what has been freely done unto you?  THAT is the way this new covenant works!

And to wrap us this train of thought, the writer says one last thing:  ¹³ By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.  Get it?  Got it?  Good!

We turn now to our reading of the psalms, and find ourselves still making our way through Psalm 106.  This, as you may recall, is a chronological account of the history of the children of Israel.  David is recounting the many times that his ancestors had turned away from God, despite the fact that the presence of God was a palpable force around them all the time.  And yet, the people were quick to turn away and take up images and idols to worship.  Such is the checkered history of the people of Israel.  She may be the chosen one, but she never knew it!

Finally, we turn to the book of Proverbs for an interesting mix of proverbs, each speaking to a deeper truth.  Solomon, the wise king, offers these proverbs as food for thought:

7 One who is full loathes honey from the comb,
   but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet.

⁸ Like a bird that flees its nest
   is anyone who flees from home.

⁹ Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,
   and the pleasantness of a friend
   springs from their heartfelt advice.

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EZEKIEL 14:12-16:41; HEBREWS 7:18-28; PSALM 106:1-12; PROVERBS 27:4-6

Ezekiel’s commission from the Lord continues, and we learn that Jerusalem’s judgement is inescapable.  This is what the Lord says to Ezekiel:  ²¹ “…How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem my four dreadful judgments—sword and famine and wild beasts and plague—to kill its men and their animals! ²² Yet there will be some survivors—sons and daughters who will be brought out of it. They will come to you, and when you see their conduct and their actions, you will be consoled regarding the disaster I have brought on Jerusalem—every disaster I have brought on it. ²³ You will be consoled when you see their conduct and their actions, for you will know that I have done nothing in it without cause, declares the Sovereign LORD.”

The wrath of God burns strong against Jerusalem, and she is described as a useless vine.  This is what the Lord says:  ⁶ “…As I have given the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest as fuel for the fire, so will I treat the people living in Jerusalem. ⁷ I will set my face against them. Although they have come out of the fire, the fire will yet consume them. And when I set my face against them, you will know that I am the LORD. ⁸ I will make the land desolate because they have been unfaithful, declares the Sovereign LORD.”

If this sounds terrible, the next analogy of Jerusalem as the adulterous wife and prostitute is no better.  The wrath of God is unabated, and these are the words of the Lord:  ³⁵ “‘Therefore, you prostitute, hear the word of the LORD! ³⁶ This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Because you poured out your lust and exposed your naked body in your promiscuity with your lovers, and because of all your detestable idols, and because you gave them your children’s blood, ³⁷ therefore I am going to gather all your lovers, with whom you found pleasure, those you loved as well as those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and will strip you in front of them, and they will see you stark naked. ³⁸ I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and who shed blood; I will bring on you the blood vengeance of my wrath and jealous anger. ³⁹ Then I will deliver you into the hands of your lovers, and they will tear down your mounds and destroy your lofty shrines. They will strip you of your clothes and take your fine jewelry and leave you stark naked. ⁴⁰ They will bring a mob against you, who will stone you and hack you to pieces with their swords. ⁴¹ They will burn down your houses and inflict punishment on you in the sight of many women. I will put a stop to your prostitution, and you will no longer pay your lovers.

Turning now to our reading of the book of Hebrews, we find the writer speaking of a “better hope” and a “better covenant” that is made available to all in the person of Jesus Christ.  While the old covenant through the Mosaic Law was entirely unattainable, the new covenant through this new plan of salvation was completely attainable, and in full measure– to both Jew and non-Jew, at that.  The writer has been quite detailed so far in offering up an argument for the more perfect and permanent nature of the priesthood in Christ Jesus, and he does so yet again in these lines:  ²³ Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; ²⁴ but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. ²⁵ Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

The writer goes on to make the case for this supernatural priest in the person of Jesus in this way: ²⁶ Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. ²⁷ Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. ²⁸ For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.  This was indeed a radical concept for the Jews of the day to reconcile themselves to.  Having been accustomed to approaching a priest in the Temple who would offer up a sacrifice on their behalf for an atonement of sins, here was something entirely different.  The writer of Hebrews was pointing to Jesus as being both the priest and the sacrifice all in one.

This was a new covenant between God and man that allowed for anyone at all to approach the Almighty so long as they entered through the intercession of Jesus Christ.  This is most certainly a more abstract concept to wrap one’s mind around.  There’s no physical priest, alright.  There’s no physical sacrifice, okay.  And if you take it one step further, there’s really no need for a physical temple, even.  Paul has already openly written about the body being the temple of God, and now the writer of this book, Hebrews, is writing about the ultimate priest and the ultimate sacrifice.  All this is a new faith, a new construct, a new way of life.  And the newly-made believers, i.e., the Jews of the day who have embraced the idea of Jesus Christ as the long-awaited Messiah to also be the savior of this world are being urged to to accept these new truths, and live them out– day in and day out.  What a concept!  If I were a first-century Jew, I know I might have also struggled with these new views!

We turn now to our reading of the psalms, and find in Psalm 106, the psalmist reminiscing about his ancestors and their rebellious ways.  The purpose of this exercise is to demonstrate a contriteness, and to offer up thanksgiving and praise to the Almighty for his many mercies over generations.  David, the psalmist, says:

⁶ We have sinned, even as our ancestors did;
   we have done wrong and acted wickedly.
⁷ When our ancestors were in Egypt,
   they gave no thought to your miracles;
they did not remember your many kindnesses,
   and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.
⁸ Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
   to make his mighty power known.
⁹ He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
   he led them through the depths as through a desert.
¹⁰ He saved them from the hand of the foe;
   from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them.
¹¹ The waters covered their adversaries;
   not one of them survived.
¹² Then they believed his promises
   and sang his praise.

Finally, a few verses from the book of Proverbs, in which Solomon, the wise king of Israel, offers food for thought on certain key qualities within human relationships.  Anger, jealousy, love, loyalty, and betrayal all have a place under the sun, and reside within each individual.  What sets one person apart from the other is the manner in which each of these qualities is contained and developed.  Solomon says:

⁴ Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming,
   but who can stand before jealousy?

⁵ Better is open rebuke
   than hidden love.

⁶ Wounds from a friend can be trusted,
   but an enemy multiplies kisses.

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EZEKIEL 12:1-14:11 | HEBREWS 7:1-17 | PSALM 105:37-45 | PROVERBS 27:3

Ezekiel continues to record the vision and the instructions he receives concerning his people in his battered homeland of Judea.  Ezekiel is in exile at the time he receives his calling to go back to his people and preach to them of an even greater destruction that is to soon come upon them.  This would be the second and final destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem—within ten years of the first invasion by the Babylonians.

The prophecies of Ezekiel will come to pass in 586 BC in full, and yet at the time of Ezekiel’s commission, it appears that the people in Judea, as well as those living in exile in Babylon did not believe that another greater destruction was to come upon their people.  There was doubt and derision among them, and in order to address this, the Lord says to Ezekiel to make it clear that there is going to be no further delay in the prophecies that Ezekiel makes.  These things will come to pass post-haste, and the Lord instructs Ezekiel to inform the people to snap out of their reveries.

Ezekiel says to them:  ²¹ The word of the LORD came to me: ²² “Son of man, what is this proverb you have in the land of Israel: ‘The days go by and every vision comes to nothing’? ²³ Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am going to put an end to this proverb, and they will no longer quote it in Israel.’ Say to them, ‘The days are near when every vision will be fulfilled. ²⁴ For there will be no more false visions or flattering divinations among the people of Israel. ²⁵ But I the LORD will speak what I will, and it shall be fulfilled without delay. For in your days, you rebellious people, I will fulfill whatever I say, declares the Sovereign LORD.’”

Ezekiel goes on to lambast the other prophets of the day—both in exile and in the motherland—of the wrath of God that will soon descend upon them for their false prophecies.  He says to them, these words of the Lord: ¹⁰ “‘Because they lead my people astray, saying, “Peace,” when there is no peace, and because, when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash, ¹¹ therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth. ¹² When the wall collapses, will people not ask you, “Where is the whitewash you covered it with?”

And there’s more where that came from.  Ezekiel goes on to tell them what God really thinks, and what he is going to do.  He serves as the Lord’s mouthpiece in these words:  ¹⁵ So I will pour out my wrath against the wall and against those who covered it with whitewash. I will say to you, “The wall is gone and so are those who whitewashed it, ¹⁶ those prophets of Israel who prophesied to Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her when there was no peace, declares the Sovereign LORD.”’  Put away your peace-pipes, folks, the time for peace is a way off, the Lord seems to say.

And yet again, there is the steadfast exhortation to turn away from idolatry, and Ezekiel is told this by the Lord:  ⁶ “Therefore say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!  Let it not be said that the people were not warned!  Let it not be said that a prophet was not sent to them!  Let it not be said that a clear sign was not given to them even in the destruction of the Temple the first time around!

We turn now to our reading of the book of Hebrews, and find the writer has picked up where he last left off concerning the person of Jesus Christ to be a more perfect priest in the likeness of the high priest, Melchizedek, a priest that ministered to Abraham even before the establishment of the house of Levi and the order of the priesthood endowed to them.  It is important to the writer that he explains this concept as clearly as possible to a readership that consists primarily of a Jewish heritage.

These Jews are considering the validity of the person of Jesus Christ to be the Messiah, and are filled with some uncertainty about giving up their traditions and customs that include honoring a priest in the temple.  But here comes this person—perhaps it is Paul, perhaps it is another—who is writing to tell them to reconsider their views in light of the new faith they have adopted.  In Christ Jesus resides a new way of worship and faith.  It is Christ, the author of Hebrews writes, who is the ultimate priest, a High Priest, in the order of Melchizedek, the mystery priest, that had appeared from nowhere to whom their ancestor and forefather, Abraham, paid tithe and tribute.

This is what the writer says: ¹¹ If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood—and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood—why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? ¹² For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also. ¹³ He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. ¹⁴ For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. ¹⁵ And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears, ¹⁶ one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life.

Turning next to our reading of the psalms, we find that we have come to the end of Psalm 105, a long psalm of praise and thanksgiving in which the psalmist lists the long history of his peoples’ existence and establishment as a nation that started with one man, Abraham.

Finally, turning to our proverb for the day, we find one in which, Solomon, the wise king of Israel, speaks to the power of provocation in these lines:

³ Stone is heavy and sand a burden,
   but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

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EZEKIEL 10:1-11:25 | HEBREWS 6:1-20 | PSALM 105:16-36 | PROVERBS 27:1-2

While still in exile, Ezekiel has been having a most fantastic vision within which he has received his commission to go to his people in Judea, the “remnant of Israel”, to warn them against further sacrilege, and to turn from their ways of idol-worship.  Among the “remnant” is only a small remnant that will be spared because the majority of the people have committed the most abominable acts of worshiping images and idols inside the very heart of the Temple.  Yet, God is merciful to a few who refrain from participating in these detestable acts.  Furthermore, those who remain in exile receive a new promise.  The wrath of God seems to relent somewhat, and this is what Ezekiel is commanded to convey to them:

¹⁶ “Therefore say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.’ ¹⁷ “Therefore say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.’  ¹⁸ “They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. ¹⁹ I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. ²⁰ Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God. ²¹ But as for those whose hearts are devoted to their vile images and detestable idols, I will bring down on their own heads what they have done, declares the Sovereign LORD.”

Turning now to our reading of the book of Hebrews, we find the writer continuing with his exhortation to his Jewish readers to mature in this newly found Christian faith.  We’ve covered all the basics, he seems to say, and it is time to move on to more substantial fare.  Let us not keep returning to the rudimentary points of our faith, because that is like crucifying Christ all over again. Once you’ve understood these truths, you cannot go back, as with the act of repentance, but must move forward.

The writer puts it like this:  ⁴ It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, ⁵ who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age ⁶ and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

This call to maturity continues in these next verses as well:  ⁹ Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case—the things that have to do with salvation. ¹⁰ God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. ¹¹ We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. ¹² We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

The writer is yet again appealing to the Jewish identities of his readers in assuring them of the everlasting covenant that God has made with their forefather, Abraham.  And after having provided this assurance of how the promise to establish Abraham descendants on this earth has been duly fulfilled, the writer once again brings it back to this one new fundamental truth:  Jesus Christ is the “forerunner” of their faith, and is also their essential High Priest who invites them into the Temple of their hearts to worship and commune with God Almighty.

This is how the author of Hebrews puts it:  ¹⁶ People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. ¹⁷ Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. ¹⁸ God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. ¹⁹ We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, ²⁰ where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

We turn now to our reading of the psalms, and find that we are still continuing in Psalm 105, a very long one that essentially outlines the incredible history of the Jewish people.  The purpose of presenting a chronological account of their history is to offer up praise and thanksgiving to God Almighty for the provisions and protections over generations.

Finally, we turn to the book of Proverbs, and find two excellent verses worthy of record and rumination.  In both, Solomon, the wise king of Israel, cautions against the ills of empty pride:

¹ Do not boast about tomorrow,
   for you do not know what a day may bring.

² Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth;
   an outsider, and not your own lips.

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EZEKIEL 7:1-9:11 | HEBREWS 5:1-14 | PSALM 105:1-15 | PROVERBS 26:28

Ezekiel’s commission from the Lord to go back to his people continues, and the wrath of the Lord remains unabated even in the mere telling of the things to come upon Jerusalem and her inhabitants.  This is surely a people to be pitied, for the level of destruction that is to befall them is truly horrific.  These are the words of the Lord to Ezekiel:

²³ “‘Prepare chains!
   For the land is full of bloodshed,
   and the city is full of violence.
²⁴ I will bring the most wicked of nations
   to take possession of their houses.
I will put an end to the pride of the mighty,
   and their sanctuaries will be desecrated.
²⁵ When terror comes,
   they will seek peace in vain.
²⁶ Calamity upon calamity will come,
   and rumor upon rumor.
They will go searching for a vision from the prophet,
   priestly instruction in the law will cease,
   the counsel of the elders will come to an end.
²⁷ The king will mourn,
   the prince will be clothed with despair,
   and the hands of the people of the land will tremble.
I will deal with them according to their conduct,
   and by their own standards I will judge them.

Ezekiel is then given a glimpse into the deep-rooted practices of idolatry that are taking place right in the heart of the Temple, by the priest and the people alike.  Seen from any direction, there is an example of blatant idol-worship to various and sundry gods.  It is bad enough that Israel has forgotten the God of her forefathers, but it is even worse when the small remnant of Israel that was left behind after the deluge of the Babylonian invasion practices such idolatry right within the heart of the Temple.  Could there be anything more detestable?  The Lord doesn’t think so.

But Ezekiel is appalled at the extent of decimation that the Lord has allowed on the people, and so, Ezekiel cries out:  “Alas, Sovereign LORD! Are you going to destroy the entire remnant of Israel in this outpouring of your wrath on Jerusalem?” And this is what the Lord tells Ezekiel:  ⁹ He answered me, “The sin of the people of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great; the land is full of bloodshed and the city is full of injustice. They say, ‘The LORD has forsaken the land; the LORD does not see.’ ¹⁰ So I will not look on them with pity or spare them, but I will bring down on their own heads what they have done.”

And yet, even in the midst of the execution of this wrath, there is a small remnant among the remnant that is spared.  Ezekiel is privy to the sight of a man who walks around with a “writing kit” and goes about placing a mark on the foreheads of those who lament the abominable idolatry that is taking place within the walls of the temple and the city.  Ezekiel soon learns that it is the ones who are found with a mark who will eventually be spared.

We now turn to our reading of the book of Hebrews, and find that the anonymous writer of this epistle is continuing on the same theme of Christ being the perfect priest, nay, the High Priest of the people.  To many in that day, this would have made complete sense, given their Jewish practices of having a priest in the temple.  However, the writer is slowly but surely dismantling some of the fundamental beliefs and practices of the Jewish faith even as he proposes these new constructs. 

Jesus Christ is the High Priest, but he is not physically present in the temple, no, he is seated at the right hand of God—he is God himself, in the perfect union of the Trinity (the Holy Spirit being the third member of this group), who intercedes to God, the Father, on your behalf, even as the Holy Spirit ministers to you for your every need.  Is that too complex a construct?

The writer hopes it is anything but, because the new believers in this faith—which is soon to be called Christianity—will hopefully understand that this is a more perfect design of worship that eliminates all barriers between God and man, and allows each and everyone who believes, access to the throne of Grace, i.e., to God himself, and therefore empowers each one to petition God, the Father, through his son, Jesus Christ.

This is no ordinary arrangement—it is most extraordinary in every which way.   Man is no longer doomed to eternal misery; rather, he is empowered to choose for himself whether or not he wishes to accept this gift of salvation that is being offered to him.  If he accepts, he is immediately accepted into the fold of God’s everlasting love and mercies; if he chooses not to, the decision is entirely his.  God does not wish for anyone at all to perish—be it Jew or non-Jew, because you see, God is the perfect gentleman:  he would never expect you to spend even a moment with him by force, let alone an eternity.  How does that strike you for being polite?!

Continuing with the theme of the new High Priest, the writer explains it in this way:  ⁷ During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. ⁸ Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered ⁹ and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him ¹⁰ and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

With this lengthy discourse on the various nuances of this new faith and its recommended practices in relation to existing Jewish observances, etc., the writer is essentially urging his readers to “grow up”!  There is a thinly veiled trace of exasperation, perhaps even a little impatience in wishing for these truths to be accepted and absorbed, even as the writer says these words:  ¹¹ We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. ¹² In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! ¹³ Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. ¹⁴ But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

We turn now to our reading of the psalms and find one in which the psalmist is singing aloud the promises of the Almighty to his people.  Alas, the children of Israel needed much reminding about this, because as per their history, they were quick to forget who they were and who their God was.  David reaffirms his faith and knowledge of his God, Yahweh, in these verses:

⁵ Remember the wonders he has done,
   his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,
⁶ you his servants, the descendants of Abraham,
   his chosen ones, the children of Jacob.
⁷ He is the LORD our God;
   his judgments are in all the earth.
⁸ He remembers his covenant forever,
   the promise he made, for a thousand generations.

Finally, a verse from the book of Proverbs, in which Solomon, the wise king of Israel, speaks to the ills of a slanderer and a sycophant:

²⁸ A lying tongue hates those it hurts,
   and a flattering mouth works ruin.

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EZEKIEL 3:16-6:14 | HEBREWS 4:1-16 | PSALM 104:24-35 | PROVERBS 26:27

Ezekiel continues to receive instructions on his commission to go to his people.  His task is to be that of a watchman’s:  warning people to turn back from evil.  So great is this responsibility on Ezekiel that were he to not do his bidding in warning the people, the Lord says to him that their blood would be on Ezekiel’s hands!  The people may exercise their freewill, by all means, but not before they are fully aware of what their choices are!

Next, Ezekiel receives detailed instructions on symbolizing the siege of Jerusalem, with Ezekiel personifying the city of Jerusalem and her many travails.  Following that, we see the razor of God’s judgment upon his people.  Suffice to say, this is not a people to be envied; this is a people to be pitied—for the grievous things that are to soon befall them.

Because this is what the Lord says:  ¹⁴ “I will make you a ruin and a reproach among the nations around you, in the sight of all who pass by. ¹⁵ You will be a reproach and a taunt, a warning and an object of horror to the nations around you when I inflict punishment on you in anger and in wrath and with stinging rebuke. I the LORD have spoken. ¹⁶ When I shoot at you with my deadly and destructive arrows of famine, I will shoot to destroy you. I will bring more and more famine upon you and cut off your supply of food. ¹⁷ I will send famine and wild beasts against you, and they will leave you childless. Plague and bloodshed will sweep through you, and I will bring the sword against you. I the LORD have spoken.”

But even in the midst of the great destruction that is to befall Jerusalem and the final fall of the Temple, there is a small element of pity that the Lord will show in the sparing of a few.  The Lord says, ⁸ “‘But I will spare some, for some of you will escape the sword when you are scattered among the lands and nations. ⁹ Then in the nations where they have been carried captive, those who escape will remember me—how I have been grieved by their adulterous hearts, which have turned away from me, and by their eyes, which have lusted after their idols. They will loathe themselves for the evil they have done and for all their detestable practices. ¹⁰ And they will know that I am the LORD; I did not threaten in vain to bring this calamity on them.”

Turning now to our reading of the book of Hebrews, we find the author exhorting his Jewish audience to consider the many privileges of grace and mercy under the gospel that are greater than any to be had under the Mosaic Law.  This is an audience that needs reassurance that giving up their strict observances of Jewish practices will not be to their detriment.  The writer, therefore, speaks of the observance of a more perfect Sabbath under this new gospel:  it is one of perfect rest and peace in the knowledge that the price of one’s sins has been made already by way of the perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God, also known as, Jesus Christ, i.e., God himself incarnate.

Is that too radical a notion to accept?  It must have been a bit unsettling to the average Jew of the day who wasn’t entirely sure about Jesus being the long-awaited Messiah.  Could it be that the Messiah has already come and gone?  You mean to say, the plan has changed now, in that both Jew and non-Jew are entitled to same privileges—and in this new dispensation of grace, there is no need to continue with old practices of offering sacrifices, observing feasts and Sabbaths, and the many other practices to approach God, the Almighty?  Yes, you got that right, is what the author of the book of Hebrews is saying.  You got that right, indeed!

The writer then speaks to the greatness of the word of God—which in recent times, as of the writing of this book, was in the person of Jesus Christ himself—that has supernatural powers of discernment.  He says: ¹² For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. ¹³ Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

To think that we have the privilege of approaching God directly was certainly a daunting thought to a people used to approaching God via a priest.  Consider the Jewish audience this letter is directed to.  To a people who were accustomed to going into a Temple and approaching a priest to offer up atonements and offerings, this was indeed a radical concept to consider the complete dismantlement of the Judaic practices of worship.

The writer, therefore, is using a familiar analogy of a priest, only he points to the perfect and ultimate priest to be Christ himself.  He says:  ¹⁴ Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. ¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. ¹⁶ Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Does that make you feel somewhat better now, is what the writer seems to be saying to his Jewish readers.  Yes, you can keep your Jewish identities, but you must relearn some new concepts that will allow you to continue with your practices and observances, but in a completely new light.  Here are some ways to rethink previously held beliefs:

The Sabbath is not just a day of rest—it is a rest in the peace that has come through the knowledge of the grace of God that has taken care of all your sins.  The approaching of a priest is not a routine matter of your weekly trip to the Temple— it is a bold privilege of approaching Jesus Christ, the High Priest who is there for you at any time at all, to minister to your every need, and to comfort you.  So, yes, come to the High Priest with “confidence”, and “receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”  Is this a radical concept, or what?  It is completely mind-blowing, if you were a Jewish person in the first century reading this letter!

We’ll turn now to our reading of the psalms, and find in these verses, a most humble acknowledgment of the psalmists’ praise to the Almighty’s omnipotence.  David says:

²⁷ All creatures look to you
   to give them their food at the proper time.
²⁸ When you give it to them,
   they gather it up;
when you open your hand,
   they are satisfied with good things.
²⁹ When you hide your face,
   they are terrified;
when you take away their breath,
   they die and return to the dust.
³⁰ When you send your Spirit,
   they are created,
   and you renew the face of the ground.

May it be that like David, we are also quick to offer up these words of praise and thanksgiving:

³³ I will sing to the LORD all my life;
   I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
³⁴ May my meditation be pleasing to him,
   as I rejoice in the LORD.

Finally, a verse from the book of Proverbs, in which Solomon, the wise king of Israel, speaks to the futility of seeking revenge.  He says:

²⁷ Whoever digs a pit will fall into it;
   if someone rolls a stone, it will roll back on them.