Subversive kingdom weeds2/9/2024 ![]() ![]() This was done in obedience to a direct word of the Lord to Samuel: “I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be ruler over my people Israel. In earlier chapters, the prophet Samuel had (somewhat reluctantly) anointed Saul as king in Israel (1 Sam 10:1). It is worth understanding where this passage comes in the narrative flow of events, for it occurs at a critical time in the story of the people of Israel. Curiously, the lectionary omits the final comment of the narrator, “in accordance with all these words and with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David” (2 Sam 7:17). When we read and hear and ponder these ancient words, we are opening our hearts and minds to the guidance of God’s Spirit, instructing us in our lives of faith today.įor the fourth Sunday in Advent, we are offered a well-known passage from 2 Samuel the message that the prophet Nathan receives from the Lord God, which he is instructed to convey to King David (2 Sam 7:1–11, 16). So whilst the Hebrew Scripture passages tell us of how God had been at work in years past, they are retained as relevant words which provide guidance and direction for understanding how God would presumably be at work in later times, in the times of Jesus, and indeed in our own times today. What they wrote-the word of the Lord for their own time-has been repeated and remembered, retold by word of mouth and written onto scrolls which, over time have become recognised as important, influential, even inspired words of wisdom. ![]() Rather, I read these passages as testimonies to the way that faithful people of old understood and experienced God to be at work in their own times, in their own lives. That is too crass, and it pays no respect at all to the wisdom of faithful people in ancient Israel. How I read these passages is not in a simplistic prophecy-fulfilment pattern. Rather, I consider that the prophets and psalmists of ancient times were addressing their own situations, not peering into the distant future. For my part, I don’t read these Hebrew Scripture passages as “predictions” pointing to Jesus. These scripture passages inform us as to how God might be understood to be at work in the story of Jesus. These scripture passages have include a sequence of excerpts from the Hebrew Scriptures-largely from the book of Isaiah-which orient us to the saving work of God, experienced by faithful people in Israel through the ages. During this season of Advent, the lectionary offers a selection of biblical passages designed to help us in our preparations, building to the climactic moment of Christmas Day, when we remember that “the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). ![]()
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