Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 24 and Colossians 2

2 Samuel 24 – The Lord gets angry at Israel and incites David to take a census - always a bad thing in Israel. It's interesting to ponder why it was seen as a bad thing, something "satan" would put into David's head. Numbering of people in one's "land" was tied with military service, and the whole concept of "state sovereignty," or organization of a people under the rule of a monarch was not something that flowed easily from Hebrew monotheism. Samuel warned against it as something not wished by God. God is the only "sovereign" power finally. It could be that some remnant of this concern lingers here. Joab warns against it (24:3), but the king insists. 

After nine months and 20 days, they return with the results—in Israel there are 800,000 “able to draw the sword” (24: 9) and in Judah, 500,000. After it is done, David become conscience-stricken. Gad, David’s prophet at this time, comes to him and asks what penalty he wants the Lord to exact - he can choose: 3 years of famine; 3 months of flight before his foes or 3 days of pestilence in the land. David chooses the last.  When he sees the devastation wrought, however, he says to God, “I alone have sinned, and I alone have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let your hand, I pray, be against me and against my father’s house” (24:17).

David buys the threshing floor of Araunah, a Jebusite whose place is threatened by the pestilence, and builds an altar there; he also buys the oxen to sacrifice and makes sacrifice there to the Lord.  The Lord answers David’s supplication and spares Israel any more suffering.

Colossians 2 – Paul tells the community, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.  See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him . .” 2:6-9).  This is fabulous writing, incredible articulation of exactly what it is to see and to live “in Christ.” Paul goes on to describe the mystery of Christian baptism.  “You have been buried with him, when you were baptized; and by baptism, too, you have been raised up with him through your belief in the power of God who raised him from the dead. You were dead, because you were sinners and had not been circumcised: he has brought you to life with him, he has forgiven us all our sins” (2:12-13).

The next passage is one that Quakers make a great deal of: “Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths.  These are only a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ” (2:16-17). “Why do you submit to regulations, ‘Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch’? All these regulations refer to things that perish with use; they are simply human commands and teachings.  These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-imposed piety, humility, and severe treatment of the body, but they are of no value in checking self-indulgence” (2:20-23).

Everyone lifts what they want from Paul’s words, and some among Friends especially simply dismiss the words as “human teaching.” Early Friends did not dismiss Paul; they felt that they grasped the message he gave in a way most Christians of their day did not. It is true Friends made a great deal about the irrelevance of “human commands and teachings” – the shadow world of “outward” religion, but Paul’s words about Christ in this epistle were not this kind of “human teaching.”  Friends rooted themselves in this cosmic Christ and they experienced him as Paul did but in a different time.

Personal Reflection: The deep revelation of Christ as Logos, Light, Word and Spiritual Savior, the revelation that energized the apostles and built the community that was the early church is every bit as inexplicable (naturally) as the OT "exodus event" was for the Jews.  You will not find any easy verification of that event in historical records, but acceptance of it was the seed around which God brought together his first people – the Jews.  Acceptance of Christ’s incarnation, death and resurrection is similarly not an event you will ever find validated as simple history, but its reality, experienced by these first apostles, is the event around which “the nations” will eventually be drawn to the one God.  Like the Israelites before us, we accept the truth of it through trust in those who were there at the event, those who knew him, saw him risen, were given the gospel first hand; and we trust them because in some deeply interior way, we too encounter God in Christ as an incarnate, loving and saving God.  His face and voice and touch in us reveals God’s reality, discloses His nature, draws us powerfully toward Him and toward the lives we were meant to live as His people.  The Holy Spirit is the power and mystery of God present with us now even though the bodily Jesus is no more. But these are truths of a different order from the truths our mind and mouths are accustomed to dealing with.  They smash against the barriers our logic and materiality (corporality) present to them.  But it is the job of faith to stand even in the absence of every human aid. 

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 23 and Colossians 1

2 Samuel 23 – David’s last words—an oracle:

The spirit of the Lord speaks through me,

     his word in upon my tongue.

The God of Israel has spoken,

     the Rock of Israel has said to me:

One who rules over the people justly,

     ruling in the fear of God,

     is like the light of morning,

     like the sun rising on a cloudless morning,

     gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.

Is not my house like this with God?

For he has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secure. . .(23:2-5).

The names of some of David’s warriors are named along with their deeds against the Philistines.  A lot of this is repeated in 1 Chronicles 11. The writer celebrates “The Thirty” and “The Three”: Josheb-basshebeth, a Tachemonite, chief of the three; Eleazar, son of Dodo; and Shammah, son of Agee.  Among the Thirty, several are named: among them Abishai, Benaiah (in charge of David’s bodyguard); Asahel; Elhanan (also son of Dodo); Ittai (Benjaminite); and Uriah the Hittite (Bathsheba’s husband).

A few of the famous deeds done by “The Three” are recounted: forcing their way into a Philistine camp to get water for the king, water he would not drink because he felt he should offer it up to the Lord instead. Then a few particular men are celebrated: Joab’s brother Abishai, most famous among “The Thirty,” Benaiah, who killed “two great Moabite warriors” and killed a lion on a snowy day. Then all the names of The Thirty are listed. 

Introductory Information on Paul's Epistle to the Colossians: This letter, dated in the period from 61 to 63 AD along with the letters to the Ephesians and Philemon, was written while Paul was under arrest in Rome. Paul’s style has changed and his doctrine is more developed than in the “great letters”—Corinthians, Galatians and Romans (written in 57-58 AD). The occasion for the letter is Epaphras’ arrival from Colossae with news of the dangers presented by speculative notions widely current in Jewish circles of the day regarding the influence of celestial powers, speculations that challenged the supremacy of Christ.

Colossae is a town in Asia Minor east of Ephesus; the church at Colossae was not one started by Paul but was in an area Paul felt some responsibility for. Paul wrote the letter and gave it to Tychicus to deliver.  The dangers addressed gave Paul occasion to rethink things he had said in the earlier letters in a deeper way.

He always thought that believers participated in Christ’s life through faith. What he develops here is a concept of how Christ’s life and power impacted on the cosmos as a whole—as pleroma [fullness of divine powers]. “Three aspects of this broader view, which focusses (sic) on the function of Christ as Head, are: that the scope of salvation is seen to be cosmic; that Christ, into whom the Church has to structure itself, is this same victor who has triumphed over the whole cosmos; and finally that the concept of the future, eschatological, promise, as already realized, becomes very much more central. . .” (Jerusalem Bible, 262). While authorship of Colossians has been questioned, the weight of opinion is that it is Paul’s.

Colossians 1 – Paul greets the Colossians and commends them for the love they have and the fruit they have given forth from their faith.  He lets them know he prays for them always, asking “God to fill you with the knowledge of his will, with all the wisdom and understanding that his Spirit gives. Then you will be able to live as the Lord wants” (1: 9-10). God has “rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (1:13).

           

Paul gives us his description of the cosmic Christ: “Christ is the visible likeness of the invisible God. He is the first-born Son, superior to all created things. For through him God created everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen things, including spiritual powers, lords, rulers, and authorities. God created the whole universe through him and for him. Christ existed before all things, and in union with him all things have their proper place. He is the head of his body, the church; he is the source of the body’s life. He is the first-born Son, who was raised from death, in order that he alone might have the first place in all things. For it was by God’s own decision that the Son has in himself the full nature of God. Through the Son, then, God decided to bring the whole universe back to himself. God made peace through his Son’s blood on the cross and so brought back to himself all things, both on earth and in heaven” (1:15-20).

The Christ described here is every bit as divine as the Christ of John’s prologue.  But what is truly amazing is that this cosmic Christ still conforms—or is conceivable only in relation—to the framework given forth in Genesis 1.  God begets light—a divine light, indeed His own divine Light--the “logos” of the entire universe.  And through this Light all the subsequent creation comes to be—ordered, good, image of the unseen and unimaginable power of the Father.  As pinnacle and embodiment of this light, life and power, man is brought forth—man both male and female.  Christ is this Adam, but here Paul tells us He is also that first Light, indwelling divine power of the entire cosmos.  It is this Christ that is Head of the Church (and Peter is His visible sign).

Christ restores in us (in our faith, in our knowledge of these great mysteries and responsiveness to them) this sense of what our lives are, of what the universe is to God.  But we must “continue securely established and steadfast in the faith,” not wander off—into the old slavery or ignorance we were once in.  Christ’s “saints” have come to know “the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generation” past (1:26).  This mystery “is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (1:27). The work he is engaged in is the work of bringing believers to maturity in their faith (1: 28). 

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 22 and Mark 16

2 Samuel 22 – A hymn of praise and thanks attributed to David for delivery from his enemies. It is Psalm 18 with some small differences:

The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my

      God, the rock, in whom I take refuge. . .

He reached from on high, he took me, he drew me out of

      mighty waters. . .

He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who

      hated me; for they were too mighty for me. . .

They came upon me in the day of my calamity, but the

     Lord was my stay. . .

He brought me out into a broad place; he delivered me,

      because he delighted in me. . .

The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness;

according to the cleanness of my hands he recompensed me.

. . .

With the loyal you show yourself loyal; with the blameless

      you show yourself blameless; with the pure you show

      yourself pure, and with the crooked you show yourself

      perverse. . .

You deliver a humble people, but your eyes are upon the

      haughty to bring them down. . .

Indeed, you are my lamp, O Lord, the Lord lightens my

      Darkness . . .

He is a tower of salvation for his king, and shows steadfast

     love to his anointed, to David and his descendants

     forever (22:2-51).

Mark 16 – Sunday morning, after the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome come and bring spices to anoint the body.  The stone is rolled away and they see a “young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side” (16:5). He tells them not to be alarmed, that Jesus “has been raised” (16:6). They are to go and tell “the disciples and Peter” that he is going to Galilee where they will see him as he said.  They flee in terror and say nothing to anyone, “for they were afraid” (16:8).

                       

The longer ending begins at verse 9. A note says it was probably composed in the 2^nd c; it says that only Mary Magdalene came to the tomb. She goes and tells the others that  Jesus was risen, but they would not believe her. Then it says that he appeared “in a different manner to two [disciples] while they were on their way to the country” (16:12). These two must be the ones Luke tells us about in his Emmaus account (Luke 24:15). They also try to tell others but no one believes them either. Then he finally appears to “the eleven” and upbraids them for their failure to believe the others’ reports. 

He commissions them to go out “into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation.  The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned” (16:15-16).  Believers will be given power to perform signs. After all of this Jesus is taken up into heaven where he “[sits] down at the right hand of God” (16:20).

The shorter ending follows [found in four 7^th to 9^th century Greek manuscripts]: Referring to the three women named at the beginning of the chapter, it continues, saying that the “women went to Peter and his friends and gave them a brief account of all they had been told” and that Jesus himself is sending out the “sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation” that is the gospel. This is the end of Mark’s gospel.

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 21 and Mark 15

2 Samuel 21 – A drought-induced famine hits for three years.  David learns from the Lord that it is because of the sin Saul incurred when he put the Gibeonites to death. 

David goes to the Gibeonites to ask what he can do to expiate Saul’s guilt.  They ask that seven of Saul’s sons be handed over to them to be “impale[d] before the Lord at Gibeon on the mountain of the Lord” (21:6). The king cannot give them Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, so he turns over two of the sons of Rizpah (daughter of Saul’s concubine Aiah) and five of the sons of Merab (Saul’s oldest daughter) and her husband Adriel. Rizpah keeps watch over the impaled bodies of her sons day and night, so they would not be carried off.  In response, David gathers the bones of Saul, Jonathan and all the seven sons and grandsons of Saul and buries them in the tomb of Kish, Saul’s father.  After that, it rained.

           

Again war breaks out with the Philistines, “and David grew weary” (21:15). His men finally convince him to stay away.  He attracts gallant attempts of the enemy to kill him.  Men of great size, descendants of a race of giants (such as Goliath) are mentioned.

Mark 15 – In the morning, the chief priests and others consult and decide to turn Jesus over to Pilate.  He asks if Jesus is “King of the Jews,” and Jesus says, “You say so” -- an ambiguous response to say the least.  He does not talk further to Pilate. Then the crowd refuses Pilate’s offer to let him go.  The writer makes it clear that it is the chief priests who are behind the crowd’s refusal (15:11). 

Jesus is flogged and handed over for crucifixion.  The soldiers cloth him in purple, give him a crown of thorns and a reed, mocking him.  On the way to his death, the soldiers compel a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene (father of Alexander and Rufus) to carry the cross.  They come to Golgotha, offer him wine and myrrh but he refuses it.  They crucify him and cast lots for his clothes.  Above him is a sign that reads “king of the Jews.” Beside him are two bandits.  He is mocked and taunted even by the men crucified with him. There is no story of a good thief here.

           

From nine to noon, he languishes.  At noon darkness covers the land and lasts until three.  Then he cries out in a loud voice “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” in Aramaic.  The women looking on “from a distance” (15:40) were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and Joses, and Salome—other women are there as will.  Joseph of Arimathea comes at dusk and body asks Pilate for Jesus’ body. He receives it and lays the body in a tomb hewn out of rock.  A stone is rolled against the door.

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 19-20 and Mark 14:54-72

2 Samuel 19 – When word gets out how the king is taking the death of his son, the day of victory turns into a day of mourning, and Joab is furious – rightfully so.  His men are made to feel ashamed instead of proud of their sacrifices.  Joab confronts him: “Today you have covered with shame the faces of all our officers who have saved your life today, and the lives of your sons and your daughters, and the lives of your wives and your concubines, for love of those who hate you and for hatred of those who love you.  You have made it clear today that commanders and officers are nothing to you; for I perceive that if Absalom were alive and all of us were dead today, then you would be pleased. So go out at once and speak kindly to your servants; for I swear by the Lord, if you do not do, not a man will stay with you this night; and this will be worse for you than any disaster that has come upon you from your youth until now” (19:5-7). In response, David does get up and take his place at the gate of the city to receive the returning troops.

           

Meanwhile, the people of Israel, who had joined Absalom in his rebellion discuss among them the need to receive David back.  They remember the good he did in the past, defeating their enemies, the Philistines. The men of Judah, however, too are now torn (I think). Put off by the behavior of their king, they hesitate to rally around David.  He sends word to their elders through Abiathar and Zadok that he expects their support.  He then also contacts Amasa (!) and asks his support, promising him command of his armies (19:13).  He must be really mad at Joab or distrustful of him. Amasa is very popular among the people of Judah, so they give their support to David again. The result of this “diplomacy” is a revival of support among the Judahites for David.

           

Shimei (the Benjaminite) of Bahurim greets David with a thousand people from that tribe, and begs him to forgive his bad behavior (cursing him—see 16:10) And Ziba also comes to serve him. Abishai wants to put him to death, but David dismisses him, saying, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah, that you should today become an adversary to me?” (19:22) There is a permanent breach here between David and the sons of Zeruiah, his half-sister—Joab and Abishai, the very men who led his armies to victory.  Either his love for Absalom or his displeasure with their forthrightness over behavior toward his troops has soured David on them seriously.

           

Mephibosheth too comes to curry favor with David.  David presses him about why he failed to support him and he has the nerve to blame his servant, Ziba. David falls for his excuse and again offers to divide lands he confiscated (chapter 16) when he heard that Mephibosheth was not supporting him.  Wisely Mephibosheth refuses to take back half the land from his maligned servant.  I guess he’s just thankful he was able to hoodwink David into forgiving him.

           

Barzillai, an old Gileadite who had provided food for David in Mahanaim, is asked to accompany David back to Jerusalem; but he prefers to go back to his own town.  He offers to send his son Chimham instead.  They go over to Gilgal.  There is a feud building here between the people of Israel and the people of Judah. It has been stoked by David himself because he sought Judah’s presence in his return—thinking he was owed it as a Judahite himself or thinking he needed their support.  But Israel is jealous because the Judahites outnumber the Israelites in David’s retinue, even though they (the Israelites) represent ten tribes as opposed to Judah’s two, and they were the first to request David’s return. “But the words of the people of Judah were fiercer than the words of the people of Israel” (19:43).

2 Samuel 20 – Sheba, a Benjaminite, foments trouble by claiming now that the people of Israel “have no portion in David” (20:1). The Israelites fall behind Sheba, but the Judahites return to Jerusalem with David. The concubines Absalom had compromised, David now locks away “until the day of their death, living as if in widowhood” (20:3).

David asks Amasa to call the men of Judah together within three days.  He is late though. So David sends Abishai and Joab against Sheba.  Amasa, late, catches up with them at Gibeon.  What must be the ill-feelings among these commanders – Amasa, reconciled to David but previously leader of the rebellion of Absalom; Joab and Abishai, loyal commanders of David’s troops (except for the disobedient slaying of David’s beloved rebel-son? It is not really surprising what happens then. When Amasa approaches Joab, Joab takes him “by the beard with his right hand to kiss him.  But Amasa did not notice the sword in Joab’s hand; Joab struck him in the belly so that his entrails poured out on the ground, and he died” (20:9-10).

Then – amazingly –Joab takes off after Sheba. Why is this man loyal to David??? The bloody body of Amasa, lying on the road distracts the men, until one of Joab’s men removes it to a field and covers it. They all pursue Sheba to Beth-maacah.  A woman in that town approaches Joab and tries to save her town.  Joab tells her that if Sheba is turned over, he will withdraw from the city.  So she promises to throw Sheba’s head over the wall (20: 21). It happens, and Joab returns to Jerusalem in command of all the army of Israel. David’s government is reconstituted.

Mark 14:54-72 - Jesus is taken to the high priest and all the chief leaders are there.  Peter follows “at a distance” into the courtyard of the high priest.  Inside, “many” give false testimony against Jesus but they do not agree. 

Jesus is silent until the high priest asks him if he is the Messiah.  Jesus answers directly: “I am; and ‘you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the power,’ and ‘coming with the clouds of heaven’” (14:62).  This drives the high priest insane.  Who needs witnesses he says in the face of this blasphemy.  They abuse him and the guards beat him.  Outside Peter denies him three times, hears the cock crow and cries in self-disgust.

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 18 and Mark 14:32-53

2 Samuel 18 – David organizes his men into three groups: one under Joab, one under Abishai (Joab’s brother) and one under Ittai the Gittite (Gath was a city in Philistia on the Mediterranean).  David wants to go out with them, but they prevail upon him to remain in the city to send help if they need it.  As they go out David says to them, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.  And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders concerning Absalom” (18:5). This is pretty amazing. I understand it as a parent. David is a man who has trouble NOT forgiving, NOT reconciling; but Absalom is the reason all these men are going out to fight and many of them will die. Yet the man who leads the rebellion they are trying to put down cannot be harmed??

           

The battle is fought in the Forest of Ephraim [east of the Jordan, near Mahanaim], and there is a great slaughter—20,000 fall.  The men of Israel are defeated by the servants of David (18:6). Absalom, riding his donkey, is caught up in a tree: “His head caught fast in the oak, and he was left hanging between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on” (18:9). Remember Absalom was a man renown for his abundant head of hair (see 14:25). Someone sees him and tells Joab.  Joab is angry that the man who came across Absalom did not kill him when he had the chance, but the man tells him he knows of the king’s wishes and was afraid to do it—believing that Joab would not have supported him against the king.  Joab says, “I will not waste time like this with you” (18:14). He runs three spears into Absalom’s heart and his armor-bearers follow suit. They recall their troops and bury Absalom in a great pit.

Priest Zadok’s son, Ahimaaz, wants to go tell David of their victory, but Joab sends a Cushite instead (worried about his reaction to the death of Absalom). Ahimaaz, however, refuses to be outdone and he outruns the Cushite.  David and his men see both running toward them.  Ahimaaz, wisely, only delivers news of the victory.  When David inquires about Absalom, he claims ignorance but does say there was some stir going on when he left. The Cushite does tell him, however. “The king was deeply moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept; and as he went, he said, ‘O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you.  O Absalom, my son, my son!’” (18:33).

If you have never listened to the amazing Sacred Harp version of “David’s Lamentation” you should listen to it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCrzfrFwctg&feature=related

Mark 14:32-53 - Jesus goes to Gethsemane and asks his disciples to remain while he prays.  He takes Peter, James and John with him further and then asks them to stay while he goes further.  He “throws himself on the ground and prays that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him” (14: 35), “yet, not what I want, but what you want” (14:36). He returns to find his disciples sleeping—“the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (14:38). Twice more this happens.  Then Judas arrives with a crowd, this time a crowd unfriendly to him.  He kisses Jesus.  One of his disciples draws a sword and strikes the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear.  Jesus does not rebuke him in this account. But then all his friends desert him, including the one who runs off naked when one of the arresting men seizes his loincloth (14:51).

I am not sure of this, but I recently read that the Roman Catholic practice of “Eucharistic Adoration” originated as a way of remembering this moment in Jesus life. Those who do it sit in simple silence in the presence of the host for an hour or so. I am not sure that people today link the practice with this part of the Jesus story, but I think it would be more meaningful if they did. Jesus asks his dearest followers to “wait for him” while he prays, while he faces the “cup of suffering” he must face for us. This struck me as a very beautiful idea. Quakers similarly sit in silence in his presence in their Meetings for Worship, but I am pretty sure they rarely link that experience with this moment in the lives of Jesus and his faithful few. I think linking both these practices with the narrative is very meaningful and enriching. 

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 17 and Mark 14:1-31

2 Samuel 17 – Ahithophel (the wise advisor) advises Absalom to pursue David that night while he is weary and discouraged and take him down – kill him, but him alone. Don’t kill everyone. Bring the rest of David’s army back to him and let them live in peace. But then Absalom seeks the advice of Hushai, the spy of David’s who has infiltrated Absalom’s circle of friends. He tells Absalom that Ahithophel is giving him poor advice—that David would not be “weary and discouraged” or easy to catch. He is a very experienced and clever fighter. He is probably off in a cave somewhere waiting for the time of battle (17:9). He advises Absalom to muster all of Israel and then overwhelm David, killing him and everyone fighting with him. Absalom chooses to go with Hushai’s plan: “the Lord had ordained to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, so that the Lord might bring ruin on Absalom” (17:14). Ahithophel, realizing he is doomed because David is sure to win this contest, goes home and hangs himself (17:23).

Hushai passes word of the plan along to Zadok and Abiathar, priests who have remained loyal to David. And they in turn get word of it to their sons, Jonathan and Ahimaaz, who are hidden by a man and his wife in a well.  David gets the news from them when he crosses the Jordan.

                       

Amasa is Absalom’s general. The bloodlines of all these characters are extremely tricky to follow. Amasa is, I think, a first cousin of David’s commander Joab. He is the son of Abigail who is Joab’s aunt (sister of his mother). When David arrives at Mahanaim, a man named Shobi brings food for his troops.

Mark 14:1-31 – Two days before Passover and the chief priests and scribes are still looking for a quiet way to get rid of Jesus.  Fear of the crowds, fear of the people is a dominant theme in this book—crowds that are attached to Jesus, that hunger for him and for his healing touch. Jesus is in Bethany, at the house of Simon the leper.  A woman anoints his head with expensive ointment.  The “waste” of this costly product angers those who think the money it represents would be better spent on the poor (14:5). But Jesus says they ought not to trouble the woman, for “you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but you will not always have me” (14:7). He also connects her anointment of him with his coming death.

           

Just after this, Judas goes to the chief priests and offers to betray him. Was he outraged at Jesus’ apparent dismissal of the concern for the poor in Jesus’ words? The disciples want to go and prepare a Passover meal.  He sends them into the city to meet a man who will show them a large room.  That evening they gather and eat.  He tells them that one among them will betray him, the “one who is dipping bread into the bowl with me” (14:20).

           

It is at this meal that the “tradition” holds that the sacrament of holy communion or “eucharist” [thanksgiving] is instituted: Jesus “took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said, ‘Take; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it. He said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many” (14:22-24). They then sing a hymn and go out to the Mt of Olives.  Here Jesus says to them, “you will all become deserters” (14:27). Peter swears he will never desert, but Jesus tells him he will do it not once but three times (14:30).  They all chime in.

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 16 and Mark 13:24-36

2 Samuel 16 – Meanwhile, Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, meets him with food for his men.  His master has stayed behind in Jerusalem believing that the overthrow will result in the restoration of his father’s patrimony to him.  David then turns all he has previously granted to Mephibosheth to the servant Ziba.

There is incredible drama in this story. Mephibosheth is the lame son of David’s dearest childhood friend, Jonathan – Saul’s son. Out of David’s love for his friend, now dead as a result of the conflict between David and Saul, he brought Mephibosheth under his protection and care. But now Mephibosheth is joining a rebellion. David responds here by taking the properties he bestowed on Mephibosheth and giving them to Ziba. But the story is not over yet. Forgiveness and love are very much attributes of this king – David.

           

At Bahurim, a man named Shimei of the family of Saul, comes out and curses David and throws stones at him.  He screams, “The Lord has avenged on all of you the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom.  See, disaster has overtaken you; for you are a man of blood” (16:8). Abishai (Joab’s brother) wants to kill him, but David reprimands him: “If he is cursing because the Lord has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’. . .Let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord has bidden him” (16:10-11).  They go to the Jordan.

Here too we see something very unique in David’s temperament – a willingness to hear unpleasant things, a willingness to let men “witness” before him. There was no First Amendment in this time, but David should be seen as laying the foundation for such freedom. Also, don’t forget, David is a king who has “on his staff” an honest prophet – Nathan – who is willing to challenge David’s actions and policies as King.

           

Back in Jerusalem, Hushai approaches Absalom and offers his loyalty. Absalom is suspicious, but accepts him. Then he asks Ahithophel for his advice about what he should do.  He tells him to go in to David’s concubines, that it will communicate to Israel that Absalom has taken his father’s place and has become odious to his father as a result.

Mark 13:24-36 - After all the suffering, “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.  Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory.  Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven” (13:24-27).

What shall we make of Jesus’ words, “I tell, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (13:30-31).  And then these really troubling words: “No one knows, however, when that day or hour will come—neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son; only the Father knows. Be on watch, be alert, for you do not know when the time will come” (13:33).

The mix of allusions in chapter 13–allusions to sufferings we know the disciples will all face after Jesus’ death and resurrection and allusions to what seems to be the end of the world – makes it very confusing. Clearly the first apostles of Jesus went out with an expectation that His Second Coming and the Parousia would come in their life-times. And when that did not happen, the apprehension about the “end times” became an obsession among many in the wider Christian community even to this day. Harold Camping thought he had it all figured out in 2011. Maybe the key is that the end-time comes for each and every one of us – at our deaths; and we should live our lives on alert to the frailty and transience of everything in this life, preparing it for Christ every day.