Daily Old Testament and Early Christian Writings: Leviticus 16 and Justin Martyr's First Apology 56-58

Leviticus 16 - Day of Atonement—When Aaron goes into the sanctuary he needs to bring a young bullock for a sin offering and a ram for a holocaust.  From the community he shall receive two male goats to the entrance and cast lots to determine which one will be for the Lord and which one will be for “Azazal” - a name for Satan the note suggests—it translates the word as “escaping goat” hence “scapegoat”.  The one for the Lord shall be offered up as a sin offering (hattat).  The other shall be “set alive before the Lord” and then sent into the desert.

The bullock Aaron brings for himself shall be offered up to atone for himself and his family.  Incense from the altar of sacrifice shall be brought inside the veil, placed on the fire so that a cloud of incense covers the propitiatory.  The blood of the bullock shall be sprinkled on the propitiatory. 

Then he offers the people’s sin offering and does the same with its blood—he makes atonement for the sanctuary, the meeting tent, for himself and for the community, for the altar—mixing the blood of both sacrifices. When he comes out he shall place his hands on the head of the other goat and confess the sins of the community.  Then the goat is escorted out of the community, out into the desert.  He leaves his vestments in the sanctuary, bathes and puts them on again and then offers up the holocaust and burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.

There shall be a fast on this day as well every year in perpetuity.

Early Christian Writers

Justin Martyr (100-165 AD) – First Apology

The Demons Still Mislead Men

56 – Not only did “the evil spirits” rely on their pre-incarnation stories of Jupiter and his sons, even AFTER Christ’s appearance and AFTER they learned of the prophesies regarding Him and AFTER they should have believed, the still continued to set their eyes on lesser men like Simon Magus and Menander.

We pray that the “sacred senate” and you leaders help people to avoid those evil doctrines and destroy the statue set up to honor them.

And Cause Persecution

57 – The devils can’t persuade us that there will be no eventual punishment of evil – just as they couldn’t keep Him hidden after He came.

The only thing “they who live irrationally, and were brought up licentiously in wicked customs, and are prejudiced in their own opinions, should kill and hate us.” But not only do we NOT hate them, we pity and try to lead them to repentance.

We do not fear death; all die. If they don’t believe that we exists after death, they help us by setting us free.

And Raise Up Heretics

58 – These same devils have tried to get us to list to Marcion of Pontus, “who is even now teaching men to deny that God is the maker of all things in heaven and on earth, and that the Christ predicted by the prophets is His Son, and preaches another god besides the Creator of all, and likewise another son. And this man many have believed, as if he alone knew the truth, and laugh at us, though they have no proof of what they say, but are carried away irrationally as lambs by a wolf, and become the prey of atheistical doctrines, and of devils. For they who are called devils attempt nothing else than to seduce men from God who made them, and from Christ His first-begotten; and those who are unable to raise themselves above the earth they have riveted, and do now rivet to things earthly and to the works of their own hands; but those who devote themselves to the contemplation of things divine, they secretly beat back; and if they have not a wise sober-mindedness, and a pure and passionless life, they drive them into godlessness.”

Marcion was not trying to lure men TO THE WORLD but away from all things physical. And that is not what we are about as Christians anyway. Our savior came in human flesh to redeem the lives we live.

Daily Old Testament and Early Christian Writings: Exodus 31 and Justin Martyr's First Apology 12-14

Exodus 31 – Artisans are chosen to make everything, artisans “filled . . . with a divine spirit—or breath--of skill and understanding and knowledge in [their] craft[s]” (31:3).  And then they are admonished to keep the Sabbath sacred “as a token” of the covenant between God and his people. Schocken’s translation “for in six days YHWH made the heavens and the earth, but on the seventh day he ceased and paused-for-breath” (31:17) is good, especially when we remember breath and spirit are the same.  The anthropomorphism of the image is appealing – to me at least.

Early Christian Writers

Justin Martyr (100-165 AD) – First Apology

12 – As for promoting peace, no one want to be a stronger helper and ally than Christians. We know that nobody escapes the notice of God and it is impossible “for the wicked, the covetous, the conspirator, [or] the virtuous” to escape the consequences of their deeds. And the consequences may be either “everlasting punishment or salvation” depending on what they did in life. 

If people KNEW this, then they would not CHOOSE wickedness or even “intend” it, for even the intention to do bad things does not escape God’s radar [my modern paraphrase].

He addresses his emperor with the assumption that he is a man who has a “reputation for piety and philosophy.”

Justin Martyr believes that all of what Jesus was and did was foretold by the prophets; and it is this amazing fulfillment of their words that provides Christianity with its convincing power.

13 – No “sober-minded man” could ever think that Christians are “atheists.” We worship “the Maker of this universe, and [declare] that He has no need of streams of blood and libations and incense.”

It would not be right for us to use “what He has brought into being for our sustenance” as burnt offerings; these things should be used by us and others who are in need “with gratitude to Him.”

“Our teacher of these things is Jesus Christ, who also was born for this purpose, and was crucified under Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judaea, in the times of Tiberius  Caesar; and we reasonable worship Him, having learned that He is the Son of the true God Himself, and hold Him in the second place, and the Prophetic Spirit in the third. . .”

People do not understand how we could believe that a “crucified man” could be “second to the unchangeable and eternal God, the Creator of all; for they do not discern the mystery that is herein . . ..”

14 – Justin Martyr points to the role of what he calls “demons” in deceiving authorities about what Christians are about. These demons “strive to hold you their slaves and servants.” Through dreams and sometimes “magical impositions” they convince those who do not resist them.

We, however, “stand aloof from them and follow the only unbegotten God through His Son.” We used to be like those who resist this truth. We too used to delight in fornication, used magical arts and valued material wealth above all things. We too used to hate and destroy one another because of “their different manners” – “men of a different tribe”; but “now, since the coming of Christ” we live with them in peace; we pray for our enemies and try to persuade those who “hate us unjustly to live conformably to the good precepts of Christ, to the end that they may become partakers with us of the same joyful hope of a reward from God the ruler of all.”

Christ was no sophist. To prove this, Justin says that he will review some of what Christ taught.

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Kings 6-7 and Luke 8

2 Kings 6 – The prophets in Elisha’s company feel crowded and suggest that they go to the Jordan to collect logs for a new dwelling (one log per prophet). He goes with them at their request.  They cut the tree down and one of the men loses an ax head – it falls into the water (6:5). They want to get it since it was borrowed from someone.  Elisha performs a miracle by cutting off a stick and throwing it into the water; this makes the ax head float (6:7).

                 

The kings of Syria and Israel go to war with each other; the Syrians (Aramaeans) camp somewhere and Elisha is able to tell the king of Israel where they are.  The Syrian king thinks one of his men is betraying him. 

When he learns that it is Elisha who is letting the king of Israel know everything, he sends men to seize him. When Elisha’s servant sees them coming, he is frightened; but Elisha tells him, “Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them” (6:16). To the Lord Elisha prays, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see” (6:17). Then, when the Aramaeans attack, he prays that they may be blinded and they are; then he tells them that the man they seek is not there but that he will take them where they want to go.  He takes them right to Samaria.  The king of Israel asks if he should kill them, but Elisha says no, “Did you capture with your sword and your bow those whom you want to kill? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink; and let them go to their master” (6:22). The raids on Israel stop.

                 

Later, when Ben-Hadad is the King of Aram, they come again and lay siege to Samaria.  Hadad was the national god of Damascus—a storm god—and the name Rimmon mean “thunderer” (Asimov, 361]. Starvation sets in. A woman comes to complain to the king that another woman suggested that they eat their children—the complaining woman’s son one day and then hers the next.  They eat the first, but when it comes time to eat the second, the woman hides him.  The king gets enraged with Elisha because he thinks that all these troubles are from the Lord! Elisha knows he is coming.

2 Kings 7 – Elisha predicts to the king that the next day, food will be available.  The king’s captain doubts, and Elisha tells him that because he doubts, he shall see it but not be permitted to eat of it.  Four leprous men decide to go to the Aramaean camp to get food; they have nothing to lose—they will die somewhere, they figure.

But when they arrive, no one is there—the Lord had given them to hear the sound of on-coming horses and chariots.  Thinking that the king of Israel had hired mercenaries to go against them, they abandon their camp. The men eat the food left behind and also carry off silver and gold; but then they get a pang of conscience and go tell their king.  The king thinks it is just a trap, but they go to check. They find the Aramaeans are gone and their equipment is strewn about everywhere. They plunder the camp. So the prediction of Elisha is realized—but the king’s captain is trampled to death by the people rushing to get the food.

Luke 8 – Jesus’ entourage now includes the twelve and some women “who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities” of various kinds—May Magdalene (who had 7 demons taken from her); Joanna (from Herod’s household); Susanna and “many others who provided from them out of their resources” (8:3).

We hear the parable of the sower from Luke (also in Matt.13 and Mark 4), and Jesus’ explanation.  Again a distinction is made by him between those to whom ears have been given for hearing directly and those who cannot hear directly what it is Jesus is teaching.  Jesus says, “The knowledge of the secrets of the Kingdom of God has been given to you, but to the rest it comes by means of parables, so that they may look but not see, and listen but not understand” (8:10). I have to say, I do not really understand what he is saying here. Anybody have any ideas?

After the parable of the sower, he tells the parable of the “lamp” on the lampstand (“nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light” (8:17).

Then Jesus’ family comes as in Mark 3:31 and again they are relegated in importance by Jesus, who insists that it is “those who hear the word of God and do it” (8:21) who are his real mother and brothers. It is softened just a little by omitting the rhetorical “Who are my mother and brothers?” we read in Mark.

They leave for the other side of the lake and run into the storm which Jesus calms (8:24).

When they arrive on the other side, Jesus encounters the man named Legion who is filled with demons.  Jesus banishes them into the swine and they run madly into the sea and are killed.  In Luke they beg Jesus not to send them back “to the abyss,” so he gives them permission to enter the swine (8:32).

The people beg him to leave, they are so afraid of Jesus.  He goes back across.  There he meets the synagogue leader, Jairus whose daughter is at the point of death.  Here we learn she is about 12 years old.  On the way to his house, the crowds press in on him and the woman with the hemorrhage touches his clothes. The hemorrhaging has been a problem for her for about twelve years. She is cured.  Jesus feels the power go out from him and finds out that it was she who had touched him.  Then they learn that Jairus’ daughter has died, but Jesus tells them no, she is only sleeping.  When she is cured, he asks them not to tell anyone about it (8:55). All this is essentially the same as in Mark.  The things added by Luke to this point are the teachings and the stories about the woman of ill-repute, the discourse on the Baptist and the story about the centurion’s slave.