The Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 23 - 9 October 2011
Exodus 32:1-14
Psalm 106:1-6, 19-23
or
Isaiah 25:1-9
Psalm 23
Philippians 4:1-9
St. Matthew 22:1-14
Background: The Golden Calf
This commentary relates to the alternative first reading for this Sunday, the story of the Golden Calf (Exodus 32:1-14). In short, the story tells of the time when Moses was communing with God on Sinai, and the people below became restless. They cajole Moses’ brother Aaron to build for them a golden calf. God warns Moses and sends him back to confront the situation, which was seen as idolatrous. Moses pleads for his people and convinces God to set aside anger and wrath.
The idolatry point, however, is a bit troubling. Several possibilities are possible here. It may have been that the Israelites were copying the Egyptian practice of bull worship (the Apis Bull) that was an integral part of Egyptian culture. Given their homeland up in the Delta of the Nile, that might not seem likely. What is more likely, and probably influenced by the culture of the time when these stories were written is that the story is modeled on Canaanite practice. It was common in Ancient Near Eastern cultures to enthrone the god on an animal. Thus we have examples of the Baalim (literally “lords” – Baal being a title rather than a name) being depicted as standing on a calf, so that the calf itself is not a god, but the throne of a god.
There is another facet of this story. When the calf is completed, Aaron proclaims, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" One of the titles for God used in the Hebrew Scriptures, especially the so-called “E” or “Elohist” narrative, is the name/title “Elohim” a plural form of the word “El” (god). Thus the translation of Aaron’s comment “the gods who brought you,” may have actually referred to the “Elohim” title, thus making the calf the enthronement of YHWH.
Exodus 32:1-14
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, "Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." Aaron said to them, "Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me." So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a festival to the LORD." They rose early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel.
The LORD said to Moses, "Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, `These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'" The LORD said to Moses, "I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation."
But Moses implored the LORD his God, and said, "O LORD, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, `It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, `I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'" And the LORD changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.
Sometimes stories are remembered and told to comment not so much on the past as to have the past form a context for a present situation. Thus it is with this story of the golden calf. We have to remember that these stories were formed and reformed at difficult points in Israel’s history. In this reading we can see a commentary about the sin of Jeroboam at the cult sites at Dan and Bethel (I Kings 12:28). The editors forming this story of Moses are making a pointed lesson about what they saw as idolatry at these two shrines. Jeroboam had raised two such calves (see the Background Commentary above) probably as enthronements for God. The reaction of the priests is what we hear in this story. The plural case seen often in the story, “these are the gods” may actually reflect the situations at the shrine, the editors retrojecting the situation into the time of Moses, so that God might comment on it. Of more interest, however, is Moses role as a later-day Abraham, arguing for the life of the people. A very complex text, this reading would serve any preacher well.
Breaking open Exodus:
- How does Moses play the role of Abraham at the end of the reading?
- What are your substitutes for God?
- How has God brought you “out of Egypt?”
106:1-6, 19-23 Confitemini Domino, Et fecerunt vitulum
Hallelujah!
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, *
for his mercy endures for ever.
Who can declare the mighty acts of the LORD *
or show forth all his praise?
Happy are those who act with justice *
and always do what is right!
Remember me, O LORD, with the favor you have for your people, *
and visit me with your saving help;
That I may see the prosperity of your elect
and be glad with the gladness of your people, *
that I may glory with your inheritance.
We have sinned as our forebears did; *
we have done wrong and dealt wickedly.
Israel made a bull-calf at Horeb *
and worshiped a molten image;
And so they exchanged their Glory *
for the image of an ox that feeds on grass.
They forgot God their Savior, *
who had done great things in Egypt,
Wonderful deeds in the land of Ham, *
and fearful things at the Red Sea.
So he would have destroyed them,
had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, *
to turn away his wrath from consuming them.
Psalm 106 is a companion piece to psalm 105 that celebrates Israel’s history and God’s care of the people. Psalm 106 takes on a different character in that if focuses on that same history but noting the rebellious nature of the people of Israel (see verse 6). Verses 19 and following begin the focus on the golden calf (see the First Reading) and thus are appropriate as a reading for this Sunday. The remainder of the psalm is a recounting of all the murmurs and rebellions of Israel. Some scholars think that the psalm was written during the exilic period to remind the people of why they were there. The psalm ends on a positive note, however, although the verse is not included in today’s reading, “And he granted them mercy / in the eyes of all their captors.”
Breaking open Psalm 19
- What is Israel’s history of murmur and complaint?
- How does God react to this?
- How does this pattern relate to you or to our time?
Or
Isaiah 25:1-9
O LORD, you are my God;
I will exalt you, I will praise your name;
for you have done wonderful things,
plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
For you have made the city a heap,
the fortified city a ruin;
the palace of aliens is a city no more,
it will never be rebuilt.
Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
For you have been a refuge to the poor,
a refuge to the needy in their distress,
a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.
When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm,
the noise of aliens like heat in a dry place,
you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds;
the song of the ruthless was stilled.
On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,
of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.
And he will destroy on this mountain
the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
the sheet that is spread over all nations;
he will swallow up death forever.
Then the Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces,
and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
This is the LORD for whom we have waited;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
This reading was selected for this day to reflect the marriage banquet in the Gospel for today. It is, however, separated from that, an odd piece in Isaiah’s composition. It revels in the defeat of an alien city (which description will soon apply to Jerusalem). Perhaps first Isaiah used an older hymn celebrating the defeat of an enemy city, and as an introduction to the notion of the messianic banquet that begins with verse six. The mountain, of course, is the house of God – Zion. There the banquet is laid out and is not only a momentary pleasure, but also a continuing evidence of God’s care for the people.
Breaking open Isaiah:
1. When do you have feasts?
2. What do you celebrate?
3. What religious feasts do you celebrate?
Psalm 23 Dominus regit me
The LORD is my shepherd; *
I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures *
and leads me beside still waters.
He revives my soul *
and guides me along right pathways for his Name's sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I shall fear no evil; *
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You spread a table before me in the presence of those
who trouble me; *
you have anointed my head with oil,
and my cup is running over.
Surely your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days
of my life, *
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
Again, the choice of this psalm is related to the messianic banquet seen in Isaiah, and later in the Gospel. The poignant phrase in the psalm is the table that is spread “in the presence of those who trouble me.” Isaiah would have understood the paradoxical nature of that phrase and those following which attempt to rejoice in the “happy life” that God calls into being, and also the danger in which the people of God live.
Breaking open Psalm 23
1. Who are the enemies in the psalm
2. What does it mean that a table is set in the midst of them.
3. What other good things follow?
Philippians 4:1-9
My brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
We can see from the very beginning of this reading the intimate relationship that Paul has with the people of Philippi. Specific names (Euodia, Syntyche, and Clement) remind us that Paul has a real knowledge of these people. The following verses make up his final exhortation on how to live the Christian life. He lists the virtues of harmony, joy, and peace, and outlines why he commends them to them. These virtues are not distinctly Christian, but reflect the Greek culture which Paul relishes, and which he see as their aide. This is an example of his “perfect love casts out fear.” He is not afraid to speak with them about the philosophical values and virtues which are current. Their relationship with Christ will transform these virtues even further, culminating in the peace that God brings.
Breaking open Philippians:
- Do you have intimate friends at your church?
- Do you share values with them?
Matthew 22:1-14
Once more Jesus spoke to the people in parables, saying: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, `Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.' But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, `The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.' Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad, so the wedding hall was filled with guests.
"But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, `Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?' And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, `Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' For many are called, but few are chosen."
We are well into Jesus’ Journey and Entrance to Jerusalem, and like the hearers, we are already aware of the outcome. This parable, which is also found in Mark, uses allegory to teach its lesson. It also uses the model found in Isaiah 5, in which Israel is seen as the “vineyard”. We can surmise who the “landlord” represents if we can equally surmise who the “son” is. The tenants seem to represent the tension that was part and parcel between a landowner and tenants – one of strife. The slaves are the prophets. The son is not a figure from the Hebrew Scriptures, nor is he John the Baptist. Matthew wants us to view him as Jesus, the son who is slain. The quote is from Psalm 118:22-23, and seems to be a bit of an interloper. Its context is the acceptance of Gentiles into the church (a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom) and the rejection of Jesus by Israel.
Breaking open the Gospel:
- What does the marriage feast symbolize?
- Are you a guest?
- What about the one who is inappropriately clothed – what does that mean?
After breaking open the Word, you might want to pray the Collect for Sunday:
Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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