The Fifth Sunday in Lent - 25 March 2012
Jeremiah 31:31-34
Psalm 51:1-13
Hebrews 5:5-10
St. John 12:20-33
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| Abraham and Melchizedek |
Background: Melchizedek
In the second lesson for today we hear the name Melchizedek, which you may recall from the Abram stories. The name is constructed from two words melek (king) and sedeq (righteousness), so that the name means “my king (is) righteous(ness). In the Abram narratives, this king is introduced to the reader as the King of Salem (Jerusalem) and as a priest of El Elyon (the Highest God). The combination of these two offices of both king and priest was common in the ancient near east, and in the New Testament is combined with a third office, that of prophet. Jesus is often described as “Prophet, Priest, and King”. In the Abram story he greets Abram with bread and wine (an image that Christians understand as Eucharistic) and blesses Abram. The term El Elyon is used not only in Genesis, but in the psalter as well. In Psalm 110:4, the king is mentioned again: “The LORD has sworn and will not waver: You are a priest forever in the manner of Melchizedek.” This is the quote used in the reading from Hebrews, where Jesus is pictured in the guise and role of the ancient priest and king.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt-- a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, "Know the LORD," for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.
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| Michelangelo - Jeremiah |
The covenant between God and Israel was imaged in a variety of ways, and mediated amongst panoply of offices. We see the covenant in the tablets of the law, in its various manifestations to both Abraham and Sarah, in the works of the prophets, in the story of Noah, and several other forms and places. Here Jeremiah breaks new ground, and names a “new covenant”. The old covenant was a public event, attested to and witnessed by nature and the people. Jeremiah sees the covenant as an interior event, written on the heart. He compares the relationship of God and people to a marriage, and it is out of that personal relationship that the new covenant is to be enacted and lived out. No longer are king, priest, or prophet to be needed – only a heart filled with God’s grace and mercy. The knowledge of God in the individual mind will mediate its terms and conditions, and such knowledge will be seen in God’s forgiveness, “remembering their sin no more.”
Breaking open Jeremiah
- What is written on your heart?
- How do you know what it is that God would have you to do?
- How do you learn religious truth?
Psalm 51:1-13 Miserere mei, Deus
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your loving-kindness; *
in your great compassion blot out my offenses.
Wash me through and through from my wickedness *
and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions, *
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you only have I sinned *
and done what is evil in your sight.
And so you are justified when you speak *
and upright in your judgment.
Indeed, I have been wicked from my birth, *
a sinner from my mother's womb.
For behold, you look for truth deep within me, *
and will make me understand wisdom secretly.
Purge me from my sin, and I shall be pure; *
wash me, and I shall be clean indeed.
Make me hear of joy and gladness, *
that the body you have broken may rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins *
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, *
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence *
and take not your holy Spirit from me.
Give me the joy of your saving help again *
and sustain me with your bountiful Spirit.
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| David and Bathsheba |
Although this psalm was probably written later, perhaps after the Exile in Babylon (see verse 20, “Show goodness in your pleasure to Zion, rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.”), its attribution is to David, and to a specific situation in David’s life. The initial verses allude to the moment when Nathan the prophet comes into see David, after he had “come into bed with Bathsheba”. The psalm that follows is the quintessence of confession, supposedly from David’s lips, but suitable on any sinners tongue. The BCP translation blunts some of the sexual nature of the psalm. The translation of verse 7, “Indeed, I have been wicked from my birth, a sinner from my mother’s womb”, seems to mute the intent. Translated with the innuendo in mind it reads, “Look, in transgression was I conceived, and in offense my mother spawned me.” (Alter). The act of conception is pictured here as “lustful”, and the verb used for the mother is the same verb that is used for animals in heat. These highly colored verses set up a context for the confession that the author makes. Even in this context, the author pleads for cleansing, and the rituals of cleansing (hyssop, water, and blood) are brought to mind. The references to “spirit” in the latter verses of this reading may also refer to the breath, and essential essence of the author – now cleansed to make life holy again. The interior language of “heart” and “spirit” recall the intentions of Jeremiah’s writing (see the first reading) and may date from the same period.
Breaking open Psalm 51
- What is your take on “original sin.”
- Is the author of the psalm’s outlook on life healthy or not?
- What creates a new spirit within you?
Hebrews 5:5-10
Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him,
"You are my Son,
today I have begotten you";
as he says also in another place,
"You are a priest forever,
according to the order of Melchizedek."
In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
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| Jesus in the guise of Melchizedek |
The author of Hebrews wants us to be aware of time. In his comparison of Jesus to the priests of the Hebrew Scriptures, he wants us to see the eternal nature of Christ’s priesthood, but also the “caught in time” nature of Jesus’ instruction. Like many writers at this time, Jesus’ suffering becomes the means of his instruction and learning, and then his obedience with the Father. The perfection of Jesus is attested to in the divine words, “You are my son…” and in the references to Melchizedek (see the Background). The author also makes reference to Gethsemane where we hear Jesus’ prayer. Jesus does endure death, but is raise by the One to whom he addressed his prayers.
Breaking open Hebrews
- How does Jesus function as a priest?
- What do you think of the author’s description of Jesus’ prayer life?
- Can you learn through suffering?
John 12:20-33
Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus." Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
"Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say-- `Father, save me from this hour'? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name." Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again." The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, "An angel has spoken to him." Jesus answered, "This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
Here, in John, we come to a point of crisis. Confronted by Greeks (read Gentiles) who wish to see Jesus, Phillip and Andrews get Jesus’ take on the situation first. Jesus goes on to address them alone, the Gentiles seem to be forgotten or ignored. It is apparently not yet time for the ministry to the Gentiles. There is another crisis, which Jesus addresses to the two by announcing, “the hour has come.” This is the necessary hour that precedes the ministry to the whole world. Jesus addresses the seeming paradox of life coming out of his death by making the comparison to a grain of wheat. The image is powerful. Unless the seed is “buried” it can bring no life. He also describes the “selflessness” that leads to a worthiness of living.
The conversation breaks, abruptly, and Jesus begins to ruminate on his impending death. His initial comment, “Now my soul is troubled” seems to reflect the attitude noted by the author to the Hebrews (see comments on the second lesson). In the garden, Jesus asks for deliverance, but in this scene he quickly becomes the one who is willing to sacrifice his life. In his acceptance, “Father, glorify your name”, Jesus is accepted by the Father in an interior conversation much like that which Jesus has in his baptism in Mark.
Breaking open the Gospel:
- Why do you think the Greeks wanted to see Jesus?
- What does Jesus mean by speaking about “this hour”?
- What does Jesus mean by speaking of being “lifted up from the earth?”
After breaking open the Word, you might want to pray the Collect for Sunday:
Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; 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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