Links for today’s readings:

Read: Ezekiel 30 Listen: (4:07)
Read: 1 Timothy 2 Listen: (1:38)

Scripture Focus:  Ezekiel 30:21-22

21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. It has not been bound up to be healed or put in a splint so that it may become strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break both his arms, the good arm as well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand.

Reflection: Dis-armed Power

By Erin Newton

If you have ever dealt with an arm in a cast, you realize how vital upper-body mobility is for the majority of people around the world. (Some have lost the ability or never had the ability to move their arms and find ways to overcome such obstacles. It is an amazing feat.) But it is no wonder that the use of the word “arm” to denote power is a common expression both today and in the ancient world.

A broken arm for a warrior meant defeat and, most likely, death. Strength was always pictured as residing within the arms. Think of all the ways a warrior would need to use one’s arms—to shoot a bow, to swing a sword, to steer a horse, to put on armor, to hold a shield, to maneuver a slingshot, to drive a tent peg. Strong arms meant power.

But here Egypt’s arms are dislocated, broken. Not only injured and immobilized, but without bandage and healing. God’s judgment of this nation’s power is depicted as completely dis-arming.

God’s hand moves in judgment using the tool of one idolatrous nation against the other. And this is often the case. God can orchestrate the movement of one person, group of people, or nation to work out his plan for his people.

Numerous times had Egypt been the power looming over God’s people in the Old Testament. From Joseph’s flight to Egypt and the subsequent oppression in Exodus to the revolving struggle for power over the land, the influence of this nation on Israel and Judah was clear. Sometimes that influence looked like overt oppression. Other times that power resulted in an influence on their faith.

The Israelites were condemned by the prophets for engaging in idolatry—the proof of which has been found in the discoveries throughout the land. Archaeological discoveries of ancient Israel reveal images of deities that share common characteristics with Egyptian culture. Female figurines that likely resemble Asherah (a generic name associated in the Bible with the Canaanite goddess alongside Baal) sometimes included a hairstyle depicting Hathor, an Egyptian goddess.

When your arms are hanging limply to your side, you have no power. But you also cannot sculpt a god for yourself. The removal of power is not only a demotion in authority or influence. Sometimes God dislocates our strength to keep us from making gods and from offering such false salvation to others.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting

Your way, O God, is holy; who is as great as our God? — Psalm 77.13

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Read more about Lasting Revivals and Normal Idols

It’s easy to be judgmental of ancient idols…But these gods were normal…practical SOP that promised financial ROI.

Listen to Breaking the Rhyme Scheme

Christ will break this rhyme scheme. The rhythms of oppression will be rewritten. The drumbeat of violence will be silenced. The time signature of terrors will give way to rest.

Links for today’s readings:

Read: Ezekiel 29 Listen: (3:43)
Read: 1 Timothy 1 Listen: (2:59)

Scripture Focus: Ezekiel 29.6-7

6 Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.

“ ‘You have been a staff of reed for the people of Israel. 7 When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.

Reflection: Splintering or Blossoming Staff?

By John Tillman

Israel and Judah had a complicated relationship with Egypt.

At times, Egypt was a shelter for Israel and a place of safety and prosperity. Abraham, Isaac, Joseph, Jacob, even Jesus took shelter there. At others, Egypt was a place of slavery, death, oppression, and genocide. Joseph and his descendants were enslaved there. Egypt tried to murder Moses’ generation of boys. Moses fled and then returned to set the people free. Sometimes, Egypt was an ally, protector, and political marriage partner. Many of Israel and Judah’s kings took Egyptian wives to seal political alliances. Other times, Egypt was an invader, an enemy, and a conqueror, even placing a puppet king on Judah’s throne.

God described Israel’s relationship with Egypt using the metaphor of a splintering staff that injures those who lean on it. (2 Kings 18.21; Isaiah 36.6; Ezekiel 29.7) When Israel needed support and leaned on Egypt, they got more hurt than help. When it suited Egypt, they supported Israel. When it suited Egypt, they turned abusive and manipulative. We might call the relationship “toxic.”

Staffs represent leadership. Rather than lean on God, trust him, and follow his ways, Israel leaned on their own shrewd dealings and political marriages of convenience. They challenged God’s leadership and chose their own. They went their own way, trusting toxic Egypt.

The benefits of leaning on God go beyond strength alone. God is a strong and life-giving staff.

When Aaron’s leadership was challenged, God confirmed it using his staff. God caused Aaron’s staff to blossom with life, while the other leaders’ staffs stayed dead sticks of wood. (Numbers 17.6-9)

No matter what kind of support we need, God wants us to lean on him and his understanding, not our own. Other staffs will spinter and break, injuring us and wrenching our bodies and minds in the process. Everything and everyone else we might lean on is just dead wood.

Lean on Jesus, a greater help than Egypt or Aaron. Egypt’s staff splintered. Aaron’s staff budded and produced a few almonds. Jesus’ cross has blossomed into a tree of life. Aaron’s staff became a snake that defeated the serpentine staffs of Egypt. (Exodus 7.10-12) Jesus crushes the great dragon, the serpent of sin. (Genesis 3.15)

What staff are you leaning on or recommending to others? Is it an alliance? A person? A party? Every other staff will splinter. Only Jesus will blossom.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons

Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. — Psalm 92.12

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Read more about Political Promises

Political parties offer Christians the same speech Sennacherib’s commander made to Jerusalem.

Read more about Horses of Flesh or Spirit

For Israel, a recurring temptation popped up in crisis after crisis. They wanted to go back to Egypt.

Links for today’s readings:

Read: Ezekiel 28 Listen: (4:32)
Read: Ephesians 6 Listen: (3:17)

Scripture Focus: Ezekiel 28.12-19

12 “Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“ ‘You were the seal of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden,
the garden of God;
every precious stone adorned you:
carnelian, chrysolite and emerald,
topaz, onyx and jasper,
lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl.
Your settings and mountings were made of gold;
on the day you were created they were prepared.
14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub,
for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created
till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade
you were filled with violence,
and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
and I expelled you, guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud
on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
I made a spectacle of you before kings.
18 By your many sins and dishonest trade
you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire come out from you,
and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes on the ground
in the sight of all who were watching.
19 All the nations who knew you
are appalled at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.’ ”

Reflection: Tyre, Eden, the Temple

By John Tillman

Ezekiel references Adam’s fall from Eden and the Temple in Jerusalem to describe judgment on the king of Tyre.

Tyre’s relationship with Israel blessed both kingdoms. The friendship started with David and continued (as trading partners) throughout the history of Israel and Judah. Tyre’s religious practices and beliefs, however, followed Ba’al and other Canaanite gods. Tyre never worshiped Yahweh other than acknowledging David’s God in the perfunctory way a business partner would and supplying many of the materials that were used to build the Temple. Still, God held this foreign king responsible to him for justice and the welfare of others. God holds him responsible for violence and using dishonesty to gain wealth in addition to gloating over Israel’s fate.

Ezekiel’s metaphor of the king being cast out of Eden implies that the sin of Tyre and Adam are similar. Adam didn’t sin by thoughtlessly taking some fruit his wife handed him. Like the king, he wanted to be “like God,” wanted to declare himself wise, and wanted to say for himself what was right and wrong.

The stones mentioned are ones from the breastplate of the high priest in Jerusalem’s temple. This implies Ezekiel’s thoughts about the pride and corruption of the priests and religious leaders. The trappings of power, items of glamour and beauty intended to glorify God, were turned toward themselves. Beauty birthed pride. Splendor corrupted wisdom.

This lament leaves no doubt that, regardless of an individual’s beliefs or the culture’s moral outlook, God will not give a pass to anyone who follows the way of Tyre, Adam, and Jerusalem.

If Tyre, Adam, and the spiritual leadership of the Temple can fall, so can we. The same sins they tripped on strike at our heels. Wealth, power, and pride make us indifferent to suffering. They have us turn a blind eye to corruption. They lead us to accept violence as a means to an end. No ruler of a nation, no CEO, no pastor, staff member, or volunteer leader of a church is exempt.

Let us test our pride: Are we glorifying God or ourselves?

Let us test our power:  Are we serving others or ourselves?

Let us test our wealth: Are we blessing others or ourselves?

And let us have hope in Jesus. When we fail, for the repentant, there is forgiveness. His promises of mercy are as sure as his promises of judgment.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence

O Lord, watch over us and save us from this generation forever. — Psalm 12.7

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Read more about The Empire Has No Clothes

Isaiah confronted people with the truth, “The empire has no clothes!” Isaiah’s constant nakedness would not let Judah escape the image.

Read more about A Love Affair with Power

We are bombarded with messages about power…why we should support it…utilize it for our own benefit.

Links for today’s readings:

Read: Ezekiel 25 Listen: (2:50)
Read: Ephesians 3 Listen: (3:42)

Links for this weekend’s readings:

Read: Ezekiel 26 Listen: (3:45), Read: Ephesians 4 Listen: (3:58)
Read: Ezekiel 27 Listen: (5:15), Read: Ephesians 5 Listen: (3:42)

Scripture Focus: Ezekiel 27.3-7

3 Say to them, ‘Hear the word of the Sovereign Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you said “Aha!” over my sanctuary when it was desecrated and over the land of Israel when it was laid waste and over the people of Judah when they went into exile, 4 therefore I am going to give you to the people of the East as a possession. They will set up their camps and pitch their tents among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk. 5 I will turn Rabbah into a pasture for camels and Ammon into a resting place for sheep. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 6 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet, rejoicing with all the malice of your heart against the land of Israel, 7 therefore I will stretch out my hand against you and give you as plunder to the nations. I will wipe you out from among the nations and exterminate you from the countries. I will destroy you, and you will know that I am the Lord.’”

Reflection: Participating in Violence

By John Tillman

Violence is a complex topic in scripture.

God used violence for his purposes, but also condemned it, even when it accomplished his purposes. He used David’s violence to defend his kingdom but condemned that violence when he refused to allow David to build the Temple. (1 Chronicles 22.8) When David’s kingdom became evil, God used Babylon’s violence to destroy it, but condemned the Babylonians for what they did. (Isaiah 47.6)

In this section of Ezekiel God curses and condemns nations and tribes who didn’t commit violence against Jerusalem—they just celebrated it. God treated them as participants.

Violence is being normalized in culture and politics today. Calls for violence are frequent. Leaders on the left and the right have been threatened and attacked. Some (including Christians) have celebrated this.

Jesus clarified and redefined his followers’ relationship with violence. We are to have no flesh and blood enemies. We must love, pray for, and do good to our enemies. We are not to resist insults and not return evil for evil. Christians must be different than the world.

If our hearts bear malice towards humans, it doesn’t matter if we don’t commit violence against them. Jesus says we are guilty. (Matthew 5.21-22) God will treat us as participants, even if we are on the sidelines.

What does participating in violence “from the sidelines” look like?

Provoking or inciting violence. This can be subtle or overt. A person might just imply that it would be good if something bad happened to someone. Or someone might openly state that someone deserves harm. Even if no one carries out what was said, it is still inciting violence.

Supporting or promoting violence. This means organizing, planning, or providing the means for violence. One can provide the place, opportunity, or information needed for it to happen. One can allow it to continue or refuse to act to stop it. This is supporting violence even if we never swing a fist or wield a weapon.

Celebrating violence. This means cheering it on, enjoying the suffering of the victims, or joking about the outcome. It also means glamorizing it or defending it. It also means repeating the rhetoric of violence, using the slogans, and endorsing those who do.

Violence is part of our world but should have no place in our hearts or our leaders’ mouths. No matter how malicious our foes, there must be no room in our hearts for malice.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting

But you, O Lord my God, oh, deal with me according to your Name; for your tender mercy’s sake, deliver me.
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me. — Psalm 109.20-21

Read more about Victory Over Violence

As someone who experienced and participated in violence, I’m shocked at the glorification of violence in our culture and among Christians.

Read more about Sticks and Stones and Scorpions

Of course words can harm. Stones may strike, sticks may swing, or scorpions sting. Fear not. The gospel’s words of healing are for us and them.