[Propertalk] Fwd: Scripture in Context March 19, 2017 [for 3 Lent]

[Joe Parrish]

Forwarded:



-----Original Message-----
From: Tom O'Brien <tgobrien at comcast.net>
To: Tom O'Brien <tgobrien at comcast.net>
Sent: Mon, Mar 6, 2017 9:07 pm
Subject: Scripture in Context March 19, 2017



Dear Friends, 
 
[Below] is Scripture in Context for March 19, 2017.  I hope you and others find it informative and helpful. 
 
Blessings, 
 
Tom 


TODAY’S READINGS IN CONTEXT
MARCH 19, 2017
 
 
Exodus 17:1-7
 
The Book of Exodus, the second book of the Bible, covers theperiod from the slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh (around 1250 BCE, if the accountis historical), the Exodus itself, and the early months in the Wilderness.  
 
In Chapter 16, the people complained about not gettingenough food, and YHWH told Moses that He would “rain bread from heaven.”  This was “manna,” a Hebrew word that means“What is it?”  Manna is real stuff andcan be purchased even now in Arab markets in Jerusalem.  It is the carbohydrate-rich excretions ofinsects that feed on the twigs of tamarisk trees.  
 
In today’s reading, the Israelites quarreled with Moses andasked (rhetorically) if he brought them out of Egypt only so they could die ofthirst.  YHWH is portrayedanthropomorphically and tells Moses to strike a rock with his staff to getwater. 
 
Israel’s lack of trust in YHWH reappears in the Book ofDeuteronomy (and other books by the Deuteronomists – Joshua, Judges, Samuel andKings) as a reason the fortunes of Israel declined and the people weresubjugated to the Assyrians and the Babylonians.  
 
Romans 5:1-11
 
Paul’s letter to the Romans is his longest, last and mostcomplex letter. It was written in the late 50s or early 60s (CE) – about tenyears before the first Gospel (Mark) was written. 
 
Paul uses some words that are difficult for us.  He say we are “justified” in verse 1. This meansliving in “righteousness” or in a right relationship with God – being“justified” as a page of type is “justified” when the margins are square onboth the left and the right. 
 
Paul’s use of “faith” is better understood today as“faithfulness” because of its active aspect. For many modern persons, “Faith” is understood as intellectual assent toone or more propositions. “Faithfulness,” however, is an active living intoone’s beliefs through grace and trust in God.
 
Paul was a Jew who became a Jesus Follower (the term“Christian” hadn’t been invented in Paul’s lifetime). All during his life, animalsacrifices were made at the Jerusalem Temple as a way Jews were reconciled toYHWH. Animal sacrifices continued until the Temple was destroyed by the Romans in70 CE –  after Paul’s death.  It is therefore not surprising that Paul uses“sacrifice” language to interpret the meaning of the Crucifixion: “Christ diedfor us” (v.8); we are “justified by his blood” (v. 9); and “through whom wehave received reconciliation (v. 12).  
 
 
 

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