August 2, 2009 - Ninth Sunday after Pentecost

The Lessons Appointed for Use on the

Sunday closest to August 3
Proper 13
Year B
RCL

Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15
Psalm 78:23-29
Ephesians 4:1-16
John 6:24-35

The Collect

Let your continual mercy, O Lord, cleanse and defend your Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without your help, protect and govern it always by your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


Old Testament

Exodus 16:2-4,9-15

The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The Israelites said to them, "If only we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger."

Then the LORD said to Moses, "I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not."

Then Moses said to Aaron, "Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, `Draw near to the LORD, for he has heard your complaining.'" And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. The LORD spoke to Moses and said, "I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, `At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.'"

In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, "It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat."

The Psalm
Psalm 78:23-29 Page 696, BCP

Attendite, popule

23
So he commanded the clouds above *
and opened the doors of heaven.

24
He rained down manna upon them to eat *
and gave them grain from heaven.

25
So mortals ate the bread of angels; *
he provided for them food enough.

26
He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens *
and led out the south wind by his might.

27
He rained down flesh upon them like dust *
and winged birds like the sand of the sea.

28
He let it fall in the midst of their camp *
and round about their dwellings.

29
So they ate and were well filled, *
for he gave them what they craved.




Ephesians 4:1-16

I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ's gift. Therefore it is said,

"When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive;
he gave gifts to his people."

(When it says, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people's trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body's growth in building itself up in love.


John 6:24-35

The next day, when the people who remained after the feeding of the five thousand saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal." Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, `He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."


EXEGESIS:

VERSES 22-23: THE CONTEXT


21Then (the disciples) wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going. 22The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.


This chapter opens with the feeding of the five thousand (vv. 1-15) and continues with Jesus walking on the water (vv. 16-21) and the crowd realizing that Jesus has departed (vv. 22-23).

Verses 21-23 are draw attention to a miracle that speaks to Jesus' identity. In the "walking on water" miracle, Jesus came to the disciples in their boat and they wanted him to get into the boat, but "immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going" (v. 21) –– the implication being that Jesus never did get in the boat –– that he made his journey across the sea from beginning to end on foot.

Then the narrator adds that the crowd realized that there had been only one boat and that Jesus had not gotten in it.

These facts constitute essential background for the question that the crowd will pose to Jesus in verse 25.


VERSES 24-27: RABBI, WHEN DID YOU COME HERE?

24So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?"


In verse 1, Jesus "went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee" –– presumably the eastern side. Then in verse 16, the disciples "got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum," on the northwestern side. They rowed three or four miles, nearly across the lake, when Jesus walked on water to join them. After he did so, "the boat reached the land toward which they were going" (v. 21).

"So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus" (v. 24). Surely only a few of the five thousand people actually cross the sea in their small boats. This verse doesn't tell us why the crowd is seeking Jesus, but the last time we saw them, they were trying to make Jesus king (v. 15).

Finding Jesus, they ask, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" (v. 25). Much of this Gospel can be understood on two levels, and that is true of this question. The crowd means to ask only about the manner by which Jesus transported himself to Capernaum, but we learned in verses 22-23 that the crowd had noticed that there was only one boat and that Jesus had not gotten into it. Jesus got there by walking on the water –– a miracle that speaks to his identity as the Son of God (Ridderbos, 223).

And this Gospel has already told us that "the Word became flesh and lived among us" (1:14). The incarnation is the more profound answer to the question of when Jesus came here.


VERSES 26-27: DO NOT WORK FOR THE FOOD THAT PERISHES

26Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal."


Jesus ignores their question and rebukes them for their superficial interest. "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves" (v. 26). "Instead of seeing in the bread the sign, they had seen in the sign only the bread" (Lange, quoted in Morris, 317). In its hierarchy of needs, the crowd is focused at stomach-level rather than spirit-level. At the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus satisfied their physical hunger, and now they are looking for more of the same.

The meeting of physical needs never loses its appeal. "If (God) will give us loaves and fishes, better houses, shorter hours, bigger wages, gadgets to lessen work and add to our leisure, ...we will follow him for (these things). But who wants his spiritual gifts? What would we do with them? What difference would they make?" (Gossip, 563).

"Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you" (v. 27a). Jesus challenges the crowd to raise their eyes to see beyond the physical realm. Earlier he said of himself, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work" (4:34). Now he challenges the crowd to join him on his spiritual journey. We first heard these words, "perish" and "eternal life" in 3:16, where Jesus speaks of God loving the world and giving the Son "so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."

Jesus is not saying that physical needs are unimportant. Elsewhere he speaks of food, drink, and clothing, assuring his listeners that "your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things," and promising that, if they will seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness, "all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:32-33). Much of Jesus' earthly ministry is focused on healing people's physical ills. But now he calls the crowd to acknowledge their need for "food that endures for eternal life" –– promising that the Son of Man will give them that food.

The people addressed Jesus as rabbi (v. 25), but he refers to himself as "the Son of Man" (v. 27). He could refer to himself as Messiah, but that word would raise expectations that he has no intention of fulfilling. People expect the Messiah to drive out the Romans and to make Israel great once again, but that is not the focus of Jesus' ministry. The phrase, Son of Man, carries less political baggage and, in this Gospel, "is increasingly laden…with associations of revelation brought from heaven to earth" (Carson, 284).

"For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal" (v. 27b). A seal authenticates authorship or ownership. An official uses a signet ring with a distinctive design to stamp an impression in wax on a document. Such a seal gives the document official status, just as a signature does today. The bearer of such a document would be accorded the respect due the person who sealed it. God the Father has set his seal on the Son, who acts as his emissary from heaven to earth (1:51; 3:13). Jesus does not tell us when this sealing took place, but perhaps it took place at his baptism, when the Spirit descended on him (1:33) and a voice from heaven said, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased" (Mark 1:11).


VERSES 28-29: THIS IS THE WORK OF GOD, THAT YOU BELIEVE

28Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works (Greek: erga ––plural) of God?" 29Jesus answered them, "This is the work (Greek: ergon –– singular) of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent."


"What must we do to perform the works (plural) of God?" (v. 28). Every since the giving of Torah law at Mount Sinai (Exodus 20 ff.) the Jewish people have accepted obedience to the law as the approved way of serving God. Torah law is complex, however, and it sounds as if this crowd is asking Jesus to point them to the heart of the law –– in much the same way that the young ruler will ask, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" (Luke 18:18). Understanding the law to be complex, they do not ask Jesus to summarize it in one commandment, as one of the scribes will do (Mark 12:28) –– although Jesus will later do just that (13:34; 15:12 –– see also Mark 12:30-31, where Jesus summarizes the law in two commandments). Instead, this crowd asks Jesus to identify the works (plural) –– the truly critical laws –– so that they might focus their attention on those. They are asking Jesus for a faithful guide through the maze of laws and commentary that lies at the center of their religious practice.

In the Synoptics, Jesus summarizes the law for his listeners (Mark 12:29-31), but here he directs them away from the law and toward himself. "This is the work (singular) of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent" (v. 29). While the crowd seemed confident that they could perform whatever works that Jesus might identify as critical, the fact is that obedience to the law is fraught with failure. As Paul put it, "I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate" (Romans 7:15). Our spirits are willing, but our flesh is weak (Mark 14:38). By inviting the crowd to believe in him, Jesus provides an achievable alternative to the Sisyphean task of law-keeping. Paul stated much the same idea in these words: "For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law" (Romans 3:28).


VERSES 30-31: WHAT SIGN ARE YOU GOING TO GIVE US?

30So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' "


"What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing?" (v. 30). Signs have been part of human life from the very beginning when God set a bow in the clouds as a sign of the covenant that God would never destroy the earth by flood again (Genesis 9:12 ff.), God has employed signs of various kinds –– symbols or miracles that point beyond themselves to something greater. Thus circumcision is a sign of the covenant (Genesis 17:11). The unleavened bread of the Passover is a sign to remind Israel of the salvation that God afforded them in Egypt (Exodus 13:9). The sabbath is a sign (Exodus 31:13, 17). God expected the Israelites to respond to signs and wonders by believing, and was disappointed when they failed to do so (Numbers 14:11, 22; Deuteronomy 4:34).

The Exodus from Egypt and its accompanying miracles served as the greatest sign of all (Joshua 24:17). Particular signs included Aaron's miraculous rod (Exodus 7:8-13) –– the various plagues (Exodus 7:14 –– 12:32) –– the Passover (Exodus 12) –– pillars of cloud and fire (Exodus 13:17-22) –– crossing the Red Sea (Exodus 14) –– bitter water made sweet (Exodus 15:22-26) –– manna from heaven (Exodus 16) –– and water from a rock (Exodus 17). These miracles not only saved Israel, but also served as signs to authenticate Moses' leadership and to point to God's love and special provision for Israel.

This crowd recognizes the radical nature of Jesus' invitation and demands assurance that he has authority to advocate such a sweeping departure from their traditional religious practice. They want a sign to authenticate him as God's prophet. For twelve centuries, they have observed Torah law –– Mosaic law –– God-given law –– as the way to please God and to assure their own salvation. For centuries, their rabbis have devoted their best efforts to applying the law to every situation. Throughout Israel's history, God has called Israel again and again to faithful observance of the law, and has called prophets to help them to understand it.

Now this thirty-something-year-old uncredentialed product of an undistinguished father and an even less distinguished town is suggesting that they abandon their long-held allegiance to the law and stake their lives on him. No wonder they want to authenticate his authority in some unmistakable, compelling way! To follow him otherwise would be the height of recklessness. However, the crowd seems to have lost sight of the fact that Jesus has just now authenticated his Godly connection by feeding five thousand (or more) people with a boy's lunch!

"Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat' " (v. 31). They ask for a sign (v. 30), and cite manna as the kind of sign that they expect (v. 31). They quote scripture, but imprecisely –– "He gave them bread from heaven to eat" (v. 31) is an amalgam of several scriptures (Exodus 16:4; Nehemiah 9:15; Psalms 78:24; 105:40). Moses' gift of manna authenticated his status as prophet. If Jesus expects this crowd to accept him as a Moses-like prophet, he must give them a Moses-like sign. They have seen false prophets come and go, and want rock-solid proof that Jesus is not one of them.

Their demand represents the response of ordinary people faced with a new situation. Jesus has thrown them off-center, and they are struggling to regain their balance. So they establish the criterion that Jesus must meet if they are to believe, and establish themselves as judge and jury. "Show us a sign, we will see, we will weigh the evidence, we will draw conclusions, and we might even decide to believe" (Craddock, 367).

Their vision seems astonishingly myopic, given that Jesus has just fed the five thousand (or perhaps ten or twenty thousand including women and children) with a few loaves and fishes (vv. 1-15), but Jesus' miracle pales when compared to Moses' miracle. Jesus fed a few thousand people on one occasion; Moses fed the whole nation every day for forty years. Jesus gave the crowd ordinary bread; Moses gave Israel bread from heaven. The crowd has seen Jesus perform a miracle, but now they raise the bar to demand that he match Moses' miracle.

There is a lesson here for us. We, too, suffer from spiritual myopia. Wonderful things happen in our presence every day, but we fail to see them or take them for granted. Martin Luther observed:

"God's wonderful works which happen daily are lightly esteemed,
not because they are of no import
but because they happen so constantly and without interruption.
Man is used to the miracle that God rules the world and upholds all creation,
and because things daily run their appointed course, it seems insignificant,
and no man thinks it worth his while to meditate upon it
and to regard it as God's wonderful work,
and yet it is a greater wonder
than that Christ fed five thousand men with five loaves
and made wine from water."

God feeds billions daily, but we take notice only when we miss a meal –– or when the feeding takes place under dramatic circumstances. We, too, say, "Give us a sign, Jesus. Do something spectacular, so we can believe in you." Sometimes we even present Jesus with trivial tests –– "Find me a parking place, Jesus, and then I will believe."


VERSES 32-34: THE BREAD OF GOD GIVES LIFE TO THE WORLD

32Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."


Jesus makes a half-dozen points here:

• It was God, not Moses, who gave the manna (v. 32).

• The manna was not the true bread from heaven (v. 32), but was "at most a type of the true bread that God, who is in a unique sense Jesus' Father, now gives" (Smith, 153).

• It isn't that the Father "gave" (past tense), but that the Father "gives" (present tense) (v. 32).

• The bread of God is incarnational –– comes down from heaven (v. 32). That is in keeping with the Prologue of this Gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth" (1:1, 14).

• The bread of God gives life (v. 33). The manna sustained physical life, but the true bread of God gives eternal life (see 3:16).

• The scope of the life-giving "bread from heaven" is broad, embracing the whole world (v. 33; 3:16). Manna gave life to the Israelites, but only temporarily –– the wilderness Israelites died centuries earlier. The true bread of life gives eternal life –– and gives it to the whole world –– not just to Israel.

The crowd responds, "Sir, give us this bread always" (v. 34). Their answer parallels that of the Samaritan woman, who said, "Sir, give me this water" (4:15a). Both sound as if they are asking Jesus for a spiritual gift, but the Samaritan woman added, "so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water" (4:15b). Her understanding was only superficial. We suspect that the same is true of this crowd.


VERSE 35: I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE

35Jesus said to them, "I am (Greek: ego eimi) the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.


The crowd failed to understand when Jesus spoke of "the bread of God (that) comes down from heaven and gives life to the world" (v. 33), so Jesus makes his meaning clear. "I am the bread of life," he says (v. 35a).

This is the first of a series of "I AM" (Greek: ego eimi) sayings in this Gospel that remind us of the burning bush story. When Moses asked God his name, God replied, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you' " (Exodus 3:14). "I am," of course, can be simple self-identification, but in John's Gospel it clearly means more. The "I AM" sayings in this Gospel are as follows:

• "Ego eimi he" (4:26)
• "Ego eimi the bread of life" (6:35).
• "Ego eimi the living bread" (6:51).
• "Ego eimi the light of the world" (8:12; 9:5).
• "Before Abraham was, Ego eimi" (8:58).
• "Ego eimi the door of the sheep" (10:7).
• "Ego eimi the door" (10:9).
• "Ego eimi the good shepherd" (10:11).
• "Ego eimi the resurrection and the life" (11:25).
• "Ego eimi the way, the truth, and the life" (14:6).
• "Ego eimi the true vine" (15:1).

"The 'I am' sayings form the distinctive core of Jesus' language of self-revelation in the Fourth Gospel…. Through these common symbols, Jesus declares that people's religious needs and human longings are met in him" (O'Day, 601).

"Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty" (v. 35b). "According to Deut. 8.3, the manna had been given as an object lesson in order that Israel should 'understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord'. The latter clause clearly has in view the Torah in particular.... Philo makes a similar connection...of the manna as a type of Wisdom... or of the Logos.... Now as the divine revealer and giver of the life of the age to come, Jesus claims to fulfil and surpass what Torah, Wisdom and the Logos would have signified for first-century Judaism. This central claim of the discourse relates back both to v. 27 and to v. 31. The food which remains for eternal life and the bread given from heaven are both to be found in Jesus, who is the bread of life" (Lincoln, 228-229).

Jesus' comments will elicit complaints from "the Jews," who will say, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" (v. 42). We should not wonder that they complain. "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said wouldn't be a great moral teacher. He'd either be a lunatic –– on the level with a man who says he's a poached egg –– or else he'd be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse" (C. S. Lewis, The Case for Christianity).

Paul speaks of the offense (Greek: skandalon –– stumbling block) of the cross (Galatians 5:11), and the cross is surely a skandalon to anyone who expects God to behave in keeping with his stature. But the incarnation is also a skandalon –– perhaps an even greater skandalon.


THOUGHT PROVOKERS:

Who worships God as God, God hears.
But he who worships God for worldly goods, worships not God;
he worships what he worships God for
and employs God as his servant.

Meister Eckhart

* * * * * * * * * *

Don't forget until too late
that the business of life is not business,
but living.

B.C. Forbes,
founder of Forbes, a magazine about business

* * * * * * * * * *

For a small living, men run a great way;
for eternal life, many will scarce move a single foot from the ground.

Thomas à Kempis

* * * * * * * * * *

Pity the nation whose factory chimneys
rise higher than her church spires.

John Kelman

* * * * * * * * * *

I have often thought that if Hollywood stars
have any God-given role to play in our society
it is to teach us that happiness, satisfaction in life, has nothing to do with fun.
These rich, beautiful and celebrated individuals
do indeed have constant access to what they desire ––
glamorous parties, fancy cars, expensive homes, luxurious vacations,
a steady supply of attractive sex partners,
invitations to exciting sporting and theatrical events.
And yet in memoir after memoir,
many of these celebrities reveal the unhappiness hidden beneath all the fun:
depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, broken marriages,
troubled children, profound loneliness.
We should feel greatly indebted to all the Hollywood stars
who have written about their sad lives.
If we could only learn from their experiences....

Dennis Prager

* * * * * * * * * *

Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com

The Bible texts of the Old Testament, Epistle and Gospel lessons are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

The Collects, Psalms and Canticles are from the Book of Common Prayer, 1979.

July 26, 2009 - Eighth Sunday after Pentecost

Scripture Study
PROPER 12
YEAR B
JULY 26, 2009


THE READINGS FROM HOLY SCRIPTURE

A reading from Second Kings

A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing food from the first fruits to the man of God: twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. Elisha said, "Give it to the people and let them eat." But his servant said, "How can I set this before a hundred people?" So he repeated, "Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the LORD, `They shall eat and have some left.'" He set it before them, they ate, and had some left, according to the word of the LORD.


Remaining seated, let us read responsively from Psalm 85

10 All your works praise you, O LORD,
and your faithful servants bless you.

11 They make known the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your power;

12 That the peoples may know of your power
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;
your dominion endures throughout all ages.

14 The LORD is faithful in all his words
and merciful in all his deeds.

15 The LORD upholds all those who fall;
he lifts up those who are bowed down.

16 The eyes of all wait upon you, O LORD,
and you give them their food in due season.

17 You open wide your hand
and satisfy the needs of every living creature.

18 The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and loving in all his works.

19 The LORD is near to those who call upon him,
to all who call upon him faithfully.



A Reading from the Letter to the Ephesians [Ephesians 3:14-21]

I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.


The Holy Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint John
Glory to you, Lord Christ. [John 6:1-21]

Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee also called the Sea of Tiberias. A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near. When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?" He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, "Six months' wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little." One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, "There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?" Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, "Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost." So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world."

When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.


EXEGESIS:

CHAPTER 6: GALILEE, JERUSALEM, GALILEE, JERUSALEM

The end of chapter 4 finds Jesus in Galilee. Chapter 5 moves to Jerusalem. Chapter 6 (our reading for this week) moves back to Galilee. In chapter 7 Jesus returns to Jerusalem. It would simplify the geography to put chapter 6 between chapters 4 and 5, but this author is more concerned with theology than geography. Jerusalem will be the place of Jesus' death during a subsequent Passover. There he will break bread with the disciples in the Upper Room, temporarily closeted away from his enemies. Here, at Passover, far from Jerusalem, he will break bread with thousands on a mountaintop.

This week's Gospel lesson includes two stories. The first (vv. 1-15) recounts the feeding of the five thousand. The second, (vv. 16-21) tells of Jesus walking on water. Both the miraculous feeding of bread from heaven and the miraculous crossing of the sea are reminiscent of the Exodus.


VERSES 1-4: JESUS WENT UP THE MOUNTAIN AND SAT DOWN

1After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias. 2A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. 3Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. 4Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.


"After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee" (v. 1a). The "other side" is probably the eastern side, across from Tiberius, but this isn't certain. Wherever they are, the disciples will get in their boat and depart for Capernaum, at the north end of the sea, when evening comes (6:16).

"also called the Sea of Tiberias" (v. 1b). The Sea of Tiberius is a name found in the Gospels only here and at 21:1. The name comes from the city of Tiberius which was built on the west shore of the sea by Herod Antipas, completed in 20 A.D. and named in honor of Tiberius Caesar, who reigned as the Roman emperor from 14-37 A.D. The sea is also known as Gennesaret (Luke 5:1).

"A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick" (v. 2). In Galilee, Jesus healed the son of a royal official (4:46-54). In Jerusalem he healed a man who had been sick for 38 years (5:1-18). This verse suggests that there were additional healings in Galilee during this visit.

"they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick" (v. 2b). The words "sign" and "signs" are important in this Gospel, occurring 17 times. A sign is "something that points to, or represents, something larger or more important than itself.... In the New Testament, ...signs point primarily to the powerful, saving activity of God as experienced through the ministry of Jesus and the apostles" (Lockyer, 991). "Miraculous 'signs' as a source of faith play an important part in the gospel of John (cf. John 20:30). The positive and correct reaction of the people to Jesus' signs is recorded (6:2, 14; 7:31; 10:41-42; 12:18-19). But, even in John, Jesus retains a skeptical assessment of faith induced by signs (2:23-25; 4:48) and attempts to point beyond the signs to the demands and promises of his message (3:2-3; 6:26-27, 35-40)" (Myers, 949).

"Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples" (v. 3). These words signal that something important is about to happen. Mountains are places where God and God's will are revealed –– where God gave the Torah to Moses (Exodus 19) –– where God defeated the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18) –– where Jesus gave his greatest sermon (Matthew 5-7) –– and where he will be transfigured (Matthew 17; Mark 9; Luke 9).

This reference to the mountain is one of a series of Exodus/Moses images in this chapter. Others include crossing the sea (v. 1), the mention of the Passover (v. 4), God's provision of bread (manna) (v. 11), the gathering of fragments (v. 12), the mention of manna (vv. 31-32, 49-50), and the mention of "the bread that came down from heaven" (v. 58). Jesus is like Moses, but is greater than Moses.

"Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near" (v. 4). The mention of the Passover is another signal that something important is happening. This Gospel tells of three Passovers:

•The first was in Jerusalem, where Jesus cleansed the temple at Passover (2:13-25). In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), the cleansing takes place near the end of Jesus' ministry, but this Gospel reports it as taking place immediately after the first of Jesus' signs, a miracle of abundance, the making of wine from water at the wedding feast in Cana of Galilee (2:1-11).

• Now, at Jesus' second Passover, we have another miracle of abundance, the feeding of the five thousand (6:1-14), a miracle like unto God's gift of manna in the wilderness –– a linkage that Jesus will make clear in the Bread of Life discourse (6:22-40) that follows the feeding of the five thousand.

• The story of Jesus' third Passover will require eight chapters for its telling (11:55 - 19:42), and will include the events leading up to Jesus' crucifixion as well as the crucifixion itself. The Passover celebrates the Exodus, with the Passover lamb commemorating the salvation of the Israelites from the death angel. In this Gospel, Jesus is "the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world" (1:29, 36 –– see also 1 Corinthians 5:7; 1 Peter 1:18; Revelation 5:12). Just as the Passover lamb saved the lives of the Israelites, so the Lamb of God has come into the world "so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life" (3:16).


VERSES 5-9: WHERE ARE WE TO BUY BREAD FOR THESE PEOPLE TO EAT?

5When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?" 6He said this to test (Greek: peirazon) him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. 7Philip answered him, "Six months' wages (Greek: diakosion denarion –– two hundred denarii) would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little." 8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 9"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?"


Unlike Matthew 14:14 and Mark 6:34; 8:2, this Gospel does not mention Jesus' compassion for the crowds, who are like sheep without a shepherd. In this Gospel, this story has to do with faith in Jesus rather than his compassion.

The story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand is also found in Luke 9:10-17, making it the only miracle story to be found in all four Gospels.

"Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?" (v. 5). Jesus addresses his question to Philip, whose home is in nearby Bethsaida (1:44). If anyone would know where to purchase bread locally, Philip should know.

This is an allusion to the question raised by Moses to God in the wilderness: "Where am I to get meat to give to all this people?" (Numbers 11:13).

Jesus "said this to test (peirozon) him" (v. 6a). Peirazon can mean "to examine" or "to tempt." The examiner hopes that the student will pass the test, while the tempter hopes that the student will fail. Jesus is an examiner here –– hoping to find in Philip a man of faith.

"for he himself knew what he was going to do" (v. 6b). Jesus has a plan in mind. He is not asking Philip a question to initiate a brainstorming session to solve a difficult problem. He is probing Philip to learn the depth of his faith.

"Six months' wages (diakosion denarion –– two hundred denarii) would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little" (v. 7). Philip points out the obvious difficulty –– the purchase of bread for such a large crowd would be very expensive. The Greek says diakosion denarion –– two hundred denarii. A denarius is a day's wages for a working man, so two hundred denarii represents at least six month's wages –– a capital sum that would seem enormous to a man like Philip. How can he get that kind of money?

Philip could go even further by pointing out the logistical problems associated with the procurement and transportation of such a large quantity of bread. Even if the disciples could collect sufficient funds, they could hardly expect to find bread already baked in sufficient quantities to feed thousands. How many ovens would be required? How many bakers? How much flour? How long would it take for the dough to rise? To bake? How could the disciples transport thousands of loaves of bread? What about water? What about toilet facilities? If the disciples were to tackle this monumental task and gather the necessary food, could Jesus reorganize the crowd for teaching again after dinner? Wouldn't it make more sense to dismiss them now and let them find their own dinner?

But doesn't Philip remember Jesus' miracle at Cana (2:1-11) –– "the first of his signs" (2:11) –– revealing Jesus' glory and causing his disciples to believe in him (2:11)? Philip was already Jesus' disciple when Jesus worked that miracle of abundance (1:43-48). While we are not specifically told that Philip was present at the Cana wedding, surely he has heard about that miracle. For whatever reason, he fails to connect that miracle of abundance with the need for abundance here.

"One of (Jesus') disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 'There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?'" (vv. 8-9). Andrew makes a feeble stab at a solution, identifying a modest resource –– a boy with his lunch. But then he endorses Philip's pessimism by saying, "But what are they among so many people?" Both Philip and Andrew help us to understand the magnitude of the coming miracle by stressing the obvious difficulties.

"five barley loaves" (v. 9). Barley loaves are an inferior bread usually eaten by poor people. It is less nutritious, less tasty, and harder to digest than bread made from wheat.

These barley loaves recall Elisha's miraculous feeding of one hundred people with a small supply of barley loaves. In that story, a man from Baal-shalishah brought twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain to give to Elisha for the offering of the first fruits. Elisha said, "Give it to the people and let them eat." But his servant said, "How can I set this before a hundred people?" So Elisha repeated, "Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the Lord, 'They shall eat and have some left.'" The servant "set it before them, they ate, and had some left, according to the word of the Lord" (2 Kings 4:42-44). The connections between the stories of the prophet Elisha and the prophet Jesus are unmistakable.

"and two fish" (v. 9). The fish are probably small –– an accompaniment for the bread, which is the main course.

This is all that the Gospels have to say about this boy (the Synoptics don't even mention him). The boy is an unlikely candidate to save the day, just as the shepherd-boy, David, was an unlikely opponent for Goliath many years earlier. His pitiful offering is as inadequate as was David's sling. The boy has little to offer, but he offers that little bit. Jesus will transform that little bit into more-than-enough.

What if the boy were unwilling to share his lunch? What if he were to say, "I need this for myself" –– or "My little bit won't make any difference"? "In the parable of the talents our Lord makes it plain that... it is the one-talent people who are most likely to falter and fail him; and this on the ground that anything they could do is so trivial as to be not worth doing.... That, says Christ, is a fallacy that has disastrous consequences" (Gossip, 555). "There would have been one great and shining deed fewer in history if that boy had refused to come or if he had withheld his loaves and fishes. The fact of life is that Jesus Christ needs what we can bring Him. We may not have much to bring but He needs what we have" (Barclay, 207).


VERSES 10-14: THE FEEDING OF THE FIVE THOUSAND

10Jesus said, "Make the people (Greek: anthropous –– men) sit down." Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they (Greek: hoi andres –– the men) sat down, about five thousand in all. 11Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks (Greek: eucharistesas), he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, "Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost." 13So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets. 14When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world (Greek: erchomenos eis ton kosmon)."


"Jesus said, 'Make the people sit down'" (v. 10a). Jesus might intend this gesture to signal the crowd to prepare for lunch. If so, it is a bold move for a man with so many mouths to feed and so little food.

"Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they (hoi andres –– the men) sat down, about five thousand in all" (v. 10b). The "in all" at the end of this sentence is absent in the Greek, and might mislead us to assume that it includes women and children. In that time and place, this sort of count would include only men, so the total crowd would be larger, probably much larger. Matthew's Gospel makes this explicit by saying, "And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children" (Matthew 14:21).

"Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks (eucharistesas), he distributed them to those who were seated" (v. 11). Eucharistesas is the Greek word from which we get our word Eucharist. "At this point in the story, (eucharistesas) carries little meaning beyond its obvious sense of giving thanks to God.... But as the chapter unfolds, the term will take on a particular meaning for the Johannine community and its audience" (Howard-Brook, 145). The traditional prayer of thanksgiving is "Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who bringest forth bread from the earth" (Carson, 270). It expresses, not a blessing of food, but thanks to God.

In the Synoptics, the disciples distribute the bread, but in this Gospel, Jesus does it. "Jesus' actions do not reflect the more liturgically stylized actions of the synoptic accounts (e.g., Mark 6:41; Luke 9:16), but rather reflect the actions of a host at a Jewish meal" (O'Day, 594). The emphasis is less clearly eucharistic in this gospel than in the Synoptics.

"When they were satisfied" (v. 12a). The people eat their fill –– not just a token amount as some scholars have suggested. Nor is this a lesson in sharing, as others have suggested. This is NOT the story of a young boy who sets an example of generosity that inspires the rest of the crowd to share their food which turns out to be adequate for the occasion. This IS a story –– one of many in both Old and New Testaments –– about God's/Jesus' ability to transform too little into more than enough.

Attempts to explain this story by rationalistic or humanistic interpretations only diminish it –– shrinking the miracle to fit our vision instead of expanding our vision to see God's majesty. We must ask why some interpreters find it possible to believe in the miracle of the resurrection but not the miracle of the loaves and fishes –– and if they do not believe in the miracle of the resurrection, how can they be faithful spiritual guides?

Jesus commands, "Gather up the fragments left over, so nothing may be lost" (v. 12b). This is somewhat different from the Exodus account, where God commanded the Israelites to gather the manna but not to keep it until the next day (Exodus 16:16-21). When the Israelites disobeyed this order by keeping food for the next day, "it bred worms and became foul" and was lost (Exodus 16:20). "The discourse will allude to this in terms of the food that perishes (v. 27). It will also go on to talk of Jesus not losing anything that the Father has given him (v. 39; cf. also 10.28; 17.12; 18.9)" (Lincoln, 213).

The emphasis in the Exodus story was the faithfulness of God's providence, while the emphasis here is the abundance of God's providence. Jesus makes no mention of gathering only what is needed for the day.

"So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets" (v. 13). The twelve baskets of leftovers are more food than Jesus started with –– one basket each for the twelve tribes of Israel. The supply is abundant. God provides plenty to meet our needs.

In an article on the significance of various numbers in the Bible, Borchert says, "The combinations of four and three (the world and the divine) are important. Three and four when added equal seven, which is regarded as a reference to fullness or perfection. The multiplication of three and four equals twelve, which is the representative number of the people of God. Five and ten often are regarded as signifying human or mortal completeness.... A thousand (three multiples of ten), the general big number" (Borchert, 255 –– see also the article on "Numbers" in Bromiley, 556-561). While our text provides no interpretation of the numbers involved here, it includes several of these significant numbers –– seven resources (five loaves and two fish) (v. 9) –– a crowd of five thousand (v. 10) –– and twelve baskets of leftovers (v. 13).

Seeing the miracle, the people say, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world" (erchomenos eis ton kosmon) (v. 14). This apparently refers to Moses' promise, "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet" (Deuteronomy 18:15). "In Greek, the phrase is the same as the description of the as yet unnamed Jesus in the prologue (1:9): 'The true light was coming into the world' (erchomenos[n] eis ton kosmon). It is John's way of speaking of the advent of Jesus" (Smith, 149).


VERSE 15: JESUS WITHDREW AGAIN TO THE MOUNTAIN BY HIMSELF

15When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

"When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king" (v. 15a). The crowd wants to institutionalize Jesus' role as provider and deliverer. Having seen power at work, they want to harness it for their own purposes. "If this was the second Moses, he would surely do for them what the first Moses had done for their ancestors and deliver them from oppression" (Bruce, 146).

While the crowd's response is natural enough, it makes too little of Jesus, whom they wish to claim as their own personal genie. Their response "reverses the answer to the catechism question so that it would read, 'Our chief end is to be glorified by God forever" (Brueggemann, 446).

"he withdrew again to the mountain by himself" (v. 15b). Seeing that they are about to make him king by force, Jesus withdraws. He has a ministry to fulfill, but not the one that these people envision. To become the king that they want would shrink his ministry from the world (3:16) to the eastern end of the Mediterranean –– from all of history to a generation or two –– from a giver of eternal life to a giver of temporal security. And to become their king would expose Jesus to a justifiable charge of treason, legitimizing his execution as a criminal. No longer would he be the innocent lamb dying for the sins of the world, but he would instead die as a rightfully convicted felon.

There is "much of St. John's irony in the passage; He who is already King has come to open His kingdom to men; but in their blindness men try to force Him to be the kind of king they want; thus they fail to get the king they want, and also lose the kingdom He offers" (R.F. Bailey, Saint John's Gospel, quoted in Morris, 307).


VERSES 16-21: THEY SAW JESUS WALKING ON THE SEA

16When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19When they had rowed about three or four miles (Greek: hos stadious eikosi pente e triakonta –– about twenty-five or thirty stadia), they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. 20But he said to them, "It is I (Greek: ego eimi); do not be afraid." 21Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.


"When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum" (vv. 16-17a). In Matthew 14:22 and Mark 6:45, the disciples depart on Jesus' orders. Here they leave on their own initiative. Luke 9 doesn't report this departure.

"It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them" (v. 17b). In this Gospel, darkness is more than the absence of physical light –– it signals evil or danger. It is now dark, and Jesus is absent.

"The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing" (v. 18). Located nearly 700 feet (215 meters) below sea level, the sea is nearly surrounded by high hills. The topography is such that high winds often sweep down suddenly from the hills, making the sea a dangerous place to be in a small boat. There is no indication yet that the disciples are in danger or afraid, but their journey will not be easy.

"When they had rowed about three or four miles" (hos stadious eikosi pente e triakonta) –– about twenty-five or thirty stadia) (v. 19a). A stadion is a little more than 600 feet (180 meters), so this distance is 15,000-18,000 feet or roughly 3 - 3.5 miles (4.8 - 5.6 km). The sea (really a good-sized lake) is 8 miles (13 km) east to west at its widest point and about 13 miles (21 km) north to south. The point here is that the disciples are somewhere in the middle of the lake. They have rowed a considerable distance in the storm, but have a considerable distance left to go. Their group includes experienced fishermen who have surely been on the lake during storms. While the text doesn't say that they are afraid, anyone who has ever been caught in a storm in the middle of a large lake will appreciate the challenge that they face –– the danger that the storm poses.

"they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified" (v. 19b). Now, for the first time, we hear that the disciples are terrified. It is not the storm that terrifies them, but the sight of Jesus walking on the sea and coming near their boat. John doesn't specify the cause of their fear, but the Synoptic Gospels tell us that the disciples are afraid because they think that Jesus is a ghost (Matthew 14:26; Mark 6:49; Luke 24:37).

Jesus says, "It is I (ego eimi); do not be afraid" (v. 20). Ego eimi can be translated "I AM" –– God's name (Exodus 3:14) –– and Jesus uses this phrase often in this Gospel to say "ego eimi the bread of life" (6:35) –– "ego eimi the light of the world" (8:12) –– "ego eimi the good shepherd" (10:11) –– etc. Here on the chaos of these troubled waters, therefore, Jesus is revealing himself on two levels. He is the leader whom the disciples have been following, but he is also the presence of God in their midst. He comes to help them in their distress. "Jesus' glory is not revealed for power, but for grace-filled pastoral care" (O'Day, 597).

Matthew includes the story of Peter attempting to walk on the water to meet Jesus (Matthew 14:28-31), a story not found in the other Gospels.

"Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going" (v. 21). The immediacy of their arrival suggests that Jesus is somehow responsible for their quick return to land. The movement of this story is from the chaos that the disciples experience when separated from Jesus to the peace that he brings when he joins them. It echoes Psalm 107:23-30:

23Some went down to the sea in ships,
doing business on the mighty waters;
24they saw the deeds of the LORD,
his wondrous works in the deep.
25For he commanded and raised the stormy wind,
which lifted up the waves of the sea.
26They mounted up to heaven, they went down to the depths;
their courage melted away in their calamity;
27they reeled and staggered like drunkards,
and were at their wits' end.
28Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he brought them out from their distress;
29he made the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
30Then they were glad because they had quiet,
and he brought them to their desired haven.


THOUGHT PROVOKERS: (Top of page)

In many of the families I visited nothing was certain, nothing predictable, nothing totally safe. Maybe there would be food tomorrow, maybe there would be work tomorrow, maybe there would be peace tomorrow. Maybe, maybe not. But whatever is given –– money, food, work, a handshake, a smile, a good word, or an embrace –– is a reason to rejoice and say gracias. What I claim as a right, my friends in Bolivia and Peru received as a gift; what is obvious to me was a joyful surprise to them; what I take for granted, they celebrate in thanksgiving; what for me goes by unnoticed became for them a new occasion to say thanks.

Henri J. M. Nouwen, Gracias! A Latin American Journal

* * * * * * * * * *

One of the characteristics of truly great people is that they can receive graciously. I know a very famous man in the academic world who by no means always dresses like an academic. In a London railway station he saw an old lady in difficulties and offered to carry her bag. When he had put it in her carriage for her, she gave him sixpence –– which he gravely and courteously received rather than embarrass the old lady who offered it.

Jesus could receive. He could take a boy's picnic lunch because it was all that the boy could offer –– and with it he could work a miracle.

William Barclay, Everyday with William Barclay

* * * * * * * * * *

To give without any reward, or any notice, has a special quality of its own. It is like presents made for older people when you were a child. So much went into them –– dreams and prayers and hours of knotted fingers and frozen effort and there... only a dirty piece of knotted string came out of it. But you knew, even if they didn't, that you were giving them something worthy of them.

There is something of worship or prayer in laying down an offering at someone's feet and then going away quickly. The nicest gifts are those left, nameless and quiet, unburdened with love, or vanity, or the desire for attention.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh, The Flower and the Nettle

* * * * * * * * * *

The fragrance always stays
in the hand that gives the rose.

Hada Bejar,
17th century British playwright

* * * * * * * * * *

A candle loses nothing
by lighting another candle.

Anonymous

* * * * * * * * * *


BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible, "The Gospel of John," Vol. 1 (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1955)

Borchert, Gerald L., New American Commentary: John 1-11, Vol. 25A (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1996)

Bromiley, Geoffrey (General Editor), The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Volume Three: K-P - Revised (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1986)

Bruce, F. F., The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1983).

Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R. and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV––Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)

Carson, D. A., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1991).

Craddock, Fred R.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; and Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)

Gossip, Arthur John and Howard, Wilbert F., The Interpreter's Bible, Volume 8 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1952)

Howard-Brook, Wes, Becoming the Children of God: John's Gospel and Radical Discipleship (New York: Maryknoll, 1994).

Hoyer, Robert J., Lectionary Bible Studies: The Year of Mark: Pentecost 1 (Minneapolis and Philadelphia: Augsburg and Fortress Press, 1976)

Kostenberger, Andreas J., Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: John (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2004)

Lincoln, Andrew T., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint John (London: Continuum, 2005)

Lockyer, Herbert, Sr., Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1986)

Morris, Leon, The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel According to John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995).

Myers, Allen C., The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1987)

O'Day, Gail R., The New Interpreter's Bible, Volume IX (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)

Ridderbos, Herman (translated by John Vriend), The Gospel of John: A Theological Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1997)

Sloyan, Gerald, "John," Interpretation (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1988)

Smith, D. Moody, Jr., Abingdon New Testament Commentaries: John (Nashville: Abingdon, 1999)

Richard Niell Donovan, Sermonwriter.com

July 19, 2009 - Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

Image via Wikipedia

SCRIPTURE STUDY
PROPER 11
YEAR B
JULY 19, 2009


THE READINGS FROM HOLY SCRIPTURE

A reading from the Second Samuel [2 Samuel 7:1-14a]

When David, the king, was settled in his house, and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies around him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, "See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent." Nathan said to the king, "Go, do all that you have in mind; for the LORD is with you."

But that same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan: Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the LORD: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?" Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the LORD of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me.


From Psalm 89

20 "I have found David my servant;
with my holy oil have I anointed him.

21 My hand will hold him fast
and my arm will make him strong.

22 No enemy shall deceive him,
nor any wicked man bring him down.

23 I will crush his foes before him
and strike down those who hate him.

24 My faithfulness and love shall be with him,
and he shall be victorious through my Name.

25 I shall make his dominion extend
from the Great Sea to the River.

26 He will say to me, 'You are my Father,
my God, and the rock of my salvation.'

27 I will make him my firstborn
and higher than the kings of the earth.

28 I will keep my love for him for ever,
and my covenant will stand firm for him.

29 I will establish his line for ever
and his throne as the days of heaven."

30 "If his children forsake my law
and do not walk according to my judgments;

31 If they break my statutes
and do not keep my commandments;

32 I will punish their transgressions with a rod
and their iniquities with the lash;

33 But I will not take my love from him,
nor let my faithfulness prove false.

34 I will not break my covenant,
nor change what has gone out of my lips.

35 Once for all I have sworn by my holiness:
'I will not lie to David.

36 His line shall endure for ever
and his throne as the sun before me;

37 It shall stand fast for evermore like the moon,
the abiding witness in the sky.' "



A Reading from the Letter to the Ephesians
[Ephesians 2:11-22]

Remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called "the uncircumcision" by those who are called "the circumcision" -- a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands-- remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.


SCRIPTURE: Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, "Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat. When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, and rushed about that whole region and began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.


EXEGESIS:

VERSES 30-56: OVERVIEW

The Gospel lesson this Sunday is composed of two passages linked by their similar content –– the story of Jesus and the apostles going away to a deserted place for solitude together, but being interrupted by the crowds with their great needs (vv. 30-34) –– and the story of the crowds coming to Jesus in Gennesaret for healing (vv. 53-56). Between these two passages, Mark tells the stories of the feeding of the five thousand (vv. 35-44) and Jesus walking on the water (vv. 45-52). This is an example of a story (or stories) within a story –– a favorite genre for Mark. In this case, Mark ties together stories of Jesus' teaching and healing ministry (vv. 30-34, 53-56) with a story of his providing bread –– a story with eucharistic overtones (vv. 35-44).

These passages speak to us, because we have felt like the disciples must have felt –– hurried and harried. The needs were great; the crowds were large; and the disciples could not even find time to eat. If busyness was a problem for them, it seems even worse now. Our problem is a world in which experts have engineered out all the breathing room. Our laborsaving appliances fail to save us from laboring –– our communications technology (voicemail, for instance) creates barriers instead of bringing us together –– and our leisure is filled with chores.

Worst are the interruptions! If we could just concentrate on the task at hand, we could get the job done. If we could just plan our work and work our plan, life would be simple. If it weren't for the phone –– and the person with a question –– and the sudden requirement for a new report –– and the line of people at the counter!

And these passages speak to us, because we have felt like the people who came to Jesus. We, too, have been sick in body and sick in spirit –– in desperate need of Jesus' healing touch. We, too, have rushed around hoping to find help –– begging Jesus that we might touch even the fringe of his cloak so that we might be healed.


VERSES 30-32: THE APOSTLES GATHERED AROUND JESUS

30The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. 31He said to them, "Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves.


Mark 6:7-13 tells of Jesus sending out the Twelve two-by-two with authority over unclean spirits. They preached repentance, cast out demons, and healed the sick. In verses 14-29, Mark interrupts that story to tell of the death of John the Baptist. Now, in verses 30-34, Mark resumes the story of the Twelve, who report the results of their mission to Jesus. This is another example, then, of one of Mark's story within a story –– the story of John the Baptist set inside the story of the mission of the Twelve.

"The apostles gathered around Jesus" (v. 30). Jesus sent them out as "the twelve" (v. 7), but now Mark calls them apostles (v. 30). This is the only place in this Gospel where Mark uses the word "apostles" (except for 3:14, where the word is disputed). The word "apostles" is particularly appropriate in verse 30, because it comes from the Greek word apostello, which means "to send" –– and it was that word that Mark used in verse 7 to speak of sending out the Twelve. Apostle is "a technical term for the early Christian missionaries, (indicating) that they are official agents (...saliah)" (Perkins, 600). Such a person is considered to have the authority and stature of the person whom they represent –– in this case, Jesus.

"Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves, and rest a while" (v. 31a). Jesus sees that the apostles are weary after their busy mission tour, and invites them to a place of solitude where they can rest. Soon Jesus will have compassion on the crowd, but first he has compassion on his apostles, who have not even had time to eat. Discipleship must balance time for service with time for physical and spiritual renewal. Vincent de Paul advises, "Be careful to preserve your health. It is a trick of the devil, which he employs to deceive good souls, to incite them to do more than they are able, in order that they may no longer be able to do anything."

"For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat" (v. 32b). It is the disciples who are so busy that they have not had time even to eat. People can miss a meal now and then without harm –– but people who are too busy to eat or rest or gather their thoughts soon find the stress wearing –– debilitating.

Contrast the hunger of the disciples in this verse with that which went before (the grim feast at which Herod had the head of John the Baptist served on a platter at his debauched banquet) and what will follow (the feeding of the five thousand).


VERSES 33-34: AND HE HAD COMPASSION FOR THEM

33Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. 34As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion (Greek: esplanchnisthe) for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.


"Now many say them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them" (v. 33). The crowds see where the boat is going, and move in that direction to intercept Jesus.

"As (Jesus) went ashore, he saw a great crowd" (v. 34a). When Jesus arrives at his resting place, a great crowd awaits him. Jesus and the disciples have reason to be annoyed. They have not eaten (v. 31), and were in need of rest even before rowing the boat to this destination. We would expect tired, hungry men to respond with anger to this unexpected demand on their ebbing energy.

"and he had compassion (esplanchnisthe) for them" (v. 34b). Mark doesn't tell us how the disciples respond, but Jesus has compassion on the crowd, because they are "like sheep without a shepherd" (v. 34). Jesus has a sharp tongue for the self-satisfied, but a soft heart for people in need. He "seems never put off by our interruptions, by our constant need of his compassion and teaching. This text affirms his extraordinary availability" (Brueggemann, 436). It also affirms the depth of his feeling for people in need. The word translated "compassion," esplanchnisthe, is also the word for bowels –– guts, and describes a sympathetic feeling that starts in the deepest regions of a person's being.

"because they were like a sheep without a shepherd" (v. 34c). These words remind us of Moses' request for God to appoint someone to succeed him as leader of the people "so that the congregation of the Lord may not be like sheep without a shepherd" (Numbers 27:17). God chose Joshua, whose name is a variant of the name Jesus.

"Sheep without a shepherd" also reminds us of the words of Ezekiel the prophet, who said, "So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and scattered, they became food for all the wild animals. My sheep were scattered, they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill; my sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with no one to search or seek for them" (Ezekiel 34:5-6).

Sheep need a shepherd to lead them on safe pathways, to help them to find food, to defend them against danger, to find them when they wander off, and to restore them to the fold. "Shepherd" is often used in the Bible as a metaphor:

• For faithful or unfaithful kings, priests and prophets (2 Samuel 5:2; Psalm 78:70-72; Isaiah 56:11-12; Jeremiah 3:15; 10:21; 23:1-4; 50:6).

• For God (Psalms 23:1-4; 28:9; 80:1; Isaiah 40:11; Jeremiah 31:10)

• For Jesus (Matthew 26:31; John 10:11-18; Hebrews 13:20; 1 Peter 2:25; Revelation 7:17)

• For church leaders (John 21:15; Acts 20:28ff; 1 Peter 5:2-4). (Myers, 939-940).

The words, "sheep without a shepherd" imply a rebuke on the religious leaders of Jesus' day, who have failed in their shepherd role.

And Jesus "began to teach them many things" (v. 34d). "Here the Marcan emphasis on teaching is evident.... Now, in response to a crowd probably seeking a miracle, Jesus offers teaching" (Williamson, 126). Mark gives us no sense, however, that the crowd is disappointed. As we will see shortly, they just keep coming (vv. 53-56).

Teaching (v. 34), feeding (vv. 35-44) and healing (v. 56) show Jesus' concern for people's physical and spiritual welfare, providing a model for ministry that has served the church well through the centuries. Word and sacrament constitute the core of our ministry, but bread and blankets are almost as important.


VERSES 35-55: NOT INCLUDED IN THE LECTIONARY READING

While these verses are not included in the lectionary reading, the preacher needs to be aware of them. They are comprised of two stories:

• The feeding of the five thousand (vv. 35-44).
• Jesus walking on the water (vv. 45-52).


VERSES 53-56: PEOPLE BEGAN TO BRING THE SICK ON MATS

53When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat. 54When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, 55and rushed about that whole region and began to bring the sick on mats (Greek: krabattois) to wherever they heard he was. 56And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe (Greek: kraspedou) of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed (Greek: esozonto –– from sozo –– to heal or to save).


"When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat" (v. 53). After feeding the five thousand (vv. 35-44) and walking on water (vv. 45-52), Jesus travels by boat with his disciples to Gennesaret, a fertile plain about three miles long and a mile wide between Capernaum and Tiberius on the west shore of the Sea of Galilee.

"When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, and rushed about that whole region" (v. 54). The people recognize Jesus and rush to bring sick people to him. The picture is at once awful and wonderful –– awful in that dozens or even hundreds of pitiful people converge on one place seeking Jesus' help –– wonderful in the faithful devotion of people who spare no effort to help their loved ones –– and wonderful in that all who touch even the fringe of Jesus' cloak are healed (v. 56).

"and began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was" (v. 55). The mats on which the sick lie are known as krabattois –– mattresses commonly used by the poor. The poor and needy are often more receptive to Jesus than are more prosperous people. We are even more receptive when we are seriously ill.

"the fringe (kraspedou) of his cloak" (v. 56a). This fringe is probably the fringe or tassels worn by Jewish men in compliance with Torah law to remind them of God's commandments (Numbers 15:38-39; Deuteronomy 22:12) –– thereby marking Jesus as an observant Jew, concerned with obedience to Torah law. Significantly, Mark will tell us next of Pharisees and scribes who rebuke Jesus for his disciples' failure to comply with the "tradition of the elders" (7:5) –– in this case, ritual handwashing. "The reference to the fringe of Jesus' garment, then, provides a fitting transition to a passage in which he will set the divine commandment over against traditions of human beings whose hearts have strayed from God" (Marcus, 439).

"and all who touched it were healed" (v. 56b). The Greek word for healed is sozo, which also means saved. As anyone who has survived a serious illness knows, to be healed is to be saved, not only from death but from suffering and incapacitation, which can be even worse than death.


THOUGHT PROVOKERS: (Top of page)

In 1991, before the advent of the Internet, Joseph Epstein had this to say:

"Hell, I assume, will be full of newspapers,
with a fresh edition every 30 seconds,
so that no one will ever feel caught up."

Which makes me wonder, "Who needs Hell?"
We have CNN and Fox News.

* * * * * * * * * *

The treasure to be found in the quiet times alone with the Lord
can seldom be found in the rush of a too-busy day.

Herman Riffel, Learning to Hear God's Voice

* * * * * * * * * *

Most of us are working ourselves to death. At least we feel that way as we rush to our next appointment. We are consumed by our jobs, working longer hours than ever before, struggling to stay employed and to get the next promotion. Cellular phones and E-mail make it harder for us to escape. We search restlessly for the meaning of life in what we accomplish. Most of us are also caught up in a spiral of materialism and consumer spending. We want more money so we can buy more things. We may deny that our happiness depends on these purchases, but the more we have, the more we seem to want.

Robert Wuthrow, God and Mammon in America

* * * * * * * * * *

Nothing is more indicative of false timesaving than the current emphasis on speed reading. It is almost made to appear that giving adequate time to a book or to serious ideas in print smacks of retardation. An author may spend days in composing a paragraph or two in order to get at the essence of an idea or to bring out the full force of a paradox. Lingering over such a passage and allowing it to stimulate the mind is a civilizing experience. No one need apologize for savoring the full meaning of print or for combining thinking with reading. Time given to thought is the greatest timesaver of all.

Norman Cousins

* * * * * * * * * *

Jack Welch, while still serving as CEO of General Electric, said:

If someone tells me, "I'm working 90 hours a week,"
I say, "You're doing something terribly wrong.
I go skiing on the weekend.
I go out on Friday.
Make a list of 20 things that make you work 90 hours,
and ten of them have to be nonsense."

* * * * * * * * * *



BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible: Gospel of Mark (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1954)

Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)

Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)

Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)

Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)

Donahue, John R. and Harrington, Daniel J., Sacra Pagina: The Gospel of Mark (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 2002)

Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)

France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)

Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)

Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)

Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)

Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)

Marcus, Joel, The Anchor Bible: Mark 1-8 (New York: Doubleday, 1999)

Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)

Myers, Allen C. (ed.), The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1987)

Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)

Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)

Copyright 2009, Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com

July 12, 2009 - 6th Sunday after Pentecost

Image by Sacred Destinations via Flickr

The Lessons Appointed for Use on the
Sunday closest to July 13
Year B
Proper 10
RCL

Amos 7:7-15
Psalm 85:8-13
Ephesians 1:3-14
Mark 6:14-29


The Collect

O Lord…mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.


Old Testament

Amos 7:7-15

This is what the Lord God showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the LORD said to me, "Amos, what do you see?" And I said, "A plumb line." Then the Lord said,

"See, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass them by;
the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,
and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword."

Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said,

`Jeroboam shall die by the sword,
and Israel must go into exile
away from his land.'"

And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom."

Then Amos answered Amaziah, "I am no prophet, nor a prophet's son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, `Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'"


The Psalm
Psalm 85:8-13 Page 709, BCP
Benedixisti, Domine

8 I will listen to what the LORD God is saying,
for he is speaking peace to his faithful people
and to those who turn their hearts to him.

9 Truly, his salvation is very near to those who fear him,
that his glory may dwell in our land.

10 Mercy and truth have met together;
righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

11 Truth shall spring up from the earth,
and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

12 The LORD will indeed grant prosperity,
and our land will yield its increase.

13 Righteousness shall go before him,
and peace shall be a pathway for his feet.


Ephesians 1:3-14

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the praise of his glory.


Mark 6:14-29

King Herod heard of the demons cast out and the many who were anointed and cured, for Jesus' name had become known. Some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him." But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."

For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her. For John had been telling Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it." And he solemnly swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.

SCRIPTURE: Mark 6:14-29

King Herod heard of the demons cast out and the many who were anointed and cured, for Jesus' name had become known. Some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him." But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."

For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her. For John had been telling Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it." And he solemnly swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.


EXEGESIS:

VERSES 14-29: THE MARTYRDOM OF JOHN THE BAPTIST

The opening words of this Gospel are: "The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, 'See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way'" (1:1-2). The messenger was John the Baptist (1:3-11). John prepared the way by preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (1:4). After John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee preaching much the same message, "Repent, and believe in the good news" (1:14-15).

The mission of the twelve (6:6b-13) leads into this story of John's martyrdom, but Mark concludes the mission story (6:30) only after telling us the martyrdom story (6:14-29). He sandwiches the martyrdom story within the mission story for a reason. The disciples' mission is quite successful (6:12-13), and reassures us that God's work continues unabated even in the face of the martyrdom of a great, Godly servant. Mark's church needed to hear this, because they were suffering great persecution. We need to hear it too, because we, like God's people through the ages, are prone to interpret difficult times as a sign that evil has trumped God. This story tells us that God does not always reward faithful discipleship with an easy life. The prophetic Christian might be beheaded –– crucified –– thrown to the lions –– expelled from college –– fired from a job –– required to apologize. The truth-teller's road is narrow and filled with potholes. We should not expect applause for living or preaching prophetically.


VERSES 14-16: JESUS' NAME HAD BECOME KNOWN

14King Herod heard of it, for Jesus' name had become known. Some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him." 15But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." 16But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."


"King Herod heard of it" (v. 14a). Hearing of Jesus' ministry, Herod immediately thinks of John the Baptist, whom he killed some time earlier (1:14). The story of John's death that follows, then, is a flashback to that time.

Herod Antipas is not really king, but tetrarch –– governor over one fourth of the territory over which his father reigned. His portion is Galilee and Perea (Matthew 14:1; Luke 9:7). He rules at Rome's pleasure, and is subject to Rome's guidance. Calling him "king" is "an example of the evangelist's irony, for it is prominent in a passage in which Herod is outwitted and manipulated by two women and hamstrung by his own oath and his fear of losing face before his courtiers" (Marcus, 398). He has reigned since 4 B.C., but will be deposed and sent into exile in 36 A.D. Consider that for a moment –– Herod's forty-year reign will come to an ignominious end not long after he is involved in the deaths of John and Jesus.

Herod's name raises a red flag. Earlier, Herod the Great tried to kill the baby Jesus (Matthew 1-20). Herod Archelaus threatened Joseph and his little family (Matthew 2:22). Now Herod Antipas murders John the Baptist. "The Herod family left bloody footprints across the New Testament" (Craddock, 343). The mention of Herod's name warns us of trouble ahead.

"for Jesus' name had become known" (v. 14b). While this is the story of John's death, it begins by mentioning both Herod and Jesus. The linkage of Herod, John, and Jesus is important to this text. We have seen linkages between John and Jesus from the beginning:

• Mary and Elizabeth celebrated their pregnancies together, and Elizabeth told Mary of the preeminent role that Mary's son would play.

• John prepared the way for Jesus.

• John baptized Jesus, and his baptism became an occasion God to reveal Jesus' sonship.


Now both John and Jesus are linked to Herod, who will play a role in their deaths (see Luke 23:7-15):

• Herod kills John for telling the truth. In due time, we will see Herod involved in Jesus' death.

• Herod is ambivalent about John, as he will be about Jesus (Luke 23). Both Herod and Pilate will have misgivings about authorizing Jesus' execution, but both will be persuaded by a crowd of people.

• John's disciples "came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb" (v. 29). Joseph of Arimathea will do the same for Jesus.

• Both John and Jesus continue to wield power after their deaths. The thought of John's death continues to haunt Herod, and he believes Jesus to be John resurrected (6:16). Jesus will, in fact, be resurrected.


This, then, is more than a story about John. It is a story about Jesus –– a glimpse into the death that he will die and the resurrection that will follow. John blazed the trail for Jesus both in life and in death.

The disciples will also find themselves on that trail. Norman Perrin discovered the following pattern (mentioned in Williamson, 123):

• John the Baptist preaches (1:4-8) and is delivered up (1:14; 6-17-29).

• Jesus preaches (1:14-15) and is delivered up (9:31; 10:33, 14, 15:1, 10, 15).

• The disciples preach (6:7-13) and are delivered up (13:9-13).


"But others said, 'It is Elijah" (v. 15). Based on the prophecy of Malachi 4:5, the people of Jesus' day expected Elijah to return to usher in the day of the Lord. In this Gospel, John is Elijah the prophet. Jesus said, "Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written about him" (9:13).

There are close parallels between this story and the story of Elijah, Ahab, and Jezebel (1 Kings 16):

• John wore a leather belt, like Elijah (2 Kings 1:8; Mark 1:6).

• The sin of both kings involves their marriage to wicked women (1 Kings 16:31; Mark 6:1-8).

• Both Elijah and John challenge their respective kings prophetically, causing both Jezebel and Herodias to scheme murder.

• Both kings are weak men who find themselves caught between their confrontation with a prophet and their fear of a strong wife.

• But Jezebel fails in her attempt to kill Elijah, while Herodias succeeds in her effort to kill John.


But Herod sees Jesus as "John, whom I beheaded," raised from the dead (v. 16):

• It doesn't make sense for Jesus to be John resurrected, because Jesus and John lived at the same time and knew each other. "What is meant is simply that the spirit of John now rests on Jesus, just as Elijah's spirit rested on Elisha (2 Kings 2:15)" (Hare, 75).

• Soon Peter will correctly identify Jesus: "You are the Messiah" (8:29).


VERSES 17-20: AND HERODIAS HAD A GRUDGE AGAINST JOHN

17For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her. 18For John had been telling Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." 19And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him.


"For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison" (v. 17a). Josephus says that John was imprisoned at Herod's order at Herod's palace at Machaerus in southern Perea, a place far removed from Tiberius, where we believe this banquet takes place. However, the executioner's quick action in vv. 27-28 suggests that John is a prisoner in the palace at which the banquet takes place.

"on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her" (v. 17b). Herod arrested John and imprisoned him because of John's opposition to Herod's marriage to Herodias, formerly the wife of Herod's brother. The name of Herod's brother is in question. Mark calls him Philip, but Josephus says that the brother is also named Herod, as are many men in that family.

The Herod family tree is both complex and disturbing. Herod the Great married several women who bore him seven sons. Herodias is the daughter of one of these seven sons and marries two of the other seven sons –– which means that both of her husbands are also her uncles. Herod the Great was quite paranoid, and murdered three of his seven sons for fear that they might try to depose him. Of the remaining four sons, three marry either Herodias or Herodias' daughter (Barclay, 150-152).

"For John had been telling Herod, 'It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife'" (v. 18). John exhibited great courage in criticizing the king for violating Torah law by marrying his brother's wife (Leviticus 18:16; 20:21). That would have been legal under certain circumstances were the brother dead (Deuteronomy 25:5-10), but Herod's brother is alive.

"And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him" (vv. 19-20). We are surprised at Herod's response to John's criticism. "He protected him" (v. 20). It sounds as if Herod's motive in arresting John may have been twofold –– to curtail John's criticism and to protect John from Herodias' wrath. If John is in Herod's custody, he cannot provoke Herodias further, and he is also beyond Herodias' reach.

Herod, hearing John, "was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him" (v. 20). We would expect Herod to close his ears to John's criticism, but holiness and truth have great power. People in positions of power tend to surround themselves with "Yes men" –– people who tell them what they want to hear. They do so because they prefer flattery to criticism –– they don't want their subordinates to raise objections to their program. But sometimes, like someone who has overindulged on candy, the ruler who has heard nothing but flattery yearns for something more substantial–– something more nourishing–– a word of truth.

"for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man" (v. 20). Even though John is a simple man with no trappings of power, Herod is afraid of him. Even though John confronts Herod, telling him things that Herod prefers not to hear, Herod nevertheless likes to listen to John. Even though Herod surely has advisors who readily offer comfortable counsel, he is drawn to John's rock-solid integrity. As preachers, we need to remember the authority of holiness and truth.

Herodias, formerly Philip's wife and now Herod's wife, is a different story. She "had a grudge against (John), and wanted to kill him" (v. 19). She "felt that the only place where her marriage-certificate could safely be written was on the back of the death-warrant of John the Baptist" (T.W. Manson, quoted in Edwards, 186). Frustrated by Herod's protection of John, she bides her time and waits for her opportunity. Herodias is the archetypical evil queen, much like Jezebel.

Jewish rabbis taught that a good woman might marry a bad man and hope to reform him, but a good man should not marry a bad woman lest she drag him down. The truth is that neither a bad man nor a bad woman is any bargain. The New Testament tells Christians to be equally yoked –– to seek a believing spouse.


VERSES 21-25: BUT AN OPPORTUNITY CAME

21But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. 22When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it." 23And he solemnly swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." 24She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." 25Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter."


"But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and offers and for the leaders of Galilee" (v. 21). Herodias' opportunity finally comes as a result of her daughter's dance (v. 22). The NRSV identifies the daughter as Herodias, but acknowledges, "Other ancient authorities read the daughter of Herodias herself." Josephus calls the daughter Salome.

"When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests" (v. 22). The dance was most likely a licentious dance that most fathers would quickly stop –– but not Herod. The Herod family is known for debauched behavior, and this scene is believable based on what we know about Herod from other sources.

"Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom" (v. 23). Herod's offer of half his kingdom is "a sham, for Rome would not allow him to part with an acre of land" (Edwards, 187).

Little does Herod guess what the daughter will ask. She seeks advice from her mother, who tells her to ask for the head of John the baptizer (v. 24). "The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her" (v. 26). Like Pilate, Herod's convictions melt easily in the face of a crowd.

Herodias asks only for John's head; Salome adds her own personal touch –– "on a platter" –– an especially macabre touch for a banquet setting (v. 25).

There are a number of parallels between this scene and the story of Esther –– parallels that would be quite apparent to early Jewish readers of Mark's Gospel:

• Both Esther and Salome gain advantage over their enemies at a banquet.

• Esther won the king's favor (Esther 5:2) and Salome "pleased Herod" (v. 22).

• Both kings offer up to half of their kingdoms (Esther 5:3; Mark 6:23).

• While Esther did not ask for the death of her enemy, Haman, her exposure of his treachery resulted in his being hung from the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai, Esther's uncle (Esther 6). Salome asks for John's death, a request that Herod quickly answers.

• The major difference between the two stories is that Esther sought only to expose Haman's treachery so that she might save her people –– her motives were pure. We cannot say the same for Salome and Herodias.


VERSES 26-29: HE WENT AND BEHEADED JOHN

26The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. 29When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.


"Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison" (v. 27). The king dispatches a soldier to bring John's head on a platter, which is done.

The guard "brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl" (v. 28). The head is presented to the daughter, who gives it to her mother. It is hard to imagine a girl and her mother who could face such a gory sight, but Mark notes no distaste on the part of either one.

Marcus notes the parallel between the passing of this platter and the passing of the bread in the story of the feeding of the five thousand (6:30-44), which follows immediately on the heels of this story. He suggests that what we have in this story of John is "a kind of demonic eucharist" (Marcus, 403).

"When (John's) disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb" (v. 29). This is another parallel with Jesus' burial. While Jesus' disciples will abandon Jesus and fail to claim his body (14:50), Joseph of Arimathea, a secret disciple, will take care of the burial (15:43-46).

Josephus reports an interesting sequel to this story. To marry Herodias, Herod Antipas divorced his first wife, who was the daughter of King Aretas of Nabatea. To avenge the insult, Aretas will start a war with Herod Antipas and soundly defeat him. That, among other things, will lead to Rome deposing Antipas and sending him into exile in Gaul. Early Christians saw this as punishment for Herod's role in the executions of John and Jesus.


THOUGHT PROVOKERS:

I was drawn into the reading of the Bible when I got my first Bible from an American army chaplain as a young prisoner of war in 1945, while I was in a Belgian prison camp. The psalms of lamentation spoke to me when I felt completely lost and forsaken. And the passion story of Jesus spoke to me, because I felt that Christ understood me in my situation. Step after step I discovered the Gospel and the promise of God for the poor and the imprisoned. The Bible is the book which rescued me from resignation and despair.

Juergen Moltmann, German theologian

* * * * * * * * * *

If God sends us on stony paths,
he will provide us with strong shoes.

Alexander MacLaren

* * * * * * * * * *

There are times in the life of every disciple
when things are not clear or easy,
when it is not possible to know what to do or say.
Such times of darkness come as a discipline to the character
and as the means of fuller knowledge of the Lord.
Such darkness is a time for listening, not for speaking.
The Lord shares the darkness with his disciple; he is there.

Oswald Chambers

* * * * * * * * * *

I never had great suffering
that I did not turn into a poem.

Goethe

* * * * * * * * * *

I must be poor and want,
before I can exercise the virtue of gratitude;
miserable and in torment,
before I can exercise the virtue of patience.

John Donne

* * * * * * * * * *

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible: Gospel of Mark (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1954)

Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)

Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)

Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)

Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)

Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)

France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)

Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)

Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)

Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)

Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)

Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)

Marcus, Joel, The Anchor Bible: Mark 1-8 (New York: Doubleday, 1999)

Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)

Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)

Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)

Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com