Untitled Sermon
Yhwh is the God of Israel, and Israel is the people of Yhwh
The household is the basic economic unit, the context for education and for some worship—notably, Passover—and thus for the continuity of Israel’s relationship with God
Thus whereas in Western culture the family often seems an inherently self-focused, bounded entity, in the First Testament this is not so
It is not the case that God’s working via an ethnic group obscures the fact that God acts on the basis of grace.13 On the contrary, it makes this fact clearer, and it makes clear that God is working sovereignly to achieve a purpose. If God’s election depended on a human response of faith, people could escape or resign from that election. But through the choosing of a certain people, God’s name is bound to the world in a way that cannot easily be dissolved
Second, the oneness of the canon with the diversity of views it embodies suggests that the one people of God can hold in itself diversity of convictions without splitting into several different Israels
As a family, Israel is a locus of teaching and learning
0 Wisdom is “advice,” ʿēṣâ (e.g., Prov 1:25, 30), but this does not mean it is merely expression of opinion given on a take-it-or-leave-it basis.21 This is the kind of ʿēṣâ that stands and compels (cf. Is 46:10). It is a clearly and decisively formulated declaration of how things will be, to be ignored at one’s peril.
But the covenant also makes demands on Israel; it begins with Yhwh’s initiative but requires Israel’s response. The Torah is what gives content to the nature of that response
A covenant is a solemnly sealed pledge made by one party to another in a particular context.26 It thus involves a commitment in a relationship, as opposed to a mere acquaintance without obligation
44). But there is nothing inherently egalitarian or mutual about covenants. They can be hierarchical, and they can be one-sided
It is Yhwh who determines the terms of this covenant. Israel does not get the opportunity to listen to its terms and think about whether to make some counterproposals
So the covenant involves both a “divine commitment” and a “human obligation.”40 “Covenant is utterly giving and utterly demanding.
The giving of the Torah is thus integral to the making of the covenant.45 The Torah is a gift from God to identify Israel as Yhwh’s, the means of bringing Yhwh’s election to full realization
But if Israel does not meet the expectations of the covenant, it does imperil its position. It can make God expostulate, “You are not my people and I will not be yours” (Hos 1:9).
Even though it is not transmitted by people with a place in a legal framework, teaching involves instruction, telling people what they should do.
Dictation emphasizes the divine origin of the teaching, while exposition by Moses complements that in recognizing the way it is expounded in human words so as to speak to human beings afresh in each new generation. For such later generations, writing would suggest the highest degree of assured divine origin
These narratives came into being by human initiative, but they came to be holy
The narratives are not the results of divine communication but of true human witness and reflection and divine sanctification,56 and they then have supreme authority for the community because they tell the true and divinely sanctified story of God’s dealings with Israel
To be chosen is to be summoned, separated out, seized, desired, acknowledged, restored, purchased, acquired, grasped and found
put it another way, Israel is Yhwh’s treasure (sĕgullâ
The master stands by the servant. The servant is expected to honor the master, but the master also honors the servant. The servant is expected to love or be dedicated to the master, but the master also loves or is dedicated to the servant (ʾāhēb, Is 43:4)
The fact that Hosea speaks much of the relationship of a man and a woman supports the idea that here Yhwh speaks with the enthusiasm of a lover for the object of his love
Why did God choose a particular people rather than relating to the whole world? It was for Israel’s sake, for God’s sake and for the world’s sake.
God decides not to be self-sufficient (for God could be that; God does not get involved with humanity because of divine need) but in freedom to draw another into covenant relationship
The broader context of Deuteronomy suggests that Yhwh’s particular love of Israel is designed to be inclusive not exclusive.
Election is both for Israel’s sake and for the world’s. It reflects both God’s concern for the world and God’s “passion” for Israel.81
Election is thus a gospel idea. Not only is God’s rejection subordinate to God’s election with regard to Israel itself; with regard to the world as a whole, God’s election of one people does not imply God’s rejection of others
The grounds of election, after all, lie in the nature of God, and thus in God as love, and in God’s love for the world
God does not elect a people on the basis of its obedience or of its potential for obedience, nor does God wait till Israel is obedient before using it. God uses it either way—obedient or disobedient
The existence of Israel is an expression of God’s mission in the world. Israel’s was not a missionary faith, but it was a faith that made universal claims
Israel was a people under the authority of Yhwh before it was a worldly kingdom
Nevertheless, there is a sense in which the land continues to be Yhwh’s. Israel
Israel does not own it but lives there as resident aliens (gērîm), not now in relation to its human owners (e.g., Gen 15:13) but in relation to Yhwh
not own it but lives there as resident aliens (gērîm), not now in relation to its human owners (e.g., Gen 15:13) but in relation to Yhwh
It is rejected, abased, defeated, spoiled, slaughtered, scattered, discarded, taunted, shamed, broken, forgotten, cast off, oppressed, resourceless and powerless, like a bird at the mercy of predators
Yhwh’s ownership of the land is an encouragement when Israel’s possession of the land seems imperiled
So Yhwh’s promise of the land does not imply support for Israel over against the Palestinians, and the First Testament illustrates the possibility of returning from exile to life in the land without statehood
Yhwh’s people has never arrived; it is always on the way. It starts off as a people Yhwh commissions to go to a new place and to which Yhwh makes outlandish promises. It continues to be a people that finds itself on the move
It is in the context of Israel’s exile and dispersion that the First Testament also develops the image of Israel as Yhwh’s servant
Being someone’s servant implies both subordination and status. Servants are subordinate to their bosses and have no choice about whether they do what their bosses require, but they are associated with their bosses and share something of their honor
Yhwh’s case, “I am with you” is not a statement made from the security of the CEO’s office on the top floor. It means Yhwh is present and active, strengthening, helping, upholding
Yhwh had chosen Israel to do the work of servant, of witness, and still intends that Israel should fulfill its vocation
For the people of God to witness to the world it is integral that it be a people like other peoples. No one can witness if they are invisible. Yet at the same time the people of God cannot be a witness unless it is also invisible in the sense of being mysterious and incapable of being grasped merely as a people or institution like any other
The regular way whereby Israel receives Yhwh’s communication is in speech. Prophets stand in places such as the temple courts and address people who come there to worship. The spoken word facilitates some forms of communication. Yhwh finds potential in words
By its nature, then, prophecy is an oral operation, but for a variety of reasons it does not stay that way
The oral delivery of prophecies has strengths and limitations. It has the power of the oral word, but also its transience. Because of this transience, we often like things to be put in writing, and Jeremiah’s putting his prophecies into writing gives Yhwh’s word ongoing tangible existence
Human beings bless God; God blesses human beings. Human prostration leads to divine giving. And the place from which the divine blessing issues is the place where the human prostration is offered
In the New Testament there is one theological motif that Paul sees as a new revelation, “a mystery kept secret for long ages” (Rom 16:25), the proclamation of Christ to the Gentile world as a result of his rejection by the Jewish world (cf. Rom 11:25
But this is the Jewish people’s destiny, and it can only become the church’s insofar as the church is an expansion of the Jewish people and a beginning of that new humanity
But this is the Jewish people’s destiny, and it can only become the church’s insofar as the church is an expansion of the Jewish people and a beginning of that new humanity
In our culture there is a strong undercurrent of assumption that something about us made us deserve God’s election. The New Testament agrees with the First Testament that election does not work thus. We do not deserve election. It issues purely from God’s freedom
Election is inclusive, not exclusive