Naamloos Sermon (7)
ἵλεως σοι reflects a frequent LXX idiom (thirty-five times). The meaning can be ‘God is/will be kind to you [i.e., you may rest assured]’ or, more often, ‘May God have mercy on you [i.e., forgive you]’
In Is. 8:14, one of the stone texts that has left its mark on the NT, God is ṣwr mkšwl (‘rock of stumbling’). Not in Is. 8:14, but in
But what does it mean to take up one’s cross? Christian readers think immediately of the cross of Jesus, and the present placement of the saying after the first Passion prediction confirms the appropriateness of doing so. But this Passion prediction is not yet speaking of a cross; and before the cross ever became associated with Jesus, condemned criminals of all sorts in the Roman Empire had carried the cross bar to be used for their crucifixion to their place of execution. As discussed at 10:38, ‘place yourself on the firing line’, ‘put your neck in the noose,’ and ‘put your head on the chopping block’ would all be analogous to what is called for here. The call is so to behave that the anticipated outcome may naturally be the loss of one’s life. There is a radical denial of self-interest and normal concern for one’s own well-being here. The concrete forms of behaviour anticipated remain totally undefined. The only clue is that this is a following of Jesus. The life-threatening behaviour called for is, therefore, patterned on that of Jesus. The call is to join Jesus as he behaves in ways which involve setting aside the claims of the inner drive to self-preservation and care for one’s own interests for the sake of a greater good. The relevant behaviour of Jesus will be that which takes him to his own cross, rejected by the leaders of his people.
παθεῖν
σκάνδαλον
ψυχὴν
