"I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, 'You are my servant'; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
A passage originally intended for the chosen people of Israel is now extended to all believers by the power of atoning work of Jesus Christ. It is in this act that God has chosen to be for us that nothing may be against us. God is free to be any sort of God he likes to be, and in his freedom He has chosen to be our God. Because god is holy he has called out from the farthest corners a people for himself (what once was Israel and now is the Church) to be a nation of priests and servants.
And so it is that if God has chosen to be for you and your good, who can stop him? Who can stop the Almighty One from doing what he wants to do? No one, and that is good news indeed!
Showing posts with label Israel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Israel. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Genesis 34:31
"But they replied, 'Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?'"
Dinah was raped.
She is the only daughter of Jacob mentioned among his twelve sons, and she was raped by a man named Shechem, the local ruler. After raping her, Shechem "loved her" and "spoke tenderly" to her and desired to marry her. This isn't love. It's abuse.
Dinah's brothers burned with anger and were filled with grief over Dinah, their beloved sister. When Shechem and Hamor came to ask for Dinah's hand in marriage, the sons of Israel tricked them, agreeing only if every male in their household was circumcised. And while they were still recovering from the pain of circumcision, Simeon and Levi killed every last male in the city to avenge Dinah. They looted everything, women and children included. Jacob tells them they should not have done such a thing. Their response is in the verse above. The price of vengeance was generations of conflict between the Israelites and Canaanites and Perizzites.
This isn't a story on how to handle conflict or on forgiveness. They refused wealth, peace, and security for the sake of their sister's honor. We can argue about if what they did was right, but have you forgotten someone? This story is about Dinah. At the end of the day, there is a woman, bruised, broken, and traumatized from sexual abuse. Our sisters have been defiled. The question is, "What are we going to do about it?"
Dinah was raped.
She is the only daughter of Jacob mentioned among his twelve sons, and she was raped by a man named Shechem, the local ruler. After raping her, Shechem "loved her" and "spoke tenderly" to her and desired to marry her. This isn't love. It's abuse.
Dinah's brothers burned with anger and were filled with grief over Dinah, their beloved sister. When Shechem and Hamor came to ask for Dinah's hand in marriage, the sons of Israel tricked them, agreeing only if every male in their household was circumcised. And while they were still recovering from the pain of circumcision, Simeon and Levi killed every last male in the city to avenge Dinah. They looted everything, women and children included. Jacob tells them they should not have done such a thing. Their response is in the verse above. The price of vengeance was generations of conflict between the Israelites and Canaanites and Perizzites.
This isn't a story on how to handle conflict or on forgiveness. They refused wealth, peace, and security for the sake of their sister's honor. We can argue about if what they did was right, but have you forgotten someone? This story is about Dinah. At the end of the day, there is a woman, bruised, broken, and traumatized from sexual abuse. Our sisters have been defiled. The question is, "What are we going to do about it?"
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Genesis 29:30-31
"Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah... When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren."
Just as Israel cannot serve two masters, he cannot serve two wives. The tension between sisters Rachel and Leah is sibling rivalry to the extreme as they both compete for the love and attention of Jacob.
But even though the situation is complicated, the LORD provides for Leah when Jacob ignores her. She bears him 4 sons in a row (Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah) and Rachel is jealous. Rachel gives Jacob another wife, her servant Bilhah, and gains two sons (Dan and Naphtali) in response to Leah's four. Leah in turn retaliates with her own maidservant Zilpah, given her as a wife and gaining two more sons (Gad and Asher) and then has two more sons herself (Issachar and Zebulun) and a daughter (Dinah) after hiring Jacob's "services" with some mandrakes. The LORD finally opens Rachel's womb and she bears Joseph in her old age and dies while giving birth to Benjamin. Final score: Leah 8, Rachel 4, Jacob 4 (wives).
And yet, out of this brokenness came the 12 tribes of Israel (aka Jacob). Even in the complications, God moderates the situation to be fair to both Leah and Rachel. Jacob only wanted Rachel, one wife, but he received two. And take it from him, one is more than enough for anyone.
Just as Israel cannot serve two masters, he cannot serve two wives. The tension between sisters Rachel and Leah is sibling rivalry to the extreme as they both compete for the love and attention of Jacob.
But even though the situation is complicated, the LORD provides for Leah when Jacob ignores her. She bears him 4 sons in a row (Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah) and Rachel is jealous. Rachel gives Jacob another wife, her servant Bilhah, and gains two sons (Dan and Naphtali) in response to Leah's four. Leah in turn retaliates with her own maidservant Zilpah, given her as a wife and gaining two more sons (Gad and Asher) and then has two more sons herself (Issachar and Zebulun) and a daughter (Dinah) after hiring Jacob's "services" with some mandrakes. The LORD finally opens Rachel's womb and she bears Joseph in her old age and dies while giving birth to Benjamin. Final score: Leah 8, Rachel 4, Jacob 4 (wives).
And yet, out of this brokenness came the 12 tribes of Israel (aka Jacob). Even in the complications, God moderates the situation to be fair to both Leah and Rachel. Jacob only wanted Rachel, one wife, but he received two. And take it from him, one is more than enough for anyone.
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