Songs of Justice and Victory (Isaiah 12)

The first part of Isaiah’s book, the prophesied judgment and redemption of Judah, ends with a beautiful description of God’s restoration of Judah after her humiliation (Isaiah 11), and then in this short chapter, with an exclamation of praise for the goodness of God manifest in this salvation.

Isaiah 12:1-2 (ESV)

You will say in that day:

“I will give thanks to you, O Lord,

    for though you were angry with me,

your anger turned away,

    that you might comfort me.

“Behold, God is my salvation;

    I will trust, and will not be afraid;

for the Lord God is my strength and my song,

    and he has become my salvation.”

Though we once were enemies of God, by his love we have been made his own. He was angry, but has become our salvation. His love has driven away our fear. We are not slaves, but adopted children, swept by grace into the family of God.

The steadfast love of God never ends. It is a well with no bottom, the depths of which only draw us closer to his heart. For eternity we will never cease to sing praise with joy for God's infinite goodness.

The chapter follows after a tradition of songs of praise from the people of God. These first verses remind us of the song of Miriam on the shore of the Red Sea after God miraculously brought Israel through, liberating them from their slavery.

Exodus 15:1b-2 (ESVUK)

“I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;

    the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.

The Lord is my strength and my song,

    and he has become my salvation;

this is my God, and I will praise him,

    my father's God, and I will exalt him.

In Jesus’ victory over death, these songs may become ours as well. The promise of the life and freedom of all the earth as described in Isaiah 11 will be ours because of Jesus. What an appropriate response to sing and dance for the goodness that is already ours, and the Promised Land that is already being prepared and we long to see.

Isaiah 12:3-6 (ESVUK)

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day:

“Give thanks to the Lord,

    call upon his name,

make known his deeds among the peoples,

    proclaim that his name is exalted.

“Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously;

    let this be made known in all the earth.

Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,

    for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

Of all the beauty and goodness that we hope to one day see fulfilled, the best will be the presence of God truly among us, a presence we will know like we know our family now. Now we see God like a poor reflection. In eternity, we will see God face to face. The Holy One of Irael, Immanuel, will be in our midst. Now we only know a part. In eternity we will know fully, and be fully known (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Mary, mother of Jesus, sang of justice and peace at the announcement of her coming child. We call her song the Magnificat.

Luke 1:46-55 (ESVUK)

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

    and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,

for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.

    For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

for he who is mighty has done great things for me,

    and holy is his name.

And his mercy is for those who fear him

    from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;

    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;

he has brought down the mighty from their thrones

    and exalted those of humble estate;

he has filled the hungry with good things,

    and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel,

    in remembrance of his mercy,

as he spoke to our fathers,

    to Abraham and to his offspring for ever.”

Until he returns, let us never cease to sing the song of our salvation, and the salvation of the earth the groans for justice. Let us dance justice, life and peace upon this fragile earth, and work in her the life Jesus has purchased for us all, resisting oppression, working for life, and doing it all in freedom and joy.

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Thursday, July 3, 2014: 1 Peter 2:21-25 - Following our Lord, the Suffering Saviour
Tuesday, July 8, 2014: Isaiah 13 -Flee Babylon, All You Arrogant Kings

Click the image for the entire series from Isaiah.

Luke 1-5 - Some last thoughts

The disciples carried the names of recent Jewish revolutionaries. They were probably common names at the time, which shows how important revolution and revolutionaries were in the public consciousness.

Luke 1:2-3 - Luke calls The recipient of the gospel "most excellent Theophilus", a title reserved for people in high rank or office, and only ever used by Luke to speak of a government official (Acts 23:26, 24:2, 26:25). It is notable, then, that Luke is willing to take such a critical view of wealth and the authority of the empire.

Luke 1:41 - Elizabeth was "filled with the Spirit" and prophesied, just as her husband does in v67.

Luke 2:52 - No matter how extraordinary he may have been, Jesus' humanity is revealed in his growth and learning. He needed to learn, to increase, just as any human does.

Luke 3:5 - Mountains lowered and valleys filled - The context of Luke makes it clear that an explicit social-ethical consequence should be interpreted in this passage. The poetry is echoed in both Luke 14:11 and 18:14, where it says clearly that those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and rose who humble themselves will be exalted. Luke 1:52-53 said that ruler will be removed, and the humble lifted up. Luke's gospel has consequences that effect the entire order of the world, not just the heart of the individual.

Chapter 5 - New Wineskin

It is well accepted that the "New Wineskin" Jesus refers to is the New Covenant that was promised in the Hebrew scriptures. This covenant is described in the New Testament as being the gospel of the Kingdom inaugurated in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, received by faith for salvation and forgiveness of sins.

 The "Old Wineskin" is the old covenant, the law of Moses. But left there, it is too easy to imagine that what is meant is simply one set of theologies replaced by another. In relaity, the law of Moses represented an entire culture and way of life, affecting the individual, the family, and the structure of government and law. This change of wine and wineskin is more than just acceptance of a new creed, it is an entirely new way of being, which will require a new system to contain it. The hearts of individuals will be changed, yes. But this will result in a change in their actions. And these changes in the way people live necessitate a revolution in the order of the ways of the world. The "new wineskin", therefore, can just as legitimately be described as an entirely new order by consequence of this new covenant written on the hearts of Jesus' followers. This new order is the Kingdom of Heaven. Followers of Jesus are right in seeking it's manifestation on earth.

Luke 1 - The Magnificat and Occupy Edmonton

(Click here to read Luke 1)

(also see my last post for more on Luke 1)

The song of Mary in this chapter is called "The Magnificat".

Last December I stood in downtown Edmonton in a mixed crowd huddling from the wind as we read this passage out loud together. It was part of "Occupy Advent". We stood outside the fenced off and empty lot where Occupy Edmonton had lived and shared community for forty days before being forcibly evicted by the landowners and fenced off from use by anyone. The words of this song resonated strongly with us that night.

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The Magnificat

Luke 1:46-55 (ESV)

⁴⁶ And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷      and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
    For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
    and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
⁵¹  He has shown strength with his arm;
     he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
⁵²  he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
     and exalted those of humble estate;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
    and the rich he has sent away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
     in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵  as he spoke to our fathers,
     to Abraham and to his offspring for ever.”

Luke 1 - "He has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of lowly estate"

(Click here to read Luke 1)

Luke 1:46-55 (ESV)
⁴⁶ And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷      and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
    For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
    and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
⁵¹  He has shown strength with his arm;
     he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
⁵²  he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
     and exalted those of humble estate;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
    and the rich he has sent away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
     in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵  as he spoke to our fathers,
     to Abraham and to his offspring for ever.”

This is the song of Mary, after being told by an angel that she will be the mother of Messiah.

In this poetic eruption of praise we see Mary and Luke (the writer of this gospel) boldly declare the truth that the gospel is good news for the lowly, the marginalized, the poor, and the weak. Jesus has come for the outsider. He has come bring down the mighty from their thrones and raise up the lowly.

This is the theme of all of Luke and Acts. The good news of the gospel is for the outsider. Jesus is bringing justice to the entire order. Kings beware.

The story of Luke and Acts is also deeply dependent  upon the work of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that will come upon Mary so that she can give birth (v35). The work of the Spirit in the life of Jesus and his followers is abundantly evident and explicitly stated again and again throughout Luke's two books.

And Luke himself writes as an outsider. While Jesus came to an occupied rural people as a poor and displaced son of a Jewish working man, Luke himself is none of these things. Luke is an educated, Greek doctor from outside the centre of Jewish life. By the time this book was written, the news of Jesus had already spread beyond the ethnic or regional centre from which it began. Luke is written in a higher and more academic Greek than any other book in the New Testament. Yet, Jesus is presented in this gospel as more human, more equal to the people from his rural community  than any of the other gospels. Though Luke is writing to a more urban and educated audience, Jesus and his family are presented in the most down to earth and reachable ways possible. While Matthew regards Jesus as a king, Luke goes out of his way to show Jesus among the margins, the outcasts, the poor, and the racially despised.

The book starts off sounding scholarly and scientific – “I have myself carefully investigated”, “an orderly account” Whereas Mark was very fast and succinct, painting with broad strokes, Luke is all about the details and precision. His language is intentional and sure. He may be writing to the very rulers that Mary says will be brought down from their thrones. And he wants them to have certainty of his words (v4).

v35 – He will be called the Son of God.