Episcopal Church of the
Incarnation
The Third Sunday in Lent (B)
Exodus
20.1-17 Psalm 19 1
Corinthians 1.18-25 John 2.13-22
Exodus
20.1-17
1) The Decalogue (the recording of which is described at Exod. 34.28, see also Deut. 4.13 and 10.4) is found here and also at Deuteronomy 5.6-21.
a) In the Exodus version (thought to be that of the Elohist redactor of the Pentateuch), the commandments are stated by the Lord.
b) In the Deuteronomy version (thought to be that of the Deuteronomist redactor of the Pentateuch), the commandments are re-stated by Moses.
c) The Ten Commandments are found in the section of Exodus (19.1-24.18) in which the covenant is solemnly concluded.
d) The text makes clear (e.g., at v. 5) that adverse consequences for disobeying the Law do not flow from the sin itself, but from the direct action of God.
i) Consequences, in this view, are not part of the sin, but the result of punishment for the sin.
(1) This too is an innovation in ancient worldview.
(2) Nonetheless, obedience is motivated not by fear but by God’s absolute authority and the people’s desire to live within His will.
e) The prohibition against images is a radical change from ancient Near Eastern culture, in which the ordinary means for an encounter between a “god” and worshipper was through an image.
2)
Different traditions number the commandments
differently.
a)
The Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, and Reformed traditions
number the prohibitions against false worship as two commandments (vv. 3-6).
b)
The Roman Catholic and Lutheran traditions number these
prohibitions as one commandment, and divide the last commandment into two.
c)
In Jewish tradition, v. 2 is not a prologue but the
first commandment, with vv. 3-6 being the second commandment.
d)
The concept of sabbath is
unique to
3)
The fifth commandment (to honor one’s parents) is a
bridge between the first four (duties to God) and the last five (duties to
fellow humans).
a)
It is the only commandment in which conditional reward
is mentioned (“... so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God gives you.”)
Psalm
19
1) The psalm falls into two distinct parts:
a) vv. 1-6 as a creation hymn.
b) vv. 7-14 as a wisdom hymn.
i) The linking of creation and wisdom is not accidental; wisdom reflects a response made on account of and in response to God’s gift to mankind in the order of creation.
2) The wisdom section of the psalm is also broken down into a hymn on the Law (vv. 7-11) and a hymn of confession with prayer for forgiveness (vv. 12-14).
3) As with all Creation, the Law is described as a gift of God.
1
Corinthians 1.18-25
1)
Having discussed the rivalries that exist in
a)
He quotes Isaiah 29.14 (from the woe oracles) to the
effect that human wisdom is to no effect.
b)
Human wisdom which condemns the Gospel is thus
condemned by the word of God.
2) Believers must detach themselves from human standards. The fact of the acceptance or rejection of God’s Good News divides humans into two classifications, those who are saved and those who are perishing.
a) Once again we see that salvation is “present tense”.
3) The “wisdom of God” referred to in v. 21 is not a reference to divine plan (for this would make Paul’s argument less forceful), but the organization of the beauty of creation.
a) As seen in Psalm 19, wisdom and creation are linked. God is revealed in how we can observe creation (what is known as “general revelation” to distinguish it from the “special revelation” of Scripture).
i) Rational speculation has failed to perceive that God has acted through a suffering Savior.
4) A demand for signs bespeaks a refusal to trust God, as well as a contentment with the status quo (i.e., a denial for the need of salvation).
a) Jews demand signs because of their messianic expectations; Gentiles seek a rational explanation.
i) Both are confounded by the “foolishness” of a crucified Christ.
ii) The Gospel is offered to all, but those who accept this offer are “called”.
John
2.13-22
1) Both the Old Testament and the literature of the Second temple era express the expectation of the establishment of a new temple for the messianic age (e.g., Ezek. 40-44; 1 Enoch 90.28-36).
a) It is against this backdrop that Jesus’ actions must be weighed.
b) John characterizes Jesus’ actions as flowing from zeal for the Lord as found in His Temple.
i) The disciples quote Ps. 69.9 to this effect.
ii)
They expect the Messiah to purge and cleanse the
2) John places the cleansing at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, rather than as a cause for the official hostility against Jesus (as expressed in the Passion accounts in the Synoptic Gospels).
a) Here, Jesus’ authority is challenged immediately. In the Synoptic accounts the challenge comes after the fact.
3) When John writes that the disciples “remembered” the saying found at Ps. 69.9 he is using a technical term for how the community of believers came to understand (after the resurrection) Jesus as the fulfillment of Scripture.
a) The authorities’ request for a “sign” is in contrast to this.