The Sabbath was made for Man (Isaiah 56)

Yahweh promises blessing to the man who keeps justice and does righteousness. Here, as in Mark 8:1-6, keeping justice and doing righteousness takes a surprising Sabbath-keeping shape. It shouldn't have been all that surprising. Deut 5:12-15 prescribes the Sabbath as being also for the foreigners among Israel. The shalom of the land was to be a catholic experience. Remembering the Sabbath meant rehearsing Israel's own outcast identity, and God's redemptive exodus activity: "you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm." So, the primary public holiness sign for God's elect priesthood for the nations leaves the transgression of partiality without excuse.

When the Pharisees read Isaiah's, "blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil," they saw this as a divine right to cross their hands against anyone not sitting on their hands, especially when it came to touching someone with an unclean hand. The holiness laws maintaining ceremonial cleanness were read to promote partiality on a liberal basis, a virtue of zealousness for Yahweh.

Both Isaiah and Jesus overturn the table-manners of that brand of Sabbath keeping, especially on the dawn of the new creation. Keeping one's hand from doing just acts of covenant mercy effectively breaks the Spirit of "keeping his hand from doing any evil"...this partiality and mercy-forgetting has ironic murderous (not to mention Sabbath-breaking) consequences for Israel. Thus not only would the hard-heartedness of authorities lead to the oversighted death of just, covenantally-merciful men (Is 57:1), in the fullness of time, it would lead to the Pharisees' purposeful plot to kill God's son, Jesus, Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 3:6, cf. James 2:1-12). (The Apostle Paul, in Romans 2, makes much the same argument with respect to what it means to be truly circumcised in the new creation: law-keeping was intended from the beginning to take a catholic-circumcision shape, signalling God's future inclusion of Gentiles via the fulfillment of the Abrahamic promise in Christ. To zealously apply 'circumcision' in ignorance of the universal communal implications of the promise of Christ to address the universal problem of sin was to effectively render oneself uncircumsized. Rom 2.23-29)

In contrast to their elitist table manners, Yahweh promises a special place in his house and sets his Sabbath-feast table for the outcasts (vss 3-7). He demands a liberal application of full acceptance to all Sabbath-keepers, those tempted to feel the inevitability of a loss of covenant communion, especially in the face of an overwhelming deluge of wrath to come. Isaiah exhorts Israel to speak Yahweh's justice for outcasts in Israel, comforting such ones that Yahweh will provide room in His house for covenant-keeping foreigners and eunuchs. To those who were considered (even to themselves) to be less than human, fated to be cut off from among his people, to them Yahweh promises "blessed is the man." (cf. Matthew 5:3ff).

In stubborn ignorance to such a suprising vision of welcome and impending wrath, Israel's leaders had prepared their own table to celebrate a counterfeit Sabbath feast (vss 56.10-12). They counterfeit Sabbath rest with their "love of slumber." Their love of wine likewise counterfeits the Sabbath sign of the enjoyment of the completion of havest labors from a blessed land. Their laborless loss of distinction between today and tomorrow profanes the holiness of the Sabbath, separated from the other six days, which signified that the eternal Sabbath rest was yet to come for God's people.

In effort to preserve their own names and territories, the leaders of Israel, appointed as shepherds, rendered themselves to be less than human. Isaiah likens them to barkless dogs, blind to the coming judgment upon the land because of their Sabbath-breaking injustices and foolishness. Israel, who had been called to be the "blessed man," God's image, ruling over and on behalf of the nations is going to be given over to the ravaging of power-hungry nations, whom they now resemble; their countfeit Sabbath feast only renders them fit food for the beasts (vs. 9).

revised chiastic structure for Sermon on the Mount

Here is my revised chiastic structure for the Sermon on the Mount. I'm not sure it's possible to be satisfied with one, since there seems to be multiple overlapping parallels.

[4:23-25] <Narrative> Great crowds follow Jesus for healing.
A. [5.01-02] <Narrative> - He ascends to catechize his disciples.

B. [5:03-10] Final blessing-mercy-peace for persecuted bearers of God's rule in Christ

C. [5:11-16] New covenant prophets/priests/kings to yield God's glory among men

D. [5:17- 48] Christ came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets in us.

E. [6:01-18] Give, Pray, Fast in secret towards our Father.
E. [6:19-34] Store-up treasure in heaven / Seek first His Kingdom.

D. [7:01-12] Do unto others...for this is the Law and the Prophets.

C. [7:13-20] Beware of false prophets known by their fruits

B. [7:21-27] Final destruction for those who turn away from Christ's word

A. [7:28-29] <Narrative> - The crowds marvel at Jesus' authority.
[8:01] <Narrative> - Great crowds follow him for healing after he descends.

Another viable chiastic structure I've heard is to take the first eight beatitudes (5:3-10) as an outline for the entire sermon on the mount. Thus, the rest of the sermon on the mount as an exposition of each of those points in reverse order.

Psalm 5 - purpose and method of study

Pastor Scott asked me to lead the devotions for our men's prayer breakfast April 10th. We've been going through the Psalter and have reached Psalm 5. I intend to use this blog to trace my preparation for the devotional.

Study Procedure

First, I will spend time familiarizing myself with the psalm in the English. It will be important to refresh my memory on what a "psalm" is as a literary genre, and try to answer the question "what kind of psalm is this?" I will then proceed to analyze the Hebrew grammar noting any significant textual variants, and compare how various translations interpret the original (e.g. English translations, but also the Septuagint (LXX)). I will proceed to determine the poetic structure of the psalm, rhetorically and thematically. I will move into broader contextual issues that help me understand the meaning of the psalm in its canonical context (e.g. thematic or theological connections to adjacent psalms, how the psalm relates to the history of God's salvation, does it quote or allude to other Scriptures?) Then I will reflect upon how the psalm may speak to Christians, respecting how subsequent authors in Scripture use (or dialogue with) its text or theology to help us understand God's salvation in Christ, the identity of His people, and how we are to be faithful to His revelation.

To begin, here is the text of Psalm 5 (English Standard Version).

TEXT: Psalm 5:1-12 ESV
Psalm 5:1 TO THE CHOIRMASTER: FOR THE FLUTES. A PSALM OF DAVID. Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning.
2 Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray.
3 O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.
4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you.
5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you.
8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me.
9 For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue.
10 Make them bear their guilt, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out, for they have rebelled against you.
11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you.
12 For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favor as with a shield.