INTRODUCTION TO THE SCRIPTURE
Year A - PROPER 14
GENESIS 37:1-4, 12-28. This reading begins the long series of patriarchal legends, known as the Joseph cycle. It is a model of great storytelling for a theological purpose. It traces the migration of one family (or tribe) from their ancient dwelling place in Canaan to Egypt. The biblical significance of this and the subsequent series of stories lies in the way the mighty acts of God provided for the people of God in every circumstance, however favourable or unfavourable (45:8).
PSALM 105: 1-6, 16-22, 45b. This psalm gives the story of Joseph its theological context and places it at the very centre of Israel's worship in the temple. The whole psalm celebrates "the wonderful works" of God (vss.3, 5) and summons Israel not only to sing thankful praise (vss. 1a, 2), but to "make known his deeds" (vs. 1b) and to "seek the Lord and his strength, ... (and ) his presence forever."
1 KINGS 19:9-18. (Alternate) Elijah the prophet fleeing from the wrath of Queen Jezebel is confronted by God as to why he has deserted God=s people. God would not let him cringe in fear for his life, but challenged him to undertake a new mission and assured him of assistance from Elisha, his understudy, and others in what he was to do.
PSALM 85:8-13. (Alternate) The psalmist finds assurance that God=s steadfast love and human faithfulness will solve problems that confront God=s people.
ROMANS 10:5-15. Paul clarifies the distinction between the legalism of Judaism to which he himself had once been so fervently dedicated and the living faith as he had found it in Christ. He presents this contrast much as a witness in a law court would testify. To do so he used several quotations from Jewish scriptures to prove his point, thereby virtually turning Judaism on itself.
MATTHEW 14:22-33. Shorter versions of this incident appear in Mark 6:47‑52 and John 6:16‑21. Both also link it to the feeding of the five thousand. The unique aspect of Matthew's version is Peter's doubt and daring attempt to prove his faith. Would not the emphasis be better placed on the disciples= lack of understanding as Mark does? Like so many of us, they really had not got the message that faith can meet any need if correctly focused on the One who saves us to the uttermost.
A MORE COMPLETE ANLAYSIS.
GENESIS 37:1‑4, 12‑28. The Joseph cycle consists of a series of patriarchal legends
skillfully woven together by an editor from the several documentary sources common to all the books of the Pentateuch. As we read it today, and in the coming weeks, we shall find it a model of great storytelling with a theological purpose. Its basic plot traces the migration of one family of Israelites from their central dwelling place as alien shepherds in Canaan to the more fertile pasturage of the Nile delta in Egypt. As such it is a tale of reversal and recognition, the classic format for a great drama.
The biblical significance the story rests in the way the editor tells it as yet another of the mighty acts of Israel's God whereby the people of God are provided for in every
circumstance, however favorable or unfavorable (45:8). Some scholars believe that it may derive its significance as a link between the period of Israelites dwelling in Canaan and the Exodus. There is no way of our knowing to what extent historical events lie behind these great legends. Nevertheless, some scholars have suggested the time of the Hyksos invasion of Egypt in the 16th century BCE as the most likely time of this migration. Others put it as late as the time of Ikhnaton, the reforming pharaoh of Egypt in the 14th century BCE.
The reading introduces us to the main characters in the first act of the drama, "this dreamer" (Joseph ‑ vs. 19) and his brothers. It shows the usual characteristics of a composite work. Vss. 1‑2a come from the post‑exilic priestly document P; vss. 2b‑4 is from the 9th century BCE document J as does much of the rest of the reading except for a few selections from the 8th century document E (vss. 5‑11, 19‑20, 22‑25a, and 28a). We still get a clear sense of the favouritism, pride, jealousy and conflict which form the heart of the whole saga.
All these very human emotions serve to heighten the tension that moves the story forward. These also relate it to the experience of the most sophisticated modern audience. Even in a secular age of personal, corporate and national conflict we know how such competitive forces drive us to do what we do. This is our story as much as it is the story of Joseph.
PSALM 105:1‑6, 16‑22, 45b. This psalm gives the story of Joseph its theological context and places it at the very centre of Israel's worship in the temple. The whole psalm celebrates "the wonderful works" of Yahweh (vss.3, 5) and summons Israel not only to sing thankful praise (vs. 1a, 2), but to "make known his deeds" (vs. 1b) and to "seek the Lord and his strength, ... (and ) his presence forever."
At vs. 6, the psalmist takes up the theme of the patriarchal sagas found in Genesis and weaves them into this liturgical hymn for congregational use. Yet as we read in the remaining segments, the central character is no longer one or other of the legendary patriarchs, but "the Lord our God" (vs. 7). The story of Joseph (vss. 16‑22) forms one part of the covenantal theology around which the worship of Israel developed (vs. 10‑11). Essentially, this is a theology of history in hymnic form. It celebrates the faith that in the great events of Israel's past, Yahweh was at work.
Vss. 1‑15 was repeated in the composite poem in 1 Chronicles 16. This places the psalm in the post‑exilic period, probably at the time when the temple was being rebuilt and traditional worship revived in the late 6th to 5th centuries BCE.
For us today, the psalm raises the question: where do we see the hand of God in the events of our past, our present and our future with the same clear vision of this psalm? As a wise teacher of children, the late Rev. Fred Rogers, once said, AWhen you see scary and bad things on TV, look for the helpers.@ That=s where God is work.
1 KINGS 19:9-18. (Alternate) Fleeing from the wrath of Queen Jezebel, Elijah the prophet trekked all the way to Horeb (Sinai), the mountain where Yahweh and Israel, led by Moses, had made covenant. There Elijah is confronted by God as to why he has deserted God=s people. There he had an unusual revelation: he found that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Despite his plaintive, self-pitying prayers, Yahweh would not let him cringe in fear for his life, but challenged him to undertake a new mission and assured him of assistance from Elisha, his understudy, and others in what he was to do.
Some interesting sidebars can be attached to this lesson. (1) Horeb was simply an alternate name for Mount Sinai, used primarily in the Elohist document in the Pentateuch and Deuteronomy. The apocryphal book Sirach 48:7 (2nd century BCE) recognizes the identity of the two. (2) Forty was a symbolic number in the OT recalling the 40 years the children of Israel spent wandering in the wilderness, about the lifetime of one generation. (3) The still small voice represented a new revelation, unlike the previous covenantal revelations of Israel=s earlier wilderness experience several hundred years earlier. (4) God doesn=t always use the primary character in a biblical story to bring about God=s purpose in a specific incident.
PSALM 85:8-13. (Alternate) The psalmist finds assurance that God=s steadfast love and human faithfulness will solve problems that confront God=s people. It is thought that the psalm written during the period when Israel's return from exile was imminent or has already occurred. Later, after the exile had ended, it may have had a liturgical function at some national celebration.
The psalm consists of three rather distinct parts. Vss. 1-3 celebrates Yahweh=s initiative in Israel=s history. Vss. 4-7 plead for forgiveness based on the covenant relationship between Yahweh and Israel. Vss. 8-13 recite the blessings that come from the mutual faithfulness of the covenant - forgiveness, righteousness, peace and prosperity.
Scholars debate whether this is a lament or a liturgical prayer. The Book of Haggai suggests a pertinent time of economic and spiritual depression when it could have been appropriate. Yet there are no certain historical references. Moreover, the latter part of the poem can be just as easily interpreted eschatologically. On the whole, the psalm deals with divine initiatives which result in salvation, whether at a time of imminent danger or at the end of time. For this reason it was chosen by the authors of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer as the psalm for Christmas Day.
In his Everyday Psalms (Wood Lake Books, 1994) Jim Taylor gives an alternate paraphrase which brings out a different point of view. He gives the psalm the title of AAn Unfair World@ and cites the situation of a friend who contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion. He thus paraphrases the psalm as a lament by one who needs greater comfort than Job’s comforters could offer. At vs. 8, he silences all pious platitudes because he needs to hear what God has to say. He ends this paraphrase with these words: ASorrow is holy ground; walk on it only with feet bared to the pain of every pebble. Through the storm, the Lord of life comes walking on the salt sea of tears.@
ROMANS 10:5‑15. In this passage Paul clarifies the distinction between the legalism of Judaism to which he himself had once been so fervently dedicated and the living faith as he had found it in Christ. He presents this contrast much as a witness in a law court would testify. To do so he used several quotations from Jewish scriptures to prove his point, thereby virtually turning Judaism on itself.
We must remember that Paul's purpose as an apostle was to declare the saving action of God in Christ and to tell how those who believed could participate in that action. His own bitter experience as a Pharisee had led him to a dead end: total obedience to the Law of Moses, however rigorous and sincere, did not give a life of friendship with God. In fact, it did just the opposite, making him realize how far he had failed to achieve that goal. No one could put oneself in a relationship with God through obedience to the law. In Christ, God done for him and for all humanity what no one else could do. By faith in Christ, right relationship with God is now available to all.
This is the message Paul puts into these few, crisp sentences and quotations from Leviticus 18:5 (vs.5); Deuteronomy 30:12‑14 (vss. 6‑8). More than that, he says that this life of faith in fellowship with God is for everybody, Jew or Gentile (vs. 12). He quotes two other scripture texts from Isaiah 29:16 and Joel 2:32 to reiterate the point twice over. This is something no Jew could ever accept, as evidenced by Peter's struggle in Acts 10 and the frequently violent opposition Paul faced during his apostolic journeys. To Jews the covenant relationship with Yahweh was exclusive to Israel. If there was any universal aspect to Judaism it would come through obedience of all other people to the law.
The reading ends with yet another quotation from Isaiah 52:7 (vs. 15). Paul interpreted this as the summons to the apostolic mission to proclaim the essential Christian confession that Jesus is Lord and that God had so declared in raising Jesus from the dead (vs. 9), the sine quae non of Christian faith.
MATTHEW 14:22‑33. This pericope appears in shorter versions in Mark 6:47‑52 and John 6:16‑21. Both also link it to the feeding of the five thousand. The unique facet of Matthew's version is Peter's doubt and daring attempt to prove his faith. Scholars hypothesize that the difference is due to Peter's primacy in the apostolic century church. If so, it is surprising that Mark does not also include it. In fact, Mark emphasizes the disciples= lack of understanding. They really had not got the message that faith can meet any need.
Another approach refers to this extension of the basic tradition of Jesus walking on water during the storm as a midrash added to Mark's story by the Syrian church which held Peter in particularly high esteem. It would speak meaningfully to any Christian who had suffered a loss of faith during persecution, but had subsequently been restored to the fellowship. Still other scholars regard it as a misplaced post‑resurrection story in which Jesus appeared to Peter to banish his self‑doubt and restore his faith. We cannot know for sure, but we certainly can draw strength from it, especially if treated analogically.
Faith is never constant; it comes and goes with the varying circumstances of our lives. Peter thus becomes the all too human representative of us all ‑ daring, then doubting, and finally dependent on the Lord for what we need most, our salvation.
The story is said to have had great meaning for the early church in times of persecution and martyrdom. So also it may for us in the church now as we face the uncertainty of diminishing influence in the global community. We feel powerlessness to confront the issues before us. All the values of the gospel seem no longer to have any currency. At the beginning of the 20th century, we proclaimed boldly that we would win the world for Christ in the next 100 years. We have passed that point now but we have not succeeded. Instead, we are caught up in an overwhelming storm of failure and doubt, and often bloody conflict with people of other faith traditions. Jesus' chiding words speak directly us: "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" Like Peter, we desperately need Jesus to reach out with the help that is always there. He has risen; he reigns; all the powers of the universe can never defeat his purpose to make love dominant in the affairs of this world. But it may not be in our time or in the way we expect it to come about, no matter how much of our energy and treasure we expend in striving to bring it about.
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