Disciples of Isaiah

16 Bind up the testimony, seal the teaching among my disciples.¹⁷I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him.¹⁸See, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.¹⁹Now if people say to you, ‘Consult the ghosts and the familiar spirits that chirp and mutter; should not a people consult their gods, the dead on behalf of the living,²⁰for teaching and for instruction?’ surely, those who speak like this will have no dawn!²¹They will pass through the land,^* greatly distressed and hungry; when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will curse^* their king and their gods. They will turn their faces upwards,²²or they will look to the earth, but will see only distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be thrust into thick darkness.^*<!– 9 –>

The Righteous Reign of the Coming King

9^*But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

Mutters and chirps

The prophet has spoken his clear message and added to it by giving his children symbolic names like “Shearjashub” which means ” a remnant will return”, that is, after exile some Israelites will come back to the homeland. All this has been his calling. He has done his job. But the people have preferred to listen to more comforting messages got by mediums from the spirits of their ancestors, who “chirp and mutter”, according to the scornful prophet. It’s still true that when people won’t believe in God, it isn’t that they’ll believe nothing, but rather that they’ll believe anything. Even today those who reject divinely inspired prophetic warnings about ecological damage and pervasive violence listen to all manner of superstitious reassurance from the mutterers and chirpers of the mass media.

That great and splendid nation the USA should be on its knees today in an act of national repentance, confessing that it has allowed its love of guns to expose its own children to repeated massacres. I can remember how horrified we were in Scotland to learn after the killings at Dunblane how easy it was to get sophisticated handguns. We listened to the evidence and against the wailing of gun-lovers we made them much harder to get. We should all pray that true Americans listen to the voice of  sensible prophets rather than the familiar chirping and muttering of the National Rifle Association. Enough of their repeated mantra that “guns don’t kill, people do.” Yes people kill and they kill much more easily and frequently with guns than they could otherwise.

But of course, this passage is for all societies not just the USA. All nations face the threat of global warming but only a few pay attention to the prophets who urge immediate action. There is always something more urgent for politicians whose attention span for issues of global importance is close to zero. They listen to the chirps and mutterings of those who want an increasingly sophisticated lifestyle more than they want life itself for their grandchildren. Many great prophets, from Rachel Carson to James Lovelock have done their inspired best. Their writings and their lives are “signs and portents from the Lord of Hosts.”  Our scripture urges us  to listen and act.

Luke 22:39-53

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

39 He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him.⁴⁰When he reached the place, he said to them, ‘Pray that you may not come into the time of trial.’^*41Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed,⁴²‘Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.’ [[⁴³Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength.⁴⁴In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.]]^*45When he got up from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping because of grief,⁴⁶and he said to them, ‘Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not come into the time of trial.’^*

the hour of darkness

The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus47 While he was still speaking, suddenly a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him;⁴⁸but Jesus said to him, ‘Judas, is it with a kiss that you are betraying the Son of Man?’⁴⁹When those who were around him saw what was coming, they asked, ‘Lord, should we strike with the sword?’⁵⁰Then one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear.⁵¹But Jesus said, ‘No more of this!’ And he touched his ear and healed him.⁵²Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple police, and the elders who had come for him, ‘Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit?⁵³When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness!’

It’s a little strange that the Lectionary gives us the end of Jesus’ life when we’re just about to celebrate its beginning; but there’s method in this apparent madness: we are being reminded of the Christian belief that the eternal God became part of the world in Jesus and has like most human beings suffered its evils and understands (eternally) the “hour of the power of darkness” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, murdered by the Nazis for his opposition to Hitler, wrote, “Only a suffering God can help.” I noticed that the state Governor had told the grieving families of the murdered children and teachers, “We will not tell you we know how you feel; because we don’t know.” The God whose beloved son was crucified does know, and grieves with them.