WEBVTT

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Professor Christine
Hayes: I'm going to go ahead

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now and get started with some
sixth-century material

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which--prophetic
literature--which confronts the

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issues that were raised by the
final destruction of Jerusalem.

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What was the meaning of this
event and how could it be

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reconciled with the concept of
Israel as God's elect?

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How could such tremendous evil
and suffering be reconciled with

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the nature of God himself?

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This is going to be a question
that will return in the next

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lecture when we look at the
wisdom literature and the Book

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of Job,
and some other texts as well as

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we proceed through the rest of
the course.

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In classical terms,
if God is God,

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then he's not good if all these
terrible things happened,

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and if God is good then he
mustn't be all powerful because

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he failed to prevent this evil.

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That tends to be the dilemma,
the way it's phrased.

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Now, Ezekiel was a priest and
he was deported in the first

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deportation.
You remember there was a

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deportation of exiles in 597,
and then the final siege and

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destruction and deportation of
exiles in 587.

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Ezekiel was among the deportees
of 597.

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He was therefore,
in exile in Babylon during the

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final destruction and the fall
of Jerusalem in 587,

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but his priestly background and
his priestly interests are

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clearly reflected in his
prophecies.

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He accuses the Israelites of
failing to observe cultic laws,

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ritual laws,
and his promises for the future

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and his vision of a restoration,
we will see,

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center around a new temple and
a restored Jerusalem and temple

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complex.
There's a striking

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correspondence between Ezekiel
and the priestly sources in

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terms of language and theme,
particularly H,

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the Holiness code.

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Now, the prophecies in Ezekiel,
conveniently and unlike many of

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the other prophetic books,
actually follow a fairly

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chronological order.

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So the first section of the
book consists of prophecies that

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were before the final
destruction,

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between 597 and 587,
and then beginning in 33,

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it seems we have prophecies
that followed the destruction.

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He gets the report of the
destruction, and then we see how

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his tone and his message
changes.

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So in those first 24 chapters
where you have prophecies that

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are delivered in Babylon,
before the destruction,

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we have three chapters that are
devoted to his call and his

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commission as a prophet.

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We see his inaugural vision.

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I'll come back and talk about
that in a minute as well as many

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other visions and symbols.

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Then you have,
from chapters 4 to 24,

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oracles that are condemning
Judah and Israel.

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There are some interesting
elements within this.

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We have the depiction of the
kavod (which represents

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God) departing.
We'll talk about that text in a

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minute.
We also have,

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in chapter 18,
a very interesting emphasis on

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individual responsibility for
sin.

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We'll come back and touch on
that as well.

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Chapters 25 to 32 contain
oracles against foreign nations

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just as we have in Jeremiah and
Isaiah.

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Throughout, Ezekiel refers to
these nations as the

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uncircumcised.
The tone here is vengeful and

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very gloating,
and these oracles have exerted

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a very strong influence on the
New Testament,

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particularly the Book of
Revelation.

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After 587, Ezekiel prophesied
and those prophecies are

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contained in the latter part of
his book from chapters 33 to 48.

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So in 33 we hear of the fall of
Jerusalem, and then after that,

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oracles of promise and hope for
the future.

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The last chapters,
from chapter 40 to 48 are

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visions: Ezekiel's visions of
the restoration,

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his vision of a rebuilt Temple
and a rebuilt Jerusalem.

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So the book opens with a
narrative account of Ezekiel's

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call in about 593 or so in a
Jewish community that's on the

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River Chebar,
which is a large irrigation

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canal off of the Euphrates in
Babylon.

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And this is the first time that
we hear of a call of a prophet

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outside the land of Israel.

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It's a remarkable vision.

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Like many of the visions in the
Book of Ezekiel it has a sort of

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surrealistic,
almost hallucinatory quality.

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The vision itself is very
reminiscent of descriptions of

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Baal, the Canaanite storm god.

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So there's a stormy wind and a
huge cloud, and a flashing fire.

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God is riding on a kind of
throne chariot.

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He's enthroned above four
magnificent creatures.

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Each of these has a human body
and then four faces:

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the face of a human,
the face of a lion,

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the face of an ox,
and the face of an eagle.

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There are four huge wheels
under this throned-chariot,

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and they are said to gleam like
beryl beneath a vast and

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awe-inspiring expanse or dome,
which gleams like crystal.

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Above that is the semblance of
a throne that is like sapphire,

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and on the throne was the
semblance of a human form that's

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gleaming like amber,
and its fire encased in a

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frame, which is radiant all
about.

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So this kavod,
this cloud that contains or

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hides the fire that is Yahweh's
presence--That is also the term

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that's used in the Torah,
in Exodus and the priestly

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sources to describe the presence
of God among His people,

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this fire that's encased in a
cloud, the kavod.

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In Exodus 24 we read that this
kavod had settled on

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Mount Sinai representing God's
presence.

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In Exodus 40,
this cloud covers the tent of

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meeting;
it fills the tabernacle,

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so when Ezekiel sees it now he
says, that it "was the

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appearance of the semblance of
the Presence of the Lord.

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When I beheld it,
I flung myself down on my face

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and I heard the voice of someone
speaking."

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Notice this language;
it was the "semblance of the

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appearance of the Presence."

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Ezekiel wants to emphasize the
transcendent nature of the

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deity.
He's having a vision of

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something which cannot in fact
be seen or perceived,

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which is a kind of paradox of
all of his visions.

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The prophet's humanity is
emphasized in contrast to this

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transcendent divinity,
and that's something that

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happens throughout Ezekiel.

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He emphasizes his humanity with
this phrase "Son of Man," ben

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adam.
Son of Man;

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it simply is the Hebrew term
for a mortal being as opposed to

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divine being.
Son of Man simply means a

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human, a morta.

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Ben adam,
one who is like Adam.

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Now, the call of Ezekiel is
reminiscent of the call of

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Jeremiah and Isaiah.

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He is sent to a nation of
rebels, rebels who will not be

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listening to him.

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His commission is symbolized by
a scroll that's handed to him,

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and we hear at the end of
chapter 2 that inscribed on this

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scroll are lamentations and
dirges and woes,

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and he's commanded to eat of
this scroll and then go to speak

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to the House of Israel.

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So he swallows this scroll and
all of its dreadful contents.

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It tastes to him as sweet as
honey and then his task is

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spelled out in chapter 3.

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He is to be a watchman,
one who gives warning of

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danger, and people will either
heed him or not,

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but each one of them is
ultimately responsible for his

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or her own fate.
In a vision,

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in chapter 8,
an angel transports Ezekiel to

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Jerusalem and into the temple
courts,

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and there he sees and gives a
very vivid description of the

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shocking abominations.

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These are represented as
justifying or explaining the

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destruction of the city and
these descriptions are

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characterized by more than the
usual amount of prophetic

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hyperbole.
As he watches the slaughter and

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the destruction that's going on
there, Ezekiel sees the

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kavod,
that is the presence of Yahweh,

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arise from the Temple and move
to the east.

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Chapter 10:18-19:
...the Presence of the

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LORD left the platform of the
House and stopped above the

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cherubs.
And I saw the cherubs lift

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their wings and rise from the
earth, with the wheels beside

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them as they departed;
and they stopped at the

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entrance of the eastern gate of
the House of the Lord,

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with the Presence of the God of
Israel above them.

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In chapter 11:23-25:
…The Presence of the

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LORD ascended from the midst of
the city and stood on the hill

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east of the city.

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A spirit carried me away and
brought me in a vision by the

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spirit of God to the exiled
community in Chaldea.

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[So now he's back to Babylon.]
Then the vision that I had seen

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left me, and I told the exiles
all the things that the Lord had

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shown me.
So this image draws on Ancient

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Near Eastern traditions of gods
abandoning their cities in

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anger, leaving them to
destruction by another god.

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The primary difference here is
that God, rather than another

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god, is himself also bringing
the destruction.

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Moreover, God doesn't retire to
the heavens.

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He doesn't abandon his people.

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He doesn't remain behind with
those left in Judah,

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but he moves into exile.

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In the book of Ezekiel those
left behind are guilty.

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God does not stay with them;
God moves east with the

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righteous exiles.

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Then at the end of the Book of
Ezekiel, we're going to see a

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vision of a restored Temple,
this happens in Ezekiel 43,

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and here Ezekiel will see the
kavod returning from the

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east and back to the temple,
…And there,

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coming from the east with a
roar like the roar of mighty

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waters,
was the Presence of the God of

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Israel, and the earth was lit up
by His presence.

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…
The Presence of the LORD

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entered the temple by the gate
that faced eastward.

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…
…and lo, the Presence of the

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LORD filled the Temple.
That was 43:1-6.

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So just as the presence,
the Divine presence,

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went eastward with the exiles
so it will return with the

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re-establishment of Israel in
her home.

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What is significant here is the
idea that God is not linked to a

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particular place but to a
particular people.

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And the implication then is
that God is with His people,

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even when they are in exile.

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So Ezekiel preached a message
of doom and judgment like his

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prophetic predecessors and his
contemporaries,

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but his condemnations tend to
emphasize the people's idolatry

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and their moral impurity and
this of course makes sense of

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his priestly heritage.

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His denunciations of Jerusalem
are among the most lurid and

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violent that you'll find in the
Bible.

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Again, these prophesies were
likely delivered between the two

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deportations,
between 597 and then the final

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destruction and deportation in
587,586.

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And Ezekiel warns that
Jerusalem will fall deservedly.

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He says that rebellion against
Babylon would be treason against

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God.
He employs all kinds of very

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vivid metaphors to describe
Israel's situation.

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Jerusalem, he says,
is Sodom's sister except even

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more vile.
Jerusalem is a "vine" but a

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wild one or a burned one.

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She produces nothing of use.

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Purity language is employed
metaphorically throughout

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Ezekiel.
Jerusalem has been utterly

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defiled and there are all sorts
of images that inspire revulsion

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in these chapters.

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So destruction is the only
possible remedy.

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There are metaphors of sexual
promiscuity throughout the book.

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God's destruction of Israel is
figured as the abuse doled out

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by an insanely jealous husband
who is violent,

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and the images are disturbing,
they're haunting,

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they're quite nightmarish.

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Ezekiel also engages in various
dramatic signs--prophetic signs

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or actions--to convey his
message.

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It's something that we've seen
in some of the other prophets,

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but his are so bizarre and so
extreme sometimes,

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that he was accused of
insanity.

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He cooks his food over a fire
of human excrement as a symbol

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of the fact that those besieged
by Nebuchadnezzar will be forced

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to eat unclean food.

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He doesn't mourn when his wife
dies in order to illustrate the

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fact that Yahweh will not mourn
the loss of His temple.

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He binds himself in ropes;
he lies on his left side 390

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days to symbolize the 390 years
of exile of Israel,

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and then he lies on his right
side for 40 days to symbolize

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the length of Judah's captivity,
which he says will be 40years.

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Neither of these terms of
captivity turn out to be

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correct.
Finally, he shaves his beard

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and his hair and he burns a
third of it, he strikes a third

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of it with his sword,
and he scatters a third of it

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to the winds.
He just keeps a few hairs bound

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up in his robe.
This is to symbolize the

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destruction of a third of the
people by pestilence and famine,

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a third of the people by
violence, and the exile of a

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third to Babylon;
only a few will God allow to

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escape.
Ezekiel makes it clear that

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those who ignore the warnings
are doomed.

12:37.870 --> 12:40.600
Those who heed will be spared,
and in this,

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he sounds the theme of
individual responsibility that

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is so characteristic of Ezekiel.

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I want you to listen to the
following passage and compare it

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to, or think about,
other verses or terms in the

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Torah that you've studied that
may relate to the same topic.

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How is he modifying those
earlier ideas?

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This is all from chapter 18,
various verses throughout:

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The word of the Lord came
to me: What do you mean by

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quoting this proverb upon the
soil of Israel,

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"Parents eat sour grapes and
their children's teeth are

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blunted"?
As I live--declares the Lord

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GOD--this proverb shall no
longer be current among you in

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Israel.
Consider, all lives are Mine;

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the life of the parent and the
life of the child are both Mine.

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The person who sins,
only he shall die.

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…
A child shall not share the

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burden of a parent's guilt,
nor shall a parent share the

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burden of a child's guilt;
the righteousness of the

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righteous shall be accounted to
him alone, and the wickedness of

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the wicked shall be account to
him alone.

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Moreover, if the wicked one
repents of all the sins that he

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committed and keeps all My laws
and does what is just and right,

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he shall live;
he shall not die.

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…
Is it My desire that a wicked

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person shall die?--says the Lord
GOD.

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It is rather that he shall turn
back from his ways and live.

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So, too, if a righteous person
turns away from his

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righteousness and does wrong,
practicing the very

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abominations that the wicked
person practiced,

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shall he live?
None of the righteous deeds

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that he did shall be remembered;
because of the treachery he has

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practiced and the sins he has
committed--because of these,

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he shall die.
…

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Be assured, O House of Israel,
I will judge each one of you

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according to his ways --declares
the LORD GOD.

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Repent and turn back from all
your transgressions;

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let them not be a stumbling
block of guilt for you.

14:24.450 --> 14:26.840
Cast away all the
transgressions by which you have

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offended, and get yourselves a
new heart and a new spirit,

14:29.629 --> 14:31.779
that you may not die,
O House of Israel.

14:31.779 --> 14:35.189
For it is not My desire that
anyone shall die--declares the

14:35.192 --> 14:37.272
Lord GOD.
Repent, therefore,

14:37.274 --> 14:40.444
and live!"
It's an important Torah idea

14:40.444 --> 14:43.624
that Ezekiel is rejecting or
contradicting here.

14:43.620 --> 14:46.520
And that's the Torah principle
of collective or even

14:46.524 --> 14:48.294
intergenerational punishment.

14:48.289 --> 14:50.939
It's found most famously in the
Second Commandment,

14:50.938 --> 14:53.798
the declaration that God
punishes children for the sins

14:53.797 --> 14:56.337
of their fathers unto the fourth
generation.

14:56.340 --> 14:59.610
Now, we need to note that we're
talking about divine justice

14:59.611 --> 15:01.221
here and not human justice.

15:01.220 --> 15:04.390
As we saw in our study of
biblical law in the sphere of

15:04.385 --> 15:07.425
human justice,
only the guilty are punished in

15:07.434 --> 15:11.234
Israelite law.
You don't have literal

15:11.227 --> 15:13.967
punishment.
Someone kills someone's son,

15:13.966 --> 15:16.186
then their son is put to
death--that idea is

15:16.192 --> 15:17.752
rejected in biblical law.

15:17.750 --> 15:21.050
But God operates according to a
different principle--the

15:21.049 --> 15:23.509
principle of collective
responsibility.

15:23.509 --> 15:26.459
And that principle is
understood in the early sources

15:26.461 --> 15:27.541
quite positively.

15:27.539 --> 15:31.369
That the sins of the father's
are visited upon the children is

15:31.372 --> 15:33.322
an expression of God's mercy.

15:33.320 --> 15:37.860
Exodus 34:6 and 7 describe God
as merciful and gracious,

15:37.861 --> 15:42.901
slow to anger and abounding in
steadfast love and faithfulness

15:42.898 --> 15:46.418
and thus tolerating sin,
though not completely clearing

15:46.424 --> 15:48.874
the guilty.
As a mercy he spreads out the

15:48.871 --> 15:51.781
punishment over three or four
generations.

15:51.779 --> 15:55.769
So this notion is tied up with
the aspect of God's mercy.

15:55.769 --> 15:59.389
But evidently there are some
who found this idea unjust and

15:59.392 --> 16:02.892
other biblical passages try to
bring a different sense of

16:02.890 --> 16:06.180
justice to this picture,
and they emphasize that the

16:06.178 --> 16:09.368
third and fourth generations
themselves must be wicked.

16:09.370 --> 16:12.740
That seems to be the case in
Exodus 20:5.

16:12.740 --> 16:15.610
The Book of Chronicles,
which is a rewrite of the

16:15.611 --> 16:18.661
historical material,
the historical narrative in the

16:18.663 --> 16:21.533
Book of Kings,
rewrites that material in a

16:21.533 --> 16:25.193
manner that never explains a
catastrophe on the basis of

16:25.186 --> 16:29.166
guilt incurred by someone other
than the one experiencing the

16:29.170 --> 16:31.160
catastrophe.
In other words,

16:31.156 --> 16:34.516
it rejects the Deuteronomistic
historian's device of delayed

16:34.523 --> 16:37.323
punishment which you'll remember
we discussed.

16:37.320 --> 16:40.590
It changes the narrative
account so that no one suffers

16:40.588 --> 16:43.008
for a crime committed by someone
else.

16:43.009 --> 16:46.779
It isn't the sin of an earlier
generation that's finally

16:46.777 --> 16:50.747
visited upon a grandson or a
king of a later generation.

16:50.750 --> 16:55.160
So it seems that after 586,
or certainly in Ezekiel's case,

16:55.158 --> 16:59.868
some accepted the idea that the
nation was suffering because of

16:59.870 --> 17:03.670
the accumulated guilt of
previous generations,

17:03.670 --> 17:05.000
notably the Deuteronomist.

17:05.000 --> 17:09.190
But for others like Ezekiel,
the idea of accumulated guilt

17:09.185 --> 17:13.435
and intergenerational punishment
seemed to lose some of its

17:13.444 --> 17:17.144
explanatory power,
perhaps because the destruction

17:17.144 --> 17:20.644
and the exile seemed
devastatingly severe punishments

17:20.642 --> 17:23.402
that didn't fit the individual
crimes.

17:23.400 --> 17:27.300
So Ezekiel is one who rejects
the doctrine of collective

17:27.296 --> 17:30.976
responsibility in the operation
of divine justice.

17:30.980 --> 17:33.350
In chapter 18,
he responds to the idea of

17:33.354 --> 17:37.044
suffering for the sins of one's
ancestors by declaring that God

17:37.035 --> 17:39.465
isn't going to work that way
anymore.

17:39.470 --> 17:42.260
God will no longer punish
people collectively.

17:42.259 --> 17:44.289
Each one will be judged
individually.

17:44.289 --> 17:47.879
Only the sinner will be
punished--and that's a major

17:47.883 --> 17:51.903
departure from Exodus 34 and
even from the contemporaneous

17:51.898 --> 17:53.658
Deuteronomistic view.

17:53.660 --> 17:56.840
At this point,
I think, we would do well to

17:56.840 --> 18:00.930
remind ourselves of the nature
of the biblical text.

18:00.930 --> 18:03.620
In the opening lecture,
I asked you to set aside

18:03.619 --> 18:06.479
certain presuppositions about
the biblical text.

18:06.480 --> 18:10.070
One of them is that it is a
uniform or unified text with a

18:10.070 --> 18:11.960
single doctrine or theology.

18:11.960 --> 18:14.440
I asked you to remember that
the Bible isn't a book;

18:14.440 --> 18:17.290
it's a library.
It's a library of works that

18:17.291 --> 18:20.061
originate in vastly differently
historical periods,

18:20.062 --> 18:22.392
vastly different historical
situations.

18:22.390 --> 18:25.850
It responds to a variety of
shifting needs and events,

18:25.849 --> 18:29.239
and reflects a range of
perceptions about God and his

18:29.244 --> 18:31.794
relation to creation and to
Israel.

18:31.789 --> 18:34.449
It isn't a book of theology,
that is to say,

18:34.448 --> 18:37.718
rational argumentation in
support of certain doctrines

18:37.724 --> 18:40.444
about God.
And it most certainly doesn't

18:40.441 --> 18:44.081
speak with a single voice on
points of theology or matters

18:44.080 --> 18:48.230
that are of traditional concern
to the discipline of theology.

18:48.230 --> 18:50.970
Doctrine isn't its concern.

18:50.970 --> 18:55.070
Understanding and making sense
of the historical odyssey of the

18:55.068 --> 18:59.098
nation of Israel in covenant
with God--that is its concern.

18:59.099 --> 19:02.599
So we're going to find many
different interpretations of the

19:02.598 --> 19:05.388
meaning of that history,
the nature of that God,

19:05.385 --> 19:07.575
and the meaning of that
covenant.

19:07.579 --> 19:10.709
And certainly there are some
basic points of agreement,

19:10.709 --> 19:14.299
but even some of the most basic
points of agreement do not pass

19:14.301 --> 19:16.041
without some contestation.

19:16.039 --> 19:19.089
So for example,
the basic point that humans are

19:19.085 --> 19:20.405
free moral agents.

19:20.410 --> 19:23.490
This seems to be clearly
assumed throughout most of the

19:23.491 --> 19:25.261
books of this little library.

19:25.259 --> 19:28.209
But there are some isolated
episodes that would appear to

19:28.209 --> 19:30.579
contradict even that most basic
assumption.

19:30.580 --> 19:32.250
God hardens Pharaoh's heart.

19:32.250 --> 19:35.300
God seals the people's ears
sometimes so that they will not

19:35.303 --> 19:38.203
hear the message of the
prophets, or will not understand

19:38.198 --> 19:39.618
them until a later day.

19:39.619 --> 19:42.689
To be sure, there are only a
few of these contradictory

19:42.692 --> 19:44.402
passages, but they do exist.

19:44.400 --> 19:48.130
And so here we find also a
major shift in the exilic

19:48.129 --> 19:52.439
period, away from the tendency
to see divine justice working

19:52.444 --> 19:56.254
through collective or
intergenerational punishment to

19:56.248 --> 20:00.488
the idea of the individual's
culpability before God.

20:00.490 --> 20:04.010
I shouldn't say a shift away;
we see arising a dialectic.

20:04.010 --> 20:05.430
This isn't a linear progression.

20:05.430 --> 20:07.950
These are different ideas
coming out at different times

20:07.953 --> 20:10.013
and receiving emphasis at
different times.

20:10.009 --> 20:14.099
But this kind of polyphony
didn't impinge upon the

20:14.096 --> 20:18.846
authority of the Hebrew Bible
for the nation of Israel,

20:18.849 --> 20:23.269
because the Bible's authority
doesn't arise from some supposed

20:23.269 --> 20:25.369
consistency or univocality.

20:25.369 --> 20:29.569
That's a modern notion and it's
based on Hellenistic ideals of

20:29.572 --> 20:30.952
truth as singular.

20:30.950 --> 20:33.820
Western culture,
influenced by Greek

20:33.819 --> 20:37.919
philosophical traditions,
defines truth in monistic

20:37.920 --> 20:40.360
terms.
Only that which contains no

20:40.359 --> 20:43.419
contradiction is true and only
that which is true is

20:43.420 --> 20:46.630
authoritative.
Those notions are somewhat

20:46.625 --> 20:50.235
alien to the ancient
non-Hellenized world.

20:50.240 --> 20:53.860
The Bible doesn't strive to
present philosophical truth.

20:53.859 --> 20:57.569
It presents the best efforts of
sages and prophets,

20:57.566 --> 21:02.026
and scribes and visionaries,
to respond to and to explain

21:02.026 --> 21:06.256
the crises of the nation over a
period of centuries.

21:06.259 --> 21:10.469
And its authority derives from
the explanatory power of its

21:10.466 --> 21:15.036
insights into and understanding
of God's governance of the world

21:15.036 --> 21:17.136
and his plans for Israel.

21:17.140 --> 21:20.010
So those insights and those
understandings may shift,

21:20.007 --> 21:22.817
and even stand in contradiction
with one another,

21:22.819 --> 21:24.999
but they are not mutually
exclusive and their

21:25.000 --> 21:27.280
contradictions don't affect
their authority,

21:27.279 --> 21:30.589
their ability to explain,
to console--their ability to

21:30.585 --> 21:34.255
nourish the faith of a people
convinced that God would never

21:34.264 --> 21:37.204
desert them no matter how
difficult it may be to

21:37.195 --> 21:39.935
understand his interactions with
them.

21:39.940 --> 21:44.150
Back to Ezekiel now;
and in chapter 33 we learn that

21:44.146 --> 21:49.626
a fugitive from Jerusalem brings
news of the fall of Jerusalem.

21:49.630 --> 21:54.500
So it's about 587,586;
and when he hears this,

21:54.495 --> 21:59.545
Ezekiel exchanges his message
of doom for a message of hope.

21:59.549 --> 22:02.939
Before the fall of the city,
his task had been to shatter

22:02.937 --> 22:04.447
the people's illusions.

22:04.450 --> 22:09.060
He wanted to shake them out of
their complacency,

22:09.060 --> 22:14.440
but now the people are reduced
to despair and remorse,

22:14.440 --> 22:17.930
and his task is to offer
reassurance and hope.

22:17.930 --> 22:21.560
God is going to initiate a new
beginning.

22:21.559 --> 22:25.199
Though Israel's punishment was
deserved, it was not,

22:25.201 --> 22:28.411
according to Ezekiel,
a sign of the end of the

22:28.414 --> 22:31.774
relationship between Yahweh and
his people,

22:31.769 --> 22:35.459
and a new Israel would rise
from the remnant of Judah and

22:35.457 --> 22:38.047
Israel.
He expresses this restoration

22:38.050 --> 22:40.810
by means of many metaphors and
visions.

22:40.809 --> 22:43.849
So chapter 34 condemns the
shepherds.

22:43.849 --> 22:46.309
This is a very common Ancient
Near Eastern metaphor for the

22:46.309 --> 22:48.989
leadership of a people;
a king is always a shepherd and

22:48.993 --> 22:51.093
so on.
So chapter 34 condemns the

22:51.088 --> 22:55.008
shepherds of the people and
promises to set up in the future

22:55.009 --> 22:58.729
one shepherd of the House of
David to be prince among the

22:58.732 --> 23:02.302
people.
Chapter 36 uses metaphors of

23:02.301 --> 23:04.481
purity and cleansing.

23:04.480 --> 23:07.540
Israel will be cleansed from
the impurities of the past.

23:07.539 --> 23:10.369
She'll be given a new covenant
of the heart.

23:10.369 --> 23:14.779
This is in verses 24 and 25 in
chapter 36.

23:14.779 --> 23:17.569
I will take you from
among the nations and gather you

23:17.574 --> 23:20.424
from all the countries and I
will bring you back to your own

23:20.416 --> 23:22.306
land.
I will sprinkle clean water

23:22.313 --> 23:25.243
upon you [pure water upon you],
and you shall be clean:

23:25.240 --> 23:27.080
[Pure.]
I will cleanse you from all

23:27.083 --> 23:29.743
your uncleanness and from all
your fetishes.

23:29.740 --> 23:32.890
And I will give you a new heart
and put a new spirit into you:

23:32.889 --> 23:35.729
I will remove the heart of
stone from your body and give

23:35.729 --> 23:38.579
you a heart of flesh;
and I will put My spirit into

23:38.580 --> 23:40.880
you.
Thus I will cause you to follow

23:40.875 --> 23:43.745
My laws and faithfully to
observe My rules.

23:43.750 --> 23:45.820
[There are echoes here of
Jeremiah also.]

23:45.823 --> 23:48.523
Then you shall dwell in the
land which I gave to your

23:48.518 --> 23:50.928
fathers,
and you shall be my people and

23:50.934 --> 23:54.364
I will be your God.
So we have again this almost

23:54.364 --> 23:58.384
utopian redesign of human nature
that we heard in Jeremiah.

23:58.380 --> 24:02.950
One in which the problems that
are associated with the exercise

24:02.946 --> 24:05.226
of free will may be obviated.

24:05.230 --> 24:09.230
Another metaphor that's used
for the restoration of a new

24:09.226 --> 24:12.006
Israel out of the remnant of the
old,

24:12.009 --> 24:16.529
is the metaphor of revival from
death and this is found in

24:16.533 --> 24:19.413
chapter 37--a very,
very famous passage:

24:19.409 --> 24:22.189
Ezekiel's vision of the valley
of dry bones:

24:22.190 --> 24:24.070
The hand of the Lord came
upon me.

24:24.069 --> 24:27.259
He took me out by the spirit of
the LORD and set me down in the

24:27.257 --> 24:29.347
valley.
It was full of bones.

24:29.350 --> 24:31.790
He led me all around them;
there were very many of them

24:31.791 --> 24:33.731
spread over the valley,
and they were very dry.

24:33.730 --> 24:36.780
He said to me,
"O mortal, can these bones live

24:36.779 --> 24:38.809
again?"
I replied, "O Lord GOD,

24:38.805 --> 24:41.125
only you know."
[Very diplomatic answer.]

24:41.125 --> 24:43.685
And He said to me,
"Prophesy over these bones and

24:43.690 --> 24:46.630
say to them: O dry bones,
hear the word of the LORD!

24:46.630 --> 24:49.990
Thus said the Lord GOD to these
bones: I will cause breath to

24:49.988 --> 24:52.058
enter you and you shall live
again.

24:52.059 --> 24:54.669
I will lay sinews upon you,
and cover you with flesh,

24:54.673 --> 24:55.933
and form skin over you.

24:55.930 --> 24:58.470
And I will put breath into you,
and you shall live again,

24:58.470 --> 25:00.330
and you shall know that I am
the LORD!"

25:00.329 --> 25:02.979
I prophesied as I had been
commanded.

25:02.980 --> 25:05.970
And while I was prophesying,
suddenly there was a sound of

25:05.967 --> 25:09.267
rattling, and the bones came
together, bone to matching bone.

25:09.269 --> 25:11.839
I looked, and there were sinews
on them, and flesh had grown,

25:11.839 --> 25:13.209
and skin had formed over them.

25:13.210 --> 25:14.840
…
The breath entered them,

25:14.838 --> 25:17.028
and they came to life and stood
up on their feet,

25:17.034 --> 25:17.954
a vast multitude.

25:17.950 --> 25:21.050
And He said to me,
"O mortal, these bones are the

25:21.049 --> 25:22.599
whole House of Israel.

25:22.599 --> 25:25.649
They say, 'Our bones are dried
up, our house is gone;

25:25.650 --> 25:27.900
we are doomed.'
Prophesy, therefore,

25:27.896 --> 25:29.736
and say to them:
Thus said the LORD GOD:

25:29.742 --> 25:32.822
I am going to open your graves
and lift you out of the graves,

25:32.819 --> 25:34.779
O My people,
and bring you to the land of

25:34.779 --> 25:35.839
Israel.
You shall know,

25:35.842 --> 25:37.592
O My people,
that I am the Lord when I have

25:37.585 --> 25:39.905
opened your graves and lifted
you out of your graves.

25:39.910 --> 25:42.810
I will put my breath into you
and you shall live again,

25:42.805 --> 25:44.945
and I will set you upon your
own soil.

25:44.950 --> 25:47.790
Then you shall know that I the
LORD have spoken and have

25:47.793 --> 25:51.043
acted--declares the LORD.
In the interpretation that

25:51.040 --> 25:53.710
follows the vision,
we are told that the bones

25:53.706 --> 25:55.776
symbolize Israel now,
in this state,

25:55.780 --> 25:57.850
in exile.
In their despair they're

25:57.852 --> 26:00.862
crying: our bones are dried up,
we're dead, now our hope is

26:00.855 --> 26:02.805
lost.
And God promises to raise

26:02.814 --> 26:06.154
Israel from the grave,
which is a metaphor for exile,

26:06.150 --> 26:08.990
and restore her to her own land
as one people,

26:08.993 --> 26:11.773
north and south,
with one prince to rule over

26:11.774 --> 26:13.714
her.
This text has often been

26:13.710 --> 26:17.410
de-contextualized and cited as
an Old Testament or Hebrew Bible

26:17.405 --> 26:20.495
source for the doctrine of
literal resurrection after

26:20.504 --> 26:22.304
death,
as if it's speaking about

26:22.298 --> 26:23.298
literal resurrection.

26:23.299 --> 26:26.979
But I think in its context it's
quite clear that it is one of

26:26.975 --> 26:30.835
many metaphors that Ezekiel uses
throughout this section for the

26:30.835 --> 26:33.465
redemption of the community from
exile,

26:33.470 --> 26:37.700
the restoration of the people
back in their own land.

26:37.700 --> 26:42.130
At the center of the restored
community that Ezekiel envisions

26:42.126 --> 26:45.676
is a new Jerusalem,
and at its center is a rebuilt

26:45.681 --> 26:48.131
temple.
And it is described in great

26:48.125 --> 26:50.825
detail in the last nine chapters
of the book.

26:50.829 --> 26:54.099
In Ezekiel's utopian vision,
the land is equally allotted,

26:54.097 --> 26:57.247
it's divided up and equally
allotted among all 12 tribes

26:57.250 --> 26:59.200
now, who will be brought back.

26:59.200 --> 27:02.890
And Jerusalem lies in the
center with 12 great gates,

27:02.892 --> 27:05.522
one for each tribe,
surrounding it.

27:05.519 --> 27:09.809
This temple is the source of a
never-ending river that gushes

27:09.809 --> 27:13.029
forth from it,
a river that will make the Dead

27:13.026 --> 27:15.596
Sea flow with fresh water again.

27:15.599 --> 27:18.769
Ezekiel sees Zadokite priests
presiding in the Temple,

27:18.765 --> 27:22.225
they are assisted by Levites
who are just menials (they are

27:22.229 --> 27:24.319
sort of demoted in his vision).

27:24.319 --> 27:27.899
And he insists no foreigners
will be permitted entry.

27:27.900 --> 27:31.160
We're going to see that that's
a view that wasn't shared by

27:31.160 --> 27:33.240
others in the post-destruction
era.

27:33.240 --> 27:39.030
While Ezekiel believed that God
would restore a purified Israel

27:39.034 --> 27:42.684
to its land under a Davidic
monarchy,

27:42.680 --> 27:45.940
and he prophesied to this
effect, he, like Jeremiah,

27:45.942 --> 27:48.952
also maintained that a
relationship with God was

27:48.948 --> 27:52.238
possible,
in the meantime--a relationship

27:52.237 --> 27:54.217
outside the chosen land.

27:54.220 --> 27:57.850
And the Jewish diaspora
("diaspora" refers to a

27:57.849 --> 28:02.659
community living outside of its
homeland)--the Jewish diaspora

28:02.662 --> 28:06.132
was a new thing;
it was a religious-national

28:06.130 --> 28:09.350
body of a type that had not been
seen before.

28:09.349 --> 28:12.279
You had a people remaining
loyal to their God,

28:12.279 --> 28:16.119
while in exile from their own
land (and what was believed to

28:16.119 --> 28:19.959
be that God's land) without
worshipping him cultically,

28:19.960 --> 28:21.880
or by means of sacrifice.

28:21.880 --> 28:25.160
Remember the only legitimate
site for an altar or for

28:25.160 --> 28:27.180
sacrifice to God is Jerusalem.

28:27.180 --> 28:29.970
And in time,
slowly, a new worship will be

28:29.972 --> 28:32.242
fashioned;
one without sacrifice,

28:32.235 --> 28:35.715
one that consists of prayer and
confession, and fasts,

28:35.716 --> 28:38.406
and other kinds of ritual
observances.

28:38.410 --> 28:41.580
Three times a day Jews will
pray and they'll pray in the

28:41.579 --> 28:43.019
direction of Jerusalem.

28:43.019 --> 28:46.179
Worship in synagogues
eventually will come into being,

28:46.175 --> 28:49.445
and the importance of the
Sabbath will grow--the Sabbath

28:49.450 --> 28:53.320
as a memorial of the covenant
and the symbol of Jewish faith.

28:53.319 --> 28:56.509
And so you also find,
beginning shortly after this

28:56.505 --> 29:00.775
period, for the first time,
non-Jews are joining themselves

29:00.780 --> 29:04.560
to Yahweh, adopting this
religion of Israel out of

29:04.559 --> 29:07.929
religious conviction,
not simply because they may be

29:07.928 --> 29:10.558
residing in the land and have to
follow God's laws.

29:10.560 --> 29:12.020
This is outside the land.

29:12.019 --> 29:14.559
You have people choosing to opt
into this community.

29:14.559 --> 29:18.489
So again, we see that as the
history of the nation of Israel

29:18.488 --> 29:21.018
came to an end,
the history of Judaism,

29:21.019 --> 29:23.349
the "religion" Judaism,
begins.

29:23.349 --> 29:26.949
So in Ezekiel we've seen one
response to the national

29:26.949 --> 29:30.549
disaster and the exile:
the idea that while suffering

29:30.549 --> 29:33.179
and punishment are fully
deserved,

29:33.180 --> 29:35.370
a relationship with God remains
possible.

29:35.369 --> 29:38.299
God is with his people even in
exile.

29:38.299 --> 29:41.649
A second response to the
destruction and exile can be

29:41.651 --> 29:45.711
found in the anonymous writings
that are appended to the Book of

29:45.711 --> 29:47.921
Isaiah.
I mentioned these writings

29:47.920 --> 29:49.920
briefly.
We'll be able to look now at

29:49.921 --> 29:51.721
what's been called Second
Isaiah.

29:51.720 --> 29:55.330
So there are two discrete units
of material that are appended to

29:55.325 --> 29:58.375
Isaiah.
Chapters 40 to 55 are referred

29:58.381 --> 30:02.191
to as Second Isaiah,
and chapters 56 to 66 are

30:02.192 --> 30:04.482
referred to as 3 Isaiah.

30:04.480 --> 30:07.160
And these chapters differ from
Isaiah proper,

30:07.161 --> 30:10.271
from the eighth-century
prophet, in several ways.

30:10.269 --> 30:14.989
It's clear, first of all,
that these parts of Isaiah were

30:14.992 --> 30:17.272
written after the Exile .

30:17.269 --> 30:21.129
Parts of Third Isaiah were
written after the Exile,

30:21.125 --> 30:25.055
all of second Isaiah,
(and Isaiah proper was clearly

30:25.058 --> 30:30.378
written in the eighth century on
into the early seventh century).

30:30.380 --> 30:33.400
Jerusalem is referred to as
destroyed.

30:33.400 --> 30:36.390
The audience that's addressed
is living in exile.

30:36.390 --> 30:39.180
Babylon is the oppressor,
not Assyria.

30:39.180 --> 30:42.320
Assyria was the oppressor in
the time of Isaiah proper.

30:42.319 --> 30:46.499
The appended materials even
seem to know of the overthrow of

30:46.503 --> 30:49.893
the Babylonians.
That's going to happen in about

30:49.888 --> 30:53.628
539 when Cyrus of Persia will
conquer the Babylonians.

30:53.630 --> 30:57.190
We have passages that express
some euphoria over this,

30:57.194 --> 30:59.014
because Cyrus,
of course,

30:59.009 --> 31:02.999
authorized the Jews to return
from Babylon to Jerusalem to

31:03.000 --> 31:04.610
rebuild their temple.

31:04.609 --> 31:08.469
There are also all kinds of
stylistic differences between

31:08.473 --> 31:11.443
First Isaiah and Second and
Third Isaiah.

31:11.440 --> 31:13.470
Second and Third Isaiah,
for example,

31:13.473 --> 31:16.923
have no biographical data and
First Isaiah has quite a bit.

31:16.920 --> 31:20.540
These materials also have a
different theology of history,

31:20.535 --> 31:23.005
a different understanding of
history,

31:23.009 --> 31:26.419
a different attitude towards
foreign nations and a very

31:26.420 --> 31:29.200
strong and renewed emphasis on
monotheism.

31:29.200 --> 31:31.490
These also mark it as different.

31:31.490 --> 31:35.000
Among the scrolls that were
found in the caves at Qumran

31:34.997 --> 31:37.997
near the Dead Sea,
we have a very large and very

31:37.995 --> 31:41.775
famous Isaiah scroll,
which is now in a museum in

31:41.778 --> 31:44.768
Jerusalem.
On the scroll there is a gap

31:44.774 --> 31:48.084
after Isaiah 39,
and a new column starts with

31:48.082 --> 31:50.512
Isaiah 40.
So it seems to signal some sort

31:50.507 --> 31:53.117
of implicit recognition that
there's a difference between

31:53.122 --> 31:54.152
these two sections.

31:54.150 --> 31:58.080
They are not the same unit,
not the same author perhaps.

31:58.079 --> 32:01.709
So we're going to talk right
now about Second Isaiah because

32:01.708 --> 32:04.228
this is a wholly post
destruction work.

32:04.230 --> 32:08.450
The opening or inaugural oracle
that occurs in chapter 40 is an

32:08.454 --> 32:10.094
oracle of consolation.

32:10.089 --> 32:13.599
It's an oracle of comfort,
and the prophet sees a straight

32:13.603 --> 32:17.183
and level highway prepared in
the wilderness for a dramatic

32:17.177 --> 32:20.257
procession of Yahweh the
shepherd who will lead his

32:20.259 --> 32:22.169
people back to Jerusalem.

32:22.170 --> 32:24.890
It's very, very famous--made
very famous by Handel's Messiah

32:24.892 --> 32:27.262
actually.
So chapter 40 (taking from

32:27.263 --> 32:30.333
various verses in this chapter):
Comfort,

32:30.329 --> 32:32.539
oh comfort My people,
Says Your God.

32:32.540 --> 32:35.790
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
And declare to her

32:35.789 --> 32:37.369
That her term of service is
over,

32:37.370 --> 32:41.020
That iniquity is expiated;
For she has received at the

32:41.023 --> 32:43.703
hand of the LORD
Double for all her sins.

32:43.700 --> 32:46.770
A voice rings out:
"Clear in the desert

32:46.770 --> 32:48.050
A road for the Lord!

32:48.050 --> 32:50.740
Level in the wilderness
A highway for our God!

32:50.740 --> 32:54.140
Let every valley be raised,
Every hill and mount made low.

32:54.140 --> 32:56.160
Let the rugged ground become
level

32:56.160 --> 32:57.720
And the ridges become a plain.

32:57.720 --> 32:59.450
The Presence of the LORD shall
appear,

32:59.450 --> 33:01.990
And all flesh,
as one, shall behold--

33:01.990 --> 33:03.660
For the LORD Himself has
spoken."

33:03.660 --> 33:05.900
A voice rings out: "Proclaim!"

33:05.900 --> 33:07.890
Another asks,
"What shall I proclaim?"

33:07.890 --> 33:10.670
All flesh is grass,
All its goodness like flowers

33:10.668 --> 33:12.368
of the field:
…

33:12.369 --> 33:14.059
But the word of our God is
always fulfilled!"

33:14.060 --> 33:16.170
…
Behold, the Lord GOD comes in

33:16.173 --> 33:17.163
might,
…

33:17.160 --> 33:19.080
Like a shepherd He pastures His
flock:

33:19.080 --> 33:22.770
He gathers the lambs in His arms
And carries them in His bosom;

33:22.769 --> 33:25.019
Gently he drives the mother
sheep.

33:25.019 --> 33:28.139
So this highway will appear
leading the exiles straight to

33:28.142 --> 33:30.602
Jerusalem.
All of the topography will be

33:30.596 --> 33:34.496
flattened and God will lead them
as a shepherd leads the lamb.

33:34.500 --> 33:36.730
Why?
Because the word of the Lord is

33:36.729 --> 33:37.939
always fulfilled.

33:37.940 --> 33:41.150
So what this voice is
proclaiming is a literal return

33:41.147 --> 33:43.377
from exile.
God is opening a highway,

33:43.380 --> 33:46.870
he's leading His flock home
like a shepherd in a new exodus.

33:46.869 --> 33:50.469
And this is an idea that's so
important that it recurs at the

33:50.470 --> 33:53.770
end of the unit as well in
chapter 55: the idea of a new

33:53.769 --> 33:56.119
exodus.
A second key theme that's

33:56.120 --> 34:00.450
sounded at the beginning and end
of the unit again (so it happens

34:00.448 --> 34:04.168
in chapter 40 and again in
chapter 55) is this idea that

34:04.167 --> 34:07.207
the word of our God is always
fulfilled.

34:07.210 --> 34:10.320
Or in some translations,
the word of our God "stands

34:10.319 --> 34:13.209
forever."
This idea is the essence of the

34:13.211 --> 34:17.301
Israelites' hope during the
period of captivity and exile,

34:17.296 --> 34:20.016
and it appears in the first
oracle.

34:20.019 --> 34:22.909
It's beautifully restated in
the last oracle,

34:22.909 --> 34:25.469
in chapter 55,
verses 10 through 12:

34:25.469 --> 34:28.559
For as the rain or snow
drops from heaven

34:28.560 --> 34:31.410
And returns not there,
But soaks the earth

34:31.409 --> 34:33.139
And makes it bring forth
vegetation,

34:33.139 --> 34:35.989
Yielding seed for sowing and
bread for eating,

34:35.989 --> 34:38.499
So is the word that issues from
my mouth:

34:38.500 --> 34:40.740
It does not come back to Me
unfulfilled,

34:40.740 --> 34:44.770
But performs what I purpose,
Achieves what I sent it to do.

34:44.769 --> 34:47.689
Yea, you shall leave in joy and
be led home

34:47.690 --> 34:50.450
secure.
Before you, mount and hill

34:50.448 --> 34:53.388
shall shout aloud,
And all the trees of the field

34:53.394 --> 34:56.774
shall clap their hands.
So the everlasting word of the

34:56.768 --> 34:59.548
Lord--it's guaranteed
fulfillment (specifically--to

34:59.549 --> 35:02.999
bring his people home in a new
exodus)--these are ideas form an

35:02.997 --> 35:07.067
envelope or an inclusio,
that kind of literary structure

35:07.071 --> 35:11.151
where something is mentioned at
the beginning and again at the

35:11.148 --> 35:15.288
end to form an inclusio
or an envelope around the entire

35:15.292 --> 35:17.032
unit of SecondIsaiah.

35:17.030 --> 35:21.020
We see also in Second Isaiah an
extreme monotheism.

35:21.019 --> 35:24.389
The monotheism is explicit of
course in Isaiah--implicit,

35:24.392 --> 35:27.952
I'm sorry, implicit in Isaiah,
but it becomes quite explicit

35:27.945 --> 35:29.205
in Second Isaiah.

35:29.210 --> 35:32.500
As we've seen,
to come to terms with the

35:32.497 --> 35:37.297
destruction of 587 entails the
acceptance of the idea that

35:37.301 --> 35:40.421
Israel's punishment was
deserved,

35:40.420 --> 35:44.600
and Yahweh's control of history
means he controls not only

35:44.599 --> 35:48.999
Israel but all other nations as
well and can use them for his

35:49.000 --> 35:51.530
purpose,
including punishing Israel.

35:51.530 --> 35:53.960
There's no power other than
Yahweh.

35:53.960 --> 35:58.280
So referring then to the rise
and fall of nations,

35:58.280 --> 36:01.810
Isaiah 41:4 states,
Who has wrought and

36:01.807 --> 36:03.567
achieved this?
He who announced the

36:03.574 --> 36:05.294
generations from the
start--

36:05.290 --> 36:08.470
I, the LORD, who was first
And will be with the last as

36:08.467 --> 36:10.507
well.
The first and the last--which

36:10.510 --> 36:12.700
is a way of saying everything,
all inclusive.

36:12.700 --> 36:14.390
There is nothing but me.

36:14.389 --> 36:18.289
And Isaiah 44 satirizes those
nations who make and worship

36:18.289 --> 36:22.119
idols, and ridicules the folly
and stupidity of ascribing

36:22.121 --> 36:26.501
divinity to that which one has
created with one's own hands.

36:26.500 --> 36:29.820
In Isaiah 41,
God states his case against

36:29.818 --> 36:32.388
these vain and useless idols.

36:32.389 --> 36:36.029
He summons them to answer for
themselves, show that they are

36:36.030 --> 36:38.930
gods by announcing something
that will occur,

36:38.929 --> 36:41.339
announcing what will occur and
seeing if it comes true.

36:41.340 --> 36:45.280
Chapter 41:22-24:
Let them approach and

36:45.279 --> 36:46.549
tell us what will happen.

36:46.550 --> 36:49.340
Tell us what has occurred,
And we will take note of it;

36:49.340 --> 36:50.910
Or announce to us what will
occur,

36:50.910 --> 36:52.620
That we may know the outcome.

36:52.620 --> 36:55.740
Foretell what is yet to happen,
That we may know that you are

36:55.743 --> 36:57.853
gods!
Do anything, good or bad,

36:57.850 --> 36:59.800
That we may be awed and see.

36:59.800 --> 37:02.010
Why, you are less than nothing.

37:02.010 --> 37:04.350
Your effect is less than
nullity;

37:04.349 --> 37:07.889
One who chooses you is an
abomination.

37:07.889 --> 37:11.679
But this is only half the
picture because not only are the

37:11.675 --> 37:15.455
gods of the nations no gods,
but Yahweh is the true God of

37:15.461 --> 37:17.521
all of these other nations.

37:17.519 --> 37:20.999
So who raised Cyrus of Persia
from the north to sweep through

37:20.996 --> 37:24.006
the Ancient Near East and
conquer the Babylonians?

37:24.010 --> 37:25.320
No one but Yahweh.

37:25.320 --> 37:28.120
Isaiah 41:
"I have roused Him from

37:28.121 --> 37:31.191
the north, and he has come
…And He has trampled rulers

37:31.189 --> 37:33.589
like mud,
Like a potter treading clay

37:33.590 --> 37:35.710
…The things once predicted to
Zion--

37:35.710 --> 37:38.580
Behold, here they are!" [from
vv 25-29].

37:38.579 --> 37:41.659
So in these passages,
the author of Second Isaiah is

37:41.658 --> 37:44.888
drawing the logical conclusion,
perhaps, towards which

37:44.890 --> 37:47.710
Israelite religion has tended
from its inception.

37:47.710 --> 37:50.710
Yahweh, once a Canaanite deity,
then the God of Israel's

37:50.707 --> 37:53.047
patriarchs, then the national
God of Israel,

37:53.050 --> 37:55.340
is here the Lord of universal
history.

37:55.340 --> 37:58.790
The only real God,
Second Isaiah is claiming,

37:58.794 --> 38:00.604
is the God of Israel.

38:00.599 --> 38:04.649
Second Isaiah is also quite
well known for the Servant Songs

38:04.650 --> 38:07.740
that it contains,
the famous servant songs.

38:07.739 --> 38:13.149
These occur scattered in
chapter 42, chapter 49,

38:13.148 --> 38:19.128
chapter 50, and then most
extensively 52:13 to 53:12,

38:19.132 --> 38:22.012
so much of 52 and 53.

38:22.010 --> 38:24.260
The identity of this
servant--I'll read some of these

38:24.256 --> 38:26.586
passages in a minute,
but it refers to this servant,

38:26.590 --> 38:28.880
God's servant,
and the identity of the servant

38:28.883 --> 38:31.893
has been a puzzle to biblical
interpreters for centuries.

38:31.889 --> 38:34.359
Sometimes the servant is
referred to as a collective

38:34.360 --> 38:37.270
figure, sometimes the servant is
referred to as an individual

38:37.267 --> 38:39.847
figure.
In chapter 49 the servant is

38:39.846 --> 38:44.306
referred to or described as a
prophet with a universal message

38:44.305 --> 38:47.955
rather than a message for the
Israelites alone,

38:47.960 --> 38:51.180
but then there's some ambiguity
here.

38:51.179 --> 38:54.479
The servant is first
identified, or the prophet--the

38:54.478 --> 38:58.358
servant or prophet--is first
identified as Israel herself.

38:58.360 --> 39:03.020
So in chapter 49:1-3:
…The Lord appointed me

39:03.019 --> 39:05.949
before I was born,
He named me while I was in my

39:05.945 --> 39:08.395
mother's womb.
He made my mouth like a

39:08.403 --> 39:11.543
sharpened blade,
He hid me in the shadow of His

39:11.538 --> 39:13.848
hand,
And He made me like a polished

39:13.845 --> 39:16.215
arrow;
He concealed me in His quiver

39:16.219 --> 39:18.709
And He said to me,
"You are My servant,

39:18.710 --> 39:23.890
Israel in whom I glory."
Yet, in verse 5 it would seem

39:23.894 --> 39:28.624
that this prophet/servant has a
mission to Israel to bring her

39:28.616 --> 39:31.776
back to Yahweh,
and that would imply that the

39:31.777 --> 39:33.847
servant or prophet is not
Israel.

39:33.850 --> 39:35.570
Verse 5:
And now the LORD has

39:35.570 --> 39:37.300
resolved--
He who formed me in the womb to

39:37.303 --> 39:38.543
be His
servant--

39:38.540 --> 39:44.710
To bring back Jacob to Himself,
That Israel may be restored to

39:44.709 --> 39:47.329
Him.
For He has said:

39:47.329 --> 39:50.029
"It is too little that you
should be My servant

39:50.030 --> 39:52.170
In that I raise up the tribes
of Jacob

39:52.170 --> 39:54.130
And restore the survivors of
Israel:

39:54.130 --> 39:57.170
I will also make you a light of
nations,

39:57.170 --> 40:01.090
That My salvation may reach the
ends of the earth."

40:01.090 --> 40:05.040
Chapter 50 quite famously
refers to the servant as

40:05.040 --> 40:07.540
rebellious and as persecuted.

40:07.540 --> 40:10.670
Verse 6:
I offered my back to the

40:10.670 --> 40:12.940
floggers,
And my cheeks to those who tore

40:12.943 --> 40:15.163
out my hair.
I did not hide my face

40:15.160 --> 40:18.630
From insult and spittle.
But it's the famous and

40:18.634 --> 40:23.254
difficult passage in Isaiah 53
that most movingly describes the

40:23.254 --> 40:26.314
suffering and sorrow of God's
servant.

40:26.310 --> 40:29.660
53:3-11:
…He was despised,

40:29.655 --> 40:31.255
we held him of no account.

40:31.260 --> 40:34.400
Yet it was our sickness that he
was bearing,

40:34.400 --> 40:36.260
Our suffering that he endured.

40:36.260 --> 40:40.430
We accounted him plagued,
Smitten and afflicted by God

40:40.429 --> 40:42.479
But he was wounded because of
our sins,

40:42.480 --> 40:44.560
Crushed because of our
iniquities.

40:44.559 --> 40:47.289
He bore the chastisement that
made us whole,

40:47.289 --> 40:50.289
And by his bruises we were
healed.

40:50.290 --> 40:53.510
We all went astray like sheep,
Each going his own way;

40:53.510 --> 40:57.090
And the LORD visited upon him
The guilt of all of us."

40:57.090 --> 40:59.830
He was maltreated,
yet he was submissive,

40:59.830 --> 41:02.790
He did not open his mouth;
Like a sheep being led to

41:02.794 --> 41:05.564
slaughter,
Like a ewe, dumb before those

41:05.558 --> 41:07.948
who shear her,
He did not open his mouth.

41:07.950 --> 41:10.210
…
And his grave was set among the

41:10.209 --> 41:11.649
wicked,
And with the rich,

41:11.650 --> 41:14.370
in his death--
Though he had done no injustice

41:14.370 --> 41:16.260
And had spoken no falsehood.

41:16.260 --> 41:19.160
But the LORD chose to crush him
by disease,

41:19.159 --> 41:21.629
That, if he made himself an
offering for guilt,

41:21.630 --> 41:24.760
He might see offspring and have
long life,

41:24.760 --> 41:28.990
And that through him the LORD's
purpose might prosper.

41:28.989 --> 41:33.059
There have been many attempts
to equate this man of sorrows

41:33.063 --> 41:35.033
with all kinds of figures.

41:35.030 --> 41:39.410
Early on, Jesus' followers saw
Jesus as the suffering servant

41:39.412 --> 41:40.802
of God in Isaiah.

41:40.800 --> 41:43.910
The New Testament writers
specifically borrowed passages

41:43.905 --> 41:46.215
from Isaiah, particularly this
chapter,

41:46.219 --> 41:49.459
chapter 53, when constructing
their narratives of Jesus,

41:49.463 --> 41:53.063
taking those verses and using
them in describing his story.

41:53.059 --> 41:56.319
So he is depicted as the
innocent and righteous servant

41:56.317 --> 41:58.607
who suffered for the sins of
others.

41:58.610 --> 42:01.190
In the teachings of Paul,
however, you have a different

42:01.189 --> 42:02.239
use of these verses.

42:02.239 --> 42:05.459
Christians, generally,
are identified as the servant

42:05.463 --> 42:07.553
who suffers with and for Jesus.

42:07.550 --> 42:10.900
Despite these later theological
interpretations,

42:10.897 --> 42:15.097
the anonymous writer of Second
Isaiah wasn't writing about a

42:15.100 --> 42:19.020
remote Nazarean teacher and
charismatic healer who would

42:19.018 --> 42:22.008
live more than five centuries
later.

42:22.010 --> 42:25.300
Examined in its original
context, it appears most likely

42:25.299 --> 42:28.769
that the servant is Israel
herself described metaphorically

42:28.768 --> 42:32.478
as an individual whose present
suffering and humiliation is due

42:32.476 --> 42:36.586
to the sins of other nations,
but whose future restoration

42:36.591 --> 42:40.711
and exultation will cause
astonishment among those nations

42:40.706 --> 42:43.446
who will then be humbled to
Yahweh.

42:43.449 --> 42:46.489
But there are problems with
even this interpretation and you

42:46.490 --> 42:47.830
should be aware of that.

42:47.829 --> 42:50.089
This has never been solved
satisfactorily.

42:50.090 --> 42:52.750
The main problem with
interpreting Israel as the

42:52.754 --> 42:55.934
servant is the verse that
describes the servant as having

42:55.929 --> 42:57.289
a mission to Israel.

42:57.289 --> 43:00.959
It seems a little odd to say
that Israel bears a mission to

43:00.960 --> 43:03.750
Israel.
But this problem can be solved,

43:03.750 --> 43:07.760
if we remember that Israel was
often divided in prophetic

43:07.760 --> 43:10.810
rhetoric.
So perhaps the writer envisions

43:10.813 --> 43:13.713
a mission of one part,
the righteous part,

43:13.714 --> 43:17.044
to the other,
the part that has gone astray.

43:17.039 --> 43:20.769
Leaving aside this difficulty,
the more prominent motif in the

43:20.768 --> 43:24.558
servant song of Isaiah is that
the servant has a mission to the

43:24.558 --> 43:26.528
world.
That's the more prominent

43:26.533 --> 43:29.863
motif, and that is a role that
would suit Israel quite well.

43:29.860 --> 43:32.010
Furthermore,
you have the phrase,

43:32.008 --> 43:35.968
"Israel, My servant," appearing
in Second Isaiah about eight

43:35.968 --> 43:38.598
times.
So the idea of Israel as God's

43:38.603 --> 43:41.943
servant to the nations is
clearly a part of Isaiah's

43:41.941 --> 43:45.081
conceptual world,
and since we're dealing with

43:45.075 --> 43:48.595
poetry rather than a rigorously
consistent metaphysical

43:48.597 --> 43:50.717
treatise,
it shouldn't be too surprising

43:50.718 --> 43:52.908
that sometimes the servant is
spoken of as a group

43:52.905 --> 43:55.235
collectively,
sometimes as an individual.

43:55.239 --> 43:57.779
The same holds true of Israel
in general, by the way,

43:57.780 --> 43:59.540
throughout much of the
literature.

43:59.539 --> 44:02.629
Sometimes Israel is spoken of
in plural terms and sometimes as

44:02.634 --> 44:03.754
a single individual.

44:03.750 --> 44:07.640
So in its original context it's
likely that the servant refers

44:07.643 --> 44:08.923
to Israel herself.

44:08.920 --> 44:12.850
If the servant is Israel,
then we can see how Second

44:12.848 --> 44:16.698
Isaiah is another response to
the events of 587.

44:16.699 --> 44:19.739
And it's ultimately a positive
interpretation,

44:19.735 --> 44:21.215
a positive response.

44:21.219 --> 44:24.679
The punishment that Israel
suffered even if excessive

44:24.678 --> 44:28.738
(remember Isaiah 40 claims that
Israel has suffered double for

44:28.735 --> 44:31.065
her sins,
so it's been an excessive

44:31.072 --> 44:33.902
punishment)--that punishment
isn't meaningless.

44:33.900 --> 44:35.850
It will lead to redemption.

44:35.849 --> 44:38.679
Israel will be healed by her
wounds.

44:38.679 --> 44:41.539
God's word will not be returned
unfulfilled.

44:41.539 --> 44:44.219
In addition,
suffering leads to a new role

44:44.216 --> 44:46.236
for Israel among the nations.

44:46.239 --> 44:50.849
Second Isaiah expresses a new
self-awareness that is taking

44:50.850 --> 44:52.440
hold in the exile.

44:52.440 --> 44:55.900
Israel saw itself as the
faithful servant of Yahweh,

44:55.902 --> 45:00.112
a servant whose loyalty to God
in this dark time would serve to

45:00.112 --> 45:04.052
broadcast the knowledge of God
throughout the nations.

45:04.050 --> 45:07.970
So Israel was chosen from the
womb to serve God's universal

45:07.973 --> 45:10.663
purpose.
Israel suffered unobserved by

45:10.657 --> 45:14.117
others, but eventually this
would make possible the

45:14.119 --> 45:16.749
recognition of God by those
others.

45:16.750 --> 45:21.080
Where once God covenanted with
David to lead his people,

45:21.075 --> 45:25.635
Israel, he now covenants with
Israel to lead the nations of

45:25.636 --> 45:27.756
the world in God's way.

45:27.760 --> 45:32.520
It's an expansion of God's
purpose, and this is an idea

45:32.520 --> 45:37.830
that appears in Isaiah 55:3-5:
Incline your ear and come

45:37.828 --> 45:39.958
to Me;
Harken, and you shall be

45:39.962 --> 45:41.902
revived.
And I will make with you an

45:41.898 --> 45:45.028
everlasting covenant,
The enduring loyalty promised

45:45.034 --> 45:47.084
to David.
[The covenant and loyalty that

45:47.082 --> 45:49.412
was promised to David I'm now
transferring to you.]

45:49.409 --> 45:51.609
As I made him a leader of
peoples,

45:51.610 --> 45:53.700
A prince and commander of
peoples,

45:53.699 --> 45:57.049
So you shall summon a nation
who you did not know,

45:57.050 --> 45:58.590
And a nation that did not know
you,

45:58.590 --> 46:01.710
Shall come running to you--
For the sake of the LORD your

46:01.713 --> 46:03.803
God,
The Holy One of Israel who has

46:03.795 --> 46:06.775
glorified you.
So God makes an eternal

46:06.783 --> 46:10.383
covenant with Israel,
like that he once concluded

46:10.380 --> 46:13.080
with David.
And the function of the

46:13.076 --> 46:17.436
institutions of the old order
are transferred to the nation as

46:17.442 --> 46:19.872
a whole.
What kings and priests,

46:19.869 --> 46:23.719
and prophets did for Israel,
Israel will now do for the

46:23.720 --> 46:27.070
whole world.
As the mediator between the

46:27.068 --> 46:32.468
only God and the nations of the
world she is a light unto them,

46:32.469 --> 46:35.329
and all will ascend to her
because from her will come

46:35.329 --> 46:38.299
Torah, instruction in the divine
will and salvation.

46:38.300 --> 46:42.060
This is the idea of universal
mission that comes out of Second

46:42.064 --> 46:43.934
Isaiah.
When we come back on Wednesday,

46:43.932 --> 46:46.352
we're going to take a look at
what I think is probably the

46:46.345 --> 46:48.415
single most profound book in the
Hebrew Bible,

46:48.420 --> 46:51.820
the Book of Job.
And again, I'll remind you that

46:51.824 --> 46:56.034
final paper information will be
available on the Classes server

46:56.033 --> 46:58.333
tonight.
I want you to have it in time

46:58.325 --> 47:01.355
to be able to ask questions of
your TF or myself about the

47:01.363 --> 47:03.453
assignment.
It's pretty detailed so sit and

47:03.451 --> 47:07.001
read through it carefully;
it'll be there later tonight.