Author: Abram K-J

I am a husband and father, a pastor, a runner, a writer, an editor, and a reviewer of cool stuff.

Greek Isaiah in a Year, Week 10=Isaiah 10:30-Isaiah 12

International LXX Day

First things first: Friday is International Septuagint Day. I’ll post again more then. This week in Greek Isaiah in a Year covers Isaiah 10:30 through the end of Isaiah 12 (a six-verse chapter). Friday we celebrate International Septuagint Day by reading a whole chapter of the Old Greek of Isaiah.

Here is the schedule and text for Monday through Friday, using again the text from R.R. Ottley’s Book of Isaiah According to the Septuagint. (As always, Ottley is here on Amazon, here in Logos, and here as a free, downloadable pdf in the public domain.) The full reading plan for our group is here (pdf).

Monday, February 4: Isa 10:30-34

30 ἡ θυγάτηρ Γαλείμ, ἐπακούσεται ἐν Σά, ἐπακούσεται ἐν Ἀναθώθ· 31 ἐξέστη Μαδεβηνὰ καὶ οἱ κατοικοῦντες Γιββείρ. 32 παρακαλεῖτε σήμερον ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ τοῦ μεῖναι, τῇ χειρὶ παρακαλεῖτε τὸ ὄρος τὴν θυγατέρα Σιών, καὶ οἱ βουνοὶ οἱ ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ. 33 ἰδοὺ γὰρ ὁ δεσπότης Κύριος σαβαὼθ συνταράσσει τοὺς ἐνδόξους μετὰ ἰσχύος, καὶ οἱ ὑψηλοὶ τῇ ὕβρει συντριβήσονται, καὶ ταπεινωθήσονται οἱ ὑψηλοί, 34 <καὶ πεσοῦνται ὑψηλοὶ> μαχαίρᾳ, ὁ δὲ Λίβανος σὺν τοῖς ὑψηλοῖς πεσεῖται.

Tuesday, February 5: Isa 11:1-5

11 1 Καὶ ἐξελεύσεται ῥάβδος ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης Ἰεσσαί, καὶ ἄνθος ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης ἀναβήσεται. 2 καὶ ἀναπαύσεται ἐπʼ αὐτὸν πνεῦμα τοῦ θεοῦ, πνεῦμα σοφίας καὶ συνέσεως, πνεῦμα βουλῆς καὶ ἰσχύος, πνεῦμα γνώσεως καὶ εὐσεβείας· 3 ἐμπλήσει αὐτὸν πνεῦμα φόβου θεοῦ. οὐ κατὰ τὴν δόξαν κρινεῖ, οὐδὲ κατὰ τὴν λαλιὰν ἐλέγξει, 4 ἀλλὰ κρινεῖ ταπεινῷ κρίσιν, καὶ ἐλέγξει τοὺς ταπεινοὺς τῆς γῆς, καὶ πατάξει γῆν τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐν πνεύματι διὰ χειλέων ἀνελεῖ ἀσεβῆ· 5 καὶ ἔσται δικαιοσύνῃ ἐζωσμένος τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀληθείᾳ εἱλημμένος τὰς πλευράς.

Wednesday, February 6: Isa 11:6-11

6 καὶ συν βοσκηθήσεται λύκος μετὰ ἀρός, καὶ πάρδαλις συναναπαύσεται ἐρίφῳ, καὶ μοσχάριον καὶ ταῦρος καὶ λέων ἅμα βοσκηθήσονται, καὶ παιδίον μικρὸν ἄξει αὐτούς· 7 καὶ βοῦς καὶ ἄρκος ἅμα βοσκηθήσονται, καὶ ἅμα τὰ παιδία αὐτῶν βοσκηθήσονται, καὶ λεὼν καὶ βοῦς ἅμα φάγονται ἄχυρα· 8 καὶ παιδίον νήπιον ἐπὶ τρώγλην ἀσπίδων, καὶ ἐπὶ κοίτην ἐκγόνων ἀσπίδων τὴν χεῖρα ἐπιβαλεῖ. 9 καὶ οὐ μὴ κακοποιήσωσιν, οὐδʼ οὐ μὴ δύνωνται ἀπολέσαι οὐδένα ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τὸ ἅγιόν μου, ὅτι ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ σύμπασα τοὐ γνῶναι τὸν κύριον, ὡς ὕδωρ πολὺ κατακαλύψαι θαλάσσας. 10 καὶ ἔσται ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἡ ῥίζα τοῦ Ἰεσσαὶ καὶ ὁ ἀνιστάμενος ἄρχειν ἐθνῶν, ἐπʼ αὐτῷ ἔθνη ἐλπιοῦσιν. καὶ ἔσται ἡ ἀνάπαυσις αὐτοῦ τιμή. 11 Καὶ ἔσται ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ προσθήσει Κύριος τοῦ δεῖξαι τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ τοῦ ζηλῶσαι τὸ καταλειφθὲν ὑπόλοιπον τοῦ λαοῦ, ὃ ἂν καταλειφθῇ ἀπὸ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων καὶ ἀπὸ Αἰγύπτου καὶ Βαβυλωνίας καὶ Αἰθιοπίας καὶ ἀπὸ Αἰλαμιτῶν καὶ ἀπὸ ἡλίου ἀνατολῶν καὶ ἐξ Ἀραβείας.

Thursday, February 7: Isa 11:12-16

12 καὶ ἀρεῖ σημεῖον εἰς τὰ ἔθνη, καὶ συνάξει τοὺς ἀπολομένους Ἰσραήλ, καὶ τοὺς διεσπαρμένους Ἰούδα συνάξει ἐκ τῶν τεσσάρων πτερύγων τῆς γῆς. 13 καὶ ἀφαιρεθήσεται ὁ <ζῆλος> Ἐφράιμ, καὶ οἱ ἐχθροὶ Ἰοὺδα ἀπολοῦνται· Ἐφράιμ οὐ ζηλώσει Ἰούδαν, καὶ Ἰούδας οὐ θλίψει Ἐφράιμ. 14 καὶ πετασθήσονται ἐν πλοίοις ἀλλοφύλων· θάλασσαν ἅμα προνομεύσουσιν καὶ τοὺς ἀφʼ ἡλίου ἀνατολῶν καὶ Ἰδουμαίαν, καὶ ἐπὶ Μωὰβ πρῶτον τὰς χεῖρας ἐπιβαλοῦσιν, οἱ δὲ υἱοὶ Ἀμμὼν πρῶτοι ὑπακούσονται. 15 καὶ ἐρημώσει Κύριος τὴν θάλασσαν Αἰγύπτου, καὶ ἐπιβαλεῖ τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὸν ποταμὸν πνεύματι βιαίῳ, καὶ πατάξει ἑπτὰ φάραγγας ὥστε διαπορεύεσθαι αὐτὸν ἐν ὑποδήμασιν· 16 καὶ ἔσται ὁδὸς τῷ καταλειφθέντι μου λαῷ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, καὶ ἔσται τῷ Ἰσραὴλ ὡς ἡ ἡμέρα ὅτε ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου.

Friday, February 8: Isa 12 (1-6)

12 1 Καὶ ἐρεῖς ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ Εὐλογήσω σε, Κύριε, διότι ὠργίσθης μοι, καὶ ἀπέστρεψας τὸν θυμόν σου καὶ ἠλέησάς με. 2 ἰδοὺ ὁ θεός μου σωτήρ μου, πεποιθὼς ἔσομαι ἐν αὐτῷ, καὶ οὐ φοβηθήσομαι· διότι ἡ δόξα μου καὶ ἡ αἴνεσίς μου Κύριος, καὶ ἐγένετό μοι εἰς σωτηρίαν. 3 καὶ ἀντλήσετε ὕδωρ μετʼ εὐφροσύνης ἐκ τῶν πηγῶν τοῦ σωτηρίου. 4 καὶ ἐρεῖς ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ Ὑμνεῖτε Κύριον, βοᾶτε τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ, ἀναγγείλατε ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν τὰ ἔνδοξα αὐτοῦ· μιμνήσκεσθε ὅτι ὑψώθη τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ. 5 ὑμνήσατε τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, ὅτι ὑψηλὰ ἐποίησεν· ἀναγγείλατε ταῦτα ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ. 6 ἀγαλλιᾶσθε καὶ εὐφραίνεσθε, οἱ κατοικοῦντες ἐν Σιών, ὅτι ὑψώθη ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἐν μέσῳ σου.

See here for more resources and links to texts for Greek Isaiah. Here are previous weeks’ readings: Week 1 / Week 2 / Week 3 / Week 4 / Week 5 / Week 6 / Week 7 / Week 8 / Week 9

And here are the Week 10 readings above, but in pdf form.

How to Effectively Use the 2nd Person “We” (Parental Communication Tip #427)

You’ve heard of the royal We? It’s all too present in seminarian papers with just a single author:

queen elizabethCareful consideration of the textual data leads us to conclude….

Or:

We read with the majority of scholars in this case that….

And then there is simply, “We are not amused.”

a gold starFor some time now my wife and I have had the materials in hand to make a star chart for our five-year-old son. Through this chart we (actual We) seek to motivate him to do what is right (treat us with respect, pee when he has to instead of holding it) and not what is wrong (tell his younger brother to “Go to jail!”, get the Gorilla glue out without asking). Good behavior earns stars, and multiple stars earn a new Wild Kratts DVD, or (better yet) a trip out for coffee with Dad or Mom. (The no longer jail-threatened brother stays at home.)

But we still haven’t made the chart. So tonight at dinner I said to my wife, “Can we make our son’s star chart this weekend?”

To which she replied, “Can you make the star chart this weekend?”

I actually had meant We literally in this case, but I can see why she thought I was using the 2nd person We, asking her to do the chart. It’s a special grammatical usage that often crops up around here:

  • #1/Me: Honey, can we make some time to do the laundry this weekend? (Translation: I’m out of clean undershirts for work; will you wash them?)
  • #2/She: Abram, can we try to keep our clothes hung up around here? (Translation: Why are you strewing your jacket, dress pants, etc., etc. all across the bed so I can’t sleep in it?)
  • #3/She: Can we clear our dishes from the table when we’re done with breakfast? (Translation: AM I YOUR MAID?)
    towels
    towels. clean towels.
  • #4/Me: Sweetheart, could we possibly distinguish between a hand towel and a drying towel? (Translation: What’s with this MASSIVE HEAP OF UNDIFFERENTIATED MOSTLY WET TOWELS ON THE COUNTER?)

See? It’s softer, gentler, more effective. In #1 above, my wife sees right through my alleged effort at mutual janitorial cooperation. In #2, I know that she’s really trying for some cleanliness equity. In #3, well… if I expect our kids to clear their dishes, I ought to do the same. As for #4? Please expect a future post to address the merits of keeping separate the towels you use to dry clean dishes versus dirty hands.

But enough blogging about it. We’ve got a chart to make for Our son.

Weekly Greekly Lectionary Confectionery

If your church uses a fixed Sunday lectionary, I found a great blog for you this week. Looking at the Greek (and English translation) of the Gospel reading each week, Left Behind and Loving It is a help to preachers (and parishioners) who want to explore the text in depth.

The Greek is there, but knowledge of it certainly isn’t required to make use of the site. Posts come early in the week, too–no “Saturday specials” here!

New Mark Kozelek track (Sun Kil Moon+Album Leaf)

SKM Album Leaf

Like the rest of the entire human race, I have trouble waiting for things I want. I especially have trouble waiting for new music I know has been recorded but not yet released to said human race. This morning I checked the Caldo Verde Records site in hopes of hearing some new Mark Kozelek. I was not disappointed.

If you click on the image above you can listen to a new track from the Koz’s collaboration with The Album Leaf. (Language warning for last portion of song: much as I love the man’s music and most of his words, there are the occasional, less-than-edifying lyrics.)

I reacted here to the idea of a Sun Kil Moon collaboration with The Album Leaf. I like this track better than the first (to which I linked in my earlier post). Still not much by way of guitar, but that will come with Koz’s February release of a covers album.

This new track had me going until the end (see comment on lyrics above). I’ll try to post a cute baby picture later as recompense.

Review of Zondervan’s Theologian Trading Cards

They’re a real thing, and they’re the best conversation starter I’ve brought into my office in a long time.

Creator Norman Jeune III came up with the idea of Theologian Trading Cards in seminary. It’s a good one. I remember, as a kid, memorizing and quoting statistics and quizzing friends with the back of baseball cards. I could tell you how many home runs and runs batted in Andrew Dawson of the Chicago Cubs had had for the last five years. It’s a good size for a learning tool.

The product description from Zondervan reads:

Patterned after the all-American baseball card, Theologian Trading Cards provide essential information about the major teachers, leaders, and trouble-makers throughout the history of the Church. At a glance you will have access to information regarding 288 important figures in church history, including when and where they lived, their contribution to the church, and enduring significance.

Jeune has organized the cards into 15 teams, each grouped by chronological or historical or theological commonality. The “Orthodoxy Dodgers” (great name) are the church’s heretics. Marcion (85-160), for example, “created his own canon [of Scripture], exlcuding the Old Testament and introducing numerous edits, compilations, and omissions to the New Testament.” The “St. James Padres” team consists of early church fathers: Ambrose, Augustine, Cyril, Justin, and so on.

The cards aren’t really “trading cards,” since there’s no trading to be done–you can only buy it as a complete set. But they’re just as fun as the baseball cards I collected as a kid… well, if you think theology is fun. (Which, of course, it is!) Jeune introduces a creative medium in a field that can be challenging for students. There are a lot of facts, figures, and beliefs to keep straight in a basic church history course.

Image from patheos.com
Image from patheos.com

The front of the card consists of a photo (except where none is available; see below), the name of the figure, and his or her team. The back of each card has dates and two sections: biographical and significance. Of course it would be impossible to cover everything (even all the significant things) in each figure’s life on just the back of a card. But Jeune does a good job of hitting the main points.

And the cards are fun. I don’t think I’ve ever had anything on my office coffee table picked up as much as these cards. Folks want to leaf through and see who’s there, what is written about them, etc. I’d imagine that they aid exam preparation, too. The handy size makes them easy to stuff in backpack, or put a small stack in a purse for on-the-go quizzing.

Of course a set like this is prone to criticism–which figures Jeune includes, which ones he doesn’t, how much detail he includes, what detail he leaves out. There is somewhat decent representation of more than just white males–users of this set will find cards for Amy Carmichael, Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, Rosemary Radford Ruether, Teresa of Avila… though still one wants for more. There is James Cone, but no MLK? Julian of Norwich, but no Perpetua? This must be impossible to get right in a set like this, but those omissions are noticeable. I’m holding out for a “booster pack” to add to the set.

Another quibble I have is that while each of the 15 teams has a checklist, there is no comprehensive checklist for the set. Even if spread out over a few cards, it would be useful to be able to quickly see all the persons that Jeune includes in the set. (Perhaps he will upload a list online in the future? If so, I’ll post here.)

Facebook silhouetteA distraction in the set is the number of cards that have a blank silhouette with a question mark on it. For these the publisher was not able to procure an image. There is a good reason for this, and it’s worth reading Jeune’s explanation here. All the same, an original sketch, however basic, would have been preferred. (Remember those Facebook friends who joined but didn’t add a profile pic for months? It looks like that, only with the super-imposed question mark.)

The idea of Theologian Trading Cards is a great one, though. The cards aim to be “a fun way to learn church history and theology.” They are that, but I hope future editions or additional sets/booster packs will be more thorough in covering all the areas and players in church history and theology. Until then, this is still a set worth having. Jeune’s layout makes it easy to fill in the gaps in one’s knowledge of church history and theologians.

Thanks to Zondervan for the opportunity to review the cards gratis. Find the cards here at Amazon or at their Zondervan product page. See here for a few sample cards.

A Prayer for Difference amidst Unity, and Unity amidst Difference

Gordon's Beyond Colorblind logo
Gordon’s Beyond Colorblind logo

Does race matter? Is ethnicity important? How do cultural backgrounds affect our everyday lives?

This week at Gordon College we have a special emphasis week, BEYOND COLORBLIND:

BEYOND COLORBLIND is a focus week to help start new conversations about race and culture on campus.  We hope the lectures and discussions help us consider how our racial and cultural identities and experiences shape our views of ourselves, others, and God.

You can watch the first large group session of the week (chapel) here. Richard Twiss was the main speaker. It’s well worth your time.

Two weeks ago I shared a prayer for the first day of school. Today I’m sharing the congregational prayer we prayed in unison this morning in chapel. This came after the passing of the peace.

God, lover of all people,
Creator of all nations,
We praise you for all that you have made.

Thank you for the rich mosaic that is the body of Christ.
Thank you for difference amidst unity,
for unity amidst difference.

Give us a spirit of understanding and appreciation of each other.
Help us to see your image clearly in those around us.

Bless us now as we gather,
and may we declare your praises with our whole lives,
through our risen Lord Jesus.
Amen.

Find out more about the week here.

Greek Isaiah in a Year, Week 9=Isaiah 10:5-10:29

Andrei Rublev's Last Judgment: Isaiah
Andrei Rublev’s Last Judgment: Isaiah

This week in Greek Isaiah in a Year covers Isaiah 10:5-29.

Here is the schedule and text for Monday through Friday, using again the text from R.R. Ottley’s Book of Isaiah According to the Septuagint. (As always, Ottley is here on Amazon, here in Logos, and here as a free, downloadable pdf in the public domain.) The full reading plan for our group is here (pdf).

Monday, January 28: Isa 10:5-9

5 Οὐαὶ Ἀσσυρίοις, ἡ ῥάβδος τοῦ θυμοῦ μου καὶ ὀργῆς ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν. 6 τὴν ὀργήν μου εἰς ἔθνος ἄνομον ἀποστέλλω, καὶ τῷ ἐμῷ λαῷ συντάξω τοῦ ποιῆσαι σκῦλα καὶ προνομήν, καὶ καταπατεῖν τὰς πόλεις καὶ θεῖναι αὐτὰς εἰς κονιορτόν. 7 αὐτὸς δὲ οὐχ οὕτως ἐνεθυμήθη, καὶ τῇ ψυχῇ οὐχ οὕτως λελόγισται· ἀλλὰ ἀπαλλάξει ὁ νοῦς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τοῦ ἐξολεθρεῦσαι ἔθνη οὐκ ὀλίγα. 8 καὶ ἐὰν εἴπωσιν αὐτῷ Σὺ μόνος εἶ ἄρχων, 9 καὶ ἐρεῖ Οὐκ ἔλαβον τὴν χώραν τὴν ἐπάνω Βαβυλῶνος καὶ Χαλαννή, οὗ ὁ πύργος ᾠκοδομήθη; καὶ ἔλαβον Ἀραβείαν καὶ Δαμασκὸν καὶ Σαμάρειαν·

Tuesday, January 29: Isa 10:10-14

10 ὃν τρόπον ταύτας ἔλαβον ἐν τῇ χειρί μου, καὶ πάσας τὰς χώρας λήμψομαι. ὀλολύξατε, τὰ γλυπτὰ ἐν Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐν Σαμαρείᾳ· 11 ὃν τρόπον γὰρ ἐποίησα Σαμαρείᾳ καὶ τοῖς χειροποιήτοις <αὐτῆς,> οὕτως ποιήσω καὶ Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ τοῖς εἰδώλοις αὐτῆς. 12 Καὶ ἔσται ὅταν συντελέσῃ Κύριος πάντα ποιῶν ἐν τῷ ὄρει Σιὼν καὶ ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ, ἐπάξει ἐπὶ τὸν νοῦν τὸν μέγαν, τὸν ἄρχοντα τῶν Ἀσσυρίων, καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ ὕψος τῆς δόξης τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτοῦ. 13 εἶπεν γὰρ Τῇ ἰσχύι ποιήσω, καὶ <τῇ σοφίᾳ τῆς συνέσεως> ἀφελῶ ὅρια ἐθνῶν, καὶ τὴν ἰσχὺν αὐτῶν προνομεύσω· 14 καὶ σείσω πόλεις κατοικουμένας, καὶ τὴν οἰκουμένην ὅλην καταλήμψομαι τῇ χειρί μου ὡς νοσσιάν, καὶ ὡς καταλελιμμένα ὠὰ ἀρῶ· καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὃς διαφεύξεταί με ἢ ἀντείπῃ μοι.

Wednesday, January 30: Isa 10:15-19

15 Μὴ δοξασθήσεται ἀξίνη ἄνευ τοῦ κόπτοντος ἐν αὐτῇ; ἢ ὑψωθήσεται πρίων ἄνευ τοῦ ἕλκοντος αὐτόν; ὡσαύτως ἐάν τις ἄρῃ ῥάβδον ἢ ξύλον, καὶ οὐχ οὕτως; 16 ἀλλὰ ἀποστελεῖ Κύριος σαβαὼθ εἰς τὴν σὴν τιμὴν ἀτιμίαν, καὶ εἰς τὴν σὴν δόξαν πῦρ καιόμενον καυθήσεται· 17 καὶ ἔσται τὸ φῶς τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ὡς πῦρ, καὶ ἁγιάσει αὐτὸ ἐν πυρὶ καιομένῳ, καὶ φάγεται ὡσεὶ χόρτον τὴν ὕλην. 18 τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἀποσβεσθήσεται τὰ ὄρη καὶ οἱ δρυμοὶ καὶ οἱ βουνοί, καὶ καταφάγεται ἀπὸ ψυχῆς ἕως σαρκῶν· καὶ ἔσται ὁ φεύγων ὡς ὁ φεύγων ἀπὸ φλογὸς καιομένης· 19 καὶ οἱ καταλειφθέντες ἀπʼ αὐτῶν ἔσονται ἀριθμός, καὶ παιδίον γράψει αὐτούς.

Thursday, January 31: Isa 10:20-24

20 Καὶ ἔσται ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ οὐκέτι προστεθήσεται τὸ καταλειφθὲν Ἰσραήλ, καὶ οἱ σωθέντες τοῦ Ἰακὼβ οὐκέτι μὴ πεποιθότες ὦσιν ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀδικήσαντας αὐτούς, ἀλλʼ ἔσονται πεποιθότες ἐπὶ τὸν θεὸν τὸν ἅγιον τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ. 21 καὶ ἔσται τὸ καταλειφθὲν τοῦ Ἰακὼβ ἐπὶ θεὸν ἰσχύοντα. 22 καὶ ἐὰν γένηται ὁ λαὸς Ἰσραὴλ ὡς ἡ ἄμμος τῆς θαλάσσης, τὸ κατάλειμμα σωθήσεται· λόγον γὰρ συντελῶν καὶ συντέμνων ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ, 23 ὅτι λόγον συντετμημένον ποιήσει ὁ θεὸς ἐν τῇ οἰκουμένῃ ὅλῃ. 24 Διὰ τοῦτο τάδε λέγει Κύριος ὁ θεὸς σαβαώθ Μὴ φοβοῦ, ὁ λαός μου, οἱ κατοικοῦντες ἐν Σιών, ἀπὸ Ἀσσυρίων, ὅτι ἐν ῥάβδῳ πατάξει σε· πληγὴν γὰρ ἐπάγω ἐπὶ σέ, τοῦ ἰδεῖν ὁδὸν Αἰγύπτου.

Friday, February 1: Isa 10:25-29

25 ἔτι γὰρ μικρὸν καὶ παύσεται ἡ ὀργή, ὁ δὲ θυμός μου ἐπὶ τὴν βουλὴν αὐτῶν· 26 καὶ ἐπεγερεῖ ὁ θεὸς ἐπʼ αὐτοὺς κατὰ τὴν πληγὴν τὴν Μαδιὰμ ἐν τόπῳ θλίψεως, καὶ ὁ θυμὸς αὐτοῦ τῇ ὁδῷ τῇ κατὰ θάλασσαν, εἰς τὴν ὁδὸν τὴν κατʼ Αἴγυπτον. 27 καὶ ἔσται ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἀφαιρεθήσεται ὁ φόβος αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ σοῦ, καὶ ὁ ζυγὸς αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὤμου σου, καὶ καταφθαρήσεται ὁ ζυγὸς ἀπὸ τῶν ὤμων ὑμῶν. 28 ἥξει γὰρ εἰς τὴν πόλιν Ἀγγαί, 29 καὶ παρελεύσεται εἰς Μαγεδδώ, καὶ ἐν Μαχμὰς θήσει τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ· καὶ παρελεύσεται φάραγγα καὶ ἥξει εἰς Ἀγγαί, φόβος λήμψεται Ῥαμὰ πόλιν Σαούλ. φεύξεται ….

See here for more resources and links to texts for Greek Isaiah. Here are previous weeks’ readings: Week 1 / Week 2 / Week 3 / Week 4 / Week 5 / Week 6 / Week 7 / Week 8

And here are the Week 9 readings above, but in pdf form.

Jesus Makes a Pun in the Synagogue

Jesus Reads in Synagogue
Jesus makes a pun in Luke 4. I’m not the first one to notice this, but it stood out to me as I read my way through Luke 4:14-21 this past week. I’m preaching on the passage at my church tomorrow.

Jesus enters the synagogue at his hometown of Nazareth in Galilee and opens the Isaiah scroll to Isaiah 61. In the NIV, the Luke passage reads as follows:

The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

But a few verses later (v. 24) Jesus tells the people, “No prophet is accepted in his hometown.” (They tried then to throw him off a cliff.)

The play on words Jesus uses is not readily evident in most translations, but Jesus uses the same word for favor (“year of the Lord’s favor“) as he does for accepted (“no prophet is accepted“). It’s a rare enough Greek word Luke uses, that I can only conclude it’s deliberate–this is the only passage in all the Gospels to use this word. (For Hellenophiles who read this blog, the word is δεκτός.)

The translations aren’t necessarily wrong to obscure the fact that it’s the same word in each verse. After all, context determines meaning, so even this same word carries different nuances the two times it’s used.

But the irony is that in this year of the Lord’s favor, which Jesus notes later in the passage begins “today,” even his hometown will not accept him. There is no acceptance (δεκτός) of this favor (δεκτός).

And before we rush to point backwards at the hard-heartedness of 1st century Nazareth, perhaps we easily enough realize those ways in which we fail to accept the favor that God would lavish on us. May Jesus give us sight where we do not see all that he comes to offer us.