Thoughts for the Day

God’s Compassion Despite Israel’s Ingratitude

When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.

The more I called them,
the more they went from me;
they kept sacrificing to the Baals,
and offering incense to idols.

Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
I took them up in my arms;
but they did not know that I healed them.
I led them with cords of human kindness,
with bands of love.
I was to them like those
who lift infants to their cheeks.
I bent down to them and fed them....

How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, O Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?
My heart recoils within me;
my compassion grows warm and tender.
I will not execute my fierce anger;
I will not again destroy Ephraim;
for I am God and no mortal,
the Holy One in your midst,
and I will not come in wrath.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

On the occasions I have read the whole of the Bible aloud over a period of days, a number of things struck me and have stayed with me over the years. The first, was the difference between the two sections of the Hebrew scriptures that repeat similar incidents. Reading the books of Samuel and Kings following all the stories regarding David it's a bit of a shock after his death to start the book of Chronicles to discover a more formal retelling of King David's story. The two sections repeat stories but one is a later addition of the first, tidied up as it were for later audiences. You only have to look at the final days of David in both incidents to see the difference (1 Kings 1.1-4 and 1 Kings 2.10-12 versus 1 Chronicles 29.26-30).

A second memory that sticks with me is much more of an emotional one. After reading the whole of the Old Testament through from Genesis to the book of Malachi I was left with one overwhelming feeling of sadness for God. (As if anyone could have the temerity to feel sorry for Almighty God!) But the story of God's people who made covenants with him, again and again and who consistently let him down almost never endingly, seemed so sad.

This passage above from Hosea is one example of what I mean about feeling sad. God is imagined as a good parent always caring and nurturing their child, but who is constantly spurned in favour of a pagan god. All down the centuries from Egypt onwards despite all that He has done for them the child has rejected His love. They deserve no mercy, yet God will still shrink from destroying them. He is torn between love and justice, neither of which can be denied. This is the pain that God accepted through His Son's death on the cross!

Father-God,
we can only imagine You sometimes in human terms.
Your Son born into this world as a baby called You "Father",
and so we too have the temerity to do so.
Throughout the centuries You have acted as a loving parent
to all your people,
yet for thousands of years we have ignored Your wishes,
and all too often we have come to grief.
Warm our cold hearts with the heat of Your love,
nurturing and protecting us from our worst desires,
that we may follow more closely in the ways of Your Son.
Amen.