Reading for November 1st

 Read Ezekiel 1.13-28a. In verses 13-14: The burning coals of fire:The sacrificial altar of the Temple (Ex 27.1-8; 38.1-7) or the incense altars (Ex 30.1-10; 37.5-28). In verses 15-21: The wheels contribute to the imagery of divine motion in all four directions. They are based on the image of the cart that carried the ark of the covenant from Philista to Jerusalem (1 Sam 6; 2 Sam 6) and the rings that held the poles by which the Levites carried the ark (Ex 25.12-15; 30.4-5).The wheel within a wheel: A wheel with a hub. In verses 22-25: Dome shining like crystal, see Gen 1.6-8, which uses "firmament" or "dome" to symbolize the distinction between heaven and earth. The sound of mighty waters: The vision is both auditory and visual. In verses 26-28a: Compare 1 Sam 4.4; 2 Sam 6.2; 1 Chr 13.6, "the ark of the covenant of the Lord of Hosts, who is enthroned on the cherubim." Sapphire: See Ex 24.10. Ezekiel attempts to describe God in human terms, but the imagery is inadequate. Gleaming amber and fire convey the power and incorporeality of the divine presence, the rainbow symbolizes God's covenant with creation (Gen 9.8-17). The glory of the Lord: God's presence (Ex 16.6-67; 40-34-38). Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 31st

 Read Ezekiel 1.4-12. In 1.4-28.a: The inaugural vision. The imagery of God's throne chariot (compare 1 Chr 28.18; Ps 18.10) is based on the most holy place in the Temple where the ark of the covenant is kept under the cherubim (1 Kings 6; see also Ex 25.10-22; 37.1-9). In verse 4: Wind , cloud, and fire appear frequently in theophanies (Ex 19; 1 Kings 19). In verses 5-12: Like: The vision is only a proximate human attempt to describe the divine presence. The four living creatures are the cherubim that surround the ark. Exodus 25.18-22; 37.7-9; and 1 Kings 6.23-28; 2 Chr 3.10-14 each mentioned only two but this passage combines the totals. Composite human/animal winged creature are well represented throughout the ancient Near East as guardians of thrones, city gates, and temples. The number four presupposes the four horns of the Temple altar (Ex 27.2; 38.2; Zech 2.1-4; 1. 18-21), which represent the "four winds"  or cardinal directions, indicating God's presence in the Temple at the center of creation. The four faces represent the divine qualities of intelligence (human), royal (lion), strength (ox), and mobility (eagle). Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 30th

 INTRODUCTION TO EZKIEL'S PROPHECY

In 1.1-3.15: The introduction includes a superscription in 1.1-3, which identifies the prophet and his historical context, and an account of his inaugural vision in 1.4-3.15, in which God commissions him to speak. Compare the call narratives of Moses (Ex 3) or Isaiah (Isa 6). 

Read Ezekiel 1.1-3. In 1.1-3: Superscription. See Isa 1.1; Jer 1.3. In verse 1: Some understand the thirtieth year as the thirtieth year after the prophet's call, the thirtieth year after Josiah's reform, the year of Jehoiachin's exile, or the date of the book's composition. It probably refers to Ezekiel's age at the time of his call. Ezekiel is a priest (1.3), and the age of priestly service begins at thirty (Num 4.3, compare Num 8.23-25) and concludes at fifty. Apart from th reference to the twenty-seventh year in 29.17, the dated oracles of the book extend from the fifth (1.2) to the twenty-fifth year of the Exile (40.1), so that the book correlates Ezekiel's prophetic oracles with the 20 years of active priestly service. The river Chebar: A canal by Nippur, a Babylonian city. In verse 2: The fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin: 593 BCE. In verse 3: Buzi is otherwise unknown. Had he not been exiled, Ezekiel would have served as a Zadokite priest in the Temple. Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 29th

 Read 1 Thessalonians 5.23-28. In 5.23-28: Epistolary closing. The passage is framed with a prayer or blessing form (5.23, 28) that reminds the congregation of the letter's themes: the survival of the community because of God's initiative (1.4; 2.12); sanctification (3.13; 4.3-4, 7-8); and the end time (1.10; 2.19; 3.13) which orients the community's life toward distinctive, blameless living. In verse 24: On who calls, an ongoing process, not a one-time event. Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 28th

 Read 1 Thessalonians 5.12--22. In 5.12-22: How the congregation should live. In verse 12: Those who ... have charge of you, "leaders" or patrons in the congregation who provide the means for the congregation to survive. In verse 14: Idlers: NRSV, perhaps influenced by 2 Thess 3.11, uses this specific noun rather than the more general "disorderly ones." It is not a comment about laziness, but about those who have not fully embraced the end-time orientation and need for holy living. Comments or Questions.. 

Reading for October 27th

 Read 1 Thessalonians 4.13-5. In 4.13-5.11: The expectation of the end times. Paul shows the distinctiveness of a community expecting the Lord's coming. In 4.16: God's trumpet, see Ex 19.16,19; Isa 27.13; Joel; 2.1. In verse 17: Meet, a term used of a delegation going out to meet a ruler. In 5.3: Labor pains, see Jer 6.24; 13.21; 22.23; Hos 13.13; Mic 4.9. In verse 5: Children of light, an expression that occurs in the Dead Sea scrolls (1 QS 1.9-10; 3.13). In verse 8: On military imagery, see Isa 59.17. In verse 10: Who died for us, an early formulation of belief about Christ. Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 26th

 Read 1 Thessalonians 4.1-12. In 4.1-12: Holy living toward each other and outsiders. In verse 1: Finally marks the last large section of the letter. In verse 4; Body, literally "vessel," could also mean "wife." Comments or Questions..