Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2saying, “I called to the Lord out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice. 3You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; all your waves and your billows passed over me. 4Then I said, ‘I am driven away from your sight; how shall I look again upon your holy temple?’ 5The waters closed in over me; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped around my head 6at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet you brought up my life from the Pit, O Lord my God. 7As my life was ebbing away, I remembered the Lord; and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple. 8Those who worship vain idols forsake their true loyalty. 9But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the Lord!”
-This is not a lectionary text but we have been asked by the TN Disciples Region to preach on it once during Lent in order to share the regions capital campaign. I do not plan on speaking a whole bunch about money but it may not be totally inappropriate given the text. The verse the region is focusing on is 2:9. "But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay." Given that the Holy Temple is mentioned twice in the passage and sacrifice is mentioned here it is not inappropriate to talk about monetary giving since that is one of the functions of the Temple. However, the Psalm is highlighting a life of gratitude rather than a single act of giving.
-Focusing on the verse the first big question is what has the author vowed to pay? We are not told. Jonah had not vowed anything to God. Rather God asked Jonah to preach to the heathen Jewish enemy and Jonah ran away from the call. Perhaps as a prophet of some authority-Jonah is mentioned in Kings-he had vowed to give his whole life to God and speak whatever God had instructed him to speak. Thus, he is reasserting his willingness to speak God’s words.
-I think I will connect this Psalm with Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem and perhaps compare the two prophets. Take a look at Luke 9:31-35 and ask yourself how Jonah and Niniveh compare to Jesus and Jerusalem?
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. 3The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” 4Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” 5Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. 7If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 8Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’” 9Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ 11and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” 12Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 13When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.
-Jesus is tested. That is the best translation of the word. We should not imagine that a horned red man is sitting in front of Jesus qouting him scripture but rather imagine Jesus having a conversation in his own mind between opposing visions of Messiahship. This opposising Jesus offers sound biblical advice for how to accomplish God’s Mission. But Jesus, strengthened by the Spirit, is able to withstand his own sound biblical advice and empower the intense passsion for God’s Dreams that require the Messiah that he will become to us.
-There are clear connections between Jesus’s temptations and the temptations we face. The tendency to place material comfort above its proper place. The desire to force people to conform to a particular image of Godly life even though compelling people to be something is contrary to the invitation of grace. Finally, taking the easy way of impressing people of your greatness rather than impressing them with your humility.
28Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. 29And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. 30Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. 31They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah” —not knowing what he said. 34While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” 36When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.
-This is a rich passage to tear into. There is a lot there. It is hard to know where to start and what to focus on. However, decisions need to be made. I am struck by the similarity between this text and the apocolpyse in Luke 21. Some of the words are the same but even when they are not the ideas can be seen as the same. In some way what we have here on the Mount of Transfiguration then is a window into the final coming of Jesus. Certainly, this is not the only interpreation but as we are on the brink of Lent I think this interpretation offers some food for thought. Now what to say about it other than that…
