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Fifth Sunday of Lent (B)
Psalm 51:1-12
Hebrews 5:5-10
John 12:20-33
Given the context for this importance theological passage, it seems difficult to restrict my comments to only the first twelve verses, so I will offer comments on the entire psalm. Psalm 51 is one of the classic seven Penitential Psalms (Pss 6; 32; 38; 51; 102; 130; 143), used by the Church at least since the early sixth century theologian Cassiodorus (who may be borrowing from the preeminent Augustine, around 400 CE). These seven Penitential Psalms were associated by medieval commentators with the “seven deadly sins” (Ps 6: wrath; Ps 32: pride; Ps 38: gluttony; Ps 51: lechery; Ps 102: avarice; Ps 130: envy; Ps 143: sloth), although the connections are sometimes vague and sometimes dependent on the Greek version of the Psalter rather than the Hebrew text. One should also compare this psalm with the other three Penitential Prayers in Ezra 9, Nehemiah 9, and Daniel 9. The later use of this particular psalm in the context of repentance and forgiveness is easy to understand given its explicit cries for mercy in light of sin and expectation of God’s deliverance.
The title of the psalm connects the anguished cry of the author to the infamous events in the life of David connected with his affair with Bathsheba and ordered murder of her husband Uriah (see 2 Samuel 11-12). However, the language used to describe the type of actions committed by the psalmist are vague and ambiguous. The serious nature of the transgression comes across, but no specifics are given as to what the psalmist has done. The only possible hint of a connection to the episode involving Bathsheba and Uriah is the plea for deliverance from “bloodguilt” in verse 14—a word often meaning the literal “shedding of blood,” but could also be metaphorical. Otherwise, the nature of the psalmist’s “sins” is unknown.
This ambiguity allows for the reader/singer/pray-er to embrace the words as one’s own. In other words, one does not have to be guilty of adultery or murder or both to pray this psalm in the attitude of contrition, humility, and expectation of restoration. This broad application of the psalm is further developed by the concluding two verses. The psalm switches from confession by the individual to a prayer for the community’s well-being, specifically in God’s grace shown toward the city of Jerusalem. Its walls need to be rebuilt, and the psalmist calls on God to restore the city’s defenses. The most logical connection is to see these final two verses as a creative postexilic application of an earlier pre-exilic individual prayer, probably between the rebuilding of the temple under Zerubabbel and Joshua around 520 BCE and the rebuilding of the city walls by Nehemiah around 445 BCE. That is, the suffering and anticipated acceptance of the individual in verses 1-17 are transferred to the whole community in verses 18-19. This shift from the individual to the community can be seen repeatedly in the book of Psalms.
The language of purification dominants the first section of the psalm (vv. 1-9), drawing on typical terminology from the priestly rituals in Leviticus. However, the language moves quickly to metaphorical contexts, emphasizing the condition of the heart and the impartation of wisdom rather than sacrifice (vv. 2, 6-7). The psalm understands the “crushing of bones” to be a result of the sin and to have originated in the deity (“the bones you have crushed” in verse 8). The connection between sin and physical illness is common in the ancient Near East and reflected throughout the Old Testament (although disputed by the counter-voice found in the book of Job, and rejected by Jesus in John 9). The Old Testament also contends that God is responsible for everything, both good and evil, in several texts (for example, Deut 32:39; Amos 3:1-8; Isaiah 45:5-7; Job 6:4, 9:22).
The second section of the psalm (vv. 10-17) concentrates on the desired change to the individual following God’s forgiveness and intervention. The call for God to act begins with the verb “create” (bara in Hebrew), the same verb used in Genesis to describe God’s activity at Creation. As has been often noted, this verb appears only, without exception, with God as its subject. That is, whatever this type of creative activity entails, it belongs only to the Divine. Humanity cannot imitate God in this regard. This unique action resides in the purview of God alone. The transformation of the human heart, contends the psalmist, belongs to and can be accomplished only by God, through the work of the Spirit. The explicit mention of the “holy spirit” in verse 11 appears only here and in Isaiah 63:10-11 (another postexilic texts that connects the failure of the people in the past—in this case, the Exodus—with the desperate conditions of the community in the present, and calls on God to intervene as God did long ago to deliver the people). This section concludes with the proclamation that animal sacrifice does not please God so much as “a broken spirit” or “a broken and contrite heart.” This sentiment of the condition of the heart as having greater value than ritual observances is more common in the Old Testament than most of us realize. From the mouth of Samuel in rebuke of Saul (1 Samuel 15:22-23) to the repeated emphasis on humility, the “heart set to seek God,” and the depiction of pride as the primary sin throughout the book of Chronicles (1 Chr 10:13-14, 16:11, 22:19, 28:9; 2 Chr 7:14, 11:16, 12:14, 14:4, 15:2 15:12-13, 16:12, 17:3, 19:3, 20:3-4, 26:5, 30:19, 31:21, 34:3) to the rejection of the sacrificial system as abhorrent in the Prophets (Amos 5:21-24; Isaiah 1:12-17, 66:1-4; Malachi 1:6-14), the Old Testament elevates repentance and humility as virtues to be embraced by God’s people.
In the season of Lent, we pause to consider our own “sins,” but we must do so with the expectation of hope, joy, and restoration brought about through the transformation worked by God through the Spirit in our lives, both individually and collectively. When we only read Psalm 51 as David’s Prayer of Repentance we miss something. This is a Prayer of Repentance for All of God’s People. Let us pray with David, with the postexilic Israelites, with the Jews and Christians down through the centuries who have called on God for forgiveness, restoration, hope, and the joy that flows from God’s steadfast love toward God’s people. Let us embrace the presence of God’s Spirit into our lives.
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Steven Schweitzer
Any attempts to understand a text such as Hebrews 5:5-10 soon usher the alert interpreter into the majestic complexity of the homily called “the letter to the Hebrews.” The author, whose identity continues to elude us, moves deftly from exposition to exhortation and back again, in a rhythm that is definitely more like that of a sermon than that of a letter. Hebrews 5:5-10 is part of a longer section (5:1-10) that is devoted to scriptural exposition about the identity and activity of Jesus Christ as both high priest and Son of God. This exposition is framed by exhortation (4:14-16 and 5:11-6:3) which is sprinkled with calls for decisive action: “let us hold fast to our confession” (4:14); “let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness” (4:16); “let us go on toward maturity, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ…” (6:1). Reflections about the nature of Jesus as high priest and Son of God are clearly intended to foster (Lenten-type) self-examination concerning our relationship to Christ and the consequent priorities that derive from within that relationship.
Jesus’ identity as Son is grounded in a citation from Psalm 2:7: “You are my Son, today I have begotten you.” (5:5) The writer emphasizes the point that Jesus did not glorify himself, for he was appointed by God. Jesus’ identity as high priest is articulated in the words of Psalm 110:4, "You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek." (5:6; c.f. also 5:10) This priestly designation, along with the Genesis 14 narrative about Melchizedek, the enigmatic king of Salem, supplies the background scripture for an elaborated exposition in Hebrews 7. The reference to Melchizedek in 5:6 therefore introduces a theme which is developed later in this extended homily.
For 21 st century readers who are familiar with the gospel narratives, the story line in Hebrews 5:7-10 elicits memories of Jesus’ passion, including his prayer in the garden of Gethsemane. These associations are heightened by the fact that the lectionary lists John 12:20-33 as the parallel gospel text. During the season of Lent, as believers anticipate another rehearsal of the drama and pathos of Passion Week, it is appropriate along with the author of Hebrews to reflect on Jesus’ pilgrimage toward the cross.
The portrait of Jesus given in 5:7-10 can serve to confront certain perceptions of the divinity and humanity of Christ still prevalent in the church and to present implications for his followers:
- Jesus’ full identification with humanity, already discussed in 2:9-18 and 4:15, is developed further in 5:7: “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.” (5:7) For people whose view of Jesus’ divinity leads them to posit that his humanity was mere pretense, Hebrews emphasizes that Jesus cried out to God in dread and anguish. Jesus yielded himself in submission to God. Trusting in God’s power to save, he faced death with the confidence that God would vindicate him. Jesus did not remain untouched by doubt, pain and despair. Like other humans, he became deeply troubled, and he cried out to God for help.
- Jesus is clearly identified as God’s Son, but this does not exempt him from suffering. In fact, Hebrews underscores the link between Jesus’ identity as Son and his vocation, which included suffering: “Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.” (5:8) Jesus’ obedience in suffering supplies a model for his followers (5:9; c.f. 12:1-13).
- As a result of his suffering and death, Jesus enters his intercessory role as the high priest who mediates salvation: “and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.” (5:9-10) Jesus is the high priest who presides at the sacrificial offering but as supreme high priest he offers himself as the climactic sacrifice for sin. This theme of Jesus’ high priestly ministry is developed extensively elsewhere in Hebrews, especially 7:1-10:18.
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Jacob W. Elias
The mission of Jesus as the Sent One reaches a pivotal point in the Gospel’s narrative in this crucial text. Here in John 12:20-33 the actualization of Jesus’ glorification begins to unfold; it culminates in Jesus high priestly prayer (ch. 17). In both portions it becomes abundantly clear that Jesus’ mission culminates in his glorification. In John glorify is linked to lifted up, which carries double meaning, both being lifted up onto the cross (3:14), thus dying, and through this being exalted to God’s right hand through triumph over death. In this action the power of Satan, “the ruler of this world” (v. 31) is overcome. John’s speaks of it as judgment. How is that so? What happens to Jesus shows forth whom God vindicates: Jesus, not the ruler of this world, is God’s Son and with him lies the destiny of the world. Evil is exposed and judged for what it is.
Until this point in the Gospel, the narrator paces and interprets Jesus’ mission with the arresting phrase, “my hour has not yet come” (2:4; 7:30; 8:20). In chs.4–5 especially, numerous sayings point to the hour as coming or about to come (4:21, 23, 52, 53; 5:25, 28, 35). In 12:23, however, a definitive change occurs. Now, “The hour has come...”
Why so? What triggered the change is the “knock on the door” from Andrew and Philip, who say, the Greeks are here and wish to see you. Jesus’ way of answering the door is to announce strategic shift in ministry emphasis: “‘The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified.’“ This makes clear, similar to locating Peter’s confession at Caesarea Philippi in Mark (8:27) that Gentiles are necessarily present for Jesus’ mission to be revealed and consummated. So now the time of crisis (krisis) is here: In Jesus’ saying about a grain of wheat falling into the ground and dying in order to bear fruit; in Jesus’ cry to be saved from this hour; in the voice from heaven that answers Jesus’ announcement, “‘ I have glorified it, and will glorify it again’”; and in Jesus’ pronouncement that “Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.” The Greeks coming to see Jesus rings the alarm on Jesus’ time-clock as the Sent One. Symbolically, it functions in the narrative as the “ringing” that sets in motion Jesus’ glorification through death, so that “I, when I am lifted up, will draw all people to myself” (12:32).
In the midst of this high drama, Jesus teaches discipleship (v. 26). The path of Jesus to the cross is also meant to be the way his followers are to walk. While Jesus must walk the path to the cross alone, as God’s divine Son and the Son of Humanity destined “to be lifted up,” yet his walk also calls into being the formation of a new community that thinks and lives differently. In the verses right after the text (35-36), Jesus calls his followers to walk in the light and “believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.” This is prefaced with “While you have the light,” a stark reminder of the coming crisis, when the Son of Humanity will be lifted up, to pour out his life for the sins of the world (1:29, 36). In John especially, the violence that puts Jesus onto the cross is “the hour of darkness.” The entire Gospel portrays the Jesus event as a crisis between light and darkness. Thank God, the light is not overcome by the darkness (1:5), but the light overcomes the darkness, offering light unending as Jesus draws all unto himself.
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Willard M. Swartley
