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Bible Tuesday for Christ the King, 2015

Bible Tuesday for the Feast Day of Christ the King, 2015

Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14

9 As I watched,
thrones were set in place,
and an Ancient One* took his throne;
his clothing was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames,
and its wheels were burning fire.
10 A stream of fire issued
and flowed out from his presence.
A thousand thousand served him,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him.
The court sat in judgement,
and the books were opened.
13As I watched in the night visions,
I saw one like a human being*
coming with the clouds of heaven.
And he came to the Ancient One*
and was presented before him.
14 To him was given dominion
and glory and kingship,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not pass away,
and his kingship is one
that shall never be destroyed.

The book of Daniel is both narrative and apocalyptic. It contains the great stories of Shadrach, Mishach, and Abednigo, as well as Daniel and the Lion’s Den, among others. And it contains accounts of the prophet, Daniel’s visions. The visions sound very much like the entire book of Revelation, because they are the same type of literature. These apocalyptic visions are interpretations of the political and socio-economic context of the seer. The book of Daniel was written in both Hebrew and Aramaic.

The above passage is a small section of “a dream and a vision of Daniel’s mind in bed; afterward he wrote down the dream.” (Daniel 7:1) The first verses of this vision recorded in Daniel 7 describe four beasts which come out of a body of water. Each beast represents a world power at that time: Babylon, Medes, Persia, and Alexander the Great of Greece. These beasts are judged by Yahweh in his throne room, the scene of which is described in the above passage. The pericope omits one of the judgments of one of the beasts.

Daniel’s vision portrays God as an amalgamation of Canaanite myth and contemporary throne room court scenes x 1000. In those various myths, the gods ascend to their thrones after defeating various enemies. However, Yahweh does not gain godliness but rather created all and has always been God. This is why the title “Ancient One” is used. Important recurring symbols are that of a river flowing from God’s throne. In Jewish tradition and Hebrew scriptures, a life-giving river will flow from Zion (the mount on which the Temple was built) when God returns to the Temple and restores Jerusalem and all Israel to its former glory.

But why is this text chosen for Christ the King Sunday?! Because of the “one like a human being” in verse 13. In Jewish tradition, this reference was to a) the hoped for messiah king whom God would use to overthrow those who occupied Israel, or b) a human like figure who will execute God’s judgment such as the angel, Gabriel, or c) the whole people of Israel.

The more common translation of the Aramic for “one like a human being” is “son of man”. This is a term Jesus uses to describe himself in three of the four gospels. It is an idiom for “human being” but when Jesus uses it, he seems to be referring to not just any human being but a special, designated one, THE designated one.

Psalm 93

The Lord is king, he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed, he is girded with strength.
He has established the world; it shall never be moved;
2 your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.

3 The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
4 More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters,
more majestic than the waves* of the sea,
majestic on high is the Lord!

5 Your decrees are very sure;
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, for evermore.

This psalm is thought to have been used during coronations of Israelite kings, with the understanding that Yahweh is king of Israel and the crowned kings are merely God’s agents. This psalm also reflects the authority of God as established, not by defeated enemies, but by having made and exerting power over all that is. In verses 4-5 the uncontainable, uncontrollable aspects of vast amounts of water are illustrating the ultimate over which God is elevated.

Revelation 1:4-8

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

To him who loves us and freed* us from our sins by his blood, 6and made* us to be a kingdom, priests serving* his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
7 Look! He is coming with the clouds;
every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him;
and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail.
So it is to be. Amen.

8 ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega’, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.

Let us leave the imagery of Revelation and the 7 spirits for another time and focus on why this text is being used for Christ the King Sunday. Within this text we find many descriptors of Jesus: the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, the king above kings, the one who frees from sins, the ultimate sacrifice, the one who will come on the clouds, the Christ which means the anointed one. God grants Jesus “glory and dominion forever” because Jesus carried out and embodies God’s love for us. Revelation does not abide by the fully fleshed out doctrine of the Trinity, but it does contain the beginnings of it.

John 18:33-37

Then Pilate entered the headquarters* again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ 34Jesus answered, ‘Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?’ 35Pilate replied, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?’ 36Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ 37Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’ And Pilate replied, “What is truth?”

The crime for which Jesus is hauled in front of Pilate is treason. The Israelites are a conquered people under Roman rule. Although the Israelites/Jews have a “Jewish” king even while under Rome’s thumb, that king was put in power by Rome. Herod the Great was raised in Rome and educated with Caesar’s own kids. Herod was put in power to keep the Jews under control and to generate revenue for Rome. If at any time Herod told Rome to go fly a kite, Herod would have been squashed and another puppet king would have been put in his place.

When Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin hauled Jesus to Pilate, it was with the hope that Pilate would find him guilty of treason and Rome would crucify Jesus, leaving the hands of the high priest and Jewish leaders clean. But in John’s gospel, Pilate is portrayed as much nicer than he really was, seeking to free Jesus because Jesus does not seem treasonous to him. Crazy? Maybe, but not treasonous.