Psalm 17:1-8, Jeremiah 7:9-15, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, Luke 19:41-47.
A). UNDER THE SHADOW OF THY WINGS.
Psalm 17:1-8.
PSALM 17:1. How can a man, born dead in trespasses and sins, plead with the LORD to “hear the right?” Well, it is as Abraham said, ‘Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?’ (Genesis 18:25). When we use this Psalm, we are not appealing to our own self-righteousness, but to ‘the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ’ (cf. Romans 3:22-23).
“My cry” comes first, and then “my prayer.” The parent hears the cry of the child, and will respond to them, even before those cries have been articulated into a known language. The LORD knows the sorrows of His people, and hears their cry (cf. Exodus 3:7). The Lord hears and answers the prayers of His righteous people (cf. 1 Peter 3:12).
PSALM 17:2. The Psalmist makes his appeal to the highest court of all, and is bold to call upon God to vindicate him. This is faith indeed: ‘if I have done any wrong, then let me hear sentence from the mouth of God.’ We can be so bold, because we know that God holds the scales of justice, and that the blood and righteousness of our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, far outweighs all of our sins (cf. Romans 3:25).
PSALM 17:3. It is the LORD who searches the heart (cf. Jeremiah 17:10). We can make our plea with Peter, ‘Thou knowest all things, thou knowest that I love thee’ (John 21:17). If we have the love of God in our hearts, then the judge Himself will be our vindicator (cf. Job 23:10).
PSALM 17:4. The desire of the believer is that we should keep ourselves away from “the works of (carnal) men.” The grace of God within us enables us to accomplish this by applying “the word of His lips” (Scripture) to keep us from “the paths of the destroyer.”
PSALM 17:5. Having forsaken the paths of evil, we can call upon God to uphold us in His paths. The Lord keeps our feet from slipping, and shall at last ‘present us faultless before the presence of His glory’ (cf. Jude 1:24-25).
PSALM 17:6. Experience tells us that God will hear our prayers. It is this confidence which seals our appeal: “incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.” Persevering prayer produces results (cf. James 5:16).
PSALM 17:7. “Show” what I know you to have: “thy loving kindness.” It is an appeal for the LORD to show anew His covenant grace wherewith He first loved us. The LORD continually extends to us the right hand of refuge.
PSALM 17:8. “Keep me as the apple of the eye.” The eye blinks to guard its pupil, its “apple.” In like manner, LORD, protect me.
“Hide me under the shadow of thy wings” – for it is under the metaphorical “wings” of the LORD that we seek refuge (cf. Ruth 2:12).
B). THE VAIN CONFIDENCE OF THE DISOBEDIENT.
Jeremiah 7:9-15.
As Paul unfolded his doctrine of justification by grace through faith in his Epistle to the Romans, he uttered the phrase ‘But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound’ (cf. Romans 5:20), and he realised that he had to square up to his detractors on this point. Paul knew perfectly well how they would twist it, and both anticipated and answered their accusing sneer: ‘Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?’ (cf. Romans 6:1).
This elicited an emphatic negation from Paul, the dynamic of which is caught in various translations: ‘God forbid!’ ‘Certainly not!’ ‘By no means!’ ‘What a ghastly thought!’ ‘No way!!!’ (cf. Romans 6:2).
It is vain and presumptuous, and downright sinful for men to imagine that they might cover their sins by the appearance of worshipping the one true God (JEREMIAH 7:9-10). But these men in Jeremiah’s day basically claimed to be “delivered” in order to go on sinning! We might hide our sins from men, but God knows our hearts (cf. Psalm 44:20-21).
Three times the LORD emphasises that “this house” (i.e. the Temple in Jerusalem) “is called by my name” (JEREMIAH 7:10-11; JEREMIAH 7:14).
Among other things the LORD asks, “Will ye steal?” (JEREMIAH 7:9). Then He says, “Is this house, which is called by name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it,” saith the LORD (JEREMIAH 7:11). Jesus says, ‘My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves’ (cf. Luke 19:46).
Now the LORD points to “Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel” (JEREMIAH 7:12). This was a town where the ark of the covenant had once rested (cf. Joshua 18:1). Shiloh had been destroyed by the Philistines, who also at that time removed the ark (cf. 1 Samuel 4:17; Psalm 78:58-64).
JEREMIAH 7:13. “And now because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD.” (The “works” are theft, murder, adultery, perjury, and idolatry - cf. Jeremiah 7:9.).
“And I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking” (cf. Jeremiah 7:25 - ‘I have even sent unto you all my servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them’).
“But ye heard not” – refused to listen. “And I called you, but ye answered not” (cf. Matthew 23:37).
JEREMIAH 7:14 (cf. Jeremiah 26:6). The people had a false sense of security, allegedly “trusting” in ‘the Temple of the LORD’ (cf. Jeremiah 7:4). Religious attendance is not enough. They would see the LORD do to “this house which is called by my name” - His own Temple in Jerusalem, which he had given “to you and your fathers” - exactly the same “as I have done to Shiloh.”
Not only so, but He would cast Judah out of His sight, into exile, even as He done to the rest of Israel (JEREMIAH 7:15). After all, the LORD had told His weeping prophet, ‘treacherous Judah’ was more guilty than ‘backsliding Israel’ (cf. Jeremiah 3:11).
C). SPIRITUALITY, DIVERSITY, AND GIFTS.
1 Corinthians 12:1-11.
1. Concerning spirituals (1 Corinthians 12:1-3).
“Now concerning spirituals,” begins this passage (1 Corinthians 12:1). This may be masculine, ‘spiritual people’. However, given the emphasis away from individualism to “Jesus is Lord” (1 Corinthians 12:3), it is more likely to be neuter, referring to ‘spiritual things’ in general. More specifically, it is a heading for the whole discussion of spiritual ‘gifts’ (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:4) in chapters 12 to 14.
“Now concerning spirituals, brethren, I would not have you ignorant,” the Apostle Paul continues (1 Corinthians 12:1). This is interesting because the Apostle had opened his letter with a celebration of the Corinthians’ giftedness in speech and knowledge (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:5-7), but now he must remind them that they have no excuse for ignorance. It is reassuring that he refers to them as “brethren”, because Paul would want the Corinthians to know that, even if he has had some stern words to speak to them, it is because his heart longs for them.
“You (all) know that you (all) were Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 12:2a). That is what we were outside of Christ: ‘aliens from the commonwealth of Israel’ (cf. Ephesians 2:12). But now, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are grafted into the olive tree which is Israel (Romans 11:7; Romans 11:17-18). We are part of ‘the fellowship of’ God’s ‘Son Jesus Christ the Lord’ (1 Corinthians 1:9).
“You (all) were Gentiles,” says Paul, “carried away unto these dumb idols, even as you (all) were led” (1 Corinthians 12:2b). The Greek is emphatic: “to idols dumb as you (all) might be led away, led away.” When we talk about somebody being ‘carried away’ it infers an out-of-control enthusiasm which drives them to extremes. In cults this may involve frenzied dancing, or even ‘lancing’ oneself until the blood gushed out (cf. 1 Kings 18:28). Hallucinations may be caused by drugs, or perhaps fumes from a volcano (as in Delphi, Greece). There is a definite ‘spiritual’ power in these phenomena, but the idols are “dumb” (cf. 1 Kings 18:26; Psalm 115:4-7; Habakkuk 2:18). It is positively demonic!
Astonishingly, the Apostle Paul now felt constrained to negate the possibility that anybody should speak an anathema against Jesus and presume that they were thus speaking by the Spirit of God. “Understand this…!” he declares (1 Corinthians 12:3a). “And no-one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3b).
This is the basic confession of Christianity: ‘Jesus is Lord’ (cf. Romans 10:9). It is what Jesus taught concerning Himself (cf. John 13:13). The Holy Spirit bears witness of Jesus (cf. John 15:26). The Holy Spirit only ever glorifies Jesus (cf. John 16:14).
For the Corinthians, to say “Jesus is Lord” was to make a stand against all that they might hitherto have believed (cf. 1 Corinthians 8:5-6). It is significant that the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures translates the name of God with the same Greek word as the New Testament uses in reference to Jesus: which we translate in both instances as ‘Lord’. In other words, for us to say “Jesus is Lord” is to acknowledge that Jesus is God!
In the ancient world the Emperor might claim to be God: thus, we had ‘Caesar is Lord’. To deny this was treasonous, and many Christians would be martyred on account of it: many with the words “Jesus is Lord” still upon their lips. Such courage, such fortitude, such perseverance can only be accounted for because of the very real experience of being ‘born again of the Spirit of God’ (cf. John 3:5-7).
2. Diversity in unity (1 Corinthians 12:4-6).
The word “diversities” appears three times in these three verses. The overall structure is Trinitarian, mentioning (in successive verses) “Spirit” (i.e. Holy Spirit), “Lord” (i.e. Jesus), and “God” (i.e. Father). These three are one God.
The Greek word used for “gifts” in 1 Corinthians 12:4 is “charismata”. This contains the word ‘Charis’ which translates as ‘grace’. So, the gifts of the Spirit are gifts given by the grace of God.
“Administrations” - or literally ‘diaconates’ or ‘services’ (1 Corinthians 12:5) - speaks of there being various ways in which we can be of service to one another. This is in keeping with Jesus’ Himself, who ‘came to serve’ (cf. Mark 10:45) and taught us to do likewise (cf. John 13:14). The Lordship of Jesus which we confess (1 Corinthians 12:3b) is, after all, a Lordship of service (cf. Philippians 2:5-8).
“Operations” could be rendered ‘in-workings’ (1 Corinthians 12:6). We are reminded that ‘it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure’ (cf. Philippians 2:13). ‘Greater is He that is in you’, Christian, ‘than he that is in the world’ (cf. 1 John 4:4).
3. Gifts for the common good, given to individuals (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).
The gifts, though given to individuals (1 Corinthians 12:11; cf. 2 Timothy 1:6), are given for the “profit” of the community of believers (1 Corinthians 12:7; cf. 1 Peter 4:10). The expression “by the Spirit” or “by the same Spirit” is repeated several times in these five verses, reminding us of the Sovereignty of the Holy Spirit in the distribution of gifts.
D). WEEPING, CLEANSING, AND TEACHING.
Luke 19:41-47a.
1. Jesus weeps over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41-44).
As He approached Jerusalem, ‘the man Christ Jesus’ (cf. 1 Timothy 2:5) wept over the city and the people whom He loved (Luke 19:41). His complaint about the people (Luke 19:42) became a prophecy against the city (Luke 19:43-44), which would be fulfilled some forty years later. And all because of their failure to recognise “the time of thy visitation” (Luke 19:44). Ignorance, after all, is no excuse.
2. Jesus cleanses the Temple (Luke 19:45-47a).
In a deliberate act of providence (cf. Luke 19:28-30), Jesus had entered Jerusalem in a manner which perfectly fulfilled Zechariah 9:9. This was the ‘triumphant entry’ of Jesus into Jerusalem - upon a humble beast of burden. The city was abuzz with anticipation.
It was Passover, and the city of Jerusalem was packed with pilgrims who had gathered to commemorate Israel’s deliverance out of slavery in Egypt. Not only was it a solemn religious celebration, but also a great national statement that defied all who would dare to oppress them in the future. No doubt tensions were high, and Roman soldiers mingled with the crowds around the great concourse of the Temple (roughly equivalent to the cloisters of a Western Cathedral).
Entering the Temple, Jesus found those who were selling sheep and oxen, and doves (Luke 19:45). Money-changers sat at tables exchanging foreign currencies for the Temple shekel. All this took place in the court of the Gentiles, thereby denying the nations a place to draw aside from the hubbub of their busy lives!
This was all taking place with the evident collusion of the priesthood. After all, (they probably reasoned) did not the people require animals for sacrifices, and money for the Temple tax? Jesus was disgusted to find such trading in His Father’s house, and He reacted accordingly.
If people had expected Jesus to come like Judas Maccabeus of old to purge the Jerusalem Temple of GENTILE pollution, they were sadly mistaken. What Jesus did do was to purge the ‘court of the Gentiles’ WITHIN the Jerusalem Temple of (presumably Jewish) sellers and buyers and money-changers (Luke 19:45). According to Jesus, these were collectively changing God’s “house of prayer” (which was meant ‘for all nations’ cf. Isaiah 56:7; Mark 11:17) into a “den of thieves” (Luke 19:46; cf. Jeremiah 7:11).
It is curious that no-one seems to have resisted Jesus - perhaps the traders were only too well aware of their guilt. The Romans, no doubt, stood aloof, probably also briefed in the desirability of thus keeping the peace. Jesus, nevertheless, "taught daily in the temple" (Luke 19:47a).
The only grumble of complaint seems to have been from 'the chief priests and scribes and chief of the people' who 'sought to destroy Him' (cf. Luke 19:47b). These custodians of the Temple 'could not find what they might do: for all the people were attentive to hear Him' (cf. Luke 19:48).
