Daily Lesson for December 11, 2018

Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Isaiah chapter 5 verses 14-17 and 24:

14 Therefore Sheol has enlarged its appetite

   and opened its mouth beyond measure;

the nobility of Jerusalem and her multitude go down,

   her throng and all who exult in her. 

15 People are bowed down, everyone is brought low,

   and the eyes of the haughty are humbled. 

16 But the Lord of hosts is exalted by justice,

   and the Holy God shows himself holy by righteousness. 

17 Then the lambs shall graze as in their pasture,

   fatlings and kids shall feed among the ruins.

24 Therefore, as the tongue of fire devours the stubble,

   and as dry grass sinks down in the flame,

so their root will become rotten,

   and their blossom go up like dust;

for they have rejected the instruction of the Lord of hosts,

   and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. 

Yesterday a friend reading these Lessons from the Prophet Isaiah said something to the effect of, “Wow, these Woe Unto Yous are getting heavy; I’m ready for some good news.”

I know what she means. 

But the Lectionary writers are doing something very intentional. They are doing what those in the 12 Step Program must do in order to work at sobriety — they are administering a complete moral inventory in order to acknowledge “the exact nature of [their] wrongs.”

Isaiah does seem bleak. But his imagery of a fire purging the land all the way to its roots is helpful. He is talking about purification at the moral root, all the way down into the exact nature of the people’s wrongdoing.

It’s harsh imagery; yet there is some good news here. The clearing razes and destroys; yet it also purifies and cleanses.  The land, scorched in the fire, now grows again. It produces again. And the lambs come and feed upon it. The symbolism in these verses is actually stunning. The nobility of Jerusalem, who took advantage of the poor and vulnerable in the City with cold and callous contempt are now sent into exile, while the land is left safe again for the most vulnerable to come again and graze.

The Prophet’s Lessons are difficult.  But they’re also necessary. Purging is necessary. Purifying Fire is necessary. Hitting bottom is necessary. It’s all necessary in order that the people can take a good and hard look at their lives and make a change. 

This is what the Advent is about.