Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24, the First Reading appointed for Christ the King Sunday in the Year of Mark, is an interesting text in that the first part is reacting to the situation described earlier in the chapter (i.e. Israel's false shepherds have been absent and/or worse in their shepherding), but as the chapter goes on, the good news that has started the section is no longer such goods news. In an unexpected course of events, the good shepherd who announces his presence with the sheep also turns out to be their judge, judging "between sheep and sheep". It will be the preacher's task to decide the balance between the good news which begins the passage, and the Law that inserts itself.
(The following questions are not meant to be exhaustive, but are best used with other fine sets of questions available to exegetes. These questions have been developed to explore the function of the Word in the text, a central concern of Law and Gospel preachers. For more on this method and Law and Gospel preaching in general, see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com and amazon.)
1. How does the Word function in the text? There is lots of Gospel in this text, particularly in the first section. Over and over we hear God say what God will do for the sheep. God will search, seek out, rescue, (i.e. save), bring into their own land, feed, and shepherd. Most amazingly, in verse 16 we are told that God's concern will include the lost, the strayed, the injured, and the weak. What good news this is! In the second section, which takes its context from verses 17-19, the good shepherd turns to judge for it turns out that some members of the flock are bullying other weaker members. Finally, in the last two verses, a Gospel word returns, assuring us of God's plan to appoint a shepherd like the faithful King David.
2. With whom are you identifying in the text? It is always important to identify with the one being addressed by the Word, and in this text that means hearing both Law and Gospel. In the early verses, we are the ones who have been scattered "on a day of clouds and thick darkness" (i.e. sent into despair and misery). We are those who are lost, stray, injured, and weak, and we hear the promise of God coming as Good Shepherd as the announcement of a Savior. But then, we must also identify with those who are judged. We might ask, "Who do we push away and banish to the margins? Who do we treat as plunder or booty, as something to be "ravaged"?
3. What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text? The call to obedience is implicit in verses 20-22. We are those who have been rescued and fed and protected. We cannot, then, fail to rescue, feed, and protect those who need our care. Are we stronger than some others in God's flock? Fine. It then becomes our call to care for the weak.
4. What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text? There are a number of possibilities in this text, given the colorful language used here: lost/found; injured/healed; sick/well; stray/rescued.
5. Exegetical work: One cannot but help note in translating this text the emphasis on the very self of God doing the shepherding. Notice in the opening verse that God says, "I myself will search for my sheep." This emphasis continues. Over and over God says, "I will do this." In verse 15 the emphasis is heightened. The NRSV translates it again as "I myself," but the literal translation is, "I, I will pasture my sheep, and I, I will cause them to lie down, says the Lord God." In Augustine's sermon on this text, he notes this emphasis: "The Lord did not say, 'I will provide other good shepherds to do these things,' but 'I myself,' he said, 'will do them. I will commit my sheep to nobody else.' (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, OT, Vol. XIII, p. 110). Augustine also includes in his sermon an insightful view of those sheep who push and butt the weak. He says, "If we lament the many sheep that are straying outside, woe to those whose shoulders and sides and horns have brought it about. It is only the strong sheep who would do this. Who are the strong? Those who rely on their own righteousness. None but those who called themselves just divided the sheep and drove them outside." (Ibid., p. 112). In this day and age when we are asking ourselves why so many are outside of the Church, these are words we might well take to heart.
6. How does the Crossings Community model work with this text? Cathy Lessmann, in her analysis, does a nice job of separating Law and Gospel . She borrows a bit from the sheep and goats in Matthew 25, the gospel lesson appointed for the day, and uses that vehicle to suggest a way forward. See the entire analysis archived under its reference at crossings.org/text-study.
Blessings on your proclamation!
No comments:
Post a Comment