Today's Meditation
Read Micah 3:1-8
And I said: Listen, you heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel! Should you not know justice?— 2you who hate the good and love the evil, who tear the skin off my people, and the flesh off their bones; 3who eat the flesh of my people, flay their skin off them, break their bones in pieces, and chop them up like meat in a kettle, like flesh in a caldron. 4Then they will cry to the Lord, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time, because they have acted wickedly. 5Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry “Peace” when they have something to eat, but declare war against those who put nothing into their mouths. 6Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision, and darkness to you, without revelation. The sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them; 7the seers shall be disgraced, and the diviners put to shame; they shall all cover their lips, for there is no answer from God.
8But as for me, I am filled with power, with the spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.
I'm captivated by verse 5 in this passage, "Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry 'Peace' when they have something to eat, but declare war against those who put nothing into their mouths."
Richard Niell Donovan writes about this verse saying that "these false prophets are like a vending machine, but one with a nasty twist." You put money in the slot, and you get a message of peace or in the Hebrew, shalom. Shalom is more than the absence of war. It involves the kind of tranquility that comes from knowing who you are and where you come from. It involved the kind of prosperity that arises not from an accumulation of material possessions, but from a thankful spirit. It involves the kind of security that comes from the faith that God loves you and will provide for your needs. When these prophets speak of shalom, they are like a fortune cookie promising a prosperous and happy future. With vending machines, if you put nothing in the coin slot, nothing happens. But these prophets, if you give them no money, give curses rather than blessings - war instead of peace. These false prophets are more like Mafia thugs than religious spokespeople. They demand tribute and promise injury if the people fail to pay.
In that culture, it was common for people to give money to prophets, just as people today give money to their church, in part, to pay the preacher. Micah is not challenging the right of prophets to receive gifts that are freely given. He is challenging false prophets who tailor their prophecy according to the gifts offered - and who practice thuggery if no gifts are offered or if they aren't pleased with the gifts that they receive. (And I'd go so far as to say that this includes leaders of all types, not just preachers and prophets, but all those who are supposed to have the public interest at heart and not their own pockets.)
Donovan goes on to say that, "We can be sure that these prophets favor rich people who can afford generous gifts and despise poor people who cannot. This kind of favoritism is absolutely contrary to the message of true prophets of Yahweh. True prophets emphasize generous treatment of widows, orphans, and other vulnerable people.
How does this passage relate to our own experiences in the church and in the our nation?
How Great Thou Art by Hillsong - this has nothing to do with today's message per se, but I loved hearing them.
No comments:
Post a Comment