I suppose it remains a temptation of people devoted to God and to their worship practices to substitute this external “seeking after God” with only the appearance of repentance. The Jewish people, even after the experience of exile, fell into that trap. They could insist that they had been fasting and humbling themselves before God, but that God did not appear to be paying attention. They may have received some psychological, emotional, and social satisfaction with these gatherings for worship and contrition. They could devote themselves thoroughly to the form of mourning, sacrifices, and fasting, only to promptly forget that God expected the substance of their religion to affect their lives. In this way, one may formally and abstractly acknowledge what is true and good, but if one does not allow what is true and good to transform one’s life, does it really matter? It was not enough to go through the motions. God expressed frustration that religious devotion did not become an expansion of godly living. They were wasting their time. They thought that the things they did showed that they knew God. However, their lives did not give evidence of it. A little girl best summarized true repentance when she said, “It’s to be sorry enough to quit.”
The text is a dialogue between the Lord and Israel. The admonition issued by the prophet is a warning against religious fetishism: an exaggerated devotion to the mechanics of worship while ignoring the ethical substance of the religion the worship dramatizes. The prophet links himself to an active debate within ancient Israelite circles over the merits of outward religious practice when the people did not couple such actions with inward spiritual devotion. Amos, for example, believes that there can be no value in religious activities such as pilgrimages, festivals and even sacrifices if those who engage in such practices do not live a life fully in accordance with the rest of covenant law. That law enjoins care for the poor, the proper administration of social and economic justice and right living before God (Amos 2:6-16; 4:1-5:24). Similar passages, pointing out Israel’s juxtaposition of extraordinary sacrifice and religious observance with idolatry or social injustice, one can find in the other prophetic books. The northern kingdom heard a prophet who warned them that their offerings and sacrifices were worthless for they needed to sow justice to reap steadfast love, thereby showing they were seeking the Lord (Hosea 9:1-10:15). Another prophet warned that the rulers did not know justice, for the hate the good and love the evil, and therefore Jerusalem will see its destruction (Micah 3:1-12). Further, coming to the Lord with burnt offerings will mean nothing unless they do what is good by doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God (Micah 6:1-8).
The Lord commands the prophet to announce to the exiles who have returned from Babylonian captivity after 539 B.C.E. that they have succumbed to mixing true and false worship. The prophet questions the merits of outward religious practice when the people did not coupe such actions with inward spiritual devotion. Most immediately, the hopes of II Isaiah for restored Israel gave way to the reality described in III Isaiah of the lack of moral regeneration. God tells the prophet: 1Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! He calls the prophet to war and religious ceremony like Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement with the shofar or ram’s horn. On a Day of Atonement during the jubilee year, the shofar would announce both the invitation to repentance and the arrival of the year of release ordained by God. It would signify both the summons to repentance and the declaration of forgiveness — an apt description of the oracle which unfolds in this passage. In the form of a formal religious petition, the Lord tells the prophet to Announce to my people their rebellion, to the house of Jacob (a favorite expression in the book of Isaiah, occurring in some nine of the 21 occurrences of the expression in the Hebrew Bible) their sins.[1]
In addressing their sin, the prophet first addresses the matter of their intention while they fast. 2 Yet day after day, (although the poet could mean, “continually,” the poet could speak of the daily cultic activities of religious functionaries) they seek me and delight to know my ways, (suggesting superficial religious fetishism). There can be little doubt that religious practice in postexilic Israel, no less than in any other culture, was attractive to many people, and satisfied as many needs for them as religious practice satisfies for people now. A perennial risk of all religious observance is that it becomes not merely perfunctory but seductive, and the ritual, drama and social standing associated with postexilic Yahwism may have satisfied many psychological, emotional, and social needs that were wholly or in part unrelated to individual and social righteousness. The denunciation by the prophet here suggests that such knowledge was, at best, superficial sophistry and deeply contradictory of what true knowledge in the biblical idiom meant. Thus, the problem in restored Israel is that they continue religious practices as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance (as singular it denotes the totality of religious expression)[2] of their God. God seems exasperated in describing the ardent religious behavior of Israel, which nonetheless coexists with their lack of righteousness and justice. The seeking of God may refer to the attempt, widespread throughout the ancient Near East and including Israel, to discern a god’s will/the future through divination. In Israel, most forms of divination (astrology, extispicy [examining the entrails of sacrificed animals], necromancy [consultation with the dead], etc.) were officially condemned as idolatrous. The main exception to this policy was the practice of cleromancy, the casting of the sacred lots Urim and Thummim (e.g., Exodus 28:30; Numbers 27:12-23; Deuteronomy 33:8). The sacred lots provided answers to a variety of questions, only in a binary yes-no fashion. The interpretation of signs and dreams (oneiromancy) as portents of the divine will were tolerated in Israel, but official Yahwism sanctioned direct revelation, especially to prophets, as the principal means of divine-human communication. We also need to understand that the prophet does not denounce worship practices in favor of individual and social righteousness. The prophetic understanding of the relation between sacred and secular behavior was that they are complementary, not merely in opposition or contradiction to each other. There is no advocacy in biblical writings, even in the wisdom tradition, of an ethical system devoid of theological mooring or religious practice. The nation that practices righteousness also, in the prophetic idiom, practices religion. The widespread modern notion of “spirituality” apart from religion is unknown in the Bible. They ask of me righteous judgments, they delight to draw near to God. 3 “Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?” Leviticus 16:29-31, 23:27-32 and Numbers 29:7 prescribe a fast on the Day of Atonement. Fasting was not a requirement of the covenant. Rather, it was a sign of mourning and repentance (II Samuel 12:16; I Kings 21:9, Esther 9:31; Jonah 3:5). Fasting was never a substitute for proper observance of the law. The ancient Israelites obviously fasted to signal to God that they repented of their sins, but as the prophets continually pointed out, if they did not also practice right observance of the law after repenting, then their repentance meant nothing. Isaiah charges that they delight in fasting. Ordinarily, fasting (along with the wearing of sackcloth and ashes, v. 5) was exceptional behavior, occasioned by calamity or mourning. Many Israelites certainly understood the conditions of the exile — the destruction of the temple, the razing of Jerusalem, the people’s separation from the promised land — as grievous and they may have viewed them as meriting perpetual fasting. Similarly, the failure of the postexilic community to realize its exilic aspirations and hopes may have encouraged the continuation of this exilic practice. Regardless of its degree of routinization, fasting was a component of postexilic religious practice for which the practitioners expected divine notice. There can be little doubt that religious practice in postexilic Israel, no less than in any other culture, was attractive to many people, and satisfied as many needs for them as religious practice satisfies for people now. A perennial risk of all religious observance is that it becomes not merely perfunctory but seductive, and the ritual, drama and social standing associated with postexilic Yahwism may have satisfied many psychological, emotional, and social needs that were wholly or in part unrelated to individual and social righteousness. Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day, and oppress all your workers (kol-’atztzeveychem tingosu).[3] They insist that they have been fasting and humbling themselves, but that God has not paid them any attention for these efforts. God realizes what the people are trying to do by emphatic construction. God summons the prophet to call the attention of the people to the fact that they are superficially religiously observant while substantively wicked. 4 Look, you conduct a fast only to quarrel, to fight and to strike with a wicked fist. We do not know enough of the historical background of the passage to say with confidence what the nature of the quarrels was, but it is easy enough to imagine the sorts of controversies that would arise regarding such a volatile practice (how often, what sustenance, if any, they would permit, what are obligatory accompanying practices, etc. Such fasting as you do today will not make your voice heard on high. They are wasting their time seeking God in these ways. 5 Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself? Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush, and to lie, part of ritual of mourning, in sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? The criticism the prophet offers of regular fasting turns on its actual practice, whatever its motivation. In fact, according to the prophet, the fasting undertaken by the Israelites has degenerated into a form of Israelite self-interest, by providing an opportunity for quarrelsome religious disputation and the exploitation of workers. Ritual fasting would naturally include the avoidance of work, which would mean that the laborers employed by fasters on a per diem basis would be out of work on their employers’ fast days. Not only would this deprive subsistence laborers of essential income, but it would also result over time in significant savings for those who could afford the luxury of such religious observance. The prophet denounces such hidden motives as corrupting true worship.
Juxtaposed to such regular but hollow piety is the true worship demanded by the Lord’s cult: correcting injustice and providing for the needs of the hungry, homeless, and naked (vv. 6-10). After dealing with proper intention of a fast, the prophet advances to the proper follow-through of the fast. Verses 6-7 is a brief picture of an ideal community in which common assistance meet the common needs of the people of the community. The text is in line with the pre-exilic prophets’ denunciation of oppression of the poor by the rich. The reality of returning home was not like the hopes we find in II Isaiah. III Isaiah says the reason is that restored Israel did not exhibit the moral regeneration to which II Isaiah called the community. 6 Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? God makes it clear what God desires in the worshiper. God desires charity to the poor through self-sacrificing action on behalf of justice. If one wants God to hear one’s voice from on high, fasting is not the way to make that happen. Once Israel embraces the call of God to act in accord with justice, God will notice them, heal them, protect them from their enemies and restore their society. If this generation of Israelites, seeking to restore their nation after exile, wishes that God would hear, they must learn to hear the cry of the needy. God will raise them up only to the extent to which they raise up the least among them. In verses 8-9, most of us will get the point. However, we must not fall into the trap of thinking that acting justly becomes another form of magic that get God to heal or bring good things to a nation. Practicing justice in this world will not protect any nation from the ebb and flow of economic conditions or the forces of evil in this world. 8 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. True fasting will bring healing.
Among the health trends has been intermittent fasting, making it a regular part of a physical health plan. In fact, short-term fasting on a regular basis (a couple of times a week) seems to change your body in a lot of positive ways. It increases human growth hormone, for example, which contributes to both weight loss and muscle gain. It improves insulin levels, repairs cells, and fights the process of aging. Researchers have also noted improvements in heart health and in the body’s ability to fight cancer. Of course, there is the obvious correlation that eating less means losing weight — really the simplest diet plan ever.
This prophet makes it clear that fasting concerns our spiritual condition, and in particular our heightened attention to God and to the needs of others. Fasting for this prophet is a matter of a spiritual audit rather than a physical health audit. 9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. Justice in society is the result of proper cultic observance, and the establishment of such justice is the necessary precondition for Israel’s flourishing as the Lord’s people. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, (an insulting gesture) the speaking of evil, 10 if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall risein the darkness and your gloom is like the noonday so that other nations will witness it and emulate it. 11 The Lord will guide you continually, satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong. The Lord shall make you like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. 12 You shall rebuild ancient ruins and you shall raise up the foundations of many generations. The generation that acts in these ways will be honored by future generations: Peopleshall call you the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets in which to live. The message of hope that concludes this prophetic admonition is that the very thing that the people of Judah seek from the Lord through cultic propitiation is the very thing that will come to them when they practice the substance and not merely the form of their religion.
The prophet was calling out the disconnect that can happen between worshiping God and doing the will of God. The prophet’s audience was keeping the forms of religion but not the substance of it. Today, we might refer to such disconnect as “compartmentalization.” We allow various aspects of our lives to have their own principles of behavior — principles that sometimes conflict with our values in other areas of our lives. A classic example is a person who openly supports high moral behavior but is cheating on their spouse. Another is the mobster who never misses Mass. In psychiatry, compartmentalization is defined as taking things that are properly related and putting them in separate compartments in our minds, so they do not have to rub up against each other and cause us pain, stress or tension. In psychiatry, the opposite of compartmentalization is “integration,” which means pulling the various aspects of our lives together so that we are working from the whole picture. Some of it happens because compartmentalization is a psychological defense mechanism that helps isolate conflicting thoughts and feelings, and thus spares us some emotional pain. Integration is not nearly as comfortable as compartmentalization. There is always the chance that something will not pass muster when we run our behavior at work and play past our spiritual and moral values. That creates internal stress — at least until we resolve the issue by letting Christ fully into the formerly walled-off places. On the other hand, compartmentalization causes its own kind of discomfort. Some compartments in our lives develop because of wrongdoing or because of some issue we do not want to face. We put those matters in a separate room, but we lock it up and put a “no admittance” sign on the door. If wrongdoing is inside, it may be there because we really don’t want to admit that it is wrong. But the secrecy of the room yields guilt, and guilt can spawn symptoms that can upset our lives. On balance, whether speaking of our mental, emotional or spiritual health, we are better to tear down the compartment walls. That could also help us when thinking about subjects like welfare and helping the needy. What does our faith in Christ call us to do about that? In the end, this can be a subject of our prayers, and in that regard, the words of the intensely devotional hymn, “Dear Jesus, in whose life I see,” will serve us well:
Dear Jesus, in whose life I see
All that I would, but fail to be,
Let Thy clear light forever shine,
To shame and guide this life of mine.
Though what I dream and what I do
In my weak days are always two,
Help me, oppressed by things undone,
O Thou whose deeds and dreams were one!
[1] This passage, like most of the book of Isaiah, is ancient Hebrew poetry, consisting usually of two short thought-units of a few syllables each (a stich), arranged in synonymous parallelism. Although this structure pervades many of the prophetic and wisdom books of the Old Testament, the form in our passage avoids monotony by employing structural variation. For example, one might diagram verse one poetically as follows:
v. 1a: Shout out, (A) do not hold back! (B)
Lift up your voice (A’) like a trumpet! (C)
v. 1b: Announce to my people (A) their rebellion, (B)
to the house of Jacob (A’) their sins (B’).
[2] In the singular, an unusual expression, denoting the totality of religious prescription. The word ordinance ordinarily occurs in the plural in the biblical text (some 95 times), mainly in priestly writings, and the singular form occurs most frequently in the expression “perpetual ordinance,” found especially in the book of Exodus (e.g., 12:14, 17, 24). The word ordinance often parallels the word “statute” (e.g., Exodus 15:25; Numbers 27:11; Psalm 81:4) and rarely has the generalized sense conveyed here. This is the only occurrence of the word in the book of Isaiah (it is also uncommon in other prophetic writings), and may reflect the generalizing tendency of Third Isaiah’s language already evident at, for example, 56:1-8, where eunuchs and foreigners represent the several classes of persons excluded from the postexilic cult.
[3] This verse may have a hidden reference to those who depart entirely from the religion of Israel’s God and follow instead the values and worldview of Israel’s pagan neighbors. If one were to change the vowel and consonantal pointing of this section of verse 3, one can transform the phrase “you oppress all your workers,” (kol-’atztzeveychem tingosu) into the phrase “you draw near to all your idols” (kol-’atzaveychem tingoshu). The similarity of the sound of these two phrases may well be an intentional reminder that those who oppress workers by making them submit to useless religious ritual might as well be worshiping idols instead of YHWH.
This is on point. -Samuel Mendenhall
ReplyDeletethis is good fits with our discussion of yesterday
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