Day 1 (Monday)
Jeremiah 31:1-37 (Restoration and a New Covenant)
Since mid-December, we have been reading the book of Leviticus, and last week, we concluded our reading from that book with the rewards that God promised His people for their faithfulness, and the consequences which He promised if they were faithless. We know that they did indeed prove to be faithless, and that after 490 years in the Land of Promise, the Lord delivered them up to the Babylonians, as Nebuchadnezzar sacked the city of Jerusalem and led the survivors captive into Babylon. The last prophet before the Babylonian Captivity was Jeremiah, and he prophesied the coming judgment to the final kings of Judah, and specifically that they would be exiled from the land for 70 years, so that the land would enjoy all the sabbath years that they had failed to observe during their 490 years in the land. Along with judgment, however, he prophesied a return from captivity and a consolation that the Lord would bring to His people after the judgment. We will read that today.
The Joyful Return of the Exiles
31 At that time, says the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.
2 Thus says the Lord:
The people who survived the sword
found grace in the wilderness;
when Israel sought for rest,
3 the Lord appeared to him from far away.
I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.
4 Again I will build you, and you shall be built,
O virgin Israel!
Again you shall take your tambourines,
and go forth in the dance of the merrymakers.
5 Again you shall plant vineyards
on the mountains of Samaria;
the planters shall plant,
and shall enjoy the fruit.
6 For there shall be a day when sentinels will call
in the hill country of Ephraim:
“Come, let us go up to Zion,
to the Lord our God.”
7 For thus says the Lord:
Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
“Save, O Lord, your people,
the remnant of Israel.”
8 See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north,
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
among them the blind and the lame,
those with child and those in labor, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
9 With weeping they shall come,
and with consolations I will lead them back,
I will let them walk by brooks of water,
in a straight path in which they shall not stumble;
for I have become a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is my firstborn.
10 Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
and declare it in the coastlands far away;
say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him,
and will keep him as a shepherd a flock.”
11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob,
and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.
12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord,
over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
their life shall become like a watered garden,
and they shall never languish again.
13 Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
14 I will give the priests their fill of fatness,
and my people shall be satisfied with my bounty,
says the Lord.
15 Thus says the Lord:
A voice is heard in Ramah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
because they are no more.
16 Thus says the Lord:
Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears;
for there is a reward for your work,
says the Lord:
they shall come back from the land of the enemy;
17 there is hope for your future,
says the Lord:
your children shall come back to their own country.
18 Indeed I heard Ephraim pleading:
“You disciplined me, and I took the discipline;
I was like a calf untrained.
Bring me back, let me come back,
for you are the Lord my God.
19 For after I had turned away I repented;
and after I was discovered, I struck my thigh;
I was ashamed, and I was dismayed
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.”
20 Is Ephraim my dear son?
Is he the child I delight in?
As often as I speak against him,
I still remember him.
Therefore I am deeply moved for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,
says the Lord.
21 Set up road markers for yourself,
make yourself signposts;
consider well the highway,
the road by which you went.
Return, O virgin Israel,
return to these your cities.
22 How long will you waver,
O faithless daughter?
For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth:
a woman encompasses a man.
23 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Once more they shall use these words in the land of Judah and in its towns when I restore their fortunes:
“The Lord bless you, O abode of righteousness,
O holy hill!”
24 And Judah and all its towns shall live there together, and the farmers and those who wander with their flocks.
25 I will satisfy the weary,
and all who are faint I will replenish.
26 Thereupon I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.
Individual Retribution
27 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of humans and the seed of animals. 28 And just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord. 29 In those days they shall no longer say:
“The parents have eaten sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
30 But all shall die for their own sins; the teeth of everyone who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge.
A New Covenant
31 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34 No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.
35 Thus says the Lord,
who gives the sun for light by day
and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord of hosts is his name:
36 If this fixed order were ever to cease
from my presence, says the Lord,
then also the offspring of Israel would cease
to be a nation before me forever.
37 Thus says the Lord:
If the heavens above can be measured,
and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
then I will reject all the offspring of Israel
because of all they have done,
says the Lord.
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out a couple of important points. First, how this prophecy speaks both of the house of Israel, that is, of Ephraim, and also of the house of Judah; both are to be restored. This is striking because the kingdom of Israel, the northern kingdom ruled by the house of Ephraim, had been led away into captivity over a hundred years before, and by this time had been almost entirely lost among the nations. A return of Israel, then, would necessitate an entrance of the nations among whom they were lost into the covenant. Second, we should consider verse 22 above, the prophecy that the Lord will do something new, and a woman will “encompass” a man. Different commentators suggest different ideas, such as the idea that a woman will defend or protect a man, which would certainly be seen as an upending of the natural order. I would suggest, however, that the context, which speaks of the return of Israel and the New Covenant being established, should indicate to us a prophecy both of the pregnancy of the Virgin Mary, and of her ongoing role as the fulfillment and perfection of both Israel and Judah, her role as intercessor and protectress of all Christians, and the upending of the natural order in her and in the Church, in which those who are meek and humble are exalted above even the Angels by God.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 2 (Wednesday)
Akathist Hymn – Stases 3/4
Last time, we read the first half of the Akathist Hymn, and saw the entire narrative of the Lord’s Incarnation, from the Annunciation through to the Feast of the Meeting in the Temple on the 40th Day after His birth. This time, we will see the hymnographer shift gears, and reflect on the entire mystery revealed to us in the Virgin Mary, as she exemplifies the New Creation and the wonder of humanity renewed and united with our Creator.
Akathist Hymn – Excerpts from Third Stanza
Oikos 7
Manifesting himself to us his creatures, the Creator displayed a new creation; he sprang from an unsown womb, preserving it, as it had been, uncorrupted, that we, beholding the miracle, might hymn the Woman, exclaiming:
'Rejoice, flower that does not faint: rejoice, crown of self-restraint.
Rejoice, who project a foreshowing of resurrection glory: rejoice, who reflect the angels' life-story.
Rejoice, tree laden with splendid fruit, which the faithful eat: rejoice, trunk shady with broad leaves, beneath which many retreat.
Rejoice, who give birth to an indicator for those who have gone astray: rejoice, who are pregnant with a liberator for those under an-
other's sway.
Rejoice, petition to the just Assessor: rejoice, remission for many a transgressor.
Rejoice, splendid dress of those stripped of the courage to speak: rejoice, tenderness overcoming all passions.
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Kontakion 8
Νow that we have seen a strange birth, we are estranged from the earth, transferring our minds to heaven: for this is why God on high appeared as a humble mortal, wishing to draw up to the height those who cry to him: "Alleluia!"
Oikos 8
Οn earth below, the un-circumscribed Word was wholly present and was in no way absent from heaven above: for a divine condescension took place, not a change of location, and the bearing of a child by a Virgin filled with God, who heard these words:
'Rejoice, monstrance of God un-confinable: rejoice, entrance of hallowed mystery.
Rejoice, for the faithless a doubtful story: rejoice, for the faithful a doubtless glory.
Rejoice, divinest transportation of him above the Cherubim: rejoice, the finest habitation of him above the Seraphim.
Rejoice, who align opposites in harmony: rejoice, who combine virginity and maternity.
Rejoice, through whom transgression is nullified: rejoice, through whom Paradise is opened wide.
Rejoice, the key to Christ's domain: rejoice, guarantee of eternal gain.
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Kontakion 9
Perceiving the mighty work of your being made man, all angel-kind marveled: for they saw him, who as God is inaccessible, a man accessible to all, dwelling among us, yet hearing on all sides this: 'Alleluia!'
Oikos 9
Quailing before you, God-bearer, eloquent orators we behold as dumb as fishes: for they are at a loss to say how you both remain a virgin and are capable of childbearing: but we, marveling at the mystery, with faith cry:
'Rejoice, of God's wisdom a repository: rejoice, of his providence a depository.
Rejoice, who discover metaphysicians to be blind: rejoice, who uncover rhetoricians as lacking in mind.
Rejoice, because the smart debaters have been made to drivel: rejoice, because the myth-creators have been made to shrivel.
Rejoice, you who rend the webs of the Athenians. Rejoice, you who fill the nets of the Fishermen.
Rejoice, who draw us up from the depth of unknowing: rejoice, who illumine many towards knowing.
Rejoice, for those wishing to be saved a boat, rejoice, a port for those on the sea of life afloat.
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Kontakion 10
Regulator of everything, wishing to save the world, he came hither of his own accord, and, as God, being a shepherd, he appeared like us, for us: and summoning like to like, as God he hears: 'Alleluia!’
Akathist Hymn – Excerpts from Fourth Stanza
Oikos 10
Shelter you are for virgins, Virgin God-bearer, and for all those who have recourse to you: for the Creator of heaven and earth made you, Immaculate One, dwelling in your womb and teaching all to address you thus:
'Rejoice, mainstay of virgin continence: rejoice, gateway to our deliverance.
Rejoice, surveyor of reformed intelligence: rejoice, purveyor of divine excellence.
Rejoice, for you have revived those conceived in disgrace: rejoice, for to those deprived of sense you have given advice.
Rejoice, who destroy the overthrower of rationality: rejoice, who bear the sower of purity.
Rejoice, of a seedless wedding the bridal room: rejoice, who betroth the faithful to the Lord as groom.
Rejoice, good nursemaid of virgin girls: rejoice, the bridesmaid of holy souls.
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Kontakion 11
Trying to match in extent the multitude of your many mercies, every hymn fails: for though we offer to you, holy King, as many strains of song as there are grains of sand, we accomplish nothing worthy of your gifts to those who cry to you: "Alleluia!"
Oikos 11
Unto those in darkness appearing we behold the holy Virgin as a lambent torch: for, kindling the insubstantial light, she leads everyone towards divine knowledge, illumining the mind with dawn's radiance, honored with this utterance:
'Rejoice, gleam of the thought-begetting sun: rejoice, beam of the never-setting moon.
Rejoice, lightning enlightening souls: rejoice, thunder frightening foes.
Rejoice, because you diffuse the light that broadly glows: rejoice, because you effuse the river that broadly flows.
Rejoice, who portray the font's prefigurement: rejoice, who remove our sin's disfigurement.
Rejoice, washing-bowl cleansing the conscience: rejoice, mixing-bowl dispensing enjoyments.
Rejoice, fragrance of Christ's sweet exhalation: rejoice, existence of mystic exultation.
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Kontakion 12
Wishing to grant grace in respect of ancient debts, he who absolves all mankind came, of his own will, to reside with those residing outside his grace: and tearing up the debit sheet he hears on all sides this: 'Alleluia!'
Oikos 12
Your offspring we sing, all praising you, God-bearer, as a living church: for, dwelling in your womb, the Lord, who holds all things in his hand, sanctified, glorified, and taught everyone to cry to you:
'Rejoice, tent of God and Word: rejoice, saint greater than saints.
Rejoice, treasure-chest gilded by the Spirit: rejoice, treasure-house of life inexhaustible.
Rejoice, diadem prized of reverent monarchs: rejoice, honoured pride of deferent hierarchs.
Rejoice, fortification of the church never shaken: rejoice, circumvallation of the kingdom never taken.
Rejoice, through whom trophies are erected: rejoice, through whom enemies are dejected.
Rejoice, cure of my outer skin: rejoice, care for my soul within.
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Kontakion 13
Zealously hymned by all, Mother, who have given birth to the most holy Word of all holy things, accepting the present offering, deliver from every calamity and from future torments of hell all those who cry to you: 'Alleluia!’
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should note that the object of our meditation in these final two stanzas is, as we said, the Incarnation and the Lord’s transformation of the world, with a focus, on the one hand, on the Theotokos as the first-fruit of the New Creation, and on the other, as the prototype of sanctified humanity. In all of this, however, the core point of theology is confessed in Oikos 8: “Οn earth below, the un-circumscribed Word was wholly present and was in no way absent from heaven above: for a divine condescension took place, not a change of location.” The point being that our Lord did not leave heaven to come to earth, that He didn’t travel from one place to another, but that, being God, He entered into His creation, lowering Himself to unite Himself with us, without ever leaving His divinity behind or being absent from His eternal throne at the right hand of the Father. This is the central mystery of the Gospel, and it is by the presence of God with us, enthroned in the Virgin’s womb and in her arms, and in the hearts and lives of all the Faithful in the Church, that He is working salvation for all the creation.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 3 (Friday)
Acts 17:1-15 (Uproar in Thessalonica, Paul & Silas in Beroea)
Last time we saw Paul and Silas in Philippi, as they were beaten and imprisoned following the exorcism of the servant girl, and then were delivered by the Lord through an earthquake, at which point they preached the Gospel to the jailor, and he and all his household were baptized. In the morning, the authorities learned that Paul was a Roman citizen, so they apologized for mistreating him and asked him to leave. This time, we will see Paul and Silas continue their way into Greece.
The Uproar in Thessalonica
17 After Paul and Silas had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three sabbath days argued with them from the scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Messiah to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This is the Messiah, Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you.”
4 Some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. 5 But the Jews became jealous, and with the help of some ruffians in the marketplaces they formed a mob and set the city in an uproar. While they were searching for Paul and Silas to bring them out to the assembly, they attacked Jason’s house.
6 When they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some believers before the city authorities, shouting, “These people who have been turning the world upside down have come here also, 7 and Jason has entertained them as guests. They are all acting contrary to the decrees of the emperor, saying that there is another king named Jesus.” 8 The people and the city officials were disturbed when they heard this, 9 and after they had taken bail from Jason and the others, they let them go.
Paul and Silas in Beroea
10 That very night the believers sent Paul and Silas off to Beroea; and when they arrived, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11 These Jews were more receptive than those in Thessalonica, for they welcomed the message very eagerly and examined the scriptures every day to see whether these things were so. 12 Many of them therefore believed, including not a few Greek women and men of high standing.
13 But when the Jews of Thessalonica learned that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Beroea as well, they came there too, to stir up and incite the crowds. 14 Then the believers immediately sent Paul away to the coast, but Silas and Timothy remained behind. 15 Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and after receiving instructions to have Silas and Timothy join him as soon as possible, they left him.
Reading 31 – 402 words
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out that, in Philippi, the synagogue, if it was indeed fully worthy of that word, consisted only of the women of the town, presumably Jewish women married to the veteran Roman soldiers who had been settled in the city, or perhaps their children and grandchildren at this point. In that city, St. Paul and his companions faced little opposition, except for from the pagan authorities themselves, when they cast out the demon from the young woman. In Thessalonica, however, there is a full-fledged synagogue, and the pattern that we saw before in Asia Minor plays out again; St. Paul preaches in the synagogue, and many are interested and believe in the Lord, but others become jealous of St. Paul’s popularity and raise the mob and the civil authorities against him. And once again, when St. Paul moves on to another city, he finds peace and fruitful ministry there for a time, but the leaders of the previous city follow him there and stir up trouble once again. We are seeing, in real time, the separation developing between those who follow Jesus Christ as the Jewish Messiah, and those who reject the Lord. Sadly, this process continues for the subsequent decades and centuries.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?