Will Vaus

The verses that “spoke” to me today were from chapter 8…. Thus says the Lord of hosts: Even though it seems impossible to the remnant of this people in these days, should it also seem impossible to me, says the Lord of hosts? Thus says the Lord of hosts: I will save my people from the east country and from the west country; and I will bring them to live in Jerusalem. They shall be my people and I will be their God, in faithfulness and in righteousness…. Just as you have been a cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you and you shall be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong. (Zechariah 8:6-8, 13) When the Jews lived in exile it must have seemed impossible to them that any of them would ever return to their hometown of Jerusalem, and yet the Lord restored them to their homeland. Our God is one who specializes in performing the impossible. This is what the angel said to the Blessed Virgin Mary w...

Zechariah preached in the same period as did Haggai. But the present Book of Zechariah combines Zechariah’s own words in chapters 1-8 with a series of later oracles in chapters 9-14 which were delivered by an unknown prophet against the Greeks about one hundred and fifty years later. Just as most scholars now refer to a First Isaiah as well as a Second and Third Isaiah, they often speak of First Zechariah and Second Zechariah to describe these two parts. Zechariah delivered his prophetic words between November 520 and November or December 518 B.C. These include at least three sets of oracles (Zec 1:1-6, 7:1-14, 8:1-23) and eight visions (Zec 1:7-6:15). He shares Haggai’s concerns for rebuilding the temple, creating a purified community, and predicting the coming of a new messianic age centered on Zerubbabel. One of the differences between the two prophets is the greater attention to priestly matters in Zechariah. He is himself the son of a priest (Ezr 5:1), and...

Here is Boadt’s introduction to Haggai…. The major event of the first years after the return was the attempt to rebuild the temple. The effort had never gotten beyond laying the foundations when Haggai and Zechariah took up the cause with a series of oracles urging the people to renew their efforts. Haggai is one of the shortest books among the Old Testament prophets—only two chapters, containing four oracles, all dated between August and December of 520 B.C. He addressed his oracles to Zerubbabel, the governor, and to Joshua, the high priest. His message was simple. The land is suffering from drought and hunger, poverty and failure, because the people think only of their own houses and fortunes, and have neglected the house of Yahweh. The land has been defiled and needs to be purified and consecrated by the presence of God in his temple. Until this is done, there would be no blessing in the new community. In this message Hagggai stands in the tradition of Ezekiel,...

I am back from a wonderful trip to California and ready to jump back into blogging through the Bible. While on my trip, someone asked me, “So what have you learned while blogging through the Bible this year?” My answer was, “That the Bible is one book with many voices.” I would add to that the fact that if the Bible is one book with many voices, perhaps then there is room in the Church of Jesus Christ for many different voices—including my voice, and your voice. The book of Zephaniah reminds us of the diversity represented in the books of the Bible no less than the other 65 books contained therein. Here is Lawrence Boadt’s introduction to this prophetic book…. About the time of Josiah’s crowning, the Book of Zephaniah records for us the voice of reaction against the false worship idolatry of Manasseh’s years. Zephaniah was a fiery preacher whose wrath against pagan practices and hatred of Assyria were matched only by his devotion to Yahweh. The book und...

My new book, "C. S. Lewis' Top Ten," just arrived, and tomorrow I am on my way to California to talk about it at Azusa Pacific University, Providence Christian College and to the Southern California C. S. Lewis Society . You can learn more about the book and order a signed copy here:  C. S. Lewis' Top Ten, Volume I . Since I will be away from my desk for a few days, I will be taking a break from blogging through the Bible. But have no fear! We are still on track to finish our journey through the C. S. Lewis Bible by the end of this calendar year.

Here is Boadt’s commentary on Habakkuk…. Habakkuk lived shortly after Nahum and describes a time when Babylon was taking over the Near East from the fallen Assyrians. Habakkuk 1:6-11 describes Babylon as the scourge of God causing terror everywhere. God declares that the Babylonians will be his instruments of punishment: “For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if I told it” (Hb 1:5). But Habakkuk also complains how the wicked continue to persecute those who seek justice and how idolatry abounds (Hb 2:6-11). Who are these wicked? Perhaps the people of Judah themselves, fallen back into evil after the death of Josiah. But also they are the Babylonians. God may use them, but that doesn’t mean Habakkuk thought of them as saints. God’s plan must be carried out, but he will punish the evil and the idolatry of the Babylonians just as much as that of his own people (see Hb 1:11; 2:5). Chapter 3 is a hymn in honor of Yahweh as the divine warri...

Here is Lawrence Boadt’s introduction to the book of Nahum…. Zephaniah had lived before Josiah’s reform and focused his zeal mostly against the evils of idolatry and faithlessness in Judah itself. Nahum provides a different view taken from within the time of reform and directed mostly against the evil of Assyria. This is one of the most colorful and dramatic books in the Old Testament with its ferocious description of the Babylonian siege of Neneveh. A short book of three chapters, it contains mostly angry and impassioned hatred against Assyria. The first chapter pictures Yahweh coming as a divine warrior to punish idolators and deliver Judah from its enemies. The second chapter describes the battle for Nineveh, and the third mixes battle scenes with reasons for God’s wrath. While it can be counted among the most stirring sections of the Bible, Nahum remains somewhat of a mystery book. We know nothing about the author except his name; he gives us no persona...

I thought I would offer something different for my commentary on today’s reading. I know it is a little bit early for some of us to be thinking about Christmas. However, here is an excerpt from my book, Open Before Christmas , that touches upon a passage in our reading for today…. An article appeared in the Associated Press one December day a number of years ago: Israel might declare Bethlehem a closed military area on Christmas Eve, preventing worshippers from arriving there…. Bethlehem’s mayor has already canceled Christmas Eve celebrations in the town because of more than two months of violence between Israelis and Palestinians. The violence has driven away most tourists, hitting Bethlehem’s economy hard. The daily Maariv said Prime Minister Ehud Barak was considering imposing the restrictions if Palestinians do not stop firing on the Jewish neighborhood of Gilo, not far from Bethlehem. Israel television broadcast a similar report. “O little ...

Here is Boadt’s introduction to Micah…. If Isaiah seemed to be totally concerned with the behavior and life of Jerusalem the capital city, and with the presence of the holy God that dwelled in its midst, Micah seems nearly the opposite. Except for the long poem on Zion that fills chapter 4 of his book and which many scholars doubt is original to Micah, hardly a mention of Jerusalem or the temple occurs anywhere. Instead, he talks of the villages and small towns, the tribal territories and the border cities of the Philistines to the west. The label that heads the book in Micah 1:1 tells us that he preached his message at the same time as did Isaiah, but the two prophets must have been very different types of people. Micah’s town of Moresheth-gath was probably quite small and more concerned with the agricultural year and the weather than with the affairs of state. Where Isaiah might cry out against injustice in urban vocabulary, “How the faithful city has become...

Here is Boadt’s introduction to Jonah…. Jonah is found among the prophetic books, but it is totally unlike any other prophetic book. It contains no oracles at all, except the report of Jonah’s words to Neneveh in Jonah 3:5. It is the story about a prophet, and right from the beginning we are warned to take this prophet with a grain of salt. The author has a great sense of literary style, full of abrupt changes of direction in thought, humorous touches, and unexpected twists in the plot. Verse 3 in chapter 1 must have made Israelites of the post-exilic period roar with laughter. The word of the Lord had come very solemnly to Jonah to go preach to Neneveh but instead “he rose to flee to Tarshish”—i.e. in the exact opposite direction! We are next treated to a scene of great comedy despite the danger that it describes about the ship in peril. Jonah seems to be asleep in the midst of a huge storm, while the sailors implore their gods in vain. When they accuse him o...