Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost; 14 November 2021; Proper 28B (RCL); 1 Samuel 1:4-20; 1 Samuel 2:1-10; Hebrews 10:11-25; Mark 13:1-8.
In our semi-continuous reading of the Old Testament, we now stand at the verge of the monarchy. Samuel will serve as the last of the judges and anoint two kings in succession: Saul and then David. In the deuteronomistic historiographical tradition, this will be the beginning of both the glory and the shame of Israel. Solomon will build the Temple, but also build shrines for the gods of his foreign wives. His united kingdom will reach its furthest extent, but the worship of foreign deities (and the concomitant unfaithfulness to YHWH) will sow the seeds of the nation’s destruction.
Continue reading “Birthpangs”