Tag: righteous

An Insignificant Number

Posted on by jovial_cynic
When Abraham asks God if He would spare the cities from destruction if there were 50, 45, 40, 30, 20, and 10 righteous people there, God says He will not destroy the cities if a requisite number of righteous people were present.

So what is the minimum number of people that are needed to prevent God from destroying a city?

We know that God will save a city on account of 10, because that’s what God said in Genesis 18:32. But how many righteous people were in the city? Is it just Lot? If so, does that mean that one righteous person not sufficient?

Actually, the text might demonstrate that one is all that’s necessary. One is sufficient.

If you remember, the region of Sodom and Gomorrah consists of 5 separate cities: Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboyim, and Bela (that is, Zoar).

These kings went to war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboyim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar).
Genesis 14:2 (NIV)

Do you notice something interesting about Bela? Aside from having the nickname “Zoar,” the king of the city isn’t named. It sticks out, right? The rabbis say that the king of Bela isn’t named because the city is so insignificant that the king’s name wasn’t even recorded. It didn’t even matter.

But pay close attention: when we jump ahead to Genesis 19 when Lot is being rescued, where does he ask to go? He’s afraid he can’t get out in time, so he asks if he can go to the little insignificant town along the way. It’s Zoar, one of the 5 wicked cities!

Interestingly, God does not destroy it.

But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it — it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.)
Genesis 19:18-22 (NIV)

Perhaps Lot is the ony righteous person there. And with just one person, as insignificant as that may seem, God spares the city.

Perhaps the rabbis are right: “a single righteous person could save the rest of the world.”

The Righteous

Posted on by jovial_cynic
There’s a teaching in Christianity that says “none are righteous,” and it’s pulled from Romans 3, which quotes from either Psalm 14 or Psalm 53 (they’re almost identical).

The thing is… the scriptures refer to people being “righteous” all the time.

Noah, Abraham, David… and though Jesus spoke Aramaic, our bibles record this greek word δίκαιος (dikaios) to describe “righteous Abel” in Matthew 23:35, and it’s the same word that Paul uses in Romans 3.

What are we supposed to learn from this?

For starters, this seems to provide pushback against “I’m-a-worthless-worm” theology, unless there’s some odd subclass of “righteous-worm” that’s hidden in the text.

And actually, if you go back and read the Psalms mentioned above, you’ll notice something important.

But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
for God is present in the company of the righteous.
You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor,
but the Lord is their refuge.
Psalm 14:5-6 (NIV)

David doesn’t say that “nobody is righteous.” He’s identifying a corrupt and wicked people, and they are distinct from the righteous people who are identified in Psalm 14:5-6.

Psalm 14:4 calls the wicked people “workers of injustice,” and when you read Psalm 14 in the context of the wickedness of Genesis 6 and Genesis 18, you’ll start to see parallels. There’s a description of a growing tide of wickedness and oppression that covers everything.

In the case of the Psalm, David is obviously not including himself in the definition of the wicked fools who say “there is no god.”

Likewise, though “the whole world is wicked” in Genesis 6, Noah is singled out. In the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot is singled out.

There’s a rabbinical teaching that says “a single righteous person could save the rest of the world,” and I think this can be derived from seeing that in the case of the flood, Noah was hidden away, leaving none. In the case of Sodom, Lot was led away, leaving none.

When Abraham asks if God would spare the cities for the sake of 10 righteous people, I think the teaching is that God would have spared the cities if there was even one who remained. Removing Lot brought the number of righteous people down to zero.

Perhaps this understanding informs the parable of the Wheat/Weeds in Matthew 13:24-30. God won’t tear out the weeds and destroy the wicked so long as there is even a single stalk of wheat growing in it.

In the Psalm, David calls these wicked people “fools” who say in their hearts, “there is no god.”

David isn’t making a statement about atheists. The description of the “fools” here are the specifically wicked who commit injustice, devour God’s people, and afflict the poor.

This absolutely (and specifically) includes people who loudly proclaim God’s laws and the existence of God, but who believe *in their hearts* that there is no God. This is hypocricy. And this is precisely what Paul was talking about in Romans 2. That’s the whole context!

Now, before we get too comfortable with drawing lines around the righteous and the wicked, I suspect that Jesus is saying something very particular when He warns against calling anyone a “fool.”

But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.
Matthew 5:22 (NIV)

All this to say, I don’t believe Paul is teaching us to never consider anyone “righteous.” We have plenty of examples of righteous people in the Bible who serve as examples of faithfulness, and as examples of God’s faithfulness in them.

Be blessed!

Do Not Judge

Posted on by jovial_cynic

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
Matthew 7:1-3 (NIV)

The teaching about “not judging others” is a bit more nuanced than simply “don’t judge.”

If you ask God to judge between you and another, you’re putting yourself in a rather precarious position. You’d better be righteous.

Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”
Genesis 16:5 (NIV)

Imagine a heavenly court whereby if you bring an accusation against someone and demand that the court determine who is at fault, the FIRST thing the court does is examine you, the accuser.

At any rate, we have a rule that if someone calls upon G-d to determine if concerning an accusation leveled against a fellow human being he or she had been correct, the first thing the heavenly tribunal does is to examine if the accuser has led a blameless life himself or herself.
Chizkuni on Genesis 16:5:4

And if they find you to be unrighteous or guilty of anything, the first thing they do is punish YOU for your sins. Only then will they address the accusation.

That is what the teaching is that informs us of this “do not judge” teaching. It is a warning.

If faults are found in the accuser’s life, he is judged, i.e. punished first, before the accusation is examined in greater detail.
Chizkuni on Genesis 16:5:4

In the case of Sarai, we want to blame her for lack of faith, or perhaps we want to apply a modern standard and accuse her of causing infidelity. But notice that God does not discipline her here.

But also, what is her accusation, exactly?

But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”
Genesis 15:2-3 (NIV)

The rabbis suggest that in Genesis 15, when Abram prayed for a child, he prayed only for himself and not for his wife. Remember: she was the one who was barren. She is the one who needed prayer.

She accuses him of being selfish in his prayer, and she is vindicated.

There are so many lessons to learn here, if we have the ears to hear.

A Problem with Noah

Posted on by jovial_cynic
Noah is a problematic character for mainline Christian theology, which suggests that once a man is “saved” or “declared righteous,” they are sort of on an upward trajectory forever, getting better with age like a fine wine.

But the rabbis point out four things about Noah. Narratively, Noah introduces the following to humanity:

1. Planting – he plants a vineyard.
2. Drunkenness – he shames himself with wine.
3. Curses – he curses his grandson.
4. Slavery – he condemns his grandson’s house to slavery.

We tend to leave out the Genesis 9 parts of Noah’s life when we teach Sunday School to little children, but there they are in glaring detail.

There’s obviously nothing wrong with planting, but Noah’s other 3 actions seem quite disastrous.

From Genesis 5 to 8, we see a man who obeys God; his heart appears inclined towards God.

But in Genesis 9, we have a different picture. I can’t help but see an angry, bitter man who yells at his grandchildren, drowning himself in wine to cope with the tragedy of the flood.

It’s a tragic end. But God uses him.

Noah is called Righteous

Posted on by jovial_cynic
Genesis 6 introduces us to this new word: Noah is צַדִּיק (“tzadik”).

This word means righteous. Just. Lawful.

We know it as the opposite of “wickedness,” but when it is shown to us first, it is shown in contrast to a word that means something different: Violence. Cruelty. Injustice.