Tag: Jesus

How we Face Death.

The interpretation and thoughts contained herein come from several commentaries and especially from a sermon given by Dr. Derek Thomas given on September 8, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Columbia, SC.  You can find a link on the church web page or at sermonaudio.com.  This sermon was an inspiration for this writing which, in turn, was for the comfort of dear brethren. 

Jesus Wept

                                John 11:35

This, the shortest verse in Scripture, is well know to Christians and has been the subject of countless writings and sermons.  These two words, Ἱησοῦσς ἑδάκρυσεν (Iēsous edakrysen), are rich with meaning.  In this passage we see Jesus facing the death of his beloved friend, Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary.  We not only learn about death from Jesus’ words and reactions, but also about our savior who is both fully human and fully God.  Jesus is confronted with a loss that all people have or will face. 

In this passage we see a great contrast of how the unbelieving world and Christians confront death.  All rational people understand that death is horrible.  The death of a loved one, parent, sibling, child, relative, or friend, is the greatest loss.  Our strong emotional response reflects this loss.  All peoples, cultures, and religions have customs and rituals surrounding death that reflect their worldview.  Yet despite all these things, despite periods of mourning, the loss does not go away in this life.  There is an empty chair, a silence, and a relational void in which our grief echoes.

Death is universal.  It is inescapable.  It will touch all in this life, save, perhaps, those who know not death at the time of the parousia.  Death is a stark reality that renders naked our man-made ideas, our goals, our aspirations, and our philosophy.  How are those who survive comforted?

Christians who are facing death or have lost loved ones must learn from Jesus’ example.   

Context

In John 11, Jesus is informed that his friend Lazarus is dying.  He is with the disciples by the Jordan River near the place where John began his ministry of baptism (evidently outside Judea).  The Scribes, Priests, and Pharisees were seeking his life and it was dangerous for him to go near Jerusalem. Mary and Martha sent for Jesus hoping he would come and heal their brother.  “But when Jesus heard it he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it’” (Jn 11:4).  The disciples did not understand the meaning here.  It appears they understood Jesus words to mean that Lazarus would recover.

Jesus waited two days and then announced he was going to Judea.  The disciples reminded Jesus that the people in Judea were seeking to stone him.  Jesus states “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him” (Jn 11:11).  The disciples thought Lazarus was resting and would recover.  Therefore, they concluded that there was no need for Jesus to go.  Then Jesus plainly said “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him” (Jn 11:14–15).

Jesus knew that Lazarus was physically dead.  He was trying to teach the disciples in word and sign-act (miracles).  Jesus knew he would raise Lazarus from the tomb and that Lazarus died for this very purpose, to demonstrate God’s glory.  God will demonstrate power over evil and death.  The ultimate demonstration of this power and victory is Jesus’ substitutionary death and resurrection. 

When Jesus arrives, Lazarus has been in the Tomb four days.  He is not only dead but decomposing.  Many people have come to console Mary and Martha.  Jewish custom at that time was to have professional mourners and musicians playing funeral music.  The professional mourners would wail even though they had no relationship to the deceased and may have few genuine feelings.  The scene was likely very noisy and demonstrative.  As best I can discern this custom is not from Scripture but was that of men.  It is recorded in the Mishna, a compilation of Jewish legal interpretation.[1]

Martha runs out to meet Jesus and says “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you” (Jn 11:21–22).  Martha believes in the general resurrection of the faithful but did not understand that Jesus is God incarnate.  Witness how Jesus gently instructs her: “Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’  Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world’” (Jn 11:23–27).

Mary, Martha’s sister remained in the house.  When she heard Jesus was calling for her, she went immediately to meet him outside the town.  The mourners and comforters followed her assuming she was going to the tomb.  Jesus sees Mary weeping and this large ceremonial entourage in tow. 

“Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.  And he said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see’” (Jn 11:32–34). 

Notice Mary and Martha said the same thing to Jesus: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  Jesus’ response to Mary is quite different.  Jesus gave Martha a lesson regarding the resurrection and his person.  Now Jesus is “deeply moved” and “greatly troubled.”  Mary has different needs than Martha.

The Greek word translated “deeply moved,” ἐμβριμάομαι (embriaomai), is an intense feeling that implies indignation.  It is used outside the Bible to describe the snorting of horses.[2]  In other words, there is a component of anger in Jesus’ response, perhaps outrage.  The Greek word translated “greatly troubled” depicts one so agitated that they are shaking.  Jesus’ emotional reaction is very strong.  He is upset and shaking mad.  Remember that this reaction is “in spirit,” or inward.  He did not show this externally.  It is not simple empathy and grief.

Why is this reaction so intense?  Jesus knew he was to raise Lazarus.  Therefore, Jesus’ reaction is not despair as is common among non-believers.  D.A. Carson comments:

“Some think that Jesus is moved by their grief, and is consequently angry with the sin, sickness and death in this fallen world that wreaks so much havoc and generates so much sorrow. Others think that the anger is directed at the unbelief itself. The men and women before him were grieving like pagans, like ‘the rest of men, who have no hope’ (1 Thes. 4:13). Profound grief at such bereavement is natural enough; grief that degenerates to despair, that pours out its loss as if there were no resurrection, is an implicit denial of that resurrection.”[3]

Commentators have identified three objects of Jesus’ indignation.  The first is that of death itself.  Death, the result of the fall, would take his dear friend and cause great suffering to the sisters he loved.  Death, emblematic of the corruption of a world infested by sin, confronts Jesus with the entire effects of the fall that he has come to undo.  The second is Satan, the prince who rules this world and holds the power of death. Jesus has come to defeat Satan as well as death.  The third may be the unbelief of the people who are mourning.  They do not understand what the Scripture has taught regarding God’s salvific purpose in history, much less the resurrection.  This in plain in their response “But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?’” (Jn 11:37). Andreas Köstenberger postulates that Jesus is bracing himself for the battle against death as demonstrated in the raising of Lazarus.[4]  Jesus’ reaction is likely all these and more.  Our translations seriously understate the state of our Lord’s spiritual agitation.

Jesus wept

The Greek word translated as “wept,” ἑδάκρυσεν (edakrysen), means “to cry.”  It is a different word than that used to describe the weeping of Mary and the others.  That Greek word is κλαίουσαν (klaiousan).  The latter emphasizes the noise that accompanies the weeping. Such noise is that of the professional mourners.[5]  Jesus was shaking mad and profoundly grieved in spirit but outwardly shed quiet tears.  The loud, demonstrative wailing of the mourners is the result of grieving without hope.  Jesus’ quiet flood of tears demonstrates his humanity. What can we learn from all this?

Lazarus is in Heaven

In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (another Lazarus; Luke 16:19-31), we are told Lazarus lay in the bosom of Abraham (is in heaven) while the rich man is in Hades.  Without going into a full explanation of this passage, Jesus is teaching that the faithful Lazarus was in heaven after he died.  This Lazarus’ soul was in heaven.  His body is decomposing in the tomb.  While Jesus is crying, Lazarus is experiencing indescribable beauty and bliss.  He is in the presence of God.  This is the expected post-mortem destination of all the elect who experience physical death.  Lazarus will undergo a bodily resurrection at the end of this age.

Derek Thomas, in a recent sermon[6], postulated that Jesus’ tears were multifold.  In addition to grieving over what was before him in terms of suffering, Jesus understood that he would recall Lazarus from paradise back into the sinful, corrupt world of suffering only to experience more pain and another physical death.  That is reason to grieve.  Would not Lazarus prefer to remain where he was?  Is he doing Lazarus a good turn by resurrecting him?  Lazarus was chosen to return for this very purpose, for the glory of God.

Think of the incarnation of our Lord.  The second person of the Trinity exists in perfect communion with the Father and Holy Spirit.  He then leaves this perfection and condescends to our level. The writer of Hebrews explains it well: “But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering (Heb 2:9–10).

Jesus leaves heaven, being made in the form of man, lower than the angels, that he may be our savior.  Jesus would be humiliated in life and death.  But in his resurrection, Jesus will be glorified and take his place as King.  But first he must live a perfect life in a fallen world full of suffering, temptation and sin.  Then he must become the pascal lamb, our substitute, that God’s justice be satisfied.  On the Cross he paid all our debts and suffered the combined punishment of everyone he came to save, past, present and future.

Lazarus’ resurrection is, in a way, sad for Lazarus.  But as a faithful servant chosen for this task, he must suffer for yet a little while longer.  Having a first-hand knowledge of what heaven is like must have strengthened him.  Knowing that his suffering was part of God’s plan of redemption must have given him great comfort.  His sisters and the others present did not understand this.  They wanted Lazarus back and thought that was best for him and them.  This is the pagan viewpoint and not the Christian.   

There are many who claim to have gone to heaven and returned.  They claim a false beatific vision.  God used such miracles as demonstrations of his power and authority.  Miracles authenticate the message and the messenger.  They have been limited to very few people and for a very limited periods of time.  With the close of the apostolic age, as the faith spread and the Gospels and writings were created and passed on, miracles and signs were no longer necessary.  The Jews were always asking for signs but were unwilling to believe.  They had no faith.   We have the Holy Spirit as our comforter and guide.  We need no signs “for we walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

When we lose loved ones who are Christian, we must understand that he or she is in heaven in the arms of Jesus.  They are in paradise, a place of unspeakable beauty, peace, and joy.  They are experiencing the best anyone can wish or hope for.  To desire that they stay here and never go there is wrong, and perhaps selfish.  To linger in this world is to linger in the realm of Satan.  Heaven is where they are meant to be and is the purpose to which they lived.  To long for their return is to wish upon them what Jesus was to do to Lazarus.  Both Mary and Martha wished Jesus would have come and healed Lazarus.  Martha seems to be indirectly asking Jesus to bring Lazarus back.  Mary was wailing with the mourners in despair, as one who had no understanding and hope. 

Jesus wept. 

Our High Priest

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:14–16)

Because Jesus was a man he identifies and has solidarity with us in every way save sin.  He sympathizes with our weakness, suffering, and fears.  Jesus experienced fatigue, thirst, hunger, insult, pain, loss, and physical death (also joy, laughter, and love).  Our God is not some abstract being somewhere out there who is so detached from our suffering as to be remote and cold.  The God of Deists, such as Thomas Jefferson, is a false god who, like a watchmaker creates the world, winds it up and lets it go without any further involvement.  Such an errant view denies the testimony of scripture in passages such as the one under consideration. 

In facing death, the Christian has a sure hope and most die well, in peace knowing where they are going.  Likewise, when losing a faithful loved one we must understand that they are truly in heaven.  We must do more than understand this intellectually.  We must understand it spiritually and faithfully.  We must know this, hope in this, and trust Jesus.  Trust is the essential element of saving faith.

And because we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our loss and grief, he sends the comforter to us; the Holy Spirit.  He has given us his living written Word that we may also be comforted and grow in grace.  He sends others into our lives to be a blessing and comfort, our family of God, our brethren.

In all this we are given constant reminders of what we already know.  No matter how long we have been Christian, no matter how much we study our Bibles and pray, we need to hear these simple truths over and again.  We are not yet perfected.  We hurt and it does not go away so easily or at all.  We are instructed what to do: to pray, to worship, to study our Bible and not to neglect the gathering of the Church.  We are to trust and listen to the Spirit indwelling in us.  We are to live our lives, in all the humdrum and commonness, doing the next task at work, at home and wherever we are called, always looking to Jesus and trusting in Jesus.

Jesus does not expect us to be stoic.  Look at Jesus’ indignation and tears!  We are to follow him and conform to his likeness.  Death brings sorrow, agitation, anger and loss.  We are Mary and Martha.  It is instructive that these two approached Jesus with the same question yet totally different responses and needs.  They represent two aspects of the tension surrounding death.  They reflect and express our worldly desires which are at odds with God’s will.    Jesus did not bring Lazarus back simply out of empathy, remorse, or to do what the sister’s asked of him.  Nay, Jesus brought Lazarus back for the Glory of God alone.  Jesus tenderly ministered to each according to their needs and he will likewise to us.

Martha needed understanding regarding the person of Jesus and Mary needed tears and sympathy.  Everyone present needed to understand who and what Jesus was and who and what they were.  They would see in the raising of Lazarus a preview of what would happen to Jesus in a short time.  Mary and Martha would remain with Jesus at the Cross and attend to his anointing and burial.  Then, they would see Jesus in his resurrected, glorified body and be called (for the first time) sisters. 

Those Outside the Faith

We can look to the unbelieving people in this narrative and understand how the unfaithful confront death.  It is a horror.  They are without hope or true comfort.  They may delude themselves for a while with denial or some philosophy.  They may falsely believe they have done good and deserve, therefore, to be in heaven because of this merit.  They may falsely believe that God will not punish sinners.  They may believe that there is no afterlife and upon death you go blank and return to mineral dust.  They may not believe in hell. 

Perhaps our Lord, in his common grace, permits many to die somewhat peacefully with these false thoughts that they may not suffer terribly.  Perhaps he permits many survivors to avoid the full extent of pain and hopelessness in their false beliefs.  But for many, if not most, confronting death is the most horrible experience.  Atheists such as Voltaire, Nietzsche, and Foucault reportedly died in desperation, insanity, and in great hopeless suffering (respectively).  Their deaths should serve as a warning to others.  But despite this, the world admires them and believes the ideas that brought them to utter ruin and eternal suffering.

As Christians, our concern should be for the lost.  As God does not take delight in the death of sinners neither should we.  We see death for what it truly is.  Our response should be like that of Jesus’ inward reaction.  When Jesus’ wept over Jerusalem, the Greek word that is used to describe his mourning is the same as that used of Mary and the mourners: loud demonstrative wailing.  Jesus understood that Jerusalem, the Holy City, along with so many of the Chosen People, would be destroyed and die in their rebellion and unbelief.  He understood where they were going and wailed.

However, Jesus knew where Lazarus was going.  And he understood the pain of death.  Outflowed copious quiet tears.  He needed no professional mourners, rituals, or customs.  What do these things do for the dead?  Are they really a comfort for the living? 

The Better House

Solomon wrote:

      It is better to go to the house of mourning

      than to go to the house of feasting,

      for this is the end of all mankind,

      and the living will lay it to heart.

      Sorrow is better than laughter,

      for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.

      The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,

      but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

      It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise

      than to hear the song of fools.

      For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,

      so is the laughter of the fools;

      this also is vanity. (Ec 7:2–6)

For it is the House of Mourning we confront Satan.

For it is in the House of Mourning we face our own mortality and see the consequences of our sin.

For it is in the House of Mourning that we hear the rebuke of the wise.

For it is in the House of Mourning that we learn of our fate should we die in rebellion to God.

For it is the House of Mourning that points to the Gospel if we have ears to hear.

For it is in the House of Mourning Christians learn to grieve properly and are comforted.

For it is in the House of Mourning Christians bear witness to others of the hope that is in us.

For it is in the House of Mourning Christians may be used of God to bring others to salvation.

For the fool understands not the House of Mourning.

For the fool deludes himself with false ideas and denial.

For the fool drowns himself in drink and bodily pleasure while going forth unto destruction.

For the fool hears the mourning, the bell tolling, and knows not that it is for him.

Application

Beloved, let us not walk in the dark but in the light.  We must endeavor to do all for God’s Glory.  Let us pray we die well despite our circumstances.  In mourning, let us be witness to the goodness and mercy of God.  As we live our lives as survivors, let us do so as bearers of the good news, in word and deed, living faith and trust in God that others may see, hear, and come to Jesus.  Our suffering is for but a little while and we will be in Glory with Him, the author of our salvation.  We will be reunited with the faithful who went before us and countless others we do not know in this life.  And we will be with Jesus.

Like so many gifts of grace, we cannot muster these things from within and by our own strength.  We need our Lord’s help.  Perhaps, we often do not experience the comfort and peace we desire because we do not ask God, listen to Him, or obey Him.  We must also remember that, like Lazarus, we are servants of our Lord and are asked to do His bidding for His purposes.  This includes suffering for the Glory of God. This is how we grow in grace.  Therefore, let us find comfort and strength in our suffering and despite our suffering.

Father, we are weak and lack understanding and faith.  Please comfort us in our sorrow.  Please give us understanding and the faith we need.  Please grant us the strength to persevere and do thy work.  Turn our sorrow into gladness, our suffering into joy, and our loss into gain.  For you, and you alone, are worthy of our trust, love and worship.  Grant us these things in the name of your son, Jesus.  Amen.

[1] Reference to this custom can be found in the Mishna Tractate on marriage and marital contracts.  Concerning the husband’s responsibility for the bride:

               F      But he is liable to maintain her, and to ransom her, and to bury her.

               G      R. Judah says, “Even the poorest man in Israel should not hire fewer than two flutes and one professional wailing woman.”

Jacob Neusner, The Mishnah : A New Translation (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1988), 386.

[2] John F. MacArthur Jr., John 1–11, MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 2006), 466.

[3] D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans, 1991), 416.

[4] Andreas J. Köstenberger, John, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2004), 340.

[5] Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 303.

[6] Ibid 1.

Lament as Response to Suffering: Part 3

3 There is no soundness in my flesh

because of your indignation;

there is no health in my bones

because of my sin.

4 For my iniquities have gone over my head;

like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.

5 My wounds stink and fester

because of my foolishness,

6 I am utterly bowed down and prostrate;

all the day I go about mourning.

7 For my sides are filled with burning,

and there is no soundness in my flesh.

8 I am feeble and crushed;

I groan because of the tumult of my heart.

                                                                                                Psalm 38:3-8

Previously we saw that YHWH was the source of David’s affliction.  David cried to YHWH not to chasten him in divine anger and wrath.  David understands YHWH’s discipline is part of their relationship.  It is therefore rational that David would look to YHWH to remove this suffering.  Verses 3-8 teach us the nature, ultimate cause and David’s response to affliction.

David stands before YHWH

Having called upon YHWH’s name and announcing a plea, David now is standing before YHWH his king.  David must now make his case.  As a king, David understood this situation.  How many times had his subjects come before him as judge?  As king, David had great power and authority.  Now David is in the dock before someone who has absolute power and authority.

For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:30–31).

Isaiah writes:

       The sinners in Zion are afraid;

trembling has seized the godless:

       “Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire?

Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?”

                                                                                                            Isaiah 33:14

David knows his position.  He is standing naked before YHWH his judge.  The effulgence of God’s Glory is at once beyond beauty and very dangerous.  YHWH is “a consuming fire” (Deut. 4:24; 9:3; Heb. 12:29).  Therefore, who can stand before him and not be destroyed?  As YHWH told Moses when he asked to see His Glory: “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live” (Ex. 33:20).  Only the pure and spotless can stand before God.  David and Moses were far from perfect and both had blood on their hands.  Indeed, no man who ever lived or will live meets this absolute perfect standard save one: Jesus.

David knew YHWH.  He understood that the Lord’s justice demands that all sin must be punished. God cannot abide anything that falls short of His moral perfection.  This includes our tainted and corrupt image which once was a pure reflection of our Creator.  If God does not uphold his justice, then he will cease to be Himself.  As God is just, such a fracture means the very failure of justice everywhere.  God cannot change.  “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb. 13:8). There must be a penalty “for the wages of sin is death” (Ro. 6:23).

Sin brings forth the anger and wrath of God.  God’s wrath is not an uncontrolled emotional reaction but “describes the settled opposition of God’s nature against evil, His holy displeasure against sinners, and the punishment He justly metes out to them on account of their sins.”[1] God’s wrath is not be understood in psychological terms but in ontological[2] terms.  God is never the subject acted upon but the object which acts upon all else.  Although Scripture speaks anthropomorphically[3] about God’s anger “being provoked,” what is happening is God acting according to his very being by strongly opposing and punishing sin.  God must do this because it is who God is.  God’s actions reflect his being.

Yet David also knows that God is kind, loving, merciful and gracious.  This was revealed to Moses in the divine name YHWH: “The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation’” (Exodus 34:6–7).

These attributes or “perfections” of God seem in conflict.  Must God choose his justice over his mercy or his wrath over his love?  Or does God somehow resolve these conflicts by some wise compromise?  It is neither.  God being infinite and pure spirit necessitates he is not made of any parts.  Therefore, God is not part justice and part mercy.  Each perfection of God is part of a simple whole that cannot be separated.  We, as limited creatures must compartmentalize and distinguish them in order to come to some understanding, albeit imperfect. 

These attributes are conceived to exist in “perichoresis”[4] which is a mutual indwelling.  The concept is trinitarian.  God is of one essence and three persons.  God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is fully God, the Son is fully God and the Father is fully God.  They exist and live within each other, not separate in anyway, but distinct.  We know each member of the Trinity through their revelation recorded in scripture.  Likewise, we come to know God’s Being through what God does.  God’s justice is revealed as him judging, His wrath as punishing, His mercy as forgiveness, His kindness as long-suffering, and His love as Jesus Christ by who’s self-sacrifice God is also gracious.

David knows God to be righteous.  Righteousness is manifest in God’s works of salvation both in His covenantal love for Israel and in Christ, Jesus.  God chose, loved, delivered and protected Israel.  However, the pinnacle of God’s righteousness is found in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”  When Israel appealed to God’s righteousness, they were calling upon Him to act according to His covenantal promises and intervene.  Jesus’ Hebrew name, Joshua (יְהוֹשֻׁ֙עַ֙, Je-ho-shu-a) is derived from the root יהוה (YHWH).  It means “Ya saves” or “God saves.” 

The name of God, that of Jesus, is grounded in God’s righteous acts of salvation.  To call upon that name is to call upon our God who has promised to save us.  By calling upon that name, David immediately calls upon YHWH in this holy relationship of mutual love and responsibilities.  Therefore, we stand not before a capricious, fickle or self-centered God who we hope to impress or appease, but before our loving father who is committed to us in covenant.  When God “cut” this covenant with Abram he appeared as a fire pot and passed between animals who were cut in two (Genesis 15).  He was effectively saying to Abram “if I break this covenant let it be done to me what has been done to these animals.”  God is immortal.  It can’t happen.  Therefore, God’s promises are certain.  As Abraham’s spiritual descendants, we have inherited this covenant and its promises.

God’s Holiness expresses the unity of his moral perfections in what He does: God’s acts.  David stands naked before the Lord’s Holiness and is experiencing chastisement.  Yet as he knows YHWH and understands that there is salvation in this, and he shall seek it as a son and as covenantal promise.  Let us explore how David accomplishes this.

The cause of David’s suffering is sin (v. 3-4).

David immediately accepts and affirms that his suffering is due to his sin.  This is the essential next step and we should make note of it. Verse 3 is an example of parallelism.  There are four lines divided into two bicola.[5]  In this case the second line explains the cause of the affliction described in the first line.  Two bicola are used to amplify and expand upon what David is saying.  Here YHWH’s indignation and David’s sin are linked together.  Indignation is YHWH’s expected response to sin.  The result is “no soundness” and “no health.”  David is emphatically admitting that YHWH is afflicting him because of sin.

David’s sin is not merely his “original sin” of being a child of Adam.  In verse 4, David is speaking of actual sins he committed.  We know that David was an adulterer who murdered Bathsheba’s husband Uriah.  How many other sins did this man, invested by YHWH with power and authority over Israel, commit?  They are enough to ‘pile over” David’s head and press down and upon him.  David must carry these sins which are likened to flood waters engulfing him and a weight crushing him. 

John Calvin compares David’s statement in verse 4 to Cain’s statement to God in Genesis 4: “My punishment is greater than I can bear.”  Calvin points out that unlike David, Cain is quarreling with God.  David first acknowledges his sin as the heavy weight whereas Cain, the refers to the punishment as that weight.  Cain is petitioning for a change in sentence and protection.  God is merciful to Cain by not taking his life for murdering Abel, but Cain departs from God’s presence unredeemed.  There was no contrition, confession and request for forgiveness. 

David, on the other hand, is under heavy conviction of sin.  Such is a great burden for one understands the harm done to others and realizes that all sin is against God.  Sin distances us from God and we feel alone.  The burden of this distancing, God hiding his “face” from us, is heard in Jesus’ cry from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  (Mark 15:34, Ps 22:1).  God never truly forsakes David, but it seems that way when He hides his “face.” 

Cain walked away from Eden, to the East where the godless will live outside of God’s “presence.”  David seeks and will find restoration of his relationship with God.  Therefore, the godly seek the Lord not merely for temporal or material purposes but for restoration of communion that has been disrupted by sin. 

David’s suffering is physical as well as spiritual (v. 5 and 7)

Verses 5-8 form a structural unit known as a chiasm[6].  You will notice that verses 5 and 7 are similar in that they describe the nature of the ailment.  Verses 6 and 8 describe the suffering that the ailment causes.  Each verse consists of a bicolon, employing parallelism.  The arrangements of the four bicola serve to greatly expand and build upon each other giving a fuller sense than a simple statement of fact.  The chiastic arrangement is A-B-A′-B′.  Verses 5 and 7 are A and A′ respectively.

We see here that David’s affliction is physical.  He describes “wounds” that are putrid and “festering.”  They were caused by his “foolishness” which here is another word for sin.  In this way verse 5 is linked to verse 3.  David is also in great pain.  Burning pain is constant and gnawing.  One cannot find relief from it. Nothing seems to quench it.  Perhaps it points to the eternal “burning” of hell.  My patients have described this form of pain as a misery indicating emotional suffering such as hopelessness.  He repeats “there is no soundness in my flesh” linking verse 7 to verse 3. 

David has expanded upon and provided a poetic technique to invite God (and the reader) to experience his affliction.  He does this also in verses 6 and 8.  Why does David need to press upon YHWH this “experience?”  Is not YHWH all knowing and all wise?  Surely, as the one afflicting David, YHWH understands fully what David is experiencing.  Yet David is appealing to God because he knows YHWH has more than mere factual knowledge of pain and suffering. 

David’s son, the Messiah, will be God-incarnate and experience firsthand, hunger, thirst, pain, sadness and even death.  He will weep for a friend, have compassion on those suffering and identify with us in every way as fully human.  He will take all our sin upon himself and be whipped such that his flesh was exposed and his wounds would come to stink and fester.  The Hebrew word translated “sides” means the loins.  This is a place where the whip often fell.  Under Roman practice rocks and other hard material was wound into the cords so they cut and tore flesh, exposing inner organs such as the kidneys.  We can only imagine the unquenching burning pain.  Jesus’ flesh became unsound.  The indignation and wrath of God fell upon him for our sake. 

Although such affliction points to Jesus’ suffering we are not to conclude that David is simply prophesizing.  It is David who is ill, who has festering wounds that burn and cause misery.  It is David who has sinned, and it is David who is experiencing God’s chastisement for sin.  The connection to Christ is logical because such suffering under discipline is a foreshadow and small taste of what Jesus would experience.  Whereas David’s affliction was corrective in nature, Jesus affliction was penal.  David could expect relief from God whereas Jesus suffered divine dereliction and “descended into Hell” for us.  David was guilty.  Jesus was innocent.  The resurrection of Christ was public vindication of his innocence and victory over Satan and death.  Our vindication and victory are not our own but ours in Christ, as we have a share in it. 

David responds with humility, shame and remorse

(v. 6 and 8)

Verses 6 and 8 describe the emotional and spiritual effect of David’s affliction.  They also describe David’s response.  David is “utterly bowed down and prostrate.”  This is a position of great humbleness.  David, the king, does not stoically sit upon his throne before God as an equal.  Nor does David claim his position, authority and accomplishments as evidence before God.  David does not gnash his teeth in defiant anger as the ones Jesus describes as being cast out of the Kingdom.  David does not demand anything, nor does he bargain. 

David simply casts himself before his Lord and Father continually mourning his sin.  David is contrite and remorseful.  This contrition differs from superficial attrition.  Attrition describes someone who is worn down and beaten by external pressure.  Contrition comes from the heart and not from the external circumstances.  Yea, God often uses the external circumstances to get our attention, but contrition can happen when all seems well.  David understands the depth of his sin and the height of He who was sinned against.  The contrite heart grieves because of the sin whereas attrition brings grief because of the adverse consequences of the sin.  “All day” describes the continual and unceasing mourning and prostration before YHWH.  It is emotional, spiritual as well as physical. 

Verse 8 amplifies and further explains verse 6.  Both verses are linked to verse 4 by use of the terms bowed down, feeble, and crushed.  The second part of verse 8 explains why David is groaning in pain.  It is not simply from the wounds but from the “tumult of my heart.”  In the Biblical world the heart is not the seat of emotions.  The bowels (kidneys, inner organs) were believed to be the seat of emotion.  The heart is the seat of the soul and is therefore used to describe the immaterial aspect of our human life, our soul, that also suffers when we do.  David is both physically sick and “sin sick.”  The Hebrew word translated as “tumult’ signifies a “roaring.”  It is not a mere disquiet but a raging storm exploding from within affecting both mind and body.  We read elsewhere that “David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the Lord, ‘I have sinned greatly in what I have done.’” 2 Sa 24:10

The connection between sin, affliction, and suffering is total.  David confesses this before the Lord and his suffering is no mere show. 

Lessons for us

David has been described as a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam 3:14; Acts 13:22).  How can this be since David was an adulterer and murderer?  When David’s sin with Bathsheba was exposed by God through the prophet Nathan, David wrote:

      The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

                                    a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Ps 51:17

This is David’s expression of confidence in God’s promise to deliver him from sin and forgive him.  It comes after contrite confession, praise and petition.  David brings nothing of his own before YHWH save his own sin and brokenness.

We are to do likewise.  God does not require of us sacrifices of bulls and goats, performance of great deeds much less acts of penance or other material gift.  God desires restoration of relationship and to that end we must recognize and own our transgressions, acknowledge God as our discipling but loving Father and come before him bringing our shame and grief.

The Christian’s heart is not one of stone but of flesh.  It is circumcised and consecrated to God.  That “heart” is our “soul,” our eternal essence that has intimate communion with God or joins with Satan and the mockers.  A man after God’s own heart seeks God’s heart – soul seeking soul, spirit seeking spirit.  As we are in Christ, we have a participation in the Triune Godhead through Christ – that most intimate circumincession inaccessible save in Christ. 

This seems so simple.  So why is it hard to do?  I confess that I sorely struggle with it as I am sure many of you do.  Our pride is puffed up by Satan who tells us we should not humble and prostrate ourselves before our Lord.  We deny, minimalize or simply fail to understand and feel the depth of our sin and its consequences.  We presume upon God’s grace rather than rest in it. In this we compound our guilt.

Once we understand that everything we have comes from God, we see that even our regeneration, conviction of sin and our faith are gifts of grace.  Before we can be like David, God must remove the old heart of stone and give us one after His own.  But until our final perfection in the resurrection of our bodies, we live in tents of fragile flesh and are far from perfect.  God is working with us, growing us and preparing us to be “meet for heaven.”  This is a process of sanctification that punctuates our lives.  We can fight it in pride and arrogance or embrace it with humility.

Oh Lord, please grant me a humble heart that I may see my sin, grieve my sin, abhor my sin and bring it to you in contrite confession.  Give me this gift though I do not deserve it.  For I am nothing and can do nothing without you; even this, my pride and arrogance, cannot be purged without you.  Make me like the publican, who beat his breast and with head held low and cried out for forgiveness.  Take me as I am, a poor and broken sinner, wash me with hyssop and clothe me with your son’s righteousness lest I be lost forever.  Let thy countenance shine upon me.  Do this for your Name’s sake and for your Son, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

[1] Alan Cairns, Dictionary of Theological Terms (Belfast; Greenville, SC: Ambassador Emerald International, 2002), 529.

[2] relating to the branch of metaphysics dealing with the nature of being.

[3] Describing certain aspects of God having human characteristics – it is analogy for our understanding.

[4] More commonly known as circumincession: “The theological concept, also referred to as perichoresis, affirming that the divine essence is shared by each of the three persons of the Trinity in a manner that avoids blurring the distinctions among them. By extension, this idea suggests that any essential characteristic that belongs to one of the three is shared by the others. Circumincession also affirms that the action of one of the persons of the Trinity is also fully the action of the other two persons.”  Stanley Grenz, David Guretzki, and Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), 26.

[5] A verse structure of poetry having two cola (lines) that are related thematically and rhythmically. pl. bicola.  Todd J. Murphy, Pocket Dictionary for the Study of Biblical Hebrew, The IVP Pocket Reference Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003), 35.

[6] A literary structure where parallel elements correspond in an inverted order (i.e., A-B-C-Cʹ-Bʹ-Aʹ).  Douglas Mangum, The Lexham Glossary of Theology (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).

The Theodicy of Disease

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.  And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” John 9:1-3

The disciples’ question may seem odd in the 21st century.  Modern science has uncovered the various mechanisms by which we become ill.  Whether it is an infectious agent, a genetic mutation, the consequence of behavior, or from injury, we have accepted a pathophysiological understanding of disease.  Illness as a moral failing, divine retribution, or consequence of sin has been rejected by secular thinkers.  If anyone were to suggest that disease has its origin in sin they would be dismissed as superstitious, medieval, bigoted or mad.

Science is by nature descriptive.  Its methods do not address morality.  It can answer “how” but not the great philosophical “why.”  Science cannot tell you the great purpose behind such things though it can, in detail, describe the various chain of events by which the thing has come about.  Without a moral answer, science leaves patients as victims of an impersonal chain of causes and effects which serve no clear purpose and cause great suffering even unto death. 

We long to know why.  How often have we asked, “why me?” or ‘why she?”  When we ask “why” in the setting of great tragedy we are not content with mere scientific description but desire knowledge and wisdom that brings purpose, context and comfort.  It is for this we must look beyond science, even human understanding, for answers. 

Are the scientific theories of disease incompatible with the Biblical understanding?  Must we choose one or the other?  Does the one exclude all moral agency and responsibility or the other preclude using human knowledge to effect moral good as part of God’s Providence?

Notice the disciples are not asking Jesus if this man’s illness is due to divine retribution but whose sin was the cause of his illness.  The disciples clearly believe that illness (as well as other disasters such as war, drought and famine) are the result of punishment for sins committed by the victims and/or their ancestors.  The disciples lived in world where it was understood that tragedy, such as illness, was linked to human wrongdoing.  This view was prominent in Western culture until the 18th century Enlightenment.

Clearly there are numerous examples of God bringing disease and pestilence upon individuals and peoples.  Witness the account of the ten plagues in Exodus including the smiting of the first born.  The Lord punished Israel with pestilence after inciting David to number the people (2-Sam 24).  God afflicted the child David conceived in adultery with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:14–15).  When God revealed his Name to Israel he said “I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:5-6). In the NT, an angel of the Lord struck down Herod the tetrarch (Acts 12:23).

At the same time the Book of Job rejects a quid pro quo analysis of every specific sin and tragedy.  Therefore, it is perilous to attribute a specific ailment or tragedy to a person’s specific sin.  Scripture clearly states when God is punishing a person or group for their sins.  Further, God sends warnings through His prophets that they may repent.  For us to state that a city, group or individual suffers under specific divine wrath for specific sins is to presume upon God’s will and assume knowledge that may be hidden within the divine council.   

We are taught in Scripture that illness and death are the result of the Fall.  Paul writes as part of his discussion on Law and Grace: “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).  This is not to deny that there are consequences of specific behaviors.  Smoking leads to cancer, obesity to diabetes and sexual promiscuity to sexually transmitted diseases.  These relationships are part of how our world is after the Fall.  They are epidemiologic and pathophysiologic processes that find their “how” in science and their ontological “why” in sin.  Therefore, we can rightly state that a drunkard who develops liver failure is a sinner who suffers the consequences of their drinking.

Many diseases are not that straightforward.  For example, say a child suffers from a disease caused by a rare genetic mutation and science teaches us that this mutation happened because of genetic recombination which normally produces variations resulting in humans who are different and unique.  In this case, the recombination process generated genes that cause suffering and perhaps death.  Scripture teaches that all people are sinners, at the very least born into sin as children of Adam.  Yet science cannot explain how sin gives rise to such an illness.  Who sinned, the child or the parents that he was born with this disease? 

Jesus does not deny that the blind man or his parents sinned.  Nor does he deny that their sins deserve punishment.  Rather, Jesus reveals a third answer.  The reason this man was born blind is that God would reveal himself through a miraculous healing and not only display His power but give authentication to Jesus as the Messiah.  There are times and places where God performs works to authenticate his word and the messenger who brings that word.  God uses evil to effect good.  He permits evil for purposes that are most often too high for us to fathom.  Suffering here may lead to salvation there.

This man’s malady has become the subject by which God brings a message of salvation to those who were present. In this way, the man’s blindness was used by God to bring this message to countless others through the witnessed account recorded by the Apostle John.    

The word translated as “works,” ἔργα (erga) is from the root word εργον (ergon).  We derive our English word ergonomics from this Greek root.  When used of God, ergon refers to His creative and redemptive acts that flow from His covenantal faithfulness/loving-kindness (חֶסֶד, hesed) and His covenantal love, אַהֲבָה (‘ahabah).  God’s hesed was manifested by his mighty acts of salvation for Israel.  In the New Testament, such acts are understood to arise from God’s Love, ἁγαπή (ag-ah-pey).  

Here faithfulness and love are not separate from act.  The tragedy of illness is used by God to do a great good and to point to the greatest good, Himself.  God is not the author of confusion (1-Cor 14:33) nor does he tempt us with evil (James 1:13).  Rather God created what was good (Genesis 1:31) and evil befell the world when man sinned (Genesis 3:14-24; Romans 5:12).  Paul writes “For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now” (Romans 8:22).  We, who believe, also groan as we await God’s new creation free of evil, corruption and suffering.  This is our true hope, our faith in Christ, for he is our hope (1-Tim 1:1) as we surely share in his resurrection. 

God created us as moral agents who experience the consequences, reward or punishment, of our actions.  God’s justice, righteousness and holiness cannot abide sin and demand its punishment.  God’s grace, mercy, love and kindness call for forgiveness of transgressions.  It is at the Cross where these are perfectly satisfied as Christ bore our sins and the punishment they deserved whilst his righteousness is imputed to those who trust in him.

God has a grand purpose for the salvation of man and the creation of a new heavens and earth for us to live in eternal fellowship.  This includes the resurrection of the perfect spiritual body into a new world that knows no sin and decay.  It is better than Eden where man was tempted and fell.  There will be no temptation in the new creation, and we will not ever fall.  Those who believe will live in security and harmonious bliss.  Yet until that time we wait patiently, wondering “how long,” and praying for the grace we need to persevere. 

We also are God’s chosen instruments to display that grace and to bring the Gospel to others.  This is often done in suffering.  For we are commanded to suffer with our Savior and take up our cross (Lk 9:13, 14:27; Mt 10:38, 16:24; Mk 8:34).  When we suffer, we do so for Christ’s name’s sake (Acts 9:16, Phil 1:29).  We are to do so gladly (1-Peter 1:6) knowing who is with us and sustains us (Ro 5:3) and that it is for just a season (1-Peter 5:10; 2-Cor 4:17).

The Cross is the answer to theodicy (lit. God-justice) wherein God is vindicated for his tolerance of evil.  It is in this context that we suffer illness, tragedy and death.  It is in this hope that we suffer with an eye to the future and with love for those God reaches through us.  We suffer for God and others as Christ suffered for us. Our suffering is always just, and our redemption is a free gift of grace.  Those who refuse the gift by rejecting Christ are without this hope.  These are hard truths. 

Scripture gives us instruction how to persevere in such trials.  It is found in the laments and is grounded in our knowledge that comes through faith. It is effected by the Holy Spirit through God’s Holy Word and with the love and support of the church.   We do not suffer alone.  Therefore, when we suffer, we cry out i to the Lord and seek is face.  When we see others suffering, we come to their aid and comfort them.  In all these things we glorify God and praise Him for what he has and will do.