[reaction to OYB’s Nov. 3-8 readings]
Working my way through Ezekiel I came across chapter 16, which is another extended metaphor of Judah as an unfaithful woman. Remember the following is talking about an unfaithful nation
. . . therefore I am going to gather all your lovers, with whom you found pleasure, those you loved as well as those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and will strip you in front of them, and they will see you stark naked. I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and who shed blood; I will bring on you the blood vengeance of my wrath and jealous anger. Then I will deliver you into the hands of your lovers, and they will tear down your mounds and destroy your lofty shrines. They will strip you of your clothes and take your fine jewelry and leave you stark naked. They will bring a mob against you, who will stone you and hack you to pieces with their swords. They will burn down your houses and inflict punishment on you in the sight of many women. I will put a stop to your prostitution, and you will no longer pay your lovers. Then my wrath against you will subside and my jealous anger will turn away from you; I will be calm and no longer angry.
Seriously? I don’ know. I suppose this was necessary to get Ezekiel’s point across.
The other extended metaphor, at least I think it’s a metaphor, is this idea from Hebrews that Jesus is a high priest of the order of Melchizedek. First, the author assumes we all know the story about the order of Mechizedek. Here are the brief mentions of Mechizedek in Genesis and Psalm. The Genesis story is after Abraham saves Lots bacon again and the Psalm is describing the descendant of David. The author of Hebrews actually makes several logical steps based on the “fact” that Jesus is a high priest of the Mechizedek order, concluding that this means that the new covenant is superior to the old one. See, e.g. chapter 7. Weird.