The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation for Ordinary Time
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Daniel 12:1-3
V1 begins with “at that time,” so let’s situate this in the larger historical context. Chps 10-12 recount a vision of the Hellenistic wars. Alexander the Great died in 323 BC with no heir. A 30-year war ensued over control of the empire, known as the Hellenistic Wars. These chapters are a vision of those wars, written after the fact while sounding very much like it is predicting those wars. The Book of Daniel was written almost 200 years after the wars. When you read the vision, you get the impression that those wars haven’t yet happened, and they’re being predicted. This is a key feature of the apocalyptic genre: it talks about events as though they are in the future and being predicted, even though they’ve already happened. It’s easy to predict the future when you’re talking about the past.
The passage today comes at the end of the vision – “at that time.” Visions are another feature of the apocalyptic genre; they are usually outlandish and wild. We might wonder if they are drug-induced! This is a “prediction” of the Hellenistic wars. In the author’s mind (and by the rules of the genre), the culmination of those wars is the end of time. That’s another feature of the apocalyptic genre – a recounting of what happens at the end of time, usually an epic battle between good and evil.
In v1 Michael the archangel arises. He’s seen here as a special guardian – another feature of the apocalyptic genre where an angel has an important role. Another feature from v1 is an epic battle with a special group of people who are experiencing extreme duress, troubles like you’ve never seen before. They are always promised an escape; they’re going to be saved in a spectacular way. But not everyone – only the special group.
V2 is an expansion on that last part. It is the most explicit reference to the resurrection in the Old Testament. Isaiah 26 and Job 14:12 may also be references, but they are not as explicit as this one. And this is the only passage in the Old Testament that speaks explicitly of the resurrection of the wicked. So in the apocalyptic genre, the special group is going to escape and, in this one, the special group includes those who have already died. This is a bit of a departure from the genre. Not only that, but the ones who have died who weren’t part of the group get resurrected too, but they go to everlasting disgrace.
V3 shows the group that is saved. In the apocalyptic genre, the special group is usually seen as “enlightened ones,” those with insight; the ones who understand. In this vision, these are the ones who escape, and they escape to eternal life, shining like the stars forever.
The apocalyptic genre came alive in Jewish circles about 200 years before Christ, and Daniel was the most famous and influential example of the genre. The Book of Daniel was written around 164 BC, and it was the last composition of the Hebrew Bible. The apocalyptic genre arose at a time in Jewish history when Jews felt alienated from the dominant social and religious structures around them.
At this point in history, Israel was ruled by Greece. In 167 BC (a few years before this book was written) Antiochus Epiphanes besieged Jerusalem and erected a statue of Zeus on the main altar. He desecrated and profaned the temple by sacrificing a pig.
Hellenism was invasive, even in Israel, even in the very heart of Jewish worship. Many people saw their heritage eroding. They felt persecuted and isolated, like they were losing everything. It probably seemed like the end of the world had come. The Book of Daniel is trying to grapple with this conflict between the religion of the Jews and the paganism of foreign rulers, which was creeping into and defiling the “pure” religion.
I think it’s a human temptation to separate into “us” vs. “them.” We believe we are wholly right and others are wholly wrong, and that they will suffer the punishment for that wrongness. Think of a group in your experience that fits this. Are there any points of commonality on which there might be consensus and agreement?
Hebrews 10:11-14, 18
Chps 8-10 summarize everything; they’re the pinnacle of the book. The main point is that Jesus’ sacrifice, his ministry, the tabernacle, the new covenant – all of this is vastly superior to what came before. This passage summarizes how Christ’s ministry and everything associated with it are superior to the old Mosaic covenant.
There are many comparisons in today’s passage between the Jewish sacrificial system and Jesus’ sacrifice. In Jewish thought, the power of a sacrifice could extend beyond spatial boundaries; for example, it could apply to all people all over the world. The sacrifice was made for past sins but there was no conception of it being able to impact future sins. Jesus’ offering was unique and superior: it covered all sins that ever had be done as well as all sins that ever would be done by everyone everywhere.
Another comparison is the sacrifice offered. In the Jewish system, what was offered was dependent on who was offering it. You might recall when Joseph and Mary came to the temple to dedicate Jesus, they brought two young pigeons. Had they been wealthy, they might have brought something larger like a sheep. There was a long list of things that could be offered for different sins.
The priest offering the sacrifice would stand at the altar, standing being a gesture of respect. And they offered sacrifices over and over again, a necessity since sin was always being committed. In contrast, Jesus offered himself and then sat down at the right hand of God because his sacrifice was complete; there was no need for anything more.
The image of Jesus at God’s right hand evokes Psalm 110, a Messianic psalm. It tells us that Jesus’ work is not just about sin but about ushering in a new order, a new world in which God reigns and evil (anything opposed to God) is conquered once and for all. Jesus’ work has done this already, but we live in that curious in-between time where we trust God’s work while we still live in the tension of a world influenced by evil. Humanity experiences this time as thousands of years but, as 2 Peter 3:8 says, “one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”
V14 tells us that Jesus’ one-time sacrifice made perfect all who are being made holy. The word “perfect” means to make complete. “Holy” means to be set apart for special use. The idea is that we are all called to holiness, to be set apart for the work God has for each of us uniquely to do. Christ’s passion and death are the means to our completion of that work of being made holy. In what ways has God been at work in your own life to bring about your holiness?
Consider reading and reflecting on Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete Et Exsultate: On The Call To Holiness In Today’s World.
Mark 13:24-32
Chps 11-13 could be subtitled: Jesus comes to his temple. In Luke’s gospel, the temple has central significance. Jesus is there right from the start. But in Mark’s gospel, the temple is just now going to take on meaning, and chp 11 is the first time Jesus goes there. The lectionary skips quite a bit in this section because we read it at other times of the liturgical year.
Today’s passage, like the Daniel reading, is apocalyptic and it’s usually called an eschatological passage, from eschatology, dealing with last things, the end times. Apocalypticism and eschatology often go hand in hand. Chp 13, along with Matthew 23-25 and the book of Revelation, are all from the apocalyptic genre.
In 13:1 the disciples are admiring the temple: “Look what a great building!” Jesus’ reply is that “there will not be one stone left upon another that will not be thrown down.” That prompts a few of the disciples to ask him, “When will this happen and what sign will there be when all these things are about to come to an end?” When will it happen and how will we know?
The visions in this passage encompass three general ranges:
- The immediate situation of the apostolic church – Mark’s audience (esp 13:5-13)
- A more distant prediction about the Jewish War and the destruction of the temple (esp 14-23)
- The most distant focus on the “end of the age” (esp 24-47 which encompasses today’s passage)
There’s a sense in which you could say that all three things apply to everything in the chapter. In today’ passage, Jesus makes a reference to “this generation.” We could view that as the end of the age, or we could view it as the situation of Mark’s audience. Scholars say that early Christianity was and still is an apocalyptic religion: we expect Jesus to be made manifest and we always look for it “soon.”
This passage starts off very much like Daniel, “in those days.” V24 references “the tribulation,” the special group is under extreme duress. Remember that Mark’s community was suffering under Nero’s persecution.
Vv24-25 contain a feature of the apocalyptic genre that didn’t really come out in Daniel: a reversal of creation. In Genesis, God makes order out of chaos. At the end of time, in the view of apocalypticism, the order will dissolve into chaos once more: no sun, no moon, no stars. The power that holds the universe together will be shaken and pulled apart.
Again, this can be read on many levels. Later on in Mark’s gospel, we’ll read the account of the crucifixion, where it says, “at noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.” (Mark 15:33). At Jesus’ death, we see this reversal begin to happen. Even so, it’s not meant to be a factual description; rather, it evokes the idea that the old order is making way for the new.
In v26, the Son of Man comes in power and glory. Early in Jewish history, “Son of Man” was another way of saying “human being.” In the centuries before Christ, it became a reference to the angel of judgment at the end of time. In Daniel, it’s Michael the archangel. Here it’s a man who Christian tradition will later identify as Jesus.
V27 shows the special group being saved in a spectacular way: they’re gathered from all over the earth.
V24-27 are the apocalyptic section of this reading. The main features here are the reversal of creation back into chaos – a new order, and the gathering of the elect, the special group. Jesus is saying that at the end of time, a new order will be established and the special people will be saved. This is all said in highly metaphorical and symbolic language; it was not meant to be taken literally. Mark’s audience would have been very familiar with the genre and they would have known that. The same applies to the Matthew passages and the book of Revelation. It is only in modern times, with the rise of biblical fundamentalism, that anyone has thought that these spectacular visions were meant to be factual portrayals of anything.
In v28 Jesus switches to tell a parable. A literal rendering of the Greek would be, “Now of the fig tree, learn the parable.” In chp 11, Jesus used the fig tree as a symbol for the nation of Israel. Here he’s using it in a different way. In the holy land, fig trees start sprouting leaves in late spring, so if you see a fig tree with small leaves, you know summer is coming. It’s inevitable. Jesus says there are things that will happen and you’ll know the end is coming. What are those things? He gives a lot of signs in v3-23: wars and famines and bad things happening and fake news. In other words, he describes the situation of virtually every human being who has ever lived. We’ve always had war and famine. Bad things are always happening somewhere. And this connects us with the upcoming season of Advent – the message we’ll hear over and over again in the coming weeks: be ready. Be on your guard, because you don’t really know when Jesus is coming.
Some people in Mark’s community were discouraged by the delay of Jesus’ return. Here, Mark encourages them about its nearness. Others in the community interpreted their present situation (disasters, wars, persecutions) as signs that the end had already come. For them, this lesson corrects that notion and says they are still waiting. For both groups, it is an encouragement and exhortation to continue on in faith. The fig tree is also a symbol that promises new life even in the midst of chaos and cataclysmic events.
V30 is a tricky verse. If Jesus is predicting the end, what is this generation? Ancient cultures viewed a generation as about 40 years. Mark’s gospel was written about 40 years after Jesus’ death. And obviously, Jesus had not returned. Is this a contradiction? On one hand, we can look at it as being fulfilled in Jesus’ death and resurrection (in which case this generation is literal). On the other hand, we can look towards it being fulfilled at the end of time (in which case this generation refers to humanity in general). As with so much interpretation in the Bible, both are equally true.
Another exhortation to stay true in the midst of all this is found in v31. The last days are both feared for the chaos they will bring, and longed for as God gathers his people. No matter what, Jesus wins!
V32 might seem to contradict v30 but I don’t think it does. V30 gives reassurance to those tempted to become weary. V32 accents the need for watchfulness since the exact time is unknown.
We often think of the end of the world as a one-time event. But perhaps it’s not. Perhaps the apocalypse is simply a transformation of human history, one way of things continually giving way to a new way of things. In the process, new things are unveiled, uncovered, and manifested. Jesus’ earthly life was an apocalypse in itself: the old ways gave birth to something new. Life was ever after profoundly different. Perhaps we experience minor apocalypses throughout life: Jesus is always coming anew into our lives, revealing himself. Those times move us from one way of being to another. The final apocalypse comes for each one of us in that moment of death, when, in the beatific vision, we finally behold God face to face.
What are some of the apocalypses of your own life? How have you seen the old order upended and something new brought about?
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© 2024 Kelly Sollinger