Daniel 9: 1 – 19

In the first year of Darius son of Ahasuerus, by birth a Mede, who became king over the realm of the Chaldeans— in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the Lord to the prophet Jeremiah, must be fulfilled for the devastation of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.

Then I turned to the Lord God, to seek an answer by prayer and supplication with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying,

‘Ah, Lord, great and awesome God, keeping covenant and steadfast love with those who love you and keep your commandments, we have sinned and done wrong, acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and ordinances. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.

‘Righteousness is on your side, O Lord, but open shame, as at this day, falls on us, the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. Open shame, O Lord, falls on us, our kings, our officials, and our ancestors, because we have sinned against you. To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by following his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

‘All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. So the curse and the oath written in the law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against you. He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers, by bringing upon us a calamity so great that what has been done against Jerusalem has never before been done under the whole heaven. Just as it is written in the law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us. We did not entreat the favour of the Lord our God, turning from our iniquities and reflecting on his fidelity. So the Lord kept watch over this calamity until he brought it upon us. Indeed, the Lord our God is right in all that he has done; for we have disobeyed his voice.

‘And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and made your name renowned even to this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly. O Lord, in view of all your righteous acts, let your anger and wrath, we pray, turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain; because of our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people have become a disgrace among all our neighbours. Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his supplication, and for your own sake, Lord, let your face shine upon your desolated sanctuary. Incline your ear, O my God, and hear. Open your eyes and look at our desolation and the city that bears your name. We do not present our supplication before you on the ground of our righteousness, but on the ground of your great mercies. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, listen and act and do not delay! For your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people bear your name!’

Reflection

Like me, you may have got to the end of this passage and felt thoroughly depressed.  There is a lot going on and not much of it is good.  As prophets often say, despite all that God has done, the people abandon God and in response God brings disaster on the people.   

Yes, there is a lot going on and much of it is familiar.  Just look at our news headlines – things in our world and our times are not good, and certainly not as God intended.  Whether it’s the climate crisis, war, refugees forced from their homes by these events, and countless other crises of which humans tend to be at the root. 

But what is familiar is not only events and how the prophet is feeling but also, and perhaps more importantly, the prayer that is offered in response.

Our prophet speaks from the heart when he looks at all the people have done and says simply, ‘God, we’ve messed up’.

Our prayers are similar, we offer thanks and praise to God and then turn round and say, ‘God, you’ve done so much for us and we’ve thrown it back in your face.  We’re sorry, help us.’

I’m not sure whether to be comforted by knowing that similar prayers have been said for millennia, or to be disheartened that nothing has changed.

But there is something about actions as part of confession.  The prophet speaks of fasting, and sackcloth and ashes to go with his confession.  I wonder if we can be accused of paying lip service to our confession.  We offer words but do little else.  Now I’m not suggesting we go around wearing sackcloth, and for many, fasting would not be healthy, but how can we respond to confession? 

Perhaps we can make Kingdom building part of our prayers of confession – peace-making, social justice, consciousness raising …  

Prayer

Loving Lord, we’ve messed up, forgive us, and spur us to action to make better our world, as we work for your coming Kingdom.  Amen

Daniel 8: 15 – 27

When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I tried to understand it. Then someone appeared standing before me, having the appearance of a man, and I heard a human voice by the Ulai, calling, ‘Gabriel, help this man understand the vision.’ So he came near where I stood; and when he came, I became frightened and fell prostrate. But he said to me, ‘Understand, O mortal, that the vision is for the time of the end.’

As he was speaking to me, I fell into a trance, face to the ground; then he touched me and set me on my feet. He said, ‘Listen, and I will tell you what will take place later in the period of wrath; for it refers to the appointed time of the end. As for the ram that you saw with the two horns, these are the kings of Media and Persia.  The male goat is the king of Greece, and the great horn between its eyes is the first king.  As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his nation, but not with his power.

At the end of their rule,
    when the transgressions have reached their full measure,
a king of bold countenance shall arise,
    skilled in intrigue.
He shall grow strong in power,
    shall cause fearful destruction,
    and shall succeed in what he does.
He shall destroy the powerful
    and the people of the holy ones.
By his cunning
    he shall make deceit prosper under his hand,
    and in his own mind he shall be great.
Without warning he shall destroy many
    and shall even rise up against the Prince of princes.
But he shall be broken, and not by human hands.

The vision of the evenings and the mornings that has been told is true. As for you, seal up the vision, for it refers to many days from now.’

So I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days; then I arose and went about the king’s business. But I was dismayed by the vision and did not understand it.

Reflection

It’s been a long time since the death of Daniel’s ‘king of Greece’, Alexander of Macedon aka Alexander the Great, who, when he died in 323 BCE, left an enormous, powerful, empire and an almighty power struggle.

In the centuries that followed Alexander’s demise the region that included what we now think of as Iraq, Iran, Syrian and Lebanon, eventually came under the control of the Seleucid empire.  Around 200 BCE the Seleucid monarch Antiochus The Great had a son called Mithridates who, by means of plentiful deceit and cunning, ultimately became Antiochus IV. He was indeed a king of bold countenance, and definitely skilled in intrigue.

Antiochus IV was also known as ‘Epihanes’ which means ‘God manifest’: declaring himself to be Zeus incarnate (in his own mind he was great) he went on the rampage. Of all the villains in the Bible, Antiochus Ephiphanes is one of the very worst. A supervillain of epic, Biblical, proportions.

Among his various villainies Epiphanes sacked the Jerusalem temple. He stole the holy things stored there and slaughtered many Jews (the people of the holy ones). He destroyed scriptures and outlawed sacred practices – he caused the civil war you can read about in the books of the Maccabees.

Many miles and years separate us from this dreadful scoundrel, clouding the meaning of the texts written about him. Echoes of his destructive reign, however, reverberate through history and, tragically, continue to shape current conflicts.  

Imperial baddies like Antiochus should represent the antithesis of a loving, relational, God. Somehow, though, we seem determined to claim for the divine the capacity for the kind of dominant power and military might that characterises supervillains like Epiphanes. When we do this, we encourage the destructive myth of redemptive violence.

Prayer

Living God
we fetishise power, idolise absolute authority,
make false deities out of leaders, empires and ideologies,
and even ascribe to you the same characteristics,
as if true, divine, love, would ever – could ever, force, compel or coerce.
Oh love that lives in, among and beyond us,
lead us to live reflecting the lustre of your light.
Steer us towards paths of peace,
let us walk, talk, and trust no more the ways of war.
Amen

 

Daniel 8: 1 – 14

In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me at first.  In the vision I was looking and saw myself in Susa the capital, in the province of Elam, and I was by the river Ulai. I looked up and saw a ram standing beside the river.  It had two horns. Both horns were long, but one was longer than the other, and the longer one came up second.  I saw the ram charging westwards and northwards and southwards. All beasts were powerless to withstand it, and no one could rescue from its power; it did as it pleased and became strong.

As I was watching, a male goat appeared from the west, coming across the face of the whole earth without touching the ground. The goat had a horn between its eyes.  It came towards the ram with the two horns that I had seen standing beside the river,[e] and it ran at it with savage force.  I saw it approaching the ram. It was enraged against it and struck the ram, breaking its two horns. The ram did not have power to withstand it; it threw the ram down to the ground and trampled upon it, and there was no one who could rescue the ram from its power.  Then the male goat grew exceedingly great; but at the height of its power, the great horn was broken, and in its place there came up four prominent horns towards the four winds of heaven.

Out of one of them came another  horn, a little one, which grew exceedingly great towards the south, towards the east, and towards the beautiful land.  It grew as high as the host of heaven. It threw down to the earth some of the host and some of the stars, and trampled on them.  Even against the prince of the host it acted arrogantly; it took the regular burnt-offering away from him and overthrew the place of his sanctuary.  Because of wickedness, the host was given over to it together with the regular burnt-offering;  it cast truth to the ground, and kept prospering in what it did.  Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the one that spoke, ‘For how long is this vision concerning the regular burnt-offering, the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled?’  And he answered him, ‘For two thousand three hundred evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.’

Reflection

Whatever else you might say about Daniel you cannot but admire his graphic description of his vision. Weird as the result may be you will easily have a picture of what he describes. There is an urgency about the narrative where everything is larger than life. The ram enraged, the goat moving with savage force, the new horn growing exceedingly great. From time to time there are little glimmers of hope that all the horror may stop. When four new horns grow and there is that little horn which points towards a beautiful land. Could this be the start of a journey to something more peaceful?

No, is the answer for it is not long before the goat was throwing down the host and some of the stars and trampling on them.

But what can we 21st Century Christians take from this vision? As I read the verses my mind, probably inevitably, turned to the two places in the world which most seem to mirror the descriptions in this vision. The  terror and the misery of those caught up in conflicts, in Israel/Palestine and in Ukraine. The inability of anyone to stop the violence and injustice are all mirrored in this vision from Daniel.

It is so easy to translate this vision into today’s conflicts but to be left no more hopeful about the future than when we began.

Daniel wrote for his time and was seen as someone whose major purpose was to offer hope and encouragement to Jews being persecuted. There is no support for armed resistance, he advocates acceptance and trust. Trust that knowledge and power lie with God alone.

Prayer

Life giving Son,
we pray for everyone caught up in conflict
and imagine that they would want us to pray for peace.
Guiding Spirit,
we pray for the wisdom to follow your leading
the patience to trust even when it is hard
the faith to believe that the sanctuary will be
‘restored to its rightful state’.
Amen

 

Daniel 7: 15 – 28

As for me, Daniel, my spirit was troubled within me, and the visions of my head terrified me.  I approached one of the attendants to ask him the truth concerning all this. So he said that he would disclose to me the interpretation of the matter:  ‘As for these four great beasts, four kings shall arise out of the earth.  But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom for ever—for ever and ever.’

Then I desired to know the truth concerning the fourth beast, which was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped what was left with its feet; and concerning the ten horns that were on its head, and concerning the other horn that came up, and to make room for which three of them fell out—the horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke arrogantly, and that seemed greater than the others. As I looked, this horn made war with the holy ones and was prevailing over them, until the Ancient One came; then judgement was given for the holy ones of the Most High, and the time arrived when the holy ones gained possession of the kingdom.

This is what he said: ‘As for the fourth beast,

there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth
    that shall be different from all the other kingdoms;
it shall devour the whole earth,
    and trample it down, and break it to pieces.
As for the ten horns,
out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise,
    and another shall arise after them.
This one shall be different from the former ones,
    and shall put down three kings.
He shall speak words against the Most High,
    shall wear out the holy ones of the Most High,
    and shall attempt to change the sacred seasons and the law;
and they shall be given into his power
    for a time, two times,[i] and half a time.
Then the court shall sit in judgement,
    and his dominion shall be taken away,
    to be consumed and totally destroyed.
The kingship and dominion
    and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven
    shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High;
their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom,
    and all dominions shall serve and obey them.’

Here the account ends. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly terrified me, and my face turned pale; but I kept the matter in my mind.

Reflection

I love the imagery in Daniel (though perhaps not reading it on a dark night sitting alone!).  The meaning of Daniel’s imagery is no less frightening.  His four beasts represent major empires taking over the known world and wreaking havoc – none worse than the Roman Empire, set to destroy everything in its quest for power.  The one glimmer of hope is the small horn mentioned that would take over to challenge the holy ones.  This according to some early commentators is the Papacy.  The Church would rise up to challenge the Empire and would take over.  Has the Church allowed itself to be overtaken by the love of power that we have formed a new kind of empire?

What impact do we as the Church have today?  We are small, but do we punch above our weight in what we try to do for justice, for truth, for the Gospel today? 

Thinking back to scary – I would not recommend listening to War of the Worlds on your own in the dark – but (sorry spoiler alert) for a microbe to cause the end of the invasion shows what is possible by something so tiny faced with something so big.

How can we be that sting in the arm of empire? How can we speak up for the voiceless; stand up to the powers who would choose power over people?  How can we use our vote (too late now for the General Election), our influence, our principles to change a corrupt world?

Daniel was affected greatly by his visions – when we look at our world, so should we.  May we not be so overwhelmed by what we see that we fail to act to be the change needed.
 
Prayer

Lord of all vision to you be all praise.  May we see in your visions the hope for our future and the work needed to bring your love and peace to your world.  Use us to speak out, speak up, or use silence and prayer to bring your kingdom values to all we meet.  Shake us in our complacency and comfort us in our shaken-ness that we may be the change that is needed today.  Amen.

 

Daniel 7: 1 – 14

In the first year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head as he lay in bed. Then he wrote down the dream: I, Daniel, saw in my vision by night the four winds of heaven stirring up the great sea,  and four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another.  The first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings. Then, as I watched, its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a human being; and a human mind was given to it.  Another beast appeared, a second one, that looked like a bear. It was raised up on one side, had three tusks in its mouth among its teeth and was told, ‘Arise, devour many bodies!’  After this, as I watched, another appeared, like a leopard. The beast had four wings of a bird on its back and four heads; and dominion was given to it.  After this I saw in the visions by night a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth and was devouring, breaking in pieces, and stamping what was left with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that preceded it, and it had ten horns.  I was considering the horns, when another horn appeared, a little one coming up among them; to make room for it, three of the earlier horns were plucked up by the roots. There were eyes like human eyes in this horn, and a mouth speaking arrogantly.

As I watched,
thrones were set in place,
    and an Ancient One took his throne;
his clothing was white as snow,
    and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames,
    and its wheels were burning fire.
A stream of fire issued
    and flowed out from his presence.
A thousand thousand served him,
    and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him.
The court sat in judgement,
    and the books were opened.

I watched then because of the noise of the arrogant words that the horn was speaking. And as I watched, the beast was put to death, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. As I watched in the night visions,

I saw one like a human being
    coming with the clouds of heaven.
And he came to the Ancient One
    and was presented before him.
To him was given dominion
    and glory and kingship,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
    should serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
    that shall not pass away,
and his kingship is one
    that shall never be destroyed.

Reflection

We all dream, whether we can remember them or not.  Sometimes our dreams recur, particularly where we are confronting our deepest fears (Don’t worry, I’m not going to share my dream life with you!).  The second half of the book of Daniel is a collection of dreams and visions.  Reading them may leave us confused, perplexed and anxious.
 
The sea was always something to be feared by the Jewish people as it represented chaos.  Four beasts emerge from this chaos to terrorise the earth often thought to represent empires.  The final beast has horns, which are often interpreted as rulers of this empire.  They are characterised by power, terror and arrogance.
 
The second section of the passage is a complete contrast.  We are introduced to an Ancient One who will bring judgement on behalf of his people.  In the Old Testament, a judge was someone who would put things right – it was a much wider remit than just listening to a case and finding in favour of one side.  We learn that the last beast is totally destroyed while the other beasts or empires lose their power.
 
A study of history shows that empires come and go, regardless of the terror and chaos that they leave behind them.  Set against this is the permanence of the heavenly kingdom represented by the Ancient One (God) and the son of man (a foreshadowing of Jesus).  No matter how much chaos, confusion, violence and disruption the empires of the earth cause God is in control and will triumph in the end (even if it takes extra time and penalties).
 
Prayer
 
Dear God, 
eternal and all powerful, 
when the chaos of the sea 
brings up powerful empires who threaten the world, 
help us to remember that justice will eventually prevail 
and help us also to stand against tyranny 
and work for that justice and peace. Amen.

 

Daniel 6: 19 – 28

Then, at break of day, the king got up and hurried to the den of lions. When he came near the den where Daniel was, he cried out anxiously to Daniel, ‘O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God whom you faithfully serve been able to deliver you from the lions?’ Daniel then said to the king, ‘O king, live for ever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no wrong.’ Then the king was exceedingly glad and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. The king gave a command, and those who had accused Daniel were brought and thrown into the den of lions—they, their children, and their wives. Before they reached the bottom of the den the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces.

Then King Darius wrote to all peoples and nations of every language throughout the whole world: ‘May you have abundant prosperity! I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion people should tremble and fear before the God of Daniel:

For he is the living God,
    enduring for ever.
His kingdom shall never be destroyed,
    and his dominion has no end.
He delivers and rescues,
    he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth;
for he has saved Daniel
    from the power of the lions.’

So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

Reflection

So we left the Daily Devotions on a cliffhanger on Saturday… is this the end of Daniel. How can he survive?

Daniel is devout and trusts God, even when facing what may seem like certain death. So this could be a simple morality tale, Daniel trusted God and was saved, so if we trust God, we too will be saved… but it’s not as simple as that, others have been as devout as Daniel and haven’t been physically saved.

There is a harshness, especially to our ears, to the punishment that follows, those who accused Daniel are thrown to the lions but also their families in line with the Law of the Medes and the Persians, an unchangeable and often brutal edict.

The thread running through this passage is that God (Daniel’s God) has authority much greater than that of a King, and this King Darius acknowledges God as a living God in contrast to the other gods of wood and stone worshipped in his Kingdom.

God saving Daniel from the lions inspires King Darius to make a new decree. He declares that the God of Daniel is eternal and powerful, it is a statement from a King bordering on humility, talking about how God can rescue, a sense that wouldn’t sound out of place in the New Testament.

I wonder if we find it easy to worship God when we are saved or spared from disaster like Daniel is. Dramatic testimonies are inspiring. But if our story isn’t as dramatic, do we recognise and bear witness to God being with us day by day?

We aren’t exempted from trials, they may not be lions, but we can be a little like Daniel. We can trust God and do what we know to be right in God’s sight. If others try to trap us and mock us for not conforming to the way the world works can we stand firm?

Prayer

God of power and rescue
Help us to stay true to you
And the people you call us to be
We man never be thrown to the lions
But rescue us from any pit.
Amen

 

 
Today’s service is led by the Revd Andy Braunston

 
Welcome

Welcome to worship for this the first Sunday of Creationtide.  Over 30 years ago the then Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople asked Christians and all believers to pray for the environment on the 1st of September.  This has become now an ecumenical season of the Church’s year lasting until St Francis’ day on 4th October.  We’ll be using some of the readings set for today to think a little about the world we’ve created; a world of vitality teeming with life but a world endangered by human selfishness and sinfulness, wanton greed and dreadful warfare.  My name is Andy Braunston and it’s my honour to lead worship today.  I am the United Reformed Church’s Minister for Digital Worship and I live in the beautiful island county of Orkney off the far north coast of Scotland.  

Call to Worship

The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land and God calls to us as a woman calls to her lover: arise my love, my fair one and come away.

The fig tree puts forth its figs, the vines are in blossom giving forth fragrance and God calls us as a woman calls to her lover: arise my love, my fair one and come away.

As God calls to us, we cry to God as a woman calls to her lover: O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the covert of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice.

And so we come to worship, to rise up into God’s fair presence, that we may see God’s face and hear God’s voice, and find strength for the journey and courage to change.  

Hymn     From All That Dwell Below the Skies
Isaac Watts (1674 – 1748) Public Domain sung by Topher Keene

From all that dwell below the skies 
let the creator’s praise arise: alleluia, alleluia!
Let the redeemer’s name be sung through ev’ry land, by ev’ry tongue.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Eternal are your mercies, Lord;
eternal truth attends your Word: alleluia, alleluia!
Your praise shall sound from shore to shore Till suns shall rise and set no more.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
 
All praise to God the Father be,
all praise, eternal Son, to thee; alleluia, alleluia!
Whom with the Spirit we adore forever and forevermore:
alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Prayers of Approach, Confession, & Grace

Father of Lights in You there is no variation or shadow due to change.
You love justice and hate evil,
and call us to be more than passive hearers of Your Word,
urging us time and time again to show our faith in action.

Risen Lord Jesus,
may our tongues be as nimble as the pens of scribes
that we may sing your praise with our loves and our lives.
When we deceive ourselves 
that we are truly following you, enlighten us;
when we lie to others 
that our motives come from our faith, forgive us;
when we make faith 
merely an ideology, change us,
when we ignore 
the cries of creation, awaken us.
Help us, Lord Jesus to be doers of the word 
and not merely deluded fools.  

Most Holy Spirit,
the earth is alive with Your glory,
You are seen in the life that teems around us,
wounded and endangered by our selfishness,
poisoned and polluted by our limitless greed,
yet nourishing and nurturing us.

Help us remember that pure and undefiled religion is this: 
to care for orphans and widows in their distress, 
and to keep ourselves unstained by the world’s greed,
that through faith in You, we may bring healing and change 
to ourselves and the world.  Amen.

Introduction

We are going to look at three readings today; an ancient song of erotic love written from the perspective of a woman.  It’s a song without shame and speaks of the desire that brings about change.  We’re going to say a Psalm together that sounds a bit like the work of a poet laureate called on to write something toadying for whoever is in power, yet repurposed by Synagogue and Church to speak of God and we’re going to listen to some words from the Epistle of James which encourage us not merely to listen to the Word but to live it in our lives and loves.  These will give us the lens to think a little about climate change and the actions we need to take to adapt to it and mitigate against its worst excesses.

Prayer for Illumination

Help us, O Christ,
that as we listen we put what we hear into practice,
that Your Word, read and proclaimed,
brings healing and life not greed and decay.
Amen.

Reading     Song of Solomon 2:8-17

The voice of my beloved! Look, he comes, leaping upon the mountains, bounding over the hills. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look, there he stands behind our wall, gazing in at the windows, looking through the lattice. My beloved speaks and says to me: “Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away, for now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines are in blossom; they give forth fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.  O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the covert of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely. Catch us the foxes, the little foxes, that ruin the vineyards— for our vineyards are in blossom.’ My beloved is mine and I am his; he pastures his flock among the lilies. Until the day breathes and the shadows flee, turn, my beloved, be like a gazelle or a young stag on the cleft mountains.

Reading     Psalm 45: 1-2, 6-9

My heart overflows with noble words.
To the king I must speak the song I have made,
my tongue as nimble as the pen of a scribe.

Your throne, O God, shall endure for ever.
A sceptre of justice is the sceptre of your kingdom.
Your love is for justice; your hatred for evil.

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness above other kings:
your robes are fragrant with aloes and myrrh.

From the ivory palace you are greeted with music.
The daughters of kings are among your loved ones.
On your right stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
 
Hymn     God The Maker Of The Heavens  
© Sam Hargreaves / Resound Worship, Administered by Jubilate Hymns Ltd sung by Engage Worship and used with their kind permission. OneLicence # A-734713  

God, the maker of the heavens, and the planet that we share,
show us how to live, like Jesus, lives of gratitude and care.
Make us mindful of the footprints from the lives that we pursue.
Make us partners in your mission: you are making all things new.

God, the gardener of Eden, teach us how to tend this earth,
learning from the changing seasons, times of fallow and new birth.
Lord have mercy when we’re careless, rich resources we misuse.
Use our hands to heal creation: you are making all things new.
 
God of labour and vocation, Lord of science, trade and art,
take our efforts and our passions make them mirrors of your heart.
Every habitat and creature loved and valued, God, by you.
May our lives reveal your Kingdom: you are making all things new.

Reading     James 1:17-27

Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. In fulfilment of his own purpose he gave birth to us by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures. You must understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger, for human anger does not produce God’s righteousness. Therefore, rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. But be doers of the word and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act–they will be blessed in their doing. If any think they are religious and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Sermon

One of the striking things, for me at least, in our recent General Election campaign was the near total lack of discussion about climate change and how we must mitigate against its worst excesses.  The Labour Party had backtracked on impressive Net Zero goals some months before the Election and the Scottish Government’s admission it had no hope of meeting its goals meant the SNP was very quiet about the climate during the campaign.  Of course, now a large proportion of their remaining seats are in the oil and gas belt of Northeast Scotland so they may become even more muted.   The Conservatives appeared rather distracted by sending youngsters off for National Service and asylum seekers to Rwanda, so it seemed that only the Greens and Reform were raising the issue of climate change.  Reform, of course, was denying its reality which doesn’t help us think about how to adapt.   

Since the election was called we’ve seen news stories showing our oceans are suffering from a record-breaking year of heat, speculation that climate change is making hurricanes worse, and London being urged to prepare for floods and heatwaves with an urgent need to renew and improve the Thames barrier.  All in all, the election seemed to indicate business as usual from the main parties; it remains to be seen if Labour will govern more daringly than they campaigned and if the rising Green vote will make a difference.  

Thirty years ago, the Ecumenical Patriarch urged all people of goodwill to set aside 1st September as a special day of prayer for the preservation of the natural environment.  Today, across the planet, many churches and Christians mark a season of creation lasting from 1st September through to the Feast of St Francis on 4th October.  The Church realises that climate change is real and that we must adapt if we are to survive; how to adapt, how best to mitigate the worst of the excesses which climate change will bring are matters of urgent debate.  As Christians we have tremendous resources within our faith tradition, and particularly, within the Bible that will help.  Today’s readings can be interesting starting places.

Our passage from the Song of Solomon is an ancient text where a woman celebrates her joy and desire for her lover.  The woman desires her man to spend the night with her and the passage joyfully celebrates the passion that two lovers feel for each other – particularly from a woman’s perspective.  It’s a lovely counterblast to the patriarchal views of relationships, and sex, that we see in other parts of the Bible.  (Though early on the rabbis saw the book as an allegory of God’s love for His people, and early Christian commentators felt the book was about the love Christ has for the Church – all that earthy sexuality can be unsettling!)   Here woman and man complement each other in an equal relationship.  Erotic love, therefore, is not peripheral to Biblical concerns.  It is good; within a relationship of equality, love is life giving and life affirming.    There is a contrast here between a Biblical view of sexual joy with the commodification of sex in our contemporary world  where everything has a monetary value, where everything is dedicated to decay, where bodies are bought and sold.  The transformation that love brings is exchanged for transitory pleasure.

In today’s passage nature, animals, women, and men together all take part in the joy of the poem – the fullness and abundance of life.  Here we see a vision of creation in harmony with humanity – written long before humans warmed the planet disrupting the joyful systems of life.  Erotic love is not the be all and end all of human existence, but it is transformative.  The playfulness and joy that comes from loving and being loved can transform the shy and unlovely into something very different.  

The Psalm set for today is a bit toadying really.   In the ancient world, as much as now, the wealthy serve as patrons of art.  Artwork might be a way to show off wealth, or a way to invest.  It may be a reward, or it might be a way of ensuring that wealth is passed on to posterity.  We think of art as painting or sculpture, but the written word also demands patronage.  Today’s poem was clearly written for a powerful king who may, or may not, have patronised the writer with a juicy appointment. Thankfully our General Assembly’s Address to the Throne doesn’t sink to the level of telling the King that he’s “the most handsome of men”.   Maybe this ancient poet laureate believed what he wrote or maybe it was just part of the job.  But this poem echoes down the years and we read into its kingly praise descriptions of God or Jesus.  In an age far more sceptical of divine right we might sneer at the praise or redirect it to the Most High.  We’re not the first to do so; the Psalmist endows the king with a throne, sceptre, love of justice, hated of evil and anointing with oil.  The letter to the Hebrews endows Jesus with these things in its attempt to locate Jesus as the everlasting king. 

We’ve no idea what Jesus looked like so can’t comment on whether he was, like this ancient king, handsome.  We can, however, see beauty in action: overturning tables, lifting the poor, enhancing the status of women, spending time with the outsider, healing the broken, and freeing captives are all marks of beauty.  A beauty different to the eroticism seen in our first reading, but vital if we are to see our world transformed and a harmonious relationship with the Earth, real beauty in our midst, be restored.  

By naming God as the “Father of Lights” shows that every life-giving gift comes from the Source of Light – God.  Yet James departs from the Greek thought of his age with the line “there is no variation due to shadow or change” as we are each given that light equally and abundantly.   Relying on Jewish thought about living ethically, James reminds his readers that knowing God’s law is one thing, doing it is what important.  In Greek thought those beings bathed in light reflected it back to the source of light; in Christian thought we are blessed with light to be a blessing to others.  The final line about caring for orphans and widows has a Christian ethic at the heart of a heartless pagan world; Christians are to be sources of light and love to those at the lowest rung of pagan society.  

So, what might we do with an erotic poem, a toadying Psalm of praise to an earthly king, and James’ admonitions to show loving ethics in a heartless world?

First I wonder how we might use this transformative energy seen in erotic love as we seek to change our values and ways of living so that the earth again enjoys abundant life?  Clearly we need a sense of fun and wonder, a spirit of playfulness even as we protest.  A sense of joy even as we grapple with huge changes.  We’re already creative; we know we must reduce, reuse and recycle.  We see some early signs of polluters paying to clean up their messes; supermarkets collect both batteries and soft plastic, there’s much we can recycle but lots we can’t.  What, I wonder, would yoghurt companies do if we cleaned then posted back to them our yoghurt pots? We get through millions of the things yet they most often can’t be recycled. What if we took those plastic trays that meat is often in, back to the supermarkets for them to puzzle over?  Direct action works, playful direct action can be fun too!  When we fall in love we change; the pole of our lives moves as we seek to find a new life with a lover whom we see as beautiful.  We adjust, hoping the other adjusts too.  The energy unleashed from romantic and erotic love lays the foundation for a new life together; what can be unleashed as we learn to love the planet again?

Secondly, we need to see that acting for change can be beautiful. Love unleashed is the power of change.  The love we need to show is for people and planet – people we may never meet in areas where the seas are rising or where our pollution is killing.  There is deep beauty in this selfless love.  The beautiful king extolled in today’s Psalm won’t come and save us like a Greek god popping out of the box to put things right at the end of a tragedy.  Instead, that beauty is seen in how God’s people serve, love, and change the world.  Just as in the early Church where Christians rescued foundlings who no one wanted, so now we must be at the forefront of the effort to change before we die.  We don’t have much time left; certainly, less time than our governments like to believe and so the power of love has to change us and change our way of living in the world.  

Finally, James urged his readers to reflect the light of God into the world around us telling us to be doers of the word; in this context this will changing how we live; urging governments to make producers pay for the pollution they cause, finding ways to make a just transition away from fossil fuels to renewables, putting pressure through our buying power for food with fewer air miles and less packaging.  

The challenge that faces us is massive; a challenge that governments seek to pass on to us whereas we need to convince them not to greenwash or avoid their huge responsibilities.  Yet it’s a challenge we can make loving and playful, beautiful and transformative, and a key part of our faith as, together, we seek to save the world. Let’s pray

Ancient of Days, yet ever young,
you hold us in your playful joyful love,
finding beauty in us that often we can’t see,
and urge us to make a difference in our world.

In your lovely joy,
give us the wit and wisdom to work for change,
that we may not perish but flourish. Amen. 

Hymn     Tend the Ground  
Text inspired by Pope Francis’s encyclical Laudato Si’. Text and music © 2016, Curtis Stephan. Published by Spirit & Song®, a division of OCP. All rights reserved. Sung by Chris Brunelle and used with his kind permission.  One Licence # A-734713  

We till the earth, we tend the ground,
sowing hope and peace where none is found.
In selfless love God’s life abounds.
We till the earth, we tend the ground

As God provides our every need, 
with grateful hearts let us receive 
these gifts of love and make return 
to bless the world, to bless the world

All creatures share one common home, 
one loving God, one song of hope. 
The rocks cry out and praises ring, 
rise up and sing, rise up and sing
 
Affirmation of Faith

We believe that God created the world 
and it is good.
We believe that God created us 
to live in harmony with nature.
We believe that human selfishness and greed
are changing our climate, heating the earth,
and endangering all living things. 
We believe as temperatures and sea levels rise
we have to change our attitudes, lifestyles, economies, and politics,
and adapt to all that is to come.
We believe we can live as the Creator intended,
through the sacrificial example of Jesus Christ,
in the power of the Holy Spirit,
so that our world may not end.  Amen

Intercessions

Caring God, we thank you for your gifts in creation:
for our world, the heavens tell of your glory.
for our land, its beauty and resources,
for the rich heritage we enjoy.

We pray:

for those who make decisions about the earth’s resources,
that we may use your gifts responsibly;

for those who work on the land and sea, in city and in industry,
that all may enjoy the fruits of their labours
and marvel at your creation;

for artists, scientists and visionaries,
that through their work we may see creation afresh.

We thank you for giving us life;
for all who enrich our experience.

We pray:

for all who through their own or others’ actions
are deprived of fulness of life,
for prisoners, refugees, the disabled and all who are sick;
for those in politics, medical science, social and relief work,
and for your Church,
for all who seek to bring life to others.

We thank you that you have called us celebrate your creation,
give us reverence for life in your world.

We thank you for your redeeming love;
may your word and sacrament strengthen us to love as you love.

O Most High, creator, bring us new life.
Jesus, Redeemer, renew us.
Holy Spirit, strengthen and guide us.

God, you shape our dreams.
As we put our trust in you,
may your hopes and desires be ours,
and we your expectant people.
Be with us now as we pray as Jesus taught,

Our Father….

Hymn     God Whose Love Is All Around Us
Fred Kaan © 1968, 1996, Hope Publishing Company OneLicence # A-734713 sung by members of Acomb Methodist Church
 
God whose love is all around us,
who in Jesus sought and found us,
who to freedom new unbound us,
keep our hearts with joy aflame.

For the sacramental breaking,
for the honour of partaking,
for your life, our lives re-making,
young and old, we praise your name.

From the service of this table,
lead us to a life more stable,
for our witness make us able;
blessings on our work we claim.

Through our calling closely knitted,
daily to your praise committed,
for a life of service fitted,
let us now your love proclaim. 

Holy Communion

God of all creation, 
you bring forth bread from the earth and fruit from the vine.
By your Holy Spirit this bread and wine will be for us
the body and blood of Christ.

All you have made is good. Your love endures for ever.

The Spirit of God be with you.  And also with you.

Lift your hearts to heaven where Christ in glory reigns.

Let us give thanks to God. It is right to offer thanks and praise.

It is right indeed to give you thanks most loving God,
through Jesus Christ, our Redeemer,
the first born from the dead, the pioneer of our salvation,
who is with us always, one of us, yet from the heart of God.

For with your whole created universe,
we praise you for your unfailing gift of life.
We thank you that you make us human and stay with us
even when we turn from you to sin.

God’s love is shown to us:
while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

In that love, dear God, righteous and strong to save,
you came among us in Jesus Christ, our crucified and living Lord.
You make all things new.
In Christ’s suffering and cross you reveal your glory
and reconcile all peoples to yourself, their true and living God.

In your mercy you are now our God.
Through Christ you gather us, new-born in your Spirit,
a people after your own heart.
We entrust ourselves to you, for you alone do justice
to all people, living and departed.

Now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation.

Therefore with saints and martyrs, apostles and prophets,
with all the redeemed, joyfully we praise you and say:

Holy, holy, holy: God of mercy, giver of life;
earth and sea and sky and all that lives,
declare your presence and your glory.

All glory to you, Giver of life sufficient and full for all creation.
Accept our praises, living God, for Jesus Christ,
the one perfect offering for the world,
who in the night that he was betrayed,
took bread, and when he had given thanks,
broke it, gave it to his disciples, and said:

Take, eat, this is my body which is given for you;
do this to remember me.

After supper he took the cup; and when he had given thanks,
he gave it to them and said: 

Drink this, all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant
which is shed for you, and for many, to forgive sin.
Do this as often as you drink it to remember me.

Therefore, God of all creation, 
in the suffering and death of Jesus our redeemer,
we meet you in your glory.
We lift up the cup of salvation and call upon your name.
Here and now, with this bread and wine,
we celebrate your great acts of liberation,
ever present and living in Jesus Christ,
crucified and risen, who was, and is, and is to come.

Amen! Come Lord Jesus.

May Christ ascended in majesty be our new and living way,
our access to you, Father, and source of all new life.
In Christ we offer ourselves to do your will.

Empower our celebration with your Holy Spirit,
feed us with your life, fire us with your love, confront us with your justice,
and make us one in the body of Christ 
with all who share your gifts of love.

Through Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit,
with all who stand before you in earth and heaven,
we worship you, Creator God. Amen.

Bread and wine; the gifts of God for the people of God.

May we who share these gifts be found in Christ and Christ in us.

Music for Communion     I Watch the Sunrise 
John Glynn © 1976, Kevin Mayhew sung by Emmaus Music and used with their kind permission.  OneLicence # A-734713  

Post Communion Prayer

From the service of this table, 
lead us to a life more stable O Most High,
that we who have been fed by You will feed others,
we who have been blessed by You, will be a blessing to all creation,
that we who have been gathered into Your presence,
will bring your grace to a hurting world,
that we may live evermore in You, and You in us.  Amen

Hymn     I Sing the Mighty Power of God
Isaac Watts (1715) Public Domain.  Sung by the 300 Voice Mass  Choir recorded at St Andrew’s Kirk, Chennai and used with their kind permission.

I sing the mighty power of God that made the mountains rise,
that spread the flowing seas abroad and built the lofty skies.
I sing the wisdom that ordained the sun to rule the day;
the moon shines full at His command, and all the stars obey.

I sing the goodness of the Lord that filled the earth with food;
he formed the creatures with His word and then pronounced them good.
Lord, how Thy wonders are displayed, where’er we turn our eyes,
if I survey the ground I tread or gaze upon the skies.
 
There’s not a plant or flower below but makes Thy glories known,
and clouds arise and tempests blow by order from Thy throne;
while all that borrows life from Thee is ever in Thy care,
and everywhere that we can be, Thou, God, are present there.

Blessing

May the One who breathed creation into life,
the One who walked in harmony with the earth,
the One who inspires us to learn from the world around us,
breath life into you,
enable you to live in harmony with the planet,
and inspire you to learn from the life that surrounds us,
and the blessing of God, 
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be with you and all whom you love,
now and evermore,
Amen.  

Although Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he continued to go to his house, which had windows in its upper room open towards Jerusalem, and to get down on his knees three times a day to pray to his God and praise him, just as he had done previously. The conspirators came and found Daniel praying and seeking mercy before his God. Then they approached the king and said concerning the interdict, ‘O king! Did you not sign an interdict, that anyone who prays to anyone, divine or human, within thirty days except to you, O king, shall be thrown into a den of lions?’ The king answered, ‘The thing stands fast, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be revoked.’ Then they responded to the king, ‘Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or to the interdict you have signed, but he is saying his prayers three times a day.’

When the king heard the charge, he was very much distressed. He was determined to save Daniel, and until the sun went down he made every effort to rescue him. Then the conspirators came to the king and said to him, ‘Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no interdict or ordinance that the king establishes can be changed.’

Then the king gave the command, and Daniel was brought and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to Daniel, ‘May your God, whom you faithfully serve, deliver you!’ A stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, so that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no food was brought to him, and sleep fled from him.

Reflection

We often see the expression, ‘I’ll pray for you’ used as code for, ‘I’m not going to do anything to help.’ It’s easy to think praying is just talking to the walls, or to ourselves. And yet, when taken seriously, prayer has amazing power.

I come from a country that was not unlike Persia in the time of Daniel. The Communist dictatorship seemed all-powerful and immovable. And when Christians united to pray for the fall of the regime, it was gone in three weeks. I have seen amazing answers to prayer. I have also prayed and nothing seemed to happen. I don’t know why God answers some prayers and doesn’t answer others. But he is unlikely to answer our prayers if we don’t pray.

In Daniel’s time, powerful men plotted together to stop Daniel’s prayers; it didn’t work. In our time, it seems that it takes a lot less to stop us – busyness, social media, addiction to devices, or simple lack of faith. So we grow complacent, and we no longer believe in a supernatural, all-powerful God. But it’s not God who stopped being the God described in the Bible – it’s us who stopped accessing his supernatural power through prayer.

Try it. Write down a list of the things you want changed in your life, in your family, in our country, or in the world. Then, bring that list to God. You don’t need flowery, religious words – just read the list to God. Don’t just do it once – keep doing it. You will be amazed at the results.

Prayer

Lord God, these days there are no lions threatening to eat us; 
no fiery furnaces await us; 
no powerful people plot against us. 
Today we willingly give up our power as your children, 
for the cheap amusements the world throws our way.
Please forgive us and grant us courage:
to stand when no one stands with us; 
to pray when few believe in prayer; 
to trust in you when it seems foolish and useless.  Amen

Daniel 6: 1 – 8

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps, stationed throughout the whole kingdom,and over them three presidents, including Daniel; to these the satraps gave account, so that the king might suffer no loss. Soon Daniel distinguished himself above all the other presidents and satraps because an excellent spirit was in him, and the king planned to appoint him over the whole kingdom. So the presidents and the satraps tried to find grounds for complaint against Daniel in connection with the kingdom. But they could find no grounds for complaint or any corruption, because he was faithful, and no negligence or corruption could be found in him. The men said, ‘We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God.’ So the presidents and satraps conspired and came to the king and said to him, ‘O King Darius, live for ever!  All the presidents of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the counsellors and the governors, are agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce an interdict, that whoever prays to anyone, divine or human, for thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into a den of lions.  Now, O king, establish the interdict and sign the document, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked.’  Therefore King Darius signed the document and interdict.

Reflection

The story of Daniel and the lions’ den is full of dramatic themes: jealousy, vanity, integrity, the power and preservation of God – and the lions will arrive tomorrow. 

Daniel, like Jesus, was faithful to God and to his duties and no negligence or corruption could be found in him.  He was in favour with the king for his honesty and excellent spirit. It appears the king does not bar Daniel from observing his faith and religion.  It’s all one to the king, as long as he does his work faithfully. But this upsets the others in charge, corrupted by their own power. The satraps were governors of their own provinces and had considerable autonomy as viceroys.  The term ‘satrap’ came to suggest tyranny or ostentatious splendour – the modern usage is pejorative with unfavourable connotations of corruption.  So they are offended by Daniel’s ‘squeaky cleanliness’.  They do not try to bear false witness against him, however, but make the king enforce an unreasonable demand that they know Daniel won’t obey.

What an affront to forbid praying to God!  And it’s not just Daniel it affects, or even just his Jewish compatriots in exile, it’s cutting everyone off from approaching God.

In the Covid pandemic, everyone was barred from attending places of worship, and that was tough for many people. In times of religious persecution throughout history, people have been driven to meet and pray in secret. But nothing can stop us from praying and calling to God for help, whatever desperate circumstances we may find ourselves in.  Living our faith means being loyal to God at all times.  Daniel is an example of being faithful, honest and reliable that we can all aspire to follow.

Prayer  ( Rejoice and Sing 532) 

Lord of all being, I give you my all;
if e’er I disown you, I stumble and fall;
but, led in your service your word to obey
I’ll walk in your freedom to the end of the way.

Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, ‘So you are Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? I have heard of you that a spirit of the gods is in you, and that enlightenment, understanding, and excellent wisdom are found in you. Now the wise men, the enchanters, have been brought in before me to read this writing and tell me its interpretation, but they were not able to give the interpretation of the matter. But I have heard that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Now if you are able to read the writing and tell me its interpretation, you shall be clothed in purple, have a chain of gold around your neck, and rank third in the kingdom.’

Then Daniel answered in the presence of the king, ‘Let your gifts be for yourself, or give your rewards to someone else! Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and let him know the interpretation.  O king, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar kingship, greatness, glory, and majesty. And because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. He killed those he wanted to kill, kept alive those he wanted to keep alive, honoured those he wanted to honour, and degraded those he wanted to degrade. But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he acted proudly, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and his glory was stripped from him. He was driven from human society, and his mind was made like that of an animal. His dwelling was with the wild asses, he was fed grass like oxen, and his body was bathed with the dew of heaven, until he learned that the Most High God has sovereignty over the kingdom of mortals, and sets over it whomsoever he will. And you, Belshazzar his son, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this! You have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven! The vessels of his temple have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them. You have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know; but the God in whose power is your very breath, and to whom belong all your ways, you have not honoured.

‘So from his presence the hand was sent and this writing was inscribed. And this is the writing that was inscribed: mene, mene, tekel, and parsin. This is the interpretation of the matter: mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end;  tekel, you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting;  peres, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.’

Then Belshazzar gave the command, and Daniel was clothed in purple, a chain of gold was put around his neck, and a proclamation was made concerning him that he should rank third in the kingdom.

That very night Belshazzar, the Chaldean king, was killed.  And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old.

Reflection

The writing is on the wall. A well-known phrase drawn from this astonishing story. Belshazzar (who should have learnt from his own father’s demise) mocked the living God through defiling holy items set aside for worship whilst feasting and toasting idols with his harem and allies. Terrifyingly, a hand appears and writes words on the wall which folk are unable (or unwilling) to interpret – so Daniel teller of truth to power is called.

Numbered, weighed, and divided.  Belshazzar days were numbered, the days of his kingdom numbered, he had been weighed and found wanting, the kingdom was divided between his enemies.

Numbered, weighed, divided.  A message to all of us too.

Numbered. Teach us, O God, to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12), for every one of them is written in the book of life (Psalm 139:16) and we cannot add one hour to our life through worry (Matthew 6:27). Numbered. The days of any oppressive regime or power are numbered – no kingdom will ultimately stand against the coming of the kingdom.  Our attempts to run our own lives, control our circumstances, have anything other than God at the centre will ultimately fail.

Weighed. The measure we have used will be used to measure us (Matthew 7:2). Has it been a good measure, pressed down, shaken and running over (Luke 6:38)? Have we lived as children of our loving, generous, hospitable justice-seeking God?

Divided. The Kingdom is like good and bad fish being sorted from the catch; like wheat and weeds being threshed; like sheep and goats being divided by the shepherd. Parsin means divided, decided, judged. At the heart of this judgement is the promise of being reconciled to God through our union with Christ in his death and resurrection. The truth is we were divided but are called to be one just as Jesus is one with the Father (John 11:17).

Prayer 

Numbered.
Numbered.
Weighed.
United.
Loving God, you made us mortal
and call us to serve your everlasting kingdom.
May we embody your loving generosity to the world
and remain in you as you remain in us.  Amen