Today’s Scripture Reading (January 8,
2015): Judges 13
“The Prince
and the Pauper” was Mark Twain’s first attempt to write Historical fiction. The
Story tells the tale of Tom Canty, a poor boy who lives with his abusive
father. But there is something special about Tom, because the boy turns out to
be identical in appearance to Prince Edward, the heir apparent to the throne of
England. When Edward and Tom meet, Edward recognizes the unique opportunity that
Tom presents to him. For his entire existence, the Prince has been pampered and
cloistered within the walls of the palace. But the presence of Tom Canty
changes that. Edward hatches a plan to change places with Tom; it is a chance
for the Prince to experience life as a common child of London.
Tom and
Edward hatch their plan and actually succeed in trading places. But then the
King dies. Edward becomes king, but it wasn’t really Edward that was living in
the palace. Although no one knew it, the person they were about to proclaim as
king was really Tom Canty, a commoner of London. The plot of Twain’s story
turns on something that Edward had hidden before his exchange with Canty. Although
the reader doesn’t realize it early in the story, the thing that Edward hides
is the Great Seal of England. And at the height of the novel, it is that seal
that convinces the authorities of Edward’s (and Tom’s) true Identity – and restores
the real Edward to the throne.
A lot has
been made about the word that we have translated in this verse with the phrase “beyond
understanding.” The problem is that the original word in this passage is related
to the word that is used in Isaiah 9:6 where it is translated “Wonderful,” and
used in a prophecy of the coming Messiah – he is the one whose name would be “Wonderful.”
For some scholars the coincidence is a little too much. This, combined with the
word “I am” that the angel uses to identify himself in verse 11, leads them to
only one conclusion - this angel was really the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ. He
is the only one whose name could be “Wonderful.”
It is an
interesting theory, and maybe it is true. But there is another, maybe simpler,
explanation. The angel words to Manoah might simply be what they seem to be. The
angel’s name was ineffable and not open to understanding. But maybe more to the
point, the angel was just a messenger. He had no desire to be the object of
Manoah’s worship – that belonged only to God. If there was worship to be
offered, it was not the angel that should have been the object of worship – the
angel’s only response is to point straight at God the Father, the only one
worthy of our worship.
Of course,
if the mysterious angel truly was Jesus, that would have been exactly his
response. Throughout the entire length of his ministry he did exactly the same
thing; he pointed at his Father as the only true object of our worship. No one
else is worthy.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Judges
14
No comments:
Post a Comment