And the remaining trees of his forests will be so few that a child could write them down. – Isaiah 10:19

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 9, 2020): Isaiah 10

Joni Mitchell wrote “Big Yellow Taxi” in Hawaii. She remembers the conception of the song this way;

I wrote 'Big Yellow Taxi' on my first trip to Hawaii. I took a taxi to the hotel and when I woke up the next morning, I threw back the curtains and saw these beautiful green mountains in the distance. Then, I looked down and there was a parking lot as far as the eye could see, and it broke my heart... this blight on paradise. That's when I sat down and wrote the song.

The “Big Yellow Taxi” in the song's final verse, the one that “took away my old man,” was likely intended to be the Old Metro Toronto Police Cars, which, when Mitchell wrote the song, were painted yellow. The idea of her “old man” being taken away from her supports the central theme of the song of the things that have been stolen away and are now irreversibly lost, namely paradise, trees, birds and bees, and finally her old man. But in spite of the final more personal stanza, the song is known for its support of environmentalism.

The second verse of the song talks about taking the trees away and putting them in a “tree museum.” The mention is an allusion to the Foster Botanical Garden in downtown Honolulu, which is a living museum of tropical plants, some of which are rare and endangered. On Maui, “The Garden of Eden” located on the road to Hana serves a similar purpose.

I struggle with the Christian response to environmentalism, which says that nature was placed here for us to use. The trees are ours to cut down as we see fit. The oil is placed in the ground for our use. Animals are created to be killed indiscriminately for whatever purpose we might dream up. I am not against the use of any of these things, but management is essential. The oil we are using cannot be replaced. We may have enough now, but every day the reserves drop, and we need to understand what the use of oil is doing to the world that we share. Trees are an essential resource, but they are also renewable, at least to a certain extent. So, as we use, we also need to plant. Animals are precious. Admittedly, I like my steaks, but our animal use should be purposeful and humane.

We need to hear the voice of Isaiah as we consider our responsibility to the natural world. Isaiah comments here on the destruction of the environment. There will be so few trees that a young child, or a child who is only beginning to learn their numbers, could count them. And this destruction of the environment is a direct result of the sin of man. The principle should still hold. If the climate suffers under our watch, it is because of our sin. We are the caretakers of creation. We are responsible for making sure that the environment thrives. Anything less is our failure. The health of the environment might be one barometer revealing how closely we are following our God. Because as nature fails, so do we.

Right now, the barometer is falling. Nature is struggling under the weight of our sins. And Mitchell’s words are coming true in front of our eyes. “Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.”

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Isaiah 11