Today's Scripture Reading (March 2, 2026): 2 Chronicles 20
Maybe one of the saddest songs ever
written was Simon and Garfunkel's "I Am a Rock." The song was written
by Paul Simon very early in his career. In the United Kingdom, the song was
released three times in one year. Simon's singing partner Art Garfunkel has called
the song one of the most neurotic songs Simon ever wrote. The lyrics of the
song describe the dangers of friendship and assert that if you have never loved,
you would never have cried. Amazingly, and maybe this is a significant comment
on our society, the song strikes a chord with the listener. One of our deepest
needs is for a friend who will stand by us through all of the circumstances of
life.
Several years ago, a friend told me
a story of a night he had experienced in his youth. He thought everything was
going well in his life until the night he found himself stranded with a car
that wouldn't run and realized that, at two in the morning, he had no one to
call. He knew he had a lot of friends, but no one close enough to wake up and
ask for help in the wee hours of the morning. He had no money or credit cards,
and no real options. That night, my friend discovered that two a.m. friends are
rare; very rare.
During the reign of David, Israel's
king had subdued the nations of Edom and Moab. Both bordered Israel and
effectively became its satellites. But being a satellite of Israel was very
different from being friends with David's nation. They found themselves in a
position of friendship with Israel only because of Israel's military power.
When the nation of Israel was divided into two, Edom became attached to the
Southern nation of Judah, and Moab to the Northern kingdom of Israel.
This incident takes place after the
death of King Ahab of Israel. Judah found themselves in a two a.m. phase of
their history. It would be a time when they would need all of the friends that
they could find. But Moab would not prove to be one of those friends. Instead,
they took advantage of the confusion in Israel and Judah to cut ties with the
nations. It was a time when a decline of Israel's power had begun.
In the Simon song, the singer sings
that he touches no one and no one touches him. It is a sentiment that never
really works. A truly successful person is never an island. Maybe our success
can really be defined by the number of friends who will answer our calls, even
at two in the morning when things are not going very well.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 21
No comments:
Post a Comment