The Hebrew Scriptures

The Hebrew Scriptures are oftentimes overlooked as a repository for issues of social, economic and environmental justice.  As we read through the ancient texts we so often focus on the sexism, warfare, and other such materials that are offensive to our progressive awareness.  All that is truly present, but there also is to be found some of the most profoundly progressive material anywhere in scripture.

We gather as progressives, both spiritual and secular, many of us with both spiritual and secular aspects.  I believe that we need to learn to use the scriptures in the same way that our adversaries on the conservative end of the spectrum have done.  They have co-opted the language of faith and the mantle of religion in an effort to promote a narrow and intolerant political agenda.  They have taken nips and snips of scripture out of context and painted a picture of religion that is warped and out of context with the continuous theme of love that is found in the Bible.  They have transformed religion and bent it to serve their own politically partisan purposes and are doing so with little or no opposition by those on the religious and political left.  It is not that we are unable; it is that we are unwilling to oppose them.  The very nature of our religious liberalism drives us to accept that every person is entitled to seek after their faith and their God in their own way.  But, we can no longer keep our heads buried in the sand waiting for the storm to pass us by.  The religious right has changed the rules while demanding that we liberals, in the spirit of ecumenical inclusiveness, give recognition and respect to the validity of their claims as they define us out of the Christian tradition in their own churches.  There allies on the political right have co-opted and encouraged this behavior wholly and fully.

This tactic can no longer go unchallenged or unchecked.  We find ourselves in a struggle for the hearts and minds of the world’s people and we need to wade boldly into the fray and engage the opposition with the tools that we have at our disposal.  We must play the game by the rules they themselves have established since they will not play by any other.  As a committed Universalist I have a difficult time saying this but I have come to believe that some religious paths do not merit the respect due to legitimate religions, denominations or sects.  When individuals use the cover of religion to promote hate, violence, intolerance, racism, and so forth I have come to the conclusion that I can no longer accord them the respect due a religious institution and therefore I need not accept their path as a valid path in a Universalistic sense.  If these denominations and modes of faith are not religions then what are they?  They are nothing but hate-groups who blanket themselves in the garments of orthodox terminology while promoting their own outlandish views.  If they were to engage in the same sort of behavior outside the protective mantle of religious freedom they would be convicted of hate crime activities in many jurisdictions.  We must engage these people, we must challenge their assumptions, and we must not let them go unchecked.  They are changing the face of religion in our nation, in our world, in a manner that speaks ill of the true loving and compassionate faith we claim to proclaim.

The Bible is the weapon they use; they have taken something sacred and transformed into a bludgeoning instrument.  Particular verses are quoted over and over to support a unique agenda. Sometimes a single verse can be the basis of an hour long sermon demonizing our GLBT brothers and sisters or vilifying women who exercise their right of control over their own bodies.  We of the left have to learn to make use of the Bible in the same fashion, but for a more enlightened purpose.  It should be simple for us since the common theme that runs throughout the biblical text is one of compassion and love, which are core principles for religious progressives.  We should not have to reach so far to make our points as our adversaries might as they seek to promote a gospel of hate.   Much of the vitriolic spew that streams forth from fundamentalist pulpits stems from a misrepresentation and selective use of the Hebrew Scriptures.  So, it is therefore important that we on the left learn to use this sacred text to counter erroneous claims and promote a more inclusive and compassionate vision of faith.

It is my hope that in the course of this address I will impart to you some of the tools and scriptural references you will need to begin challenging the assumptions and misrepresentations made by both the political and religious right.  I also hope to point you towards some verses that some would rather be left unnoticed and show you why it is important to bring them into the light of day.  Remember as we proceed through this discussion that the knowledge that they fear is the weapon to be used against them.  But, try to keep in mind that it is not the rank and file members of these churches that are your adversaries, they are victims as much, or perhaps more than we are.  It is the leaders who speak from the pulpit and twist the minds of their congregations.  Congregations that are in all likelihood filled with people who are seeking after God themselves.  Perhaps they attend this church or that because it is the church in which they were raised.  Perhaps it happens to be the church across the street or just next door.  We cannot forget that they are seeking after God’s will just as we are, and above all, remember that they are our brothers and sisters.  They just need a different light to show them another direction.  Another path illuminating the way to pull them from the darkness to the light, to free them from the bonds of their delusion and shine the way towards a new freedom.  

We can find justice addressed early on in the Pentateuch.  In Exodus we see issues addressed in powerful and profound ways.  In chapter 22:21 God opens with themes that are present throughout the Old Testament; “You shall not wrong nor oppress resident aliens, for you were aliens in Egypt.  You shall not abuse the widow or the orphan”.  Widows and Orphans are an ongoing theme in the OT and should not be perceived as only widows and orphans but as the very least and most vulnerable of any population.  Aliens, another ongoing theme can be seen as strangers in a strange land. As the citation progresses we hear God in verse 23, “If you do abuse them when they cry out I will surely hear their cry to me, and I will surely heed their cry; my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives will become widows and orphans.”  This powerfully illustrates that God will be there for the least amongst us and that if we as a people fail to heed their cry and provide for their needs God will turn wrathfully upon the selfish among us and punish them by the sword.  How can we in good faith and without due fear slash the programs on which these people rely?  How can we treat our immigrant workers as bonded servants and slaves without fear?  How can we do this on one hand while on the other proclaim our love of and faith in god?  The answer is we can not.

We find in the same chapter beginning in verse 25 a direct condemnation of the credit and lending of money at interest to the poor.  It says, “If you lend money to my people to the poor among you, (the poor are often represented as God’s people), you shall not deal with them as a creditor; you shall not exact interest from them.”  I find it of interest to note that as God is speaking he singles out the “poor among you” as God’s particular people.  It is not the wealthy, the powerful, or the practioners of the Gospel of Wealth that are the recipients of God’s protection, blessing, or love, it is the poor.  We see this God of the poor acting out again in Leviticus 19:9 where the Lord commands that landowners and keepers of vineyards are not to strip their land bare.  They are to leave a portion of the lands produce in place for aliens and the poor to glean at their need.  Where is the outcry from the political and religious right against the credit and banking industry?  Why are they not demanding that creditors make loans to the poor without interest?  Why are they not outraged that retailer’s give a portion of there inventory to the needy at no cost?  Why do they choose certain elements of scripture that they find abhorrent while ignoring such powerful statements?  The answer is that it serves their needs.  They are not seeking to follow God’s words to the letter, despite their proclamations to the contrary.  They are just trying to control the debate and achieve their goals.

Many of the threads we have been discussing come together in the concept of the Sabbatical Year as discussed in the 25th chapter of Leviticus.  We see the Lord command through his servant Moses that every 7th year there is to be no planting or harvest as in other years.  The land is to be left in the care of the Lord and the fruits of the land that spring forth are to be given to the people of the Lord.  The hireling, the slave, the alien and those who counted as least amongst the ancient Israelites were to be allowed to pluck the fruits of the land for their use.  Debts are forgiven and slaves are freed, a time of rejoicing for all was at hand.  We find in Deuteronomy’s 15th chapter very enlightened laws regulating debts and those in need.  Beginning with the first verse we see it proclaim, “Every sabbatical year you shall grant a remission of debts.  We see in the seventh verse, “If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of your towns within the land that the Lord has given you, do not be hard hearted or tight-fisted towards your needy neighbor.  You should rather open your hand, lending enough to meet their need whatever it may be…..Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake…..I therefore command you, “Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.” Where is the remission of debts for the needy in our time?  We see the political right seeking to enslave a debtor class through legislation which makes it harder for bankruptcy to be declared.  Instead of remitting debts they are yoking people with it for life.  Does not the Lord command it?  Does not the Lord admonish us to give enough to meet their need whatever it may be and to do so ungrudgingly?  How does this mesh with the rhetoric of “pull yourself up by your own bootstraps?”  How does it fit into the worldview of those who rail against paying fair taxes, or pass judgment on welfare recipients?  How can it even be reconciled with the clever smoke and mirrors policy of “workfare?”  The answer is none of it can be.  But our conservative brothers and sisters choose to ignore these dictates since they would be inconvenient for them to follow.  They would cost them a little money.  Perhaps they would actually have to put their faith into action and do something besides give lip service to God.


The overall context of the stories of the Exodus and the arrival of the Hebrew peoples into the Levantine region can be seen through the lens of social upheaval and revolutionary consciousness.  The liberation of the Hebrew people from their oppressors can be viewed as an exemplar of God as Liberator.  God sees his people oppressed and treated harshly by their Egyptian overlords and does whatever is necessary to free them from the tyrannical rule they are forced to endure.  God so loves the poor and the needy that he will strike out at the oppressor in order to free the downtrodden.
The Book of Exodus has long been recognized as a revolutionary document that promotes freedom not just of the spirit but from physical and temporal bondage.  The Lord our God will free his people (the poor, the oppressed, the least amongst us) from bondage and servitude. Woe to those who seek to stand in the way of the Lord. Armies, cities, people, and more will be crushed by God’s hand if his chosen are held in servitude.  Those on the right, who through their unfair macroeconomic and political systems keep the Lord’s people in bondage, will be washed away as was Pharaoh and his armies if they fail to hear, and heed the cry of the oppressed.  How can people of faith stand by and watch as their brothers and sisters pass into economic servitude?  The answer is they cannot if they wish to remain true to the faith they espouse.  Most of our fundamentalist and conservative evangelical brothers and sisters are unaware of the things we are talking about tonight.  Or, if they are aware of some of it they are not aware that it is a common, powerful and recurring theme in scripture.  We as progressives much reach out in love and compassion.  We must adopt the techniques they have used for generations and proselytize and evangelize them with the “Good News” that they have failed to see.  


The Book of Judges is often overlooked as an example of social justice.  There are a number of lenses through which to view the events portrayed in this book.  There is the paradigm that shows the tribes of Israel as an outside entity, which arrives in Canaan and seizes the land.  This is how the story is portrayed in the traditional lens.  There is a hybrid paradigm which has a small core of newcomers, perhaps fleeing slaves from Egypt, arriving in the Holy Land and encouraging the native people to revolt.  The way that perhaps speaks most clearly to the adherent of revolutionary social justice is a bottom up revolt of indigenous Levantine peoples against indigenous Canaanite oppressors.  Imagine if you will the Canaanite’s not as the only indigenous people native to the region but as the city dwelling overlords that exploit the rural and pastoral “Hebrews” who fill the peasant and slave classes of the Canaanite social pyramid (there is archeological evidence that supports this paradigm).  God’s deliverance can be seen as an agrarian peasant revolt of the proletarian masses against the exploitive city elites of Canaan.  This message is one that we should promote.  It is a message that the ruling classes of our society should be aware of and it is one that can hold prophetic power in our own time.  Exodus and Judges together can and should be used over and over again to illustrate the temporal aid that God can give to the people of God.  There is more than just freedom of the spirit at stake here.   God wants his people to be free, to be able to pursue their happiness, to be free of servitude and slavery.  God will not tolerate exploitive behavior on the part of the oppressor class.  The people must only show their faith in God and rise up, rise to the occasion, and as Moses and Joshua showed us, be willing to go against the prevailing winds and throw off their yokes.  If the people show their faith in God, God will reward them with freedom.

In the Second book of Samuel we find a wonderful allegorical tale which illustrates the hypocrisy of the powerful and the complete disregard they have for others as they seize that which is desired.  Their willingness to rob and steal at the expense of those less powerful than themselves and, the complete obliviousness they have of any wrongness of their action.   Nathan told David, “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.  The rich man had very many flocks and herds but the poor man had but one little ewe lamb which he had bought.  He brought it up and it grew up with him and his children; and it used to eat from his meager fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him.  Now there came a traveler to the rich man and he was loathe to take one of his own flock or heard to prepare to the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, the lamb that he loved, and this lamb he did slay and order prepared for his guest.”  When David heard this story he was filled with wrath and anger towards the rich man in the story stating that he deserved to die.  Nathan revealed that David himself was that man and had been found so in his dealings with his servant Urriah.  God had seen the iniquity in David and had judged him through his instrument Samuel.  We must be aware that the powerful are so used to their power that they do not even see what they do as wrong.  They do not see the humanity resident in us all.  They have a sense of superiority that causes them to act in hypocritical fashion.  The standards that they apply to others they often refuse to apply to themselves.  This is the sin of arrogance and pride that lives within their hearts.  This is why we can not ever hope to think that they are governed by the same morals and virtues.  The capitalist and the bourgeoisie see the world through a different lens, self serving, hypocritical, and contemptuous of others.  They will never grant equal status to those they consider their inferiors unless they are coerced by self interest or forced by powers beyond their control.

Another interesting story with powerful ramifications for our time is the story of Naboth’s vineyard which is found in the 1 Kings: 21.  Naboth was a righteous man who walked upright before the Lord.  The King, Ahab coveted his family vineyard for a vegetable garden.  Naboth refused to sell his land at any price.  Ahab was not the sort of person who was used to being told no.  The story goes on to say that after being refused he ran off to bed, turned away his face and refused to eat.  Now before I go any further let me try to paint this picture.  Here you have a spoiled rich man who wants to buy up the land of a poor man and when he does not get his way he throws a tantrum just like a little child.  And, as I further reflect upon this story I am compelled to think of all the people in today’s world, who are pressured to sell their land by some unscrupulous business man, not for a vegetable garden perhaps, but maybe a strip mall or some big box retailer.  But, I digress; let me get back to the narrative of the tale.  

So there is Ahab in the midst of his tantrum and in comes his wife….Jezebel.  Now I want you to lay aside any preconceived notions in your mind about Jezebel.  In today’s vernacular her name almost means prostitute.  But, that’s not correct and I want you to try to get beyond that sexist rendering.  Jezebel comes to her King and inquires as to the nature of his sorrow.  He tells her his woeful tale and as a good wife she tells him to fret not, she would handle everything.  She has Naboth lured to a banquet where he was falsely accused on trumped up charges and put to death.  Then without serious obstacle the King is able to take control of his land.   God of course is not as “down with” these machinations as are Jezebel and Ahab and he sends in his Prophet, Elijah the Tishbite to pass judgment upon the royal pair.  They, of course, are found wanting and condemned by the Lord.  Through a little timely groveling the King is able to shirk responsibility for his actions and seems willing to let God’s wrath fall on his descendants.  It reminds me of the way we are piling up national debt and despite all our friends on the right’s protestations to the otherwise it seems to be nothing more than selfishness and self-centeredness as we set up our children and grandchildren to pay for our folly.

Let me say here a little something more on Jezebel. I want to mention that if such an action were taken by a man in the ancient near east, as reprehensible as it seems to modern ears, he would have been lauded in poem and song for generations.  That sort of behavior was par for the course in the ancient Middle East.  People in power did what they desired at the expense of anyone unlucky enough to get in his, or her, way.  Ahab, from the ancient near eastern perspective was quite lucky to have a wife like Jezebel who had the cunning and acumen necessary to accomplish their goal.  Just contemplate for a moment the picture…the King in his bed, face to the wall, refusing to eat, perhaps even crying, in the middle of a tantrum.  And then there is his beloved and devoted wife, Jezebel, the rational and albeit ruthless repository of the royal power.  In many ways Jezebel is a positive example to women, especially in an ancient Israelite context.  Israel was a patriarchal society where women were oftentimes portrayed as little more than property and sexual playthings for the men in their lives.  Jezebel stands out head and shoulders above the masses as a powerful woman in her own right.

The story of Naboth was commented on by Saint Ambrose writing in the 4th century, he called it one of life’s perennial tales. He noted that there were contemporary Naboth’s in his own time that he had seen their land stripped away and their lives taken from them by powerful personages.  Just as Saint Ambrose observed such behavior in his time we can observe it in our own.  We see it here in the United States, but in more oligarchial fashion, where the wheels of government are greased by the powerful, which then set them in motion against the poor, keeping their own hands clean of the dirtiest work, yet achieving their desired ends.  Outside the United States we see the traditional Naboth inspired horror in its full glory, such as Israeli bulldozers bringing down Palestinian Homes to build security perimeters. When we read stories like Naboth let us not be hoodwinked into believing that it is a story for ages past.  Let us endeavor to see that much of this scripture has a timeless quality that can teach us something of our own day.  We must learn the scripture and shirk not from applying it to ourselves and our contemporaries.  

Like the stories of Exodus and Joshua the stories of the Ewe Lamb and Naboth’s Vineyard can be applied to a number of circumstances.  Try and learn them in your own way and make them your own.  They are powerful testimonies of liberation, freedom, inequality, injustice, exploitation and the callous disregard of others by the rich and the powerful.  They are condemnations of the wealthy and the societal elites who so zealously persecute the least amongst us.  Take these tales with you and tell them often.  Tell them in various contexts and in various levels of detail.  Tell them metaphorically, tell them allegorically, tell them literally, but tell them.  They teach important biblical truths that we seem to be losing in this age of selfishness and greed.

Some key principles of justice can also be found scattered like pearls in the Book of Psalms.  I would like to share some of them with you.  In Psalms 9:7-8 we learn that, the Lord sits enthroned forever, he has established his throne for judgment. He judges the world with righteousness; he judges the peoples with equity.  In Psalm 10:17-18 we learn that; O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more.  The 41st Psalms first verse tells us that; “Happy are those that consider the poor; the Lord will deliver them in time of trouble.”  That theme is further reiterated in Psalm 76:8-9 “From the heavens you uttered judgment; the earth feared and was still.”  When God rose up to establish judgment to save the oppressed of the earth.  As we progress through the Psalms we see God’s power and glory made manifest as in the opening verses of Psalm 99: “The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples. Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he! Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness…” In the Psalm 103:6 we start to sense God’s purpose in this, “The Lord works vindication and justice for all who are oppressed.”  It all comes together in the 146th Psalm: “Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.”  As you read through the Psalms you can note the nature of God and where the concern of God lies.  You can see what it is that God wants for his people, and, somewhat ominously for the oppressor classes the promise that “The Lord works vindication and justice for all who are oppressed.”  The Lord does not promise to make the rich richer, the powerful more powerful.  God is going to free prisoners, give sight to the blind, lift up those who are bowed, and bring ruin to the wicked.  Who are the wicked?  They are those that oppress and subjugate, those that fail to hearken to the cries of the poor. They are those who slash entitlement programs, cut domestic spending, cry greedily for more and more tax cuts, seek to crush unions, overturn workers protections acts, those who promote preemptive war, those who profit at the expense of others, those who oppose medical care for all, I could go on and on.  The wicked are those that adhere to the Theo-fascist principles that dominate the neo-conservative movement in the United States and its allies and like minded peoples from around the world.

A bit of scripture every politician should read is to be found in Isaiah 10: 1-4, “Woe betide those who enact unjust laws and draft oppressive edicts, depriving the poor of justice, robbing the weakest of my people of their rights, plundering the widow and despoiling the fatherless!  What will you do when called to account, when devastation from afar confronts you?  To whom will you flee for help, and where will you leave your children so that they do not cower among the prisoners or fall among the slain?  For all this his anger has not abated; his hand still threatens.”  Isaiah states further in 32:7, “the villain’s tactics are villainous and he devises infamous plans to bring ruin on the poor with his lies and deny justice to the needy.”  I think Isaiah lays it out plainly for the world to see.  God will strike down with devastation those who rob and despoil the weakest of people.  They themselves, their families, their children will all be paid out the wages of their sin.  What politician with even the faintest breath of faith could pass laws that harm the poor and the helpless?  How can the follow the rightist agenda that we see enacted in the house and Senate every day?   The answer is they should not be able to if their faith is more than hollow words.  Politicians of faith should be amongst the most ardent supporters of social programs to support God’s people.  

Jeremiah also speaks on the powerful and on behalf of the needy.  In Jeremiah 5:27 the prophet calls attention to scoundrels amongst the people who turn their back on the helpless, “Their houses are full of fraud, as a cage full of birds.  They grow great and rich, sleek and bloated; they turn a blind eye to wickedness and refuse to do justice; the claims of the fatherless they do not uphold, nor do they defend the poor at law.  Shall I fail to punish them for this, says the Lord; shall I not exact vengeance on such a people?”  
This is something that should cause politicians, corporations, employers, and every other wealthy and powerful individual to take note.  It is amongst the closest thing to a threat that God makes and I for one believe that it should be taken to heart.

Something our current administration should make note of is found in the Book of Hosea 10:12: “Sow justice and reap loyalty.  Break up your fallow ground it is time to seek the lord, till he comes and rains justice on you.  You have ploughed wickedness and reaped depravity; you have eaten the fruit of treachery.  Because you have trusted in your chariots, in the number of your warriors, the tumult of war will rise against your people, and all your fortresses will be overthrown….”  We cannot continue to lie, cheat and rob the world.  We cannot continue to wage pre-emptive and unilateral wars upon innocent people.  We cannot expect a domestic population that is fed injustice and lies to return with loyalty and trust.  We cannot stand firm behind our soldiers because if we live by the sword we are doomed to die by the sword.

Proverbs are full of quick, witty, and pithy sayings that will make your point without lots of fluff, verbiage, or undue effort.  If you walk away with nothing tonight but these little sayings you will have added a set of powerful tools to your bag of tricks.  Proverbs 11:25 states, “A generous person enjoys prosperity, and one who refreshes others will be refreshed.”  14:31, “To oppress the poor is to insult the creator; to be generous to the needy is to do him honor.”  19:17 “He who is generous to the poor lend to the lord.”  21:13, “Whoever stops his ears at the cry of the helpless will himself cry for help and not be answered.”  22:8-10 “Whoever sows injustice will reap trouble; the rod of God’s wrath will destroy him.  One who is kindly will be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor.”  23:4 “Do not be a slave to wealth; be sensible and desist.”  29:7, “The righteous are concerned for the claims of the helpless, but the wicked cannot understand such concern.”  31:8-9, “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; oppose any that go to law against them; speak out and pronounce just sentence and give judgment for the wretched and the poor.”  Toss these about next time you hear the same tired old conservative rhetoric at a social gathering and watch the ears perk up.  You might find that most of the people in attendance think more like you than you realized.  They just need something around which to galvanize themselves, and that something is the progressive gospel.