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<div class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>Forwarded: </b></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>TODAY’S READINGS IN CONTEXT<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>OCTOBER 30, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b> </b></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal"><b><u>Isaiah 1:10-18<o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><u><o:p> </o:p></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">The Book of Isaiah is a composite of writings from three
distinct periods in Israel’s history.
Chapters 1-39 are called “First Isaiah” and were written in the 30 years
before Jerusalem was under direct siege by the Assyrians in 701 BCE. “Second Isaiah” is Chapters 40 to 55 and
brings hope to the Judeans <u>during</u> the time of the Exile in Babylon (587
to 539 BCE) by telling them they have suffered enough and will return to
Jerusalem. “Third Isaiah” is Chapters 56 to 66 and contains encouragement to
the Judeans who returned to Jerusalem <u>after </u>the Exile. Today’s reading
is set in the time from 733 to 701 BCE.
As a “prophet,” Isaiah does not foretell the future, but instead speaks
for Yahweh to indict Israel for empty forms of worship divorced from social
justice. The last verse of today’s reading is optimistic, but is conditional on
Israel’s becoming “willing and obedient” (v. 19). <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><b><u>2 Thessalonians
1:1-4, 11-12<o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">Thessalonica, a port city in northern Greece, was capital of
the Roman province of Macedonia in the First Century. Paul’s First Letter to
the Thessalonians is the oldest part of the Christian Scriptures and was
written by Paul before 50 CE, about 20 years before the first Gospel (Mark) was
written. A principal theme of both 1 and
2 Thessalonians is the return of the Lord Jesus in the end time. In 2
Thessalonians, however, there is an emphasis on living in the present and warnings
about forgeries of Paul’s writings. For
these reasons, many scholars conclude that 2 Thessalonians was written by one
of Paul’s disciples after Paul’s death in 64 CE. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">In today’s reading, the salutation is identical to 1
Thessalonians, followed by a thanksgiving for the faith of the community and a reference
to “persecutions and afflictions” (v.4).
The omitted verses (5 -10) assert that God will afflict the persecutors
and work vengeance on those who do not obey the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Today’s reading concludes with a prayer that
God will make the people worthy of God’s call so that the Lord Jesus will be
glorified in the believers’ lives. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<div style="font-family:arial,helvetica;font-size:10pt;color:black">-----Original Message-----<br>
From: Tom O'Brien <tgobrien@comcast.net><br>
To: Tom O'Brien <tgobrien@comcast.net><br>
Sent: Fri, Oct 14, 2016 9:49 am<br>
Subject: Scripture in Context October 30, 2016<br>
<br>
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<div>Dear Friends, </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Attached is Scripture in Context for October 30, 2016. I
hope you and others find it helpful. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Because we are going to be traveling from October 16 to October 26, I’ll
try to send you the Scripture in Context offering for 11/6 before we get on the
road from CT to FL. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>I’ll send the Scripture in Context for November 13 to you before October
31. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>There will be two different Scripture in Context offerings for November 6,
2016 because some congregations will celebrate All Saints Day on that day and
others will observe the 25th Sunday after Pentecost. You should choose
(use) the one that applies to your tradition. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Prior Scripture in Context offerings back to July 2016 can be found at <a style="href: " target="_blank" href="http://www.scriptureincontext.org">www.scriptureincontext.org</a> </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Blessings, </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Tom </div>
<div><br>
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