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Wisdom
4:7-15 (apocrypha) The good (sometimes) die young
2 Chronicles 24:17-22 The stoning of Zechariah
Acts 6:1-7 Appointment of the seven deacons
Acts 7:59-8:8 Stoning of Stephen and martyrdom
The life of the righteous may be cut short by death, but he will be at
rest.
Honor does not reside in long life or number of years; wisdom is worthy
of
veneration, and an unstained life is better than old age. He who loves
and
pleases God is better taken to heaven early, lest the wickedness and
deceit
around him should have time to corrupt him. Temptation obscures truth,
and lust
undermines the unwise.
The Lord hastened to take away from among the
wicked him
whose soul pleased the Lord. The people saw but did not understand that
God’s
“grace and mercy are with his saints, and that he hath respect unto
(honors)
his chosen” (Wisdom 4:15).
After the high priest Jehoiada died,
during the reign
of Joash, King of Judah, the princes of Judah
forsook
the house of the Lord and took up idolatry. The Lord sent prophets
among them
to call them back to the Lord, but they would not give heed.
Then
Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, was filled
with the
Holy Spirit and rebuked the people, saying “Why do you transgress the
commandments of the Lord so that you cannot prosper? Because you have
forsaken
the Lord, he has forsaken you” (2 Chronicles 24:20).
“But they
conspired
against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in
the
court of the house of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 24:21). “Thus Joash
the king did not remember the kindness which Jehoiada,
Zechariah’s father had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was
dying he
said ‘May the Lord see and avenge’” (2 Chronicles 24:22).
In the early days of the Christian church, before persecution arose,
the church
was growing rapidly, and they were living a communal lifestyle (see
Acts
2:44-47).The Helenists [Greek-speaking
Jews; the
Hebrews (Acts 6:1) probably spoke Aramaic] felt that they were being
neglected
in the daily distribution of food and perhaps other resources.
Therefore
the Twelve “apostles” (the 11 original disciples of Jesus plus Mathias,
who
replaced Judas; see Acts 1:15-26) delegated the duties of distribution
to a
group of seven, traditionally regarded as the first deacons.
They chose
Stephen, “a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit”, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor,
Timon, Parmenas,
and Nicolaus (a Gentile who had converted
to Judaism prior to
becoming a Christian) (the names are Greek; Acts 6:5). These were
commissioned
for this work by prayer and the laying-on of hands by the Apostles.
[“And
Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the
people”
(Acts 6:8) in addition to serving tables, and also taught (Acts
6:9-10), and he
preached before the Jewish council (Sanhedrin), (which led to his
stoning; Acts
7:1-53).]
Stephen was brought before the Sanhedrin, the “council”, the chief
court of the
Jews, on false charges that he prophesied against the Temple (as Jesus
also had been charged).
Stephen preached the Gospel, in response, and his hearers were so
enraged by
what he said that they dragged him out of the city and stoned him to
death (Acts
7:58). The witnesses laid their garments at the feet of Saul (of Tarsus, who
became the
apostle Paul), who agreed that Stephen should be killed (Acts 8:1).
As
Stephen
died, he forgave his executioners [as Jesus had forgiven his (Luke
23:34)].
That day marked the beginning of a great persecution against the Church
in Jerusalem, and believers were
scattered throughout Judea
and Samaria,
except the apostles.
Saul became a leading persecutor of Christians.
The
dispersal brought about by the persecution led to the spread of the
Gospel to
the surrounding area, including Samaria,
which
was inhabited by a mixed remnant of the northern kingdom interbred with
non-Jews introduced following the fall of the northern kingdom to Babylon. Philip,
the deacon
appointed along with Stephen, preached the Gospel in Samaria and many
gave heed to his preaching
which was accompanied by healing miracles.
The passage from the book of the Wisdom of Solomon (a non-canonical
book
included in the apocrypha, as found in Catholic Bibles), offers an
explanation
for why God allows the righteous to die young. It emphasizes that
righteousness
and a personal knowledge of the Lord is more important that long life.
It
expresses the faith that God will rectify injustice; that in his mercy
and
grace he will bless those who trust in him, and that there is hope
beyond this
present world.
After Jehoiada, the high priest, died,
King Joash of Judah
was influenced by his counselors to stray from the worship of the Lord
and into
idolatry. The Lord sent prophets to call the people to repent and
return to the
Lord, but the people wouldn’t listen to the prophets of the Lord. Then
Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the high
priest, was
filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of the Lord.
The rebuke
from
Zechariah made the people so angry that they stoned him to death. Joash ordered Zechariah’s death, although Jehoiada, Zechariah’s father had done much
kindness to Joash. As Zechariah was dying
he said “May the Lord see and
avenge” (2 Chronicles 24:22b). [The Lord did see, and he will avenge:
see Luke
11:51.]
Stephen was the first martyr for the Gospel. Stephen was an exemplary
disciple
of Jesus: He was a servant (see Luke 22:27), teacher and preacher,
“full of
faith and the Holy Spirit” (Acts 7:5). He was obedient to Jesus’ ways.
He
was, like Jesus, falsely accused of preaching against the Temple, and like
Jesus he forgave his
executioners. Although his life was cut short, it was not in
vain; he had
a profound impact, even to this day, and he had the assurance of
eternal life
in heaven with God (Acts 7:55-56). God’s “grace and mercy are with his
saints,
and…he (God) honors his chosen” (Wisdom 4:15).
Don’t expect the world to honor and reward faith and obedience to
Jesus. Jesus
said, “for what does it profit (a person) to gain the whole world and
forfeit
his (eternal) life?” (Mark 8:36). Joash
unjustly
repaid the faithful service of Jehoiada
the high
priest by killing Jehoiada’s son Zechariah
for
speaking the truth.
Believers have a faithful and just King who
remembers and
rewards faithfulness justly. Trust in Jesus and walk in his ways.
The
Lord sees and he will avenge the persecution of his saints. The Lord is
merciful to forgive all who repent and turn to him in true faith [like
Saul,
the persecutor of the church, for example, who became Saint Paul the
Apostle;
see Acts 9:1-22]. The Lord is able and desires to honor obedient faith
in Jesus
with eternal life in heaven.
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first
truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ
and
teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do
you know
with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians
1:13-14)? |