Daily Prophets
Day 63
“A harsh prophecy has been told to me: the betrayer is betraying, the ravager is ravaging. Advance Elam, Lay siege Media. I have put an end to all her sighing. My loins are filled with anguish; My mind is confused, I shudder in panic. What I have heard from God of Hosts, the God of Israel, I have told to you.”(Isaiah 21:2-4,10).
Isaiah is telling us that those that have betrayed before will betray again. This is an important lesson for all of us, many of us believe that what one does to another person they will not do to us. After all, the betrayers spoken about here, probably betrayed someone else to the people in power so we can trust them, right? Wrong! God is telling us, through Isaiah, that harshness is coming, the ones you trust to do right and good for you will not. They have betrayed God, they have ravaged you and your possessions, do not trust them nor follow them.
Yet, of course Isaiah knows that they people will continue to do what they have always done, whatever is expedient and easy; even if it leads to ruin. Knowing this, Isaiah is gripped by anguish, trembling, confusion and panic. He is so upset for the people and for God. Here again is an example of the prophet holding God and human in the same thought, in the same moment, as Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel teaches.
Verse 10 here reminds us that this is not something Isaiah wants to do, necessarily, rather it is something he has to do. He has received the word from God and has to tell the people, he is incapable of staying silent, God has chosen him for this task and he will faithfully carry out God’s Will.
Rabbi Heschel speaks of the depth of Isaiah’s agony in verses 2-4, I hear his empathy for Isaiah and for the people who could not/would not hear the prophet and heed his words. He goes on to say: “there is no doubt that the prophets were conscious of their own sincerity; that their tongues were not confuted by their consciences.”(The Prophets, pg 427). Rabbi Heschel is teaching us that the Prophets could discern between what their hearts wanted and what God wanted. They accepted the mission to minister to the people by repeating God’s words, hopes, anger, fear to the people and identifying with both God and the people as we see in these verses. This is the model that was set for us by the Prophets and we have discarded it and tried to turn the prophets into studies in psychosis rather than studies in inspiration, faithfulness and love to and for God and humanity.
If only our political leaders could be so loyal. I want to shout from the rooftops to the people who continue to go along with the betrayers and the ravagers, believing that it would never happen to them. We have see the siege of Russia on our election system and, instead of making the system more secure, some states are trying to restrict who votes through a series of machinations that were stopped in the 60’s. What is so scary is that the elected leaders don’t shudder, don’t feel the panic, have stopped being anguished by these events; their minds are confused and seem to be staying that way! We, The People, must speak the words of God to them, as our founding fathers did: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” All men, all women, all people have these rights that some of our political leaders are helping to take away-on the right and the left. “If not now, when? as Rabbi Hillel asks!
In recovery, we know the life of the ravager and the betrayer because prior to our recovery, we were them. For many of us, when we did our first writings and our first inventory, we shuddered, we were panicked and we were able to see the confusion of our minds. Recovery has given us the gift of clearer vision, minds that are less confused and the ability to hear God’s voice. We live in ways that invite God in and God does become both our co-pilot and navigator. We are constantly checking in with God/Higher Power, to make sure we are on the correct course and make whatever course corrections are necessary in the moment. We also, like Isaiah, are called to spread the message and reach out to, speak to, and give hope to other people who are suffering. This is the gift that our recovery and God give to us. I know this is the cause of our gratitude and joy.
I have betrayed and ravaged in my days of drinking and stealing. I have betrayed in my recovery as well. I know this. The biggest betrayal has been the betrayal of my knowing and the betrayal of trust that Harriet and Heather have in me. When I betray what I know in order to get along, get something for me and/or for another; disaster always follows.. When I betray what I know to be true, good and right I betray the faith of Harriet and Heather to always protect them by protecting me. Most of all, I betray the faith God has in me to do the next right thing, no matter what. I realize my lack of hearing God and speaking God’s words at times. I realize my inappropriate timing of speaking God’s words at times. I also know that more often than not, I reached out to people with the words God wanted them to hear. My errors are some, my faithfulness to God and humans, more. When do you betray and when do you stay faithful? Stay safe and God Bless, Rabbi Mark