The Lord will wash away the filth of the women of Zion; he will cleanse the bloodstains from Jerusalem by a spirit of judgement and a spirit of fire.
I've struggled with this verse. I don't feel filthy and bloodstained.
I reached out to others* on this same Advent journey and they draw strength from being a bloodstained woman of Zion. They draw strength from the female body's bloody, messy, inconvenient ability to bring forth life. This is NOT where I find my strength. There is so much more to me than my ability to usher life into the world.
So, I had to dig deeper, make room if you will, for a different way this verse can speak to me.
If we instead view filth as sin - our pride, our idolatry, our vanity - then this begins to make more sense. I am covered with the stains of these. Now imagine the blood of Jerusalem as the oppression and cruelty we see in the world today. I would love to make room for the Lord to come down and rid us of hatred of those who don't look like us, of violence towards those protecting what is sacred, of the pride that makes us turn our heads and say "This doesn't affect me so it's not my problem."
Lord, make room in our hearts for your mercy towards the filth and stains we carry and that we see on our brothers and sisters.
*If you would like to read another take on this verse, check out Dr. Tracy Radosevic's interpretation here.
No comments:
Post a Comment