Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem
The Names and Titles of God (Sun of Righteousness)
Malachi 4:2
2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.
King James Version
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Tomorrow will be the last OLD Testament reference to the names and Titles of God. Then I will be off to the Berkshire Mountains for a huge wedding that will take all weekend. Upon my return on Tuesday, I will start a up again with the NEW Testament Names and Titles of God, which will also include the Names and Titles for Christ. You will see how they fit perfectly with the Old Testament Names, and how consistent and harmonious the two Testaments are with each other.
In the 1968 Star Trek Episode "Bread and Circuses", there is a horrible pun used as a plot device. The episode takes place on another planet, which, for some strange reason, resembles Ancient Rome. There is a caste of slaves who serve as gladiators, and they seem to have a primitive religion of Sun-Worship. It is only at the end of the episode that Lt. Uhura posits that the slaves don't worship the SUN, they worship the SON of God. This causes Captain Kirk to muse that, if Christ visited Planet Earth, why could He have not visited this planet too?
This makes a few assumptions that, in 1978, didn't seen too unusual. (It may be noted that subsequent Star Trek Series were not as welcoming to Christianity, Patriotism, or Family Values, but that's a whole other issue). Here are some of the things that would have to be true in order for Lt. Uhura's solution to work:
1. Language: The Planet's Language would have to be English, or at least a language in which the word for the Planet's Star and the word for a male offspring sounded very much alike. This only works in English, as far as I know. It doesn't even work in Latin, the Language of Ancient Rome.
2. The Endurance of Christianity: In another episode, Lt. Uhura tells Abraham Lincoln that we "no longer are afraid of labels" for people. And yet, in "Bread and Circuses", Lt. Uhura labels the slaves as "Christians". She does so in an affirming and positive way, as if she is a Christian too. Then Captain Kirk affirms HER affirmation with his musings about the Son of God visiting other planets besides Earth. (The actor, William Shatner, happens to be Jewish). The general feeling is that both Uhura and Kirk just assume Christianity as a fact of life, even in the 23rd Century, and even on other planets.
3. Popular Culture: Up until just a few years ago, Christianity was a prominent part of Western Culture. Even people who were not religious knew Bible Verses, as they are peppered throughout our language. Hollywood made movies about Boys Town, Missionaries in Red China heroically scaling mountains to escape the communists, Urban Priests changing the lives of youths in the city, and so on. We saw the lives of saints like Bernadette and Joan of Arc made into movies, and there were several epics based upon the Life of Christ. Star Trek TOS was originally supposed to depict the evolution of Human Culture beyond borders and religions, but it actually depicted the ideal end-product of WESTERN Culture, which was founded and nurtured by Christianity. While this is just my humble opinion, and while this opinion is targeted for much abuse from Academia and the Media, it is what it is, and I will not apologize for it.
With that out of the way, let's look at Today's Name for God. He is called "The Sun of Righteousness". It's easy to make the same connection that Lt. Uhura made and thing "The SON of Righteousness", but the pun doesn't exist in Hebrew or Greek. So the Prophet Malachi is talking about that big yellow star in the center of our Solar System. He also speaks of this Sun having wings, and that, in those wings is healing.
The recent Solar Eclipse resurrected the idea that you must NOT look directly at the Sun, even if most of it is covered up by the shadow of our moon. This Sun, although you can't look directly at it without going blind, brings joy, peace, and healing, so that we are like creatures rejoicing in the sunshine, kicking up our heels and jumping around like baby calves being let out of the stall for the first time.
Malachi is the last Prophet in the Old Testament. His Book is situated in your Bible just before the New Testament begins with the Book of Matthew. After Malachi, there are some Historic Books known as The Apocrypha, but these are not Prophetic Books. They tell the story of Israel during the 400 bleak years between Malachi's Prediction and The Opening Genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1. It is from this period that we learn the origins of Chanukah, the depredations of Alexander The Great and his successors, and so on. They are great stories, but not "Prophetic". There are disputes about the Inspiration of the Apocrypha, and whether or not they should be included in the Canon of Scripture, but whatever you think about that, Malachi still is considered to be the last prophetic voice before the Coming of the Messiah.
His Name for the Messiah is "The Sun Of Righteousness". That is a very powerful Name. Something really BIG was about to happen, and even the Sun and the Stars were on the alert.
Come and Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.
For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. (Mark 4:22)
God Bless America.
Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.
Hallelujah and Amen
ML/LTOS