Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18

In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.

Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.

“I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.

“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: ‘The four great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’

Grace, peace, and mercy to you from God our Father, from our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ, and the Holy Spirit who unites us in faith. Amen.

‘Tis the season for spooky ghosts and terrifying demons, so it only seems natural to preach about Daniel’s vision of four frightening beasts from today’s Old Testament scripture. It’s a vision that seems like it would have fit well in Pastor Mark’s “Game of Thrones” summer sermon series, but I trust by the end you will see why this scripture is well suited for today’s observance of All Saint’s Day.

Daniel’s vision is an example of apocalyptic literature. Except for an adult forum on the book of Revelation a few years ago, I don’t remember the subject of apocalyptic writing coming up much in the last few years around here. The genre got a bad rap back in the 90s when the popular yet ill-conceived Left Behind series of books was published. That book series was built around the idea that the apocalyptic Biblical texts were a coded depiction of the eventual destruction of the world corresponding with Jesus’ second coming to earth.

The Left Behind writers were correct that apocalyptic texts are mean to be decoded and interpreted to make sense of the present and future; however, their fundamental mistake was their failure to grasp that the apocalyptic literature in the Bible is always good news.

The depiction of the beasts is omitted from the lectionary selections. I will fill you in on what you missed so that you can meet our four beasts and see what good news they have for us.

“The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.” (verse 4)

Daniel’s original audience would have associated this lion with the Babylonian empire that conquered the Hebrew people in the 7th century B.C. The imagery connecting lions with Babylonians was very ‘on the nose’ to the original Hebrew audience. The lion was the symbol used by the Babylonian King. Also, recall that Daniel, a servant in the Babylonian court, had survived an encounter in the lion’s den.

“[The second] looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’” (verse 5)

Ok, a giant flesh-craving bear ready to pounce. Not only is this my wife’s worst nightmare, but it is also a reference to the Median Empire—the ones who unseated the Babylonians and served as another brutal occupying force for the Hebrews.

“[The third] looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.” (verse 6)

This four-headed winged leopard refers to the Persians, who supplanted the Medes as the next in line to rule over the Hebrews.

Lastly, we have the “fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns…there before me was another horn…This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully...the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them…” (Daniel 7:7-8, 20-21).

Though the artists have presented us with a visual image of the beast, it is interesting that no animal imagery is used in the scripture. That fact, combined with the sheer violence and domination attributed to this beast, tells us that it is wholly different from the ones that have come before it. So too, the empire it represents was wholly different from the ones that came before it. This makes the Greek superpower the most likely allegorical link. It’s worth noting that this empire more than all the others sets itself up in opposition to God’s rule. The talking horn, which is characterized by boastful speech (think of the Greek conqueror, Alexander THE GREAT), illustrates the danger inherent in rulers who lead out of pride, arrogance, self-aggrandizement, and blasphemy.

The original audience who heard the stories of Daniel and his visions would have recognized the four beasts as the four empires who had conquered the Hebrews. So where’s the good news in such a vision?

The good news comes at the end of the vision, when someone or something referred to as “the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom” (Daniel 7:22). The beasts were slain and “the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever” (Daniel 7:18).

The good news of apocalyptic literature in the Bible is that God always triumphs. Things may look bad. Thing may be bad. Things may get worse. But there is always hope. God will always emerge victorious. That’s the message people of faith are bold to believe in and act according to.

Daniel’s prophetic vision about the beasts is a warning to anyone who would place their trust in the worldly forces of boastful political leaders and concentrated power. The vision, as well as the scope of world history, makes it clear that these things manifest their monstrous nature against the people of God. But, and always more importantly, God will triumph over all the beasts and all the empires and all the boastful leaders.

This trajectory of despair to hope made me think of a quote that has been attributed to everyone from John Lennon to Ed Sheeran, from author Paulo Coehlo to the film Best Exotic Marigold Hotel:

“Everything will be alright in the end. If it’s not alright, it’s not the end.”

What better message to bear for All Saints Day, when we recall the lives of those who have gone before us and also contemplate our own mortality. Even in the midst of death and the death-dealing cultures of this world, “the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever” (Daniel 7:18).

Be aware of the beasts who threaten to destroy. Join with God in the divine battle against them. Be brave in the face of your own mortality. And trust that not even death will prevent you from participating in the kingdom of God for ever and ever. Amen.

Mark 9:2-9

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

Someone once told me they hated the Lord of the Rings movies. That was a hard thing for me to hear. As a die-hard Tolkien fan who has spent countless hours immersed in the mythology and adventures of middle-earth through the novels and films, it’s hard for me to comprehend how someone could say they hated the original trilogy of films; as imperfect as they were.

This person elaborated, saying he stumbled upon the movie on TV and gave up after about a half-hour because he couldn’t understand what was going on. In the course of the conversation it became clear that he had seen just one of the movies in the original trilogy – the last one, The Return of the King.

It’s no wonder he didn’t understand what was going on; there are six hours of film material that sets up The Return of the King. If he didn’t understand what the ring is, why a tiny hobbit and allies had set off to destroy it, or the dynamics of the forces and obstacles in their way, then there was no way he could be invested in the outcome of the story.

In a way, jumping into the story of the Transfiguration of Christ in Mark’s gospel account is like skipping the first two Lord of the Rings movies and only watching a ten minute scene from the third movie. You might appreciate the special effects or a particular line delivered by an actor, but you’re left with no clear understanding of how the scene fits into the larger story, much less what implications the story has for you.

So, briefly, here are the stories you need to know in order to appreciate the story of the Transfiguration.

Episode 1: Moses and Mt. Sinai.

The Lord summons Moses up the mountain where, over the course of 40 days and nights, Moses encounters God through wind, earthquake, and fire. Moses receives a lengthy list of commandments, starting with what we know as the ten commandments, but also including laws about the altar, slaves, violence, property, restitution, festivals, etc. The last thing Moses does before leaving the mountaintop is he requests that the Lord’s favor would be with him and his people. The Lord agrees.

Moses returned to camp with the commandments and finds the people had made a golden calf idol to worship, effectively rejecting the Lord who brought them out of slavery. Moses is furious and smashes the stone tablets engraved with the commandments. The Lord is furious and threatens to destroy the people. Moses intervenes, however, and the Lord’s mind is changed…although the Lord still sends a plague upon the people. One could make the case that the people got sick less due to divine wrath and more likely because Moses had ground up the golden idol and made the people drink it.

We’ll fast-forward decades after Moses’s mountaintop experience to Episode 2: Elijah and the SIlence.

Elijah was a prophet to the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Elijah led a military victory over followers of Baal, which outraged Jezebel, the Queen of the Northern Kingdom. Fearing for his life, Elijah fled from the promised land and went into the wilderness, eventually coming to Mt. Sinai.

Elijah hopes for a Moses-like moment. He wants The Lord to appear in the fire, wind, and earthquake. He wants the Lord to bestow to him the new rules so that he could return to the promised land and usher in a new age of fidelity. He wants to be the new Moses.

But this time on Mt. Sinai, Lord was not in the wind, earthquake, or fire; rather, God was in the sheer silence. Not a "still, small voice" (as has been erroneously translated), but it is in the silence that God speaks. In the silence, Elijah understands what he must do; he must return to the same people who had threatened to kill him and continue to proclaim the prophetic word of justice and truth.

Jesus’s disciples and the first Christians were very familiar with these stories. They understood mountains had played a significant role as important places of divine revelation. They also understood that things go awry once you head down from the mountain and try to communicate your divine experience back in the “real world.”

Fast-forward once more to Episode 3: Daniel and the Mysterious Figure.

Daniel was a noble and faithful Hebrew man whom the Lord rescued from the den of lions. The final part of Daniel’s story involves an encounter with “a man clothed in linen….His face was like a flash of lightning, and his eyes were like burning torches” (Daniel 10:5-6). This luminous figure foretells of a great military victory for the Hebrew kingdom, ushering in a time of prosperity and peace; and concludes with a mysterious statement about the resurrection of the dead. This figure was often understood as a symbol of the Christ or Messiah.

Here we have two stories of dine revelation happening on a mountain; and one story of a figure clothed in blinding white promising the Lord would lead the Hebrew people to victory on the earth.

With these stories in our rearview, we can now turn our attention to today’s story of the Transfiguration.

The writer of the Gospel of Mark likely thought this was an important story to include in his collection of Jesus-stories because it is so obviously in continuity with well-known Hebrew stories, as we’ve just explored. However, as with all the great gospel stories, it’s power is precisely where the story puts a radical spin on previously-held truths.

Jesus has been very active teaching, healing, and providing for the people suffering great need. At this point Peter has proclaimed Jesus as the Messiah. Only a couple verses later Peter rebukes Jesus for claiming that he would be killed by the religious and political forces. After all, Peter knew of the promise of victory given to Daniel by the mysterious figure. By talking about being killed, Jesus was getting the story wrong.

Jesus, Peter, James and John head up a high mountain and there Jesus is transfigured. His clothes become dazzling white and Elijah and Moses show up and start talking to Jesus.

Peter’s mind in blown. He knows something incredible is happening. Some new divine revelation is about to be revealed. And then it hits him. “Uh-oh, he thinks; I know what happens when people go back down the mountain…and it’s never good.” Peter’s excitement turns to terror.

Once more Peter rebukes Jesus, this time it’s proactive and subtle; but it is a rebuke nonetheless. Peter refers to Jesus as “Rabbi.” In Mark’s gospel, the disciples only ever call Jesus “Rabbi” when they’re about to challenge or confront him. It’s a power move, designed to pin Jesus within the confines of the established Hebrew religion – the one that promised great blessings for the people so long as they remained faithful.

So Peter calls out to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here." But what he's really saying is something like this...

“Hey Rabbi, don’t forget your obligation is to our religion, so whatever it is you’re talking about with those two, be careful. You know what, let’s just hang out up here. We got Moses and Elijah here, which is great. Plus, as long as we’re up here, we’re safe. Whatever you three are talking about is probably bad news for everyone else, and I don’t like giving people bad news. So, what d’ya say. Wanna pitch a tent and never go back down?”

And then comes a loud voice, saying, “This is my son, the beloved; listen to him.”

And there’s the twist of the story. On the top of this new mountain, there is no new divine revelation. No new commandments. No wind, fire, earthquake, or even silence. There is only the acknowledgment that everything Peter needs to know has already been said by Jesus before they summited the mountain.

And what has Jesus been saying recently? He has been talking about how he is going to die and be raised back to life.

Jesus has been sharing a new radical divine revelation the whole time. It’s the same message Peter rebuked Jesus for saying.

God’s purpose is not a military victory over Israel’s oppressors. God’s purpose is peace..

God’s purpose is not to give the Hebrews and Christ-followers all the world’s resources. God’s purpose is for all things to be shared abundantly among all people.

God’s purpose is not a cult of adulation. God’s purpose is the way of the cross.

As one biblical commentator puts it, God’s phrase, “Listen to him!” means that the disciples are to believe Jesus’ word that “rejection, suffering, death, and resurrection are integral to his messianic mission, and that the way of the cross is equally integral and inescapable for all who would follow him (cf. Mark 8:34–38).”*

There is always a chance that we would use the relative security of religion to wall us in from doing the real work of discipleship. The real work of discipleship is cruciform. It is going down from the mountain into the world that desperately needs the message of peace, love, hope, and unlimited forgiveness.

May you be aware of the times when your faith is “Peter-ing” out – the times when you desire to choose safety over service and comfort over care. God is on the mountain just as God is on the cross; but God also comes down from the mountain the same way God comes down from the cross.

The real work of discipleship is cruciform. It is risky and dangerous. It calls us to move away from false assurances and instead to take the leap of faith into a path we cannot see.

The real work of discipleship is cruciform. It is driven by a love “that refuses to “play the world’s power game of domination, exploitation, greed, and deception.”**

The real work of discipleship leads to the cross, where everything that needs to die is put to death; and everything beautiful rises again, and again, and again; because the beautiful things in life will come back to us.

Amen.

* Rodney J. Hunter, Feasting on the Word, p.452.
** Hunter, p.454.

Everything Will Be Alright in the End

Petering Out On The Mountaintop