The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) - Day 218: Each Will Be Judged (2023)

Episode Date: August 6, 2023

Fr. Mike reflects on some of the ways that people turn away from God, including: worshipping idols, fasting for selfish reasons, and not honoring the sabbath. He also highlights the passage from Ezekiel 18 that tells us that each person will be judged by their own actions, and not by those of their parents or children. The readings are Isaiah 57-58, Ezekiel 17-18, and Proverbs 13:5-8. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz, and you're listening to the Bible in a Year podcast, where we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of Scripture. The Bible in a Year podcast is brought to you by Ascension. Using the Great Adventure Bible Timeline, we'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story today. It is day 218. We are reading from Isaiah chapter 57 and 58, as well as Ezekiel chapters 17 and 18, and Proverbs chapter 13, verses 5 through 18. The Bible translation,

as always, that we're using today is the one we use every day, which is the Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition. I'm using the Great Adventure Bible from Ascension. If you want to download your own Bible in a Year reading plan, you can visit ascensionpress.com slash Bible in a Year. You can also subscribe to this podcast by clicking on subscribe. You can receive daily episodes and you too can follow along for 218 days, which is what you're doing, which is a phenomenal, incredible thing. Maybe you're even watching these words appear on a screen. If you're following us or watching this on YouTube, that'd be pretty cool too.

As I said, it is day 218. We have Isaiah 57 and 58 in Ezekiel 17, 18 and Proverbs chapter 13, verses five through eight. The book of the prophet Isaiah chapter 57, idolatry condemned. The righteous man perishes and no one lays it to heart. Devout men are taken away while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from calamity.

He enters into peace. They rest in their beds who walk in their uprightness. But you, draw near to hear, sons of the sorceress, offspring of the adulterer and the harlot, of whom are you making sport? Against whom do you open your mouth wide and put out your tongue? Are you not children of transgression, the offspring of deceit? You who burn with lust among the oaks, under every green tree, who slay your children in the valleys, under the clefts of the rocks? Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion. They, they are your lot. To them you have poured out a drink offering, you have brought a cereal offering. Shall I be appeased for these things?

Upon a high and lofty mountain, you have set your bed, and from there you went up to offer sacrifice. Behind the door and the doorpost, you have set up your symbol. For deserting me, you have uncovered your bed. You have gone up to it, you have made it wide, and you have made a bargain for yourself with them. You have loved their bed. You have looked on nakedness. You journeyed to Moloch with oil and multiplied your perfumes. You sent your envoys far off and sent down even to Sheol. You were wearied with the length of your way, but you did not say it is hopeless.

You found new life for your strength, so you were not faint. Whom did you dread and fear so that you lied and did not remember me, did not give me a thought? Have I not held my peace, even for a long time, so that you do not fear me? I will tell of your righteousness and your doings, but they will not help you. When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you. The wind will carry them off. A breath will take them away. But he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land and shall inherit my holy mountain. And it shall be said, build up, build up, prepare the way,

remove every obstruction from my people's way. For thus says the high and lofty one who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy. I dwell in the high and holy place and also with him who is of a contrite and humble spirit to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite. For I will not contend forever, nor will I always be angry for For from me proceeds the Spirit, and I have made the breath of life. Because of the iniquity of his covetousness, I was angry. I struck him, I hid my face, and was angry. But he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart. I have seen his ways, but I will heal him. I will lead him and repay him with comfort, creating for his mourners the fruit of the lips.

Peace, peace to the far and to the near, says the Lord, and I will heal him. But the wicked are like the tossing sea, for it cannot rest, and its waters toss up mire and dirt. There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked. Chapter 58. True and False Fasting and Worship. Cry aloud, spare not, lift up your voice like a trumpet, declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness, and did not forsake the ordinance of their God. as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance of their God. They ask of me righteous judgments. They delight to draw near to God.

Why have we fasted and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves and you take no knowledge of it? Behold, in the day of your fast, you seek your own pleasure and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a man to humble himself? Is it to bow down with his head like a rush and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?

Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the Lord? Is not this the fast that I choose? To loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke. Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house when you see the naked to cover him and to not hide yourself from your own flesh. Then shall your light break forth like the dawn and your healing shall spring up speedily. Your righteousness shall go before you.

The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call and the Lord will answer. You shall cry and he will say, here I am. If you take away from the midst of you the yoke the pointing of the finger and speaking wickedness if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noon day and the lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire with good things and make your bones strong.

And you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water whose waters do not fail. And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt. You shall raise up the foundations of many generations. You shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in. If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the Lord honorable, if you honor it, not going your own ways or seeking your own pleasure or talking idly, then you shall take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth.

I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. The book of the prophet Ezekiel, chapter 17, Two Eagles and the Vine. The word of the Lord came to me, son of man, propound a riddle and speak an allegory to the house of Israel. Say, Thus says the Lord God, A great eagle, with great wings and long pinions, rich in plumage of many colors, came to Lebanon, and took the top of the cedar. He broke off the topmost of its young twigs, and carried it to a land of trade, and set it in a city of merchants. Then he took of the seed of the land, and planted it in fertile soil. He placed it beside abundant waters. He set it like a willow twig, and it sprouted and became a low-spreading

vine, and its branches turned toward him, and its roots remained where it stood. So it became a vine, and brought forth branches and put forth foliage. But there was another great eagle with great wings and much plumage. And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him and shot forth its branches toward him that he might water it. From the bed where it was planted, he transplanted it to good soil by abundant waters that it might bring forth branches and bear fruit and become a noble vine. Say, thus says the Lord God, will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its branches, so that all its fresh sprouting leaves wither?

It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it from its roots. Behold, when it is transplanted, will it thrive? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind strikes it, wither away on the bed where it grew? Then the word of the Lord came to me. Say now to the rebellious house, do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem

and took her king and her princes and brought them to him to Babylon. And he took one of the royal offspring and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. The chief men of the land he had taken away that the kingdom might be humble and not lift itself up, and that by keeping his covenant it might stand. But he rebelled against him by sending ambassadors to Egypt that they might give him horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Can a man escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant and

yet escape as I live, says the Lord God? Surely in the place where the king dwells, who made him king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die. Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives. Because he despised the oath and broke the covenant, because he gave his hand and yet did all these things, he shall not escape. Therefore, thus says the Lord God, as I live, surely my oath, which he despised, and my covenant, which he broke, I will repay upon his head. I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare. And I will bring him to

Babylon and enter into judgment with him there for the treason he has committed against me. And all the pick of his troops shall fall by the sword and the survivors shall be scattered to every wind. And you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken. Thus says the Lord God, I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it upon a high and lofty mountain. On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bring forth boughs and bear fruit and become a noble cedar, and under it will dwell all kinds of beasts. In the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest. And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, bring low the Chapter 18

Each will be judged by his own conduct. The word of the Lord came to me again. What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel? The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge. As I live, says the Lord God, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel.

Behold, all souls are mine. The soul of the father, as well as the soul of the son is mine. The soul that sins shall die. If a man is righteous and does what is lawful and right, if he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor's wife or approach a woman in her time of impurity, does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry, and covers the naked with a garment, does not lend at interest or take any increase, withholds his hand from

the iniquity, executes true justice between man and man, walks in my statutes, and is careful to observe my ordinances, he is righteous. He shall surely live, says the Lord God. If he begets a son who is a robber, a shedder of blood, who does none of these duties, but eats upon the mountains, defiles his neighbor's wife, oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, does not restore the pledge, lifts up his eyes to the idols, commits abomination, lends at interest, and takes increase, shall he then live? He shall not live. He has done all these abominable things. He shall surely die. His blood shall be upon himself. But if this man begets a son who sees all the sins which his father has done and fears and does not do likewise, who does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his

eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor's wife, does not wrong anyone, exacts no pledge, commits no robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment, withholds his hand from iniquity, takes no interest or increase, observes my ordinances, and walks in my statutes, he shall not die for his father's iniquity. He shall surely live. As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what is not good among his people, behold, he shall die for his iniquity. Yet you say, why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?

When the son has done what is lawful and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, he shall surely live. The soul that sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself. But if a wicked man turns away from all his sins, which he has committed and keeps all my statutes

and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live. He shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him. For the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity and does the same abominable things that

the wicked man does, shall he live? None of the righteous deeds which he has done shall be remembered. For the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has committed, he shall die. guilty and the sin he has committed, he shall die. Yet you say, the way of the Lord is not just. Hear now, O house of Israel, is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just? When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he shall die for it. For the iniquity which he has committed, he shall die. Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is lawful and right, he shall save his life. Because he considered and turned away from all the transgressions which he had committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. Yet the house of Israel says the way of the Lord is not just. O house of Israel, are my ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?

Therefore, I will judge you, O house of Israel, everyone according to his ways, says the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God. So turn and live. The book of Proverbs chapter 13 verses 5 through 8.

A righteous man hates falsehood, but a wicked man acts shamefully and disgracefully. Righteousness guards him whose way is upright, but sin overthrows the wicked. One man pretends to be rich yet has nothing. Another pretends to be poor yet has great wealth. The ransom of a man's life is his wealth, but a poor man has no means of redemption. Father in heaven, we give you praise. We thank you. We thank you so much for giving us your wisdom and sharing with us the way in which you see, the way in which you think, just like yesterday. We recognized yesterday that you spoke to us and said that your ways are not our ways

and that our minds, our thoughts are not your thoughts. And we're so grateful for that. We're so grateful that you do share your ways. You share your thoughts with us. And so we ask you to please, once again, like we prayed yesterday, like we keep on praying, allow your words to continue to change our hearts, allow your power to change our lives. Allow your power to change our lives

and allow your grace to change us forever so we can belong to you not only today, but also in eternity. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Okay. So, oh gosh, you guys, so good. Remember chapter 57, we mentioned yesterday in Ezekiel chapter 16, how, and this has been a common theme, right? Where idolatry is often represented as adultery. And so, because it happens so much. In fact, so often do we and the people of Israel, we're the same, we're all the same people, broken, same broken heart, same brokenness. We turn away from the God who loves us to anything, anything. And that's what idolatry is, is taking good things, typically good things, and making them the ultimate things, right? Because it's very rare that people make idols

out of bad things, but we make idols out of good things and make them into ultimate things. And yet at the same time, we can make idols out of, gosh, well, here is a great example. In chapter 57 of Isaiah, it says here, it says that you burn with lust among the oaks under every green tree. So once again, kind of like the imagery of idolatry and adultery, one of the things they say, wait, under the oaks, under every green tree. Well, those green trees, those oaks, those high places were often considered places of fertility, right? And so in the ancient world, they would commit impure acts, with the idea of we're appeasing some kind of God or goddess of fertility. And so not only would

there be idolatry happening there, but also be like lewd conduct or promiscuity or fornication would that be happening in those places. And here is God saying like, this is what you're doing. And you're not only doing this, but you're doing this claiming that you're doing the right thing. This is the bonkers thing, right? This is the crazy thing, is that you're doing this thinking you're doing the right thing. It also goes on to say, among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion. They are your lot. To them, you poured out a drink offering. You have brought a cereal offering. And that same, remember, remember all that stuff in Leviticus, all that in Numbers and Deuteronomy about the drink offering, you know, the drink libation, that cereal offering. Here's God saying, you're still doing that, but you're doing it to false gods, right? You're doing that

in the stones of the valley. Not only that, but it goes on to say that you offered your sacrifice and you journeyed to Moloch with oil and multiplied your perfumes. So Moloch, remember that false god we mentioned before, they'd often have a metal statue of Moloch with arms outstretched in his hands or where his hands would be, would be this receptacle area. And people would hyper heat, heat up the statue, maybe put even embers or fire in the hands area and then place their own children, their own infants, babies into this place.

And this is Isaiah highlighting once again, the degree to which people are giving false worship. And, and, and so then it goes from here. God promises, I'm not always going to be angry. I'm going to bring you back to me. But then in chapter 58, it talks about this good and false worship, true and false fasting, true and false worship, where people are fasting falsely. They're worshiping falsely. And then asking the question, well, how come God doesn't hear us?

We're fasting. You don't see this? We humbled ourselves. You don't take any knowledge of it? And then God responds, well, yeah, in the day of your fast, you seek your own pleasure. You oppress all your workers. In fact, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and hit with wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice be heard on high. So this is the reality, right? Is that here are these people in chapter 57 that are worshiping false gods. And then even when it comes to giving the Lord God, right? The real God worship fasting, they're not even doing it the right way. They're doing it just for show. And they're not even doing it the right way. They're doing it just for show, and they're not even doing it with their whole heart, which is just remarkable and remarkably

presumptuous. You know, it's having the surface rules and doing it for the wrong reason and not doing it for the wrong intention. Now, sometimes the motivation we have is selfish, right? Obviously, we pray when we're listening to the Bible. Sometimes that motivation is selfish. Like the drive is, I want to save my soul, or I want to be holy, or I want, I want, I want, right? And that's not awful. It's not the best thing in the world, right? Our motivation should be love. But at the same time, we recognize that it's not always love. Sometimes our motivation is something other than love. At the same time, that's okay. God still accepts that. He still accepts that humility, accepts that offering that we have.

But the goal, right? The intention, what do we want ultimately? That is a very, very important because even if we have a selfish motivation, ultimately we want to belong to him. But here is the kind of fasting, the kind of prayer that's happening in chapter 58, that yep, is selfish. Not only the motivation is selfish, but even the goal is selfish. Not only the reason why I'm doing this, but even the ultimate end, like what you want to get out of this is still yet selfish.

And that is painful to the Lord. And that is painful to the people because we're giving God less than he deserves, less than he is owed. Now, if we jump over to chapter 17 and 18 in Ezekiel, we're going to learn some other things. So here they are. We have the parable of the two eagles and the branch. And this is one of those really grateful moments where not only is there a parable, but there's an explanation of the parable in chapter 17, where here's an eagle that takes a branch and plants it and makes it grow. And it does grow, but the branch turns to another eagle and says, you take care of us instead. And then the first eagle comes and

kind of destroys it essentially. And then Ezekiel explains what that means and says, okay, so here's the first eagle, the great eagle is Nebuchadnezzar, right? The king of Babylon. And he took part of you, took the top of the cedar and broke off its young twigs and carried them to a land of trade, right? So he takes Zedekiah, the king, and takes his sons and brings them to Babylon. And here's people like Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, or Hananiah, Ezariah, Mishael. And they're, yeah, they're dwelling in Babylon, but they're being fruitful. In fact, not only are they being fruitful, but the remnant is left in Israel that Nebuchadnezzar left their second deportation

with Ezekiel, of course. But even then, there were people who remained in Jerusalem. And yet the people remaining in Jerusalem made an alliance with Egypt with the idea that we can fight against Babylon. So they chose another eagle who was powerful, thinking this eagle will be better for us. And because of that, the first eagle, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, said, okay, well, in that case, I'm going to destroy

you completely. And that's the third deportation that he takes from Jerusalem and leaves only a remnant of the blind, the crippled, and the lame who are left in Jerusalem. So rather than choosing to be a vassal state, they end up being completely destroyed, basically, with just that small, small remnant living in Jerusalem and the rest of them being in exile. And so that's one of those parables that, okay, that makes more sense now. The first eagle is Babylon, second eagle is Pharaoh, and the branch is Judah or the people of Israel. Chapter 18, what a gift. I mean, this is one that we do have in the lectionary. I mentioned yesterday, the lectionary. We do have this in our readings of the mass where it talks about the justice of God, which is

every person is judged on their own conduct. They are not judged on the holiness of their parents or on the holiness of their children and not judged on the sinfulness of the parents or on the sinfulness of their children. And that's really important for us to be reminded of in so many ways, not only because there are some people who are like, oh yeah, you know, I have a whole line of family members who have been followers of the Lord. Okay, but are you a follower of the Lord? In fact, I remember someone once saying, God doesn't have any grandchildren. He's not a grandfather.

He's only a father. And as a father, he only has children. He doesn't have any grandchildren. He's not a grandfather. He's only a father. And as a father, he only has children. He doesn't have grandchildren. So my mom or dad was really, really faithful. That is great for them. It doesn't kind of mean anything when it comes to me. I have to choose also to be faithful. Or maybe my parents were awful.

And again, that doesn't mean anything for me. I get to choose to be faithful. That's so good. And yet here, you say the way of the Lord is not just. And God is saying, oh no, this is actual justice. Whoever it is turns away from their sin to me, I receive them. And whoever turns away from their righteousness to evil, I allow them to go. But God doesn't want that to happen.

And that last words of chapter 18, he says, I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God. So turn and live. And that's his deepest desire, right? God's desire is, well, his deepest desire is to love, you know, pour out love from the Father to the Son and Son to the Father, and that love being the Holy Spirit. But his desire is that none of us should be lost. None of us turn away from him.

But all of us turn to him and live. And so, man, the stakes are high. You know, this is eternity we're talking about. This is the battle between, the battle between good and evil happening in our day that the battle between good and evil, heaven and hell, um, God and the powers of powers, forces of evil are happening all of the time. And even the small decisions of our lives. And that is, that's something to really reflect on. Here's the last thing. I thought that was the last thing, but I, you know, in the Isaiah today, we hear a lot about keeping the Sabbath holy and it's so, so powerful, right? Because here's God who says, no, this is in chapter 58.

If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, call the Sabbath, the delight and the holy day of the Lord honorable. If you honor it, not going your own ways, not seeking your own pleasure, but talking idly, then you shall take delight in the Lord. And, you know, we can sometimes give the Pharisees a bad rap because they're really concerned about the Sabbath. But at the same time, we have to understand

that it's likely that the Pharisees were concerned about the Sabbath because they knew Isaiah 58 and they knew the rest of the Old Testament where here's God saying, this is a big deal that you actually honor my Sabbath. And so here's Jesus who's honoring the Sabbath by doing miracles. Here's Jesus who's honoring the Sabbath by setting people free. And that's again, what he says. He says, this is, but here's the thing, those Pharisees who are emphasizing the last part of Isaiah 58 with kind of forgetting the first part of Isaiah 58, they're saying, no, we have to keep holy the Sabbath. And Jesus is

saying, yeah, but here's the Sabbath, loose the bonds of wickedness, undo the thongs of the yoke, let the oppressed go free to break every yoke. And that's the key here. We have to always, always keep the entirety of scripture in mind. It's not that Jesus is just flouting the rules. He's not, he's not flouting the rules. He's not. He's not flouting the rules. What he's doing is getting to the heart of the rule, which is at the very beginning of chapter 58 and not merely isolating the end of chapter 58, that Jesus is saying, yes, I am honoring the Sabbath by doing exactly what God said through Isaiah in 58, loosening the bonds of wickedness, undoing the thongs of the yoke, letting the oppressed go free,

because isn't there anything more powerful than healing someone, bringing them back to life and letting them go free? And so scripture doesn't cancel out scripture. Scripture gives layers and gives color and dimension to scripture. So we're so grateful. That means that we have to also be those kind of people who honor the Sabbath, those people who honor the Lord and give him the worship he deserves and desires. But we know our temptation as well is to turn away from him. So let's turn towards him right now, turn back to him and live, which is what God wants. I'm praying for you that you do that. Please pray for me that I keep doing that. My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless.