All Streams Flow to the Sea

Qoheleth, the world-weary narrator of Ecclesiastes, often thought to be the voice of Solomon, Israel’s sage king, looked on the phenomenon of rivers flowing to the sea and saw in them evidence of the tedium and futility of life.

All streams flow into the sea,

yet the sea is never full.

To the place the streams come from,

there they return again.

All things are wearisome,

more than one can say.

Ecclesiastes 1:7-8

The Sound of Mountain Water

All earth brims with his glory.

Yes and Yes and Yes.

Psalm 72:19 The Message

A friend recently introduced me to the writings of Wallace Stegner, (1909-1993) an American writer, educator and conservationist. In one of his books on the western wilderness, The Sound of Mountain Water, Stegner recounts his earliest experience of a river at the age of eleven. His words resonate with the Biblical theme that “all the earth brims with God’s glory.”

Stegner writes:

The Aral Sea Disaster

The Aral Sea stands as one of the monstrous environmental catastrophes of the 20th Century.

Before 1960, it was the world's fourth largest inland sea – behind Asia’s Caspian Sea, North America’s Lake Superior and Africa’s Lake Victoria – with an area of 68,000 km². It had a vibrant fishing industry employing 40,000 people. Today discarded fishing boats lie on the sand 20 kilometers from shore.

In the 1950’s and 60’s Soviet engineers began diverting its two major inflowing rivers to irrigate cotton fields. As a result Uzbekistan has become one of the world’s major cotton producers. But this drawdown had a disastrous result as the sea lost most of the inflow of its source waters. The mighty Aral Sea began shrinking – and shrank steadily until, in 2004 it was only 25% of its original surface area, and by 2007 it had declined to 10% of its original size.

A Garden Fountain

In recent posts we’ve been considering the significance of the Garden of Eden for human vocation and environmental stewardship.

Eden is also the Bible's original setting where a man and woman first set eyes on each other. So it is entirely fitting that the Song of Songs, which is full of extravagant poetic description, uses garden and water imagery to depict the intimacy and vibrancy of marital love.

Dear lover and friend,
you're a secret garden,
a private and pure fountain.
Body and soul, you are paradise, . . .
A garden fountain, sparkling and splashing,
fed by spring waters from the Lebanon mountains.
Song of Songs 4:12-15 MSG


In the exotic language of this song, this is an extended metaphor of sexual intimacy.

To Serve and Protect

In the Garden of Eden story in Genesis 2:5-15, Adam’s priestly task also included a protective role. He was to ‘tend’ the garden and to ‘watch over’ it. Other translations say to ‘keep’ it or ‘take care of’ it.

The Hebrew word for ‘keep’, samar, is a military term. It is exactly the same word used in the next chapter when the angel with a flaming sword ‘guards’ the way to the tree of life against intruders. It is used again in the fourth chapter in Cain’s retort, “Am I my brother’s keeper?

Garden of Eden - Vocation

Before the Garden of Eden was planted, the Book of Genesis describes the world as barren and uncultivated: “neither wild plants nor grains were growing on the earth. For the LORD God had not yet sent rain to water the earth, and there were no people to cultivate the soil. Instead, springs came up from the ground and watered all the land." Genesis 2:5-6 NLT

Great potential was going to waste. Parts of the earth were dry from lack of rain and other parts were drenched by the inundation of streams, but neither had yet been cultivated because there was no one to harness the waters and apply them to any useful agriculture.

The Paradox of Rivers

"All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full!"  Ecclesiastes 1:7

Isn’t that an amazing thought? We could stand in awe at the mouth of Amazon, the Yangtze, the Danube and Brahmaputra, the Mississippi, Thames and Congo, the Mekong, Volga and Rhine, the Columbia and a thousand other rivers, large and small, pouring themselves day and night into the sea, and marvel at the paradox of the sea never getting filled to capacity.

It’s fascinating how this world seems to be a perpetual motion machine.

Presence

I think one of the most memorable lines in all of Isaiah’s inspiring 8th century prophecy is this –

When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,

they will not sweep over you.
Isaiah 43:2.

These words occur in the part of Isaiah that describes Israel’s release from exile and return to their homeland, but they also convey God’s promise to sustain Israel through the ordeal of exile, which was truly a deep water trauma. It was an upheaval so jarring and disorienting, many Jews doubtless lost what little faith they had. It seemed obvious that God had abandoned them and broken covenant with them.

River Director

In many parts of the world, small farmers irrigate their fields or rice paddies by means of small channels which divert water from a reservoir or stream, a pond or well. The farmer opens or shuts sluice gates to direct water where he or she wants it to go. In larger operations, a variety of irrigation systems are used to ensure that the crops that need water, get it when they need it. Farmers meddle with nature to boost the productivity of their fields. A Hebrew proverb draws a parallel between this agricultural practice and the influence of God on the practices of earthly rulers.

The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD;

he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases.

Proverbs 21:1

Desert, Torrent and Sea

Woven throughout the puzzling images of the Book of Revelation are the twin themes of victory and suffering.

Half-way through the book, in Chapter 12, John sees ‘a great and wondrous sign’ that illustrates this double truth.

A pregnant woman is on the verge of giving birth, but a fierce red dragon stands in front of her ready to pounce on her infant the moment she delivers. It’s a bizarre picture to be sure, but it's a symbolic portrait of the cosmic battle under-lying the history of the human race.

The woman is a composite of Eve, the mother of all living (who was stalked by the serpent) and Mary, the mother of Jesus, stalked by Herod after Jesus was born. The new-born boy-child, we’re told, “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” So we know this is about the reign of Jesus and the hostility of the evil one who seeks to destroy him. The child is no sooner born than he is “snatched up to God and to his throne” (v.5). The story leaps from the birth of Jesus to his ascension to heaven.

To Infinity and Beyond

Yesterday we had a brush with infinity. My wife and I were hiking along the Skógá River above Skogafoss, one of Iceland’s most striking waterfalls.

The falls are post-card perfect – an impressive 60 meter sheer drop (higher than Niagara) into a thundering pool (often with a double rainbow effect). The rugged rocks on either side and the jet-black sand on the flat plain along the river below the falls give a dramatic framing. No wonder legends of buried Viking gold grew up around this place; no wonder tourists shoot a zillion photos.

Climbing 380 steps to see the falls from above drew us into an adventure of discovery. A stile over a fence at the top beckoned us further up and further in. Little did we know the wonders that awaited.

Fertile Crescent

The journey of Abraham and four generations of his descendents follows the arc of the Fertile Crescent from the famed Tigris-Euphrates valley in the east, or Mesopotamia as it was known, to the Nile Delta in the west.

Mesopotamia, the land between the rivers, was the cradle of one of the earliest civilizations on earth. It already had two thousand years of commerce, culture and tradition when Abraham was born in Ur on the south bank of the Euphrates. Lying just west of the point where the two mighty rivers joined before flowing into the Persian Gulf, Ur was a prosperous and proud culture, living off the largess of the two rivers.

Mesopotamia was water-rich. The Tigris rises in the Taurus Mountains 1,000 miles to the northwest. Less than a hundred miles away, the Euphrates flows first westerly then it curls around to the southeast and flows in a roughly parallel direction to the Tigris, draining a vast region of hills in their early miles and then meandering a thousand kilometers across the plains. Early settlers in Mesopotamia developed extensive irrigation systems and levees to enhance the use of water for agriculture. Traders brought goods and wealth from far afield and the commercial expertise of the Mesopotamians fostered the development of cuneiform script, the earliest known system of writing.

The name Euphrates derives from the Persian word for 'the good', but the Bible is not particularly impressed with the good life in Ur or the whole Mesopotamian culture. Instead, it tells the story of a man and his descendents who deliberately the cultural and economic amenities of Ur and travelled west in search of a very different kind of civilization.

As Thomas Cahill tells it in The Gifts of the Jews, it would have seemed to everyone in Ur that this was a migration in the wrong direction. But in fact this peculiar migration became 'a hinge of history changing the way everyone in the world today thinks and feels.'

Genesis 12 tells of the summons of a god named Yahweh who said to Abram “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go (or come) to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you.”

So Abraham left this land of abundance and travelled to a place where water was much less available. In the course of this adventure he would learn that God, the designer of rivers, is also the spring of a different kind of water, living water and the headwaters of every stream that enriches our lives.  Nevertheless, Abraham also had to work hard to support his herds and flocks in a land of minimal rain or surface water.

Image Sources:
Map: Ancient History Encyclopedia 
Euphrates: Ferrell Jenkins
Book: Amazon.com

Egypt's Finest Day

In an earlier post this week, Egyptian Reversal, we looked at Isaiah's ancient prophecy in Isaiah 19 - that the Nile would dry up and Egypt's economy would disintegrate.

It was a shocking use of prophetic hyperbole designed to warn Israel not to seek a military alliance with Egypt.

Interestingly the last book of the Bible echoes Isaiah’s vision of economic collapse of a great city and its maritime commerce. Global investors are distraught and lament ...
In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin! Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off.
When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim,
'Was there ever a city like this great city? Revelation 18:17-19

But Isaiah’s prophecy, like John’s Revelation, is not a doomsday tirade. Like John, Isaiah is a prophet of hope. In a way unforeseen by any other Hebrew writer, Isaiah perceives that God has a national destiny in store for Egypt that would astonish even the most imaginative zealot in Israel – or the church. Isaiah foresees a day when God will open Egypt’s heart, not to foolish superstitions, but to the worship of Yahweh. Egyptians will become passionate Yahweh worshippers and Yahweh will become Egypt’s saviour (v.20).

A highway of commerce and communication will open from Egypt to Assyria, linking Israel’s ancient and current oppressors in a covenant of loyalty, not simply with Israel, but with Israel’s God. Egypt and Assyrian will worship Yahweh together (v. 23). And so the doomed Nile becomes a river of blessing to the whole world, like the river of Eden and the rivers of  Ezekiel and St. John.

St. Simon the Tanner Church, Moquattan Mtn, Egypt

Who could have foreseen such a paradigm-bursting turn-around, such a river of blessing from such a cursed source? Who would have imagined that - 'in that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. The LORD Almighty will bless them, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.' (v. 24-25)

God of Rivers, Revenue and Righteousness,
Your words today remind me that the flow of wealth in this world is not automatic. Your River flows in channels of justice and truth. You have ordained a law for all nations that industry and mercy must flow together or they will eventually shrivel and die. And you have promised that if we pay attention to your commands, our peace and prosperity will flow like a river, our righteousness like the waves of the sea (Isaiah 48:18).

May your mercy flow today into every country drained and watered by the mighty Nile – Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt. And, may the good news of Jesus flow like a river through these nations and cause them to flourish in ways we can hardly imagine. Amen.

Photo Sources:
Pyramid - EgyptPhoto
Nile - Travel2Egypt
Coptic Church - The Egypt Diocesan Association

Egyptian Reversal

The political pundits of his day wrote him off as simplistic and out of touch, but Isaiah foresaw the unthinkable.

The mighty Nile, longest river in the world, he said, will dry up like a wadi in the desert. In shocking metaphor, Isaiah depicted the economic demise of what was then a vibrant world power.

Break-through

Guerilla warfare depends on evasion, stealth and surprise, and David was a master at the game. He had honed his skills through 20 years on the run from King Saul, but now that Saul was dead, David faced an even more formidable foe. The combined Philistine confederacy was moving in for the kill. 2 Samuel 5:17-25.

When David learned this he reverted to guerilla tactics instead of direct assault. He retreated to the caves near the Dead Sea and prayed for God’s counsel. With divine direction he attacked and routed the Philistines decisively.

Flood Season

This week-end's news told of swollen rivers over-flowing their banks in the Assinoboine and Mississippi flood-plains and disastrous floods in Colombia. Today's post focuses on the challenge of a river in flood-stage.

In the spring of the year, the Jordan River runs at its highest level, swollen by melting snow and late winter rains. This was the season when God chose to lead Israel into the Promised Land, perhaps for two reasons. Pragmatically, it brought Israel into their new homeland in time for the abundance of the spring barley and wheat harvest. But more significantly, it provided a dramatic sign of God’s amazing power for both Israel and the nations.

Darwin Awards - The Jesus Edition

Since 1994, the Darwin Awards have held up a mirror to human folly. Their tongue-in-cheek books and web-site tell true stories of people who, as they say, ‘live in the shallow end of the gene pool’, people who 'show an astounding lack of judgment and cause their own demise'.

'Terminal stupidity', they call it, with lethal personal consequences. They cite these stories not to laugh at calamity, but as cautionary tales.

Jesus used a different metaphor, but his insight into disastrous human stupidity is just as clear. His story about the foolish carpenter and the raging river seems the perfect parable for April Fools Day!

As a carpenter Jesus knew the consequences of shoddy house-building. He probably knew peasants in the hills around Nazareth who skimped on the foundations of hasty summer-built houses only to see their investment collapse in ruins when the winter rains fell and the wadis swelled with torrential floods that tore the earth away from their doorsteps.

Swimming Home

Last week I wrote about Ezekiel’s vision of a New World Comin’. Today my sister, Kathy Legg who lives in Lethbridge, Alberta, writes about her thoughts of that extraordinary vision in Ezekiel 47.

Picture this: You’re in a foreign land, a lush and lovely place, prosperous, sophisticated. But it’s not your true home, and to the locals you’re an anomaly, subject to ridicule. You believe in an unseen God. You long to worship openly without the risk you’ll antagonize someone. You try to fit in but it leaves you feeling soul-weary and fragmented. You want to go home. But you can’t -- you’re captive here. Will you ever see home again?

World Water Day - Imagine This!

Tomorrow, March 22, is the UN's annual World Water Day. This year's theme is "Water for Cities". 1000 delegates from 66 countries are gathered at a UN conference in Cape Town to address issues related to water, poverty, politics and urban issues.

The Bible describes a magnificent urban river scene in the last chapter of Revelation – a dazzling river with crystal clear water flowing down the middle of a great avenue.

The river flows from the throne of God which tells us that God loves this city* and sustains it as a place of refuge* and safety and where its citizens are being spiritually renewed* and nourished. Jesus is the spring of living water for the thirst and cleansing of the world.

New World Comin'

A river runs through it – from start to finish, from the Garden of Eden to the last chapter of Revelation, the story of God and Earth is told as a river-story.

At one of the lowest points of the story, in exile far from their homeland, the prophet Ezekiel (Ch. 47) imagines a trickle of water bubbling out of the dry ground in Jerusalem. It flows from the temple of God across the desert hills to the Jordan valley and into the Dead Sea.

The further it flows, the deeper and wider the current grows and, astonishingly, the more lush the barren landscape becomes. Everything is refreshed and renewed. Fishing and agriculture burst into life. Trees flourish along the banks of the river. The Dead Sea becomes a fresh-water lake.