December 18, 2021 - The "O" Antiphons - The Second: O Adonai, Lord and Ruler of the House of Israel

Lord and Ruler of the House of Israel. God appears to Moses as an unburnt bush, on fire but not consumed. The Hebrew word in the narrative that is translated into English as bush is seneh (סנה‎ [səneh]), which refers in particular to brambles; seneh is a biblical dis legomenon, only appearing in two places, both of which describe the burning bush. The use of seneh (סנה‎ [sˈne]) may be a deliberate pun on Sinai (סיני‎), a feature common in Hebrew texts. Later God gives Moses the Laws on Sinai.

The relationship of the God of the Old Testament with the God of the New Testament is fascinating. How God is apprehended throughout the Bible is paradoxical in terms of power. There is so much that is paradoxical and the burning bush is a perfect image to meditate on this paradox. What is permanent and what is transitory in the world we inhabit? 

What Israel learns about God, and the ways of God, over time is meticulously recorded in scripture. Those lessons continue to be relevant because, like Wisdom, they are counterintuitive.  

O Adonai
Shepherd of God’s people, you made yourself known to Moses in a burning bush,
and let him in on life’s best secrets on that very same mountain:
Come now, take us into your confidence as well.

Lord draw near.
Draw near and save.