Moral Stop Signs
Wash, become pure, remove your evil acts from My eyes. Cease doing evil. Learn to do good . . . Isaiah 1:16-17a Robert Alter
Cease – Yesterday we learned that God rejects all religious acts if the underlying principle of compassion for others is missing in society. Oh, perhaps you need to read that sentence again. You see, for most of us we will think, “Well, I’m compassionate. I really care about others. I support charities. What happens to the poor and the helpless matters to me. I do all I can.” And you’d be correct. You probably do all that you can. But that wasn’t God’s complaint. God’s judgment falls on society, not on any particular individual in that society. Sodom was destroyed despite Lot’s concern for the angels. What matters is the tenor of the whole civilization, not the righteousness of the few. Andralamousia (October 6, 2020). The Greek term for doom falling on everyone, the righteous swept up in the judgment of the wicked. You might wash and become pure. You might remove the evil from His eyes. But if you live in a world with hands full of blood, don’t imagine that somehow you will be raptured out before judgment falls. It’s humanity that’s on trial here, just as the whole nation of Israel was on trial. Were there righteous people in Israel when Isaiah spoke? Of course there were. Were there Torah observant Jews living in the Land when God sent Jeremiah to warn Israel? Surely so. Did it matter?
No, the destruction of the society and the Babylonia captivity came anyway. Do you think we will be spared?
The Hebrew verb here is ḥādal. It is used in the absolute sense: Stop! Put to an end! You would think that this is obvious. God wants us to completely quit raʿ (evil). But remember the context. Evil here isn’t simply breaking moral rules. Isaiah’s concern is with society’s underlying attitudes. Evil is a lot bigger issue than just what you and I do individually.
There’s another critically important implication here. God’s directive, חִדְל֖וּ הָרֵֽעַ (Cease to do evil), implies that human beings actually can stop. Contrary to some Christian theologies, this verse suggests that we have the ability to forsake our evil practices, in particular, we have the ability to become compassionate, responsible societies. We are not constrained by some dark, inherited force that makes us sin. It comes down to choice and God’s plea tells us that we have the power to choose. The inevitability of divine judgment isn’t quite so inevitable after all. But unless we, as a society, choose to embrace the second greatest commandment, the trajectory of destruction will continue.
We hear a lot about inequality today. Political speech is filled with DEI platitudes. The problem isn’t that these things don’t need correction. The problem is that our society believes the corrections can come without a return to the Creator. DEI is just another conglomeration of “religious” practices without spiritual connection. It might as well be sacrifices and rituals, new moons and offerings. It will come to the same conclusion. Andralamousia. First clean the inside of the cup.
Topical Index: andralamousia, cease, ḥādal, DEI, Isaiah 1:16-17a
