LIGHT IN DARKNESS - A: 23rd Sun of OrdTime

First Reading: Ezek 33:7-9 (6 Sept 2020)

Watchmen (KJV, NIV ), sentinels (ISV, NRSV ), look-outs (CEB, NAB ), and spies (WYC ).

These are military terms used in English bibles to translate the Hebrew word ṣopehin Ezek 33:7. We cannot blame them for doing so since these renditions match the definition of this word in Hebrew-English lexicons, i.e., “to keep watch or a look-out” or “to spy” (cf. HALOT ). Indeed, sentinels are militiamen or auxiliaries who are stationed in watchtowers to survey vigilantly any forthcoming attacks of the enemies.

They have a sworn duty to stay always alert and awake as the whole camp is dependent on the information they give lest the infantry meets its immediate doom and defeat in battle.

Relaying God’s summon to the prophet Ezekiel, the text of Ezek 33:7 metaphorically mandates all would-be prophets to act as God’s sentinels: “So you, mortal, I have made a sentinel (ṣopeh) for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me” (Ezek 33:7). Essentially, this can be done by anybody by taking the courage to correct others, to unveil offenders’ mistakes and irregularities, and to forbid offenders from perpetuating their mistakes. The reward for those who enact this mission is none other than salvation: “But if you warn the wicked to turn from their ways, and they do not turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but you will have saved your life” (v.9).

But all should embrace this call to be ṣopeh, not only for one’s salvation but for the salvation of everybody, inclusive of the brethren being warned and corrected.

While there is nothing wrong with employing military terms in expressing the nature of the task at hand, it moves away farther from the authentic spirit of God’s command. Words like “sentinels” and “spies,” for instance, impress a sense of entitlement for someone to be on top of the rest after having received a mandate from above. The terms “watchmen” and “look-outs” give a sense of extraordinary authority as special informants in society. While these connotations are not consciously intended by Bible translators, readers are conditioned to equate them to our modern-day security personnel and intelligence officers.

But what is really the sense of ṣopeh in this prophecy?

Two celebrated grammarians and linguists in biblical Hebrew and Aramaic studies, viz., Wilhelm Gesenius and Marcus Jastrow, give light to the lexeme’s meaning. They both say that ṣopeh is more properly derived from the action of providing light than merely watching or waiting. Suppose we read the prophecy in this direction. In that case, we can argue that God’s enjoinment to be ṣopeh is not necessarily a call to be reporters, informants, or even snitches of communities, becoming almost Pharisaic in scrutinizing each one’s tiniest mistakes. Instead, it is an invitation to keep on radiating God’s loving care in our small ways: in our sweet smiles, in our thoughtful manners, in our uplifting compliments, in our fortitude and resilience in suffering, and our optimistic views of living.

Fraternal corrections can indeed be swiftly accomplished by hard and straightforward means.

But they are more effectively done with the overwhelming brightness of one’s gentleness.

- Rex Fortes, CM