Matthew 23:37-39

³⁷ “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. ³⁸”Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

Jesus uses the image of a mother hen corralling her chicks under her wings for protection from predators or cover from the elements. And the little chicks are oblivious to the danger, unaware of the prowl of predator or the harshness of the elements. 

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem” — such a heart-rending cry from the lips of Jesus concerning the city and the people he loved. Rather than commending their ability to keep the law of God and reflect the glory of the God of Israel, Jesus describes them as a people who kill the very messengers God has sent their way. Stoning was described in the Old Testament as punishment for those who spoke out against God in a multitude of ways and behaviors. It was a brutal death and was used to discourage behavior that went against their covenant promises. By describing stoning as their way of killing the prophets, Jesus is saying in effect you use the message of God to kill the messengers of God!

We don’t do a lot of physical stoning these days. But it doesn’t take a lot of time perusing through Facebook to find Christians using the word of God as a weapon against those who believe a little differently or act a little differently. Rather than trying to cover and protect, there is a very quick impulse to throw stones, to defend my position by putting someone else down.

When we do this, make no mistake, we aren’t in any way demonstrating the character of the God we are trying to defend. Jesus made it very clear in John 8 that just because we have a biblical warrant doesn’t give us justification to pick up the first stone! 

Maybe today in Lent is a good day to side with Jesus. To look out over the city and the people of our neighborhoods, both physical and virtual, and rather than finding a way to pick up a stone, instead find a way to offer some protection. We need to look at a group of people in a different sort of way — to find a way to help someone else find the safety of Jesus. To exchange the rocks in our hands with the feathers of a loving hen. Maybe we too will discover that feathers are more comfortable than rocks. 

Author: David Brown

Other Lenten readings for today:

• Psalm 27
• Psalm 118:26-29