6.King david's plague: conclusion & prayer

​Conclusion
            We suffer as individuals of our private spheres and also as individuals in society. Natural calamities may strike us, but how we fare may depend upon the competence of our government to respond. Our government may enact policies that undermine rather than improve (what the Constitution calls) the general welfare.
            Contemporary society is quite different from the ancient societies of our scripture lessons. We are a representative democracy, and our founding documents reflect Enlightenment values. We must not declare that our leaders are divine representatives as Pharaoh and David were. But we do carry out our citizenship duties informed by our faith, and as we grow in faith, we try to differentiation our religious values with political and cultural values that might lead us away from biblical faith. (The popular notion that “God helps those who help themselves” is one example.)
            As we move through this time of pandemic and social change, let us beseech God to help us and our families and to lead us toward social, medical, and economic well-being!   

Question
1.As our current pandemic began and grew, what would you have done differently, or the same, to address the crisis?
 
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Prayer:
Lamb of God, Son of David, thank you for the opportunity to learn and grow through our reading of Scripture and our conversations with others. Help us to recognize your kingdom, particularly in the ways we seek to grow in lovingkindness and service in our world. Amen.
 
 
 
Notes
1.Bruce C. Birch, “The First and Second Books of Samuel,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. II (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998), 1382.
 
2.Leslie C Allen, “The First and Second Books of Chronicles,” The New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. III (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1999), 426-427.  
 
3.Brevard S Childs, Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992), 154-155.