O Adonai, Lord of Israel, Come! Advent Daybook 20
This week we are adoring Jesus by praying the prophetic names of the O Antiphons. Read this post for an overview.
O ADONAI (LORD )
Pray: O Sacred Lord of ancient Israel, who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush, who gave him the holy law on Sinai mountain: Come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free.
Look: Icon of the Unburnt Bush - Source
"The Church established by Christ has always looked back on this event and seen the “Unburnt Bush” on the Mount Horeb as a type – a prefiguration – of the Holy Theotokos, who gave birth to Christ while still remaining a virgin (burning with fire yet unconsumed)."
Listen: Advent Antiphons: No. 2. O Adonai, Queens' College, Cambridge - Spotify | YouTube
Latin:
O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel,
qui Moysi in igne flammae rubi apparuisti,
et ei in Sina legem dedisti:
veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.
English:
O Adonai, and leader of the House of Israel,
who appeared to Moses in the fire of the burning bush
and gave him the law on Sinai:
Come and redeem us with an outstretched arm.
Read:
A Reading from Isaiah 11:4
But with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
A Reading from Isaiah 33:21 -22
But there the Lord in majesty will be for us a place of broad rivers and streams, where no galley with oars can go, nor stately ship can pass. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our ruler, the Lord is our king; he will save us.
A Reading from Exodus 19:9,16 -19, 20:1 - 6
And the Lord said to Moses, “Lo, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you for ever.” On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. Ten Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God; and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. And Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire; and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder.
And God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.”
A Reading from Micah 5:2
But you, O Bethlehem Eph’rathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.
Read Malcolm Guite's sonnet and then sing the second verse of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel as today's prayer.
Unsayable, you chose to speak one tongue,
Unseeable, you gave yourself away,
The Adonai, the Tetragramaton
Grew by a wayside in the light of day.
O you who dared to be a tribal God,
To own a language, people and a place,
Who chose to be exploited and betrayed,
If so you might be met with face to face,
Come to us here, who would not find you there,
Who chose to know the skin and not the pith,
Who heard no more than thunder in the air,
Who marked the mere events and not the myth.
Touch the bare branches of our unbelief
And blaze again like fire in every leaf.
Sing:
O come, O come, thou Lord of might,
who to thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times didst give the law,
In cloud and majesty and awe.
Refrain: Rejoice, Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!
Do: Read the commandments again slowly. Then talk to a trusted friend about any way you’ve sinned against God and others. Receive the forgiveness of our Savior Jesus.
Advent has historically been considered a "little Lent", a season of time set aside to consider the places our lives have become disconnected from God and others. Today’s Old Testament reading gives us the law handed to Moses for God’s people. In the New Testament, James, the brother of Jesus, encourages us to "confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed." As we get ready to enter into the full-fledged celebration of Christmas, set aside some time to check in with a trusted friend who can listen and offer the words of assurance that John, the friend of Jesus, reminds us: "When we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Thanks be to God for this gracious, life-giving invitation!
