Day 23: Lying in Wait for Blood

Who is bloodthirsty? Last post I said we all humans are. That is a very strong statement. Most of us try to create a reality where only a deviant part of humanity is capable of murder, bloodshed, violence, and the rest of us normal safe people have to work hard to protect ourselves from them using dogs, doorlocks, security guards and maximum security prisons.

But that is a deceptive reality and also an unbiblical reality. The good news of the gospel can only be heard where the bad news is swallowed. News like:
"and there is no one left who is upright; they all lie in wait for blood, and they hunt eachother with nets. Their hands are skilled to do evil: the official and the judge ask for a bribe and the powerful dictate what they desire; thus they pervert justice." That is only part of the very depressing first 6 verses of Micah 7.

News like this about God's chosen city, Jerusalem: "You Bloody City! The princes of Israel in you, everyone according to his power, have been bent on shedding blood. . . .they have devoured human lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows within it. Priests have done violence to my teaching . . .officials are like wolves tearing the prey, shedding blood, destroying lives to get dishonest gain. Prophets have smeared whitewash on their behalf, seeing false visions and divining lies . . .the people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery; they have oppressed the poor and needy, and have extorted from the alien without redress." Those are selections from Exekiel 22.

Come on, it can't be everybody? Exekiel 22:30 answers: "And I sought for anyone among them who would repair the wall and stand in the breach before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one."

That is bad news. That makes for a scary reality, worse than the story book worlds of good guys and bad guys. Sometimes I can accept that, but a lot of times I say, that reality is too grim and gloomy! That rhetoric must be exaggerating how bad things really are! No one left who is upright? Not even the professionals we need to put our trust in? Bankers and Accountants? Doctors and Nurses? Teachers and Nannies? Judges and Leaders of State? Priest and Ministers?