But first something I have been thinking about. What is a prophetic law suit?
They say there is a prophetic law suit by God in Deuteronomy 32 and then Isaiah uses a similar format for one in Isaiah 1. Then there is something similar in Micah 6: 1-8 and Hosea 4: 1-3. Some say the book of Revelations is one and Paul’s Epistle to the Galations is another.
This is the pattern of a prophetic law suit:
The summons: calling witnesses.
The indictment / accusation. Here it is the violation of the moral law before God.
The defense/ hearing. The accused is given space.
The judgement / verdict. Repentance, offer of grace, final vindication.
In the Old Testament God is the plaintiff, prosecutor and judge against His people using the prophet as His messenger. Let us look at these different stages in an example of each part from three different ones: Micah, Hosea, and Isaiah.
Micah’s summon is for the people to argue or place a case before the hills and mountains because that is where they have placed the groves with idols/ pagan gods. The mountains are called to witness against them.
‘ Hear, Oh mountains, the LORD has a strong controversy with his people.’ Micah 6: 1,2
Then there is Hosea where an indictment/ accusation is made:
‘ Hear the LORD, He has a controversy with the people, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. By swearing, lying and killing, and stealing and committing adultery…
‘Hosea’s message/ judgement is:
‘ My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge I will reject you seeing as you have forgotten the law of your God.’
Let us look at the last part of the process in Isaiah which is an offer of repentance:
God speaking: ‘ Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings seek judgement,relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow … come now let us reason together says the LORD: though your sins are scarlet they shall be as wool.’
There is so much more to study here. Our defense is mercy and then grace from Christ if we choose this. Would that be what is missing in these chapters but most likely in Revelation? I will continue to study…
But we are travelling also and here is a large place with a smaller place inside and then a woman. No ordinary woman.
Here is the large place which we are looking at from the Gironde estuary. It is a fortification engineered by Vauban in 1685 to protect the 3km span of the estuary which eventually leads to Bordeaux.
Walking through it one soon comes to a house where the Duches de Berry was kept as a prisoner. Why?
Here is a story taken from information boards. It starts like this… after her husband was assassinated in 1820, she gave birth posthumously to a son, the Duke of Bordeaux. Her father-in-law , Charles X , abdicated and was acceaded by Louis – Philippe. The Duchess believed he was a usurper, and that her son, the grandson of Charles X should be king. She organised a rebellion and lost so had to flee first to England then Italy and then came back to France to try again. She failed and was placed in this house.
But what is it now? A wonderful creative space filled with objects made of drift wood.
And what happened to the boy known as ‘the miracle child’ who his mother fought to have on the throne. Legitimists called for him to be put on the throne as Henri V and he flatly refused to have the Tricolour as the flag, but rather wanted the white flag of the Bourbon monarchy decorated with the fleur-de-lis. Restoration plans failed because of this and by the time Henri died in Austria in 1883 at the age of 62, the French public had grown to love the Republic and the monarchy was gone for ever.
A story of a place in a place with consequences.
‘When anger rises, think of the consequences.’
Confucius
‘ Sometimes when I consider what tremendous consequences come from little things, I am tempted to think there are no little things.’
Bruce Barton
‘ Be willing to have it so. Acceptance of what has happened is the first step to overcoming the consequences of any misfortune.’
William James.
The Duchess de Berry (1798- 1870) would have walked this way considering this was put in place about 1685.
A long post for me.
Take care,
Sandy 🙂