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Writer of Fancy: The Playful Piety of Jane Austen
1 & 2 Kings
Brazos Theological Commentary
The Promise Of His Appearing: An Exposition Of Second Peter
A Great Mystery: Fourteen Wedding Sermons
Deep Comedy: Trinity, Tragedy, And Hope In Western Literature
Miniatures & Morals: The Christian Novels of Jane Austen
The Priesthood of the Plebs: A Theology of Baptism
A Son To Me: An Exposition of 1 & 2 Samuel
From Silence to Song: The Davidic Liturgical Revolution
Ascent to Love: A Guide to Dante's Divine Comedy
Blessed Are the Hungry: Meditations on the Lord's Supper
A House For My Name: A Survey of the Old Testament
Heroes of the City of Man: A Christian Guide to Select Ancient Literature
Brightest Heaven of Invention: A Christian Guide To Six Shakespeare Plays
Wise Words: Family Stories That Bring the Proverbs to Life
The Kingdom and the Power: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church
Zechariah 9:1-4 focuses on the conquest of Tyre, the “wise” city, shrewd at least in amassing wealth (v. 3). But the celebratory description contains a subversive pun. The Hebrew for Tyre is tsor (”rock”), and Zechariah says that Tyre has built herself a fortress, a word built on the same Hebrew root (matsor). But the word for “fortress” is more commonly used to mean “siege” (Deut 28:53; 2 Kings 24:10; Ezekiel 4:2-3). In her “wisdom,” Tyre thinks she’s building a fortress, but is actually preparing a siege that will destroy her.
The pun continues in verse 12, an exhortation to return to the stronghold (bitstsaron), apparently a reference to Jerusalem, the city to which prisoners return. Jerusalem is the true fortress/stronghold, the true “stone” (eben, 12:3), the true city of wisdom.
posted by Peter J. Leithart on Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 4:35 am
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