Cultivating spaces for all people to flourish where we live, learn, work and worship
Proper 15A: Look Who’s Missing From Isaiah 56!
“Whatever Jesus may look like, he can be found in the struggle of the disenfranchised, not because they are holier but because they must struggle for the abundant life.”1 ~ Miguel De La Torre
Context
The Hebrew scripture this week is Isaiah 56:1, 6-8. These four verses affirm that God’s covenant with humanity includes people from all nations. The passage provides the foundation for a theologically sound sermon on justice and kindness toward foreigners. That’s a great and important message. But what happened to verses 2-5? Why did the lectionary exclude them? We will expand this passage to include what’s been left out and talk about why this matters for all people.
2 Blessed is the one who does this—
the person who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath without desecrating it,
and keeps their hands from doing any evil.”
3 Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”
And let no eunuch complain,
“I am only a dry tree.”
4 For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenant—
5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls
a memorial and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that will endure forever. (NIV)
Verse 2 is a charge to all people who seek to be righteous: that we all must do what is named in verse 1. All people must maintain justice and do what is right. All people must keep from doing evil. These are not only instructions for outsiders, but also for those in positions of power. Without verse two, the lectionary passage seems to suggest that the onus is on outsiders to “do what we’re doing so you can be righteous,” while insiders are not held accountable for maintaining justice and doing right to the outsiders.
Also excluded from the lectionary is verses 3b-5. Here, we see hope given to eunuchs (people whose atypical genitals prevent them from having children.) While Jewish law prohibited eunuchs from entering the temple or serving as priests, here God promises that they are remembered, that their legacy matters. How is the plight of eunuchs relevant to our congregations today, and why do these verses deserve our attention?
Eunuchs are one example of what some have dubbed “Sexual Others.” Sexual Others are people whose physical expressions of gender and sexuality are outside the heteronormative, cisnormative standards of society. Often, they do not or cannot procreate (although medical science now provides some options to those who wish to.) The experience of eunuchs resonates with many LGBTQ+ individuals. “Early lesbian and gay-identified biblical studies/theology further reinforced the view that texts relating to eunuchs were relevant to gay readers…[they] ‘outed’ and celebrated the biblical eunuch as a gay ancestor…” More recently, scholars “relocate the eunuch within transgender…discourse.”2 Excluding this passage from the lectionary denies hope and visibility to Sexual Others while relieving the church of its responsibility to act justly toward them.
By expanding the Scripture passage, we are drawing the circle wider. Sexual Others are not dry trees, Isaiah tells us. Outsiders are not excluded. Insiders are growing into who they were created to be as they extend justice, hospitality, and Christ-like love to others. In God, we all – everyone – find an everlasting name and eternal life. We flourish. We thrive. Let this be the focus of our worship.
Prayer
Everlasting and Eternal God, thank you for inviting all people into covenant with you; to love you, to be loved by you, and to love one another. May we uplift one another, creating hospitable environments around us so that all may thrive and flourish. Amen.
This upbeat song that serves as an excellent opening to worship or an encouraging sending forth at the end of the service:
Here in this worn and weary land Where many a dream has died Like a tree planted by the water We never will run dry
We know we were made for so much more Than ordinary lives It's time for us to more than just survive We were made to thrive
The bridge provides a pleasing earworm that worshippers will pick up quickly:
Joy Unspeakable, Faith Unsinkable Love Unstoppable, Anything is possible
Visual Arts
Imagery of flourishing trees may be displayed on the screens in the sanctuary, on your bulletin, or other spaces where visual art can be seen.
Animated flourishing trees, such as the one in this GIF may be effective on screens before and after the service. (The animation would likely serve as a distraction during the service.)
Testimony: In Her Own Words
United Methodist minister Rev. Dr. Joelle Henneman describes flourishing after gender-affirming surgery. In her Substack post Finding Abundant Life After Top Surgery, Joelle writes:
The shape of me feels like home. A body that once felt like an assigned uniform now feels like a blossoming garden. When I pause from the busyness and distractions of life, I breathe deeply and experience my body as a gift of joy.4
Children’s Sermon Prompt
Special thanks to Gemini (Google) for assisting with the development of a children’s sermon prompt focused on flourishing!
Title: “Designed to Flourish”
The Big Idea: God is like a Master Gardener who doesn’t just want us to “survive,” but to flourish—to grow big, strong, and exactly as we were uniquely designed to be.
Visual Aid Recommendation: A vibrant, healthy flowering plant
Key Talking Points:
Creation Intent: Use the plant to show that God gave it everything it needs (roots, leaves, sunlight) because God loves watching it grow.
The “Diverse” Image: Mention that different plants need different things to flourish—some need lots of sun, some need shade—just like God made every child with unique needs and gifts.
God’s Role: Connect the “water and light” to God’s love and the community of the church. We flourish best when we stay connected to those “nutrients.”
The Goal: Flourishing isn’t just about standing still; it’s about blooming and making the world a more beautiful, “green” place for everyone.
By expanding the Scripture passage, we are drawing the circle wider.
Sources
Miguel A. De La Torre, Reading the Bible from the Margins (Orbis Books, 2002), Kindle, 106. ↩︎
Deryn Guest, “Deuteronomy,” The Queer Bible Commentary, 2nd edition, edited by Mona West and Robert E. Shore-Goss (SCM Press, 2022), Kindle, 218. ↩︎
Jennifer Noricks 
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