On today's episode...

We jump into the Prophets, the final section of the Hebrew Scriptures in our Bible, beginning with Isaiah.

Our guest this week is the Rev. Tanya Regli, associate rector at St. David’s. After a brief introduction to Tanya, we talk about this section of the Bible, including a reminder of the function of prophets in our scripture. We’ll cover the historical framework of Isaiah itself, the three sections scholars break it into, and the context of when it was written.

We talk about the major themes in Isaiah, especially the two important words in Hebrew: mishpat (justice) and tsedaqah/tzedakah (righteousness) which we understand together today to refer to social justice.

We discuss how the audience for Isaiah’s writing is mostly the people in power, but also to some degree all the people of Israel. We also discuss that the blessings God offers through Isaiah’s words is open to all nations, not just Israel. We’ll also spend some time on Isaiah’s call to be a prophet, and what is unique about it. (Don’t forget to do your own search of “Biblically accurate angels” images.)

You’ll find much of Isaiah quoted in the New Testament, and many passages will sound familiar to you. Notice, but don’t get too caught up in them because 1) we want to appreciate the original context and 2) you might get stuck in Isaiah for a long time. Also, if you’d like to hear a better version of “The Messiah” than Natalee’s attempt, check out St. David’s Choir singing it at the Messiah concert in December 2024.

Don’t forget to refer back to some of our previous podcast episodes which relate to today’s: 1 + 2 Samuel, 1 + 2 Kings, 1 + 2 Chronicles, and Matthew episodes.

At the end, during our speed round of questions for Tanya she named (one of) her favorite book(s): “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe.

Cross Connections is a ministry of ⁠⁠St. David’s Episcopal Church in Wayne, PA⁠⁠. Season two, Cover to Cover is hosted by the Rev. Rick Morley, Elliot VanHoy, and Natalee Hill.

A full copy list of readings for 2025 may be found on our website at ⁠⁠https://stdavidschurch.org/crossconnections⁠⁠

If you have questions for us, you can call us at 484.588.5656 and leave a voicemail with your name, where you’re from, and your question or comment. Please note, we may use your recorded voice in an upcoming episode of Cross Connections. You can also email us at [email protected].

Logo graphic design and podcast production by Natalee Hill. Stock Media Music provided by Marscott and MoodMode / ⁠⁠Pond5⁠⁠.

You are welcome to learn more about all of St. David’s worship offerings and ministries at ⁠⁠ https://stdavidschurch.org/.