Hello! Hope you’re well. Here’s the latest, including a Super Fun Announcement:
Wait—Do I Know This One?
A brand new episode of Holy Ghost Stories dropped yesterday for your listening pleasure: "The Guardian Angel, the Blowhard, and the Reformer.” This one’s about Judah’s King Hezekiah and the time Yahweh helped him lead Jerusalem through the onslaught of Assyria’s invasion of Judah under Sennacherib. (A sort-of-new story to many of you according to the comments on my post this week.)
One thing I love about this story: it’s full of dialogue. I’m telling you—take a look at the passages in the Old Testament that relate these events (2 Kings 18-19, 2 Chronicles 32, and Isaiah 36-37)—they’re packed with the actual words spoken by the various players. I love when this happens in a text; it’s like the narrative slows way down and we’re privy to the moment in an intimate way. Too, I feel like an abundance of dialogue like this (or monologue, in the case of Sennacherib) gives us a great sense of character—helps us see these people more clearly: who they are, how they are, what they want.
A couple of interesting tidbits from this episode:
The siege of Lachish is depicted in extraordinary detail in a series of decorative stone carvings Sennacherib commissioned to decorate his palace in Nineveh. I got to see them this summer at the British Museum and based everything in this episode’s depiction of that siege on what I saw in those carvings. Here are a couple of shots I took—check out the siege engines, the ox carts with young children atop them, and the stripped men stretched in some kind of harness as they’re led away from their home.
In this exhibit at the British museum, they even have items recovered from within the walls of Lachish during the time of the siege. Burned olive pits, sling stones, and arrowheads made out of bone. That last one, of course, really got my imagination going and as you may have already heard, made it into this episode. Brutal.
Here are a couple of a photos I took—can you believe you can look at the things these men and women touched while this story was happening?? Amazing.
I loved getting to spend some time with Hezekiah in this story. He’s got some beautiful moments of faith, and also does his share of stumbling. Raise your hand if you can relate. And yet, the way his reign and life are summed up by Yahweh in the end… What a gracious God we serve. He definitely sees us through a filter of love. What a comfort it is to know that.
When I thought about Hezekiah breaking the bronze serpent into pieces (one translation says he “pulverized” it), I thought to myself, “How do you do that with metal??” Well, I looked into it. Here’s a video if you’re as big a curiosity nerd as I am.
That tunnel Hezekiah had dug? You can see it today. (!) (Skip to about 4:03)
Do you have a mental picture of Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem? If not, here’s a really helpful and interesting animation to give you a sense of place as you read the Old Testament.
This story has long been a muse to artists. Here’s a poem by Lord Byron entitled “The Destruction of Sennacherib”:
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay wither'd and strown.For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he pass'd;
And the eyes of the sleepers wax'd deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,
But through it there roll'd not the breath of his pride:
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.And there lay the rider distorted and pale,
With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail;
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
Last thing: I just love the way Yahweh directs his trash-talking to Sennacherib to Hezekiah. Take a look at the text—this doesn’t seem to be a “deliver-this-message-for-me” moment. It’s a “here’s-what-I’d-say-to-the-guy-who’s-bullying-my-kid” moment. It has to be wonderful for Hezekiah to hear this from his Father. I’ve had moments like this with my daughters. (“What would you say to her if she was here right now, dad?” “Oh, I’ll tell you exactly what I’d say—” And with every word, my little girl’s back gets straighter and by the end her just-been-bullied countenance has given way to a smile.) This seems to be exactly what Yahweh is doing for Hezekiah here. It’s the best.
I hope this episode blesses you and gives you a valuable glimpse of your Father through what may be an unfamiliar story.
Enjoy!
GUESS WHAT?
Okay—Big Announcement Time! You may remember that for the Season 2 premier of HGS (Jonah’s story) I was fortunate enough to license two pieces from an incredible cellist and composer named Kendall Ramseur.
(This is him performing with a group he’s in called “Sons of Serendip” on America’s Got Talent)
I am thrilled to tell you that for months now, Kendall and I have been working together on a HGS first: a bonafide collaboration.
Episode 8—the very next episode—will tell the story of Saul’s visit to the Witch of Endor, and it will have an original score composed by none other than Kendall Ramseur.
Ha!
He’s created this music from scratch for this episode of Holy Ghost Stories. And. It’s. So. Good.
Like, so so good.
This episode will drop on Monday October 25, just in time for you to listen surrounded by some nice Halloween vibes. I’ve had my eye on the witch of Endor since the beginning of Holy Ghost Stories, and I thought: now that’s a Halloween story if I ever heard one.
I’m telling you: you are going to loooovvvvee this episode.
Now, I’m going to be transparent with you: hiring Kendall to create 30 minutes of custom orchestration was not free, of course. He’s performed at the Emmys, he’s opened for John Legend, he’s working at this moment on projects for names you very much know—he’s way out of my league. But he loves Holy Ghost Stories and wanted to do this project for half of what his normal fee would be. Amazing.
But that’s still $5,000.
I’m not gonna lie; I gulped when I saw that number. But my wife said, “Hey—I believe in Holy Ghost Stories. Let’s do it.” And so I did. It’s incredibly important to me to make this storytelling as excellent as I can make it for you. I feel like these stories deserve our best. And rest assured: Kendall and I are bringing you our absolute best for this next episode.
Now: if you want to make sure stuff like this continues to exist, all it takes is to partner with me on Patreon to make it happen. I’ll do this as long as I can, but we have to do it together. When you become a patron, I get to provide things like this for you.
With that in mind, I’ve set a goal to get to 200 patrons by the end of this season. 200 incredible, generous people who believe the world needs to hear these incredible stories told well.
If you can fit this into your budget, I’d be so grateful for the chance to partner with you. (Plus, you get some very cool thank-you content, like bonus HGS episodes and more.)
As of today, we’re at 141 patrons (if you’re one of them, thank you!). So the goal is 59 new patrons by November 29–a week after Season 2 ends.
I think we can do it, don’t you?
Want more info? Ready to partner up in this storytelling venture? Here’s the link:
I’ve found Holy Ghost Stories listeners (you!) to be such a beautifully enthusiastic, encouraging, generous bunch—thank you.
And thanks in advance to those of you who become patrons. Truly.
4 Cool Things
Brilliant Whales - I’ve read about sperm whales adapting their defense strategies (and quickly passing that learning on to others!) when the whaling industry really got going in the 1800s. But here’s an example of similar learning happening in real time. Wow.
Walk of Life Project - I’ve been a believer for a while, and here’s where I attempt to convert you: The ending of every movie works wonderfully with “Walk of Life” by the Dire Straits playing behind it. See for yourself. (I’m partial to Terminator 2 and Gladiator, myself.)
Rainbows Keep Going?! - Viewed from the right vantage point, a rainbow can appear as a FULL CIRCLE. Coooooool.
Elegant Pies - This Instagram account is making me want to keep looking at these pictures of amazingly intricate pies. Oh—did you think I was going to say it’s making me want to bake? Nah.
That’s it!
Are you pumped about having a HGS episode with a custom score?? If so, do reply and let me know—I’ll be very excited to know you’re excited.
Hope you’re deeply blessed by “The Guardian Angel, the Blowhard, and the Reformer.”
Oh—and let’s get to 200 together!
Gratefully,
Justin
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