In the past couple of days I’ve found myself listening to a number of live performances of a certain Bob Dylan song from around the 2000 / 2001 period. They’re all good and spirited renditions, with extended jams. Dylan and the Sexton/Campbell guitar combo are stretching out and having fun.

On Sunday I generally link to a Dylan tune with some potential spiritual significance. With this one it might be a little hard to make such a connection. But let’s call it a, ah, morality tale of sorts.

This version on YouTube — from Liverpool in 2001 — has Bob looking kind of displeased a lot of the time. Perhaps he’s not happy with his own guitar playing or something. But his singing is great and eventually he finds a big ol’ riff with which to close the tune out.

Bob’s dancing there is pretty darned good too.

You know, I don’t mind him cheatin’ on me
But I sure wish he’d take that off his head

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In reference to my previous post on Unbiblical Bob, thanks to Josh for his e-mail:

Bob is, of course, the eternal Jester. I think we can attribute this to his eternally wonderful sense of humor. He does tend to keep it light on Theme Time.

Actually, some parts of Jewish tradition (of which Bob would surely be familiar, given his back pages) suggests that Isaac made himself a willing sacrifice, actually assenting to the demand of God.

Another e-mail from a Jewish reader confirmed that last part in no uncertain terms. This — the binding of Isaac — is a pretty important story, obviously; a foundational one, in fact. After Abraham has sacrificed the ram, which he found caught in the thicket (as opposed to a lamb which he brought with him, as DJ Bob inaccurately described it), this is what takes place, as in the NASB:

Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies.

“In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

Even a layman like myself knows that a whole lot of theology, not to mention practical reality, has flowed from that moment. It doesn’t get much bigger than that, right? So, it’s all the more surprising that DJ Bob would kind of play fast and loose with the facts in the antecedent story. However, I would agree with Josh that it would be wrong to take Bob’s comments on this too seriously, considering the context.

By the way, you can find a smattering of interpretations of this story on good old Wikipedia at this link.

Via that article, I came upon some question and answer things at Chabad.org around the topic, and I found this one particularly rewarding to read: What Kind of G-d Would Ask You to Sacrifice Your Son? (a conversation, by Yanki Tauber.)

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The church which Governor Sarah Palin’s family call their own has suffered serious damage due to a fire, and the authorities suspect it was an arson attack. The Wasilla Bible Church has its website at this link. Many will offer them sympathy and prayers, as we do here, and I’m betting that some across this nation will also offer them a little help to rebuild.

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