Gandalf has fallen during his battle with the Balrog. The rest of the Company has been scattered – running out of the Gates and down the age-worn steps of the threshold of Moria. Beyond hope, they reached open skies. On this episode of the Secret Fire Podcast we begin the journey to Lothlorien in The Lord of the Rings.

On The Road To Lothlorien

We leave Gandalf – the prophet of the prophet, priest and king motif – and now focus on Aragorn, the king. He is full of compassion, mercy, lovingkindness – the Greek word eleos. The Ranger of the North who could smite an orc captain and cause others to flee the terror of his wrath, has a remarkable capacity for tender-loving care of Frodo and Sam.

‘I am sorry, Frodo!’ he cried, full of concern. ‘So much has happened this day and we have such need of haste, that I have forgotten that you were hurt; and Sam too. You should have spoken. We have done nothing to ease you, as we ought, though all the orcs of Moria were after us.’

The Lord of the Rings: One Volume, p. 335

I Desire Compassion

Aragorn is a picture of the Good Samaritan. The Good Samaritan is a picture of Jesus. Consider the time that Jesus was sharing a table in a house full of “tax collectors and sinners” and the Pharisees questioned what kind of rabbi would keep such company.

Matthew 9:12-13 (NASB)
But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

I desire compassion; eleos in the Greek. Strong’s describes it as:

mercy: kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them

Let us learn compassion from Aragorn – a picture of Christ Jesus.

Gold And Silver Trees

Legolas is excited at the prospect of entering Lothlorien. The inhabitants are his kin, yet it has been long since any of his folk have journeyed to the land they had wandered in ages past. And he longs for the trees there.

‘There lie the woods of Lothlórien!’ said Legolas. ‘That is the fairest of all the dwellings of my people. There are no trees like the trees of that land.’

The Lord of the Rings: One Volume, p. 335

In honor of the Silvan Elves we are pleased to share with you the song “Gold and Silver Trees” by Lonely Mountain Band, from the album Second Breakfast. We are sure you will enjoy it.

J.R.R. Tolkien, The Man

We have begun a new video series exploring the letters of J.R.R. Tolkien. It is our belief that the more we know about Tolkien, the man, the more we learn about Middle-earth and the entire Legendarium.

What stood out to you in Lothlorien Pt. 1? Let us know in the comments below.

On The Secret Fire Podcast we travel chapter-by-chapter and book-by-book through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth viewing it through Christian lenses. We invite you to join us as we continue the adventure on the Arkenstone server in Lord Of The Rings Online.

Please join our Fellowship on our Facebook and Twitter pages for even more fun from Tolkien’s Legendarium.

Support the Secret Fire Podcast and the GCTNetwork on our Patreon page.

You may listen to the podcast by using the audio player at the top of this post, or use the links below for other convenient ways to subscribe and listen.

ITUNES | GOOGLE PLAY MUSIC | STITCHER RADIO | TUNEIN RADIO | RSS FEED

Theme song: Hobbit’s Dance from the album Memories Of Middle Earth, by Brobdingnagian Bards

Affiliate links are used on this site.

The post Lothlorien Pt. 1, The Lord Of The Rings | SFP038 appeared first on GCTN.