h/t montreal anglican

NEW TESTAMENT: Ephesians 5: 8 - 14 (RCL, Roman Catholic)

Ephe 5:1 (NRSV) Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, 2 and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But fornication and impurity of any kind, or greed, must not even be mentioned among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Entirely out of place is obscene, silly, and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving. 5 Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be associated with them. 8 For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light-- 9 for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true. 10 Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly; 13 but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14 for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
"Sleeper, awake!
Rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you."


The author has exhorted his readers to conduct themselves ethically as befits those who have adopted the way of Christ. Having “put away your former way of life” (4:22) and being clothed with the new self (4:24) when they were “marked with a seal” (4:30) in baptism, they are now to lead moral lives for, being members of a body in which the Holy Spirit dwells, an offence against a member is an offence against God. They are to “share with the needy” (4:28), emphasize the good in others (4:29) and imitate “God” (5:1) and Christ. They must obey God (5:6). Now, in terminology also found at Qumran and in Matthew, the author contrasts unbelievers (who live in “darkness”, 5:8, and disobey God) with those who are in “light” (5:8), “in the Lord”. Christians should “expose” (5:11) deviations from God’s ways. Evil deeds are known to God (5:13). 5:14b may be a quote from an early baptismal hymn. Seek the “light”, what God would have you do (5:10)

Ephesians 5:8-14
4:17-19: These verses reflect a common Jewish view of pagan moral conduct. See also 2:3; Colossians 1:21; Romans 1:28; 2:15. [NJBC]
4:17: “the futility of their minds”: See also Romans 1:18-32. [CAB]
4:20: Learning about Christ has direct implications for daily living. [CAB]
4:22-24:: As with filthy, worn-out clothes. Colossians 3:9-10 says “Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator”. [NJBC]
4:22: In 2 Corinthians 5:17, Paul writes: “So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!”. [CAB]
4:24: In Galatians 3:27, Paul writes: “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ”. See also Romans 6:1-14. [CAB]
4:25: See also Zechariah 8:16 (“... Speak the truth to one another”) and Romans 12:5 (“... we are members one of another ...”). [NOAB]
4:26: If you are angry, let it be neither in a sinful spirit nor prolonged. See also Psalm 4:4; Colossians 3:8; James 1:19-20. [NOAB]
4:28: Thieves are to share with the needy not just in restitution but in liberality. [NOAB]
4:29: Colossians 3:8 admonishes: “... now you must get rid of all such things – anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth”. [NOAB]
4:30: All Christians together form a living temple in which the Holy Spirit dwells (2:21-22), so offence against any member of the community is an offence against the Holy Spirit. [NJBC]
4:30: “do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God”: See also Isaiah 63:10 (“they rebelled and grieved his holy spirit”) and 1 Thessalonians 5:19 (“Do not quench the Spirit”). [CAB]
4:30: “you were marked with a seal”: 1:13 says “In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit”. [NJBC]
4:31: See also 1 Timothy 1:19-20 (“... By rejecting conscience, certain persons have suffered shipwreck in the faith ...”) and James 1:19-20 (“... let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger ...”). [CAB]
4:31: “all bitterness ...”: Elements of a traditional list of vices are incorporated into the parenesis (teaching/exhortation). Such lists were common in Hellenistic moral tracts as well as in the New Testament, e.g. Romans 1:29-31; Galatians 5:19-21, and in the Qumran literature e.g. 1QS (Rule of the Community) 4:3-5; CD (Damascus Document) 4:17-19. The vices listed in this verse are disruptive to communal life. [NJBC]
4:32: “forgiving one another ...”: Reminiscent of the petition in the Lord’s Prayer that God forgive those who forgive others, but the imperative and the condition are reversed. Christian conduct is a corollary of Christian doctrine: see also Philippians 2:5-8 and Colossians 3:1-3. [NJBC] [NOAB]
5:1: “be imitators of God”: i.e. in forgiving (in 4:32) and in loving. This is closer to Matthew 5:43-48 than to Paul, who speaks of imitating Christ and himself: see 1 Corinthians 11:1; 4:16; Galatians 4:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; Philippians 3:17. [NOAB] [NJBC] [CAB]
5:2: “gave himself up”: i.e. to death, as a sacrifice. [NOAB]
5:3-5: This list of vices is like the one in Colossians 3:5. See also 1 Corinthians 5:9-11; 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-21; Romans 1:29-32. [CAB]
5:4: “obscene ... talk”: Shameful is another translation. The same Greek word is used in v. 12.
5:4: “silly ... talk”: Foolish talk is another translation.
5:4: “vulgar talk”: i.e. talk of a licentious nature. [NOAB]
5:5: “one who is greedy”: i.e. one sets up something to worship other than God. Colossians 3:5 says “Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed (which is idolatry)”. [NOAB]
5:6: “the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient”: i.e. they will be punished at the end of time.
5:7: See also 1 Corinthians 5:9-10. [CAB]
5:6-20: The vocabulary is reminiscent of the language in the Qumran literature. The author contrasts the children of darkness (disobedience) with the children of light. See also 1QS (Rule of the Community) 5:1-2; 3:10-11; 1:5; 2:24-25. As at Qumran, the light-darkness dualism is wholly ethical and not ontological, as in later Gnosticism. [NJBC]
5:8-17: These verses appear to be an insert loosely connected to the foregoing. V. 18 seems to follow naturally after v. 7.
5:8: In 1 Thessalonians 5:5, Paul says: “... you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness”. In Philippians 2:15, Paul writes of Christians as “children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world”. [CAB]
5:11: “expose them”: A translation not favoured by some scholars is reprove them. Responsibility for correcting sinners was also important at Qumran: see 1QS (Rule of the Community) 5:24-6:1. [NJBC]
5:14: “for everything that becomes visible is light”: This verse is a non sequitur from v. 13, unless the author is somehow saying that the children of light reveal the light of Christ.
5:14: The hymn from which the quotation is taken seems to combine ideas in Isaiah 60:1 and 26:19. [CAB]
5:15-17: “not as unwise people but as wise ... So do not be foolish”: See also 1QS (Rule of the Community) 4:23-24. [NJBC]
5:16: Colossians 4:5 says “Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time”. [NOAB]
5:18: “Do not get drunk with wine”: See also Proverbs 23:31-35. [CAB]
5:19-20: Colossians 3:16-17 has similarities: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him”. [CAB]


GOSPEL: John 9: 1 - 41 (RCL)
John 9: 1 (2 - 5) 6 - 9 (10 - 12) 13 - 17 (18 - 33) 34 - 38 (Roman Catholic)

John 9:1 (NRSV) As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" 3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." 6 When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man's eyes, 7 saying to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Silo'am" (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. 8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, "Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?" 9 Some were saying, "It is he." Others were saying, "No, but it is someone like him." He kept saying, "I am the man." 10 But they kept asking him, "Then how were your eyes opened?" 11 He answered, "The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, "Go to Silo'am and wash.' Then I went and washed and received my sight." 12 They said to him, "Where is he?" He said, "I do not know."
13 They brought to the Phar'isees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 Then the Phar'isees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see." 16 Some of the Phar'isees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?" And they were divided. 17 So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened." He said, "He is a prophet."
18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19 and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?" 20 His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself." 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23 Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."
24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, "Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner." 25 He answered, "I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see." 26 They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?" 27 He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?" 28 Then they reviled him, saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from." 30 The man answered, "Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. 32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing." 34 They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?" And they drove him out.
35 Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" 36 He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him." 37 Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he." 38 He said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind." 40 Some of the Phar'isees near him heard this and said to him, "Surely we are not blind, are we?" 41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, "We see,' your sin remains.

John 9:1-41
Perhaps Jesus encounters the blind man in the precincts of the Temple, where beggars habitually gathered. Illness and physical disability were attributed to sin: in this case, either of the man (prenatally) or of “his parents” (v. 2). Jesus dismisses the link between sin and illness, at least in this case; rather he says that this man’s impairment provides him with opportunities to do (and show) the works of God. Jesus and his followers (“we”, v. 4) must do his mission while they can. A time is coming (from his crucifixion to his resurrection) when he, “the light of the world” (v. 5) will not be in the world, so he will be unable to “work” (v. 4, and the disciples will desert him). Jesus takes earth (the substance from which human, Adam, was made), makes a “mud” (v. 6) poultice, and applies it to the man’s eyes. If he has trust enough to go to the “pool” (v. 7) and wash it off, he will have sight. He does; thus Jesus completes one of “God’s works” (v. 3). John draws attention to “Siloam” (v. 7) as meaning “Sent”, thereby alluding to Jesus as sent for the salvation of humankind – so washing symbolizes baptism.
Despite the man’s claim to be the one who was a beggar, those who know him are divided: some say “it is he” (v. 9) but others doubt: he only looks like the beggar. In vv. 10-22, the man confirms his cure as genuine. The Pharisees consider making mud on the sabbath as breaking the Law (v. 14) so they examine the man. They too are divided (v. 16): between those who say Jesus can’t be from God (for he breaks the Law) and those who wonder how a sabbath-breaker can perform miracles (which only one approved by God can do). So they question the man further, hoping that the dilemma can be resolved by discrediting the cure (v. 17). They ask: What do you say about his opening of your eyes? He insists that Jesus’ power is from God (“a prophet”). The man’s parents swear that their son was blind from birth but say no more, for fear of being cast out of the community (vv. 18-23). The Pharisees invite the man to confess that he has deceived them in claiming to be cured (v. 24). (“Give glory to God” is an Old Testament formula inviting confession.) The man boldly asserts the fact of the cure and adds, ironically: if you listen to my story you may admit that Jesus is right! (v. 27) They question Jesus’ authority: “we know” (v. 29) that the Law is from God, but Jesus is an upstart! The man ridicules their expert opinion (v. 30). God only listens to sinners who are penitent (v. 31). Jesus must be “from God” (v. 33) for no one has ever before performed such a cure (v. 32). For trying to teach the Pharisees a lesson, the man is evicted from the synagogue (“drove him out”, v. 34). Jesus invites him to express his faith shown by his conduct (vv. 35-38). He says he took on human form for two purposes: to give understanding, sight, of ultimate reality, and to punish those who think they “see” (v. 39) but don’t. The Pharisees are incredulous (v. 40). Jesus says: if you were ignorant of God’s ways (“blind”, v. 41) you would be considered sin-less, but you make the unfounded assumption that you do “see”, so you are liable to be punished.

John 9:1-41

BlkJn says that this is the second sign in the second group of three signs.

Comments: where beggars habitually gathered: V. 8 tells us he was a beggar. In Acts 3:1-10, Peter cures a beggar near the Temple. [BlkJn]

Verse 2: “who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”: This question illustrates the belief, common at the time, that illness and physical misfortunes were punishment for sin. This was what Job’s friends believed. Luke 13:2, 4 also illustrates this belief, and shows that Jesus did not share it. [BlkJn]

Verse 3: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him”: BlkJn, arguing from the construction of the clauses in the Greek and noting the characteristically Semitic refusal (or inability) to distinguish the purpose and the consequence of an action, tries to reproduce this ambiguity: [This did] not [happen because] this man or his parents sinned, but for the works of God to be shown forth in him.

Verse 3: “God’s works”: Both those performed by God and by the godly. [BlkJn] In 11:4, on hearing of Lazarus’ illness, Jesus says: “‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God's glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it’”.

Verse 4: “night”: For the symbolism, see also 3:2 (Nicodemus) and 13:30 (Judas Iscariot). [BlkJn]

Verse 5: “I am in the world”: 1:10 says: “He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him” and in 3:19 Jesus says: “And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil”. [BlkJn]

Verse 5: “I am the light of the world”: 8:12 says: “‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’” [BlkJn]

Verse 6: In Mark 10:51, Jesus asks if the blind man, Bartimaeus, wishes help. Here he doesn’t ask. [BlkJn]

Verse 6: “saliva”: It was usual to use spittle as a means of healing in ancient times, but here it is simply used to make “mud” (which would stick to the man’s eyes). Jesus uses the spittle and dirt, the material from which proto-human was made (see Genesis 2:7), to complete the creative act in the blind man. [BlkJn]

Verse 7: As Naaman was challenged by Elisha to have faith (by washing in the Jordan), so the blind man is challenged to wash in the pool of Siloam: see 2 Kings 5:10. [BlkJn]

Verse 7: “the pool of Siloam”: The pool still exists; it is on the south side of the site of the Temple. It is fed by the overflow of the intermittent Virgin’s Spring sent by the tunnel Hezekiah made: see 2 Kings 20:20. [BlkJn]

Verse 7: “Siloam ... (which means Sent)”: “Sent” is a symbol of Jesus as sent from God to give light. Perhaps John also intends an allusion to Isaiah 8:6, the waters of Shiloah which Jews refused to receive – as they refused Christ. [NOAB]

Verse 7: “he ... came back able to see”: For similar healings in the synoptic gospels, see, for example, Mark 10:46-52 (Bartimaeus) and Mark 8:22-26 (the blind man at Bethsaida).

Verse 13: “They”: i.e. the neighbours and friends. [NOAB]

Verse 16: “‘This man is not from God’”: BlkJn points out the odd order of the words in Greek: so he translates this clause: This is not the man from God.

Verse 16: “they were divided”: For division that results from Jesus’ presence among humans, see also 7:43 and Luke 12:51.

Verse 17: “He is a prophet”: The miracle authenticates Jesus as a messenger from God. [NOAB] Sight to the blind is promised in the prophetic books (see Isaiah 29:18; 35:5) and especially in Isaiah 42:6-7 where it is linked to renewal of the covenant. The Samaritan woman also proclaims Jesus as a prophet: see 4:19. [BlkJn]

Verse 24: “‘Give glory to God!’”: This is a technical term meaning tell the truth! It is a formula used when people are to confess their sins. In Joshua 7:19, Joshua urges Achan: “give glory to the LORD God of Israel and make confession to him”. See also 1 Samuel 6:5; Jeremiah 13:16; Acts 12:23 (Agrippa dies); Mishnah Sanhedrin 6:2. [BlkJn] [NOAB]

Verse 25: “‘now’”: BlkJn says that the Greek word, arti, is emphatic, so he translates it as at present.

Verse 28: “You are his disciple”: An expression of baffled rage. The Pharisees attempt to cover their own defeat by denouncing the one who has been blind. [NOAB]

Verse 30: “‘astonishing’”: BlkJn translates the Greek as marvellous.

Verse 31 : “‘We know ...’”: From Old Testament teachings. [NOAB]

Verse 31: “‘God does not listen to sinners’”: In Isaiah 1:15, God, through the prophet, says to unrepentant sinners: “ When you stretch out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood”. [BlkJn] See also Psalm 66:18.

Verse 31: “he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will”: Proverbs 15:29 says “The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous”. [NOAB]

Verse 34: Blinded by their pride of learning (see 7:15), the Pharisees attribute the man’s refusal to be persuaded by them to his sins. [BlkJn]

Verse 34: “they drove him out”: If we take this literally, the examination of the man took place in a synagogue. Synagogues were used for many communal purposes besides than worship. The man is branded as an outcast. [BlkJn]

Verse 35: “‘the Son of Man’”: In John, both the humiliated and the exalted Christ. Jesus appears to have used this title to avoid the then popular connotations of Messiah. Note that when he is in Samaria, Jesus acknowledges that he is the Messiah: see 4:26.

Verses 36,38: “‘sir ... Lord’”: The Greek word in both cases is Kurie (Kyrie). It is possible that in v. 38 the meaning is no more than sir and “worshipped him” may only be an extravagant gesture of respect: see Matthew 8:2; 9:18; 18:26, 20:20. However John probably intends us to take the second Kurie as divine “Lord” and “worshipped” in the full sense it has in every other case in John. [BlkJn]

Verse 38: “I believe”: For belief as a result of a sign, see also 4:53 (Jesus heals an official’s son). [BlkJn]

Verse 39: Jesus came as the light but also for judgement: see also 3:19 (Nicodemus) and 5:22. [BlkJn]

Verse 39: “‘who do not see may see’”: Isaiah 35:5 prophesies: “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped”.

Verse 39: “‘those who do see may become blind’”: This is from Isaiah 6:9-10. These verses are also quoted in 12:40 and Matthew 13:14-17. [BlkJn]

Verse 41: “now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains”: Proud refusal to admit spiritual blindness demonstrates their sin. Sin and disbelief are closely linked in 8:24; however 3:36 says: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure God's wrath”.


Luke 3: 33 - 35 (alt for C of E)

Luke 2:33 (NRSV) And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed 35 so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed-and a sword will pierce your own soul too."


John 19: 25 - 27 (alt for C of E)

John 19:25 (NRSV) And that is what the soldiers did.
Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, "Woman, here is your son." 27 Then he said to the disciple, "Here is your mother." And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.