OLD TESTAMENT: 2 Kings 5: 1 - 14 (RCL) 2Kin 5:1 (NRSV) Na'aman, commander of the army of the king of Ar'am, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Ar'am. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. 2 Now the Arame'ans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Na'aman's wife. 3 She said to her mistress, "If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy." 4 So Na'aman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. 5 And the king of Ar'am said, "Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel." He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. 6 He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, "When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Na'aman, that you may cure him of his leprosy." 7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, "Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me." 8 But when Eli'sha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, "Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel." 9 So Na'aman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Eli'sha's house. 10 Eli'sha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean." 11 But Na'aman became angry and went away, saying, "I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! 12 Are not Aba'na and Phar'par, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?" He turned and went away in a rage. 13 But his servants approached and said to him, "Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, "Wash, and be clean'?" 14 So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean. Proverbs 8: 1, 22 - 31 (C of E) Prov 8:1 (NRSV) Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice? 22 The LORD created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago. 23 Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. 24 When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth- 26 when he had not yet made earth and fields, or the world's first bits of soil. 27 When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, 28 when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, 29 when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, 30 then I was beside him, like a master worker; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, 31 rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the human race. Leviticus 13: 1 - 2, 44 - 46 (Roman Catholic) Levi 13:1 (NRSV) The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2 When a person has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a leprous disease on the skin of his body, he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. [If] 44 he is leprous, he is unclean. The priest shall pronounce him unclean; the disease is on his head. 45 The person who has the leprous disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head be disheveled; and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, "Unclean, unclean." 46 He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease; he is unclean. He shall live alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp. PSALM 30 (RCL) Psal 30:1 (NRSV) I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up, and did not let my foes rejoice over me. 2 O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me. 3 O LORD, you brought up my soul from She'ol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit. 4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. 5 For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning. 6 As for me, I said in my prosperity, "I shall never be moved." 7 By your favor, O LORD, you had established me as a strong mountain; you hid your face; I was dismayed. 8 To you, O LORD, I cried, and to the LORD I made supplication: 9 "What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness? 10 Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me! O LORD, be my helper!" 11 You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, 12 so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever. 30 Exaltabo te, Domine (ECUSA BCP) 1 I will exalt you, O LORD, because you have lifted me up * and have not let my enemies triumph over me. 2 O LORD my God, I cried out to you, * and you restored me to health. 3 You brought me up, O LORD, from the dead; * you restored my life as I was going down to the grave. 4 Sing to the LORD, you servants of his; * give thanks for the remembrance of his holiness. 5 For his wrath endures but the twinkling of an eye, * his favor for a lifetime. 6 Weeping may spend the night, * but joy comes in the morning. 7 While I felt secure, I said, “I shall never be disturbed. * You, LORD, with your favor, made me as strong as the mountains.” 8 Then you hid your face, * and I was filled with fear. 9 I cried to you, O LORD; * I pleaded with the Lord, saying, 10 “What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the Pit? * will the dust praise you or declare your faithfulness? 11 Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me; * O LORD, be my helper." 12 You have turned my wailing into dancing; * you have put off my sack-cloth and clothed me with joy. 13 Therefore my heart sings to you without ceasing; * O LORD my God, I will give you thanks for ever. Psalm 104: 24 - 35 (C of E) Psal 104:24 (NRSV) O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. 25 Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great. 26 There go the ships, and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it. 27 These all look to you to give them their food in due season; 28 when you give to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things. 29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. 30 When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground. 31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works- 32 who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke. 33 I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. 34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the LORD. 35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD! Note: Verse numbering in the C of E Psalter is two higher than the above. Psalm 32: 1 - 2, 5, 11 (Roman Catholic) Psal 32:1 (NRSV) Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 2 Happy are those to whom the LORD imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. 5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity; I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," and you forgave the guilt of my sin. [Selah] 6 Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to you; at a time of distress, the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them. 7 You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance. [Selah] 8 I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. 9 Do not be like a horse or a mule, without understanding, whose temper must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not stay near you. 10 Many are the torments of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds those who trust in the LORD. 11 Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart. NEW TESTAMENT: 1 Corinthians 9: 24 - 27 (RCL) 1Cor 9:24 (NRSV) Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. 25 Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. 26 So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; 27 but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified. Paul has written that he has been “entrusted with a commission” (v. 17) from God to spread the good news. He has gone beyond what God expects of him, making himself the servant of all, not burdening the Corinthians financially, so that he may bring more to Christ. He has accepted this discipline voluntarily, and “for the sake of the gospel” (v. 23). Now he presents the metaphor of sports, one familiar to his first readers, for the Isthmian Games (of which the Olympics are a modern imitation) were once held in Corinth. He likens Christian life to track races – but every metaphor has its limitations. It seems that by being believers and joining in the liturgical and sacramental life of the Church some Christians at Corinth thought themselves sure of eternal life – but the Christian way requires more than this. While we all set out on the Way in our baptism, not all persevere as we should. In athletics, one person wins; in Christian life, not all persevere beyond baptism so Paul says “run in such a way that you may win it” (v. 24). Do this by exercising “self-control” (v. 25, self-discipline), whatever your way to Christ. (Paul thinks of other sports too: see v. 26). Winners in the Games received a crown of dried celery, a “perishable wreath” (v. 25), while Christians who strive towards the goal of being more Christ-like will, by God’s grace, be given eternal life. Paul not only exerts great effort but does so purposefully and effectively: a boxer who beats the air loses (v. 26). Paul disciplines his “body” (v. 27) and harnesses it to God’s purposes, lest he be “disqualified” from eternal life. Thus he warns his readers. In 1 Thessalonians 2:7, Paul speaks of his restraint from asserting his rights as an apostle: “... we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children”. [NOAB] Verses 1-2: “an apostle”: In 15:8-9, Paul writes: “Then he [Jesus] appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles ...”. See also Galatians 1:1, 11-12; Acts 9:3-6 (Paul’s vision), 17. [NOAB] Verse 1: “Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?”: See 15:8 (quoted above). [NJBC] Verse 4: i.e. at the expense of the church. [NOAB] Verse 5: “the brothers of the Lord”: In Matthew 13:55, some who have heard Jesus in the synagogue ask “... And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?”. That they and “Cephas” (presumably Peter) are mentioned suggests that the opposition to Paul originated in Jerusalem. Of Jesus’ brothers, Paul only names one: James (see Galatians 1:19). See also Mark 3:31; 6:3; Acts 1:14. [NJBC] Verse 5: “a believing wife”: Mark 1:30 tells us that Peter was married: “Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever ...”. [NOAB] Verse 6: “Barnabas”: He is mentioned in Galatians 2:1 as Paul’s companion on his visit to Jerusalem. In Galatians 1:13, Paul says of him: “even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy”, meaning the hypocrisy of Jerusalem Christians. “Alone” is singular in the Greek so Paul may have suddenly remembered another apostle whose practice mirrored his own. [NJBC] Verse 6: “ have no right to refrain from working for a living”: Paul employs four arguments to justify the right to support: • From common sense (v. 7-8, “on human authority”), an argument also used in 2 Timothy 2:3-6 • Mosaic law (vv. 8-9) • Ancient cultic practice (v. 13), and • Jesus’ directive for the Palestinian mission (v. 14) [NJBC] Verse 9: The quotation is from Deuteronomy 25:4. The ox has a right to eat the grain. [NOAB] Verse 11: A quid pro quo. [NJBC] Verse 12: “If others ...”: Other missionaries have passed through Corinth, and have had the right to support accepted. [NJBC] Verse 13: In Judaism, this is prescribed in Leviticus 7:28-35. It was also the practice in Hellenic cults. [NOAB] Verse 14: In Luke 10:7, Jesus tells the pairs of emissaries he sends out: “Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid”. Deuteronomy 25:4 and this verse are quoted in 1 Timothy 5:18. [NOAB] Verses 15-18: In 2 Corinthians 11:7-12, Paul says that his mission to the Corinthians is financed by “friends who came from Macedonia”. [NOAB] Verse 17: “entrusted with a commission”: In Galatians 1:15-17, Paul tells us “ ... when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, ... I went away at once into Arabia, and afterwards I returned to Damascus.” [NJBC] Verse 18: “free of charge”: NJBC sees this as a feeble joke. The wages of one not entitled to any is to work for nothing! Verse 18: “not to make full use of”: The verb in Greek is katachraomai, meaning overuse. NJBC says that Paul uses this word deliberately to disguise a mental reservation, because while at Corinth he was subsidized from Macedonia. Verses 20-22: Paul proceeds with his mission with consideration and tact, not cowardice and compromise. [NOAB] Verse 21: This verse is difficult to understand; in Comments I present a general understanding of vv. 19-23. Blk1Cor says “this is one of the most difficult sentences in the epistle”. It is perhaps helpful to recall Galatians 6:2, where the “law of Christ” is fulfilled by bearing one another’s burdens, i.e. in love. Christ fulfills “God’s law” but now love helps us to be obedient to God, as Paul is: he is “entrusted with a commission”. NJBC also sees an allusion to the “law-less” at Corinth, i.e. those who saw no requirement for ethical behaviour because the Second Coming was thought to be so close. See 6:12 and 10:23. Verse 22: Comments: eating meat left over from pagan rites: In 8:12-13, Paul submits himself to the conscience (and discipline) of the “weak” and recommends such discipline to others who have progressed significantly in their journeys of faith: “... when you thus sin against members of your family, and wound their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ”. [NJBC] Verse 22: “win the weak”: As will become clear in 10:23-11:1, the hearts of the weak also needed to be changed. [NJBC] Verses 24-27: Athletic metaphors on the importance of self-discipline out of consideration for others. [NOAB] In a sense, Paul trains himself to better carry out his God-given commission. h/t Montreal Anglican GOSPEL: Mark 1: 40 - 45 (all except C of E) Mark 1:40 (NRSV) A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, "If you choose, you can make me clean." 41 Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I do choose. Be made clean!" 42 Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43 After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, 44 saying to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them." 45 But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter. At Capernaum Jesus has surprised those worshipping and studying in the synagogue by teaching with a new kind of authority and by healing a mentally disturbed man by command alone. He has then cured Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever. Later people in a crowd have witnessed him curing many. After communing with God in “a deserted place” (v. 35) he moves on to spread the good news in other towns. Now a leper approaches him in supplication (“kneeling”, v. 40). The man recognizes something of the essence of God: God chooses whom he heals (and saves). Jesus is “moved” (v. 41) emotionally: he touches the man – thus making himself ritually unclean and risking leprosy himself. Jesus’ stern “warning” (v. 43) is to “say nothing to anyone” (v. 44), but the man ignores it (v. 45). Jesus does not wish to be misunderstood: physical healing is only an indicator of the Kingdom; he is not merely a wonder-worker. For the man to be readmitted to Jewish society, the healing needs to be confirmed by a “priest” (v. 44) – a requirement of Mosaic law (“what Moses commanded”). Leviticus 14 requires him to make certain sacrifices (“offer for your cleansing”) so he could be ritually purified. (The “testimony to them” may either be to the crowds or be to the power of God now available to all believers.) Lest he be misunderstood, Jesus continues his ministry secretly, “out in the country” (v. 45), away from the crowds. The parallels are Matthew 8:2-4 and Luke 5:12-16. [NOAB] The first part of the story, vv. 40-42, follows the usual outline of healing accounts: the disease is described; Jesus heals; and the healing is clearly complete. Then it is complicated by Jesus’ command that he show himself to the priest (vv. 43-44). [NJBC] Verse 40: “make me clean”: The Greek word, katharisai, could mean declare clean. So the leper may be asking Jesus rather than the Jerusalem priests to declare him ritually pure; however everything in the present form of the story indicates that the leper is seeking a cure. [NJBC] Verse 42: “leprosy”: CAB says that the unidentified skin ailment was probably a form of mould and not Hansen’s disease (which we commonly call leprosy.) NJBC says that leprosy was a general term for repulsive skin diseases including psoriasis, favus, and seborrheic dermatitis. Leviticus 13 describes the various kinds of afflictions and their detection by the priests. Verse 43: “sternly warning”: To CAB, this is what effects the cure. This he says may be a variant of Jesus’ commanding word, his rebuke, to the “demons” (v. 25). Verses 43-44: Jesus wishes the healing to carry with it a spiritual obligation. [NOAB] Verse 44: “say nothing to anyone”: This may be part of the messianic secret device found elsewhere in Mark, but it may only indicate Jesus’ command that the man present himself to the priest-inspectors as soon as possible. [NJBC] Comments: he touches the man – thus making himself ritually unclean: The regulation is in Leviticus 15:5. Verse 45: Whether this verse belongs to the story is in some doubt. As part of the story, the man appears to disobey Jesus and goes against Jesus’ desire to keep his true identify secret. [NJBC] Verse 45: “he”: If this refers to Jesus, the verse begins a new paragraph, summarizing Jesus’ activity between 1:40-44 and 2:1-12 in terms already used in 1:38. When “he” is taken as Jesus, the problem of the man’s disobedience disappears and the connection with the messianic secret vanishes.