• 24 Saint Matthias the Apostle according to the Acts of the Apostles, was the apostle chosen by the remaining eleven apostles to replace Judas Iscariot following Judas' betrayal of Jesus and suicide • 25 John Roberts, Priest, 1949 • 26 Emily Malbone Morgan, Prophetic Witness, 1937 • 27 George Herbert, priest, 1633 was a Welsh-born English poet, orator and Anglican priest. • 28 Anna Julia Haywood Cooper, 1964, and Elizabeth Evelyn Wright, 1904, Educators • 29 John Cassian, Abbot at Marseilles, 433 John the Ascetic, or John Cassian the Roman, was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern Churches for his mystical writing March • 1 David, Bishop of Menevia, Wales, c. 544 was a Welsh bishop of Menevia during the 6th century; he was later regarded as a saint and as the patron saint of Wales OLD TESTAMENT: Genesis 15: 1 - 12, 17 - 18 (all) Gene 15:1 (NRSV) After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great." 2 But Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Elie'zer of Damascus?" 3 And Abram said, "You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir." 4 But the word of the LORD came to him, "This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir." 5 He brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your descendants be." 6 And he believed the LORD; and the LORD reckoned it to him as righteousness. 7 Then he said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chalde'ans, to give you this land to possess." 8 But he said, "O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?" 9 He said to him, "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." 10 He brought him all these and cut them in two, laying each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. 11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. 12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and a deep and terrifying darkness descended upon him. 17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, PSALM 27 (RCL) Psalm 27: 1, 7 - 9, 13 - 14 (Roman Catholic) Psal 27:1 (NRSV) The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh-- my adversaries and foes-- they shall stumble and fall. 3 Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident. 4 One thing I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple. 5 For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will set me high on a rock. 6 Now my head is lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the LORD. 7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud, be gracious to me and answer me! 8 "Come," my heart says, "seek his face!" Your face, LORD, do I seek. 9 Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger, you who have been my help. Do not cast me off, do not forsake me, O God of my salvation! 10 If my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will take me up. 11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies. 12 Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen against me, and they are breathing out violence. 13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. 14 Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD! Note: Verse numbering in your Psalter may differ from the above. 27 Dominus illuminatio (ECUSA BCP) 1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom then shall I fear? * the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid? 2 When evildoers came upon me to eat up my flesh, * it was they, my foes and my adversaries, who stumbled and fell. 3 Though an army should encamp against me, * yet my heart shall not be afraid; 4 And though war should rise up against me, * yet will I put my trust in him. 5 One thing have I asked of the Lord; one thing I seek; * that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; 6 To behold the fair beauty of the Lord * and to seek him in his temple. 7 For in the day of trouble he shall keep me safe in his shelter; * he shall hide me in the secrecy of his dwelling and set me high upon a rock. 8 Even now he lifts up my head * above my enemies round about me. 9 Therefore I will offer in his dwelling an oblation with sounds of great gladness; * I will sing and make music to the Lord. 10 Hearken to my voice, O Lord, when I call; * have mercy on me and answer me. 11 You speak in my heart and say, "Seek my face." * Your face, Lord, will I seek. 12 Hide not your face from me, * nor turn away your servant in displeasure. 13 You have been my helper; cast me not away; * do not forsake me, O God of my salvation. 14 Though my father and my mother forsake me, * the Lord will sustain me. 15 Show me your way, O Lord; * lead me on a level path, because of my enemies. 16 Deliver me not into the hand of my adversaries, * for false witnesses have risen up against me, and also those who speak malice. 17 What if I had not believed that I should see the goodness of the Lord * in the land of the living! 18 O tarry and await the Lord's pleasure; be strong, and he shall comfort your heart; * wait patiently for the Lord. NEW TESTAMENT: Philippians 3: 17 - 4: 1 (all) Phil 3:17 (NRSV) Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. 18 For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. 19 Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. 21 He will transform the body of our humiliation that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself. 4:1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved. H/T Montreal Anglican Paul has written: “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death” (3:10). He has not yet fully understood Christ, but he presses on (3:12) towards the goal of being with Christ when he comes again. This is how “mature” (3:15) Christians should think: they have not yet achieved full understanding. Now Paul offers himself as an example of centering oneself in Christ, in his sufferings. (At the time, Paul was in prison.) Observe those who follow his (our) example! He warns against “many” (3:18) who centre on other things: at the end of the age, sadly they will be destroyed. Who are they? Perhaps self-centred people, but more likely Christians who insist on keeping Jewish dietary laws (“belly”, 3:19) and on circumcision: to boast in this is to glory in an organ which should be modestly covered (“shame”). These are “earthly things”, made obsolete by Christ’s coming. Society looks to Rome for citizenship but we look to “heaven” (3:20). Our bodies, now mortal, will enter eternal life in a changed form, to achieve union with Christ (3:21). Per Psalm 8, the Messiah will be sovereign over all (“subject to himself”); Christ is the Messiah. Do not deviate from the true faith! (4:1). The abrupt change of tone and content at 3:1b suggests that this segment is from a later communication of Paul. [NJBC] 3:12-14: Though righteousness is God’s gift, Christians are not relieved of the obligation of serious effort towards being godly. [NOAB] 3:12-14: “goal ... prize ... heavenly”: Paul is thinking of Greek foot races; the “goal” is their finishing post. The word translated “heavenly” literally means upward. Winners were called to ascend a podium to receive a “prize”, i.e. a “crown” (4:1). [NOAB] [NJBC] 3:13: “Beloved”: literally brothers. 3:13: “forgetting what lies behind”: i.e. leaving behind past achievements. [NJBC] 3:14: “heavenly call”: Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17: “... the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel's call and with the sound of God's trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever”, and in Romans 5:2: “... we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God”. 3:15: “mature”: In 1 Corinthians, Paul distinguishes between immature and mature Christians. In 1 Corinthians 2:6 he writes: “... among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age ...”. In 1 Corinthians 14:20, he urges members of the community to grow spiritually: “... do not be children in your thinking; rather, be infants in evil, but in thinking be adults”. See also Hebrews 5:13-14. [JBC] 3:17: “join in imitating me”: Paul also invites imitation of him in 4:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2 Thessalonians 3:7, 9; 1 Corinthians 4:16. He is able to do this because he himself is an imitator of Christ: he advises in 1 Corinthians 11:1: “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ”. [JBC] 3:18: “enemies of the cross of Christ”: Comments uses the interpretation in NJBC. By preaching the necessity of circumcision, the “enemies” deny the efficacy of the Cross, thus voiding Christ’s costly self-sacrifice: Paul writes in Galatians 2:21: “I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing”. However, NOAB does not consider these people to be those who expect Christians to adopt Judaic practices by being circumcised, “those who mutilate the flesh” (3:2). CAB says that the “enemies” are likely those who do not wish to make the Cross the centre of the Christian message. See also 1 Corinthians 1:18; 2:2; 11:26. 3:19: “destruction”: In 1 Corinthians 1:18, Paul presents the paradox of the Cross: “For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God”. [JBC] 3:19: “belly”: This refers to zeal for Jewish food laws or to selfishness in general. In Romans 16:18, Paul writes: “... such people do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites”. [NJBC] 3:19: “their glory is in their shame”: To boast in circumcision (vv. 2-3) is to glory in something which one modestly covers: Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12:23: “those members of the body that we think less honourable we clothe with greater honour, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect”. [NJBC] 3:19: “earthly things”: In Galatians 4:9, Paul asks those who are tempted to desert the faith and the Way: “Now, however, that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly elemental spirits? How can you want to be enslaved to them again?”. [JBC] 3:19: It is also possible that the “many” see Paul’s imprisonment as a setback in their social status – in the context of the residents of Philippi. [CAB] 3:20: “our citizenship is in heaven”: We already have it! The Greek word translated “citizenship” carries with it the notion of being active as a citizen. See also Galatians 4:24-27 (the allegory of Hagar and Sarah) and Ephesians 2:19 (“... citizens with the saints ...”). [NJBC] To CAB, Paul’s use of the word “citizenship” indicates that his opponents see his imprisonment as a setback in terms of their status in society. 3:20: “it is from there ...”: In Acts 1:11, after the Ascension two messengers from God tell the disciples: “This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven”. See also Acts 3:21; 2 Timothy 4:1. [CAB] 3:21: “that it may be ... glory”: In Romans 8:23, Paul speaks of waiting for “adoption, the redemption of our bodies”. 1 Corinthians 15:49 says “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven” and 15:51 “... we will all be changed”. See also Romans 8:19-21, 29-30; 2 Corinthians 5:1-5; Colossians 3:1-4. [NOAB] 3:21: “make all things subject to himself”: An allusion to Psalm 8:6 (“You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet”), a verse that to Paul tells of the messianic reign of Christ. See also Ephesians 1:22; Hebrews 2:6-9; 1 Peter 3:22. [NJBC] 4:1: “joy and crown”: Paul asks rhetorically in 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20: “For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? Yes, you are our glory and joy!”. [NOAB] GOSPEL: Luke 13: 31 - 35 (RCL) Luke 13:31 (NRSV) At that very hour some Phar'isees came and said to him, "Get away from here, for Her'od wants to kill you." 32 He said to them, "Go and tell that fox for me, "Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. 33 Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.' 34 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35 See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, "Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.'" Someone has asked: “Will only a few be saved?” (v. 23). Jesus has warned that few who have eaten with him will enter the Kingdom; many apparently pious people will be excluded. Many others, from across the world, will eat with him. Now “some Pharisees” (v. 31), in perhaps the only favourable mention of them in the gospels, advise him to leave Herod Antipas’ territory (“here”, i.e. Galilee and Perea). (Herod the Great died soon after Jesus was born.) To Jesus, Herod is “that fox” (v. 32): destructive, tricky, sly, politically motivated. Herod will not cut short Jesus’ earthly ministry. His journey to Jerusalem “must” (v. 33), in accord with the Father’s will, continue day-by-day; in and at his resurrection (“third day”, v. 32), he will complete, consummate, his mission of restoring mankind to the relationship God intended at creation. Jerusalem, not Herod, has first claim on God’s messengers! (v. 33b). This city is to be the place of, and the agent of, his murder. In vv. 34-35, Jesus laments over the city and (probably) its religious leaders (“house”). Perhaps v. 34b speaks of Jesus’ extensive effort to bring Judeans to him, of efforts not recorded in the gospels. The city’s residents, rejecting him now, will not see him again until they shout “Blessed ...” (v. 35) as he rides triumphantly into the city on the first Palm Sunday. Verses 31-32: “Herod ... that fox”: Herod Antipas is also mentioned in 3:1, 19-20 (the imprisonment of John the Baptizer); 9:7-9; 23:6-10 (Pilate sends Jesus to Herod and is questioned by him). He had already had John the Baptist put to death. Luke contains criticism of Roman social order. [NJBC] Verse 32: “today and tomorrow, and on the third day”: NOAB says that Jesus did not mean “third” literally; rather, he means a short and limited time. The NRSV translates the Greek literally, but BlkLk translates it as day by day, and one day soon. He says that there is an Aramaic idiom behind the Greek which does not refer to two actual days but to an indefinite short period followed by a still indefinite, but certain, event. This idiom is also at work in Hosea 6:2: “After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him”. Verse 32: “finish”: The same Greek word is found in John 5:36 (“complete”); 17:4, 23; 19:28; Hebrews 2:10; 5:9. It signifies the perfection of Christ’s redemptive mission. [JBC] Verse 33: “today, tomorrow, and the next day”: As a sequel to his interpretation given for v. 32, BlkLk suggests that the meaning may be every day. Verse 33: “it is impossible ...”: NOAB says that this is bitter irony. For the motif of the rejected prophet, see Nehemiah 9:26-31. [NJBC] Verse 33: “prophet”: In 4:24-27, Jesus says “... no prophet is accepted in the prophet's hometown ...”. In 7:16, when Jesus restores a man to life, those gathered proclaim: “‘A great prophet has risen among us!’”. In 7:39, a Pharisee argues that Jesus is not a prophet. In 24:19, on the road to Emmaus, Cleopas speaks of Jesus as “a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people”. [JBC] Verses 34-35: The parallel is Matthew 23:37-39. [NOAB] Verse 34b: Comments: of efforts not recorded in the gospels: Luke 4:44 says: “So he continued proclaiming the message in the synagogues of Judea”; however, the text is uncertain. In some manuscripts and in the parallels (Matthew 4:23 and Mark 1:39), Galilee appears rather than Judea. If “Judea” is correct, this is the only express mention of Jesus’ early ministry in Judea outside the Gospel according to John. [NOAB] Verse 34: “hen”: An image of loving care and protection. [NJBC] Verse 35: “your house”: The Old Testament background seems to be Jeremiah 22:1-9 where house means the king’s household of leaders. [NJBC] Verse 35: “Blessed ...”: See 19:38 (Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem) and Psalm 118:26 (“Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD ...”). At the time, this psalm was ascribed messianic significance. [JBC] Zechariah 9:9 says: “ Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey”. Luke 9: 28 - 36 (alt. for RCL & Can. BAS, but not C of E or ECUSA) Luke 9: 28b - 36 (Roman Catholic) Luke 9:28 (NRSV) Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. 30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Eli'jah, talking to him. 31 They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Eli'jah"--not knowing what he said. 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" 36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen. Luke 9:28-36 Jesus has predicted his suffering, death and resurrection to his disciples; he has called on them to “take up their cross” (v. 23), has warned that those who hear the gospel but fail to trust in it will be condemned, and has promised that some present will see the kingdom of God. Now he and the inner circle of disciples ascend “the mountain” (v. 28). In Luke, Jesus always prays before an important event. An aura of unnatural brightness is linked with mystical appearances in Exodus and Acts; “dazzling white” (v. 29) is a symbol of transcendence. In Jewish tradition, both “Moses and Elijah” (v. 30) were taken into heaven without dying. Jesus’ agenda is in accord with the Law and the prophets; he is doing God’s will. “Two men” also appear at the resurrection and at the ascension. Jesus’ “departure” (v. 31, exodos in Greek) is his journey to Jerusalem and his passage from this world. Peter clearly doesn’t understand; perhaps he thinks he is witnessing a super Feast of Tabernacles (“dwellings”, v. 33) – a time when the whole city was brightly illuminated. The “cloud” (v. 34) is a symbol of God’s presence; the words from it recall Jesus’ baptism, and add “listen to him!” (v. 35). They refrain from telling anyone what they had seen in order to avoid premature curtailing of Jesus’ earthly ministry. The parallels are Matthew 17:1-8 and Mark 9:2-8. [NOAB] Comments: An aura of unnatural brightness is linked with mystical appearances in Exodus and Acts: The references are Exodus 34:29-35 and Acts 9:3 (Paul’s vision on the road to Damascus). Other references are Nahum 3:3; Ezekiel 1:4, 7; Daniel 10:6 (particularly in the Septuagint translation). [BlkLk] Verse 28: “about eight days after”: Luke may be intending the octave day of the Feast of Tabernacles. During this feast, the whole city was brightly illuminated. [JBC] Verse 28: “these sayings”: i.e. those in vv. 23-27. Luke intends to link Jesus’ prediction of the coming of the Kingdom with the Transfiguration. [NJBC] Verse 28: “went up on the mountain to pray”: For prayer as part of many recorded momentous events in Jesus’ life, see, for example, Mark 1:35; Luke 3:21 (the baptism of Jesus); 6:12 (Jesus chooses the twelve apostles); 9:18 (Peter’s recognition that Jesus is the Messiah); 11:1 (the Lord’s Prayer); 22:21-46 (Jesus predicts Peter's denial of him). [NOAB] Verse 29: “the appearance of his face was changed”: Mark 9:2 has “transfigured”. BlkLk suggests that Luke avoids the apparent metamorphosis lest his Hellenic readers think in terms of human deities. Verses 30-31: On the road to Emmaus, in 24:26-27, Jesus asks: “‘Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’. Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures”. “Glory” is associated with the risen and heavenly life. [NJBC] Verse 30: “Two men”: There are two similar appearances: • at the Resurrection, in 24:4: “While they [the women who had come from Galilee] were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them” • after the Ascension, in Acts 1:10: “While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them”. [JBC] Verse 31: “departure”: God’s secret burial of Moses (per the Septuagint translation of Deuteronomy 34:6) led to the tradition that Moses did not die, but rather ascended. Elijah’s taking up into heaven is mentioned in 2 Kings 2:1-12. [CAB] Joshua and Jesus are the same name. As Joshua succeeded Moses, so Jesus does now. [BlkLk] Verse 32: “weighed down with sleep”: This suggests that the Transfiguration took place at night. [NOAB] However, BlkLk offers a second alternative: Luke may be seeking a way of excusing Peter’s strange suggestion in v. 33 (although it can also be seen as an attempt to delay the departure of Moses and Elijah). Verse 33: “three dwellings”: For the Feast of Tabernacles (“booths”), see Zechariah 14:16. [JBC] Verse 34: “Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!”: The parallel to this verse is Matthew 23:37-39. Going back to the previous verses, Matthew 23:29-36, Jesus says that previous generations have killed from A to Z, “from ... Abel to ... Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar”. HBD says that this Zechariah was probably the son of Jehoida, a priest; “the son of Barachiah” being a scribal error. The parallel, Luke 11:51, does not identify his father. 2 Chronicles 24:20-21 tells us that this Zechariah was stoned to death for his unpopular preaching, which was prophetic; it says in part: “they stoned him to death in the court of the house of the LORD”. Clearly, “house” here means Temple. Zechariah was one prophet who was murdered in Jerusalem. Jesus may be thinking of himself as another prophet to be killed there. Verse 35: “This is my Son ...”: The words at Jesus’ baptism, in 3:21-22, are “‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased’”. [NJBC] Verse 35: “Chosen”: The Greek word has much the same meaning as that translated Beloved, found in the parallel passages. See also John 12:28-30. [NOAB] Both titles indicate an act of will rather than of feeling. CAB suggests that “my Chosen” refers to the concept of Israel in Isaiah 42:1: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.” The voice identifies Jesus as the agent of the new-covenant people. In Psalm 106:20, Moses is spoken of as “his chosen one”. The scoffers at the cross refer to Jesus as God’s “chosen one”: see 23:35. [BlkLk] Verse 35: “listen to him”: Perhaps a reference to the prophet like Moses of Deuteronomy 18:15, whom the Israelites are to heed. Here the meaning is that the disciples are commanded to be attentive to this new phase in God’s revelation of who the Son is: one who returns to God via the cross. The implications for the disciples of Jesus’ journey to the cross will be spelt out in 9:51-19:27. [NJBC]

• 18 Martin Luther, 1546 was a German monk, priest, professor of theology and seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation • 19 • 20 Frederick Douglass, Prophetic Witness, 1895 was an American social reformer, orator, writer and statesman. After escaping from slavery, he became a leader of the abolitionist movement • 21 John Henry Newman, priest and theologian, 1890 • 22 Eric Liddell, Missionary to China, 1945 • 23 Polycarp, Bishop and Martyr of Smyrna, 156 was a 2nd century Christian bishop of Smyrna.[1] According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to touch him • 24 Saint Matthias the Apostle according to the Acts of the Apostles, was the apostle chosen by the remaining eleven apostles to replace Judas Iscariot following Judas' betrayal of Jesus and suicide • 25 John Roberts, Priest, 1949 OLD TESTAMENT: Deuteronomy 26: 1 - 11 (RCL) Deuteronomy 26: 4 - 10 (Roman Catholic) Deut 26:1 (NRSV) When you have come into the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, 2 you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. 3 You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, "Today I declare to the LORD your God that I have come into the land that the LORD swore to our ancestors to give us." 4 When the priest takes the basket from your hand and sets it down before the altar of the LORD your God, 5 you shall make this response before the LORD your God: "A wandering Arame'an was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous. 6 When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, 7 we cried to the LORD, the God of our ancestors; the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. 8 The LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; 9 and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O LORD, have given me." You shall set it down before the LORD your God and bow down before the LORD your God. 11 Then you, together with the Le'vites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the LORD your God has given to you and to your house. PSALM 91: 1 - 2, 9 - 16 (RCL) Psalm 91: 1 - 2, 10 - 15 (Roman Catholic) Psal 91:1 (NRSV) You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, 2 will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust." 9 Because you have made the LORD your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place, 10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot. 14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name. 15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them. 16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation. Note: Can. BAS omits vs. 1 & 2 91 Qui habitat (ECUSA BCP) 1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, * abides under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 He shall say to the Lord, "You are my refuge and my stronghold, * my God in whom I put my trust." 9 Because you have made the Lord your refuge, * and the Most High your habitation, 10 There shall no evil happen to you, * neither shall any plague come near your dwelling. 11 For he shall give his angels charge over you, * to keep you in all your ways. 12 They shall bear you in their hands, * lest you dash your foot against a stone. 13 You shall tread upon the lion and the adder; * you shall trample the young lion and the serpent under your feet. 14 Because he is bound to me in love, therefore will I deliver him; * I will protect him, because he knows my Name. 15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; * I am with him in trouble; I will rescue him and bring him to honor. 16 With long life will I satisfy him, * and show him my salvation. NEW TESTAMENT: Romans 10: 8b - 13 (RCL) Romans 10: 8 - 13 (Roman Catholic) Romans 10:8 (NRSV) "The word is near you, on your lips and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); 9 because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. 11 The scripture says, "No one who believes in him will be put to shame." 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. 13 For, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." h/t Montreal Anglican Paul has written that the Israelites did strive for law-based righteousness (9:31), a right relationship with God, but failed to achieve it because they sought it through “works” (9:32) rather than faith. By massaging Isaiah 28:16 and 8:14, Paul says that God is the impediment that lay in their way. He desires that they be part of God’s plan of salvation because of their “zeal for God” (10:2); however, they lack the right relationship with God that now comes from God: that revealed in Christ. They missed the real meaning of what God has done through Christ, thus failing to embrace Christ as the model for living. Moses said that union with God comes through obedience to the Law (v. 5), but this is close to impossible: it is like a Christian being expected to bring about his own resurrection (v. 6) and ascension (v. 7) – this we are not asked to do! Rather (v. 8) God’s “word”, his freely-given gift of love and right living, is readily available (“near you”) through faith. We need only acknowledge that “Jesus is Lord” (v. 9) and believe in Christ’s resurrection by the Father. One who believes this and recognizes Jesus as sovereign is godly (“justified”, v. 10) and will have new life when Christ comes again (“saved”). In v. 11, Paul again massages Isaiah: “no one” who believes, whatever his or her ethnic background, will be condemned (“put to shame”) at the Last Day. There is one Jesus – for all people. Everyone who sincerely believes will be saved (v. 13). 9:30: See also 3:22; 10:6, 20; Galatians 2:16; 3:24; Philippians 3:9; Hebrews 11:7. [NOAB] 9:32-33: Paul’s conflation of Isaiah 28:16 and 8:14 has the effect of making the Old Testament say almost the opposite of what it actually says! [NJBC] Isaiah 8:14-15 says: “He [the Lord of hosts] will become a sanctuary, a stone one strikes against; ... he will become a rock one stumbles over – a trap and a snare for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble; they shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken”. Isaiah 28:16 says: “thus says the Lord GOD, See, I am laying in Zion a foundation stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation: ‘One who trusts [in it] will not panic’”. In Isaiah 8:14-15, the “rock” is an impediment to Israel, but in Isaiah 28:16, the “stone” is a symbol of salvation; here in Romans “rock” and “stone” are interpreted as Christ. See also Matthew 21:42. Belief (or trust) in Christ brings salvation: in 10:10-11, Paul writes: “... one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. The scripture says, ‘No one who believes in him will be put to shame.’”. [NOAB] Paul really mangles the verses from Isaiah! The same conflation is found in 1 Peter 2:6-8, Mark 12:10 (parallels: Matthew 21:42 and Luke 20:17) and Acts 4:11. 10:1: Paul also prays that Jews may be included in salvation in Romans 1:16. [NJBC] 10:2: “zeal for God”: See also Acts 21:20; 22:3; Galatians 1:14 (Paul’s zealousness as a Jew); Philippians 3:6 (Paul’s credentials as a Jew); John 2:17; 1 Maccabees 2:26-27. [NJBC] 10:3: They try to establish righteousness with respect to the Law – their own righteousness – but not directly God’s, leaving their fate in his hands. 10:4: There are three possible meanings: • The law of Moses, with its demands and consequences, is no longer in effect: Christ is the termination of the law. (See also Galatians 3:23-26.) • In Christ, the Law is brought to its proper conclusion and fulfilment. (See also Matthew 5:17.) • The Law functions to drive people to ask for deliverance; this is available in Christ Paul may intend all three meanings. NJBC sees the third meaning as the most likely: the final and purposive goal of the Law is Christ. He notes that in 9:31-33 there is pursuit of oneness with God; one pursues a goal. 10:5: The quotation is from Leviticus 18:5. Paul also quotes it in Galatians 3:12. Paul emphasizes “does”. One must actually practise the Law completely to find life through it – which Paul has shown is impossible: see 3:9-10. [NOAB] Note that Paul accepts a common understanding of his time: that Moses wrote Leviticus. 10:6: “Do not say in your heart”: From Deuteronomy 8:17 and 9:4 (Septuagint translation). Both passages issue a warning against trust in one’s own achievements. [CAB] Paul takes the speaker as being the righteousness of God [BlkRom]; in Deuteronomy, the speaker is Moses; he tells what God has commanded him to say. 10:6-8: “Who will ascend into heaven?”: This is a quotation from Deuteronomy 30:12. In these verses, Paul generally quotes Deuteronomy 30:11-14; however, “Who will descend into the abyss” is probably based on Psalm 107:26 while Deuteronomy 30:13 asks: “Who will cross to the other side of the sea ...?”. 10:6-7: “(that is, to bring Christ down) ... (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)”: In fact, Christ has gone all the way for you Israelites: he has come “down” (v. 6, been born into the world) and has been raised from “the dead” (v. 7). 10:6: “(that is, to bring Christ down)”: CAB offers another interpretation: to bring into effect God’s salvation. 10:7: “Who will descend into the abyss?”: Based on Psalm 107:26. The “abyss” was the place of the dead, where disobedient spirits awaited judgement. Revelation 9:1 says: “... the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit”. 10:7: “(that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)”: CAB offers another interpretation: to bring about the final stage of God’s salvation. Perhaps 1 Peter 3:19 tells us what Jesus did between his crucifixion and his resurrection: “... he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison”, i.e. to those who had died. 10:8: The quotation is Deuteronomy 30:14. Faith-based grace was (and is) available to the Israelites. In the original context, Moses says that God’s word of love and justification is God’s gift, not something humans can achieve or do. In 2:29, Paul writes: “... real circumcision is a matter of the heart – it is spiritual and not literal ...”. See also 6:17. 10:9: “Jesus is Lord”: Also found in 2 Corinthians 4:5; 1 Corinthians 12:3; Philippians 2:11; Romans 2:29; 6:17, this is probably a statement of faith. [NJBC] 10:9: In 2 Corinthians 4:5, Paul writes: “For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake”. [NJBC] 10:9: “God”: i.e. the Father. 10:10: “justified”: The Greek word is translated as “righteousness” in 9:30 and 10:3-6. [NOAB] 10:11: Again the quotation is from Isaiah 28:16. [NOAB] 10:12: “the same Lord is Lord of all”: Jesus is the risen Lord of Jew and Greek: in 9:5, Paul writes: “They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, comes the Messiah, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen”. See also 1 Corinthians 8:6 and Philippians 2:9-11. [NJBC] 10:13: In the Old Testament, those who call “on the name of the Lord” are sincere and pious Israelites: see Joel 2:32. Early Christians often applied Old Testament references to “Lord” to Jesus. In the original context, they refer to God. 10:14-21: Paul says that Israel did not take advantage of the opportunity offered to it by the prophets and the gospel; so the fault lies with Israel. The opportunity to believe in Christ was offered to all, but especially to Israel; it cannot claim that it did not hear the gospel. Paul proposes for himself four difficulties or objections, perhaps echoing comments from missionary sermons among Jews, and to each he proposes a brief answer by quoting the Old Testament: • How can people believe the gospel unless it has been fully preached? (vv. 14-15) • But it has not been fully accepted by everyone! (vv. 16-17) • But perhaps the Jews did not hear it! (v. 18) • Perhaps they did not understand! (vv. 19-21) [NJBC] 10:15: The quotation is Isaiah 52:7, a text originally referring to the good news announced to Jews left in ruined Jerusalem that deliverance from Babylonian captivity was coming and that Jerusalem’s restoration was close at hand. In Paul’s hands, the “good news” has overtones of his good news, the gospel. So to him, the goods news has indeed been preached to Israel. [NJBC] 10:16: The quotation is Isaiah 53:1, in which Isaiah saw a refusal to believe comparable to the one in Paul’s time. In Isaiah’s time, despite the prophet’s preaching, not all Jews accepted his message. [NJBC] 10:18: The quotation is Psalm 19:4, in which the psalmist sings of nature proclaiming the glory of God everywhere. Paul accommodates the words to the preaching of the gospel: properly authorized preachers have done their job, so Israel has had the opportunity to believe in Christ. [NJBC] 10:19: The quotation is Deuteronomy 32:21, in which Yahweh, through Moses, tries to educate Israel and announces that it will be humiliated by unbelievers (the Babylonians). In quoting this verse, Paul implies a comparison of Israel’s situation in his time with what it was at the time of the Exile. How much greater should Israel’s humiliation be now than then. Gentiles understand the good news, but Jews generally do not. [NJBC] 10:20-21: The quotations are Isaiah 65:1 and 65:2. In the original context, the same people are envisaged by both verses, but Paul, influenced by the Septuagint translation (which has ethnos, nation in v. 1 and laos, people, in v. 2) splits the two verses such that they apply to different peoples: in v. 1 he applies “nation” to Gentiles and in v. 2 “people” to Jews. [NJBC] (The NRSV follows the Septuagint in Isaiah 65:1-2.) So, to Paul, authentic preachers did speak in an intelligible way, so Israel had a proper opportunity to understand. [NJBC] 10:20: “who did not seek me”: Recall that in 9:30 the Gentiles “did not strive” for godliness. GOSPEL: Luke 4: 1 - 13 (all) Luke 4:1 (NRSV) Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. 3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread." 4 Jesus answered him, "It is written, "One does not live by bread alone.'" 5 Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And the devil said to him, "To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. 7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours." 8 Jesus answered him, "It is written, "Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'" 9 Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, "He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,' 11 and "On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'" 12 Jesus answered him, "It is said, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" 13 When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time. Luke has told us of Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan, of “a voice ... from heaven” (3:22) saying “You are my Son ...”. On that occasion “the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form”, but is this what we today, living in an age with supposedly only one reality, would consider bodily? Ancient people conceived of several levels of spirit worlds with occasional contact between them and earth. Perhaps Jesus transcends between earth and a spirit world in the story of his testing by the devil. (Note the imaginative images in vv. 5 and 9.) During his time there (“forty days”, v. 2, meaning a significant period of time), the Holy Spirit sustains him in his travails; human as he is, Jesus is totally dependent on the Spirit being with him, for “he ate nothing”. (Moses ate nothing during the time he was on the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments.) In this dependance, Jesus is humanly helpless; he humbles himself before the Father. The devil speaks, but is this like “a voice from heaven” speaking? The devil recognizes him as “Son of God” (vv. 3, 9), the one who fulfils God’s plan in creation and, given Luke’s genealogy in 3:23-28, in Israel’s history. Jesus answers the devil’s questions with quotations from the Law, i.e. Deuteronomy, then considered to be the words of Moses. In v. 4 Jesus, hungry as he is, says: God sustains humans through other means than eating. Whether the devil has the authority to offer Jesus world-wide political power is unlikely (vv. 5-7); however Jesus’ answer is plain: God is the ultimate master; only he is to be worshipped (v. 8). In vv. 9-11, the devil invites Jesus to do something extraordinary – a thing not in accordance with God’s plan of salvation. Again Jesus refuses to be taken in (v. 12). Jesus opposed the forces of evil throughout his ministry, but the greatest chance (“an opportune time”, v. 13) the devil had was on the cross. There he again faces identified temptations. The parallels are Matthew 4:1-11 and Mark 1:12-13. In Matthew, the temptations are in a different order. [NOAB] Jesus habitually refuses to allow his sense of mission to be influenced by concern for his safety or for merely practical interests. For the temptations Jesus faces on the cross, see 23:34b-39. Speculation about the end-time included the mythological element of the overthrow of the devil: see Assumption of Moses 10:1 and 1 Enoch 69:29. Did these events literally happen? Perhaps Jesus himself used the eschatological thought patterns of his day to tell his disciples about the testings of his faith he faced as he preached the good news. [NJBC] Verse 1: “full of the Holy Spirit”: A Christian phrase: see also Acts 2:4 (the Day of Pentecost); 6:3, 5 (the election of the first deacons); 7:55 (Stephen); 11:24 (Barnabas). Jesus is the model for Christians under duress. The work of Jesus and of the Church begins as God acts through individuals. [NOAB] [NJBC] Verse 1: “wilderness”: The Judean wilderness was considered to be the place of demons: see also 8:29 and 11:24. [NJBC] Verse 2: “forty days”: In Exodus 34:38, Moses was on Mount Sinai for forty days; In 1 Kings 19:8, Elijah spent forty days on the journey to Mount Horeb. According to the northern tradition (in Deuteronomy 9) , Moses received the Law there, rather than on Mount Sinai, the location in the southern tradition. In Deuteronomy 9:9, Moses says “I remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water”. [NOAB] “Forty days” appears many times in the Old Testament meaning a significant period of time. Recall also that Jonah predicted that Nineveh would be destroyed after “forty days” if the citizens did not repent. [NJBC] Verse 2: “devil”: The devil (diabolos in Greek) is God’s prosecuting attorney. He is presented in this role in Zechariah 3:1: “Then he showed me the high priest Joshua standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him”. “An accuser” is also mentioned in Psalm 109:6. [BlkLk] Luke consistently uses diabolos while Matthew mingles “Satan” and “devil” in his version of the story. Evil was conceived as a personal will actively hostile to God: see Luke 13:16. The devil was in conflict with God’s purpose of salvation; he is the concern of Jesus’ saving activity: see Matthew 8:14-17. [NJBC] Verse 3: “this stone”: Luke is more realistic than Matthew: he does not envisage turning the desert into a bakery! [NJBC] Verse 4: “One”: i.e. a human being. The quotation is Deuteronomy 8:3. [NOAB] Jesus is recalling that God taught the Israelites humility by allowing them to endure hunger. They learnt that “one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.” Verse 5: “showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world”: Presumably this is meant figuratively rather than literally. Jesus’ transportation to the pinnacle of the Temple also seems to be figurative. Verse 6: “authority”: The Greek word, exousia, is found in the New Testament only in Luke: see 20:20; 23:7 (“jurisdiction”). [NJBC] Verse 6: “for it has been given over to me”: “It” is “all this authority”. 1 John 5:19 says “We know that ... the whole world lies under the power of the evil one”. [NOAB] Verse 8: The quotation is Deuteronomy 6:13: “The LORD your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name alone you shall swear”. In 22:24-27, Jesus commands his disciples not to seek political power. [NJBC] Verse 9: It is noteworthy that in Luke the final temptation is in Jerusalem. Later in his gospel, Luke clearly marks the point at which Jesus “set[s] his face to go to Jerusalem”. There, “Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot” (22:3); there too the powers of darkness are mightily at work. [NJBC] To interpret this temptation as to self-advertisement is to miss the point. [BlkLk] Verses 10 -11: The devil quotes Psalm 91:11-12. The devil takes up Jesus’ armament. [NJBC] Verse 12: That Jesus considers the devil’s quotations as applying to himself is the way the early Church used them. Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16: “Do not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah”. [NOAB] Verse 13: “until an opportune time”: See Mark 8:33 (Jesus rebukes Peter) and Luke 22:28 (during the Last Supper). [NOAB] For the temptation on the cross, see Luke 23:34b-39.

• 11 Frances Jane (Fanny) Van Alstyne Crosby, Hymnwriter, 1915 was an American Methodist rescue mission worker, poet, lyricist, and composer • 12 Charles Freer Andrews, Priest and “Friend of the Poor” in India, 1940 • 13 Absalom Jones, Priest, 1818 was an African-American abolitionist and clergyman. After founding a black congregation in 1794, in 1804 he was the first African-American ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church of the United States • 14 Cyril, Monk, and Methodius, Bishop, Missionaries to the Slavs, 869, 885 • 15 Thomas Bray, Priest and Missionary, 1730 was an English clergyman, who spent time in Maryland as an Anglican representative. • 16 Charles Todd Quintard, Bishop of Tennessee, 1898 • 17 Janani Luwum, Archbishop of Uganda, and Martyr, 1977 OLD TESTAMENT: Exodus 34: 29 - 35 (RCL) Exod 34:29 (NRSV) Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. 33 When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face; 34 but whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out, and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining; and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him. Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 27: 5 - 8 (Roman Catholic) Sir 27:5 (NRSV) The kiln tests the potter's vessels; so the test of a person is in his conversation. 6 Its fruit discloses the cultivation of a tree; so a person's speech discloses the cultivation of his mind. 7 Do not praise anyone before he speaks, for this is the way people are tested. 8 If you pursue justice, you will attain it and wear it like a glorious robe. PSALM 99 (RCL) Psal 99:1 (NRSV) The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! 2 The LORD is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples. 3 Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he! 4 Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. 5 Extol the LORD our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he! 6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the LORD, and he answered them. 7 He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees, and the statutes that he gave them. 8 O LORD our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings. 9 Extol the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the LORD our God is holy. 99 Dominus regnavit (ECUSA BCP) 1 The Lord is King; let the people tremble; * he is enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth shake. 2 The Lord is great in Zion; * he is high above all peoples. 3 Let them confess his Name, which is great and awesome; * he is the Holy One. 4 "O mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; * you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob." 5 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God and fall down before his footstool; * he is the Holy One. 6 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among those who call upon his Name, * they called upon the Lord, and he answered them. 7 He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud; * they kept his testimonies and the decree that he gave them. 8 "O Lord our God, you answered them indeed; * you were a God who forgave them, yet punished them for their evil deeds." 9 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God and worship him upon his holy hill; * for the Lord our God is the Holy One. Psalm 92: 1 - 2, 12 - 15 (Roman Catholic) Psal 92:1 (NRSV) It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; 2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, 12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 13 They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God. 14 In old age they still produce fruit; they are always green and full of sap, 15 showing that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him. Note: Verse numbering in Roman Catholic Bibles is one higher than the above. NEW TESTAMENT: 2 Corinthians 3: 12 - 4:2 (RCL) 2Cor 3:12 (NRSV) Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, 13 not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. 14 But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. 15 Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; 16 but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit. 4:1 Therefore, since it is by God's mercy that we are engaged in this ministry, we do not lose heart. 2 We have renounced the shameful things that one hides; we refuse to practice cunning or to falsify God's word; but by the open statement of the truth we commend ourselves to the conscience of everyone in the sight of God. h/t Montreal Anglican Paul contrasts his ministry with that of Moses. In 3:3, he says that his readers, supported and enabled by the Holy Spirit, are “a letter of Christ”, prepared by him and his colleagues: a letter written on “tablets of human hearts”, not on “tablets of stone”. This is the “confidence that we have through Christ” (3:4). The dead letter of the Law has been replaced by the living letter of the Spirit. Paul interprets the “veil” (3:13) in Exodus as signifying the limited duration of the old covenant. The new covenant in Christ sets aside the old. The thinking of Israelites was frozen in time (“hardened”, 3:14), and it still is: when they hear the Law read (“old covenant”, 3:14; “Moses”, 3:15), they only see God’s plan for saving people dimly, i.e. through a “veil”, but when one is converted (“turns to the Lord”, 3:16), one sees the plan clearly. In Judaism and Christianity, the motive force is the spirit, but for us Christ and the Holy Spirit are one (“the Lord is the Spirit”, 3:17), and in Christ we have “freedom” from the Law: as we become more and more Christ-like, we are more and more able to render to God the honour (“glory”, 3:18) he is due, with the Spirit’s help. In 10:9-11, Paul’s accusers claim that he is strong on words but weak on action. He now retorts: “by God’s mercy” (4:1) he has turned from persecuting Christians to “this ministry” which he does with “great boldness” (3:12), not losing heart. Unlike his accusers, he has cast aside his horrible hidden deeds of the past, namely unscrupulous acts and misrepresentations of the gospel (4:2). He speaks openly, appealing to all to authentically discern the truth. 3:1: Apparently Paul had been accused of commending himself. [NOAB] He does do so in 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12: (“You yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our coming to you was not in vain ...”) in order to distinguish himself from other itinerant preachers. [NJBC] 3:1: “letters of recommendation”: Illustrated by Romans 16:1-2 (Phoebe) and mentioned in Acts 9:2 (Saul to the synagogues at Damascus); 18:27 (to the disciples in Achaia). [NJBC] 3:2: “written on our hearts”: While “our” is better attested, your makes more sense. The heart is the source of all human activity. [NJBC] 3:3: “prepared by us”: The church at Corinth (Paul’s letter of recommendation) was the work of God; Paul was only the instrument (v. 5). [NOAB] 3:3: “on tablets of human hearts”: Like the covenant announced by Jeremiah: Jeremiah 31:31-33 announces: “The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt – a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people”. See also Ezekiel 11:19; 36:26; Proverbs 3:3; 7:3. [CAB] [NJBC] 3:3: “tablets of stone”: For the tablets of stone on which Moses received the covenant, see Exodus 24:12; 31:18; Deuteronomy 9:10-11. In Romans 2:29, Paul writes: “... a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart – it is spiritual and not literal ...”. [NOAB] [CAB] 3:5: God empowers Paul to carry out his mission, which is beyond the capacity of fallen human nature. [NJBC]. Paul says in 4:7: “we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us”. 3:6: Paul is forced to distinguish between the two types of covenant because his opponents were using the new covenant theme to insist on the Law. To this extent the new covenant participated in the destructive power of the old covenant: see v. 14. [NJBC] 3:6: “kills”: For Paul’s view of the purpose and effect of the Law, see Galatians 3:19-29 (“Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring would come to whom the promise had been made; and it was ordained through angels by a mediator ...”) and Romans 7:7-13 (“What then should we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet, if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet...”). Though the Law could not make people righteous (Galatians 3:21), it revealed God’s will so that they might recognize their sins. [NOAB] 3:6: “the spirit gives life”: Christ gives the new life (see 2:16) of authentic humanity. [NJBC]. In 1 Corinthians 15:45, Paul quotes Genesis 2:7b freely: “‘The first man, Adam, became a living being’; the last Adam [Christ] became a life-giving spirit”. 3:7-4:6: The prominence given to Moses is probably due to an emphasis of his adversaries. [NJBC] 3:7-11: In unusually impersonal language, Paul contrasts the splendour (Greek: doxa) of his ministry, not his person, with that represented by Moses in Exodus 34:27-35. [NJBC] 3:7: “ministry of death”: i.e. existence under Mosaic law. It is called “the ministry of condemnation” in v. 9. In Romans 7:10, Paul writes “... the very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me.” [NOAB] 3:9: “the ministry of justification”: Being permeated by the Spirit, it sets humans in a right relationship with God. [NJBC] 3:10: In comparison with the glory of the ministry of the Spirit, the glory of Moses’ ministry is so minuscule as to be non-existent. [NJBC] 3:12: “boldness”: The Greek word, parrhesia, can also be translated as authoritative plainness. [NJBC] This word is also translated as “openly” and “plainly” elsewhere in the New Testament. 3:13: Paul interprets Moses’ “veil” as his effort to hide from the people how temporary the old covenant was to be. [NOAB] Moses’ face shone only for a time. Either Paul read the Hebrew in context or followed the Septuagint translation of Exodus 34: it translates karan contextually as glorified. [BLXX] See Comments. 3:14-18: Corresponding to the difference between Paul and Moses, there is a difference in their followers; the first group is open, but the second closed. [NJBC] 3:14: “their minds were hardened”: See Isaiah 6:9-10 (“Keep listening, but do not comprehend ...”); 29:10; Deuteronomy 29:4; Romans 11:7. [NJBC] 3:14: “set aside”: NJBC offers annulled. 3:15: “whenever Moses is read”: As in Acts 15:21, this is a way of speaking of the books of Moses, i.e. the Law. See also 2 Chronicles 25:4; Nehemiah 13:1; Mark 12:26. [NJBC] 3:16: This is an adaptation of Exodus 34:34. In Exodus, the subject is Moses. Here Paul probably intends “one” to be Moses, not as a person but as the personification of the Jewish people of whom he is the founder. [JBC] 3:16: “when one turns to the Lord”: i.e. to God as revealed in Christ: see 4:6. See also 1 Thessalonians 1:9; Deuteronomy 4:30; Sirach 5:7; Isaiah 19:22. [NJBC] 3:17: “the Lord is the Spirit”: It is probable that Paul has God directly in view, although opinion is divided. God is identified with the Spirit in order to deny that he still operates through the “letter” (v. 6) of the Law. [NJBC] JBC offers a different interpretation: in the Septuagint, ho kyrios (the Lord) translates Yahweh; the God of Israel is spirit, indeed the spirit, for God is most perfect. Throughout this section, “spirit” refers to the spiritual nature of the new covenant, which it has from Christ, who is the personification of the new dispensation, and therefore its spirit. 3:17: “freedom”: We are no longer under the Law. Paul says in Galatians 5:18: “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law”. [NJBC] 3:18: “reflected”: NJBC argues, on linguistic evidence, that beholding as is a preferable translation. 3:18: “the glory of the Lord”: As the “last Adam” (see 1 Corinthians 15:45), Christ is the image and glory of God: see also 1 Corinthians 11:7. God is mirrored in Christ: in 4:6, Paul writes: “... it is the God who said, “‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”. [NJBC] 3:18: “from one degree of glory to another”: The meaning of doxa shifts from splendour to giving glory. [NJBC] 3:18: “the same image”: Of God, i.e. Christ. 4:4 says: “In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God”. [NOAB] 3:18: “transformed”: In Romans 12:2, Paul advises: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect”. See also Romans 8:17, 29. [NOAB] We are transformed into conformity with Christ; this is salvation. 4:1: Comments: In 10:9-11: Scholars tell us that Chapter 10 is earlier than Chapter 3. 4:1: This verse expands on v. 12 above. [NJBC] 4:1: “by God’s mercy”: Paul writes of his persecution of Christians in 1 Corinthians 15:9 (“... I persecuted the church of God”); Galatians 1:13, 23. [NJBC] 4:2: “practice cunning or falsify God’s word”: This is probably a reference to the “false apostles” mentioned in 11:13: “... such boasters are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ”. See also 2:17. [NOAB] In 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, Paul has laid himself open to the charge of being willing to adopt any means of achieving his end. [NJBC] 4:2: “conscience”: This is the faculty of authentic discernment. It is perhaps equivalent to the love of truth in 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10: “The coming of the lawless one [the devil] is apparent in the working of Satan, who uses all power, signs, lying wonders, and every kind of wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved”. [NJBC] 4:3: “even if our gospel is veiled”: Paul concedes that his preaching was not totally effective. He brought few Jews to Christ. [NJBC] 4:4: “the god of this world”: NOAB says that this is a reference to either Satan or “Beliar” (see 6:15); however, NJBC suggests that the god who is this world is a better translation. In Philippians 3:19, Paul writes “their god is the belly”. 4:5: “we do not proclaim ourselves”: Perhaps this is a hint that false apostles gave more prominence to themselves than to Christ. [NJBC] 4:5: “Jesus Christ as Lord”: This is a confessional formula. It is also found in 1 Corinthians 12:3; Philippians 2:10-11; Romans 10:9. [NJBC] 4:6: “‘Let light shine out of darkness’”: This is a free citation of Genesis 1:3, applied to the “new creation” (5:17) through Christ. [NOAB] The Creator remains active to illuminate: see Isaiah 9:2 (“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light ...”). [NJBC] Recall John 1:4-5: “in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness ...” [JBC] 4:6: “in the face of Christ”: Note the contrast with Moses in 3:7. Paul tells his opponents that they should be comparing Christ, and not him, with Moses. [NJBC] GOSPEL: Luke 9: 28 - 36, (37 - 43a) (RCL) Luke 9:26 (NRSV) Those who are ashamed of me and of my words, of them the Son of Man will be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 But truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God." 28 Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. 30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Eli'jah, talking to him. 31 They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Eli'jah"--not knowing what he said. 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" 36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen. 37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 Just then a man from the crowd shouted, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child. 39 Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him. 40 I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not." 41 Jesus answered, "You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here." 42 While he was coming, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astounded at the greatness of God. Jesus has predicted his suffering, death and resurrection to his disciples; he has called on them to “take up their cross” (v. 23), has warned that those who hear the gospel but fail to trust in it will be condemned, and has promised that some present will see the kingdom of God. Now he and the inner circle of disciples ascend “the mountain” (v. 28). In Luke, Jesus always prays before an important event. An aura of unnatural brightness is linked with mystical appearances in Exodus and Acts; “dazzling white” (v. 29) is a symbol of transcendence. In Jewish tradition, both “Moses and Elijah” (v. 30) were taken into heaven without dying. Jesus’ agenda is in accord with the Law and the prophets; he is doing God’s will. “Two men” also appear at the resurrection and at the ascension. Jesus’ “departure” (v. 31, exodos in Greek) is his journey to Jerusalem and his passage from this world. Peter clearly doesn’t understand; perhaps he thinks he is witnessing a super Feast of Tabernacles (“dwellings”, v. 33) – a time when the whole city was brightly illuminated. The “cloud” (v. 34) is a symbol of God’s presence; the words from it recall Jesus’ baptism, and add “listen to him!” (v. 35). Vv. 37-43a, the healing of an epileptic child, present three contrasts: • from the mountain to the needy world; • Jesus’ great power over evil (vs. the disciples’); and • Jesus’ fidelity to God vs. general human infidelity. The child is in miserable condition. In healing him, Jesus shows God’s “greatness” to “all” (v. 43). Comments: An aura of unnatural brightness is linked with mystical appearances in Exodus and Acts: The references are Exodus 34:29-35 and Acts 9:3 (Paul’s vision on the road to Damascus). Other references are Nahum 3:3; Ezekiel 1:4, 7; Daniel 10:6 (particularly in the Septuagint translation). [BlkLk] Verse 28: “about eight days after”: Luke may be intending the octave day of the Feast of Tabernacles. During this feast, the whole city was brightly illuminated. [JBC] Verse 28: “these sayings”: i.e. those in vv. 23-27. Luke intends to link Jesus’ prediction of the coming of the Kingdom with the Transfiguration. [NJBC] Verse 28: “went up on the mountain to pray”: For prayer as part of many recorded momentous events in Jesus’ life, see, for example, Mark 1:35; Luke 3:21 (the baptism of Jesus); 6:12 (Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles); 9:18 (Peter’s recognition that Jesus is the Messiah); 11:1 (the Lord’s Prayer); 22:21-46 (Jesus Predicts Peter's Denial). [NOAB] Verse 29: “the appearance of his face was changed”: Mark 9:2 has “transfigured”. BlkLk suggests that Luke avoids the apparent metamorphosis lest his Hellenic readers think in terms of human deities. Verses 30-31: On the road to Emmaus, in 24:26-27, Jesus asks: “‘Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’. Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures”. “Glory” is associated with the risen and heavenly life. [NJBC] Verse 30: “Two men”: There are two similar appearances: • at the Resurrection, in 24:4: “While they [the women who had come from Galilee] were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them” • after the Ascension, in Acts 1:10: “While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them”. [JBC] Verse 31: “departure”: God’s secret burial of Moses (per the Septuagint translation of Deuteronomy 34:6) led to the tradition that Moses did not die, but rather ascended. Elijah’s taking up into heaven is mentioned in 2 Kings 2:1-12. [CAB] Joshua and Jesus are the same name. As Joshua succeeded Moses, so Jesus does now. [BlkLk] Verse 32: “weighed down with sleep”: This suggests that the Transfiguration took place at night. [NOAB] However, BlkLk offers a second alternative: Luke may be seeking a way of excusing Peter’s strange suggestion in v. 33 (although it can also be seen as an attempt to delay the departure of Moses and Elijah). Verse 33: “three dwellings”: For the Feast of Tabernacles (“booths”), see Zechariah 14:16. [JBC] Verse 35: “This is my Son ...”: The words at Jesus’ baptism, in 3:21-22, are “‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased’”. [NJBC] Verse 35: “Chosen”: The Greek word has much the same meaning as that translated Beloved, found in the parallel passages. See also John 12:28-30. [NOAB] Both titles indicate an act of will rather than of feeling. CAB suggests that “my Chosen” refers to the concept of Israel in Isaiah 42:1: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.” The voice identifies Jesus as the agent of the new-covenant people. In Psalm 106:20, Moses is spoken of as “his chosen one”. The scoffers at the cross refer to Jesus as God’s “chosen one”: see 23:35. [BlkLk] Verse 35: “listen to him”: Perhaps a reference to the prophet like Moses of Deuteronomy 18:15, whom the Israelites are to heed. Here the meaning is that the disciples are commanded to be attentive to this new phase in God’s revelation of who the Son is: one who returns to God via the cross. The implications for the disciples of Jesus’ journey to the cross will be spelt out in 9:51-19:27. [NJBC] Verse 38: “I beg you to look at my son”: See also 1 Samuel 1:11 (Hannah’s vow) and Luke 1:48 (the Magnificat). [NJBC] Verse 38: “only child”: Luke picks up on “only” elsewhere: see 7:12 and 8:42. [NJBC] Verses 39,42: Epilepsy was thought to be due to the influence of the moon, a demonic force: Psalm 121:6 comforts: “The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night”. [NOAB] Verse 41: Jesus’ words are drawn from Deuteronomy 32:5, 20. [JBC] Verse 41: “faithless and perverse generation”: Whom does Jesus address? Neither the boy’s father nor the disciples have shown lack of faith, and neither have turned against him, so it seems that Jesus speaks of general human infidelity and, in particular, that of his contemporaries. Reading ahead, we know that Jesus’ deeds of mercy will be greeted with disbelief, and that this will eventually lead to the cross. [NJBC] Verses 43-44: All Jesus’ mighty deeds must be seen from the vantage point of the cross. [NJBC] Verse 44: “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands”: Jesus has predicted this in the verses preceding our reading: see v. 22. At the empty tomb, the two men remind the women of this prophecy. [NJBC] Verse 45: Only after Jesus’ resurrection and his gift of insight (his interpretation given on the road to Emmaus) will the disciples understand the meaning of his cross. [NJBC]

• 4 Anskar, Archbishop of Hamburg, Missionary to Denmark and Sweden, 865 • 5 Roger Williams, 1683, and Anne Hutchinson, 1643, Prophetic Witnesses Anne Hutchinson, born Anne Marbury (1591–1643), was a Puritan woman, spiritual adviser, mother of 15, and important participant in the Antinomian Controversy that shook the infant Massachusetts Bay Colony from 1636 to 1638 • 6 The Martyrs of Japan, 1597 were Christians who were persecuted for their faith in Japan, mostly during the 17th century. • 7 Cornelius the Centurion was a Roman centurion who is considered by Christians to be the first Gentile to convert to the faith, as related in Acts of the Apostles. • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 Frances Jane (Fanny) Van Alstyne Crosby, Hymnwriter, 1915 OLD TESTAMENT: Jeremiah 1: 4 - 10 (RCL) Jeremiah 1: 4 - 5, 17 - 19 (Roman Catholic) Jere 1:4 (NRSV) Now the word of the LORD came to me saying, 5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." 6 Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy." 7 But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, "I am only a boy'; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you, 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, qsays the LORD." 9 Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the LORD said to me, "Now I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant." 17 But you, gird up your loins; stand up and tell them everything that I command you. Do not break down before them, or I will break you before them. 18 And I for my part have made you today a fortified city, an iron pillar, and a bronze wall, against the whole land--against the kings of Judah, its princes, its priests, and the people of the land. 19 They will fight against you; but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, says the LORD, to deliver you. Genesis 2.4b-9,15-25 (C of E) Gen. 2:4 (NRSV) In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, 5when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground; 6but a stream would rise from the earth, and water the whole face of the ground— 7then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. 8And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. 16And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’ 18 Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.’ 19So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner. 21So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken.’ 24Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. 25And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed. PSALM 71: 1 - 6 (RCL) Psalm 71: 1 - 6, 15, 17 (Roman Catholic) Psal 71:1 (NRSV) In you, O LORD, I take refuge; let me never be put to shame. 2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me and save me. 3 Be to me a rock of refuge, a strong fortress, to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel. 5 For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth. 6 Upon you I have leaned from my birth; it was you who took me from my mother's womb. My praise is continually of you. 15 My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all day long, though their number is past my knowledge. 17 O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. 71 In te, Domine, speravi (ECUSA BCP) 1 In you, O Lord, have I taken refuge; * let me never be ashamed. 2 In your righteousness, deliver me and set me free; * incline your ear to me and save me. 3 Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe; * you are my crag and my stronghold. 4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, * from of the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor. 5 For you are my hope, O Lord God, * my confidence since I was young. 6 I have been sustained by you ever since I was born; from my mother's womb you have been my strength; * my praise shall be always of you. Psalm 65 (C of E) Psalm 65:1 (NRSV) Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed, 2 O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come. 3 When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions. 4 Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple. 5 By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas. 6 By your* strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might. 7 You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples. 8 Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy. 9 You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it. 10 You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth. 11 You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness. 12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy, 13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy. NEW TESTAMENT: 1 Corinthians 13: 1 - 13 (RCL) 1 Corinthians 12: 31 - 13: 4 (5 - 13) (Roman Catholic) 1Cor 12:31 (NRSV) But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. 13:1 If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. 9 For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; 10 but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. 13 And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. h/t Montreal Anglican In response to a letter, Paul has further instructed the Christians at Corinth about the gifts of the Spirit. It seems that they value the gift of tongues too highly. Three groups of gifted people are especially important – “apostles” (12:28, spreading the good news), “prophets” (telling new insights into the faith) and “teachers” (of the faith) – but now he says that the most important gift is love, the expression in the community of Christ’s love for us. The statements in vv. 1-3 are all on the same model. Whatever is spoken, if said without love, is like the clatter of pagan worship. (At the time, rabbis debated what language “angels” spoke.) Prophecy is important but without love of one’s fellows it is “nothing” (v. 2). Even helping others to the extent of self-denial is worthless without love. In vv. 4-7, he tells his readers how their behaviour contrasts with the qualities of this love: it is the reverse of their proud, contemptuous, divisive attitudes. “Truth” (v. 6) is integrity, ethical living. Love, he says, is different from God’s other gifts (v. 8); unlike them (“prophecies”, “tongues”, “knowledge”), it never ends: it is transcendent, continuing beyond this era, into the time when we will be fully one with Christ. In the present age, all that we do through the Spirit is “partial” (v. 10), incomplete, immature. Mirrors then, being polished metal, gave a fuzzy image, but in the age to come (“then”, v. 12) we will see God clearly. We will know him fully, as God knows Paul now. “Love” (v. 13) is the “greatest” because it will continue unchanged, while “faith” will become sight and “hope” will become certainty. Paul’s discussion of spiritual gifts begins in 12:1-11. NJBC considers 13:1-13 to be a text Paul composed for another occasion and inserted here, based on the quality of the writing and the use of the Hellenistic literary form of praise of the greatest virtue. Only by loving does the Christian exist authentically: see 1:30. “Love” here is agape. It is love for others, love that “builds up” (8:1). It is love in the community, inspired by the love of God in Christ for us, through the Holy Spirit (see Romans 5:5). [NOAB] Verses 1-3: Note the progression from the lowest gift (“tongues”, v. 1, see also 14:6-12), via intellectual gifts and miracle-working faith (“remove mountains”, v. 2), to acts of supreme devotion benefiting others. [NJBC] Verse 1: “tongues”: In 12:28, Paul writes: “God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues”. Verse 1: “noisy ... cymbal”: In 12:2, in introducing the subject of “spiritual gifts”, Paul says: “You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak”. [NOAB] Verse 2: “prophetic powers ... faith”: In 12:8-9, Paul says: “To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit ...”. [NOAB] “Faith” here is great faith, i.e. faith that God can work miracles. [NJBC] Verse 3a: See 12:28 (quoted above). Verse 3: “boast”: To Paul, boasting is acceptable if one is sufficiently godly and blameless. See 9:15 (“no one will deprive me of my ground for boasting!”) and 2 Corinthians 1:14 (“we are your boast even as you are our boast”). The phrase in this verse can also be translated to be burned: burning was the most horrible of deaths. Verses 4-7: Love is evident in actions rather than merely in feelings. Fifteen verbs in these verses show what love accomplishes for the upbuilding of the community. Verse 4: The strong at Corinth are neither “patient” nor “kind”: see 8:1-13: “Now concerning food sacrificed to idols: we know that "all of us possess knowledge." Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up ...”. [NJBC] Verse 6: “rejoice in wrongdoing”: As the Corinthian community did: see 5:1-8: “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not found even among pagans; for a man is living with his father's wife ...”. [NJBC] Verse 8: Prophecies, tongues and knowledge (in the Greek sense, i.e. unapplied) are time-limited, but love is forever. Verse 11: In 3:1, Paul speaks to the Christians at Corinth “ as infants in Christ”. In 14:20, Paul writes “Brothers and sisters, do not be children in your thinking; rather, be infants in evil, but in thinking be adults”. [NJBC] Verse 12: “see face to face”: An expression used in the Old Testament to express the quality of Moses’ knowledge of God (see Exodus 33:11; Numbers 12:8; Deuteronomy 34:10) in this present life. Verse 12: “as I have been fully known”: i.e. by God, in making Paul an apostle. In 8:3, Paul says: “anyone who loves God is known by him”. See also Galatians 4:9 and Romans 8:29. Verse 13: 1 John 4:8-10 says: “Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God's love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins”. Verse 13: “faith, hope, and love”: This triad is also in Romans 5:1-5; Galatians 5:5-6; Colossians 1:4-5; 1 Thessalonians 1:3, 5:8. [NJBC] Revelation 4 (C of E) Rev. 4:1 (NRSV) After this I looked, and there in heaven a door stood open! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, ‘Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.’ 2At once I was in the spirit,* and there in heaven stood a throne, with one seated on the throne! 3And the one seated there looks like jasper and cornelian, and around the throne is a rainbow that looks like an emerald. 4Around the throne are twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones are twenty-four elders, dressed in white robes, with golden crowns on their heads. 5Coming from the throne are flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and in front of the throne burn seven flaming torches, which are the seven spirits of God; 6and in front of the throne there is something like a sea of glass, like crystal. Around the throne, and on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: 7the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with a face like a human face, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle. 8And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and inside. Day and night without ceasing they sing, ‘Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come.’ 9And whenever the living creatures give glory and honour and thanks to the one who is seated on the throne, who lives for ever and ever, 10the twenty-four elders fall before the one who is seated on the throne and worship the one who lives for ever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne, singing, 11 ‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.’ GOSPEL: Luke 4: 21 - 30 (RCL, Roman Catholic) Luke 4:21 (NRSV) Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." 22 All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, "Is not this Joseph's son?" 23 He said to them, "Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, "Doctor, cure yourself!' And you will say, "Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Caper'naum.'" 24 And he said, "Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet's hometown. 25 But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Eli'jah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; 26 yet Eli'jah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zar'ephath in Si'don. 27 There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Eli'sha, and none of them was cleansed except Na'aman the Syrian." 28 When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. 29 They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. 30 But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way. At Nazareth, Jesus attends the synagogue service on the sabbath. He has just read some verses from Isaiah. He now tells worshippers that he fulfils them: he is the expected messiah; he will rescue all those who are in need; God’s promises made to Israel are “fulfilled” in the new age. All are “amazed” (v. 22), they keep wondering: at (as a scholar puts it) Jesus’ words of grace, of God’s freely given gift of love. An Old Testament usage suggests the “words” are the word of God. Probably vv. 22ff describe a subsequent visit to the synagogue. Isn’t this the person we have known since he was a child? In v. 23, as often in Luke, Jesus takes the offensive: people want him to perform miraculous deeds to satisfy their curiosity, and for their benefit. In vv. 25-27, Jesus reminds them of instances where God has helped foreigners (both women and men) rather than Israelites. (In 1 Kings 17-18, a “famine”, attributed to God cutting off Israel, lasts 3 years; in contemporary books about the end times, the period of persecution and disgrace lasts three and a half years.) The people are “filled with rage” (v. 28) because they begin to realize that Jesus is for others as well as for them. Nazareth, being on a hillside, has steep slopes down which a person might fall to his death. Jesus escapes the lynch mob: they let him go because they think he might just be the messiah. He continues his mission in accord with God’s plan. The parallels are Matthew 13:53-58 and Mark 6:1-6. Verse 21: “Today”: Luke uses this word to introduce important themes elsewhere too: see 2:11 (“to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord”); 22:61; 23:43. It should not be taken as a reference to the historical then of Jesus’ time, but to the now, the time of fulfilment. [NJBC] Verse 22: “gracious words”: Words of salvation/grace is suggested by Acts 14:3; 20:24, 32 – where the same Greek phrase also occurs. [NJBC] Verse 22: “came from his mouth”: Deuteronomy 8:3 says “... one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD”. [NJBC] Verse 22: “‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’”: The local people are surprised that a person they have known since he was a child is the messenger of such news. This question would sound ironic to the first readers who had read 1:32 (“He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David”), 1:35 (“The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God’”); 3:21-22; 4:1-13. Verses 24-27: See 1 Kings 17:1, 8-16; 18:1 (the widow of Zarephath); 2 Kings 5:1-14 (the healing of Naaman). Luke universalizes Isaiah 61:1-2 (part of Jesus’ reading in vv. 18-19). For the rejected prophet, see also 6:22-23; 11:49-51; 13:34-35; Acts 7:35, 51-52. The pattern of the rejected prophet theme is found in Nehemiah 9:26-31. The stages are: • The people rebel, and kill a prophet • God punishes the perpetrators • God shows mercy through sending a new prophet • The people sin and reject the prophet. [NJBC] One might note that, unlike Jesus, Elijah and Elisha were not rejected by the Israelites. Verse 25: “three years and six months”: 1 Kings 18:1 says that the famine lasted three years. Luke (and James 5:17) extend this to three and a half years, giving it eschatological significance. [JBC] For the duration of the eschatological struggle, see Daniel 7:25 (“ a time, two times, and half a time”); 12:7; Revelation 11:2 (“forty-two months”); 12:6 (“one thousand two hundred sixty days”, i.e. 3 ½ years), 14 (“a time, and times, and half a time”). Verse 30: This is not necessarily a miracle.