· 9 Columba, Abbot
of Iona, 597 was an Irish
abbot and
missionary credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at
the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission.
· 10 Ephrem
of Edessa, Syria, Deacon, 373 was a Syriac
deacon and a prolific Syriac-language hymnographer and theologian of
the 4th century from the region of Assyria
OLD TESTAMENT: 1 Kings 17:
8 - 16, (17 - 24) (RCL)
1 Kings 17: 17 - 24 (Roman Catholic, alt. for
RCL)
1Kin 17:8 (NRSV) {The Widow of Zarephath}
Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 9 "Go now to Zarephath, which
belongs to Sidon, and live there;
for I have commanded a widow there to feed you." 10 So he set out and went
to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering
sticks; he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel,
so that I may drink." 11 As she was going to bring it, he called to her
and said, "Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand." 12 But she said,
"As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal
in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so
that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it,
and die." 13 Elijah said to her, "Do not be afraid; go and do as you
have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and
afterwards make something for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the LORD
the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will
not fail until the day that the LORD sends rain on the earth." 15 She went
and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for
many days. 16 The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail,
according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.
17 {Elijah Revives the Widow's Son}
After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; his
illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18 She then said to
Elijah, "What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to
bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!" 19 But he
said to her, "Give me your son." He took him from her bosom, carried
him up into the upper chamber where he was lodging, and laid him on his own
bed. 20 He cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, have you brought
calamity even upon the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?"
21 Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried out to the
LORD, "O LORD my God, let this child's life come into him again." 22
The LORD listened to the voice of Elijah; the life of the child came into him
again, and he revived. 23 Elijah took the child, brought him down from the
upper chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; then Elijah said,
"See, your son is alive." 24 So the woman said to Elijah, "Now I
know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is
truth."
PSALM 146 (RCL)
Psal 146:1 (NRSV) {Praise for God's Help}
Praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD, O my soul!
2 I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
3 Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortals, in whom there is no help.
4 When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
on that very day their plans perish.
5 Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD their God,
6 who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith forever; 7 who executes justice for the
oppressed;
who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free; 8 the LORD opens the
eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous.
9 The LORD watches over the strangers;
he upholds the orphan and the widow,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10 The LORD will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the LORD!
146 Lauda, anima mea (ECUSA BCP)
1 Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord,
O my soul! *
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have
my being.
2 Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any
child of earth, *
for there is no help in them.
3 When they breathe their last, they
return to earth, *
and in that day their thoughts perish.
4 Happy are they who have the God of Jacob
for their help! *
whose hope is in the Lord their God;
5 Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and
all that is in them; *
who keeps his promise for ever;
6 Who gives justice to those who are
oppressed, *
and food to those who hunger.
7 The Lord
sets the prisoners free;
the Lord
opens the eyes of the blind; *
the Lord
lifts up those who are bowed down;
8 The Lord
loves the righteous;
the Lord
cares for the stranger; *
he sustains the orphan and widow,
but frustrates the way of the wicked.
9 The Lord
shall reign for ever, *
your God, O Zion, throughout all
generations.
Hallelujah!
Psalm 30: 1, 3-5, 10, 11a,
13b (Roman Catholic)
1 I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up,
and did not let
my foes rejoice over me.
3 O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol,
restored me to
life from among those gone down to the Pit.*
4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones,
and give thanks
to his holy name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment;
his favor is for
a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
but joy comes
with the morning.
10 Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me!
O Lord, be my
helper!’
11 You have turned my mourning into dancing;
12 O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you for ever.
Note: Verse numbering in Roman Catholic Bibles is one
higher.
NEW TESTAMENT: Galatians 1: 11 - 24 (RCL)
Galatians 1: 11 - 19 (Roman
Catholic)
Gala 1:11 (NRSV) {Paul's Vindication of His
Apostleship} For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, {Gk
[brothers] } that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not
of human origin; 12 for I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I
taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
13 You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life in
Judaism. I was violently persecuting the church
of God and was trying to destroy
it. 14 I advanced in Judaism beyond many among my people of the same age, for I
was far more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. 15 But when God, who
had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased
16 to reveal his Son to me, {Gk [in me] } so that
I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, I did not confer with any human being,
17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were already apostles before me,
but I went away at once into Arabia, and afterwards I returned to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem
to visit Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days; 19 but I did not see any
other apostle except James the Lord's brother. 20 In what I am writing to you,
before God, I do not lie! 21 Then I went into the regions of Syria
and Cilicia, 22 and I was still unknown by sight to the churches
of Judea that are in Christ; 23 they only heard it said,
"The one who formerly was persecuting us is now proclaiming the faith he
once tried to destroy." 24 And they glorified God because of me.
h/t Montreal
Anglican
· he stresses that his apostleship is divinely
instituted, not commissioned by humans, and
· he skips the usual thanksgiving and prayer
for his addressees.
V. 6
gives his reason for writing: Christians in Galatia
are “so quickly deserting” the true faith, influenced by certain false leaders.
We need to discover what they were teaching from Paul’s rebuttal.Vv. 11-12 present the core of Paul’s defence. His detractors claim that he is not a real apostle, because he did not accompany Jesus in his ministry. They say that he was commissioned for mission by humans (in Antioch, see Acts 13:3); real apostles received the good news directly from Christ. Paul argues that he was commissioned “through a revelation of Christ”, through his vision on the road to Damascus. In vv. 13-16, he rebuts the false teachers further: they accuse him of weakening the faith by excusing Christians from Jewish practices, e.g. circumcision. Paul points out that he was ardently and strictly Jewish until his vision, his commissioning by Christ. God had set him apart for his purposes first as a Pharisee and then as one sent, as an apostle with a distinct mission: “among the Gentiles”. In v. 16, the word translated “confer” means consult for interpretation . Paul did not need help in interpreting his vision, not even from the apostles who were with Jesus, for God gave him its meaning. It was divinely given.
Later (“After three years”, v. 18) he spent two weeks with Peter (“Cephas”). The word translated “visit” means get to know. Fifteen days is long enough to be fully instructed in the faith. His sessions with Peter probably had substantial information content, supplementing and/or correcting what he had learnt as a persecutor (v. 13). In other letters, Paul freely acknowledges his dependence on traditions he has received. He did “see” (v. 19, and only see) “James the Lord’s brother”, the leader of the Jerusalem church. V. 20 has the force of a (legal) oath: my commission and authority are from God, not from humans! (It appears to be intended for some who disputed his version of his first visit to Jerusalem.) Paul is not weakening the faith, but applying it in a different culture. “Syria and Cilicia” (v. 21) were at the north-east corner of the Mediterranean. The word translated as “by sight” (v. 22) denotes a person’s presence: he was not in Judea during this period, so he could not have been influenced by anyone in Judea (outside of Jerusalem). The only response of churches there was to praise God for him, so his missionary work was acknowledged as authoritative by the mother churches.
1:1-5: The salutation emphasizes both Paul’s divinely given authority as an “apostle” and, in his message, the atoning death of “Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins”: see Mark 10:45 and 1 Timothy 2:5-6. [ NOAB]
1:1: “apostle”: The Greek word apostolos developed a specific Christian nuance under the contemporary Jewish institution of the seliah , one sent: a commissioned agent with full powers to carry out a definite (legal, prophetic or missionary) charge. [ NJBC]
1:1: “sent neither by human commission nor from human authorities”: BlkGal offers not from human beings nor through a human being. Paul was commissioned as a missionary by the church at Antioch: see Acts 13:1-3. The critique of Paul’s apostleship was on two grounds:
- that his apostleship originated with the leaders of the church at Antioch, and/or
- it was mediated through an individual – presumably Peter (see v. 18), or possibly Barnabas.
- the territory occupied by descendants of these ethnically Gallic tribes and
- the Roman province established in 25 BC, and its inhabitants.
1:3: “Grace ... peace”: See also Romans 1:7 and 2 Thessalonians 1:2 [ NOAB]
1:4: “who gave himself for our sins”: Jesus says in Mark 10:45 “... the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many”. See also 1 Timothy 2:6. [ NOAB] The letter’s dominant chord is sounded: salvation through Christ according to the Father’s plan or will. [ NJBC]
1:4: “the present evil age”: Judaism commonly made the distinction between the present age and the age to come. John says in Revelation 21:1 “I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more”. See also 2 Peter 3:11-13. [ CAB] Paul echoes this distinction and sees the present age as dominated by Satan. In 2 Corinthians 4:4, Paul writes: “... 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 ...”. Christ’s giving of himself has brought about the meeting of the two ages and freed human beings from this “age”. See 1 Corinthians 10:11. [ NJBC]
1:6-7: Instead of his customary thanksgiving, Paul voices his surprise and shock at Galatian fickleness.
1:6: “so quickly”: Either in the sense of so soon after your conversion (and my evangelisation) or so easily.
1:6: “the one who called you”: It was Paul’s preaching that called the Galatians to faith: see 4:13-14 [ CAB] To NOAB, it is God, through Christ: see v. 15. The Father’s plan is executed through the benevolence of Christ. [ NJBC]
1:6: “a different gospel”: i.e. different from the gospel that Paul proclaimed: see also 3:3 and 4:12-20. [ CAB] Since the gospel is “the power of God for salvation” (Romans 1:16), emanating from Christ, who is not divided (1 Corinthians 1:13), there can only be one gospel. This Paul has already proclaimed to them. [ NJBC]
1:8,9: “accursed”: The Greek word is anathema, with the sense of being cut off from God forever. In Romans 9:3, Paul writes: “I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my own people, my kindred according to the flesh”. [ CAB] In Romans 9:3, Paul says “For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my own people [Jews], my kindred according to the flesh”. See also 1 Corinthians 12:3. [ NOAB]
1:8: “an angel from heaven”: In 3:19-20, Paul refers to the Jewish belief that Mosaic law was enacted by angels. Even if one of them were to appear again with a modified gospel, he is not to be heard – in fact, Paul curses such a being. [ NJBC]
1:10: “... please people ...”: These words indicate that Paul has been accused of being a people-pleaser, most likely because he has not mandated circumcision for his Gentile converts ( 6:24-25). [ CAB] Paul denies an opponent’s charge that he conciliates people to win converts. In 1 Thessalonians 2:4, he writes: “... we speak, not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts”. [ NOAB]
1:10: “a servant of Christ”: His conversion has freed him from the “yoke of slavery” (see 5:1), which was Mosaic law, with its emphasis on human achievement. He has become a slave of Christ, prompt to obey him: see Romans 6:16-20. There may also be a further nuance. In Philippians 1:1 and Romans 1:1, Paul calls himself a slave (NRSV: “servant(s)”), possibly like great Old Testament figures who served Yahweh faithfully (e.g. Moses in the Septuagint translation of 2 Kings 18:12). If he were courting human favour, he would not be true to such a calling. [ NJBC]
1:11: Despite his severity, Paul addresses the Galatians as “brothers and sisters”. A message merely “of human origin” would be no “gospel of Christ” (v. 7) or “revelation” (v. 12). [ NOAB]
1:11: “the gospel that was proclaimed by me”: The essence of this gospel is that salvation is possible for all human beings alike through faith in Christ. [ NJBC]
1:11-12: In 1 Corinthians 1:17, Paul says that he was sent by Christ. [ CAB]
1:12-2:14: The Judaizers apparently had accused Paul of having derived his message not from Christ, because he had never witnessed the ministry of Jesus, but from other preachers, and having watered it down for Gentiles by eliminating the obligation of Jewish practices. He replies by citing his historic commission and by explaining his relation with the mother church in Jerusalem. [ NJBC]
1:12: “through a revelation of Jesus Christ”: The “of” can mean either his vision revealed Christ (see v. 16) or that Christ (not human beings) revealed the gospel. The revelation near Damascus told Paul about Christ and his meaning for humanity. It gave him the essential character of the gospel, not necessarily its form (details). For the facts about Jesus’ life, Paul depended on an early tradition emanating from the Jerusalem church. [ NJBC]
Comments: his vision on the road to Damascus: See Acts 9:3-8.
1:13: “my earlier life in Judaism”: In Philippians 3:4-6, Paul lists his credentials as a Jew. See also Acts 22:3. [ CAB] NJBC offers “my former conduct as a Jew”. He says that Paul’s former way of life hardly provided the psychological background from which his gospel would naturally have developed. As a Pharisee (see Philippians 3:5-6), he would have rejected resolutely everything opposed to Mosaic law and traditions (Pharisaic interpretations of the Torah: see Mark 7:1-13). [ NJBC]
1:13: “violently persecuting the church ...”: See also 1 Corinthians 15:9; Acts 9:1-2; 22:4-5, 9-11. [ CAB] Acts 8:3 tells us: “... Saul [Paul] was ravaging the church by entering house after house; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison”. See also Acts 9:21 and 22:4-5. [ NOAB]
1:13: “church”: It is the people of God called into fellowship with the Lord through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. The word may refer to:
- the total number of believers in the world,
- to those in a particular region (see v. 2), or
- to those in one locality,
1:14: “zealous for the traditions of my ancestors”: The targets of his persecution were Jewish Christians who, in his mind, had fallen away from those traditions. [ CAB] Paul also tells of his zeal in Philippians 3:4-6 and Acts 22:3. [ NOAB]
1:15-17: Paul’s conversion and commission as an apostle were due to the sovereign plan of God, not to human teachers: see v. 1. [ NOAB]
1:15: “set me apart before I was born”: NJBC offers from my mother’s womb, a phrase used in the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament. Jeremiah and the Suffering Servant of Isaiah were also destined for the call by God before they even existed: see Jeremiah 1:5 and Isaiah 49:1. One wonders whether Paul saw himself as another Suffering Servant (as Jesus was). [ NJBC]
1:15: Paul understood himself as a theologian in Judaism, set apart before he was born and called through God’s “grace”. See Isaiah 49:1-6 and Jeremiah 1:5 (Jeremiah’s commissioning). [ CAB]
1:16: Paul understands the moment of his God’s revelation to be the moment of his calling as an apostle to the Gentiles. [ CAB]
1:16: “that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles”: Paul connects his apostolic commission with the revelation of Christ, but the words may or may not indicate that the revelation and the commissioning occurred simultaneously. [ NJBC]
1:16: “confer with any human being”: Luke’s presentation, written decades after Paul, indicates Paul’s baptism by Ananias: see Acts 9:10-19. [ CAB] NJBC offers consult. The words translated “human being” literally mean flesh and blood, an expression used in Sirach 14:18 and 17:31, which Paul uses again in 1 Corinthians 15:50. The emphatic denial of the human origin of his commission is explained by the chronological and geographical details that follow. [ NJBC]
1:17: Luke tells a different story in Acts 9:26-30. [ CAB]
1:17: “to Jerusalem”: His basic insight into Christ did not stem from the traditional centre from which the word of God went forth. Isaiah 2:3 says: “... out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem”. [ NJBC]
1:17: “already apostles before me”: Paul was conscious that he was the least important of the apostles (see 1 Corinthians 15:9), but that does not mean that he was an apostle only of the second rank. [ NJBC]
1:17: “Arabia”: The Nabataean kingdom that surrounded Damascus and stretched southward. [ CAB] Acts does not mention this sojourn. [ NJBC]
1:17: “Damascus”: Under Roman rule, it was one of the cities of the Decapolis and was administered by Nabataean governors. Paul’s return was to the areas of his persecuting activity. [ CAB] Paul’s time there after his conversion is mentioned in Acts 9:19-25 and 2 Corinthians 11:32-33. [ NOAB]
1:18: “Then after three years”: To be reckoned from Paul’s return from Arabia.
1:18: “to visit Cephas”: NJBC offers to get information from Cephas. The meaning of historesai is to inquire about, into (a person or thing), to go and examine (a thing). Many ancient interpreters understood it simply as to see (as did Jerome in the Vulgate) often interpreted as to pay a (social) visit. The preferable interpretation is that Paul visited Cephas for the purpose of inquiry, to get information from him about Jesus’ ministry. During the 15 days spent with Cephas, Paul probably learned “traditions” of the Jerusalem church: see 1 Corinthians 11:2, 23-25; 15:3-7.[NJBC]
1:18: “Cephas”: The Aramaic equivalent of the name Peter , the leading figure among the Jerusalem apostles. [ CAB] See also Matthew 16:18.
1:18: “except James”: The Greek words ei me can mean either “except” or but only. If but only is meant, James is said to be an apostle, so he has been added to the twelve; if except is meant, he may or may not be an apostle. Eusebius, in Ecclesiastical History 2.23.1 tells us that James, the brother of our Lord was the one to whom the episcopal seat at Jerusalem had been entrusted by the apostles.
1:19: “James the Lord’s brother”: Jesus’ brother James is mentioned in Mark 6:3 and Matthew 13:55. 1 Corinthians 15:7 lists him among those to whom the risen Jesus appeared. In Acts 1:14 Jesus’ brothers are among the first Christian community, where James was a leader (see Acts 15:13-21 and 21:18). Paul seems to list “James” among the “apostles”, a word which is not yet limited to the twelve. [ CAB] It is possible that “brother” refers to cousins. Four brothers, including “James” are listed in Matthew 13:55. [ NOAB]
1:20: Paul’s other oaths are found in 1 Thessalonians 2:5; 2 Corinthians 1:23; 11:31; Philippians 1:8. [ CAB]
1:21: “Cilicia”: Tarsus, Paul’s birthplace according to Acts 22:3, was the capital of Cilicia. [ CAB]
2:15-21: In propositional and personal terms, Paul outlines his gospel of justification by faith. [ NOAB]
GOSPEL: Luke 7: 11 - 17 (all)
Luke 7:11 (NRSV)
{Jesus Raises the Widow's Son at Nain} Soon
afterwards {Other ancient authorities read [Next day] }
he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with
him. 12 As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried
out. He was his mother's only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a
large crowd from the town. 13 When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her
and said to her, "Do not weep." 14 Then he came forward and touched
the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to
you, rise!" 15 The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him
to his mother. 16 Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying,
"A great prophet has risen among us!" and "God has looked favorably
on his people!" 17 This word about him spread throughout Judea
and all the surrounding country.
Now Jesus is in Nain, near where Elisha raised the son of a wealthy woman. The body of a dead man is being carried out of the town, through the “gate” (v. 12). Burial was not permitted inside Jewish towns and cities. In a patriarchal society, a widow’s loss of her “only son” would render her destitute. By touching “the bier” (v. 14), Jesus makes himself ritually unclean. The story recalls Elijah raising a widow’s son; indeed the words translated “gave him to his mother” (v. 15) also appear in the then-current Greek translation of 1 Kings. All are struck with awe (“fear”, v. 16): restoring life is beyond the limits of human understanding and shows the power of God. Jesus is a prophet; God shows his mercy through him.
Comments: near where Elisha raised the son of a wealthy woman: 2 Kings 4:8-37 tells of Elisha brought the boy back to life. [ CAB]
Verse 11: “Nain”: About 25 miles (40 kilometres) southwest of Capernaum. [ NOAB]
Verse 11: “a large crowd”: This is evidence of deep sympathy for the loss of the widow’s only son. [ NOAB]
Verse 12: “his mother's only son”: Luke tells us other stories about only children: see 8:41-42 (Jairus’ only daughter, who is dying) and 9:38 (a man’s only son, who has epilepsy). [ NJBC]
Verses 13-14: Jesus’ compassion for someone in dire need causes him to bypass the laws of ritual purity. The law against touching a corpse is in Numbers 19:11, 16. [ NJBC]
Verse 13: “Lord”: Luke frequently uses this title for Jesus. [ NOAB] 4:25
Verse 15: “gave him to his mother”: The same Greek words appear in the Septuagint translation of 1 Kings 17:23, in the story of Elijah restoring to life the son of the widow in Zarephath . [ NJBC] The dead man prefigures the death of Jesus himself and Mary’s bereavement. If Luke was thinking of Jesus’ own death and resurrection, John 19:26-27 relates: “When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, here is your son.’ Then he said to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.”
Verse 16: The crowd calls the mighty deeds of Elijah. Jesus is shown to be a prophet in three ways in Luke/Acts:
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