Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for Sept. 7, 2025 (Pentecost 13C/Proper 18)

Christ Before the People (1837-1857), oil painting on canvas by Alexander Ivanov (1806-1858). Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): Jeremiah 18:1-11

Sunday’s readings prompt us to reflect on our assumptions about God’s role in the universe and Jesus’s image as the gentle Good Shepherd. In the Track One first reading, God sends Jeremiah to watch an artisan – a creator who fashions pots from clay – who does not hesitate to smash and re-make an unsatisfactory creation over and over again. If the people of Judah do not turn from their evil ways, Jeremiah hears, then God, like a cosmic potter, will create disaster for them. However, that God – the cosmic potter – tries creation over and over again. Even when humanity goes wrong, the possibility of repentance and restoration remains.

First Reading (Track Two): Deuteronomy 30:15-20

After wandering 40 years in the desert, the Israelites reach the River Jordan at last and are preparing to cross into the Promised Land. Before they make this long-awaited crossing, they pause while Moses reminds them of the covenant they made at Mount Sinai: Love God and walk in God’s ways, follow God’s laws, and you will thrive and prosper. But turn away from God, and you will lose the land and God’s blessings. This simple call to follow God’s way lies at the center of Scripture, and it shapes Jesus’ message to us as well.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17

God knows us as intimately as Jeremiah’s potter knows his clay. Whatever we do, wherever we go, God knows our every thought, the Psalmist sings. God knows every word that we speak and every idea that we imagine. Even before we were born, God knew us. The Psalmist, however, does not explicitly thank God for knowing our every moment, nor do these verses ask how this knowledge affects our daily lives. No, the simple fact that God knows us so deeply is enough.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 1

Psalm 1, the first of the 150 ancient hymns that make up the Psalms, echoes Moses’ theme at the banks of Jordan: The world is made up of two kinds of people, those who follow God’s laws and those who do not. Follow God’s laws and be happy and prosper; follow the way of the wicked and perish. Scripture is far more nuanced than this black-and-white understanding, of course. Still, “follow God’s ways and win, follow evil ways and lose,” concisely sums up the Covenant that Moses made with God for the people at Mount Sinai.

Second Reading: Philemon 1-21

Paul, having befriended young Onesimus, a slave, in prison, writes a letter about the youth to the slave’s master, Philemon. We might wish that Paul had taken a strong stand against slavery, offering clear guidance on this evil practice that would ring through the ages. But read it closely, and we see that Paul is gently guiding Philemon to a deeper truth: Christians should love each other as brothers and sisters. There is no space for slavery in that!

Gospel: Luke 14:25-33

Tension is rising as Jesus continues his journey toward Jerusalem and the cross. The crowds that have been following him since he set his face toward Jerusalem are growing larger and more excited. Meanwhile, the Romans and the Temple authorities are growing nervous about this unruly crowd descending on the capital at Passover. Jesus needs the crowd to know that it will not be easy to follow him on this journey, just as he had warned them earlier that he came not to bring peace but division. Does he really mean that we have to hate our families and give up everything we have to follow him? Is Jesus just exaggerating to make his point? This much is sure: Jesus is warning his followers not to start a task that they can’t finish. They must follow him not halfheartedly but with whole hearts.

Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for Aug. 31, 2025 (Pentecost 12C/Proper 17)

Parable of the Great Banquet (c.1525-1545), oil painting on panel by the Brunswick Monogrammist, an anonymous 16th-century Dutch painter. National Museum in Warsaw, Poland. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): Jeremiah 2:4-13

When we place our own interest first, we lose sight of God’s way. Listen for this theme through Sunday’s readings. In our Track One first reading, we see Jeremiah, reassured that his youth is no bar to being a prophet, stepping into the role. Speaking God’s words aloud to humanity, he cries out in an anguished reverie, lamenting how the chosen people could have gone astray. Did they find some wrong in God that led them to waste their lives on worthless things? More in sorrow than in anger, it seems, God reflects that the people have forsaken the living water that they were given, building cracked cisterns instead that won’t hold what the people need to slake their spiritual thirst.

First Reading (Track Two): Sirach 10:12-18

Sirach, or The Wisdom of Jesus ben Sirach to give its full name, is one of the group of books known as Apocrypha that come at the end of the Hebrew Bible. It sums up Torah, God’s teaching, in the genre of wisdom literature: brisk, memorable suggestions of spiritual advice. Sunday’s Track Two first reading from Sirach follows the theme of the day’s readings: Pride leads to sin, and sin leads to no good end. In language that may remind us of the Song of Mary, the Magnificat, it warns that proud rulers will be overthrown, to be replaced by the lowly.

Alternate First Reading (Track Two): Proverbs 25:6-7

When Jesus offered his simple wisdom to banquet-goers that we hear in Sunday’s Gospel, perhaps he remembered this simple, ancient wisdom in Sunday’s alternate first reading from Proverbs: “It is better to be told, ‘Come up here,’ than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.” Both Luke and Matthew sum up this idea in almost identical words, “… all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 81:1,10-16

The theme of this hymn seems to flow naturally from today’s Jeremiah reading. The Psalmist shouts in joy for God’s strength, and like Jeremiah, imagines God speaking of having brought the people out of slavery in Egypt. God saw to it that they were fed and protected, only to see their stubborn hearts turn to their own ways and ignore God’s commands. Imagining God’s voice, the Psalmist laments, “O that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways!”

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 112

Understood in the context of today’s lessons, the point in this Psalm is clear, and it clearly restates God’s covenant with the people: Follow God’s commandments and be blessed, and remember that the sum of that commandment is to be righteous and just, serve your neighbor, share your wealth, and provide for the poor. Secure in God, there is no need to live in fear.

Second Reading: Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16

Our four-week visit with the letter to the Hebrews concludes Sunday in beautiful poetic words urging us to love one another as God loves us. We must remember to do good, to share with one another, and to show hospitality, remembering that the patriarch Abraham once hospitably yet unknowingly received visiting angels. These verses offer simple advice on living as God would have us live. Keep our lives free from the love of money, and be content with what we have, for God will never leave us or forsake us.

Gospel: Luke 14:1, 7-14

Like so many of Jesus’s parables, this one seems to have an obvious, simple message … and then a sudden turn makes us stop and think. Don’t assume that the seat of honor is saved for you, Jesus tells the Pharisees at a banquet table, or you’ll be embarrassed when the host directs you to move down. It’s more prudent to take a humble place, then bask in a happy glow as the host escorts you to a better place. But then we find, as we so often do with Jesus’ teachings, that there’s a deeper meaning: Next time, don’t host a banquet for wealthy, influential people at all. Rather, host one for hungry, thirsty, ill, and oppressed people. They can’t repay you as rich friends might, but your reward will be plentiful when God’s kingdom comes.

Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for Aug. 24, 2025 (Pentecost 11C/Proper 16)

Heilung der gichtbrüchigen Frau am Sabbat (Healing the paralyzed woman on the Sabbath). Illumination in the Ottheinrich Bible (c.1530-1532). Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, the Bavarian State Library. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): Jeremiah 1:4-10

Whenever God calls a prophet, the prophet-to-be almost invariably resists. Moses thought he couldn’t speak well enough. Jonah didn’t like the people of Nineveh and ran away. Isaiah thought his unclean lips weren’t up to the job. And Jeremiah? He doubted that he was old enough for this important job, telling God, “Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy!” But God reassured him: Even before Jeremiah was born, God knew him, and knew that he would be a prophet to nations and kingdoms, with power “to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”

First Reading (Track Two): Isaiah 58:9b-14

The great prophetic book of Isaiah actually contains the work of three ancient writers in sequence, Bible scholars say. The first Isaiah prophesied the coming destruction of Jerusalem and the temple; the second Isaiah may have written from within Israel’s exiled community in Babylon; and the third Isaiah, who spoke Sunday’s verses, prophesied soon after the exiles returned home. The city and the temple lay in ruins, and the people were having a hard time settling back in. God will help us, the prophet promises; but we must be just, share with the needy, and care for the afflicted. Do all this, the prophet says, and honor the Sabbath, and Judah’s ancient glory will be restored.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 71:1-6

Sunday’s short Psalm fits well with the Track One first reading from Jeremiah. In these verses, the Psalmist speaks from a place of weakness and fear. Caught in the hand of the wicked, in the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor, he calls out to God for refuge, seeking God’s protection and help. God knows us, as God knew Jeremiah, from before our birth. God is our strength and our hope, sustaining us through all our lives.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 103:1-8

The people must have sung a hymn much like this one to celebrate their arrival back in Jerusalem after the exile. Its message of thanksgiving has made it a favorite from ancient times down through the ages: “Bless the Lord, O my soul!” As we sing, we remember that God forgives us, heals us, and redeems us. We can count on God’s mercy and grace, gentle spirit, and abundant love. We know that God insists on righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.

Second Reading: Hebrews 12:18-29

This week’s reading from the Letter to the Hebrews recalls how Moses received the Ten Commandments: The people were terrified. The sky went dark. Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and the earth shook with God’s power. But now, the author declares, continuing his extended argument that Christianity is the better way, we have a new covenant under Jesus. God gives us through Christ a kingdom that cannot be shaken.

Gospel: Luke 13:10-17

As an observant Jew and charismatic rabbi, Jesus knew well and faithfully followed the law demanding strict observance of the Sabbath. But his compassion for a painfully disabled woman compelled him to interrupt his teaching in order to heal her right there in the synagogue! The leader of the synagogue was outraged at this breach of the Sabbath rules, but Jesus reminded those who complained that they wouldn’t hesitate to protect their own property on the Sabbath. Why should a woman who has been in pain for 18 years have to wait even another hour?

Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for Aug. 17, 2025 (Pentecost 10C/Proper 15)

The Horrors of War (1637-1638), oil painting on canvas by Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640). Galleria Palatina, Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): Isaiah 5:1-7

Sunday’s Lectionary readings provide us with background for a passage from Luke’s Gospel that might be described as disturbing. In our Track One first reading, the Prophet Isaiah begins with a charming love song to God’s beautiful vineyard, but the calm beauty of this opening image doesn’t last. Although the vineyard was thoughtfully planted and carefully tended, it produced only sour, unusable grapes. God, angered, vows to tend the vines no more. Then Isaiah explains the metaphors in plain words: The vineyard is the house of Israel, the people of Judah. God had planted them to reap righteousness and justice, but they’ve failed in this mission, so their harvest will be destruction and exile.

First Reading (Track Two): Jeremiah 23:23-29

Sunday’s Track Two first reading reminds us of the idea of panentheism (not pantheism) as described by the late theologian Marcus Borg: God is transcendent, wholly other, distinct from the world … but God is also immanent, right here, all around us, and present in our lives. The Prophet Jeremiah, who spoke words of doom and warning before Israel’s destruction and exile, finds God in both approaches. Don’t think that God is only far away, Jeremiah warns: God is nearby, too. In words that Christians might see as foreshadowing the frightening words in Luke’s gospel, the prophet warns that God holds fire and destructive power ready at hand for those who forget God’s word.

Psalm: (Track One): Psalm 80:1-2, 8-18

The Psalmist’s song echoes the words and resonates with the spirit of Isaiah’s warning about God’s lost love for Israel. Here, too, we sing of Israel as God’s beloved, well-tended vine, one that grew fruitful and mighty. But that was then. Now we find it ravaged, eaten by forest animals, burned, and cut down. The Psalmist calls on God: Please return and tend this vine! Return life to the exiled people, the Psalmist pleads, and they surely won’t betray you again.

Psalm: (Track Two): Psalm 82

The idea of God sitting in a divine council of other gods sounds strange to modern ears. Bible historians trace this concept to ancient Near Eastern tradition, when early Israelites understood the God of Abraham and Moses as supreme over the lesser gods of enemy nations. The Psalm’s underlying theme, in any case, feels as relevant today as it was in the time of the ancient Temple: God insists on justice and calls us to stand up for the weak, the orphan, the lowly, the humble, and the needy.

Second Reading: Hebrews 11:29-12:2

This week’s selection from the letter to the Hebrews continues the theme of praise for our ancestor in faith, Abraham, that we heard in last Sunday’s reading. We hear more snippets about Hebrew Bible heroes who achieved greatness through their faith and now form a cloud of witnesses that surrounds and inspires us. These witnesses, we are told, show us the way to “run with perseverance the race that is set before us” as we follow Jesus, who endured the shame of crucifixion and now sits at the right hand of God.

Gospel: Luke 12:49-56

Sunday’s gospel shows us an unexpected side of Jesus. Continuing his conversation with the disciples that began in last week’s reading, Jesus expresses a stern and seemingly angry desire to bring fire to the earth, not ushering in peace but division that will even separate family members from each other. What’s going on? Remember that we are following Luke’s account of Jesus’s journey to Jerusalem and the cross. Walking this hard journey is not an easy path for Jesus or for those who follow his way. The Kingdom is coming soon, he says; and the hard work of making that happen may divide us even from friends and family.

Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for Aug. 10, 2025 (Pentecost 9C/Proper 14)

The Prophet Isaiah (1707), oil painting on canvas by Antonio Balestra (1666-1740). Castelvecchio Museum, Verona, Italy. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

“Do not be afraid.” These reassuring words that Jesus utters to his little flock in Sunday’s Gospel occur scores of times throughout Scripture, always foretelling good news. Listen for this message in Sunday’s readings, even as a final note of hope in the otherwise alarming tones in our First Reading and Psalm. In alarming, threatening words, Isaiah warns the people that God is angry because they have failed to keep the covenant that they made at Mount Sinai and abandoned God’s ways. But even now there is hope: “Cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, and plead for the widow,” and God will forgive their sins; if they are willing and obedient, they shall eat the good of the land.

First Reading (Track Two): Genesis 15:1-6

In recent weeks our Track Two first readings have looked into the life and work of Abraham, the patriarch of the chosen people: God promising that Abraham and Sarah would have a son; Abraham bargaining with God over Sodom and Gomorrah’s fate. Now we turn back to an earlier chapter. Abram – God has not yet changed his name to Abraham – is frustrated because he and his wife, Sarai, are still waiting fruitlessly for the heir that God has repeatedly promised them. Abram has followed God’s call and done battle for the people, but his only heir is a slave’s child. He asks for God’s reassurance, and God responds with the repeated promise that Abram’s descendants will be as numerous as the stars.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 50:1-8, 22-23

Sunday’s Psalm continues and expands upon the theme of Isaiah’s prophecy to Judah: God is pleased to have our offerings of thanksgiving, but God expects us to keep our covenant to be faithful, to be thankful and to practice righteousness and justice to others in our lives. Insincere thanksgiving won’t do, the Psalmist warns. Those who forget God risk being consumed by flame and raging storm. But those who keep God’s way and remember the covenant with Moses need not be afraid; they will know salvation.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 33:12-22

Imagine how Abram must have felt after receiving God’s reassurance. Relief, joy and gratitude for God’s love and care: These are the themes, too, of psalms like this one, psalms of thanksgiving and praise. As the prophets consistently proclaim, the nations and people whom God chooses will be happy; God’s eye remains on those who wait for the Lord. Those who trust in the Lord’s namewill know God’s loving-kindness.

Second Reading: Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16

As we begin a four-week lectionary visit with the letter to the Hebrews, take care to keep it in historical context. It is not a pastoral letter of Paul but a later document aimed at a broad audience. This message appears to have been intended for Jewish Christians who were abandoning Christianity to avoid Roman persecution. Unfortunately, throughout its text, sometimes using terms that can sound anti-Jewish to modern ears, the author of Hebrews argues that Christianity is the better way. In these verses, though, the author speaks well of the Abrahamic tradition expressed by the prophets, declaring that Jews and Christians alike will inherit the city of God through faith, beautifully described as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

Gospel: Luke 12:32-40

Do not be afraid, Jesus assures his little flock. This gentle reassurance comes just after he has reminded them to live like the lilies of the field, striving only for God’s kingdom and knowing that all the rest will be given as well. Still the verses that follow might have made the disciples a little nervous: Sell your possessions. Give alms. Make durable purses: Be ready to go as soon as Jesus calls, dressed for action and with your lamps lighted. Be on guard, for you don’t know when a thief might come into the house at night. Be ready, Jesus warns, for God’s kingdom may come when we least expect it, bringing us “unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.”

Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for Aug. 3, 2025 (Pentecost 8C/Proper 13)

Der reiche Mann und der Tod (The Rich Man and Death), 1622, painting by David Kindt (1580-1652). Hauptkirche St. Jacobi (St. James’ Church), Hamburg, Germany. (Click image to enlarge

First Reading (Track One): Hosea 11:1-11

Last Sunday we heard the introduction to the book of the prophet Hosea, an angry and startling accusation about Israel’s unrighteous path to destruction. Now, toward the end of the book, Hosea turns from anger to more gentle tones and beautiful imagery. Now he envisions Israel as a child, and God as a loving but exasperated parent. God knows that the misbehaving offspring deserve punishment but isn’t willing to give up on them entirely. God’s heart recoils when Israel turns away, but God’s compassion grows warm and tender. Eventually the children will come home to a happy reunion.

First Reading (Track Two): Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23

“Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” ​In reflecting on this familiar passage in the mysterious book of Ecclesiastes,​ ​think of “vanity” in the sense of the original Hebrew word: “breath” or “vapor,” something barely visible that veils the light. We spend our lives futilely toiling under the scorching sun in pursuit of something that we can’t grasp, the poet sings: “chasing after wind.” The first-person narrator, “I, the Teacher” is traditionally understood as King Solomon, but the book was almost certainly written long after the people’s return from exile, centuries after Solomon.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 107:1-9, 43

The people returning home from exile might have sung a hymn much like this. It hails God’s compassion despite Israel’s ingratitude. Three times in nine verses the people praise God’s steadfast love, a poignant Hebrew word – “chesed” – that connotes compassion, faithfulness, kindness, mercy, and grace. Take special note of Verse 9, praising God who gives drink to the hungry and fills the hungry with good things.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 49:1-11

Foreshadowing the parable of the foolish rich man in Sunday’s Gospel, this portion of Psalm 49 calls out the foolishness of trust in riches. High or low, rich or poor, we can never ransom ourselves or deliver to God the price of our life, the Psalmist sings. We can never earn enough to ransom our lives when our time comes. No one has enough riches to buy life forever, never seeing the grave. Rich or poor, wise or dull and stupid, all together come to the grave.

Second Reading: Colossians 3:1-11

In our fourth and final week with the letter to the Colossians, the author proclaims that once Christ is revealed in our lives, we are called to put away evil ways and clothe ourselves in a new life in Christ. In words similar to Paul’s invitation to the Galatians to put away all differences among humankind, we are reminded that “there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free.” Once we are raised with Jesus and connected with each other in baptism, such earthly differences as race, religion, gender, class and culture no longer matter. Our new life in Christ is one in all.

Gospel: Luke 12:13-21

The rich man in Jesus’s parable became wealthy through his work, planning and careful investment. He has an enviable retirement plan, having stored up sufficient property and earnings to ensure him a merry life of ease. Yet God calls him a fool, and it’s not hard to see the reasons why. Most obviously, the rich man failed to consider that we never know when we’ll die. He focused his life on saving for a future that he’ll never see. Even more important, he was greedy. He never gave a thought to others. He did not love his neighbors as himself. Jesus – who reminded us that whatever we do for poor, hungry, unclothed and oppressed people we do also for him – has little patience with those who think only of themselves.