Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Aug. 27, 2023

First Reading (Track One): Exodus 1:8-2:10

For the rest of the season after Pentecost, we will follow the narrative of Moses and the chosen people out of slavery and through the desert for 40 years until they reach the Promised Land.

Christ Giving the Keys of the Kingdom to St. Peter (1481-83). Fresco by Pietro di Cristoforo Vannucci (“Perugino,” 1450-1523), Sistine Chapel, Vatican City, Rome. (Click image to enlarge.)

Our Gospel readings will recall the journey of Jesus to Jerusalem and the cross. In the first reading, years have passed since we left Joseph and his brothers, and Pharaoh no longer knows of Joseph or the work he did to save Egypt. Now the Egyptian leaders are afraid of the Hebrews, who have grown in numbers and are now perceived as a threat. Pharaoh tries to have all the Hebrew baby boys slaughtered at birth, but the infant Moses escapes and is adopted by Pharaoh’s own daughter.

First Reading (Track Two): Isaiah 51:1-6

In a metaphor that may remind us of Jesus’ response to Peter in today’s Gospel, Isaiah reminds the people that they were hewn from rock and dug from a quarry in their descent from Abraham and Sarah and their children. God promised to bless Abraham and make his offspring as numerous as the stars, and that promise has been fulfilled. Even if they are in exile now, God will deliver them; God’s justice will be a light to the people, and their deliverance will come soon. Earth will wear out like a garment and the heavens will vanish like smoke, but God’s deliverance and salvation are forever.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 124

Recalling the time that the people were delivered from slavery in Egypt, the Psalmist sings out a hymn of thanksgiving to the God who protected them through the fear and danger of their exodus. We remember how the Red Sea waters might have overwhelmed them in a raging torrent without God’s protection. Then, in a beautiful metaphor, we envision the people as a bird pursued by a hunter, escaping from a broken snare. In celebration we sing, “Our help is in the name of the Lord.”

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 138

Echoing the hope for return from exile and eventual salvation that we heard from Isaiah, today’s Psalm thanks and praises God for love and faithfulness. When we called, God answered us and gave us strength. Although God is high, God cares for the lowly; God keeps us safe when we walk in the midst of trouble. The love of the Lord endures forever, and God will not abandon the works of God’s hands.

Second Reading: Romans 12:1-8

Having made his case to the Christians of Rome to live and worship together in love, Paul moves on to urge them to devote their minds and bodies as a living sacrifice in their spiritual worship, living not according to the customs of this world but discerning and follow what is good in the will of God. Working out a beautiful metaphor that we also hear in 1 Corinthians, he imagines the church, like our bodies, as an organism made of many parts. Every part has its purpose, and they all must function well together to make the body work. Some lead, some teach, some give, some learn, some listen; some offer compassion. All together we make up one body in Christ.

Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20

This key turning point in the Gospels appears in similar form in Matthew, Mark and Luke: Although the disciples have already begun wondering if Jesus is the Son of God – when they worshipped him after he walked on the water and stilled the storm, for example – this is the first point in the Gospels, just as they begin their journey toward Jerusalem, when Jesus responds and agrees with Peter’s assertion that God has revealed him as the Messiah. Jesus then declares Peter “the rock” upon which he will build the church. Then Jesus sternly commands the disciples not to tell anyone about this. His time has not yet come.

What are “Track 1” and “Track 2”?
During the long green season after Pentecost, there are two tracks (or strands) each week for Old Testament readings. Within each track, there is a Psalm chosen to accompany the particular lesson.
The Revised Common Lectionary allows us to make use of either of these tracks, but once a track has been selected, it should be followed through to the end of the Pentecost season, rather than jumping back and forth between the two strands.
For more information from LectionaryPage.net, click here.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Aug. 30, 2020

First Reading (Track One): Exodus 3:1-15



The long journey of the people from slavery in Egypt toward freedom in Canaan begins.

The Burning Bush (17th century), oil painting on canvas by Sébastien Bourdon (1616-1671). Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia. (Click image to enlarge.)

Moses encounters God in the form of a burning bush on Mount Horeb. This is another name for Mount Sinai, where Moses will later return to receive the Ten Commandments and enter the people into covenant with God. The God of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, too powerful to view face to face, occupying holy ground, tells a somewhat reluctant Moses that he is to lead the people out of Egypt. Then Moses asks a curious question: What is God’s name? “I am who I am,” God replies. “Say to the Israelites, ‘I am’ has sent me to you.” We may have heard an echo of this divine tradition in last week’s Gospel when Jesus asked the apostles, “Who do you say that I am?”

First Reading (Track Two): Jeremiah 15:15-21



The youthful prophet Jeremiah’s sometimes angry, frequently despondent prophecies have earned him the nickname “Weeping Prophet.” We hear a little of both emotions in Sunday’s Track Two first reading. Jeremiah confronts God and begs him to bring down retribution on those who are persecuting him. He spoke out on God’s behalf, Jeremiah declares, even though it was hard, but those ungrateful people only insulted him. “Why,” he wails, “is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?” God responds with kindness, reassuring him: “they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you.”

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45c

Well matched to Sunday’s Track One first reading, this Psalm of thanksgiving and praise remembers the people’s descent from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their sojourn as aliens and oppressed slaves in Egypt. When we sing praise for Moses’ service in protecting the people so they might “observe God’s laws,” we celebrate the survival of not just dry legislation but of “Torah,” God’s timeless teaching that guides the way we live.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 26:1-8

One might wonder if Jesus had Psalm 26 in mind in the passage in Luke about the Pharisee who boasted loudly of his righteousness when he prayed. The Pharisee thanked God that he was not like the thieves, rogues, adulterers, and tax collectors he saw around him. It would be easy to read that kind of prideful piety into these verses, too. But try hearing them instead with the perspective of Jeremiah’s call for God’s grace, and envision a God whose lovingkindness inspires us to worship with thanksgiving and songful procession, loving the place where God’s glory abides.

Second Reading: Romans 12:9-21



We have journeyed with Paul in his letter to the people of Rome through more than two months of the season after Pentecost. We have listened and learned as Paul worked out a new theology, discerning how we receive new life in God’s grace through Christ. Now we are approaching the end. During the next three weeks we will hear him conclude the letter with a beautiful, poetic summary of his call to Rome’s Jewish and Gentile Christians to live together in love. “Hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another,” he writes in today’s passage. “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Gospel: Matthew 16:21-28



In last week’s Gospel we heard Jesus praise Peter, calling him the rock upon which he will build the church. Now, in the verses that immediately follow, Jesus tells the apostles that he must suffer, die and be raised again. Peter angrily demurs, prompting Jesus to turn and declare Peter “Satan,” ordering him to get out of his sight. The evangelist we know as Matthew, perhaps reflecting evolving Christian theology a generation or two after the crucifixion, depicts a powerful image of Jesus as Messiah, predicting his own death and resurrection as necessary steps toward the universal justice that will come with God’s kingdom.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Sept. 3, 2017

Moses before the Burning Bush (1613-14). Oil painting on canvas by Domenico Fetti (1589-1623).
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. (Click image to enlarge.)

The long journey of the people from slavery in Egypt toward freedom in Canaan begins. Moses encounters God in the form of a burning bush on Mount Horeb. This is another name for Mount Sinai, where Moses will later return to receive the Ten Commandments and enter the people into covenant with God. The God of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, too powerful to view face to face, occupying holy ground, tells a somewhat reluctant Moses that he is to lead the people out of Egypt. Then Moses asks a curious question: What is God’s name? “I am who I am,” God replies. “Say to the Israelites, ‘I am’ has sent me to you.”

First Reading (Track Two): Jeremiah 15:15-21

The youthful prophet Jeremiah’s sometimes angry, frequently despondent prophecies have earned him the nickname “Weeping Prophet.” We hear a little of both emotions in today’s first reading, in which we find Jeremiah confronting God and asking him to bring down retribution on those who are persecuting him. Jeremiah spoke out on God’s behalf, even though it was hard, but the ungrateful people only insulted him. “Why,” he wails, “is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?” God responds with kindness, reassuring him: “they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you.”

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45c

Echoing the announcement of God’s name to Moses, this Psalm of praise sings out thanksgiving and glory to God’s holy name. It, too, celebrates the people’s ancestry from Abraham, Jacob and Israel (Jacob), and recalls that they, too, sojourned as aliens and oppressed slaves in Egypt. Once the people become oppressed, God sent Moses and Aaron to bring them out. Hallelujah … praise the Lord!

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 26:1-8

It is interesting to wonder whether Jesus had Psalm 26 in mind when he told (in Luke 18) about the Pharisee who boasted loudly of his righteousness and thanked God that he was not like the thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even tax collectors. It would be easy to read that kind of prideful piety into these verses. Let’s hear them instead in the light of Jeremiah’s woeful call for God’s grace, and envision a God whose lovingkindness inspires us to worship with thanksgiving and songful procession, loving the place where God’s glory abides.

Second Reading: Romans 12:9-21

We have read through much of Paul’s letter to the people of Rome for almost three months, since the beginning of the season after Pentecost. We have listened and learned as Paul worked out a new theology, discerning how we receive new life in God’s grace through Christ. Now we approach the end of the letter and hear a beautiful, poetic summary of Paul’s call to Rome’s Jewish and Gentile Christians to live together in love as Jesus would have done. “Hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another … Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” This is no dry, ancient admonition: As it was then, so is it today.

Gospel: Matthew 16:21-28

What a difference a day makes! In last week’s Gospel we heard Jesus praise Peter, calling him the rock upon which he will build the church. Now, in the verses that immediately follow, when Jesus tells the apostles that he must suffer, die and be raised again, Peter angrily demurs, prompting Jesus to turn and declare Peter “Satan,” ordering him to get out of his sight. The evangelist we know as Matthew, perhaps reflecting evolving Christian theology a generation or two after the crucifixion, depicts a powerful image of Jesus as Messiah, predicting his own death and resurrection as necessary steps toward the universal justice that will come with God’s kingdom.

What are “Track 1” and “Track 2”?
During the long green season after Pentecost, there are two tracks (or strands) each week for Old Testament readings. Within each track, there is a Psalm chosen to accompany the particular lesson.
The Revised Common Lectionary allows us to make use of either of these tracks, but once a track has been selected, it should be followed through to the end of the Pentecost season, rather than jumping back and forth between the two strands.
For more information from LectionaryPage.net, click here.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sept. 7, 2014

Ezekiel’s Wheel, Fra Angelico, 1455 CE), Basilica of the Holy Cross, Florence.

In highly specific instructions, God ordains a symbolic meal for a people on the run. Having fought hard-hearted Pharaoh through a dozen plagues with God’s help, the people now stand on the brink of escape from slavery in Egypt. This joyous outcome, though, must begin with a horrible, bloody punishment visited not only on the children and animals of Egypt but on their pagan gods, while the chosen people are saved, literally, by the blood of the lamb. This gory sacrifice may belong to a place and time in ancient history, but the underlying grace remains: God has delivered God’s people into freedom.

First Reading (Track 2): Ezekiel 33:7-11

The Prophet Ezekiel, identified in tradition as a priest exiled to Babylon six centuries before Jesus, during the wars that would eventually lead to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, warned the people that God would punish them for their wickedness by taking away the covenant that had given them the promised land. In these verses, the prophet hears God’s warning that God does not desire to punish the people, but wishes that they would save their lives by turning back – repenting – from their evil ways.

Psalm: Psalm 149

Today’s Psalm joyously dances and shakes tambourines to celebrate a God’s gift of victory for the faithful. It is couched in the language of violence, exulting in the swords, fetters and iron chains used to execute vengeance against the people’s enemies. We might wish for a more peaceful view of God, but it is important to recognize the range of emotion in the Psalms, from this warrior shout of victory to the quiet, protective love of the Good Shepherd in Psalm 23.

Psalm (Track 2): Psalm 119:33-40

Psalm 119, the longest Psalm, celebrates God’s Torah as a glorious gift to humankind. The Psalms in English often render “Torah” as “laws,” “statutes” or “ordinances,” but the source of the Psalmist’s affection may be more clear when we understand it as God’s “teaching.” Here’s a curiosity: This entire Psalm is an “alphabetic acrostic.” Every line in each of its 22 eight-verse stanzas begins with a Hebrew letter in alphabetical order. The lines of today’s reading all begin with the Hebrew letter “Hey,” or “H.”

Second Reading: Romans 13:8-14

Seeking to bridge the worlds of Jewish and Gentile Christianity, Paul focuses onthe law. He looks at Jesus’ commandment to love our neighbors, and recognizes that this incorporates all the commandments. Love, he says, does no wrong to those around us. If we love our neighbors; we won’t do things that hurt our neighbors. We won’t kill them, we won’t steal from them, we won’t be jealous of what they have. Love fulfills the law.

Gospel: Matthew 18:15-20

Here is Jesus’ promise that he will be there among us when we gather in his name, in prayer and in the real presence of the Eucharist. But what is this about “gathering two or three” to work out conflicts among members of the church? We might not like it much if the church nowadays followed this formal practice to sort out one another’s sins. But Jesus may be getting at something deeper: When we gather together, in celebration or in conflict, Jesus is with us and shows us the way.