Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Aug. 29, 2021

First Reading (Track One): Song of Solomon 2:8-13

During the first half of the Pentecost season during this Lectionary year we have followed the stories of Israel’s Judges and Kings in our Track One first readings. Now, we’ll devote most of the rest of the season to the Hebrew Bible’s wisdom literature – books of thoughts and advice on wise and proper living.

James the Just, the Brother of Jesus. Ancient Orthodox icon. (Click image to enlarge.)

Our wisdom journey begins this Sunday with a love poem. What an unexpected thing to find in the Bible! The Song of Solomon is a collection of love poems that tradition attributes to King Solomon himself, although they were actually written centuries later. These verses sing of deep love between a woman and a man who has just returned to her after a cold winter. The subject invites us to look for all sorts of metaphor, but remember sometimes a love song is just a love song.

First Reading (Track Two): Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9

Don’t do as we say. Do as we do. This simple wisdom is unveiled for us throughout Sunday’s Track Two readings. In the first reading last week, we looked on as an aging Joshua, facing the end of his life, called on the people to recommit to God’s covenant now that they were established in the Promised Land. This week we back up in time to Deuteronomy, listening in as Moses emphasizes the importance of following God’s covenant. By carrying God’s teaching through the generations, he tells the people, the Israelites will earn the right to live in the promised land, gaining the world’s respect for wisdom and discernment.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 45:1-2, 7-10

In the context of the Song of Solomon, these snippets from Psalm 45 are framed as a love song, too. A noble song fashioned for a king on the occasion of his royal wedding, it praises the king himself as the fairest of men, from whose lips produce flowing grace. But the narrative quickly turns to praise God, above the king. God is the Holy One who has anointed and blessed the king with an enduring throne and a scepter of righteousness. God has anointed the king because God loves righteousness and hates iniquity, the psalm tells us. Thus the king carries out God’s will and earns God’s blessings on earth.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 15

Echoing Moses’ wisdom in the first reading, the Psalmist – said by tradition to be King David himself – proclaims that those who live blamelessly and with righteousness and truth may earn God’s protection. Be honest, be trustworthy, be fair; protect the innocent. Follow these ways, the psalm advises us, and abide upon God’s holy hill. Honesty, kindness, and love of neighbor all make a difference: The way we live matters to God.

Second Reading: James 1:17-27

Following several weeks with second readings chosen from the letter to the Ephesians, we now turn to the letter of James for five weeks. Although this epistle is traditionally attributed to James, the brother of Jesus, it was more likely written in James’ name by a later Jewish Christian after the fall of the Temple, perhaps around the same time as Matthew’s Gospel.. This passage is akin to today’s other readings in its emphasis on God’s covenant: “Care for the widows and orphans in their distress.” Throughout the letter, the writer shows little doubt that we are called not merely to hear God’s teaching but to act on what we hear.

Gospel: Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

After our summer digression into the bread narrative in  John’s Gospel, we now return to Mark for the rest of this liturgical year, picking up where we left off in mid-July. If you don’t pay attention, though, you might think for a moment that nothing has changed, as we find Jesus arguing with a crowd of Scribes and Pharisees just as we left him doing in John’s account. The law-abiding religious leaders have challenged Jesus because they saw his disciples ignoring the strict ritual practice of washing before eating. In response, Jesus quotes the Prophet Isaiah in a passage that showers scorn on those who honor God with their lips while their hearts are far away. The message: Do not thoughtlessly follow ritual; rather live in the spirit of God’s laws. It is not eating that defiles us, Jesus proclaims, but the sins that come from our mouths and our hearts.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Aug. 26, 2018

Joshua passing the River Jordan with the Ark of the Covenant (1800). Oil painting on wood by Benjamin West (1738-1820). Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): 1 Kings 8:22-23, 41-43

The narrative of the kings of ancient Israel reaches its zenith as the wise and wealthy King Solomon, son of King David, dedicates the first Temple in Jerusalem. The Ark of the Covenant, God’s sanctuary on Earth, has a permanent home at last. Solomon speaks to all the assembled leaders of Israel and Judah, reminding them of God’s covenant with his father David: “There shall never fail you a successor before me to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your children look to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me.” Sadly, as the narrative goes on, the people will fail to practice justice and righteousness. The nation will decline and fall, the temple will be destroyed, and the leaders will be sent to exile in Babylon as the prophets foretold.

First Reading (Track Two): Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-18

When we are facing major life choices, how do we decide? Where is God in this process? Hear this challenging question as we go through Sunday’s readings. First we see Joshua, Moses’ successor, assembling the people whom he had led into the Promised Land, taking it from its Canaanite inhabitants in a fierce and bloody war. Joshua, now in old age and facing death, confronts them with a decision: Will they follow the gods of their new neighbors, or will they renew the covenant that their ancestors Abraham and Moses made with the God who led them out of exile and through the desert? They respond faithfully: “We … will serve the Holy One, for he is our God.” These are good intentions; but Joshua knows the people’s long history: The verses that come just before and after this reading, and the snippet that it reading skips over, offer hard reminders that breaking the covenant has real consequences.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 84

This lyrical hymn of praise celebrates the joy of worshiping in the temple that Solomon built. Those who decide to put their trust in God, the Holy One of hosts, will receive God’s grace and glory. The people in exile who prayed for God’s favor, who accepted God’s covenant, trusted that God would welcome the people home and would offer protection, favor and honor to those who had trust. As God provides nests for the small birds, so will God provide for us. As God provides pools of water for thirsty travelers, so will God hear our prayers.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 34:15-22

We have chanted this Psalm in three parts over three successive Sundays. Its hymn of praise and thanks to our merciful, saving God concludes this week with a simple, critical choice that fits the theme of this week’s readings: Those who choose to follow God’s commandments, like the Israelites entering Canaan, will earn God’s protection against fear, sorrow and danger. The wicked and the unrighteous who choose otherwise will eventually be punished, the Psalmist sings; but those who choose to serve God can trust in God.

Second Reading: Ephesians 6:10-20

As we reach the last of seven Sunday readings from the letter to the Ephesians, we hear another call to make a choice: As a persecuted church, a tiny minority in the Empire of Rome, the people clearly understood that their struggle was not against “blood and flesh” – surely an echo of Jesus’ promise in John – but against the powerful earthly rulers who stood for the forces of evil. Our armor, breastplate, helmet, sword, belt and sturdy shoes of faith in God protect us when we choose to boldly declare our faith.

Gospel: John 6:56-69

Our five-week journey through Jesus’ difficult discourse about eating his body and drinking his blood comes to its end today. We have seen the enthusiastic crowds that surrounded him at the start gradually dwindle away as they take literally each new and troubling call to eat Jesus’ body and drink his blood in order to gain eternal life. First the skeptics and faithless had turned away in disgust. Now the division grows as many of his own disciples, even, become uncomfortable and leave. Only those closest to Jesus make the decision to remain with him no matter what. In the end their faith wins out over doubt, even if they don’t understand it, because they know Jesus as the Holy One of God. Peter declares, “ Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

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 Aug. 30, 2015

Ancient icon depicting James, the Brother of Jesus.

Last week we heard the people recommit to God’s covenant as they crossed the Jordan into Canaan with Joshua. Now we back up in time, to Deuteronomy, to listen as Moses emphasizes the importance of following God’s covenant. By carrying God’s teaching through the generations, the Israelites will earn the promised land, gaining the world’s respect for its wisdom and discernment.

Psalm: Psalm 15

Echoing Moses’ wisdom, the Psalmist – said by tradition in this Psalm to be King David himself – proclaims that those who live blamelessly and with righteousness and truth may earn God’s protection. Be honest, be trustworthy, be fair; protect the innocent. Follow these ways, and abide upon God’s holy hill.

Second Reading: James 1:17-27

After spending more than a month with the letter to the Ephesians, we now turn for a month or so to the letter of James. This epistle is traditionally attributed to James, the brother of Jesus, but it was probably written by a later Jewish Christian, perhaps around the same time as Matthew’s Gospel. Martin Luther is said to have disliked the letter of James because it seems to conflict with Luther’s belief in salvation by faith alone. This passage is akin to today’s other readings in its emphasis on God’s covenant – “care for the widows and orphans in their distress.” James seems in no doubt that we are called not merely to hear God’s teaching but to act on what we hear.

Gospel: Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

After our summer digression into John’s Gospel, we now return to Mark for the rest of this liturgical year. In keeping with today’s readings, we find Jesus arguing with the scribes and Pharisees over the details of following God’s teachings and keeping God’s laws. Challenged because his disciples failed to follow strict ritual practices before eating, Jesus cites the Prophet Isaiah as he raises up the spirit of God’s laws in favor of blind adherence to ritual. It is not eating that defiles us, Jesus proclaims, but the sins that come from our mouths and our hearts.

Illuminations of readings for Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012.

First Lesson: Song of Solomon 2:8-13
A love poem – what an unexpected thing to find in the Bible! From the book of love poems that tradition attributes to King Solomon, these verses sing of deep love between a woman and a man, but it can also be understood as telling of God’s love for Israel – and for us.

Second Lesson: James 1:17-27
Christian tradition attributes the letter of James to the apostle identified as Jesus’s brother. Although the time of its writing makes this appealing legend doubtful, the letter remains as one of the New Testament’s strongest calls to the social gospel, urging us to “reach out as Christ’s hands to the world”. As James says, don’t just hear the word, do it.