Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Sept. 12, 2021

First Reading (Track One): Proverbs 1:20-33

We turn back to the first chapter of the book of Proverbs this week, where we meet Wisdom personified as a powerful woman. “Be wise! Embrace knowledge,” she shouts out to the city and all its inhabitants.

Peter the Apostle (1743), oil painting on canvas by Giuseppe Nogari (1699-1766). Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden, Germany. (Click image to enlarge.)

Wisdom roars in a prophetic voice; and like the prophets, she finds that many refuse to listen. When distress and anguish come to them, she warns, she will laugh and mock them. When they call on her in their panic, she will not answer. Echoing the covenantal warning that we hear often from the other prophets and in the Psalms, she warns, “the complacency of fools destroys them; but those who listen to me will be secure and will live at ease, without dread of disaster.”

First Reading (Track Two): Isaiah 50:4-9a

What is it like when great suffering stands between us and the goals we most desire? This challenging question recurs in Sunday’s readings. Isaiah raises this idea in the powerful metaphor of the Suffering Servant. What could be more important to a community than its teachers, whose words shape our growth and understanding? Isaiah portrays this teacher as a servant who suffers the humiliation of exile and turns away from those who strike him. To Israel he represented the nation awaiting vindication in its own exile. Christians would later interpret it as an image of Christ.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 19

The heavens declare the glory of God! The beauty of creation rings out in this psalm of praise for God at work in the universe. Echoing the first reading’s exhortation to hear and attend to Wisdom’s word, the psalm’s verses urge us to rejoice in our hearts about God’s perfect law: Torah, the word that, in the original Hebrew, is synonymous with “teaching.” The psalm concludes with a familiar prayer that preachers often use to begin a sermon: “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 116:1-8

Like Isaiah’s Suffering Servant, the Psalmist, too, speaks from a place of sorrow and grief, in a Psalm traditionally understood as a song of thanksgiving for recovery from illness. Filled with despair, entangled in the cords of death, the Psalmist called out, and God responded. Now, rescued from death’s grip, his tears are wiped dry and his feet no longer stumble. Walking again in the land of the living, his heart fills with love for God, who has heard his voice in supplication.

Second Reading: James 3:1-12


A teacher’s tongue may reveal the way of God, but tongues can be tricky, this passage from the letter of James tells us in delightful wordplay. James likens this small but powerful organ to other small but powerful things that can control forces beyond their size: A horse’s bridle, a ship’s rudder, a spark that starts a forest fire. Our tongues can bless, but tongues may curse, as well. Watch our tongues, James warns. Use them wisely to praise and bless our brothers and sisters, not to express hurtful things.

Gospel: Mark 8:27-38


We have reached the midpoint of Mark’s Gospel, and the narrative is taking a turn. Last week we saw Jesus for the first time extend his ministry to a Gentile, healing a woman’s child. Now, in a strange conversation with his disciples, much new is unveiled: First, Jesus confirms Peter’s bold announcement, the apostles’ first revelation that Jesus is the Messiah. Then, to Peter’s horror, Jesus tells them that he must endure great suffering, rejection and death. If they want to follow him, Jesus warns, they must deny themselves, take up the cross, and follow him. If you wish to save your life, he warns, you must lose it first.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Sept. 9, 2018

Jesus and the Canaanite woman. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading (Track One): Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23

This Sunday we turn to the book of Proverbs, another work of wisdom literature that, like the Song of Solomon that we heard last week, was thought in older times to have been written by King Solomon himself. Many of its simple, timeless aphorisms might remind us of such modern works as Benjamin Franklin or the Old Farmer’s Almanac, and much of its wisdom seems as applicable now as it did 2,500 years ago. Much of it, too, phrased in memorable poetic rhythms, reminds us that God’s covenant with the people gives preference to the poor: “Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord pleads their cause and despoils of life those who despoil them.”

First Reading (Track Two): Isaiah 35:4-7a

God feeds the hungry, gives drink to the thirsty, heals the blind and the deaf and takes the side of the oppressed, and we are called to do the same. This call for distributive justice resonates through Sunday’s readings. First we hear the Prophet Isaiah sounding the call. He speaks from exile in Babylon, urging the people to remain strong and fearless as God comes to save the people and their land. Even though the fortunes of war have sent you into exile and separated you from home and Temple, Isaiah sings, God is coming with healing and comfort and will lead you back. God will open their eyes and ears as Earth and waters and all creation are restored in speech and sing their joy.

Psalm (Track One): Psalm 125

One of the shortest of the Psalms with just five verses, Psalm 125 also holds up the justice of God’s covenant with the people. Those who trust in God can no more be moved than Zion, the mountain on which the Temple stands, we sing; God stands around the people as the hills rise around Jerusalem, fixed and strong forever. God rewards those who are good and pure in heart, but those who turn to evil ways will be sent away with all the evildoers.

Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 146

Echoing Isaiah’s celebration of God’s justice, our Psalm sings the praise of God who cares for us and loves us deeply. Do not trust in earthly rulers, the Psalmist warns, for they cannot help us in the long run. Place our hope in God instead, who created the earth and all that is in it, and who reigns forever. God’s caring justice favors those most in need: the poor and the oppressed, hungry people, prisoners. those who are blind; the stranger, the widow, the orphan; those weighed down by life’s load. In caring for the least among us, God cares for us all.

Second Reading: James 2:1-17

In its second chapter this week, the letter of James gets straight to its theological point: It does no good if you offer a hungry or naked brother or sister only your warm wishes but no food or clothing. If you don’t give them what they need, what good is that? This advice should speak as clearly to us today as it did to its first century audience. What if a homeless person came to our church today, looking for a haircut and a bath? Would we greet that person warmly and find a way to help? God expects us to love all our neighbors, rich and poor alike, James reminds us. Kind words alone are not enough; faith without such works is dead.

Gospel: Mark 7:24-37

This may be one of the most troubling passages in the four Gospels. Jesus, has left the apostles and the crowds for a while, traveling alone in Tyre, a coastal region populated by Israel’s enemies, the descendants of the Canaanites whom the Israelites had driven out of the Promised Land. It is surprising that Jesus is there; surprising that a woman of the region, who apparently knows of his healing powers, asks for help; and frankly shocking that he dismisses her with a startling slur, comparing her and her daughter to little dogs. We might consider this a rare glimpse into Jesus’ fully human side, briefly shorn of the divine; or it may simply be a later addition to the Gospel story, aimed at showing Jesus recognizing a mission wider than Israel alone. Either way, we see the woman’s faith empowering her to challenge Jesus, whereupon he listens, learns, and heals her child, just as he will restore hearing and speech to the deaf Gentile man in the next town down the road.

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. 13, 2015

The Prophet Isaiah, tempera on panel, Lorenzo Monaco (circa 1370–circa 1425).

The figure of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah is easy for Christians to visualize as Jesus Christ, and there is a reason for this: Isaiah understands the Servant as Messiah, the new King David who will emerge to lead Israel out of exile and back to glory. Christians see Christ as Messiah, who comes to save all humankind. Speaking with the tongue of a teacher, the Servant shows us God’s way. As Jesus would teach, the Servant turns his cheek to his enemies, responding to violence with peace.

Psalm: Psalm 116:1-8

The Psalmist, too, speaks from a place of suffering, sorrow and grief in a Psalm traditionally understood as a song of thanksgiving for recovery from illness. When he was sick, near death, full of grief, he called out to God and God answered. Saved from the grip of death, his tears wiped dry and his feet set firmly upon the road, he shouts out in gratitude: “I love the Lord.”

Second Reading: James 3:1-12


The teacher’s tongue may tell God’s way, but our tongues are tricky, small but powerful, James writes in delightful wordplay that likens our tongues to other little yet strong things that control forces beyond their size: A horse’s bridle, a ship’s rudder, a spark that starts a forest fire. Our tongues can bless, but tongues may curse, as well. Watch our tongues, James warns. Use them wisely to praise and bless our brothers and sisters, not to express hurtful things.

Gospel: Mark 8:27-38

We have reached the mid-point of Mark’s Gospel, and the narrative is taking a turn. Last week we saw Jesus for the first time extend his ministry to a Gentile, healing a woman’s child. Now, in a strange conversation with his disciples, much new is unveiled: First, Jesus confirms Peter’s bold announcement, the apostles’ first recognition that Jesus is the Messiah. Then, to Peter’s horror, Mark’s narrative turns toward the cross. Jesus tells them that he must endure great suffering, rejection and death. If they want to follow him, Jesus warns, they must deny themselves and take up the cross: You’ll have to lose your life in order to save it.

Illuminations of readings for Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012.

First Reading: Isaiah 50:4-9a
What could be more important to a community than its teachers, whose words shape our growth and understanding? The Israelites understood this teacher, Isaiah’s so-called “Suffering Servant,” to represent their nation in exile. Christians later found in this suffering servant an image of Christ, who endures opposition, turns the other cheek, and keeps on teaching until we hear.

Psalm 116:1-8
The Psalmist today expresses joy because God has listened to his prayer, made in grief and desperation, and has brought relief from distress and anguish, and the hope of new life. His troubled soul can rest now. God has dealt bountifully in restoring life, and this gift inspires a hymn hailing God in the boldest language we find in Psalms: “I love the Lord.”

Second Reading: James 3:1-12
I hate you! Angry words can spill out of us suddenly, before we have time to think about them. And then how we wish we could take back the hurtful things we said! James reminds us in a series of colorful metaphors that words have power. Echoing the Isaiah reading, he warns us that teachers bear a heavy responsibility to use words wisely. It’s up to us to use them well.

Gospel: Mark 8:27-38
“Who do you say that I am?” Can you picture Jesus, sitting with the apostles and confronting them with this reality check? When Peter, declaring Jesus his Messiah, objects to Jesus’s warning of his coming passion and death, Jesus calls him “Satan!” We see no smiling Jesus hugging children and lambs today, but a challenge: Take up your cross and follow. If you want to save your life in the Kingdom of Heaven, be prepared to lose it now for the Gospel and Jesus’ sake.