1 Chronicles 16-17
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 16
1 (A)They brought in the ark of God and set it within the tent which David had pitched for it.(B) Then they sacrificed burnt offerings and communion offerings to God. 2 When David had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and communion offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord, 3 and distributed to every Israelite, to every man and every woman, a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a raisin cake.
David’s Directives for the Levites. 4 He then appointed certain Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord, to celebrate, thank, and praise the Lord, the God of Israel.(C) 5 Asaph was their chief, and second to him were Zechariah, Uzziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel. These were to play on harps and lyres, while Asaph was to sound the cymbals, 6 and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel were to be the regular trumpeters before the ark of the covenant of God.
7 On that same day, David appointed Asaph and his brothers to sing for the first time these praises of the Lord:
8 [a]Give thanks to the Lord, invoke his name;(D)
make known among the peoples his deeds.
9 Sing praise, play music;
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
10 Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the Lord!
11 Rely on the mighty Lord;
constantly seek his face.
12 Recall the wondrous deeds he has done,
his signs, and his words of judgment,
13 You sons of Israel, his servants,
offspring of Jacob, the chosen ones!
14 The Lord is our God;
who rules the whole earth.
15 He remembers forever his covenant
the pact imposed for a thousand generations—
16 Which was made with Abraham,
confirmed by oath to Isaac,
17 And ratified as binding for Jacob,
an everlasting covenant for Israel:
18 “To you will I give the land of Canaan,
your own allotted heritage.”
19 When they were few in number,
a handful, and strangers there,
20 Wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another,
21 He let no one oppress them;
for their sake he rebuked kings:
22 “Do not touch my anointed,
to my prophets do no harm.”
23 (E)Sing to the Lord, all the earth,
announce his salvation, day after day.
24 Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
25 For great is the Lord and highly to be praised;
to be feared above all gods.
26 For the gods of the nations all do nothing,
but the Lord made the heavens.
27 Splendor and majesty go before him;
power and rejoicing are in his holy place.
28 Give to the Lord, you families of nations,
give to the Lord glory and might;
29 Give to the Lord the glory due his name!
Bring gifts, and come before him;
bow down to the Lord, splendid in holiness.
30 Tremble before him, all the earth;
the world will surely stand fast, never to be moved.
31 Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let them say among the nations: The Lord is king.
32 Let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
33 Then let all the trees of the forest exult
before the Lord, who comes,
who comes to rule the earth.
34 (F)Give thanks to the Lord, who is good,
whose love endures forever;
35 And say, “Save us, O God, our savior,
gather us and deliver us from among the nations,
That we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in praising you.”
36 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting!
Let all the people say, Amen! Hallelujah.
37 Then David left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the Lord to minister before the ark regularly according to the daily ritual; 38 he also left there Obed-edom and sixty-eight of his brothers, including Obed-edom, son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, to be gatekeepers.(G)
39 But the priest Zadok and his priestly brothers he left before the tabernacle of the Lord on the high place at Gibeon,(H) 40 to make burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar for burnt offerings regularly, morning and evening, and to do all that is written in the law of the Lord which he commanded Israel.(I) 41 With them were Heman and Jeduthun and the others who were chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the Lord, “whose love endures forever,”(J) 42 with trumpets and cymbals for accompaniment, and instruments for sacred song. The sons of Jeduthun kept the gate.(K)
43 Then all the people departed, each to their own homes, and David returned to bless his household.(L)
Chapter 17
The Oracle of Nathan. 1 (M)After David had taken up residence in his house, he said to Nathan the prophet, “See, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under tentcloth.”(N) 2 Nathan replied to David, “Whatever is in your heart, go and do, for God is with you.”
3 But that same night the word of God came to Nathan: 4 Go and tell David my servant, Thus says the Lord: It is not you who are to build the house for me to dwell in.(O) 5 For I have never dwelt in a house, from the day I brought Israel up, even to this day, but I have been lodging in tent or tabernacle. 6 As long as I have wandered about with all Israel, did I ever say a word to any of the judges of Israel whom I commanded to shepherd my people, Why have you not built me a house of cedar? 7 Now then, speak thus to my servant David, Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to become ruler over my people Israel.(P) 8 I was with you wherever you went, and I cut down all your enemies before you. I will make your name like that of the greatest on the earth. 9 I will assign a place for my people Israel and I will plant them in it to dwell there; they will never again be disturbed, nor shall the wicked ever again oppress them, as they did at the beginning, 10 and during all the time when I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover, I declare to you that the Lord will build you a house: 11 when your days have been completed and you must join your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you who will be one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom.(Q) 12 He it is who shall build me a house, and I will establish his throne forever.(R) 13 I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me, and I will not withdraw my favor from him as I withdrew it from the one who was before you;(S) 14 but I will maintain him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be firmly established forever.
15 In accordance with all these words and this whole vision Nathan spoke to David.
David’s Thanksgiving. 16 Then King David came in and sat in the Lord’s presence, and said: “Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house, that you should have brought me so far? 17 And yet, even this is too little in your sight, O God! For you have made a promise regarding your servant’s house reaching into the future, and you have looked on me as henceforth the most notable of men, Lord God.(T) 18 What more can David say to you? You have known[b] your servant. 19 Lord, for your servant’s sake and in keeping with your purpose, you have done this great thing. 20 Lord, there is no one like you, no God but you, just as we have always heard.(U)
21 “Is there, like your people Israel, whom you redeemed from Egypt, another nation on earth whom a god went to redeem as his people? You won for yourself a name for great and awesome deeds by driving out the nations before your people.(V) 22 You made your people Israel your own forever, and you, Lord, became their God. 23 Now, Lord, may the promise that you have spoken concerning your servant and his house remain firm forever. Bring about what you have promised, 24 that your name, Lord of hosts, God of Israel, may be great and abide forever, while the house of your servant is established in your presence.
25 “Because you, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build him a house, your servant dares to pray before you.(W) 26 Since you, Lord, are truly God and have made this generous promise to your servant, 27 do, then, bless the house of your servant, that it may be in your presence forever—since it is you, Lord, who blessed it, it is blessed forever.”(X)
Footnotes
- 16:8–36 A hymn composed of parts of several psalms: vv. 8–22 = Ps 105:1–15; vv. 23–33 = Ps 96:1–13; vv. 34–36 = Ps 106:1, 47–48. There are minor textual variants between this hymn and the psalms it is drawn from.
- 17:18 Known: given David recognition, chosen him, singled him out; cf. Gn 18:19; Ex 33:12; Am 3:2.
Proverbs 14:18-35
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
18 The simple have folly as an adornment,
but the shrewd wear knowledge as a crown.[a]
19 The malicious bow down before the good,
and the wicked, at the gates of the just.
20 Even by their neighbors the poor are despised,
but a rich person’s friends are many.(A)
21 Whoever despises the hungry comes up short,
but happy the one who is kind to the poor![b]
22 Do not those who plan evil go astray?
But those who plan good win steadfast loyalty.
23 In all labor there is profit,
but mere talk tends only to loss.
24 The crown of the wise is wealth;
the diadem of fools is folly.
25 The truthful witness saves lives,
but whoever utters lies is a betrayer.
26 The fear of the Lord is a strong defense,
a refuge even for one’s children.
27 The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
turning one from the snares of death.
28 A multitude of subjects is the glory of the king;
but if his people are few, a prince is ruined.
29 Long-suffering results in great wisdom;
a short temper raises folly high.[c](B)
30 A tranquil mind gives life to the body,
but jealousy rots the bones.
31 Those who oppress the poor revile their Maker,
but those who are kind to the needy honor him.(C)
32 The wicked are overthrown by their wickedness,
but the just find a refuge in their integrity.
33 Wisdom can remain silent in the discerning heart,
but among fools she must make herself known.[d](D)
34 Justice exalts a nation,
but sin is a people’s disgrace.[e]
35 The king favors the skillful servant,
but the shameless one incurs his wrath.
Footnotes
- 14:18 The inner quality of a person, simple or wise, will eventually be revealed.
- 14:21 The paradox is that anyone who spurns the hungry will lack something, but anyone who shows mercy (presumably by giving to the poor) will gain prosperity.
- 14:29 A series of puns on short and long; lit., “long of nostrils (idiom for “patient”), large in wisdom, / short in breath (idiom for “impatient”), makes folly tall.”
- 14:33 Wisdom can remain silent in a wise person as a welcome friend. But it must speak out among fools, for the dissonance is so strong.
- 14:34 The rare noun “disgrace” occurs elsewhere only in Lv 20:17. In measuring the greatness of a nation, one is tempted to consider territory, wealth, history, but the most important criterion is its relationship to God (“justice”).
2 Corinthians 13
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 13
1 This third time I am coming[a] to you. “On the testimony of two or three witnesses a fact shall be established.”(A) 2 I warned those who sinned earlier[b] and all the others, and I warn them now while absent, as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come again I will not be lenient, 3 [c]since you are looking for proof of Christ speaking in me. He is not weak toward you but powerful in you. 4 For indeed he was crucified out of weakness, but he lives by the power of God. So also we are weak in him, but toward you we shall live with him by the power of God.
5 [d]Examine yourselves to see whether you are living in faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless, of course, you fail the test. 6 I hope you will discover that we have not failed. 7 But we pray to God that you may not do evil, not that we may appear to have passed the test but that you may do what is right, even though we may seem to have failed. 8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9 For we rejoice when we are weak but you are strong. What we pray for is your improvement.
10 [e](B)I am writing this while I am away, so that when I come I may not have to be severe in virtue of the authority that the Lord has given me to build up and not to tear down.
V. Conclusion[f]
11 Finally, brothers, rejoice. Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the holy ones greet you.(C)
13 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the holy Spirit be with all of you.(D)
Footnotes
- 13:1 This third time I am coming: designation of the forthcoming visit as the “third” (cf. 2 Cor 12:14) may indicate that, in addition to his founding sojourn in Corinth, Paul had already made the first of two visits mentioned as planned in 2 Cor 1:15, and the next visit will be the long-postponed second of these. If so, the materials in 2 Cor 1:12–2:13 plus 2 Cor 7:4–16 and 2 Cor 10–13 may date from the same period of time, presumably of some duration, between Paul’s second and third visit, though it is not clear that they are addressing the same crisis. The chronology is too unsure and the relations between sections of 2 Corinthians too unclear to yield any certainty. The hypothesis that 2 Cor 10–13 are themselves the “tearful letter” mentioned at 2 Cor 2:3–4 creates more problems than it solves.
- 13:2 I warned those who sinned earlier: mention of unrepentant sinners (2 Cor 12:21 and here) and of an oral admonition given them on an earlier visit complicates the picture at the very end of Paul’s development. It provides, in fact, a second explanation for the show of power that has been threatened from the beginning (2 Cor 10:1–6), but a different reason for it, quite unsuspected until now. It is not clear whether Paul is merely alluding to a dimension of the situation that he has not previously had occasion to mention, or whether some other community crisis, not directly connected with that behind 2 Cor 10–13, has influenced the final editing. I will not be lenient: contrast Paul’s hesitation and reluctance to inflict pain in 2 Cor 1:23 and 2 Cor 2:1–4. The next visit will bring the showdown.
- 13:3–4 Paul now gives another motive for severity when he comes, the charge of weakness leveled against him as an apostle. The motive echoes more closely the opening section (2 Cor 10:1–18) and the intervening development (especially 2 Cor 11:30–12:10). Proof of Christ speaking in me: the threat of 2 Cor 10:1–2 is reworded to recall Paul’s conformity with the pattern of Christ, his insertion into the interplay of death and life, weakness and power (cf. note on 2 Cor 12:10b).
- 13:5–9 Paul turns the challenge mentioned in 2 Cor 13:3 on them: they are to put themselves to the test to demonstrate whether Christ is in them. These verses involve a complicated series of plays on the theme of dokimē (testing, proof, passing and failing a test). Behind this stands the familiar distinction between present human judgment and final divine judgment. This is the final appearance of the theme (cf. 2 Cor 10:18; 11:15; 12:19).
- 13:10 Authority…to build up and not to tear down: Paul restates the purpose of his letter in language that echoes 2 Cor 10:2, 8, emphasizing the positive purpose of his authority in their regard. This verse forms an inclusion with the topic sentence of the section (2 Cor 12:19), as well as with the opening of this entire portion of the letter (2 Cor 10:1–2).
- 13:11–13 These verses may have originally concluded 2 Cor 10–13, but they have nothing specifically to do with the material of that section. It is also possible to consider them a conclusion to the whole of 2 Corinthians in its present edited form. The exhortations are general, including a final appeal for peace in the community. The letter ends calmly, after its many storms, with the prospect of ecclesial unity and divine blessing. The final verse is one of the clearest trinitarian passages in the New Testament.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.