◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Psalm 80 (Israel the vine); Isaiah 32:9-20 (A fruitful field); James 3:17-18 (Wisdom is full of good fruits) (New English Translation)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Daily Bible readings that follow the church liturgical year, with thematically matched Old and New Testament readings.

Duration: 1245 days

Psalm 80

Psalm 80^[a]

For the music director, according to the shushan-eduth style;^[b] a psalm of Asaph.

80 O Shepherd of Israel, pay attention,
you who lead Joseph like a flock of sheep.
You who sit enthroned above the cherubim,^[c] reveal your splendor.^[d]
²In the sight of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh reveal^[e] your power.
Come and deliver us.^[f]
³O God, restore us.
Smile on us.^[g] Then we will be delivered.^[h]
⁴O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies,^[i]
how long will you remain angry at your people while they pray to you?^[j]
⁵You have given them tears as food;^[k]
you have made them drink tears by the measure.^[l]
⁶You have made our neighbors dislike us,^[m]
and our enemies insult us.
⁷O God of Heaven’s Armies,^[n] restore us.
Smile on us.^[o] Then we will be delivered.^[p]
⁸You uprooted a vine^[q] from Egypt;
you drove out nations and transplanted it.
⁹You cleared the ground for it;^[r]
it took root,^[s]
and filled the land.
¹⁰The mountains were covered by its shadow,
the highest cedars^[t] by its branches.
¹¹Its branches reached the Mediterranean Sea,^[u]
and its shoots the Euphrates River.^[v]
¹²Why did you break down its walls,^[w]
so that all who pass by pluck its fruit?^[x]
¹³The wild boars of the forest ruin it;^[y]
the insects^[z] of the field feed on it.
¹⁴O God of Heaven’s Armies,^[aa] come back.
Look down from heaven and take notice.
Take care of this vine,
¹⁵the root^[ab] your right hand planted,
the shoot you made to grow.^[ac]
¹⁶It is burned^[ad] and cut down.
May those who did this die because you are displeased with them.^[ae]
¹⁷May you give support to the one you have chosen,^[af]
to the one whom you raised up for yourself.^[ag]
¹⁸Then we will not turn away from you.
Revive us and we will pray to you.^[ah]
¹⁹O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies,^[ai] restore us.
Smile on us.^[aj] Then we will be delivered.^[ak]

Footnotes

Psalm 80:1 sn Psalm 80. The psalmist laments Israel’s demise and asks the Lord to show favor toward his people, as he did in earlier times.
Psalm 80:1 tn The Hebrew expression shushan-eduth means “lily of the testimony.” It may refer to a particular music style or to a tune title. See the superscription to Ps 60.
Psalm 80:1 sn Cherubim are winged angels. As depicted in the OT, they possess both human and animal (lion, ox, and eagle) characteristics (see Ezek 1:10; 10:14, 21; 41:18). They are pictured as winged creatures (Exod 25:20; 37:9; 1 Kgs 6:24-27; Ezek 10:8, 19) and serve as the very throne of God when the ark of the covenant is in view (Ps 99:1; see Num 7:89; 1 Sam 4:4; 2 Sam 6:2; 2 Kgs 19:15). The picture of the Lord seated on the cherubim suggests they might be used by him as a vehicle, a function they carry out in Ezek 1:22-28 (the “living creatures” mentioned here are identified as cherubim in Ezek 10:20). In Ps 18:10 the image of a cherub serves to personify the wind.
Psalm 80:1 tn Heb “shine forth.”sn Reveal your splendor. The psalmist may allude to Deut 33:2, where God “shines forth” from Sinai and comes to superintend Moses’ blessing of the tribes.
Psalm 80:2 tn Heb “stir up”; “arouse.”
Psalm 80:2 tn Heb “come for our deliverance.”
Psalm 80:3 tn The idiom “cause your face to shine” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 89:15; Dan 9:17).
Psalm 80:3 tn Heb “cause your face to shine in order that we may be delivered.” After the imperative, the cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose/result.
Psalm 80:4 tn Heb “Lord, God, hosts.” One expects the construct form אֱלֹהֵי (ʾelohe) before צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot; “hosts”; see Ps 89:9), but יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים (yehvah ʾelohim) precedes צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot) in Pss 59:5 and 84:8 as well. In this context the term “hosts” has been rendered “Heaven’s Armies.”
Psalm 80:4 tn Heb “How long will you remain angry during the prayer of your people.” Some take the preposition ב (bet) in an adversative sense here (“at/against the prayer of your people”), but the temporal sense is preferable. The psalmist expects persistent prayer to pacify God.
Psalm 80:5 tn Heb “you have fed them the food of tears.”
Psalm 80:5 tn Heb “[by] the third part [of a measure].” The Hebrew term שָׁלִישׁ (shalish, “third part [of a measure]”) occurs only here and in Isa 40:12.
Psalm 80:6 tn Heb “you have made us an object of contention to our neighbors.”
Psalm 80:7 tn Heb “O God, hosts.” One expects the construct form אֱלֹהֵי before צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot, “hosts”; see Ps 89:9), but יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים (yehvah ʾelohim) precedes צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot) in Pss 59:5 and 84:8 as well. See also v. 4 for a similar construction.
Psalm 80:7 tn The idiom “cause your face to shine” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 89:15; Dan 9:17).
Psalm 80:7 tn Heb “cause your face to shine in order that we may be delivered.” After the imperative, the cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose/result.
Psalm 80:8 sn The vine is here a metaphor for Israel (see Ezek 17:6-10; Hos 10:1).
Psalm 80:9 tn Heb “you cleared away before it.”
Psalm 80:9 tn Heb “and it took root [with] its roots.”
Psalm 80:10 tn Heb “cedars of God.” The divine name אֵל (ʾel, “God”) is here used in an idiomatic manner to indicate the superlative.
Psalm 80:11 tn Heb “to [the] sea.” The “sea” refers here to the Mediterranean Sea.
Psalm 80:11 tn Heb “to [the] river.” The “river” is the Euphrates River in Mesopotamia. Israel expanded both to the west and to the east.
Psalm 80:12 sn The protective walls of the metaphorical vineyard are in view here (see Isa 5:5).
Psalm 80:12 tn Heb “pluck it.”
Psalm 80:13 tn The Hebrew verb כִּרְסֵם (kirsem, “to eat away; to ruin”) occurs only here in the OT.
Psalm 80:13 tn The precise referent of the Hebrew word translated “insects,” which occurs only here and in Ps 50:11, is uncertain. Aramaic, Arabic, and Akkadian cognates refer to insects, such as locusts or crickets.
Psalm 80:14 tn Heb “O God, hosts.” One expects the construct form אֱלֹהֵי before צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot, “hosts”; see Ps 89:9), but יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים (yehvah ʾelohim) precedes צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot) in Pss 59:5 and 84:8 as well. See also vv. 4, 7 for a similar construction.
Psalm 80:15 tn The form וְכַנָּה (v^ekhannah, “and a root”) is understood as וְכַנָּהּ (v^ekhannah), taking the ה (he) at the end as the third feminine singular pronominal suffix הּ (he with mappiq is hard “h”) rather than as the noun ending (see HALOT 483 s.v. III כֵּן). Elsewhere the noun refers to a pedestal or base, most often for the wash basin between the tabernacle and the altar. Translations here vary as “root” (NIV), “shoot” (NASB), “stock” (ASV, ESV, RSV), or the contextually driven “vineyard” (KJV).
Psalm 80:15 tn Heb “and upon a son you strengthened for yourself.” In this context, where the extended metaphor of the vine dominates, בֵּן (ben, “son”) probably refers to the shoots that grow from the vine. Cf. Gen 49:22.
Psalm 80:16 tn Heb “burned with fire.”
Psalm 80:16 tn Heb “because of the rebuke of your face they perish.”
Psalm 80:17 tn Heb “may your hand be upon the man of your right hand.” The referent of the otherwise unattested phrase “man of your right hand,” is unclear. It may refer to the nation collectively as a man. (See the note on the word “yourself” in v. 17b.)
Psalm 80:17 tn Heb “upon the son of man you strengthened for yourself.” In its only other use in the Book of Psalms, the phrase “son of man” refers to the human race in general (see Ps 8:4). Here the phrase may refer to the nation collectively as a man. Note the use of the statement “you strengthened for yourself” both here and in v. 15, where the “son” (i.e., the branch of the vine) refers to Israel.
Psalm 80:18 tn Heb “and in your name we will call.”
Psalm 80:19 tn Heb “O Lord, God, hosts.” One expects the construct form אֱלֹהֵי before צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot, “hosts”; see Ps 89:9), but יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים (yehvah ʾelohim) precedes צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot) in Pss 59:5 and 84:8 as well. See also vv. 4, 7, 14 for a similar construction.
Psalm 80:19 tn The idiom “cause your face to shine” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 89:15; Dan 9:17).
Psalm 80:19 tn Heb “cause your face to shine in order that we may be delivered.” After the imperative, the cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose/result.

Isaiah 32:9-20

The Lord Will Give True Security

⁹You complacent^[a] women,
get up and listen to me!
You carefree^[b] daughters,
pay attention to what I say!
¹⁰In a year’s time^[c]
you carefree ones will shake with fear,
for the grape harvest^[d] will fail,
and the fruit harvest will not arrive.
¹¹Tremble, you complacent ones!
Shake with fear, you carefree ones!
Strip off your clothes and expose yourselves—
put sackcloth around your waists.^[e]
¹²Mourn over the field,^[f]
over the delightful fields
and the fruitful vine.
¹³Mourn^[g] over the land of my people,
which is overgrown with thorns and briers,
and over all the once-happy houses^[h]
in the city filled with revelry.^[i]
¹⁴For the fortress is neglected;
the once-crowded^[j] city is abandoned.
Hill^[k] and watchtower
are permanently uninhabited.^[l]
Wild donkeys love to go there,
and flocks graze there.^[m]
¹⁵This desolation will continue^[n] until new life is poured out on us from heaven.^[o]
Then the wilderness will become an orchard^[p]
and the orchard will be considered a forest.^[q]
¹⁶Justice will settle down in the wilderness
and fairness will live in the orchard.^[r]
¹⁷Fairness will produce peace^[s]
and result in lasting security.^[t]
¹⁸My people will live in peaceful settlements,
in secure homes,
and in safe, quiet places.^[u]
¹⁹Even if the forest is destroyed^[v]
and the city is annihilated,^[w]
²⁰you will be blessed,
you who plant seed by all the banks of the streams,^[x]
you who let your ox and donkey graze.^[y]

Footnotes

Isaiah 32:9 tn Or “self-assured”; NASB, NRSV “who are at ease.”
Isaiah 32:9 tn Or “self-confident”; NAB “overconfident.”
Isaiah 32:10 tn Heb “days upon a year.”
Isaiah 32:10 tn Or perhaps, “olive.” See 24:13.
Isaiah 32:11 tn The imperatival forms in v. 11 are problematic. The first (חִרְדוּ, khir^edu, “tremble”) is masculine plural in form, though spoken to a feminine plural addressee (שַׁאֲנַנּוֹת, shaʾanannot, “complacent ones”). The four imperatival forms that follow (רְגָזָה, r^egazah, “shake with fear”; פְּשֹׁטָה, p^eshotah, “strip off your clothes”; עֹרָה, ʿorah, “expose yourselves”; and חֲגוֹרָה, khagorah, “put on”) all appear to be lengthened (so-called “emphatic”) masculine singular forms, even though they too appear to be spoken to a feminine plural addressee. GKC 131-32 §48.i suggests emending חִרְדוּ (khir^edu) to חֲרָדָה (kharadah) and understanding all five imperatives as feminine plural “Aramaized” forms.
Isaiah 32:12 tc The Hebrew text has “over mourning breasts.” The reference to “breasts” would make sense in light of v. 11, which refers to the practice of women baring their breasts as a sign of sorrow (see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:585). However, one expects the preposition עַל (ʿal) to introduce the source or reason for mourning (see vv. 12b-13a) and the participle סֹפְדִים (sofedim, “mourning”) seems odd modifying “breasts.” The translation above assumes a twofold emendation: (1) שָׁדַיִם (shadayim, “breasts”) is emended to [ם]שָׂדַי (saday[m], “field,” a term that also appears in Isa 56:9). The final mem (ם) would be enclitic in this case, not a plural indicator. (The Hebrew noun שָׂדֶה (sadeh, “field”) forms its plural with an וֹת- [-ot] ending). (2) The plural participle סֹפְדִים is emended to סְפֹדָה (s^efodah), a lengthened imperatival form, meaning “mourn.” For an overview of various suggestions that have been made for this difficult line, see Oswalt, 586, n. 12).
Isaiah 32:13 tn “Mourn” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.
Isaiah 32:13 tn Heb “indeed, over all the houses of joy.” It is not certain if this refers to individual homes or to places where parties and celebrations were held.
Isaiah 32:13 sn This same phrase is used in 22:2.
Isaiah 32:14 tn Or “noisy” (NAB, NIV, NCV).
Isaiah 32:14 tn Hebrew עֹפֶל (ʿofel), probably refers here to a specific area within the city of Jerusalem. See HALOT 861 s.v. II עֹפֶל.
Isaiah 32:14 tn The Hebrew text has בְעַד מְעָרוֹת (v^eʿad m^eʿarot). The force of בְעַד, which usually means “behind, through, round about,” or “for the benefit of,” is uncertain here. HALOT 616 s.v. *מְעָרָה takes מְעָרוֹת (m^eʿarot) as a homonym of “cave” and defines it here as “cleared field.” Despite these lexical problems, the general point of the statement seems clear—the city will be uninhabited.
Isaiah 32:14 tn Heb “the joy of wild donkeys, a pasture for flocks.”
Isaiah 32:15 tn The words “The desolation will continue” refer to the previous context and have been added for smoothness.
Isaiah 32:15 tn Heb “until a spirit is emptied out on us from on high.” The words “this desolation will continue” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic purposes. The verb עָרָה (ʿarah), used here in the Niphal, normally means “lay bare, expose.” The term רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) is often understood here as a reference to the divine spirit (cf. 44:3 and NASB, NIV, CEV, NLT), but it appears here without an article (cf. NRSV “a spirit”), pronominal suffix, or a genitive (such as “of the Lord”). The translation assumes that it carries an impersonal nuance “vivacity, vigor” in this context.
Isaiah 32:15 tn The term כַּרְמֶל (karmel) may refer to fertile land, an orchard, a garden of vines, a plantation of trees, or fresh grain. The dictionaries may subdivide these meaning under homonyms (see BDB 502, NIDOTTE 718, HALOT 499, The Concise DCH, 183). The picture of transformation is clearer when it is understood that a מִדְבָּר (midbar, “wilderness”) is an area that does not receive enough rainfall to support trees.
Isaiah 32:15 sn The same statement appears in 29:17b, where, in conjunction with the preceding line, it appears to picture a reversal. Here it seems to depict supernatural growth. The desert will blossom into an orchard, and the trees of the orchard will multiply and grow tall, becoming a forest.
Isaiah 32:16 sn This new era of divine blessing will also include a moral/ethical transformation, as justice and fairness fill the land and replace the social injustice so prevalent in Isaiah’s time.
Isaiah 32:17 tn Heb “and the product of fairness will be peace.”
Isaiah 32:17 tn Heb “and the work of fairness [will be] calmness and security forever.”
Isaiah 32:18 tn Or “in safe resting places”; NAB, NRSV “quiet resting places.”
Isaiah 32:19 tn Heb “and [?] when the forest descends.” The form וּבָרַד (uvarad) is often understood as an otherwise unattested denominative verb meaning “to hail” (HALOT 154 s.v. I ברד). In this case one might translate, “and it hails when the forest is destroyed” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV). Perhaps the text alludes to a powerful wind and hail storm that knocks down limbs and trees. Some prefer to emend the form to וְיָרַד (v^eyarad), “and it descends,” which provides better, though not perfect, symmetry with the parallel line (cf. NAB). Perhaps וּבָרַד should be dismissed as dittographic. In this case the statement (“when the forest descends”) lacks a finite verb and seems incomplete, but perhaps it is subordinate to v. 20.
Isaiah 32:19 tn Heb “and in humiliation the city is laid low.”
Isaiah 32:20 tn Heb “by all the waters.”
Isaiah 32:20 tn Heb “who set free the foot of the ox and donkey”; NIV “letting your cattle and donkeys range free.”sn This verse seems to anticipate a time when fertile land is available to cultivate and crops are so abundant that the farm animals can be allowed to graze freely.

James 3:17-18

¹⁷But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating,^[a] full of mercy and good fruit,^[b] impartial, and not hypocritical.^[c] ¹⁸And the fruit that consists of righteousness^[d] is planted^[e] in peace among^[f] those who make peace.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 80[a]

For the music director, according to the shushan-eduth style;[b] a psalm of Asaph.

Footnotes

The Lord Will Give True Security

Footnotes

Footnotes

Psalm 80^[a]

For the music director, according to the shushan-eduth style;^[b] a psalm of Asaph.