◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Psalm 112 (The righteous are merciful); Proverbs 21:1-4 24-26 (The righteous give and do not hold back); Matthew 20:20-28 (A request for seats of honor) (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 112

Psalm 112^[a]

112 Praise the Lord!
How blessed is the one^[b] who obeys^[c] the Lord,
who takes great delight in keeping his commands.^[d]
²His descendants^[e] will be powerful on the earth;
the godly^[f] will be blessed.
³His house contains wealth and riches;
his integrity endures.^[g]
⁴In the darkness a light^[h] shines for the godly,
for each one who is merciful, compassionate, and just.^[i]
⁵It goes well for the one^[j] who generously lends money,
and conducts his business honestly.^[k]
⁶For he will never be shaken;
others will always remember one who is just.^[l]
⁷He does not fear bad news.
He^[m] is confident; he trusts in the Lord.
⁸His resolve^[n] is firm; he will not succumb to fear
before he looks in triumph on his enemies.
⁹He generously gives^[o] to the needy;
his integrity endures.^[p]
He will be vindicated and honored.^[q]
¹⁰When the wicked^[r] see this, they will worry;
they will grind their teeth in frustration^[s] and melt away.
The desire of the wicked will perish.^[t]

Footnotes

Psalm 112:1 sn Psalm 112. This wisdom psalm lists some of the benefits of living a godly life. The psalm is an acrostic. After the introductory call to praise, every poetic line (twenty-two in all) begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
Psalm 112:1 tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The individual is representative of a larger group, called the “godly” in vv. 3-4. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender specific “man” with the more neutral “one.” The generic masculine pronoun is used in the following verses.
Psalm 112:1 tn Heb “fears.”
Psalm 112:1 tn Heb “in his commands he delights very much.” The words “in keeping” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Taking delight in the law is metonymic here for obeying God’s moral will. See Ps 1:2.
Psalm 112:2 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
Psalm 112:2 tn Heb “His seed will be mighty on the earth, the generation of the godly.” The Hebrew term דוֹר (dor, “generation”) could be taken as parallel to “offspring” and translated “posterity,” but the singular more likely refers to the godly as a class. See BDB 189-90 s.v. for other examples where “generation” refers to a class of people.
Psalm 112:3 tn Heb “stands forever.”
Psalm 112:4 tn In this context “light” symbolizes divine blessing in its various forms (see v. 2), including material prosperity and stability.
Psalm 112:4 tn Heb “merciful and compassionate and just.” The Hebrew text has three singular adjectives, which are probably substantival and in apposition to the “godly” (which is plural, however). By switching to the singular, the psalmist focuses on each individual member of the group known as the “godly.” Note how vv. 5-9, like vv. 1-2a, use the singular to describe the representative godly individual who typifies the whole group.
Psalm 112:5 tn Heb “man.”
Psalm 112:5 tn Heb “he sustains his matters with justice.”
Psalm 112:6 tn Heb “for an eternal memorial a just [one] will be.”
Psalm 112:7 tn Heb “his heart,” viewed here as the seat of the volition and emotions (see Ps 108:1).
Psalm 112:8 tn Heb “his heart,” viewed here as the seat of the volition.
Psalm 112:9 tn Heb “he scatters, he gives.”
Psalm 112:9 tn Heb “stands forever.”
Psalm 112:9 tn Heb “his horn will be lifted up in honor.” The horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 89:17, 24; 92:10; Lam 2:17).
Psalm 112:10 tn The Hebrew text uses the singular; the representative wicked individual is in view as typifying the group (note the use of the plural form in v. 10).
Psalm 112:10 tn Heb “his teeth he will gnash.” In Pss 35:16 and 37:12 this action is associated with a vicious attack.
Psalm 112:10 tn This could mean that the desires of the wicked will go unfulfilled. Another possibility is that “desire” refers by metonymy to the object desired and acquired. In this case the point is that the wicked will lose what they desired so badly and acquired by evil means (see Ps 10:3).

Proverbs 21:1-4

21 The king’s heart^[a] is in the hand^[b] of the Lord like channels of water;^[c]
he turns it wherever he wants.
²All a person’s ways seem right in his own opinion,^[d]
but the Lord evaluates^[e] his thoughts.^[f]
³To do righteousness and justice
is more acceptable^[g] to the Lord than sacrifice.^[h]
⁴Haughty eyes and a proud heart—
what the wicked cultivate^[i] is sin.

Footnotes

Proverbs 21:1 sn “Heart” is a metonymy of subject; it signifies the ability to make decisions, if not the decisions themselves.
Proverbs 21:1 sn “Hand” in this passage is a personification; the word is frequently used idiomatically for “power,” and that is the sense intended here.
Proverbs 21:1 tn “Channels of water” (פַּלְגֵי, palge) is an adverbial accusative, functioning as a figure of comparison—“like channels of water.” Cf. NAB “Like a stream”; NIV “watercourse”; NRSV, NLT “a stream of water.”sn The farmer channels irrigation ditches where he wants them, where they will do the most good; so does the Lord with the king. No king is supreme; the Lord rules.
Proverbs 21:2 tn Heb “in his own eyes.” The term “eyes” is a metonymy for estimation, opinion, evaluation. Physical sight is used figuratively for one’s point of view intellectually.
Proverbs 21:2 tn Heb “weighs” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “examines”; NCV, TEV “judges.” Weighing on scales is an act of examining and verifying weight for market purposes (2 Kgs 12:11) but can be used metaphorically for evaluating other things (e.g. the Lord weighs actions in (1 Sam 2:3).
Proverbs 21:2 tn Heb “the minds.” The term לֵב (lev, “mind, heart”) is used as a metonymy of association for thoughts and motives (BDB 660-61 s.v. 6-7). sn It is easy to rationalize one’s point of view and deceive even oneself. But the Lord evaluates our thinking and motives as well (cf. Prov 16:2).
Proverbs 21:3 tn The Niphal participle בָּחַר (bakhar, “to choose”) means “choice to the Lord” or “chosen of the Lord,” meaning “acceptable to the Lord”; cf. TEV “pleases the Lord more.”
Proverbs 21:3 sn The Lord prefers righteousness above religious service (e.g., Prov 15:8; 21:29; 1 Sam 15:22; Ps 40:6-8; Isa 1:11-17). This is not a rejection of ritual worship; rather, religious acts are without value apart from righteous living.
Proverbs 21:4 tc The MT reads “the tillage (נִר, nir) of the wicked.” The LXX, other versions, and some Hebrew manuscripts read “the lamp (נֵר, ner) of the wicked” (so ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV). Both are difficult in the context.tn The MT’s נִר (nir) refers to “ground that has recently been cultivated” (HALOT 723, s.v.), hence “tillage” (NAB), or “plowing” (KJV). This image goes one step behind the metaphor of planting to the cultivating the ground, but it may still have the harvest from such work in view. What the wicked cultivate (and produce) is sin. The saying perhaps looks at their haughty attitude as the groundwork for of their actions which are sinful. The LXX’s “lamp” does not solve the difficulty of the relationship between the expressions. We would somehow need to equate haughtiness with what the wicked consider a (guiding?) light, so that it is evaluated as sin.

Proverbs 21:24-26

²⁴A proud^[a] and arrogant^[b] person, whose name is “Scoffer,”^[c]
acts^[d] with overbearing pride.^[e]
²⁵What the sluggard desires^[f] will kill him,^[g]
for his hands^[h] have refused to work.
²⁶All day long he has craved greedily,^[i]
but the righteous person gives and does not hold back.^[j]

Footnotes

Proverbs 21:24 tn The word זֵד (zed, “proud”) comes from the verb זִיד (zid, “to boil up; to seethe; to act proudly [or, presumptuously].” Just as water boiling up in a pot will boil over, so the presumptuous person “oversteps” the boundaries.
Proverbs 21:24 tn The word יָהִיר (yahir) means “haughty,” that is, to be or show oneself to be presumptuous or arrogant.
Proverbs 21:24 tn Heb “proud haughty scorner his name” (KJV similar). There are several ways that the line could be translated: (1) “Proud, arrogant—his name is scoffer” or (2) “A proud person, an arrogant person—‘Scoffer’ is his name.” BDB 267 s.v. זֵד suggests, “A presumptuous man, [who is] haughty, scoffer is his name.”
Proverbs 21:24 tn Heb “does.” The Qal active participle “does” serves as the main verb, and the subject is “proud person” in the first line.
Proverbs 21:24 tn The expression בְּעֶבְרַת זָדוֹן (b^eʿevrat zadon) means “in the overflow of insolence.” The genitive specifies what the overflow is; the proud deal in an overflow of pride. Cf. NIV “overweening pride”; NLT “boundless arrogance.”sn The portrait in this proverb is not merely of one who is self-sufficient, but one who is insolent, scornful, and arrogant.
Proverbs 21:25 tn Heb “the desire of the sluggard” (so ASV, NASB). This phrase features a subject genitive: “what the sluggard desires.” The term תַּאֲוַת (taʾavat, “desire; craving”) is a metonymy of cause. The craving itself will not destroy the sluggard, but what will destroy him is what the craving causes him to do or not to do. The lazy come to ruin because they desire the easy way out.
Proverbs 21:25 tn The verb תְּמִיתֶנּוּ (t^emitennu) is the Hiphil imperfect with a suffix: “will kill him.” It is probably used hyperbolically here for coming to ruin (cf. NLT), although it could include physical death.
Proverbs 21:25 sn “Hands” is figurative for the whole person, but “hands” is retained in the translation because it is often the symbol to express one’s ability of action.
Proverbs 21:26 tn The construction uses the Hitpael perfect tense הִתְאַוָּה (hitʾavvah) followed by the cognate accusative תַאֲוָה (taʾavah). While the Piel verb means “to desire, wish for,” the reflexive meaning of the Hitpael appears to mean to encourage or build one’s desire. An English idiom might be to fan the flames of desire. It is not inherently immoral (the king will build desire for his bride in Ps 45:11) but often more often refers to a greedy craving or lust. This verse has been placed with the preceding because of the lexical connection with “desire/craving.”
Proverbs 21:26 sn The additional clause, “and does not hold back,” emphasizes that when the righteous gives he gives freely, without fearing that his generosity will bring him to poverty. This is the contrast with the one who is self-indulgent and craves for more.

Matthew 20:20-28

A Request for James and John

²⁰Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling down she asked him for a favor.^[a] ²¹He said to her, “What do you want?” She replied,^[b] “Permit^[c] these two sons of mine to sit, one at your^[d] right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” ²²Jesus^[e] answered, “You don’t know what you are asking!^[f] Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?”^[g] They said to him, “We are able.”^[h] ²³He told them, “You will drink my cup,^[i] but to sit at my right and at my left is not mine to give. Rather, it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”

²⁴Now^[j] when the other ten^[k] heard this,^[l] they were angry with the two brothers. ²⁵But Jesus called them and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions use their authority over them. ²⁶It must not be this way among you! Instead whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave^[m]— ²⁸just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom^[n] for many.”

Footnotes

Matthew 20:20 tn Grk “asked something from him.”
Matthew 20:21 tn Grk “said to him.”
Matthew 20:21 tn Grk “Say that.”
Matthew 20:21 tc A majority of witnesses read σου (sou, “your”) here, perhaps as a clarifying addition. At the same time, it is possible that the pronoun dropped out through haplography or was excised because of perceived redundancy (there are two other such pronouns in the verse) by א B. All things considered, σου is most likely authentic.
Matthew 20:22 tn Grk “And answering, Jesus said.” This is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
Matthew 20:22 tn The verbs in Greek are plural here, indicating that Jesus is not answering the mother but has turned his attention directly to the two disciples.
Matthew 20:22 tc Most mss (C N W Γ Δ 33 565 579 700 1241 1424 M al, as well as some versional and patristic authorities) add “or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” But this is surely due to a recollection of the fuller version of this dominical saying found in Mark 10:38. The same mss also have the Lord’s response, “and you will be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized” in v. 23, again due to the parallel in Mark 10:39. The shorter reading, in both v. 22 and v. 23, is to be preferred both because it better explains the rise of the other reading and is found in superior witnesses (א B D L Z Θ 085 ƒ^{1, 13} lat sa, as well as other versional and patristic authorities).
Matthew 20:22 sn No more naïve words have ever been spoken as those found here coming from James and John, “We are able.” They said it with such confidence and ease, yet they had little clue as to what they were affirming. In the next sentence Jesus confirms that they will indeed suffer for his name.
Matthew 20:23 tc See the tc note on “about to drink” in v. 22.
Matthew 20:24 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
Matthew 20:24 tn Grk “the ten.”
Matthew 20:24 tn The word “this” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
Matthew 20:27 tn See the note on the word “slave” in 8:9.
Matthew 20:28 sn The Greek word for ransom (λύτρον, lutron) is found here and in Mark 10:45 and refers to the payment of a price in order to purchase the freedom of a slave. The idea of Jesus as the “ransom” is that he paid the price with his own life by standing in our place as a substitute, enduring the judgment that we deserved for sin.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 112[a]

Footnotes

Footnotes

Footnotes

A Request for James and John

Footnotes

Psalm 112^[a]