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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 28

Psalm 28^[a]

By David.

28 To you, O Lord, I cry out!
My Protector,^[b] do not ignore me.^[c]
If you do not respond to me,^[d]
I will join^[e] those who are descending into the grave.^[f]
²Hear my plea for mercy when I cry out to you for help,
when I lift my hands^[g] toward your holy temple.^[h]
³Do not drag me away with evil men,
with those who behave wickedly,^[i]
who talk so friendly to their neighbors,^[j]
while they plan to harm them.^[k]
⁴Pay them back for their evil deeds.
Pay them back for what they do.
Punish them.^[l]
⁵For they do not understand the Lord’s actions,
or the way he carries out justice.^[m]
The Lord^[n] will permanently demolish them.^[o]
⁶The Lord deserves praise,^[p]
for he has heard my plea for mercy.^[q]
⁷The Lord strengthens and protects me;^[r]
I trust in him with all my heart.^[s]
I am rescued^[t] and my heart is full of joy;^[u]
I will sing to him in gratitude.^[v]
⁸The Lord strengthens his people;^[w]
he protects and delivers his chosen king.^[x]
⁹Deliver your people.
Empower^[y] the nation that belongs to you.^[z]
Care for them like a shepherd and carry them in your arms^[aa] at all times!^[ab]

Footnotes

Psalm 28:1 sn Psalm 28. The author looks to the Lord for vindication, asks that the wicked be repaid in full for their evil deeds, and affirms his confidence that the Lord will protect his own.
Psalm 28:1 tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The Lord is compared to a rocky summit where one can find protection from enemies. See Ps 18:2.
Psalm 28:1 tn Heb “do not be deaf from me.”
Psalm 28:1 tn Heb “lest [if] you are silent from me.”
Psalm 28:1 tn Heb “I will be equal with.”
Psalm 28:1 tn Heb “the pit.” The noun בּוֹר (bor, “pit, cistern”) is sometimes used of the grave and/or the realm of the dead.
Psalm 28:2 sn I lift my hands. Lifting one’s hands toward God was a gesture of prayer.
Psalm 28:2 tn The Hebrew term דְּבִיר (d^evir, “temple”) actually refers to the most holy place within the sanctuary.
Psalm 28:3 tn Heb “workers of wickedness.”
Psalm 28:3 tn Heb “speakers of peace with their neighbors.”
Psalm 28:3 tn Heb “and evil [is] in their heart[s].”
Psalm 28:4 tn Heb “Give to them according to their work, and according to the evil of their deeds. According to the work of their hands give to them. Return their due to them.” The highly repetitive style reflects the psalmist’s agitated emotional state and draws attention to his yearning for justice.
Psalm 28:5 tn Heb “or the work of his hands.” In this context “the Lord’s actions” and “the work of his hands” probably refer to the way he carries out justice by vindicating the godly and punishing the wicked. (Note the final line of the verse, which refers to divine judgment. See also Ps 92:4-7.) Evil men do not “understand” God’s just ways; they fail to realize he will protect the innocent. Consequently they seek to harm the godly, as if they believe they will never be held accountable for their actions.
Psalm 28:5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord, who is referred to in the two immediately preceding lines) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Psalm 28:5 tn Heb “will tear them down and not rebuild them.” The ungodly are compared to a structure that is permanently demolished.
Psalm 28:6 tn Heb “blessed [be] the Lord.”
Psalm 28:6 sn He has heard my plea for mercy. The psalmist’s mood abruptly changes at this point, because the Lord responded positively to his petition and assured him that he would deliver him.
Psalm 28:7 tn Heb “The Lord [is] my strength and my shield.”
Psalm 28:7 tn Heb “in him my heart trusts.”
Psalm 28:7 tn Or “I am helped.”
Psalm 28:7 tn Heb “and my heart exults.”
Psalm 28:7 tn Heb “and from my song I will thank him.” As pointed in the Hebrew text, מִשִּׁירִי (mishiri) appears to be “from my song,” but the preposition “from” never occurs elsewhere with the verb “to thank” (Hiphil of יָדָה, yadah). Perhaps משׁיר is a noun form meaning “song.” If so, it can be taken as an adverbial accusative, “and [with] my song I will thank him.” See P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 236.
Psalm 28:8 tn Heb “the Lord [is] strength to them” (or perhaps, “to him”). The form לָמוֹ (lamo, “to them/him”) probably needs to be emended to לְעַמּוֹ (l^eʿammo, “to his people”; see P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 236), perhaps due to quiescence of the letter ʿayin (ע; see P. McCarter, Textual Criticism [GBS], 55). Note the reference to the Lord’s “people” in the next verse. Also, a few Hebrew mss, the LXX, and Syriac support לְעַמּוֹ (l^eʿammo, “to his people”).
Psalm 28:8 tn Heb “he [is] a refuge of help for his anointed one.” The noun מָשִׁיחַ (mashiakh, “anointed one”) refers to the Davidic king, who perhaps speaks as representative of the nation in this psalm. See Pss 2:2; 18:50; 20:6; 84:9; 89:38, 51; 132:10, 17.
Psalm 28:9 tn Or “bless.”
Psalm 28:9 tn Heb “your inheritance.” The parallelism (note “your people”) indicates that Israel is in view.
Psalm 28:9 tn Heb “shepherd them and lift them up.”sn The shepherd metaphor is sometimes associated with royal responsibility. See 2 Sam 5:2; 7:7; Mic 5:2-4).
Psalm 28:9 tn Or “forever.”

Judges 16:23-31

Samson’s Death and Burial

²³The rulers of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate. They said, “Our god has handed Samson, our enemy, over to us.” ²⁴When the people saw him,^[a] they praised their god, saying, “Our god has handed our enemy over to us, the one who ruined our land and killed so many of us!”^[b]

²⁵When they really started celebrating,^[c] they said, “Call for Samson so he can entertain us!” So they summoned Samson from the prison and he entertained them.^[d] They made him stand between two pillars. ²⁶Samson said to the young man who held his hand, “Position me so I can touch the pillars that support the temple.^[e] Then I can lean on them.” ²⁷Now the temple^[f] was filled with men and women, and all the rulers of the Philistines were there. There were 3,000 men and women on the roof watching Samson entertain. ²⁸Samson called to the Lord, “O Sovereign Lord,^[g] remember me! Strengthen me just one more time, O God, so I can get swift revenge^[h] against the Philistines for my two eyes!” ²⁹Samson took hold of the two middle pillars that supported the temple^[i] and he leaned against them, with his right hand on one and his left hand on the other. ³⁰Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” He pushed hard,^[j] and the temple collapsed on the rulers and all the people in it. He killed many more people in his death than he had killed during his life.^[k] ³¹His brothers and all his family^[l] went down and brought him back.^[m] They buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had led^[n] Israel for twenty years.

Matthew 9:2-8

²Just then^[a] some people^[b] brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher.^[c] When Jesus saw their^[d] faith, he said to the paralytic, “Have courage, son! Your sins are forgiven.”^[e] ³Then^[f] some of the experts in the law^[g] said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!”^[h] ⁴When Jesus perceived their thoughts he said, “Why do you respond with evil in your hearts? ⁵Which is easier,^[i] to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’? ⁶But so that you may know^[j] that the Son of Man^[k] has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then he said to the paralytic^[l]—“Stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.”^[m] ⁷So^[n] he stood up and went home.^[o] ⁸When^[p] the crowd saw this, they were afraid^[q] and honored God who had given such authority to men.^[r]

Footnotes

Matthew 9:2 tn Grk “And behold, they were bringing.” Here καὶ ἰδού (kai idou) has been translated as “just then” to indicate the somewhat sudden appearance of the people carrying the paralytic. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1), especially in conjunction with the suddenness of the stretcher-bearers’ appearance.
Matthew 9:2 tn Grk “they”; the referent (some unnamed people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Matthew 9:2 tn Traditionally, “on a bed,” but this could be confusing to the modern reader who might envision a large piece of furniture. In various contexts, κλίνη (klinē) may be translated “bed, couch, cot, stretcher, or bier” (in the case of a corpse). See L&N 6.106.
Matthew 9:2 sn The plural pronoun their makes it clear that Jesus was responding to the faith of the entire group, not just the paralyzed man.
Matthew 9:2 sn The passive voice here is a divine passive (ExSyn 437). It is clear that God does the forgiving.
Matthew 9:3 tn Grk “And behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1). Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative.
Matthew 9:3 tn Or “some of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.
Matthew 9:3 sn Blaspheming in the NT has a somewhat broader meaning than mere utterances. It could mean to say something that dishonored God, but it could also involve claims to divine prerogatives (in this case, to forgive sins on God’s behalf). Such claims were viewed as usurping God’s majesty or honor. The remark here raised directly the issue of the nature of Jesus’ ministry, and even more importantly, the identity of Jesus himself as God’s representative.
Matthew 9:5 sn Which is easier is a reflective kind of question. On the one hand to declare that sins are forgiven is easier, since the forgiveness is unseen, unlike telling a paralyzed person to walk. On the other hand, to declare sins forgiven is harder, because for it to be true one must possess the authority to forgive the sin. Jesus is implicitly claiming that authority here.
Matthew 9:6 sn Now Jesus put the two actions together. The walking of the man would be proof (so that you may know) that his sins were forgiven and that God had worked through Jesus (i.e., the Son of Man).
Matthew 9:6 sn The term Son of Man, which is a title in Greek, comes from a pictorial description in Dan 7:13 of one “like a son of man” (i.e., a human being). It is Jesus’ favorite way to refer to himself. Jesus did not reveal the background of the term here, which mixes human and divine imagery as the man in Daniel rides a cloud, something only God does. He just used it. It also could be an idiom in Aramaic meaning either “some person” or “me.” So there is a little ambiguity in its use here, since its origin is not clear at this point. However, the action makes it clear that Jesus used it to refer to himself here.
Matthew 9:6 sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.
Matthew 9:6 tn Grk “to your house.”
Matthew 9:7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative.
Matthew 9:7 tn Grk “to his house.”
Matthew 9:8 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
Matthew 9:8 tc Most witnesses (C L N Γ Θ 0233 ƒ¹³ 565 579 700 M) have ἐθαύμασαν (ethaumasan; “marveled, were amazed”) instead of ἐφοβήθησαν (ephobēthēsan) here, effectively turning the fearful reaction into one of veneration. But the harder reading is well supported by א B D W 0281 ƒ¹ 33 892 1424 lat co and thus is surely authentic.
Matthew 9:8 tn Grk “people.” The plural of ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos) usually indicates people in general, but the singular is used in the expression “Son of Man.” There is thus an ironic allusion to Jesus’ statement in v. 6: His self-designation as “Son of Man” is meant to be unique, but the crowd regards it simply as meaning “human, person.” To maintain this connection for the English reader the plural ἀνθρώποις (anthrōpois) has been translated here as “men” rather than as the more generic “people.”

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 28[a]

By David.

Footnotes

Samson’s Death and Burial

Footnotes

Footnotes

Psalm 28^[a]