◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Psalm 62:5-12 (In God is my safety and my honor); Jeremiah 20:7-13 (Jeremiah denounces his persecutors); 2 Peter 3:1-7 (Scoffers doubt God’s message) (New English Translation)

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January 22, 2027

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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 62:5-12

⁵Patiently wait for God alone, my soul!^[a]
For he is the one who gives me hope.^[b]
⁶He alone is my protector^[c] and deliverer.
He is my refuge;^[d] I will not be shaken.
⁷God delivers me and exalts me;
God is my strong protector and my shelter.^[e]
⁸Trust in him at all times, you people!
Pour out your hearts before him.^[f]
God is our shelter. (Selah)
⁹Men are nothing but a mere breath;
human beings are unreliable.^[g]
When they are weighed in the scales,
all of them together are lighter than air.^[h]
¹⁰Do not trust in what you can gain by oppression.^[i]
Do not put false confidence in what you can gain by robbery.^[j]
If wealth increases, do not become attached to it.^[k]
¹¹God has declared one principle;
two principles I have heard:^[l]
God is strong,^[m]
¹²and you, O Lord, demonstrate loyal love.^[n]
For you repay men for what they do.^[o]

Footnotes

Psalm 62:5 tn Heb “only for God be silent, my soul.” The wording is similar to that of v. 1a. Here an imperatival form, דּוֹמִּי (dommi, “be silent”), appears instead of the noun דּוּמִיָּה (dumiyyah, “silence”). The psalmist is encouraging himself to maintain his trust in God.
Psalm 62:5 tn Heb “for from him [is] my hope.”
Psalm 62:6 tn Heb “my high rocky summit.”
Psalm 62:6 tn Or “my elevated place” (see Ps 18:2).
Psalm 62:7 tn Heb “upon God [is] my deliverance and my glory, the high rocky summit of my strength, my shelter [is] in God.”
Psalm 62:8 tn To “pour out one’s heart” means to offer up to God intense, emotional lamentation and petitionary prayers (see Lam 2:19).
Psalm 62:9 tn Heb “only a breath [are] the sons of mankind, a lie [are] the sons of man.” The phrases “sons of mankind” and “sons of man” also appear together in Ps 49:2. Because of the parallel line there, where “rich and poor” are mentioned, a number of interpreters and translators treat these expressions as polar opposites, בְּנֵי אָדָם (b^ene ʾadam) referring to the lower classes and בְּנֵי אִישׁ (b^ene ʾish) to higher classes. But usage does not support such a view. The rare phrase בְּנֵי אִישׁ (“sons of man”) appears to refer to human beings in general in its other uses (see Pss 4:2; Lam 3:33). It is better to understand the phrases as synonymous expressions.
Psalm 62:9 tn The noun הֶבֶל (hevel), translated “a breath” earlier in the verse, appears again here.
Psalm 62:10 tn Heb “do not trust in oppression.” Here “oppression” stands by metonymy for the riches that can be gained by oppressive measures, as the final line of the verse indicates.
Psalm 62:10 tn Heb “and in robbery do not place vain hope.” Here “robbery” stands by metonymy for the riches that can be gained by theft, as the next line of the verse indicates.
Psalm 62:10 tn Heb “[as for] wealth, when it bears fruit, do not set [your] heart [on it].”
Psalm 62:11 tn Heb “one God spoke, two which I heard.” This is a numerical saying utilizing the “x” followed by “x + 1” pattern to facilitate poetic parallelism. (See W. M. W. Roth, Numerical Sayings in the Old Testament [VTSup], 55-56.) As is typical in such sayings, a list corresponding to the second number (in this case “two”) follows. Another option is to translate, “God has spoken once, twice [he has spoken] that which I have heard.” The terms אַחַת (ʾakhat, “one; once”) and שְׁתַיִם (sh^etayim, “two; twice”) are also juxtaposed in 2 Kgs 6:10 (where they refer to an action that was done more than “once or twice”) and in Job 33:14 (where they refer to God speaking “one way” and then in “another manner”).
Psalm 62:11 tn Heb “that strength [belongs] to God.”
Psalm 62:12 tn Heb “and to you, O Master, [is] loyal love.”
Psalm 62:12 tn Heb “for you pay back to a man according to his deed.” Another option is to understand vv. 11b and 12a as the first principle and v. 12b as the second. In this case one might translate, “God has declared one principle, two principles I have heard, namely, that God is strong, and you, O Lord, demonstrate loyal love, and that you repay men for what they do.”sn You repay men for what they do. The psalmist views God’s justice as a demonstration of both his power (see v. 11c) and his loyal love (see v. 12a). When God judges evildoers, he demonstrates loyal love to his people.

Jeremiah 20:7-13

Jeremiah Complains about the Reaction to His Ministry

⁷Lord, you coerced me into being a prophet,
and I allowed you to do it.
You overcame my resistance and prevailed over me.^[a]
Now I have become a constant laughingstock.
Everyone ridicules me.
⁸For whenever I prophesy,^[b] I must cry out,^[c]
“Violence and destruction are coming!”^[d]
This message from the Lord^[e] has made me
an object of continual insults and derision.
⁹Sometimes I think, “I will make no mention of his message.
I will not speak as his messenger^[f] anymore.”
But then^[g] his message becomes like a fire
locked up inside of me, burning in my heart and soul.^[h]
I grow weary of trying to hold it in;
I cannot contain it.
¹⁰I^[i] hear many whispering words of intrigue against me.
Those who would cause me terror are everywhere!^[j]
They are saying, “Come on, let’s publicly denounce him!”^[k]
All my so-called friends^[l] are just watching for
something that would lead to my downfall.^[m]
They say, “Perhaps he can be enticed into slipping up,
so we can prevail over^[n] him and get our revenge on him.”
¹¹But the Lord is with me to help me like an awe-inspiring warrior.^[o]
Therefore those who persecute me will fail and will not prevail over me.
They will be thoroughly disgraced because they did not succeed.
Their disgrace will never be forgotten.
¹²O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,^[p] you test and prove the righteous.
You see into people’s hearts and minds.^[q]
Pay them back for what they have done
because I trust you to vindicate my cause.
¹³Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord!
For he rescues the oppressed from the clutches of evildoers.^[r]

Footnotes

Jeremiah 20:7 tn The translation is admittedly interpretive but so is every other translation that tries to capture the nuance of the verb rendered here “coerced.” Here the Hebrew text reads, “You [—]ed me, and I let myself be [—]ed. You overpowered me and prevailed.” The value one assigns to [—] is in every case interpretive, based on what one thinks the context is referring to. The word is rendered “deceived” or “tricked” by several English versions (see, e.g., KJV, NASB, TEV, ICV), as though God had misled him. It is rendered “enticed” by some (see, e.g., NRSV, NJPS), as though God had tempted him with false hopes. Some go so far as to accuse Jeremiah of accusing God of metaphorically “raping” him. It is true that the word is used of “seducing” a virgin in Exod 22:15, and that it is used in several places to refer to “deceiving” someone with false words (Prov 24:28; Ps 78:36). It is also true that it is used of “coaxing” someone to reveal something he does not want to (Judg 14:15; 16:5), and of “enticing” someone to do something on the basis of false hopes (1 Kgs 22:20-22; Prov 1:10). However, it does not always have negative connotations or associations. In Hos 2:14 (2:16 HT) God “charms” or “woos” Israel, his estranged ‘wife,’ into the wilderness, where he hopes to win her back to himself. What Jeremiah is alluding to here is crucial for translating and interpreting the word. There is no indication in this passage that Jeremiah is accusing God of misleading him or raising false hopes; God informed him at the outset that he would encounter opposition (1:17-19). Rather, he is alluding to his call to be a prophet, a call which he initially resisted but was persuaded to undertake because of God’s persistence (Jer 1:7-10). The best single word to translate “…” with is thus “persuaded” or “coerced.” The translation spells out the allusion explicitly, so the reader is not left wondering about what is being alluded to when Jeremiah speaks of being “coerced.” The translation “I let you do it” is a way of rendering the Niphal of the same verb, which must be tolerative rather than passive, since the normal passive for the Piel would be the Pual (See IBHS 389-90 §23.4g for discussion and examples.). The translation “you overcame my resistance” is based on allusion to the same context (1:7-10) and on the parallel use of חָזַק (khazaq) as a transitive verb with a direct object in 1 Kgs 16:22.
Jeremiah 20:8 tn Heb “speak,” but the speaking is in the context of speaking as a prophet.
Jeremiah 20:8 tn Heb “I cry out, I proclaim.”
Jeremiah 20:8 tn Heb “Violence and destruction.”sn The words “Violence and destruction…” are a synopsis of his messages of judgment. Jeremiah is lamenting that his ministry up to this point has been one of judgment and has brought him nothing but ridicule because the Lord has not carried out his threats. He appears in the eyes of the people to be a false prophet.
Jeremiah 20:8 tn Heb “the word of the Lord.” For the use of כִּי…כִּי (ki…ki) here in the sense of “for…and,” see KBL 432 s.v. כּי 10.
Jeremiah 20:9 tn Heb “speak in his name.” This idiom occurs in passages where someone functions as the messenger under the authority of another. See Exod 5:23; Deut 18:19; 29:20; Jer 14:14. The antecedent in the first line is quite commonly misidentified as being “him,” i.e., the Lord. Comparison, however, with the rest of the context, especially the consequential clause “then it becomes” (וְהָיָה, v^ehayah), and Jer 23:36 shows that it is “the word of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 20:9 tn The English sentence has again been restructured for the sake of English style. The Hebrew construction involves two vav consecutive perfects in a condition and consequence relation: “If I say to myself…, then it [his word] becomes.” See GKC 337 §112.kk for the construction.
Jeremiah 20:9 sn Heb “It is in my heart like a burning fire, shut up in my bones.” In addition to standing as part for the whole, the “bones” for the person (e.g., Ps 35:10), the bones were associated with fear (e.g., Job 4:14), with pain (e.g., Job 33:19, Ps 102:3 [102:4 HT]), and with joy or sorrow (e.g., Ps 51:8 [51:10 HT]). As has been mentioned several times, the heart was connected with intellectual and volitional concerns.
Jeremiah 20:10 tn It would be difficult to render accurately the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this verse without lengthening the English line unduly. It probably means something like “This is true, even though I…,” i.e., the particle is concessive (cf. BDB s.v. כִּי 2.c). No other nuance seems appropriate. The particle is left out of the translation, but its presence is acknowledged here.
Jeremiah 20:10 tn The phrase translated “Those who would cause me terror are everywhere” has already occurred in 6:25, in the context of the terror caused by the enemy from the north, and in 20:3, in reference to the curse pronounced on Pashhur, who would experience it firsthand. Some have seen the phrase here not as Jeremiah’s ejaculation of terror but as his assailants’ taunts of his message or even their taunting nickname for him. But comparison of this passage with the first two lines of Ps 31:13 (31:14 HT), which are word for word the same as these two, will show that it refers to the terror inspired by the plots of his enemies to do away with him. It is also clear from the context of that passage and the following context here that the “whispering of many” (the literal translation of “many whispering words of intrigue against me”) refers to intrigues to take vengeance on him by killing him.
Jeremiah 20:10 tn Heb “Denounce and let us denounce him.” The verb that is translated “denounce” (נָגַד, nagad) does not very often take an accusative object of person as it does here. When it does, it usually means to inform someone. The only relevant passage appears to be Job 17:5, where it means something like “denounce.” What is probably involved here are the attempts to portray Jeremiah as a traitor (Jer 26:10) and a false prophet (see his conflict with Hananiah in Jer 28).
Jeremiah 20:10 tn Heb “the men of my peace [who are concerned about my welfare].” For this phrase compare Ps 41:9 (41:10 HT) and Jer 38:22. It is generally agreed that irony is being invoked here, hence “so-called” is supplied in the translation to bring it out.
Jeremiah 20:10 tn Heb “watching my stumbling [for me to stumble].” Metaphorically they were watching for some slip-up that would lead to his downfall. Cf. Pss 35:15; 38:17 (38:18 HT).
Jeremiah 20:10 tn All the text says literally is, “Perhaps he can be enticed so that we can prevail over him.” However, the word “enticed” needs some qualification. As W. McKane (Jeremiah [ICC], 1:479) notes, it should probably be read in the context of the “stumbling” (= “something that would lead to my downfall”). Hence “slipping up” has been supplied as an object. It is vague enough to avoid specifics, as the original text does, but suggests some reference to “something that would lead to my downfall.”sn An ironical wordplay occurs between terms here (“enticed,” “prevail over”) and the same Hebrew words in v. 7 (“coerced,” “prevailed over”), where they describe the Lord coercing Jeremiah into being a spokesman by overcoming his resistance. Jeremiah is lamenting that it was God’s call to speak his word, which he could not (and still cannot) resist, that has led, ironically, to his endangerment.
Jeremiah 20:11 sn This line has some interesting ties with Jer 15:20-21, where Jeremiah is assured by God that he is indeed with him, as he promised him when he called him (1:8, 19), and will deliver him from the clutches of wicked and violent people. The word translated here “awe-inspiring” is the same as the word “violent people” there. Jeremiah is confident that his “awe-inspiring” warrior will overcome “violent people.” The statement of confidence here is, by the way, a common element in the psalms of petition in the Psalter. The common elements of that type of psalm are all here: invocation (v. 7), lament (vv. 7-10), confession of trust/confidence in being heard (v. 11), petition (v. 12), and thanksgiving or praise (v. 13). For some examples of this type of psalm, see Pss 3, 7, and 26.
Jeremiah 20:12 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies.”sn See the study note on 2:19 for explanation of this title for God.
Jeremiah 20:12 tn Heb “Lord of Armies, the one who tests the righteous, who sees kidneys and heart.” The sentence has been broken up to avoid a long and complex English sentence. The translation is more in keeping with contemporary English style.sn This verse is almost an exact duplication of the petition in one of Jeremiah’s earlier prayers and complaints. See Jer 11:20 and notes there for explanation of the Hebrew psychology underlying the use of “kidneys and heart” here. For the thoughts expressed here see Ps 17.
Jeremiah 20:13 sn While it may be a little confusing to modern readers to see the fluctuation in moods and the shifts in addressee in a prayer and complaint like this, it was not at all unusual for Israel, where these were often offered in the temple in the conscious presence of God before fellow worshipers. For another example of these same shifts, see Ps 22, which is a prayer of David in a time of deep distress.

2 Peter 3:1-7

The False Teachers’ Denial of the Lord’s Return

3 Dear friends, this is already the second letter I have written^[a] you, in which^[b] I am trying to stir up^[c] your pure mind by way of reminder: ²I want you to recall^[d] both^[e] the predictions^[f] foretold by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles.^[g] ³Above all, understand this:^[h] In the last days blatant scoffers^[i] will come, being propelled by their own evil urges^[j] ⁴and saying,^[k] “Where is his promised return?^[l] For ever since^[m] our ancestors^[n] died,^[o] all things have continued as they were^[p] from the beginning of creation.” ⁵For they deliberately suppress this fact,^[q] that by the word of God^[r] heavens existed long ago and an earth^[s] was formed out of water and by means of water. ⁶Through these things^[t] the world existing at that time was destroyed when it was deluged with water. ⁷But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, by being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.^[u]

Footnotes

2 Peter 3:1 tn Grk “I am already writing this [as] a second letter.” The object-complement construction is more smoothly rendered in English a bit differently. Further, although the present tense γράφω (graphō) is used here, English convention employs an epistolary past tense. (The Greek epistolary aorist might have been expected here, but it also occurs in situations unlike its English counterparts.)
2 Peter 3:1 tn The relative pronoun is plural, indicating that the following statement is true about both letters.
2 Peter 3:1 tn Or “I have stirred up, aroused.” The translation treats the present tense verb as a conative present.
2 Peter 3:2 tn Grk “to remember.” “I want you” is supplied to smooth out the English. The Greek infinitive is subordinate to the previous clause.
2 Peter 3:2 tn “Both” is not in Greek; it is supplied to show more clearly that there are two objects of the infinitive “to remember”—predictions and commandment.
2 Peter 3:2 tn Grk “words.” In conjunction with πρόειπον (proeipon), however, the meaning of the construction is that the prophets uttered prophecies.
2 Peter 3:2 sn Holy prophets…apostles. The first chapter demonstrated that the OT prophets were trustworthy guides (1:19-21) and that the NT apostles were also authoritative (1:16-18). Now, using the same catch phrase found in the Greek text of 1:20 (τοῦτο πρῶτον γινώσκοντες, touto prōton ginōskontes), Peter points to specific prophecies of the prophets as an argument against the false teachers.
2 Peter 3:3 tn Grk “knowing this [to be] foremost.” Τοῦτο πρῶτον (touto prōton) constitute the object and complement of γινώσκοντες (ginōskontes). The participle is loosely dependent on the infinitive in v. 2 (“[I want you] to recall”), perhaps in a telic sense (thus, “[I want you] to recall…[and especially] to understand this as foremost”). The following statement then would constitute the main predictions with which the author was presently concerned. An alternative is to take it imperativally: “Above all, know this.” In this instance, however, there is little semantic difference (since a telic participle and imperatival participle end up urging an action). Cf. also 2 Pet 1:20.
2 Peter 3:3 tn The Greek reads “scoffers in their scoffing” for “blatant scoffers.” The use of the cognate dative is a Semitism designed to intensify the word it is related to. The idiom is foreign to English. As a Semitism, it is further incidental evidence of the authenticity of the letter (see the note on “Simeon” in 1:1 for other evidence).
2 Peter 3:3 tn Grk “going according to their own evil urges.”
2 Peter 3:4 tn The present participle λέγοντες (legontes, “saying”) most likely indicates result. Thus, their denial of the Lord’s return is the result of their lifestyle. The connection to the false teachers of chapter 2 is thus made clear.
2 Peter 3:4 tn Grk “Where is the promise of his coming?” The genitive παρουσίας (parousias, “coming, advent, return”) is best taken as an attributed genitive (in which the head noun, promise, functions semantically as an adjective; see ExSyn 89-91).
2 Peter 3:4 tn The prepositional phrase with the relative pronoun, ἀφ᾿ ἧς (aph’ |ēs), is used adverbially or conjunctively without antecedent (see BDAG 727 s.v. ὅς 1.k.).
2 Peter 3:4 tn Grk “fathers.” The reference could be either to the OT patriarchs or first generation Christians. This latter meaning, however, is unattested in any other early Christian literature.
2 Peter 3:4 tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaō) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for the death of a believer.
2 Peter 3:4 tn Grk “thus,” “in the same manner.”
2 Peter 3:5 tn The Greek is difficult at this point. An alternative is “Even though they maintain this, it escapes them that…” Literally the idea seems to be: “For this escapes these [men] who wish [it to be so].”
2 Peter 3:5 tn The word order in Greek places “the word of God” at the end of the sentence. See discussion in the note on “these things” in v. 6.
2 Peter 3:5 tn Or “land,” “the earth.”
2 Peter 3:6 tn The antecedent is ambiguous. It could refer to the heavens, the heavens and earth, or the water and the word. If the reference is to the heavens, the author is reflecting on the Genesis account about “the floodgates of the heavens” being opened (Gen 7:11). If the reference is to the heavens and earth, he is also thinking about the cosmic upheaval that helped to produce the flood (Gen 6:11). If the reference is to the water and the word, he is indicating both the means (water) and the cause (word of God). This last interpretation is the most likely since the final nouns of v. 5 are “water” and “word of God,” making them the nearest antecedents.
2 Peter 3:7 tn Grk “the ungodly people.”

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Footnotes

Jeremiah Complains about the Reaction to His Ministry

Footnotes

The False Teachers’ Denial of the Lord’s Return

Footnotes