◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Psalm 81:1-10 (Raise a loud shout to the God of Jacob); Exodus 31:12-18 (The sabbath law); Acts 25:1-12 (Paul is unafraid of death) (New English Translation)

Prev Day

May 27, 2027

Next Day

Use the calendar to view readings from this devotional.

May 2027
Su	Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30	31

Return to today's reading

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 81:1-10

Psalm 81^[a]

For the music director, according to the gittith style;^[b] by Asaph.

81 Shout for joy to God, our source of strength!
Shout out to the God of Jacob!
²Sing^[c] a song and play the tambourine,
the pleasant-sounding harp, and the ten-stringed instrument.
³Sound the ram’s horn on the day of the new moon,^[d]
and on the day of the full moon when our festival begins.^[e]
⁴For observing the festival is a requirement for Israel;^[f]
it is an ordinance given by the God of Jacob.
⁵He decreed it as a regulation in Joseph,
when he attacked the land of Egypt.^[g]
I heard a voice I did not recognize.^[h]
⁶It said:^[i] “I removed the burden from his shoulder;
his hands were released from holding the basket.^[j]
⁷In your distress you called out and I rescued you.
I answered you from a dark thundercloud.^[k]
I tested you at the waters of Meribah.^[l] (Selah)
⁸I said,^[m] ‘Listen, my people!
I will warn^[n] you.
O Israel, if only you would obey me!^[o]
⁹There must be^[p] no other^[q] god among you.
You must not worship a foreign god.
¹⁰I am the Lord, your God,
the one who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.’

Footnotes

Psalm 81:1 sn Psalm 81. The psalmist calls God’s people to assemble for a festival and then proclaims God’s message to them. The divine speech (vv. 6-16) recalls how God delivered the people from Egypt, reminds Israel of their rebellious past, expresses God’s desire for his people to obey him, and promises divine protection in exchange for obedience.
Psalm 81:1 tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew term הַגִּתִּית (haggittit) is uncertain; it probably refers to a musical style or instrument. See the superscription to Ps 8.
Psalm 81:2 tn Heb “lift up.”
Psalm 81:3 tn Heb “at the new moon.”sn New moon festivals were a monthly ritual in Israel (see R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 469-70). In this context the New Moon festival of the seventh month, when the Feast of Tabernacles was celebrated (note the reference to a “festival” in the next line), may be in view.
Psalm 81:3 tn Heb “at the full moon on the day of our festival.” The Hebrew word כֶּסֶה (keseh) is an alternate spelling of כֶּסֶא (keseʾ, “full moon”).sn The festival in view is probably the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths), which began on the fifteenth day of the seventh month when the moon was full. See Lev 23:34; Num 29:12.
Psalm 81:4 tn Heb “because a statute for Israel [is] it.”
Psalm 81:5 tn Heb “in his going out against the land of Egypt.” This apparently refers to the general time period of Israel’s exodus from Egypt. The LXX reads, “from Egypt,” in which case “Joseph” (see the preceding line) would be the subject of the verb, “when he [Joseph = Israel] left Egypt.”
Psalm 81:5 tn Heb “a lip I did not know, I heard.” Here the term “lip” probably stands for speech or a voice. Apparently the psalmist speaks here and refers to God’s voice, whose speech is recorded in the following verses.
Psalm 81:6 tn The words “It said” are not included in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation for clarification.
Psalm 81:6 sn I removed the burden. The Lord speaks metaphorically of how he delivered his people from Egyptian bondage. The reference to a basket/burden probably alludes to the hard labor of the Israelites in Egypt, where they had to carry loads of bricks (see Exod 1:14).
Psalm 81:7 tn Heb “I answered you in the hidden place of thunder.” This may allude to God’s self-revelation at Mount Sinai, where he appeared in a dark cloud accompanied by thunder (see Exod 19:16).
Psalm 81:7 sn The name Meribah means “strife.” Two separate but similar incidents at the place called Meribah are recorded in the Pentateuch (Exod 17:1-7; Num 20:1-13). In both cases the Israelites complained about lack of water and the Lord miraculously provided for them.
Psalm 81:8 tn The words “I said” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Verses 8-10 appear to recall what the Lord commanded the generation of Israelites that experienced the events described in v. 7. Note the statement in v. 11, “my people did not listen to me.”
Psalm 81:8 tn Or perhaps “command.”
Psalm 81:8 tn The Hebrew particle אִם (ʾim, “if”) and following prefixed verbal form here express a wish (GKC 321 §109.b). Note that the apodosis (the “then” clause of the conditional sentence) is suppressed.
Psalm 81:9 tn The imperfect verbal forms in v. 9 have a modal function, expressing what is obligatory.
Psalm 81:9 tn Heb “different”; “illicit.”

Exodus 31:12-18

Sabbath Observance

¹²^[a] The Lord said to Moses,^[b] ¹³“Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep my Sabbaths,^[c] for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.^[d] ¹⁴So you must keep the Sabbath, for it is holy for you. Everyone who defiles it^[e] must surely be put to death; indeed,^[f] if anyone does^[g] any^[h] work on it, then that person will be cut off from among his^[i] people. ¹⁵Six days^[j] work may be done,^[k] but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest,^[l] holy to the Lord; anyone who does work on the Sabbath day must surely be put to death. ¹⁶The Israelites must keep the Sabbath by observing the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. ¹⁷It is a sign between me and the Israelites forever; for in six days^[m] the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”^[n]

¹⁸He gave Moses two tablets of testimony when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, tablets of stone written by the finger of God.^[o]

Footnotes

Exodus 31:12 sn There are some questions about the arrangement of the book. The placement of this section here, however, should come as no surprise. After the instructions and preparation for work, a Sabbath day when work could not be done had to be legislated. In all that they were going to do, they must not violate the Sabbath.
Exodus 31:12 tn Heb “and Yahweh said (אָמַר, ʾamar) to Moses, saying.”
Exodus 31:13 sn The instruction for the Sabbath at this point seems rather abrupt, but it follows logically the extended plans of building the sanctuary. B. Jacob, following some of the earlier treatments, suggests that these are specific rules given for the duration of the building of the sanctuary (Exodus, 844). The Sabbath day is a day of complete cessation; no labor or work could be done. The point here is that God’s covenant people must faithfully keep the sign of the covenant as a living commemoration of the finished work of Yahweh, and as an active part in their sanctification. See also H. Routtenberg, “The Laws of Sabbath: Biblical Sources,” Dor le Dor 6 (1977): 41-43, 99-101, 153-55, 204-6; G. Robinson, “The Idea of Rest in the OT and the Search for the Basic Character of Sabbath,” ZAW 92 (1980): 32-42; M. Tsevat, “The Basic Meaning of the Biblical Sabbath, ZAW 84 (1972): 447-59; M. T. Willshaw, “A Joyous Sign,” ExpTim 89 (1978): 179-80.
Exodus 31:13 tn Or “your sanctifier.”
Exodus 31:14 tn This clause is all from one word, a Piel plural participle with a third, feminine suffix: מְחַלְלֶיהָ (mekhal^eleha, “defilers of it”). This form serves as the subject of the sentence. The word חָלַל (khalal) is the antonym of קָדַשׁ (qadash, “to be holy”). It means “common, profane,” and in the Piel stem “make common, profane” or “defile.” Treating the Sabbath like an ordinary day would profane it, make it common.
Exodus 31:14 tn This is the asseverative use of כִּי (ki) meaning “surely, indeed,” for it restates the point just made (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 73, §449).
Exodus 31:14 tn Heb “the one who does.”
Exodus 31:14 tn “any” has been supplied.
Exodus 31:14 tn Literally “her” (a feminine pronoun agreeing with “soul/life,” which is grammatically feminine).
Exodus 31:15 tn This is an adverbial accusative of time, indicating that work may be done for six days out of the week.
Exodus 31:15 tn The form is a Niphal imperfect; it has the nuance of permission in this sentence, for the sentence is simply saying that the six days are work days—that is when work may be done.
Exodus 31:15 tn The expression is שַׁבַּת שַׁבָּתוֹן (shabbat shabbaton), “a Sabbath of entire rest,” or better, “a sabbath of complete desisting” (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 404). The second noun, the modifying genitive, is an abstract noun. The repetition provides the superlative idea that complete rest is the order of the day.
Exodus 31:17 tn The expression again forms an adverbial accusative of time.
Exodus 31:17 sn The word “rest” essentially means “to cease, stop.” So describing God as “resting” on the seventh day does not indicate that he was tired—he simply finished creation and then ceased or stopped. But in this verse is a very bold anthropomorphism in the form of the verb וַיִּנָּפַשׁ (vayyinnafash), a Niphal preterite from the root נָפַשׁ (nafash), the word that is related to “life, soul” or more specifically “breath, throat.” The verb is usually translated here as “he was refreshed,” offering a very human picture. It could also be rendered “he took breath” (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 345). Elsewhere the verb is used of people and animals. The anthropomorphism is clearly intended to teach people to stop and refresh themselves physically, spiritually, and emotionally on this day of rest.
Exodus 31:18 sn The expression “the finger of God” has come up before in the book, in the plagues (Exod 8:19) to express that it was a demonstration of the power and authority of God. So here too the commandments given to Moses on stone tablets came from God. It too is a bold anthropomorphism; to attribute such a material action to Yahweh would have been thought provoking to say the least. But by using “God” and by stating it in an obviously figurative way, balance is maintained. Since no one writes with one finger, the expression simply says that the Law came directly from God.

Acts 25:1-12

Paul Appeals to Caesar

25 Now^[a] three days after Festus^[b] arrived in the province, he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea.^[c] ²So the chief priests and the most prominent men^[d] of the Jews brought formal charges^[e] against Paul to him. ³Requesting him to do them a favor against Paul,^[f] they urged Festus^[g] to summon him to Jerusalem, planning an ambush^[h] to kill him along the way. ⁴Then Festus^[i] replied that Paul was being kept at Caesarea,^[j] and he himself intended to go there^[k] shortly. ⁵“So,” he said, “let your leaders^[l] go down there^[m] with me, and if this man has done anything wrong,^[n] they may bring charges^[o] against him.”

⁶After Festus^[p] had stayed^[q] not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea,^[r] and the next day he sat^[s] on the judgment seat^[t] and ordered Paul to be brought. ⁷When he arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him,^[u] bringing many serious^[v] charges that they were not able to prove.^[w] ⁸Paul said in his defense,^[x] “I have committed no offense^[y] against the Jewish law^[z] or against the temple or against Caesar.”^[aa] ⁹But Festus,^[ab] wanting to do the Jews a favor, asked Paul, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and be tried^[ac] before me there on these charges?”^[ad] ¹⁰Paul replied,^[ae] “I am standing before Caesar’s^[af] judgment seat,^[ag] where I should be tried.^[ah] I have done nothing wrong^[ai] to the Jews, as you also know very well.^[aj] ¹¹If then I am in the wrong^[ak] and have done anything that deserves death, I am not trying to escape dying,^[al] but if not one of their charges against me is true,^[am] no one can hand me over to them.^[an] I appeal to Caesar!”^[ao] ¹²Then, after conferring with his council,^[ap] Festus^[aq] replied, “You have appealed to Caesar;^[ar] to Caesar^[as] you will go!”^[at]

Footnotes

Acts 25:1 tn BDAG 736-37 s.v. οὖν 2.b states, “οὖν serves to indicate a transition to someth. new…now, then, well…Ac 25:1.”
Acts 25:1 sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.
Acts 25:1 sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1. This was a journey of 65 mi (just over 100 km).
Acts 25:2 tn BDAG 893-94 s.v. πρῶτος 2.a.β has “οἱ πρῶτοι the most prominent men, the leading men w. gen. of the place…or of a group…οἱ πρ. τοῦ λαοῦ…Lk 19:47; cp. Ac 25:2; 28:17.”
Acts 25:2 tn BDAG 326 s.v. ἐμφανίζω 3 has “ἐ. τινὶ κατά τινος bring formal charges against someone…Ac 24:1; 25:2.”sn Note how quickly the Jewish leadership went after Paul: They brought formal charges against him within three days of Festus’ arrival in the province.
Acts 25:3 tn Grk “Requesting a favor against him”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation, the understood direct object of “requesting” has been supplied, and the phrase “to do them” supplied for clarity.
Acts 25:3 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Festus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The words “they urged him” are in v. 2 in the Greek text.
Acts 25:3 sn Planning an ambush. The Jewish leadership had not forgotten the original plan of several years ago (see 23:16). They did not trust the Roman legal process, but preferred to take matters into their own hands.
Acts 25:4 sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.
Acts 25:4 sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1.
Acts 25:4 tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text but is implied.
Acts 25:5 tn Grk “let those who are influential among you” (i.e., the powerful).
Acts 25:5 tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.
Acts 25:5 tn Grk “and if there is anything wrong with this man,” but this could be misunderstood in English to mean a moral or physical defect, while the issue in context is the commission of some crime, something legally improper (BDAG 149 s.v. ἄτοπος 2).
Acts 25:5 tn BDAG 533 s.v. κατηγορέω 1 states, “nearly always as legal t.t.: bring charges in court.” L&N 33.427 states for κατηγορέω, “to bring serious charges or accusations against someone, with the possible connotation of a legal or court context—‘to accuse, to bring charges.”
Acts 25:6 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Festus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Acts 25:6 tn Grk “Having stayed.” The participle διατρίψας (diatripsas) has been taken temporally.
Acts 25:6 sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1.
Acts 25:6 tn Grk “sitting down…he ordered.” The participle καθίσας (kathisas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
Acts 25:6 tn Although BDAG 175 s.v. βῆμα 3 gives the meaning “tribunal” for this verse, and a number of modern translations use similar terms (“court,” NIV; “tribunal,” NRSV), since the bēma was a standard feature in Greco-Roman cities of the time, there is no need for an alternative translation here.sn The judgment seat (βῆμα, bēma) was a raised platform mounted by steps and sometimes furnished with a seat, used by officials in addressing an assembly or making pronouncements, often on judicial matters. The judgment seat was a familiar item in Greco-Roman culture, often located in the agora, the public square or marketplace in the center of a city.
Acts 25:7 tn BDAG 801 s.v. περιίστημι 1.a has “περιέστησαν αὐτὸν οἱ ᾿Ιουδαῖοι the Judeans stood around him 25:7.”
Acts 25:7 tn Grk “many and serious.” The term βαρύς (barus) refers to weighty or serious charges (BDAG 167 s.v. 1).
Acts 25:7 tn The term ἀποδείκνυμι (apodeiknumi) in a legal context refers to legal proof (4 Macc 1:8; BDAG 108 s.v. 3).
Acts 25:8 tn Grk “Paul saying in his defense”; the participle ἀπολογουμένου (apologoumenou) could be taken temporally (“when Paul said…”), but due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the participle was translated as a finite verb and a new sentence begun here in the translation. BDAG 116-17 s.v. ἀπολογέομαι has “W. ὅτι foll. τοῦ Παύλου ἀπολογουμένου, ὅτι when Paul said in his defense (direct quot. foll.) Ac 25:8.”
Acts 25:8 tn Grk “I have sinned…in nothing.”
Acts 25:8 tn Grk “against the law of the Jews.” Here τῶν ᾿Ιουδαίων has been translated as an attributive genitive.sn The Jewish law refers to the law of Moses.
Acts 25:8 tn Or “against the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).sn Paul’s threefold claim to be innocent with respect to the law…the temple and Caesar argues that he has not disturbed the peace at any level. This was the standard charge made against early Christians (Luke 23:2; Acts 17:6-7). The charges here are emphatically denied, with the Greek conjunction oute repeated before each charge.
Acts 25:9 sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.
Acts 25:9 tn Or “stand trial.”
Acts 25:9 tn Grk “concerning these things.”
Acts 25:10 tn Grk “said.”
Acts 25:10 tn Or “before the emperor’s” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).
Acts 25:10 tn Although BDAG 175 s.v. βῆμα 3 gives the meaning “tribunal” for this verse, and a number of modern translations use similar terms (“court,” NIV; “tribunal,” NRSV), since the bema was a standard feature in Greco-Roman cities of the time, there is no need for an alternative translation here. Here of course Paul’s reference to “Caesar’s judgment seat” is a form of metonymy; since Festus is Caesar’s representative, Festus’ judgment seat represents Caesar’s own.sn The judgment seat (βῆμα, bēma) was a raised platform mounted by steps and sometimes furnished with a seat, used by officials in addressing an assembly or making pronouncements, often on judicial matters. The judgment seat was a familiar item in Greco-Roman culture, often located in the agora, the public square or marketplace in the center of a city.
Acts 25:10 tn That is, tried by an imperial representative and subject to Roman law.
Acts 25:10 sn “I have done nothing wrong.” Here is yet another declaration of total innocence on Paul’s part.
Acts 25:10 tn BDAG 506 s.v. καλῶς 7 states, “comp. κάλλιον (for the superl., as Galen, Protr. 8 p. 24, 19J.=p. 10, 31 Kaibel; s. B-D-F §244, 2) ὡς καί σὺ κ. ἐπιγινώσκεις as also you know very well Ac 25:10.”
Acts 25:11 tn BDAG 20 s.v. ἀδικέω 1.b has “intr. be in the wrong (Ex 2:13) εἰ ἀδικῶ Ac 25:11.”
Acts 25:11 tn BDAG 764 s.v. παραιτέομαι 2.b.β, “οὐ παραιτοῦμαι τὸ ἀποθανεῖν I am not trying to escape death Ac 25:11 (cf. Jos., Vi. 141).” To avoid redundancy in the translation, the English gerund “dying” is used to translate the Greek infinitive ἀποθανεῖν (apothanein).
Acts 25:11 tn Or “but if there is nothing to their charges against me.” Both “if” clauses in this verse are first class conditions. Paul stated the options without prejudice, assuming in turn the reality of each for the sake of the argument.
Acts 25:11 sn That is, no one can hand me over to them lawfully. Paul was aware of the dangers of a return to Jerusalem.
Acts 25:11 tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).sn The appeal to Caesar was known as the provocatio ad Caesarem. It was a Roman citizen’s right to ask for a direct judgment by the emperor (Pliny the Younger, Letters 10.96). It was one of the oldest rights of Roman citizens.
Acts 25:12 tn That is, with his advisers.
Acts 25:12 sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.
Acts 25:12 tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).
Acts 25:12 tn Or “to the emperor.”
Acts 25:12 sn “To Caesar you will go!” In all probability Festus was pleased to send Paul on to Rome and get this political problem out of his court.

New English Translation (NET)

Prev Day

Top

Next Day

Use the calendar to view readings from this devotional.

Log in to read this devotional and:

Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 81[a]

For the music director, according to the gittith style;[b] by Asaph.

Footnotes

Sabbath Observance

Footnotes

Paul Appeals to Caesar

Footnotes

Psalm 81^[a]

For the music director, according to the gittith style;^[b] by Asaph.