◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Psalm 91:1-6 14-16 (God my refuge); Jeremiah 23:23-32 (God’s word like a hammer); Ephesians 2:1-10 (God is rich in mercy) (New English Translation)

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September 27, 1968

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Daily Bible readings that follow the church liturgical year, with sequential stories told across multiple weeks.

Duration: 1245 days

Psalm 91:1-6

Psalm 91^[a]

91 As for you, the one who lives^[b] in the shelter of the Most High,^[c]
and resides in the protective shadow^[d] of the Sovereign One^[e]—
²I say this about the Lord, my shelter and my stronghold,
my God in whom I trust—
³he will certainly rescue you from the snare of the hunter^[f]
and from the destructive plague.
⁴He will shelter you^[g] with his wings;^[h]
you will find safety under his wings.
His faithfulness is like a shield or a protective wall.^[i]
⁵You need not fear the terrors of the night,^[j]
the arrow that flies by day,
⁶the plague that stalks in the darkness,
or the disease that ravages at noon.^[k]

Footnotes

Psalm 91:1 sn Psalm 91. In this psalm an individual (perhaps a priest) addresses one who has sought shelter in the Lord and assures him that God will protect him from danger (vv. 1-13). In vv. 14-16 God himself promises to keep his loyal follower safe.
Psalm 91:1 tn Heb “[O] one who lives.”
Psalm 91:1 sn The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן ʿelyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Pss 7:17; 9:2; 18:13; 21:7; 47:2.
Psalm 91:1 sn The Lord is compared here to a bird who protects its young under the shadow of its wings (see v. 4).
Psalm 91:1 sn The divine name used here is “Shaddai” (שַׁדַּי, shadday; see also Ps 68:14). Shaddai (or El Shaddai) is the Sovereign God of the world who grants life/blesses and kills/judges. In Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he both blesses/protects and takes away life/happiness.
Psalm 91:3 tn The word refers specifically to a fowler (or hunter of birds).
Psalm 91:4 tn Heb “put a cover over you” (see Ps 5:11).
Psalm 91:4 tc The Hebrew text has the singular, but the plural should be read. The final י (yod) of the suffix, which indicates the plural, has dropped off by haplography (note the yod at the beginning of the next word).
Psalm 91:4 tn Traditionally the Hebrew term סֹחֵרָה (sokherah), which occurs only here in the OT, has been understood to refer to a buckler or small shield (see BDB 695 s.v.). But HALOT 750 s.v., on the basis of evidence from the cognate languages, proposes the meaning “wall.”
Psalm 91:5 tn This probably alludes to a sneak attack by enemies in the darkness of night (see Song 3:8).
Psalm 91:6 sn As in Deut 32:23-24, vv. 5-6 closely associate military attack and deadly disease. Perhaps the latter alludes to one of the effects of siege warfare on the population of an entrapped city, which was especially vulnerable to the outbreak of epidemics.

Psalm 91:14-16

¹⁴The Lord says,^[a]
“Because he is devoted to me, I will deliver him;
I will protect him^[b] because he is loyal to me.^[c]
¹⁵When he calls out to me, I will answer him.
I will be with him when he is in trouble;
I will rescue him and bring him honor.
¹⁶I will satisfy him with long life,^[d]
and will let him see my salvation.”

Jeremiah 23:23-32

²³Do you people think^[a] that I am some local deity
and not the transcendent God?”^[b] the Lord asks.^[c]
²⁴“Do you really think anyone can hide himself
where I cannot see him?” the Lord asks.^[d]
“Do you not know that I am everywhere?”^[e]
the Lord asks.^[f]

²⁵The Lord says,^[g] “I have heard what those prophets who are prophesying lies in my name are saying. They are saying, ‘I have had a dream! I have had a dream!’^[h] ²⁶Those prophets are just prophesying lies. They are prophesying the delusions of their own minds.^[i] ²⁷How long will they go on plotting^[j] to make my people forget who I am^[k] through the dreams they tell one another? That is just as bad as what their ancestors^[l] did when they forgot who I am by worshiping the god Baal.^[m] ²⁸Let the prophet who has had a dream go ahead and tell his dream. Let the person who has received my message report that message faithfully. What is like straw cannot compare to what is like grain!^[n] I, the Lord, affirm it!^[o] ²⁹My message is like a fire that purges dross.^[p] It is like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces.^[q] I, the Lord, so affirm it!^[r] ³⁰So I, the Lord, affirm^[s] that I am opposed to those prophets who steal messages from one another that they claim are from me.^[t] ³¹I, the Lord, affirm^[u] that I am opposed to those prophets who are using their own tongues to declare, ‘The Lord declares.’^[v] ³²I, the Lord, affirm^[w] that I am opposed to those prophets who dream up lies and report them. They are misleading my people with their reckless lies.^[x] I did not send them. I did not commission them. They are not helping these people at all.^[y] I, the Lord, affirm it!”^[z]

Footnotes

Jeremiah 23:23 tn The words “Do you people think” at the beginning of this verse and “Do you really think” at the beginning of the next verse are not in the text but are a way of trying to convey the nature of the rhetorical questions, which expect a negative answer. They are also a way of trying to show that the verses are still connected to the preceding discussion addressed to the people (cf. 23:16, 20).
Jeremiah 23:23 tn Heb “Am I a god nearby and not a god far off?” The question is sometimes translated as though there is an alternative being given in v. 23, one that covers both the ideas of immanence and transcendence (i.e., “Am I only a god nearby and not also a god far off?”). However, the interrogative he (הַ) at the beginning of this verse and the particle (אִם, ʾim) at the beginning of the next show that the linkage is between the question in v. 23 and that in v. 24a. According to BDB 210 s.v. הֲ 1.d, both questions in this case expect a negative answer.sn The thought that is expressed here must be viewed against the background of ancient Near Eastern thought, where gods were connected with different realms, e.g., Baal, the god of wind, rain, and fertility; Mot, the god of drought, infertility, and death; Yam, the god of the sea and of chaos. Moreover, Baal was worshiped in local manifestations as the Baal of Peor, Baal of Gad, etc. Hence, Baal is sometimes spoken of in the singular and sometimes in the plural. The Lord is the one true God (Deut 6:4). Moreover, he is the maker of heaven and earth (Gen 1:1; 14:19, 22; 2 Kgs 19:15; Ps 115:15), sees into the hearts of all men (Ps 33:13-15), and judges men according to what they do (Ezek 7:3, 7, 27). There is no hiding from him (Job 34:22; Ps 139:7-12) and no escape from his judgment (Amos 9:2-4). God has already spoken to the people and their leaders through Jeremiah along these lines (Jer 16:17; 21:14). Lurking behind the thoughts expressed here is probably Deut 29:19-21, where God warns that one “bad apple,” who thinks he can get away with sinning against the covenant, can lead to the destruction of all. The false prophets were the “bad apples,” encouraging the corruption of the whole nation by their words promoting a false sense of security unconnected with loyalty to God and obedience to his covenant. The first question deals with the issue of God’s transcendence, the second with his omniscience, and the third with his omnipresence.
Jeremiah 23:23 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:24 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:24 tn The words “Do you not know” are not in the text. They are a way of conveying the idea that the question, which reads literally, “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” expects a positive answer. They follow the pattern used at the beginning of the previous two questions and continue that thought. The words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
Jeremiah 23:24 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:25 tn The words, “The Lord says” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity to show that the Lord continues speaking.
Jeremiah 23:25 sn To have had a dream was not an illegitimate means of receiving divine revelation. God had revealed himself in the past to his servants through dreams (e.g., Jacob [Gen 31:10-11] and Joseph [Gen 37:6, 7, 9]), and God promised to reveal himself through dreams (Num 12:6; Joel 2:28 [3:1 HT]). What was illegitimate was to use the dream to lead people away from the Lord (Deut 13:1-5 [13:2-6 HT]). That was what the prophets were doing through their dreams, which were “lies” and “the delusions of their own minds.” Through them they were making people forget who the Lord really was, which was just like what their ancestors had done through worshiping Baal.
Jeremiah 23:26 sn See the parallel passage in Jer 14:13-15.
Jeremiah 23:27 tn The relation of the words to one another in v. 26 and the beginning of v. 27 has created difficulties for translators and commentators. The proper solution is reflected in the NJPS. Verses 26-27 read somewhat literally, “How long is there in the hearts of the prophets who are prophesying the lie and [in the hearts of] the prophets of the delusions of their [own] heart the plotting to cause my people to forget my name…” Most commentaries complain that the text is difficult and that there is no subject for “is there.” However, the long construct qualification “in the hearts of” has led to the lack of observation that the proper subject is “the plotting to make my people forget.” There are no exact parallels, but Jer 14:22 and Neh 5:5 follow the same structure. The “How long” precedes the other means of asking a question for the purpose of emphasis (cf. BDB 210 s.v. הֲ 1.b, and compare, for example, the usage in 2 Sam 7:7). There has also been a failure to see that “the prophets of the delusion of…” is a parallel construct noun after “heart of.” Stripping the syntax down to its barest minimum and translating literally, the sentence would read, “How long will the plotting…continue in the hearts of the prophets who…and [in hearts of] the prophets of…” The sentence has been restructured in the translation to conform to contemporary English style, but attempt has been made to maintain the same subordinations.
Jeremiah 23:27 tn Heb “my name.”sn In the OT, the “name” reflected the person’s character (cf. Gen 27:36; 1 Sam 25:25) or his reputation (Gen 11:4; 2 Sam 8:13). To speak in someone’s name was to act as his representative or carry his authority (1 Sam 25:9; 1 Kgs 21:8). To call one’s name over something was to claim it for one’s own (2 Sam 12:28). Hence, here to forget God’s name is equivalent to forgetting who he is in his essential character (cf. Exod 3:13-15; 6:3; 34:5-7). By preaching lies they had obliterated part of his essential character and caused people to forget who he really was.
Jeremiah 23:27 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 39).
Jeremiah 23:27 tn Heb “through Baal.” This is an elliptical expression for the worship of Baal. See 11:17; 12:16; and 19:5 for other references to the people’s relation to Baal. There is a deliberate paralleling in the syntax here between “through their dreams” and “through Baal.”
Jeremiah 23:28 tn Heb “What to the straw with [in comparison with] the grain?” This idiom represents an emphatic repudiation or denial of relationship. See, for example, the usage in 2 Sam 16:10 and note BDB 553 s.v. מָה 1.d(c).
Jeremiah 23:28 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:29 tn Heb “Is not my message like a fire?” The rhetorical question expects a positive answer that is made explicit in the translation. The words “that purges dross” are not in the text but are implicit to the metaphor. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
Jeremiah 23:29 tn Heb “Is it not like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” See preceding note.
Jeremiah 23:29 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:30 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:30 tn Heb “who are stealing my words from one another.” However, context shows it is their own word that they claim is from the Lord (cf. next verse).
Jeremiah 23:31 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:31 tn The words “The Lord” are not actually in the text but are implicit in the idiom. They are generally supplied in all the English versions.sn Jer 23:30-33 are filled with biting sarcasm. The verses all begin with the words “Behold, I am against the prophets who…” and go on to describe their reprehensible behavior. They “steal” one another’s messages, which the Lord sarcastically calls “my words” (The passage shows that they are not; compare Marc Anthony’s use of “noble” to describe the ignoble men who killed Caesar). Here the idiom translated “to use their own tongue” really refers to taking something in preparation for action, i.e., “they take their tongue” and “declare.” The verb “declare” is only used here and is derived from the idiom “oracle of,” which is almost universally used in the idiom “oracle of the Lord,” which occurs 176 times in Jeremiah. That is, it is their tongue that is “declaring not his mouth” (v. 16). Moreover, in the report of what they “declare,” the Lord has left out the qualifying “of the Lord” to suggest the delusive nature of their message, i.e., they mislead people into believing that their message is from the Lord. Elsewhere in the discussion of the issue of false prophecy the Lord will use the full formula (Ezek 13:6-7). How ironic that their “Oracle of…” is punctuated by the triple “Oracle of the Lord” (vv. 30, 31, 32; translated here “I, the Lord, affirm that…”).
Jeremiah 23:32 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:32 tn Heb “with their lies and their recklessness.” This is an example of hendiadys where two nouns (in this case a concrete and an abstract one) are joined by “and” but one is intended to be the adjectival modifier of the other.
Jeremiah 23:32 sn In the light of what has been said this is a rhetorical understatement; they are not only “not helping,” they are leading them to their doom (cf. vv. 19-22). This figure of speech is known as litotes.
Jeremiah 23:32 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

Ephesians 2:1-10

New Life Individually

2 And although you were^[a] dead^[b] in your offenses and sins, ²in which^[c] you formerly lived^[d] according to this world’s present path,^[e] according to the ruler of the domain^[f] of the air, the ruler of^[g] the spirit^[h] that is now energizing^[i] the sons of disobedience,^[j] ³among whom^[k] all of us^[l] also^[m] formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath^[n] even as the rest…^[o]

⁴But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, ⁵even though we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you are saved!^[p]— ⁶and he raised us up together with him and seated us together with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, ⁷to demonstrate in the coming ages^[q] the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward^[r] us in Christ Jesus. ⁸For by grace you are saved^[s] through faith,^[t] and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹it is not from^[u] works, so that no one can boast.^[v] ¹⁰For we are his creative work, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we can do them.^[w]

Footnotes

Ephesians 2:1 tn The adverbial participle “being” (ὄντας, ontas) is taken concessively.
Ephesians 2:1 sn Chapter 2 starts off with a participle, although you were dead, that is left dangling. The syntax in Greek for vv. 1-3 constitutes one incomplete sentence, though it seems to have been done intentionally. The dangling participle leaves the readers in suspense while they wait for the solution (in v. 4) to their spiritual dilemma.
Ephesians 2:2 sn The relative pronoun which is feminine as is sins, indicating that sins is the antecedent.
Ephesians 2:2 tn Grk “walked.” sn The Greek verb translated lived (περιπατέω, peripateō) in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.
Ephesians 2:2 tn Or possibly “Aeon.”sn The word translated present path is the same as that which has been translated [this] age in 1:21 (αἰών, aiōn).
Ephesians 2:2 tn That is, “[place of] authority”; see BDAG 353 s.v. ἐξουσία 6.
Ephesians 2:2 tn Grk “of” (but see the note on the word “spirit” later in this verse).
Ephesians 2:2 sn The ruler of the kingdom of the air is also the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. Although several translations regard the ruler to be the same as the spirit, this is unlikely since the cases in Greek are different (ruler is accusative and spirit is genitive). To get around this, some have suggested that the genitive for spirit is a genitive of apposition. However, the semantics of the genitive of apposition are against such an interpretation (cf. ExSyn 100).
Ephesians 2:2 tn Grk “working in.”
Ephesians 2:2 sn Sons of disobedience is a Semitic idiom that means “people characterized by disobedience.” However, it also contains a subtle allusion to vv. 4-10: Some of those sons of disobedience have become sons of God.
Ephesians 2:3 sn Among whom. The relative pronoun phrase that begins v. 3 is identical, except for gender, to the one that begins v. 2 (ἐν αἵς [en hais], ἐν οἵς [en hois]). By the structure, the author is building an argument for our hopeless condition: We lived in sin and we lived among sinful people. Our doom looked to be sealed as well in v. 2: Both the external environment (kingdom of the air) and our internal motivation and attitude (the spirit that is now energizing) were under the devil’s thumb (cf. 2 Cor 4:4).
Ephesians 2:3 tn Grk “we all.”
Ephesians 2:3 tn Or “even.”
Ephesians 2:3 sn Children of wrath is a Semitic idiom which may mean either “people characterized by wrath” or “people destined for wrath.”
Ephesians 2:3 sn Eph 2:1-3. The translation of vv. 1-3 is very literal, even to the point of retaining the awkward syntax of the original. See note on the word dead in 2:1.
Ephesians 2:5 tn Or “by grace you have been saved.” The perfect tense in Greek connotes both completed action (“you have been saved”) and continuing results (“you are saved”).
Ephesians 2:7 tn Or possibly “to the Aeons who are about to come.”
Ephesians 2:7 tn Or “upon.”
Ephesians 2:8 tn See note on the same expression in v. 5.
Ephesians 2:8 tc The feminine article is found before πίστεως (pisteōs, “faith”) in the Byzantine text as well as in A Ψ 1241 1881 al. Perhaps for some scribes the article was intended to imply creedal fidelity as a necessary condition of salvation (“you are saved through the faith”), although elsewhere in the corpus Paulinum the phrase διὰ τῆς πίστεως (dia tēs pisteōs) is used for the act of believing rather than the content of faith (cf. Rom 3:30, 31; Gal 3:14; Eph 3:17; Col 2:12). On the other side, strong representatives of the Alexandrian and Western texts (א B D* F G P 0278 6 33 1175 1505 1739 al bo) lack the article. Without the article, the meaning of the text is most likely “saved through faith” as opposed to “saved through the faith.” On both internal and external grounds the anarthrous wording is preferred.
Ephesians 2:9 tn Or “not as a result of.”
Ephesians 2:9 tn Grk “lest anyone should boast.”
Ephesians 2:10 tn Grk “so that we might walk in them” (or “by them”).sn So that we may do them. Before the devil began to control our walk in sin and among sinful people, God had already planned good works for us to do.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 91[a]

Footnotes

Footnotes

Footnotes

New Life Individually

Footnotes

Psalm 91^[a]