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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
New English Translation (NET)
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Psalm 125

Psalm 125[a]

A song of ascents.[b]

125 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be moved and will endure forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people,
now and forevermore.
3 Indeed,[c] the scepter of a wicked king[d] will not settle[e]
upon the allotted land of the godly.
Otherwise the godly
might do what is wrong.[f]
4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
to the morally upright.[g]
5 As for those who are bent on traveling a sinful path,[h]
may the Lord remove them,[i] along with those who behave wickedly.[j]
May Israel experience peace.[k]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 125:1 sn Psalm 125. The psalmist affirms his confidence in the Lord’s protection and justice.
  2. Psalm 125:1 sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.
  3. Psalm 125:3 tn Or “for.”
  4. Psalm 125:3 tn Heb “a scepter of wickedness.” The “scepter” symbolizes royal authority; when collocated with “wickedness” the phrase refers to an oppressive foreign conqueror.
  5. Psalm 125:3 tn Or “rest.”
  6. Psalm 125:3 tn Heb “so that the godly might not stretch out their hands in wrongdoing.” A wicked king who sets a sinful example can have an adverse moral and ethical effect on the people he rules.
  7. Psalm 125:4 tn Heb “pure of heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the seat of one’s moral character and motives. The “pure of heart” are God’s faithful followers who trust in and love the Lord and, as a result, experience his deliverance (see Pss 7:10; 11:2; 32:11; 36:10; 64:10; 94:15; 97:11).
  8. Psalm 125:5 tn Heb “and the ones making their paths twisted.” A sinful lifestyle is compared to a twisting, winding road.
  9. Psalm 125:5 tn Heb “lead them away.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive of prayer here (note the prayers directly before and after this). Another option is to translate, “the Lord will remove them” (cf. NIV, NRSV).
  10. Psalm 125:5 tn Heb “the workers of wickedness.”
  11. Psalm 125:5 tn Heb “peace [be] upon Israel.” The statement is understood as a prayer (see Ps 122:8 for a similar prayer for peace).
Proverbs 4:10-27

10 Listen, my child,[a] and accept my words,
so that[b] the years of your life will be many.[c]
11 I hereby guide you[d] in the way of wisdom
and I lead you in upright paths.[e]
12 When you walk, your steps[f] will not be hampered,[g]
and when you run,[h] you will not stumble.
13 Hold on to instruction,[i] do not let it go;
protect it,[j] because it is your life.
14 Do not enter the path of the wicked
or walk[k] in the way of those who are evil.
15 Avoid it, do not go on it;
turn away from it, and go on.[l]
16 For they cannot sleep[m] unless they cause harm;[n]
they are robbed of sleep[o] until they make someone stumble.[p]
17 Indeed they have eaten[q] bread gained from wickedness[r]
and drink[s] wine obtained from violence.[t]
18 But the path of the righteous is like the bright morning light,[u]
growing brighter and brighter[v] until full day.[w]
19 The way of the wicked is like gloomy darkness;
they do not know what they stumble over.[x]

20 My child, pay attention to my words;
listen attentively[y] to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart[z] from your sight,
guard[aa] them within your heart;[ab]
22 for they are life to those who find them
and healing to one’s entire body.[ac]
23 Guard your heart[ad] with all vigilance,[ae]
for from it are the sources[af] of life.
24 Remove perverse speech[ag] from your mouth;[ah]
keep devious talk far from your lips.[ai]
25 Let your eyes look directly[aj] in front of you
and let your gaze[ak] look straight before you.
26 Make the path for your feet[al] level,[am]
so that[an] all your ways may be established.[ao]
27 Do not turn[ap] to the right or to the left;
turn yourself[aq] away from evil.[ar]

Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 4:10 tn Heb “my son” (likewise in v. 20).
  2. Proverbs 4:10 tn Following an imperative, a vav plus imperfect verb can depict purpose or result.
  3. Proverbs 4:10 tn Heb “and the years of life will be many for you.”
  4. Proverbs 4:11 tn The form הֹרֵתִיךָ (horetikha) is the Hiphil perfect with a suffix from the root יָרָה (yarah, “to guide”). This and the parallel verb should be taken as instantaneous (or performative) perfects, translated as an English present tense: The sage is now instructing or pointing the way.sn The verb יָרָה (yarah) means “to teach; to instruct; to guide.” This is from the same root as the Hebrew word for “law” (torah). See G. R. Driver, “Hebrew Notes,” VT 1 (1951): 241-50; and J. L. Crenshaw, “The Acquisition of Knowledge in Israelite Wisdom Literature,” WW 7 (1986): 9.
  5. Proverbs 4:11 tn Heb “in the tracks of uprightness”; cf. NAB “on straightforward paths.” Both the verb and the object of the preposition make use of the idiom—the verb is the Hiphil perfect from דֶּרֶךְ (derekh, related to “road; way”) and the object is “wagon tracks, paths.”
  6. Proverbs 4:12 sn The noun צַעֲדֶךָ (tsaʿadekha, “your steps”) and the temporal infinitive בְּלֶכְתְּךָ (belekhtekha, “when you walk”) use the idiom of walking to represent the course of life. On that course there will be no obstacles; the “path” will be straight—morally and practically.
  7. Proverbs 4:12 sn The verb צָרַר (tsarar, “to be narrow; to be constricted”) refers to that which is narrow or constricted, signifying distress, trouble, adversity; that which was wide-open or broad represents freedom and deliverance.
  8. Proverbs 4:12 sn The progression from walking to running is an idiom called “anabasis,” suggesting that as greater and swifter progress is made, there will be nothing to impede the progress (e.g., Isa 40:31).
  9. Proverbs 4:13 tn Or “discipline.” See note at 1:2.
  10. Proverbs 4:13 tn The form נִצְּרֶהָ (nitsereha, from נָצַר, natsar) has an anomalous doubled letter (see GKC 73 §20.h).
  11. Proverbs 4:14 tn The verb אָשַׁר (ʾashar, “to walk”) is not to be confused with the identically spelled homonym אָשַׁר “to pronounce happy” as in BDB 80 s.v. אָשַׁר.
  12. Proverbs 4:15 sn The verb עָבַר (ʿavar, “to cross over; to travel through”) ends both cola. In the first it warns against going on wrong paths; in the second it means “to go your own way,” but may hint that the way will cross over the wrong way. The rapid sequence of commands stresses the urgency of the matter.
  13. Proverbs 4:16 tn The verb יָשַׁן (yashan) “to be asleep” is a stative root. In the imperfect it can be future “will not sleep” or modal, in this case abilitive, “are not able to sleep.”
  14. Proverbs 4:16 sn The verb is רָעַע (raʿaʿ), which means “to do evil; to harm.” The verse is using the figure of hyperbole to stress the preoccupation of some people with causing trouble. R. L. Alden says, “How sick to find peace only at the price of another man’s misfortune” (Proverbs, 47).
  15. Proverbs 4:16 sn Heb “their sleep is robbed/seized”; these expressions are metonymical for their restlessness in plotting evil.
  16. Proverbs 4:16 sn The Hiphil imperfect (Kethib) means “cause to stumble.” This idiom (from hypocatastasis) means “bring injury/ruin to someone” (BDB 505-6 s.v. כָּשַׁל Hiph.1).
  17. Proverbs 4:17 tn The verb ‏לָחֲמוּ (lakhamu) is a perfect form of a dynamic root, and therefore past or perfective. This serves as verification of the description in the previous verse.
  18. Proverbs 4:17 tn Heb “the bread of wickedness” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV). There are two ways to take the genitives: (1) genitives of apposition: wickedness and violence are their food and drink (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT), or (2) genitives of source: they derive their livelihood from the evil they do (C. H. Toy, Proverbs [ICC], 93).
  19. Proverbs 4:17 tn The verb is an imperfect, either present or future, saying what they do or forecasting what they will do. Being paired with a perfect verb in the beginning of the verse, the description combines their past pattern with what they continue to do.
  20. Proverbs 4:17 tn Heb “the wine of violence” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV). This is a genitive of source, meaning that the wine they drink was plundered from their violent crime. The Hebrew is structured in an AB:BA chiasm: “For they eat the bread of wickedness, and the wine of violence they drink.” The word order in the translation is reversed for the sake of smoothness and readability.
  21. Proverbs 4:18 tn Heb “like light of brightness.” This construction is an attributive genitive: “bright light.” The word “light” (אוֹר, ʾor) refers to the early morning light or the dawn (BDB 21 s.v.). The point of the simile is that the course of life that the righteous follow is like the clear, bright morning light. It is illumined, clear, easy to follow, and healthy and safe—the opposite of what darkness represents.
  22. Proverbs 4:18 tn A literal rendering would appear to be “walking and becoming bright.” When the Qal active participle of הָלַךְ (halakh) is paired with another participle (or adj.) it can express the intensification of an event, that is, the second element in the pairing continues on and increases in character. Cf. Jonah 1:11 and see HALOT 246-247 s.v. הָלַךְ 5).
  23. Proverbs 4:18 tn Heb “until the day is established.” This expression refers to the coming of the full day or the time of high noon.
  24. Proverbs 4:19 sn The image of paths, brightness or darkness, and stumbling illustrate the contrast of lifestyles. When acting with righteousness one’s course becomes clearer and more sure, while the wicked are caught in their ways, ignorant of why they fall.
  25. Proverbs 4:20 tn Heb “incline your ear.” The verb הַט (hat) is the Hiphil imperative from נָטָה (natah, Hiphil: “to turn to; to incline”). The idiom “to incline the ear” gives the picture of “lean over and listen closely.” sn Commentators note the use of the body in this section: ear (v. 20), eyes (v. 21), flesh (v. 22), heart (v. 23), lips (v. 24), eyes (v. 25), feet (v. 26), and hands and feet (v. 27). Each is a synecdoche of part representing the whole; the total accumulation signifies the complete person in the process.
  26. Proverbs 4:21 tn The Hiphil form יַלִּיזוּ (yallizu) follows the Aramaic with gemination. The verb means “to turn aside; to depart” (intransitive Hiphil or inner causative).
  27. Proverbs 4:21 tn Or “keep” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV and many others).
  28. Proverbs 4:21 sn The words “eyes” and “heart” are metonymies of subject representing the faculties of each. Cf. CEV “think about it all.”
  29. Proverbs 4:22 tn Heb “to all of his flesh.”
  30. Proverbs 4:23 tn Anatomically the Hebrew word לֵב (lev) refers to the “heart.” But abstractly it can refer to one’s inner self, will, understanding, or mind. They did not see the heart and mind in opposition, such that the advice here includes both one’s thinking and feelings.
  31. Proverbs 4:23 tn Heb “more than any guard.” The preposition מִן (min) has its comparative sense “more than.” The noun מִשְׁמָר (mishmar) refers here to the act of guarding, protection, or vigilance (BDB 1038 s.v. מִשְׁמָר; HALOT 649 s.v. מִשְׁמָר).
  32. Proverbs 4:23 sn The word תּוֹצְאוֹת (totseʾot, from יָצָא, yatsaʾ) means “outgoings; extremities; sources.” It is used here for starting points, like a fountainhead, and so the translation “sources” works well.
  33. Proverbs 4:24 tn Heb “crookedness.” The noun עִקְּשׁוּת (ʿiqqeshut) refers to what is morally twisted or perverted. Here it refers to things that are said (cf. NAB “dishonest talk”; NRSV “crooked speech”). The term “mouth” functions as a metonymy of cause for perverse speech. Such perverse talking could be subtle or blatant.
  34. Proverbs 4:24 tn Heb “crookedness of mouth.”
  35. Proverbs 4:24 tn Heb “deviousness of lips put far from you.”
  36. Proverbs 4:25 tn The jussives in this verse are both Hiphil, the first from the verb “to gaze; to look intently [or, carefully],” (נָבַט, navat) and the second from the verb “to be smooth, straight” (יָשָׁר, yashar).
  37. Proverbs 4:25 tn Heb “your eyelids.” The term “eyelids” is often a poetic synonym for “eye” (it is a metonymy of adjunct, something connected with the eye put for the eye that sees); it may intensify the idea as one might squint to gain a clearer look.
  38. Proverbs 4:26 tn Heb “path of your foot.”
  39. Proverbs 4:26 sn The verb is a denominative Piel from the word פֶּלֶס (peles), “balance; scale.” In addition to telling the disciple to keep focused on a righteous life, the sage tells him to keep his path level, which is figurative for living the righteous life.
  40. Proverbs 4:26 tn Following an imperative, a vav plus imperfect verb can depict purpose or result.
  41. Proverbs 4:26 tn The Niphal jussive from כּוּן (kun, “to be fixed; to be established; to be steadfast”) continues the idiom of walking and ways for the moral sense in life.
  42. Proverbs 4:27 sn The two verbs in this verse are from different roots, but nonetheless share the same semantic domain. The first verb is תֵּט (tet), a jussive from נָטָה (natah), which means “to turn aside” (Hiphil); the second verb is the Hiphil imperative of סוּר (sur), which means “to cause to turn to the side” (Hiphil). The disciple is not to leave the path of righteousness, but to stay on the path he must leave evil.
  43. Proverbs 4:27 tn Heb “your foot” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV). The term רַגְלְךָ (raglekha, “your foot”) is a synecdoche of part (= foot) for the whole person (= “yourself”).
  44. Proverbs 4:27 tc The LXX adds, “For the way of the right hand God knows, but those of the left hand are distorted; and he himself will make straight your paths and guide your goings in peace.” The ideas presented here are not out of harmony with Proverbs, but the section clearly shows an expansion by the translator. For a brief discussion of whether this addition is Jewish or early Christian, see C. H. Toy, Proverbs (ICC), 99.
Romans 2:12-16

12 For all who have sinned apart from the law[a] will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous before God, but those who do the law will be declared righteous.[b] 14 For whenever the Gentiles,[c] who do not have the law, do by nature[d] the things required by the law,[e] these who do not have the law are a law to themselves. 15 They[f] show that the work of the law is written[g] in their hearts, as their conscience bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or else defend[h] them,[i] 16 on the day when God will judge[j] the secrets of human hearts,[k] according to my gospel[l] through Christ Jesus.

Footnotes

  1. Romans 2:12 sn This is the first occurrence of law (nomos) in Romans. Exactly what Paul means by the term has been the subject of much scholarly debate. According to J. A. Fitzmyer (Romans [AB], 131-35; 305-6) there are at least four different senses: (1) figurative, as a “principle”; (2) generic, meaning “a law”; (3) as a reference to the OT or some part of the OT; and (4) as a reference to the Mosaic law. This last usage constitutes the majority of Paul’s references to “law” in Romans.
  2. Romans 2:13 tn The Greek sentence expresses this contrast more succinctly than is possible in English. Grk “For not the hearers of the law are righteous before God, but the doers of the law will be declared righteous.”
  3. Romans 2:14 sn Gentile is a NT term for a non-Jew.
  4. Romans 2:14 tn Some (e.g. C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:135-37) take the phrase φύσει (phusei, “by nature”) to go with the preceding “do not have the law,” thus: “the Gentiles who do not have the law by nature,” that is, by virtue of not being born Jewish.
  5. Romans 2:14 tn Grk “do by nature the things of the law.”
  6. Romans 2:15 tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
  7. Romans 2:15 tn Grk “show the work of the law [to be] written,” with the words in brackets implied by the Greek construction.
  8. Romans 2:15 tn Or “excuse.”
  9. Romans 2:15 tn Grk “their conscience bearing witness and between the thoughts accusing or also defending one another.”
  10. Romans 2:16 tn The form of the Greek word is either present or future, but it is best to translate in future because of the context of future judgment.
  11. Romans 2:16 tn Grk “of people.”
  12. Romans 2:16 sn On my gospel cf. Rom 16:25; 2 Tim 2:8.
New English Translation (NET)

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