◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Psalm 73:1-20 (I saw the prosperity of the wicked); Proverbs 8:32—9:6 (Wisdom speaks); Hebrews 11:29—12:2 (The heroes of faith) (New English Translation)

Prev Day

September 6, 2021

Next Day

Use the calendar to view readings from this devotional.

September 2021
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

Return to today's reading

Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

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

Duration: 1245 days

Psalm 73:1-20

Book 3 (Psalms 73-89)

Psalm 73^[a]

A psalm by Asaph.

73 Certainly God is good to Israel,^[b]
and to those whose motives are pure.^[c]
²But as for me, my feet almost slipped;
my feet almost slid out from under me.^[d]
³For I envied those who are proud,
as I observed^[e] the prosperity^[f] of the wicked.
⁴For they suffer no pain;^[g]
their bodies^[h] are strong and well fed.^[i]
⁵They are immune to the trouble common to men;
they do not suffer as other men do.^[j]
⁶Arrogance is their necklace,^[k]
and violence covers them like clothing.^[l]
⁷Their prosperity causes them to do wrong;^[m]
their thoughts are sinful.^[n]
⁸They mock^[o] and say evil things;^[p]
they proudly threaten violence.^[q]
⁹They speak as if they rule in heaven,
and lay claim to the earth.^[r]
¹⁰Therefore they have more than enough food to eat,
and even suck up the water of the sea.^[s]
¹¹They say, “How does God know what we do?
Is the Most High aware of what goes on?”^[t]
¹²Take a good look. This is what the wicked are like,^[u]
those who always have it so easy and get richer and richer.^[v]
¹³I concluded,^[w] “Surely in vain I have kept my motives^[x] pure
and maintained a pure lifestyle.^[y]
¹⁴I suffer all day long,
and am punished every morning.”
¹⁵If I had publicized these thoughts,^[z]
I would have betrayed your people.^[aa]
¹⁶When I tried to make sense of this,
it was troubling to me.^[ab]
¹⁷Then I entered the precincts of God’s temple,^[ac]
and understood the destiny of the wicked.^[ad]
¹⁸Surely^[ae] you put them in slippery places;
you bring them down^[af] to ruin.
¹⁹How desolate they become in a mere moment.
Terrifying judgments make their demise complete.^[ag]
²⁰They are like a dream after one wakes up.^[ah]
O Lord, when you awake^[ai] you will despise them.^[aj]

Footnotes

Psalm 73:1 sn Psalm 73. In this wisdom psalm the psalmist offers a personal testimony of his struggle with the age-old problem of the prosperity of the wicked. As he observed evil men prosper, he wondered if a godly lifestyle really pays off. In the midst of his discouragement, he reflected upon spiritual truths and realities. He was reminded that the prosperity of the wicked is only temporary. God will eventually vindicate his people.
Psalm 73:1 tn Since the psalm appears to focus on an individual’s concerns, not the situation of Israel, this introduction may be a later addition designed to apply the psalm’s message to the entire community. To provide a better parallel with the next line, some emend the Hebrew phrase לְיִשְׂרָאֵל אֱלֹהִים (l^eyisra’el ʾelohim, “to Israel, God”) to אֱלֹהִים [or אֵל] לָיָּשָׁר (layyashar ʾelohim [or ʾel], “God [is good] to the upright one”).
Psalm 73:1 tn Heb “to the pure of heart.”
Psalm 73:2 tn The Hebrew verb normally means “to pour out,” but here it must have the nuance “to slide.”sn My feet almost slid out from under me. The language is metaphorical. As the following context makes clear, the psalmist almost “slipped” in a spiritual sense. As he began to question God’s justice, the psalmist came close to abandoning his faith.
Psalm 73:3 tn The imperfect verbal form here depicts the action as continuing in a past time frame.
Psalm 73:3 tn Heb “peace” (שָׁלוֹם, shalom).
Psalm 73:4 tn In Isa 58:6, the only other occurrence of this word in the OT, the term refers to “bonds” or “ropes.” In Ps 73:4 it is used metaphorically of pain and suffering that restricts one’s enjoyment of life.
Psalm 73:4 tn Or “bellies.”
Psalm 73:4 tc Or “fat.” The MT of v. 4 reads as follows: “for there are no pains at their death, and fat [is] their body.” Since a reference to the death of the wicked seems incongruous in the immediate context (note v. 5) and premature in the argument of the psalm (see vv. 18-20, 27), some prefer to emend the text by redividing it. The term לְמוֹתָם (l^emotam, “at their death”) is changed to לָמוֹ תָּם (lamo tam, “[there are no pains] to them, strong [and fat are their bodies]”). The term תָּם (tam, “complete; sound”) is used of physical beauty in Song 5:2; 6:9. This emendation is the basis for the present translation. However, in defense of the MT (the traditional Hebrew text), one may point to an Aramaic inscription from Nerab which views a painful death as a curse and a nonpainful death in one’s old age as a sign of divine favor. See ANET 661.
Psalm 73:5 tn Heb “in the trouble of man they are not, and with mankind they are not afflicted.”
Psalm 73:6 sn Arrogance is their necklace. The metaphor suggests that their arrogance is something the wicked “wear” proudly. It draws attention to them, just as a beautiful necklace does to its owner.
Psalm 73:6 tn Heb “a garment of violence covers them.” The metaphor suggests that violence is habitual for the wicked. They “wear” it like clothing; when one looks at them, violence is what one sees.
Psalm 73:7 tc The MT reads “it goes out from fatness their eye,” which might be paraphrased, “their eye protrudes [or “bulges”] because of fatness.” This in turn might refer to their greed; their eyes “bug out” when they see rich food or produce (the noun חֵלֶב [khelev, “fatness”] sometimes refers to such food or produce). However, when used with the verb יָצָא (yatsaʾ, “go out”) the preposition מִן (“from”) more naturally indicates source. For this reason it is preferable to emend עֵינֵמוֹ (ʿenemo, “their eye”) to עֲוֹנָמוֹ, (ʿavonamo, “their sin”) and read, “and their sin proceeds forth from fatness,” that is, their prosperity gives rise to their sinful attitudes. If one follows this textual reading, another interpretive option is to take חֵלֶב (“fatness”) in the sense of “unreceptive, insensitive” (see its use in Ps 17:10). In this case, the sin of the wicked proceeds forth from their spiritual insensitivity.
Psalm 73:7 tn Heb “the thoughts of [their] heart [i.e., mind] cross over” (i.e., violate God’s moral boundary, see Ps 17:3).
Psalm 73:8 tn The verb מוּק (muq, “mock”) occurs only here in the OT.
Psalm 73:8 tn Heb “and speak with evil.”
Psalm 73:8 tn Heb “oppression from an elevated place they speak.” The traditional accentuation of the MT places “oppression” with the preceding line. In this case, one might translate, “they mock and speak with evil [of] oppression, from an elevated place [i.e., “proudly”] they speak.” By placing “oppression” with what follows, one achieves better poetic balance in the parallelism.
Psalm 73:9 tn Heb “they set in heaven their mouth, and their tongue walks through the earth.” The meaning of the text is uncertain. Perhaps the idea is that they lay claim to heaven (i.e., speak as if they were ruling in heaven) and move through the earth declaring their superiority and exerting their influence. Some take the preposition ב (bet) the first line as adversative and translate, “they set their mouth against heaven,” that is, they defy God.
Psalm 73:10 tc Heb “therefore his people return [so Qere (marginal reading); Kethib (consonantal text) has “he brings back”] to here, and waters of abundance are sucked up by them.” The traditional Hebrew text (MT) defies explanation. The present translation reflects M. Dahood’s proposed emendations (Psalms [AB], 2:190) and reads the Hebrew text as follows: לָכֵן יִשְׂבְעוּם לֶחֶם וּמֵי מָלֵא יָמֹצּוּ לָמוֹ (“therefore they are filled with food, and waters of abundance they suck up for themselves”). The reading יִשְׂבְעוּם לֶחֶם (yisv^eʿum lekhem, “they are filled with food”) assumes (1) an emendation of יָשִׁיב עַמּוֹ (yashiv ʿammo, “he will bring back his people”) to יִשְׂבְעוּם (yisv^eʿum, “they will be filled”; a Qal imperfect third masculine plural form from שָׂבַע [savaʿ] with enclitic mem [ם]), and (2) an emendation of הֲלֹם (halom, “to here”) to לֶחֶם (“food”). The expression “be filled/fill with food” appears elsewhere at least ten times (see Ps 132:15, for example). In the second line the Niphal form יִמָּצוּ (yimmatsu, derived from מָצָה, matsah, “drain”) is emended to a Qal form יָמֹצּוּ (yamotsu), derived from מָצַץ (matsats, “to suck”). In Isa 66:11 the verbs שָׂבַע (savaʿ; proposed in Ps 73:10a) and מָצַץ (proposed in Ps 73:10b) are parallel. The point of the emended text is this: Because they are seemingly sovereign (v. 9), they become greedy and grab up everything they need and more.
Psalm 73:11 tn Heb “How does God know? Is there knowledge with the Most High?” They appear to be practical atheists, who acknowledge God’s existence and sovereignty in theory, but deny his involvement in the world (see Pss 10:4, 11; 14:1).
Psalm 73:12 tn Heb “Look, these [are] the wicked.”
Psalm 73:12 tn Heb “the ones who are always at ease [who] increase wealth.”
Psalm 73:13 tn The words “I concluded” are supplied in the translation. It is apparent that vv. 13-14 reflect the psalmist’s thoughts at an earlier time (see vv. 2-3), prior to the spiritual awakening he describes in vv. 17-28.
Psalm 73:13 tn Heb “heart,” viewed here as the seat of one’s thoughts and motives.
Psalm 73:13 tn Heb “and washed my hands in innocence.” The psalmist uses an image from cultic ritual to picture his moral lifestyle. The reference to “hands” suggests actions.
Psalm 73:15 tn Heb “If I had said, ‘I will speak out like this.’”
Psalm 73:15 tn Heb “look, the generation of your sons I would have betrayed.” The phrase “generation of your [i.e., God’s] sons” occurs only here in the OT. Some equate the phrase with “generation of the godly” (Ps 14:5), “generation of the ones seeking him” (Ps 24:6), and “generation of the upright” (Ps 112:2). In Deut 14:1 the Israelites are referred to as God’s “sons.” Perhaps the psalmist refers here to those who are “Israelites” in the true sense because of their loyalty to God (note the juxtaposition of “Israel” with “the pure in heart” in v. 1).
Psalm 73:16 tn Heb “and [when] I pondered to understand this, troubling it [was] in my eyes.”
Psalm 73:17 tn The plural of the term מִקְדָּשׁ (miqdash) probably refers to the temple precincts (see Ps 68:35; Jer 51:51).
Psalm 73:17 tn Heb “I discerned their end.” At the temple the psalmist perhaps received an oracle of deliverance announcing his vindication and the demise of the wicked (see Ps 12) or heard songs of confidence (for example, Ps 11), wisdom psalms (for example, Pss 1, 37), and hymns (for example, Ps 112) that describe the eventual downfall of the proud and wealthy.
Psalm 73:18 tn The use of the Hebrew term אַךְ (ʾakh, “surely”) here literarily counteracts its use in v. 13. The repetition draws attention to the contrast between the two statements, the first of which expresses the psalmist’s earlier despair and the second his newly discovered confidence.
Psalm 73:18 tn Heb “cause them to fall.”
Psalm 73:19 tn Heb “they come to an end, they are finished, from terrors.”
Psalm 73:20 tn Heb “like a dream from awakening.” They lack any real substance; their prosperity will last for only a brief time.
Psalm 73:20 sn When you awake. The psalmist compares God’s inactivity to sleep and the time of God’s judgment to his awakening from sleep.
Psalm 73:20 tn Heb “you will despise their form.” The Hebrew term צֶלֶם (tselem, “form; image”) also suggests their short-lived nature. Rather than having real substance, they are like the mere images that populate one’s dreams. Note the similar use of the term in Ps 39:6.

Proverbs 8:32-9:6

³²“So now, children,^[a] listen to me;

blessed are those who keep my ways.
³³Listen to my instruction^[b] so that you may be wise,^[c]
and do not neglect it.
³⁴Blessed is the one^[d] who listens to me,
watching^[e] at my doors day by day,
waiting^[f] beside my doorway.^[g]
³⁵For the one who finds me has found^[h] life
and received^[i] favor from the Lord.
³⁶But the one who misses me^[j] brings harm^[k] to himself;^[l]
all who hate^[m] me love death.”

The Consequences of Accepting Wisdom or Folly^[n]

9 Wisdom has built her house;
she has carved out its seven pillars.^[o]
²She has prepared her meat,^[p] she has mixed her wine;
she also has arranged her table.^[q]
³She has sent out her female servants;
she calls out^[r] on the highest places^[s] of the city.
⁴“Whoever is naive, let him turn in here.”
To those^[t] who lack understanding,^[u] she has said,^[v]
⁵“Come, eat^[w] some of my food,
and drink some of the wine I have mixed.^[x]
⁶Abandon your foolish ways^[y] so that you may live,^[z]
and proceed^[aa] in the way of understanding.”

Footnotes

Proverbs 8:32 tn Heb “sons.”
Proverbs 8:33 tn Heb “discipline.”
Proverbs 8:33 tn The construction uses two imperatives joined with the vav (ו); this is a volitive sequence in which result or consequence is being expressed.
Proverbs 8:34 tn Heb “the man.”
Proverbs 8:34 tn The form לִשְׁקֹד (lishqod) is the infinitive construct serving epexegetically in the sentence. It explains how the person will listen to wisdom.
Proverbs 8:34 tn Heb “keeping” or “guarding.”
Proverbs 8:34 tn Heb “at the posts of my doors” (so KJV, ASV).
Proverbs 8:35 tc The Kethib reads the verb as a plural participle: “the one who finds me are finders of life.” The LXX reads a plural subject: “those who find me.” But the Hebrew Qere reads a singular perfect verb. The next verb is a preterite, which commonly follows the perfect but very rarely a participle. The perfect form of a dynamic verb should be translated as past or perfective.
Proverbs 8:35 tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive continues the time frame of the perfect verb that came before it. sn The sage uses these verb forms in contrast with the following verse, which is present tense. The antithetic parallelism contrasts not just the subject (who finds vs. who misses) and the verb (to find vs. to harm) but also the state of the outcome. This person found life and continues in the benefit: “had found life.”
Proverbs 8:36 tn Heb “the one sinning [against] me.” The verb חָטָא (khataʾ, “to sin, to err”) forms a contrast with “find” in the previous verse, and so has its basic meaning of “failing to find, miss.”
Proverbs 8:36 tn The Qal active participle functions verbally here. The word stresses both social and physical harm and violence. sn Brings harm. While the previous verse used past time verbs, the sage employs the participle here as an ongoing activity. Whoever tries to live without wisdom is inviting all kinds of disaster into his life.
Proverbs 8:36 tn Heb “his soul.”
Proverbs 8:36 tn The basic idea of the verb שָׂנֵא (saneʾ, “to hate”) is that of rejection. Its antonym is also used in the line, “love,” which has the idea of choosing. So not choosing (i.e., hating) wisdom amounts to choosing (i.e., loving) death.
Proverbs 9:1 sn Chapter 9 forms the conclusion of the lengthy introduction to the book. Both wisdom and folly will make their final appeals; and both appeal to the simpletons. Wisdom offers life with no mention of pleasure; folly offers pleasure with no mention of death. The first twelve verses concern accepting wisdom: the invitation of wisdom (1-6), the description of the responses (7-11), and the consequence (12). Verses 13-18 concern accepting folly: the invitation (13-17) and the consequence (18).
Proverbs 9:1 sn Wisdom is personified as a wise woman. She has prepared a house and established it on seven pillars. This is a reference to the habitable world (e.g., 8:31). For the equation of the house and the world, e.g., 8:29; Job 38:6; Ps 104:5 (also G. Boström, Proverbiastudien [LUÅ], 1-14). The “seven pillars” have been variously interpreted, but since seven is a number for completeness and sacredness, the idea seems to be that wisdom produced a perfect world.
Proverbs 9:2 tn Heb “she has slaughtered her slaughter [animals].” English does not prefer to use a cognate verb and noun for butchering an animal in food preparation. Cf. KJV “hath killed her beasts”; NAB “has dressed her meat”; NASB “has prepared her food.”
Proverbs 9:2 sn Wisdom has prepared a sumptuous banquet in this house and sends out her maids to call the simple to come and eat (M. Lichtenstein, “The Banquet Motif in Keret and in Proverbs 9, ” JANESCU 1 [1968/69]: 19-31). The figures of meat and wine represent the good teaching of wisdom that will be palatable and profitable (implied comparisons). Cf. Isaiah 55:1-2 and John 6:51, 55 for similar uses of the figures. The idea of mixing wine could refer to the practice of mixing wine with spices or with water (as the LXX text assumes; e.g., Prov 23:30; Isa 5:22). Mixed wine was the most intoxicating; thus, her wisdom is attractive. All the imagery lets the simple know that what wisdom has to offer is marvelous.
Proverbs 9:3 tn The Hebrew imperfect can be a general present. The prior perfect verbs tell what she has done in preparation, while the imperfect tells what she now does. But it is also possible, given the past time context of the previous verbs, that the imperfect should be understood as past habitual, “she would call,” or as a preterite (without the vav consecutive), “she called.” This would be in line with the next verse which uses a perfect, “she has said.”
Proverbs 9:3 tn The text uses two synonymous terms in construct to express the superlative degree.
Proverbs 9:4 tn Heb “[As for one] lacking of mind—she has said to him.” The pronominal suffix is a resumptive pronoun, meaning, “she has said to the [person] lacking of mind.”
Proverbs 9:4 tn The Hebrew word לֵב (lev) means both the “heart” and the “mind.” By metonymy, the mind stands for understanding or judgment.
Proverbs 9:4 tn The Hebrew switches to the perfect verb form to introduce the speech in the following verses. It lets us know what her message has been. It is possible that the imperfect verb in the previous verse should be understood as a past habitual, “she would call” or as a preterite (without the vav consecutive), “she called.” tc The LXX supports the reading of the verb as a perfect. But at the similar construction in 9:16, the LXX reads a participle, which would be present time. The consonants are the same for both forms. It is possible that the verb should be read as a participle in both verses. The present tense could certainly fit the context.
Proverbs 9:5 tn The construction features a cognate accusative (verb and noun from same root). The preposition ב (bet) has the partitive use “some” (GKC 380 §119.m).
Proverbs 9:5 tn The final verb actually stands in a relative clause although the relative pronoun is not present; it modifies “wine.”sn The expressions “eat” and “drink” carry the implied comparison forward; they mean that the simple are to appropriate the teachings of wisdom.
Proverbs 9:6 tn There are two ways to take this word: either as “fools” or as “foolish ways.” The spelling for “foolishness” in v. 13 differs from this spelling, and so some have taken that as an indicator that this should be “fools.” But this could still be an abstract plural here as in 1:22. Either the message is to forsake fools (i.e., bad company; cf. KJV, TEV) or forsake foolishness (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV, NRSV, NLT).
Proverbs 9:6 tn The two imperatives are joined with vav; this is a volitive sequence in which result or consequence is expressed.
Proverbs 9:6 tn The verb means “go straight, go on, advance” or “go straight on in the way of understanding” (BDB 80 s.v. אָשַׁר).

Hebrews 11:29-12:2

²⁹By faith they crossed the Red Sea as if on dry ground, but when the Egyptians tried it, they were swallowed up. ³⁰By faith the walls of Jericho fell after the people marched around them^[a] for seven days. ³¹By faith Rahab the prostitute escaped the destruction of^[b] the disobedient, because she welcomed the spies in peace.

³²And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets. ³³Through faith they conquered kingdoms, administered justice,^[c] gained what was promised,^[d] shut the mouths of lions, ³⁴quenched raging fire,^[e] escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength in weakness,^[f] became mighty in battle, put foreign armies to flight, ³⁵and women received back their dead raised to life.^[g] But others were tortured, not accepting release, to obtain resurrection to a better life.^[h] ³⁶And others experienced mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. ³⁷They were stoned, sawed apart,^[i] murdered with the sword; they went about in sheepskins and goatskins; they were destitute, afflicted, ill-treated ³⁸(the world was not worthy of them); they wandered in deserts and mountains and caves and openings in the earth. ³⁹And these all were commended^[j] for their faith, yet they did not receive what was promised.^[k] ⁴⁰For God had provided something better for us, so that they would be made perfect together with us.^[l]

The Lord’s Discipline

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,^[m] we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us, ²keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For^[n] the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.^[o]

Footnotes

Hebrews 11:30 tn Grk “after they had been encircled.”
Hebrews 11:31 tn Grk “did not perish together with.”
Hebrews 11:33 tn This probably refers to the righteous rule of David and others. But it could be more general and mean “did what was righteous.”
Hebrews 11:33 tn Grk “obtained promises,” referring to the things God promised, not to the pledges themselves. sn Gained what was promised. They saw some of God’s promises fulfilled, even though the central promise remained unfulfilled until Christ came (cf. vv. 39-40).
Hebrews 11:34 tn Grk “quenched the power of fire.”
Hebrews 11:34 tn Or “recovered from sickness.”
Hebrews 11:35 tn Grk “received back their dead from resurrection.”
Hebrews 11:35 tn Grk “to obtain a better resurrection.”
Hebrews 11:37 tc The reading ἐπρίσθησαν (epristhēsan, “they were sawed apart”) is found in some significant witnesses (P⁴⁶ [D* twice reads ἐπίρσθησαν, “they were burned”?] sy^p sa Or^pt Eus). Other mss have ἐπειράσθησαν (epeirasthēsan, “they were tempted”), either before “sawed apart” ([א] L P [048] 33 81 326 1505 sy^h), after “sawed apart” (P^13vid A D¹ Ψ 1739 1881 M lat bo Or^pt), or altogether in place of “sawed apart” (0150 vg^mss Cl). Since the two words ἐπρίσθησαν and ἐπειράσθησαν are so much alike in sight and sound, and since the position of “they were tempted” varies in the mss, it seems best to say that ἐπειράσθησαν is an accidental transcriptional error of ἐπρίσθησαν or an intentional change to a more common word (the root of ἐπρίσθησαν [πρίζω, prizō] occurs only here in the NT, while the root of ἐπειράσθησαν [πειράζω, peirazō] occurs 38 times). The best reading here seems to be “sawed apart” without any addition before or after. (See TCGNT 603-4, for a discussion of emendations that scholars have proposed for this difficult problem.)
Hebrews 11:39 sn The expression these all were commended forms an inclusio with Heb 11:2: The chapter begins and ends with references to commendation for faith.
Hebrews 11:39 tn Grk “the promise,” referring to the thing God promised, not to the pledge itself.
Hebrews 11:40 tn The Greek phrasing emphasizes this point by negating the opposite: “so that they would not be made perfect without us.”
Hebrews 12:1 tn Grk “having such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.”
Hebrews 12:2 tn Or “Because of”; or “Instead of.” The Greek prepostion can be understood either way. For discussion and sources see Wallace, ExSyn 367-68; cf. also BDAG 88 s.v. 1, “instead of, in place of” and s.v. 3 “(in exchange) for.”
Hebrews 12:2 sn An allusion to Ps 110:1.

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 (Semicontinuous)

Book 3 (Psalms 73-89)

Psalm 73[a]

A psalm by Asaph.

Footnotes

The Consequences of Accepting Wisdom or Folly[n]

Footnotes

The Lord’s Discipline

Footnotes

Psalm 73^[a]

The Consequences of Accepting Wisdom or Folly^[n]