◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Psalm 102:1-17 (Like a lonely bird on a housetop); Jeremiah 29:24-32 (Jeremiah exposes a false prophet); Ephesians 6:10-20 (An ambassador in chains) (New English Translation)

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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 102:1-17

Psalm 102^[a]

The prayer of an oppressed man, as he grows faint and pours out his lament before the Lord.

102 O Lord, hear my prayer.
Pay attention to my cry for help.^[b]
²Do not ignore me in my time of trouble.^[c]
Listen to me.^[d]
When I call out to you, quickly answer me.
³For my days go up in smoke,^[e]
and my bones are charred as in a fireplace.^[f]
⁴My heart is parched^[g] and withered like grass,
for I am unable^[h] to eat food.^[i]
⁵Because of the anxiety that makes me groan,
my bones protrude from my skin.^[j]
⁶I am like an owl^[k] in the wilderness;
I am like a screech owl^[l] among the ruins.^[m]
⁷I stay awake;^[n]
I am like a solitary bird on a roof.
⁸All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who mock me use my name in their curses.^[o]
⁹For I eat ashes as if they were bread,^[p]
and mix my drink with my tears,^[q]
¹⁰because of your anger and raging fury.
Indeed,^[r] you pick me up and throw me away.
¹¹My days are coming to an end,^[s]
and I am withered like grass.
¹²But you, O Lord, rule forever,^[t]
and your reputation endures.^[u]
¹³You will rise up and have compassion on Zion.^[v]
For it is time to have mercy on her,
for the appointed time has come.
¹⁴Indeed,^[w] your servants take delight in her stones,
and feel compassion for^[x] the dust of her ruins.^[y]
¹⁵The nations will respect the reputation of the Lord,^[z]
and all the kings of the earth will respect^[aa] his splendor,
¹⁶when the Lord rebuilds Zion,
and reveals his splendor,
¹⁷when he responds to the prayer of the destitute,^[ab]
and does not reject^[ac] their request.^[ad]

Footnotes

Psalm 102:1 sn Psalm 102. The psalmist laments his oppressed state, but longs for a day when the Lord will restore Jerusalem and vindicate his suffering people.
Psalm 102:1 tn Heb “and may my cry for help come to you.”
Psalm 102:2 tn Heb “do not hide your face from me in the day of my trouble.” The idiom “to hide the face” can mean “to ignore” (see Pss 10:11; 13:1; 51:9) or carry the stronger idea of “to reject” (see Pss 29:7; 30:7; 88:14).
Psalm 102:2 tn Heb “turn toward me your ear.”
Psalm 102:3 tn Heb “for my days come to an end in smoke.”
Psalm 102:3 tn The Hebrew noun קֵד (qed, “fireplace”) occurs only here, in Isa 33:14 (where it refers to the fire itself), and perhaps in Lev 6:2.
Psalm 102:4 tn Heb “struck, attacked.”
Psalm 102:4 tn Heb “I forget.”
Psalm 102:4 sn I am unable to eat food. During his time of mourning, the psalmist refrained from eating. In the following verse he describes metaphorically the physical effects of fasting.
Psalm 102:5 tn Heb “from the sound of my groaning my bone[s] stick to my flesh.” The preposition at the beginning of the verse is causal; the phrase “sound of my groaning” is metonymic for the anxiety that causes the groaning. The point seems to be this: Anxiety (which causes the psalmist to groan) keeps him from eating (v. 4). This physical deprivation in turn makes him emaciated—he is turned to “skin and bones,” so to speak.
Psalm 102:6 tn The Hebrew term קָאַת (qaʾat) refers to some type of bird (see Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (see Zeph 2:14). Modern translations have frequently rendered this as some type of owl (NIV, REB “desert owl”; NRSV “owl”).
Psalm 102:6 tn The Hebrew term כוֹס (khos) refers to a bird (see Lev 11:17; Deut 14:16), probably a type of owl (cf. NIV, REB “owl”; NRSV “little owl”).
Psalm 102:6 sn By comparing himself to a screech owl among the ruins, the psalmist may be highlighting his loneliness (see v. 7), though he may also be comparing his cries for help to the owl’s screech.
Psalm 102:7 tn This probably refers to the psalmist’s inability to sleep. Another option is to translate, “I keep watch,” in which case it might refer to watching for a response from the Lord (see vv. 1-2).
Psalm 102:8 tn Heb “by me they swear.” When the psalmist’s enemies call judgment down on others, they hold the psalmist up as a prime example of what they desire their enemies to become.
Psalm 102:9 sn Mourners would sometimes put ashes on their head or roll in ashes as a sign of mourning (see 2 Sam 13:19; Job 2:8; Isa 58:5).
Psalm 102:9 tn Heb “weeping.”
Psalm 102:10 tn Or “for.”
Psalm 102:11 tn Heb “my days [are] like an extended [or “lengthening”] shadow,” that is, like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness.
Psalm 102:12 tn Heb “sit” (i.e., sit enthroned, see Ps 9:7). The imperfect verbal form highlights the generalization.
Psalm 102:12 tn Heb “and your remembrance [is] for a generation and a generation.”
Psalm 102:13 tn The imperfect verbal forms are understood as expressing the psalmist’s confidence in God’s intervention. Another option is to take them as expressing the psalmist’s request or wish, “You, rise up and have compassion!”
Psalm 102:14 tn Or “for.”
Psalm 102:14 tn The Poel of חָנַן (khanan) occurs only here and in Prov 14:21, where it refers to having compassion on the poor.
Psalm 102:14 tn Heb “her dust,” probably referring to the dust of the city’s rubble.
Psalm 102:15 tn Heb “will fear the name of the Lord.” To “fear” God’s name means to have a healthy respect for his revealed reputation which in turn motivates one to obey God’s commands (see Ps 86:11).
Psalm 102:15 tn The verb “will fear” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the preceding line).
Psalm 102:17 tn The Hebrew adjective עַרְעָר (ʿarar, “destitute”) occurs only here in the OT. It is derived from the verbal root ערר (“to strip oneself”).
Psalm 102:17 tn Heb “despise.”
Psalm 102:17 tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 16-17 are functioning as future perfects, indicating future actions that will precede the future developments described in v. 15.

Jeremiah 29:24-32

A Response to the Letter and a Subsequent Letter

²⁴The Lord told Jeremiah, “Tell^[a] Shemaiah the Nehelamite^[b] ²⁵that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,^[c] has a message for him.^[d] Tell him,^[e] ‘On your own initiative^[f] you sent a letter^[g] to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah^[h] and to all the other priests and to all the people in Jerusalem. In your letter you said to Zephaniah,^[i] ²⁶“The Lord has made you priest in place of Jehoiada.^[j] He has put you in charge in the Lord’s temple of controlling^[k] any lunatic^[l] who pretends to be a prophet.^[m] And it is your duty to put any such person in the stocks^[n] with an iron collar around his neck.^[o] ²⁷You should have reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth who is pretending to be a prophet among you!^[p] ²⁸For he has even sent a message to us here in Babylon. He wrote and told us,^[q] ‘You will be there a long time. Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what they produce.’”’”^[r]

²⁹Zephaniah the priest read that letter to the prophet Jeremiah.^[s] ³⁰Then the Lord’s message came to Jeremiah: ³¹“Send a message to all the exiles in Babylon. Tell them, ‘The Lord has spoken about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: “Shemaiah has spoken to you as a prophet even though I did not send him. He is making you trust in a lie.^[t] ³²Because he has done this,”^[u] the Lord says, “I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his whole family. There will not be any of them left to experience the good things that I will do for my people. I, the Lord, affirm it! For he counseled rebellion against the Lord.”’”^[v]

Footnotes

Jeremiah 29:24 tn The words “The Lord told Jeremiah” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation here to indicate the shift in topic and the shift in addressee (the imperative “tell” is second singular). The introduction supplied in the translation here matches that in v. 30, where the words are in the text.
Jeremiah 29:24 tn It is unclear whether this is a family name or a place name. The word occurs nowhere else in the Hebrew Bible.
Jeremiah 29:25 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel.”sn See study notes on 2:19 and 7:3 for the explanation of this title.
Jeremiah 29:25 tn Heb “Tell Shemaiah the Nehelamite, ‘Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel….” The indirect quotation is used in the translation to avoid the complexity of embedding a quotation within a quotation.
Jeremiah 29:25 sn Jer 29:24-32 are concerned with Jeremiah’s interaction with a false prophet named Shemaiah. The narrative in this section is not in strict chronological order and is somewhat elliptical. It begins with a report of a message that Jeremiah appears to have delivered directly to Shemaiah and refers to a letter that Shemaiah sent to the priest Zephaniah, encouraging him to reprimand Jeremiah for what Shemaiah considered treasonous words in his letter to the exiles (vv. 24-28; compare v. 28 with v. 5). However, Jeremiah is in Jerusalem, and Shemaiah is in Babylon. The address must then be part of a second letter Jeremiah sent to Babylon. Following this the narrative refers to Zephaniah reading Shemaiah’s letter to Jeremiah and Jeremiah sending a further letter to the captives in Babylon (vv. 29-32). This is probably not a third letter but part of the same letter in which Jeremiah reprimands Shemaiah for sending his letter to Zephaniah (vv. 25-28; the same letter referred to in v. 29). So here is the order of events. Jeremiah sent a letter to the captives counseling them to settle down in Babylon (vv. 1-23). Shemaiah sent a letter to Zephaniah asking him to reprimand Jeremiah (vv. 26-28). After Zephaniah read that letter to Jeremiah (v. 29), Jeremiah wrote a further letter to Babylon reprimanding Shemaiah (vv. 25-28, 31) and pronouncing judgment on him (v. 32). The elliptical nature of the narrative is reflected in the fact that vv. 25-27 are part of a long causal sentence that sets forth an accusation but has no corresponding main clause or announcement of judgment. This kind of construction involves a rhetorical figure (called aposiopesis) where what is begun is not finished for various rhetorical reasons. Here the sentence that is broken off is part of an announcement of judgment that is not picked up until v. 32 after a further (though related) accusation (v. 31b).
Jeremiah 29:25 tn Heb “In your [own] name.” See the study note on 23:27 for the significance of this idiom.
Jeremiah 29:25 tn Heb “letters.” Though GKC 397 §124.b, n. 1 denies it, this is probably a case of the plural of extension. For a similar usage see Isa 37:14, where the plural “letters” is referred to later as an “it.” Even if there were other “letters,” the focus is on the letter to Zephaniah.
Jeremiah 29:25 sn According to Jer 52:24 and 2 Kgs 25:18, Zephaniah son of Maaseiah was second in command to the high priest. He was the high ranking priest who was sent, along with a civic official, by Zedekiah to inquire of the Lord’s will from Jeremiah on two separate occasions (Jer 21:1; 37:3).
Jeremiah 29:25 tn The words “In your letter you said to Zephaniah” are not in the text: Heb “you sent a letter to…, saying.” The sentence has been broken up to conform better to contemporary English style, and these words have been supplied in the translation to make the transition to the address to Zephaniah in vv. 26-28.
Jeremiah 29:26 tn Heb “in place of Jehoiada the priest.” The word “the priest” is unnecessary to the English sentence.
Jeremiah 29:26 tc Heb “The Lord has appointed you priest in place of the priest Jehoiada to be overseer in the house of the Lord for/over.” The translation is based on a reading presupposed by several of the versions. The Hebrew text reads, “The Lord has…to be overseers [in] the house of the Lord for/over.” The reading here follows that of the Greek, Syriac, and Latin versions in reading פָּקִיד בְּבֵית (paqid b^evet) in place of פְּקִדִים בֵּית (p^eqidim bet). There has been a confusion of the ם (mem) and בּ (bet) and a transposition of the י (yod) and ד (dalet).
Jeremiah 29:26 sn The Hebrew term translated lunatic applies to anyone who exhibits irrational behavior. It was used for example of David, who drooled and scratched on the city gate to convince Achish not to arrest him as a politically dangerous threat (1 Sam 21:14). It was often used contemptuously of the prophets by those who wanted to play down the significance of their words (2 Kgs 9:11; Hos 9:7, and here).
Jeremiah 29:26 tn The verb here is a good example of what IBHS 431 §26.2f calls the estimative-declarative reflexive, where a person presents himself in a certain light. For examples of this usage see 2 Sam 13:5 and Prov 13:7.
Jeremiah 29:26 tn See the translator’s note on 20:2 for this word, which only occurs here and in 20:2-3.
Jeremiah 29:26 tn This word only occurs here in the Hebrew Bible. All the lexicons are agreed that it refers to a collar placed around the neck. The cognate languages are the basis for this definition (see, e.g., HALOT 958-59 s.v. צִינֹק for the most complete discussion).
Jeremiah 29:27 tn Heb “So why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah…?” The rhetorical question functions as an emphatic assertion made explicit in the translation.
Jeremiah 29:28 tn Heb “For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying….” The quote, however, is part of the earlier letter.
Jeremiah 29:28 sn See v. 5.
Jeremiah 29:29 tn Heb “in the ears of Jeremiah the prophet.”
Jeremiah 29:31 tn Or “is giving you false assurances.”
Jeremiah 29:32 tn Heb “Therefore.”
Jeremiah 29:32 sn Compare the same charge against Hananiah in Jer 28:16 and see the note there. In this case, the false prophecy of Shemaiah is not given, but it likely had the same tenor, since he wants Jeremiah reprimanded for saying that the exile will be long and the people are to settle down in Babylon.

Ephesians 6:10-20

Exhortations for Spiritual Warfare

¹⁰Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. ¹¹Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand against the schemes^[a] of the devil. ¹²For our struggle^[b] is not against flesh and blood,^[c] but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness,^[d] against the spiritual forces^[e] of evil in the heavens.^[f] ¹³For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground^[g] on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. ¹⁴Stand firm therefore, by fastening^[h] the belt of truth around your waist,^[i] by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵by fitting your^[j] feet with the preparation that comes from the good news^[k] of peace,^[l] ¹⁶and in all of this,^[m] by taking up the shield^[n] of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation^[o] and the sword^[p] of the Spirit (which is the word of God). ¹⁸With every prayer and petition, pray^[q] at all times in the Spirit, and to this end^[r] be alert, with all perseverance and petitions for all the saints. ¹⁹Pray^[s] for me also, that I may be given the right words when I begin to speak^[t]—that I may confidently make known^[u] the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may be able to speak boldly as I ought to speak.

Footnotes

Ephesians 6:11 tn Or “craftiness.” See BDAG 625 s.v. μεθοδεία.
Ephesians 6:12 tn BDAG 752 s.v. πάλη says, “struggle against…the opponent is introduced by πρός w. the acc.”
Ephesians 6:12 tn Grk “blood and flesh.”
Ephesians 6:12 tn BDAG 561 s.v. κοσμοκράτωρ suggests “the rulers of this sinful world” as a gloss. sn The phrase world-rulers of this darkness does not refer to human rulers but the evil spirits that rule over the world. The phrase thus stands in apposition to what follows (the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens); see note on heavens at the end of this verse.
Ephesians 6:12 tn BDAG 837 s.v. πνευματικός 3 suggests “the spirit-forces of evil” in Ephesians 6:12.
Ephesians 6:12 sn The phrase spiritual forces of evil in the heavens serves to emphasize the nature of the forces which oppose believers as well as to indicate the locality from which they originate.
Ephesians 6:13 tn The term ἀνθίστημι (anthistēmi) carries the idea of resisting or opposing something or someone (BDAG 80 s.v.). In Eph 6:13, when used in combination with στῆναι (stēnai; cf. also στῆτε [stēte] in v. 14) and in a context of battle imagery, it seems to have the idea of resisting, standing firm, and being able to stand your ground.
Ephesians 6:14 sn The four participles fastening…putting on…fitting…taking up… indicate the means by which believers can take their stand against the devil and his schemes. The imperative take in v. 17 communicates another means by which to accomplish the standing, i.e., by the word of God.
Ephesians 6:14 tn Grk “girding your waist with truth.” In this entire section the author is painting a metaphor for his readers based on the attire of a Roman soldier prepared for battle and its similarity to the Christian prepared to do battle against spiritually evil forces. Behind the expression “with truth” is probably the genitive idea “belt of truth.” Since this is an appositional genitive (i.e., belt which is truth), the author simply left unsaid the idea of the belt and mentioned only his real focus, namely, the truth. (The analogy would have been completely understandable to his 1st century readers.) The idea of the belt is supplied in the translation to clarify the sense in English.
Ephesians 6:15 tn The definite article τοῖς (tois) was taken as a possessive pronoun, i.e., “your,” since it refers to a part of the physical body.
Ephesians 6:15 tn Grk “gospel.” However, this is not a technical term here.
Ephesians 6:15 tn Grk “in preparation of the gospel of peace.” The genitive τοῦ εὐαγγελίου (tou euangeliou) was taken as a genitive of source, i.e., “that comes from….”
Ephesians 6:16 tn Grk “in everything.”
Ephesians 6:16 sn The Greek word translated shield (θυρεός, thureos) refers to the Roman soldier’s large rectangular wooden shield, called in Latin scutum, about 4 ft (1.2 m) high, covered with leather on the outside. Before a battle in which flaming arrows might be shot at them, the soldiers wet the leather covering with water to extinguish the arrows. The Roman legionaries could close ranks with these shields, the first row holding theirs edge to edge in front, and the rows behind holding the shields above their heads. In this formation they were practically invulnerable to arrows, rocks, and even spears.
Ephesians 6:17 sn An allusion to Isa 59:17.
Ephesians 6:17 sn The Greek term translated sword (μάχαιρα, machaira) refers to the Roman gladius, a short sword about 2 ft (60 cm) long, used for close hand-to-hand combat. This is the only clearly offensive weapon in the list of armor mentioned by the author (he does not, for example, mention the lance [Latin pilum]).
Ephesians 6:18 tn Both “pray” and “be alert” are participles in the Greek text (“praying…being alert”). Both are probably instrumental, loosely connected with all of the preceding instructions. As such, they are not additional commands to do but instead are the means through which the prior instructions are accomplished.
Ephesians 6:18 tn Grk “and toward it.”
Ephesians 6:19 tn To avoid a lengthy, convoluted sentence in English, the Greek sentence was broken up at this point and the verb “pray” was inserted in the English translation to pick up the participle προσευχόμενοι (proseuxomenoi, “praying”) in v. 18.
Ephesians 6:19 tn Grk “that a word may be given to me in the opening of my mouth.” Here “word” (λόγος, logos) is used in the sense of “message,” but more specifically in this context, “the right words.”
Ephesians 6:19 tn The infinitive γνωρίσαι (gnōrisai, “to make known”) is functioning epexegetically to further explain what the author means by the preceding phrase “that I may be given the right words when I begin to speak.”

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 102[a]

The prayer of an oppressed man, as he grows faint and pours out his lament before the Lord.

Footnotes

A Response to the Letter and a Subsequent Letter

Footnotes

Exhortations for Spiritual Warfare

Footnotes

Psalm 102^[a]