◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Psalm 98 (Earth sees the victory of God); Haggai 2:10-19 (A rebuke and a promise); 2 Peter 1:16-21 (Prophecy comes not by human will) (New English Translation)

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November 7, 2022

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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 98

Psalm 98^[a]

A psalm.

98 Sing to the Lord a new song,^[b]
for he performs^[c] amazing deeds.
His right hand and his mighty arm
accomplish deliverance.^[d]
²The Lord demonstrates his power to deliver;^[e]
in the sight of the nations he reveals his justice.
³He remains loyal and faithful to the family of Israel.^[f]
All the ends of the earth see our God deliver us.^[g]
⁴Shout out praises to the Lord, all the earth.
Break out in a joyful shout and sing!
⁵Sing to the Lord accompanied by a harp,
accompanied by a harp and the sound of music.
⁶With trumpets and the blaring of the ram’s horn,
shout out praises before the king, the Lord.
⁷Let the sea and everything in it shout,
along with the world and those who live in it.
⁸Let the rivers clap their hands!
Let the mountains sing in unison
⁹before the Lord.
For he comes to judge the earth.
He judges the world fairly,^[h]
and the nations in a just manner.

Haggai 2:10-19

The Promised Blessing

¹⁰On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month of Darius’ second year,^[a] the Lord’s message came to the prophet Haggai:^[b] ¹¹“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has said, ‘Ask the priests about the law.^[c] ¹²If someone carries holy meat in a fold of his garment and that fold touches bread, a boiled dish, wine, olive oil, or any other food, will that item become holy?’”^[d] The priests answered, “It will not.” ¹³Then Haggai asked, “If a person who is ritually unclean because of touching a dead body^[e] comes in contact with one of these items, will it become unclean?” The priests answered, “It will be unclean.”

¹⁴Then Haggai responded, “‘The people of this nation are unclean in my sight,’^[f] decrees the Lord. ‘And so is all their effort; everything they offer is also unclean.^[g] ¹⁵Now therefore reflect carefully on the recent past,^[h] before one stone was laid on another in the Lord’s temple.^[i] ¹⁶From that time^[j] when one came expecting a heap of twenty measures, there were only ten; when one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty measures from it, there were only twenty. ¹⁷I struck all the products of your labor^[k] with blight, disease, and hail, and yet you brought nothing to me,’^[l] says the Lord. ¹⁸‘Think carefully^[m] about the past: from today, the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month,^[n] to the day work on the temple of the Lord was resumed,^[o] think about it.^[p] ¹⁹The seed is still in the storehouse, isn’t it? And the vine, fig tree, pomegranate, and olive tree have not produced. Nevertheless, from today on I will bless you.’”

Footnotes

Haggai 2:10 sn The twenty-fourth day of the ninth month of Darius’ second year was Kislev 24 or December 18, 520 b.c.
Haggai 2:10 sn This Hebrew expression is slightly different from the one in 1:1, 3; 2:1.
Haggai 2:11 tn Heb “Ask the priests a torah, saying”; KJV “concerning the law”; NAB “for a decision”; NCV “for a teaching”; NRSV “for a ruling.”
Haggai 2:12 sn This is probably not an appeal to the Torah (i.e., the Pentateuch) as such but to a priestly ruling (known in postbiblical Judaism as a p^esaq din). There is, however, a Mosaic law that provides the basis for the priestly ruling (Lev 6:27).
Haggai 2:13 tn Heb “unclean of a person,” a euphemism for “unclean because of a dead person”; see Lev 21:11; Num 6:6. Cf. NAB “unclean from contact with a corpse.”
Haggai 2:14 tn Heb “so this people, and so this nation before me.” In this context “people” and “nation” refer to the same set of individuals; the repetition is emphatic. Cf. CEV “this entire nation.”
Haggai 2:14 sn The point here is that the Jews cannot be made holy by unholy fellowship with their pagan neighbors; instead, they and their worship will become corrupted by such associations.
Haggai 2:15 tn Heb “and now set your heart from this day and upward.” The juxtaposition of מָעְלָה (maʿlah, “upward”) with the following מִטֶּרֶם (mitterem, “before”) demands a look to the past. Cf. ASV “consider from this day and backward.”
Haggai 2:15 sn Before one stone was laid on another in the Lord’s temple is best taken as referring to the laying of the present temple’s foundation, sixteen years earlier (536 b.c.; see Ezra 3:8). Cf. NCV “before you started laying stones”; TEV “before you started to rebuild”; NLT “before you began to lay (started laying CEV) the foundation.”
Haggai 2:16 tn Heb “from their being,” idiomatic for “from the time they were then,” or “since the time.” Cf. KJV “Since those days were.”
Haggai 2:17 tn Heb “you, all the work of your hands”; NRSV “you and all the products of your toil”; NIV “all the work of your hands.”
Haggai 2:17 tn Heb “and there was not with you to me.” The context favors the idea that the harvests were so poor that the people took care of only themselves, leaving no offering for the Lord. Cf. KJV and many English versions “yet ye turned not to me,” understanding the phrase to refer to the people’s repentance rather than their failure to bring offerings.
Haggai 2:18 tn Heb “set your heart.” A similar expression occurs in v. 15.
Haggai 2:18 sn The twenty-fourth day of the ninth month was Kislev 24 or December 18, 520. See v. 10. Here the reference is to “today,” the day the oracle is being delivered.
Haggai 2:18 sn The day work…was resumed. This does not refer to the initial founding of the Jerusalem temple in 536 b.c. but to the renewal of construction three months earlier (see 1:15). This is clear from the situation described in v. 19 which accords with the food scarcities of that time already detailed in Hag 1:10-11.
Haggai 2:18 tn Heb “set your heart.” A similar expression occurs in v. 15 and at the beginning of this verse.

2 Peter 1:16-21

¹⁶For we did not follow cleverly concocted fables when we made known to you the power and return^[a] of our Lord Jesus Christ;^[b] no,^[c] we were^[d] eyewitnesses of his^[e] grandeur.^[f] ¹⁷For he received honor and glory from God the Father, when that^[g] voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory: “This is my dear Son, in whom I am delighted.”^[h] ¹⁸When this voice was conveyed from heaven, we ourselves^[i] heard it, for we were with him on the holy mountain.^[j] ¹⁹Moreover,^[k] we^[l] possess the prophetic word as an altogether reliable thing.^[m] You do well if you pay attention^[n] to this^[o] as you would^[p] to a light shining in a murky place, until the day dawns and the morning star^[q] rises in your hearts.^[r] ²⁰Above all, you do well if you recognize^[s] this:^[t] No prophecy of scripture ever comes about by the prophet’s own imagination,^[u] ²¹for no prophecy was ever borne of human impulse; rather, men^[v] carried along by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

Footnotes

2 Peter 1:16 tn Grk “coming.”
2 Peter 1:16 tn Grk “for we did not make known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ by following cleverly concocted fables.”
2 Peter 1:16 tn Grk “but, instead.”
2 Peter 1:16 tn Grk “became.”
2 Peter 1:16 tn Grk “that one’s.” That is, “eyewitnesses of the grandeur of that one.” The remote demonstrative pronoun is used perhaps to indicate esteem for Jesus. Along these lines it is interesting to note that “the Pythagoreans called their master after his death simply ἐκεῖνος” as a term of reverence and endearment (BDAG 302 s.v. ἐκεῖνος a.γ).
2 Peter 1:16 sn The term grandeur was used most frequently of God’s majesty. In the 1st century, it was occasionally used of the divine majesty of the emperor. 2 Pet 1:1 and 1:11 already include hints of a polemic against emperor-worship (in that “God and Savior” and “Lord and Savior” were used of the emperor).
2 Peter 1:17 tn Grk “such a.” The pronoun τοιᾶσδε (toiasde) most likely refers to what follows, connoting something of the uniqueness of the proclamation.
2 Peter 1:17 tn The verb εὐδόκησα (eudokēsa) in collocation with εἰς ὅν (eis hon) could either mean “in whom I am well-pleased, delighted” (in which case the preposition functions like ἐν [en]), or “on whom I have set my favor.”sn This is my beloved Son, in whom I am delighted alludes to the Transfiguration. However, the author’s version is markedly different from the synoptic accounts (in particular his introductory phrase, “when that voice was conveyed to him,” an unusual expression [perhaps used to avoid naming God directly as the one who spoke from heaven]). The most natural explanation for such differences is that he was unaware of the exact wording of the Gospels. This is, of course, easier to explain if 2 Peter is authentic than if it is a late document, written in the 2nd century.
2 Peter 1:18 tn The “we” in v. 18 is evidently exclusive, that is, it refers to Peter and the other apostles.
2 Peter 1:18 tn 2 Pet 1:17-18 comprise one sentence in Greek, with the main verb “heard” in v. 18. All else is temporally subordinate to that statement. Hence, more literally these verses read as follows: “For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory: ‘This is my beloved Son, in whom I am delighted,’ we ourselves heard this voice when it was conveyed from heaven, when we were with him on the holy mountain.”
2 Peter 1:19 tn Grk “and.” The use of καί (kai) is of course quite elastic. Only the context can determine if it is adversative, continuative, transitional, etc.
2 Peter 1:19 sn We in v. 19 is apparently an inclusive “we” (the author and his audience). Such shifts in the first person plural are quite common in epistolary literature (cf., e.g., 2 Cor 10-13, passim).
2 Peter 1:19 tn The comparative adjective βεβαιότερον (bebaioteron) is the complement to the object τὸν προφητικὸν λόγον (ton prophētikon logon). As such, the construction almost surely has the force “The prophetic word is (more certain/altogether certain)—and this is something that we all have.” Many scholars prefer to read the construction as saying “we have the prophetic word made more sure,” but such a nuance is unparalleled in object-complement constructions (when the construction has this force, ποιέω [poieō] is present [as in 2 Pet 1:10]). The meaning, as construed in the translation, is that the Bible (in this case, the OT) that these believers had in their hands was a thoroughly reliable guide. Whether it was more certain than was even Peter’s experience on the Mount of Transfiguration depends on whether the adjective should be taken as a true comparative (“more certain”) or as an elative (“very certain, altogether certain”). Some would categorically object to any experience functioning as a confirmation of the scriptures and hence would tend to give the adjective a comparative force. Yet the author labors to show that his gospel is trustworthy precisely because he was an eyewitness of this great event. Further, to say that the OT scriptures (the most likely meaning of “the prophetic word”) were more trustworthy an authority than an apostle’s own experience of Christ is both to misconstrue how prophecy took place in the OT (did not the prophets have visions or other experiences?) and to deny the final revelation of God in Christ (cf. Heb 1:2). In sum, since syntactically the meaning that “we have confirmed the prophetic word by our experience” is improbable, and since contextually the meaning that “we have something that is a more reliable authority than experience, namely, the Bible” is unlikely, we are left with the meaning “we have a very reliable authority, the Old Testament, as a witness to Christ’s return.” No comparison is thus explicitly made. This fits both the context and normal syntax quite well. The introductory καί (kai) suggests that the author is adding to his argument. He makes the statement that Christ will return, and backs it up with two points: (1) Peter himself (as well as the other apostles) was an eyewitness to the Transfiguration, which is a precursor to the Parousia; and (2) the Gentile believers, who were not on the Mount of Transfiguration, nevertheless have the Old Testament, a wholly reliable authority that also promises the return of Christ.
2 Peter 1:19 tn Grk “paying attention” (the adverbial participle is either conditional [“if you pay attention”] or instrumental [“by paying attention”]; though there is difference in translation, there is virtually no difference in application). On a lexical level, “pay attention to” (προσέχω [prosechō]) does not, in a context such as this, mean merely observe or notice, but follow, give heed to, obey.
2 Peter 1:19 tn “To this” is a relative pronoun in Greek. The second half of v. 19 is thus a relative clause. Literally it reads “to which you do well if you pay attention.”
2 Peter 1:19 tn Grk “as”; ὡς (hōs) clauses after imperatives or implied commands (as here) make a comparison of what should be true (imperative) to what is true (indicative). This is the case even when the verb of the ὡς clause is only implied. Cf. Matt 6:10 (“may your will be done on earth as [it is] in heaven”); 10:16 (“be wise as serpents [are], and be as gentle as doves [are]”); 22:39 (“love your neighbor as [you already do] love yourself”).
2 Peter 1:19 sn The reference to the morning star constitutes a double entendre. First, the term was normally used to refer to Venus. But the author of course has a metaphorical meaning in mind, as is obvious from the place where the morning star is to rise—“in your hearts.” Most commentators see an allusion to Num 24:17 (“a star shall rise out of Jacob”) in Peter’s words. Early Christian exegesis saw in that passage a prophecy about Christ’s coming. Hence, in this verse Peter tells his audience to heed the OT scriptures which predict the return of Christ, then alludes to one of the passages that does this very thing, all the while running the theme of light on a parallel track. In addition, it may be significant that Peter’s choice of terms here is not the same as is found in the LXX. He has used a Hellenistic word that was sometimes used of emperors and deities, perhaps as a further polemic against the paganism of his day.
2 Peter 1:19 sn The phrase in your hearts is sometimes considered an inappropriate image for the parousia, since the coming of Christ will be visible to all. But Peter’s point has to do with full comprehension of the revelation of Christ, something only believers will experience. Further, his use of light imagery is doing double-duty, suggesting two things at once (i.e., internal guidance to truth or illumination, and OT prophecy about Christ’s return) and hence can not be expected to be consistent with every point he wishes to make.
2 Peter 1:20 tn Grk “knowing this [to be] foremost.” Τοῦτο πρῶτον (touto prōton) constitute the object and complement of γινώσκοντες (ginōskontes). The participle is dependent on the main verb in v. 19 (“you do well [if you pay attention]”), probably in a conditional usage. An alternative is to take it imperativally: “Above all, know this.” In this rendering, πρῶτον is functioning adverbially. Only here and 2 Pet 3:3 is τοῦτο πρῶτον found in the NT, making a decision more difficult.
2 Peter 1:20 tn The ὅτι (hoti) clause is appositional (“know this, that”). English usage can use the colon with the same force.
2 Peter 1:20 tn Verse 20 is variously interpreted. There are three key terms here that help decide both the interpretation and the translation. As well, the relation to v. 21 informs the meaning of this verse. (1) The term “comes about” (γίνεται [ginetai]) is often translated “is a matter” as in “is a matter of one’s own interpretation.” But the progressive force for this verb is far more common. (2) The adjective ἰδίας (idias) has been understood to mean (a) one’s own (i.e., the reader’s own), (b) its own (i.e., the particular prophecy’s own), or (c) the prophet’s own. Catholic scholarship has tended to see the reference to the reader (in the sense that no individual reader can understand scripture, but needs the interpretations handed down by the Church), while older Protestant scholarship has tended to see the reference to the individual passage being prophesied (and hence the Reformation doctrine of analogia fidei [analogy of faith], or scripture interpreting scripture). But neither of these views satisfactorily addresses the relationship of v. 20 to v. 21, nor do they do full justice to the meaning of γίνεται. (3) The meaning of ἐπίλυσις (epilusis) is difficult to determine, since it is a biblical hapax legomenon. Though it is sometimes used in the sense of interpretation in extra-biblical Greek, this is by no means a necessary sense. The basic idea of the word is unfolding, which can either indicate an explanation or a creation. It sometimes has the force of solution or even spell, both of which meanings could easily accommodate a prophetic utterance of some sort. Further, even the meaning explanation or interpretation easily fits a prophetic utterance, for prophets often, if not usually, explained visions and dreams. There is no instance of this word referring to the interpretation of scripture, however, suggesting that if interpretation is the meaning, it is the prophet’s interpretation of his own vision. (4) The γάρ (gar) at the beginning of v. 21 gives the basis for the truth of the proposition in v. 20. The connection that makes the most satisfactory sense is that prophets did not invent their own prophecies (v. 20), for their impulse for prophesying came from God (v. 21).sn No prophecy of scripture ever comes about by the prophet’s own imagination. 2 Pet 1:20-21, then, form an inclusio with v. 16: The Christian’s faith and hope are not based on cleverly concocted fables but on the sure Word of God—one which the prophets, prompted by the Spirit of God, spoke. Peter’s point is the same as is found elsewhere in the NT, i.e., that human prophets did not originate the message, but they did convey it, using their own personalities in the process.
2 Peter 1:21 tn If, as seems probable, the “prophecy” mentioned here is to be identified with the “prophecy of scripture” mentioned in the previous verse, then the Greek term ἄνθρωποι (anthrōpoi, “men”) would refer specifically to the human authors of scripture, who (as far as we know) were all men. Thus “men” has been used here in the translation. If, on the other hand, the “prophecy” mentioned in the present verse is not limited to scripture but refers to oral prophecy as well, then women would be included, since Joel 2:20 specifically mentions “sons and daughters” as having the ability to prophesy, and the NT clearly mentions prophetesses (Luke 2:36; Acts 21:9).

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 98[a]

A psalm.

Footnotes

The Promised Blessing

Footnotes

Footnotes

Psalm 98^[a]