◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Psalm 105:1-6 23-26 45b (Remembering Moses); Exodus 4:1-9 (Two signs given to Moses); Matthew 8:14-17 (Jesus heals many at Peter’s house) (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 105:1-6

Psalm 105^[a]

105 Give thanks to the Lord.
Call on his name.
Make known his accomplishments among the nations.
²Sing to him.
Make music to him.
Tell about all his miraculous deeds.
³Boast about his holy name.
Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
⁴Seek the Lord and the strength he gives.
Seek his presence continually.
⁵Recall the miraculous deeds he performed,
his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed,^[b]
⁶O children^[c] of Abraham,^[d] God’s^[e] servant,
you descendants^[f] of Jacob, God’s^[g] chosen ones.

Psalm 105:23-26

²³Israel moved to^[a] Egypt;
Jacob lived for a time^[b] in the land of Ham.
²⁴The Lord^[c] made his people very fruitful,
and made them^[d] more numerous than their^[e] enemies.
²⁵He caused the Egyptians^[f] to hate his people,
and to mistreat^[g] his servants.
²⁶He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.

Psalm 105:45

⁴⁵so that they might keep his commands
and obey^[a] his laws.
Praise the Lord.

Exodus 4:1-9

The Source of Sufficiency

4 ^[a] Moses answered again,^[b] “And if^[c] they do not believe me or pay attention to me,^[d] but say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you’?” ²The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.”^[e] ³The Lord^[f] said, “Throw it to the ground.” So he threw it to the ground, and it became a snake,^[g] and Moses ran from it. ⁴But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and grab it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand^[h]— ⁵“that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

⁶The Lord also said to him, “Put your hand into your robe.”^[i] So he put his hand into his robe, and when he brought it out—there was his hand,^[j] leprous like snow!^[k] ⁷He said, “Put your hand back into your robe.” So he put his hand back into his robe, and when he brought it out from his robe—there it was,^[l] restored^[m] like the rest of his skin!^[n] ⁸“If^[o] they do not believe you or pay attention to^[p] the former sign, then they may^[q] believe the latter sign.^[r] ⁹And if^[s] they do not believe even these two signs or listen to you,^[t] then take^[u] some water from the Nile and pour it out on the dry ground. The water you take out of the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”^[v]

Footnotes

Exodus 4:1 sn In chap. 3, the first part of this extensive call, Yahweh promises to deliver his people. At the hesitancy of Moses, God guarantees his presence will be with him, and that assures the success of the mission. But with chap. 4, the second half of the call, the tone changes sharply. Now Moses protests his inadequacies in view of the nature of the task. In many ways, these verses address the question, “Who is sufficient for these things?” There are three basic movements in the passage. The first nine verses tell how God gave Moses signs in case Israel did not believe him (4:1-9). The second section records how God dealt with the speech problem of Moses (4:10-12). And finally, the last section records God’s provision of a helper, someone who could talk well (4:13-17). See also J. E. Hamlin, “The Liberator’s Ordeal: A Study of Exodus 4:1-9, ” Rhetorical Criticism [PTMS], 33-42.
Exodus 4:1 tn Heb “and Moses answered and said.”
Exodus 4:1 tn Or “What if.” The use of הֵן (hen) is unusual here, introducing a conditional idea in the question without a following consequence clause (see Exod 8:22 HT [8:26 ET]; Jer 2:10; 2 Chr 7:13). The Greek has “if not” but adds the clause “what shall I say to them?”
Exodus 4:1 tn Heb “listen to my voice,” so as to respond positively.
Exodus 4:2 tn Or “rod” (KJV, ASV); NCV, CEV “walking stick”; NLT “shepherd’s staff.”sn The staff appears here to be the shepherd’s staff that he was holding. It now will become the instrument with which Moses will do the mighty works, for it is the medium of the display of the divine power (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 27; also, L. Shalit, “How Moses Turned a Staff into a Snake and Back Again,” BAR 9 [1983]: 72-73).
Exodus 4:3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Exodus 4:3 sn The details of the verse are designed to show that there was a staff that became a snake. The question is used to affirm that there truly was a staff, and then the report of Moses running from it shows it was a genuine snake. Using the serpent as a sign would have had an impact on the religious ideas of Egypt, for the sacred cobra was one of their symbols.
Exodus 4:4 sn The signs authenticated Moses’ ministry as the Lord’s emissary. This sign will show that the Lord had control over Egypt and its stability, over life and death. But first Moses has to be convinced that he can turn it into a dead stick again.
Exodus 4:6 tn The word חֵיק (kheq), often rendered “bosom,” refers to the front of the chest and a fold in the garment there where an item could be placed for carrying (see Prov 6:27; 16:33; 21:14). So “into your robe” should be understood loosely here and in v. 7 as referring to the inside of the top front of Moses’ garment. The inside chest pocket of a jacket is a rough modern equivalent.
Exodus 4:6 tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) points out the startling or amazing sight as if the reader were catching the first glimpse of it with Moses.
Exodus 4:6 sn This sudden skin disease indicated that God was able to bring such diseases on Egypt in the plagues and that only he could remove them. The whitening was the first stage of death for the diseased (Num 12:10; 2 Kgs 5:27). The Hebrew words traditionally rendered “leprous” or “leprosy,” as they are used in Lev 13 and 14, encompass a variety of conditions, not limited to the disease called leprosy and identified as Hansen’s disease in modern times.
Exodus 4:7 tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) points out the startling or amazing sight as if the reader were catching the first glimpse of it with Moses.
Exodus 4:7 tn Heb “it returned.”
Exodus 4:7 tn Heb “like his flesh.”
Exodus 4:8 tn Heb “and it will be if.”
Exodus 4:8 tn Heb “listen to the voice of,” meaning listen so as to respond appropriately.
Exodus 4:8 tn The nuance of this perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive will be equal to the imperfect of possibility—“they may believe.”
Exodus 4:8 tn Heb “believe the voice of the latter sign,” so as to understand and accept the meaning of the event.
Exodus 4:9 tn Heb “and it will be if.”
Exodus 4:9 tn Heb “listen to your voice.”
Exodus 4:9 tn The verb form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive; it functions then as the equivalent of the imperfect tense—here as an imperfect of instruction.
Exodus 4:9 sn This is a powerful sign, for the Nile was always known as the source of life in Egypt, but now it will become the evidence of death. So the three signs were alike, each consisting of life and death. They would clearly anticipate the struggle with Egypt through the plagues. The point is clear that in the face of the possibility that people might not believe, the servants of God must offer clear proof of the power of God as they deliver the message of God. The rest is up to God.

Matthew 8:14-17

Healings at Peter’s House

¹⁴Now^[a] when Jesus entered Peter’s house,^[b] he saw his^[c] mother-in-law lying down,^[d] sick with a fever. ¹⁵He touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then^[e] she got up and began to serve them.^[f] ¹⁶When it was evening, many demon-possessed people were brought to him. He drove out the spirits with a word,^[g] and healed all who were sick.^[h] ¹⁷In this way what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah was fulfilled:^[i]

“He took our weaknesses and carried our diseases.”^[j]

Footnotes

Matthew 8:14 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
Matthew 8:14 sn There is now significant agreement among scholars that the house of Simon Peter in Capernaum has been found beneath the ruins of a fifth-century Byzantine church some 84 ft south of the synagogue. At the bottom of several layers of archaeological remains is a first-century house that apparently was designated for public viewing sometime in the mid-first century, and continued to be so in subsequent centuries. For details see S. Loffreda, “Capernaum—Jesus’ Own City,” Bible and Spade 10.1 (1981): 1-17.
Matthew 8:14 tn The referent of “his” is somewhat ambiguous although context makes it clear that Peter is in view. In addition, the parallels in Mark 1:30 and Luke 4:38 both specify that it was “Simon’s” [i.e., Peter’s] mother-in-law.
Matthew 8:14 tn Or “struck down with a fever”; Grk “having been thrown down.” The verb βεβλημένην (beblēmenēn) is a perfect passive participle of the verb βάλλω (ballō, “to throw”). Given the general description of the illness (“fever”), the use of this verb indicates the severity of the woman’s condition.
Matthew 8:15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then.”
Matthew 8:15 sn Though the nature of the serving is not specified, context suggests these would be the typical duties associated with domestic hospitality. The woman’s restoration from her illness is so complete that these activities can be resumed right away, a point emphasized in the parallel account in Luke 4:39.
Matthew 8:16 sn The expression with a word underscores Jesus’s authority over the demonic spirits, but also recalls the centurion’s comment on authority in Matt 8:8.
Matthew 8:16 sn Note how the author distinguishes healing from exorcism here, implying that the two are not identical.
Matthew 8:17 tn Grk “spoken by Isaiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying.” The participle λέγοντος (legontos) is redundant and has not been translated.
Matthew 8:17 sn A quotation from Isa 53:4.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 105[a]

Footnotes

Footnotes

Footnotes

The Source of Sufficiency

Footnotes

Healings at Peter’s House

Footnotes

Psalm 105^[a]