◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Psalm 121 (My help is from the Lord); Exodus 13:1-10 (The feast of unleavened bread); Matthew 21:18-22 (Jesus teaches about praying in faith) (New English Translation)

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September 13, 2023

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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 121

Psalm 121^[a]

A song of ascents.^[b]

121 I look up^[c] toward the hills.
From where^[d] does my help come?
²My help comes from the Lord,^[e]
the Creator^[f] of heaven and earth.
³May he not allow your foot to slip.
May your Protector^[g] not sleep.^[h]
⁴Look! Israel’s Protector^[i]
does not sleep or slumber.
⁵The Lord is your protector;
the Lord is the shade at your right hand.
⁶The sun will not harm you by day,
or the moon by night.^[j]
⁷The Lord will protect you from all harm;
he will protect your life.
⁸The Lord will protect you in all you do,^[k]
now and forevermore.

Footnotes

Psalm 121:1 sn Psalm 121. The psalm affirms that the Lord protects his people Israel. Unless the psalmist addresses an observer (note the second person singular forms in vv. 3-8), it appears there are two or three speakers represented in the psalm, depending on how one takes v. 3. The translation assumes that speaker one talks in vv. 1-2, that speaker two responds to him with a prayer in v. 3 (this assumes the verbs are true jussives of prayer), and that speaker three responds with words of assurance in vv. 4-8. If the verbs in v. 3 are taken as a rhetorical use of the jussive, then there are two speakers. Verses 3-8 are speaker two’s response to the words of speaker one. See the note on the word “sleep” at the end of v. 3.
Psalm 121:1 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.
Psalm 121:1 tn Heb “I lift my eyes.”
Psalm 121:1 tn The Hebrew term מֵאַיִן (meʾayin) is interrogative, not relative, in function. Rather than directly stating that his source of help descends from the hills, the psalmist is asking, “From where does my help come?” Nevertheless, the first line does indicate that he is looking toward the hills for help, probably indicating that he is looking up toward the sky, or up toward the temple, in anticipation of supernatural intervention. The psalmist assumes the dramatic role of one needing help. He answers his own question in v. 2.
Psalm 121:2 tn Heb “my help [is] from with the Lord.”
Psalm 121:2 tn Or “Maker.”
Psalm 121:3 tn Heb “the one who guards you.”
Psalm 121:3 tn The prefixed verbal forms following the negative particle אַל (ʾal) appear to be jussives. As noted above, if they are taken as true jussives of prayer, then the speaker in v. 3 would appear to be distinct from both the speaker in vv. 1-2 and the speaker in vv. 4-8. However, according to GKC 322 §109.e), the jussives are used rhetorically here “to express the conviction that something cannot or should not happen.” In this case one should probably translate, “he will not allow your foot to slip, your protector will not sleep,” and understand just one speaker in vv. 4-8. But none of the examples in GKC for this use of the jussive are compelling.
Psalm 121:4 tn Heb “the one who guards Israel.”
Psalm 121:6 sn One hardly thinks of the moon’s rays as being physically harmful, like those of the sun. The reference to the moon may simply lend poetic balance to the verse, but it is likely that the verse reflects an ancient, primitive belief that the moon could have an adverse effect on the mind (note the English expression “moonstruck,” which reflects such a belief). Another possibility is that the sun and moon stand by metonymy for harmful forces characteristic of the day and night, respectively.
Psalm 121:8 tn Heb “your going out and your coming in.”

Exodus 13:1-10

The Law of the Firstborn

13 ^[a] The Lord spoke^[b] to Moses, ²“Set apart^[c] to me every firstborn male—the first offspring of every womb^[d] among the Israelites, whether human or animal; it is mine.”^[e]

³Moses said to the people, “Remember^[f] this day on which you came out from Egypt, from the place where you were enslaved,^[g] for the Lord brought you out of there^[h] with a mighty hand—and no bread made with yeast may be eaten.^[i] ⁴On this day,^[j] in the month of Abib,^[k] you are going out.^[l]

⁵“When^[m] the Lord brings you to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey,^[n] then you will keep^[o] this ceremony^[p] in this month. ⁶For seven days^[q] you must eat^[r] bread made without yeast, and on the seventh day there is to be^[s] a festival to the Lord. ⁷Bread made without yeast must be eaten^[t] for seven days;^[u] no bread made with yeast shall be seen^[v] among you, and you must have no yeast among you within any of your borders.

⁸“You are to tell your son^[w] on that day,^[x] ‘It is^[y] because of what^[z] the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ ⁹^[aa] It^[ab] will be a sign^[ac] for you on your hand and a memorial^[ad] on your forehead,^[ae] so that the law of the Lord may be^[af] in your mouth,^[ag] for^[ah] with a mighty hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt. ¹⁰So you must keep^[ai] this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year.^[aj]

Footnotes

Exodus 13:1 sn This next section seems a little confusing at first glance: vv. 1 and 2 call for the dedication of the firstborn, then vv. 3-10 instruct concerning the ritual of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and then vv. 11-16 return to the firstborn. B. Jacob (Exodus, 360) explains that vv. 3-16 contain a sermon, in which Moses “began his speech by reminding the people of the events which had just occurred and how they would be recalled by them in the future,” and then he explained the rulings that went along with it. So the first two verses state the core of the sermon, a new command calling for the redeemed (firstborn) to be sanctified. The second portion stresses that God requires the redeemed to remember their redemption by purifying themselves (3-10). The third section (11-16) develops the theme of dedication to Yahweh. The point is that in view of God’s mighty redemption, the redeemed (represented by the firstborn) must be set apart for Yahweh’s service.
Exodus 13:1 tn Heb “and Yahweh spoke.”
Exodus 13:2 tn The verb “sanctify” is the Piel imperative of קָדַשׁ (qadash). In the Qal stem it means “be holy, be set apart, be distinct,” and in this stem “sanctify, set apart.” sn Here is the central principle of the chapter—the firstborn were sacred to God and must be “set apart” (the meaning of the verb “sanctify”) for his use.
Exodus 13:2 tn The word פֶּטֶּר (petter) means “that which opens”; this construction literally says, “that which opens every womb,” which means “the first offspring of every womb.” Verses 12 and 15 further indicate male offspring.
Exodus 13:2 tn Heb “to me it.” The preposition here expresses possession; the construction is simply “it [is, belongs] to me.”
Exodus 13:3 tn The form is the infinitive absolute of זָכַר (zakhar, “remember”). The use of this form in place of the imperative (also found in the Decalogue with the Sabbath instruction) stresses the basic meaning of the root word, everything involved with remembering (emphatic imperative, according to GKC 346 §113.bb). The verb usually implies that there will be proper action based on what was remembered.sn There is a pattern in the arrangement of vv. 3-10 and 11-16. Both sections contain commands based on the mighty deliverance as reminders of the deliverance. “With a mighty hand” occurs in vv. 3, 9, 14, 16. An explanation to the son is found in vv. 8 and 14. The emphases “sign on your hand” and “between your eyes” are part of the conclusions to both halves (vv. 9, 16).
Exodus 13:3 tn Heb “from a house of slaves.” “House” is obviously not meant to be literal; it indicates a location characterized by slavery, a land of slaves, as if they were in a slave house. Egypt is also called an “iron-smelting furnace” (Deut 4:20).
Exodus 13:3 tn Heb “from this” [place].
Exodus 13:3 tn The verb is a Niphal imperfect; it could be rendered “must not be eaten” in the nuance of the instruction or injunction category, but permission fits this sermonic presentation very well—nothing with yeast may be eaten.
Exodus 13:4 tn The word הַיּוֹם (hayyom) means literally “the day, today, this day.” In this sentence it functions as an adverbial accusative explaining when the event took place.
Exodus 13:4 sn Abib appears to be an old name for the month, meaning something like “[month of] fresh young ears” (Lev 2:14 [Heb]) (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 106). B. Jacob (Exodus, 364) explains that these names were not precise designations, but general seasons based on the lunar year in the agricultural setting.
Exodus 13:4 tn The form is the active participle, functioning verbally.
Exodus 13:5 tn Heb “and it will be when.”
Exodus 13:5 tn See notes on Exod 3:8.
Exodus 13:5 tn The verb is וְעָבַדְתָּ (v^eʿavadta), the Qal perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive. It is the equivalent of the imperfect tense of instruction or injunction; it forms the main point after the temporal clause—“when Yahweh brings you out…then you will serve.”
Exodus 13:5 tn The object is a cognate accusative for emphasis on the meaning of the service—“you will serve this service.” W. C. Kaiser notes how this noun was translated “slavery” and “work” in the book, but “service” or “ceremony” for Yahweh. Israel was saved from slavery to Egypt into service for God as remembered by this ceremony (“Exodus,” EBC 2:383).
Exodus 13:6 tn Heb “Seven days.”
Exodus 13:6 tn The imperfect tense functions with the nuance of instruction or injunction. It could also be given an obligatory nuance: “you must eat” or “you are to eat.” Some versions have simply made it an imperative.
Exodus 13:6 tn The phrase “there is to be” has been supplied.
Exodus 13:7 tn The imperfect has the nuance of instruction or injunction again, but it could also be given an obligatory nuance.
Exodus 13:7 tn The construction is an adverbial accusative of time, answering how long the routine should be followed (see GKC 374 §118.k).
Exodus 13:7 tn Or “visible to you” (B. Jacob, Exodus, 366).
Exodus 13:8 tn The form is the Hiphil perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive, carrying the sequence forward: “and you will declare to your son.”sn A very important part of the teaching here is the manner in which the memory of the deliverance will be retained in Israel—they were to teach their children the reasons for the feast, as a binding law forever. This will remind the nation of its duties to Yahweh in gratitude for the great deliverance.
Exodus 13:8 tn Heb “day, saying.” “Tell…saying” is redundant, so “saying” has not been included in the translation here.
Exodus 13:8 tn “it is” has been supplied.
Exodus 13:8 tn The text uses זֶה (zeh), which Gesenius classifies as the use of the pronoun to introduce a relative clause after the preposition (GKC 447 §138.h)—but he thinks the form is corrupt. B. S. Childs, however, sees no reason to posit a corruption in this form (Exodus [OTL], 184).
Exodus 13:9 sn This passage has, of course, been taken literally by many devout Jews, and portions of the text have been encased in phylacteries and bound on the arm and forehead. B. Jacob (Exodus, 368), weighing the pros and cons of the literal or the figurative meaning, says that those who took it literally should not be looked down on for their symbolic work. In many cases, he continues, it is the spirit that kills and the letter makes alive—because people who argue against a literal usage do so to excuse lack of action. This is a rather interesting twist in the discussion. The point of the teaching was obviously meant to keep the Law of Yahweh in the minds of the people, to remind them of their duties.
Exodus 13:9 tn That is, this ceremony.
Exodus 13:9 tn Heb “for a sign.”
Exodus 13:9 tn Heb “for a memorial.”
Exodus 13:9 tn Heb “between your eyes” (KJV and ASV both similar); the same expression occurs in v. 16.sn That these festivals and consecrations were to be signs and memorials is akin to the expressions used in the book of Proverbs (Prov 3:3, “bind them around your neck…write them on your heart”). The people were to use the festivals as outward and visible tokens to remind them to obey what the Law required.
Exodus 13:9 tn The purpose of using this ceremony as a sign and a memorial is that the Law might be in their mouth. The imperfect tense, then, receives the classification of final imperfect in the purpose clause.
Exodus 13:9 sn “Mouth” is a metonymy of cause; the point is that they should be ever talking about the Law as their guide as they go about their duties (see Deut 6:7; 11:19; Josh 1:8).
Exodus 13:9 tn This causal clause gives the reason for what has just been instructed. Because Yahweh delivered them from bondage, he has the strongest claims on their life.
Exodus 13:10 tn The form is a perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive, functioning as the equivalent of an imperfect of instruction or injunction.
Exodus 13:10 tn Or “every year,” or “year after year.”

Matthew 21:18-22

The Withered Fig Tree

¹⁸Now early in the morning, as he returned to the city, he was hungry. ¹⁹After noticing a fig tree^[a] by the road he went to it, but found nothing on it except leaves. He said to it, “Never again will there be fruit from you!” And the fig tree withered at once. ²⁰When the disciples saw it they were amazed, saying, “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” ²¹Jesus^[b] answered them, “I tell you the truth,^[c] if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. ²²And whatever you ask in prayer, if you believe,^[d] you will receive.”

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 121[a]

A song of ascents.[b]

Footnotes

The Law of the Firstborn

Footnotes

The Withered Fig Tree

Footnotes

Psalm 121^[a]

A song of ascents.^[b]