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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 7

Psalm 7^[a]

A musical composition^[b] by David, which he sang to the Lord concerning^[c] a Benjaminite named Cush.^[d]

7 O Lord my God, in you I have taken shelter.^[e]
Deliver me from all who chase me. Rescue me!
²Otherwise they will rip^[f] me^[g] to shreds like a lion;
they will tear me to bits and no one will be able to rescue me.^[h]
³O Lord my God, if I have done what they say,^[i]
or am guilty of unjust actions,^[j]
⁴or have wronged my ally,^[k]
or helped his lawless enemy,^[l]
⁵may an enemy relentlessly chase^[m] me^[n] and catch me;^[o]
may he trample me to death^[p]
and leave me lying dishonored in the dust.^[q] (Selah)
⁶Stand up angrily,^[r] Lord.
Rise up with raging fury against my enemies.^[s]
Wake up for my sake, and execute the judgment you have decreed for them.^[t]
⁷The countries are assembled all around you;^[u]
take once more your rightful place over them.^[v]
⁸The Lord judges the nations.^[w]
Vindicate me, Lord, because I am innocent,^[x]
because I am blameless,^[y] O Exalted One.^[z]
⁹May the evil deeds of the wicked^[aa] come to an end.^[ab]
But make the innocent^[ac] secure,^[ad]
O righteous God,
you who examine^[ae] inner thoughts and motives.^[af]
¹⁰The Exalted God is my shield,^[ag]
the one who delivers the morally upright.^[ah]
¹¹God is a just judge;
he is angry throughout the day.^[ai]
¹²If a person^[aj] does not repent, God will wield his sword.^[ak]
He has prepared to shoot his bow.^[al]
¹³He has prepared deadly weapons to use against him;^[am]
he gets ready to shoot flaming arrows.^[an]
¹⁴See the one who is pregnant with wickedness,
who conceives destructive plans,
and gives birth to harmful lies—
¹⁵he digs a pit^[ao]
and then falls into the hole he has made.^[ap]
¹⁶He becomes the victim of his own destructive plans^[aq]—
and the violence he intended for others falls on his own head.^[ar]
¹⁷I will thank the Lord for^[as] his justice;
I will sing praises to the Lord Most High!^[at]

Footnotes

Psalm 7:1 sn Psalm 7. The psalmist asks the Lord to intervene and deliver him from his enemies. He protests his innocence and declares his confidence in God’s justice.
Psalm 7:1 tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew term שִׁגָּיוֹן (shiggayon; translated here “musical composition”) is uncertain. Some derive the noun from the verbal root שָׁגָה (shagah, “swerve, reel”) and understand it as referring to a “wild, passionate song, with rapid changes of rhythm” (see BDB 993 s.v. שִׁגָּיוֹן). But this proposal is purely speculative. The only other appearance of the noun is in Hab 3:1, where it occurs in the plural.
Psalm 7:1 tn Or “on account of.”
Psalm 7:1 sn Apparently this individual named Cush was one of David’s enemies.
Psalm 7:1 tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form probably refers here to a completed action with continuing results.
Psalm 7:2 tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew text, even though “all who chase me” in v. 1 refers to a whole group of enemies. The singular is also used in vv. 4-5, but the psalmist returns to the plural in v. 6. The singular is probably collective, emphasizing the united front that the psalmist’s enemies present. This same alternation between a collective singular and a plural referring to enemies appears in Pss 9:3, 6; 13:4; 31:4, 8; 41:6, 10-11; 42:9-10; 55:3; 64:1-2; 74:3-4; 89:22-23; 106:10-11; 143:3, 6, 9.
Psalm 7:2 tn Heb “my life.” The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.
Psalm 7:2 tn Heb “tearing and there is no one rescuing.” The verbal form translated “tearing” is a singular active participle.
Psalm 7:3 tn Heb “if I have done this.”
Psalm 7:3 tn Heb “if there is injustice in my hands.” The “hands” figuratively suggest deeds or actions.
Psalm 7:4 tn Heb “if I have repaid the one at peace with me evil.” The form שׁוֹלְמִי (shol^emi, “the one at peace with me”) probably refers to a close friend or ally, i.e., one with whom the psalmist has made a formal agreement. See BDB 1023 s.v. שָׁלוֹם 4.a.
Psalm 7:4 tn Heb “or rescued my enemy in vain.” The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive (the verb form is pseudo-cohortative; see IBHS 576-77 §34.5.3) carries on the hypothetical nuance of the perfect in the preceding line. Some regard the statement as a parenthetical assertion that the psalmist is kind to his enemies. Others define חָלַץ (khalats) as “despoil” (cf. NASB, NRSV “plundered”; NIV “robbed”), an otherwise unattested nuance for this verb. Still others emend the verb to לָחַץ (lakhats, “oppress”). Most construe the adverb רֵיקָם (reqam, “emptily, vainly”) with “my enemy,” i.e., the one who is my enemy in vain.” The present translation (1) assumes an emendation of צוֹרְרִי (tsor^eri, “my enemy”) to צוֹרְרוֹ (tsor^ero, “his [i.e., the psalmist’s ally’s] enemy”) following J. Tigay, “Psalm 7:5 and Ancient Near Eastern Treaties,” JBL 89 (1970): 178-86, (2) understands the final mem (ם) on רֵיקָם as enclitic, and (3) takes רִיק (riq) as an adjective modifying “his enemy.” (For other examples of a suffixed noun followed by an attributive adjective without the article, see Pss 18:17 (“my strong enemy”), 99:3 (“your great and awesome name”) and 143:10 (“your good spirit”). The adjective רִיק occurs with the sense “lawless” in Judg 9:4; 11:3; 2 Chr 13:7. In this case the psalmist affirms that he has not wronged his ally, nor has he given aid to his ally’s enemies. Ancient Near Eastern treaties typically included such clauses, with one or both parties agreeing not to lend aid to the treaty partner’s enemies.
Psalm 7:5 tn The vocalization of the verb form seems to be a mixture of Qal and Piel (see GKC 168 §63.n). The translation assumes the Piel, which would emphasize the repetitive nature of the action. The translation assumes the prefixed verbal form is a jussive. The psalmist is so certain that he is innocent of the sins mentioned in vv. 3-4, he pronounces an imprecation on himself for rhetorical effect.
Psalm 7:5 tn Heb “my life.” The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.
Psalm 7:5 tn Heb “and may he overtake.” The prefixed verbal form is distinctly jussive. The object “me,” though unexpressed, is understood from the preceding statement.
Psalm 7:5 tn Heb “and may he trample down to the earth my life.”
Psalm 7:5 tn Heb “and my honor in the dust may he cause to dwell.” The prefixed verbal form is distinctly jussive. Some emend כְבוֹדִי (kh^evodi, “my honor”) to כְבֵדִי (kh^evedi, “my liver” as the seat of life), but the term כְבוֹדִי (kh^evodi) is to be retained since it probably refers to the psalmist’s dignity or honor.
Psalm 7:6 tn Heb “in your anger.”
Psalm 7:6 tn Heb “Lift yourself up in the angry outbursts of my enemies.” Many understand the preposition prefixed to עַבְרוֹת (ʿavrot, “angry outbursts”) as adversative, “against,” and the following genitive “enemies” as subjective. In this case one could translate, “rise up against my furious enemies” (cf. NIV, NRSV). The present translation, however, takes the preposition as indicating manner (cf. “in your anger” in the previous line) and understands the plural form of the noun as indicating an abstract quality (“fury”) or excessive degree (“raging fury”). Cf. Job 21:30.
Psalm 7:6 tc Heb “Wake up to me [with the] judgment [which] you have commanded.” The LXX understands אֵלִי (ʾeliy, “my God”) instead of אֵלַי (ʾelay, “to me”; the LXX reading is followed by NEB, NIV, NRSV.) If the reading of the MT is retained, the preposition probably has the sense of “on account of, for the sake of.” The noun מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat, “judgment”) is probably an adverbial accusative, modifying the initial imperative, “wake up.” In this case צִוִּיתָ (tsivvita, “[which] you have commanded”) is an asyndetic relative clause. Some take the perfect as precative. In this case one could translate the final line, “Wake up for my sake! Decree judgment!” (cf. NIV). However, not all grammarians are convinced that the perfect is used as a precative in biblical Hebrew.
Psalm 7:7 tn Heb “and the assembly of the peoples surrounds you.” Some understand the prefixed verbal form as a jussive, “may the assembly of the peoples surround you.”
Psalm 7:7 tn Heb “over it (the feminine suffix refers back to the feminine noun “assembly” in the preceding line) on high return.” Some emend שׁוּבָה (shuvah, “return”) to שֵׁבָה (shevah, “sit [in judgment]”) because they find the implication of “return” problematic. But the psalmist does not mean to imply that God has abandoned his royal throne and needs to regain it. Rather he simply urges God, as sovereign king of the world, to once more occupy his royal seat of judgment and execute judgment, as the OT pictures God doing periodically.
Psalm 7:8 sn The Lord judges the nations. In hyperbolic fashion the psalmist pictures the nations assembled around the divine throne (v. 7a). He urges God to take his rightful place on the throne (v. 7b) and then pictures him making judicial decisions that vindicate the innocent (see vv. 8-16).
Psalm 7:8 tn Heb “judge me, O Lord, according to my innocence.”
Psalm 7:8 tn Heb “according to my blamelessness.” The imperative verb translated “vindicate” governs the second line as well.
Psalm 7:8 tn The Hebrew form עָלָי (ʿalay) has been traditionally understood as the preposition עַל (ʿal, “over”) with a first person suffix. But this is syntactically awkward and meaningless. The form is probably a divine title derived from the verbal root עָלָה (ʿalah, “ascend”). This relatively rare title appears elsewhere in the OT (see HALOT 824-25 s.v. I עַל, though this text is not listed) and in Ugaritic as an epithet for Baal (see G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 98). See M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:44-45, and P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 98.
Psalm 7:9 tn In the psalms the Hebrew term רְשָׁעִים (r^eshaʿim, “wicked”) describes people who are proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21). They oppose God and his people.
Psalm 7:9 tn The prefixed verbal form is a jussive, expressing an imprecation here.
Psalm 7:9 tn Or “the godly” (see Ps 5:12). The singular form is collective (see the plural “upright in heart” in v. 10), though it may reflect the personal focus of the psalmist in this context.
Psalm 7:9 tn The prefixed verbal form expresses the psalmist’s prayer or wish.
Psalm 7:9 tn For other uses of the verb in this sense, see Job 7:18; Pss 11:4; 26:2; 139:23.
Psalm 7:9 tn Heb “and [the one who] tests hearts and kidneys, righteous God.” The translation inverts the word order to improve the English style. The heart and kidneys were viewed as the seat of one’s volition, conscience, and moral character.
Psalm 7:10 tn Traditionally, “my shield is upon God” (cf. NASB). As in v. 8, עַל (ʿal) should be understood as a divine title, here compounded with “God” (cf. NIV, “God Most High”). See M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:45-46. The shield metaphor pictures God as a protector against deadly attacks.
Psalm 7:10 tn Heb “pure of heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the seat of one’s moral character and motives. The “pure of heart” are God’s faithful followers who trust in and love the Lord and, as a result, experience his deliverance (see Pss 11:2; 32:11; 36:10; 64:10; 94:15; 97:11).
Psalm 7:11 tn Heb “God (the divine name אֵל [ʾel] is used) is angry during all the day.” The verb זֹעֵם (zoʿem) means “be indignant, be angry, curse.” Here God’s angry response to wrongdoing and injustice leads him to prepare to execute judgment as described in the following verses.
Psalm 7:12 tn Heb “If he”; the referent (a person who is a sinner) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The subject of the first verb is understood as the sinner who fails to repent of his ways and becomes the target of God’s judgment (vv. 9, 14-16).
Psalm 7:12 tn Heb “if he does not return, his sword he wields.” The referent (God) of the pronominal subject of the second verb (“sharpens”) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The verb לָטַשׁ (latash) appears only five times in the Bible. It is typically taken as a reference to sharpening, as in 1 Sam 13:20. But the meaning “wield” known from Ugaritic, a close cognate language, seems to fit the context better. The following verbs describe past actions of having gotten instruments prepared for battle. It is more consistent with that setting to picture God taking his sword and swinging it as a final act of preparation or as an immediate threat.
Psalm 7:12 tn Heb “his bow he has stepped [on] and prepared it.” “Treading the bow” involved stepping on one end of it in order to bend and string it and thus prepare it for battle. The verbs are a perfect and a preterite, thus referring to past action.
Psalm 7:13 tn Heb “and for him he has prepared the weapons of death.”
Psalm 7:13 tn Heb “his arrows into flaming [things] he makes.” The verb is a prefixed form and understood as an imperfect. As a parallel to the first verb in the series, יִלְטֹשׁ (yiltosh; he will wield), it describes a final act of preparation or the beginning of engaging in battle. It is also possible that the form is a preterite and should be understood as past tense, like the preceding perfect and preterite verbs.
Psalm 7:15 tn Heb “a pit he digs and he excavates it.” Apparently the imagery of hunting is employed; the wicked sinner digs this pit to entrap and destroy his intended victim. The redundancy in the Hebrew text has been simplified in the translation.
Psalm 7:15 tn The verb forms in vv. 15-16 describe the typical behavior and destiny of those who attempt to destroy others. The image of the evildoer falling into the very trap he set for his intended victim emphasizes the appropriate nature of God’s judgment.
Psalm 7:16 tn Heb “his harm [i.e., the harm he conceived for others, see v. 14] returns on his head.”
Psalm 7:16 tn Heb “and on his forehead his violence [i.e., the violence he intended to do to others] comes down.”
Psalm 7:17 tn Heb “according to.”
Psalm 7:17 tn Heb “[to] the name of the Lord Most High.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his divine characteristics as suggested by his name, in this case the compound “Lord Most High.” The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן, ʿelyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Ps 47:2.

Amos 3:9-4:5

Samaria Will Fall

⁹Make this announcement in^[a] the fortresses of Ashdod
and in the fortresses in the land of Egypt.
Say this:
“Gather on the hills around Samaria!^[b]
Observe the many acts of violence^[c] taking place within the city,^[d]
the oppressive deeds^[e] occurring in it.”^[f]
¹⁰“They do not know how to do what is right,” the Lord says.

“They store up^[g] the spoils of destructive violence^[h] in their fortresses.
¹¹Therefore,” says the Sovereign Lord, “an enemy will encircle the land.^[i]
He will take away your power;^[j]
your fortresses will be looted.”

¹²This is what the Lord says:

“Just as a shepherd salvages from the lion’s mouth a couple of leg bones or a piece of an ear,
so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be salvaged.^[k]
They will be left with just a corner of a bed,^[l]
and a part^[m] of a couch.
¹³Listen and warn^[n] the family^[o] of Jacob!”^[p]
The Sovereign Lord, the God who commands armies,^[q] is speaking!
¹⁴“Certainly when^[r] I punish Israel for their^[s] covenant transgressions,^[t]

I will destroy^[u] Bethel’s altars.
The horns^[v] of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground.
¹⁵I will destroy both the winter and summer houses.^[w]
The houses filled with ivory^[x] will be ruined,
the great^[y] houses will be swept away.”^[z]
The Lord is speaking!
4 Listen to this message, you cows of Bashan^[aa] who live on Mount Samaria!

You^[ab] oppress the poor;
you crush the needy.
You say to your^[ac] husbands,
“Bring us more to drink!”^[ad]
²The Sovereign Lord confirms this oath by his own holy character:^[ae]
“Certainly the time is approaching^[af]
when you will be carried away^[ag] in baskets,^[ah]
every last one of you^[ai] in fishermen’s pots.^[aj]
³Each of you will go straight through the gaps in the walls;^[ak]
you will be thrown out^[al] toward Harmon.”^[am]
The Lord is speaking.

Israel has an Appointment with God

⁴“Go to Bethel^[an] and rebel!^[ao]
At Gilgal^[ap] rebel some more!
Bring your sacrifices in^[aq] the morning,
your tithes on^[ar] the third day!
⁵Burn a thank offering of bread made with yeast!^[as]
Make a public display of your voluntary offerings!^[at]
For you love to do this, you Israelites.”
The Sovereign Lord is speaking.

Footnotes

Amos 3:9 tn Heb “on” or “over” (also later in this verse).
Amos 3:9 sn Samaria might refer here both to the region and to the capital city (later known as Sebaste). On the other hand, there actually are hills that surround the mound upon which the city was built. The implication is that the nations can come and sit and see from those hills the sin of the capital city and its judgment.
Amos 3:9 tn The Hebrew noun carries the nuance of “panic” or “confusion.” Here it refers metonymically to the violent deeds that terrorize the oppressed.
Amos 3:9 tn Heb “in her midst” (so NAB, NASB); cf. NIV “among her people.”
Amos 3:9 tn The translation assumes the form is an abstract plural (see Job 35:9; Eccl 4:1). Another option is to understand the form as a substantival passive participle and translate, “the oppressed” (so KJV).
Amos 3:9 tn Heb “within her.”
Amos 3:10 tn Heb “those who.”
Amos 3:10 tn Heb “violence and destruction.” The expression “violence and destruction” stand metonymically for the goods the oppressors have accumulated by their unjust actions.
Amos 3:11 tc The MT reads “an enemy and around the land.” It is also possible to take the MT as an exclamation (“an enemy, and all about the land!”; see S. M. Paul, Amos [Hermeneia], 118; NJPS; cf. NLT). Most scholars and versions emend the text to יְסוֹבֵב (y^esovev, Polel imperfect), “will encircle.”
Amos 3:11 tn Heb “He will bring down your power from you.” Some emend the text to read, “Your power will be brought down from you.” The shift, however, from an active to a passive sense also appears at 3:14 (“I will destroy Bethel’s altars. The horns of the altar will be cut off.”) The pronouns (“your…you”) are feminine singular, indicating that the personified city of Samaria is addressed here. Samaria’s “power” here is her defenses and/or wealth.
Amos 3:12 sn The verb translated salvaged, though often used in a positive sense of deliverance from harm, is here employed in a sarcastic manner. A shepherd would attempt to salvage part of an animal to prove that a predator had indeed killed it. In this way he could prove that he had not stolen the missing animal and absolve himself from any responsibility to repay the owner (see Exod 22:12-13).
Amos 3:12 tn Heb “with a corner of a bed.”
Amos 3:12 tn The meaning of the Hebrew word דְּמֶשֶׁק (d^emesheq), which occurs only here, is uncertain. If not emended, it is usually related to the term דַּמֶּשֶׂק (dammeseq) and translated as the “Damask linens” of the bed (cf. NASB “the cover”) or as “in Damascus” (so KJV, NJB, NIV). The differences in spelling (Damascus is spelled correctly in 5:27), historical considerations, and the word order make both of these derivations unlikely. Many emendations have been proposed (e.g., “a part from the foot [of a bed],” based on a different division of the Hebrew letters (cf. NEB, NRSV); and “on the edge,” based on a Hebrew term not attested in the Bible (NKJV). Some suggest a resemblance to an Akkadian term that means “sideboard [of a bed],” which is sometimes incorrectly rendered “headboard” (NJPS; see S. M. Paul, Amos [Hermeneia], 121-22). Most likely another part of a bed or couch is in view, but it is difficult to be more specific.
Amos 3:13 tn Or “testify against.”
Amos 3:13 tn Heb “house.”
Amos 3:13 tn These words are spoken to either the unidentified heralds addressed at the beginning of v. 9, or to the Egyptians and Philistines (see v. 9b). Another possibility is that one is not to look for a specific addressee but rather appreciate the command simply as a rhetorical device to grab the attention of the listeners and readers of the prophetic message.
Amos 3:13 tn Traditionally, “the God of hosts.”
Amos 3:14 tn Heb “in the day.”
Amos 3:14 tn Heb “his.” With the referent “Israel” here, this amounts to a collective singular.
Amos 3:14 tn Traditionally, “transgressions, sins,” but see the note on the word “crimes” in 1:3.
Amos 3:14 tn Heb “punish” (so NASB, NRSV).
Amos 3:14 sn The horns of an ancient altar projected upwards from the four corners and resembled an animal’s horns in appearance. Fugitives could seek asylum by grabbing hold of these corners (see Exod 21:14; 1 Kgs 1:50; 2:28). When the altar’s horns were cut off, there would be no place of asylum left for the Lord’s enemies.
Amos 3:15 tn Heb “the winter house along with the summer house.”sn Like kings, many in Israel’s wealthy class owned both winter and summer houses (cf. 1 Kgs 21:1, 18; Jer 36:22). For a discussion of archaeological evidence relating to these structures, see P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 64-65.
Amos 3:15 tn Heb “houses of ivory.” These houses were not made of ivory, but they had ivory panels and furniture decorated with ivory inlays. See P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 139-48.
Amos 3:15 tn Or “many,” cf. NAB “their many rooms.”
Amos 3:15 tn The translation assumes the form is from the Hebrew verb סָפָה (safah, “to sweep away”) rather than סוּף (suf, “to come to an end”), which is the choice of most versions. Either option effectively communicates the destruction of the structures.
Amos 4:1 sn The expression cows of Bashan is used by the prophet to address the wealthy women of Samaria, who demand that their husbands satisfy their cravings. The derogatory language perhaps suggests that they, like the livestock of Bashan, were well fed, ironically in preparation for the coming slaughter. This phrase is sometimes cited to critique the book’s view of women.
Amos 4:1 tn Heb “the ones who” (three times in this verse).
Amos 4:1 tn Heb “their.”
Amos 4:1 sn Some commentators relate this scene to the description of the marzeah feast of 6:3-6, in which drinking played a prominent part (see the note at 6:6).
Amos 4:2 tn Heb “swears by his holiness.”sn The message that follows is an unconditional oath, the fulfillment of which is just as certain as the Lord’s own holy character.
Amos 4:2 tn Heb “Look, certainly days are coming upon you”; cf. NRSV “the time is surely coming upon you.”
Amos 4:2 tn Heb “one will carry you away”; cf. NASB “they will take you away.”
Amos 4:2 tn The meaning of the Hebrew word translated “baskets” is uncertain. The translation follows the suggestion of S. M. Paul (Amos [Hermeneia], 128), who discusses the various options (130-32): “shields” (cf. NEB); “ropes”; “thorns,” which leads to the most favored interpretation, “hooks” (cf. NASB “meat hooks,” and NIV, NRSV “hooks”); “baskets,” and (derived from “baskets”) “boats.” Against the latter, it is unlikely that Amos envisioned a deportation by boat for the inhabitants of Samaria! See also the note on the expression “fishermen’s pots” later in this verse.
Amos 4:2 tn Or “your children”; cf. KJV “your posterity.”
Amos 4:2 tn The meaning of the Hebrew expression translated “in fishermen’s pots” is uncertain. The translation follows that of S. M. Paul (Amos [Hermeneia], 128), who discusses the various options (132-33): “thorns,” understood by most modern interpreters to mean (by extension) “fishhooks” (cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV); “boats,” but as mentioned in the previous note on the word “baskets,” a deportation of the Samaritans by boat is geographically unlikely; and “pots,” referring to a container used for packing fish (cf. NEB “fish-baskets”). Paul (p. 134) argues that the imagery comes from the ancient fishing industry. When hauled away into exile, the women of Samaria will be like fish packed and transported to market.sn The imagery of catching fish in connection with the captivity of Israel is also found in Jer 16:16 and Hab 1:14.
Amos 4:3 tn Heb “and [through the] breaches you will go out, each straight ahead.”
Amos 4:3 tn The Hiphil verb form has no object. It may be intransitive (F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman, Amos [AB], 425), though many emend it to a Hophal.
Amos 4:3 tn The meaning of this word is unclear. Many understand it as a place name, though such a location is not known. Some (e.g., H. W. Wolff, Joel and Amos [Hermeneia], 204) emend to “Hermon” or to similarly written words, such as “the dung heap” (NEB, NJPS), “the garbage dump” (NCV), or “the fortress” (cf. NLT “your fortresses”).
Amos 4:4 sn Bethel and Gilgal were important formal worship centers because of their importance in Israel’s history. Here the Lord ironically urges the people to visit these places so they can increase their sin against him. Their formal worship, because it was not accompanied by social justice, only made them more guilty in God’s sight by adding hypocrisy to their list of sins. Obviously, theirs was a twisted view of the Lord. They worshiped a god of their own creation in order to satisfy their religious impulses (see 4:5: “For you love to do this”). Note that none of the rituals listed in 4:4-5 have to do with sin.
Amos 4:4 tn The Hebrew word translated “rebel” (also in the following line) could very well refer here to Israel’s violations of their covenant with God (see also the term “crimes” in 1:3 [with note] and the phrase “covenant transgressions” in 2:4 [with note] and 3:14).
Amos 4:4 sn See the note on Bethel earlier in this verse.
Amos 4:4 tn Or “for.”
Amos 4:4 tn Or “for.”
Amos 4:5 sn For the background of the thank offering of bread made with yeast, see Lev 7:13.
Amos 4:5 tn Heb “proclaim voluntary offerings, announce.”

James 2:1-7

Prejudice and the Law of Love

2 My brothers and sisters,^[a] do not show prejudice^[b] if you possess faith^[c] in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.^[d] ²For if someone^[e] comes into your assembly^[f] wearing a gold ring and fine clothing, and a poor person enters in filthy clothes, ³do you pay attention to the one who is finely dressed and say,^[g] “You sit here in a good place,”^[h] and to the poor person, “You stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor”?^[i] ⁴If so, have you not made distinctions^[j] among yourselves and become judges with evil motives?^[k] ⁵Listen, my dear brothers and sisters!^[l] Did not God choose the poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him? ⁶But you have dishonored the poor!^[m] Are not the rich oppressing you and dragging you into the courts? ⁷Do they not blaspheme the good name of the one you belong to?^[n]

Footnotes

James 2:1 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.
James 2:1 tn Or “partiality.”
James 2:1 tn Grk “do not have faith with personal prejudice,” with emphasis on the last phrase.
James 2:1 tn Grk “our Lord Jesus Christ of glory.” Here δόξης (doxēs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.
James 2:2 tn The word for “man” or “individual” here is ἀνήρ (anēr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” But as BDAG 79 s.v. 2 says, “equivalent to τὶς someone.”
James 2:2 tn Grk “synagogue.” Usually συναγωγή refers to Jewish places of worship (e.g., Matt 4:23, Mark 1:21, Luke 4:15, John 6:59). The word can be used generally to refer to a place of assembly, and here it refers specifically to a Christian assembly (BDAG 963 s.v. 2.b.).
James 2:3 tn Grk “and you pay attention…and say,” continuing the “if” clauses from v. 2. In the Greek text, vv. 2-4 form one long sentence.
James 2:3 tn Or “sit here, please.”
James 2:3 tn Grk “sit under my footstool.” The words “on the floor” have been supplied in the translation to clarify for the modern reader the undesirability of this seating arrangement (so also TEV, NIV, CEV, NLT). Another option followed by a number of translations is to replace “under my footstool” with “at my feet” (NAB, NIV, NRSV).
James 2:4 tn Grk “have you not made distinctions” (as the conclusion to the series of “if” clauses in vv. 2-3).
James 2:4 tn Grk “judges of evil reasonings.”
James 2:5 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.
James 2:6 tn This is singular: “the poor person,” perhaps referring to the hypothetical one described in vv. 2-3.
James 2:7 tn Grk “that was invoked over you,” referring to their baptism in which they confessed their faith in Christ and were pronounced to be his own. To have the Lord’s name “named over them” is OT imagery for the Lord’s ownership of his people (cf. 2 Chr 7:14; Amos 9:12; Isa 63:19; Jer 14:9; 15:16; Dan 9:19; Acts 15:17).

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 7[a]

A musical composition[b] by David, which he sang to the Lord concerning[c] a Benjaminite named Cush.[d]

Footnotes

Samaria Will Fall

Israel has an Appointment with God

Footnotes

Prejudice and the Law of Love

Footnotes

Psalm 7^[a]

A musical composition^[b] by David, which he sang to the Lord concerning^[c] a Benjaminite named Cush.^[d]