Daily Scripture Readings     

Sunday (August 29, 2010)*

Daily Office Lectionary, The Book of Common Prayer, the Episcopal Church in the U.S.A., 1979; cf. The Revised Common Lectionary (RCL), Abingdon Press, 1992

Daily Lectionary, Book of Common Worship, the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., 1993

Daily Lectionary, Book of Worship Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship, c. 1978 (2002 printing) ‡

http://www.satucket.com/lectionary/index.htm

http://www.pcusa.org/cgi-bin/lectiond.cgi

YOU MAY NEED TO COPY AND PASTE THESE URLs IN YOUR BROWSER

‡ Daily Lectionary, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, ELCA, 2006. In the Evangelical Lutheran Worship book of 2006, the Daily Lectionary (pp. 1121-1153) is revised to correlate with the Sunday Lectionary (the Revised Common Lectionary) on the three year cycle: Year A, Year B, Year C (now current). “The readings are chosen so that the days leading up to Sunday (Thursday through Saturday) prepare for the Sunday readings. The days flowing out from Sunday (Monday through Wednesday) reflect upon the Sunday readings” (p. 1121).

Unless otherwise indicated, the scripture texts quoted are from The New Revised Standard Version (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers), 1989.

Sunday

AM Psalm 148, 149, 150

PM Psalm 114, 115

Job 11:1-9, 13-20

Rev. 5:1-14

Matt. 5:1-12

From the Sunday Lectionary:

(Cf. the RCL)

Jeremiah 2:4-13 & Psalm 81:1, 10-16 or

Sirach 10:12-18 or Proverbs 25:6-7 & Psalm 112;

Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16; Luke 14:1, 7-14

(Cf. BCP)

Psalm 112

Ecclesiasticus 10:( 7-11) 12-19

Hebrews 13:1-8

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sunday

Morning: Psalms 108; 150

Job 11:1-9, 13-20

Rev. 5:1-14

Matt. 5:1-12

Evening: Psalms 66; 23

Sunday

Morning Pss.: 67, 150

Judges 16:15-31

2 Cor. 13:1-11

Mark 5:25-34

Evening Pss.: 46, 93

22st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

Jeremiah 2:4-13

Psalm 81:1, 10-16

Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sunday, August 28-September 3

Proverbs 25:6-7

 or Sirach 10:12-18

Psalm 112 (4)

Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16

Luke 14:1, 7-14

Semicontinuous reading and psalm

Jeremiah 2:4-13

Psalm 81:1, 10-16 (16)

* The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost, references for the Sunday closest to August 31, Year Two

 

For the Lutheran Readings for today, and comments on them, see the Episcopal Readings in the file for August 15, 2010, two weeks ago. These traditions differ in relating readings to the weeks following Pentecost.

 

Episcopal and Presbyterian Readings:

 

Job 11:1-9, 13-20

 

Zophar Speaks: Job’s Guilt Deserves Punishment

 

11:1 Then Zophar the Naamathite answered:

2 “Should a multitude of words go unanswered,

and should one full of talk be vindicated?

3 Should your babble put others to silence,

and when you mock, shall no one shame you?

4 For you say, ‘My conduct is pure,

and I am clean in God’s sight.’

5 But O that God would speak,

and open his lips to you,

6 and that he would tell you the secrets of wisdom!

For wisdom is many-sided.

Know then that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves.

 

7 “Can you find out the deep things of God?

Can you find out the limit of the Almighty?

8 It is higher than heaven --what can you do?

Deeper than Sheol--what can you know?

9 Its measure is longer than the earth,

and broader than the sea. (Job 11:1-9, NRSV)

 

13 “If you direct your heart rightly,

you will stretch out your hands toward him.

14 If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,

and do not let wickedness reside in your tents.

15 Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish;

you will be secure, and will not fear.

16 You will forget your misery;

you will remember it as waters that have passed away.

17 And your life will be brighter than the noonday;

its darkness will be like the morning.

18 And you will have confidence, because there is hope;

you will be protected and take your rest in safety.

19 You will lie down, and no one will make you afraid;

many will entreat your favor.

20 But the eyes of the wicked will fail;

all way of escape will be lost to them,

and their hope is to breathe their last.” (Job 11:13-20, NRSV)

 

The following comments are based on those of August 31, 2008 (the Sunday closest to August 31, 2008, Year Two), when comments were repeated from September 3, 2006 (the Sunday closest to August 31, Year Two):

 

The ridicule with which Bildad began, “How long will you say these things, / and the words of your mouth be a great wind” (Job 8:2), is equaled, if not surpassed, by Zophar’s opening: “Should a multitude of words go unanswered, / and should one full of talk be vindicated? / Should your babble put others to silence, / and when you mock, shall no one shame you?” (11:2-3). If one compares these to Eliphaz’s beginning words, which, on the surface, at least, imply respect and concern for Job–“If one ventures a word with you, / will you be offended? (4:2a)–we see a trend of increasing intensity in the criticism of Job, due, perhaps to the accumulation of his emotional protest. Mayer Gruber criticizes Zophar. “Like Bildad in 8:2, Zophar here, in the house of a man bereft of his children (1:18-19) and infested with maggots (7:5), has the colossal nerve to tell Job, the master of the house, that he talks too much! Just because a person talks a lot, says Zophar, does not meant that he is right” (The Jewish Study Bible, 2004, p. 1519 on Job 11:2-3). Leong Seow describes Zophar’s remarks as in direct contradiction of Job. “Picking up on Job’s complaint that he cannot ‘be in the right’ (‘yitsdaq,’ see 9:2), Zophar argues that one who is as full of talk as Job cannot be vindicated (‘yitsdaq’ [qDac4y9]). Whereas Job uses the term in the legal sense, Zophar uses it in the broader sense employed in the wisdom tradition, which emphasizes prudence and restraint in speaking” (NOAB, 3rd ed., augmented, 2007, on Job 11:2).

 

When Zophar gets beyond insults to the point he wants to make, he says, “For you say, ‘My conduct is pure (yH97q4l9 j`za, zak liqchî; LXX kaqarovV eijmi toi:V e[rgoiV, katharos eimi tois ergois LXX), / and I am clean in God’s sight’” (v. 4). As the NRSV text note e indicates, the Hebrew word translated “conduct” (NRSV, cf. LXX) means “teaching” (cf. William L. Holladay, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 1971, 10th corrected impression, 1988, s.v. Hqal,, leqach). Seow also notes that the NRSV has followed the Septuagint here. “As the NRSV has it (emending on the basis of the Greek), Job had been claiming purity of conduct. The Heb. text suggests, however, that what is at issue to Zophar is the purity of doctrine (Heb ‘leqach’ [Hqal,]). Zophar is focused not on the reality of Job’s experience but on the incorrectness of Job’s doctrine” (op. cit., on v. 4). God should teach Job the truth. “But O that God would speak, / and open his lips to you, / and that he would tell you the secrets of wisdom!” (vv. 5, 6a). True wisdom, as Zophar would have it, would teach Job “that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves” (v. 6b).

 

As others before him, Zophar makes points with rhetorical questions. “Can you find out the deep things of God? / Can you find out the limit of the Almighty? / It is higher than heaven—what can you do? / Deeper than Sheol—what can you know?” (vv. 7-8). James L. Crenshaw refers to Sirach: “”The height of heaven, the breadth of earth, / the abyss, and wisdom—who can search them out?” (Ecclus. 1:3). For each of Zophar’s questions the implied answer is, “You can’t!” Zophar explains the extent of God’s power. “Its measure is longer than the earth, / and broader than the sea” (v. 9). With Zophar’s references to “the deep things of God” (v. 7a), “the limit of the Almighty,” “the heights of heaven” (v. 8a NRSV note i) and the depth of Sheol (v. 8b), according to Gruber, he suggests that neither Job nor any person can really understand God: “And should God’s actions be limited to those that human beings find rational or just? Here, like the other friends, Zophar suggests that God’s great power (vv. 7-10) shows that He is a fair judge, who punishes iniquity only (v. 11)” (op. cit., on vv. 7-11). The crowning insult comes in verse 12: “But a stupid person will get understanding, / when a wild ass is born human” (v. 12). How sarcastic can Zophar get? “Zophar,” says Gruber, “is using this proverb to suggest that Job is a hollow man [NJPS 1985, 1999 trans. for ‘a stupid person’ NRSV, Heb. bUbn!, Navûv], and that he will never get understanding” (ibid., on v. 12).

 

In the balance of the chapter, Zophar advises Job to repent. “If you direct your heart (j~B@7l9, libbekā) rightly,” he says, “you will stretch out your hands toward him” (v. 13). “To ‘direct the heart’,” says Seow, is the idiom that Rabbinic Judaism used to describe the meditative preparation for prayer (cf. 5:8; 8:5-6a)” (op. cit., on vv. 13-20). By the references, Seow connects the advice to repent given by the three friends. According to Crenshaw, “Another discussion of divine justice that isolates the heart as the decisive organ in need of attention, Ps. 73, clarifies the issue. The problem, according to Zophar and this psalmist, is one of cognition” (op. cit., on v. 13). Job is to put iniquity far away: “If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away, / and do not let wickedness reside in your tents” (v. 14). If Job repents, says Zophar, “Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish; / you will be secure, and will not fear” (v. 15). Job is told, “you will forget your misery; / you will remember it as waters that have passed away” (v. 16). “And your life will be brighter than the noonday,” adds Zophar; its darkness will be like the morning” (v. 17). Gruber calls this “a response to the darkness imagery used at the end of Job’s previous speech [cf. 10:21-22]” (op. cit., on 11:17). “And you will have confidence,” says Zophar, because there is hope; / you will be protected and take your rest in safety” (v. 18). To Zophar’s promise of hope, contrast Job’s later denials of hope (13:15; 14:7-12; 17:15). In his response to Zophar, Job says, “See, he will kill me; I have no hope;d / but I will defend my ways to his face” (Job. 13:15 NRSV). The NRSV text note d says, “Or Though he kill me, yet I will trust in him” (cf. “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him” AV/KJV). Crenshaw explains: (I have no hope, lit. ‘I will not wait/hope.’ The qere reading (an ancient alternative to what is written in the Hebrew text) suggest that a later reader considered Job’s language excessive and substituted ‘for him’ (lit. ‘to him’) for ‘not,’ yielding ‘I will for him wait/hope’ (see the translation in text note d). Even this change hardly justifies a positive understanding of Job’s defiant last-ditch stand” (op. cit., on Job 13:15).

 

“You will lie down,” says Zophar, “and no one will make you afraid; / many will entreat your favor” (11:19). These promises (vv. 16-19) are conditional in Zophar’s mind, depending on the repentance advised earlier (vv. 13-14). But Zophar concludes with a description of the fate of “the wicked,” as though that is the future he really expects for Job. “But the eyes of the wicked will fail; / all way of escape will be lost to them, / and their hope is to breathe their last” (v. 20).

 

Revelation 5:1-14

 

The Scroll and the Lamb

 

            5:1 Then I saw in the right hand of the one seated on the throne a scroll written on the inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals; 2 and I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. 4 And I began to weep bitterly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

            6 Then I saw between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders a Lamb standing as if it had been slaughtered, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of the one who was seated on the throne. 8 When he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell before the Lamb, each holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9 They sing a new song:

 

“You are worthy to take the scroll

and to open its seals,

for you were slaughtered and by your blood you ransomed for God

saints from every tribe and language and people and nation;

10 you have made them to be a kingdom and priests serving our God,

and they will reign on earth.”

 

            11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 singing with full voice,

 

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might

and honor and glory and blessing!”

 

13 Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing,

“To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb

be blessing and honor and glory and might

forever and ever!”

 

14 And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped. (Revelation 5:1-14, NRSV)

 

The following comments are based on relevant comments on Revelation 4:9-5:5 and 5:6-14 of December 17 and 18, 2009 (Thursday and Friday in the week of the Third Sunday of Advent, Year Two), when comments were based on comments from October 27 and 28 (Tuesday and Wednesday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 26, Year One), when the readings were Revelation 4:1-11 and 5:1-10), and on earlier comments as noted there. Following comments are also based on relevant comments on Revelation 5:1-10 and 5:11-6:11 from October 28 and 29, 2009 (Wednesday and Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 26, Year One), and earlier comments as noted there.

 

In Revelation, chapter 4, we are presented with a picture of the heavenly throne room in which the Lord God is worshipped by “the four living creatures” (Rev. 4:8), and the twenty-four elders (vv. 9-11). But attention soon turns to the “Lamb” (Christ). A question is raised. “Then,” says John, “I saw in the right hand of the one seated on the throne a scroll written on the inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals” (Rev. 5:1). This was “A scroll,” says Bruce M. Metzger, “containing the fixed purposes of God for the future (Ezek. 2:9-10).” And “sealed,” he adds, means that it was “therefore both unalterable and unknown to others” (The New Oxford Annotated Bible [NOAB], 2nd. ed., 1994, on Rev. 5:1). David E. Aune notes that “the scroll written on the inside and on the back, technically an opisthograph, is unusual because papyrus rolls were usually used on one side only, though legal rolls could have a summary of the contents on the outside” (The HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Rev. 5:1). Then John “saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?’ ” (Rev. 5:2). “Worthy,” here, according to Aune, means “both able and authorized” (ibid., on v. 2). For a moment, the answer seems to be “no one is worthy,” for “no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it” (v. 3). According to John, this was a very disturbing development. “And I began to weep bitterly,” he says, “because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it” (v. 4). But he is quickly reassured. “Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals’ ” (v. 5). The elder, of course, refers to Christ. Metzger says, “No created being is worthy to carry out God’s plan, only the Messianic king can do so; for his titles (Lion . . . Root), compare Gen. 49:9-10; Isa. 11:1, 10” (op. cit., on vv. 3-5). Following Metzger, Jean-Pierre Ruiz adds, “has conquered [refers to] the paradoxical victory of the cross and resurrection (Jn. 16:33)” (The New Oxford Annotated Bible [NOAB], 3rd. edition, augmented 2007, on vv. 3-5). According to Aune, “Lion of the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:9-10) [is] a metaphor for the king or Messiah expected to come from the royal tribe of Judah, a claim frequently made for Jesus (Heb. 7:14)” (op. cit., on Rev. 5:5). “Root of David,” adds Aune, “(see also 22:16), meaning stock of David or descendant of David, king of Israel, is a messianic title (see Isa. 11:1, 10; Jer. 23:5; 33.15; Zech 3:8; 6:12; Rom. 15:12)” (ibid.).

 

“Then,” says John, “I saw between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders a Lamb (ajrnivon, arnion) standing as if it had been slaughtered, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth” (v. 6). According to Aune, “The image of Jesus as a Lamb who has been slaughtered is a surprising contrast to his designation as a lion (v. 5), perhaps alluding to the Passover sacrifice (1 Cor. 5:7) or the morning and evening sacrifice of a lamb in the temple at Jerusalem” (ibid., on v. 6). When John’s gospel calls Jesus “the Lamb (ajmnovV, amnos) of God who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29, cf. v. 36), the term for “lamb” is different. In Revelation, the term ajrnivon (arnion), a “diminutive of ajrhvn (ar‘n [‘sheep, lamb’]), but no longer felt to be such in NT times. . . . [means] a sheep of any age, sheep, lamb, in our lit. only in imagery, in Rev. a designation of Christ 5:6, 8, 12f; 6:1, 16; 7:9f, 14, 17; 12:11; 13:8; 14:1, 4, 10; 15:3; 17:14; 19:7, 9; 21:9, 14, 22f, 27; 22:1, 3; compare the parody figure 13:11” (Bauer-Danker-Arndt-Gingrich [BDAG], A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed., 2000, s.v. ajrnivon, arnion). The Lamb of Revelation is a paradox, “standing as if it had been slaughtered” (5:6, cf. vv. 8, 12), but nevertheless the leader of a multitude of the redeemed (7:7-10; 14:1), the conqueror of “the ten horns,” that is, “ten kings” (17:12) who, with “the beast” (v. 13), “will make war on the Lamb,” who “will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings” (v. 14).

 

Early in Revelation the Lamb, who one might think symbolizes weakness, is seen to be the one who is “worthy to open the scroll” (5:4), and throughout the book appears as the leader of the forces of righteousness. “He went and took the scroll from the right hand of the one who was seated on the throne,” says John (5:7). “When he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell before the Lamb, each holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (v. 8). Those in God’s throne room sing: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, / for you were slaughtered and by your blood you ransomed for God / saints from every tribe . . . / you have made them to be a kingdom of priests serving our God, / and they will reign on earth” (vv. 9-10)

 

Throughout much of the Book of Revelation, the plagues and judgments are brought about by the Lamb’s opening of the seals and the blowing of the trumpets and pouring out of bowls by angels. While the Dragon and the two Beasts have their day (chaps. 12-13), there is never really any doubt that they will be “thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur” (Rev. 20:10).” God is in control from the start to the finish. While the Book of Revelation certainly portrays cosmic conflict between the powers of light and the powers of darkness, there is never really any doubt as to the eventual outcome.

 

At this point, a multitude of angels and heavenly beings join the singing of praise. John looks and hears “the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands” (Rev. 5:11). They were “singing with full voice, ‘Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered / to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might / and honor and glory and blessing!” (v. 12). Metzger calls this, “the sevenfold praise of myriads in heaven honoring the sacrificial Lamb” (op. cit., on Rev. 5:11-12). And as if “myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands” were not enough, John hears “every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing, ‘To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb / be blessing and honor and glory and might / forever and ever!” (v. 13). Metzger says this is “Universal praise to the Creator and to the Redeemer as equal in majesty” (ibid. on v. 13). The songs of praise conclude with an “Amen!” from “the four living creatures” as “the elders [fall] down and [worship]” (v. 14).

 

Matthew 5:1-12

 

The Beatitudes (Lk 6.20-26)

 

            5:1 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

            3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

            4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

            5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

            6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

            7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

            8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

            9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

            10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

            11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV)

 

The following comments are repeated here from relevant comments on Matthew 5:1-10 and 11-16 of April 26 and 27, 2010 (Monday and Tuesday in the week of the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year Two), when comments were repeated from September 17, 2009 (Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 14, Year One), when comments were repeated from April 14, 2008 (Monday in the week of the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year Two), and earlier comments as noted there.

 

Today’s reading includes Matthew’s brief introduction of the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, “When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying” (Mt. 5:1-2). This is followed by the first nine Beatitudes (vv. 3-12). In Luke, the parallel Sermon on the Plain (Lk. 6:20-49, cf. v. 17) begins with four beatitudes and four contrasting woes. The relationship between these two versions of the beatitudes is indicated by the following table:

 

The Beatitudes (and Woes), Matthew 5:1-12; Luke 6:20-26 (NRSV)

Mt. 4:24 So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he cured them. 25 And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

Lk. 6:17 He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. 18 They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured.

5:1 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

19 And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them. Then he looked up at his disciples and said:

3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

20b "Blessed are you who are poor,

for yours is the kingdom of God. (Cf. Ps. 69:29-36)

 

24 "But woe to you who are rich,

for you have received your consolation.

4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (Cf. Gen. 24:67; Isa. 66:13; 2 Cor. 1:4; 7:6-7)

21b "Blessed are you who weep now,

for you will laugh.

 

25b "Woe to you who are laughing now,

for you will mourn and weep.

5 "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. (Cf. Ps. 37:11)

 

6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. (Cf. Ps. 72:2)

21a "Blessed are you who are hungry now,

for you will be filled.

 

25a "Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry.

 Compare “Woe unto you who eat the best bread!/And drink wine in large bowls,/trampling upon the weak people with your might./Woe unto you who have water available to you all the time,/for soon you shall be consumed and wither away,/for you have forsaken the fountain of life” (1 Enoch 96:5-6, ed. Charlesworth)

7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. (Cf. Lk. 6:36//Mt. 5:48)

 

8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. (Cf. Pss. 24:4; 51:10)

 

9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. (Cf. Rom. 12:18)

 

10 "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Cf. Ps. 119:811-88)

 

11 "Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Cf. Mt. 10:18, 39; 16:25; 1 Kgs. 19:10; Neh. 9:26)

22 "Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. 23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.

 

26 "Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

 

Matthew’s first eight beatitudes call certain kinds of people “blessed” (makavrioi, makarioi, cf. makavrioV, makarios, singular, in Ps. 1:1 LXX, for the Heb. yr2w4xa, ’ašrê, “fortunate, blessed,” William L. Holladay, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 1971, 10th corrected impression 1988, s.v. yr2w4xa, ’ašrê). These include “the poor in spirit . . . those who mourn . . . the meek . . . those who hunger and thirst for righteousness . . . the merciful . . . the pure in heart . . . the peacemakers . . . those who are persecuted for righteousness sake" (Mt. 5:3-10). If we include the ninth beatitude (Mt. 5:11-12), we find that four of the beatitudes have parallel beatitudes in Luke (as in the table above). Luke’s Sermon on the Plain (Lk. 6:20–49) is largely parallel to parts of Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount. Both begin with beatitudes and both conclude with similar illustrations about persons who built houses, one of which withstood the storm and one which was destroyed (Mt. 7:21-27; Lk. 6:46-49). Of the four beatitudes in Luke that are parallel to beatitudes in Matthew, each has contrasting “woes,” as is also apparent in the table above. So we see that Luke’s balanced list of beatitudes and woes draws a sharp contrast between the poor (v. 21b) and the rich (v. 24), those who weep (v. 21b) and those who laugh (v. 25b), those who are hungry (v. 21a) and those who are full (v. 25a) and between those who are persecuted “on account of the Son of Man” (vv. 22-23) and those of whom “all speak well” (v. 26). Marion Lloyd Soards says of Luke’s four beatitudes that “the focus is on economic and social conditions, not spiritual states” (NOAB, 3rd ed., augmented, 2007, on Lk. 6:20-23).

 

T. W. Manson, however, has a different perspective, if not a different understanding. He suggests that Luke’s “simpler form” of the beatitudes “is strongly eschatological,” and as such, “it is likely that their “stark simplicity” is “the original,” whereas in Matthew “the phrasing of the beatitudes has been given a more edifying turn” (T. W. Manson, The Sayings of Jesus, London: SCM Press, 1949, repr., 1975, p. 47). Manson continues as follows on the first beatitude (“poor,” “poor in spirit”):

 

The first beatitude states the contrast in general terms. The meaning of the word ‘poor’ is given by such passages as Ps. 69:29-36. In the Judaism of the last two centuries B.C. the term was practically a synonym for Ch~sîd [dys9HA], i.e. ‘saintly’ or ‘pious,’ in the best sense. So, for example, Ps. Sol. 10:7: ‘The saints also shall give thanks in the assembly of the people: and God will have mercy on the poor in the (day of) gladness of Israel.’ Here ‘the saints’ and ‘the poor’ stand in synonymous parallelism. Again in the Talmud they are treated as synonyms (Ber. 6b). The use of the word ‘poor’ in this way goes back to the days of the Seleucid rule in Palestine. Then it was the poor above all who remained faithful to their religion and the Law. The well-to-do upper classes in Jerusalem allowed themselves to be tainted with heathenism. Hence “rich” tends to mean ‘worldly’ and ‘irreligious,’ and ‘poor’ the opposite. In this specialized sense the word is used here. In Mt. the paraphrase ‘poor in spirit’ is an attempt to make this fact clear. The Kingdom of God belongs to these simple devoted souls, because they belong to it, having accepted God’s will as the only rule of their lives. As they submit themselves to the obligations of the Kingdom, so they become heirs of its privileges. (ibid.)

 

Manson has said that Matthew’s clarifying addition of “in spirit” illustrates his tendency to “gild the lily” (ibid.). He believes that Luke’s shorter version implies what Matthew’s version thus spells out. In general, we may say that Matthew’s version of the Beatitudes provides a blueprint for Christian living. Of the beatitudes in Matthew, J. Andrew Overman says, “In these nine beatitudes Jesus describes the ideal characteristics of the members of the Matthean community. They promise God’s comfort in the coming age (Isa. 61:2)” (NOAB, 3rd ed., augmented, 2007, on Mt. 5:3-12).

 

It has been said that the arrangement of material in Matthew’s Gospel (throughout) has made it an excellent “church manual” for teaching and practice, and for that reason, it was a favorite among the early Christians. The various beatitudes, as presented by Matthew, certainly point to significant Christian values, even virtues. We would do well to aspire to these attributes. We certainly need people at this time who are humble (“poor in spirit”), hungry and thirsty for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart and peacemakers, not to mention the other characteristics described in the beatitudes.

 

As noted above, for the Lutheran Readings for today, and comments on them, see the Episcopal Readings in the file for August 15, 2010, two weeks ago. These traditions differ in relating readings to the weeks following Pentecost.

 

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net