Daily Scripture Readings     

Saturday (October 9, 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.

Saturday

AM Psalm 137:1-6(7-9), 144

PM Psalm 104

Micah 5:1-4,10-15

Acts 25:13-27

Luke 8:16-25

[Wilfred Grenfell]:

wilfred grenfell

Psalm 107:23-32

2 Kings 2:19-22; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Mark 6:45-56 Eucharistic Readings:

Galatians 3:21-29; Psalm 105:1-7;

Luke 11:27-28

Saturday

Morning: Psalms 104; 149

Hosea 10:1-15

Acts 25:13-27

Luke 8:16-25

Evening Psalms 138; 98

Saturday

Morning Pss.: 63, 149

Esther 9:1-32

Acts 20:1-16

Luke 4:38-44

Evening Pss.: 125, 90

 

Year C Daily Readings

Psalm 111

Numbers 12:1-15

Luke 5:12-16

* Saturday in the week of the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost, references for the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two

 

For the Lutheran Readings for today, and comments on them, see the Episcopal Readings in the file for September 25 2010, two weeks ago. These traditions differ in relating readings to the weeks following Pentecost.

 

Episcopal and Presbyterian Readings:

 

Micah 5:1-4, 10-15

 

5:1 Now you are walled around with a wall;

siege is laid against us;

with a rod they strike the ruler of Israel

upon the cheek.

 

The Ruler from Bethlehem

 

2 But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah,

who are one of the little clans of Judah,

from you shall come forth for me

one who is to rule in Israel,

whose origin is from of old,

from ancient days.

3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time

when she who is in labor has brought forth;

then the rest of his kindred shall return

to the people of Israel.

4 And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD,

in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.

And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great

to the ends of the earth; (Micah 5:1-4, NRSV = Heb. 4:14, 5:1-3)

 

10 In that day, says the LORD,

I will cut off your horses from among you

and will destroy your chariots;

11 and I will cut off the cities of your land

and throw down all your strongholds;

12 and I will cut off sorceries from your hand,

and you shall have no more soothsayers;

13 and I will cut off your images

and your pillars from among you,

and you shall bow down no more

to the work of your hands;

14 and I will uproot your sacred poles from among you

and destroy your towns.

15 And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance

on the nations that did not obey. (Micah 5:10-15, NRSV = Heb. 5:9-14)

 

The following comments are repeated here with editing and supplement from October 11, 2008 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two), when they were repeated from October 14, 2006 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two):

 

Gregory Mobley identifies Hosea, chapters four and five, as “speeches promising divine restoration and exaltation of the people of Israel and the city Jerusalem,” in which “A series of poems depicts an ideal age (‘that day’) when God reigns, Israel triumphs, and the nations are judged” (NOAB, 3rd ed., augmented, 2001, on Micah 4:1-5:15 NRSV). The first of these poems (4:1-8) was included in part (vv. 1-5) in yesterday’s reading. The theme continues (with Mobley’s labels for the respective sections): “The LORD will rescue the exiles” (4:9-10); “Israel will crush its enemies” (4:11-12); “A messianic poem [about a ruler from Bethlehem]” (5:2-5a); “Assyria will be defeated” (5:5b); and “Israel gains the upper hand” (5:7-9).

 

But in the course of this series of hopeful poems, we come to a problematic situation in Hosea 5:1 (Heb. 4:14): “Now you are walled around with a wall; / siege is laid against us; / with a rod they strike the ruler of Israel / upon the cheek.” Philip J. King, with particular reference to the striking of “the ruler of Israel / upon the cheek,” says it is “an act of humiliation expressing contempt for the king,” and that it “may refer to King Hezekiah who, in 701 B.C.E., was cowed by Sennacherib” (HarperCollins Study Bible, 1st ed., 1993 on Hos. 5:1 NRSV). So we may say that Micah draws a sharp contrast here between present humiliation, (cf. the “now’ situations of 4:9, 11), and the glorious future. Another king like David will come from Bethlehem to rule. “But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, / who are one of the little clans of Judah, / from you shall come forth for me / one who is to rule in Israel, / whose origin is from of old, / from ancient days” (v. 2 = Heb. v. 1). This “messianic poem” (vv. 2-5a) is familiar, of course, from it’s use by Christians at Christmas, and specifically, the quotation of it in Matthew’s narrative of the visit of the Magi (Mt. 2:6, citing Mic. 5:2, combined, says Dennis C. Duling, with 2 Sam. 5:2, “It is you who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you who shall be ruler over Israel”). This, as Duling reminds us (HarperCollins Study Bible, 1993, on Mt. 2:5-6), is Matthew’s “second formula quotation,” introduced (Mt. 2:5) by a variation of the formula, “All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet” (Mt. 1:22, my emphasis). (The “by the Lord” part of this formula is usually omitted–but clearly understood–in the subsequent formula quotations, 2:5-6, 15, 17-18, 23; 3:3, etc.), and the “through the prophet” part of the formula varies to suit the context, as, for example, in the reference to John the Baptist as “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness” (Mt. 3:3, citing Isa. 40:3).

 

Ehud Ben Zvi, who, of course, does not share Matthew’s understanding of this passage as a reference to Christ, nevertheless cites “traditional Jewish interpretations” as messianic. They “tend to focus on comparisons between the birth pangs of a woman and the hardship of Israel prior to the coming of the Messiah” (The Jewish Study Bible, 2004, on Hos. 5:2 = Heb. = NRSV 5:3). He refers to “the following text”:

 

Rab said: The son of David will not come until the [Roman] power enfolds Israel for nine months, as it is written, Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel. ‘Ulla said: Let him [The Messiah] come, but let me not see him. Rabbah said likewise. Let him come, but let me not see him . . . Abaye enquired of Rabbah: ‘What is your reason [for not wishing to see him]? Shall we say, because of the birth pangs [preceding the advent] of the Messiah?’ But it has been taught, R. Eleazar’s disciples asked him: ‘What must a man do to be spared the pangs of the Messiah?’ [He answered,] ‘Let him engage in study and benevolence and you Master do both.’ (b. Sanh. 98b [Soncino ET], cited by ibid.)

 

The messianic poem continues. “Therefore he [i.e., the ruler from Bethlehem] shall give them up until the time / when she who is in labor has brought forth; / then the rest of his kindred shall return / to the people of Israel” (v. 3 NRSV = Heb. v. 2). King says, “Labor pains symbolizing distress  may refer to a time frame rather than to a person” (op. cit., on v. 3). According to Mobley, “Isaiah of Jerusalem, a contemporary of Micah, also described the birth of an ideal king ([Isa.] 7:14; 9:6)” (op. cit., on v. 3). “And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD,” continues the poem,” in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God” (v 4a, b NRSV = Heb. v. 3a, b). This, says King, is a “description, comparable to the royal psalms, of the ideal shepherd-king, who will bring security and peace” (op. cit. on v. 4). And so, “they shall live secure, for now he shall be great / to the ends of the earth; / and he shall be the one of peace (MOl7wA, šālôm)” (vv. 4c, d, 5a NRSV = Heb. 3c, d, 4a). So this messianic poem ends by promising peace.

 

In the interval in the lectionary reference, Micah continues by predicting the defeat of Assyria (vv. 5b, c, d, e, 6a, b NRSV = Heb. 4b, c, d, 5a, b), the rescue of “us from the Assyrians / if they come into our land / or tread within our border” (v. 6c, d, e NRSV = Heb. v. 5c, d, e), and the ascendency of Israel (vv. 7-9 NRSV = Heb. vv. 6-8). For “the remnant of Jacob,” though surrounded by many peoples,” will have the power of the “dew”–that is, coming upon an enemy by surprise (NRSV v. 7a, b, c = Heb. v. 6a, b, c; cf. 2 Sam. 17:12 and Mobley’s comment on Mic. 5:7). For “the remnant of Jacob,” though “surrounded by many peoples,” will be like a lion (v. 8a, b, c, d NRSV = Heb. v. 7a, b, c, d), which “treads down / and tears in pieces, with no one to deliver” (v. 8e, f NRSV = Heb. v. 7e, f). Israel will be “lifted up over your adversaries, / and all your enemies shall be cut off” (v. 9 NRSV = Heb. v. 8).

 

But the last part of this hopeful section (chaps. 4-5) backs off a little. The LORD says he will “cut off your horses from among you / and . . . destroy your chariots” (5:10 NRSV = Heb. 5:9), for, as Mobley says, “Israel must rely on the LORD, not military force (Ps. 20:17; 33:13-17; Zech. 9:10)” (op. cit., on v. 10). The LORD “will cut off the cities of your land / and throw down all your strongholds” (v. 11 NRSV = Heb. v. 10). The LORD will bring forbidden religious practices to an end, for he says, “I will cut off sorceries from your hand, / and you shall have no more soothsayers” (v. 12 NRSV = Heb. v. 11). According to Mobley, “The precise forms these means of divination took are unknown; for the biblical prohibition, see Deut. 18:10-11” (op. cit., on Mic. 5:12). The LORD continues: “and I will cut off your images / and your pillars from among you, / and you shall bow down no more / to the work of your hands / and I will uproot your sacred poles from among you / and destroy your towns” (vv. 13-14 NRSV = Heb. vv. 12-13). “Pillars,” says King, “refer to standing stone monuments with a variety of functions; they may have been symbols of the male deity (Deut. 16:22; 1 Kings 14:23. Work of your hands,” he adds, “signifies idols sardonically” (op. cit., on v. 13). “Sacred poles,” says King, “designates wooden cult symbols of the Canaanite mother goddess Asherah. This passage may be associated with the reform of Hezekiah” (ibid., on v. 14). “Pillars and sacred poles,” says Mobley, were “the equipment of Canaanite religion, banned for Israel (Ex. 34:13). According to 2 Kings 18:4, King Hezekiah accomplished this” (ibid., on vv. 13-14). “And in anger and wrath,” says the LORD, “I will execute vengeance / on  the nations; that did not obey” (v. 15 NRSV = Heb. v. 14).

 

Ben Zvi calls this stanza “a divine purge of Israel and the nations that serves to emphasize the importance of obedience to the LORD. Note the rhetorically powerful repetitions of ‘you/your’ and ‘I will’ that serve to stress the main point of the text, namely the relation between the LORD and Israel in the future envisioned in these vv., as the destruction of sinful elements of Judah is transformed at the last moment to retribution on the nations [v. 14 NJPS = Heb. = NRSV ‘vengeance on the nations’ v. 15]” (op. cit., on vv. 9-14 NJPS = Heb. = NRSV vv. 10-15).

 

Hosea 10:1-15 (Presbyterian and Lutheran traditions–see the comments for Friday, October 3, 2008, eight days ago.)

 

Acts 25:13-27

 

Festus Consults King Agrippa

 

            13 After several days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to welcome Festus. 14 Since they were staying there several days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, “There is a man here who was left in prison by Felix. 15 When I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me about him and asked for a sentence against him. 16 I told them that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over anyone before the accused had met the accusers face to face and had been given an opportunity to make a defense against the charge. 17 So when they met here, I lost no time, but on the next day took my seat on the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought. 18 When the accusers stood up, they did not charge him with any of the crimes that I was expecting. 19 Instead they had certain points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. 20 Since I was at a loss how to investigate these questions, I asked whether he wished to go to Jerusalem and be tried there on these charges. 21 But when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of his Imperial Majesty, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to the emperor.” 22 Agrippa said to Festus, “I would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” he said, “you will hear him.”

 

Paul Brought before Agrippa

 

            23 So on the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then Festus gave the order and Paul was brought in. 24 And Festus said, “King Agrippa and all here present with us, you see this man about whom the whole Jewish community petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25 But I found that he had done nothing deserving death; and when he appealed to his Imperial Majesty, I decided to send him. 26 But I have nothing definite to write to our sovereign about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after we have examined him, I may have something to write- 27 for it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner without indicating the charges against him.” (Acts 25:13-27, NRSV)

 

The following comments are repeated here with some editing from August 22, 2009 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to August 17, Year One), when comments were repeated with editing and supplement from October 11, 2008 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two), when comments were repeated from August 25, 2007 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to August 17, Year One), when comments were repeated from October 14, 2006 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two), when they were combined and revised from October 9, 2004 (Saturday of the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two), and from August 20, 2005 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to August 17, Year One).

 

At the close of yesterday’s reading, Festus, the Roman governor (procurator), agreed to send Paul to the emperor (Acts 25:12) rather that to Jerusalem to be tried by the Jews (v. 9). King Agrippa II, who appears in this reading, and his sister Bernice were children of King Agrippa I, whose death is reported in Acts 12:20-23. According to Francis O. Garcia-Treto, “when his father, Agrippa I, died suddenly in A.D. 44, Agrippa II was only seventeen and was being educated in Rome” (Harper’s Bible Dictionary, rev. ed., 1996, s.v. Agrippa II). Due to his youth, Agrippa II only gradually gained “the rights of succession,” and rule over various territories, including “the former tetrarchy of Philip and certain territories in the Lebanon. . . . [and] parts of Galilee and Perea” (ibid.). Also, according to Garcia-Treto, while he “retained important rights having to do with the Temple in Jerusalem . . . his true loyalty to Rome never wavered . . . even when put to the ultimate test provided by the Jewish revolt of A.D. 66 and its subsequent suppression by the Romans” (ibid.). Garcia-Treto adds that “Agrippa, after futile efforts to forestall revolt, joined the Roman side and not only regained his kingdom with Roman help but was closely associated with Titus, the conqueror of Jerusalem. Agrippa moved to Rome, and there he died after A.D. 93” (ibid.).

 

“After several days had passed,” that is, after Festus met with his council and agreed to send Paul to Rome (Acts 25:12), “King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to welcome [the new governor,] Festus” (v. 13). “Since they were staying there several days,” says Luke, “Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, ‘There is a man here who was left in prison by Felix’ ” (v. 14). And Festus describes the case of Paul in some detail. “When I was in Jerusalem,” he says, “the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me about him and asked for a sentence against him” (v. 15). “I told them,” he adds, “that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over anyone before the accused had met the accusers face to face and had been given an opportunity to make a defense against the charge” (v. 16). Christopher R. Matthews says, “Roman judicial process is put in a good light” (NOAB, 3rd ed., augmented, 2007, on Acts 25:16), as one might expect from the Roman procurator. “So when they met here,” that is, in Caesarea, says Felix, “I lost no time, but on the next day took my seat on the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought” (v. 17). But Festus was apparently surprised by the nature of the charges against Paul by the Jewish leaders. “When the accusers stood up, they did not charge him with any of the crimes that I was expecting. Instead they had certain points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died, but whom Paul asserted to be alive” (vv. 18-19). As Festus describes the situation, the charges were religious matters not subject to Roman law (cf. the words of Gallio in 18:14-15). “Since I was at a loss how to investigate these questions, I asked whether he wished to go to Jerusalem and be tried there on these charges” (25:20). According to Matthews, “The accusers do not bring a charge of sedition (24:5). Cf. 18:13-16; but in this case Festus does not dismiss the charges” (ibid., on 25:18-20). Festus reports Paul’s answer. “But when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of his Imperial Majesty” (v. 21a, cf. “I am appealing to the emperor’s tribunal ( ejpi; tou: bhvmatoV KaivsaroV, epi tou b‘matos Kaisaros)” (v. 10), I ordered him to be held until I could send him to the emperor” (v. 21). Beverly Roberts Gaventa sums up Festus’s speech: “Festus’s statement summarizes the events of 24:27-25:12, although with several changes: he states that the Jews asked for a verdict (25:15; cf. 25:2-3); he concedes the rightness of Paul’s defense (25:18-19): and he omits his political reasons for proposing that Paul be tried in Jerusalem (25:20; cf. 25:9)” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Acts 25:14-21). At that, we hear from Agrippa, who “said to Festus, ‘I would like to hear the man myself,” and Festus replies, “Tomorrow . . . you will hear him” (v. 22).

 

So arrangements are made for a hearing before Agrippa under auspicious circumstances, for, “on the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city” (v. 23a). Festus orders that Paul be brought in (v. 23b) and summarizes the situation as a Jewish issue. “And Festus said, ‘King Agrippa and all here present with us, you see this man about whom the whole Jewish community petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he ought not to live any longer’ ” (v. 24). But Luke reports that, like Pilate of Jesus, Festus said, “I found that he had done nothing deserving death (v. 25a, cf. Lk. 23:4). For that, Gaventa refers to Acts 23:29; 25:18; 26:31; Lk. 23:15, 22 (op. cit., on 25:25). But Festus adds, “when he appealed to his Imperial Majesty (SebastovV, Sebastos), I decided to send him” (v. 25b). “His Imperial Majesty, lit. ‘Augustus [Latin]’,” says Matthews, was “one of the imperial titles” (op. cit. on v. 25).

 

Although Festus has decided to send Paul to the emperor, he has a dilemma. Apparently, Festus, having agreed to send Paul to Rome, wants help in drafting the indictment. “But I have nothing definite to write to our sovereign about him,” he says. “Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after we have examined him, I may have something to write” (v. 26). “On the need for specific charges,” says Gaventa, “see note on 21:33” (op. cit., on 25:25-27). In the note she refers to, she says, “The need to identify what he had done recurs in 22:30; 25:26” (ibid., on 21:33). In the present context, Festus concludes by saying, “for it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner without indicating the charges against him” (25:27).

 

A scene is being set for Paul’s defense before Agrippa, Bernice and Festus (chap. 26, in readings for Monday and Tuesday of next week) which will fulfill Jesus’ prediction, “You will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will give you an opportunity to testify” (Lk. 21:12-15; cf. Christopher R. Matthews, op. cit., on Acts 26:1). Most of us bear witness to Christ in less grandiose circumstances!

 

Luke 8:16-25

 

Lamp under a Jar (Mt 4.21-25)

 

            16 “No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. 17 For nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light. 18 Then pay attention to how you listen; for to those who have, more will be given; and from those who do not have, even what they seem to have will be taken away.”

 

The True Kindred of Jesus (Mt 12.46-50; Mk 3.31-35)

 

            19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” 21 But he said to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”

 

Jesus Calms a Storm (Mt 8.23-27; Mk 4.35-41)

 

            22 One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they put out, 23 and while they were sailing he fell asleep. A windstorm swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger. 24 They went to him and woke him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he woke up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; they ceased, and there was a calm. 25 He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?” (Luke 8:16-25, NRSV)

 

The following comments are repeated here with some editing from May 13, 2009 (Wednesday in the Fifth Week of Easter, Year One), when comments were repeated from October 11, 2008 (Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two), when comments were repeated with some editing from May 9, 2007 (Wednesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year One), when comments were based on comments from October 9, 2004, and October 14, 2006 (in their respective years the Saturday in the week of the Sunday closest to October 5, Year Two), but with extensive revision and supplement. The primary reading for today is from Luke; for parallel accounts in Matthew and Mark, see the separate file, Lamp under a Jar.

 

A review of the parallel passages reveals a common thread in these Gospels, but some independence on the part of each. In Luke’s case, perhaps especially, there was some concern about how much material turned up by his extensive investigation (Lk. 1:3) to include, given the limitations of space imposed by the length of a papyrus scroll. With his Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles, he surely filled up two scrolls. A couple of the shorter parables which Mark includes in chapter 4 are included by Luke not in the parallel in chapter 8, but in chapter 13. Matthew has the largest group of agricultural parables in his chapter 13 (parallel to Mark 4 and Luke 8), but that is likely due in part to his topical arrangement. And Luke surely wanted to reserve room for some parables that he alone presents, for example, the parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:29-37), the Rich Fool (12:16-21), the Lost Coin (15:8-10), the Prodigal Son (15:11-32), the Unjust Steward (16:1-9), and the Rich Man and Lazarus (16:19-31).

 

“No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar,” says Jesus, “or puts it under a bed. But puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light” (Lk. 8:16; cf. Mk. 4:21; Mt. 5:15). This parable of the hidden lamp, under a jar (Lk. 8:16) or under a bushel basket (Mk. 4:21; Mt. 5:15) is generally the same in the three Gospels, but applied differently, at least by Matthew, in a context, where it accompanies Jesus’ statement, “You are the light of the world” (Mt. 5:14), and the following admonition to “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Mt. 5:16). But in Mark and Luke there is the implication that one should not seek to hide things, for they will be exposed. “For nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light” (Lk. 8:17; cf. Mk. 4:22; cf. also Mt. 10:26). The listeners are admonished to obey what they hear. “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” says Mark (Mk. 4:23). “Pay attention to what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get and still more will be given you” (Mk. 4:24; cf. Mt. 7:2). Luke omits the admonition to “anyone with ears” (Mk. 4:23), and revises the next admonition. “Then pay attention to how you listen; for to those who have, more will be given; and from those who do not have, even what they seem to have will be taken away” (Lk. 8:18). According to David L. Tiede, revised by Christopher R. Matthews, “Luke focuses on how you listen, i.e. the listener’s receptivity or attitude . . . to the word of God” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Lk. 8:18).

 

At this point Luke turns from parables to other matters. He passes over Mark’s Parable of the Seed Growing Secretly (Mk. 4:26-29), and postpones the use of others, to include Jesus’ statements about his true kindred (Lk. 8:19-21). “Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd” (Lk. 8:19). This scene, in which Jesus defines his family, is shorter in Luke’s version and in a different context from Mark and Matthew (Lk. 8:19-21; cf. Mk. 3:311-35; Mt. 12:46:50). When Jesus is told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you” (Lk. 8:20), he responds: “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it” (Lk. 8:21; cf. Mk. 3:33-35; Mt. 12:49-50). The scene where some people–some read it as Jesus’ family–were saying “He has gone out of his mind” (Mk. 3:21), is not included by Luke nor by Matthew.

 

Luke moves quickly on to the report of Jesus Stilling the Storm (Lk. 8:22-25; Mk. 4:35-41; Mt. 8:23-27). Again the accounts are similar, but Mark’s is the longest. The contexts are different; Luke, for example, says “one day” (Lk. 8:22 where Mark says, “on that day” (Mk. 4:35). Each account includes a windstorm (Lk. 8:23; Mt. 8:24), or a “great windstorm” (Mk. 4:37). Where Mark and Matthew state that the boat was “being swamped” (gemivzesqai, gemizesthai Mk 4:37; kaluvptesqai, kalyptesthai Mt. 8:24), Luke says the boat “was filling with water” (suneplhrou:nto, synepl‘rounto). In each account the disciples awaken Jesus (Mk. 4:38; Mt. 8:25; Lk. 8:24) and he rebukes ( ejpetivmhsen, epetim‘sen) the wind (Mk. 4:39; Mt. 8:26b; Lk. 8:24). In various ways in each Gospel Jesus challenges their faith. “Why are you afraid?” he asks. “Have you no faith” (Mark 4:40). “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” (Mt. 8:26a). But Luke’s form of the question is simple: “Where is your faith?” (Lk. 8:25a). The disciples’ wonder at this miracle (Mk. 4:41b; Mt. 8:27; Lk. 8:25b) is emphasized by Mark, “And they were filled with great awe ( ejfobhvqhsan fovbon mevgan, ephob‘th‘san phobon megan)” (Mk. 4:41); cf. “They were amazed ( ejqauvmasan, ethaumasan)” (Mt. 8:27), and “They were afraid and amazed (fobhqevnteV de; ejqauvmasan, phob‘thentes de ethaumasan)” (Lk. 8:25).

 

The time will probably come when we are compelled to shout, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” (Lk. 8:24). The Lord may still the storm, or he may give us grace to endure it. The latter, it seems was his response to prayers during the recent hurricane Ike and other recent disasters. In the face of such tragedy, it seems, we too are disciples of little faith. Lord, increase our faith.

 

As noted above, for the Lutheran Readings for today, and comments on them, see the Episcopal Readings in the file for September 25, 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