So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God,
At this
point in the biblical story, the promise made to Abraham has been fulfilled in
many ways. They are a people and they have settled in a land, including a
capital, and a royal palace. Now King David wishes to “settle” God as well. It
is time, he thinks, to put the tent away that has housed the Ark of the Covenant. The prophet Nathan agrees, but God does not.
God neither wants nor needs a house. David and his descendants are all the
house God intends on establishing. It will fall to David’s son Solomon to build
the Temple.
7:1 Now when [King David] was
settled in his house, and the Lord
had given him rest from all his enemies around him, 2 the king said to the prophet Nathan, “See
now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.” 3 Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that
you have in mind; for the Lord is
with you.” 4 But that same night
the word of the Lord came to
Nathan: 5
Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord:
Are you the one to build me a house to
live in? 6 I have not lived in a
house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day,
but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. 7 Wherever I have moved about among all the
people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of
Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you
not built me a house of cedar?” 8 Now
therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord
of hosts: I took you from the pasture,
from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; 9 and I have been with you wherever you went,
and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a
great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for my people
Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be
disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, 11 from the time that I appointed judges over
my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie
down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall
come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for my name, and I
will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14
I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me.
Psalm
89:20-37 (Track 1)
Psalm 89 begins with a
royal hymn of praise (vv. 1-18). Verses 19-37 are a poetic version of the
Lord’s covenant with David found at 2 Samuel 7:11-17. It emphasizes the eternal and unalterable
nature of that covenant.
20 I have found David my servant; *
with my holy oil have I anointed him.
21 My hand will hold him fast *
and my arm will make him strong.
22 No enemy shall deceive him, *
nor any wicked man bring him down.
23 I will crush his foes before him *
and strike down those who hate him.
24 My faithfulness and love shall be with him, *
and he shall be victorious through my Name.
25 I shall make his dominion extend *
from the Great Sea to the River.
26 He will say to me, “You are my Father, *
my God, and the rock of my salvation.”
27 I will make him my firstborn *
and higher than the kings of the earth.
28 I will keep my love for him for ever, *
and my covenant will stand firm for him.
29 I will establish his line for ever *
and his throne as the days of heaven.
30 “If his children forsake my law *
and do not walk according to my judgments;
31 If they break my statutes *
and do not keep my commandments
32 I will punish their transgressions with a rod *
and their iniquities with the lash;
33 But I will not take my love from him, *
nor let my faithfulness prove false.
34 I will not break my covenant, *
nor change what has gone out of my lips.
35 Once for all I have sworn by my holiness: *
“I will not lie to David.
36 His line shall endure for ever *
and his throne as the sun before me;
37 It shall stand fast for evermore like the moon, *
the abiding witness in the sky.”
Or this
1st Reading (Track 2): Jeremiah 23:1-6
Jeremiah 23 begins
with an indictment against the leaders of the nation, using the images of
shepherds and sheep, which are found frequently in the Hebrew Scriptures. The Lord promises to raise up faithful
servant leaders, and, in particular, one ruler of the “righteous branch” of
David. “The Lord is our righteousness”
could also be translated, “The Lord is our justice.” Christians have often interpreted this
righteous ruler to come to be Jesus, though Jesus did not seek to be a
political leader.
23:1 Woe to the shepherds who
destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the Lord. 2 Therefore
thus says the Lord, the God of
Israel, concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my flock, and
have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. So I will attend to
you for your evil doings, says the Lord.
3 Then I myself will gather the
remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will
bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. 4 I will raise up shepherds over them who will
shepherd them, and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall
any be missing, says the Lord. 5 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a
righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute
justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In
his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the
name by which he will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”
Psalm
23 (Track 2)
This most beloved of
psalms, Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann says, “invites us into a world
of deep trust and lean desire.” By “lean
desire” he means that the trust we put in the Lord who is the shepherd is a
trust that focuses and simplifies our needs.
This is a psalm not only of protection, but also of perspective.
1 The Lord is my
shepherd; *
I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures *
and leads me beside still waters.
3 He revives my soul *
and guides me along right pathways for his Name’s sake.
4 Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I shall fear no evil; *
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
5 You spread a table before me in the presence of those
who trouble me; *
you have anointed my head with oil,
and my cup is running over.
6 Surely your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days
of my life, *
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
2nd Reading:
Ephesians 2:11-22
The writer of Ephesians (perhaps Paul, or someone from
the next generation) makes an eloquent statement of the unity of peoples which
Christ makes possible. Alienation,
hostility, and division are no more, reconciliation has been brought about by
Christ and peace—well-being for all—is the result. Two images for this new reality are
used: all are saints (“holy ones,” here
meant to mean all united in Christ, not only some with special gifts), and all
are members of the household of God—an image we use when we welcome the newly
baptized (BCP, p. 308).
2:11 So then, remember that at one
time you Gentiles by birth, called “the uncircumcision” by those who are called
“the circumcision”—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands—12 remember that you were at that time without
Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the
covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were
far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he is our peace; in his flesh he has
made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the
hostility between us. 15 He has
abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in
himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, 16 and might reconcile both groups to God in
one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. 17 So he came and proclaimed peace to you who
were far off and peace to those who were near; 18
for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the
Father. 19 So then you are no
longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also
members of the household of God, 20 built
upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as
the cornerstone. 21 In him the
whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22 in whom you also are built together
spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
Gospel Reading: Mark 6:30-34,
53-56
The disciples have
returned from their “mission trip,” and Jesus seeks to find them some
well-deserved rest. He is unsuccessful,
for the crowds follow him wherever he goes (verses 35-44 tell of the feeding of
the 5,000 and verses 45-52, Jesus’ walking on water). They are received well in Gennesaret (in
Gentile territory), far better than they were in Jesus’ hometown.
6:30 The apostles gathered around
Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 He said to them, “Come away to a deserted
place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and
they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And
they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. 33 Now many saw them going and recognized
them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of
them. 34 As he went ashore, he saw
a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep
without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 53 When they had crossed over, they came to land
at Gennesaret and moored the boat. 54 When
they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, 55 and rushed about that whole region and
began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 And wherever he went, into villages or
cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that
they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were
healed.
The Scripture readings (except for the
psalm) are from the New Revised Standard
Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of
the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by
permission. All rights reserved. The Psalm translation is from The Book of Common Prayer. Commentaries are copyright © 2018
Epiphany ESources, 67 E. Main St., Hornell, NY 14843. www.EpiphanyEsources.com. All rights
reserved. Permission is given to copy for congregational use with this
attribution.
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