O God, from whom all good proceeds: Grant that by your inspiration we may think those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever Amen.
1st Reading (Track 1): 1 Samuel 8:4-11
(12-15) 16-20 (11:14-15)
Our passage today is a turning point in the story of biblical Israel. The people have had no other king but God. A series of “judges” have ruled Israel in the name of God. They people see no successor to Samuel as judge, and so they ask for a king. Their reasoning is significant: they want to be like other nations. Samuel knows this is disaster, and so does God, but God says to give them what they want, just make sure they know the consequences. “Damn the consequences,” is the reply. So Saul becomes the first anointed king of Israel.
8:4 All the elders of Israel gathered together and
came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 and said
to him, “You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us,
then, a king to govern us, like other nations.” 6
But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to
govern us.” Samuel prayed to the Lord,
7 and the Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in
all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have
rejected me from being king over them. 8 Just
as they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt to this
day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so also they are doing to you. 9 Now then, listen to their voice; only—you
shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign
over them.” 10 So Samuel reported
all the words of the Lord to the
people who were asking him for a king. 11 He
said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take
your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run
before his chariots.
[12 And he will appoint for himself commanders of
thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap
his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots.
13 He will take your daughters to
be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He
will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give
them to his courtiers. 15 He will
take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers
and his courtiers.]
16 He will take your male and female slaves, and the
best of your cattle and donkeys, and put them to his work. 17 He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and
you shall be his slaves. 18 And in
that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for
yourselves; but the Lord will not
answer you in that day.” 19 But
the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; they said, “No! but we are
determined to have a king over us, 20 so
that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go
out before us and fight our battles.’
[11:14 Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingship.” 15 So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed offerings of well-being before the Lord, and there Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.]
Psalm 138 (Track 1)
Psalm 138 is an individual’s prayer of confidence in God. This confidence rests on the promise of God’s steadfast love, which is for the lowly as well as the mighty.
1 I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart; *
before the gods I will sing your praise.
2 I will bow down toward your holy temple
and praise your Name, *
because of your love and faithfulness;
3 For you have glorified your Name *
and your word above all things.
4 When I called, you answered me; *
you increased my strength within me.
5 All the kings of the earth will praise you, O Lord; *
when they have heard the words of your mouth.
6 They will sing of the ways of the Lord, *
that great is the glory of the Lord.
7 Though the Lord be high, he cares for the lowly; *
he perceives the haughty from afar.
8 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you keep me safe; *
you stretch forth your hand against the fury of my enemies;
your right hand shall save me.
9 The Lord will make good his purpose for me; *
O Lord, your love endures for ever;
do not abandon the works of your hands.
1st
Reading (Track 2): Genesis 3:8-15
What follows is the second half of the temptation story (sometimes called “the fall”). The crafty serpent has revealed that the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden (of which God has commanded they shall not eat) will not cause them to die, but to be like God, that is, wise, “knowing good and evil.” They ate, but their first knowledge is of shame. They “knew that they were naked.” Shame distorts their relationship with God, as the second part of the story tells us. The tragedy of the whole of the Bible can be summarized in Adam’s response to God, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid…” The “original sin” may be disobedience of God’s command, or is it the refusal to take responsibility for one’s own actions?
3:8 They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 He said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, :The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” 14 The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you among all animals and among all wild creatures; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Psalm
130 (Track 2)
Psalm 130 is one of the “Songs of Ascent,” pilgrim songs sung on the way to Jerusalem. This psalm is a prayer for deliverance from personal trouble. The psalmist knows the “depths,” but also trusts the Lord’s forgiveness and mercy.
1 Out of the depths have I called to you, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice; *
let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication.
2 If you, Lord, were to note what is done amiss, *
O Lord, who could stand?
3 For there is forgiveness with you; *
therefore you shall be feared.
4 I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; *
in his word is my hope.
5 My soul waits for the Lord,
more than watchmen for the morning, *
more than watchmen for the morning.
6 O Israel, wait for the Lord, *
for with the Lord there is mercy;
7 With him there is plenteous redemption, *
and he shall redeem Israel from all their sins.
Paul begins this paragraph by referencing the faith of the psalmist in the midst of trouble. The exact reference is to Psalm 116:10. He has been talking about the experience of suffering, both by himself and the Christian community in general. He encourages the Corinthians to experience it as “a slight momentary affliction.” It is not God’s ultimate plan for us.
4:13 Just as we have the same spirit of faith that is in accordance with scripture—“I believed, and so I spoke”—we also believe, and so we speak, 14 because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence. 15 Yes, everything is for your sake, so that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. 16 So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. 17 For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, 18 because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal. 5:1 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
Gospel
Reading: Mark 3:20-35
Jesus has just called his twelve disciples. Now there is a troubling encounter with his family, who attempt to restrain him because there is a rumor that he is insane. The religious authorities also claim that he is in league with Satan. (“Beelzebul” is a form of Baal-zebub, a widely known pagan God, see 2 Kings 1:2). He responds with his well-known saying about sins against the Holy Spirit being “eternal,” i.e., unforgivable. Bible interpreters have spent two millennia trying to figure out exactly what constitutes a “sin against the Holy Spirit.” More importantly, as the story moves on, his family attempts to intervene again and he more or less turns his back on them. He has created a new family.
3:20 The crowd came together again, so that Jesus and his disciples could not even eat. 21 When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind.” 22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.” 23 And he called them to him, and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. 27 But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered. 28 Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—30 for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.” 31 Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.” 33 And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34 And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
The Scripture
quotations (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. All rights reserved. The Collect of the Day and the Psalm
translation are from The Book of Common
Prayer. Commentaries are copyright ©
2021, Epiphany ESources, 67 E. Main St., Hornell, NY 14843, www.epiphanyesources.com. All rights reserved. Permission is given to copy for group
study.
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