During this Pentecost Season, there are two “Tracks” of Scriptures that are offered, and congregations may choose which Track they will follow. The first two readings presented are the readings from Tracks 1 and 2, respectively. The third and fourth readings are the same in both Tracks.

1 Kings 2:10-12, 3:3-14

Reading

10 David slept with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David. 11 The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.

3:3 Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places. 4 The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place; Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” 6 And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today. 7 And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted. 9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?”

10 It pleased the LORD that Solomon had asked this. 11 God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12 I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. 13 I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. 14 If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.”

Commentary

The Book of Kings is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings. These books are a “didactic history” that covered the period from just before the entry into the Promised Land (c.1220 BCE, if the account is historical) to the release of the exiled king of Judah during the Babylonian Exile (562 BCE). The books were written in the period from 640 BCE to 550 BCE and continued to be revised even after that.

The authors of the Deuteronomic Books artfully wove their stories from many sources. They then used the stories in these books to demonstrate that that God controls history and to assert that it was the failures of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judea to worship YHWH and obey God’s commands that led to the conquest of Northern Israel in 722 BCE by the Assyrians and the conquest of Judea by the Babylonians in 597 BCE. (The conquests were not seen as the result of the Assyrians’ and Babylonians’ greater wealth and more powerful armies.)

The Book of Kings (to the extent it may be historical) covers from the end of the reign of David (965 BCE) to the time of the Exile (587-539 BCE).

At the end of last week’s reading, David was reported to be lamenting Absalom’s death, just as he had lamented Saul’s death – another death that had political advantages for David. In the intervening chapters, David and Joab fought battles against persons who revolted against David. In Chapter 21, there are descriptions of battles with the Philistines (which seem to be transposed from earlier in David’s reign), including the killing of Goliath by Elhanan, the Bethlehemite (21:19). Chapter 22 is virtually the same as Psalm 18, a psalm of praise of YHWH. In Chapter 24, YHWH became angry with David because he took a census. David was offered a choice of three punishments and chose to have a pestilence visited upon the people. David then built an altar at the place where Solomon built one of the altars in the Temple, and the pestilence ended.

The first chapters of the Book of Kings are a continuation of 2 Samuel and were, at one time, not divided as they are now. David was described as old and, even though he was offered Abishag, the most beautiful girl in all Israel, he had lost his sexual potency (1:4).

Adonijah was David’s fourth (and oldest surviving) son and had been born in Hebron (where David first reigned). Learning of David’s decline, he began gathering allies to support his kingship and had a celebration in anticipation of his kingship. When Nathan and Bathsheba learned of this celebration, they went to David and convinced him that he had promised her that Solomon would be David’s successor. This promise is not recounted anywhere in the Book of Samuel. The high priest, Zadok (from whose name we get the word “Sadducees”) anointed Solomon king.

In actions that “The Godfather” would later imitate, Solomon had his brother Adonijah killed for asking that Abishag be given to him as his wife; banished and later killed a rival high priest on a flimsy excuse; and had Joab killed for siding with Adonijah. He also married Pharaoh’s daughter (3:1), thus starting down a path marrying foreign wives that would lead to his downfall in Chapter 11.

After all this mayhem and murder, in today’s reading, Solomon asked for wisdom, and was granted a “wise and discerning mind.” In not knowing whether to “go out or go in” (v.7), Solomon was noting his lack of military experience. Solomon received both wisdom and wealth, both of which were themes in describing his reign – at least until Chapter 11.

Proverbs 9:1-6

Reading

1 Wisdom has built her house, she has hewn her seven pillars.
2 She has slaughtered her animals, she has mixed her wine, she has also set her table.
3 She has sent out her servant-girls, she calls from the highest places in the town,
4 “You that are simple, turn in here!” To those without sense she says,
5 “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Lay aside immaturity, and live, and walk in the way of insight.”

Commentary

In Christian Bibles, the Book of Proverbs is included in the “Wisdom Literature,” but in the Jewish Bible (the “TaNaK”), it is part of the “Writings.” The other two parts of the Jewish Bible are The Torah and The Prophets. The name “TaNaK” is an acronym for the first letters of the Hebrew words for each of these sections: the Torah, the Nevi’im, and the Ketubim.

Although Proverbs claims to be written by Solomon (v.1:1), who reigned from 965 to 930 BCE, most scholars agree that these sayings were compiled over a lengthy period and put in their final form around 450 BCE. In fact, two Chapters of Proverbs (22:17 to 24:34) are copied almost word-for-word from Egyptian wisdom literature dating to about 1100 BCE.

Most sayings in Proverbs are presented as teachings from the elders and are aimed at young men. They advised that moral living (diligence, sobriety, self-restraint, selecting a good wife, honesty) would lead to a good life.

The usual translation of a recurring theme in Proverbs is that “fear” of YHWH (translated as LORD – all capital letters in the NRSV) is the beginning of wisdom. Many scholars suggest that “awe of YHWH” or “reverence for YHWH” better captures the sense of the authors of the sayings in Proverbs.

In today’s reading, Wisdom was portrayed as a woman who invited even the “simple” and “those without sense” to share the bread and wine at her table and walk in the way of insight. In Proverbs 8:22, Wisdom was portrayed as being present at the Creation.

Ephesians 5:15-20

Reading

15 Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So do not be foolish but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, 20 giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Commentary

Ephesus was a large and prosperous city in what is now western Turkey. In the Acts of the Apostles and 1 Corinthians, Paul is said to have visited there. In Ephesus, there were Jesus Followers who were Jews and Jesus Followers who were Gentiles, and they did not always agree on what it meant to be a Jesus Follower.

Because the letter contained terms not used in Paul’s other letters and gave new meanings to some of Paul’s characteristic terms, most scholars believe that this letter was written by one of Paul’s disciples late in the First Century. The letter sought to unify the Jesus Follower community in Ephesus. The first three chapters are theological teachings, and the last three chapters consist of ethical exhortations.

In today’s reading, the author continued to urge the Jewish Jesus Followers and the Gentile Jesus Followers in Ephesus to live wisely, soberly, and to be thankful to God. In the verses just before today’s reading, the author used light and dark imagery to show that they were all now children of the light.

John 6:51-58

Reading

51 Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; 55 for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. 56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

Commentary

The Fourth Gospel is different in many ways from the Synoptic Gospels. The “signs” (miracles) and many stories in the Fourth Gospel are unique to it, such as the Wedding at Cana, Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, and the Raising of Lazarus.

The chronology of events is also different in the Fourth Gospel. For example, the Temple Event (“cleansing of the Temple”) occurred early in Jesus’ Ministry in the Fourth Gospel, rather than late as in the Synoptic Gospels. In the Synoptic Gospels, the Last Supper was a Passover Seder, but in the Fourth Gospel, it occurred the day before the first day of Passover so that Jesus (who is described as “the Lamb of God”) died at the time lambs were sacrificed at the Temple for the Passover Seder to be held that night.

Today’s reading is a continuation of the “Bread of Life Discourse” that has been the subject of the readings for the last two weeks. As usual, the author of the Fourth Gospel presents “the Jews” (the Temple Authorities and the Pharisees) as unduly literal. For them, consuming flesh was cannibalism, and blood (the lifegiving force) was reserved for God and was forbidden for humans. When animals were sacrificed at the Temple, the blood was poured on the altar. Meat that is “kosher” has all the blood drained from it.

The Bread of Life Discourse assumes the institution of the Eucharist, and the ritual of the Eucharist was part of the Jesus Followers worship by the time the Fourth Gospel was compiled late in the First Century. According to The Jewish Annotated New Testament, the ritual of “eating god” existed in some Greco-Roman mystery cults such as the cults of Demeter and Dionysius.

During this Pentecost Season, there are two “Tracks” of Scriptures that are offered, and congregations may choose which Track they will follow. The first two readings presented are the readings from Tracks 1 and 2, respectively. The third and fourth readings are the same in both Tracks.

2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33

Reading

5 The king, David, ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders concerning Absalom.

6 So the army went out into the field against Israel; and the battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim. 7 The men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the slaughter there was great on that day, twenty thousand men. 8 The battle spread over the face of all the country; and the forest claimed more victims that day than the sword. Absalom happened to meet the servants of David.

9 Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great oak. His head caught fast in the oak, and he was left hanging between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on.

15 And ten young men, Joab’s armor-bearers, surrounded Absalom and struck him, and killed him.

31 Then the Cushite came; and the Cushite said, “Good tidings for my LORD the king! For the LORD has vindicated you this day, delivering you from the power of all who rose up against you.” 32 The king said to the Cushite, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” The Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my LORD the king, and all who rise up to do you harm, be like that young man.”

33 The king was deeply moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept; and as he went, he said, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”

Commentary

The Book of Samuel is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings. These books are a “didactic history” that covered the period from just before the entry into the Promised Land (c.1220 BCE, if the account is historical) to the beginning of Babylonian Captivity (586 BCE). The books were written in the period from 640 BCE to 550 BCE and continued to be revised even after that.

The authors of the Deuteronomic Books artfully wove their stories from numerous sources. They then used the stories in these books to demonstrate that that God controls history and to assert that it was the failures of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judea to worship YHWH and obey God’s commands that led to the conquest of Northern Israel in 722 BCE by the Assyrians and the conquest of Judea by the Babylonians in 597 BCE. (The conquests were not seen as the result of the Assyrians’ and Babylonians’ greater wealth and more powerful armies.)

The Book of Samuel (to the extent it may be historical) covers from the end of the time of the Judges (c.1030 BCE) to the last years of the Reign of David (c. 965 BCE).

Today’s reading has fast forwarded from last week’s reading in which Nathan told David that YHWH said, “I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house” (2 Sam. 12:11).

In the intervening chapters, Amnon (David’s oldest son) became infatuated with his half-sister (Tamar) and raped her. David learned of this but declined to punish Amnon “because he loved him, for he was his firstborn” (13:21). Absalom (David’s third son) was Tamar’s full brother and got revenge by having his servants kill Amnon. In fear, Absalom ran away and lived with his maternal grandfather. After five years, he was allowed to see David and was subservient to him.

This subservience was short-lived. Absalom ingratiated himself with the people of Israel and led a revolt against David. David fled from Jerusalem and Absalom moved into David’s house and took all his concubines (a symbol of kingship). Absalom brought his army to pursue David but was persuaded by a person secretly sympathetic to David to hold off on attacking David. (This gave David time to regroup.)

David was now ready to attack Absalom’s troops but told his generals to “be gentle” with Absalom (v.5). In this way, the Deuteronomist absolved David of Absalom’s death.

Absalom was described as very beautiful (14:25) and had such a great head of hair that when he had it cut at the end of each year, the cut hair weighed five pounds (14:26). Because of his beautiful hair, he was ensnared by the oak tree (v.9) and was killed by Joab and his men. (Joab was always fiercely loyal to David).

In the omitted verses (16-34), Joab dissuaded people from bringing news of Absalom’s death to David and sent a “Cushite” (an Ethiopian) (v.21) instead. When David got the report, he was (according to the Deuteronomist) less interested in the victory over Absalom’s troops than he was about Absalom’s fate. He bemoaned Absalom’s death and said he would have preferred to die himself (v.33).

In the verses that follow today’s reading, Joab scolded David for caring more about his rebellious son than all the persons who were loyal to David and helped him regain his throne.

The balance of 2 Samuel relates the return of David to power and consolidation of his reign. Next week, the Lectionary introduces the reign of Solomon.

1 Kings 19:4-8

Reading

4 Elijah went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: “It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and lay down again. 7 The angel of the LORD came a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.” 8 He got up, and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.

Commentary

The authors of the Book of Kings also wrote the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges and Samuel, usually called the “Deuteronomic History,” a didactic history of Ancient Israel from the time in the Wilderness (c. 1250 BCE) to the Babylonian Captivity in 587 BCE.

These books were given their final form around 500 BCE – long after the events they described. The authors used the stories to demonstrate that it was the failures of the Kings of Israel and the Kings of Judea to worship YHWH properly and obey God’s commands that led to the conquest of Northern Israel in 722 BCE by the Assyrians and the conquest of Judea by the Babylonians in 597 BCE. (The conquests were not seen as the result of the Assyrians’ and Babylonians’ greater wealth and more powerful armies.)

Elijah and his successor, Elisha, were two of the great prophets (speakers for YHWH) in Jewish History. They opposed the (mostly) Baal-worshiping kings in Northern Israel for 90 years (from approximately 873 to 784 BCE), and their stories comprise about 40% of the Book of Kings. Elijah and Elisha are both credited with numerous healings, restoring people to life, and other extraordinary events involving food, such as the one recounted in today’s reading.

Just prior to today’s reading, Elijah invoked the power of YHWH to overcome the prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel in the Northern part of Israel. He brought fire upon a huge sacrifice, rain to end a drought, and then killed all the prophets of Baal.

The evil King of Northern Israel at the time was Ahab (873-852) and his wife was the Baal-worshiping foreigner, Jezebel. After Elijah’s deeds, Jezebel swore to kill Elijah, so he ran away as far south in Israel as he could – first to Beer-sheba (about 100 miles) and then to the wilderness where he hoped to die. In today’s reading, YHWH’s angels provided food to Elijah, so he had strength to journey to Horeb and continue his ministry.

For the Deuteronomists, the holy mountain is called “Horeb” rather than Sinai. “Sinai” is the name of the holy mountain used by the authors of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. The location of the holy mountain in the Sinai Peninsula has never been determined.

Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Reading

25 Putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. 26 Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and do not make room for the devil. 28 Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. 29 Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. 31 Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, 32 and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, 2 and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Commentary

Ephesus was a large and prosperous city in what is now western Turkey. In the Acts of the Apostles and 1 Corinthians, Paul is said to have visited there. In Ephesus, there were Jesus Followers who were Jews and Jesus Followers who were Gentiles, and they did not always agree on what it meant to be a Jesus Follower.

Because the letter contained many terms not used in Paul’s other letters and gave new meanings to some of Paul’s characteristic terms, most scholars believe that this letter was written by one of Paul’s disciples late in the First Century. The letter was intended to unify the Jesus Follower community in Ephesus. The first three chapters are theological teachings, and the last three chapters consist of ethical exhortations.

Because of the verses just before today’s reading, this passage appears mostly directed at the Gentile Jesus Followers. The author urged them to put away falsehood, not speak evil of others, and to put away bitterness, wrath, anger, wrangling and slander (v.4:31). He urged them live in love as Christ loved us. Describing Christ as a “fragrant sacrifice” (v.5:2) was a reference by the author to burnt offerings in the Hebrew Scriptures which are described as giving off an odor that was pleasing to YHWH, for example, Noah’s sacrifice in Gen. 8:21.

John 6:35, 41-51

Reading

35 Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

41 Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43 Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Commentary

The Fourth Gospel is different in many ways from the Synoptic Gospels. The “signs” (miracles) and many of the stories in the Fourth Gospel are unique to it, such as the Wedding at Cana, Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, and the Raising of Lazarus.

The chronology of events is also different in the Fourth Gospel. For example, the Temple Event (“cleansing of the Temple”) occurred early in Jesus’ Ministry in the Fourth Gospel, rather than late as in the Synoptic Gospels. In the Synoptic Gospels, the Last Supper was a Passover Seder, but in the Fourth Gospel, it occurred the day before the first day of Passover so that Jesus (who is described as “the Lamb of God”) died at the time lambs were being sacrificed at the Temple for the Passover Seder to be held that night.

Today’s reading begins with the closing verse of last week’s reading with Jesus asserting that he is the “Bread of Life.” (v.35) The “Jews” who complained (v.41) are the Temple Authorities and the Pharisees, not Jewish people generally. In verse 45a, Isaiah 54:13 is paraphrased – a portion of Isaiah of the Exile in which the prophet said that the Exiles would be taught by God and would be restored to Jerusalem.

The Fourth Gospel does not contain an Institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. Today’s reading is part of an extended discussion in which Jesus affirmed his relationship with the Father and asserted that – unlike manna in the desert — he is the Bread of Life that brings eternal life.

The Fourth Gospel is the most theologically dense of the four Gospels, and the theology of the Eucharist is one of the most challenging religious constructs for Christians to appreciate. To affirm that bread and wine are somehow transformed into the Body and Blood of The Christ requires a leap of faith. To affirm that ingesting the Body and Blood will transform us and put us in “common-union” with The Christ demands a leap of faith. To affirm that this union with The Christ opens us to “eternal life” (however understood) also is a faith statement.

During this Pentecost Season, there are two “Tracks” of Scriptures that are offered, and congregations may choose which Track they will follow. The first two readings presented are the readings from Tracks 1 and 2, respectively. The third and fourth readings are the same in both Tracks.

2 Samuel 11:26-12:13a

Reading

26 When the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she made lamentation for him. 27 When the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son.

But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD, 12:1 and the LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had very many flocks and herds; 3 but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meager fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. 4 Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.” 5 Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die; 6 he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.”

7 Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul; 8 I gave you your master’s house, and your master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added as much more. 9 Why have you despised the word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, for you have despised me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. 11 Thus says the LORD: I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes, and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this very sun. 12 For you did it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.” 13 David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”

Commentary

The Book of Samuel is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings. These books are a “didactic history” that covered the period from just before the entry into the Promised Land (c.1220 BCE, if the account is historical) to the beginning of Babylonian Captivity (586 BCE). The books were written in the period from 640 BCE to 550 BCE and continued to be revised even after that.

The authors of the Deuteronomic Books artfully wove their stories from numerous sources. They then used the stories in these books to demonstrate that that God controls history and to assert that it was the failures of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judea to worship YHWH and obey God’s commands that led to the conquest of Northern Israel in 722 BCE by the Assyrians and the conquest of Judea by the Babylonians in 597 BCE. (The conquests were not seen as the result of the Assyrians’ and Babylonians’ greater wealth and more powerful armies.)

The Book of Samuel (to the extent it may be historical) covers from the end of the time of the Judges (c.1030 BCE) to the last years of the Reign of David (c. 965 BCE).

Today’s reading picks up where last week’s reading ended – David sent a letter carried by Uriah to Joab to have Uriah placed in the front lines. In the omitted verses, Uriah was killed, and Joab sent a messenger to tell David that the battle did not go well, but then to tell him that Uriah was killed so that he (David) would not become angry (v.23).

Bathsheba mourned for the prescribed seven days, and David made her one of his wives, and she bore a son.

YHWH was not pleased with David’s behavior (v.27) and sent Nathan to tell a parable to David about a rich man and a poor man. David became angry and said the rich man was required to repay the poor man fourfold (v.6). This was prescribed by Ex. 22:1 in the NRSV and by Ex. 21:37 in the Jewish Publication Society Version.

YHWH (through Nathan) verbally chastised David for his ingratitude and noted that YHWH gave David the “house” (sometimes translated as “daughters”) of Saul (“your master”), Saul’s concubines, and the house of Israel and Judah (v.8). The distinction between Israel and Judah shows that this text was written after the division that occurred in 930 BCE after Solomon’s death.

YHWH told David that the sword would never depart from his house (v.10) because David “despised” (“spurned” in the JPS) YHWH. In the balance of the Book of Samuel, most of David’s problems arose because of his sons.

In the verses just after today’s reading, Nathan told David that YHWH had remitted his sin, but YHWH afflicted the child that Bathsheba bore (v.15). David fasted and prayed for the child’s recovery, but the son died after seven days. David “consoled” Bathsheba and she bore another son.

In the NRSV, it says David named this son Solomon, but in the JPS it says “she” named him (v.24). The name “Solomon” means “his replacement.” In the next verse, YHWH named the child Jedidiah, which means “beloved of the LORD” (v.25).

Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15

Reading

2 The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3 The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.”

9 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, ‘Draw near to the LORD, for he has heard your complaining.’“ 10 And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. 11 The LORD spoke to Moses and said, “I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning, you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.’“

13 In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14 When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15 When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.”

Commentary

The Book of Exodus is the second book of the Bible and covered the period from the slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh (around 1250 BCE), the Exodus itself, and the early months in the Wilderness.

In today’s reading, the Israelites had not yet reached Sinai, and were complaining (once again) to Moses that it would have been better to have died at the hand of YHWH in Egypt than to starve in the Wilderness.

Because YHWH was perceived as controlling everything in much of the Hebrew Bible, the writers of this story said that the Israelites’ deaths in Egypt would have been at the hand of YHWH (v.3) rather than at the hand of Pharaoh.

The God presented in this story is very human-like. YHWH “heard” their complaining (v.7). YHWH “spoke” to Moses (v.4) and responded (twice – one in v.4 and again in v.11) by sending the Israelites manna and quail. The fact of two responses indicates that this story is an amalgam of two traditions.

Man hu are the Hebrew words for “What is it?” (v. 15), so the name of the substance is also a play on words. “Manna” is a real thing. The New Oxford Annotated Bible says it is “the carbohydrate-rich excretion of two scale-insects that feed on the twigs of the tamarisk tree.” In Israel today, something called “manna” is sometimes available for purchase in Arab markets. It is sweet and sticky.

In the omitted verses (5-7) the Israelites were directed to collect manna each day, collect two days’ supply of manna on the sixth day, and not to collect manna on the Sabbath. This shows the story was written (at least in part) by the Priestly writers – for whom the Sabbath was most important.

In Numbers 11 contains another story about YHWH’s sending quail to the Israelites in such quantity that they gorged themselves and were struck by a great plague that killed many of them.

Ephesians 4:1-16

Reading

1 I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.
7 But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it is said,
“When he ascended on high, he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his people.”

9 (When it says, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) 11 The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14 We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15 But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

Commentary

Ephesus was a large and prosperous city in what is now western Turkey. In the Acts of the Apostles and 1 Corinthians, Paul is said to have visited there. In Ephesus, there were Jesus Followers who were Jews and Jesus Followers who were Gentiles, and they did not always agree on what it meant to be a Jesus Follower.

Because the letter contained many terms not used in Paul’s other letters and gave new meanings to some of Paul’s characteristic terms, most scholars believe that this letter was written by one of Paul’s disciples late in the First Century. The letter was intended to unify the Jesus Follower community in Ephesus. The first three chapters are theological teachings, and the last three chapters consist of ethical exhortations.

In today’s reading, the author continued to urge the Jewish Jesus Followers and the Gentile Jesus Followers in Ephesus to be unified in Christ. He urged them to be humble, patient, “bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (v.3).

He emphasized that there is “one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.” Christ both ascended and descended (into Sheol?) so that he might come to all persons. Each person has different gifts for the body’s growth in building itself up in love (v.11-12). A perfect (i.e. complete) church is modeled on Christ himself.

John 6:24-35

Reading

24 The next day, when the people who remained after the feeding of the five thousand saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26 Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30 So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32 Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

Commentary

The Fourth Gospel is different in many ways from the Synoptic Gospels. The “signs” (miracles) and many of the stories in the Fourth Gospel are unique to it, such as the Wedding at Cana, Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, and the Raising of Lazarus.

The chronology of events is also different in the Fourth Gospel. For example, the Temple Event (“cleansing of the Temple”) occurred early in Jesus’ Ministry in the Fourth Gospel, rather than late as in the Synoptic Gospels. In the Synoptic Gospels, the Last Supper was a Passover Seder, but in the Fourth Gospel, it occurred the day before the first day of Passover so that Jesus (who is described as “the Lamb of God”) died at the time lambs were being sacrificed at the Temple for the Passover Seder to be held that night.

Today’s reading is part of a longer discussion in the Fourth Gospel that is sometimes called “The Bread of Life Discourse” that is not found in the other Canonical Gospels. Conversely, this Gospel, unlike the Synoptic Gospels, does not include an institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. (Instead, Jesus washes the apostles’ feet at the Last Supper in the Fourth Gospel.)

The account contains terms that have deeper meanings. In saying that the Son of Man will “give you the food that endures for eternal life” (v.27) the author drew upon the Jewish understanding of the Son of Man as the messenger of God (Dan. 7:13) who makes God known (Jn.3:13).

The references to “my Father” and the “I am” statement reflect the greater emphasis in the Fourth Gospel on the divinity of Jesus and his connection with the Father. All the “I am” statements in the Fourth Gospel echo the response from the Burning Bush in Exodus 3 – “I am what I am” – to Moses’ question about the name of God.