◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Isaiah 12:2-6 (In your midst is the Holy One of Israel); Amos 9:8-15 (God will set things right); Luke 1:57-66 (The birth of John the Baptist) (New English Translation)

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December 15, 2018

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Daily Bible readings that follow the church liturgical year, with thematically matched Old and New Testament readings.

Duration: 1245 days

Isaiah 12:2-6

²Look, God is my deliverer!^[a]
I will trust in him^[b] and not fear.
For the Lord gives me strength and protects me;^[c]
he has become my deliverer.”^[d]
³Joyfully you will draw water
from the springs of deliverance.^[e]
⁴At that time^[f] you will say:
“Praise the Lord!
Ask him for help!^[g]
Publicize his mighty acts among the nations.
Make it known that he is unique.^[h]
⁵Sing to the Lord, for he has done magnificent things;
let this be known^[i] throughout the earth.
⁶Cry out and shout for joy, O citizens of Zion,
for the Holy One of Israel^[j] acts mightily^[k] among you!”

Amos 9:8-15

⁸Look, the Sovereign Lord is watching^[a] the sinful nation,^[b]
and I will destroy it from the face of the earth.
But I will not completely destroy the family^[c] of Jacob,” says the Lord.
⁹“For look, I am giving a command
and I will shake the family of Israel together with all the nations.
It will resemble a sieve being shaken,
when not even a pebble falls to the ground.^[d]
¹⁰All the sinners among my people will die by the sword—
the ones who say, ‘Disaster will not come near, it will not confront us.’

The Restoration of the Davidic Dynasty

¹¹“In that day I will rebuild the collapsing hut^[e] of David.
I will seal its^[f] gaps,
repair its^[g] ruins,
and restore it to what it was like in days gone by.^[h]
¹²As a result they^[i] will conquer those left in Edom^[j]
and all the nations subject to my rule.”^[k]
The Lord, who is about to do this, is speaking.
¹³“Be sure of this,^[l] the time is^[m] coming,” says the Lord,
“when the plowman will catch up to the reaper,^[n]
and the one who stomps the grapes^[o] will overtake^[p] the planter.^[q]
Juice will run down the slopes;^[r]
it will flow down all the hillsides.^[s]
¹⁴I will bring back my people, Israel;^[t]
they will rebuild the cities lying in rubble^[u] and settle down.^[v]
They will plant vineyards and drink the wine they produce;^[w]
they will grow orchards^[x] and eat the fruit they produce.^[y]
¹⁵I will plant them on their land,
and they will never again be uprooted from the^[z] land I have given them,”
says the Lord your God.

Footnotes

Amos 9:8 tn Heb “the eyes of the Sovereign Lord are on.”
Amos 9:8 tn Or “kingdom.”
Amos 9:8 tn Heb “house” (also in the following verse).
Amos 9:9 tn Heb “like being shaken with a sieve, and a pebble does not fall to the ground.” The meaning of the Hebrew word צְרוֹר (ts^eror), translated “pebble,” is unclear here. In 2 Sam 17:13 it appears to refer to a stone. If it means “pebble,” then the sieve allows the grain to fall into a basket while retaining the debris and pebbles. However, if one interprets צְרוֹר as a “kernel of grain” (cf. NASB, NIV, NKJV, NLT) then the sieve is constructed to retain the grain and allow the refuse and pebbles to fall to the ground. In either case, the simile supports the last statement in v. 8 by making it clear that God will distinguish between the righteous (the grain) and the wicked (the pebbles) when he judges, and will thereby preserve a remnant in Israel. Only the sinners will be destroyed (v. 10).
Amos 9:11 tn The phrase translated “collapsing hut” refers to a temporary shelter (cf. NASB, NRSV “booth”) in disrepair and emphasizes the relatively weakened condition of the once powerful Davidic dynasty. Others have suggested that the term refers to Jerusalem, while still others argue that it should be repointed to read “Sukkoth,” a garrison town in Transjordan. Its reconstruction would symbolize the rebirth of the Davidic empire and its return to power (e.g., M. E. Polley, Amos and the Davidic Empire, 71-74).
Amos 9:11 tc The MT reads a third feminine plural suffix, which could refer to the two kingdoms (Judah and Israel) or, more literally, to the breaches in the walls of the cities that are mentioned in v. 14 (cf. 4:3). Some emend to third feminine singular, since the “hut” of the preceding line (a feminine singular noun) might be the antecedent. In that case, the final nun (ן) is virtually dittographic with the vav (ו) that appears at the beginning of the following word.
Amos 9:11 tc The MT reads a third masculine singular suffix, which could refer back to David. However, it is possible that an original third feminine singular suffix (יה-, yod-he) has been misread as masculine (יו-, yod-vav). In later Hebrew script a ה (he) resembles a יו- (yod-vav) combination.
Amos 9:11 tn Heb “and I will rebuild as in days of antiquity.”
Amos 9:12 sn They probably refers to the Israelites or to the Davidic rulers of the future.
Amos 9:12 tn Heb “take possession of the remnant of Edom”; cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV “possess the remnant of Edom.”
Amos 9:12 tn Heb “nations over whom my name is proclaimed.” The Hebrew idiom indicates ownership, sometimes as a result of conquest. See 2 Sam 12:28.sn This verse envisions a new era of Israelite rule, perhaps patterned after David’s imperialistic successes (see 2 Sam 8-10). At the same time, however, the verse does not specify how this rule is to be accomplished. Note that the book ends with a description of peace and abundance, and its final reference to God (v. 15) does not include the epithet “the Lord who commands armies,” which has militaristic overtones. This is quite a different scene than what the book began with: nations at war and standing under the judgment of God.
Amos 9:13 tn Heb “behold” or “look.”
Amos 9:13 tn Heb “the days are.”
Amos 9:13 sn The plowman will catch up to the reaper. Plowing occurred in October-November, and harvesting in April-May (see P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 109.) But in the future age of restored divine blessing, there will be so many crops the reapers will take all summer to harvest them, and it will be time for plowing again before the harvest is finished.
Amos 9:13 sn When the grapes had been harvested, they were placed in a press where workers would stomp on them with their feet and squeeze out the juice. For a discussion of grape-harvesting technique, see O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 110-12.
Amos 9:13 tn The verb is omitted here in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation from the parallel line.
Amos 9:13 sn The grape harvest occurred in August-September, the planting in November-December (see P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 109). But in the future age described here there will be so many grapes that the workers who stomp them will still be working when the next planting season arrives.
Amos 9:13 tn Or “hills,” where the vineyards were planted.
Amos 9:13 tn Heb “and all the hills will melt.”
Amos 9:14 tn This line can also be translated, “I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel,” and is a common idiom (e.g., Deut 30:3; Jer 30:3; Hos 6:11; Zeph 3:20). This rendering is followed by several modern English versions (e.g., NEB, NRSV, NJPS).
Amos 9:14 tn Or “the ruined [or “desolate”] cities.”
Amos 9:14 tn Or “and live [in them].”
Amos 9:14 tn Heb “drink their wine.”
Amos 9:14 tn Or “gardens.”
Amos 9:14 tn Heb “eat their fruit.”
Amos 9:15 tn Heb “their.” The pronoun was replaced by the English definite article in the translation for stylistic reasons.

Luke 1:57-66

The Birth of John

⁵⁷Now the time came^[a] for Elizabeth to have her baby,^[b] and she gave birth to a son. ⁵⁸Her^[c] neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown^[d] great mercy to her, and they rejoiced^[e] with her.

⁵⁹On^[f] the eighth day^[g] they came to circumcise the child, and they wanted to name^[h] him Zechariah after his father. ⁶⁰But^[i] his mother replied,^[j] “No! He must be named^[k] John.”^[l] ⁶¹They^[m] said to her, “But^[n] none of your relatives bears this name.”^[o] ⁶²So^[p] they made signs to the baby’s^[q] father,^[r] inquiring what he wanted to name his son.^[s] ⁶³He^[t] asked for a writing tablet^[u] and wrote,^[v] “His name is John.” And they were all amazed.^[w] ⁶⁴Immediately^[x] Zechariah’s^[y] mouth was opened and his tongue^[z] released,^[aa] and he spoke, blessing God. ⁶⁵All^[ab] their neighbors were filled with fear, and throughout the entire hill country of Judea all these things were talked about. ⁶⁶All^[ac] who heard these things^[ad] kept them in their hearts,^[ae] saying, “What then will this child be?”^[af] For the Lord’s hand^[ag] was indeed with him.

Footnotes

Luke 1:57 tn Grk “the time was fulfilled.”
Luke 1:57 tn The words “her baby” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity.
Luke 1:58 tn Grk “And her.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
Luke 1:58 tn Grk “had magnified his mercy with her.”
Luke 1:58 tn The verb συνέχαιρον (sunechairon) is an imperfect and could be translated as an ingressive force, “they began to rejoice.”
Luke 1:59 tn Grk “And it happened that.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
Luke 1:59 sn They were following OT law (Lev 12:3) which prescribed that a male child was to be circumcised on the eighth day.
Luke 1:59 tn This could be understood as a conative imperfect, expressing an unrealized desire (“they were trying to name him”). It has been given more of a voluntative nuance in the translation.
Luke 1:60 tn Grk “And,” but with clearly contrastive emphasis in context.
Luke 1:60 tn Grk “his mother answering, said.” The combination of participle and finite verb is redundant in English and has been simplified to “replied” in the translation.
Luke 1:60 tn This future passive indicative verb has imperatival force and thus has been translated “he must be named.”
Luke 1:60 sn “No! He must be named John.” By insisting on the name specified by the angel, Elizabeth (v. 60) and Zechariah (v. 63) have learned to obey God (see Luke 1:13).
Luke 1:61 tn Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
Luke 1:61 tn The word “but” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
Luke 1:61 tn Grk “There is no one from your relatives who is called by this name.”
Luke 1:62 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action described.
Luke 1:62 tn Grk “his”; the referent (the baby) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Luke 1:62 sn The crowd was sure there had been a mistake, so they appealed to the child’s father. But custom was not to be followed here, since God had spoken. The fact they needed to signal him (made signs) shows that he was deaf as well as unable to speak.
Luke 1:62 tn Grk “what he might wish to call him.”
Luke 1:63 tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
Luke 1:63 sn The writing tablet requested by Zechariah would have been a wax tablet.
Luke 1:63 tn Grk “and wrote, saying.” The participle λέγων (legōn) is redundant in English and has not been translated.
Luke 1:63 sn The response, they were all amazed, expresses a mixture of surprise and reflection in this setting where they were so certain of what the child’s name would be.
Luke 1:64 tn Grk “And immediately.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
Luke 1:64 tn Grk “his”; the referent (Zechariah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Luke 1:64 sn The mention of both mouth and tongue here is a figure called zeugma and emphasizes that the end of the temporary judgment came instantly and fully upon Zechariah’s expression of faith in naming the child. He had learned to trust and obey God during his short period of silence. He had learned from his trial.
Luke 1:64 tn “Released” is implied; in the Greek text both στόμα (stoma) and γλῶσσα (glōssa) are subjects of ἀνεῴχθη (aneōchthē), but this would be somewhat redundant in English.
Luke 1:65 tn Grk “And all.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.sn Fear is the emotion that comes when one recognizes something unusual, even supernatural, has taken place.
Luke 1:66 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. A new sentence was begun at this point in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.
Luke 1:66 tn Grk “heard”; the referent (these things, from the previous verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Luke 1:66 tn Grk “heart.” The term “heart” (καρδία, kardia) could also be translated as “mind,” or “thoughts,” and the entire phrase be rendered as “kept them in mind,” “thought about,” or the like. But the immediate context is clearly emotive, suggesting that much more is at work than merely the mental processes of thinking or reasoning about “these things.” There is a sense of joy and excitement (see the following question, “What then will this child be?”) and even fear. Further, the use of καρδία in 1:66 suggests connections with the same term in 2:19 where deep emotion is being expressed as well. Therefore, recognizing both the dramatic nature of the immediate context and the literary connections to 2:19, the translation renders the term in 1:66 as “hearts” to capture both the cognitive and emotive aspects of the people’s response.
Luke 1:66 tn Or “what manner of child will this one be?”
Luke 1:66 sn The reference to the Lord’s hand indicates that the presence, direction, and favor of God was with him (Acts 7:9b).

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Footnotes

The Restoration of the Davidic Dynasty

Footnotes

The Birth of John

Footnotes