◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Psalm 80:1-7 17-19 (Show the light of your countenance); 2 Samuel 7:23-29 (David reminds God of God’s promise); John 3:31-36 (The one who comes from above) (New English Translation)

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December 17, 2022

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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

Psalm 80:1-7

Psalm 80^[a]

For the music director, according to the shushan-eduth style;^[b] a psalm of Asaph.

80 O Shepherd of Israel, pay attention,
you who lead Joseph like a flock of sheep.
You who sit enthroned above the cherubim,^[c] reveal your splendor.^[d]
²In the sight of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh reveal^[e] your power.
Come and deliver us.^[f]
³O God, restore us.
Smile on us.^[g] Then we will be delivered.^[h]
⁴O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies,^[i]
how long will you remain angry at your people while they pray to you?^[j]
⁵You have given them tears as food;^[k]
you have made them drink tears by the measure.^[l]
⁶You have made our neighbors dislike us,^[m]
and our enemies insult us.
⁷O God of Heaven’s Armies,^[n] restore us.
Smile on us.^[o] Then we will be delivered.^[p]

Footnotes

Psalm 80:1 sn Psalm 80. The psalmist laments Israel’s demise and asks the Lord to show favor toward his people, as he did in earlier times.
Psalm 80:1 tn The Hebrew expression shushan-eduth means “lily of the testimony.” It may refer to a particular music style or to a tune title. See the superscription to Ps 60.
Psalm 80:1 sn Cherubim are winged angels. As depicted in the OT, they possess both human and animal (lion, ox, and eagle) characteristics (see Ezek 1:10; 10:14, 21; 41:18). They are pictured as winged creatures (Exod 25:20; 37:9; 1 Kgs 6:24-27; Ezek 10:8, 19) and serve as the very throne of God when the ark of the covenant is in view (Ps 99:1; see Num 7:89; 1 Sam 4:4; 2 Sam 6:2; 2 Kgs 19:15). The picture of the Lord seated on the cherubim suggests they might be used by him as a vehicle, a function they carry out in Ezek 1:22-28 (the “living creatures” mentioned here are identified as cherubim in Ezek 10:20). In Ps 18:10 the image of a cherub serves to personify the wind.
Psalm 80:1 tn Heb “shine forth.”sn Reveal your splendor. The psalmist may allude to Deut 33:2, where God “shines forth” from Sinai and comes to superintend Moses’ blessing of the tribes.
Psalm 80:2 tn Heb “stir up”; “arouse.”
Psalm 80:2 tn Heb “come for our deliverance.”
Psalm 80:3 tn The idiom “cause your face to shine” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 89:15; Dan 9:17).
Psalm 80:3 tn Heb “cause your face to shine in order that we may be delivered.” After the imperative, the cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose/result.
Psalm 80:4 tn Heb “Lord, God, hosts.” One expects the construct form אֱלֹהֵי (ʾelohe) before צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot; “hosts”; see Ps 89:9), but יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים (yehvah ʾelohim) precedes צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot) in Pss 59:5 and 84:8 as well. In this context the term “hosts” has been rendered “Heaven’s Armies.”
Psalm 80:4 tn Heb “How long will you remain angry during the prayer of your people.” Some take the preposition ב (bet) in an adversative sense here (“at/against the prayer of your people”), but the temporal sense is preferable. The psalmist expects persistent prayer to pacify God.
Psalm 80:5 tn Heb “you have fed them the food of tears.”
Psalm 80:5 tn Heb “[by] the third part [of a measure].” The Hebrew term שָׁלִישׁ (shalish, “third part [of a measure]”) occurs only here and in Isa 40:12.
Psalm 80:6 tn Heb “you have made us an object of contention to our neighbors.”
Psalm 80:7 tn Heb “O God, hosts.” One expects the construct form אֱלֹהֵי before צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot, “hosts”; see Ps 89:9), but יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים (yehvah ʾelohim) precedes צְבָאוֹת (ts^evaʾot) in Pss 59:5 and 84:8 as well. See also v. 4 for a similar construction.
Psalm 80:7 tn The idiom “cause your face to shine” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 89:15; Dan 9:17).
Psalm 80:7 tn Heb “cause your face to shine in order that we may be delivered.” After the imperative, the cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose/result.

Psalm 80:17-19

¹⁷May you give support to the one you have chosen,^[a]
to the one whom you raised up for yourself.^[b]
¹⁸Then we will not turn away from you.
Revive us and we will pray to you.^[c]
¹⁹O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies,^[d] restore us.
Smile on us.^[e] Then we will be delivered.^[f]

2 Samuel 7:23-29

²³Who is like your people, Israel, a unique nation^[a] on the earth? Their God^[b] went^[c] to claim^[d] a nation for himself and to make a name for himself! You did great and awesome acts for your land,^[e] before your people whom you delivered for yourself from the Egyptian empire and its gods.^[f] ²⁴You made Israel your very own people for all time.^[g] You, O Lord, became their God. ²⁵So now, O Lord God, make this promise you have made about your servant and his family a permanent reality.^[h] Do as you promised,^[i] ²⁶so you may gain lasting fame,^[j] as people say,^[k] ‘The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is God over Israel!’ The dynasty^[l] of your servant David will be established before you, ²⁷for you, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, have told^[m] your servant, ‘I will build you a dynastic house.’^[n] That is why your servant has had the courage^[o] to pray this prayer to you. ²⁸Now, O Sovereign Lord, you are the true God.^[p] May your words prove to be true!^[q] You have made this good promise to your servant.^[r] ²⁹Now be willing to bless your servant’s dynasty^[s] so that it may stand permanently before you, for you, O Sovereign Lord, have spoken. By your blessing may your servant’s dynasty be blessed from now on into the future!”^[t]

Footnotes

2 Samuel 7:23 tn Heb “a nation, one.”
2 Samuel 7:23 tn Heb “whose God” or “because God.” In the Hebrew text this clause is subordinated to what precedes. The clauses are separated in the translation for stylistic reasons.
2 Samuel 7:23 tn The verb is plural in Hebrew, agreeing grammatically with the divine name, which is a plural of degree.
2 Samuel 7:23 tn Heb “redeem.”
2 Samuel 7:23 tn Heb “and to do for you [plural form] the great [thing] and awesome [things] for your land.”
2 Samuel 7:23 tn Heb “from Egypt, nations and their gods.” The LXX has “nations and tents,” which reflects a mistaken metathesis of letters in אֶלֹהָיו (ʾelohayv, “its gods”) and אֹהָלָיו (ʾohalayv, “its tents”).
2 Samuel 7:24 tn Heb “and you established for yourself your people Israel for yourself for a people permanently.”
2 Samuel 7:25 tn Heb “and now, O Lord God, the word which you spoke concerning your servant and concerning his house, establish permanently.”
2 Samuel 7:25 tn Heb “as you have spoken.”
2 Samuel 7:26 tn Heb “and your name might be great permanently.” Following the imperative in v. 23b, the prefixed verbal form with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result.
2 Samuel 7:26 tn Heb “saying.” The words “as people” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.
2 Samuel 7:26 tn Heb “the house.” See the note on “dynastic house” in the following verse.
2 Samuel 7:27 tn Heb “have uncovered the ear of.”
2 Samuel 7:27 tn Heb “a house.” This maintains the wordplay from v. 11 (see the note on the word “house” there) and is continued in v. 29.
2 Samuel 7:27 tn Heb “has found his heart.”
2 Samuel 7:28 tn Heb “the God.” The article indicates uniqueness here.
2 Samuel 7:28 tn The translation understands the prefixed verb form as a jussive, indicating David’s wish/prayer. Another option is to take the form as an imperfect and translate “your words are true.”
2 Samuel 7:28 tn Heb “and you have spoken to your servant this good thing.”
2 Samuel 7:29 tn Heb “house” (again later in this verse). See the note on “dynastic house” in v. 27.
2 Samuel 7:29 tn Or “permanently”; cf. NLT “it is an eternal blessing.”

John 3:31-36

³¹The one who comes from above is superior to all.^[a] The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks about earthly things.^[b] The one who comes from heaven^[c] is superior to all.^[d] ³²He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. ³³The one who has accepted his testimony has confirmed clearly that God is truthful.^[e] ³⁴For the one whom God has sent^[f] speaks the words of God, for he does not give the Spirit sparingly.^[g] ³⁵The Father loves the Son and has placed all things under his authority.^[h] ³⁶The one who believes in the Son has eternal life. The one who rejects^[i] the Son will not see life, but God’s wrath^[j] remains^[k] on him.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 80[a]

For the music director, according to the shushan-eduth style;[b] a psalm of Asaph.

Footnotes

Footnotes

Footnotes

Footnotes

Psalm 80^[a]

For the music director, according to the shushan-eduth style;^[b] a psalm of Asaph.