Lectionary
Ruminations 2.0 is a revised continuation of Lectionary Ruminations. Focusing on The Revised Common Lectionary Readings for the upcoming Sunday from New Revised
Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible, Lectionary
Ruminations 2.0 draws on nearly thirty years of pastoral experience. Believing that the questions we ask are often
more important than any answers we find, without overreliance on commentaries I
intend with comments and questions to encourage reflection and rumination for
readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are
invited and encouraged. All lectionary
links are to the via the PC(USA)
Devotions and Readings website.
FOR AN UPDATED AND REVISED VERSION, GO TO
THIS LINK
32:1 Why are the references
to the reigns of two kings significant?
What year was this?
32:2 Who was the king of
Babylon and why was his army besieging Jerusalem?
32:3a What had Jeremiah
done to provoke King Zedekiah to confine him?
32:6 How did Jeremiah know
and how does anyone know when the word of the LORD comes to them?
32:7 What is the right of
redemption? Where is Anathoth?
32:8 What and where is the
land of Benjamin? What is the significance of this real estate transaction?
32:9 What is the
contemporary value of seventeen shekels of silver?
32:10 I think it is amazing
what Jeremiah was able to do while confined.
32:11 Why all this
documentation?
32:12 Why are all these
people and witnesses mentioned?
32:13 This must be one of
the shortest verses in the Hebrew Scriptures.
32:14 What a significant
archeological find this would be! I can imagine the sequel now” Indiana Jones
and the Lost Deed of Jeremiah”
32:15 How can contemporary
real estate purchases be theological statements? Perhaps we need to be
purchasing real estate in depressed and distressed neighborhoods. Oh, I guess
that is gentrification!
91:1 How is a shadow a
shelter? If the Almighty does not have a
physical body, how does it cast a shadow? Might this be metaphorical language? What
is the deeper meaning of “Most High”?
91:2 How is a refuge and
fortress like a shelter and a shadow? Note that both a refuge and a fortress are
defensive, not offensive. When I read about refuges in the Bible I think of
National Wildlife Refuges.
91:3 Who is the fowler? What
might the deadly pestilence refer to?
91:4 God has pinions? God has wings? Raptors, like eagles, have pinions.
Hens do not have pinions. What is a
buckler?
91:5 Why is terror
associated with the night? Why am I thinking of Dylan Thomas?
91:6 Rather than a chiastic
structure we have 91:6 parallel to 91:5, ABAB.
91:14 Who is speaking? Has the voice changed? What does it mean to
“know a name”?
91:15 What do being rescued
and being honored have in common?
91:16 What does “salvation”
mean in the context of the Psalms?
6:6 What is godliness? Is
great gain the only motivation to strive to be godly?
6:7 So the person with the
most toys at the end of the day does not get to take their toys with them! I
cannot help but think of Luke 12:13-21.
6:8 Would you, or most
Americans, be content with only food and clothing? How much food and clothing
do we need to be content?
6:9 Is there a difference
between being rich and wanting to be rich? When it comes to being rich, how
much is enough?
6:10 It is not money but
the love of money that is the root of all evil. How do we reconcile this and the
preceding verse with the capitalism? Why
must the desire to be rich lead one away from the faith?
6:11 I have a hunch this
was not intended to be an all-inclusive, exhaustive list.
6:12 I have problems with
the “fight” metaphor. Is there another
metaphor that would suffice? How about
“Climb the good climb of faith”? Note that “witnesses” are again mentioned, as
in Jeremiah 32:10.
6:13 Is it a problem that
this is not Trinitarian?
6:14 What commandment? What does it mean for our Lord Jesus Christ
to be manifested?
6:15 Who will bring this
about?
6:16 What is “unapproachable
light”? Who is it that no one has ever seen or can see?
6:17 Why
do we not enjoy everything God provides us with? Are you surprised that the
rich are not commanded to distribute their riches to the poor? What about
Matthew 19:20-22 and Luke 18:21-23?
6:18 This sounds like the beginning
of a stewardship sermon.
6:19 What life is not life?
16:19 What is the
significance of being dressed in purple?
There seems to be an almost seamless transition from the Second Reading
to the Gospel. Note that the rich man is not identified by name.
16:20 Note that the poor
man IS identified by name. Is this the same Lazarus in John 11?
16:21 Is this an example of
trickle-down economics in the New Testament era? Why am I thinking of Matthew
15:26-27 and Mark 7:27-28?
16:22 Note that the poor
man is carried away by angels while the rich man is simply buried.
16:23 What and where is
Hades. Why was the rich man being tormented?
16:24 How does this verse
feed into popular and contemporary notions of hell?
16:25 I am surprised Abraham
referred to the dead rich man as “child”. I think this is just another example
of the reversals we find in Scripture, reversals lie the first shall be last
the last shall be first, the rich will become poor and the poor will become
rich, and so on.
16:26 How could the rich
man converse with Abraham if a great chasm exists between them?
16:27 Note that even in his
torment the rich man refers to Abraham as “father”.
16:28 Is there any
significance to the number five?
16:29 Moses and the
Prophets represent two of the three divisions of the Hebrew canon. Should we
not also listen to the Writings?
16:30 This sounds like
prefiguration.
16:31 Do I detect some
prejudice toward Judaism? Is there no hope or promise her? This sounds like an
admonition only.
ADDENDUM
I am currently a Member at Large of Upper Ohio
Valley Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). I am a trained and
experienced Interim Pastor currently available to supply as a fill-in
occasional guest preacher and worship leader or serve in a half-time to
full-time position.
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