PROPER 5
Worship
Scripture Notes
For use with Common, Lutheran and Roman Catholic Lectionaries
All six of the texts selected for this occasion place emphasis on the importance of close personal relationships between God and the People of God. This emphasis is not seen in any single word or concept present in each text. Each account, however, concludes with some aspect of these relationships.
Common:
Psalm 13
This psalm is among the most personal of the personal laments in the Psalter. The psalmist is presented as totally dependent on Yahweh, waiting for some indication of Yahweh's action. Although there has been no evidence of action from Yahweh for a long period of time, the psalmist is confident that Yahweh will act as in the past. The basis for the psalmist's confidence is the psalmist's close personal relationship with Yahweh, a relationship based on experience.
Lutheran:
Psalm 50:1-15
Roman Catholic: Psalm 50:1, 8, 12-15
According to this psalm, there was nothing basically wrong with the animal sacrifices that the people were offering to God. What God actually wanted, however, was not animal sacrifices. God was not hungry for meat and blood. What God wanted was an offering of thanksgiving, a request for deliverance and salvation. When God supplied deliverance and salvation, God expected some expression of appreciation. Even though God is described in this psalm as the Mighty One, the Lord, the King of the Universe, God is also depicted here in a most personal manner, not unlike us as a person, wanting what any good parent or employer would want from children or from employees.
Common:
Genesis 22:1-8
By ending the reading at verse 18, those who selected this text placed the emphasis of the text on the blessings that came to Abraham because Abraham maintained his close personal relationship with God by being willing to offer his own beloved son as a sacrifice to God. By obeying the voice of God, Abraham demonstrated that his close personal relationship with God was more important than even the life of the only son born to him by his wife Sarah. Abraham was rewarded in this text. The life of his son was spared, and many good things were promised to Abraham.
It should be noted that the primary purpose of this account, particularly of the Elohistic source portion, Genesis 22:1-14, 19 is to mark the transition from human sacrifices to animal sacrifices for the pre-Israelites. This transition is portrayed in this vivid story form. The transition was of great importance for the pre-Israelites in antiquity. We must question the wisdom, however, to using the account either in a worship service or in a Sunday School setting unless its primary purpose will be carefully explained. Children particularly are likely to interpret the account only literally, and as a result misunderstand it, causing them to fear both God and their own fathers and to feel afraid and guilty, with no one to whom they can turn or trust.
Lutheran: Hosea 5:15--6:6
Roman Catholic: Hosea 6:3-6
This segment of the Hosea tradition continues the personal description of God. Just as Genesis 22:1-14, 19, marks the transition from human sacrifice to animal sacrifice for the pre-Israelites, this text is an indication of the transition for many Israelites from animal sacrifices to concerns for justice and compassion. Psalms such as Psalm 50 that emphasize personal relationships between God and God's People may have been developed in response to the kind of prophetic word that we have in Hosea 5:15--6:6. God is portrayed in Hosea 5:15--6:6 as a person who decides upon a course of action, anticipates the reaction of the people who will be affected by the action, reflects on this, acts decisively, and explains the relationship that will be most desirable. (The importance of the idea in Hosea 6:2 that "After two days Yahweh will revive us; on the third day Yahweh will raise us up" for our Christian belief that God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day after the crucifixion has not been adequately noted in the Church.) Within Hosea 5:15--6:6, the focal point for us should be 6:6, "What I want is sincere, consistent love from them, to be known as a person by them."
Common:
Romans 4:13-18
Lutheran, Roman Catholic: Romans 4:18-25
Because this selection from Paul's Epistle to the Romans contains no reference to the insufficiency of animal sacrifices, while it does stress Abraham's relationship of trust, hope, and faith in God, the positive portions of Hosea 6:6 form the common denominator for these texts selected for this occasion. In addition, this reading includes the emphasis on our relationship with God as a relationship in which God declares us to be pardoned from our sins because of the death and resurrection of Jesus our Lord, and therefore in a good personal relationship with God.
Matthew 9:9-13
In Mark 2:13-17 amid in the redactions of that text here in Matthew 9:9-13 and in Luke 5:27-32 the underlying significance of the account of the calling of the tax collector and of Jesus' table fellowship with tax collectors and other "sinners" is that through Jesus' words and actions all types of people - even tax collectors and others who cooperated with the oppressive Roman occupation forces - can be restored to a healthy relationship with God. Those who are relatively healthy have little need for a physician, but those who are ill - such as tax collectors and other "sinners" who cooperate with the oppressive Romans - have great need. Jesus has come so that those who are ill, even those who by cooperating with the oppressive Romans indirectly participated in the crucifixion of Jesus, may be restored to a healthy relationship with God. The message is that if those who participated in the crucifixion of Jesus can be restored to a healthy relationship with God, anyone can be restored to such a relationship.
The tone of the Mark 2:13-17 account is not particularly antagonistic, except that the account is included within a series of controversy dialogues that extends from Mark 2:1--3:6 and reaches a climax in 3:6. In Matthew 9:9-13, as in many other instances, the Matthean tradition increased the anti-Jewish polemic in its use of Markan texts. The most significant Matthean redaction was the insertion near the end of the account (Matthew 9:13a) of the words, "But go, learn what is the meaning of the words, 'I want sincere, consistent love, not animal sacrifice.' " The tradition in process of development, therefore, linked this account to Hosea 6:6 in Matthew 9:9-13, but it did not in Mark 2:13-17 or in Luke 5:27-32. Although there may be a connection between the purpose of the table fellowship of the Jesus of history with tax collectors and with other "sinners" who cooperated with the oppressive Roman occupation forces and the purpose of Hosea 5:15--6:6, the connection was established in a rather awkward and unfortunate manner in Matthew 9:13a. The Mark 2:13-17 account had nothing in it about animal sacrifices and, even if it included something about animal sacrifices, the Pharisees were much more interested in sincere, consistent love for God than they were in animal sacrifices. Therefore, the accusation inserted into the tradition in Matthew 9:13a was basically unfair to the Pharisees.
As we, where we are, proclaim next Sunday the good news that God wants good personal relationships with us and with all people, the good news that through the words and actions of Jesus all types of people - even those who by cooperating with the oppressive Roman occupation forces participated indirectly in the crucifixion of Jesus - can be established in a good, personal relationship with God, it is of vital importance that as the "Body of Christ" wherever we are we demonstrate that all types of people can live together in a congregational community of love, forgiveness, and acceptance of God and of each other.
Common:
Psalm 13
This psalm is among the most personal of the personal laments in the Psalter. The psalmist is presented as totally dependent on Yahweh, waiting for some indication of Yahweh's action. Although there has been no evidence of action from Yahweh for a long period of time, the psalmist is confident that Yahweh will act as in the past. The basis for the psalmist's confidence is the psalmist's close personal relationship with Yahweh, a relationship based on experience.
Lutheran:
Psalm 50:1-15
Roman Catholic: Psalm 50:1, 8, 12-15
According to this psalm, there was nothing basically wrong with the animal sacrifices that the people were offering to God. What God actually wanted, however, was not animal sacrifices. God was not hungry for meat and blood. What God wanted was an offering of thanksgiving, a request for deliverance and salvation. When God supplied deliverance and salvation, God expected some expression of appreciation. Even though God is described in this psalm as the Mighty One, the Lord, the King of the Universe, God is also depicted here in a most personal manner, not unlike us as a person, wanting what any good parent or employer would want from children or from employees.
Common:
Genesis 22:1-8
By ending the reading at verse 18, those who selected this text placed the emphasis of the text on the blessings that came to Abraham because Abraham maintained his close personal relationship with God by being willing to offer his own beloved son as a sacrifice to God. By obeying the voice of God, Abraham demonstrated that his close personal relationship with God was more important than even the life of the only son born to him by his wife Sarah. Abraham was rewarded in this text. The life of his son was spared, and many good things were promised to Abraham.
It should be noted that the primary purpose of this account, particularly of the Elohistic source portion, Genesis 22:1-14, 19 is to mark the transition from human sacrifices to animal sacrifices for the pre-Israelites. This transition is portrayed in this vivid story form. The transition was of great importance for the pre-Israelites in antiquity. We must question the wisdom, however, to using the account either in a worship service or in a Sunday School setting unless its primary purpose will be carefully explained. Children particularly are likely to interpret the account only literally, and as a result misunderstand it, causing them to fear both God and their own fathers and to feel afraid and guilty, with no one to whom they can turn or trust.
Lutheran: Hosea 5:15--6:6
Roman Catholic: Hosea 6:3-6
This segment of the Hosea tradition continues the personal description of God. Just as Genesis 22:1-14, 19, marks the transition from human sacrifice to animal sacrifice for the pre-Israelites, this text is an indication of the transition for many Israelites from animal sacrifices to concerns for justice and compassion. Psalms such as Psalm 50 that emphasize personal relationships between God and God's People may have been developed in response to the kind of prophetic word that we have in Hosea 5:15--6:6. God is portrayed in Hosea 5:15--6:6 as a person who decides upon a course of action, anticipates the reaction of the people who will be affected by the action, reflects on this, acts decisively, and explains the relationship that will be most desirable. (The importance of the idea in Hosea 6:2 that "After two days Yahweh will revive us; on the third day Yahweh will raise us up" for our Christian belief that God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day after the crucifixion has not been adequately noted in the Church.) Within Hosea 5:15--6:6, the focal point for us should be 6:6, "What I want is sincere, consistent love from them, to be known as a person by them."
Common:
Romans 4:13-18
Lutheran, Roman Catholic: Romans 4:18-25
Because this selection from Paul's Epistle to the Romans contains no reference to the insufficiency of animal sacrifices, while it does stress Abraham's relationship of trust, hope, and faith in God, the positive portions of Hosea 6:6 form the common denominator for these texts selected for this occasion. In addition, this reading includes the emphasis on our relationship with God as a relationship in which God declares us to be pardoned from our sins because of the death and resurrection of Jesus our Lord, and therefore in a good personal relationship with God.
Matthew 9:9-13
In Mark 2:13-17 amid in the redactions of that text here in Matthew 9:9-13 and in Luke 5:27-32 the underlying significance of the account of the calling of the tax collector and of Jesus' table fellowship with tax collectors and other "sinners" is that through Jesus' words and actions all types of people - even tax collectors and others who cooperated with the oppressive Roman occupation forces - can be restored to a healthy relationship with God. Those who are relatively healthy have little need for a physician, but those who are ill - such as tax collectors and other "sinners" who cooperate with the oppressive Romans - have great need. Jesus has come so that those who are ill, even those who by cooperating with the oppressive Romans indirectly participated in the crucifixion of Jesus, may be restored to a healthy relationship with God. The message is that if those who participated in the crucifixion of Jesus can be restored to a healthy relationship with God, anyone can be restored to such a relationship.
The tone of the Mark 2:13-17 account is not particularly antagonistic, except that the account is included within a series of controversy dialogues that extends from Mark 2:1--3:6 and reaches a climax in 3:6. In Matthew 9:9-13, as in many other instances, the Matthean tradition increased the anti-Jewish polemic in its use of Markan texts. The most significant Matthean redaction was the insertion near the end of the account (Matthew 9:13a) of the words, "But go, learn what is the meaning of the words, 'I want sincere, consistent love, not animal sacrifice.' " The tradition in process of development, therefore, linked this account to Hosea 6:6 in Matthew 9:9-13, but it did not in Mark 2:13-17 or in Luke 5:27-32. Although there may be a connection between the purpose of the table fellowship of the Jesus of history with tax collectors and with other "sinners" who cooperated with the oppressive Roman occupation forces and the purpose of Hosea 5:15--6:6, the connection was established in a rather awkward and unfortunate manner in Matthew 9:13a. The Mark 2:13-17 account had nothing in it about animal sacrifices and, even if it included something about animal sacrifices, the Pharisees were much more interested in sincere, consistent love for God than they were in animal sacrifices. Therefore, the accusation inserted into the tradition in Matthew 9:13a was basically unfair to the Pharisees.
As we, where we are, proclaim next Sunday the good news that God wants good personal relationships with us and with all people, the good news that through the words and actions of Jesus all types of people - even those who by cooperating with the oppressive Roman occupation forces participated indirectly in the crucifixion of Jesus - can be established in a good, personal relationship with God, it is of vital importance that as the "Body of Christ" wherever we are we demonstrate that all types of people can live together in a congregational community of love, forgiveness, and acceptance of God and of each other.
