I am an emeritus professor from Cornell University and was a Commissioned Lay Preacher in the Presbyterian Church (USA). For many years I have followed the Daily Lectionary as printed in the Mission Yearbook of my church. For each day of a two-year cycle, the lectionary lists four psalms and three other scriptural passages--usually one from the Old Testament and two from the New Testament. My practice is to copy down a verse or two from one of the psalms and from each of the other three passages. After I have written out all four selections, I reflect upon them, rearrange their order, and incorporate them into a meditation. Sometimes I retain much of the original wording; sometimes all that remains of a selection is an idea that was stimulated when I read the original words. All selections are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible. For the Daily Lectionary, see the link below.

November 03, 2005

I. Readings
Psalms 16, 62, 97
Zechariah 1:7-17
Revelation 14:1-13
Matthew 14:1-12

II. Selections
Psalm 97:1
The LORD is king! Let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!

Zechariah 1:12
Then the angel of the LORD said, "O LORD of hosts, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which you have been angry these seventy years?"

Revelation 14:12
Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and hold fast to the faith of Jesus.

Matthew 14:9-10
The king was grieved, yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he commanded it to be given; he sent and had John beheaded in the prison.

III. Meditation: Not like Herod
You are king! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad. You are not a king like Herod, a king who was angry over just criticism, who refrained from killing for fear of the crowds, and who nonetheless out of embarrassment killed. Yet we are told you are capable of anger. How long will your anger last? How long will you withhold your mercy? You call us to endurance, to keep your commandments and hold fast to the faith of Jesus. You are king.

Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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