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.

Better Than Thebes?--Oct. 30, 2010


I. Readings
Psalms 63, 149, 125, 90
Nahum 3:8-19
Revelation 13:11-18
Luke 12:32-48

II. Selections
Psalm 90:17
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
      and prosper for us the work of our hands—
      O prosper the work of our hands!

Nahum 3:8
Are you better than Thebes
      that sat by the Nile,
with water around her,
      her rampart a sea,
      water her wall?

Revelation 13:16-17
Also [the second beast] causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell who does not have the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.

Luke 12:33b
“Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. …” [Jesus to his disciples]

III. Meditation

O Lord our God, we live in a most fearful age.
What protection have we? Drones and missiles?
The FBI and CIA? More restrictive immigration?

Are we better than Thebes, which depended
on surrounding waters to make itself secure,
thought itself impregnable, and was defeated?

What keeps us safe from thief or from moth?
Are we relying upon the mark of the beast?
Remind us, there is no security apart from you.

May your favor be upon us; may you prosper
the work of our hands; and may our work be
for you, that we may have treasure in heaven.
Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)