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.

In the Seat of Scoffers--Oct. 10, 2018



God, forgive me when I sit in the seat of scoffers,
accusing others at the slightest provocation,
just for the joy of putting people down.
Remind me that if I sow the wind,
I shall reap the whirlwind.

Lectionary Readings
Ps. 89:1-18; 147:1-11; 1; 33
Hosea 8:1-14
Acts 23:23-35
Luke 7:18-35

Selected Verses
Ps. 1:1
Happy are those
          who do not follow the advice of the wicked,
or take the path that sinners tread,
          or sit in the seat of scoffers…

Hosea 8:7a
For [the people of Israel] sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind. 

Acts 23:35
…[the governor] said, "I will give you a hearing when your accusers arrive."  Then he ordered that [Paul] be kept under guard in Herod's headquarters.

Luke 7:33-34
"… For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, 'He has a demon'; the Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'…"[Jesus to the crowds]

Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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