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Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22
Proper 21B
Comments and Observations: There is not much Esther in the Revised Common Lectionary, and few pastors have ever complained or requested more. The Lectionary likewise does little with Song of Songs or Jude, and if you follow only the Lectionary, you would be unlikely to generate a long series of sermons on Nahum or Revelation,…
Psalm 54
Proper 20B
Comments, Observations, and Questions to Consider Psalm 54 is a prayer for God’s deliverance from enemies who wish to harm or maybe even kill the poet. Perhaps not surprisingly, then, it also contains a strong tone of lament over enemies’ mistreatment of the poet. This lends Psalm 54 an air of honesty that sometimes seems…
Proverbs 31:10-31
Proper 20B
Comments and Observations: What are we to make of this conclusion to Proverbs? For a long time some women saw it as a kind of blueprint for life and so were honored if they could be seen as fitting this profile of the “wife of noble character.” Not surprisingly, more recent times have witnessed other…
Psalm 19
Proper 19B
Comments, Observations, and Questions to Consider C.S. Lewis once called Psalm 19 “the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world.” So it’s no wonder that lyricists have set a number of beautiful interpretations of it, including “The Heavens Declare Your Glory” and “God’s Glory Fills the Heavens,” to…
Proverbs 1:20-33
Proper 19B
Comments and Observations: In Plato’s dialogue Phaedrus Socrates tells an ancient Egyptian legend about a king named Thamus and a god named Theuth. Theuth, it seems, was an inventor of great tools and new technologies. One day he showed King Thamus a vast array of his inventions, climaxing with his most recent innovation: writing. The…
Psalm 125
Proper 18B
Comments, Observations, and Questions to Consider “Appearances can be deceiving.” Those who preach and teach Psalm 125 will certainly find numerous examples of that old adage that fit our hearers’ own particular contexts. A neighbor who’s going bankrupt may live “high on the hog” right until he files for Chapter 11. A friend who has…
Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23
Proper 18B
Comments and Observations: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” “The early bird catches the worm.” “A penny saved is a penny earned.” “God helps those who help themselves.” Sound familiar? They should as these are among the better known modern-day proverbs that have a lot of currency throughout North America. I am…
Psalm 15
Proper 17B
Comments, Observations, and Questions to Consider Psalm 15 reflects on the intimate relationship between ethics and worship. In one sense it’s a wisdom psalm that explores how to live wisely, how to order one’s life according God’s will and purposes. However, some scholars suggest that Psalm 15 was also an “entrance liturgy” that Israel’s priests…
Song of Solomon 2:8-13
Proper 17B
Comments and Observations: Are the people who put together the Common Lectionary winking at us this week? The Lectionary across its three-year cycle contains exactly ONE text from the Song of Songs (or the Song of Solomon) and this is it. But it occurs on the same Year B Sunday when the Gospel lection is…
Psalm 84
Proper 16B
In Psalm 84 the poet expresses her love for God’s “dwelling place.” In fact, her longing to be “in God’s courts” is so deep that she insists that it fills her soul, heart and flesh, in other words, her whole being. While David had wanted to build a dwelling place for the Lord, God had…
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