Reflecting on the Sixteenth
Sunday after Pentecost
Year B

Daily Readings for Wednesday
September 15, 2021

Prayer

Wisdom of God, 

from the street corners and at the entrances to the city 

you proclaim the way of life and of death. 

Grant us the wisdom to recognize your Messiah, 

that following in the way of the cross, 

we may know the way of life and glory. Amen.

 

Psalm 73:21-28

You guide me with your counsel

 

When my soul was embittered,

when I was pricked in heart,

I was stupid and ignorant;

I was like a brute beast toward you.

Nevertheless I am continually with you;

you hold my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will receive me with honor.

Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire other than you.

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Indeed, those who are far from you will perish;

you put an end to those who are false to you.

But for me it is good to be near God;

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

to tell of all your works.

 

Proverbs 29:1-27

Use good sense

 

One who is often reproved, yet remains stubborn,

will suddenly be broken beyond healing.

When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice;

but when the wicked rule, the people groan.

A child who loves wisdom makes a parent glad,

but to keep company with prostitutes is to squander one’s substance.

By justice a king gives stability to the land,

but one who makes heavy exactions ruins it.

Whoever flatters a neighbor

is spreading a net for the neighbor’s feet.

In the transgression of the evil there is a snare,

but the righteous sing and rejoice.

The righteous know the rights of the poor;

the wicked have no such understanding.

Scoffers set a city aflame,

but the wise turn away wrath.

If the wise go to law with fools,

there is ranting and ridicule without relief.

The bloodthirsty hate the blameless,

and they seek the life of the upright.

A fool gives full vent to anger,

but the wise quietly holds it back.

If a ruler listens to falsehood,

all his officials will be wicked.

The poor and the oppressor have this in common:

the Lord gives light to the eyes of both.

If a king judges the poor with equity,

his throne will be established forever.

The rod and reproof give wisdom,

but a mother is disgraced by a neglected child.

When the wicked are in authority, transgression increases,

but the righteous will look upon their downfall.

Discipline your children, and they will give you rest;

they will give delight to your heart.

Where there is no prophecy, the people cast off restraint,

but happy are those who keep the law.

By mere words servants are not disciplined,

for though they understand, they will not give heed.

Do you see someone who is hasty in speech?

There is more hope for a fool than for anyone like that.

A slave pampered from childhood

will come to a bad end.

One given to anger stirs up strife,

and the hothead causes much transgression.

A person’s pride will bring humiliation,

but one who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.

To be a partner of a thief is to hate one’s own life;

one hears the victim’s curse, but discloses nothing.

The fear of others lays a snare,

but one who trusts in the Lord is secure.

Many seek the favor of a ruler,

but it is from the Lord that one gets justice.

The unjust are an abomination to the righteous,

but the upright are an abomination to the wicked.

 

John 7:25-36

Jesus the Messiah

 

Now some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is not this the man whom they are trying to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, but they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Messiah? Yet we know where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” Then Jesus cried out as he was teaching in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I am from. I have not come on my own. But the one who sent me is true, and you do not know him. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. Yet many in the crowd believed in him and were saying, “When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?”

 

The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering such things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent temple police to arrest him. Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little while longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, ‘You will search for me and you will not find me’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?”

 

 

Prayer

Through suffering and rejection, O God, 

you bring forth our salvation, 

for in Jesus you embrace our humanity 

and transform our lives by the glory of his cross. 

Grant that for the sake of the gospel 

we may rebuke the lure of this world, 

take up our cross, 

and follow your Son Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

Psalm 119:169-176

God’s law my delight

 

Let my cry come before you, O Lord;

give me understanding according to your word.

Let my supplication come before you;

deliver me according to your promise.

My lips will pour forth praise,

because you teach me your statutes.

My tongue will sing of your promise,

for all your commandments are right.

Let your hand be ready to help me,

for I have chosen your precepts.

I long for your salvation, O Lord,

and your law is my delight.

Let me live that I may praise you,

and let your ordinances help me.

I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek out your servant,

for I do not forget your commandments.

 

Isaiah 10:12-20

Evil will be destroyed

 

When the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, he will punish the arrogant boasting of the king of Assyria and his haughty pride. For he says:

 

“By the strength of my hand I have done it,

and by my wisdom, for I have understanding;

I have removed the boundaries of peoples,

and have plundered their treasures;

like a bull I have brought down those who sat on thrones.

My hand has found, like a nest,

the wealth of the peoples;

and as one gathers eggs that have been forsaken,

so I have gathered all the earth;

and there was none that moved a wing,

or opened its mouth, or chirped.”

Shall the ax vaunt itself over the one who wields it,

or the saw magnify itself against the one who handles it?

As if a rod should raise the one who lifts it up,

or as if a staff should lift the one who is not wood!

Therefore the Sovereign, the Lord of hosts,

will send wasting sickness among his stout warriors,

and under his glory a burning will be kindled,

like the burning of fire.

The light of Israel will become a fire,

and his Holy One a flame;

and it will burn and devour

his thorns and briers in one day.

The glory of his forest and his fruitful land

the Lord will destroy, both soul and body,

and it will be as when an invalid wastes away.

The remnant of the trees of his forest will be so few

that a child can write them down.

 

On that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no more lean on the one who struck them, but will lean on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

 

John 7:25-36

Jesus the Messiah

 

Now some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is not this the man whom they are trying to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, but they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Messiah? Yet we know where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” Then Jesus cried out as he was teaching in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I am from. I have not come on my own. But the one who sent me is true, and you do not know him. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. Yet many in the crowd believed in him and were saying, “When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?”

 

The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering such things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent temple police to arrest him. Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little while longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, ‘You will search for me and you will not find me’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?”

 

 

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Prayer reprinted from Revised Common Lectionary Prayers, © 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. Reproduced by permission.

Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings copyright © 2005 Consultation on Common Texts admin. Augsburg Fortress. Reproduced by permission. No further reproduction allowed without the written permission of Augsburg Fortress.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.


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