Reading for September 16th

Read 1 Peter 1.22-2.3 New birth, new behavior.
Conversion to the "holy" God demands a holy life.
In verses 22-23 the new birth (1.3) functions as part of the exhortation to holy living.
In verses 23-25 in contrast to a mortal world where things die (all flesh is like grass), in God's immortal world, the word of divine promises endures forever means death to previous sin,
pursuit of spiritual milk which nourishes for endurance, and wisdom for valuing this noble state.
Comments or Questions...

Reading for September 15th

Read 1 Peter 1.1-21
In verses 10-16 Good theology means good morals.
Topics from the thanksgiving are developed: inheritance and suffering leading to glory.
In verses 11-11 prophets confirm that suffering leads to future glory, a pattern applied to Jesus
(2.22; Isa 53) and his disciples.
In verses 13-14 thus they should act like obedient children, avoiding desires and pursuing purity.
In verses 15-16 called by the holy god, they too must be holy, spotless or blameless (Lev 11.44-45).
In verses 17-21 Recalling conversion.
In verse 17 although blessed, they still face God's impartial judgment.
In verses 18-21 Jesus' sacrificial death ransomed Christians; thus God works in them
the process of death leading to glory.
Comments or Questions...

Reading for September 14th

Read 1 Peter 1.1-9 Letter opening.
In verse 1 Peter addresses Christians in Asia Minor, acknowledging their civil status as exiles.
In verse 2 God their patron purifies them with the blood of Jesus, thus conferring worth on a valueless people.
Patrons are high-ranking persons with great resources who enter into formal agreement with
lower-ranking supplicants or clients; patrons bestow protection, food, and the like,
while clients maintain strong loyalty to their patrons and give them praise and honor.
Thus the Christian God bestows lavish divine gifts of God's clients, the Christian communities,
but expects from them respect, exclusive allegiance, and praise.
In verses 3-9 Thanksgiving.
Most Christian letters begin with a thanksgiving; this one is Semitic in form
(Blessed be the God; see 2 Cor 1.3-7).
It introduces themes developed later (new birth, inheritance, suffering).
In verses 3-5 Peter rehearses God's benefaction to these exiles, especially the promise of resurrection.
In verses 6-7 loyalty from God's clients in difficult circumstances brings praise, glory, and honor from their patron on judgment day.
Comments or Questions...

Reading for September 13th

Read Amos 9.11-15 Vision of renewal.
These images of restoration, because they are unparalleled in the rest of Amos and contrast so sharply with his expectation of judgment, are widely regarded as a later addition to Amos's prophecies.
In verse 11 the ruined state of the booth of David, a reference to the Davidic monarchy that ruled Judah, appears to place this speech after the fall of Jerusalem in 587 BCE.
This image also suggests that this text was written from the perspective of Judah, the southern kingdom, rather than from the perspective of the northern kingdom which Amos addressed.
It anticipates the return of the Babylonian exiles to rebuild their ruined country.
Comments or Questions...

Reading for September 12th

Read Amos 9.5-10 Master of the universe.
Amos describes God's power over creation (vv. 5-6) and world history (vv. 7-10).
In verse 7 Caphtor is likely Crete, while the location of Kir is uncertain. Just as God directed Israel's migration from Egypt (3.1), so God has directed the affairs of other nations.
Comments or Questions...

Reading for September 11th

Read Amos 9.1-4 Amos's visions concluded.
Like Amos's other vision (7.1-9; 8.1-3), this vision shows Amos God's coming judgment,
but the judgment predicted here is the harshest and most complete of them all.
In verse 2 Sheol is the abode of the dead.
Comments or Questions...

Reading for September 10th

Read Amos 8.4-14 Judgment on Israel's businessmen.
In this judgment speech, Amos indicts Israel's merchants for economic abuses (vv. 4-6),
and announces a sentence of widespread devastation (vv. 7-14).
In verse 5 the new moon and the sabbath are religious  holidays (Isa 1.13; Hos 2.11)
considered an annoyance by merchants who cannot make a profit during their observance.
The ephah is used to measure an amount of grain by capacity, and the shekel is used to
measure an amount of grain by weight.
Reducing the ephah and enlarging the shekel are this two ways merchants can cheat their customers.
In verse 14 the Hebrew text rendered Ashimah here means literally "guilt," thus, "the guilt of Samaria."
However, scholars have altered the Hebrew slightly to read either "Ashimah," a Syrian deity
(2 Kings 17.30), or Asherah, a Canaanite deity (1 Kings 16.33).
Amos's mention of Israel's capital, Samaria, together with one of its major religious centers,
Dan, and a southern center visited by northerners, Beer-sheba (5.5), includes within God's
judgment the political and religious leaders of Israel.
Comments or Questions...