#that's a footnote of a complaint compared to everything else

[aflawedfashion]

unpopular opinion: the defiance finale was perfect

strongly agree | agree | neutral | disagree | strongly disagree

Thanks, you really wanted to set me off, huh? Ok, I’ll take the bait.

I love Defiance. I do. I would not make this post if I did not love Defiance enough to be this disappointed in it, so here we go...

Ok, so, Defiance was a show about people coming together. Obviously it’s not going to be pretty if you take people from several different planets (the aliens weren’t even all from the same planet), have them fight a a brutal war against each other that nearly destroyed the only planet they have left, and then tell them that it’s now time to play nice and be friends. It’s going to be messy. And that’s ok. There is no story without conflict, and this puts us at the perfect starting point for a whole lot of character development. Love it.

The endgame of the show should have been people finally coming together, but was it that? No, it was about the small group of characters who actually survived this brutal show finding an entire race of aliens that had to be shot off into space because they can’t kill them all, but they’re too dangerous to actually live with. Aliens played by black actors (although they are painted purple and I think the writers actually had good intentions when they created the Omec, you can’t not notice how terrible this turned out.... unless, I guess, you’re the people who wrote this). They were purple people eating aliens. 

Other than T’evgin and Kindzi, the Omec never even had a voice, but the entire finale hinges on them. We see in their faces that they probably wouldn’t want to kill everyone if they knew more about the people of Earth, but we never get to see resolution to that. We never see them revolt against Kindzi. They never get to speak for themselves or fight for themselves or learn about the people of Earth. They just start eating everyone because the show wanted the main characters seem justified in shooting them. They’re treated like props.

The show wants Doc and Amanda to be seen as heroes for shooting the evil aliens (it frames them heroically when they do it), while also having Irisa be the hero for saying they should try to save them without ever giving the Omec a proper voice. You can’t do this all in two episodes and call it good. Nolan and Amanda had even stood up for the Omec until the very last moment, until Kindzi raped Nolan, killed her father, caged the people of earth, turned doc yewll into a slave, and ordered her followers to eat their enemies. Nolan and Amanda truly just wanted to do what was right and got hammered into the ground until they didn’t know what else to do. I get where they’re coming from. I get where Irisa’s coming from, but why are we here?

By giving the Omec a voice, there’s an arc to be found in these two episodes, and I can see what the writers were probably going for. I could even pretend I loved this episode and write a meta about the interesting parts of this kind of conflict, but it’s not actually developed in these episodes. They’d need an entire season arc, and I don’t really want that arc. Look, down to the basics, do I think we needed to end Defiance on purple people eating aliens? No. Cut the people eating and rewrite the finale, and the Omec could have been good in the end instead of a pile of shock value tropes stacked on top of each other (I forgot bring up that they were also incestuous). Their power, their status, their history with the Votans can exist without the people eating.

And what really bugs me about this is that there was a far superior finale arc in front of the writers that they left in 3x11 when Kindzi killed T’evgin. The VC were a great villain that had already been established and fit the core narrative of the show. They were scary, they were powerful, and they were a complex threat. We that even everyone in the VC doesn’t all agree, but they’d all level defiance if they needed to. So many potential conflicts here.

Silora Voske. Great character who liked Amanda, and genuinely wanted to make peace with Defiance, but peace with the VC means playing nice with the VC, something Amanda has never wanted. Silora would have shot Amanda in the back of the head if she betrayed her, no matter how good of friends they became. Now she’s dead and Defiance will be blamed. So much potential.

There is no government above Amanda in Defiance. With the United States long gone and the E-Rep’s power only lasting a season, Defiance is free from any larger government or country, and Amanda wants to keep it that way. Unfortunately for her, the VC wants more power, and Defiance is just this little town all on its own trying to swat away every fascist government that tries to take over.

And that’s where the Omec should have come into these last few episodes. We have all these Omec on a spaceship, why make them cannon fodder when you could bring them together with Defiance to fight against a common enemy - an enemy who wanted to divide humans and Votans. It would have made this a story about people coming together, exactly what the show wanted to be in the beginning.

Now for the characters, the reason I love this show, the reason this finale makes me emotionally mad at it on top of being frustrated by the plot.

Nolan and Irisa. They had been wandering around the country for 15 years with this vague goal that one day they’d get to Antarctica. They didn’t even know if it was paradise or not, and honestly, it didn’t really matter because they weren’t really trying to get there. In 15 years, they traveled from Denver to Defiance/St. Louis. That’s not very far. Truthfully, I doubt they ever really tried to get to Antarctica, but getting there wasn’t the point. Everyone needs something to live for, a dream, thoughts of a better future. Antarctica was just a fantasy that gave them a reason to live in a shitty world. 

But then they get to Defiance, and Nolan instantly finds a purpose and meets people who give him hope that the world he actually lives in might not be entirely horrible. He tells Irisa that Antarctica’s not real, but Defiance is. They can make a difference here. They can be happy. There’s no more reason to chase after a fantasy. He becomes a better, more hopeful person by finding a reason to get up in the morning and finding people he can believe in.

But... then in the finale, he just gets shot into space and Irisa makes a joke that he’s going to be flirting with alien princesses and getting in trouble. What is this negative character development the show is trying to sell me as a good ending for Nolan? Why are we resetting him to back before he found a purpose? Can male writers really never let go of their Han Solo fantasy from when they were 13, and let these characters grow as they deserve, as they already had?

Nolan spent 3 seasons talking about how he’s a one woman guy, even breaking off a friends with benefits relationship when he realizes he’s in love with Amanda. He thinks Amanda’s into someone else at the time, but he still can’t be with someone else when he’s in love with her, even when his fuck buddy doesn’t care because it’s a meaningless sexual relationship. Nolan doesn’t deserve to be reduced to the guy who drives around and has funny sexual escapades (and although I’m sure he’s had a few funny one night stands in his life, he had sex with three women in three seasons, and all relationships lasted more than one episode, note: I will not count rape in this total, so why are they trying to sell me on the idea that funny sexual escapades are a defining characteristic of his?)

Nolan deserved to find actual, real, attainable happiness with Amanda and his daughter, not get tossed into space away from the people he loves on some writer’s dumbass teenage Han Solo fantasy.

And Amanda, the love of both Nolan’s life and mine, she has been emotionally destroyed by the show, and very nearly physically destroyed as well. The writers wanted her to die a martyr, and only backed out of it when they realized there was no one qualified to be mayor in season 4, and they finally realized that killing all your characters for shock value actually has consequences. She deserved better than that.

Before the end of the finale, she thought Nolan would come back because he always did. She had hope for herself and for him. They were going to be be together and be happy. She deserved to be happy. And then in the final lines of the series, Irisa says Amanda thinks Nolan is dead. Where’s her hope? Why did the writers take that from her? Amanda is the person who made everyone want to be better. She gave people hope when they had none. Amanda represented the possibility that all these people could live together, and the writers wanted her to die while she was shooting aliens. They wanted to kill the person who represented the hope that humans and aliens could live together, and yeah, that pretty much sums up the finale.

And they don’t kill her. Instead, they just leave her sad, alone in her office, and without hope. 

Thanks.

I hate it. 

This episode pieces together a bunch of action, drama, and emotional moments to make you feel a lot of things as you watch it, but it’s not good on any deeper level. It betrayed everything I loved about this show, so I hate this finale.

[thegeneralsnotebook]

Nov 28 Spoiler Design Roundup

Cheering Section

Novelty: As I’m kind of getting tired of saying by now, the card gets the automatic +1 for having the Harmony tag (maybe we can just assume that going forward?) While pushing aggro and Competitive isn’t necessarily something new for Blue, this is one of the few cards that I can think of which specifically pushes the colour to go wide. Which is not something it’s done a whole lot of in the past.

Impact: Competitive 5 is I think the number where this card switches from middling to quite good. So Impact is a question of how many Blue decks from the days of yore could consistently have three pegasi out. Scootaloo clearly would qualify, Bluna perhaps less so. So there certainly could have been some adopters out there.

Flavour: The flavour on this card is pretty nicely established, especially while pegasi are known for having individualist streaks, they’re also fairly team-oriented most of the team. Why wouldn’t they work together to elevate the stars among themselves?

Accident at the Pear Farm

Novelty: As I’ve made this series, I’ve occasionally wondered if Novelty and Flavour are somewhat opposing ideas. For example, sometimes I’ve awarded Novelty for cards that took a colour away from doing things it’s done before, and sometimes I’ve awarded Flavour for cards that let a colour keep doing things that it’s always done. This card is a good example of why I think the system still works. It does a decidedly less-Orange thing (Troublemaker +Power) in a very Orange way (banishing stuff from discard). Which is great.

Impact: Funnily enough, as I mentioned in my Field Report video when I talked about this card, the real allure of it is that it’s sitting in that brilliant 2+2:5 spot where aggro will like it a lot. Even if the text is irrelevant, I can’t give it less for Impact since aggressive decks want Problems like this so bad.

Flavour: This card is strange, since I’d say that if the design idea of the card had anything to do with Dragons, I’d give it a 5. Troublemakers helping Troublemakers: that’s exactly the Dragon synergy. But there’s no connection to pears whatsoever.

Garble, Let’s Race

Novelty: It was pointed out to me after I lost my marbles over this card that giants in Orange aren’t exactly anything new, and Garble himself might not even be breaking new ground in terms of power. Competitive 4 is still the highest value on any individual Friend though, and this is the first Friend that’s been able to do that for Troublemakers (as opposed to directly giving them power like Purple has done before).

Impact: One the Impact front, the first thing that I said for Novelty comes back for this one. Rescue Party actually is probably the better Friend if you want a real aggro powerhouse at this cost, and Garble alone isn’t enough to bring the Troublemaker deck to life.

Flavour: I positively love this card’s flavour, though. I mentioned this in my reaction video, but Garble as a character really has this big individualist streak and is the kind of guy who really could strike out on his own. Despite being a total jerk, this dragon is ambitious, competent, and oh-so-willing to believe that he’s the best thing there ever was. In short, he’s not a ready-made support character, but if all you’re looking to do is start a ruckus, he’ll be plenty of help.

Somnambula, Pillar of Hope

Novelty: In general, for what it’s worth, I’ve found all of the Pillars so far to be quite well-designed. Somnambula may be re-purposing text from good old Balloonoculars, but that text needed to be better represented anyway, and she does something very special with it. The draw trigger is entirely novel, though (again, somewhat similar to what Balloonoculars did, but much more general).

Impact: I’ve plenty of talk already about fun things that can be done with this card, and many of them rely only on original Core cards in order to do it. Without question, this card could have been implemented into a variety of Pink strategies before FF, and I think most of them would have been eager to have her. Granted the answer to her is the same as the old meta’s answer to everything else (Belly Flops, pumpkins, etc. etc.), but it would still be a different place.

Flavour: I really like this card’s flavour. If you wanted to talk about Hope embodied in a card, then look no further. Given a little bit of knowledge, you get to make a judgement call, and hope that you’re right. Hope tempered with the wisdom to direct it properly is a potent weapon. Plus (and I’ll get to this for the other pillars), I really appreciate the chosen art. A hero of action should to the extent possible be depicted in action.

Star Swirl the Bearded, Pillar of Sorcery

Novelty: Star Swirl is functioning here essentially an embodiment of Super Purple. I do believe that “Super Meticulous” is the correct shorthand for his first ability, and it takes the concept to its logical extreme. In addition, even though he’s borrowing Premier Twilight’s text for his second part, that text is entirely new to Core, so it’s not even really that old.

Impact: Unfortunately for Star Swirl, big expensive Friends really need to do something right away to be able to enjoy much relevance. Compare Redeem Starlight, whose ability was positively monstrous if you could get it off several times. Somnambula’s great because she does something right away, and Flash is similar. Star Swirl pretty much needs to see the start of a turn to get his value out.

Flavour: This one borrows from the Novelty blurb quite a bit. Star Swirl is Purple refined and sharpened to a point. The fact that he takes an original Purple ability (Premier Twilight’s) and adds on an evolution of a thing that Purple only later became known for is only icing on the cake. If Premier Twilight was the Faithful Student, then this is what she would have looked like if she’d been able to get her Ph. D.

Flash Magnus, Pillar of Bravery

Novelty: I really do feel sorry for both Flash and Lightning Dust (whose Novelty rating I will be decreasing as a result of seeing this card). It’s such a shame that those two cards simply had to be so similar to each other in the end. Flash gets the better end of the stick for adding a little onto that formula, but at least in this category I can’t help but feel disappointed.

Impact: In this category, though, I’ve got nothing but praise. Even if my initial reaction may have been somewhat over-the-top (Flash doesn’t necessarily go in everything) I still think most Blue decks would eagerly make a place for him. And he would be a potent tool for them. When you can’t zip Thunderlane around and confront everything, then you may as well use this guy as a cudgel on your opponent’s turn.

Flavour: My only complaint on the flavour on this card brings up the little footnote I wrote for Somnambula above. Sure, Flash is a finely handsome stallion, but with the amount of action this guy’s gotten up to, I would have expected there would be some art to show him in the thick of it. A shot of him just standing there doesn’t quite have the same impact. Besides that, though, the design works just fine.

Princess Cadance, Family Matters

Novelty: Cadance actually hits this one out of the park, doing some pretty crazy things on a Friend. The cost-reduction thing is close to Secret but it’s done in a much more extreme way. The Event tax is close to a Mimics (if you name Events with your Mimics about ⅔’s of the time, then in the long run it’s exactly the same thing). And the card draw is absolute insanity.

Impact: Unlike the other big, slow giant tri-colour cards, Cadance gets some love in this category even if she’s a super magnet for removal. Namely, she is still guaranteed value, except for the corner case where she’s removed by some effect that doesn’t require the opponent to play a card. Other than that, you’re going to get at least some value from her, which is enough to make her viable in more than just the reanimation playstyle.

Flavour: Okay, just like I did for Tri-Twi here: 1) While this cost reduction thing is clearly the Blue effect, it reminds me more of Pink because of Secret, and Gilda, and similar things. So I’m not feeling this one. 2) Taxes are for the rich and famous (because in Equestria the tax code makes sense). So White! 3) Pink has returned to its roots, and will draw you all the cards. Sorry, did you only some of the cards? I’m afraid you’re getting all of the cards.

Detention!

Novelty: As a slower unconditional Napcakes, this card reminds me a lot of some of the Events we had back in The Crystal Games. I don’t remember the exact names, but I’m sure there was something at least similar to this. It’s getting it’s mandatory +1 for the Harmony, but that’s it.

Impact: As I said in my reaction video, I think this card is kind of on the fringe even in the world where Unicorn decks exist. If it’s trying to make its own way, it’s not going to find one.

Flavour: Now, the Flavour here is pretty good, though. Top-decking is the most serious removal that Purple can offer, and setting it in the academic context is nice. Plus it’s important to point out that the Unicorn Harmony is done right. Having an abundance of Unicorns isn’t going to make your spells more powerful, but it might make them easier to do.

Smolder, Culture Shock

Novelty: Naturally, I can’t give Smolder much of a drop for Novelty. That text certainly looks nothing like anything that I’ve ever seen before. It’s clever, but it’s still decidedly Orange. It’s nice.

Impact: Smolder gets a helping hand in this category because Orange is really crying out for a reasonable Mane right now. Yes, Muffin Mare exists, but she has a pretty dedicated niche. With AJ gone, Orange desperately needs a good general purpose Mane. And even though Smolder has the obvious Dragon synergy, she’s perfectly fine in other Orange decks that do faceoffs from time to time.

Flavour: Like with Gallus, let me try to interpret this text into something that can be well-understood. Again, we’re in a tough spot (the faceoff). Smolder is going to take the opponent head on (exhausting herself) in the hope of interfering with them (forced discard) enough to give one of her allies (other card) an opening to strike (+Power). Now that is very Dragon-like (it’s bascially what the tribe is about), but it sounds like a super stretch to throw that on Smolder as a character. I’m not convinced.

Yona, Student of Friendship

Novelty: I was getting ready to bust Yona all of the way down to 1 just like I did with Sandbar before. While it’s true that no card that no card has had her specific text before, there have been many variations on the theme. However, I did notice one key thing that I felt merited something: the fact that her effect isn’t local, whereas all of the Friend-based “Turn a Troublemaker down” effects are. That actually counts for something, since it helps her out with the Trixie TM.

Impact: That said, we’re still going to be moving along here. Yellow has plenty of Troublemaker hate already, and won’t blink an eye getting more.

Flavour: Interfering with Troublemakers has in the past been interpreted as impressive power (including in one of my favourite Flavour cards, Princess Celestia, Bane of Evil). However, sometimes it’s also been mere trickery or unexpected good fortune. I find it hard to really fault Yona in any way on this, so she can have a middling score, since she’s okay in Yellow.

Stop Fighting!

Novelty: This is another card that I really like, in this case mainly because of the novel thing that it’s doing with its tribe. When the tribe thing was first starting out, we saw the way that Unicorns and Pegasi and Dragons etc. were looking, and everyone said “Well gee, there aren’t really enough griffons to pull a deck like that together; let’s hope we see a lot more griffons.” But this card is saying that the griffon tribe isn’t going to work like that. There probably isn’t going to be a griffon deck; there may instead be a griffon package that augments other things. And it’s cool to see some tribes that aren’t implemented as full “Your whole deck must be Unicorns” things.

Impact: Somewhat paradoxically given the above, I still think that we’re a little short on griffons at the moment for this card to have a real spot in the world. It’s not terrible as a pure 1 AT frighten, though, so at least I have to give it that.

Flavour: Griffons can be loud and intimidating, and I really love again how the tribe’s synergy is portrayed in the design of cards like this. Griffons generally aren’t team players, so you’re not going to see effects like Unicorn Trixie or Dragon Charcoal. Instead, you’re going to see effects that make each griffon individually better. Top notch, though why this has to be in the discard pile first is a tougher lift for me.

Queen Chrysalis, Evil Twin

Novelty: In effect, what Chrysalis is really implementing is a stronger version of the already-done stealing mechanic. Since this card effectively steals a Friend, but no recourse exists to get the Friend back. If that was the only thing special about the card, it wouldn’t score that highly. But implementing it on a 5-cost, 0-Power Friend that ushers in a whole slew of rules on what “copying a Friend” actually means. Sign me up for that.

Impact: Unfortunately in terms of game impact, we really can reduce Chryssy down to just a stronger stealing effect. Since stealing was already generally considered too expensive at 4, I wouldn’t say that making it 5 and getting the extra surety is going to help all that much. Though she can be cheated out, which is something at least.

Flavour: Let us all take a moment to collectively chuckle at this beautiful flavour text. And if you hear any hissing, watch carefully the one who hisses, for that one may be the traitor in disguise. In all seriousness, though, this card perfectly encapsulates the changeling ideal of aggressively replacing someone else. It’s something Chrysalis honestly ought to do more of on the show; it’s kind of what she’s good at.

Ocellus, Knowledge is Power

Novelty: Well, clearly there isn’t much to say on this. This Mane is totally new; we’ve never seen anything even remotely like this before. And it’s clever, and it’s cool. Ocellus has already inspired lots of new thinking about how to play decks with her (including from yours truly). That’s precisely what novel cards are supposed to do.

Impact: Similar to Smolder, Ocellus gets some of her Impact score purely from the fact that White was in need of a better general-purpose Mane than it currently had. Which isn’t to imply that this one is necessarily “general-purpose”. She definitely does require some thought and work to use properly, but not as much as Octavia. And she’s clearly powerful, though not quite in a way that I’d immediately say she’s going to rock the meta.

Flavour: Okay, I may as well keep this process going. So Ocellus is naturally a timid individual; she needs some support (the efficient Friend) to properly shine. With AT somewhat associated with knowledge via Purple, the Immediate ability is the implementation of the whole Knowledge is Power thing: with applied thought, Ocellus can be a proper force. However, she has to take a hit because she doesn’t belong in White. I fully understand why this Mane had to be White (the changeling colours are Yellow and White) but that doesn’t make it a Flavour win.

Maulwurf, Extra Large

Novelty: It’s true that the text on this card has an identifiable source, coming straight from good old Jet Set & Upper Crust, albeit with a slight variation both in Power and in text. Bringing that effect to Core is desirable enough (especially since it was actually a valuable thing in Harmony once or twice), even if it’s basically the same card.

Impact: While clearly a farming counter, Maulwurf on its own does nothing against a farming deck. Indeed, old JSUC required an Alicorn Amulet to really come into its own, and this card will likely fill the same role in any deck that wants it. Farming is around though, so in that sense it stands a fighting chance.

Flavour: Trying to figure out what exactly the point value of a Troublemaker translates to in terms of flavour was an interesting exercise for me. In the end, I think it comes down to the degree of cunning on the part of the character. Minions and wild beasts don’t get the points, it’s the leaders and the planners that get that benefit. And thus this works, in addition to the moderate values on the rest of the card with the game text filling in for its resistant biology.

Untested Magic Fireworks

Novelty: This card really comes out of leftfield and leaves only an impact crater when it leaves, doesn’t it? On the one hand, this is a classic Johnny card and something that the game needs more of. On the other, it instantly calls to mind Chaos Capital of the World, though clearly with some major differences that probably make it much more applicable to the weird interactions that it’s going to cause people to dream up.

Impact: I have no idea whatsoever what the Impact of this card should be. Again, its presence has already incited fevered theorizing, and a couple of combos that sound like they might be edging closer to the main stage. But it definitely feels like more of a joke to me.

Flavour: At this stage, I feel like the card should just turn things up to eleven and replace the Problems each time while it’s at it, so the whole board is just getting nuked. Either way, though, it’s still pretty awesome. This is a meteor coming out of nowhere and doing some damage. To everyone. Outstanding.

Sorry Stamp

Novelty: Mechanically, this card is actually pretty interesting. It stands in a similar spot to Pharynx, where it’s quite bad when used on its own, but rapidly gets quite respectable when used in the proper deck. In the way that I see Earth Ponies playing, this card is very much just going to be dismiss two things, and that’s new too. It will be interesting to see how the costs play out.

Impact: This is one of the cards where I feel like Impact, as I have been judging it, feels wrong. Like sure, this card gets a low Impact score because it’s not going to start an Earth Pony deck all on its own, so clearly in SB nobody would use it. (Especially since there was no shortage of removal in those days already). But that’s really not the point of the card. But again, that’s why we don’t average or combine the ratings when we do overall. The card is novel, and cards shouldn’t have to always be all three.

Flavour: Like a fair number of these Harmony cards, the problem is with the scaling. We have more Earth Ponies so it’s easier to stamp more stuff? Hardly.

These things somehow always turn out being incredibly gigantic pieces of work. That I didn’t quite expect when I started out. But I guess it’s almost done, right? Just have that review stream to look forward too...

[dailyofficereadings]

Daily Office Readings May 18, 2019

Psalm 55

Psalm 55

Complaint about a Friend’s Treachery

To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

1 Give ear to my prayer, O God; do not hide yourself from my supplication. 2 Attend to me, and answer me; I am troubled in my complaint. I am distraught 3 by the noise of the enemy, because of the clamor of the wicked. For they bring[a] trouble upon me, and in anger they cherish enmity against me.

4 My heart is in anguish within me, the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 5 Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. 6 And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; 7 truly, I would flee far away; I would lodge in the wilderness;Selah 8 I would hurry to find a shelter for myself from the raging wind and tempest.”

9 Confuse, O Lord, confound their speech; for I see violence and strife in the city. 10 Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it; 11 ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace.

12 It is not enemies who taunt me— I could bear that; it is not adversaries who deal insolently with me— I could hide from them. 13 But it is you, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend, 14 with whom I kept pleasant company; we walked in the house of God with the throng. 15 Let death come upon them; let them go down alive to Sheol; for evil is in their homes and in their hearts.

16 But I call upon God, and the Lord will save me. 17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he will hear my voice. 18 He will redeem me unharmed from the battle that I wage, for many are arrayed against me. 19 God, who is enthroned from of old,Selah will hear, and will humble them— because they do not change, and do not fear God.

20 My companion laid hands on a friend and violated a covenant with me[b] 21 with speech smoother than butter, but with a heart set on war; with words that were softer than oil, but in fact were drawn swords.

22 Cast your burden[c] on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

23 But you, O God, will cast them down into the lowest pit; the bloodthirsty and treacherous shall not live out half their days. But I will trust in you.

Footnotes:

Psalm 55:3 Cn Compare Gk: Heb they cause to totter

Psalm 55:20 Heb lacks with me

Psalm 55:22 Or Cast what he has given you

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Psalm 138:1-139:23

Psalm 138

Thanksgiving and Praise

Of David.

1 I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise; 2 I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness; for you have exalted your name and your word above everything.[a] 3 On the day I called, you answered me, you increased my strength of soul.[b]

4 All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O Lord, for they have heard the words of your mouth. 5 They shall sing of the ways of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord. 6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly; but the haughty he perceives from far away.

7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve me against the wrath of my enemies; you stretch out your hand, and your right hand delivers me. 8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Psalm 139

The Inescapable God

To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.

1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me. 2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. 3 You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. 4 Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely. 5 You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it.

7 Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, 10 even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,” 12 even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.

13 For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance. In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed. 17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! 18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand; I come to the end[c]—I am still with you.

19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God, and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me— 20 those who speak of you maliciously, and lift themselves up against you for evil![d] 21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you? 22 I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies. 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.

Footnotes:

Psalm 138:2 Cn: Heb you have exalted your word above all your name

Psalm 138:3 Syr Compare Gk Tg: Heb you made me arrogant in my soul with strength

Psalm 139:18 Or I awake

Psalm 139:20 Cn: Meaning of Heb uncertain

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Wisdom 7:1-14

Solomon Like Other Mortals

7 I also am mortal, like everyone else, a descendant of the first-formed child of earth; and in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh, 2 within the period of ten months, compacted with blood, from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage. 3 And when I was born, I began to breathe the common air, and fell upon the kindred earth; my first sound was a cry, as is true of all. 4 I was nursed with care in swaddling cloths. 5 For no king has had a different beginning of existence; 6 there is for all one entrance into life, and one way out.

Solomon’s Respect for Wisdom

7 Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me; I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me. 8 I preferred her to scepters and thrones, and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her. 9 Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem, because all gold is but a little sand in her sight, and silver will be accounted as clay before her. 10 I loved her more than health and beauty, and I chose to have her rather than light, because her radiance never ceases. 11 All good things came to me along with her, and in her hands uncounted wealth. 12 I rejoiced in them all, because wisdom leads them; but I did not know that she was their mother. 13 I learned without guile and I impart without grudging; I do not hide her wealth, 14 for it is an unfailing treasure for mortals; those who get it obtain friendship with God, commended for the gifts that come from instruction.

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Colossians 3:12-17

12 As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. 13 Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord[a] has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ[b] dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.[c] 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Footnotes:

Colossians 3:13 Other ancient authorities read just as Christ

Colossians 3:16 Other ancient authorities read of God, or of the Lord

Colossians 3:16 Other ancient authorities read to the Lord

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Luke 7:18-35

Messengers from John the Baptist

18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. So John summoned two of his disciples 19 and sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” 20 When the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’” 21 Jesus[a] had just then cured many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and had given sight to many who were blind. 22 And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers[b] are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them. 23 And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

24 When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus[c] began to speak to the crowds about John:[d] “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 What then did you go out to see? Someone[e] dressed in soft robes? Look, those who put on fine clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces. 26 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written,

‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’

28 I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John; yet the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 29 (And all the people who heard this, including the tax collectors, acknowledged the justice of God,[f] because they had been baptized with John’s baptism. 30 But by refusing to be baptized by him, the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves.)

31 “To what then will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’

33 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon’; 34 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!’ 35 Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”

Footnotes:

Luke 7:21 Gk He

Luke 7:22 The terms leper and leprosy can refer to several diseases

Luke 7:24 Gk he

Luke 7:24 Gk him

Luke 7:25 Or Why then did you go out? To see someone

Luke 7:29 Or praised God

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[dailyofficereadings]

Daily Office Readings April 17, 2019

Psalm 55

Psalm 55

Complaint about a Friend’s Treachery

To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

1 Give ear to my prayer, O God; do not hide yourself from my supplication. 2 Attend to me, and answer me; I am troubled in my complaint. I am distraught 3 by the noise of the enemy, because of the clamor of the wicked. For they bring[a] trouble upon me, and in anger they cherish enmity against me.

4 My heart is in anguish within me, the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 5 Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. 6 And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; 7 truly, I would flee far away; I would lodge in the wilderness;Selah 8 I would hurry to find a shelter for myself from the raging wind and tempest.”

9 Confuse, O Lord, confound their speech; for I see violence and strife in the city. 10 Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it; 11 ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace.

12 It is not enemies who taunt me— I could bear that; it is not adversaries who deal insolently with me— I could hide from them. 13 But it is you, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend, 14 with whom I kept pleasant company; we walked in the house of God with the throng. 15 Let death come upon them; let them go down alive to Sheol; for evil is in their homes and in their hearts.

16 But I call upon God, and the Lord will save me. 17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he will hear my voice. 18 He will redeem me unharmed from the battle that I wage, for many are arrayed against me. 19 God, who is enthroned from of old,Selah will hear, and will humble them— because they do not change, and do not fear God.

20 My companion laid hands on a friend and violated a covenant with me[b] 21 with speech smoother than butter, but with a heart set on war; with words that were softer than oil, but in fact were drawn swords.

22 Cast your burden[c] on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

23 But you, O God, will cast them down into the lowest pit; the bloodthirsty and treacherous shall not live out half their days. But I will trust in you.

Footnotes:

Psalm 55:3 Cn Compare Gk: Heb they cause to totter

Psalm 55:20 Heb lacks with me

Psalm 55:22 Or Cast what he has given you

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Psalm 74

Psalm 74

Plea for Help in Time of National Humiliation

A Maskil of Asaph.

1 O God, why do you cast us off forever? Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture? 2 Remember your congregation, which you acquired long ago, which you redeemed to be the tribe of your heritage. Remember Mount Zion, where you came to dwell. 3 Direct your steps to the perpetual ruins; the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary.

4 Your foes have roared within your holy place; they set up their emblems there. 5 At the upper entrance they hacked the wooden trellis with axes.[a] 6 And then, with hatchets and hammers, they smashed all its carved work. 7 They set your sanctuary on fire; they desecrated the dwelling place of your name, bringing it to the ground. 8 They said to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”; they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

9 We do not see our emblems; there is no longer any prophet, and there is no one among us who knows how long. 10 How long, O God, is the foe to scoff? Is the enemy to revile your name forever? 11 Why do you hold back your hand; why do you keep your hand in[b] your bosom?

12 Yet God my King is from of old, working salvation in the earth. 13 You divided the sea by your might; you broke the heads of the dragons in the waters. 14 You crushed the heads of Leviathan; you gave him as food[c] for the creatures of the wilderness. 15 You cut openings for springs and torrents; you dried up ever-flowing streams. 16 Yours is the day, yours also the night; you established the luminaries[d] and the sun. 17 You have fixed all the bounds of the earth; you made summer and winter.

18 Remember this, O Lord, how the enemy scoffs, and an impious people reviles your name. 19 Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild animals; do not forget the life of your poor forever.

20 Have regard for your[e] covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the haunts of violence. 21 Do not let the downtrodden be put to shame; let the poor and needy praise your name. 22 Rise up, O God, plead your cause; remember how the impious scoff at you all day long. 23 Do not forget the clamor of your foes, the uproar of your adversaries that goes up continually.

Footnotes:

Psalm 74:5 Cn Compare Gk Syr: Meaning of Heb uncertain

Psalm 74:11 Cn: Heb do you consume your right hand from

Psalm 74:14 Heb food for the people

Psalm 74:16 Or moon; Heb light

Psalm 74:20 Gk Syr: Heb the

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Jeremiah 17:5-10

5 Thus says the Lord: Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord. 6 They shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when relief comes. They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.

7 Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. 8 They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit.

9 The heart is devious above all else; it is perverse— who can understand it? 10 I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings.

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Jeremiah 17:14-17

Jeremiah Prays for Vindication

14 Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved; for you are my praise. 15 See how they say to me, “Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come!” 16 But I have not run away from being a shepherd[a] in your service, nor have I desired the fatal day. You know what came from my lips; it was before your face. 17 Do not become a terror to me; you are my refuge in the day of disaster;

Footnotes:

Jeremiah 17:16 Meaning of Heb uncertain

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Philippians 4:1-13

4 1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters,[a] whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

Exhortations

2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion,[b] help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

4 Rejoice[c] in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.[d] 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, beloved,[e] whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about[f] these things. 9 Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Acknowledgment of the Philippians’ Gift

10 I rejoice[g] in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it.[h] 11 Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Footnotes:

Philippians 4:1 Gk my brothers

Philippians 4:3 Or loyal Syzygus

Philippians 4:4 Or Farewell

Philippians 4:4 Or Farewell

Philippians 4:8 Gk brothers

Philippians 4:8 Gk take account of

Philippians 4:10 Gk I rejoiced

Philippians 4:10 Gk lacks to show it

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

John 12:27-36

Jesus Speaks about His Death

27 “Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people[a] to myself.” 33 He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. 34 The crowd answered him, “We have heard from the law that the Messiah[b] remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” 35 Jesus said to them, “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. If you walk in the darkness, you do not know where you are going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.”

The Unbelief of the People

After Jesus had said this, he departed and hid from them.

Footnotes:

John 12:32 Other ancient authorities read all things

John 12:34 Or the Christ

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[dailyofficereadings]

Daily Office Readings May 13, 2017

Psalm 55

Psalm 55

Complaint about a Friend’s Treachery

To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

1 Give ear to my prayer, O God; do not hide yourself from my supplication. 2 Attend to me, and answer me; I am troubled in my complaint. I am distraught 3 by the noise of the enemy, because of the clamor of the wicked. For they bring[a] trouble upon me, and in anger they cherish enmity against me.

4 My heart is in anguish within me, the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 5 Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. 6 And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; 7 truly, I would flee far away; I would lodge in the wilderness;Selah 8 I would hurry to find a shelter for myself from the raging wind and tempest.”

9 Confuse, O Lord, confound their speech; for I see violence and strife in the city. 10 Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it; 11 ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace.

12 It is not enemies who taunt me— I could bear that; it is not adversaries who deal insolently with me— I could hide from them. 13 But it is you, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend, 14 with whom I kept pleasant company; we walked in the house of God with the throng. 15 Let death come upon them; let them go down alive to Sheol; for evil is in their homes and in their hearts.

16 But I call upon God, and the Lord will save me. 17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he will hear my voice. 18 He will redeem me unharmed from the battle that I wage, for many are arrayed against me. 19 God, who is enthroned from of old,Selah will hear, and will humble them— because they do not change, and do not fear God.

20 My companion laid hands on a friend and violated a covenant with me[b] 21 with speech smoother than butter, but with a heart set on war; with words that were softer than oil, but in fact were drawn swords.

22 Cast your burden[c] on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

23 But you, O God, will cast them down into the lowest pit; the bloodthirsty and treacherous shall not live out half their days. But I will trust in you.

Footnotes:

Psalm 55:3 Cn Compare Gk: Heb they cause to totter

Psalm 55:20 Heb lacks with me

Psalm 55:22 Or Cast what he has given you

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Psalm 138:1-139:23

Psalm 138

Thanksgiving and Praise

Of David.

1 I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise; 2 I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness; for you have exalted your name and your word above everything.[a] 3 On the day I called, you answered me, you increased my strength of soul.[b]

4 All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O Lord, for they have heard the words of your mouth. 5 They shall sing of the ways of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord. 6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly; but the haughty he perceives from far away.

7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve me against the wrath of my enemies; you stretch out your hand, and your right hand delivers me. 8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Psalm 139

The Inescapable God

To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.

1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me. 2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. 3 You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. 4 Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely. 5 You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it.

7 Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, 10 even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,” 12 even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.

13 For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance. In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed. 17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! 18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand; I come to the end[c]—I am still with you.

19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God, and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me— 20 those who speak of you maliciously, and lift themselves up against you for evil![d] 21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you? 22 I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies. 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.

Footnotes:

Psalm 138:2 Cn: Heb you have exalted your word above all your name

Psalm 138:3 Syr Compare Gk Tg: Heb you made me arrogant in my soul with strength

Psalm 139:18 Or I awake

Psalm 139:20 Cn: Meaning of Heb uncertain

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Wisdom 7:1-14

Solomon Like Other Mortals

7 I also am mortal, like everyone else, a descendant of the first-formed child of earth; and in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh, 2 within the period of ten months, compacted with blood, from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage. 3 And when I was born, I began to breathe the common air, and fell upon the kindred earth; my first sound was a cry, as is true of all. 4 I was nursed with care in swaddling cloths. 5 For no king has had a different beginning of existence; 6 there is for all one entrance into life, and one way out.

Solomon’s Respect for Wisdom

7 Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me; I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me. 8 I preferred her to scepters and thrones, and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her. 9 Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem, because all gold is but a little sand in her sight, and silver will be accounted as clay before her. 10 I loved her more than health and beauty, and I chose to have her rather than light, because her radiance never ceases. 11 All good things came to me along with her, and in her hands uncounted wealth. 12 I rejoiced in them all, because wisdom leads them; but I did not know that she was their mother. 13 I learned without guile and I impart without grudging; I do not hide her wealth, 14 for it is an unfailing treasure for mortals; those who get it obtain friendship with God, commended for the gifts that come from instruction.

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Colossians 3:12-17

12 As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. 13 Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord[a] has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ[b] dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.[c] 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Footnotes:

Colossians 3:13 Other ancient authorities read just as Christ

Colossians 3:16 Other ancient authorities read of God, or of the Lord

Colossians 3:16 Other ancient authorities read to the Lord

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Luke 7:18-35

Messengers from John the Baptist

18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. So John summoned two of his disciples 19 and sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” 20 When the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’” 21 Jesus[a] had just then cured many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and had given sight to many who were blind. 22 And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers[b] are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them. 23 And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

24 When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus[c] began to speak to the crowds about John:[d] “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 What then did you go out to see? Someone[e] dressed in soft robes? Look, those who put on fine clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces. 26 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written,

‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’

28 I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John; yet the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 29 (And all the people who heard this, including the tax collectors, acknowledged the justice of God,[f] because they had been baptized with John’s baptism. 30 But by refusing to be baptized by him, the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves.)

31 “To what then will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’

33 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon’; 34 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!’ 35 Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”

Footnotes:

Luke 7:21 Gk He

Luke 7:22 The terms leper and leprosy can refer to several diseases

Luke 7:24 Gk he

Luke 7:24 Gk him

Luke 7:25 Or Why then did you go out? To see someone

Luke 7:29 Or praised God

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[dailyofficereadings]

Daily Office Readings April 12, 2017 at 01:00AM

Psalm 55

Psalm 55

Complaint about a Friend’s Treachery

To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

1 Give ear to my prayer, O God; do not hide yourself from my supplication. 2 Attend to me, and answer me; I am troubled in my complaint. I am distraught 3 by the noise of the enemy, because of the clamor of the wicked. For they bring[a] trouble upon me, and in anger they cherish enmity against me.

4 My heart is in anguish within me, the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 5 Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. 6 And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; 7 truly, I would flee far away; I would lodge in the wilderness;Selah 8 I would hurry to find a shelter for myself from the raging wind and tempest.”

9 Confuse, O Lord, confound their speech; for I see violence and strife in the city. 10 Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it; 11 ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace.

12 It is not enemies who taunt me— I could bear that; it is not adversaries who deal insolently with me— I could hide from them. 13 But it is you, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend, 14 with whom I kept pleasant company; we walked in the house of God with the throng. 15 Let death come upon them; let them go down alive to Sheol; for evil is in their homes and in their hearts.

16 But I call upon God, and the Lord will save me. 17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he will hear my voice. 18 He will redeem me unharmed from the battle that I wage, for many are arrayed against me. 19 God, who is enthroned from of old,Selah will hear, and will humble them— because they do not change, and do not fear God.

20 My companion laid hands on a friend and violated a covenant with me[b] 21 with speech smoother than butter, but with a heart set on war; with words that were softer than oil, but in fact were drawn swords.

22 Cast your burden[c] on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

23 But you, O God, will cast them down into the lowest pit; the bloodthirsty and treacherous shall not live out half their days. But I will trust in you.

Footnotes:

Psalm 55:3 Cn Compare Gk: Heb they cause to totter

Psalm 55:20 Heb lacks with me

Psalm 55:22 Or Cast what he has given you

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Psalm 74

Psalm 74

Plea for Help in Time of National Humiliation

A Maskil of Asaph.

1 O God, why do you cast us off forever? Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture? 2 Remember your congregation, which you acquired long ago, which you redeemed to be the tribe of your heritage. Remember Mount Zion, where you came to dwell. 3 Direct your steps to the perpetual ruins; the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary.

4 Your foes have roared within your holy place; they set up their emblems there. 5 At the upper entrance they hacked the wooden trellis with axes.[a] 6 And then, with hatchets and hammers, they smashed all its carved work. 7 They set your sanctuary on fire; they desecrated the dwelling place of your name, bringing it to the ground. 8 They said to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”; they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

9 We do not see our emblems; there is no longer any prophet, and there is no one among us who knows how long. 10 How long, O God, is the foe to scoff? Is the enemy to revile your name forever? 11 Why do you hold back your hand; why do you keep your hand in[b] your bosom?

12 Yet God my King is from of old, working salvation in the earth. 13 You divided the sea by your might; you broke the heads of the dragons in the waters. 14 You crushed the heads of Leviathan; you gave him as food[c] for the creatures of the wilderness. 15 You cut openings for springs and torrents; you dried up ever-flowing streams. 16 Yours is the day, yours also the night; you established the luminaries[d] and the sun. 17 You have fixed all the bounds of the earth; you made summer and winter.

18 Remember this, O Lord, how the enemy scoffs, and an impious people reviles your name. 19 Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild animals; do not forget the life of your poor forever.

20 Have regard for your[e] covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the haunts of violence. 21 Do not let the downtrodden be put to shame; let the poor and needy praise your name. 22 Rise up, O God, plead your cause; remember how the impious scoff at you all day long. 23 Do not forget the clamor of your foes, the uproar of your adversaries that goes up continually.

Footnotes:

Psalm 74:5 Cn Compare Gk Syr: Meaning of Heb uncertain

Psalm 74:11 Cn: Heb do you consume your right hand from

Psalm 74:14 Heb food for the people

Psalm 74:16 Or moon; Heb light

Psalm 74:20 Gk Syr: Heb the

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Jeremiah 17:5-10

5 Thus says the Lord: Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord. 6 They shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when relief comes. They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.

7 Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. 8 They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit.

9 The heart is devious above all else; it is perverse— who can understand it? 10 I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings.

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Jeremiah 17:14-17

Jeremiah Prays for Vindication

14 Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved; for you are my praise. 15 See how they say to me, “Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come!” 16 But I have not run away from being a shepherd[a] in your service, nor have I desired the fatal day. You know what came from my lips; it was before your face. 17 Do not become a terror to me; you are my refuge in the day of disaster;

Footnotes:

Jeremiah 17:16 Meaning of Heb uncertain

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Philippians 4:1-13

4 1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters,[a] whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

Exhortations

2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion,[b] help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

4 Rejoice[c] in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.[d] 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, beloved,[e] whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about[f] these things. 9 Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Acknowledgment of the Philippians’ Gift

10 I rejoice[g] in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it.[h] 11 Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Footnotes:

Philippians 4:1 Gk my brothers

Philippians 4:3 Or loyal Syzygus

Philippians 4:4 Or Farewell

Philippians 4:4 Or Farewell

Philippians 4:8 Gk brothers

Philippians 4:8 Gk take account of

Philippians 4:10 Gk I rejoiced

Philippians 4:10 Gk lacks to show it

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

John 12:27-36

Jesus Speaks about His Death

27 “Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people[a] to myself.” 33 He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. 34 The crowd answered him, “We have heard from the law that the Messiah[b] remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” 35 Jesus said to them, “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. If you walk in the darkness, you do not know where you are going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.”

The Unbelief of the People

After Jesus had said this, he departed and hid from them.

Footnotes:

John 12:32 Other ancient authorities read all things

John 12:34 Or the Christ

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.