Book of Common Prayer Lectionary
2 Chronicles 36:14-23
Psalm 122
Ephesians 2:4-10
John 6:4-15

Revised Common Lectionary
Numbers 21:4-9
Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22
Ephesians 2:1-10
John 3:14-21

Reflection and Response
Prayer Starter

Today’s readings celebrate God’s mercy. The reading from 2 Chronicles (BCP) explains how God, moved with compassion, restores the people of Israel, despite their unfaithfulness. In Numbers (RCL), God delivers the people from poisonous serpents. Paul, in the letter to the Ephesians, announces that God has graciously done it all, lifting us out of sin’s grave and preparing us to do good works. In today’s BCP gospel, John relates the story of the feeding of the 5,000. In the RCL gospel, John tells us that Jesus is God’s gift to us, the ultimate expression of God’s mercy and love.

First Reading: 2 Chronicles 36:14-23 (BCP)
The books of 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah were composed in the late fifth century B.C. by one or more court-appointed historians. This chronicler wrote with the concerns of the restored Jewish community in view. After the return from exile, they struggled to figure out the meaning of the destruction of their temple, the exile and the absence of the Davidic monarchy. At stake was the faithfulness of God to the covenant with David.

The chronicler sees the rebuilding of the temple as the primary sign of God’s continuing relationship with Israel. The role of the monarchy is subjugated in importance to the law and the temple service. The chronicler thus works to present a pattern for the religious life of his own time.

Today’s reading is based upon 2 Kings 25:1-21, but the events described are put into theological perspective. Whereas 2 Kings primarily blames the kings for Jerusalem’s downfall, the chronicler holds the priesthood and the people likewise accountable. In accordance with Jeremiah’s prophecies, the land will lie desolate and keep sabbath rest. Nevertheless, there is the expectation of restoration.

2 Chronicles 36:14-23
All the leading priests and the people also
were exceedingly unfaithful,
following all the abominations of the nations;
and they polluted the house of the LORD
that he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
The LORD, the God of their ancestors,
sent persistently to them by his messengers,
because he had compassion on his people
and on his dwelling place;
but they kept mocking the messengers of God,
despising his words,
and scoffing at his prophets,
until the wrath of the LORD against his people
became so great that
there was no remedy.
Therefore he brought up against them
the king of the Chaldeans,
who killed their youths with the sword
in the house of their sanctuary,
and had no compassion
on young man or young woman,
the aged or the feeble;
he gave them all into his hand.
All the vessels of the house of God,
large and small,
and the treasures of the house of the LORD,
and the treasures of the king and of his officials,
all these he brought to Babylon.
They burned the house of God,
broke down the wall of Jerusalem,
burned all its palaces with fire,
and destroyed all its precious vessels.
He took into exile in Babylon
those who had escaped from the sword,
and they became servants
to him and to his sons
until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia,
to fulfill the word of the LORD
by the mouth of Jeremiah,
until the land had made up for its sabbaths.
All the days that it lay desolate
it kept sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.

In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia,
in fulfillment of the word of the LORD
spoken by Jeremiah,
the LORD stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia
so that he sent a herald
throughout all his kingdom
and also declared in a written edict:
"Thus says King Cyrus of Persia:
The LORD, the God of heaven,
has given me all the kingdoms of the earth,
and he has charged me to build him a house
at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
Whoever is among you of all his people,
may the LORD his God be with him!
Let him go up."

First Reading: Numbers 21:4-9 (RCL)
This reading describes the incident that the evangelist John uses to understand the healing power of Christ’s death on the cross. For their lack of faith in God’s power to provide food for them on their wilderness journey, the people are punished by poisonous serpents. When the people admit their sinfulness and seek God’s forgiveness through Moses’ intercession, God provides an outward sign–the bronze serpent–that when looked upon unleashed God’s life-giving power.

Numbers 21:4-9
From Mount Hor they set out
by the way to the Red Sea,
to go around the land of Edom;
but the people became impatient on the way.
The people spoke against God
and against Moses,
"Why have you brought us up out of Egypt
to die in the wilderness?
For there is no food and no water,
and we detest this miserable food."

Then the LORD
sent poisonous serpents among the people,
and they bit the people,
so that many Israelites died.
The people came to Moses and said,
"We have sinned by speaking against the LORD
and against you;
pray to the LORD to take away the serpents from us."
So Moses prayed for the people.
The LORD said to Moses,
"Make a poisonous serpent,
and set it on a pole;
and everyone who is bitten
shall look at it and live."

So Moses made a serpent of bronze,
and put it upon a pole;
and whenever a serpent bit someone,
that person would look at the serpent of bronze
and live.

Psalm: Psalm 122 (BCP)
Psalms 120—134 are each titled "A Song of Ascents." They were probably sung by pilgrims who came to Jerusalem for the three great festivals of the year, Tabernacles or Booths, Passover, and Weeks or Pentecost (Leviticus 23). Psalm 122 was probably sung upon arrival in the city. The Holy City is acclaimed as the center for the Lord’s worship and for the declaration of justice. The psalm ends with a prayer for its peace as emblematic of the welfare of the people.

Psalm 122
I was glad when they said to me,
Let us go to the house of the LORD!"

Our feet are standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem.

Jerusalem–built as a city
that is bound firmly together.

To it the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the LORD.

For there the thrones for judgment were set up,
the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
"May they prosper who love you.

Peace be within your walls,
and security within your towers."

For the sake of my relatives and friends I will say,
"Peace be within you."

For the sake of the house of the LORD our God,
I will seek your good.

Psalm: Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 (RCL)
This psalm encourages those whom God has rescued to give praise (vv. 1-3). Verses 17-22 recall God’s healing in time of illness.

Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22
O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever.

Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
those he redeemed from trouble
and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.

Some were sick through their sinful ways,
and because of their iniquities endured affliction;
they loathed any kind of food,
and they drew near to the gates of death.

Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distress;
he sent out his word and healed them,
and delivered them from destruction.

Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wonderful works to humankind.

And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,
and tell of his deeds with songs of joy.

Second Reading: Ephesians 2:1-10
This letter was probably first circulated as an encyclical letter to a number of churches in Asia Minor. Chapter 1 centers upon the privileges of the believer’s new life in Christ. Today’s reading focuses on the process of restoration. God alone takes the initiative

In verses 8-10, there is a double aspect to salvation. It begins with "grace" (v. 5) and results in "good works" (v. 10). Faith is here a gift from God, not something we do. Works are required, but not as a prerequisite. The living out of the Christian life is not the cause of salvation, but its effect. Faith must always lead to good works.

Ephesians 2:1-10
You were dead through the trespasses and sins
in which you once lived,
following the course of this world,
following the ruler of the power of the air,
the spirit that is now at work
among those who are disobedient.
All of us once lived among them
in the passions of our flesh,
following the desires of flesh and senses,
and we were by nature children of wrath,
like everyone else.

But God, who is rich in mercy,
out of the great love with which he loved us
even when we were dead through our trespasses,
made us alive together with Christ–
by grace you have been saved–
and raised us up with him
and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
so that in the ages to come
he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace
in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God–
not the result of works,
so that no one may boast.
For we are what he has made us,
created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand
to be our way of life.

Gospel: John 6:4-15 (BCP)
The feeding of the 5,000 is the only miracle of Jesus’ ministry recorded in all four gospels. John’s account seems to come from a tradition independent of, but parallel to, the other accounts. As so often emphasized in John, Jesus takes the initiative, even before the people arrive.

John looks at the miracle from a three-dimensional perspective. He recalls the past by alluding to Moses and the feeding of the Israelites with manna in the wilderness and, secondarily, to Elijah and Elisha. He recalls the present by the mention of the celebration of the Passover.

Jesus’ instructions to the disciples to "gather up...that nothing may be lost" (v. 12) anticipate later statements about his ministry (see 11:52, 17:12 and 18:9). The people’s response to the sign is the desire to acclaim Jesus as "the prophet." But this popular pressure causes Jesus to withdraw, for he does not seek this kind of political leadership.

John 6:4-15
Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.
When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him,
Jesus said to Philip,
"Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?"
He said this to test him,
for he himself knew what he was going to do.
Philip answered him,
"Six months’ wages would not buy enough bread
for each of them to get a little."
One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him,
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish.
But what are they among so many people?"
Jesus said,
"Make the people sit down."
Now there was a great deal of grass in the place;
so they sat down, about five thousand in all.
Then Jesus took the loaves,
and when he had given thanks,
he distributed them to those who were seated;
so also the fish, as much as they wanted.

When they were satisfied, he told his disciples,
"Gather up the fragments left over,
so that nothing may be lost."
So they gathered them up,
and from the fragments of the five barley loaves,
left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets.
When the people saw the sign that he had done,
they began to say,
"This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world."
When Jesus realized that they were about to come
and take him by force to make him king,
he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

Gospel: John 3:14-21 (RCL)
Today’s reading is taken from the first of John’s lengthy expositions of Jesus’ teachings. This discourse as a whole (3:1-21) moves from the work of the Spirit (3:3-8) to that of the Son (3:11-15) to that of the Father (3:16-21). Nicodemus comes to Jesus by night because of his interest in the signs Jesus has performed. Jesus seeks to draw him past these outward manifestations to a recognition of their inward significance.

The lifting up of the Son of Man points to his exaltation on the cross and in the resurrection and ascension; for John, these are one single act of glorification, offering believers eternal life by participation in God’s life.

Verse 16, one of the most familiar verses of scripture, succinctly describes God’s goal–to offer eternal life, God’s motivation–love for the world, and God’s strategy–giving the Son. Jesus has become the watershed for life, both now and in the future. Those who reject Jesus face condemnation in the day of judgment, and they live now in darkness and fear. Those who believe "in the name of the only Son of God" (v. 18) have escaped future condemnation, enjoy the promise and reality of eternal life, and live in light and truth.

John 3:14-21
And just as Moses lifted up
the serpent in the wilderness,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
that whoever believes in him
may have eternal life.
"For God so loved the world
that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him
may not perish but may have eternal life.
"Indeed, God did not send the Son
into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world
might be saved through him.
Those who believe in him are not condemned;
but those who do not believe are condemned already,
because they have not believed
in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the judgment,
that the light has come into the world,
and people loved darkness rather than light
because their deeds were evil.
For all who do evil hate the light
and do not come to the light,
so that their deeds may not be exposed.
But those who do what is true come to the light,
so that it may be clearly seen
that their deeds have been done in God."

Reflection and Response
Anyone who pursues a craft will appreciate the analogy in today’s reading from Ephesians. The words "For we are what [God] has made us" (v. 10) speak profoundly to people who quilt, sculpt, paint, do carpentry or create any of a wide variety of art forms.

These artists know how painstaking the process of creation can be. The initial conception may be gift or inspiration, but it is only the first step. There follows a long period of planning, transferring the vision to paper or canvas and laboring to bring it to birth. When we create artworks ourselves, we may have some inkling of what it means for God to create us collectively as a people and individually as works of art.

To define ourselves too narrowly would do an injustice to God’s ongoing work of creation. After all, God isn’t finished with us yet. Knowing that we are engaged in the co-creation of ourselves should boost our confidence, but should not lead to pride. "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God..." (Ephesians 2:9).

Today’s gospel passage occurs in the context of Jesus’ longer conversation with Nicodemus on the importance of being born again. The process of recovering ourselves, or being born again is closely connected with dying. The Jews endured a kind of death for almost 50 years before they were allowed to return to their land. Christ redeemed us when we were dead in sin. Even though he may have had every reason to condemn us, he saved us.

We often think of Lent as a dark and dreary time. In some parts of the world, the climate is still wintry, and spring seems a long way off. But today we read of nurture and surprise, healing and careful handiwork. In the midst of death, we hope for new birth and resurrection. We hear dimly the first notes of the songs we had refused to sing in exile.

Quietly consider:
In what ways do I know myself to be God’s work of art?

Prayer Starter
Lord, my presence before you today is a sign of your grace in my life.
Soften my heart and make me alive today in Christ...