Monday, June 5, 2017

Trinity Sunday A Readings & Commentaries

The First Reading:  Genesis 1:1—2:4a

The Bible begins with a faith statement: “In the beginning, God…” The final form in Hebrew may very well have been met for use in worship. The main point is that God and God’s creation are deeply entertwined. It is not only a story meant to help us understand God’s past action in creation, it is a claim on the present and on the future for this faithful God. This would have been especially important to those living in exile in Babylon, when most scholars believe this text took its final form. The Lord controls the future as he has created the past, not the gods of Babylon and its empire.

1:1 In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. 6 And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. 8 God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. 9 And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. 14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. 20 And God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.” 21 So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day. 24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 26 Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” 27 So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” 29 God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2 And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation. 4a These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created. In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.

Song of the Three 29-34 (BCP Canticle 13)
This canticle (known as the Benedictus es, Domine) is from an addition to the book of Daniel found in the Apocrypha (The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Jews).  It is from a longer piece, said to be the song of the three young men thrown into the fiery furnace. The last verse is an added doxology.

Glory to you, Lord God of our fathers; *
you are worthy of praise; glory to you.
Glory to you for the radiance of your holy Name; *
we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever.
Glory to you in the splendor of your temple; *
on the throne of your majesty, glory to you.
Glory to you, seated between the Cherubim; *
we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever.
Glory to you, beholding the depths; *
in the high vault of heaven, glory to you.
Glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *
                we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever.

Or this

Psalm 8
Psalm 8 is a creation hymn, and the first song of praise in the collection of the Psalms. The psalm begins and ends with praise, enveloping a poem about God’s gift to humankind of our place and responsibility in the creation.

1      O Lord our Governor, *
                how exalted is your Name in all the world!
2      Out of the mouths of infants and children *
                your majesty is praised above the heavens.
3      You have set up a stronghold against your adversaries, *
                to quell the enemy and the avenger.
4      When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, *
                the moon and the stars you have set in their courses,
5      What is man that you should be mindful of him? *
                the son of man that you should seek him out?
6      You have made him but little lower than the angels; *
                you adorn him with glory and honor;
7      You give him mastery over the works of your hands; *
                you put all things under his feet:
8      All sheep and oxen, *
                even the wild beasts of the field,
9      The birds of the air, the fish of the sea, *
                and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea.
10   O Lord our Governor, *
        how exalted is your Name in all the world!

The Second Reading2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Paul ends his second letter to the church in Corinth with a final exhortation that sums up the themes of the letter. There is a greeting with what we would call today “the kiss of peace,” and a blessing with a Trinitarian structure. The doctrine of the Trinity is not directly defined in Scripture, but is implied by passages such as this one.

13:11 Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you. 13 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.

The Holy Gospel:  Matthew 28:16-20
The theme of discipleship is strong in Matthew’s Gospel, so at its end Jesus gives a final commission to the disciples (and us) to go out into the world spreading this discipleship, with no regard to human divisions. His final words echo the title given him at his birth (Matt 1:23), “Emmanuel,” “God with us,” will be with us always. The reference to baptism with a Trinitarian formula may be a later addition, but it is also possible that the formula was in use in Matthew’s community at the time of this Gospel’s composition.

28:16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”


The Scripture quotations (except for the psalm) are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.  The Collect of the Day and Canticle 13 are from The Book of Common Prayer.  Commentaries are copyright © 2017 Epiphany ESources, 67 E. Main St., Hornell, NY 14843. www.EpiphanyEsources.com. All rights reserved. Permission is given to copy for congregational use with this attribution.

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