Brandon Nappi and Ned Parker discuss rejoicing, pain, and surrendering power to find joy in Psalm 147:1-11, 20c. The text is appointed for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany in Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Brandon Nappi and Ned Parker discuss rejoicing, pain, and surrendering power to find joy in Psalm 147:1-11, 20c. The text is appointed for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany in Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Voiceover Voice:
What it means to be God is to gather those people who’ve been left on the margins and bring them closer to the center.
Helena Martin:
This is Chapter, Verse, and Season: a lectionary podcast from Yale Bible Study. Join us each week as two Yale Divinity School professors look at an upcoming text from the Revised Common Lectionary.
This episode, we have Brandon Nappi, Executive Director of Leadership Programs at Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and he’s joining Ned Parker, Associate Dean for Institutional Advancement at Andover Newton Seminary at Yale. Both of them also hold the title Lecturer in Homiletics.
They’re discussing Psalm 147:1-11, 20c, which is appointed for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany in Year B. The text is read for you by Liturgical Minister of Marquand Chapel, Michael Libunao-Macalintal.
Michael Libunao-Macalintal
[Psalm 147:1-11, 20c]
Praise the Lord!
How good it is to sing praises to our God, for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.
Great is our Lord and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
The Lord lifts up the downtrodden; he casts the wicked to the ground.
Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.
He covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, makes grass grow on the hills.
He gives to the animals their food and to the young ravens when they cry.
His delight is not in the strength of the horse nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.
He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances.
Praise the Lord!
Brandon Nappi:
So, Ned, what I noticed is that God is incredibly busy. God is lifting, providing, creating, feeding, building, and even taking pleasure. I hadn’t remembered that. It’s a lovely little detail. I’m often struck by the things that actually make their way into scripture. And this idea that God is delighting and taking pleasure, probably here hearkening back to Genesis creation story, it was really, really refreshing. And in response to all this busyness, this wondrous busyness on God’s part, we’re asked to sing, to praise, and even to rock out on the lyre. I’m a guitarist, so I love this image of the response to play air guitar or real guitar or lyre, is a way of being faithful to what God has done. So, I’m just feeling a kind of sense of joyous celebration in this Psalm.
Ned Parker:
Yeah, I love the Psalm too. I love the Psalms in general. I feel like the Psalms are the scripture that comes as close to being about the human condition as any other scripture. You know, I think about Walter Brueggemann, who talks about the Psalms being in three different places. You have orientation, then you have disorientation, then you have reorientation. Except for Psalm 88, which he calls, what does he call it? An embarrassment to the rest of the Psalms because there’s only disorientation. And the only hope in that is the fact that the Psalmist is still speaking to God.
So, the Psalms are so rich and this one stands out as a place of, as you said, essentially great orientation. And when we’re oriented, when we know where we’re headed, where we know who we are, we can do things like rock out on the lyre. I was a drummer myself. Nobody ever forgives the percussionists, especially their parents. But we can do that because we have orientation. So, from that orientation, we’re comfortable enough, we’re secure enough to find joy, to find hope. So, I’m totally on board with everything you said and what stands out to me is, in verse three and also in verse six, first he heals the brokenhearted, binds up their wounds. The Lord lifts up downtrodden. He casts the wicked to the ground. And I think healing is very tricky in sacred scripture. And I think that this is one of the only places where healing is done right. [laughs] Because when we come to those passages where Jesus is performing healing rituals, I always wonder what do our disabled siblings think about this? What is the theology of disability in this place? Because I’m actually not convinced that it’s physical healing. I think it is, the healing described in this psalm right here, he heals the broken hearted, binds up their wounds, lifts up the downtrodden. I think Jesus healing in the Bible is more about restoring right relationship in the community and saying this person, whatever has happened to their body, they still belong here. Their whole self belongs here. And so, for me, this is a really important passage because I think it, I think it gets healing right.
Brandon Nappi:
Oh, wow. Thank you for that. Yeah. I mean, you’re calling to my mind this image almost of a double helix. That joy and really pain continually coexist.
Ned Parker:
Yeah.
Brandon Nappi:
And I’m always appreciative of the psalmist’s raw honesty.
Ned Parker:
Yeah!
Brandon Nappi:
As you say, you’re going to get the whole human experience. You’re going to rejoice, but the reason that you can rejoice is because you’ve also known pain. And I really appreciate the way this Psalm names that the community is by definition inclusive of those who’ve been outcast, right? Those who’ve been judged as not worthy of the community are actually constitutively part of the community. That what it means to be God is to gather those people who’ve been left behind, who’ve been left on the margins and bring them closer to the center. Obviously our church has not always been that community. Obviously American culture has not always been that kind of community. And yet here it is right in the Psalms calling us to this ancient, to this ancient promise. And I’m challenged by it, and it actually gives me hope as well.
Ned Parker:
Yeah, no, it gives me hope too. I mean, God’s understanding is beyond measure. It’s a reminder that our understanding is not. This is all a reminder, so many parts of this are reminders that, you know… What’s the saying? All good things come from God. The Psalm lifts those things up and it gives us orientation, and it gives us hope that no matter where we are in life, we can have a relationship with God. And if we can have a relationship with God, there is a community of God on this earth that we can have a relationship with too. Jesus says, some will say to you that the kingdom of heaven is over there. The kingdom of heaven is over there. But I say to you, the kingdom is within you. Jesus saying that feels like an echo of this Psalm and a reminder that it is our job as people of faith to make this come to life. Because I think we’re too good at making a living hell for people who are on earth. We need to be more worried about creating the kingdom of heaven.
Brandon Nappi:
I’m just digesting that. You know, I’m also really curious about the way the Psalm in verse five names the greatness of God and the abundance of power in God. You know, I sometimes feel like a control freak and I want everything to go my way. I begin my day with a kind of choreography of the day, of the week. I could tell you what I’m doing at 2:30 six weeks from now on a Friday afternoon. And yet I’m continually reminded over and over that control doesn’t bring the kind of peace, the kind of equanimity that I seek.
Ned Parker:
Yeah.
Brandon Nappi:
It’s really entrusting in the power of God, which has not traditionally been a big part of my spiritual practice. And I’m just sort of reminded that the Psalm, it invites us to step into a very different world than 21st century America, where power comes from success or riches or looking smart, you know, like we want to do all the time here at Yale. It comes in a kind of surrender of power. And my ego doesn’t naturally want to do that. And so, the dots that I’m connecting here in the Psalm are these – that when I can surrender my power and control, which is so much a part of 12 step movements, that the pathway is joy.
Ned Parker:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, no, I, for me, it’s the surrendering of power actually comes out of a very strange verse, I know. But the surrendering of power comes out of, God covers the heavens with clouds, because that’s a reminder that in some kind of way, even science shows us that God is still creating. That the universe is moving out, it’s moving out into abyss, an abyss where there is nothing and there is still a singularity where creation is still happening. And my surrender comes recognizing that there is so much more happening out there that I could possibly understand or imagine. And that gives me hope. I mean, Paul, in another passage, Paul writes, remember that there is a power already at work within you that is greater than you can possibly understand or imagine. And that power is also the power that is still creating and moving the entire universe out deeper into a new creation. We are always becoming new creations ourselves.
Helena Martin:
Thanks for listening. You can visit our website for more Bible study resources: YaleBibleStudy.org.
Chapter, Verse, and Season is a production of the Center for Continuing Education at Yale Divinity School. It’s produced by: Creator and Managing Editor, Joel Baden; Production Manager, Kelly Morrissey; Associate Producer, Aidan Stoddart; and I’m your Host and Executive Producer, Helena Martin. And our theme music is by Calvin Linderman.
We’ll be back with another conversation from Chapter, Verse, and Season.
New Revised Standard Version Bible
Copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Host and Executive Producer: Helena Martin
Production Manager: Kelly Morrissey
Creator and Managing Editor: Joel Baden
Assistant Producer: Aidan Stoddart
Music: Calvin Linderman
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Joel Baden and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss Messianism, prophetic gentleness, and hermeneutical approaches in Isaiah 42:1-9. The text is appointed for the First Sunday after the Epiphany, in Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Vasileios Marinis and Volker Leppin discuss human nature, sovereignty over creation, and preacherly responsibility with reference to Psalm 8. The text is appointed for the First Sunday after Christmas, in Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Yejide Peters Pietersen and Bill Goettler discuss the spirit of children, the multiplicity of interpretation, and pastoral responsibility at Christmas, with reference to Luke 2:1-14 (15-20). The text is appointed for Christmas Eve in the Revised Common Lectionary.
Mark Heim and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss Christian and Muslim interpretations of the Nativty of Jesus, with special reference to Matthew 1:18-25. The text is appointed for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, in Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Judith Gundry and Adam Eitel discuss patience, endurance of suffering, and the challenges of family conflict in James 5:7-10. The text is appointed for the Third Sunday of Advent, in Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss the imagined future of the glorious kingdom in Isaiah 11:1-10 and Romans 15:4-13. The text is appointed for the Second Sunday of Advent, in Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary.
AndrewMcGowan and Ned Parker discuss the holiness of divine absence and the anticipation of things to come in Matthew 24:36-44. The text is appointed for the First Sunday of Advent in Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Tisa Wenger discuss colonial narratives, indigenous theology, and the downsides of going to a “Promised Land” in Deuteronomy 26:1-11. The text is appointed for Thanksgiving Day (USA), in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss Hebrew vocabulary, shepherd imagery, and the legacy of King David in Jeremiah 23:1-6. The text is appointed for the Feast of Christ the King (Proper 29), in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss eschatology, aspiration, and ancient Near Eastern curse formulations in Isaiah 65:17-25. The text is appointed for the Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 28), in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
John Collins and Jennifer Herdt discuss poverty, apocalyptic imagery, and economic justice in reference to Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18 and Luke 6:20-31. The text is appointed for All Saints’ Day, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Harold Attridge and Greg Sterling discuss redemption, the proper use of wealth, and the strange company Jesus keeps in Luke 19:1-10. The text is appointed for the Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 26, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Awet Andemicael and Adam Eitel discuss shame, redemption, and rehabilitation in Joel 2:23-32. The text is appointed for the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 25, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss punishment, free will, and the dangers of metaphor in Jeremiah 31:27-34. The text is appointed for the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 24, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Jacqueline Vayntrub and Christian Wiman discuss joy, salvation history, and chicken guts in Psalm 66:1-12. The text is appointed for the Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 23, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss trauma, hope, and poetic Hebrew in Lamentations 1:1-6 and 3:19-26. The text is appointed for the Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 22), in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss faith, ritual performance, and divine blessing in Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16. The text is appointed for the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 21), in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Justin Crisp and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss capitalism, shrewdness, and the logic of parables in Luke 16:1-13. The text is appointed for the Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 20), in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
John Collins and Jennifer Herdt discuss the undoing of creation, fidelity, and false prophets in Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28. The text is appointed for the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 19, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Eric Reymond discuss precarity, God as creator and destroyer, and the potter metaphor in Jeremiah 18:1-11. The text is appointed for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 18, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss humility, reversing the status quo, speaking truth to power in Sirach 10:12-18. The text is appointed for the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 17, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Christian Wiman and Jacqueline Vayntrub discuss justice, prayer and action, and getting God's attention in Isaiah 58:9b-14. The text is appointed for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 16, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Erika Helgen and Chloë Starr discuss faith heroes through history, triumphant faith, and the role of sin in Hebrews 11:29-12:2. The text is appointed for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 15, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Greg Sterling and Harry Attridge discuss women in early Christian communities, eschatology, and faith as a matter of the heart in Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16. The text is appointed for the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 14, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Judith Gundry and Adam Eitel discuss possession, wealth, and covetousness in Luke 12:13-21. The text is appointed for the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 13, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Tisa Wenger and Joel Baden discuss bargaining, God and Abraham's new relationship, and the righteous of Sodom and Gamorrah in Genesis 18:20-32. The text is appointed for Track 2 on the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 12, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Andrew McGowan and Ned Parker discuss Mary and Martha, extroversion, and authenticity in Luke 10:38-42. The text is appointed for the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 11, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Volker Leppin and Vasileios Marinis discuss poverty, God's expectations, and our responsibilities to one another in Psalm 82. The text is appointed for the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 10, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Eric Reymond discuss kings, skin diseases, and prophetic power in 2 Kings 5:1-14. The text is appointed for the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 9, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Erika Helgen and Chloë Starr discuss prophetic leadership, sudden loss, and mentorship in 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14. The text is appointed for the Third Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 8, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Harold Attridge and John Hare discuss gender identity, ethnic dynamics, and changes of the heart in Galatians 3:23-29. The text is appointed for Proper 7, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss joy, multiculturalism, and feminine language in Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31. The text is appointed for Trinity Sunday, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Volker Leppin and Vasileios Marinis discuss signs and wonders, Hebrew Bible connections, the promise of salvation, and more in Acts 2:1-21. The text is appointed for Pentecost, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Yejide Peters Pietersen and Bill Goettler discuss love-songs, community, and connection in reference to John 17:20-26. The text is appointed for the Feast of the Ascension, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Erika Helgen and Chloë Starr discuss social justice, human failure, and heavenly hope in Revelation 21:10, 22–22:5. The text is appointed for the Sixth Sunday of Easter, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Eric Reymond discuss poetic structure, creation language, and the mechanics of praise in Psalm 148. The text is appointed for the Fifth Sunday of Easter, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Andrew McGowan and Ned Parker discuss whiteness, danger, and comfort in Revelation 7:9-17. The text is appointed for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Harold Attridge and Gregory Sterling discuss Resurrection encounters and calls to action in Acts 9:1-20 and John 21:1-19. The text is appointed for the Third Sunday of Easter, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Mark Heim and Abdul-Rehman Malik discuss doubt, trauma, and the value of “Doubting Thomas” in John 20:19-31. The text is appointed for the Second Sunday of Easter, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Harry Attridge and John Hare discuss faith, uncertainty, and the power of emotion in John 20:1-18. The text is appointed for Easter Day, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Tisa Wenger discuss the construction of stories, Christian supersessionism, and the legacy of Christian storytelling in relation to Genesis 22:1-18. The text is appointed for the Easter Vigil, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Judy Gundry and Adam Eitel discuss the innocence of Jesus, divine kingship, and more in John 18:1-19:42. The text is appointed for Good Friday, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
John Collins and Jennifer Herdt discuss enslavement imagery, Passover liberation, and models of service in Exodus 12:1-14 and John 13:1-17. The texts are appointed for Maundy Thursday, in all three years of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Andrew McGowan and Ned Parker discuss community, sacrament, and suffering in Luke 22:14-23:56. The text is appointed for the Palm Sunday, the Liturgy of the Passion, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Tisa Wenger and Joel Baden discuss divine violence, colonialism, and the notion of “wilderness” in Isaiah 43:16-21. The text is appointed for the Fifth Sunday in Lent, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Yejide Peters Pietersen and Bill Goettler discuss reconciliation, spiritual role-models, and what it means to “become the righteousness of God” with reference to 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. The text is appointed for the 4th Sunday in Lent, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Judith Gundry and Adam Eitel discuss repentance, leniency, and divine warnings in Luke 13:1-9. The text is appointed for the Third Sunday in Lent, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Eric Reymond discuss inheritance, offspring, and the promises of God in Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18. The text is appointed for the Second Sunday in Lent, in Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Harold Attridge and John Hare discuss the possibility of being in relationship with God in Romans 10:8b-13. The text is appointed for the First Sunday in Lent, March 6, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Felicity Harley-McGowan and Bruce Gordon discuss the healing and transforming power of God in Luke 9:28-43. The text is appointed for Transfiguration Sunday, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Sarah Drummond and Joel Baden discuss forgiveness and the sibling dynamics at work in Genesis 45:3-11,15. The text is appointed for the Seventh Sunday after Epiphany, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Felicity Harley-McGowan and Bruce Gordon discuss Jesus’ blessings and warnings in Luke 6:17-26. The text is appointed for the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany, Sunday, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Jacqueline Vayntrub and Christian Wiman discuss the difference between verse and prose in Isaiah 6:1-13. The text is appointed for the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Sarah Drummond and Joel Baden discuss reluctant prophets and God’s will in Jeremiah 1:4-10. The text is appointed for the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Erika Helgen and Chloe Starr discuss the church universal and love as the basis for the exercise of spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a. The text is appointed for the Third Sunday after Epiphany, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary
Felicity Harley-McGowan and Bruce Gordon discuss recognizing God in the midst of community and the diversity of gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11. The text is appointed for the Second Sunday after Epiphany, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss the power of God in Psalm 29. The text is appointed for the First Sunday after Epiphany, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Awet Andemicael and Adam Eitel discuss the mystery, language and lyricism in John 1:1-18. The text is appointed for the Second Sunday after Christmas, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Gregory Sterling and Harold Attridge discuss the humanity of young Jesus and the role of Mary as mother in Luke 2:41-52. The text is appointed for the First Sunday after Christmas, Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Sarah Drummond and Joel Baden discuss birth, kingship and signs of God’s redemption in Isaiah 9:2-7. The text is appointed for Christmas (Proper 1), December 24, Years A, B, and C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Felicity Harley-McGowan and Bruce Gordon discuss the Magnificat and our understanding of Mary through the ages in relation to Luke 1:46b-55. The text is appointed for the Fourth Sunday of Advent (Advent 4), Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Sarah Drummond discuss hope, apathy, and why the context of prophecy matters in Zephaniah 3:14-20. The text is appointed for the Third Sunday of Advent (Advent 3), Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Peter Hawkins and Eric Reymond discuss disaster and hope, glory, and reversal in Baruch 5:1-9. The text is appointed for the Second Sunday of Advent (Advent 2), Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Joel Baden and Tisa Wenger discuss messianic prophecy, timelessness, and historic context in Jeremiah 33:14-16. The text is appointed for the First Sunday of Advent (Advent 1), Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.
Chapter, Verse, and Season gives listeners the opportunity to overhear the kinds of conversations that take place in the halls of Yale Divinity School. Each week, professors from different theological disciplines chat about biblical texts from the Revised Common Lectionary. They bring their own interests to the table and hopefully spark new insights into the scripture appointed for each Sunday.