The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation for Ordinary Time
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Overview and Connections
All three readings today speak of our relationship with material possessions, a topic that can be contentious in private-ownership societies. They also speak of the transitory nature of life, something we appreciate more deeply with each passing year. The Preacher in Ecclesiastes ponders the meaninglessness of the pursuit of wealth. The author of Colossians invites us to shift our focus from the surface of things to what lies deeper. And then Jesus offers a parable for consideration.
Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23
What would it be like to live in a world without God? Theologically, we would say that this is impossible, that life cannot exist without God. But the teacher/preacher of Ecclesiastes makes an attempt at such an imagining. Overwhelmingly, he concludes that, in such a theoretical world, nothing would have meaning. Everything would be without meaning, vain. Modern psychology would term this “existential pessimism,” a life not worth living.
The reading begins with a single verse in chapter one that sums up the entire book: All things are vanity. The New International Version uses the word meaningless, which probably speaks to us better today: “‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher. ‘Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.’”
The Hebrew word here is hă·ḇêl and it carries a range of meanings including futility, absurdity, meaninglessness, vapor / mist / breath / smoke, empty, fleeting, and transitory. In a world without God, everything you see would be like a mere breath. This word is a key term in the book and is repeated five times in 1:2 alone.
The rest of the verses address humanity’s labor in particular. Work is seen as arduous and long-range planning as impossible. In the face of all that, the preacher recommends in v24 finding present enjoyment in the modest fulfillment of the work we must do in order to live. In other words, strike a balance. This is the first positive statement made by the preacher, and it will be repeated throughout the book with an increasing emphasis. This is not necessarily saying that we should avoid hard work. But it does suggest that the real fruit of our earthly labor is to be found in the labor itself, rather than what it may produce in the future. Jesus will emphasize this from a different perspective in today’s gospel reading. It’s a mystery to me why they didn’t include v24 in the lectionary selection!
V21 speaks of a “great evil” or misfortune. In a world without God, anticipation of any future satisfaction is futile and meaningless. The received theological tradition of the time suggests that good things are given to good people, but the Preacher’s experience suggests otherwise. He is grappling with his community’s inherited wisdom and what it means in his era.
We know that we do not live in a world without God, and we know that our daily life does have meaning, however hard this may be to see some days. The Preacher ultimately rejects a simplistic view of life where “do good = life will be good.” I think what the Preacher is doing is setting up an extreme and giving us some lessons from that extreme that we can then use in a world that does have meaning. He advocates an enjoyment of life that is not focused on the pursuit of wealth and self-comfort, but, rather, on ordinary God-given joys.
Read over these verses again from the extreme viewpoint: that God does not exist in this world. Now reread them and see what lessons you can draw from the extreme in a world where God does exist.
Vv17-23 grapple with the despair of the human condition. Vv24-25 invite us into the joy of daily living. Ask God to bring to mind ways that you have despaired of life in the hard times. Then ask God to help you see ways that you already do take joy in your daily activities and how you might deepen that joy.
Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11
This is the last lectionary reading from this book. The verses which follow it, 12-17, are read on the Feast of the Holy Family in the Octave of Christmas. It’s a shame we don’t read these verses in Ordinary Time, because they are about far more than family life. The lectionary reading warns us against certain behaviors. Human psychology tells us that we are much more likely to respond to positive reinforcement. Rather than telling a child what not to do, you get better results by reinforcing alternative positive behavior. Take time this week to meditate on 3:12-17. There are six verses; you might consider taking one verse per day and let these positive things soak into you and begin to influence your outward behavior.
Vv1-4 speak of a tension that runs throughout the New Testament: we have indeed been “raised with Christ” (v1) but we have not yet appeared with Christ in glory (v4). We live in that in-between time. And we live it hidden in Christ (v3).
V1 sees Christ seated at God’s right hand. The right hand in ancient cultures was the side of power. Anyone standing to the right side of a king or ruler was seen as within the realm of that power. To be seated at the right side of a king was to participate fully and be identified within the king’s power.
The author exhorts us in v2 to “think about” or “set your minds on” the deeper realities of life. “Set your minds” is used in the gospels only in the verse where Jesus rebukes Peter: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you are not thinking about the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:23 and Mark 8:33). Paul uses the word extensively.
The word “appear” is usually translated elsewhere as “revealed.” “When Christ is revealed, you too will be revealed.” The word “glory” in the Old Testament meant a physical manifestation of the presence of God. You will be revealed in God’s revealing presence.
In v5 the author gives a list of specific vices, a list that matches other such lists common in antiquity. Similar vice lists can also be found in Romans 1:29-31 and Galatians 5:19-21. I suspect today we might list other sins that plague us personally and as a society. I think of the Confiteor prayer, with its request for forgiveness “in what I have done and what I have failed to do.” Specific naming of sins is important, not because God won’t forgive what is not named. It’s important so that we can recognize the specific ways we have failed and invite God’s already-given forgiveness, which puts us on the road to personal transformation.
Most of our Christian journey is the process of a gradual transformation. But sometimes something more radical is called for. “Putting to death” implies something instant, a decisive break. I believe this is another tension that we live with daily. On one hand, we are called to make a decisive choice to leave behind those things which trap us and separate us from Christ. On the other hand, fully leaving behind these things is the work of a lifetime.
Immorality in v5 is the word Greek porneia, which implies sexual overtones. Greed or covetousness is the Greek word pleonexia, where pleone means “numerically more” and exia means “have”. To want to have more.
In v11 the author lists what is mostly a series of opposites. There is one exception in the listing of “barbarians” and “Scythians.” Barbarians were anyone lacking culture. For the Greeks, this was anyone who did not speak Greek or adopt the Greek culture. Inhabitants of Scythia, an ancient region in Eastern Europe, were generally considered the wildest of all barbarians.
This passage uses imagery to evoke baptism. During baptism, the candidate would strip completely naked to enter the baptismal waters. They would then emerge on the other side and be clothed with new, white garments. Imagine yourself clothed in certain behaviors and ways of doing things. Imagine one in particular that hinders you. Perhaps it’s the tendency to judge or gossip, or an area where you need deep healing. What would it look like for you to “take off” that behavior? What would you replace it with? Imagine yourself doing that today. This might be a good exercise as you move throughout your days: whenever you catch yourself engaged in this behavior, stop and imagine yourself taking it off and putting on something new.
In v1 the author says: you have been raised with Christ, so act like risen people! What do risen actions look like in your own life and in the life of your community?
Who are you really? What is your true identity? The author of Colossians asks us to root our true identity in our baptism as well as being “hidden with Christ.” How does your baptismal identity affect who you see yourself as?
Luke 12:13-21
Last week began a section in Luke about prayer, and this week’s reading continues that theme.
The reading begins with a request by someone “in the crowd” to mediate a dispute. In Jesus’ time, this would have been a very common way to settle legal disputes: you found the closest expert and asked them to rule. And that ruling carried legal weight for all the parties.
The request is for one brother to share the inheritance (or divide the estate) with his brother. Roman law required a division of inheritance only if all parties wanted it. Jewish law said a division could happen on the request of a single son (recall the prodigal father story). But it was shameful to go against the wishes of the father.
We might read into the man’s motives here – perhaps the estate was going entirely to his brother and he felt he deserved a share. That was against the wishes of his father, and probably his brother did not agree to the division, so Roman law fails him there. At this point, he needs a Jewish rabbi to rule that he deserves part of the estate. We don’t know his heart, but Jesus’ response indicates that the request was fueled by greed. Perhaps he had been left enough by his father to sustain him but he wanted more.
Jesus’ response in v14 in the NAB rendering uses the word “friend.” The Greek is anthrópos – meaning simply person or human. The word does not connote any sort of relationship, and is, in fact, condescending. Most translations render it simply, “Man.”
Jesus asks, “Who made me arbitrator or divider or executor?!” Being asked to do this was actually considered a high honor. But Jesus is refusing it. He’s refusing to be drawn into a shameful conflict fueled by greed or mistrust.
In v15 Jesus shifts to teaching the audience. Back in 11:21, there was the parable of the strong man who locked up his possessions. This word “guard against” is that same word. At the end of the verse, some translations say that life does not “consist of possessions,” and others say it does not “consist in the abundance of possessions.” The Greek syntax at the end is very challenging, hence the difference in translations. The text does have the word abundance, which means something excessive and overflowing.
I don’t think Jesus is glorifying absolute poverty here. I think he acknowledges the need for some level of “enough.” But it’s the abundance – the excess – that gets us.
And then Jesus launches into a parable in v16. It’s important to know two things the audience would have immediately assumed about the man as he is introduced. First, they would assume he is favored by God since he is rich. And they would have assumed that the community surrounding this man was going to share his excess, as commanded by Jewish law. If you recall the story of Ruth, she gleaned leftover corn in Boaz’s field in order to feed her family. Boaz deliberately left perfectly good corn behind during the reaping in order to provide for those not able to provide for themselves. Jesus sets up an initial expectation that this is a positive story.
But in v17 comes the twist. Instead of sharing or consulting anyone, this man asks himself what he should do with all his bounty. Notice just in this verse how many times the man says “I” or “me” or “my.” We don’t immediately notice it as much, given our individualistic culture, but it would have struck the original audience. The soliloquy indicates that this man has isolated himself.
In v18 he decides to accumulate rather than share anything. And then he will enjoy himself.
At this point, the original audience would be considering this man shameful. He’s not an honorable person. But the fact remains that he is rich, and that implies God’s favor. V20 gives us another plot twist. Everyone’s thinking this man is favored by God, but then God speaks up and says no! That’s not it at all.
One commentary put it that this is a “radical redefinition of security: Jesus upends conventional wisdom about material wealth providing safety, instead highlighting its temporary nature.” In fact, you can read throughout the Old Testament where God says God’s favor is shown not always in wealth but in other ways. One example is Psalm 41:1, “Blessed are those who have regard for the weak; / the Lord delivers them in times of trouble.”
In v21, Jesus interprets the parable in case his listeners haven’t quite made the connection. The NAB uses the phrasing “rich in what matters to God.” The literal Greek says, “rich toward God.”
Partly, Jesus is grappling here with what matters in life. Is the accumulation of wealth what matters? Jesus says no. What matters are things like having regard for the weak. Or Hosea 6:6, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”
Use this parable for imaginative prayer. Put your own concrete life circumstances in place of the rich man’s land with a bountiful harvest. Imagine what happens when bounty comes your way. How do you respond?
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© 2025 Kelly Sollinger