Alternate First Reading

Detail from The Brunswick Monogrammist's
Commentary on Jeremiah 2:4-13

In a long-term relationship such as with a colleague, friend, or family member, expressing interpersonal [...]

Image of healing the infirm woman, from a Coptic-Arab evangelary, ca. 1250.
Commentary on Jeremiah 1:4-10

Who am I? Who are my people? What do we want? What are we building? [...]

photo of clouds before a storm in a field with cattle
Commentary on Isaiah 5:1-7

Isaiah’s song of the vineyard in 5:1–7 may be the most click-bait biblical text ever. [...]

photo of lamps burning
Commentary on Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

The use of the term “vision” followed by an indication [...]

photo of wheat grains piling up
Commentary on Hosea 11:1-11

The prophet envisions God as a tender, loving, intimate parent who shows mercy. After last [...]

Detail from Anders Zorn's
Commentary on Hosea 1:2-10

Hosea’s family life serves as a powerful but potentially problematic metaphor for Israel’s unfaithfulness to [...]

Detail from Nicolaes Maes'
Commentary on Amos 8:1-12

Amos is a social justice prophet. We remember his famous line: “Let justice roll down [...]

Detail from Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps'
Commentary on Amos 7:7-17

The prophetic books are often divided into two categories. The books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and [...]

Detail from Camille Pissarro's
Commentary on 2 Kings 5:1-14

In 2 Kings 5:1–14, the biblical writers recount the story of a military leader’s encounter [...]

Photo of a bronze sculpture by Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz, on a bench beside St. Clement's church in Cambridge, Ontario.
Commentary on 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

In the second chapter of 2 Kings, the biblical writers [...]