First Reading

a metal gate opening to a wheat field at sunset
Commentary on Acts 2:42-47

The reading for the Fourth Sunday of Easter stretches into the days following the Pentecost [...]

Girl on someone's shoulders uses fingers as play binoculars
Commentary on Acts 2:14a, 22-32

The lectionary readings for the Sundays after Easter contain passages [...]

dirt road in a desert
Commentary on Acts 2:14a, 36-41

The reading for the Third Sunday of Easter continues Peter’s [...]

Sunlight streaming through green leafy forest
Commentary on Acts 10:34-43

When Peter opens his mouth before Cornelius, his message succinctly captures the heart of Acts’ [...]

Stone cross with carved dove and floral decoration
Commentary on Isaiah 52:13—53:12

There were many in the early Jesus movement who identified [...]

Sandals in sand
Commentary on Exodus 12:1-4 [5-10] 11-14

The Israelites’ escape from Egypt is a well-known story.1 Commentaries [...]

Painting of Jesus carrying cross by Hieronymus Bosch
Commentary on Isaiah 50:4-9a

A repeated refrain throughout scripture is that those who should listen to prophets frequently do [...]

stairs in the jungle, leading to haze
Commentary on Genesis 12:1-4a

The call of Abram is a watershed moment in the book of Genesis and celebrated [...]

person holding a glass amber bottle dripping oil into her hand
Commentary on 1 Samuel 16:1-13

1 Samuel 16:1-13 speaks a powerful word about the painful [...]

painting of Lazarus raised from the dead by Jesus in front of His disciples
Commentary on Ezekiel 37:1-14

Ezekiel 37 is probably the most well-known passage from this prophetic book. Inevitably, when I [...]