Bible Readings for October 3, 2016

Today our passages are Jeremiah 1:1–2:30; Philippians 4:1-23; Psalm 75:1-10; and Proverbs 24:17-20. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. If you find these readings helpful, please consider sending an offering directly to Cove Presbyterian Church, 3404 Main Street, Weirton, West Virginia or through PayPal by using the link below.

 

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Jeremiah 1-2:30 (The Message)

Jeremiah 1

Demolish, and Then Start Over

 ^1-4 The Message of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah of the family of priests who lived in Anathoth in the country of Benjamin. God's Message began to come to him during the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amos reigned over Judah. It continued to come to him during the time Jehoiakim son of Josiah reigned over Judah. And it continued to come to him clear down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah over Judah, the year that Jerusalem was taken into exile. This is what God said:  ⁵"Before I shaped you in the womb,
   I knew all about you.
Before you saw the light of day,
   I had holy plans for you:
A prophet to the nations—
   that's what I had in mind for you."
 ⁶But I said, "Hold it, Master God! Look at me.
   I don't know anything. I'm only a boy!"
 ^7-8God told me, "Don't say, 'I'm only a boy.'
   I'll tell you where to go and you'll go there.
I'll tell you what to say and you'll say it.
   Don't be afraid of a soul.
I'll be right there, looking after you."
   God's Decree.
 ^9-10God reached out, touched my mouth, and said,
   "Look! I've just put my words in your mouth—hand-delivered!
See what I've done? I've given you a job to do
   among nations and governments—a red-letter day!
Your job is to pull up and tear down,
   take apart and demolish,
And then start over,
   building and planting."

Stand Up and Say Your Piece

 ^11-12God's Message came to me: "What do you see, Jeremiah?"
   I said, "A walking stick—that's all."
And God said, "Good eyes! I'm sticking with you.
   I'll make every word I give you come true."  ^13-15God's Message came again: "So what do you see now?"
   I said, "I see a boiling pot, tipped down toward us."
Then God told me, "Disaster will pour out of the north
   on everyone living in this land.
Watch for this: I'm calling all the kings out of the north."
   God's Decree.
 ^15-16"They'll come and set up headquarters
   facing Jerusalem's gates,
Facing all the city walls,
   facing all the villages of Judah.
I'll pronounce my judgment on the people of Judah
   for walking out on me—what a terrible thing to do!—
And courting other gods with their offerings,
   worshiping as gods sticks they'd carved, stones they'd painted.
 ¹⁷"But you—up on your feet and get dressed for work!
   Stand up and say your piece. Say exactly what I tell you to say.
Don't pull your punches
   or I'll pull you out of the lineup.
 ^18-19"Stand at attention while I prepare you for your work.
   I'm making you as impregnable as a castle,
Immovable as a steel post,
   solid as a concrete block wall.
You're a one-man defense system
   against this culture,
Against Judah's kings and princes,
   against the priests and local leaders.
They'll fight you, but they won't
   even scratch you.
I'll back you up every inch of the way."
   God's Decree.

Jeremiah 2

Israel Was God's Holy Choice

 ^1-3 God's Message came to me. It went like this: "Get out in the streets and call to Jerusalem,
   'God's Message!
I remember your youthful loyalty,
   our love as newlyweds.
You stayed with me through the wilderness years,
   stuck with me through all the hard places.
Israel was God's holy choice,
   the pick of the crop.
Anyone who laid a hand on her
   would soon wish he hadn't!'"
         God's Decree.  ^4-6Hear God's Message, House of Jacob!
   Yes, you—House of Israel!
God's Message: "What did your ancestors find fault with in me
   that they drifted so far from me,
Took up with Sir Windbag
   and turned into windbags themselves?
   It never occurred to them to say, 'Where's God,
   the God who got us out of Egypt,
Who took care of us through thick and thin, those rough-and-tumble
   wilderness years of parched deserts and death valleys,
A land that no one who enters comes out of,
   a cruel, inhospitable land?'
 ^7-8"I brought you to a garden land
   where you could eat lush fruit.
But you barged in and polluted my land,
   trashed and defiled my dear land.
The priests never thought to ask, 'Where's God?'
   The religion experts knew nothing of me.
The rulers defied me.
   The prophets preached god Baal
And chased empty god-dreams and silly god-schemes.
 ^9-11"Because of all this, I'm bringing charges against you"
         —God's Decree—
   "charging you and your children and your grandchildren.
Look around. Have you ever seen anything quite like this?
   Sail to the western islands and look.
Travel to the Kedar wilderness and look.
   Look closely. Has this ever happened before,
That a nation has traded in its gods
   for gods that aren't even close to gods?
But my people have traded my Glory
   for empty god-dreams and silly god-schemes.
 ^12-13"Stand in shock, heavens, at what you see!
   Throw up your hands in disbelief—this can't be!"
         God's Decree.
"My people have committed a compound sin:
   they've walked out on me, the fountain
Of fresh flowing waters, and then dug cisterns—
   cisterns that leak, cisterns that are no better than sieves.
 ^14-17"Isn't Israel a valued servant,
   born into a family with place and position?
So how did she end up a piece of meat
   fought over by snarling and roaring lions?
There's nothing left of her but a few old bones,
   her towns trashed and deserted.
Egyptians from the cities of Memphis and Tahpanhes
   have broken your skulls.
And why do you think all this has happened?
   Isn't it because you walked out on your God
   just as he was beginning to lead you in the right way?
 ^18-19"And now, what do you think you'll get by going off to Egypt?
   Maybe a cool drink of Nile River water?
Or what do you think you'll get by going off to Assyria?
   Maybe a long drink of Euphrates River water?
Your evil ways will get you a sound thrashing, that's what you'll get.
   You'll pay dearly for your disloyal ways.
Take a long, hard look at what you've done and its bitter results.
   Was it worth it to have walked out on your God?"
         God's Decree, Master God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

Addicted to Alien Gods

 ^20-22"A long time ago you broke out of the harness.
   You shook off all restraints.
You said, 'I will not serve!'
   and off you went,
Visiting every sex-and-religion shrine on the way,
   like a common whore.
You were a select vine when I planted you
   from completely reliable stock.
And look how you've turned out—
   a tangle of rancid growth, a poor excuse for a vine.
Scrub, using the strongest soaps.
   Scour your skin raw.
The sin-grease won't come out. I can't stand to even look at you!"
   God's Decree, the Master's Decree.  ^23-24"How dare you tell me, 'I'm not stained by sin.
   I've never chased after the Baal sex gods'!
Well, look at the tracks you've left behind in the valley.
   How do you account for what is written in the desert dust—
Tracks of a camel in heat, running this way and that,
   tracks of a wild donkey in rut,
Sniffing the wind for the slightest scent of sex.
   Who could possibly corral her!
On the hunt for sex, sex, and more sex—
   insatiable, indiscriminate, promiscuous.
 ²⁵"Slow down. Take a deep breath. What's the hurry?
   Why wear yourself out? Just what are you after anyway?
But you say, 'I can't help it.
   I'm addicted to alien gods. I can't quit.'
 ^26-28"Just as a thief is chagrined, but only when caught,
   so the people of Israel are chagrined,
Caught along with their kings and princes,
   their priests and prophets.
They walk up to a tree and say, 'My father!'
   They pick up a stone and say, 'My mother! You bore me!'
All I ever see of them is their backsides.
   They never look me in the face.
But when things go badly, they don't hesitate to come running,
   calling out, 'Get a move on! Save us!'
Why not go to your handcrafted gods you're so fond of?
   Rouse them. Let them save you from your bad times.
You've got more gods, Judah,
   than you know what to do with.

Trying Out Another Sin-Project

 ^29-30"What do you have against me,
   running off to assert your 'independence'?"
         God's Decree.
"I've wasted my time trying to train your children.
   They've paid no attention to me, ignored my discipline.
And you've gotten rid of your God-messengers,
   treating them like dirt and sweeping them away.

 

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Philippians 4:1-23 (The Message)

Philippians 4

 ¹ My dear, dear friends! I love you so much. I do want the very best for you. You make me feel such joy, fill me with such pride. Don't waver. Stay on track, steady in God.

Pray About Everything

 ²I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn't want his children holding grudges.  ³And, oh, yes, Syzygus, since you're right there to help them work things out, do your best with them. These women worked for the Message hand in hand with Clement and me, and with the other veterans—worked as hard as any of us. Remember, their names are also in the Book of Life.
 ^4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!
 ^6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
 ^8-9Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

Content Whatever the Circumstances

 ^10-14I'm glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you're again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don't have a sense of needing anything personally. I've learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. I don't mean that your help didn't mean a lot to me—it did. It was a beautiful thing that you came alongside me in my troubles.  ^15-17You Philippians well know, and you can be sure I'll never forget it, that when I first left Macedonia province, venturing out with the Message, not one church helped out in the give-and-take of this work except you. You were the only one. Even while I was in Thessalonica, you helped out—and not only once, but twice. Not that I'm looking for handouts, but I do want you to experience the blessing that issues from generosity.
 ^18-20And now I have it all—and keep getting more! The gifts you sent with Epaphroditus were more than enough, like a sweet-smelling sacrifice roasting on the altar, filling the air with fragrance, pleasing God no end. You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. Our God and Father abounds in glory that just pours out into eternity. Yes.
 ^21-22Give our regards to every follower of Jesus you meet. Our friends here say hello. All the Christians here, especially the believers who work in the palace of Caesar, want to be remembered to you.
 ²³Receive and experience the amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, deep, deep within yourselves.

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Psalm 75:1-10 (The Message)

Psalm 75

An Asaph Psalm

 ¹ We thank you, God, we thank you— your Name is our favorite word;
      your mighty works are all we talk about.

 ^2-4 You say, "I'm calling this meeting to order,
      I'm ready to set things right.
   When the earth goes topsy-turvy
      And nobody knows which end is up,
   I nail it all down,
      I put everything in place again.
   I say to the smart alecks, 'That's enough,'
      to the bullies, 'Not so fast.'"

 ^5-6 Don't raise your fist against High God.
      Don't raise your voice against Rock of Ages.
   He's the One from east to west;
      from desert to mountains, he's the One.

 ^7-8 God rules: he brings this one down to his knees,
      pulls that one up on her feet.
   God has a cup in his hand,
      a bowl of wine, full to the brim.
   He draws from it and pours;
      it's drained to the dregs.
   Earth's wicked ones drink it all,
      drink it down to the last bitter drop!

 ^9-10 And I'm telling the story of God Eternal,
      singing the praises of Jacob's God.
   The fists of the wicked
      are bloody stumps,
   The arms of the righteous
      are lofty green branches.

 

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Proverbs 24:17-20 (The Message)

28

 ^17-18 Don't laugh when your enemy falls;
   don't crow over his collapse.
God might see, and become very provoked,
   and then take pity on his plight.

29

 ^19-20 Don't bother your head with braggarts
   or wish you could succeed like the wicked.
Those people have no future at all;
   they're headed down a dead-end street.

 

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Verse of the Day

 

“[A Real Reason for Hope]Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on.” - 1 Peter 1:3

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

Leading Yiddish author and playwright, Sholom Aleichem wrote, “Life is a dream for the wise, a game for the fool, a comedy for the rich, a tragedy for the poor.”

Bible Readings for May 5, 2014

Today our passages are Judges 21:1–Ruth 1:22; John 4:4-42; Psalm 105:1-15; and Proverbs 14:25. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. 

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Judges 21 - Ruth 1:22 (The Message)

Judges 21

Wives

 ¹Back at Mizpah the men of Israel had taken an oath: "No man among us will give his daughter to a Benjaminite in marriage." ^2-3 Now, back in Bethel, the people sat in the presence of God until evening. They cried loudly; there was widespread lamentation. They said, "Why, O God, God of Israel, has this happened? Why do we find ourselves today missing one whole tribe from Israel?" ⁴ Early the next morning, the people got busy and built an altar. They sacrificed Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Peace-Offerings.  ⁵ Then the Israelites said, "Who from all the tribes of Israel didn't show up as we gathered in the presence of God?" For they had all taken a sacred oath that anyone who had not gathered in the presence of God at Mizpah had to be put to death.

^6-7 But the People of Israel were feeling sorry for Benjamin, their brothers. They said, "Today, one tribe is cut off from Israel. How can we get wives for those who are left? We have sworn by God not to give any of our daughters to them in marriage."
 ^8-9 They said, "Which one of the tribes of Israel didn't gather before God at Mizpah?"
    It turned out that no one had come to the gathering from Jabesh Gilead. When they took a roll call of the people, not a single person from Jabesh Gilead was there.
 ^10-11 So the congregation sent twelve divisions of their top men there with the command, "Kill everyone of Jabesh Gilead, including women and children. These are your instructions: Every man and woman who has had sexual intercourse you must kill. But keep the virgins alive." And that's what they did.
 ¹² And they found four hundred virgins among those who lived in Jabesh Gilead; they had never had sexual intercourse with a man. And they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.
 ^13-14 Then the congregation sent word to the Benjaminites who were at the Rimmon Rock and offered them peace. And Benjamin came. They gave them the women they had let live at Jabesh Gilead. But even then, there weren't enough for all the men.
 ¹⁵ The people felt bad for Benjamin; God had left out Benjamin—the missing piece from the Israelite tribes.

^16-18 The elders of the congregation said, "How can we get wives for the rest of the men, since all the Benjaminite women have been killed? How can we keep the inheritance alive for the Benjaminite survivors? How can we prevent an entire tribe from extinction? We certainly can't give our own daughters to them as wives." (Remember, the Israelites had taken the oath: "Cursed is anyone who provides a wife to Benjamin.")
 ¹⁹ Then they said, "There is that festival of God held every year in Shiloh. It's north of Bethel, just east of the main road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem and a little south of Lebonah."
 ^20-22 So they told the Benjaminites, "Go and hide in the vineyards. Stay alert —when you see the Shiloh girls come out to dance the dances, run out of the vineyards, grab one of the Shiloh girls for your wife, and then hightail it back to the country of Benjamin. When their fathers or brothers come to lay charges against us, we'll tell them, 'We did them a favor. After all we didn't go to war and kill to get wives for men. And it wasn't as if you were in on it by giving consent. But if you keep this up, you will incur blame.'"
 ²³ And that's what the Benjaminites did: They carried off girls from the dance, wives enough for their number, got away, and went home to their inheritance. They rebuilt their towns and settled down.
 ²⁴ From there the People of Israel dispersed, each man heading back to his own tribe and clan, each to his own plot of land.
 ²⁵ At that time there was no king in Israel. People did whatever they felt like doing.

Ruth 1

 ^1-2Once upon a time—it was back in the days when judges led Israel— there was a famine in the land. A man from Bethlehem in Judah left home to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. The man's name was Elimelech; his wife's name was Naomi; his sons were named Mahlon and Kilion—all Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They all went to the country of Moab and settled there.  ^3-5 Elimelech died and Naomi was left, she and her two sons. The sons took Moabite wives; the name of the first was Orpah, the second Ruth. They lived there in Moab for the next ten years. But then the two brothers, Mahlon and Kilion, died. Now the woman was left without either her young men or her husband.

^6-7 One day she got herself together, she and her two daughters-in-law, to leave the country of Moab and set out for home; she had heard that God had been pleased to visit his people and give them food. And so she started out from the place she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law with her, on the road back to the land of Judah.
 ^8-9 After a short while on the road, Naomi told her two daughters-in-law, "Go back. Go home and live with your mothers. And may God treat you as graciously as you treated your deceased husbands and me. May God give each of you a new home and a new husband!" She kissed them and they cried openly.
 ¹⁰ They said, "No, we're going on with you to your people."
 ^11-13 But Naomi was firm: "Go back, my dear daughters. Why would you come with me? Do you suppose I still have sons in my womb who can become your future husbands? Go back, dear daughters—on your way, please! I'm too old to get a husband. Why, even if I said, 'There's still hope!' and this very night got a man and had sons, can you imagine being satisfied to wait until they were grown? Would you wait that long to get married again? No, dear daughters; this is a bitter pill for me to swallow—more bitter for me than for you. God has dealt me a hard blow."
 ¹⁴ Again they cried openly. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye; but Ruth embraced her and held on.
 ¹⁵ Naomi said, "Look, your sister-in-law is going back home to live with her own people and gods; go with her."
 ^16-17 But Ruth said, "Don't force me to leave you; don't make me go home. Where you go, I go; and where you live, I'll live. Your people are my people, your God is my god; where you die, I'll die, and that's where I'll be buried, so help me God—not even death itself is going to come between us!"
 ^18-19 When Naomi saw that Ruth had her heart set on going with her, she gave in. And so the two of them traveled on together to Bethlehem.
    When they arrived in Bethlehem the whole town was soon buzzing: "Is this really our Naomi? And after all this time!"
 ^20-21 But she said, "Don't call me Naomi; call me Bitter. The Strong One has dealt me a bitter blow. I left here full of life, and God has brought me back with nothing but the clothes on my back. Why would you call me Naomi? God certainly doesn't. The Strong One ruined me."
 ²² And so Naomi was back, and Ruth the foreigner with her, back from the country of Moab. They arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

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John 4:4-42 (The Message)

 ^4-6To get there, he had to pass through Samaria. He came into Sychar, a Samaritan village that bordered the field Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob's well was still there. Jesus, worn out by the trip, sat down at the well. It was noon.

 ^7-8A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, "Would you give me a drink of water?" (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.)

 ⁹The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, "How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?" (Jews in those days wouldn't be caught dead talking to Samaritans.)

 ¹⁰Jesus answered, "If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water."

 ^11-12The woman said, "Sir, you don't even have a bucket to draw with, and this well is deep. So how are you going to get this 'living water'? Are you a better man than our ancestor Jacob, who dug this well and drank from it, he and his sons and livestock, and passed it down to us?"

 ^13-14Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life."

 ¹⁵The woman said, "Sir, give me this water so I won't ever get thirsty, won't ever have to come back to this well again!"

 ¹⁶He said, "Go call your husband and then come back."

 ^17-18"I have no husband," she said.

   "That's nicely put: 'I have no husband.' You've had five husbands, and the man you're living with now isn't even your husband. You spoke the truth there, sure enough."

 ^19-20"Oh, so you're a prophet! Well, tell me this: Our ancestors worshiped God at this mountain, but you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place for worship, right?"

 ^21-23"Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God's way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you're called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.

 ^23-24"It's who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That's the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship. God is sheer being itself—Spirit. Those who worship him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration."

 ²⁵The woman said, "I don't know about that. I do know that the Messiah is coming. When he arrives, we'll get the whole story."

 ²⁶"I am he," said Jesus. "You don't have to wait any longer or look any further."

 ²⁷Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked. They couldn't believe he was talking with that kind of a woman. No one said what they were all thinking, but their faces showed it.

 ^28-30The woman took the hint and left. In her confusion she left her water pot. Back in the village she told the people, "Come see a man who knew all about the things I did, who knows me inside and out. Do you think this could be the Messiah?" And they went out to see for themselves.

It's Harvest Time

 ³¹In the meantime, the disciples pressed him, "Rabbi, eat. Aren't you going to eat?"

 ³²He told them, "I have food to eat you know nothing about."

 ³³The disciples were puzzled. "Who could have brought him food?"

 ^34-35Jesus said, "The food that keeps me going is that I do the will of the One who sent me, finishing the work he started. As you look around right now, wouldn't you say that in about four months it will be time to harvest? Well, I'm telling you to open your eyes and take a good look at what's right in front of you. These Samaritan fields are ripe. It's harvest time!

 ^36-38"The Harvester isn't waiting. He's taking his pay, gathering in this grain that's ripe for eternal life. Now the Sower is arm in arm with the Harvester, triumphant. That's the truth of the saying, 'This one sows, that one harvests.' I sent you to harvest a field you never worked. Without lifting a finger, you have walked in on a field worked long and hard by others."

 ^39-42Many of the Samaritans from that village committed themselves to him because of the woman's witness: "He knew all about the things I did. He knows me inside and out!" They asked him to stay on, so Jesus stayed two days. A lot more people entrusted their lives to him when they heard what he had to say. They said to the woman, "We're no longer taking this on your say-so. We've heard it for ourselves and know it for sure. He's the Savior of the world!"

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Psalm 105:1-15 (The Message)

Psalm 105

    Hallelujah! Thank God! Pray to him by name!
      Tell everyone you meet what he has done!
   Sing him songs, belt out hymns,
      translate his wonders into music!
   Honor his holy name with Hallelujahs,
      you who seek God. Live a happy life!
   Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works;
      be alert for signs of his presence.
   Remember the world of wonders he has made,
      his miracles, and the verdicts he's rendered—
         O seed of Abraham, his servant,
         O child of Jacob, his chosen.

 ^7-15 He's God, our God,
      in charge of the whole earth.
   And he remembers, remembers his Covenant—
      for a thousand generations he's been as good as his word.
   It's the Covenant he made with Abraham,
      the same oath he swore to Isaac,
   The very statute he established with Jacob,
      the eternal Covenant with Israel,
   Namely, "I give you the land.
      Canaan is your hill-country inheritance."
   When they didn't count for much,
      a mere handful, and strangers at that,
   Wandering from country to country,
      drifting from pillar to post,
   He permitted no one to abuse them.
      He told kings to keep their hands off:
   "Don't you dare lay a hand on my anointed,
      don't hurt a hair on the heads of my prophets." 

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Proverbs 14:25 (The Message)

 ²⁵ Souls are saved by truthful witness
   and betrayed by the spread of lies.

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Verse of the Day

“Don't worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.” - Philippians 4:6-7

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

 

Yiddish author and playwright, Sholom Aleichem wrote, “Life is a dream for the wise, a game for the fool, a comedy for the rich, a tragedy for the poor.”