Instructions

17 He said to His disciples, “^(A)It is inevitable that ^[a]stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! ^2 (B)It ^[b]would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble. ^3 [c]Be on your guard! ^(C)If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. ⁴ And if he sins against you ^(D)seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ ^[d]forgive him.”

^5 (E)The apostles said to ^(F)the Lord, “Increase our faith!” ⁶ And ^(G)the Lord said, “If you ^[e]had faith like ^(H)a mustard seed, you would say to this ^(I)mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would ^[f]obey you.

⁷ “Which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come immediately and ^[g]sit down to eat’? ⁸ But will he not say to him, ‘^(J)Prepare something for me to eat, and properly ^[h]clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and ^[i]afterward you ^[j]may eat and drink’? ⁹ He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he? ¹⁰ So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’”

Prayer for Victory over Enemies.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.