Book of Common Prayer

For the director of music. A psalm of Asaph. A song to the tune of “Do Not Destroy.”

For the director of music. A psalm of Asaph. A song to be played on stringed instruments.

A psalm of David.

A psalm of David.

²⁸ The young woman ran home. She told her mother’s family what had happened. ²⁹ Rebekah had a brother named Laban. He hurried out to the spring to meet the man. ³⁰ Laban had seen the nose ring. He had seen the bracelets on his sister’s arms. And he had heard Rebekah tell what the man had said to her. So Laban went out to the man. He found him standing by the camels near the spring. ³¹ “The Lord has given you his blessing,” he said. “So come with me. Why are you standing out here? I’ve prepared my house for you. I also have a place for the camels.”

³² So the man went to the house. The camels were unloaded. Straw and feed were brought for the camels. And water was brought for him and his men to wash their feet. ³³ Then food was placed in front of him. But he said, “I won’t eat until I’ve told you what I have to say.”

“Then tell us,” Laban said.

³⁴ So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. ³⁵ The Lord has blessed my master greatly, and he has become rich. The Lord has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold. He has also given him male and female servants, camels and donkeys. ³⁶ My master’s wife Sarah had a son by him when she was old. He has given that son everything he owns. ³⁷ My master made me promise him. He said, ‘I’m living in the land of the people of Canaan. But promise me that you won’t get a wife for my son from their daughters. ³⁸ Instead, go to my father’s family and to my own relatives. Get a wife for my son there.’

⁴⁹ Now will you be kind and faithful to my master? If you will, tell me. And if you won’t, tell me. Then I’ll know which way to turn.”

⁵⁰ Laban and Bethuel answered, “The Lord has done all of this. We can’t say anything to you one way or the other. ⁵¹ Here is Rebekah. Take her and go. Let her become the wife of your master’s son, just as the Lord has said.”

¹² So put your hands to work. Strengthen your legs for the journey. ¹³ “Make level paths for your feet to walk on.” (Proverbs 4:26) Then those who have trouble walking won’t be disabled. Instead, they will be healed.

A Warning and an Appeal

¹⁴ Try your best to live in peace with everyone. Try hard to be holy. Without holiness no one will see the Lord. ¹⁵ Be sure that no one misses out on God’s grace. See to it that a bitter plant doesn’t grow up. If it does, it will cause trouble. And it will make many people impure. ¹⁶ See to it that no one commits sexual sins. See to it that no one is godless like Esau. He sold the rights to what he would receive as the oldest son. He sold them for a single meal. ¹⁷ As you know, after that he wanted to receive his father’s blessing. But he was turned away. With tears he tried to get the blessing. But he couldn’t change what he had done.

The Mountain of Fear and the Mountain of Joy

¹⁸ You haven’t come to a mountain that can be touched. You haven’t come to a mountain burning with fire. You haven’t come to darkness, gloom and storm. ¹⁹ You haven’t come to a blast from God’s trumpet. You haven’t come to a voice speaking to you. When people heard that voice long ago, they begged it not to say anything more to them. ²⁰ What God commanded was too much for them. He said, “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be killed with stones.” (Exodus 19:12,13) ²¹ The sight was terrifying. Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.” (Deuteronomy 9:19)

²² But you have come to Mount Zion. You have come to the city of the living God. This is the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to a joyful gathering of angels. There are thousands and thousands of them. ²³ You have come to the church of God’s people. God’s first and only Son is over all things. God’s people share in what belongs to his Son. Their names are written in heaven. You have come to God, who is the Judge of all people. You have come to the spirits of godly people who have been made perfect. ²⁴ You have come to Jesus. He is the go-between of a new covenant. You have come to the sprinkled blood. It promises better things than the blood of Abel.

²⁵ Be sure that you don’t say no to the one who speaks. People did not escape when they said no to the one who warned them on earth. And what if we turn away from the one who warns us from heaven? How much less will we escape! ²⁶ At that time his voice shook the earth. But now he has promised, “Once more I will shake the earth. I will also shake the heavens.” (Haggai 2:6) ²⁷ The words “once more” point out that what can be shaken can be taken away. I’m talking about created things. Then what can’t be shaken will remain.

²⁸ We are receiving a kingdom that can’t be shaken. So let us be thankful. Then we can worship God in a way that pleases him. Let us worship him with deep respect and wonder. ²⁹ Our “God is like a fire that burns everything up.” (Deuteronomy 4:24)

Jesus Teaches at the Feast

¹⁴ Jesus did nothing until halfway through the feast. Then he went up to the temple courtyard and began to teach. ¹⁵ The Jews there were amazed. They asked, “How did this man learn so much without being taught?”

¹⁶ Jesus answered, “What I teach is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. ¹⁷ Here is how someone can find out whether my teaching comes from God or from me. That person must choose to do what God wants them to do. ¹⁸ Whoever speaks on their own does it to get personal honor. But someone who works for the honor of the one who sent him is truthful. Nothing about him is false. ¹⁹ Didn’t Moses give you the law? But not one of you obeys the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”

²⁰ “You are controlled by demons,” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”

²¹ Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all amazed. ²² Moses gave you circumcision, and so you circumcise a child on the Sabbath day. But circumcision did not really come from Moses. It came from Abraham. ²³ You circumcise a boy on the Sabbath day. You think that if you do, you won’t break the law of Moses. Then why are you angry with me? I healed a man’s entire body on the Sabbath day! ²⁴ Stop judging only by what you see. Judge in the right way.”

People Don’t Agree About Who Jesus Is

²⁵ Then some of the people of Jerusalem began asking questions. They said, “Isn’t this the man some people are trying to kill? ²⁶ Here he is! He is speaking openly. They aren’t saying a word to him. Have the authorities really decided that he is the Messiah? ²⁷ But we know where this man is from. When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.”

²⁸ Jesus was still teaching in the temple courtyard. He cried out, “Yes, you know me. And you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority. The one who sent me is true. You do not know him. ²⁹ But I know him. I am from him, and he sent me.”

³⁰ When he said this, they tried to arrest him. But no one laid a hand on him. The time for him to show who he really was had not yet come. ³¹ Still, many people in the crowd believed in him. They said, “How will it be when the Messiah comes? Will he do more signs than this man?”

³² The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering things like this about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.

³³ Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time. Then I will go to the one who sent me. ³⁴ You will look for me, but you won’t find me. You can’t come where I am going.”

³⁵ The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man plan to go? Does he think we can’t find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks? Will he go there to teach the Greeks? ³⁶ What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you won’t find me’? And what did he mean when he said, ‘You can’t come where I am going’?”