Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
101 The prayer of the poor man, when he was anxious, and poured out his supplication before the Lord.
2 Hear, O Lord, my prayer: and let my cry come to thee.
3 Turn not away thy face from me: in the day when I am in trouble, incline thy ear to me. In what day soever I shall call upon thee, hear me speedily.
4 For my days are vanished like smoke: and my bones are grown dry like fuel for the fire.
5 I am smitten as grass, and my heart is withered: because I forgot to eat my bread.
6 Through the voice of my groaning, my bone hath cleaved to my flesh.
7 I am become like to a pelican of the wilderness: I am like a night raven in the house.
8 I have watched, and am become as a sparrow all alone on the housetop.
9 All the day long my enemies reproached me: and they that praised me did swear against me.
10 For I did eat ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping.
11 Because of thy anger and indignation: for having lifted me up thou hast thrown me down.
12 My days have declined like a shadow, and I am withered like grass.
13 But thou, O Lord, endurest for ever: and thy memorial to all generations.
14 Thou shalt arise and have mercy on Sion: for it is time to have mercy on it, for the time is come.
15 For the stones thereof have pleased thy servants: and they shall have pity on the earth thereof.
16 And the Gentiles shall fear thy name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth thy glory.
17 For the Lord hath built up Sion: and he shall be seen in his glory.
18 He hath had regard to the prayer of the humble: and he hath not despised their petition.
19 Let these things be written unto another generation: and the people that shall be created shall praise the Lord:
20 Because he hath looked forth from his high sanctuary: from heaven the Lord hath looked upon the earth.
21 That he might hear the groans of them that are in fetters: that he might release the children of the slain:
22 That they may declare the name of the Lord in Sion: and his praise in Jerusalem;
23 When the people assemble together, and kings, to serve the Lord.
24 He answered him in the way of his strength: Declare unto me the fewness of my days.
25 Call me not away in the midst of my days: thy years are unto generation and generation.
26 In the beginning, O Lord, thou foundedst the earth: and the heavens are the works of thy hands.
27 They shall perish but thou remainest: and all of them shall grow old like a garment: And as a vesture thou shalt change them, and they shall be changed.
28 But thou art always the selfsame, and thy years shall not fail.
29 The children of thy servants shall continue: and their seed shall be directed for ever.
24 And the king of the Assyrians brought people from Babylon, and from Cutha, and from Avah, and from Emath, and from Sepharvaim: and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.
25 And when they began to dwell there, they feared not the Lord: and the Lord sent lions among them, which killed them.
26 And it was told the king of the Assyrians, and it was said: The nations which thou hast removed, and made to dwell in the cities of Samaria, know not the ordinances of the God of the land: and the Lord hath sent lions among them: and behold they kill them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.
27 And the king of the Assyrians commanded, saying: Carry thither one of the priests whom you brought from thence captive, and let him go, and dwell with them: and let him teach them the ordinances of the God of the land.
28 So one of the priests who had been carried away captive from Samaria, came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should worship the Lord.
29 And every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the temples of the high places, which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities where they dwelt.
30 For the men of Babylon made Sochothbenoth: and the Cuthites made Nergel: and the men of Emath made Asima.
31 And the Hevites made Nebahaz and Tharthac. And they that were of Sepharvaim burnt their children in fire, to Adramelech and Anamelech the gods of Sepharvaim.
32 And nevertheless they worshipped the Lord. And they made to themselves, of the lowest of the people, priests of the high places, and they placed them in the temples of the high places.
33 And when they worshipped the Lord, they served also their own gods according to the custom of the nations out of which they were brought to Samaria:
34 Unto this day they followed the old manner: they fear not the Lord, neither do they keep his ceremonies, and judgments, and law, and the commandment, which the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom he surnamed Israel:
35 With whom he made a covenant, and charged them, saying: You shall not fear strange gods, nor shall you adore them, nor worship them, nor sacrifice to them.
36 But the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power, and a stretched out arm, him shall you fear, and him shall you adore, and to him shall you sacrifice.
37 And the ceremonies, and judgments, and law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, you shall observe to do them always: and you shall not fear strange gods.
38 And the covenant that he made with you, you shall not forget: neither shall ye worship strange gods,
39 But fear the Lord your God, and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
40 But they did not hearken, but did according to their old custom.
41 So these nations feared the Lord, but nevertheless served also their idols: their children also and grandchildren, as their fathers did, so do they unto this day.
14 These things I write to thee, hoping that I shall come to thee shortly.
15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
16 And evidently great is the mystery of godliness, which was manifested in the flesh, was justified in the spirit, appeared unto angels, hath been preached unto the Gentiles, is believed in the world, is taken up in glory.
4 Now the Spirit manifestly saith, that in the last times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to spirits of error, and doctrines of devils,
2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy, and having their conscience seared,
3 Forbidding to marry, to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving by the faithful, and by them that have known the truth.
4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be rejected that is received with thanksgiving:
5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
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