Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
God, a Helper against the Treacherous.
For the choir director; [a]upon an eight-stringed lyre. A Psalm of David.
12 Help, Lord, for (A)the godly man ceases to be,
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 They (B)speak [b]falsehood to one another;
With (C)flattering [c]lips and with a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
The tongue that (D)speaks great things;
4 Who (E)have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are [d]our own; who is lord over us?”
5 “Because of the (F)devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now (G)I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will (H)set him in the safety for which he longs.”
10 The soul of the wicked desires evil;
His (A)neighbor finds no favor in his eyes.
11 When the (B)scoffer is punished, the [a]naive becomes wise;
But when the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge.
12 The righteous one considers the house of the wicked,
Turning the (C)wicked to ruin.
13 He who (D)shuts his ear to the cry of the poor
Will also cry himself and not be (E)answered.
14 A (F)gift in secret subdues anger,
And a bribe in the bosom, strong wrath.
15 The exercise of justice is joy for the righteous,
But is (G)terror to the workers of iniquity.
16 A man who wanders from the way of understanding
Will (H)rest in the assembly of the [b]dead.
45 (A)And while all the people were listening, He said to the disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, (B)who like to walk around in long robes, and love respectful greetings in the market places, and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”
The Widow’s Gift
21 (C)And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. 2 And He saw a poor widow putting [a]in (D)two [b]small copper coins. 3 And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; 4 for they all out of their [c]surplus put into the [d]offering; but she out of her poverty put in all [e]that she had (E)to live on.”
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