Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Praise the Lord’s Goodness
111 Praise the Lord!
I will thank the Lord with all my heart
in the meeting of his good people.
2 The Lord does great things;
those who enjoy them seek them.
3 What he does is glorious and splendid,
and his goodness continues forever.
4 His miracles are unforgettable.
The Lord is kind and merciful.
5 He gives food to those who fear him.
He remembers his agreement forever.
6 He has shown his people his power
when he gave them the lands of other nations.
7 Everything he does is good and fair;
all his orders can be trusted.
8 They will continue forever.
They were made true and right.
9 He sets his people free.
He made his agreement everlasting.
He is holy and wonderful.
10 Wisdom begins with respect for the Lord;
those who obey his orders have good understanding.
He should be praised forever.
Rules for Cleaning Mildew
33 The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron, 34 “I am giving the land of Canaan to your people. When they enter that land, if I cause mildew to grow in someone’s house in that land, 35 the owner of that house must come and tell the priest. He should say, ‘I have seen something like mildew in my house.’ 36 Then the priest must order the people to empty the house before he goes in to look at the mildew. This is so he will not have to say that everything in the house is unclean. After this, the priest will go in to look at it. 37 He will look at the mildew, and if the mildew on the walls of the house is green or red and goes into the wall’s surface, 38 he must go out and close up the house for seven days. 39 On the seventh day the priest must come back and check the house. If the mildew has spread on the walls of the house, 40 the priest must order the people to tear out the stones with the mildew on them. They should throw them away, at a certain unclean place outside the city. 41 Then the priest must have all the inside of the house scraped. The people must throw away the plaster they scraped off the walls, at a certain unclean place outside the city. 42 Then the owner must put new stones in the walls, and he must cover the walls with new clay plaster.
43 “Suppose a person has taken away the old stones and plaster and put in new stones and plaster. If mildew again appears in his house, 44 the priest must come back and check the house again. If the mildew has spread in the house, it is a mildew that destroys things; the house is unclean. 45 Then the owner must tear down the house, remove all its stones, plaster, and wood, and take them to the unclean place outside the city. 46 Anyone who goes into that house while it is closed up will be unclean until evening. 47 Anyone who eats in that house or lies down there must wash his clothes.
48 “Suppose after new stones and plaster have been put in a house, the priest checks it again and the mildew has not spread. Then the priest will announce that the house is clean, because the mildew is gone.
49 “Then, to make the house clean, the priest must take two birds, a piece of cedar wood, a piece of red string, and a hyssop plant. 50 He will kill one bird in a clay bowl containing fresh water. 51 Then he will take the bird that is still alive, the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the red string, and he will dip them into the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water. The priest will sprinkle the blood on the house seven times. 52 He will use the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the red string to make the house clean. 53 He will then go to an open field outside the city and let the living bird go free. This is how the priest makes the house clean and ready for service to the Lord.”
13 Follow the pattern of true teachings that you heard from me in faith and love, which are in Christ Jesus. 14 Protect the truth that you were given; protect it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
15 You know that everyone in Asia has left me, even Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord show mercy to the family of Onesiphorus, who has often helped me and was not ashamed that I was in prison. 17 When he came to Rome, he looked eagerly for me until he found me. 18 May the Lord allow him to find mercy from the Lord on that day. You know how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.