Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

A Song of Praise

100 Call out with joy to the Lord, all the earth. ² Be glad as you serve the Lord. Come before Him with songs of joy. ³ Know that the Lord is God. It is He Who made us, and not we ourselves. We are His people and the sheep of His field.

⁴ Go into His gates giving thanks and into His holy place with praise. Give thanks to Him. Honor His name. ⁵ For the Lord is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever. And He is faithful to all people and to all their children-to-come.

²⁸ On the day when the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, ²⁹ the Lord said to Moses, “I am the Lord. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you.” ³⁰ But Moses said to the Lord, “See, I am not able to speak well. How then will Pharaoh listen to me?”

Aaron Speaks for Moses

7 The Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you as God to Pharaoh. Your brother Aaron will be the one who speaks for you. ² You will speak all that I tell you. Your brother Aaron will tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel leave his land. ³ But I will make Pharaoh’s heart hard. So I will do many powerful works for the people to see in the land of Egypt. ⁴ Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay My hand on Egypt. By great acts that will punish the Egyptians, I will bring out My family groups, My people, the sons of Israel, from the land of Egypt. ⁵ The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I put My hand upon Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.” ⁶ So Moses and Aaron did what the Lord told them to do. ⁷ Moses was eighty years old and Aaron was eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Aaron’s Special Walking Stick

⁸ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ⁹ “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Prove yourselves by doing a powerful work,’ then you say to Aaron, ‘Take your special stick and throw it down in front of Pharaoh so that it will become a snake.’” ¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh. They did just as the Lord had told them. Aaron threw his stick down in front of Pharaoh and his servants and it became a snake. ¹¹ Then Pharaoh called for his wise men and wonder-workers. They did the same thing using their secret ways. ¹² For each one threw down his stick and it became a snake. But Aaron’s special stick ate their sticks. ¹³ Yet Pharaoh’s heart was hard. He did not listen to them, just as the Lord had said.

Jesus Speaks Sharp Words to the Leaders ^(A)

7 The proud religious law-keepers and some of the teachers of the Law had come from Jerusalem. They gathered around Jesus. ² They had seen some of His followers eat bread without washing their hands. ³ The proud religious law-keepers and all the Jews never eat until they wash their hands. They keep the teaching that was given to them by their early fathers. ⁴ When they come from the stores, they never eat until they wash. There are many other teachings they keep. Some are the washing of cups and pots and pans in a special way.

⁵ Then the proud religious law-keepers and the teachers of the Law asked Jesus, “Why do Your followers not obey the teaching given to them by their early fathers? They eat bread without washing their hands.” ⁶ He said to them, “Isaiah told about you who pretend to be someone you are not. Isaiah wrote, ‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. ⁷ Their worship of Me is worth nothing. They teach what men say must be done.’ ^{(B) 8} You put away the Laws of God and obey the laws made by men.”

⁹ Jesus said to them, “You put away the Laws of God but keep your own teaching. ¹⁰ Moses said, ‘Respect your father and mother.’ ^(C) ‘He who curses his father and mother will be put to death!’ ^{(D) 11} But you say that it is right if a man does not help his father and mother because he says he has given to God what he could have given to them. ¹² You are not making him do anything for his father and mother. ¹³ You are putting away the Word of God to keep your own teaching. You are doing many other things like this.”