Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A psalm; a song; for the day of rest—a holy day.
92 It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to make music to praise your name, O Most High.
2 It is good to announce your mercy in the morning
and your faithfulness in the evening
3 on a ten-stringed instrument and a harp
and with a melody on a lyre.
4 You made me find joy in what you have done, O Lord.
I will sing joyfully about the works of your hands.
5 How spectacular are your works, O Lord!
How very deep are your thoughts!
6 A stupid person cannot know
and a fool cannot understand
7 that wicked people sprout like grass
and all troublemakers blossom ⌞like flowers⌟,
only to be destroyed forever.
8 But you, O Lord, are highly honored forever.
9 Now look at your enemies, O Lord.
Now look at your enemies.
They disappear, and all troublemakers are scattered.
10 But you make me as strong as a wild bull,
and soothing lotion is poured on me.
11 My eyes gloat over those who spy on me.
My ears hear ⌞the cries⌟ of evildoers attacking me.
12 Righteous people flourish like palm trees
and grow tall like the cedars in Lebanon.
13 They are planted in the Lord’s house.
They blossom in our God’s courtyards.
14 Even when they are old, they still bear fruit.
They are always healthy and fresh.
15 They make it known that the Lord is decent.
He is my rock.
He is never unfair.
Blessings from the Lord
28 Carefully obey the Lord your God, and faithfully follow all his commands that I’m giving you today. If you do, the Lord your God will place you high above all the other nations in the world. 2 These are all the blessings that will come to you and stay close to you because you obey the Lord your God:
3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
4 You will be blessed. You will have children. Your land will have crops. Your animals will have offspring. Your cattle will have calves, and your flocks will have lambs and kids.
5 The grain you harvest and the bread you bake will be blessed.
6 You will be blessed when you come and blessed when you go.
7 The Lord will defeat your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction but run away from you in seven directions.
8 The Lord will bless your barns and everything you do. The Lord your God will bless you in the land that he is giving you.
9 You will be the Lord’s holy people, as he promised you with an oath. He will do this if you obey the commands of the Lord your God and follow his directions. 10 Then all the people in the world will see that you are the Lord’s people, and they will be afraid of you. 11 The Lord will give you plenty of blessings: You will have many children. Your animals will have many offspring. Your soil will produce many crops in the land the Lord will give you, as he swore to your ancestors.
12 The Lord will open the heavens, his rich storehouse, for you. He will send rain on your land at the right time and bless everything you do. You will be able to make loans to many nations but won’t need to borrow from any. 13 The Lord will make you the head, not the tail. You will always be at the top, never at the bottom, if you faithfully obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. 14 Do everything I’m commanding you today. Never worship other gods or serve them.
Live as God’s People
17 So I tell you and encourage you in the Lord’s name not to live any longer like other people in the world. Their minds are set on worthless things. 18 They can’t understand because they are in the dark. They are excluded from the life that God approves of because of their ignorance and stubbornness. 19 Since they no longer have any sense of shame, they have become promiscuous. They practice every kind of sexual perversion with a constant desire for more.
20 But that is not what you learned from Christ’s teachings. 21 You have certainly heard his message and have been taught his ways. The truth is in Jesus. 22 You were taught to change the way you were living. The person you used to be will ruin you through desires that deceive you. 23 However, you were taught to have a new attitude. 24 You were also taught to become a new person created to be like God, with a life that truly has God’s approval and is holy.
25 So then, get rid of lies. Speak the truth to each other, because we are all members of the same body.
26 Be angry without sinning. Don’t go to bed angry. 27 Don’t give the devil any opportunity ⌞to work⌟.
28 Thieves must quit stealing and, instead, they must work hard. They should do something good with their hands so that they’ll have something to share with those in need.
29 Don’t say anything that would hurt ⌞another person⌟. Instead, speak only what is good so that you can give help wherever it is needed. That way, what you say will help those who hear you. 30 Don’t give God’s Holy Spirit any reason to be upset with you. He has put his seal on you for the day you will be set free ⌞from the world of sin⌟.
31 Get rid of your bitterness, hot tempers, anger, loud quarreling, cursing, and hatred. 32 Be kind to each other, sympathetic, forgiving each other as God has forgiven you through Christ.
Imitate God
5 Imitate God, since you are the children he loves. 2 Live in love as Christ also loved us. He gave his life for us as an offering and sacrifice, a soothing aroma to God.
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