Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Hymn of Thanksgiving
A song of David.
138 Lord, I will thank you with all my heart.
I will sing to you before the false gods.
2 I will bow down facing your holy Temple.
And I will thank you for your love and loyalty.
You have made your name and your word
greater than anything.
3 On the day I called to you, you answered me.
You made me strong and brave.
4 Lord, let all the kings of the earth praise you.
They have heard the words you speak.
5 They will sing about what the Lord has done
because the Lord’s glory is great.
6 Though the Lord is supreme
he takes care of those who are not proud.
But he stays away from those who are proud.
7 Lord, even when I have trouble all around me,
you will keep me alive.
When my enemies are angry,
you will reach down and save me by your power.
8 Lord, you do everything for me.
Lord, your love continues forever.
You made us. Do not leave us.
11 The Lord spoke his word to me. He said: 12 “Human being, sing a funeral song for the king of Tyre. Say to him: ‘This is what the Lord God says:
You were an example of what was perfect.
You were full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You had a wonderful life,
like those in Eden, the garden of God.
Every valuable gem was on you:
ruby, topaz and emerald,
yellow quartz, onyx and jasper,
sapphire, turquoise and chrysolite.
Your jewelry was made of gold.
It was prepared on the day you were created.
14 I appointed a living creature to guard you.
I put you on the holy mountain of God.
You walked among the gems of fire.
15 Your life was right and good.
This was from the day you were created,
until evil was found in you.
16 Because you traded with countries far away,
you learned to be cruel, and you sinned.
So I threw you down in disgrace from the mountain of God.
And the living creature who guarded you
forced you out from among the gems of fire.
17 You became too proud
because of your beauty.
You ruined your wisdom
because of your greatness.
I threw you down to the ground.
Your example taught a lesson to other kings.
18 You dishonored your places of worship
through your many sins and dishonest trade.
So I set your city on fire.
And it burned up.
I turned you into ashes on the ground
for all those watching to see.
19 All the nations who knew you
are shocked about you.
Your punishment was so terrible.
And you are gone forever.’”
Judging Problems Among Christians
6 When one of you has something against a brother in Christ, why do you go to the judges in the law courts? Those people are not right with God. So why do you let them decide who is right? You should be ashamed! Why do you not let God’s people decide who is right? 2 Surely you know that God’s people will judge the world. So if you are to judge the world, then surely you are able to judge small things as well. 3 You know that in the future we will judge angels. So surely we can judge things in this life. 4 So if you have disagreements that must be judged, why do you take them to those who are not part of the church? They mean nothing to the church. 5 I say this to shame you. Surely there is someone among you wise enough to judge a complaint between two brothers in Christ. 6 But now one brother goes to court against another brother. And you let men who are not believers judge their case!
7 The lawsuits that you have against each other show that you are already defeated. It would be better for you to let someone wrong you! It would be better for you to let someone cheat you! 8 But you yourselves do wrong and cheat! And you do this to your own brothers in Christ!
9-10 Surely you know that the people who do wrong will not receive God’s kingdom. Do not be fooled. These people will not receive God’s kingdom: those who are sexually immoral, or worship idols, or take part in adultery, or men who have physical relations with other men, or steal, or are selfish, or get drunk, or lie about others, or cheat. 11 In the past, some of you were like that. But you were washed clean. You were made holy. And you were made right with God in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.