Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Davidic^[a]

A Prayer for Help and Forgiveness

Standards of Righteous Behavior

⁵ “If a person is righteous, and practices what’s lawful and right, ⁶ if he doesn’t eat at mountain shrines, and doesn’t look to the idols that have been erected in Israel’s house, if he doesn’t defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her time of menstrual separation, ⁷ if he doesn’t oppress anyone, but instead returns the debtor’s security for his debt, if he doesn’t rob anyone, but instead shares his food with the hungry and gives clothes to those who are naked, ⁸ if he doesn’t lend with usury or exact interest, but instead refuses to participate in^[a] what is unjust, if he administers true justice between people,^{[b] 9} if he lives his life^[c] consistent with my statutes and keeps my ordinances by practicing what’s true, then he’s righteous and will certainly live,” declares the Lord God.

Standards of Unrighteous Behavior

¹⁰ “Now suppose that person produces a son who’s violent, a murderer, and practices any of these things, ¹¹ even though the father^[d] hasn’t done any of these things. The son who eats at mountain shrines, defiles his neighbor’s wife, ¹² oppresses the afflicted and the poor, robs others, doesn’t return security for a debt, looks to idols, does detestable things, ¹³ loans with usury, and exacts interest; will he live? He certainly will not! He has done all these detestable practices. He will certainly die, and his guilt will be his own fault.”^[e]

Personal Accountability for Sin

¹⁴ “Now suppose that he produced a son who practiced all of his father’s sins, but then that son^[f] began to fear me and stopped doing all of these things. ¹⁵ That is, suppose he doesn’t eat at the mountain shrines, doesn’t look to the idols of Israel’s house, doesn’t defile his neighbor’s wife, ¹⁶ doesn’t oppress anyone, doesn’t take possession of a debtor’s pledge, or doesn’t steal, but instead shares his food with the hungry, gives clothes to those who are naked, ¹⁷ doesn’t refuse to help the afflicted, or refuses to loan with usury or exact interest, but instead follows my ordinances and lives his life consistent with my statutes. He won’t die because of his father’s sin, will he? No! He’ll certainly live. ¹⁸ As for his father, watch out! If he wrongfully oppressed or robbed his brother and did what wasn’t good among his people, he’ll die because of^[g] his own sin.”

³² We’re telling you the good news: What God promised our ancestors ³³ he has fulfilled for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm, ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.’^{[a] 34} God^[b] raised him from the dead, never to experience decay, as he said, ‘I’ll give you the holy promises made to David.’^{[c] 35} In another Psalm^[d] he says, ‘You will not let your Holy One experience decay.’^{[e] 36} Now David, after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation, died^[f] and was buried with his ancestors, and so he experienced decay. ³⁷ However, the man whom God raised did not experience decay.

³⁸ “Therefore, brothers, you must understand that through him the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, ³⁹ and that everyone who believes in him is justified and freed from everything that kept you from being justified by the Law of Moses. ⁴⁰ So be careful that what the prophets said doesn’t happen to you: