Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Prayer for Protection, Guidance and Pardon.

A Psalm of David.

⁵ “But if a man is righteous and practices justice and righteousness, ⁶ and does not ^(A)eat at the mountain shrines or ^(B)lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or ^(C)defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her menstrual period— ⁷ if a man does not oppress anyone, but ^(D)restores to the debtor his pledge, ^(E)does not commit robbery, but ^(F)gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, ⁸ if he does not lend money on ^(G)interest or take ^(H)increase, if he keeps his hand from iniquity and ^(I)executes true justice between man and man, ⁹ if he walks in ^(J)My statutes and My ordinances so as to deal faithfully—^(K)he is righteous and will surely ^(L)live,” declares the Lord God.

¹⁰ “Then he may ^[a]have a violent son who sheds blood and who does any of these things to a brother ¹¹ (though he himself did not do any of these things), that is, he even eats at the mountain shrines, and ^(M)defiles his neighbor’s wife, ¹² oppresses the ^(N)poor and needy, ^(O)commits robbery, does not restore a pledge, but lifts up his eyes to the idols and ^(P)commits abomination, ¹³ he ^(Q)lends money on interest and takes increase; will he live? He will not live! He has committed all these abominations, he will surely be put to death; his ^(R)blood will be ^[b]on his own head.

¹⁴ “Now behold, he ^[c]has a son who has observed all his father’s sins which he committed, and ^(S)observing does not do likewise. ¹⁵ He does not eat at the mountain shrines or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or defile his neighbor’s wife, ¹⁶ or oppress anyone, or retain a pledge, or commit robbery, but he ^(T)gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, ¹⁷ he keeps his hand from ^[d]the poor, does not take interest or increase, but executes My ordinances, and walks in My statutes; ^(U)he will not die for his father’s iniquity, he will surely live. ¹⁸ As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was not good among his people, behold, he will die for his iniquity.

³² And we ^(A)preach to you the good news of ^(B)the promise made to the fathers, ³³ that God has fulfilled this promise ^[a]to our children in that He ^(C)raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, ‘^(D)You are My Son; today i have begotten You.’ ³⁴ As for the fact that He ^(E)raised Him up from the dead, no longer to return to decay, He has spoken in this way: ‘^(F)I will give you the holy and ^[b]sure blessings of David.’ ³⁵ Therefore He also says in another Psalm, ‘^(G)You will not ^[c]allow Your ^[d]Holy One to ^[e]undergo decay.’ ³⁶ For ^(H)David, after he had ^[f]served ^(I)the purpose of God in his own generation, ^(J)fell asleep, and was laid among his fathers and ^[g]underwent decay; ³⁷ but He whom God ^(K)raised did not ^[h]undergo decay. ³⁸ Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that ^(L)through ^[i]Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, ³⁹ and ^[j]through Him ^(M)everyone who believes is ^[k]freed ^[l]from all things, from which you could not be ^[m]freed ^[n]through the Law of Moses. ⁴⁰ Therefore take heed, so that the thing spoken of ^(N)in the Prophets may not come upon you: