Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

18 ¶ The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying,

² What mean ye, that ye use this saying concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge?

³ As I live, said the Lord GOD, ye shall never again have reason to use this saying in Israel.

⁴ Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine; the soul that sins, it shall die.

²⁵ And if ye say, The way of the Lord is not straight. Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way not straight? Are not your ways crooked?

²⁶ When a righteous man leaves his righteousness, and commits iniquity, he shall die in it; for his iniquity that he has done he shall die.

²⁷ Again, when the wicked man leaves his wickedness that he has committed and lives according to judgment and righteousness, he shall cause his soul to live.

²⁸ Because he saw and left all his rebellions that he has committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

²⁹ If even now the house of Israel should say, The way of the Lord is not straight. O house of Israel, are not my ways straight? Certainly your ways are not straight.

³⁰ ¶ Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, each one according to his ways, said the Lord GOD. Repent and turn yourselves from all your iniquities, so iniquity shall not be your ruin.

³¹ Cast away from you all your iniquities by which ye have rebelled, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

³² For I do not desire the death of him that dies, said the Lord GOD; therefore turn yourselves, and ye shall live.

A Psalm of David.

Aleph

¹ ¶ Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul.

Beth

² O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not my enemies triumph over me.

Gimel

³ Yea, none that wait on thee shall be ashamed; those which rebel without cause shall be ashamed.

Daleth

⁴ Show me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths.

He

⁵ Cause me to walk in thy truth and teach me: for thou art the God of my saving health; I have waited for thee all the day.

Vau

⁶ Remember, O LORD, thy compassion and thy mercies, for they have been ever of old.

Zain

⁷ Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my rebellions; according to thy mercy remember me for thy goodness’ sake, O LORD.

Cheth

⁸ ¶ Good and upright is the LORD: therefore he will teach sinners in the way.

Teth

⁹ He will cause the humble to pass through the judgment, and the meek he will teach his way.

2 ¶ Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of charity, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,

² fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same charity, unanimous, minding the one thing.

³ Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in humility let each esteem others better than themselves,

⁴ with each one not looking to their own things, but also to the things of others.

⁵ Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,

⁶ who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God,

⁷ but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, made in the likeness of men,

⁸ and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. {Gr. stauros – stake}

⁹ Therefore, God also has highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name,

¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth,

¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is Lord in the glory of God the Father.

¹² ¶ Therefore, my beloved, as ye have always hearkened, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own saving health with fear and trembling.

¹³ For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

²³ ¶ And when he was come into the temple, the princes of the priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?

²⁴ And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you a word, which if ye tell me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things.

²⁵ The baptism of John, where was it from? from heaven or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven, he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?

²⁶ But if we shall say, Of men, we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.

²⁷ And they answered Jesus and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.

²⁸ ¶ But what do you think? A certain man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, Son, go work today in my vineyard.

²⁹ He answered and said, I will not, but afterward he repented and went.

³⁰ And he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, I will go, Lord, and went not.

³¹ Which of the two did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go ahead of you into the kingdom of God.

³² For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not, but the publicans and the harlots believed him, and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward that ye might believe him.