Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Morning Prayer for Protection
For the director of music. For flutes. A song of David.
5 Lord, listen to my words.
Understand what I am thinking.
2 Listen to my cry for help.
My king and my God, I pray to you.
3 Lord, every morning you hear my voice.
Every morning, I tell you what I need.
And I wait for your answer.
4 You are not a God who is pleased with what is wicked.
You do not live with those who do evil.
5 Those people who make fun of you cannot stand before you.
You hate all those who do wrong.
6 You destroy liars.
The Lord hates those who kill and trick others.
7 Because of your great love,
I can come into your Temple.
Because I fear and respect you,
I can worship in your holy Temple.
8 Lord, since I have many enemies,
show me the right thing to do.
Show me clearly how you want me to live.
9 With their mouths my enemies do not tell the truth.
In their hearts they want to destroy people.
Their throats are like open graves.
They use their tongues for telling lies.
10 God, declare them guilty!
Let them fall into their own traps.
Send them away because their sins are many.
They have turned against you.
11 But let everyone who trusts you be happy.
Let them sing glad songs forever.
Protect those who love you.
They are happy because of you.
12 Lord, you bless those who do what is right.
You protect them like a soldier’s shield.
21 A wise person is known for his understanding.
He wins people to his side with pleasant words.
22 Understanding is like a fountain of water which gives life to those who use it.
But foolishness will cause foolish people to be punished.
23 A wise person’s mind tells him what to say.
This helps him to teach others better.
24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb.
They make a person happy and healthy.
25 Some people think they are doing what’s right.
But in the end it causes them to die.
26 The worker’s hunger helps him.
His desire to eat makes him work.
27 An evil person makes evil plans.
And his words are like a burning fire.
28 An evil person causes trouble.
And a person who gossips ruins friendships.
29 A cruel man tricks his neighbor.
He leads him to do wrong.
30 Someone who winks at you is planning evil.
And the one who grins at you is about to do something wrong.
31 Gray hair is like a crown of honor.
You earn it by living a good life.
32 Patience is better than strength.
Controlling your temper is better than capturing a city.
33 People throw lots to make a decision.
But the answer comes from the Lord.
Obey God’s Law Not Men’s
15 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem. They asked him, 2 “Why do your followers not obey the rules given to us by the great people who lived before us? Your followers don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
3 Jesus answered, “And why do you refuse to obey God’s command so that you can follow those rules you have? 4 God said, ‘Honor your father and mother.’[a] And God also said, ‘Anyone who says cruel things to his father or mother must be put to death.’[b] 5 But you say that a person can tell his father or mother, ‘I have something I could use to help you. But I will not use it for you. I will give it to God.’ 6 You teach that person not to honor his father. You teach that it is not important to do what God said. You think that it is more important to follow the rules you have. 7 You are hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he spoke about you:
8 ‘These people show honor to me with words.
But their hearts are far from me.
9 Their worship of me is worthless.
The things they teach are nothing
but human rules they have memorized.’” Isaiah 29:13
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.