Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 103[a]
Praise of God’s Providence
1 Of David.
Bless the Lord, O my soul;[b]
my entire being, bless his holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and do not forget all his benefits.
3 He forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases.[c]
4 He redeems[d] your life from the pit
and crowns you with kindness and mercy.
5 He satisfies your years with good things
and renews your youth like an eagle’s.[e]
6 The Lord performs acts of righteousness
and administers justice for all who are oppressed.
7 [f]He made known his ways[g] to Moses,
his wondrous deeds to the people of Israel.
8 [h]The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
9 He will not always rebuke,
nor will he remain angry forever.
10 He does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our offenses.
11 As high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his kindness toward those who fear him.[i]
12 As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.[j]
13 [k]As a father has compassion for his children,
so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him.
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
everywhere in his domain.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.[a]
44 Everyone who quotes proverbs will use this one in regard to you: “Like mother, like daughter.” 45 You are a true daughter of your mother who loathed her husband and her children, and you are a true sister of your sisters who loathed their husbands and their children. Your mother was a Hittite, and your father was an Amorite. 46 Your elder sister is Samaria, who lives to the north of you with her daughters, and your younger sister is Sodom, who lives to the south of you with her daughters. 47 You not only followed their ways and imitated their loathsome practices, but within a brief period of time you were more corrupt than they in all of your ways.
48 As I live, says the Lord God, your sister Sodom and her daughters have not done as you and your daughters have done. 49 The crimes of your sister Sodom were pride, gluttony, and lack of concern for the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and committed abominable deeds in my presence. Therefore, I swept them from my sight, as you have seen.
51 Samaria did not commit half of the sins of which you have been guilty. You have done far more abominable crimes than they did, and you have made your sisters appear to be innocent because of all the abominations that you have committed. 52 Bear the shame of your disgrace, as a result of which you have made possible a more favorable judgment for your sisters. Because your conduct was far more abominable than theirs, they appear to be more upright in comparison with you. Therefore, blush for shame, and bear the disgrace of having made your sisters appear to be righteous.
Salutation
Chapter 1
Address.[a] 1 Simon Peter,[b] a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: 2 may grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge[c] of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Exhortation to Growth in Christian Virtues
Strengthen Your Vocation.[d] 3 His divine power has bestowed on us everything that is necessary for life and for devotion through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue. 4 By these he has given us his precious promises, great beyond all price, so that through them you may escape from the corruption with which evil desires have infected the world and thereby may come to share in the divine nature.[e]
5 [f]In view of all this, you should make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with piety, 7 and piety with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love.
8 If you possess these qualities and they increase in abundance, they will prevent your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ from being ineffective and unfruitful. 9 For anyone who lacks them is near-sighted or blind, since he has forgotten how his past sins were washed away.[g]
10 Therefore, brethren, be diligent in providing a firm foundation for your call and election. If you do this, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a glorious welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.[h]
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