Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Song for a Holiday
For the director of music. By the gittith [C perhaps a musical term or instrument]. A psalm of Asaph [C a Levitical musician, a descendant of Gershon, at the time of David; 1 Chr. 6:39; 15:17; 2 Chr. 5:12].
81 Sing for joy to God, our strength;
shout out loud to the God of Jacob [C another name for Israel].
2 ·Begin the music [Lift up a psalm]. ·Play [Sound; L Give] the tambourines [68:25; 149:3; 150:4; Ex. 15:20].
·Play pleasant music on the harps [L …the pleasant/sweet harps] and lyres.
3 Blow the ·trumpet [ram’s horn] at ·the time of the New Moon [L the month; C a monthly religious festival],
when the moon is full, when our feast begins.
4 This is the ·law [statute; ordinance; requirement] for Israel;
it is the ·command [judgment] of the God of Jacob [v. 1].
5 He ·gave [set] this ·rule [decree; testimony] to the people of Joseph [C reference to the northern tribes]
when they went out of the land of Egypt [C the exodus; Ex. 12–15].
I heard a ·language [L tongue] I did not know, saying [C God now speaks]:
6 “I ·took the load off [removed the burden from] their shoulders;
·I let them put down their baskets [L Their hands were removed from the baskets].
7 When you were in ·trouble [distress], you called, and I ·saved [rescued] you.
I answered you ·with thunder [L in the secret place of thunder; Ex. 19:18–19].
I tested you at the waters of Meribah [95:8; 106:32; Ex. 17:1–17; Num. 20:1–13]. ·
8 My people, listen. I ·am warning [bear testimony/witness against] you.
Israel, please listen to me!
9 You must not have ·foreign [strange] gods;
you must not worship any ·false [foreign] god.
10 I, the Lord, am your God,
who brought you out of Egypt.
·Open [L Widen] your mouth and I will feed you [Deut. 29:6; 32:10–14].
Special Holidays
23 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the ·people [L sons; children] of Israel: ‘You will announce the Lord’s appointed ·feasts [festivals] as holy ·meetings [convocations]. These are my special ·feasts [festivals].
The Sabbath
3 “‘There are six days for you to work, but the seventh day will be a special day of rest. It is a day for a holy ·meeting [convocation]; you must not do any work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your homes [Ex. 20:8–11; 31:12–17; 35:1–3; Num. 28:9–10; Deut. 5:12–15].
The Passover and Unleavened Bread
4 “‘These are the Lord’s appointed ·feasts [festivals], the holy ·meetings [convocations], which you will announce at the times set for them. 5 The Lord’s Passover is on the fourteenth day of the first month, beginning at twilight. 6 The ·Feast [Festival] of Unleavened Bread begins on the fifteenth day of the same month. You will eat bread made without ·yeast [leaven] for seven days. 7 On the first day of this ·feast [festival] you will have a holy ·meeting [convocation], and you must not do any work. 8 For seven days you will bring an offering made by fire to the Lord. There will be a holy ·meeting [convocation] on the seventh day, and on that day you must not do any regular work [Ex. 12:1–13, 21–27; 23:15; Num. 28:16–25; Deut. 16:1–8].’”
God’s Love in Christ Jesus
31 So what should we say ·about this [in response to these things]? If God is for us, ·no one can defeat us [L who is against us?]. 32 He did not spare his own Son but ·gave him [or delivered him over; C to death] for us all. So with Jesus, ·God will surely [how could he not…?] give us all things. 33 Who can ·accuse [bring an accusation/charge against] the people God has chosen? No one, because God is the One who ·makes them right [declares them righteous; justifies them]. 34 Who can ·say God’s people are guilty [condemn; pronounce punishment]? No one, because Christ Jesus died, but he was also raised from the dead, and now he is on God’s right ·side [hand; Ps. 110:1], ·appealing to God [interceding; pleading] for us. 35 ·Can anything [or Who can] separate us from the love Christ has for us? Can ·troubles [trials; tribulations] or ·problems [distress; hardship] or ·sufferings [persecution] or ·hunger [famine] or ·nakedness [destitution] or danger or ·violent death [L sword]? 36 As it is written in the Scriptures:
“For ·you [your sake] we are ·in danger of death [L being put to death] all the time.
·People think we are worth no more than [L We were considered like] sheep ·to be killed [about to be slaughtered; Ps. 44:22].”
37 But in all these things we are completely victorious through ·God [or Christ; L the One] who showed his love for us. 38 Yes, I am ·sure [convinced] that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor ·ruling spirits [or heavenly rulers; or demons; L rulers; T principalities], nothing ·now [in the present], nothing in the future, no ·powers [or spiritual powers/authorities], 39 ·nothing above us [or no powers in the sky], ·nothing below us [or nor powers in the depths], nor ·anything else in the whole world [any created thing] will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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