Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
BOOK V (Psalms 107-150)
Gratitude for God’s Deliverance
23 Those who go down to the sea in ships,
who work in the great waters,
24 witnessed the works of the Lord—
his awesome deeds in the ocean’s depth.
25 He spoke and stirred up a windstorm
that made its waves surge.
26 The people[a] ascended skyward and descended to the depths,
their courage[b] melting away in their peril.
27 They reeled and staggered like a drunkard,
as all their wisdom became useless.
28 Yet when they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
the Lord brought them out of their distress.
29 He calmed the storm
and its waves[c] quieted down.
30 So they rejoiced that the waves[d] became quiet,
and he led them to their desired haven.
31 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his gracious love
and for his awesome deeds on behalf of mankind.
32 Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people
and praise him in the counsel of the elders.
Job Wishes for the Old Days
29 Then Job continued with his discourse:
2 “I wish I could go back to how things were a few months ago;
when God used to watch over me,
3 when his lamp used to shine over my head,
so I could walk through the dark,
4 like when I was in my prime
and God trusted me with his secrets![a]
5 “The Almighty was still with me back then,
and my children were still around me.
6 I was successful wherever I went,[b]
and even the rocks poured out streams of olive oil for me.”
Job Remembers His Respected Position
7 “Whenever I went out to the city gate,
a seat had been reserved for me in the plaza.[c]
8 The young men would see me and withdraw,
and the aged would rise and stand.
9 Nobles would refrain from speaking,
covering their mouths with their hands.
10 The voices of the commanders-in-chief[d] were hushed,
and their tongues would cling to the roofs of their mouths.”
Job Remembers His Acts of Kindness
11 “When people heard me speak, they blessed me;
when people saw me, they approved me,
12 because I delivered the poor who were crying for help,
along with orphans who had no one to help them.
13 Those who were about to die blessed me,
and I made widows sing for joy.
14 I put on righteousness like clothing;
my just decisions were like a robe and a turban.
15 I served as eyes for the blind
and feet for the lame.
16 I was a father to the needy;
I diligently inquired into the case of those I didn’t know.
17 I broke the fangs of the wicked,
and made him drop the prey.”
Job Remembers His Previous Condition
Paul’s Trip to Macedonia and Greece
20 When the uproar was over, Paul sent for the disciples and encouraged them. Then he said goodbye to them and left to go to Macedonia. 2 He went through those regions and encouraged the people[a] with everything he had to say. Then he went to Greece 3 and stayed there for three months. When he was about to sail for Syria, a plot was initiated against him by the Jews, so he decided to go back through Macedonia. 4 He was accompanied by Sopater (the son of Pyrrhus) from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia. 5 These men went on ahead and were waiting for us in Troas. 6 After the Festival[b] of Unleavened Bread, we sailed from Philippi, and days later we joined them in Troas and stayed there for seven days.
Paul’s Farewell Visit to Troas
7 On the first day of the week, when we had met to break bread, Paul began to address the people.[c] Since he intended to leave the next day, he went on speaking until midnight. 8 Now there were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. 9 A young man named Eutychus, who was sitting in a window, began to sink off into a deep sleep as Paul kept speaking longer and longer. Overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead. 10 But Paul went down, bent over[d] him, took him into his arms, and said, “Stop being alarmed, because he’s still alive.” 11 Then he went back upstairs, broke bread, and ate. He talked with them for a long time, until dawn, and then left. 12 They took the young man away alive and were greatly relieved.
Paul’s Trip to Miletus
13 We proceeded to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we intended to pick up Paul. He had arranged it this way, since he had planned to travel there on foot. 14 When he met us in Assos, we took him on board and went to Mitylene. 15 We sailed from there and on the following day arrived off Chios. The next day, we crossed over to Samos and stayed at Trogyllium.[e] The day after that, we came to Miletus. 16 Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in Asia, as he was in a hurry to get to Jerusalem for the day of Pentecost, if that was possible.
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