Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 116[a]
Thanksgiving to God Who Saves from Death
I
1 I love the Lord, who listened
to my voice in supplication,
2 Who turned an ear to me
on the day I called.
3 I was caught by the cords of death;[b](A)
the snares of Sheol had seized me;
I felt agony and dread.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord,
“O Lord, save my life!”
II
5 Gracious is the Lord and righteous;
yes, our God is merciful.(B)
6 The Lord protects the simple;
I was helpless, but he saved me.
7 Return, my soul, to your rest;
the Lord has been very good to you.(C)
8 For my soul has been freed from death,
my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.(D)
9 I shall walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.[c](E)
Chapter 2
Spies Saved by Rahab. 1 Then Joshua, son of Nun, secretly sent out two spies from Shittim, saying, “Go, reconnoiter the land and Jericho.” When the two reached Jericho, they went into the house of a prostitute named Rahab,(A) where they lodged. 2 But a report was brought to the king of Jericho: “Some men came here last night, Israelites, to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent Rahab the order, “Bring out the men who have come to you and entered your house, for they have come to spy out the entire land.” 4 The woman(B) had taken the two men and hidden them, so she said, “True, the men you speak of came to me, but I did not know where they came from. 5 At dark, when it was time to close the gate, they left, and I do not know where they went. You will have to pursue them quickly to overtake them.” 6 Now, she had led them to the roof, and hidden them among her stalks of flax spread out[a] there. 7 But the pursuers set out along the way to the fords of the Jordan. As soon as they had left to pursue them, the gate was shut.
8 Before the spies lay down, Rahab went up to them on the roof 9 and said:[b] “I know that the Lord has given you the land, that a dread of you has come upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land tremble with fear because of you.(C) 10 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt,(D) and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan, whom you destroyed under the ban. 11 We heard, and our hearts melted within us; everyone is utterly dispirited because of you, since the Lord, your God, is God in heaven above and on earth below.(E) 12 (F)Now then, swear to me by the Lord that, since I am showing kindness to you, you in turn will show kindness to my family.(G) Give me a reliable sign 13 that you will allow my father and mother, brothers and sisters, and my whole family to live, and that you will deliver us from death.” 14 “We pledge our lives for yours,” they answered her. “If you do not betray our mission, we will be faithful in showing kindness to you when the Lord gives us the land.”
17 By faith Abraham, when put to the test, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was ready to offer his only son,(A) 18 of whom it was said, “Through Isaac descendants shall bear your name.”(B) 19 [a]He reasoned that God was able to raise even from the dead,(C) and he received Isaac back as a symbol. 20 By faith regarding things still to come Isaac[b] blessed Jacob and Esau.(D) 21 By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph and “bowed in worship, leaning on the top of his staff.”(E) 22 By faith Joseph, near the end of his life, spoke of the Exodus of the Israelites and gave instructions about his bones.(F)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.