Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Thanksgiving for Escaping Death
116 I love the Lord,
because he ·listens to my prayers for help [L hears/or heard my voice, my prayer of supplication].
2 He ·paid attention [L extends his ear] to me,
so I will ·call to him for help [call; pray] ·as long as I live [L in my days].
3 The ·ropes [cords] of death ·bound [encompass] me,
and the ·fear [hardship; distress] of ·the grave [L Sheol; C the grave or the underworld] ·took hold of [reached; found] me.
I ·was troubled and sad [L found distress and sadness].
4 Then I ·called out [prayed in] the name of the Lord.
I said, “Please, Lord, ·save [rescue] me!”
5 The Lord is ·kind [gracious] and ·does what is right [righteous];
our God is ·merciful [compassionate; Ex. 34:6–7].
6 The Lord ·watches over [keeps; guards] the ·foolish [immature; simpleminded];
when I was ·helpless [brought low], he ·saved me [gave me victory].
7 I said to myself, “·Relax [L Return, my soul/life to your rest],
because the Lord ·takes care of you [treats you well].”
8 Lord, you ·saved [rescued] me from death.
·You stopped my eyes from crying [L …and my eyes from tears];
·you kept me from being defeated [L …my feet from stumbling].
9 So I will walk ·with [before; in the presence of] the Lord
in the land of the living [C as opposed to the grave].
22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house. Bring her out and bring out those who ·are with [belong to] her, because of the ·promise you made [oath you swore] to her.” 23 So the ·two men [young men] went into the house and brought out Rahab, her father, mother, brothers, and all ·those with [who belonged to] her. They put all of her family in a safe place outside the camp of Israel.
24 Then Israel burned the whole city and everything in it, but they did not burn the things made from silver, gold, bronze, and iron. These were ·saved for [L put in the treasury of the house of] the Lord. 25 Joshua saved Rahab the prostitute, her ·family [L father’s household], and all who ·were with [belonged to] her, because Rahab had helped the men he had sent to spy out Jericho [Matt. 1:5; Heb. 11:31; James 2:25]. Rahab still lives among the Israelites today.
26 Then Joshua ·made [or caused them to take] this oath:
“Anyone who tries to rebuild this city of Jericho
will be cursed ·by [or before] the Lord.
The one who lays the foundation of this city
will lose his ·oldest [firstborn] son,
and the one who sets up the gates
will lose his youngest son [1 Kin. 16:34].”
27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and Joshua became famous through all the land.
Leaders Doubt Jesus’ Authority(A)
23 Jesus went to the Temple [courts], and while he was teaching there, the ·leading [T chief] priests and the elders of the people came to him. They said, “What authority do you have to do these things? [L And] Who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus answered, “I also will ask you a question. If you answer me, then I will tell you what authority I have to do these things. 25 Tell me: When John baptized people, did that come from ·God [L heaven; C a reverential Jewish way of referring to God] or just from ·other people [human beings]?”
They argued about Jesus’ question, saying, “If we answer, ‘John’s baptism was from ·God [L heaven],’ Jesus will say, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘It was from ·people [human beings],’ we are afraid of what the crowd will do because they all ·believe [think; hold] that John was a prophet.”
27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Jesus said to them, “Then I won’t tell you what authority I have to do these things.
A Story About Two Sons
28 “Tell me what you think about this: A man had two sons. He went to the ·first [elder] son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in ·my [the] vineyard.’ 29 The son answered, ‘I will not go.’ But later the son ·changed his mind [regretted/thought better of it] and went. 30 Then the father went to the other son and said, ·‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard’ [L the same thing]. The son answered, ‘Yes, sir, I will,’ but he did not go. 31 Which of the two sons ·obeyed [L did the will of] his father?”
·The priests and leaders [L They] answered, “The first son.”
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes ·will enter [are going into] the kingdom of God ·before you do [ahead of you]. 32 [L For] John came to show you the ·right way to live [the way/path of righteousness]. You did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes believed him. Even after seeing this, you still refused to ·change your ways [change your mind; repent] and believe him.
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