Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 116[a]
Thanksgiving to God for Help Received
1 I love the Lord because he has heard my voice
and listened to my cry for mercy,[b]
2 because he has inclined his ear to me
on the day when I called out to him.[c]
3 The bonds of death[d] encompassed me;
the snares of the netherworld held me tightly.
I was seized by distress and sorrow.
4 Then I cried out in the name[e] of the Lord:
“O Lord, I entreat you to preserve my life.”
5 Gracious is the Lord and righteous;
our God is merciful.
6 The Lord watches over his little ones;[f]
when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Be at peace once again, O my soul,
for the Lord has shown mercy to you.
8 He has delivered my soul[g] from death,
my eyes from tears,
and my feet from stumbling.
9 I will walk in the presence of the Lord
in the land of the living.[h]
22 Rahab’s Family Spared. But Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the countryside, “Go to the harlot’s house and bring her out to me, her and everyone who is with her, just as you promised her that you would do.” 23 So the young men who had done the spying brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and everyone whom she had with her. They brought out the entire family and left them outside of the camp of Israel. 24 They then burned the entire city with everything that was in it. Only the silver and gold, and the objects of bronze and iron were put into the treasury in the house of the Lord. 25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, along with her father’s household, and all that she owned because she had hid the spies whom Joshua had sent. She lives among the Israelites up to the present.
26 Joshua then said, “May the man who attempts to rebuild this city, Jericho, be cursed by the Lord. May he lose his firstborn[a] if he lays its foundation, may he lose his youngest if he sets up its gates.” 27 The Lord was with Joshua, and his reputation became known throughout the land.
23 The Authority of Jesus Questioned.[a] When he entered the temple and began to teach, the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him and asked, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?” 24 Jesus said to them in reply, “I will also ask you one question. If you give me an answer, then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 Where did John’s baptism originate? From heaven or from men?”
They argued among themselves, “If we say: ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we are afraid of the people, for they all regard John as a prophet.”
27 Therefore, they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Then neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.[b]
28 The Parable of the Two Sons.[c]“What is your opinion about this? A man had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘My son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 He answered, ‘I will not,’ but later he had a change of heart and went. 30 The father then gave the same instruction to the second son, who answered, ‘Of course I will,’ but then did not go. 31 Which of the two complied with his father’s instruction?” They responded, “The first.”
Then Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32 For John came to show you the path of righteousness, but you did not believe him, whereas the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. Yet even after you realized that, you still refused to change your minds and believe in him.
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