Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 139[a]
The All-knowing and Ever-present God
1 For the leader. A psalm of David.
I
Lord, you have probed me, you know me:
2 you know when I sit and stand;[b](A)
you understand my thoughts from afar.
3 You sift through my travels and my rest;
with all my ways you are familiar.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
Lord, you know it all.
5 Behind and before you encircle me
and rest your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
far too lofty for me to reach.(B)
7 Where can I go from your spirit?
From your presence, where can I flee?
8 If I ascend to the heavens, you are there;
if I lie down in Sheol, there you are.(C)
9 If I take the wings of dawn[c]
and dwell beyond the sea,
10 Even there your hand guides me,
your right hand holds me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely darkness shall hide me,
and night shall be my light”[d]—
12 Darkness is not dark for you,
and night shines as the day.
Darkness and light are but one.(D)
II
13 You formed my inmost being;
you knit me in my mother’s womb.(E)
14 I praise you, because I am wonderfully made;
wonderful are your works!
My very self you know.
15 My bones are not hidden from you,
When I was being made in secret,
fashioned in the depths of the earth.[e]
16 Your eyes saw me unformed;
in your book all are written down;(F)
my days were shaped, before one came to be.
III
17 How precious to me are your designs, O God;
how vast the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the sands;
when I complete them, still you are with me.(G)
Call of Jeremiah
4 The word of the Lord came to me:
5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I dedicated you,
a prophet to the nations I appointed you.[a](A)
6 “Ah, Lord God!” I said,
“I do not know how to speak. I am too young!”[b]
7 But the Lord answered me,
Do not say, “I am too young.”
To whomever I send you, you shall go;
whatever I command you, you shall speak.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you—oracle of the Lord.
9 Then the Lord extended his hand and touched my mouth, saying to me,
See, I place my words in your mouth!(B)
10 Today I appoint you
over nations and over kingdoms,
To uproot and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.
21 He said to them again, “I am going away and you will look for me, but you will die in your sin.[a] Where I am going you cannot come.”(A) 22 [b]So the Jews said, “He is not going to kill himself, is he, because he said, ‘Where I am going you cannot come’?” 23 He said to them, “You belong to what is below, I belong to what is above. You belong to this world, but I do not belong to this world.(B) 24 That is why I told you that you will die in your sins. For if you do not believe that I AM,[c] you will die in your sins.”(C) 25 [d]So they said to him, “Who are you?”(D) Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning. 26 I have much to say about you in condemnation. But the one who sent me is true, and what I heard from him I tell the world.”(E) 27 They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father. 28 So Jesus said [to them], “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me.(F) 29 The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what is pleasing to him.” 30 Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.
Jesus and Abraham.[e] 31 Jesus then said to those Jews who believed in him,[f] “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”(G) 33 They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone.[g] How can you say, ‘You will become free’?”(H) 34 Jesus answered them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.(I) 35 A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son[h] always remains.(J) 36 So if a son frees you, then you will truly be free. 37 I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. 38 [i]I tell you what I have seen in the Father’s presence; then do what you have heard from the Father.”
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.