Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
7 The ·teachings [laws; instructions] of the Lord are perfect;
they ·give new strength [T revive the soul].
The ·rules [testimonies] of the Lord ·can be trusted [are faithful/sure];
they make ·plain [simpleminded; immature] people wise [Prov. 1:4].
8 The orders of the Lord are ·right [virtuous];
·they make people happy [L rejoicing the heart].
The commands of the Lord are pure;
·they light up the way [L giving light to the eyes].
9 ·Respect [Fear] for the Lord [Prov. 1:7] is ·good [pure];
it will ·last [endure] forever.
The judgments of the Lord are true;
they are ·completely [altogether] ·right [righteous].
10 They are ·worth [desired; coveted] more than gold,
even ·the purest [fine] gold.
They are sweeter than honey,
even the ·finest honey [L droppings of the honeycomb].
11 By them your servant is warned.
·Keeping [Observing] them brings great reward.
12 ·People cannot [L Who can…?] ·see [detect; L understand] their own ·mistakes [errors].
·Forgive [Clear] me for my ·secret [hidden] sins.
13 ·Keep me [L Restrain your servant] from ·the sins of pride [proud thoughts];
don’t let them ·rule [dominate] me.
Then I can be pure
and innocent of the greatest of sins.
14 ·I hope my ·words [L The words of my mouth] and ·thoughts [meditations of my heart] ·please [L be before] you.
Lord, you are my Rock, ·the one who saves me [L and my redeemer].
Moses Talks to the Israelites
1 ·This is the message [L These are the words] Moses gave to all the people of Israel in the ·desert [wilderness] east of the Jordan River. They were in the ·desert [wilderness] area near Suph, between Paran and the towns of Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab.
2 (The trip from Mount Sinai to Kadesh Barnea on the Mount Seir road takes eleven days.) 3 ·Forty years after the Israelites had left Egypt [L In the fortieth year], on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses told the ·people [L sons; T children] of Israel everything the Lord had commanded him to tell them. 4 This was after the Lord had ·defeated [L struck] Sihon and Og. Sihon was king of the Amorite people and lived in Heshbon. Og was king of Bashan and lived in Ashteroth and Edrei [Num. 21:21–35].
5 Now ·the Israelites [L they] were ·east of [L beyond] the Jordan River in the land of Moab, and there Moses began to ·explain [make clear] ·what God had commanded [L this law/instruction]. He said:
6 The Lord our God spoke to us at ·Mount Sinai [L Horeb; C another name for Sinai] and said, “You have stayed long enough at this mountain. 7 ·Get ready [L Turn face], and go to the mountain country of the Amorites, and to all the places around there—the ·Jordan Valley [L Arabah], the mountains, the ·western hills [L Shephelah], the ·southern area [L Negev], the seacoast, the land of Canaan, and Lebanon. Go as far as the great river, the Euphrates [Gen. 15:18–21]. 8 See, I have given you this land, so go in and take it for yourselves. The Lord ·promised it [swore] to your ancestors—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their descendants [Gen. 12:1–3; 15:17–20].”
Moses Appoints Leaders
9 At that time I said, “I am not able to ·take care of you [L lift you up; bear you] by myself. 10 The Lord your God has made you grow in number so that there are as many of you as there are stars in the ·sky [heavens; Gen. 15:5; 22:17; 26:4; Ex. 32:13]. 11 I pray that the Lord, the God of your ·ancestors [fathers], will give you a thousand times more people and ·do all the wonderful things [L bless you as] he promised. 12 ·But I cannot take care of [L How can I lift up/bear…?] your problems, your troubles, and your arguments by myself. 13 So choose some men from each tribe—wise men who have ·understanding [discernment] and experience—and I will make them leaders over you.”
14 And you said, “That’s a good thing to do.”
15 So I took the wise and experienced leaders of your tribes, and I made them your leaders. I appointed commanders over a thousand people, over a hundred people, over fifty people, and over ten people and made them officers over your tribes. 16 Then I told your ·leaders [judges], “Listen to the arguments between your people. Judge fairly between two ·Israelites [relatives; L brothers] or between an ·Israelite [L relative; brother] and a ·foreigner [resident alien]. 17 When you judge, ·be fair to everyone [do not show favoritism]; don’t act as if one person is more important than another, and don’t be ·afraid of [intimidated by] anyone, because your decision comes from God. Bring the hard cases to me, and I will judge them.” 18 At that time I told you everything you must do [Ex. 18:13–23].
20 Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon [C major cities on the Phoenician coast north of Israel], but the people of those cities all ·came in a group [or agreed together to come] to him. After convincing Blastus, the ·king’s personal servant [chamberlain; L one in charge of his bedroom], to ·be on their side [or support their position], they asked Herod for peace, because their country got its food from his country.
21 On ·a chosen [an appointed] day Herod put on his royal robes, sat on his ·throne [judgment seat; rostrum; platform], and made a speech to the people. 22 They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not a human!” 23 Because Herod did not give the glory to God, an angel of the Lord immediately ·caused him to become sick [L struck him down], and he was ·eaten [or infected] by worms [C perhaps intestinal roundworms] and died.
24 God’s ·message [word] continued to spread and reach people.
25 After Barnabas and Saul finished their ·task in Jerusalem [mission], they returned to Antioch,[a] taking John [L also called] Mark with them.
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