Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹⁸ Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper that is right for him.” ¹⁹ Out of the ground the Lord God made every animal of the field and every bird of the sky. He brought them to the man to find out what he would call them. And whatever the man called a living thing, that was its name. ²⁰ Adam gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field. But there was no helper found that was right for Adam. ²¹ So the Lord God put the man to sleep as if he were dead. And while he was sleeping, He took one of the bones from his side and closed up the place with flesh. ²² The Lord God made woman from the bone which He had taken from the man. And He brought her to the man. ²³ The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She will be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” ²⁴ For this reason a man will leave his father and his mother, and will be joined to his wife. And they will become one flesh.

God’s Shining-Greatness

8 O Lord, our Lord, how great is Your name in all the earth. You have set Your shining-greatness above the heavens. ² Out of the mouth of children and babies, You have built up strength because of those who hate You, and to quiet those who fight against You.

³ When I look up and think about Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in their place, ⁴ what is man, that You think of him, the son of man that You care for him? ⁵ You made him a little less than the angels and gave him a crown of greatness and honor. ⁶ You made him to rule over the works of Your hands. You put all things under his feet: ⁷ All sheep and cattle, all the wild animals, ⁸ the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and all that pass through the sea. ⁹ O Lord, our Lord, how great is Your name in all the earth!

God Speaks Through His Son

1 Long ago God spoke to our early fathers in many different ways. He spoke through the early preachers. ² But in these last days He has spoken to us through His Son. God gave His Son everything. It was by His Son that God made the world. ³ The Son shines with the shining-greatness of the Father. The Son is as God is in every way. It is the Son Who holds up the whole world by the power of His Word. The Son gave His own life so we could be clean from all sin. After He had done that, He sat down on the right side of God in heaven.

The Son Was Greater Than the Angels

⁴ The Son of God was made greater and better than the angels. God gave Him a greater name than theirs.

Jesus, the Way to Heaven

⁵ God did not make angels to be the leaders of that world to come which we have been speaking about. ⁶ Instead, the Holy Writings say, “What is man that You think of him and the son of man that You should remember him?” ^{(A) 7} “You made him so he took a place that was not as important as the angels for a little while. You gave him the crown of honor and shining-greatness. *You made him the head over everything You have made. ⁸ You have put everything under his feet.” ^(B) There is nothing that does not obey him, but we do not see all things obey him yet. ⁹ But we do see Jesus. For a little while He took a place that was not as important as the angels. But God had loving-favor for everyone. He had Jesus suffer death on a cross for all of us. Then, because of Christ’s death on a cross, God gave Him the crown of honor and shining-greatness.

¹⁰ God made all things. He made all things for Himself. It was right for God to make Jesus a perfect Leader by having Him suffer for men’s sins. In this way, He is bringing many men to share His shining-greatness. ¹¹ Jesus makes men holy. He takes away their sins. Both Jesus and the ones being made holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them His brothers. ¹² Jesus is saying to His Father, “I will tell My brothers Your name. I will sing songs of thanks for You among the people.” ^(C)

² The proud religious law-keepers came to Him. They tried to trap Him and asked, “Does the Law say a man can divorce his wife?” ³ He said to them, “What did the Law of Moses say?” ⁴ They said, “Moses allowed a man to divorce his wife, if he put it in writing and gave it to her.” ⁵ Jesus said to them, “Because of your hard hearts, Moses gave you this Law. ⁶ From the beginning of the world, God made them man and woman. ⁷ Because of this, a man is to leave his father and mother and is to live with his wife. ⁸ The two will become one. So they are no longer two, but one. ⁹ Let no man divide what God has put together.”

¹⁰ In the house the followers asked Jesus about this again. ¹¹ He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another is not faithful to her and is guilty of a sex sin. ¹² If a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she is not faithful to her husband and is guilty of a sex sin.”

Jesus Gives Thanks for Little Children ^(A)

¹³ They brought little children to Jesus that He might put His hand on them. The followers spoke sharp words to those who brought them. ¹⁴ Jesus saw this and was angry with the followers. He said, “Let the little children come to Me. Do not stop them. The holy nation of God is made up of ones like these. ¹⁵ For sure, I tell you, whoever does not receive the holy nation of God as a little child does not go into it.” ¹⁶ He took the children in His arms. He put His hands on them and prayed that good would come to them.