Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹⁸ Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to^[a] him.” ¹⁹ Out of the ground Yahweh God formed every animal of the field, and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. Whatever the man called every living creature became its name. ²⁰ The man gave names to all livestock, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a helper comparable to him. ²¹ Yahweh God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. As the man slept, he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. ²² Yahweh God made a woman from the rib which he had taken from the man, and 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 Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will join with his wife, and they will be one flesh.

For the Chief Musician; on an instrument of Gath. A Psalm by David.

1 God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, ² has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. ³ His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, ⁴ having become as much better than the angels as the more excellent name he has inherited is better than theirs.

⁵ For he didn’t subject the world to come, of which we speak, to angels. ⁶ But one has somewhere testified, saying,

For in that he subjected all things to him, he left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we don’t yet see all things subjected to him. ⁹ But we see him who has been made a little lower than the angels, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that by the grace of God he should taste of death for everyone.

¹⁰ For it became him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in bringing many children to glory, to make the author of their salvation perfect through sufferings. ¹¹ For both he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brothers,^{[b] 12} saying,

² Pharisees came to him testing him, and asked him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”

³ He answered, “What did Moses command you?”

⁴ They said, “Moses allowed a certificate of divorce to be written, and to divorce her.”

⁵ But Jesus said to them, “For your hardness of heart, he wrote you this commandment. ⁶ But from the beginning of the creation, God made them male and female.^{(A) 7} For this cause a man will leave his father and mother, and will join to his wife, ⁸ and the two will become one flesh,^(B) so that they are no longer two, but one flesh. ⁹ What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

¹⁰ In the house, his disciples asked him again about the same matter. ¹¹ He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. ¹² If a woman herself divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

¹³ They were bringing to him little children, that he should touch them, but the disciples rebuked those who were bringing them. ¹⁴ But when Jesus saw it, he was moved with indignation and said to them, “Allow the little children to come to me! Don’t forbid them, for God’s Kingdom belongs to such as these. ¹⁵ Most certainly I tell you, whoever will not receive God’s Kingdom like a little child, he will in no way enter into it.” ¹⁶ He took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.