Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
23 A man’s steps are established by the Lord,
and the Lord[a] delights in his way.
24 Though he stumbles,
he will not fall down flat,
for the Lord will hold up his hand.
25 I once was young and now I am old,
but I have not seen a righteous person forsaken
or his descendants begging for bread.
26 Every day he is generous, lending freely,
and his descendants are blessed.
27 Depart from evil, and do good,
and you will live in the land[b] forever.
28 Indeed, the Lord loves justice,
and he will not abandon his godly ones.
They are kept safe forever,
but the lawless will be chased away,[c]
and the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.
29 The righteous will inherit the land,
and they will dwell in it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous one produces wisdom;
his tongue speaks justice.
31 The instruction[d] of his God is in his heart;
his steps will not slip.
32 The wicked stalks the righteous person, seeking to kill him,
33 but the Lord will not let him fall into his hands.
He will not be condemned when he is put on trial.
34 Wait on the Lord,
Keep faithful to his way,
and he will exalt you to possess the land.
You will see the wicked cut off.
35 I once observed a wicked and oppressive person,
flourishing like a green tree in native soil.
36 But then he[e] passed away;[f]
in fact, he simply was not there.
When I looked for him,
he could not be found.
37 Observe the blameless!
Take note of the upright!
Indeed, the future of that man is peace.
38 Sinners will be destroyed together;
the future of the wicked will be cut off.
39 But deliverance for the righteous one comes from the Lord;
he is their strength in times of distress.
40 The Lord helps and delivers them;
he will deliver them from the wicked,
and he will save them because they have sought refuge in him.
Samuel’s Farewell
12 Then Samuel told all Israel, “Take note! I’ve listened to you, to everything you have told me, and I’ve appointed a king over you. 2 Now here is the king walking before you,[a] while I’m old and gray, and my sons are with you. I’ve walked before you[b] from my youth until this day. 3 Here I am. Testify against me in the Lord’s presence and before his anointed. Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken? Who have I cheated? Who have I oppressed? Who bribed me to look the other way?[c] I’ll restore it to you.”
4 They said, “You haven’t cheated us or oppressed us, and you haven’t taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
5 He told them, “Today the Lord is testifying, along with his anointed, that you haven’t found any bribes in my possession.”
They said, “He’s a witness.”
6 Then Samuel told the people, “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron and who brought your ancestors up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now stand up and I’ll pass judgment on you in light of the Lord’s righteous acts that he did for you and your ancestors. 8 After Jacob went to Egypt, and your ancestors cried out to the Lord, he sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place. 9 But they forgot the Lord their God, so he handed them over to the domination of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into domination by the Philistines and by the king of Moab, and Israel fought against them.
10 “Then they cried out to the Lord: ‘We have sinned because we have forsaken the Lord and have served[d] the Baals[e] and the Ashtaroth.[f] Now deliver us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve[g] you.’ 11 Then the Lord sent Jerubbaal,[h] Barak,[i] Jephthah, and Samuel and he delivered you from the hand of your enemies on every side, so that you lived securely. 12 But when you saw that Nahash, king of the Ammonites, was coming to fight you, you told me, ‘No, let a king rule over us instead,’ even though the Lord your God was your king.
13 “Now, here is the king you have chosen, the one whom you asked for. See, the Lord has appointed a king over you. 14 If you fear the Lord, serve him, obey him, and don’t rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and the king who rules over you will truly follow the Lord your God. 15 But if you don’t obey the Lord and rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the Lord will turn against you as he did against your ancestors.[j]
16 “Now then, stand up and see this great thing that the Lord is about to do before your eyes. 17 Is it not the wheat harvest today? I’ll call upon the Lord, and he will send thunder and rain. Then you will know and understand that you have done a great evil in the sight of the Lord by asking for a king for yourselves.” 18 Samuel called upon the Lord that same day, and the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.
19 Then all the people told Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants, so that we don’t die, because we made all our sins worse by asking for a king for ourselves.”
20 Samuel told all the people, “Don’t be afraid. You have done all this evil. Yet don’t turn aside from following the Lord, but serve[k] the Lord with all your heart. 21 Don’t turn aside after useless things[l] that cannot profit or deliver because they’re useless. 22 Indeed, the Lord won’t abandon His people for the sake of His great name, for the Lord desires to make you a people for himself. 23 Now as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you. I’ll also instruct you in the way that is good and right. 24 Only, fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. Indeed, consider what great things he has done for you. 25 But if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away.”
Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet
13 Now before the Passover Festival, Jesus realized that his hour had come to leave this world and return to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.[a] 2 By supper time, the Devil had already put it into the heart of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray him. 3 Because Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into his control,[b] that he had come from God, and that he was returning to God, 4 therefore he got up from the table, removed his outer robe, and took a towel and fastened it around his waist. 5 Then he poured some water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel that was tied around his waist.
6 Then he came to Simon Peter, who asked him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus answered him, “You don’t realize now what I’m doing, but later on you’ll understand.”
8 Peter told him, “You must never wash my feet!”
Jesus answered him, “Unless I wash you, you cannot be involved with me.”
9 Simon Peter told him, “Lord, not just my feet, but my hands and my head as well!”
10 Jesus told him, “Whoever has bathed is entirely clean. He doesn’t need to wash himself further, except for his feet. And you men[c] are clean, though not all of you.” 11 For he knew who was going to betray him. That’s why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
12 When Jesus[d] had washed their feet and put on his outer robe, he sat down again and told them, “Do you realize what I’ve done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right[e] because that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you must also wash one another’s feet. 15 I’ve set an example for you, so that you may do as I have done to you. 16 Truly, I tell all of you[f] emphatically, a servant isn’t greater than his master, and a messenger isn’t greater than the one who sent him. 17 If you understand these things, how blessed you are if you put them into practice!
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