Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Praise to Jehovah the abundant Helper.

15 At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. ² And this is the manner of the release: every creditor shall release that which he hath lent unto his neighbor; he shall not exact it of his neighbor and his brother; because Jehovah’s release hath been proclaimed. ³ Of a foreigner thou mayest exact it: but whatsoever of thine is with thy brother thy hand shall ^[a]release. ⁴ Howbeit there shall be no poor with thee (for Jehovah will surely bless thee in the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to possess it), ⁵ if only thou diligently hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to observe to do all this commandment which I command thee this day. ⁶ For Jehovah thy God will bless thee, as he promised thee: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow; and thou shalt rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over thee.

⁷ If there be with thee a poor man, one of thy brethren, within any of thy gates in thy land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thy hand from thy poor brother; ⁸ but thou shalt surely open thy hand unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth. ⁹ Beware that there be not a base thought in thy heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou give him nought; and he cry unto Jehovah against thee, and it be sin unto thee. ¹⁰ Thou shalt surely give him, and thy heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him; because that for this thing Jehovah thy God will bless thee in all thy work, and in all that thou puttest thy hand unto. ¹¹ For the poor will never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt surely open thy hand unto thy brother, to thy needy, and to thy poor, in thy land.

¹⁵ And for this cause he is the mediator of a new ^[a]covenant, that a death having taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first ^[b]covenant, they that have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. ¹⁶ For where a ^[c]testament is, there must of necessity ^[d]be the death of him that made it. ¹⁷ For a ^[e]testament is of force ^[f]where there hath been death: ^[g]for it doth never avail while he that made it liveth. ¹⁸ Wherefore even the first covenant hath not been dedicated without blood. ¹⁹ For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses unto all the people according to the law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, ²⁰ saying, ^[h]This is the blood of the ^[i]covenant which God commanded to you-ward. ²¹ Moreover the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry he sprinkled in like manner with the blood. ²² And according to the law, I may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and apart from shedding of blood there is no remission.

²³ It was necessary therefore that the copies of the things in the heavens should be cleansed with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. ²⁴ For Christ entered not into a holy place made with hands, like in pattern to the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear before the face of God for us: