Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

^8 (A)So the word of the Lord came to him: ⁹ Arise, go to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow there to feed you. ¹⁰ He arose and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the entrance of the city, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called out to her, “Please bring me a small cupful of water to drink.” ¹¹ She left to get it, and he called out after her, “Please bring along a crust of bread.” ¹² She said, “As the Lord, your God, lives, I have nothing baked; there is only a handful of flour in my jar and a little oil in my jug. Just now I was collecting a few sticks, to go in and prepare something for myself and my son; when we have eaten it, we shall die.” ¹³ Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid. Go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake and bring it to me. Afterwards you can prepare something for yourself and your son. ¹⁴ For the Lord, the God of Israel, says: The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, until the day when the Lord sends rain upon the earth.” ¹⁵ She left and did as Elijah had said. She had enough to eat for a long time—he and she and her household. ¹⁶ The jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord spoken through Elijah.

Psalm 146^[a]

Trust in God the Creator and Redeemer

¹ Hallelujah!

I

II

²⁴ For Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands, a copy of the true one, but heaven itself, that he might now appear before God on our behalf.^{(A) 25} Not that he might offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters each year into the sanctuary with blood that is not his own; ²⁶ if that were so, he would have had to suffer repeatedly from the foundation of the world. But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages^[a] to take away sin by his sacrifice.^{(B) 27} Just as it is appointed that human beings die once, and after this the judgment,^{(C) 28} so also Christ, offered once to take away the sins of many,^[b] will appear a second time, not to take away sin but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him.^(D)

³⁸ In the course of his teaching he said,^(A) “Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes and accept greetings in the marketplaces, ³⁹ seats of honor in synagogues, and places of honor at banquets. ⁴⁰ They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext, recite lengthy prayers. They will receive a very severe condemnation.”

The Poor Widow’s Contribution.^{[a] 41} He sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury.^(B) Many rich people put in large sums. ⁴² A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. ⁴³ Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, “Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. ⁴⁴ For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.”