Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 145[a]
The Greatness and Goodness of God
1 Praise. Of David.
I will extol you, my God and king;
I will bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you;
I will praise your name forever and ever.(A)
3 Great is the Lord and worthy of much praise,(B)
whose grandeur is beyond understanding.
4 One generation praises your deeds to the next
and proclaims your mighty works.(C)
5 They speak of the splendor of your majestic glory,
tell of your wonderful deeds.(D)
6 They speak of the power of your awesome acts
and recount your great deeds.(E)
7 They celebrate your abounding goodness
and joyfully sing of your justice.
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.(F)
9 The Lord is good to all,
compassionate toward all your works.(G)
10 All your works give you thanks, Lord
and your faithful bless you.(H)
11 They speak of the glory of your reign
and tell of your mighty works,
12 Making known to the sons of men your mighty acts,
the majestic glory of your rule.
13 Your reign is a reign for all ages,
your dominion for all generations.(I)
The Lord is trustworthy in all his words,
and loving in all his works.
14 The Lord supports all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.(J)
15 The eyes of all look hopefully to you;
you give them their food in due season.(K)
16 You open wide your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is just in all his ways,
merciful in all his works.(L)
18 The Lord is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.(M)
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.(N)
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he destroys.(O)
21 My mouth will speak the praises of the Lord;
all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.
Chapter 4
The Beauty of the Woman
1 M(A), (B) How beautiful you are, my friend,
how beautiful you are!
Your eyes are doves
behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
streaming down Mount Gilead.[a]
2 Your teeth[b] are like a flock of ewes to be shorn,
that come up from the washing,
All of them big with twins,
none of them barren.
3 Like a scarlet strand, your lips,
and your mouth—lovely!
Like pomegranate[c] halves, your cheeks
behind your veil.
4 (C)Like a tower of David, your neck,
built in courses,
A thousand shields hanging upon it,
all the armor of warriors.[d]
5 (D)Your breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle
feeding among the lilies.
6 (E)Until the day grows cool
and the shadows flee,
I shall go to the mountain of myrrh,
to the hill of frankincense.[e]
7 You are beautiful in every way, my friend,
there is no flaw in you![f]
8 With me from Lebanon, my bride!
With me from Lebanon, come!
Descend from the peak of Amana,
from the peak of Senir and Hermon,[g]
From the lairs of lions,
from the leopards’ heights.
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving. 4 I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge, 6 as the testimony[a] to Christ was confirmed among you, 7 so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.(A) 8 He will keep you firm to the end, irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus [Christ].(B) 9 God is faithful, and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.(C)
II. Disorders in the Corinthian Community
A. Divisions in the Church[b]
Groups and Slogans. 10 I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose.(D) 11 For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers, by Chloe’s people, that there are rivalries among you. 12 I mean that each of you is saying, “I belong to[c] Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.”(E) 13 [d]Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I give thanks [to God] that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,(F) 15 so that no one can say you were baptized in my name. 16 (I baptized the household of Stephanas also; beyond that I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.)(G) 17 [e]For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with the wisdom of human eloquence,[f] so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning.(H)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.