Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
To the Music Director: A Davidic Song
A Prayer for Deliverance
140 [a]Deliver me, Lord, from evil people,
preserve me from violent men,
2 who craft evil plans in their minds,
inciting wars every day.[b]
3 They sharpen their tongues like a serpent;
the venom of vipers is on their lips.
4 Protect me, Lord, from the control of evil people,
from violent men who have planned to trip me.
5 The arrogant have laid a trap for me;
they have spread a net with ropes,
lining it with snares along the way.
6 So I say to the Lord, “You are my God;
listen to my voice
as I plead for mercy, Lord.
7 Lord, my Lord, my strong deliverer,
you have protected my head in the time[c] of battle.
8 Never grant, Lord, the desires of the wicked;
never condone their plans
so they cannot exalt themselves.
9 May those who surround me discover
that the trouble they talk about falls on their own head!
10 May burning coals fall on them;
may they be cast into fire,
and into miry pits, never to rise again.
11 Let not the slanderer[d] become established in the land.
May evil quickly hunt down the violent man.
12 I know that the Lord will act on behalf of the tormented,
providing justice for the needy.
13 Surely the righteous will give thanks to your name,
while the upright live in your presence.
The Servant Relates His Adventures
34 “I’m Abraham’s servant,” he said. 35 “The Lord has greatly blessed my master, so that he has become wealthy. He has provided him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, camels and donkeys. 36 My master’s wife Sarah gave birth to my master’s son in her old age, and Abraham[a] has given him everything that belongs to him. 37 My master made me swear this oath: ‘You are not to select a wife for my son from among the daughters of the Canaanites in this land where I live. 38 Instead, you are to go to my father’s household, to my relatives, and choose a wife for my son there.’
39 “So I asked my master, ‘What if the woman won’t come back with me?’
40 “Abraham[b] told me, ‘The Lord, who is with me wherever I go, will send his angel with you to make your journey successful. So you are to choose a wife for my son from my family, from my father’s household. 41 Only then will you be released from fulfilling[c] my oath. However, when you come to my family, if they don’t give her to you, you’ll be released from fulfilling[d] my oath.’
Laban and Bethuel Acquiesce
50 “Since this has come from the Lord,” Laban and Bethuel both replied, “we cannot speak one way or another.[a] 51 So here’s Rebekah—she’s right in front of you. Take her and go, so she can become a wife for your master’s son, just as the Lord has decreed.”
52 When Abraham’s servant heard what they had said, he bowed down to the ground before the Lord. 53 Then the servant brought out some silver and gold items, along with some clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave gifts to her brother and to her mother. 54 He and the men with him ate and drank, and then they spent the night.
The Servant Prepares to Leave
When they got up the next morning, the servant[b] requested, “Send me off to my master.”
55 But her brother and mother said, “Let the young lady stay with us a few days—at least ten—and after that she may go.”
56 “Please don’t delay me,” the servant[c] answered them. “The Lord has made my journey successful. Send me off so I can return to my master.”
57 But they said, “We’ll call the young lady and see what she has to say about this.”[d]
58 So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Do you want to go with this man?”
“I will go,” she replied.
59 So they sent off their sister Rebekah, along with her personal assistant,[e] Abraham’s servant, and his men. 60 As they were leaving, they all blessed Rebekah by[f] saying,
“Our sister, may you become the mother of tens of millions![g]
May your descendants take over
the city gates[h] of those who hate them.”[i]
61 Then Rebekah and her young servant women got up, mounted their camels, and followed Abraham’s servant, who took Rebekah and went on his way.
Isaac Marries Rebekah
62 Later on, as Isaac was returning one evening from Beer-lahai-roi[j] (he had been living in the Negev[k]), 63 Isaac[l] went out walking[m] in a field. He looked up, and all of a sudden there were some camels coming. 64 Rebekah looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she quickly dismounted from her camel 65 and asked the servant, “Who is that man coming in the field to meet us?”
“That’s my master,” the servant told her. So she reached for a veil and covered herself. 66 Then the servant informed Isaac about everything he had done. 67 Later, Isaac brought Rebekah into the tent that had belonged to his mother Sarah and married her. Isaac loved her, and that’s how he was comforted following the loss of[n] his mother.
We Must Obey God’s Commandments
7 Dear friends, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning. This old commandment is the word you have heard. 8 On the other hand, I am writing to you a new commandment that is truly in him and in you. For the darkness is fading away, and the true light is already shining.
9 The person who says that he is in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. 10 The person who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no reason for him to stumble. 11 But the person who hates his brother is in the darkness and lives in the darkness. He does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
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