Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Lord, an Abundant Helper.
146 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!
(A)Praise the Lord, my soul!
2 I will praise the Lord (B)while I live;
I will (C)sing praises to my God while I [c]have my being.
3 (D)Do not trust in noblemen,
In [d]mortal (E)man, in whom there is (F)no salvation.
4 His (G)spirit departs, he (H)returns to [e]the earth;
On that very day his (I)plans perish.
5 (J)Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
Whose (K)hope is in the Lord his God,
6 Who (L)made heaven and earth,
The (M)sea and everything that is in them;
Who (N)keeps [f]faith forever;
7 Who (O)executes justice for the oppressed;
Who (P)gives food to the hungry.
The Lord (Q)frees the prisoners.
8 The Lord (R)opens the eyes of those who are blind;
The Lord (S)raises up those who are bowed down;
The Lord (T)loves the righteous.
9 The Lord (U)watches over strangers;
He [g](V)supports the fatherless and the widow,
But He [h]thwarts (W)the way of the wicked.
10 The Lord will (X)reign forever,
Your God, Zion, to all generations.
[i]Praise [j]the Lord!
11 The rich person is (A)wise in his own eyes,
But the poor who has understanding [a]sees through him.
12 When the (B)righteous triumph, there is great glory,
But (C)when the wicked rise, people [b]hide themselves.
13 One who (D)conceals his wrongdoings will not prosper,
But one who (E)confesses and abandons them will find compassion.
14 How blessed is the person who (F)fears always,
But one who (G)hardens his heart will fall into disaster.
15 Like a (H)roaring lion and a rushing bear
Is a (I)wicked ruler over a poor people.
16 A (J)leader who is a great oppressor lacks understanding,
But a person who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.
17 A person who is (K)burdened with the guilt of human blood
Will [c]be a fugitive until death; no one is to support him!
18 One who walks blamelessly will receive help,
But one who is [d](L)crooked will fall all at once.
19 (M)One who works his land will (N)have plenty of food,
But one who follows empty pursuits will have plenty of poverty.
20 A (O)faithful person will abound with blessings,
But one who (P)hurries to be rich will not go unpunished.
21 To [e](Q)show partiality is not good,
(R)Because for a piece of bread a man will do wrong.
22 A person with an (S)evil eye (T)hurries after wealth
And does not know that poverty will come upon him.
23 One who (U)rebukes a person will afterward find more favor
Than one who (V)flatters with the tongue.
24 He who (W)robs his father or his mother
And says, “There is no wrong done,”
Is the (X)companion of a person who destroys.
25 An [f]arrogant person (Y)stirs up strife,
But one who (Z)trusts in the Lord (AA)will [g]prosper.
26 One who (AB)trusts in his own heart is a fool,
But one who walks wisely will flee to safety.
27 One who (AC)gives to the poor will never lack anything,
But one who [h]shuts his eyes will have many curses.
28 When the wicked rise, people hide themselves;
But when they perish, the righteous increase.
43 And they were all amazed at the [a](A)greatness of God.
(B)But while everyone was astonished at all that He was doing, He said to His disciples, 44 “As for you, let these words sink into your ears: (C)for the Son of Man is going to be [b]handed over to men.” 45 But (D)they [c]did not understand this statement, and it was concealed from them so that they would not comprehend it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this statement.
The Test of Greatness
46 (E)Now an argument [d]started among them as to which of them might be the greatest. 47 But Jesus, (F)knowing [e]what they were thinking in their hearts, took a child and had him stand by His side, 48 and He said to them, “(G)Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; (H)for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.”
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