Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Prayer with Confidence in Final Salvation
A Prayer of David.
17 Hear a just cause, O Lord,
Attend to my cry;
Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.
2 Let my vindication come from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright.
3 You have tested my heart;
You have visited me in the night;
(A)You have [a]tried me and have found [b]nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth shall not (B)transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men,
By the word of Your lips,
I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.
5 (C)Uphold my steps in Your paths,
That my footsteps may not slip.
6 (D)I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
7 Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand,
O You who [c]save those who trust in You
From those who rise up against them.
8 Keep me as the [d]apple of Your eye;
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
9 From the wicked who oppress me,
From my deadly enemies who surround me.
Marriage Duty of the Surviving Brother
5 (A)“If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the widow of the dead man shall not be married to a stranger outside the family; her husband’s brother shall go in to her, take her as his wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her. 6 And it shall be that the firstborn son which she bears (B)will succeed to the name of his dead brother, that (C)his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 But if the man does not want to take his brother’s wife, then let his brother’s wife go up to the (D)gate to the elders, and say, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to raise up a name to his brother in Israel; he will not perform the duty of my husband’s brother.’ 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him. But if he stands firm and says, (E)‘I do not want to take her,’ 9 then his brother’s wife shall come to him in the presence of the elders, (F)remove his sandal from his foot, spit in his face, and answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who will not (G)build up his brother’s house.’ 10 And his name shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal removed.’
Paul’s Roman Citizenship
22 And they listened to him until this word, and then they raised their voices and said, (A)“Away with such a fellow from the earth, for (B)he is not fit to live!” 23 Then, as they cried out and [a]tore off their clothes and threw dust into the air, 24 the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks, and said that he should be examined under scourging, so that he might know why they shouted so against him. 25 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who stood by, (C)“Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman, and uncondemned?”
26 When the centurion heard that, he went and told the commander, saying, “Take care what you do, for this man is a Roman.”
27 Then the commander came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?”
He said, “Yes.”
28 The commander answered, “With a large sum I obtained this citizenship.”
And Paul said, “But I was born a citizen.”
29 Then immediately those who were about to examine him withdrew from him; and the commander was also afraid after he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.
The Sanhedrin Divided
30 The next day, because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews, he released him from his bonds, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down and set him before them.
The Jerusalem Jews Plot to Kill Paul
23 Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, “Men and brethren, (D)I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.” 2 And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him (E)to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and (F)do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?”
4 And those who stood by said, “Do you revile God’s high priest?”
5 Then Paul said, (G)“I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, (H)‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’ ”
6 But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Men and brethren, (I)I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; (J)concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!”
7 And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees; and the assembly was divided. 8 (K)For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection—and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both. 9 Then there arose a loud outcry. And the scribes of the Pharisees’ party arose and protested, saying, (L)“We find no evil in this man; [b]but (M)if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, (N)let us not fight against God.”
10 Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks.
The Plot Against Paul
11 But (O)the following night the Lord stood by him and said, [c]“Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in (P)Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at (Q)Rome.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.