Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Prayer for Safekeeping from Wickedness
A Psalm of David.
141 Lord, I cry out to You;
Make haste to me!
Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You.
2 Let my prayer be set before You (A)as incense,
(B)The lifting up of my hands as (C)the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard, O Lord, over my (D)mouth;
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not incline my heart to any evil thing,
To practice wicked works
With men who work iniquity;
(E)And do not let me eat of their delicacies.
5 (F)Let the righteous strike me;
It shall be a kindness.
And let him rebuke me;
It shall be as excellent oil;
Let my head not refuse it.
For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked.
6 Their judges are overthrown by the sides of the [a]cliff,
And they hear my words, for they are sweet.
7 Our bones are scattered at the mouth of the grave,
As when one plows and breaks up the earth.
God Will Restore Israel
14 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 15 “Son of man, your brethren, your relatives, your countrymen, and all the house of Israel in its entirety, are those about whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘Get far away from the Lord; this land has been given to us as a possession.’ 16 Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Although I have cast them far off among the Gentiles, and although I have scattered them among the countries, (A)yet I shall be a little [a]sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.” ’ 17 Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: (B)“I will gather you from the peoples, assemble you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.” ’ 18 And they will go there, and they will take away all its (C)detestable things and all its abominations from there. 19 Then (D)I will give them one heart, and I will put (E)a new spirit within [b]them, and take (F)the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, 20 (G)that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; (H)and they shall be My people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for those whose hearts follow the desire for their detestable things and their abominations, (I)I will recompense their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God.
22 So the cherubim (J)lifted up their wings, with the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was high above them. 23 And (K)the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and stood (L)on the mountain, (M)which is on the east side of the city.
24 Then (N)the Spirit took me up and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into [c]Chaldea, to those in captivity. And the vision that I had seen went up from me. 25 So I spoke to those in captivity of all the things the Lord had shown me.
Do Not Grieve the Spirit
25 Therefore, putting away lying, (A)“Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,” for (B)we are members of one another. 26 (C)“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, 27 (D)nor give [a]place to the devil. 28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather (E)let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something (F)to give him who has need. 29 (G)Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but (H)what is good for necessary [b]edification, (I)that it may impart grace to the hearers. 30 And (J)do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 (K)Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, [c]clamor, and (L)evil speaking be put away from you, (M)with all malice. 32 And (N)be kind to one another, tenderhearted, (O)forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Walk in Love
5 Therefore(P) be imitators of God as dear (Q)children. 2 And (R)walk in love, (S)as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God (T)for a sweet-smelling aroma.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.