Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
114 The people of Israel escaped from Egypt.
Yes, Jacob’s descendants left that foreign country.
2 Then Judah became God’s special people,
and Israel became his kingdom.
3 The Red Sea saw this and ran away.
The Jordan River turned and ran.
4 The mountains danced like rams.
The hills danced like lambs.
5 Red Sea, why did you run away?
Jordan River, why did you turn and run away?
6 Mountains, why did you dance like rams?
Hills, why did you dance like lambs?
7 The earth shook in front of the Lord,
the God of Jacob.
8 He is the one who caused water to flow from a rock.
He made a spring of water flow from that hard rock.
Jonah’s Prayer
2 While Jonah was in the stomach of the fish, he prayed to the Lord his God. He said,
2 “I was in very bad trouble.
I called to the Lord for help,
and he answered me.
I was deep in the grave.
I cried to you,
and you heard my voice.
3 “You threw me into the sea.
Your powerful waves splashed over me.
I went down, down into the deep sea.
The water was all around me.
4 Then I thought, ‘Now I must go where you cannot see me,’
but I continued looking to your holy Temple for help.
5 “The seawater closed over me.
The water covered my mouth,
and I could not breathe.[a]
I went down, down into the deep sea.
Seaweed wrapped around my head.
6 I was at the bottom of the sea,
the place where the mountains begin.
I thought I was locked in this prison forever,
but the Lord my God took me out of my grave.
God, you gave me life again!
7 “My soul gave up all hope,
but then I remembered the Lord.
I prayed to you,
and you heard my prayers in your holy Temple.
8 “Some people worship useless idols,
but those statues never help them.[b]
9 I will give sacrifices to you,
and I will praise and thank you.
I will make special promises to you,
and I will do what I promise.”
Salvation only comes from the Lord!
10 Then the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out of its stomach onto the dry land.
Some People Doubt Jesus’ Authority(A)
38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law answered Jesus. They said, “Teacher, we want to see you do a miracle as a sign from God.”
39 Jesus answered, “Evil and sinful people are the ones who want to see a miracle as a sign. But no miracle will be done to prove anything to them. The only sign will be the miracle that happened to the prophet Jonah.[a] 40 Jonah was in the stomach of the big fish for three days and three nights. In the same way, the Son of Man will be in the grave three days and three nights. 41 On the judgment day, you people who live now will be compared with the people from Nineveh,[b] and they will be witnesses who show how guilty you are. Why do I say this? Because when Jonah preached to those people, they changed their lives. And you are listening to someone greater than Jonah, but you refuse to change!
42 “On the judgment day, you people who live now will also be compared with the queen of the South,[c] and she will be a witness who shows how guilty you are. I say this because she traveled from far, far away to listen to Solomon’s wise teaching. And I tell you that someone greater than Solomon is right here, but you won’t listen!
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International