Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Lord’s Wonderful Works in Behalf of Israel.
105 O give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the people.
2
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;
Speak of all His wonderful acts and devoutly praise them.
3
Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those who seek and require the Lord [as their most essential need] rejoice.
4
Seek and deeply long for the Lord and His strength [His power, His might];
Seek and deeply long for His face and His presence continually.
5
Remember [with awe and gratitude] the wonderful things which He has done,
His amazing deeds and the judgments uttered by His mouth [on His enemies, as in Egypt],(A)
6
O you offspring of Abraham, His servant,
O you sons of Jacob, His chosen ones!
7
He is the Lord our God;
His judgments are in all the earth.
8
He has remembered His covenant forever,
The word which He commanded and established to a [a]thousand generations,
9
The covenant which He made with Abraham,
And His sworn oath to Isaac,(B)
10
Which He confirmed to Jacob as a statute,
To Israel as an everlasting covenant,
11
Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
As the measured portion of your inheritance.”
37
He brought the sons of Israel out [of Egypt] with silver and gold,
And among their tribes there was not one who stumbled.(A)
38
Egypt was glad when they departed,
For the dread and fear of them had fallen on the Egyptians.(B)
39
The Lord spread a cloud as a covering [by day],
And a fire to illumine the night.(C)
40
The Israelites asked, and He brought quail,
And satisfied them with the bread of heaven.(D)
41
He opened the rock and water flowed out;
It ran in the dry places like a river.(E)
42
For He remembered His holy word
To Abraham His servant;(F)
43
He brought out His people with joy,
And His chosen ones with a joyful shout,
44
He gave them the lands of the nations [of Canaan],
So that they would possess the fruits of those peoples’ labor,(G)
45
So that they might observe His precepts
And keep His laws [obediently accepting and honoring and valuing them].
Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)
God’s Commission to Joshua
1 Now it happened after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant (attendant), saying,(A) 2 “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore [a]arise [to take his place], cross over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, to the [b]sons of Israel. 3 I have given you every place on which the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness [of Arabia in the south] and this Lebanon [in the north], even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates [in the east], all the land of the [c]Hittites (Canaan), and as far as the Great [Mediterranean] Sea toward the west shall be your territory. 5 No man will [be able to] stand before you [to oppose you] as long as you live. Just as I was [present] with Moses, so will I be with you; I will not fail you or abandon you. 6 Be strong and confident and courageous, for you will give this people as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers (ancestors) to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do [everything] in accordance with the entire law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may prosper and be successful wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall read [and meditate on] it day and night, so that you may be careful to do [everything] in accordance with all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will be [d]successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua Assumes Command
10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, 11 “Go throughout the camp and command the people, saying, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to cross this [river] Jordan, to go in to take possession of the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess [as an inheritance].’”
Encouragement of Timothy’s Visit
3 Therefore, when we could no longer endure our separation [from you], we thought it best to be left behind, alone at Athens, 2 and so we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s servant in [spreading] the good news of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you [exhorting, comforting, and establishing you] in regard to your faith, 3 so that no one would be unsettled by these difficulties [to which I have referred]. For you know that we have been destined for this [as something unavoidable in our position]. 4 For even when we were with you, we warned you plainly in advance that we were going to experience persecution; and so, as you know, it has come to pass. 5 For this reason, when I could no longer endure the suspense, I sent someone to find out about your faith [how you were holding up under pressure], for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our work [among you] would prove to be ineffective.
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