Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
God promises to bless all the nations
56 This is what the Lord says:
‘Always be fair and do what is right.
Soon I will come to rescue you.
I will do what is right for my people.
6 I will also bless foreigners who decide to serve me.
They must be faithful to me as my servants.
They must respect the rules for the Sabbath day and keep it special.
They must always obey my covenant.
7 Then I will bring them to my holy mountain.[a]
I will make them happy in my house, where people pray to me.
I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices,
when they offer them to me on my altar.
People will call my temple,
“A house where people from all nations may pray.” ’[b]
8 The Almighty Lord is the one who brings together all the Israelite people who are in exile. He says, ‘I will continue to bring more people to join with them.’
This psalm is a song for the music leader. He is to use stringed instruments.
All the nations should praise God[a]
67 God, please be kind to us and bless us.
Look at us with a smile on your face.
Selah.
2 Then people on the earth will know
what pleases you.
People from all nations will know
that you have the power to save them.
3 May people everywhere praise you, God.
Yes, may they all praise you!
4 May the nations be so happy
that they sing aloud with joy!
Because you are fair when you judge people,
and you are a guide for all the nations of the world.
Selah.
5 May people everywhere praise you, God.
Yes, may they all praise you!
6 The land has given us a harvest of food,
and God, our God, continues to bless us.
7 God, please bless us!
Then all people everywhere will respect you.
Some of the Jews do trust God
11 So I ask this: ‘Has God turned away from his people?’ No, certainly, he has not done that! I myself belong to Israel's people. I am a descendant of Abraham and I belong to Benjamin's tribe. 2 God chose who would be his people from the beginning. He has not turned against them now. Remember what the Bible tells us about Elijah. He wanted God to punish Israel's people. Elijah said:
29 God's thoughts about his people cannot change. He has blessed them with gifts and he has chosen them to belong to him.
30 In past times, you Gentiles did not obey God. But now God has been very kind to you, because Israel's people refused to obey him. 31 They do not obey God now. As a result God has been very kind to you. That has happened so that God may now be very kind to them too. 32 God says that everyone is guilty because they do not obey him. He says that so that he can be kind and he can forgive everyone.
Jesus talks about the wrong things that people do
10 Jesus asked the crowd of people to come to him. He said to them, ‘Listen to me, so that you can understand my message. 11 It is not food that goes into people's mouths that makes them unclean. Instead, what comes out of people's mouths is important. It may show that what is inside them is unclean.’
12 Then Jesus' disciples went to him, and they said, ‘The Pharisees heard what you said. They did not agree with what you said. Do you know that?’
13 Jesus replied, ‘Those Pharisees are like plants that my Father God did not put in the ground. Like a farmer, he will completely pull all those plants out of the ground. 14 Do not listen to what the Pharisees say. They are blind, but they try to show people which way to go. A blind person cannot lead another blind person. If he does, then both of them will fall into a deep hole.’
15 Peter said to Jesus, ‘Explain to us what you mean.’
16 Jesus replied, ‘I am surprised that you still do not understand what I am saying. 17 You should understand that food first goes into people's mouths. Then it goes into their stomach, and then it passes out of their body. 18 The words that people speak come from their thoughts. It is what comes out of their mouths that makes them unclean. 19 Evil thoughts come out from people's minds. As a result, they do wrong things. They murder people. They have sex with another man's wife. They have sex in other wrong ways. They rob people. They tell lies about other people. They insult people.
20 It is these bad things that make people unclean. But if people eat food when they have not washed their hands in the right way, that will not make them unclean.’
Jesus makes a girl well again
21 Then, Jesus left that place. He went away to some places near to the cities called Tyre and Sidon.
22 A woman was living in this part of the country. She was one of the Canaanite people. She came to see Jesus. She was shouting with a loud voice, ‘Son of David, help me, sir! A bad spirit is living inside my daughter. It is giving her much pain.’
23 Jesus did not say anything to the woman. So his disciples came to him. They said, ‘Please, send this woman away. She is following us and she is making a lot of noise.’
24 Jesus replied to his disciples, ‘God has sent me to help only the people of Israel. They are like sheep that have lost their way.’
25 Then the woman came to Jesus and she went down on her knees in front of him. ‘Sir, please help me,’ she said.
26 Jesus did answer the woman this time. He said, ‘It is not right to take food from the children and then throw it to the dogs.’
27 The woman replied to Jesus. ‘Yes sir, that is true. But even the dogs eat the small pieces of food that fall from their master's table.’
28 Jesus answered her, ‘Woman, you show clearly that you believe in God. God will do what you have asked.’
At that moment the woman's daughter became well again.
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