Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Joy in Forgiveness of Israel’s Sins
106 Praise[a] the Lord!
(A)Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Who can [b]utter the mighty acts of the Lord?
Who can declare all His praise?
3 Blessed are those who keep justice,
And [c]he who (B)does righteousness at (C)all times!
4 (D)Remember me, O Lord, with the favor You have toward Your people.
Oh, visit me with Your salvation,
5 That I may see the benefit of Your chosen ones,
That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,
That I may glory with [d]Your inheritance.
6 (E)We have sinned with our fathers,
We have committed iniquity,
We have done wickedly.
7 Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders;
They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies,
(F)But rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.
8 Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake,
(G)That He might make His mighty power known.
9 (H)He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it dried up;
So (I)He led them through the depths,
As through the wilderness.
10 He (J)saved them from the hand of him who hated them,
And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11 (K)The waters covered their enemies;
There was not one of them left.
12 (L)Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.
Isaac Blesses Jacob
27 Now it came to pass, when Isaac was (A)old and (B)his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.”
And he answered him, “Here I am.”
2 Then he said, “Behold now, I am old. I (C)do not know the day of my death. 3 (D)Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. 4 And make me [a]savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul (E)may bless you before I die.”
5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it. 6 So Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying, “Indeed I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying, 7 ‘Bring me game and make [b]savory food for me, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before my death.’ 8 Now therefore, my son, (F)obey my voice according to what I command you. 9 Go now to the flock and bring me from there two choice kids of the goats, and I will make (G)savory food from them for your father, such as he loves. 10 Then you shall take it to your father, that he may eat it, and that he (H)may bless you before his death.”
11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Look, (I)Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth-skinned man. 12 Perhaps my father will (J)feel me, and I shall seem to be a deceiver to him; and I shall bring (K)a curse on myself and not a blessing.”
13 But his mother said to him, (L)“Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get them for me.” 14 And he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother (M)made [c]savory food, such as his father loved. 15 Then Rebekah took (N)the choice clothes of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
18 So he went to his father and said, “My father.”
And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”
19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done just as you told me; please arise, sit and eat of my game, (O)that your soul may bless me.”
20 But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?”
And he said, “Because the Lord your God brought it to me.”
21 Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I (P)may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” 22 So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 And he did not recognize him, because (Q)his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him.
24 Then he said, “Are you really my son Esau?”
He said, “I am.”
25 He said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, so (R)that my soul may bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.” 27 And he came near and (S)kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said:
“Surely, (T)the smell of my son
Is like the smell of a field
Which the Lord has blessed.
28 Therefore may (U)God give you
Of (V)the dew of heaven,
Of (W)the fatness of the earth,
And (X)plenty of grain and wine.
29 (Y)Let peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you.
Be master over your brethren,
And (Z)let your mother’s sons bow down to you.
(AA)Cursed be everyone who curses you,
And blessed be those who bless you!”
Sister Phoebe Commended
16 I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church in (A)Cenchrea, 2 (B)that you may receive her in the Lord (C)in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you; for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also.
Greeting Roman Saints
3 Greet (D)Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. 5 Likewise greet (E)the church that is in their house.
Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who is (F)the firstfruits of [a]Achaia to Christ. 6 Greet Mary, who labored much for us. 7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my countrymen and my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the (G)apostles, who also (H)were in Christ before me.
8 Greet Amplias, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and Stachys, my beloved. 10 Greet Apelles, approved in Christ. Greet those who are of the household of Aristobulus. 11 Greet Herodion, my [b]countryman. Greet those who are of the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.
12 Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, who have labored in the Lord. Greet the beloved Persis, who labored much in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus, (I)chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.
16 (J)Greet one another with a holy kiss. [c]The churches of Christ greet you.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.