Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Mary’s Hymn of Praise to God

⁴⁶ And Mary said,

The Family of Elkanah

1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim Zophim, from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.^{[a] 2} He had two wives; the name of the first was Hannah, and the name of the second was Peninnah. Now Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. ³ Now this man used to go up from his town year by year^[b] to worship and to sacrifice to Yahweh of hosts in Shiloh, where^[c] the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests to Yahweh. ⁴ On^[d] the day Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. ⁵ But to Hannah he would give a double portion,^[e] because he loved Hannah, though Yahweh had closed her womb. ⁶ (Now her rival wife would provoke her severely in order to upset her because Yahweh had closed her womb.) ⁷ And so he used to do^[f] year after year; whenever^[g] she went up to the house of Yahweh, she^[h] would provoke her so that she^[i] would weep and would not eat. ⁸ So Elkanah her husband would say to her: “Hannah, why do you weep and why do you not eat? And why are you heartsick?^[j] Am I not better to you than ten sons?” ⁹ Then Hannah got up after eating and drinking at Shiloh. (Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the temple^[k] of Yahweh.) ¹⁰ She was deeply troubled,^[l] so she prayed to Yahweh and wept bitterly. ¹¹ She made a vow^[m] and said: “O Yahweh of hosts, if you will look with compassion on the misery of your female servant, and will remember me, and not forget your female servant, and will give to your female servant a male child^[n] then I will give him to Yahweh all the days of his life, and a razor will never pass over his head.”^{[o] 12} While^[p] she continued to pray before Yahweh, Eli was observing her mouth. ¹³ Now Hannah had been speaking in her heart; her lips were moving, but her voice could not be heard, so Eli considered her to be drunk. ¹⁴ Then Eli said to her, “How long will you behave like someone who is drunk? Put away your wine!” ¹⁵ But Hannah answered and said, “No, my lord. I am a woman deeply distressed,^[q] but I have not drunk wine or strong drink. Rather, I have poured out my soul before Yahweh. ¹⁶ Do not regard your female servant as worthless,^[r] but because of the extent of my worries and my provocation I have spoken all of this.” ¹⁷ Then Eli answered and said, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant your request that you have asked of him.” ¹⁸ And she said, “May your female slave find favor in your sight.” Then the woman went on her way and ate something, and her face did not look sad any longer.^[s]

The Earthly Ministry of the Old Covenant

9 Now^[a] the first covenant had regulations for worship and the earthly sanctuary. ² For a tent was prepared, the first one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the presentation of the loaves, which is called the holy place. ³ And after the second curtain was a tent called the holy of holies, ⁴ containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which were a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant. ⁵ And above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat, about which it is not now possible to speak in detail.

⁶ Now these things having been prepared in this way, the priests enter into the first tent continually^[b] as they^[c] accomplish their service, ⁷ but only the high priest enters into the second tent once a year, not without blood, which he offers on behalf of himself and the sins of the people committed in ignorance. ⁸ The Holy Spirit was making this clear, that the way into the holy place was not yet revealed, while^[d] the first tent was still in existence, ⁹ which was a symbol for the present time, in which both the gifts and sacrifices which were offered were not able to perfect the worshiper with respect to the conscience, ¹⁰ concerning instead only food and drink and different washings, regulations of outward things imposed until the time of setting things right.

The Heavenly Ministry of the New Covenant

¹¹ But Christ has arrived as a high priest of the good things to come. Through the greater and more perfect tent not made by hands, that is, not of this creation, ¹² and not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, he entered once for all into the most holy place, obtaining eternal redemption. ¹³ For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow sprinkled on those who are defiled sanctify them for the ritual purity of the flesh, ¹⁴ how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works to serve the living God?