Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
18 “Don’t remember[a] the former things;
don’t dwell on things past.
19 Watch! I’m about to carry out something new!
And[b] now it’s springing up—
don’t you recognize it?
I’m making a way in the wilderness
and paths[c] in the desert.
20 Wild animals, jackals, and owls[d] will honor me
because I provide[e] water in the desert
and streams in the wilderness
to give drink to my people, my chosen ones,[f]
21 the people whom I formed for myself
and[g] so that they may speak[h] my praise.”
God is Weary of Israel
22 “And[i] yet you didn’t call upon me, Jacob;
indeed, you are tired of me, Israel!
23 You haven’t brought me your sheep for a burnt offering,[j]
nor have you honored me with[k] your sacrifices,
nor have you made meal offerings for me[l]—
yet I have not tired you about incense!
24 You[m] haven’t bought me sweet cane with money,
nor have you satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices.
You have only burdened me with your sins
and made me tired with your iniquities.
To the Director: A Davidic Psalm.
When Things Go Wrong
41 Blessed is the one who is considerate of the destitute;[a]
the Lord will deliver him when the times are evil.
2 The Lord will protect him and keep him alive;
he will be blessed in the land;
and he will not be handed over to the desires of his enemies.
3 The Lord will uphold him even on his sickbed;
you will transform his bed of illness into health.
4 As for me, I said,
“Lord, be gracious to me!
Heal me, for I have sinned against you!”
5 As for my enemies, with malice they said,
“When will he die and memory of[b] his name perish?”
6 The one who comes to visit me speaks lies;
in his heart he thinks slanderous things about me
and goes around spreading them.
7 As for all who hate me,
they whisper together against me;
they desire to do me harm.
8 They say, “Wickedness is entrenched in him.
Once he is brought low,
he will not rise again.”
9 As for my best friend,
the one in whom I trusted,
the one who ate my bread,
even he has insulted[c] me!
10 But you, Lord, be gracious to me and raise me up
so that I may pay them back!
11 In this way I will know that you are pleased with me,
and that my enemies will not shout in triumph over me.
12 As for me, you will maintain my just cause,
and you will cause me to stand in your presence forever.
13 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
from eternity to eternity.
Amen and amen!
18 As certainly as God is faithful, we haven’t talked to you with mixed messages like that.[a] 19 For God’s Son, Jesus the Messiah,[b] who was preached among you by us—by me, Silvanus, and Timothy—was not “Yes” and “No.” But with him it is always “Yes.” 20 For all God’s promises are “Yes” in him. And so through him we can say “Amen,”[c] to the glory of God. 21 Now the one who makes us—and you as well—secure in union with the Messiah[d] and has anointed us is God, 22 who has placed his seal on us and has given us the Spirit in our hearts as a down payment.
Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man(A)
2 Several days later, Jesus[a] returned to Capernaum and it was reported that he was at home. 2 Such a large crowd gathered that there wasn’t room for them, even in front of the door. Jesus[b] was speaking his message to them 3 when some people[c] came and brought him a paralyzed man being carried by four men. 4 Since they couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof over the place where he was. They dug through it and let down the mat on which the paralyzed man was lying.
5 When Jesus saw their faith, he told the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
6 Now some scribes were sitting there, arguing among themselves,[d] 7 “Why does this man talk this way? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
8 At once, Jesus knew in his spirit what they were saying to themselves. “Why are you arguing about such things among yourselves?”[e] he asked them. 9 “Which is easier: to say to the paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk’? 10 But I want you to know[f] that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” Then he told the paralyzed man, 11 “I say to you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home!” 12 So the man[g] got up, immediately picked up his mat, and went out in front of all of them.
As a result, all of the people were amazed and began to glorify God as they kept on saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
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