Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The God of Sinai and of the Sanctuary.
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.
68 Let God arise, and His enemies be scattered;
Let those who hate Him flee before Him.
2
As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;
As wax melts before the fire,
So let the wicked and guilty perish before [the presence of] God.
3
But let the righteous be glad; let them be in good spirits before God,
Yes, let them rejoice with delight.
4
Sing to God, sing praises to His name;
Lift up a song for Him who rides through the desert—
His name is the Lord—be in good spirits before Him.
5
A father of the fatherless and a judge and protector of the widows,
Is God in His holy habitation.
6
God makes a home for the lonely;
He leads the prisoners into prosperity,
Only the stubborn and rebellious dwell in a parched land.
7
O God, when You went out before Your people,
When You marched through the wilderness, Selah.
8
The earth trembled;
The heavens also poured down rain at the presence of God;
Sinai itself trembled at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9
You, O God, sent abroad plentiful rain;
You confirmed Your inheritance when it was parched and weary.
10
Your flock found a dwelling place in it;
O God, in Your goodness You provided for the poor.
19
Blessed be the Lord, who bears our burden day by day,
The God who is our salvation! Selah.
20
God is to us a God of acts of salvation;
And to [a]God the Lord belong escapes from death [setting us free].
The Offering of Isaac
22 Now after these things, God tested [the faith and commitment of] Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he answered, “Here I am.” 2 God said, “Take now your son, your only son [of [a]promise], whom you love, Isaac, and go to the region of [b]Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” 3 So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and his son Isaac; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and then he got up and went to the place of which God had told him. 4 On the third day [of travel] Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 Abraham said to his servants, “Settle down and stay here with the donkey; the [c]young man and I will go over there and worship [God], and we will come back to you.”(A) 6 Then Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it [d]on [the shoulders of] Isaac his son, and he took the [e]fire (firepot) in his own hand and the [sacrificial] knife; and the two of them walked on together. 7 And Isaac said to Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Isaac said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself [f]a lamb for the burnt offering.” So the two walked on together.
9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood, and bound Isaac his son and placed him on the altar, on top of the wood.(B) 10 Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to [g]kill his son.(C) 11 But the [h]Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” He answered, “Here I am.” 12 The Lord said, “Do not reach out [with the knife in] your hand against the boy, and do nothing to [harm] him; for now I know that you fear God [with reverence and profound respect], since you have not withheld from Me your son, your only son [of promise].” 13 Then Abraham looked up and glanced around, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering (ascending sacrifice) instead of his son. 14 So Abraham named that place [i]The Lord Will Provide. And it is said to this day, “On the mountain of the Lord it [j]will be seen and provided.”
The Council at Jerusalem
2 Then after a period of fourteen years I again went up to Jerusalem, [this time] with Barnabas, taking Titus along also. 2 I went up [to Jerusalem] because of a [divine] revelation, and I put before them the gospel which I preach among the Gentiles. But I did so in private before those of [a]reputation, for fear that I might be running or had run [the course of my ministry] in vain. 3 But [all went well, for] not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled [as some had anticipated] to be circumcised, despite the fact that he was a Greek. 4 My concern was because of the [b]false brothers [those people masquerading as Christians] who had been secretly smuggled in [to the community of believers]. They had slipped in to spy on the freedom which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us back into bondage [under the Law of Moses]. 5 But we did not yield to them even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would continue to remain with you [in its purity]. 6 But from those who were of high reputation (whatever they were—in terms of individual importance—makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality—He is not impressed with the positions that people hold nor does He recognize distinctions such as fame or power)—well, those who were of reputation contributed nothing to me [that is, they had nothing to add to my gospel message nor did they impose any new requirements on me].(A) 7 But on the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised (Gentiles), just as Peter had been [entrusted to proclaim the gospel] to the circumcised (Jews); 8 (for He who worked effectively for Peter and empowered him in his ministry to the Jews also worked effectively for me and empowered me in my ministry to the Gentiles). 9 And recognizing the grace [that God had] bestowed on me, James and Cephas (Peter) and John, who were reputed to be pillars [of the Jerusalem church], gave to me and Barnabas the [c]right hand of fellowship, so that we could go to the Gentiles [with their blessing] and they to the circumcised (Jews). 10 They asked only [one thing], that we remember the poor, the very thing I was also eager to do.
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