Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Triumphal Procession up to the Temple

Psalm 68

The Binding of Isaac

22 Now it was after these things that God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham.”^[a]

“Hineni,” he said.

² Then He said, “Take your son, your only son whom you love^[b]—Isaac—and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains about which I will tell you.”

³ So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son. He split wood for the burnt offering, and got up and went to the place about which God had told him. ⁴ On the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from a distance. ⁵ Abraham said to his young men, “Sit yourselves down here with the donkey. As for me and the young man, we’ll go over there, worship and return to you.”

⁶ Then Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and put it on Isaac his son. In his hand he took the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together.

⁷ Then Isaac said to Abraham his father, “My father?”

Then he said, “Here I am, my son.”

He said, “Look. Here’s the fire and the wood. But where’s the lamb for a burnt offering?”

⁸ Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself a lamb for a burnt offering, my son.”

The two of them walked on together. ⁹ Then they came to the place about which God had told him, and Abraham built the altar there, laid out the wood, bound up Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. ^{[c] 10} Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.

¹¹ But the angel of Adonai called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham! Abraham!”

He said, “Hineni!”

¹² Then He said, “Do not reach out your hand against the young man—do nothing to him at all. For now I know that you are one who fears God—you did not withhold your son, your only son, from Me.”

¹³ Then Abraham lifted up his eyes and behold, there was a ram, just caught in the thick bushes by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. ¹⁴ Abraham named that place, Adonai Yireh,—as it is said today, “On the mountain, Adonai will provide.”

Accepted in Jerusalem

2 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus with me. ² Because of a revelation, I went up and presented to them the Good News that I proclaim among the Gentiles. But I did so privately to those who seemed to be influential, to make sure I would not run—or had not run—in vain. ^{[a] 3} Yet not even Titus who was with me, a Greek, was forced to be circumcised. ⁴ Now this issue came up because of false brothers secretly brought in (who slipped in to spy out our freedom in Messiah, in order to bring us into bondage). ⁵ But we did not give in to them even for a moment, so that the truth of the Good News might be preserved for you.

⁶ But from those who seemed to be influential (whatever they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—well, those influential ones added nothing to my message. ⁷ On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the Good News for the uncircumcised just as Peter was for the circumcised. ⁸ (For the same God who was at work in Peter as an emissary to the Jews, also was at work in me as a emissary to the Gentiles.) ⁹ Realizing the favor that had been given to me, Jacob and Peter^[b] and John—who are the recognized pillars—shook hands in partnership with Barnabas and me,^[c] so that we would go to the Gentiles and they to the Jews. ¹⁰ They asked only that we remember the poor—something I also was eager to do.