Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Hannah Gives Thanks
2 Hannah prayed:
“The Lord has filled my heart with joy;
I feel very strong in the Lord.
I can laugh at my enemies;
I am glad because you have helped me!
2 “There is no one holy like the Lord.
There is no God but you;
there is no Rock like our God.
3 “Don’t continue bragging,
don’t speak proud words.
The Lord is a God who knows everything,
and he judges what people do.
4 “The bows of warriors break,
but weak people become strong.
5 Those who once had plenty of food now must work for food,
but people who were hungry are hungry no more.
The woman who could not have children now has seven,
but the woman who had many children now is sad.
6 “The Lord sends death,
and he brings to life.
He sends people to the grave,
and he raises them to life again.
7 The Lord makes some people poor,
and others he makes rich.
He makes some people humble,
and others he makes great.
8 The Lord raises the poor up from the dust,
and he lifts the needy from the ashes.
He lets the poor sit with princes
and receive a throne of honor.
“The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord,
and the Lord set the world upon them.
9 He protects those who are loyal to him,
but evil people will be silenced in darkness.
Power is not the key to success.
10 The Lord destroys his enemies;
he will thunder in heaven against them.
The Lord will judge all the earth.
He will give power to his king
and make his appointed king strong.”
Isaac—the Promised Son
15 God said to Abraham, “I will change the name of Sarai,[a] your wife, to Sarah.[b] 16 I will bless her and give her a son, and you will be the father. She will be the mother of many nations. Kings of nations will come from her.”
17 Abraham bowed facedown on the ground and laughed. He said to himself, “Can a man have a child when he is a hundred years old? Can Sarah give birth to a child when she is ninety?” 18 Then Abraham said to God, “Please let Ishmael be the son you promised.”
19 God said, “No, Sarah your wife will have a son, and you will name him Isaac.[c] I will make my agreement with him to be an agreement that continues forever with all his descendants.
20 “As for Ishmael, I have heard you. I will bless him and give him many descendants. And I will cause their numbers to grow greatly. He will be the father of twelve great leaders, and I will make him into a great nation. 21 But I will make my agreement with Isaac, the son whom Sarah will have at this same time next year.” 22 After God finished talking with Abraham, God rose and left him.
Paul’s Love for the Christians
8 In the past you did not know God. You were slaves to gods that were not real. 9 But now you know the true God. Really, it is God who knows you. So why do you turn back to those weak and useless rules you followed before? Do you want to be slaves to those things again? 10 You still follow teachings about special days, months, seasons, and years. 11 I am afraid for you, that my work for you has been wasted.
12 Brothers and sisters, I became like you, so I beg you to become like me. You were very good to me before. 13 You remember that it was because of an illness that I came to you the first time, preaching the Good News. 14 Though my sickness was a trouble for you, you did not hate me or make me leave. But you welcomed me as an angel from God, as if I were Jesus Christ himself! 15 You were very happy then, but where is that joy now? I am ready to testify that you would have taken out your eyes and given them to me if that were possible. 16 Now am I your enemy because I tell you the truth?
17 Those people[a] are working hard to persuade you, but this is not good for you. They want to persuade you to turn against us and follow only them. 18 It is good for people to show interest in you, but only if their purpose is good. This is always true, not just when I am with you. 19 My little children, again I feel the pain of childbirth for you until you truly become like Christ. 20 I wish I could be with you now and could change the way I am talking to you, because I do not know what to think about you.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.