Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Compassion on Zion’s Children
8 Thus says Adonai:
“In a time of favor I will answer you.
In a day of salvation I will help you.
I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people,
to restore the land,
to make them possess its desolate inheritances,
9 saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out!’
to those in darkness, ‘Be shown!’
Along the roads they will graze—
their pasture will be on all the barren heights.
10 They will not hunger or thirst,
nor scorching wind or sun strike them,
for their compassionate One will lead them,
and will guide them by springs of water.
11 I will make all My mountains a road,
and My highways will be raised up.
12 “Behold, these shall come from afar.
behold, these from the north and from the west,
and from the land of Sinim.
13 Shout for joy, heavens!
Rejoice, earth!
Break forth into ringing shouts, O mountains!
For Adonai has comforted His people
and has compassion on His afflicted.”
14 But Zion said: “Adonai has forsaken me,
Adonai has forgotten me.”
15 “Can a woman forget her nursing baby
or lack compassion for a child of her womb?
Even if these forget,
I will not forget you.
16 Behold, I have engraved you
on the palms of My hands.
Your walls are continually before Me.
Be Still My Soul
Psalm 131
1 A Song of Ascents. Of David.
Adonai, my heart is not proud,
nor my eyes lofty,
nor do I go after things too great
or too difficult for me.
2 But I have calmed and quieted my soul—
like a weaned child with his mother,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O Israel, put your hope in Adonai
from this time forth and forever.
Learning to Imitate Messiah’s Emissary
4 So let each one think of us in this way—as Messiah’s helpers and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 In this case, moreover, what is required of stewards is to be found trustworthy. 3 But to me it matters very little to be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore do not judge anything before the time—wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light the things hidden in darkness and also make clear the motives of the hearts. Then the praise for each one will come from God.
24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stick by one and look down on the other. You cannot serve God and money.”[a]
Overcoming Worry with Trust
25 “So I say to you, do not worry about your life—what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?
26 “Look at the birds of the air. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your Father in heaven feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? [b] 28 And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. [c] 30 Now if in this way God clothes the grass—which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow—will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 For the pagans eagerly pursue all these things; yet your Father in heaven knows that you need all these. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.