Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Praise to God Who Made the World
104 ·My whole being [T O my soul], ·praise [bless] the Lord.
Lord my God, you are very great.
You are clothed with ·glory [splendor] and ·majesty [beauty];
2 you ·wear [L wrap yourself in] light like a robe [Hab. 3:4; 1 John 1:5].
You stretch out the ·skies [heavens] like a tent [Is. 40:22].
3 You ·build your room above the clouds [L set the beams of your upper room on the waters].
You make the clouds your chariot [18:10–19; 68:4; Is. 19:1; Dan. 7:13–14; Luke 21:27; Rev. 1:7],
and you ride on the wings of the wind.
4 You make the winds your messengers,
and flames of fire are your ·servants [ministers; Heb. 1:7].
5 You ·built [founded] the earth on its foundations
so it can never be moved.
6 You covered the earth with ·oceans [L the deeps];
the water ·was above [L stood over] the mountains.
7 But at your ·command [reprimand; rebuke], the water ·rushed away [fled].
·When you thundered your orders [L At the sound of your thunder], it hurried away.
8 The mountains rose; the valleys sank.
The water went to the places you ·made [founded] for it.
9 You set borders for the seas that they cannot ·cross [pass],
so water will never cover the earth again [C as before the third day creation or during the Flood; Gen. 1:9–10; 9:9–17; Job 38:8–11; Prov. 8:29].
10 You make springs pour into the ·ravines [wadis];
they flow between the mountains.
11 They water all the ·wild animals [L creatures of the field];
the wild donkeys ·come there to drink [L quench their thirst].
12 ·Wild birds [Birds of the sky/heavens] ·make nests by the water [L dwell by them];
they ·sing [L give voice] among the tree branches.
13 You water the mountains from ·above [L your high dwelling].
The earth is ·full of [or satisfied by] ·the things you made [L the fruit of your works].
14 You make the grass grow for cattle
and ·vegetables [plants] for the people to ·use [cultivate].
You make ·food [or bread] ·grow [L come out] from the earth.
15 You give us wine that ·makes happy hearts [rejoices the hearts of people; John 2:1–12]
and olive oil that makes our faces shine [C soothing skin in a dry climate; Luke 7:46].
You give us bread that gives us ·strength [sustenance].
16 The Lord’s trees ·have plenty of water [flourish];
they are the cedars of Lebanon [C the most majestic trees known], which he planted.
17 The birds make their nests there;
the stork’s home is in the fir trees.
18 The high mountains belong to the wild goats.
The rocks are ·hiding places [refuge] for the badgers.
19 You made the moon ·to mark the seasons [for appointed times; Gen. 1:14; Lev. 23:2, 4, 37, 44],
and the sun always knows when to set.
20 You make it dark, and it becomes night.
Then all the ·wild animals [L creatures of the forest] ·creep [swarm] around.
21 The lions roar ·as they attack [L for prey].
They ·look to [seek] God for food.
22 When the sun rises, they leave
and go back to their dens to lie down.
23 Then people go to work
and ·work [labor] until evening.
24 Lord, ·you have made many things;
with your wisdom you made them all [Prov. 8:22–31].
The earth is full of your ·riches [or creatures].
25 Look at the sea, so big and wide,
with creatures large and small, ·creeping [swarming] things that cannot be counted.
26 Ships travel over the ocean,
and there is Leviathan [C a sea monster and symbol of chaos; 74:14; Job 3:8; 41:1; Is. 27:1],
which you made to play there.
27 All these things ·depend [hope; wait] on you
to give them their food at the right time.
28 When you give it to them,
they gather it up.
When you open your hand,
they are ·filled [satisfied] with good food.
29 When you ·turn away [L hide your face] from them,
they ·become frightened [are terrified].
When you take away their breath,
they ·die [expire] and turn to dust [Gen. 2:7; Eccl. 12:7].
30 When you ·breathe [L send your breath/or Spirit] on them,
they are created [Gen. 2:7],
and you make the land new again.
31 May the glory of the Lord [C his manifest presence] be forever.
May the Lord ·enjoy [rejoice in] what he has made.
32 He just looks at the earth, and it ·shakes [trembles].
He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will ·sing praises [make a psalm] to my God as long as I live.
34 May my ·thoughts [meditations] please him;
I ·am happy [will rejoice] in the Lord.
35 Let sinners be ·destroyed [obliterated] from the earth,
and let the wicked live no longer.
·My whole being [T O my soul], ·praise [bless] the Lord.
Praise the Lord.
Elijah Stops the Rain
17 Now Elijah the Tishbite was a prophet from the settlers in Gilead. “I ·serve [L stand before] the Lord, the God of Israel,” Elijah said to Ahab. “As surely as the Lord lives, no dew or rain will fall during the next few years ·unless I command it [except by my word; C the people were worshiping the false god Baal whom they believed brought rain].”
2 Then the ·Lord spoke his word [word of the Lord came] to Elijah: 3 “Leave this place and go east and hide near Kerith ·Ravine [Brook; Wadi] east of the Jordan River. 4 Drink from the stream, and I have ·commanded [ordered] ravens to bring you food there.” 5 So Elijah did ·what the Lord said [L according to the word of the Lord]; he went to Kerith ·Ravine [Brook; Wadi], east of the Jordan, and lived there. 6 The ·birds [ravens] brought Elijah bread and meat every morning and evening, and he drank water from the stream.
7 After a while the stream dried up because there was no rain in the land. 8 Then the ·Lord spoke his word to Elijah [L word of the Lord came to him], 9 “Go to Zarephath in Sidon and live there. I have commanded a widow there to ·take care of [provide for; feed] you.”
10 So Elijah went to Zarephath. When he reached the town gate, he saw a widow gathering ·wood for a fire [sticks]. Elijah asked her, “·Would you [Please] bring me a little water in a ·cup [jar; pitcher] so I may have a drink?” 11 As she was going to get his water, Elijah said, “Please bring me a ·piece [scrap] of bread [L in your hand].”
12 The woman answered, “As surely as the Lord your God lives, I have no bread. I have only a handful of flour in a ·jar [bowl] and only a little olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather some wood so I could go home and cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die [C of hunger].”
13 “Don’t ·worry [be afraid],” Elijah said to her. “Go home and cook your food as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread from the flour you have, and bring it to me. Then cook something for yourself and your son. 14 The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘That jar of flour will never be ·empty [spent; used up], and the jug will ·always have oil in it [not run dry/fail/be empty], until the day the Lord sends rain to the land.’”
15 So the woman went home and did what Elijah told her to do. And the woman and her ·son and Elijah [family; L household] had enough food ·every day [L for many days]. 16 The ·jar [bowl] of flour and the jug of oil were never empty, ·just as the Lord, through Elijah, had promised [L according to the word of the Lord, spoken through Elijah].
6 Brothers and sisters, I have used Apollos and myself as examples so you could learn through us the meaning of the saying, “·Follow only [L Do not go beyond] ·what is written in the Scriptures [or what I have already written to you; L what is written].” Then you will not ·be more proud of one person than another [or arrogantly support one person over another]. 7 [L For] Who ·says you are better than others [made you so important; or sees anything different in you]? What do you have that was not given to you? And if it was given to you, why do you ·brag [boast] as if you did not ·receive it as a gift [L receive it]?
8 ·You think you already have everything you need [L Already you have been satisfied/filled up!; C the Corinthians believed they had reached a higher spiritual status because of their wisdom]. ·You think you are rich [L Already you are rich!]. You ·think you have become kings [have begun to reign…!] without us. I wish you really were ·kings [reigning] so we could ·be kings [reign] together with you. 9 But it seems to me that God has put us apostles ·in last place [or on display at the end of the procession], like those sentenced to die [C the image is of prisoners of war being led through the city in disgrace, condemned to die in the arena]. We are like a ·show [spectacle; display] for the whole world to see—angels and people. 10 We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are very wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You receive honor, but we are ·shamed [disgraced; dishonored]. 11 Even ·to this very hour [or now] we do not have enough to eat or drink or to wear. We are often beaten, and we have no homes in which to live. 12 We work hard with our own hands [C Paul earned his own living so as not to burden the church and to avoid accusations of profiting from the Gospel; 1 Thess. 2:9]. When people ·curse [insult; revile] us, we bless them. When they ·hurt [persecute] us, we ·put up with it [endure; persevere]. 13 When they ·tell evil lies about [slander] us, we ·speak nice words about them [answer gently; or humbly appeal; entreat]. Even today, we are treated as though we were the garbage of the world—·the filth of the earth [L everyone’s scum/filth; or scum/filth in everyone’s eyes].
14 I am not writing this to make you feel ashamed, but to ·warn [admonish; correct] you as my own ·dear [beloved] children. 15 For though you may have ten thousand ·teachers [guardians; tutors] in Christ, you do not have many fathers. [L For; Because] Through the ·Good News [Gospel] I became your father in Christ Jesus, 16 so I ·beg [urge; encourage; exhort] you, ·please follow my example [L be imitators of me]. 17 That is why I am sending to you Timothy, my ·dear [beloved] and faithful son in the Lord. He will ·help you remember [remind you about] my way of life in Christ Jesus, just as I teach it in all the churches everywhere.
18 Some of you have become ·proud [arrogant; puffed up], thinking that I will not come to you again. 19 But I will come to you very soon if the Lord ·wishes [wills; allows]. Then I will ·know [find out; learn] ·what the proud ones do, not what they say [L not just the talk/word of these arrogant people, but also their power], 20 because the kingdom of God ·is present [or consists] not in talk but in power. 21 Which do you want: that I come to you with ·punishment [L a rod] or with love and ·gentleness [or a gentle spirit]?
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