Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Mary’s Song of Thanks

⁴⁶ Then Mary said, “My heart sings with thanks for my Lord. ⁴⁷ And my spirit is happy in God, the One Who saves from the punishment of sin. ⁴⁸ The Lord has looked on me, His servant-girl and one who is not important. But from now on all people will honor me. ⁴⁹ He Who is powerful has done great things for me. His name is holy. ⁵⁰ The loving-kindness of the Lord is given to the people of all times who honor Him. ⁵¹ He has done powerful works with His arm. He has divided from each other those who have pride in their hearts. ⁵² He has taken rulers down from their thrones. He has put those who are in a place that is not important to a place that is important. ⁵³ He has filled those who are hungry with good things. He has sent the rich people away with nothing. ⁵⁴ He has helped Israel His servant. This was done to remember His loving-kindness. ⁵⁵ He promised He would do this to our early fathers and to Abraham and to his family forever.”

Samuel Is Born

¹⁹ The family got up early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord. Then they returned to their house in Ramah. Elkanah lay with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. ²⁰ The Lord made it possible for her to have a child, and when the time came she gave birth to a son. She gave him the name Samuel, saying, “I have asked the Lord for him.”

²¹ Then Elkanah went up with all those of his house to give the Lord the gift on the altar in worship as he did each year, and to pay what he had promised. ²² But Hannah did not go. For she said to her husband, “I will not go up until the child no longer needs to be nursed. Then I will bring him before the Lord, to stay there forever.” ²³ Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what you think is best. Stay here until he no longer needs to be nursed. Only may the Lord do as He has said.” So Hannah stayed and nursed her son until he no longer needed to be nursed. ²⁴ When she had finished nursing him, she took him with her to the house of the Lord in Shiloh, and the child was young. ²⁵ She brought a three year old bull, one basket of flour and a jar of wine also. Then they killed the bull, and brought the boy to Eli. ²⁶ Hannah said, “O, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. ²⁷ I prayed for this boy, and the Lord has given me what I asked of Him. ²⁸ So I have given him to the Lord. He is given to the Lord as long as he lives.” And they worshiped the Lord there.

8 Now the important thing is this: We have such a Religious Leader Who has made the way for man to go to God. He is the One Who sits at the right side of the All-powerful God in the heavens. ² He is the Religious Leader of that holy place in heaven which is the true place of worship. It was built by the Lord and not by men’s hands. ³ Every religious leader of the Old Way of Worship had the work of killing animals and of giving gifts on the altar to God. So Christ had to have something to give also. ⁴ If Christ were on the earth, He would not be a religious leader such as these. The religious leaders on earth give gifts like the Law says. ⁵ Their work shows us only a picture of the things in heaven. When Moses was putting up the tent to worship in, God told him, “Be sure you make the tent for worship like I showed you on Mount Sinai.” ^(A)

⁶ But Christ has a more perfect work. He is the One Who goes between God and man in this new and better way. The New Way of Worship promises better things. ⁷ If the Old Way of Worship had been perfect, there would have been no need for another one. ⁸ God was not happy how the people lived by the Old Way of Worship. He said, “The day will come when I will make a New Way of Worship for the Jews and those of the family group of Judah. ⁹ The New Way of Worship will not be like the Old Way of Worship I gave to their early fathers. That was when I took them by the hand and led them out of Egypt. But they did not follow the Old Way of Worship. And so I turned away from them. ¹⁰ This is the New Way of Worship that I will give to the Jews. When that day comes, says the Lord, I will put My Laws into their minds. And I will write them in their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be My people. ¹¹ No one will need to teach his neighbor or his brother to know the Lord. All of them will already know Me from the least to the greatest. ¹² I will show loving-kindness to them and forgive their sins. I will remember their sins no more.” ^(B)

¹³ When God spoke about a New Way of Worship, He showed that the Old Way of Worship was finished and of no use now. It will never be used again.