Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 23
A psalm of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd.
I lack nothing.
2 He lets me rest in grassy meadows;
he leads me to restful waters;
3 he keeps me [a] alive.
He guides me in proper paths
for the sake of his good name.
4 Even when I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no danger because you are with me.
Your rod and your staff—
they protect me.
5 You set a table for me
right in front of my enemies.
You bathe my head in oil;
my cup is so full it spills over!
6 Yes, goodness and faithful love
will pursue me all the days of my life,
and I will live[b] in the Lord’s house
as long as I live.
Living God or human handiwork
10 Listen to the word that the Lord has spoken to you, people of Israel!
2 The Lord proclaims:
Don’t follow the ways of the nations
or be troubled by signs in the sky,
even though the nations are troubled by them.
3 The rituals of the nations are hollow:
a tree from the forest is chopped down
and shaped by the craftsman’s tools.
4 It’s overlaid with silver and gold,
and fastened securely with hammer and nails
so it won’t fall over.
5 They are no different than a scarecrow
in a cucumber patch:
they can’t speak;
they must be carried
because they can’t walk.
Don’t be afraid of them,
because they can’t do harm or good.
6 Lord, no one is like you!
You are great,
and great is your mighty name.
7 Who wouldn’t fear you,
king of the nations?
That is your due;
among all the wise of the nations
and in all their countries,
there is no one like you!
8 But they are both foolish and silly;
they offer nothing
because they are mere wood.
9 Covered with silver from Tarshish
and gold from Uphaz,
they are the work of a craftsman
and the hands of a goldsmith.
Clothed in blue and purple,
all of them nothing more than the work of artisans.
10 But the Lord is the true God!
He’s the living God and the everlasting king!
When he’s angry, the earth quakes;
the nations can’t endure his rage.
11 Tell them this: The gods who didn’t make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.[a]
12 But God made the earth by his might;
he shaped the world by his wisdom,
crafted the skies by his knowledge.
13 At the sound of his voice,
the heavenly waters roar.
He raises the clouds from the ends of the earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain,
the wind from his treasuries.
14 Everyone is too foolish to understand;
every goldsmith is dishonored by his idols,
for their images are shams;
they aren’t alive.
15 They are a delusion, a charade;
at the appointed time they will vanish!
16 Jacob’s portion is utterly different
because God has formed all things,
including Israel, his very own people—
the Lord of heavenly forces is his name!
Hymn about Christ’s work
15 The Son is the image of the invisible God,
the one who is first over all creation,[a]
16 Because all things were created by him:
both in the heavens and on the earth,
the things that are visible and the things that are invisible.
Whether they are thrones or powers,
or rulers or authorities,
all things were created through him and for him.
17 He existed before all things,
and all things are held together in him.
18 He is the head of the body, the church,
who is the beginning,
the one who is firstborn from among the dead[b]
so that he might occupy the first place in everything.
19 Because all the fullness of God was pleased to live in him,
20 and he reconciled all things to himself through him—
whether things on earth or in the heavens.
He brought peace through the blood of his cross.
21 Once you were alienated from God and you were enemies with him in your minds, which was shown by your evil actions. 22 But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through death, to present you before God as a people who are holy, faultless, and without blame. 23 But you need to remain well established and rooted in faith and not shift away from the hope given in the good news that you heard. This message has been preached throughout all creation under heaven. And I, Paul, became a servant of this good news.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible