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.
12 If I took you to court, Lord,
you would win.
But I still have questions about your justice.
Why do guilty persons enjoy success?
Why are evildoers so happy?
2 You plant them, and they take root;
they flourish and bear fruit.
You are always on their lips
but far from their hearts.
3 Yet you, Lord, you know me.
You see me.
You can tell that I love you.[a]
So drag them away
and butcher them like sheep.
Prepare them for the slaughterhouse.
4 How long will the land mourn
and the grass in the fields dry up?
The animals and birds are swept away
due to the evil of those in the land.
The people say,
“God doesn’t see what we’re up to!”
5 If you have raced with people and are worn out,
how will you compete with horses?
If you fall down in an open field,[b]
how will you survive in the forest along the Jordan?
6 Even your relatives, your very family,
are planning to trap you.
They are out to get you.
So don’t trust them,
even if they appear to be on your side.
God’s lament over Judah’s destruction
7 I have abandoned my house;
I have deserted my inheritance.
I have given the one I love
into the power of her enemies.
8 My inheritance has turned against me
like a lion in the forest;
she growls at me;
therefore, I have rejected her.
9 My inheritance has become
like a bird of prey,
surrounded and attacked.[c]
Go, gather all the wild animals for the feast.
10 Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard;
they have trampled down my field;
they have reduced my treasured field
to a desolate wilderness.
11 They have devastated her;
desolate, she cries out to me in distress:
“The whole land is desolate,
and no one seems to care.”
12 Over all the desert roads
destroyers march;
for the sword of the Lord devours
from one end of the land to the other;
no one is safe.
13 They have sown wheat and reaped weeds;
they have worn themselves out for nothing.
They will be ashamed of their[d] harvest
on account of the Lord’s fierce anger.
A blind man is healed
35 As Jesus came to Jericho, a certain blind man was sitting beside the road begging. 36 When the man heard the crowd passing by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus the Nazarene is passing by.”
38 The blind man shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, show me mercy.” 39 Those leading the procession scolded him, telling him to be quiet, but he shouted even louder, “Son of David, show me mercy.”
40 Jesus stopped and called for the man to be brought to him. When he was present Jesus asked, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
He said, “Lord, I want to see.”
42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” 43 At once he was able to see, and he began to follow Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they praised God too.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible