Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Character of Those Who May Dwell with the Lord
A Psalm of David.
2 He who walks uprightly,
And works righteousness,
And speaks the (B)truth in his heart;
3 He who (C)does not backbite with his tongue,
Nor does evil to his neighbor,
(D)Nor does he [b]take up a reproach against his friend;
4 (E)In whose eyes a vile person is despised,
But he honors those who fear the Lord;
He who (F)swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 He who does not put out his money at usury,
Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things (G)shall never be moved.
Abram Inherits Canaan
13 Then Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and (A)Lot with him, (B)to the [a]South. 2 (C)Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. 3 And he went on his journey (D)from the South as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, 4 to the (E)place of the altar which he had made there at first. And there Abram (F)called on the name of the Lord.
5 Lot also, who went with Abram, had flocks and herds and tents. 6 Now (G)the land was not able to [b]support them, that they might dwell together, for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together. 7 And there was (H)strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. (I)The Canaanites and the Perizzites then dwelt in the land.
8 So Abram said to Lot, (J)“Please let there be no strife between you and me, and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen; for we are brethren. 9 (K)Is not the whole land before you? Please (L)separate from me. (M)If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.”
10 And Lot lifted his eyes and saw all (N)the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the Lord (O)destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) (P)like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt as you go toward (Q)Zoar. 11 Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they separated from each other. 12 Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot (R)dwelt in the cities of the plain and (S)pitched his tent even as far as Sodom. 13 But the men of Sodom (T)were exceedingly wicked and (U)sinful against the Lord.
14 And the Lord said to Abram, after Lot (V)had separated from him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—(W)northward, southward, eastward, and westward; 15 for all the land which you see (X)I give to you and (Y)your [c]descendants forever. 16 And (Z)I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered. 17 Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you.”
18 (AA)Then Abram moved his tent, and went and (AB)dwelt by [d]the terebinth trees of Mamre, (AC)which are in Hebron, and built an (AD)altar there to the Lord.
Appreciation of the Mystery
14 For this reason I bow my knees to the (A)Father [a]of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 that He would grant you, (B)according to the riches of His glory, (C)to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in (D)the inner man, 17 (E)that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, (F)being rooted and grounded in love, 18 (G)may be able to comprehend with all the saints (H)what is the width and length and depth and height— 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled (I)with all the fullness of God.
20 Now (J)to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly (K)above all that we ask or think, (L)according to the power that works in us, 21 (M)to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.