Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Laboring and Prospering with the Lord
A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.
Seek God in Early Life
12 Remember(A) now your Creator in the days of your youth,
Before the [a]difficult days come,
And the years draw near (B)when you say,
“I have no pleasure in them”:
2 While the sun and the light,
The moon and the stars,
Are not darkened,
And the clouds do not return after the rain;
3 In the day when the keepers of the house tremble,
And the strong men bow down;
When the grinders cease because they are few,
And those that look through the windows grow dim;
4 When the doors are shut in the streets,
And the sound of grinding is low;
When one rises up at the sound of a bird,
And all (C)the daughters of music are brought low.
5 Also they are afraid of height,
And of terrors in the way;
When the almond tree blossoms,
The grasshopper is a burden,
And desire fails.
For man goes to (D)his eternal home,
And (E)the mourners go about the streets.
6 Remember your Creator before the silver cord is [b]loosed,
Or the golden bowl is broken,
Or the pitcher shattered at the fountain,
Or the wheel broken at the well.
7 (F)Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
(G)And the spirit will return to God (H)who gave it.
8 “Vanity(I) of vanities,” says the Preacher,
“All is vanity.”
Do Not Worry(A)
22 Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, (B)do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. 23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and (C)God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? 25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 26 If you then are not able to do the least, why [a]are you anxious for the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even (D)Solomon in all his glory was not [b]arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of (E)little faith?
29 “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father (F)knows that you need these things. 31 (G)But seek [c]the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.