Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Praise for the Lord’s Mercies
A Psalm of David.
103 Bless (A)the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
3 (B)Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who (C)heals all your diseases,
4 Who redeems your life from destruction,
(D)Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that (E)your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Penalty for Violating the Sabbath(A)
32 Now while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, (B)they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. 33 And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation. 34 They put him (C)under guard, because it had not been explained what should be done to him.
35 Then the Lord said to Moses, (D)“The man must surely be put to death; all the congregation shall (E)stone him with stones outside the camp.” 36 So, as the Lord commanded Moses, all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, and he died.
Tassels on Garments
37 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 38 “Speak to the children of Israel: Tell (F)them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. 39 And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and (G)remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you (H)may not (I)follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, 40 and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be (J)holy for your God. 41 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.”
The Discipline of God(A)
3 (B)For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, (C)lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. 4 (D)You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. 5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:
(E)“My son, do not despise the [a]chastening of the Lord,
Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;
6 For (F)whom the Lord loves He chastens,
And scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 (G)If[b] you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what (H)son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening, (I)of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to (J)the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, (K)that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no [c]chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields (L)the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Renew Your Spiritual Vitality(M)
12 Therefore (N)strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.
14 (O)Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, (P)without which no one will see the Lord: 15 looking carefully lest anyone (Q)fall short of the grace of God; lest any (R)root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; 16 lest there be any (S)fornicator or [d]profane person like Esau, (T)who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. 17 For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was (U)rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.