Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

⁹ When you pray, I will answer you. When you call to me, I will respond.

“If you put an end to oppression, to every gesture of contempt, and to every evil word; ¹⁰ if you give food to the hungry and satisfy those who are in need, then the darkness around you will turn to the brightness of noon. ¹¹ And I will always guide you and satisfy you with good things. I will keep you strong and well. You will be like a garden that has plenty of water, like a spring of water that never goes dry. ¹² Your people will rebuild what has long been in ruins, building again on the old foundations. You will be known as the people who rebuilt the walls, who restored the ruined houses.”

The Reward for Keeping the Sabbath

¹³ The Lord says, “If you treat the Sabbath as sacred and do not pursue your own interests on that day; if you value my holy day and honor it by not traveling, working, or talking idly on that day, ¹⁴ then you will find the joy that comes from serving me. I will make you honored all over the world, and you will enjoy the land I gave to your ancestor, Jacob. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

The Love of God^[a]

^18 (A)You have not come, as the people of Israel came, to what you can feel, to Mount Sinai with its blazing fire, the darkness and the gloom, the storm, ¹⁹ the blast of a trumpet, and the sound of a voice. When the people heard the voice, they begged not to hear another word, ^20 (B)because they could not bear the order which said, “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” ^21 (C)The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling and afraid!”

²² Instead, you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, with its thousands of angels. ²³ You have come to the joyful gathering of God's first-born, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, who is the judge of all people, and to the spirits of good people made perfect. ^24 (D)You have come to Jesus, who arranged the new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that promises much better things than does the blood of Abel.

^25 (E)Be careful, then, and do not refuse to hear him who speaks. Those who refused to hear the one who gave the divine message on earth did not escape. How much less shall we escape, then, if we turn away from the one who speaks from heaven! ^26 (F)His voice shook the earth at that time, but now he has promised, “I will once more shake not only the earth but heaven as well.” ²⁷ The words “once more” plainly show that the created things will be shaken and removed, so that the things that cannot be shaken will remain.

²⁸ Let us be thankful, then, because we receive a kingdom that cannot be shaken. Let us be grateful and worship God in a way that will please him, with reverence and awe; ^29 (G)because our God is indeed a destroying fire.

Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath

¹⁰ One Sabbath Jesus was teaching in a synagogue. ¹¹ A woman there had an evil spirit that had kept her sick for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not straighten up at all. ¹² When Jesus saw her, he called out to her, “Woman, you are free from your sickness!” ¹³ He placed his hands on her, and at once she straightened herself up and praised God.

^14 (A)The official of the synagogue was angry that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, so he spoke up and said to the people, “There are six days in which we should work; so come during those days and be healed, but not on the Sabbath!”

¹⁵ The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Any one of you would untie your ox or your donkey from the stall and take it out to give it water on the Sabbath. ¹⁶ Now here is this descendant of Abraham whom Satan has kept in bonds for eighteen years; should she not be released on the Sabbath?” ¹⁷ His answer made his enemies ashamed of themselves, while the people rejoiced over all the wonderful things that he did.