Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
6 Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king,
And do not stand in the place of the great;
7 (A)For it is better that he say to you,
“Come up here,”
Than that you should be put lower in the presence of the prince,
Whom your eyes have seen.
The Blessed State of the Righteous
112 Praise[a] the Lord!
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
Who (A)delights greatly in His commandments.
2 (B)His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 (C)Wealth and riches will be in his house,
And his righteousness [b]endures forever.
4 (D)Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness;
He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
5 (E)A good man deals graciously and lends;
He will guide his affairs (F)with discretion.
6 Surely he will never be shaken;
(G)The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance.
7 (H)He will not be afraid of evil tidings;
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
8 His (I)heart is established;
(J)He will not be afraid,
Until he (K)sees his desire upon his enemies.
9 He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever;
His [c]horn will be exalted with honor.
10 The wicked will see it and be grieved;
He will gnash his teeth and melt away;
The desire of the wicked shall perish.
Concluding Moral Directions
13 Let (A)brotherly love continue. 2 (B)Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing (C)some have unwittingly entertained angels. 3 (D)Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.
4 (E)Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; (F)but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.
5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, (G)“I will never leave you nor forsake you.” 6 So we may boldly say:
(H)“The Lord is my helper;
I will not fear.
What can man do to me?”
Concluding Religious Directions
7 Remember those who [a]rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct. 8 Jesus Christ is (I)the same yesterday, today, and forever.
A Man with Dropsy Healed on the Sabbath
14 Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely.
Take the Lowly Place
7 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: 8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; 9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 (A)But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. 11 (B)For whoever exalts himself will be [a]humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite (C)the poor, the [b]maimed, the lame, the blind. 14 And you will be (D)blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.