Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 23
A psalm of David.
1 The Lord is my shepherd,(A) I lack nothing.(B)
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,(C)
3 he refreshes my soul.(D)
He guides me(E) along the right paths(F)
for his name’s sake.(G)
4 Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,[a](H)
I will fear no evil,(I)
for you are with me;(J)
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
17 Terror(A) and pit and snare(B) await you,
people of the earth.(C)
18 Whoever flees(D) at the sound of terror
will fall into a pit;(E)
whoever climbs out of the pit
will be caught in a snare.(F)
The floodgates of the heavens(G) are opened,
the foundations of the earth shake.(H)
19 The earth is broken up,(I)
the earth is split asunder,(J)
the earth is violently shaken.
20 The earth reels like a drunkard,(K)
it sways like a hut(L) in the wind;
so heavy upon it is the guilt of its rebellion(M)
that it falls(N)—never to rise again.(O)
21 In that day(P) the Lord will punish(Q)
the powers(R) in the heavens above
and the kings(S) on the earth below.
22 They will be herded together
like prisoners(T) bound in a dungeon;(U)
they will be shut up in prison
and be punished[a] after many days.(V)
23 The moon will be dismayed,
the sun(W) ashamed;
for the Lord Almighty will reign(X)
on Mount Zion(Y) and in Jerusalem,
and before its elders—with great glory.(Z)
Jesus Questioned About Fasting(A)
18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting.(B) Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”
19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them,(C) and on that day they will fast.
21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.