Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

⁵ My people are deceived by prophets who promise peace to those who pay them, but threaten war for those who don't. To these prophets the Lord says, ⁶ “Prophets, your day is almost over; the sun is going down on you. Because you mislead my people, you will have no more prophetic visions, and you will not be able to predict anything.” ⁷ Those who predict the future will be disgraced by their failure. They will all be humiliated because God does not answer them.

⁸ But as for me, the Lord fills me with his spirit and power, and gives me a sense of justice and the courage to tell the people of Israel what their sins are. ⁹ Listen to me, you rulers of Israel, you that hate justice and turn right into wrong. ¹⁰ You are building God's city, Jerusalem, on a foundation of murder and injustice. ¹¹ The city's rulers govern for bribes, the priests interpret the Law for pay, the prophets give their revelations for money—and they all claim that the Lord is with them. “No harm will come to us,” they say. “The Lord is with us.”

^12 (A)And so, because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a pile of ruins, and the Temple hill will become a forest.

The Prayer of Someone in Exile ^(A)

⁹ Surely you remember, our friends, how we worked and toiled! We worked day and night so that we would not be any trouble to you as we preached to you the Good News from God.

¹⁰ You are our witnesses, and so is God, that our conduct toward you who believe was pure, right, and without fault. ¹¹ You know that we treated each one of you just as parents treat their own children. ¹² We encouraged you, we comforted you, and we kept urging you to live the kind of life that pleases God, who calls you to share in his own Kingdom and glory.

¹³ And there is another reason why we always give thanks to God. When we brought you God's message, you heard it and accepted it, not as a message from human beings but as God's message, which indeed it is. For God is at work in you who believe.

Jesus Warns against the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees^(A)

23 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples. ² “The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees are the authorized interpreters of Moses' Law. ³ So you must obey and follow everything they tell you to do; do not, however, imitate their actions, because they don't practice what they preach. ⁴ They tie onto people's backs loads that are heavy and hard to carry, yet they aren't willing even to lift a finger to help them carry those loads. ^5 (B)They do everything so that people will see them. Look at the straps with scripture verses on them which they wear on their foreheads and arms, and notice how large they are! Notice also how long are the tassels on their cloaks!^{[a] 6} They love the best places at feasts and the reserved seats in the synagogues; ⁷ they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to have people call them ‘Teacher.’ ⁸ You must not be called ‘Teacher,’ because you are all equal and have only one Teacher. ⁹ And you must not call anyone here on earth ‘Father,’ because you have only the one Father in heaven. ¹⁰ Nor should you be called ‘Leader,’ because your one and only leader is the Messiah. ^11 (C)The greatest one among you must be your servant. ^12 (D)Whoever makes himself great will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be made great.