Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 16[a]
A prayer[b] of David.
16 Protect me, O God, for I have taken shelter in you.[c]
2 I say to the Lord, “You are the Lord,
my only source of well-being.”[d]
3 As for God’s chosen people who are in the land,
and the leading officials I admired so much[e]—
4 their troubles multiply;
they desire other gods.[f]
I will not pour out drink offerings of blood to their gods,[g]
nor will I make vows in the name of their gods.[h]
5 Lord, you give me stability and prosperity;[i]
you make my future secure.[j]
6 It is as if I have been given fertile fields
or received a beautiful tract of land.[k]
7 I will praise[l] the Lord who[m] guides[n] me;
yes, during the night I reflect and learn.[o]
8 I constantly trust in the Lord;[p]
because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 So my heart rejoices
and I am happy;[q]
my life is safe.[r]
10 You will not abandon me[s] to Sheol;[t]
you will not allow your faithful follower[u] to see[v] the Pit.[w]
11 You lead me in[x] the path of life.[y]
I experience absolute joy in your presence;[z]
you always give me sheer delight.[aa]
28 Now all this happened[a] to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 After twelve months, he happened to be walking around on the battlements[b] of the royal palace of Babylon. 30 The king uttered these words: “Is this not the great Babylon that I have built for a royal residence[c] by my own mighty strength[d] and for my majestic honor?” 31 While these words were still on the king’s lips,[e] a voice came down from heaven: “It is hereby announced to you,[f] King Nebuchadnezzar, that your kingdom has been removed from you! 32 You will be driven from human society, and you will live with the wild animals. You will be fed grass like oxen, and seven periods of time will pass by for you before[g] you understand that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whomever he wishes.”
33 Now in that very moment[h] this pronouncement about[i] Nebuchadnezzar came true.[j] He was driven from human society, he ate grass like oxen, and his body became damp with the dew of the sky, until his hair became long like an eagle’s feathers, and his nails like a bird’s claws.[k]
34 But at the end of the appointed time[l] I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up[m] toward heaven, and my sanity returned to me.
I extolled the Most High,
and I praised and glorified the one who lives forever.
For his authority is an everlasting authority,
and his kingdom extends from one generation to the next.
35 All the inhabitants of the earth are regarded as nothing.[n]
He does as he wishes with the army of heaven
and with those who inhabit the earth.
No one slaps[o] his hand
and says to him, ‘What have you done?’
36 At that time my sanity returned to me. I was restored[p] to the honor of my kingdom, and my splendor returned to me. My ministers and my nobles were seeking me out, and I was reinstated[q] over my kingdom. I became even greater than before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, for all his deeds are right and his ways are just. He is able to bring down those who live[r] in pride.
The Parable of the Tenants
12 Then[a] he began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard.[b] He put a fence around it, dug a pit for its winepress, and built a watchtower. Then[c] he leased it to tenant farmers[d] and went on a journey. 2 At harvest time he sent a slave[e] to the tenants to collect from them[f] his portion of the crop.[g] 3 But[h] those tenants[i] seized his slave,[j] beat him,[k] and sent him away empty-handed.[l] 4 So[m] he sent another slave to them again. This one they struck on the head and treated outrageously. 5 He sent another, and that one they killed. This happened to many others, some of whom were beaten, others killed. 6 He had one left, his one dear son.[n] Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and the inheritance will be ours!’ 8 So[o] they seized him,[p] killed him, and threw his body[q] out of the vineyard.[r] 9 What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy[s] those tenants and give the vineyard to others.[t] 10 Have you not read this scripture:
‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.[u]
11 This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”[v]
12 Now[w] they wanted to arrest him (but they feared the crowd), because they realized that he told this parable against them. So[x] they left him and went away.[y]
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