Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
2 “(A)Futility of futilities,” says the Preacher,
“Futility of futilities! All is futility.”
The Futility of Wisdom
12 I, the (A)Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 And I (B)set my [a]mind to seek and (C)explore by wisdom about everything that has been done under heaven. It is a [b](D)sorry task with which God has given the sons of mankind to be troubled. 14 I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is (E)futility and striving after wind.
The Futility of Labor
18 So I hated (A)all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, because I must (B)leave it to the man who will come after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be wise or (C)a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is (D)futility. 20 Therefore I [a]completely despaired over all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun. 21 When there is a person who has labored with wisdom, knowledge, and (E)skill, and then (F)gives his [b]legacy to one who has not labored for it; this too is futility and a great evil. 22 For what does a person get in (G)all his labor and in [c]his striving with which he labors under the sun? 23 Because all his days his activity is painful and (H)irritating; even at night his [d]mind (I)does not rest. This too is futility.
The Foolishness of Trusting in Riches.
For the music director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
49 (A)Hear this, all peoples;
Listen, all (B)inhabitants of the world,
2 Both (C)low and high,
Rich and poor together.
3 My mouth will (D)speak wisdom,
And the meditation of my heart will be (E)understanding.
4 I will incline my ear to (F)a proverb;
(G)I will [a]express my (H)riddle on the harp.
5 Why should I (I)fear in days of adversity,
When the injustice of those who betray me surrounds me,
6 Those who (J)trust in their wealth
And boast in the abundance of their riches?
7 No one can by any means (K)redeem another
Or give God a (L)ransom for him—
8 For (M)the redemption of [b]his soul is priceless,
And he should cease imagining forever—
9 That he might (N)live on eternally,
That he might not [c](O)undergo decay.
10 For he sees that even (P)wise people die;
The (Q)foolish and the stupid alike perish
And (R)leave their wealth to others.
11 Their [d](S)inner thought is that their houses (T)are forever
And their dwelling places to all generations;
They have (U)named their lands after their own names.
12 But (V)man in his splendor will not endure;
He is like the animals that [e]perish.
Put On the New Self
3 Therefore, if you have been (A)raised with Christ, keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, (B)seated at the right hand of God. 2 [a](C)Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have (D)died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, (E)who is our life, is revealed, (F)then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
5 (G)Therefore, [b]treat (H)the parts of your earthly body as dead to (I)sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which [c]amounts to idolatry. 6 For it is because of these things that (J)the wrath of God is coming [d]upon the [e]sons of disobedience, 7 and (K)in them you also once walked, when you were living [f]in them. 8 But now you also, (L)rid yourselves of all of them: (M)anger, wrath, malice, slander, and (N)obscene speech from your mouth. 9 [g](O)Do not lie to one another, since you (P)stripped off the old [h]self with its evil practices, 10 and have (Q)put on the new self, which is being [i](R)renewed to a true knowledge (S)according to the image of the One who (T)created it— 11 a renewal in which (U)there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, (V)circumcised and uncircumcised, [j](W)barbarian, [k]Scythian, (X)slave, and free, but (Y)Christ is all, and in all.
Greed Denounced
13 Now someone [a]in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” 14 But He said to him, “[b](A)You there—who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over the two of you?” 15 But He said to them, “(B)Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one is affluent does his life consist of his possessions.” 16 And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. 17 And he began thinking to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there. 19 And I will say to [c]myself, “(C)You have many goods stored up for many years to come; relax, eat, drink, and enjoy yourself!”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘(D)You fool! This very night [d](E)your soul is demanded of you; and (F)as for all that you have prepared, who will own it now?’ 21 Such is the one who (G)stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich in relation to God.”
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