Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 15[a]
A psalm of David.
15 Lord, who may be a guest in your home?[b]
Who may live on your holy hill?[c]
2 Whoever lives a blameless life,[d]
does what is right,
and speaks honestly.[e]
3 He[f] does not slander,[g]
or do harm to others,[h]
or insult his neighbor.[i]
4 He despises a reprobate,[j]
but honors the Lord’s loyal followers.[k]
He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise.[l]
5 He does not charge interest when he lends his money.[m]
He does not take bribes to testify against the innocent.[n]
The one who lives like this[o] will never be shaken.
17 You must not pervert justice[a] due a resident foreigner or an orphan, or take a widow’s garment as security for a loan. 18 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore I am commanding you to do all this. 19 Whenever you reap your harvest in your field and leave some unraked grain there,[b] you must not return to get it; it should go to the resident foreigner, orphan, and widow so that the Lord your God may bless all the work you do.[c] 20 When you beat your olive tree you must not repeat the procedure;[d] the remaining olives belong to the resident foreigner, orphan, and widow. 21 When you gather the grapes of your vineyard you must not do so a second time;[e] they should go to the resident foreigner, orphan, and widow. 22 Remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt; therefore, I am commanding you to do all this.
25 If controversy arises between people,[f] they should go to court for judgment. When the judges[g] hear the case, they shall exonerate[h] the innocent but condemn[i] the guilty. 2 Then,[j] if the guilty person is sentenced to a beating,[k] the judge shall force him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with the number of blows his wicked behavior deserves.[l] 3 The judge[m] may sentence him to forty blows,[n] but no more. If he is struck with more than these, you might view your fellow Israelite[o] with contempt.
4 You must not muzzle your[p] ox when it is treading grain.
17 Elders who provide effective leadership[a] must be counted worthy[b] of double honor,[c] especially those who work hard in speaking[d] and teaching. 18 For the scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,”[e] and, “The worker deserves his pay.”[f] 19 Do not accept an accusation against an elder unless it can be confirmed by two or three witnesses.[g] 20 Those guilty of sin[h] must be rebuked[i] before all,[j] as a warning to the rest.[k] 21 Before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, I solemnly charge you to carry out these commands without prejudice or favoritism of any kind.[l] 22 Do not lay hands on anyone[m] hastily and so identify with the sins of others.[n] Keep yourself pure. 23 (Stop drinking just water, but use a little wine for your digestion[o] and your frequent illnesses.)[p] 24 The sins of some people are obvious, going before them into judgment, but for others, they show up later.[q]
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