Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
7 “Hear, O My people, and I will speak,
O Israel, and I will testify against you;
(A)I am God, your God!
8 (B)I will not [a]rebuke you (C)for your sacrifices
Or your burnt offerings,
Which are continually before Me.
9 (D)I will not take a bull from your house,
Nor goats out of your folds.
10 For every beast of the forest is Mine,
And the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know all the birds of the mountains,
And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
(E)For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.
13 (F)Will I eat the flesh of bulls,
Or drink the blood of goats?
14 (G)Offer to God thanksgiving,
And (H)pay your vows to the Most High.
15 (I)Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”
40 Let us search out and examine our ways,
And turn back to the Lord;
41 (A)Let us lift our hearts and hands
To God in heaven.
42 (B)We have transgressed and rebelled;
You have not pardoned.
43 You have covered Yourself with anger
And pursued us;
You have slain and not pitied.
44 You have covered Yourself with a cloud,
That prayer should not pass through.
45 You have made us an (C)offscouring and refuse
In the midst of the peoples.
46 (D)All our enemies
Have opened their mouths against us.
47 (E)Fear and a snare have come upon us,
(F)Desolation and destruction.
48 (G)My eyes overflow with rivers of water
For the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 (H)My eyes flow and do not cease,
Without interruption,
50 Till the Lord from heaven
(I)Looks down and sees.
51 My eyes bring suffering to my soul
Because of all the daughters of my city.
52 My enemies (J)without cause
Hunted me down like a bird.
53 They [a]silenced my life (K)in the pit
And (L)threw [b]stones at me.
54 (M)The waters flowed over my head;
(N)I said, “I am cut off!”
Paul’s Ministry on Malta
28 Now when they had escaped, they then found out that (A)the island was called Malta. 2 And the (B)natives[a] showed us unusual kindness; for they kindled a fire and made us all welcome, because of the rain that was falling and because of the cold. 3 But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. 4 So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.” 5 But he shook off the creature into the fire and (C)suffered no harm. 6 However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and (D)said that he was a god.
7 In that region there was an estate of the [b]leading citizen of the island, whose name was Publius, who received us and entertained us courteously for three days. 8 And it happened that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and dysentery. Paul went in to him and (E)prayed, and (F)he laid his hands on him and healed him. 9 So when this was done, the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came and were healed. 10 They also honored us in many (G)ways; and when we departed, they provided such things as were (H)necessary.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.