Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

⁸ Late in the afternoon, when the breeze began to blow, the man and woman heard the Lord God walking in the garden. So they hid behind some trees.

Sin Brings a Curse

⁹ The Lord God called out to the man and asked, “Where are you?”

¹⁰ The man answered, “I was naked, and when I heard you walking through the garden, I was frightened and hid!”

¹¹ “How did you know you were naked?” God asked. “Did you eat any fruit from that tree in the middle of the garden?”

¹² “It was the woman you put here with me,” the man said. “She gave me some of the fruit, and I ate it.”

^13 (A) The Lord God then asked the woman, “What have you done?”

“The snake tricked me,” she answered, “and I ate some of that fruit.”

¹⁴ So the Lord God said to the snake:

(A song for worship.)

Trusting the Lord in Times of Trouble

¹³ In the Scriptures it says, “I spoke because I had faith.” We have this same kind of faith. So we speak ¹⁴ because we know that God raised the Lord Jesus to life. And just as God raised Jesus, he will also raise us to life. Then he will bring us into his presence together with you. ¹⁵ All of this has been done for you, so more and more people will know how kind God is and will praise and honor him.

Faith in the Lord

¹⁶ We never give up. Our bodies are gradually dying, but we ourselves are being made stronger each day. ¹⁷ These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing. ¹⁸ Things that are seen don't last forever, but things that are not seen are eternal. This is why we keep our minds on the things that cannot be seen.

5 ^(A) Our bodies are like tents that we live in here on earth. But when these tents are destroyed, we know that God will give each of us a place to live. These homes will not be buildings someone has made, but they are in heaven and will last forever.

Jesus and the Ruler of Demons

(Matthew 12.22-32; Luke 11.14-23; 12.10)

²⁰ Jesus went back home,^[a] and once again such a large crowd gathered that there was no chance even to eat. ²¹ When Jesus' family heard what he was doing, they thought he was crazy and went to get him under control.

^22 (A) Some teachers of the Law of Moses came from Jerusalem and said, “This man is under the power of Beelzebul, the ruler of demons! He is even forcing out demons with the help of Beelzebul.”

²³ Jesus told the people to gather around him. Then he spoke to them in riddles and said:

How can Satan force himself out? ²⁴ A nation whose people fight each other won't last very long. ²⁵ And a family that fights won't last long either. ²⁶ So if Satan fights against himself, that will be the end of him.

²⁷ How can anyone break into the house of a strong man and steal his things, unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can take everything.

²⁸ I promise you that any of the sinful things you say or do can be forgiven, no matter how terrible those things are. ^29 (B) But if you speak against the Holy Spirit, you can never be forgiven. That sin will be held against you forever.

³⁰ Jesus said this because the people were saying that he had an evil spirit in him.

Jesus' Mother and Brothers

(Matthew 12.46-50; Luke 8.19-21)

³¹ Jesus' mother and brothers came and stood outside. Then they sent someone with a message for him to come out to them. ³² The crowd sitting around Jesus told him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters^[b] are outside and want to see you.”

³³ Jesus asked, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?” ³⁴ Then he looked at the people sitting around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. ³⁵ Anyone who obeys God is my brother or sister or mother.”