Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A song; a psalm by Korah’s descendants; for the choir director; according to mahalath leannoth; [a] a maskil by Heman the Ezrahite.
88 O Lord God, my savior,
I cry out to you during the day and at night.
2 Let my prayer come into your presence.
Turn your ear to hear my cries.
3 My soul is filled with troubles,
and my life comes closer to the grave.
4 I am numbered with those who go into the pit.
I am like a man without any strength—
5 abandoned with the dead,
like those who have been killed and lie in graves,
like those whom you no longer remember,
who are cut off from your power.
6 You have put me in the bottom of the pit—in deep, dark places.
7 Your rage lies heavily on me.
You make all your waves pound on me. Selah
8 You have taken my friends far away from me.
You made me disgusting to them.
I’m shut in, and I can’t get out.
9 My eyes grow weak because of my suffering.
All day long I call out to you, O Lord.
I stretch out my hands to you ⌞in prayer⌟.
10 Will you perform miracles for those who are dead?
Will the spirits of the dead rise and give thanks to you? Selah
11 Will anyone tell about your mercy in Sheol
or about your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Will anyone know about your miracles in that dark place
or about your righteousness in the place where forgotten people live?
13 I cry out to you for help, O Lord,
and in the morning my prayer will come into your presence.
14 Why do you reject my soul, O Lord?
Why do you hide your face from me?
15 Ever since I was young, I have been suffering and near death.
I have endured your terrors, and now I am in despair.
16 Your burning anger has swept over me.
Your terrors have destroyed me.
17 They swirl around me all day long like water.
They surround me on all sides.
18 You have taken my loved ones and friends far away from me.
Darkness is my only friend!
Bodily Discharges from Women
19 “When a woman has her monthly period, she will be unclean for seven days. Those who touch her will be unclean until evening. 20 Everything she lies on or sits on during her period will be unclean. 21 Those who touch her bed must wash their clothes and their bodies. They will be unclean until evening. 22 Those who touch anything she sits on must wash their clothes and their bodies. They will be unclean until evening. 23 If her blood touches anything on the bed or anything she sits on, it will be unclean until evening. 24 If a man has sexual intercourse with her while she has her period, he will be unclean for seven days. Any bed he lies on will become unclean.
25 “If a woman has a discharge of blood for many days other than her monthly period, she is unclean. If her period lasts longer than usual, she will be unclean as long as she has a discharge. It is like her period. 26 As long as she has a discharge, any bed she lies on or anything she sits on is unclean. It is like her period. 27 Those who touch these things are unclean and must wash their clothes and their bodies. They will be unclean until evening.
28 “When her discharge stops, she must wait seven days. After that, she will be clean. 29 On the eighth day she must take two mourning doves or two pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 30 The priest will offer one as an offering for sin and the other as a burnt offering. So in the Lord’s presence the priest will make peace with the Lord for the woman who had an unclean discharge.
31 “You must separate the Israelites from anything that keeps them from being presentable to me. Otherwise, they will die because they make my tent, which is among them, unclean.
The Reason to Give to the Christians in Jerusalem
9 I don’t need to write anything further to you about helping the Christians ⌞in Jerusalem⌟. 2 I know how willing you are to help, and I brag about you to the believers in the province of Macedonia. I tell them, “The people of Greece have been ready ⌞to send their collection⌟ since last year,” and your enthusiasm has moved most of them ⌞to act⌟. 3 I’ve sent my coworkers so that when we brag that you’re ready, we can back it up. 4 Otherwise, if any Macedonians come with me, they might find out that you’re not ready after all. This would embarrass us for feeling so confident as much as it would embarrass you. 5 So I thought that I should encourage our coworkers to visit you before I do and make arrangements for this gift that you had already promised to give. Then it will be the blessing it was intended to be, and it won’t be something you’re forced to do.
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