Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Righteous Branch
23 Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! declares the Lord.
2 Therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says about the shepherds who shepherd my people.
You have scattered my flock.
You have driven them away.
You have not taken care of them,
but I will certainly take care of you,
because of the evil things you have done,
declares the Lord.
3 I will gather what is left of my flock
out of all the countries where I have driven them,
and I will bring them back to their pastures.
They will be fruitful and multiply.
4 I will raise up shepherds over them
who will shepherd them.
They will no longer be afraid or terrified,
nor will any be missing, declares the Lord.
5 Listen, the days are coming, declares the Lord,
when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch,
who will reign wisely as king
and establish justice and righteousness on earth.
6 In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will dwell securely.
This is his name by which he will be called:
The Lord Our Righteousness.
Psalm 23
The King of Love My Shepherd Is
Heading
A psalm by David.
The Shepherd Provides for His People
1 The Lord is my shepherd.
I lack nothing.
2 He causes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside quiet waters.
3 He restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
The Shepherd Protects His People
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
The Royal Host Provides for His People
United in Christ
11 Therefore, remember that at one time, you Gentiles in the flesh—the ones who are called “uncircumcised” by those called “the circumcised” (which is performed physically by human hands)— 12 remember that at that time you were separated from Christ, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of the promise. You were without hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace. He made the two groups one by destroying the wall of hostility that divided them 15 when he abolished the law of commandments and regulations in his flesh. He did this to create in himself one new person out of the two, in this way making peace. 16 And he did this to reconcile both to God in one body through the cross by putting the hostility to death on it.[a] 17 He also came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.[b]
19 So then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household. 20 You have been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the Cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Jesus Feeds More Than Five Thousand
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all that they had done and taught. 31 He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” For there were so many people coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat. 32 They went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. 33 But many people saw them leave and knew where they were going. They ran there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. 34 When Jesus stepped out of the boat, he saw a large crowd. His heart went out to them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. He began to teach them many things.
53 When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. 54 As soon as they stepped out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. 55 They ran around that whole region and began to bring sick people on their stretchers to where they heard he was. 56 Wherever he entered villages, cities, or the countryside, they were laying sick people in the marketplaces and pleading with him that they might just touch the edge of his garment. And all who touched it were made well.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.