Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
For the director of music. A psalm of David, the servant of the Lord.
36 I have a message from God in my heart.
It is about the evil ways of anyone who sins.
They don’t have any respect for God.
2 They praise themselves so much
that they can’t see their sin or hate it.
3 Their mouths speak words that are evil and false.
They do not act wisely or do what is good.
4 Even as they lie in bed they make evil plans.
They commit themselves to a sinful way of life.
They never say no to what is wrong.
5 Lord, your love is as high as the heavens.
Your faithful love reaches up to the skies.
6 Your holiness is as great as the height of the highest mountains.
You are as honest as the oceans are deep.
Lord, you keep people and animals safe.
7 How priceless your faithful love is!
People find safety in the shadow of your wings.
8 They eat well because there is more than enough in your house.
You let them drink from your river that flows with good things.
9 You have the fountain of life.
We are filled with light because you give us light.
10 Keep on loving those who know you.
Keep on doing right to those whose hearts are honest.
11 Don’t let the feet of those who are proud step on me.
Don’t let the hands of those who are evil drive me away.
12 See how those who do evil have fallen!
They are thrown down and can’t get up.
Joseph Saves Many Lives
13 But there wasn’t any food in the whole area. In fact, there wasn’t enough food anywhere. The people of Egypt and Canaan lost their strength because there wasn’t enough food to go around. 14 Joseph collected all the money in Egypt and Canaan. People paid it to him for the grain they were buying. And Joseph brought it to Pharaoh’s palace. 15 When the money of the people of Egypt and Canaan was gone, all the Egyptians came to Joseph. They said, “Give us food. What good would it do you to watch us all die? Our money is all gone.”
16 “Then bring your livestock,” said Joseph. “You say your money is gone. So I’ll trade you food for your livestock.” 17 They brought their livestock to Joseph. He traded them food for their animals. They gave him their horses, sheep, goats, cattle and donkeys. He helped the people live through that year by trading them food for all their livestock.
18 When that year was over, they came to him the next year. They said, “We can’t hide the truth from you. Our money is gone. Our livestock belongs to you. We don’t have anything left to give you except our bodies and our land. 19 What good would it do you to watch us die? Why should our land be destroyed? Trade us food for ourselves and our land. Then we and our land will belong to Pharaoh. Give us some seeds so we can live and not die. We don’t want the land to become a desert.”
20 So Joseph bought all the land in Egypt for Pharaoh. All the people of Egypt sold their fields. They did that because there wasn’t enough food anywhere. So the land became Pharaoh’s. 21 Joseph made the people slaves from one end of Egypt to the other. 22 But Joseph didn’t buy the land that belonged to the priests. They received a regular share of food from Pharaoh. They had enough food from what Pharaoh gave them. That’s why they didn’t have to sell their land.
23 Joseph said to the people, “I’ve bought you and your land today for Pharaoh. So here are some seeds for you to plant in the ground. 24 But when the crop comes in, give a fifth of it to Pharaoh. Keep the other four-fifths for yourselves. They will be seeds for the fields. And they will be food for yourselves, your children, and the other people who live with you.”
25 “You have saved our lives,” they said. “If you are pleased with us, we will be Pharaoh’s slaves.”
26 So Joseph made a law about land in Egypt. It’s still the law today. A fifth of the produce belongs to Pharaoh. Only the land belonging to the priests didn’t become Pharaoh’s.
The Yeast of the Pharisees and Herod
14 The disciples had forgotten to bring bread. They had only one loaf with them in the boat. 15 “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees. And watch out for the yeast of Herod.”
16 They talked about this with each other. They said, “He must be saying this because we don’t have any bread.”
17 Jesus knew what they were saying. So he asked them, “Why are you talking about having no bread? Why can’t you see or understand? Are you stubborn? 18 Do you have eyes and still don’t see? Do you have ears and still don’t hear? And don’t you remember? 19 Earlier I broke five loaves for the 5,000. How many baskets of pieces did you pick up?”
“Twelve,” they replied.
20 “Later I broke seven loaves for the 4,000. How many baskets of pieces did you pick up?”
“Seven,” they answered.
21 He said to them, “Can’t you understand yet?”
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.