Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 15
Who May Dwell in Your Sanctuary?
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A psalm by David.
The Question: Who May Dwell in Your Sanctuary?
1 Lord, who may be a guest in your tent?
Who may dwell on your holy mountain?
The Answer: The One Who Does What Is Righteous
2 One who walks with integrity,
who does what is righteous,
and who speaks the truth in his heart.
3 He has no slander on his tongue.
He does not harm his friend,
and he does not defame his neighbor.
4 He despises everyone whom God rejects,
but he honors those who fear the Lord.
When he promises something,
he does not break his word
even though it costs him a lot.
5 He does not lend his money to get interest,[a]
and he does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
One who does these things will never be toppled.
15 Moses turned and went down the mountain, with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hand—tablets that were written on both sides, written on one side and on the other. 16 The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
17 When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is the noise of war in the camp.”
18 Moses said, “It is not the sound of people who shout for victory; neither is it the sound of people who cry because of defeat. But I do hear the sound of people who are celebrating.”
19 As soon as Moses came near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing, and Moses’ anger burned. So he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. 20 He took the calf that they had made, burned it with fire, ground it to powder, and scattered it on the water. Then he made the people of Israel drink it.
21 Moses said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, that you have brought such a great sin on them?”
22 Aaron said, “Do not let the anger of my lord burn. You know these people. They are set on evil, 23 so they said to me, ‘Make a god for us, who will go ahead of us, because this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 24 So I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, pull it off.’ So they gave it to me. I threw it into the fire and out came this calf.”
25 When Moses saw that the people were out of control (for Aaron had let them get so out of control that they were disgraced among their enemies), 26 Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, “Whoever is on the Lord’s side, come to me!”
All the descendants of Levi gathered themselves together to Moses. 27 He said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Every man is to strap his sword on his thigh and go back and forth throughout the camp, from one gate of the camp to the other, and every man is to kill his brother, and every man his friend, and every man his neighbor.’” 28 The Levites did what Moses said, and that day about three thousand men from among the people fell. 29 Moses said, “Begin your service of the Lord today.[a] Yes, because every man among you took a stand against his son and against his brother, the Lord is bestowing a blessing on you today.”
30 On the next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a very serious sin. Now I will go up to the Lord. Perhaps I can gain atonement for your sin.”
31 Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Yes, this people has committed a very serious sin: They have made a god of gold for themselves. 32 Yet now, if you will, please forgive their sin—and if not, please erase me from your book, which you have written.”
33 The Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me is the one I will erase from my book. 34 Now go, lead the people to the place about which I have spoken to you. Look, my Angel shall go ahead of you. Nevertheless, when the right day comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.” 35 The Lord struck the people with a plague, because of what they had done with the calf that Aaron made.
Rich and Poor
9 Let the brother of humble circumstances boast in his high position, 10 and the rich one in his humble position, because he will pass away like a flower of the grass. 11 Indeed, the sun rises with burning heat and dries up the grass. Its blossom falls off, and its beauty perishes. In the same way also, the rich person will wither away in his busy pursuits.
Temptation
12 Blessed is the man who endures a trial patiently, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life, which God[a] promised to those who love him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” because God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is dragged away and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin. And sin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death.
Receive and Do What God’s Word Says
16 Do not be deceived, my dear brothers.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.