Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death.

²² Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “^(A)Go into the harlot’s house and bring the woman and all she has out of there, as you have sworn to her.” ²³ So the young men who were spies went in and ^(B)brought out Rahab and her father and her mother and her brothers and all she had; they also brought out all her relatives and placed them outside the camp of Israel. ^24 (C)They burned the city with fire, and all that was in it. Only the silver and gold, and articles of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the ^[a]house of the Lord. ²⁵ However, ^(D)Rahab the harlot and her father’s household and all she had, Joshua ^[b]spared; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, for ^(E)she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

²⁶ Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, “^(F)Cursed before the Lord is the man who rises up and builds this city Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates.” ²⁷ So ^(G)the Lord was with Joshua, and his ^(H)fame was in all the land.

Authority Challenged

^23 (A)When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him ^(B)while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” ²⁴ Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one ^[a]thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵ The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ ²⁶ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the ^[b]people; for they all regard John as ^(C)a prophet.” ²⁷ And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

Parable of Two Sons

²⁸ “But what do you think? A man had two ^[c]sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘^[d]Son, go work today in the ^(D)vineyard.’ ²⁹ And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. ³⁰ The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. ³¹ Which of the two did the will of his father?” They *said, “The first.” Jesus *said to them, “Truly I say to you that ^(E)the tax collectors and prostitutes ^[e]will get into the kingdom of God before you. ³² For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but ^(F)the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.