Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 112[a]
1 Hallelujah!
Blessed is the person who fears Yahweh
and is happy to obey his commands.
2 His descendants will grow strong on the earth.
The family of a decent person will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches will be in his home.
His righteousness continues forever.
4 Light will shine in the dark for a decent person.
He is merciful, compassionate, and fair.
5 All goes well for the person who is generous and lends willingly.
He earns an honest living.
6 He will never fail.
A righteous person will always be remembered.
7 He is not afraid of bad news.
His heart remains secure, full of confidence in Yahweh.
8 His heart is steady, and he is not afraid.
In the end he will look triumphantly at his enemies.
9 He gives freely to poor people.
His righteousness continues forever.
His head is raised in honor.
10 The wicked person sees this and becomes angry.
He angrily grits his teeth and disappears.
The hope that wicked people have will vanish.
Laws about Sex and Marriage
13 A man might marry a woman, sleep with her, and decide he doesn’t like her. 14 Then he might make up charges against her and ruin her reputation by saying, “I married this woman. But when I slept with her, I found out she wasn’t a virgin.” 15 The girl’s father and mother must go to the city gate where the leaders of the city are and submit the evidence that their daughter was a virgin. 16 The girl’s father will tell the leaders, “I gave my daughter in marriage to this man, but he doesn’t like her. 17 Now he has made up charges against her. He says he found out that my daughter wasn’t a virgin. But here’s the evidence!” Then the girl’s parents must spread out the cloth in front of the leaders of the city. 18 The leaders of that city must take the man and punish him. 19 They will fine him 2¼ pounds of silver and give it to the girl’s father. The husband ruined the reputation of an Israelite virgin. She will continue to be his wife, and he can never divorce her as long as he lives.
20 But if the charge is true, and no evidence that the girl was a virgin can be found, 21 they must take the girl to the entrance of her father’s house. The men of her city must stone her to death because she has committed such a godless act in Israel: She had sex before marriage, while she was still living in her father’s house. You must get rid of this evil.
22 If a man is caught having sexual intercourse with a married woman, both that man and the woman must die. You must get rid of this evil in Israel.
23 This is what you must do when a man has sexual intercourse with a virgin who is engaged to another man. If this happens in a city, 24 take them to the gate of the city and stone them to death. The girl must die because she was in a city and didn’t scream for help. The man must die because he had sex with another man’s wife. You must get rid of this evil.
25 But if a man rapes an engaged girl out in the country, then only the man must die. 26 Don’t do anything to the girl. She has not committed a sin for which she deserves to die. This is like the case of someone who attacks and murders another person. 27 The man found the girl out in the country. She may have screamed for help, but no one was there to rescue her.
28 This is what you must do when a man rapes a virgin who isn’t engaged. When the crime is discovered, 29 the man who had sexual intercourse with her must give the girl’s father 1¼ pounds of silver, and she will become his wife. Since he raped her, he can never divorce her as long as he lives.[a]
30 A man must never marry his father’s wife because this would disgrace his father.
Advice about Marriage
7 Now, concerning the things that you wrote about: It’s good for men not to get married. 2 But in order to avoid sexual sins, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.
3 Husbands and wives should satisfy each other’s sexual needs. 4 A wife doesn’t have authority over her own body, but her husband does. In the same way, a husband doesn’t have authority over his own body, but his wife does.
5 Don’t withhold yourselves from each other unless you agree to do so for a set time to devote yourselves to prayer. Then you should get back together so that Satan doesn’t use your lack of self-control to tempt you. 6 What I have just said is not meant as a command but as a suggestion. 7 I would like everyone to be like me. However, each person has a special gift from God, and these gifts vary from person to person.
8 I say to those who are not married, especially to widows: It is good for you to stay single like me. 9 However, if you cannot control your desires, you should get married. It is better for you to marry than to burn with sexual desire.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.