Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
God’s Works and Word
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
19 The heavens ·declare [recount; narrate] the glory [C the manifest presence] of God,
and the ·skies [firmament; dome; Gen. 1:6] ·announce [speak out] ·what his hands have made [L the works of his hands].
2 Day after day they ·tell the story [L bubble/pour forth speech];
night after night they ·tell it again [L declare knowledge].
3 They have no speech or words;
they have no voice to be heard.
4 But their ·message [L line] goes out through all the world;
their words go ·everywhere on [L to the ends of the] earth.
·The sky [Heaven; L In them] is like a ·home [L tent] for the sun.
5 The sun comes out like a bridegroom from his ·bedroom [L wedding chamber].
It rejoices like an ·athlete [strong man] eager to run a race.
6 The sun rises at one end of the ·sky [heavens]
and ·follows its path [L its circuit is] to the other end.
Nothing hides from its heat.
7 The ·teachings [laws; instructions] of the Lord are perfect;
they ·give new strength [T revive the soul].
The ·rules [testimonies] of the Lord ·can be trusted [are faithful/sure];
they make ·plain [simpleminded; immature] people wise [Prov. 1:4].
8 The orders of the Lord are ·right [virtuous];
·they make people happy [L rejoicing the heart].
The commands of the Lord are pure;
·they light up the way [L giving light to the eyes].
9 ·Respect [Fear] for the Lord [Prov. 1:7] is ·good [pure];
it will ·last [endure] forever.
The judgments of the Lord are true;
they are ·completely [altogether] ·right [righteous].
10 They are ·worth [desired; coveted] more than gold,
even ·the purest [fine] gold.
They are sweeter than honey,
even the ·finest honey [L droppings of the honeycomb].
11 By them your servant is warned.
·Keeping [Observing] them brings great reward.
12 ·People cannot [L Who can…?] ·see [detect; L understand] their own ·mistakes [errors].
·Forgive [Clear] me for my ·secret [hidden] sins.
13 ·Keep me [L Restrain your servant] from ·the sins of pride [proud thoughts];
don’t let them ·rule [dominate] me.
Then I can be pure
and innocent of the greatest of sins.
14 ·I hope my ·words [L The words of my mouth] and ·thoughts [meditations of my heart] ·please [L be before] you.
Lord, you are my Rock, ·the one who saves me [L and my redeemer].
Nehemiah Is Sent to Jerusalem
2 It was the month of Nisan [C early spring] in the twentieth year Artaxerxes was king [C 445 bc]. Wine was brought ·for him [or to me]. I took some and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before. 2 So the king said, “Why does your face look sad even though you are not sick? ·Your heart must be sad [You must be very troubled].”
Then I was very afraid. 3 I said to the king, “May the king live forever! ·My face is sad because [L Why should my face not look sad/dejected when…?] the city ·where my ancestors are buried [of my fathers’ tombs] lies in ruins, and its gates have been ·destroyed [L devoured] by fire.”
4 Then the king said to me, “What do you ·want [seek; request]?”
·First [Then; So] I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I answered the king, “If ·you are willing [it pleases/is good to you] and if I have ·pleased you [found favor in your sight], send me to Judah, to the city ·where my ancestors are buried [of my fathers’ tombs; C Jerusalem] so I can rebuild it.”
6 The queen was sitting next to the king. He asked me, “How long will your ·trip [journey] take, and when will you get back?” It ·pleased [L was good to] the king to send me, so I set a time.
7 I also said to him, “If ·you are willing [it pleases/is good to you], give me letters for the governors of ·Trans-Euphrates [C provinces west of the Euphrates River]. Tell them to let me pass safely through their lands ·on my way to [until I reach] Judah. 8 And may I have a letter for Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, telling him to give me timber? I will need it to make ·boards [beams] for the gates of the ·palace [or fortress], which is by the ·Temple [L house], and for the city wall, and for the house in which I will live.” So the king ·gave [granted] me the letters, because ·God was showing kindness to me [L the gracious/good hand of God was on me]. 9 Then I went to the governors of ·Trans-Euphrates [C provinces west of the Euphrates River] and gave them the king’s letters. The king had also sent army officers and ·horsemen [cavalry] with me.
10 When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite ·officer [official] heard about this, they were ·upset [very displeased] that someone had come to ·help [promote/seek the welfare of] the Israelites.
Give Your Lives to God
12 ·So [Therefore] brothers and sisters, since God has shown us great mercy, I ·beg [urge; appeal to] you to offer your ·lives [selves; L bodies] as a living sacrifice to him. Your offering must be ·only for God [holy] and pleasing to him, which is the ·spiritual [or authentic; true; or appropriate; fitting; or rational; reasonable] way for you to worship. 2 Do not be ·shaped by [conformed to; pressed into a mold by] this ·world [age]; instead be ·changed within [transformed] by ·a new way of thinking [or changing the way you think; L the renewing of your mind]. Then you will be able to ·decide [discern; test and approve] what ·God wants for you [is God’s will]; you will know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect. 3 Because God has given me ·a special gift [his grace], I have something to say to everyone among you. Do not think you are better than you are. [Instead] You must ·decide what you really are [think sensibly; think with sober discernment] ·by [based on; in accordance with] the amount of faith God has given you. 4 [L For just as] Each one of us has ·a [L one] body with many parts, and these parts all have different ·uses [functions]. 5 In the same way, we are many, but in Christ we are all one body, and each part belongs to all the other ·parts [L members]. 6 We all have different gifts, each of which came because of the grace God gave us. The person who has the gift of prophecy should use that gift ·in agreement with the faith [or in proportion to their faith]. 7 Anyone who has the gift of serving should serve. Anyone who has the gift of teaching should teach. 8 Whoever has the gift of ·encouraging [exhorting] others should ·encourage [exhort]. Whoever has the gift of giving to others should give ·freely [generously]. Anyone who has the gift of being a leader should ·try hard when he leads [lead diligently/enthusiastically]. Whoever has the gift of showing mercy to others should do so with ·joy [cheerfulness].
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