Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 37[a]
The Fate of Sinners and the Reward of the Just
1 Of David.
Aleph
Do not be provoked by evildoers;
do not envy those who do wrong.(A)
2 Like grass they wither quickly;
like green plants they wilt away.(B)
Beth
3 Trust in the Lord and do good
that you may dwell in the land[b] and live secure.(C)
4 Find your delight in the Lord
who will give you your heart’s desire.(D)
Gimel
5 Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him and he will act(E)
6 And make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
your justice like noonday.(F)
Daleth
7 Be still before the Lord;
wait for him.
Do not be provoked by the prosperous,
nor by malicious schemers.
He
8 Refrain from anger; abandon wrath;
do not be provoked; it brings only harm.
9 Those who do evil will be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord will inherit the earth.(G)
Waw
10 Wait a little, and the wicked will be no more;
look for them and they will not be there.
11 But the poor will inherit the earth,(H)
will delight in great prosperity.
Taw
39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord,
their refuge in a time of distress.(A)
40 The Lord helps and rescues them,
rescues and saves them from the wicked,
because they take refuge in him.
16 When Joseph saw them and Benjamin, he told his steward, “Take the men into the house, and have an animal slaughtered and prepared, for they are to dine with me at noon.” 17 Doing as Joseph had ordered, the steward conducted the men to Joseph’s house. 18 But they became apprehensive when they were led to his house. “It must be,” they thought, “on account of the money put back in our bags the first time, that we are taken inside—in order to attack us and take our donkeys and seize us as slaves.” 19 So they went up to Joseph’s steward and talked to him at the entrance of the house. 20 “If you please, sir,” they said, “we came down here once before to buy food.(A) 21 But when we arrived at a night’s encampment and opened our bags, there was each man’s money in the mouth of his bag—our money in the full amount! We have now brought it back.(B) 22 We have brought other money to buy food. We do not know who put our money in our bags.” 23 He replied, “Calm down! Do not fear! Your God and the God of your father must have put treasure in your bags for you. As for your money, I received it.” With that, he led Simeon out to them.
24 The steward then brought the men inside Joseph’s house. He gave them water to wash their feet, and gave fodder to their donkeys. 25 Then they set out their gifts to await Joseph’s arrival at noon, for they had heard that they were to dine there. 26 When Joseph came home, they presented him with the gifts they had brought inside, while they bowed down before him to the ground. 27 After inquiring how they were, he asked them, “And how is your aged father, of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?”(C) 28 “Your servant our father is still alive and doing well,” they said, as they knelt and bowed down. 29 Then Joseph looked up and saw Benjamin, his brother, the son of his mother. He asked, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you told me?” Then he said to him, “May God be gracious to you, my son!”(D) 30 With that, Joseph hurried out, for he was so overcome with affection for his brother that he was on the verge of tears. So he went into a private room and wept there.
31 After washing his face, he reappeared and, now having collected himself, gave the order, “Serve the meal.” 32 It was served separately to him,[a] to the brothers, and to the Egyptians who partook of his board. Egyptians may not eat with Hebrews; that is abhorrent to them. 33 When they were seated before him according to their age, from the oldest to the youngest, they looked at one another in amazement; 34 and as portions were brought to them from Joseph’s table, Benjamin’s portion was five times as large as[b] anyone else’s. So they drank freely and made merry with him.
Chapter 8
The Flesh and the Spirit.[a] 1 Hence, now there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has freed you from the law of sin and death.(A) 3 For what the law, weakened by the flesh, was powerless to do, this God has done: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for the sake of sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,(B) 4 so that the righteous decree of the law might be fulfilled in us, who live not according to the flesh but according to the spirit.(C) 5 For those who live according to the flesh are concerned with the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the spirit with the things of the spirit. 6 The concern of the flesh is death, but the concern of the spirit is life and peace.(D) 7 For the concern of the flesh is hostility toward God; it does not submit to the law of God, nor can it;(E) 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.(F) 9 But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.(G) 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness.(H) 11 If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.