Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
(By David.)
A Prayer for Guidance and Help
1 I offer you my heart, Lord God,
2 and I trust you.
Don't make me ashamed
or let enemies defeat me.
3 Don't disappoint any
of your worshipers,
but disappoint all
deceitful liars.
4 Show me your paths
and teach me to follow;
5 guide me by your truth
and instruct me.
You keep me safe,
and I always trust you.
6 Please, Lord, remember,
you have always
been patient and kind.
7 Forget each wrong I did
when I was young.
Show how truly kind you are
and remember me.
8 You are honest and merciful,
and you teach sinners
how to follow your path.
9 You lead humble people
to do what is right
and to stay on your path.
10 In everything you do,
you are kind and faithful
to everyone who keeps
our agreement with you.
14 The king sent for Joseph, who was quickly brought out of jail. He shaved, changed his clothes, and went to the king.
15 The king said to him, “I had a dream, yet no one can explain what it means. I am told that you can interpret dreams.”
16 “Your Majesty,” Joseph answered, “I can't do it myself, but God can give a good meaning to your dreams.”
17 The king told Joseph:
I dreamed I was standing on the bank of the Nile River. 18 I saw seven fat, healthy cows come up out of the river, and they began feeding on the grass. 19 Next, seven skinny, bony cows came up out of the river. I have never seen such terrible looking cows anywhere in Egypt. 20 The skinny cows ate the fat ones. 21 But you couldn't tell it, because these skinny cows were just as skinny as they were before. At once, I woke up.
22 I also dreamed that I saw seven heads of grain growing on one stalk. The heads were full and ripe. 23 Then seven other heads of grain came up. They were thin and scorched by a wind from the desert. 24 These heads of grain swallowed the full ones. I told my dreams to the magicians, but none of them could tell me the meaning of the dreams.
25 Joseph replied:
Your Majesty, both of your dreams mean the same thing, and in them God has shown what he is going to do. 26 The seven good cows stand for seven years, and so do the seven good heads of grain. 27 The seven skinny, ugly cows that came up later also stand for seven years, as do the seven bad heads of grain that were scorched by the desert wind. The dreams mean there will be seven years when there won't be enough grain.
28 It is just as I said—God has shown what he intends to do. 29 For seven years Egypt will have more than enough grain, 30 but that will be followed by seven years when there won't be enough. The good years of plenty will be forgotten, and everywhere in Egypt people will be starving. 31 The famine will be so bad that no one will remember that once there had been plenty. 32 God has given you two dreams to let you know that he has definitely decided to do this and that he will do it soon.
33 Your Majesty, you should find someone who is wise and will know what to do, so that you can put him in charge of all Egypt. 34 Then appoint some other officials to collect one fifth of every crop harvested in Egypt during the seven years when there is plenty. 35 Give them the power to collect the grain during those good years and to store it in your cities. 36 It can be stored until it is needed during the seven years when there won't be enough grain in Egypt. This will keep the country from being destroyed because of the lack of food.
Faith and Works
14 My friends, what good is it to say you have faith, when you don't do anything to show you really do have faith? Can this kind of faith save you? 15 If you know someone who doesn't have any clothes or food, 16 you shouldn't just say, “I hope all goes well for you. I hope you will be warm and have plenty to eat.” What good is it to say this, unless you do something to help? 17 Faith that doesn't lead us to do good deeds is all alone and dead!
18 Suppose someone disagrees and says, “It is possible to have faith without doing kind deeds.”
I would answer, “Prove that you have faith without doing kind deeds, and I will prove that I have faith by doing them.” 19 You surely believe there is only one God. That's fine. Even demons believe this, and it makes them shake with fear.
20 Does some stupid person want proof that faith without deeds is useless? 21 (A) Well, our ancestor Abraham pleased God by putting his son Isaac on the altar to sacrifice him. 22 Now you see how Abraham's faith and deeds worked together. He proved his faith was real by what he did. 23 (B) This is what the Scriptures mean by saying, “Abraham had faith in God, and God accepted him.” That's how Abraham became God's friend.
24 You can now see that we please God by what we do and not only by what we believe. 25 (C) For example, Rahab had been a prostitute. But she pleased God when she welcomed the spies and sent them home by another way.
26 Anyone who doesn't breathe is dead, and faith that doesn't do anything is just as dead!
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