Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A song of David.
15 Lord, who can live in your Holy Tent[a]?
Who can live on your holy mountain?
2 Only those who live pure lives, do what is right,
and speak the truth from their hearts.
3 Such people don’t say bad things about others.
They don’t do things to hurt their neighbors.
They don’t tell shameful things about those close to them.
4 They hate those who fail to please God
and honor those who respect the Lord.
If they make a promise to their neighbor,
they do what they promised.[b]
5 If they loan money to someone,
they do not charge them interest.
And they refuse to testify against an innocent person,
even if someone offers them money to do it.
Whoever lives like this will always stand strong.
Lot Is Captured
14 Amraphel was the king of Babylonia, Arioch was the king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer was the king of Elam, and Tidal was the king of Goiim. 2 All these kings fought a war against King Bera of Sodom: King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela. (Bela is also called Zoar.)
3 All these kings joined their armies in the Valley of Siddim. (The Valley of Siddim is now the Salt Sea.) 4 These kings had served Kedorlaomer for twelve years. But in the 13th year, they all rebelled against him. 5 So in the 14th year, King Kedorlaomer and the kings with him came to fight against them. Kedorlaomer and the kings with him defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim. They also defeated the Zuzites in Ham. They defeated the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim. 6 And they defeated the Horites who lived in the area from the hill country of Seir[a] to El Paran.[b] (El Paran is near the desert.) 7 Then King Kedorlaomer turned back, went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and defeated the Amalekites. He also defeated the Amorites living in Hazezon Tamar.
8 At that time the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela (Zoar) joined together to fight against their enemies in the Valley of Siddim.[c] 9 They fought against King Kedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Babylonia, and King Arioch of Ellasar. So there were four kings fighting against five.
10 There were many holes filled with tar in the Valley of Siddim. When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies ran away, some of the soldiers fell into these holes, but the others ran away to the mountains.
11 So Kedorlaomer and his armies took everything that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah owned. They took all their food and clothing and left. 12 Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, was living in Sodom, and they captured him. They also took everything he owned and left. 13 One of the men who had escaped went to Abram the Hebrew and told him what happened. Abram was camped near the trees of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner[d] had made an agreement to help each other, and they had also signed an agreement to help Abram.
Abram Rescues Lot
14 When Abram learned that Lot was captured, he called all of his family together. There were 318 trained soldiers. He led the men and chased the enemy all the way to the town of Dan. 15 That night he and his men made a surprise attack against the enemy. They defeated them and chased them to Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 Then Abram brought back everything the enemy had stolen, as well as the women and servants, his nephew Lot, and everything Lot owned.
A Story About a Farmer Sowing Seed(A)
4 A large crowd came together. People came to Jesus from every town, and he told them this story:
5 “A farmer went out to sow seed. While he was scattering the seed, some of it fell beside the road. People walked on the seed, and the birds ate it all. 6 Other seed fell on rock. It began to grow but then died because it had no water. 7 Some other seed fell among thorny weeds. This seed grew, but later the weeds stopped the plants from growing. 8 The rest of the seed fell on good ground. This seed grew and made 100 times more grain.”
Jesus finished the story. Then he called out, “You people who hear me, listen!”
9 Jesus’ followers asked him, “What does this story mean?”
10 He said, “You have been chosen to know the secret truths about God’s kingdom. But I use stories to speak to other people. I do this so that
‘They will look,
but they will not see,
and they will listen,
but they will not understand.’ (B)
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International