Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
ט Teth
65 You have been good to Your servant,
O Lord, according to Your word.
66 Teach me good discernment and knowledge,
for I have believed Your commandments.
67 Before I was afflicted I wandered,
but now I keep Your word.
68 You are good and do good;
teach me Your statutes.
69 The proud have spoken lies against me,
but I keep Your precepts with my whole heart.
70 Their heart is as thick as fat,
but I delight in Your law.
71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
that I might learn Your statutes.
72 The law from Your mouth is better to me
than thousands of gold and silver coins.
Egypt Attacks Jerusalem(A)
12 Now when the reign of Rehoboam was established and strong, he, and all of Israel with him, abandoned the law of the Lord. 2 And in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt went up against Jerusalem for they had acted unfaithfully against the Lord, 3 with one thousand two hundred chariots and sixty thousand horses. The people were without number who came with him from Egypt—Libyans, Sukkiktes, and Ethiopians. 4 And he captured the fortified cities that were in Judah, and he came even to Jerusalem.
5 Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the rulers of Judah who were assembled in Jerusalem before Shishak, and he said to them, “So the Lord says: You have abandoned Me, so I have abandoned you into the hand of Shishak.”
6 Then the king and the rulers of Israel humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.”
7 So when the Lord observed that they had humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, “They have humbled themselves, so I will not destroy them. I will let some of them escape, and My anger will not pour out against Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. 8 For they will be slaves to him so that they experience My labor and the labor of the kingdoms of other lands.”
9 So Shishak king of Egypt went up against Jerusalem and took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and of the palace of the king. He took everything, even the gold shields that Solomon made. 10 And King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place and entrusted them to the hands of the rulers of the guards, those who guarded the entrance to the king’s palace. 11 And it happened that whenever the king came to the house of the Lord, the guards came and carried the shields and then returned them to the guardroom.
12 And when he humbled himself, the anger of the Lord turned away from him so that there was not a complete annihilation. Moreover, there were some good things in Judah during this time.
7 Remember those who rule over you, who have proclaimed to you the word of God. Follow their faith, considering the results it has produced in their lives. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever.
9 Do not be carried away with diverse and strange doctrines. It is a good thing that the heart be strengthened with grace, not with foods, which have not profited those who have been occupied with them. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve in the tabernacle have no right to eat.
11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest on account of sin, are burned outside the camp. 12 Therefore Jesus also, so that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. 13 Therefore let us go forth to Him outside the camp, bearing the reproach that He bore. 14 For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
15 Through Him, then, let us continually offer to God the sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. 16 But do not forget to do good and to share. For with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch over your souls as those who must give an account. Let them do this with joy and not complaining, for that would not be profitable to you.
18 Pray for us. For we trust that we have a good conscience and in all things are willing to live honestly. 19 But I implore you to pray, that I may be restored to you very soon.
Benediction and Final Greetings
20 Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the Great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.