Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 139[a]
The All-knowing and Ever-present God
1 For the leader. A psalm of David.
I
Lord, you have probed me, you know me:
2 you know when I sit and stand;[b](A)
you understand my thoughts from afar.
3 You sift through my travels and my rest;
with all my ways you are familiar.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
Lord, you know it all.
5 Behind and before you encircle me
and rest your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
far too lofty for me to reach.(B)
II
13 You formed my inmost being;
you knit me in my mother’s womb.(A)
14 I praise you, because I am wonderfully made;
wonderful are your works!
My very self you know.
15 My bones are not hidden from you,
When I was being made in secret,
fashioned in the depths of the earth.[a]
16 Your eyes saw me unformed;
in your book all are written down;(B)
my days were shaped, before one came to be.
III
17 How precious to me are your designs, O God;
how vast the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the sands;
when I complete them, still you are with me.(C)
21 The Lord favored Hannah so that she conceived and gave birth to three more sons and two daughters, while young Samuel grew up in the service of the Lord.(A)
Eli’s Futile Rebuke. 22 When Eli was very old, he kept hearing how his sons were treating all Israel, and that they were behaving promiscuously[a] with the women serving at the entry of the meeting tent. 23 So he said to them: “Why are you doing such things? I hear from everyone that your behavior is depraved. 24 Stop this, my sons! The report that I hear the Lord’s people spreading is not good. 25 If someone sins against another, anyone can intercede for the sinner with the Lord; but if anyone sins against the Lord, who can intercede[b] for the sinner?” But they disregarded their father’s warning, since the Lord wanted them dead.
Chapter 25
The Parable of the Ten Virgins.[a] 1 “Then[b] the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 [c]Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, 4 but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. 6 At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. 11 [d](A)Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ 12 But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 (B)Therefore, stay awake,[e] for you know neither the day nor the hour.
The Parable of the Talents.[f]
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.