Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 115[a]
The Greatness of the True God
I
1 Not to us, Lord, not to us
but to your name give glory
because of your mercy and faithfulness.(A)
2 Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”[b](B)
3 Our God is in heaven
and does whatever he wills.(C)
II
4 Their idols are silver and gold,(D)
the work of human hands.(E)
5 They have mouths but do not speak,
eyes but do not see.
6 They have ears but do not hear,
noses but do not smell.
7 They have hands but do not feel,
feet but do not walk;
they produce no sound from their throats.
8 Their makers will be like them,
and anyone who trusts in them.
III
9 [c]The house of Israel trusts in the Lord,(F)
who is their help and shield.(G)
10 The house of Aaron trusts in the Lord,
who is their help and shield.
11 Those who fear the Lord trust in the Lord,
who is their help and shield.
12 The Lord remembers us and will bless us,
will bless the house of Israel,
will bless the house of Aaron,
13 Will bless those who fear the Lord,
small and great alike.
14 May the Lord increase your number,
yours and your descendants.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
maker of heaven and earth.
16 [d]The heavens belong to the Lord,
but he has given the earth to the children of Adam.(H)
17 [e]The dead do not praise the Lord,
not all those go down into silence.(I)
18 It is we who bless the Lord,
both now and forever.
Hallelujah!
29 Whenever Aaron enters the sanctuary, he will thus bear the names of the sons of Israel on the breastpiece of decision over his heart as a constant reminder before the Lord. 30 In this breastpiece of decision(A) you shall put the Urim and Thummim,[a] that they may be over Aaron’s heart whenever he enters the presence of the Lord. Thus he shall always bear the decisions for the Israelites over his heart in the presence of the Lord.
Other Vestments. 31 The robe of the ephod(B) you shall make entirely of violet material. 32 It shall have an opening for the head in the center, and around this opening there shall be a selvage, woven as at the opening of a shirt, to keep it from being torn. 33 At the hem at the bottom you shall make pomegranates, woven of violet, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine linen twined, with gold bells between them; 34 a gold bell, a pomegranate, a gold bell, a pomegranate, all around the hem of the robe. 35 Aaron shall wear it when ministering, that its sound may be heard as he enters and leaves the Lord’s presence in the sanctuary; else he will die.
36 You shall also make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, as on a seal engraving, “Sacred to the Lord.” 37 This plate is to be tied over the turban with a violet ribbon in such a way that it rests on the front of the turban,(C) 38 over Aaron’s forehead. Since Aaron bears whatever guilt the Israelites may incur in consecrating any of their sacred gifts, this plate must always be over his forehead, so that they may find favor with the Lord.
3 I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you,(A) 4 praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, 5 because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. 6 (B)I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.[a] 7 It is right that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.(C) 9 And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception,(D) 10 to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,(E) 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.(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.