Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 130

A Song of Ascents.

¹³ And many people assembled in Jerusalem to have the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month. There was a very large assembly. ¹⁴ They went out and removed the altars that were in Jerusalem, and they took away all the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley.

¹⁵ They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. The priests and Levites were ashamed, and they consecrated themselves and brought in burnt offerings to the house of the Lord. ¹⁶ They stood at their places according to the Law of Moses, the man of God; the priests sprinkled the blood they received from the hands of the Levites. ¹⁷ For there were many in the assembly who had consecrated themselves, so the Levites slaughtered the Passover lamb for those who were not clean in order to consecrate the people to the Lord. ¹⁸ For a multitude of the people—many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun—had not purified themselves. For they ate of the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed over them saying, “The Lord is good, and may He pardon ¹⁹ everyone who sets his heart to seek God, the Lord God of his fathers, but is not pure according the rules of the holy sanctuary.” ²⁰ So the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people.

²¹ Then the sons of Israel present in Jerusalem kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great joy, and the Levites and priests praised the Lord every day, singing with loud instruments to the Lord.

²² Then Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites who taught the good knowledge of the Lord. So they ate for the appointed seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord God of their fathers.

²³ Then the whole assembly counseled to have the feast for another seven days, so they had seven more days of gladness. ²⁴ For Hezekiah king of Judah lifted up for the assembly one thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep. And the officials offered up for the assembly one thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep. And a multitude of priests consecrated themselves. ²⁵ So all the assembly of Judah and the priests and Levites and all the assembly who came from Israel rejoiced, even the sojourners who came from the land of Israel and those who resided in Judah. ²⁶ And there was a great rejoicing in Jerusalem, for since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel there had not been anything like this. ²⁷ Then the priests and Levites went out and blessed the people, and their voices were heard. And their prayers came up to His holy habitation in the heavens.

The Healing of a Paralytic^(A)

2 Again, He entered Capernaum after some days. And it was reported that He was in the house. ² Immediately many were gathered together, so that there was no room to receive them, not even at the door. And He preached the word to them. ³ They came to Him bringing one sick with paralysis, who was carried by four men. ⁴ When they could not come near Him due to the crowding, they uncovered the roof where He was. When they had broken it open, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. ⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”

⁶ But some of the scribes were sitting there, reasoning in their hearts, ⁷ “Why does this Man speak such blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

⁸ Immediately, when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, He said to them, “Why do you contemplate these things in your hearts? ⁹ Which is easier to say to the paralytic: ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? ¹⁰ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” He said to the paralytic, ¹¹ “I say to you, rise, and take up your bed, and go your way to your house.” ¹² Immediately he rose, picked up the bed, and went out in front of them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”