Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Lord is Holy
99 The Lord reigns—
let people tremble;
he is seated above the cherubim—
let the earth quake.
2 The Lord is great in Zion
and is exalted above all peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name.
He is holy!
4 A mighty king who loves justice,
you have established fairness.
You have exercised justice
and righteousness over Jacob.
5 Exalt the Lord our God;
worship and bow down at his footstool;
He is holy!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests;
Samuel also was among those who invoked his name.
When they called on the Lord,
he answered them.
7 In a pillar of cloud he spoke to them;
they obeyed his decrees
and the Law that he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered them;
you were their God who forgave[a] them,
but also avenged their evil deeds.
9 Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain,
for the Lord our God is holy!
Judgment against Eli’s Sons
22 Now Eli was very[a] old, and he had heard everything that[b] his sons were doing[c] to the Israelis,[d] and how they lay with the women who were serving regularly[e] at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 23 “Why are you doing these things that I’m hearing about?” he asked his sons,[f] “These reports about your evil deeds are coming from all these[g] people! 24 No, my sons, I’m not hearing good news being circulated by the Lord’s people. 25 If a person sins[h] against another, God[i] will mediate for him,[j] but if a person sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?”
But they would not follow the advice of[k] their father; for the Lord wanted to put them to death. 26 But the boy Samuel continued to grow both physically and in favor with the Lord and the people.
27 A man of God came to Eli, saying to him,[l] “This is what the Lord says: ‘When they were in Egypt and slaves[m] to the house of Pharaoh, did I not reveal[n] to the family of your ancestor Aaron[o] 28 that I had chosen him[p] out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer up burnt offerings on my altar, burn incense, and carry[q] the ephod in my presence? And did I not give to your ancestors’ family all the Israeli fire-offerings? 29 Why, then, do all of you show contempt for[r] my sacrifice and offering that I’ve commanded for my[s] dwelling? And you honor your sons more than me in order to fatten yourselves[t] from the best of all the offerings of my people Israel.’[u]
30 “Therefore, the Lord God of Israel has declared, ‘I did, in fact, say[v] that your family and your ancestor’s family would walk before me forever,’ but now the Lord declares, ‘Far be it from me! The one who honors me I’ll honor, and the one who despises me is to be treated with contempt. 31 The time is coming when I’ll cut away[w] at your family[x] and your ancestor’s family[y] until there are no old men left in your family. 32 Distress will settle down to live in your household, and despite all the good that I do for Israel,[z] there will never be an old man in your family forever, and you will never again have an old man in my house.[aa] 33 Any of you whom I don’t eliminate from serving at my altar will grow tired from weeping,[ab] and their[ac] souls will grieve. All the increase of your family will die by violence.[ad] 34 Here’s a sign for you—your two sons Hophni and Phineas will both die on the same day! 35 And I’ll raise up for myself a faithful[ae] priest who will do according to what is in my heart and according to my desire. I’ll build for him an enduring[af] house and he will walk before my anointed one forever. 36 Anyone who remains in your family will come and prostrate themselves before him for a small wage[ag] or a loaf of bread and will say,[ah] “Please put me in one of the priest’s offices so I can eat a piece of bread.”’”
The Healing at the Pool
5 Later on, there was another[a] festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem is a pool called Bethesda[b] in Hebrew. It has five colonnades, 3 and under these a large number of sick people were lying—blind, lame, or paralyzed—waiting for the movement of the water.[c] 4 At certain times an angel of the Lord would go down into the pool and stir up the water, and whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had.[d]
5 One particular man was there who had been ill for 38 years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I don’t have anyone to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up. While I’m trying to get there, someone else steps down ahead of me.”
8 Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” 9 The man immediately became well, and he picked up his mat and started walking. Now that day was a Sabbath.
10 So the Jewish leaders[e] told the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.
11 But he answered them, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’”
12 They asked him, “Who is the man who told you, ‘Pick it up and walk’?”
13 But the one who had been healed did not know who it was, because Jesus had slipped away from the crowd in that place. 14 Later on, Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, “Look! You have become well. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went off and told the Jewish leaders[f] that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 So the Jewish leaders[g] began persecuting Jesus,[h] because he kept doing such things on the Sabbath.
17 But Jesus[i] answered them, “My Father has been working until now, and I, too, am working.” 18 So the Jewish leaders[j] were trying all the harder to kill him, because he was not only breaking the Sabbath but was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself equal to God.
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