Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Longing for God
A psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.[a]
63 O God, you are my God;
I will seek you diligently.
My soul thirsts for you; my flesh longs for you
as in a dry and weary land without water.
2 Thus I have seen you in the sanctuary,
beholding your strength and glory.
3 Because your loyal love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
4 So I will bless you while I live.
I will lift up my hands[b] in your name.
5 My soul will be satisfied as with the best and richest food,
and with joyful lips my mouth will praise.
6 When I remember you on my bed,
I meditate on you in the night watches.
7 Because you have been my help,
therefore[c] in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
8 My soul clings to[d] you;
your right hand upholds me.
17 Moses sent them to explore the land of Canaan, and he said to them, “Go up like this to the Negev,[a] and go up into the hill country, 18 and you will see what the land is like and if the people who inhabit it are strong or weak, or whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they are inhabiting is good or bad, and whether the cities they are inhabiting are camps or fortifications, 20 and whether the land is fertile or lean, and whether there are trees on it or not. You will show yourself courageous, and you will take some of the fruit of the land.” It was the time of first ripe grapes.
21 So they went up and explored the land from the desert of Zin until Rehob, at Lebo Hamath.[b] 22 They went up through the Negev[c] and came to Hebron, where[d] Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai the descendants of the Anakites were. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came up to the valley[e] of Eshcol, and they cut off a vine branch and one cluster of grapes from there; they carried it on a pole between two men, with pomegranates and figs. 24 That place he called the valley[f] of Eshcol on account of the cluster of grapes that the Israelites[g] cut off from there.
The Spies Return
25 They returned from exploring the land at the end of forty days.[h] 26 And they came[i] to Moses and Aaron and to the entire community of the Israelites[j] in the desert of Paran at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the community, and they showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him,[k] “We came to the land that you sent us, and it is flowing of milk and honey; this is its fruit. 28 Yet the people who are inhabiting it are strong and the cities are fortified and very large; moreover, we saw the descendants of the Anakites there. 29 The Amalekites are living in the land of the Negev;[l] the Hittites, Jebusites, and the Amorites are living in the hill country; and the Canaanites are living at the sea and on the banks of the Jordan.”
30 And Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “Surely, let us go up and let us take possession of it because surely we will be able to prevail over it.” 31 And the men who went up with him said, “We are not able to go up to the people because they are stronger than us.” 32 And they presented the report of the land that they explored to the Israelites,[m] saying, “The land that we went through to explore is a land that eats its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in its midst are men of great size.[n] 33 There we saw the Nephilim (the descendants[o] of Anak came from the Nephilim), and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their eyes.”
The People Complain
14 Then all the community lifted up their voices,[p] and the people wept during that night. 2 And all the Israelites[q] grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and all the community said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt or in this desert! 3 Why did Yahweh bring us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little children will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” 4 They said to each other,[r] “Let us appoint a leader, and we will return to Egypt.”
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before[s] the assembly of the community of the Israelites.[t] 6 Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, from the explorers of the land, tore their garments. 7 And they said to all the community of the Israelites,[u] “The land that we went through to explore is an exceptionally good land.[v] 8 If Yahweh delights in us, then he will bring us into this land, and he will give it to us, a land that is flowing with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against Yahweh, and you will not fear the people of the land, because they will be our food. Their protection[w] has been turned from them; Yahweh is with us. You should not fear them.”
Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection a Second Time
22 Now as[a] they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men,[b] 23 and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.” And they were extremely distressed.
Paying the Double Drachma Temple Tax
24 Now when[c] they arrived in Capernaum, the ones who collected the double drachma tax[d] came up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the double drachma tax?” 25 He said, “Yes.” And when he[e] came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect tolls or taxes—from their own sons, or from foreigners?” 26 And when he[f] said, “From foreigners,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27 But so that we do not give offense to them, go out to the sea, cast a line with[g] a hook, and take the first fish that comes up. And when you[h] open its mouth, you will find a four-drachma coin. Take that and[i] give it[j] to them for me and you.”
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