Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Praise the Lord’s Wonderful Works. Vanity of Idols.
135 [a](A)Praise [b]the Lord!
Praise the name of the Lord;
Praise Him, O (B)servants of the Lord,
2 You who stand in the house of the Lord,
In the (C)courts of the house of our God!
3 [c]Praise [d]the Lord, for (D)the Lord is good;
(E)Sing praises to His name, (F)for it is lovely.
4 For [e]the Lord has (G)chosen Jacob for Himself,
Israel for His [f](H)own possession.
5 For I know that (I)the Lord is great
And that our Lord is (J)above all gods.
6 (K)Whatever the Lord pleases, He does,
In heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps.
7 [g]He (L)causes the [h]vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;
Who (M)makes lightnings for the rain,
Who (N)brings forth the wind from His treasuries.
8 [i]He (O)smote the firstborn of Egypt,
[j]Both of man and beast.
9 [k]He sent (P)signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt,
Upon (Q)Pharaoh and all his servants.
10 [l](R)He (S)smote many nations
And slew mighty kings,
11 (T)Sihon, king of the Amorites,
And (U)Og, king of Bashan,
And (V)all the kingdoms of Canaan;
12 And He (W)gave their land as a heritage,
A heritage to Israel His people.
13 Your (X)name, O Lord, is everlasting,
Your [m]remembrance, O Lord, [n]throughout all generations.
14 For the Lord will (Y)judge His people
And (Z)will have compassion on His servants.
15 The (AA)idols of the nations are but silver and gold,
The work of man’s hands.
16 They have mouths, but they do not speak;
They have eyes, but they do not see;
17 They have ears, but they do not hear,
Nor is there any breath at all in their mouths.
18 Those who make them will be like them,
Yes, everyone who trusts in them.
Idolatrous Elders Condemned
14 Then some (A)elders of Israel came to me and (B)sat down before me. 2 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 3 “Son of man, these men have (C)set up their idols in their hearts and have (D)put right before their faces the stumbling block of their iniquity. Should I be (E)consulted by them at all? 4 Therefore speak to them and tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord [a]God, “Any man of the house of Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, puts right before his face the stumbling block of his iniquity, and then comes to the prophet, I the Lord will be brought to give him an answer in [b]the matter in view of the (F)multitude of his idols, 5 in order to lay hold of [c](G)the hearts of the house of Israel who are [d](H)estranged from Me through all their idols.”’
6 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “(I)Repent and turn away from your idols and turn your faces away from all your (J)abominations. 7 For anyone of the house of Israel or of the (K)immigrants who stay in Israel who separates himself from Me, sets up his idols in his heart, puts right before his face the stumbling block of his iniquity, and then comes to the prophet to inquire of Me for himself, (L)I the Lord will be brought to answer him in My own person. 8 I will (M)set My face against that man and make him a (N)sign and [e]a proverb, and I will cut him off from among My people. So you will know that I am the Lord.
9 “But if the prophet is [f]prevailed upon to speak a word, it is I, the Lord, who have [g]prevailed upon that prophet, and I will stretch out My hand against him and (O)destroy him from among My people Israel. 10 They will bear the punishment of their iniquity; as the iniquity of the inquirer is, so the iniquity of the prophet will be, 11 in order that the house of Israel may no longer (P)stray from Me and no longer (Q)defile themselves with all their transgressions. Thus they will be (R)My people, and I shall be their God,”’ declares the Lord God.”
Healing the Lame Beggar
3 Now (A)Peter and John were going up to the temple at the [a]ninth hour, (B)the hour of prayer. 2 And (C)a man who had been lame from his mother’s womb was being carried along, whom they (D)used to set down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, (E)in order to beg [b]alms of those who were entering the temple. 3 When he saw (F)Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking to receive alms. 4 But Peter, along with John, (G)fixed his gaze on him and said, “Look at us!” 5 And he began to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: (H)In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk!” 7 And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened. 8 [c](I)With a leap he stood upright and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. 9 And (J)all the people saw him walking and praising God; 10 and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to (K)sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg alms, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.