Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 135(A)
1 Praise the Lord.[a]
Praise the name of the Lord;
praise him, you servants(B) of the Lord,
2 you who minister in the house(C) of the Lord,
in the courts(D) of the house of our God.
3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;(E)
sing praise to his name,(F) for that is pleasant.(G)
4 For the Lord has chosen Jacob(H) to be his own,
Israel to be his treasured possession.(I)
5 I know that the Lord is great,(J)
that our Lord is greater than all gods.(K)
6 The Lord does whatever pleases him,(L)
in the heavens and on the earth,(M)
in the seas and all their depths.
7 He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;
he sends lightning with the rain(N)
and brings out the wind(O) from his storehouses.(P)
8 He struck down the firstborn(Q) of Egypt,
the firstborn of people and animals.
9 He sent his signs(R) and wonders into your midst, Egypt,
against Pharaoh and all his servants.(S)
10 He struck down many(T) nations
and killed mighty kings—
11 Sihon(U) king of the Amorites,(V)
Og king of Bashan,(W)
and all the kings of Canaan(X)—
12 and he gave their land as an inheritance,(Y)
an inheritance to his people Israel.
13 Your name, Lord, endures forever,(Z)
your renown,(AA) Lord, through all generations.
14 For the Lord will vindicate his people(AB)
and have compassion on his servants.(AC)
15 The idols of the nations(AD) are silver and gold,
made by human hands.(AE)
16 They have mouths, but cannot speak,(AF)
eyes, but cannot see.
17 They have ears, but cannot hear,
nor is there breath(AG) in their mouths.
18 Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them.
19 All you Israelites, praise the Lord;(AH)
house of Aaron, praise the Lord;
20 house of Levi, praise the Lord;
you who fear him, praise the Lord.
21 Praise be to the Lord from Zion,(AI)
to him who dwells in Jerusalem.(AJ)
Praise the Lord.
Jerusalem’s Judgment Inescapable
12 The word of the Lord came to me: 13 “Son of man, if a country sins(A) against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply(B) and send famine upon it and kill its people and their animals,(C) 14 even if these three men—Noah,(D) Daniel[a](E) and Job(F)—were in it, they could save only themselves by their righteousness,(G) declares the Sovereign Lord.
15 “Or if I send wild beasts(H) through that country and they leave it childless and it becomes desolate so that no one can pass through it because of the beasts,(I) 16 as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be desolate.(J)
17 “Or if I bring a sword(K) against that country and say, ‘Let the sword pass throughout the land,’ and I kill its people and their animals,(L) 18 as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved.
19 “Or if I send a plague into that land and pour out my wrath(M) on it through bloodshed,(N) killing its people and their animals,(O) 20 as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if Noah, Daniel and Job were in it, they could save neither son nor daughter. They would save only themselves by their righteousness.(P)
21 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem my four dreadful judgments(Q)—sword(R) and famine(S) and wild beasts and plague(T)—to kill its men and their animals!(U) 22 Yet there will be some survivors(V)—sons and daughters who will be brought out of it.(W) They will come to you, and when you see their conduct(X) and their actions, you will be consoled(Y) regarding the disaster I have brought on Jerusalem—every disaster I have brought on it. 23 You will be consoled when you see their conduct and their actions, for you will know that I have done nothing in it without cause, declares the Sovereign Lord.(Z)”
Jesus Honors a Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith(A)
24 Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre.[a](B) He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. 25 In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit(C) came and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.
27 “First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
28 “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”
29 Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.”
30 She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
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