Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

2 My heart hath rejoiced in the Lord, and my horn is exalted in my God: my mouth is enlarged over my enemies: because I have joyed in thy salvation.

² There is none holy as the Lord is: for there is no other beside thee, and there is none strong like our God.

³ Do not multiply to speak lofty things, boasting: let old matters depart from your mouth: for the Lord is a God of all knowledge, and to him are thoughts prepared.

⁴ The bow of the mighty is overcome, and the weak are girt with strength.

⁵ They that were full before have hired out themselves for bread: and the hungry are filled, so that the barren hath borne many: and she that had many children is weakened.

⁶ The Lord killeth and maketh alive, he bringeth down to hell and bringeth back again.

⁷ The Lord maketh poor and maketh rich, he humbleth and he exalteth.

⁸ He raiseth up the needy from the dust, and lifteth up the poor from the dunghill: that he may sit with princes, and hold the throne of glory. For the poles of the earth are the Lord's, and upon them he hath set the world.

⁹ He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness, because no man shall prevail by his own strength.

¹⁰ The adversaries of the Lord shall fear him: and upon them shall he thunder in the heavens. The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth, and he shall give empire to his king, and shall exalt the horn of his Christ.

21 And the Lord visited Sara, as he had promised: and fulfilled what he had spoken.

² And she conceived and bore a son in her old age, at the time that God had foretold her.

³ And Abraham called the name of his son, whom Sara bore him, Isaac.

⁴ And he circumcised him the eighth day, as God had commanded him,

⁵ When he was a hundred years old: for at this age of his father was Isaac born.

⁶ And Sara said: God hath made a laughter for me: whosoever shall hear of it will laugh with me.

⁷ And again she said: Who would believe that Abraham should hear that Sara gave suck to a son, whom she bore to him in his old age.

⁸ And the child grew and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast on the day of his weaning.

⁹ And when Sara had seen the son of Agar the Egyptian playing with Isaac her son, she said to Abraham:

¹⁰ Cast out this bondwoman, and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.

¹¹ Abraham took this grievously for his son.

¹² And God said to him: Let it not seem grievous to thee for the boy, and for thy bondwoman: in all that Sara hath said to thee, hearken to her voice: for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

¹³ But I will make the son also of the bondwoman a great nation, because he is thy seed.

¹⁴ So Abraham rose up in the morning, and taking bread and a bottle of water, put it upon her shoulder, and delivered the boy, and sent her away. And she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Bersabee.

¹⁵ And when the water in the bottle was spent, she cast the boy under one of the trees that were there.

¹⁶ And she went her way, and sat over against him a great way off as far as a bow can carry, for she said: I will not see the boy die: and sitting over against, she lifted up her voice and wept.

¹⁷ And God heard the voice of the boy: and an angel of God called to Agar from heaven, saying: What art thou doing, Agar? fear not: for God hath heard the voice of the boy, from the place wherein he is.

¹⁸ Arise, take up the boy, and hold him by the hand: for I will make him a great nation.

¹⁹ And God opened her eyes: and she saw a well of water, and went and filled the bottle, and gave the boy to drink.

²⁰ And God was with him: and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became a young man, an archer.

²¹ And he dwelt in the wilderness of Pharan, and his mother took a wife for him out of the land of Egypt.

²¹ Tell me, you that desire to be under the law, have you not read the law?

²² For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, and the other by a free woman.

²³ But he who was of the bondwoman, was born according to the flesh: but he of the free woman, was by promise.

²⁴ Which things are said by an allegory. For these are the two testaments. The one from mount Sina, engendering unto bondage; which is Agar:

²⁵ For Sina is a mountain in Arabia, which hath affinity to that Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.

²⁶ But that Jerusalem, which is above, is free: which is our mother.

²⁷ For it is written: Rejoice, thou barren, that bearest not: break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for many are the children of the desolate, more than of her that hath a husband.

²⁸ Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.

²⁹ But as then he, that was born according to the flesh, persecuted him that was after the spirit; so also it is now.

³⁰ But what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son; for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman.

³¹ So then, brethren, we are not the children of the bondwoman, but of the free: by the freedom wherewith Christ has made us free.

5 Stand fast, and be not held again under the yoke of bondage.