Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

א (Alef)

26 A famine came over the land, not the same as the first famine, which had taken place when Avraham was alive. Yitz’chak went to G’rar, to Avimelekh king of the P’lishtim. ² Adonai appeared to him and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt, but live where I tell you. ³ Stay in this land, and I will be with you and bless you, because I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants. I will fulfill the oath which I swore to Avraham your father — ⁴ I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, I will give all these lands to your descendants, and by your descendants all the nations of the earth will bless themselves. ⁵ All this is because Avraham heeded what I said and did what I told him to do — he followed my mitzvot, my regulations and my teachings.”

¹² How blessed is the man who perseveres through temptation! For after he has passed the test, he will receive as his crown the Life which God has promised to those who love him. ¹³ No one being tempted should say, “I am being tempted by God.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, and God himself tempts no one. ¹⁴ Rather, each person is being tempted whenever he is being dragged off and enticed by the bait of his own desire. ¹⁵ Then, having conceived, the desire gives birth to sin; and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death. ¹⁶ Don’t delude yourselves, my dear brothers.