Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

⁹ How can a young man keep his way pure? By living by Your Word. ¹⁰ I have looked for You with all my heart. Do not let me turn from Your Law. ¹¹ Your Word have I hid in my heart, that I may not sin against You. ¹² Great and honored are You, O Lord. Teach me Your Law. ¹³ I have told with my lips of all the Laws of Your mouth. ¹⁴ I have found as much joy in following Your Law as one finds in much riches. ¹⁵ I will think about Your Law and have respect for Your ways. ¹⁶ I will be glad in Your Law. I will not forget Your Word.

Wisdom Brings Safety

2 My son, if you receive my sayings and store up my teachings within you, ² make your ear open to wisdom. Turn your heart to understanding. ³ If you cry out to know right from wrong, and lift your voice for understanding; ⁴ if you look for her as silver, and look for her as hidden riches; ⁵ then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find what is known of God. ⁶ For the Lord gives wisdom. Much learning and understanding come from His mouth. ⁷ He stores up perfect wisdom for those who are right with Him. He is a safe-covering to those who are right in their walk. ⁸ He watches over the right way, and He keeps safe the way of those who belong to Him. ⁹ Then you will understand what is right and good, and right from wrong, and you will know what you should do. ¹⁰ For wisdom will come into your heart. And much learning will be pleasing to your soul. ¹¹ Good thinking will keep you safe. Understanding will watch over you. ¹² You will be kept from the sinful man, and from the man who causes much trouble by what he says. ¹³ You will be kept from the man who leaves the right way to walk in the ways of darkness, ¹⁴ from the one who is happy doing wrong, and who finds joy in the way of sin. ¹⁵ His ways are not straight and are not good.

What Jesus Taught about Marriage and Divorce ^(A)

19 When Jesus had finished talking, He went from the country of Galilee. He came to the part of the country of Judea which is on the other side of the Jordan River. ² Many people followed Him and He healed them there.

³ The proud religious law-keepers came to Jesus. They tried to trap Him by saying, “Does the Law say a man can divorce his wife for any reason?” ⁴ He said to them, “Have you not read that He Who made them in the first place made them man and woman? ⁵ It says, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and his mother and will live with his wife. The two will become one.’ ⁶ So they are no longer two but one. Let no man divide what God has put together.”

⁷ The proud religious law-keepers said to Jesus, “Then why did the Law of Moses allow a man to divorce his wife if he put it down in writing and gave it to her?” ⁸ Jesus said to them, “Because of your hard hearts Moses allowed you to divorce your wives. It was not like that from the beginning. ⁹ And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sex sins, and marries another, is guilty of sex sins in marriage. Whoever marries her that is divorced is guilty of sex sins in marriage.”

¹⁰ His followers said to Him, “If that is the way of a man with his wife, it is better not to be married.” ¹¹ But Jesus said to them, “Not all men are able to do this, but only those to whom it has been given. ¹² For there are some men who from birth will never be able to have children. There are some men who have been made so by men. There are some men who have had themselves made that way because of the holy nation of heaven. The one who is able to do this, let him do it.”