Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Idolatry Forbidden

19 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

² “Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘^(A)You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.

Various Laws

⁹ ‘^(A)Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. ¹⁰ And you shall not glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the Lord your God.

¹¹ ‘^(B)You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, ^(C)nor lie to one another. ¹² And ^(D)you shall not swear falsely by My name, so as to ^(E)profane the name of your God; I am the Lord.

¹³ ‘^(F)You shall not oppress your neighbor, nor rob him. ^(G)The wages of a hired worker are not to remain with you all night until morning. ¹⁴ You shall not curse a person who is deaf, nor ^(H)put a stumbling block before a person who is blind, but you shall revere your God; I am the Lord.

¹⁵ ‘^(I)You shall not do injustice in judgment; you shall not show partiality to the poor nor give preference to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly. ¹⁶ You shall not go about as ^(J)a slanderer among your people; and you are not to ^[a]jeopardize the ^[b](K)life of your neighbor. I am the Lord.

¹⁷ ‘You ^(L)shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you ^(M)may certainly rebuke your neighbor, but you are not to incur sin because of him. ^18 (N)You shall not take vengeance, ^(O)nor hold any grudge against the sons of your people, but ^(P)you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord.

He

¹⁰ According to ^(A)the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder ^(B)I laid a foundation, and ^(C)another is building on it. But each person must be careful how he builds on it. ¹¹ For no one can lay a ^(D)foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

^16 (A)Do you not know that ^(B)you are a ^[a]temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? ¹⁷ If anyone destroys the ^[b]temple of God, God will destroy ^[c]that person; for the ^[d]temple of God is holy, ^[e]and that is what you are.

^18 (C)Take care that no one deceives himself. ^(D)If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in ^(E)this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. ¹⁹ For ^(F)the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the sight of God. For it is written: “He is ^(G)the one who catches the wise by their craftiness”; ²⁰ and again, “^(H)The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are useless.” ²¹ So then, ^(I)no one is to be boasting in people. For ^(J)all things belong to you, ^22 (K)whether Paul or Apollos or ^[f]Cephas, or the world or ^(L)life or death, or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, ²³ and ^(M)you belong to Christ, and ^(N)Christ belongs to God.

³⁸ “^(A)You have heard that it was said, ‘^(B)Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ ³⁹ But I say to you, do not show opposition against an evil person; but ^(C)whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other toward him also. ⁴⁰ And if anyone wants to sue you and take your ^[a]tunic, let him have your ^[b]cloak also. ⁴¹ Whoever ^[c]forces you to go one mile, go with him two. ^42 (D)Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

⁴³ “^(E)You have heard that it was said, ‘^(F)You shall love your neighbor ^(G)and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I say to you, ^(H)love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ so that you may prove yourselves to be ^(I)sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ For ^(J)if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Even the tax collectors, do they not do the same? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Even the Gentiles, do they not do the same? ⁴⁸ Therefore ^(K)you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.