Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

The Vision of Dry Bones

37 I felt the power of the Lord on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and put me down in the middle of a valley. It was full of bones. ² He led me around among the bones, and I saw that there were many bones in the valley and that they were very dry. ³ Then he asked me, “Human, can these bones live?”

I answered, “Lord God, only you know.”

⁴ He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. ⁵ This is what the Lord God says to the bones: I will cause breath to enter you so you will come to life. ⁶ I will put muscles on you and flesh on you and cover you with skin. Then I will put breath in you so you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

⁷ So I prophesied as I was commanded. While I prophesied, there was a noise and a rattling. The bones came together, bone to bone. ⁸ I looked and saw muscles come on the bones, and flesh grew, and skin covered the bones. But there was no breath in them.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the wind.^[a] Prophesy, human, and say to the wind, ‘This is what the Lord God says: Wind, come from the four winds, and breathe on these people who were killed so they can come back to life.’” ¹⁰ So I prophesied as the Lord commanded me. And the breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, a very large army.

¹¹ Then he said to me, “Human, these bones are like all the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has gone. We are destroyed.’ ¹² So, prophesy and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves. Then I will bring you into the land of Israel. ¹³ My people, you will know that I am the Lord when I open your graves and cause you to come up from them. ¹⁴ And I will put my Spirit inside you, and you will come to life. Then I will put you in your own land. And you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it, says the Lord.’”

A Prayer for Mercy

A song for going up to worship.

⁶ If people’s thinking is controlled by the sinful self, there is death. But if their thinking is controlled by the Spirit, there is life and peace. ⁷ When people’s thinking is controlled by the sinful self, they are against God, because they refuse to obey God’s law and really are not even able to obey God’s law. ⁸ Those people who are ruled by their sinful selves cannot please God.

⁹ But you are not ruled by your sinful selves. You are ruled by the Spirit, if that Spirit of God really lives in you. But the person who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Christ. ¹⁰ Your body will always be dead because of sin. But if Christ is in you, then the Spirit gives you life, because Christ made you right with God. ¹¹ God raised Jesus from the dead, and if God’s Spirit is living in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. God is the One who raised Christ from the dead, and he will give life through^[a] his Spirit that lives in you.

The Death of Lazarus

11 A man named Lazarus was sick. He lived in the town of Bethany, where Mary and her sister Martha lived. ² Mary was the woman who later put perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair. Mary’s brother was Lazarus, the man who was now sick. ³ So Mary and Martha sent someone to tell Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

⁴ When Jesus heard this, he said, “This sickness will not end in death. It is for the glory of God, to bring glory to the Son of God.” ⁵ Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. ⁶ But when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was for two more days. ⁷ Then Jesus said to his followers, “Let’s go back to Judea.”

⁸ The followers said, “But Teacher, some people there tried to stone you to death only a short time ago. Now you want to go back there?”

⁹ Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the daylight, he will not stumble, because he can see by this world’s light. ¹⁰ But if anyone walks at night, he stumbles because there is no light to help him see.”

¹¹ After Jesus said this, he added, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to wake him.”

¹² The followers said, “But Lord, if he is only asleep, he will be all right.”

¹³ Jesus meant that Lazarus was dead, but his followers thought he meant Lazarus was really sleeping. ¹⁴ So then Jesus said plainly, “Lazarus is dead. ¹⁵ And I am glad for your sakes I was not there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him now.”

¹⁶ Then Thomas (the one called Didymus) said to the other followers, “Let us also go so that we can die with him.”

Jesus in Bethany

¹⁷ When Jesus arrived, he learned that Lazarus had already been dead and in the tomb for four days. ¹⁸ Bethany was about two miles from Jerusalem. ¹⁹ Many of the Jews had come there to comfort Martha and Mary about their brother.

²⁰ When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed home. ²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² But I know that even now God will give you anything you ask.”

²³ Jesus said, “Your brother will rise and live again.”

²⁴ Martha answered, “I know that he will rise and live again in the resurrection^[a] on the last day.”

²⁵ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me will have life even if they die. ²⁶ And everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Martha, do you believe this?”

²⁷ Martha answered, “Yes, Lord. I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the One coming to the world.”

Jesus Cries

²⁸ After Martha said this, she went back and talked to her sister Mary alone. Martha said, “The Teacher is here and he is asking for you.” ²⁹ When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to Jesus. ³⁰ Jesus had not yet come into the town but was still at the place where Martha had met him. ³¹ The Jews were with Mary in the house, comforting her. When they saw her stand and leave quickly, they followed her, thinking she was going to the tomb to cry there.

³² But Mary went to the place where Jesus was. When she saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

³³ When Jesus saw Mary crying and the Jews who came with her also crying, he was upset and was deeply troubled. ³⁴ He asked, “Where did you bury him?”

“Come and see, Lord,” they said.

³⁵ Jesus cried.

³⁶ So the Jews said, “See how much he loved him.”

³⁷ But some of them said, “If Jesus opened the eyes of the blind man, why couldn’t he keep Lazarus from dying?”

Jesus Raises Lazarus

³⁸ Again feeling very upset, Jesus came to the tomb. It was a cave with a large stone covering the entrance. ³⁹ Jesus said, “Move the stone away.”

Martha, the sister of the dead man, said, “But, Lord, it has been four days since he died. There will be a bad smell.”

⁴⁰ Then Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

⁴¹ So they moved the stone away from the entrance. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me. ⁴² I know that you always hear me, but I said these things because of the people here around me. I want them to believe that you sent me.” ⁴³ After Jesus said this, he cried out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” ⁴⁴ The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with pieces of cloth, and a cloth around his face.

Jesus said to them, “Take the cloth off of him and let him go.”

The Plan to Kill Jesus

⁴⁵ Many of the people, who had come to visit Mary and saw what Jesus did, believed in him.