Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

¹² Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord. Happy are the people He has chosen for His own.

¹³ The Lord looks from heaven. He sees all the sons of men. ¹⁴ From where He sits He looks upon all who live on the earth. ¹⁵ He made the hearts of them all. And He understands whatever they do. ¹⁶ No king is saved by the power of his strong army. A soldier is not saved by great strength. ¹⁷ A horse cannot be trusted to win a battle. Its great strength cannot save anyone.

¹⁸ See, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, and on those who hope for His loving-kindness, ¹⁹ to save their soul from death, and to keep them alive when there is nothing to eat. ²⁰ Our soul waits for the Lord. He is our help and our safe cover. ²¹ For our heart is full of joy in Him, because we trust in His holy name. ²² O Lord, let Your loving-kindness be upon us as we put our hope in You.

God’s Ten Great Laws

20 Then God spoke all these words, saying, ² “I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house where you were servants.

³ “Have no gods other than Me.

⁴ “Do not make for yourselves a god to look like anything that is in heaven above or on the earth below or in the waters under the earth.

⁵ “Do not worship them or work for them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. I punish the children, even the great-grandchildren, for the sins of their fathers who hate Me. ⁶ But I show loving-kindness to thousands of those who love Me and keep My Laws.

⁷ “Do not use the name of the Lord your God in a false way. For the Lord will punish the one who uses His name in a false way.

⁸ “Remember the Day of Rest, to keep it holy. ⁹ Six days you will do all your work. ¹⁰ But the seventh day is a Day of Rest to the Lord your God. You, your son, your daughter, your male servant, your female servant, your cattle, or the traveler who stays with you, must not do any work on this day. ¹¹ For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea and all that is in them. And He rested on the seventh day. So the Lord gave honor to the Day of Rest and made it holy.

¹² “Honor your father and your mother, so your life may be long in the land the Lord your God gives you.

¹³ “Do not kill other people.

¹⁴ “Do not do sex sins.

¹⁵ “Do not steal.

¹⁶ “Do not tell a lie about your neighbor.

¹⁷ “Do not have a desire for your neighbor’s house. Do not have a desire for his wife or his male servant, his female servant, or his bull or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

¹⁸ All the people heard and saw the thunder and lightning, the sound of the horn, and the mountain smoking. And when the people saw it, they shook with fear and stood far away. ¹⁹ They said to Moses, “You speak to us and we will listen. But do not let God speak to us or we will die.” ²⁰ Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so you may have enough fear of Him to keep you from sinning.” ²¹ The people stood far away, while Moses came near to the cloud where God was.

Jesus Teaches on the Mountain ^(A)

5 Jesus saw many people. He went up on the mountain and sat down. His followers came to Him. ² He began to teach them, saying, ³ “Those who know there is nothing good in themselves are happy, because the holy nation of heaven is theirs. ⁴ Those who have sorrow are happy, because they will be comforted. ⁵ Those who have no pride in their hearts are happy, because the earth will be given to them. ⁶ Those who are hungry and thirsty to be right with God are happy, because they will be filled. ⁷ Those who show loving-kindness are happy, because they will have loving-kindness shown to them. ⁸ Those who have a pure heart are happy, because they will see God. ⁹ Those who make peace are happy, because they will be called the sons of God. ¹⁰ Those who have it very hard for doing right are happy, because the holy nation of heaven is theirs. ¹¹ You are happy when people act and talk in a bad way to you and make it very hard for you and tell bad things and lies about you because you trust in Me. ¹² Be glad and full of joy because your reward will be much in heaven. They made it very hard for the early preachers who lived a long time before you.