Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “You are my relative, but it is not right for you to work for me without pay. What would you like me to pay you?”
16 Now Laban had two daughters. The older was Leah, and the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was very beautiful. 18 Jacob loved Rachel, so he said to Laban, “Let me marry your younger daughter Rachel. If you will, I will work seven years for you.”
19 Laban said, “It would be better for her to marry you than someone else, so stay here with me.” 20 So Jacob worked for Laban seven years so he could marry Rachel. But they seemed like just a few days to him because he loved Rachel very much.
21 After seven years Jacob said to Laban, “Give me Rachel so that I may marry her. The time I promised to work for you is over.”
22 So Laban gave a feast for all the people there. 23 That evening he brought his daughter Leah to Jacob, and they had sexual relations. 24 (Laban gave his slave girl Zilpah to his daughter to be her servant.) 25 In the morning when Jacob saw that he had had sexual relations with Leah, he said to Laban, “What have you done to me? I worked hard for you so that I could marry Rachel! Why did you trick me?”
26 Laban said, “In our country we do not allow the younger daughter to marry before the older daughter. 27 But complete the full week of the marriage ceremony with Leah, and I will give you Rachel to marry also. But you must serve me another seven years.”
28 So Jacob did this, and when he had completed the week with Leah, Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife.
God’s Love for Israel
105 Give thanks to the Lord and pray to him.
Tell the nations what he has done.
2 Sing to him; sing praises to him.
Tell about all his miracles.
3 Be glad that you are his;
let those who seek the Lord be happy.
4 Depend on the Lord and his strength;
always go to him for help.
5 Remember the miracles he has done;
remember his wonders and his decisions.
6 You are descendants of his servant Abraham,
the children of Jacob, his chosen people.
7 He is the Lord our God.
His laws are for all the world.
8 He will keep his agreement forever;
he will keep his promises always.
9 He will keep the agreement he made with Abraham
and the promise he made to Isaac.
10 He made it a law for the people of Jacob;
he made it an agreement with Israel to last forever.
11 The Lord said, “I will give you the land of Canaan,
and it will belong to you.”
45 This was so they would keep his orders
and obey his teachings.
Praise the Lord!
The Happy Home
A song for going up to worship.
128 Happy are those who respect the Lord and obey him.
2 You will enjoy what you work for,
and you will be blessed with good things.
3 Your wife will give you many children,
like a vine that produces much fruit.
Your children will bring you much good,
like olive branches that produce many olives.
4 This is how the man who respects the Lord
will be blessed.
5 May the Lord bless you from Mount Zion;
may you enjoy the good things of Jerusalem all your life.
6 May you see your grandchildren.
Let there be peace in Israel.
26 Also, the Spirit helps us with our weakness. We do not know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself speaks to God for us, even begs God for us with deep feelings that words cannot explain. 27 God can see what is in people’s hearts. And he knows what is in the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit speaks to God for his people in the way God wants.
28 We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him.[a] They are the people he called, because that was his plan. 29 God knew them before he made the world, and he chose them to be like his Son so that Jesus would be the firstborn[b] of many brothers and sisters. 30 God planned for them to be like his Son; and those he planned to be like his Son, he also called; and those he called, he also made right with him; and those he made right, he also glorified.
God’s Love in Christ Jesus
31 So what should we say about this? If God is for us, no one can defeat us. 32 He did not spare his own Son but gave him for us all. So with Jesus, God will surely give us all things. 33 Who can accuse the people God has chosen? No one, because God is the One who makes them right. 34 Who can say God’s people are guilty? No one, because Christ Jesus died, but he was also raised from the dead, and now he is on God’s right side, appealing to God for us. 35 Can anything separate us from the love Christ has for us? Can troubles or problems or sufferings or hunger or nakedness or danger or violent death? 36 As it is written in the Scriptures:
“For you we are in danger of death all the time.
People think we are worth no more than sheep to be killed.” Psalm 44:22
37 But in all these things we are completely victorious through God who showed his love for us. 38 Yes, I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor ruling spirits, nothing now, nothing in the future, no powers, 39 nothing above us, nothing below us, nor anything else in the whole world will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Stories of Mustard Seed and Yeast
31 Then Jesus told another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. 32 That seed is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows, it is one of the largest garden plants. It becomes big enough for the wild birds to come and build nests in its branches.”
33 Then Jesus told another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and hid in a large tub of flour until it made all the dough rise.”
Stories of a Treasure and a Pearl
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. One day a man found the treasure, and then he hid it in the field again. He was so happy that he went and sold everything he owned to buy that field.
45 “Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a man looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found a very valuable pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.
A Story of a Fishing Net
47 “Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was put into the lake and caught many different kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. They sat down and put all the good fish in baskets and threw away the bad fish. 49 It will be this way at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the good people. 50 The angels will throw the evil people into the blazing furnace, where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.”
51 Jesus asked his followers, “Do you understand all these things?”
They answered, “Yes, we understand.”
52 Then Jesus said to them, “So every teacher of the law who has been taught about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house. He brings out both new things and old things he has saved.”
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.