Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Water in the Rock
17 Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by [a]stages from the wilderness of (A)Sin, according to the [b]command of the Lord, and camped at (B)Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. 2 Therefore the people (C)quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “(D)Why do you quarrel with me? (E)Why do you test the Lord?” 3 But the people thirsted there for water; and [c]they (F)grumbled against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill [d]us and [e]our children and [f](G)our livestock with thirst?” 4 So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “What shall I do to this people? A (H)little more and they will stone me.” 5 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of (I)the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which (J)you struck the Nile, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at (K)Horeb; and (L)you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 He named the place [g](M)Massah and [h](N)Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they (O)tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us, or not?”
God’s Guidance of His People in Spite of Their Unfaithfulness.
A [a]Maskil of Asaph.
78 (A)Listen, O my people, to my [b]instruction;
(B)Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will (C)open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter (D)dark sayings of old,
3 Which we have heard and known,
And (E)our fathers have told us.
4 We will (F)not conceal them from their children,
But (G)tell to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,
And His strength and His (H)wondrous works that He has done.
12 (A)He wrought wonders before their fathers
In the land of Egypt, in the (B)field of Zoan.
13 He (C)divided the sea and caused them to pass through,
And He made the waters stand (D)up like a heap.
14 Then He led them with the cloud by (E)day
And all the night with a (F)light of fire.
15 He (G)split the rocks in the wilderness
And gave them abundant drink like the ocean depths.
16 He (H)brought forth streams also from the rock
And caused waters to run down like rivers.
Be Like Christ
2 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any (A)fellowship of the Spirit, if any [a](B)affection and compassion, 2 (C)make my joy complete [b]by (D)being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing [c]from [d](E)selfishness or (F)empty conceit, but with humility of mind (G)regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4 (H)do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5 (I)Have this attitude [e]in yourselves which was also in (J)Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He (K)existed in the (L)form of God, (M)did not regard equality with God a thing to be [f]grasped, 7 but [g](N)emptied Himself, taking the form of a (O)bond-servant, and (P)being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, (Q)He humbled Himself by becoming (R)obedient to the point of death, even (S)death [h]on a cross. 9 (T)For this reason also, God (U)highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him (V)the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus (W)every knee will bow, of (X)those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is (Y)Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12 So then, my beloved, (Z)just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your (AA)salvation with (AB)fear and trembling; 13 for it is (AC)God who is at work in you, both to will and to work (AD)for His good pleasure.
Authority Challenged
23 (A)When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him (B)while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” 24 Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one [a]thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the [b]people; for they all regard John as (C)a prophet.” 27 And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.
Parable of Two Sons
28 “But what do you think? A man had two [c]sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘[d]Son, go work today in the (D)vineyard.’ 29 And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. 30 The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They *said, “The first.” Jesus *said to them, “Truly I say to you that (E)the tax collectors and prostitutes [e]will get into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but (F)the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.
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