Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
24 Y’hoshua gathered all the tribes of Isra’el to Sh’khem; he summoned the leaders, heads, judges and officials of Isra’el; and they presented themselves before God. 2 Y’hoshua said to all the people, “This is what Adonai the God of Isra’el says: ‘In antiquity your ancestors lived on the other side of the [Euphrates] River — Terach the father of Avraham and Nachor — and they served other gods. 3 I took your ancestor Avraham from beyond the River, led him through all the land of Kena‘an, increased his descendants and gave him Yitz’chak.
14 “Therefore fear Adonai, and serve him truly and sincerely. Put away the gods your ancestors served beyond the [Euphrates]River and in Egypt, and serve Adonai! 15 If it seems bad to you to serve Adonai, then choose today whom you are going to serve! Will it be the gods your ancestors served beyond the River? or the gods of the Emori, in whose land you are living? As for me and my household, we will serve Adonai!”
16 The people answered, “Far be it from us that we would abandon Adonai to serve other gods; 17 because it is Adonai our God who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from a life of slavery, and did those great signs before our eyes, and preserved us all along the way we traveled and among all the peoples we passed through; 18 and it was Adonai who drove out from ahead of us all the peoples, the Emori living in the land. Therefore we too will serve Adonai, for he is our God.”
19 Y’hoshua said to the people, “You can’t serve Adonai; because he is a holy God, a jealous God, and he will not forgive your crimes and sins. 20 If you abandon Adonai and serve foreign gods, he will turn, doing you harm and destroying you after he has done you good.”
21 But the people said to Y’hoshua, “No, but we will serve Adonai.”
22 Y’hoshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen Adonai, to serve him.”
They answered, “We are witnesses.”
23 “Now,” Y’hoshua urged, “put away the foreign gods you have among you, and turn your hearts to Adonai, the God of Isra’el.”
24 The people answered Y’hoshua, “We will serve Adonai our God; we will pay attention to what he says.”
25 So Y’hoshua made a covenant with the people that day, laying down for them laws and rulings there in Sh’khem.
78 (0) A maskil of Asaf:
(1) Listen, my people, to my teaching;
turn your ears to the words from my mouth.
2 I will speak to you in parables
and explain mysteries from days of old.
3 The things which we have heard and known,
and which our fathers told us
4 we will not hide from their descendants;
we will tell the generation to come
the praises of Adonai and his strength,
the wonders that he has performed.
5 He raised up a testimony in Ya‘akov
and established a Torah in Isra’el.
He commanded our ancestors
to make this known to their children,
6 so that the next generation would know it,
the children not yet born,
who would themselves arise
and tell their own children,
7 who could then put their confidence in God,
not forgetting God’s deeds,
but obeying his mitzvot.
13 Now, brothers, we want you to know the truth about those who have died; otherwise, you might become sad the way other people 14 do who have nothing to hope for. For since we believe that Yeshua died and rose again, we also believe that in the same way God, through Yeshua, will take with him those who have died. 15 When we say this, we base it on the Lord’s own word: we who remain alive when the Lord comes will certainly not take precedence over those who have died. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a rousing cry, with a call from one of the ruling angels, and with God’s shofar; those who died united with the Messiah will be the first to rise; 17 then we who are left still alive will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we will always be with the Lord. 18 So encourage each other with these words.
25 “The Kingdom of Heaven at that time will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went out to meet the groom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were sensible. 3 The foolish ones took lamps with them but no oil, 4 whereas the others took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 Now the bridegroom was late, so they all went to sleep. 6 It was the middle of the night when the cry rang out, ‘The bridegroom is here! Go out to meet him!’ 7 The girls all woke up and prepared their lamps for lighting. 8 The foolish ones said to the sensible ones, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ 9 ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both you and us. Go to the oil dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 But as they were going off to buy, the bridegroom came. Those who were ready went with him to the wedding feast, and the door was shut. 11 Later, the other bridesmaids came. ‘Sir! Sir!’ they cried, ‘Let us in!’ 12 But he answered, ‘Indeed! I tell you, I don’t know you!’ 13 So stay alert, because you know neither the day nor the hour.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.