Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

¹⁵ “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers.^(A) You must listen to him. ¹⁶ This is what you requested from the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, ‘Let us not continue to hear the voice of the Lord our God or see this great fire any longer, so that we will not die!’ ^{(B) 17} Then the Lord said to me, ‘They have spoken well. ¹⁸ I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. ¹⁹ I will hold accountable whoever does not listen to my words that he speaks in my name.^{(C) 20} But the prophet who presumes to speak a message in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods—that prophet must die.’

Psalm 111

Praise for the Lord’s Works

Food Offered to Idols

8 Now about food sacrificed to idols:^(A) We know that “we all have knowledge.” Knowledge puffs up,^(B) but love^(C) builds up. ² If anyone thinks he knows anything, he does not yet know it as he ought to know it.^{(D) 3} But if anyone loves God,^(E) he is known^(F) by him.

⁴ About eating food sacrificed to idols, then, we know that “an idol is nothing in the world,”^[a] and that “there is no God but one.”^{(G) 5} For even if there are so-called gods,^(H) whether in heaven or on earth—as there are many “gods” and many “lords”— ⁶ yet for us there is one God, the Father.^(I) All things are from him,^(J) and we exist for him. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ. All things are through him, and we exist through him.^(K)

⁷ However, not everyone has this knowledge. Some have been so used to idolatry up until now that when they eat food sacrificed to an idol, their conscience, being weak, is defiled. ⁸ Food will not bring us close to God.^[b] We are not worse off if we don’t eat, and we are not better if we do eat.^{(L) 9} But be careful that this right of yours in no way becomes a stumbling block^(M) to the weak. ¹⁰ For if someone sees you, the one who has knowledge, dining in an idol’s temple, won’t his weak conscience be encouraged^[c] to eat food offered to idols? ¹¹ So the weak person, the brother or sister for whom Christ died,^(N) is ruined^[d](O) by your knowledge.^{(P) 12} Now when you sin like this against brothers and sisters and wound their weak conscience, you are sinning against Christ. ¹³ Therefore, if food causes my brother or sister to fall, I will never again eat meat,^(Q) so that I won’t cause my brother or sister to fall.

Driving Out an Unclean Spirit

²¹ They^(A) went into Capernaum,^(B) and right away he entered the synagogue^(C) on the Sabbath^(D) and began to teach.^{(E) 22} They were astonished^(F) at his teaching^(G) because he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not like the scribes.

²³ Just then a man with an unclean^(H) spirit^(I) was in their synagogue.^(J) He cried out, ²⁴ “What do you have to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?^(K) Have you come to destroy^(L) us? I know who you are—the Holy^(M) One of God!” ^(N)

²⁵ Jesus rebuked^(O) him saying, “Be silent,^(P) and come out of him!” ²⁶ And the unclean spirit threw him into convulsions,^(Q) shouted with a loud voice, and came out of him.

²⁷ They were all amazed,^(R) and so they began to ask^(S) each other, “What is this? A new teaching^(T) with authority!^[a](U) He commands even the unclean^(V) spirits,^(W) and they obey him.” ²⁸ At once the news about him spread throughout the entire vicinity of Galilee.^(X)