Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
21 (A)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood (B)from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who [a]sits above the [b](C)circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like (D)grasshoppers,
Who (E)stretches out the heavens like a (F)curtain
And spreads them out like a (G)tent to dwell in.
23 He it is who reduces (H)rulers to nothing,
Who (I)makes the judges of the earth [c]meaningless.
24 [d]Scarcely have they been planted,
[e]Scarcely have they been sown,
[f]Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
And the (J)storm carries them away like stubble.
25 “(K)To whom then will you liken Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 (L)Lift up your eyes on high
And see (M)who has created these stars,
The (N)One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the (O)greatness of His might and the [g]strength of His power,
(P)Not one of them is missing.
27 (Q)Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
“My way is (R)hidden from the Lord,
And the (S)justice due me [h]escapes the notice of (T)my God”?
28 (U)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The (V)Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is (W)inscrutable.
29 He gives strength to the (X)weary,
And to him who lacks might He (Y)increases power.
30 Though (Z)youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous (AA)young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who [i]wait for the Lord
Will (AB)gain new strength;
They will [j](AC)mount up with [k]wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.
Praise for Jerusalem’s Restoration and Prosperity.
147 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!
For (A)it is good to sing praises to our God;
For [c]it is pleasant and praise is (B)becoming.
2 The Lord (C)builds up Jerusalem;
He (D)gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the (E)brokenhearted
And (F)binds up their [d]wounds.
4 He (G)counts the number of the stars;
He [e](H)gives names to all of them.
5 (I)Great is our Lord and abundant in strength;
His (J)understanding is [f]infinite.
6 The Lord [g](K)supports the afflicted;
He brings down the wicked to the ground.
7 (L)Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
Sing praises to our God on the lyre,
8 Who (M)covers the heavens with clouds,
Who (N)provides rain for the earth,
Who (O)makes grass to [h]grow on the mountains.
9 He (P)gives to the beast its food,
And to the (Q)young ravens which cry.
10 He does not delight in the strength of the (R)horse;
He (S)does not take pleasure in the legs of a man.
11 The Lord (T)favors those who fear Him,
(U)Those who wait for His lovingkindness.
16 For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for (A)I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach (B)the gospel. 17 For if I do this voluntarily, I have a (C)reward; but if against my will, I have a (D)stewardship entrusted to me. 18 What then is my (E)reward? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel (F)without charge, so as (G)not to make full use of my right in the gospel.
19 For though I am (H)free from all men, I have made myself (I)a slave to all, so that I may (J)win more. 20 (K)To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under [a]the Law, as under [b]the Law though (L)not being myself under [c]the Law, so that I might win those who are under [d]the Law; 21 to those who are (M)without law, (N)as without law, though not being without the law of God but (O)under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. 22 To the (P)weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become (Q)all things to all men, (R)so that I may by all means save some. 23 I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.
Crowds Healed
29 (A)And immediately after they came (B)out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with [a]James and John. 30 Now Simon’s mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they *spoke to [b]Jesus about her. 31 And He came to her and raised her up, taking her by the hand, and the fever left her, and she [c]waited on them.
32 (C)When evening came, (D)after the sun had set, they began bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were (E)demon-possessed. 33 And the whole (F)city had gathered at the door. 34 And He (G)healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was.
35 (H)In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and (I)was praying there. 36 Simon and his companions searched for Him; 37 they found Him, and *said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” 38 He *said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may [d]preach there also; for that is what I came for.” 39 (J)And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, [e]preaching and casting out the demons.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.