Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Proof of the Agreement
17 When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to him. The Lord said, “I am God All-Powerful. Obey me and do what is right. 2 I will make an agreement between us. I will make you the ancestor of many people.”
3 Then Abram bowed facedown on the ground. God said to him, 4 “I am making my agreement with you: I will make you the father of many nations. 5 I am changing your name from Abram[a] to Abraham.[b] This is because I am making you a father of many nations. 6 I will give you many descendants. New nations will be born from you. Kings will come from you. 7 And I will make an agreement between me and you and all your descendants from now on: I will be your God and the God of all your descendants.
23 Praise the Lord, all you who worship him.
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him.
Fear him, all you Israelites.
24 The Lord does not ignore
the one who is in trouble.
He doesn’t hide from him.
He listens when the one in trouble calls out to him.
25 Lord, I praise you in the great meeting of your people.
These worshipers will see me do what I promised.
26 Poor people will eat until they are full.
Those who look to the Lord will praise him.
May your hearts live forever!
27 People everywhere will remember
and will turn to the Lord.
All the families of the nations
will worship him.
28 This is because the Lord is King.
He rules the nations.
29 All the powerful people on earth will eat and worship.
Everyone will bow down to him.
30 The people in the future will serve him.
They will always be told about the Lord.
31 They will tell that he does what is right.
People who are not yet born
will hear what God has done.
God Keeps His Promise
13 Abraham[a] and his descendants received the promise that they would get the whole world. But Abraham did not receive that promise through the law. He received it because he was right with God through his faith. 14 If people could receive what God promised by following the law, then faith is worthless. And God’s promise to Abraham is worthless, 15 because the law can only bring God’s anger. But if there is no law, then there is nothing to disobey.
16 So people receive God’s promise by having faith. This happens so that the promise can be a free gift. And if the promise is a free gift, then all of Abraham’s children can have that promise. The promise is not only for those people that live under the law of Moses. It is for anyone who lives with faith like Abraham. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written in the Scriptures: “I am making you a father of many nations.”[b] This is true before God. Abraham believed in God—the God who gives life to the dead and decides that things will happen that have not yet happened.
18 There was no hope that Abraham would have children. But Abraham believed God and continued hoping. And that is why he became the father of many nations. As God told him, “Your descendants will also be too many to count.”[c] 19 Abraham was almost 100 years old, much past the age for having children. Also, Sarah could not have children. Abraham thought about all this. But his faith in God did not become weak. 20 He never doubted that God would keep his promise. Abraham never stopped believing. He grew stronger in his faith and gave praise to God. 21 Abraham felt sure that God was able to do the thing that God promised. 22 So, “God accepted Abraham’s faith, and that made him right with God.”[d] 23 Those words (“God accepted Abraham’s faith”) were written not only for Abraham. 24 They were written also for us. God will accept us also because we believe. We believe in the One who raised Jesus our Lord from death. 25 Jesus was given to die for our sins. And he was raised from death to make us right with God.
31 Then Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things. He taught that the Son of Man would not be accepted by the Jewish elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law. He taught that the Son of Man must be killed and then rise from death after three days. 32 Jesus told them plainly what would happen. Then Peter took Jesus aside and began to criticize him. 33 But Jesus turned and looked at his followers. Then he criticized Peter and said, “Go away from me, Satan![a] You don’t care about the things of God. You care only about things men think are important.”
34 Then Jesus called the crowd to him, along with his followers. He said, “If anyone wants to follow me, he must say ‘no’ to the things he wants. He must be willing to die on a cross, and he must follow me. 35 Whoever wants to save his life will give up true life. But whoever gives up his life for me and for the Good News will have true life forever. 36 It is worth nothing for a person to have the whole world, if he loses his soul. 37 A person could never pay enough to buy back his soul. 38 The people who live now are living in a sinful and evil time. If anyone is ashamed of me and my teaching, then I will be ashamed of him. I will be ashamed of him when I come with the glory of my Father and the holy angels.”
Jesus with Moses and Elijah
2 Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John and went up on a high mountain. They were all alone there. While these followers watched, Jesus was changed. 3 His clothes became shining white, whiter than any person could make them. 4 Then two men appeared, talking with Jesus. The men were Moses and Elijah.[a]
5 Peter said to Jesus, “Teacher, it is good that we are here. We will put three tents here—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6 Peter did not know what to say, because he and the others were so frightened.
7 Then a cloud came and covered them. A voice came from the cloud. The voice said, “This is my Son, and I love him. Obey him!”
8 Then Peter, James, and John looked around, but they saw only Jesus there alone with them.
9 As Jesus and his followers were walking back down the mountain, he commanded them, “Don’t tell anyone about the things you saw on the mountain. Wait till the Son of Man rises from death. Then you may tell.”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.