Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Prophetic Call to Samuel
3 Now (A)the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord before Eli. And (B)word from the Lord was rare in those days, [a]visions were infrequent.
2 It happened at that time as Eli was lying down in his place (now (C)his eyesight had begun to grow dim and he could not see well), 3 and (D)the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was, 4 that the Lord called Samuel; and he said, “(E)Here I am.” 5 Then he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, lie down again.” So he went and lay down. 6 The Lord called yet again, “Samuel!” So Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he [b]answered, “I did not call, my son, lie down again.” 7 (F)Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor had the word of the Lord yet been revealed to him. 8 So the Lord called Samuel again for the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli discerned that the Lord was calling the boy. 9 And Eli said to Samuel, “Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 Then the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”
11 The Lord said to Samuel, “Behold, (A)I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. 12 In that day (B)I will carry out against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. 13 For (C)I have told him that I am about to judge his house forever for (D)the iniquity which he knew, because (E)his sons brought a curse on themselves and (F)he did not rebuke them. 14 Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that (G)the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
15 So Samuel lay down until morning. Then he (H)opened the doors of the house of the Lord. But Samuel was afraid to tell (I)the vision to Eli. 16 Then Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” 17 He said, “What is the word that He spoke to you? Please do not hide it from me. (J)May God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all the words that He spoke to you.” 18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “(K)It is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him.”
19 Thus (L)Samuel grew and (M)the Lord was with him and (N)let none of his words [a]fail. 20 All Israel (O)from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord.
God’s Omnipresence and Omniscience.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
139 O Lord, You have (A)searched me and known me.
2 You (B)know [a]when I sit down and [b]when I rise up;
You (C)understand my thought from afar.
3 You [c](D)scrutinize my [d]path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
4 [e]Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You (E)know it all.
5 You have (F)enclosed me behind and before,
And (G)laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such (H)knowledge is (I)too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.
13 For You (A)formed my [a]inward parts;
You (B)wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will give thanks to You, for [b]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
(C)Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
15 My [c](D)frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the (E)depths of the earth;
16 Your (F)eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in (G)Your book were all written
The (H)days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.
5 For we (A)do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants [a]for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “(B)Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has (C)shone in our hearts to give the (D)Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in (E)earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of (F)the power will be of God and not from ourselves; 8 we are (G)afflicted in every way, but not (H)crushed; (I)perplexed, but not despairing; 9 (J)persecuted, but not (K)forsaken; (L)struck down, but not destroyed; 10 (M)always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that (N)the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death works in us, but life in you.
Question of the Sabbath
23 (A)And it happened that He was passing through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples began to make their way along while (B)picking the heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees were saying to Him, “Look, (C)why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” 25 And He *said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions became hungry; 26 how he entered the house of God in the time of (D)Abiathar the high priest, and ate the [a]consecrated bread, which (E)is not lawful for anyone to eat except the priests, and he also gave it to those who were with him?” 27 Jesus said to them, “(F)The Sabbath [b]was made [c]for man, and (G)not man [d]for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
3 (H)He (I)entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered. 2 (J)They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, (K)so that they might accuse Him. 3 He *said to the man with the withered hand, “[e]Get up and come forward!” 4 And He *said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 After (L)looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately began [f]conspiring with the (M)Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.