Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
12 Sinful people make plans to harm those who do what is right.
They grind their teeth at them.
13 But the Lord laughs at those who do evil.
He knows the day is coming when he will judge them.
14 Sinners pull out their swords.
They bend their bows.
They want to kill poor and needy people.
They plan to murder those who lead honest lives.
15 But they will be killed by their own swords.
Their own bows will be broken.
16 Those who do what is right may have very little.
But it’s better than the wealth of many sinners.
17 The power of those who are evil will be broken.
But the Lord takes good care of those who do what is right.
18 Those who are without blame spend their days in the Lord’s care.
What he has given them will last forever.
19 When trouble comes to them, they will have what they need.
When there is little food in the land, they will still have plenty.
20 But sinful people will die.
The Lord’s enemies may be like flowers in the field.
But they will be swallowed up.
They will disappear like smoke.
21 Sinful people borrow and don’t pay back.
But those who are godly give freely to others.
22 The Lord will give the land to those he blesses.
But he will destroy those he curses.
Solomon Dies
29 The other events of Solomon’s rule from beginning to end are written down. They are written in the records of Nathan the prophet. They are written in the prophecy of Ahijah. He was from Shiloh. They are also written in the records of the visions of Iddo the prophet about Jeroboam. Jeroboam was the son of Nebat. 30 Solomon ruled in Jerusalem over the whole nation of Israel for 40 years. 31 Then he joined the members of his family who had already died. He was buried in the city of his father David. Solomon’s son Rehoboam became the next king after him.
35 By that time it was late in the day. His disciples came to him. “There is nothing here,” they said. “It’s already very late. 36 Send the people away. Then they can go to the nearby countryside and villages to buy something to eat.”
37 But Jesus answered, “You give them something to eat.”
They said to him, “That would take more than half a year’s pay! Should we go and spend that much on bread? Are we supposed to feed them?”
38 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Go and see.”
When they found out, they said, “Five loaves and two fish.”
39 Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of 100s and 50s. 41 Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish. He looked up to heaven and gave thanks. He broke the loaves into pieces. Then he gave them to his disciples to pass around to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. 42 All of them ate and were satisfied. 43 The disciples picked up 12 baskets of broken pieces of bread and fish. 44 The number of men who had eaten was 5,000.
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