Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

111 ^1-2 Hallelujah! I want to express publicly before his people my heartfelt thanks to God for his mighty miracles. All who are thankful should ponder them with me. ³ For his miracles demonstrate his honor, majesty, and eternal goodness.

⁴ Who can forget the wonders he performs—deeds of mercy and of grace? ⁵ He gives food to those who trust him; he never forgets his promises. ⁶ He has shown his great power to his people by giving them the land of Israel, though it was the home of many nations living there. ⁷ All he does is just and good, and all his laws are right, ⁸ for they are formed from truth and goodness and stand firm forever. ⁹ He has paid a full ransom for his people; now they are always free to come to Jehovah (what a holy, awe-inspiring name that is).

¹⁰ How can men be wise? The only way to begin is by reverence for God. For growth in wisdom comes from obeying his laws. Praise his name forever.

2 As the time of King David’s death approached, he gave this charge to his son Solomon:

² “I am going where every man on earth must some day go. I am counting on you to be a strong and worthy successor. ³ Obey the laws of God and follow all his ways; keep each of his commands written in the law of Moses so that you will prosper in everything you do, wherever you turn. ⁴ If you do this, then the Lord will fulfill the promise he gave me, that if my children and their descendants watch their step and are faithful to God, one of them shall always be the king of Israel—my dynasty will never end.

⁵ “Now listen to my instructions. You know that Joab murdered my two generals, Abner and Amasa. He pretended that it was an act of war, but it was done in a time of peace. ⁶ You are a wise man and will know what to do—don’t let him die in peace. ⁷ But be kind to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite. Make them permanent guests of the king, for they took care of me when I fled from your brother Absalom. ⁸ And do you remember Shimei, the son of Gera the Benjaminite from Bahurim? He cursed me with a terrible curse as I was going to Mahanaim; but when he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I promised I wouldn’t kill him. ⁹ But that promise doesn’t bind you! You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him.”

¹⁰ Then David died and was buried in Jerusalem. ¹¹ He had reigned over Israel for forty years, seven of them in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem.

⁷ Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus asked her for a drink. ⁸ He was alone at the time as his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food. ⁹ The woman was surprised that a Jew would ask a “despised Samaritan” for anything—usually they wouldn’t even speak to them!—and she remarked about this to Jesus.

¹⁰ He replied, “If you only knew what a wonderful gift God has for you, and who I am, you would ask me for some living water!”

¹¹ “But you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this is a very deep well! Where would you get this living water? ¹² And besides, are you greater than our ancestor Jacob? How can you offer better water than this which he and his sons and cattle enjoyed?”

¹³ Jesus replied that people soon became thirsty again after drinking this water. ¹⁴ “But the water I give them,” he said, “becomes a perpetual spring within them, watering them forever with eternal life.”

¹⁵ “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me some of that water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again and won’t have to make this long trip out here every day.”

¹⁶ “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her.

^17-18 “But I’m not married,” the woman replied.

“All too true!” Jesus said. “For you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now.”

¹⁹ “Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. ²⁰ But say, tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim,^[a] where our ancestors worshiped?”

^21-24 Jesus replied, “The time is coming, ma’am, when we will no longer be concerned about whether to worship the Father here or in Jerusalem. For it’s not where we worship that counts, but how we worship—is our worship spiritual and real? Do we have the Holy Spirit’s help? For God is Spirit, and we must have his help to worship as we should. The Father wants this kind of worship from us. But you Samaritans know so little about him, worshiping blindly, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes to the world through the Jews.”

²⁵ The woman said, “Well, at least I know that the Messiah will come—the one they call Christ—and when he does, he will explain everything to us.”

²⁶ Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!”