Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Let Us Go to the Country

The Woman

The Man

Psalm 45

The Wedding of the Victorious King

Heading

For the choir director. According to “Lilies.”^[a]
By the Sons of Korah. A maskil. A love song.

Introduction

The Glory of the Royal Groom

¹⁷ Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the lights, who does not change or shift like a shadow.^{[a] 18} Just as he planned, he gave us birth by the word of truth so that we would be a kind of firstfruits of his creations.

¹⁹ Remember this,^[b] my dear brothers: Let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. ²⁰ Certainly, a man’s anger does not bring about what is right before God. ²¹ So after getting rid of all moral filthiness and overflowing wickedness, receive with humility the word planted in you. It is able to save your souls.

²² Be people who do what the word says, not people who only hear it. Such people are deceiving themselves. ²³ In fact, if anyone hears the word and does not do what it says, he is like a man who carefully looks at his own natural face in a mirror. ²⁴ Indeed, he carefully looks at himself; then, he goes away and immediately forgets what he looked like. ²⁵ But the one who looks carefully into the perfect law, the law of freedom, and continues to do so—since he does not hear and forget but actually does what it says—that person will be blessed in what he does.

²⁶ If anyone considers himself to be religious but deceives his own heart because he does not bridle his tongue, this person’s religion is worthless. ²⁷ Religion that is pure and undefiled in the sight of God the Father is this: to take care of orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Commandments and Traditions

7 The Pharisees and some of the experts in the law came from Jerusalem and gathered around Jesus. ² They saw some of his disciples eating bread with unclean (that is, unwashed) hands. ³ In fact, the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they scrub their hands with a fist,^[a] holding to the tradition of the elders. ⁴ When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.^[b] And there are many other traditions they adhere to, such as the washing^[c] of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches.^{[d] 5} The Pharisees and the experts in the law asked Jesus, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead they eat bread with unclean hands.”

⁶ He answered them, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites. As it is written:

⁸ “You abandon God’s commandment but hold to human tradition like the washing of pitchers and cups, and you do many other such things.”^[f]

¹⁴ He called the crowd to him again and said, “Everyone, listen to me and understand. ¹⁵ There is nothing outside of a man that can make him unclean by going into him. But the things that come out of a man are what make a man unclean.

²¹ In fact, from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual sins, theft, murder, ²² adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained immorality, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. ²³ All these evil things proceed from within and make a person unclean.”