Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Wisdom Cries Out Her Message in the Street[a]
20 Wisdom cries out in the street;
she raises her voice in the public squares.
21 She calls out on the crowded street corners;
at the city gates she proclaims her message:
22 “How long will you simple people continue to be fools?
How long will you mockers[b] delight in your mocking?
How long will you fools continue to hate knowledge?
23 If you would seriously consider my reproof,
I would pour out my thoughts to you
and make my precepts known to you.
24 “However, because you refused to listen to my call,
because no one heeded when I stretched out my hand,
25 and because you rejected all my counsel
and ignored all my warnings,
26 [c]I in my turn will laugh at your distress
and mock you when panic overwhelms you,
27 when terror suddenly strikes you like a hurricane
and your doom approaches like a whirlwind,
when distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will cry out to me but I will not answer;
they will search for me, but not find me.[d]
29 For they hated knowledge
and chose not to fear the Lord.[e]
30 They refused to accept my advice
and spurned all my warnings.
31 “Now they must eat the fruits of their conduct
and be glutted with the results of their schemes.[f]
32 For the stubbornness of the simple kills them;
fools come to final ruin by their own complacency.
33 But whoever listens to me will be secure
and live in peace, without fear of disaster.”
Psalm 19[a]
God’s Glory in Creation
1 For the director.[b] A psalm of David.
2 [c]The heavens proclaim the glory of God;
the firmament shows forth the work of his hands.
3 One day imparts that message to the next,
and night conveys that knowledge to night.
4 All this occurs without speech or utterance;
no voice can be heard.
5 [d]Yet their message goes forth throughout the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.
[e]In the heavens he has placed a tent for the sun,
6 which comes forth like a bridegroom from his wedding chamber,
rejoicing like an athlete who runs his course.
7 It rises from one end of the heavens,
and its circuit is completed at the other;
nothing can be hidden from its heat.
8 The law of the Lord is perfect,
affording refreshment to the soul.
The decree of the Lord is worthy of trust,
imparting wisdom to the simple.[f]
9 The precepts of the Lord are right,
causing the heart[g] to rejoice.
The commands of the Lord are clear,
giving light to the eyes.
10 The fear of the Lord[h] is pure,
destined to endure forever.
The ordinances of the Lord are true,
and all of them are just.
11 They are even more precious than gold,
than an abundance of the purest gold;
they are also sweeter than honey
that drips from the comb.[i]
12 [j]By these your servant is instructed;
obedience in following them will ensure a great reward.
13 But who can fully recognize his shortcomings?
Cleanse me of my hidden faults.
14 From willful sins preserve your servant;
never let them gain power over me.
Then I will be blameless
and innocent of serious sin.
15 Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart[k]
find favor in your sight,
O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
26 For she is the reflection of eternal light,
the spotless mirror of the active power of God
and the image of his goodness.
27 Although she is only one, she can do all things;
while unchanging herself, she makes all things new.
Generation after generation she enters into holy souls,
and turns them into friends of God[a] and prophets.
28 For God loves nothing more
than one who dwells with Wisdom.
29 She is more beautiful than the sun
and outshines every constellation of the stars.
In comparison with the light she is far superior,
30 for light is supplanted by the night,
but evil cannot overpower Wisdom.
Chapter 8
1 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she governs all things exceedingly well.
Exhortation To Practice Christian Living
Chapter 3
Avoid Faults of the Tongue.[a] 1 My brethren, not many of you should become teachers, for you know that we will face a more severe judgment. 2 For all of us fall short in many ways. Anyone who never makes a mistake in speech has reached perfection[b] and is able to control every part of his body.
3 When we put a bit into a horse’s mouth to make it obey us, we also guide its entire body. 4 Or think of ships. Even though they are large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder on whatever course the helmsman chooses. 5 In the same way, the tongue is a small member but its pretensions are great.
Consider how a small fire can set ablaze a great forest. 6 And the tongue is also a fire, a world of evil that infects the entire body. It sets afire the entire course of our existence and is itself set on fire by Gehenna.
7 For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by man, 8 but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.[c]
10 Out of the same mouth flow blessings and curses. This should not be so, my brethren. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives or can a grapevine produce figs? Neither can salt water yield fresh water.
27 Peter’s Confession That Jesus Is the Messiah.[a] Then Jesus and his disciples set out for the villages of Caesarea Philippi. Along the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 They responded, “[Some say] John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” 29 “But you,” he asked, “who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” 30 Then he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone about him.
The Mystery of Jesus Is Revealed[b]
The Way of the Son of Man[c]
31 Jesus Predicts His Passion.[d] After that, he began to teach them that the Son of Man must endure great suffering, be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,[e] and be put to death, and rise again after three days. 32 He told them these facts in plain words.
Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 At this, Jesus turned and, looking at his disciples, rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! You are thinking not as God does, but as men do.”
34 The Conditions of Discipleship.[f] He then called the people and his disciples to him and said to them, “Anyone who wishes to follow me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 35 [g]For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the sake of the gospel will save it. 36 What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his very life? 37 Indeed, what can he give in exchange for his life?
38 “If anyone in this adulterous and sinful generation is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
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