Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Davidic Song of Ascents
God is for Us
124 If the Lord had not been on our side—
let Israel now say—
2 if the Lord had not been on our side,
when men came against us,
3 then they would have devoured us alive,
when their anger burned against us.
4 Then the flood waters would have overwhelmed us,
the torrent would have flooded over us;
5 the swollen waters would have swept us away.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
who did not give us as prey to their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird from the hunter’s trap.
The trap has been broken,
and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth.
Haman is Promoted by Ahasuerus
3 Sometime later King Ahasuerus promoted Hammedatha the Agagite’s son Haman, elevating him to a position above[a] all the other officials who were with him. 2 All the king’s ministers[b] who were in the king’s gate would kneel and bow down to Haman, because the king had commanded that Haman[c] be honored in this way. Mordecai, however, would not kneel and would not bow down.
3 The king’s ministers[d] who were in the king’s gate asked Mordecai, “Why are you disobeying the king’s command?” 4 They asked him this day after day, and he would not listen to them, so they told Haman to see whether or not Mordecai would get away with his disobedience,[e] since he also had told them that he was Jewish. 5 When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel and bow down to him, he[f] flew into a rage. 6 Because they had told him who the people of Mordecai were, Haman[g] found it unacceptable[h] to kill[i] only Mordecai. So Haman sought to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jewish people, who were in all the kingdom of Ahasuerus.
Haman’s Plot against the Jewish People
7 In the twelfth year of the reign of[j] King Ahasuerus, in the first month (the month Nisan), the pur (that is, the lot) was cast in Haman’s presence to determine the best day and month to carry out his plot.[k] The lot indicated the twelfth month, the month Adar.[l] 8 Then Haman told King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and divided among the people throughout the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different than all the other people, they don’t obey the king’s laws, and it’s not in the king’s best interest[m] to leave them alone. 9 If the king approves, let it be decreed[n] that they’re to be destroyed, and I’ll measure out 10,000 silver talents[o] and bring it to the king’s treasury for those who will do the work.”
10 The king removed his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Hammedatha the Agagite’s son Haman, the enemy of the Jewish people. 11 The king told Haman, “The silver is given to you, along with the people, to do with them as you see fit.”
12 The king’s scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and all that Haman commanded was written to the regional authorities[p] of the king, to the governors who were over each province, and to the officials of each people. This order[q] was translated in the name of King Ahasuerus into the language of each province[r] and bore the seal of the king’s signet ring. 13 Letters were sent by couriers to all of the king’s provinces to annihilate, to kill, and to destroy all the Jewish people, both young and old, women and children, and to confiscate their goods[s] on a single day—the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar. 14 A copy of the letter was to be issued as an edict in every province and published to all the people, telling them[t] to be ready for that day. 15 The couriers went out, urged on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in Susa the capital. The king and Haman sat down to drink, while the city of Susa was thrown into confusion.
Salt and Light in the World(A)
13 “You are the salt of the world. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty again? It’s good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled on by people.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden. 15 People[a] don’t light a lamp and put it under a basket but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before people in such a way that they will see your good actions and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Jesus Fulfills the Law and the Prophets
17 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I didn’t come to destroy them, but to fulfill them, 18 because I tell all of you[b] with certainty that until heaven and earth disappear, not one letter[c] or one stroke of a letter will disappear from the Law until everything has been accomplished. 19 So whoever sets aside[d] one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom from[e] heaven. But whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom from[f] heaven 20 because I tell you, unless your righteousness greatly exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom from[g] heaven!”
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