Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Job Answers
23 Then Job answered:
2 “I am still complaining today.
I groan because God is still making me suffer.
3 I wish I knew where to find him.
I wish I knew how to go to where he lives.
4 I would present my case to him.
I would make my arguments to show that I am innocent.
5 He could give his response, and I would understand.
I would listen closely to what he says.
6 Would God use his power against me?
No, he would listen to me!
7 Since I am an honest man, he would let me tell my story.
Then my Judge would set me free!
8 “If I go to the east, God is not there.
If I go to the west, I still don’t see him.
9 When he is working in the north, I don’t see him.
When he turns to the south, I still don’t see him.
16 The fear of God has made me lose my courage.
God All-Powerful makes me afraid.
17 What has happened to me is like a dark cloud over my face.
But the darkness will not keep me quiet.
To the director: To the tune “The Deer of Dawn.”[a] A song of David.
22 My God, my God, why have you left me?
You seem too far away to save me,
too far to hear my cries for help!
2 My God, I kept calling by day,
and I was not silent at night.
But you did not answer me.
3 God, you are the Holy One.
You sit as King upon the praises of Israel.
4 Our ancestors trusted you.
Yes, they trusted you, and you saved them.
5 They called to you for help and escaped their enemies.
They trusted you and were not disappointed!
6 But I feel like a worm, less than human!
People insult me and look down on me.
7 Everyone who sees me makes fun of me.
They shake their heads and stick out their tongues at me.
8 They say, “Call to the Lord for help.
Maybe he will save you.
If he likes you so much, surely he will rescue you!”
9 God, the truth is, you are the one who brought me into this world.
You made me feel safe while I was still at my mother’s breasts.
10 You have been my God since the day I was born.
I was thrown into your arms as I came from my mother’s womb.
11 So don’t leave me!
Trouble is near, and there is no one to help me.
12 My enemies surround me like angry bulls.
They are like the powerful bulls of Bashan, and they are all around me.
13 Their mouths are opened wide,
like a lion roaring and tearing at its prey.
12 God’s word[a] is alive and working. It is sharper than the sharpest sword and cuts all the way into us. It cuts deep to the place where the soul and the spirit are joined. God’s word cuts to the center of our joints and our bones. It judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts. 13 Nothing in all the world can be hidden from God. He can clearly see all things. Everything is open before him. And to him we must explain the way we have lived.
Jesus Christ Is Our High Priest
14 We have a great high priest who has gone to live with God in heaven. He is Jesus the Son of God. So let us continue to express our faith in him. 15 Jesus, our high priest, is able to understand our weaknesses. When Jesus lived on earth, he was tempted in every way. He was tempted in the same ways we are tempted, but he never sinned. 16 With Jesus as our high priest, we can feel free to come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we receive mercy and kindness to help us when we need it.
A Rich Man Refuses to Follow Jesus(A)
17 Jesus started to leave, but a man ran to him and bowed down on his knees before him. The man asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get the life that never ends?”
18 Jesus answered, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. 19 And you know his commands: ‘You must not murder anyone, you must not commit adultery, you must not steal, you must not lie, you must not cheat, you must respect your father and mother ….’[a]”
20 The man said, “Teacher, I have obeyed all these commands since I was a boy.”
21 Jesus looked at the man in a way that showed how much he cared for him. He said, “There is still one thing you need to do. Go and sell everything you have. Give the money to those who are poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come and follow me.”
22 The man was upset when Jesus told him to give away his money. He didn’t want to do this, because he was very rich. So he went away sad.
23 Then Jesus looked at his followers and said to them, “It will be very hard for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom!”
24 The followers were amazed at what Jesus said. But he said again, “My children, it is very hard[b] to enter God’s kingdom! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom!”
26 The followers were even more amazed and said to each other, “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “That is something people cannot do, but God can. He can do anything.”
28 Peter said to Jesus, “We left everything to follow you!”
29 Jesus said, “I can promise that everyone who has left their home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or farm for me and for the Good News about me 30 will get a hundred times more than they left. Here in this world they will get more homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and farms. And with these things they will have persecutions. But in the world that is coming they will also get the reward of eternal life. 31 Many people who have the highest place now will have the lowest place in the future. And the people who have the lowest place now will have the highest place then.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International