Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Job Responds to Eliphaz
23 Job’s response was to say:
2 “I’m still complaining bitterly today;
my hand is heavy because of groaning.
3 If only I knew where to find him,
I would visit him where he has taken his seat.
4 I would lay out my case before him;
and fill my mouth with arguments.
5 I know how he would answer me;
I understand what he’ll tell me.
6 “Would he use his great power to fight me?
No, he’ll pay attention to me.
7 In that place, the upright can reason with him;
and I’ll be acquitted once and for all by my judge.”
Job Justifies His Innocence
To the Director: To the tune of[a] “Doe of the Dawn”.
A Davidic Psalm.
God Delivers His Suffering Servant
22 My God! My God!
Why have you abandoned me?
Why are you so far from delivering me—
from my groaning words?
2 My God, I cry out to you throughout the day,
but you do not answer;
and throughout the night,
but I have no rest.[b]
3 You are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
4 Our ancestors trusted in you;
they trusted and you delivered them.
5 They cried out to you and escaped;
they trusted in you and were not put to shame.
6 But as for me,
I am only a worm and not a man,
scorned by mankind and despised by people.
7 Everyone who sees me mocks me;
they gape at me with open mouths
and shake their heads at me.
8 They say,[c] “Commit yourself to the Lord;
perhaps the Lord[d] will deliver him,
perhaps he will cause him to escape,
since he delights in him.”
9 Yet, you are the one who took me from the womb,
and kept me safe on my mother’s breasts.
10 I was dependent on you from birth;
from my mother’s womb you have been my God.
11 Do not be so distant from me,
for trouble is at hand;
indeed, there is no deliverer.
12 Many bulls have surrounded me;
the vicious bulls of Bashan have encircled me.
13 Their mouths are opened wide toward me,
like roaring and attacking lions.
14 I am poured out like water;
all my bones are out of joint.
My heart is like wax, melting within me.
15 My strength is dried up like broken pottery;
my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth,[e]
and you have brought me down to the dust of death.
12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul and spirit, joints and marrow, as it judges the thoughts and purposes of the heart. 13 No creature can hide from him, but everyone is exposed and helpless before the eyes of the one to whom we must give a word of explanation.
Our Compassionate High Priest
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us live our lives consistent with[a] our confession of faith.[b] 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. Instead, we have one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet he never sinned. 16 So let us keep on coming boldly to the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
A Rich Man Comes to Jesus(A)
17 As Jesus[a] was setting out again,[b] a man ran up to him, knelt down in front of him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “Nobody is good except for one—God. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Never murder.’[c] ‘Never commit adultery.’[d] ‘Never steal.’[e] ‘Never give false testimony.’[f] ‘Never cheat.’ ‘Honor your father and mother.’”[g]
20 The man[h] replied to him, “Teacher, I have obeyed all of these since I was a young man.”
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. Then he told him, “You’re missing one thing. Go and sell everything you own, give the money[i] to the destitute, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come back and follow me.” 22 Shocked at this statement, the man[j] went away sad, because he had many possessions.
Salvation and Reward(B)
23 Then Jesus looked around and told his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 The disciples were startled by these words, but Jesus told them again, “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in their wealth[k] to get into the kingdom of God! 25 It’s easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into the kingdom of God.”
26 The disciples[l] were utterly amazed and asked one another,[m] “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “For humans it’s impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.”
28 Then Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “I tell all of you[n] with certainty, there is no one who has left his home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or fields because of me and the gospel 30 who will not receive a hundred times as much here in this world—homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and fields, along with persecution—as well as eternal life in the age to come. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
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