Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Praise God Who Helps the Weak

¹⁸ Naomi saw that Ruth had made up her mind to go with her. So Naomi stopped arguing with her. ¹⁹ Naomi and Ruth went on until they came to the town of Bethlehem. When the two women entered Bethlehem, all the people became very excited. The women of the town said, “Is this Naomi?”

²⁰ But Naomi told the people, “Don’t call me Naomi.^[a] Call me Mara,^[b] because God All-Powerful has made my life very sad. ²¹ When I left, I had all I wanted. But now, the Lord has brought me home with nothing. So why should you call me Naomi when the Lord has spoken against me? God All-Powerful has given me much trouble.”

²² So Naomi and her daughter-in-law Ruth, the woman from Moab, came back from Moab. They came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

Worship Under the Old Agreement

9 The first agreement^[a] had rules for worship. And it had a place on earth for worship. ² The Holy Tent was set up for this. The first area in the Tent was called the Holy Place. In it were the lamp and the table with the bread that was made holy for God. ³ Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place. ⁴ In it was a golden altar for burning incense. Also there was the Ark of the Covenant that held the old agreement. The Ark of the Covenant was covered with gold. Inside this Ark of the Covenant was a golden jar of manna and Aaron’s rod—the rod that once grew leaves. Also in it were the stone tablets of the old agreement. ⁵ Above the Ark of the Covenant were the creatures with wings that showed God’s glory. The wings of the creatures reached over the lid. But we cannot tell everything about these things now.

⁶ Everything in the Tent was made ready in this way. Then the priests went into the first room every day to do their worship. ⁷ But only the high priest could go into the second room, and he did that only once a year. He could never enter the inner room without taking blood with him. He offered that blood to God for himself and for the people’s sins. These were sins people did without knowing that they were sinning. ⁸ The Holy Spirit uses this to show that the way into the Most Holy Place was not open. This was while the system of the old Holy Tent was still being used. ⁹ This is an example for the present time. It shows that the gifts and sacrifices offered cannot make the worshiper perfect in his heart. ¹⁰ These gifts and sacrifices were only about food and drink and special washings. They were rules for the body, to be followed until the time of God’s new way.

Worship Under the New Agreement

¹¹ But Christ has come as the high priest of the good things we now have.^[b] The tent he entered is greater and more perfect. It is not made by men. It does not belong to this world. ¹² Christ entered the Most Holy Place only once—and for all time. He did not take with him the blood of goats and calves. His sacrifice was his own blood. He entered the Most Holy Place and set us free from sin forever.