Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

1 In the days of one of the judges, when the judges ruled, there came a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem Juda, went to sojourn in the land of Moab with his wife and his two sons.

² He was named Elimelech, and his wife, Noemi: and his two sons, the one Mahalon, and the other Chelion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem Juda. And entering into the country of Moab, they abode there.

³ And Elimelech the husband of Noemi died: and she remained with her sons.

⁴ And they took wives of the women of Moab, of which one was called Orpha, and the other Ruth. And they dwelt there ten years.

⁵ And they both died, to wit, Mahalon and Chelion: and the woman was left alone, having lost both her sons and her husband.

⁶ And she arose to go from the land of Moab to her own country with both her daughters in law: for she had heard that the Lord had looked upon his people, and had given them food.

⁷ Wherefore she went forth out of the place of her sojournment, with both her daughters in law: and being now in the way to return into the land of Juda,

⁸ She said to them: Go ye home to your mothers: the Lord deal mercifully with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me.

⁹ May he grant you to find rest in the houses of the husbands which you shall take. And she kissed them. And they lifted up their voice and began to weep,

¹⁰ And to say: We will go on with thee to thy people.

¹¹ But she answered them: Return, my daughters: why come ye with me? have I any more sons in my womb, that you may hope for husbands of me?

¹² Return again, my daughters, and go your ways: for I am now spent with age, and not fit for wedlock. Although I might conceive this night, and bear children,

¹³ If you would wait till they were grown up, and come to man's estate, you would be old women before you marry. Do not so, my daughters, I beseech you: for I am grieved the more for your distress, and the hand of the Lord is gone out against me.

¹⁴ And they lifted up their voice, and began to weep again: Orpha kissed her mother in law and returned: Ruth stuck close to her mother in law.

¹⁵ And Noemi said to her: Behold thy kinswoman is returned to her people, and to her gods, go thou with her.

¹⁶ She answered: Be not against me, to desire that I should leave thee and depart: for whithersoever thou shalt go, I will go: and where thou shalt dwell, I also will dwell. Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.

¹⁷ The land that shall receive thee dying, in the same will I die: and there will I be buried. The Lord do so and so to me, and add more also, if aught but death part me and thee.

¹⁸ Then Noemi, seeing that Ruth was steadfastly determined to go with her, would not be against it, nor persuade her any more to return to her friends:

146 Praise ye the Lord, because psalm is good: to our God be joyful and comely praise.

² The Lord buildeth up Jerusalem: he will gather together the dispersed of Israel.

³ Who healeth the broken of heart, and bindeth up their bruises.

⁴ Who telleth the number of the stars: and calleth them all by their names.

⁵ Great is our Lord, and great is his power: and of his wisdom there is no number.

⁶ The Lord lifteth up the meek, and bringeth the wicked down even to the ground.

⁷ Sing ye to the Lord with praise: sing to our God upon the harp.

⁸ Who covereth the heaven with clouds, and prepareth rain for the earth. Who maketh grass to grow on the mountains, and herbs for the service of men.

⁹ Who giveth to beasts their food: and to the young ravens that call upon him.

¹⁰ He shall not delight in the strength of the horse: nor take pleasure in the legs of a man.

¹¹ The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him: and in them that hope in his mercy.

¹¹ But Christ, being come an high priest of the good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hand, that is, not of this creation:

¹² Neither by the blood of goats, or of calves, but by his own blood, entered once into the holies, having obtained eternal redemption.

¹³ For if the blood of goats and of oxen, and the ashes of an heifer being sprinkled, sanctify such as are defiled, to the cleansing of the flesh:

¹⁴ How much more shall the blood of Christ, who by the Holy Ghost offered himself unspotted unto God, cleanse our conscience from dead works, to serve the living God?

²⁸ And there came one of the scribes that had heard them reasoning together, and seeing that he had answered them well, asked him which was the first commandment of all.

²⁹ And Jesus answered him: The first commandment of all is, Hear, O Israel: the Lord thy God is one God.

³⁰ And thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind, and with thy whole strength. This is the first commandment.

³¹ And the second is like to it: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these.

³² And the scribe said to him: Well, Master, thou hast said in truth, that there is one God, and there is no other besides him.

³³ And that he should be loved with the whole heart, and with the whole understanding, and with the whole soul, and with the whole strength; and to love one's neighbour as one's self, is a greater thing than all holocausts and sacrifices.

³⁴ And Jesus seeing that he had answered wisely, said to him: Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.