Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Davidic[a]
Patiently Trust in God
37 Don’t be angry because of those who do evil,
do not be jealous because of those who commit iniquity.
2 Indeed, they soon will wither like grass,
and like green herbs they will fade away.
3 Trust in the Lord and do good.
Dwell in the land and feed on faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord;
Trust him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as a light,
and your justice as the noonday sun.[b]
7 Be silent in the Lord’s presence
and wait patiently for him.
Don’t be angry because of the one whose way prospers
or the one who implements evil schemes.
8 Calm your anger and abandon wrath.
Don’t be angry—
it only leads to evil.
9 Those who do evil will perish.
But those who wait[c] on the Lord will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while longer,
and the wicked will be no more.
You will search for his place,
but he will not be there.
11 The humble will inherit the land;
they will take in abundant peace.
39 But deliverance for the righteous one comes from the Lord;
he is their strength in times of distress.
40 The Lord helps and delivers them;
he will deliver them from the wicked,
and he will save them because they have sought refuge in him.
Joseph Sees Benjamin
16 As soon as Joseph noticed that Benjamin had come with them, he ordered his palace manager, “Bring the men into the palace.[a] Slaughter an animal and prepare it, because these men will be dining with me for lunch.”[b] 17 So the man did what Joseph had ordered, and brought the men to Joseph’s palace.
18 The men were terrified as they were being taken to Joseph’s palace. “It’s because of that money that was returned to our sacks the first time we were brought to him,” they reasoned. “He’s seeking an excuse to attack us, enslave us, and confiscate our donkeys!”
19 So they approached Joseph’s palace manager and talked with him at the palace entrance. 20 “Your Excellency,” they said, “The first time we came here to buy food, 21 when we arrived at our overnight lodging place, we opened our sacks and discovered each man’s money was still in the mouth of his sack. All of our money was there! We’ve brought it back with us in full. 22 We’ve also brought along some more money to buy supplies, but we don’t know who put our money back into our sacks.”
23 “Relax,” the manager said. “You can stop being afraid, now. Your God, the God of your father, has placed hidden treasure within those sacks for you. I’ve been paid in full.” Then he brought Simeon out to them, 24 ushered the men into Joseph’s palace, gave them water to wash their feet, and provided[c] fodder for their donkeys. 25 Then off he went to prepare the honorary meal that was to be made ready for Joseph’s arrival at noon, since they had been informed that they were going to be eating there.
Joseph Inquires about His Family
26 When Joseph arrived at his palace, his brothers[d] brought to him their gifts that they had carried with them and bowed to the ground in front of him.
27 Joseph asked them how they had been doing. “Is your father well, the older gentleman about whom you spoke?” he inquired. “Is he still alive?”
28 “Your servant, our father, is doing well,” they replied. “He is still alive.” Then they bowed down in humility.
29 As Joseph looked up and recognized his brother Benjamin, his own mother’s son, he asked, “Is this your youngest brother about whom you spoke to me?” And he addressed him directly, “May God be gracious to you, my son.”[e]
30 At this, Joseph hurried out, deeply moved because of his brother, and looked for a place to weep by himself. He entered his personal quarters, wept there awhile,[f] 31 then washed his face and came out. Barely controlling himself, he ordered his staff to serve the meal.
32 Joseph’s staff[g] served him by himself, his brothers[h] separately, and the Egyptian staff members by themselves, because the Egyptians wouldn’t take their meal with the Hebrews, since doing so was detestable for the Egyptians. 33 Meanwhile, the brothers[i] were seated in front of Joseph in birth order, from firstborn to youngest. The men stared at one another in astonishment. 34 Joseph[j] himself brought portions to them from his own table, except that he provided to Benjamin five times as much as he did for each of the others. So they feasted together and drank freely with Joseph.[k]
The Spirit Gives Life
8 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in union with the Messiah[a] Jesus.[b] 2 For the Spirit’s law of life in the Messiah[c] Jesus has set me[d] free from the Law of sin and death. 3 For what the Law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did. By sending his own Son in the form of humanity,[e] he condemned sin by being incarnate, 4 so that the righteous requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not live according to human nature but according to the Spirit.
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 To focus our minds on the human nature leads to death, but to focus our minds on the Spirit leads to life and peace. 7 That is why the mind that focuses on human nature is hostile toward God. It refuses to submit to the authority of God’s Law because it is powerless to do so. 8 Indeed, those who are under the control of human nature cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not under the control of the human nature but under the control of the Spirit, since God’s Spirit lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of the Messiah,[f] he does not belong to him. 10 But if the Messiah[g] is in you, your bodies are dead due to sin, but the spirit[h] is alive due to righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, then the one who raised the Messiah[i] from the dead will also make your mortal bodies alive by his Spirit who lives in you.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.