Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Attacks of the Wicked
11 Malicious witnesses arise.
They ask me about things I do not know.
12 They repay me with evil instead of good.
They rob my soul of happiness.
13 But when they were sick, I dressed in sackcloth.
I afflicted myself with fasting.
My prayers returned unanswered.[a]
14 I walked around mourning,
as if mourning for a friend or for my brother.
I bowed down, dirty with ashes,[b]
as though mourning for my mother.
15 But when I stumbled, they were happy.
They gathered together.
Yes, attackers gathered together against me
though I did not expect it.
They ripped me and were never quiet.
16 Like profane mockers,[c] they gnashed their teeth at me.
Second Petition
17 Lord, how long will you look on?
Restore my life from their devastating attacks,
my precious life from these young lions.
Second Vow
18 I will give thanks to you in the great assembly.
In a large crowd I will praise you.
Third Petition
19 Do not let them rejoice over me—
those who are my enemies without cause.
Do not let those who hate me without reason mock me.[d]
20 For they do not speak for peace,
but they devise false accusations
against those who live quietly in the land.
21 They also open their mouths wide against me.
They say, “Ha! Ha! We see with our own eyes.”
22 Lord, you have seen all this.
Do not be silent.
Lord, do not be far from me.
23 Wake up and rise up to my defense!
My God and Lord, rise to my cause.
24 Judge me according to your righteousness,
O Lord, my God.
Do not let them rejoice over me.
25 Do not let them say in their hearts,
“Aha! Just what we wanted!”
Do not let them say,
“We have swallowed him.”
26 May those who rejoice over my trouble
be put to shame and disgrace.
May those who exalt themselves over me
be clothed with shame and contempt.
27 May those who are pleased by my acquittal
shout for joy and be glad.
May they always say, “The Lord is great.
He takes delight in the peace of his servant.”
Third Vow
28 My tongue will report your righteousness
and your praise all day long.
35 Moses assembled the whole community of the people of Israel and told them, “These are the things which the Lord has commanded you to do.”
The Sabbath
2 On six days work may be done, but the seventh day shall be a holy day for you, a sabbath of complete rest to the Lord. Whoever does any work on that day must be put to death. 3 You must not even light a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day.
The Offering for the Construction of the Dwelling
4 Moses spoke to the whole community of the people of Israel. He told them what the Lord commanded:
5 From what you possess, gather a special offering[a] for the Lord. Whoever has a willing heart, let him bring these things as the Lord’s offering: gold, silver, and bronze; 6 blue, purple, and scarlet material, fine linen; goats’ hair, 7 rams’ skins dyed red, and the hides of sea cows; acacia wood, 8 olive oil for the Light, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 9 onyx stones, and stones to be mounted on the special vest and on the chest pouch.
10 Let every skilled craftsman among you come and make everything that the Lord has commanded: 11 the Dwelling, its tent and its outer coverings, its clasps, its framework, its crossbars, its posts, and its socket bases; 12 the ark and its poles, the atonement seat, the special veil that hides it;[b] 13 the table with its poles, all its vessels and accessories, and the Bread of the Presence; 14 also the lampstand for the Light, with its utensils, its lamps, and the oil for the Light; 15 and the altar for incense with its poles, the anointing oil, the fragrant incense; the screen for the door at the entrance to the tent; 16 the altar for burnt offerings with its bronze grate, its poles, and all its utensils; the basin and its pedestal; 17 the hangings for the courtyard, its posts, their socket bases, and the screen for the gate of the courtyard; 18 the stakes for the tent, the stakes for the courtyard, and their ropes; 19 the finely woven garments for ministering in the Holy Place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments for his sons, to minister in the priest’s office.
20 So the whole community of Israel departed from the presence of Moses. 21 Then everyone whose heart moved him and everyone whose spirit was willing came back and brought offerings to the Lord for the construction of the Tent of Meeting and for all the things to be used in its services and for the holy garments. 22 They came back, both men and women, all those whose hearts were willing. They brought brooches, earrings, signet rings, armlets, and all kinds of gold jewelry.[c] Every person who came presented a wave offering of gold to the Lord. 23 Everyone who had blue, purple, and scarlet material, fine linen, goats’ hair, rams’ skins dyed red, and hides of sea cows brought them. 24 Everyone who presented an offering of silver and bronze brought it as the Lord’s special offering, and everyone who had acacia wood for any use in the project brought it. 25 All the women who were skilled spun thread with their hands and brought what they had spun: the blue, the purple, and the scarlet material and the fine linen. 26 All the women who were willing and skillful spun the goats’ hair. 27 The tribal leaders brought the onyx stones and the stones to be mounted on the vest and the pouch, 28 also the spices, and the olive oil for the Light, for the anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense. 29 The people of Israel brought a voluntary[d] offering to the Lord. Every man and woman whose heart was willing contributed to all the work which the Lord had commanded Moses to do.
Peter Sees a Vision
9 The next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray at about the sixth hour.[a] 10 He became hungry and wanted to eat, but while they were preparing the meal, he fell into a trance. 11 He saw heaven opened and an object coming down. It was like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners.[b] 12 In it were all kinds of four-footed animals and reptiles[c] of the earth and birds of the sky.
13 Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!”
14 But Peter said, “Certainly not, Lord, for I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”
15 Yet the voice came to him a second time: “What God has made clean, you must not continue to call unclean.”
16 This happened three times, and then the object was immediately taken up to heaven.[d]
17 While Peter was inwardly perplexed about what the vision he had seen might mean, just then the men who were sent by Cornelius arrived. They had asked for directions to Simon’s house and were standing at the gate. 18 They called out, asking if Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there as a guest.
19 While Peter was still deep in thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “See, three men are looking for you! 20 Now get up, go downstairs, and don’t hesitate to go with them, because I have sent them.”
21 Peter went down to the men and said, “I am the one you are looking for. Why have you come?”
22 They replied, “Cornelius the centurion is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is highly respected by the whole Jewish nation. He was directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house and to listen to what you have to say.” 23 So Peter invited them in and received them as guests.
Peter Goes to the Home of Cornelius
The next day, Peter got ready and left with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa went along with him.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.