Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

The Promise of God’s Presence

¹² Then Moses said to the Lord, “See, ^(A)You say to me, ‘Bring up this people.’ But You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, ^(B)‘I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight.’ ¹³ Now therefore, I pray, ^(C)if I have found grace in Your sight, ^(D)show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is ^(E)Your people.”

¹⁴ And He said, ^(F)“My Presence will go with you, and I will give you ^(G)rest.”

¹⁵ Then he said to Him, ^(H)“If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. ¹⁶ For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, ^(I)except You go with us? So we ^(J)shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.”

¹⁷ So the Lord said to Moses, ^(K)“I will also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.”

¹⁸ And he said, “Please, show me ^(L)Your glory.”

¹⁹ Then He said, “I will make all My ^(M)goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. ^(N)I will be gracious to whom I will be ^(O)gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” ²⁰ But He said, “You cannot see My face; for ^(P)no man shall see Me, and live.” ²¹ And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. ²² So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you ^(Q)in the cleft of the rock, and will ^(R)cover you with My hand while I pass by. ²³ Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall ^(S)not be seen.”

Praise to the Lord for His Holiness

Greeting

1 Paul, ^(A)Silvanus, and Timothy,

To the church of the ^(B)Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace to you and peace ^[a]from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Their Good Example

^2 (C)We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, ³ remembering without ceasing ^(D)your work of faith, ^(E)labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, ⁴ knowing, beloved brethren, ^(F)your election by God. ⁵ For ^(G)our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, ^(H)and in the Holy Spirit ^(I)and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake.

⁶ And ^(J)you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, ^(K)with joy of the Holy Spirit, ⁷ so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe. ⁸ For from you the word of the Lord ^(L)has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also ^(M)in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out, so that we do not need to say anything. ⁹ For they themselves declare concerning us ^(N)what manner of entry we had to you, ^(O)and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, ¹⁰ and ^(P)to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us ^(Q)from the wrath to come.

The Pharisees: Is It Lawful to Pay Taxes to Caesar?^(A)

^15 (B)Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. ¹⁶ And they sent to Him their disciples with the ^(C)Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not ^[a]regard the person of men. ¹⁷ Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”

¹⁸ But Jesus ^[b]perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites? ¹⁹ Show Me the tax money.”

So they brought Him a denarius.

²⁰ And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?”

²¹ They said to Him, “Caesar’s.”

And He said to them, ^(D)“Render^[c] therefore to Caesar the things that are ^(E)Caesar’s, and to God the things that are ^(F)God’s.” ²² When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.