Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
BOOK V (Psalms 107-150)
Gratitude for God’s Deliverance
107 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His gracious love exists forever.
2 Let those who have been redeemed by the Lord declare it—
those whom he redeemed
from the power[a] of the enemy,
3 those whom he gathered from other lands—
from the east, west, north, and south.[b]
4 They wandered in desolate wilderness;
they found no road to a city where they could live.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
their spirits[c] failed.
6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them in a straight way
to find a city where they could live.
33 He turns rivers into a desert,
springs of water into dry ground,
34 and a fruitful land into a salty waste,
due to the wickedness of its inhabitants.
35 He turns a desert into a pool of water,
dry land into springs of water.
36 There he settled the hungry,
where they built a city to live in.
37 They sowed fields and planted vineyards
that yielded a productive harvest.
Rahab Receives Two Scouts
2 After this, Nun’s son Joshua sent two men from the Acacia groves[a] as undercover scouts. He told them, “Go and look over the land. Pay special attention to Jericho.” So they went out, came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab, and lodged there.
2 Then the king of Jericho was told, “Look! Israeli men arrived tonight to scout out the land.”
3 So the king of Jericho sent for Rahab and ordered her, “Bring out the men who came to visit you and lodged in your house, because they’ve come to scout out the entire land.”
4 Now the woman had taken the two men and hid them. So she replied, “The men really did come to me, but I didn’t know from where they came. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gates, the men left. I don’t know where the men went. Go after them quickly, and[b] you might overtake them.”
6 But she had taken them up to the roof and had hidden them among stalks of flax that she had laid out in order on the roof. 7 So the men pursued them along the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan River. As soon as the search party had left, they shut the city gate after them.
Rahab Seeks Protection
8 Before the scouts[c] had lain down, she went up to them on the roof 9 “I’m really convinced that the Lord has given you the land,” she said,[d] “because we’re overwhelmed with fear of you. All the other inhabitants of the land are demoralized at your presence, 10 because we heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Reed[e] Sea right in front of you as you were coming out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other[f] side of the Jordan River—to Sihon and Og—whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard these reports,[g] we all became terrified and discouraged[h] because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath. 12 Now therefore, since I’ve treated you so kindly,[i] please swear in the name of[j] the Lord that you’ll also be kind[k] to my father’s household by giving me this[l] sure sign: 13 Spare my father, my mother, and my brothers and sisters, along with everyone who belongs with them so we won’t be killed.”
A Promise of Protection
14 So the men told her, “Our life for yours—even to death—if you don’t betray this mission of ours. Then when the Lord gives us this land, we’ll treat you graciously and faithfully.”
Warning against False Teachers
2 Now there were false prophets among the people, just as there also will be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many people will follow their immoral ways, and because of them the way of truth will be maligned.[a] 3 In their greed they will exploit you with deceptive words. The ancient verdict against them is still in force, and their destruction is not delayed.[b]
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