Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

God’s Blessing on the King

For the music director. A psalm of David.^[a]

Saul Rules over Israel

13 Saul was thirty^[a] years old^[b] at the beginning of his reign, and he reigned forty-two years^[c] over Israel. ² He chose for himself three thousand from Israel. Two thousand of these were with Saul at Micmash in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. He sent away the rest of the people, each to his tent. ³ Jonathan defeated the garrison of the Philistines that was at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!” ⁴ And all Israel did hear, saying, “Saul has defeated the garrison of the Philistines; and also, Israel has become a stench among the Philistines!” So the people were called out after Saul at Gilgal.

Saul’s Blunder

⁵ And the Philistines assembled to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen and an army as numerous as sand which is on the seashore. And they came up and encamped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven.

⁶ When the men of Israel saw that it was too difficult^[d] for them, because the army was hard pressed, the people hid themselves in the caves, in the thorn bushes, in the cliffs, in the vaults^[e] and in the wells. ⁷ Some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. But Saul was still at Gilgal, and all the army followed him trembling.^{[f] 8} He waited seven days according to the appointed time Samuel determined, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the army started to slip away from him.^{[g] 9} So Saul said, “Bring here to me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” Then he offered up the burnt offering. ¹⁰ Just as^[h] he finished offering the burnt sacrifice, Samuel was coming. So Saul went out to meet him and to bless him. ¹¹ But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul said, “Because I saw that the army was scattering^[i] from me and you did not come at the appointed time^[j] and that the Philistines had gathered at Micmash, ¹² therefore I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not yet implored the face of Yahweh.’ So I forced myself and offered the burnt offering.”

¹³ Then Samuel said to Saul, “You have behaved foolishly! You have not kept the command of Yahweh your God which he commanded you. For then, Yahweh would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. ¹⁴ But now, your kingdom will not endure. Yahweh has sought for himself a man according to his own heart, and Yahweh has appointed him as leader over his people, because you have not kept what Yahweh commanded you.”

¹⁵ Then Samuel got up and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul mustered the people who were found with him, about six hundred men.

The Parable of the Sower

4 And again he began to teach beside the sea,^[a] and a very large crowd was gathered to him, so that he got into a boat and^[b] sat on the sea, and the whole crowd was at the sea on the land. ² And he began to teach^[c] them many things in parables, and was saying to them in his teaching, ³ “Listen! Behold, the sower went out to sow. ⁴ And it happened that while he was sowing, some seed^[d] fell on the side of the path, and the birds came and devoured it. ⁵ And other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up at once, because it did not have any depth of soil. ⁶ And when the sun rose it was scorched, and because it did not have enough root, it withered. ⁷ And other seed fell among the thorn plants, and the thorn plants came up and choked it, and it did not produce grain.^{[e] 8} And other seed fell on the good soil, and produced grain,^[f] coming up and increasing, and it bore a crop^[g]—one thirty and one sixty and one a hundred times as much.^{[h] 9} And he said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The Reason for the Parables

¹⁰ And when he was alone, those around him together with the twelve began asking^[i] him about the parables. ¹¹ And he said to them, “To you has been granted the secret of the kingdom of God, but to those who are outside everything is in parables, ¹² so that

The Parable of the Sower Interpreted

¹³ And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? And how will you understand all the parables? ¹⁴ The sower sows the word. ¹⁵ And these are the ones beside the path where the word is sown, and whenever they hear it,^[m] immediately Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. ¹⁶ And these are like^[n] the ones sown on the rocky ground, who whenever they hear the word immediately receive it with joy. ¹⁷ And they have no root in themselves, but are temporary. Then when^[o] affliction or persecution comes because of the word, immediately they fall away. ¹⁸ And others are the ones sown among the thorn plants—these are the ones who hear the word, ¹⁹ and the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and^[p] choke the word and it becomes unproductive. ²⁰ And those are the ones sown on the good soil, who hear the word and receive it^[q] and bear fruit—one thirty and one sixty and one a hundred times as much.”^[r]