Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

The King of Shining-Greatness

24 The earth is the Lord’s, and all that is in it, the world, and all who live in it. ² For He has built it upon the seas. He has set it upon the rivers. ³ Who may go up the mountain of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? ⁴ He who has clean hands and a pure heart. He who has not lifted up his soul to what is not true, and has not made false promises. ⁵ He will receive what is good from the Lord, and what is right and good from the God Who saves him. ⁶ Such is the family of those who look for Him, who look for Your face, O God of Jacob.

⁷ Lift up your heads, O gates. And be lifted up, O doors that last forever. And the King of shining-greatness will come in. ⁸ Who is the King of shining-greatness? The Lord strong and powerful. The Lord powerful in war. ⁹ Lift up your heads, O gates. Lift them up, O doors that last forever and the King of shining-greatness will come in. ¹⁰ Who is the King of shining-greatness? The Lord of All. He is the King of shining-greatness.

Making the Special Box of the Agreement

37 Bezalel made the special box of the agreement of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits tall. ² He covered it inside and out with pure gold. And he made a piece of gold to put on it all around. ³ He made four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet. He put two rings on one side of it and two rings on the other side. ⁴ He made long pieces of acacia wood and covered them with gold. ⁵ Then he put the long pieces of wood through the rings on the sides of the special box to carry it. ⁶ He made a mercy-seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long, and one and a half cubits wide. ⁷ He made two cherubim out of beaten gold at the two ends of the mercy-seat. ⁸ He made one cherub on one end and one cherub on the other end. He made the cherubim and the mercy-seat of one piece. ⁹ The cherubim had their wings spread up over the mercy-seat. Their faces were toward each other, and toward the mercy-seat. ¹⁰ Then he made a table of acacia wood, two cubits long, one cubit wide, and one and a half cubits tall. ¹¹ He covered it with pure gold and made a gold piece around it. ¹² He made a piece around it as wide as a hand. And he put gold on the side of this piece all around. ¹³ He made four rings of gold for it. He put them on the four corners that were on the table’s four legs. ¹⁴ The rings were close to the sides, to hold the long pieces of wood used to carry the table. ¹⁵ He made the long pieces of acacia wood and covered them with gold. The table was carried with these. ¹⁶ He made of pure gold its plates, its pots and its jars, for pouring gifts of drink.

Some Things to Do

² You must keep praying. Keep watching! Be thankful always. ³ As you pray, be sure to pray for us also. Pray that God will open the door for us to preach the Word. We want to tell the secret of Christ. And this is the reason I am in prison. ⁴ Pray that I will be able to preach so everyone can understand. This is the way I should speak. ⁵ Be wise in the way you live around those who are not Christians. Make good use of your time. ⁶ Speak with them in such a way they will want to listen to you. Do not let your talk sound foolish. Know how to give the right answer to anyone.

Paul’s Helpers Say Hello

⁷ Tychicus will tell you how I am getting along. He is a much-loved brother and faithful helper. Both of us are owned by the Lord. ⁸ This is the reason I have sent him to you. It is so you can know about us. He can also bring joy to your hearts. ⁹ Onesimus is going with Tychicus. He is one of your own people. He is faithful and we love him very much. They will tell you about everything here.

¹⁰ One of the men here in prison with me is Aristarchus. He says hello you. Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, says hello. (You have heard before that if he comes to you, you are to receive him and make him happy.) ¹¹ Jesus Justus says hello also. These are the only Jewish workers helping me teach about the holy nation of God. What a help they have been to me!

¹² Epaphras says hello. He is one of your people and a servant of Jesus Christ. As he prays for you, he asks God to help you to be strong and to make you perfect. He prays that you will know what God wants you to do in all things. ¹³ I can tell you for sure that he works hard for you and for the Christians in the cities of Laodicea and Hierapolis. ¹⁴ Luke, the dear doctor, and Demas say hello. ¹⁵ Greet all the Christians in Laodicea. Greet Nympha and the Christians who gather for church in her house.

¹⁶ When this letter has been read to you, have it read in the church in Laodicea also. Be sure you read the letter that is coming from Laodicea. ¹⁷ Tell Archippus to be sure to finish the work the Lord called him to do.

¹⁸ I, Paul, am writing this last part with my own hand. Do not forget that I am in prison. May you have God’s loving-favor.