Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

¹⁰ Who can find a good wife? For she is worth far more than rubies that make one rich. ¹¹ The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will never stop getting good things. ¹² She does him good and not bad all the days of her life. ¹³ She looks for wool and flax, and works with willing hands. ¹⁴ She is like ships that trade. She brings her food from far away. ¹⁵ She rises while it is still night and makes food for all those in her house. She gives work for the young women to do. ¹⁶ She gives careful thought to a field and buys it. She plants grape-vines from what she has earned. ¹⁷ She makes herself ready with strength, and makes her arms strong. ¹⁸ She sees that what she has earned is good. Her lamp does not go out at night. ¹⁹ She puts her hands to the wheel to make cloth. ²⁰ She opens her hand to the poor, and holds out her hands to those in need. ²¹ She is not afraid of the snow for those in her house, for all of them are dressed in red. ²² She makes coverings for herself. Her clothes are linen cloth and purple. ²³ Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the leaders of the land. ²⁴ She makes linen clothes and sells them. She brings belts to those who trade. ²⁵ Her clothes are strength and honor. She is full of joy about the future. ²⁶ She

opens her mouth with wisdom. The teaching of kindness is on her tongue. ²⁷ She looks well to the ways of those in her house, and does not eat the bread of doing nothing. ²⁸ Her children rise up and honor her. Her husband does also, and he praises her, saying: ²⁹ “Many daughters have done well, but you have done better than all of them.” ³⁰ Pleasing ways lie and beauty comes to nothing, but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised. ³¹ Give her the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

The Difference between Good and Sinful People

1 Happy is the man who does not walk in the way sinful men tell him to, or stand in the path of sinners, or sit with those who laugh at the truth. ² But he finds joy in the Law of the Lord and thinks about His Law day and night. ³ This man is like a tree planted by rivers of water, which gives its fruit at the right time and its leaf never dries up. Whatever he does will work out well for him.

⁴ Sinful men are not like this. They are like straw blown away by the wind. ⁵ So the sinful will not stand. They will be told they are guilty and have to suffer for it. Sinners will not stand with those who are right with God. ⁶ For the Lord knows the way of those who are right with Him. But the way of the sinful will be lost from God forever.

Wisdom from Above

¹³ Who among you is wise and understands? Let that one show from a good life by the things he does that he is wise and gentle. ¹⁴ If you have jealousy in your heart and fight to have many things, do not be proud of it. Do not lie against the truth. ¹⁵ This is not the kind of wisdom that comes from God. But this wisdom comes from the world and from that which is not Christian and from the devil. ¹⁶ Wherever you find jealousy and fighting, there will be trouble and every other kind of wrong-doing. ¹⁷ But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure. Then it gives peace. It is gentle and willing to obey. It is full of loving-kindness and of doing good. It has no doubts and does not pretend to be something it is not. ¹⁸ Those who plant seeds of peace will gather what is right and good.

4 What starts wars and fights among you? Is it not because you want many things and are fighting to have them? ² You want something you do not have, so you kill. You want something but cannot get it, so you fight for it. You do not get things because you do not ask for them. ³ Or if you do ask, you do not receive because your reasons for asking are wrong. You want these things only to please yourselves.

⁷ So give yourselves to God. Stand against the devil and he will run away from you. ⁸ Come close to God and He will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners. Clean up your hearts, you who want to follow the sinful ways of the world and God at the same time.

Jesus Tells of His Death the Second Time ^(A)

³⁰ From there Jesus and His followers went through the country of Galilee. He did not want anyone to know where He was. ³¹ He taught His followers, saying, “The Son of Man will be handed over to men. They will kill Him. Three days after He is killed, He will be raised from the dead.” ³² They did not understand what He said and were afraid to ask Him.

Jesus Teaches about the Faith of a Child ^(B)

³³ They came to the city of Capernaum and were in the house. Jesus asked His followers, “What were you arguing about along the road?” ³⁴ They did not answer. They had been arguing along the road about who was the greatest. ³⁵ Jesus sat down and called the followers to Him. He said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be last of all. He will be the one to care for all.”

³⁶ Jesus took a child and stood it among them. Then He took the child up in His arms and said to the followers, ³⁷ “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name, receives Me. Whoever will receive Me, receives not Me, but Him Who sent Me.”