Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 105[a]
God’s Fidelity to the Promise
I
1 Give thanks to the Lord, invoke his name;(A)
make known among the peoples his deeds!(B)
2 Sing praise to him, play music;
proclaim all his wondrous deeds!
3 Glory in his holy name;
let hearts that seek the Lord rejoice!
4 Seek out the Lord and his might;
constantly seek his face.(C)
5 Recall the wondrous deeds he has done,
his wonders and words of judgment,
6 You descendants of Abraham his servant,
offspring of Jacob the chosen one!
II
7 He the Lord, is our God
whose judgments reach through all the earth.
8 He remembers forever his covenant,
the word he commanded for a thousand generations,
9 Which he made with Abraham,
and swore to Isaac,(D)
10 And ratified in a statute for Jacob,
an everlasting covenant for Israel:
11 “To you I give the land of Canaan,
your own allotted inheritance.”(E)
III
IV
16 Then he called down a famine on the land,
destroyed the grain that sustained them.[a](A)
17 He had sent a man ahead of them,
Joseph, sold as a slave.(B)
18 They shackled his feet with chains;
collared his neck in iron,(C)
19 Till his prediction came to pass,
and the word of the Lord proved him true.(D)
20 The king sent and released him;
the ruler of peoples set him free.(E)
21 He made him lord over his household,
ruler over all his possessions,(F)
22 To instruct his princes as he desired,
to teach his elders wisdom.
V
23 Then Israel entered Egypt;(G)
Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.[b]
24 God greatly increased his people,
made them more numerous than their foes.(H)
25 He turned their hearts to hate his people,
to treat his servants deceitfully.(I)
26 He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron whom he had chosen.(J)
27 [c]They worked his signs in Egypt(K)
and wonders in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness and it grew dark,
but they rebelled against his word.
29 He turned their waters into blood
and killed their fish.
30 Their land swarmed with frogs,
even the chambers of their kings.
31 He spoke and there came swarms of flies,
gnats through all their country.
32 For rain he gave them hail,
flashes of lightning throughout their land.
33 He struck down their vines and fig trees,
shattered the trees of their country.
34 He spoke and the locusts came,
grasshoppers without number.(L)
35 They devoured every plant in the land;
they devoured the crops of their fields.
36 He struck down every firstborn in the land,
the first fruits of all their vigor.
37 He brought his people out,
laden with silver and gold;(M)
no one among the tribes stumbled.
38 Egypt rejoiced when they left,
for fear had seized them.
VI
42 For he remembered his sacred promise
to Abraham his servant.
Chapter 20
Invasion from Edom. 1 [a]After this the Moabites, the Ammonites, and with them some Meunites came to fight against Jehoshaphat. 2 Jehoshaphat was told: “A great multitude is coming against you from across the sea, from Edom; they are already in Hazazon-tamar” (which is En-gedi). 3 Frightened, Jehoshaphat resolved to consult the Lord. He proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4 Then Judah gathered to seek the Lord’s help; from every one of the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.(A)
Jehoshaphat’s Prayer. 5 Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the house of the Lord before the new court, 6 and he said: “Lord, God of our ancestors, are you not God in heaven, and do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? In your hand is power and might, and no one can withstand you.(B) 7 Was it not you, our God, who dispossessed the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and gave it forever to the descendants of Abraham, your friend? 8 They have dwelt in it and they built in it a sanctuary for your name. They have said: 9 ‘If evil comes upon us, the sword of judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before you, for your name is in this house, and we will cry out to you in our affliction, and you will hear and save!’(C) 10 And now, see the Ammonites, Moabites, and those of Mount Seir whom you did not allow Israel to invade when they came from the land of Egypt, but instead they passed them by and did not destroy them:(D) 11 See how they are now repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you have given us. 12 O our God, will you not bring judgment on them? We are powerless before this vast multitude that is coming against us. We ourselves do not know what to do, so our eyes are turned toward you.”
Victory Prophesied. 13 All Judah was standing before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children. 14 And the spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel, son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the clan of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly, 15 and he said: “Pay attention, all of Judah, inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat! The Lord says to you: Do not fear or be dismayed at the sight of this vast multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s. 16 Go down against them tomorrow. You will see them coming up by the ascent of Ziz, and you will come upon them at the end of the wadi which opens on the wilderness of Jeruel. 17 You will not have to fight in this encounter. Take your places, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord; he will be with you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear or be dismayed. Tomorrow go out to meet them, and the Lord will be with you.”(E) 18 Then Jehoshaphat knelt down with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord in worship. 19 Levites from among the Kohathites and Korahites stood up to sing the praises of the Lord, the God of Israel, their voices ever louder.
The Invaders Destroyed. 20 Early in the morning they went out to the wilderness of Tekoa. As they were going out, Jehoshaphat halted and said: “Listen to me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Let your faith in the Lord, your God, be firm, and you will be firm.(F) Have faith in his prophets and you will succeed.” 21 [b]After taking counsel with the people, he appointed some to sing to the Lord and some to praise the holy Splendor as it went forth at the head of the army. They sang: “Give thanks to the Lord, whose love endures forever.”(G) 22 At the moment they began their jubilant praise, the Lord laid an ambush against the Ammonites, Moabites, and those of Mount Seir who were coming against Judah, so that they were defeated.
22 He passed through towns and villages, teaching as he went and making his way to Jerusalem. 23 Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” He answered them, 24 (A)“Strive to enter through the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough.(B) 25 After the master of the house has arisen and locked the door, then will you stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ He will say to you in reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’(C) 26 And you will say, ‘We ate and drank in your company and you taught in our streets.’ 27 (D)Then he will say to you, ‘I do not know where [you] are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers!’ 28 (E)And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God and you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south and will recline at table in the kingdom of God.(F) 30 For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”(G)
Herod’s Desire to Kill Jesus. 31 At that time some Pharisees came to him and said, “Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.