Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
119 Blessed are those whose lives have integrity,
those who follow the teachings of the Lord.
2 Blessed are those who obey his written instructions.
They wholeheartedly search for him.
3 They do nothing wrong.
They follow his directions.
4 You have commanded
that your guiding principles be carefully followed.
5 I pray that my ways may become firmly established
so that I can obey your laws.
6 Then I will never feel ashamed
when I study all your commandments.
7 I will give thanks to you
as I learn your regulations, which are based on your righteousness.
8 I will obey your laws.
Never abandon me.
30 All these blessings and curses I have spoken about will happen to you. Take them to heart when you are among all the nations where the Lord your God will scatter you. 2 If you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul, doing everything I command you today, 3 he will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you from all the nations of the world where he will scatter you. 4 Even if you are scattered to the most distant country in the world, the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back from there. 5 The Lord your God will bring you to the land your ancestors owned. You will take possession of it, and the Lord will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors were.
6 The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants. You will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and you will live. 7 Then the Lord your God will put all these curses on your enemies, those who hate you and persecute you. 8 You will again obey the Lord and follow all his commands that I’m giving you today. 9 The Lord your God will give you many blessings in everything you do: You will have many children. Your animals will have many offspring. Your soil will produce many crops. The Lord will again delight in making you as prosperous as he made your ancestors.
Jesus Challenges the Pharisees’ Traditions(A)
15 Then some Pharisees and experts in Moses’ Teachings came from Jerusalem to Jesus. They asked, 2 “Why do your disciples break the traditions of our ancestors? They do not wash their hands before they eat.”
3 He answered them, “Why do you break the commandment of God because of your traditions? 4 For example, God said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Whoever curses father or mother must be put to death.’ 5 But you say that whoever tells his father or mother, ‘I have given to God whatever support you might have received from me,’ 6 does not have to honor his father. Because of your traditions you have destroyed the authority of God’s word. 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8 ‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
9 Their worship of me is pointless,
because their teachings are rules made by humans.’ ”
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