◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Deuteronomy 30:15-20 (Choose life); or Sirach 15:15-20 (Choose between life and death); Psalm 119:1-8 (Happy are those who walk in the law); 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (God gives the growth); Matthew 5:21-37 (The teaching of Christ: forgiveness) (1599 Geneva Bible)

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February 12, 2023

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Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Daily Bible readings that follow the church liturgical year, with sequential stories told across multiple weeks.

Duration: 1245 days

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

¹⁵Behold, I have set before thee this day life and good, death and evil,

¹⁶In that I command thee this day, ^[a]to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandment, and his ordinances, and his laws, that thou mayest ^[b]live, and be multiplied, and that the Lord thy God may bless thee in the land, whither thou goest to possess it.

¹⁷But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not obey, but shalt be seduced and worship other gods, and serve them,

¹⁸I pronounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, ye shall not prolong your days in the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to possess it.

¹⁹^(A)I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore ^[c]choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live,

²⁰By loving the Lord thy God, by obeying his voice, and by cleaving unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days, that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.

Error: 'Sirach 15:15-20' not found for the version: 1599 Geneva Bible

Psalm 119:1-8

119 1 The Prophet exhorteth the children of God to frame their lives according to his holy word. 123 Also he showeth wherein the true service of God standeth, that is, when we serve him according to his word, and not after our own fantasies.

ALEPH

¹Blessed are ^[a]those that are upright in their way, and walk in the Law of the Lord.

²Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and seek him with their whole heart.

³Surely they work ^[b]none iniquity, but walk in his ways.

⁴Thou hast commanded to keep thy precepts diligently.

⁵^[c]Oh that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!

⁶Then should I not be confounded, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.

⁷I will praise thee with an upright ^[d]heart, when I shall learn the ^[e]judgments of thy righteousness.

⁸I will keep thy statutes: forsake me not ^[f]overlong.

1 Corinthians 3:1-9

3 1 He yieldeth a reason why he preached small matters unto them: 4 He showeth how they ought to esteem of Ministers: 6 The minister’s office. 10 A true form of edifying. 16 He warneth the Corinthians, that they be not drawn away to profane things, 18 through the proud wisdom of the flesh.

¹And ^[a]I could not speak unto you, brethren, as unto spiritual men, but as unto ^[b]carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

²I gave you milk to drink, and not ^[c]meat: for ye were not yet ^[d]able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.

³For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as ^[e]men?

⁴For when one saith, I am Paul’s, and another, I am Apollos’s, are ye not carnal?

⁵^[f]Who is Paul then? and who is Apollos, but the ministers by whom ye believed, and as the Lord gave to every man?

⁶^[g]I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.

⁷So then, neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth, but God that giveth the increase.

⁸And he that planteth, and he that watereth, are one, ^(A)and every man shall receive his wages, according to his labor.

⁹For we together are God’s ^[h]laborers: ye are God’s husbandry, and God’s building.

Footnotes

1 Corinthians 3:1 Having declared the worthiness of heavenly wisdom, and of the Gospel, and having generally condemned the blindness of man’s mind, now at length he applieth it particularly to the Corinthians, calling them carnal, that is, such in whom as yet the flesh prevaileth against the spirit. And he bringeth a double testimony of it: first, for that he had proved them to be such, insomuch that he dealt with them no otherwise than with ignorant men, and such as are almost babes in the doctrine of godliness; and secondly, because they showed indeed by these dissensions, which sprang up by reason of the ignorance of the virtue of the Spirit, and heavenly wisdom, that they had profited very little or nothing.
1 Corinthians 3:1 He calleth them carnal, which are as yet ignorant, and therefore to express it the better, he termeth them babes.
1 Corinthians 3:2 Substantial meat, or strong meat.
1 Corinthians 3:2 To be fed by me with substantial meat: therefore as the Corinthians grew up in age, so the Apostle nourished them by teaching first with milk, then with strong meat, which difference was only but in the manner of teaching.
1 Corinthians 3:3 By the square and compass of man’s wit and judgment.
1 Corinthians 3:5 After that he hath sufficiently reprehended ambitious teachers, and their foolish esteemers, now he showeth how the true ministers are to be esteemed, that we attribute not unto them, more or less than we ought to do. Therefore he teacheth us, that they are they by whom we are brought to faith and salvation, but yet as the ministers of God, and such as do nothing of themselves, but God so working by them as it pleaseth him to furnish them with his gifts. Therefore we have not to mark or consider what minister it is that speaketh, but what is spoken: and we must depend only upon him which speaketh by his servants.
1 Corinthians 3:6 He beautifieth the former sentence, with two similitudes: first comparing the company of the faithful, to a field which God maketh fruitful, when it is sowed and watered through the labor of his servants: next, by comparing it to a house, which indeed the Lord buildeth, but by the hands of his workmen, some of whom, he useth in laying the foundation, others in building of it up. Now, both these similitudes tend to this purpose, to show that all things are wholly accomplished by God’s only authority and might, so that we must only have an eye to him. Moreover, although that God useth some in the better part of the work, we must not therefore contemn others, in respect of them, and much less may we divide, or set them apart, (as these factious men did) seeing that all of them labor in God’s business, and in such sort, that they serve to finish one selfsame work, although by a divers manner of working, insomuch that they need one another’s help.
1 Corinthians 3:9 Serving under him: Now they which serve under another, do nothing by their own strength, but as it is given them by grace, which grace maketh them fit to that service. See 1 Cor. 15:10; 2 Cor. 3:6, and all the increase that cometh by their labor, doth so proceed from God, that no part of the praise of it may be given to the under servant.

Matthew 5:21-37

²¹^[a]Ye have heard that it was said unto them of the old time, ^(A)Thou shalt not kill: for whosoever killeth shall be culpable of judgment.

²²But I say unto you, whosoever is angry with his brother unadvisedly, shall be ^[b]culpable ^[c]of judgment. And whosoever saith unto his brother, Raca, shall be worthy to be punished by the ^[d]Council. And whosoever shall say, Fool, shall be worthy to be punished with ^[e]hell ^[f]fire.

²³^[g]If then thou bring thy gift to the ^[h]altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee,

²⁴Leave there thine offering before the altar, and go thy way: first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

²⁵^(B)^[i]Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art in the way with him, lest thine adversary deliver thee to the Judge, and the Judge deliver thee to the sergeant, and thou be cast into prison.

²⁶Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt not come out thence, till thou hast ^[j]paid the utmost farthing.

²⁷¶ ^[k]Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, ^(C)Thou shalt not commit adultery.

²⁸But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

²⁹^(D)Wherefore if thy ^[l]right eye cause thee ^[m]to offend, pluck it out and cast it from thee: for better it is for thee, that one of thy members perish, than that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

³⁰Also if thy right hand make thee to offend, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for better it is for thee, that one of thy members perish, than that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

³¹It hath been said also, ^(E)Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a bill of divorcement.

³²But I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife (except it be for fornication) causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced, committeth adultery.

³³^[n]Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, ^(F)Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform thine oaths to the Lord.

³⁴But I say unto you, Swear not at all, neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God:

³⁵Nor yet by the earth, for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem: for it is the city of the great King.

³⁶Neither shalt thou swear by thine head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.

³⁷^(G)But let your communication be ^[o]Yea, yea: Nay, nay. For whatsoever is more than these, cometh of ^[p]evil.

Footnotes

Matthew 5:21 The true meaning of the first commandment.
Matthew 5:22 He speaketh of the judgment of God, and of the difference of sins, and therefore applieth his words to the form of civil judgments, which were then used.
Matthew 5:22 Of that judgment which was ruled by three men, who had the hearing and deciding of money matters, and such other small causes.
Matthew 5:22 By that judgment which stood of 23 Judges, who had the hearing and deciding of weighty affairs and matters of life and death: as the highest Judges of all, were to the number of 71, which had the hearing of most weighty affairs, as the matter of a whole tribe or of an high Priest, or of a false prophet.
Matthew 5:22 Whereas we read here, Hell, it is in the text itself, Gehenna, which is an Hebrew word made of two, and is as much to say, as the Valley of Hinnom, which otherwise the Hebrews called Tophet: it was a place where the Israelites were wont most cruelly to sacrifice their children to false gods, whereupon it was taken for a place appointed to torment the reprobates in Jer. 7:31.
Matthew 5:22 The Jews used four kinds of punishments, before their government was taken away by Herod, hanging, heading, stoning, and burning: this is it that Christ shot at, because burning was the greatest punishment, therefore in that he maketh mention of a judgment, a council, and a fire, he showeth that some sins are worse than other sins, but yet they are all such that we must give account for them, and will be punished for them.
Matthew 5:23 The covetous Pharisees taught that God was appeased by the sacrifices appointed in the Law, which they themselves devoured. But Christ on the contrary side denieth that God accepteth any man’s offering, unless he maketh satisfaction to his brother whom he hath offended: and saith moreover, that these stubborn and stiffnecked despisers of their brethren, shall never escape the wrath and curse of God, before they have made full satisfaction to their brethren.
Matthew 5:23 He applieth all this speech to the state of his time, when as there was an altar standing in Jerusalem, and therefore they are very foolish, that gather hereupon, that we must build altars, and use sacrifices: but they are more fools, which draw that to purgatory, which is spoken of peacemaking and atonement one with another.
Matthew 5:25 Cut off all cause for enmity.
Matthew 5:26 Thou shalt be dealt withall to the utmost extremity.
Matthew 5:27 He is taken for an adulterer before God, whatsoever he be, that coveteth a woman: and therefore we must keep our eyes chaste, and all the members we have, yea, and we must eschew all occasions which might move us to evil, how dear soever it cost us.
Matthew 5:29 He nameth the right eye and the right hand, because the parts of the right side of our bodies are the chiefest, and the readiest to commit any wickedness.
Matthew 5:29 Word for word, do cause thee to offend: for sins are stumbling blocks as it were, that is to say, rocks which we are cast upon.
Matthew 5:33 The meaning of the third commandment against the froward opinion and judgment of the Scribes, which excused by oaths or indirect forms of swearing.
Matthew 5:37 Whatsoever you vouch, vouch it barely, and whatsoever you deny, deny it barely without any more words.
Matthew 5:37 From an evil conscience, or from the devil.

1599 Geneva Bible (GNV)

Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.

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