Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
33 You who are godly, sing with joy to the Lord.
It is right for honest people to praise him.
2 With the harp, praise the Lord.
With the lyre that has ten strings, make music to him.
3 Sing a new song to him.
Play with skill, and shout with joy.
4 What the Lord says is right and true.
He is faithful in everything he does.
5 The Lord loves what is right and fair.
The earth is full of his faithful love.
6 The heavens were made when the Lord commanded it to happen.
All the stars were created by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathers together the waters of the sea.
He puts the oceans in their places.
8 Let the whole earth have respect for the Lord.
Let all the people in the world honor him.
9 He spoke, and the world came into being.
He commanded, and it stood firm.
10 The Lord blocks the sinful plans of the nations.
He keeps them from doing what they want to do.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever.
What he wants to do will last for all time.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.
Blessed are the people he chose to be his own.
17 After Abram won the battle over Kedorlaomer and the kings who helped him, he returned home. The king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh. It was also called the King’s Valley.
18 Melchizedek was the king of Jerusalem. He brought out bread and wine. He was the priest of the Most High God. 19 He gave a blessing to Abram. He said,
“May the Most High God bless Abram.
May the Creator of heaven and earth bless him.
20 Give praise to the Most High God.
He gave your enemies into your hand.”
Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything.
21 The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people. Keep everything else for yourself.”
22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to make a promise to the Lord. He is the Most High God. He is the Creator of heaven and earth. 23 I’ve said I will not accept anything that belongs to you. I will not take even a thread or the strap of a sandal. You will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24 I’ll accept only what my men have eaten and what belongs to Aner, Eshkol and Mamre. These three men went with me. Let them have their share.”
On Shore at Malta
28 When we were safe on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2 The people of the island were unusually kind. It was raining and cold. So they built a fire and welcomed all of us. 3 Paul gathered some sticks and put them on the fire. A poisonous snake was driven out by the heat. It fastened itself on Paul’s hand. 4 The people of the island saw the snake hanging from his hand. They said to one another, “This man must be a murderer. He escaped from the sea. But the female god Justice won’t let him live.” 5 Paul shook the snake off into the fire. He was not harmed. 6 The people expected him to swell up. They thought he would suddenly fall dead. They waited for a long time. But they didn’t see anything unusual happen to him. So they changed their minds. They said he was a god.
7 Publius owned property nearby. He was the chief official on the island. He welcomed us to his home. For three days he took care of us. He treated us with kindness. 8 His father was sick in bed. The man suffered from fever and dysentery. So Paul went in to see him. Paul prayed for him. He placed his hands on him and healed him. 9 Then the rest of the sick people on the island came. They too were healed. 10 The people of the island honored us in many ways. When we were ready to sail, they gave us the supplies we needed.
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