Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Jacob and Esau
19 This is the account of Isaac,[a] the son of Abraham.
Abraham became the father of Isaac. 20 When Isaac was forty years old, he married Rebekah,[b] the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean.[c]
21 Isaac prayed[d] to the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was childless. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 But the children struggled[e] inside her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?”[f] So she asked the Lord,[g] 23 and the Lord said to her,
“Two nations[h] are in your womb,
and two peoples will be separated from within you.
One people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.”
24 When the time came for Rebekah to give birth,[i] there were[j] twins in her womb. 25 The first came out reddish[k] all over,[l] like a hairy[m] garment, so they named him Esau.[n] 26 When his brother came out with[o] his hand clutching Esau’s heel, they named him Jacob.[p] Isaac was sixty years old[q] when they were born.
27 When the boys grew up, Esau became a skilled[r] hunter, a man of the open fields, but Jacob was an even-tempered man, living in tents.[s] 28 Isaac loved Esau because he had a taste for fresh game,[t] but Rebekah loved[u] Jacob.
29 Now Jacob cooked some stew,[v] and when Esau came in from the open fields, he was famished. 30 So Esau said to Jacob, “Feed[w] me some of the red stuff—yes, this red stuff—because I’m starving!” (That is why he was also called[x] Edom.)[y]
31 But Jacob replied, “First[z] sell me your birthright.” 32 “Look,” said Esau, “I’m about to die! What use is the birthright to me?”[aa] 33 But Jacob said, “Swear an oath to me now.”[ab] So Esau[ac] swore an oath to him and sold his birthright[ad] to Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew; Esau ate and drank, then got up and went out.[ae] So Esau despised his birthright.[af]
נ (Nun)
105 Your word[a] is a lamp to walk by,
and a light to illumine my path.[b]
106 I have vowed and solemnly sworn
to keep your just regulations.
107 I am suffering terribly.
O Lord, revive me with your word.[c]
108 O Lord, please accept the freewill offerings of my praise.[d]
Teach me your regulations.
109 My life is in continual danger,[e]
but I do not forget your law.
110 The wicked lay a trap for me,
but I do not wander from your precepts.
111 I claim your rules as my permanent possession,
for they give me joy.[f]
112 I am determined to obey[g] your statutes
at all times, to the very end.
The Believer’s Relationship to the Holy Spirit
8 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.[a] 2 For the law of the life-giving Spirit[b] in Christ Jesus has set you[c] free from the law of sin and death. 3 For God achieved what the law could not do because[d] it was weakened through the flesh. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 so that the righteous requirement of the law may be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 For those who live according to the flesh have their outlook shaped by[e] the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit have their outlook shaped by the things of the Spirit. 6 For the outlook[f] of the flesh is death, but the outlook of the Spirit is life and peace, 7 because the outlook of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to the law of God, nor is it able to do so. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 You, however, are not in[g] the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, but[h] the Spirit is your life[i] because of righteousness. 11 Moreover if the Spirit of the one[j] who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, the one who raised Christ[k] from the dead will also make your mortal bodies alive through his Spirit who lives in you.[l]
The Parable of the Sower
13 On that day after Jesus went out of the house, he sat by the lake.[a] 2 And such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat[b] to sit while[c] the whole crowd stood on the shore. 3 He[d] told them many things in parables,[e] saying: “Listen![f] A sower went out to sow.[g] 4 And as he sowed, some seeds[h] fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other[i] seeds fell on rocky ground[j] where they did not have much soil. They sprang up quickly because the soil was not deep.[k] 6 But when the sun came up, they were scorched, and because they did not have sufficient root, they withered. 7 Other seeds fell among the thorns,[l] and they grew up and choked them.[m] 8 But other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty. 9 The one who has ears had better listen!”[n]
18 “So listen to the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one[a] comes and snatches what was sown in his heart;[b] this is the seed sown along the path. 20 The[c] seed sown on rocky ground[d] is the person who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. 21 But he has no root in himself and does not endure;[e] when[f] trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 The[g] seed sown among thorns is the person who hears the word, but worldly cares and the seductiveness of wealth[h] choke the word,[i] so it produces nothing. 23 But as for the seed sown on good soil, this is the person who hears the word and understands. He bears fruit, yielding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.”[j]
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