Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Prayer for Mercy
A song ·for going up to worship [of ascents; C perhaps sung while traveling to Jerusalem to celebrate an annual religious festival like Passover].
130 Lord, ·I am in great trouble [L from the depths],
so I ·call out [pray] to you.
2 Lord, hear my voice;
·listen to my prayer for help [L let your ear pay attention to the sound of my supplication].
3 Lord, if you ·punished people for all their sins [L observed/watched/guarded against iniquity],
·no one would be left [L who could stand…?], Lord.
4 But you forgive ·us [L your people],
so you are ·respected [feared; Prov. 1:7].
5 I ·wait [hope] for the Lord ·to help me [L my soul hopes],
and I ·trust [hope in] his word.
6 I ·wait for the Lord to help me [hope for the Lord]
more than night watchmen wait for the ·dawn [morning],
more than night watchmen wait for the ·dawn [morning].
7 People of Israel, put your hope in the Lord
because he is ·loving [loyal]
and ·able to save [L with him is abundant redemption].
8 He will ·save [redeem] Israel
from all their ·sins [iniquities].
16 When the king of Egypt and his ·officers [servants] ·learned [L heard the report] that Joseph’s brothers had come, ·they were very happy [L it was good in their eyes]. 17 So ·the king [L Pharaoh] said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers to load their ·animals [donkeys] and go back to the land of Canaan 18 and bring their father and their ·families [L households] back here to me. I will give them the best land in Egypt, and they will eat the ·best food we have here [L fat of the land; Ezek. 34:3; 39:19]. 19 ·Tell [Command] them to take some wagons from Egypt for their ·children [little ones] and their wives and to bring their father back also. 20 Tell them not to ·worry [be troubled] about bringing any of their things with them, because we will give them the best of what we have in Egypt.”
21 So the sons of Israel did this. Joseph gave them wagons as the king had ordered and ·food [provisions] for ·their trip [the way]. 22 He gave each ·brother [L of them] a change of clothes, but he gave Benjamin five changes of clothes and about ·seven and one-half pounds [L three hundred pieces] of silver. 23 Joseph also sent his father ten donkeys loaded with the best things from Egypt and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and other food for his father ·on his trip back [L for the way]. 24 Then Joseph told his brothers to go. As they were leaving, he said to them, “Don’t quarrel on the way home.”
25 So the brothers left Egypt and went to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. 26 They told him, “Joseph is still alive and is the ruler over all the land of Egypt.” ·Their father [L His heart] was ·shocked [stunned] and did not believe them. 27 But when the brothers told him everything Joseph had said, and when Jacob saw the wagons Joseph had sent to carry him back to Egypt, ·he felt better [L the spirit of Jacob their father came alive/revived]. 28 Israel [C Jacob’s other name; 32:28] said, “·Now I believe you [Enough!]. My son Joseph is still alive, and I will go and see him before I die.”
Jesus Heals a Sick Man(A)
8 When Jesus came down from the ·hill [mountainside], ·great crowds [many people] followed him. 2 Then a ·man with a skin disease [T leper; C the term does not refer to modern leprosy (Hansen’s disease), but to various skin disorders; see Lev. 14] came to Jesus. The man ·bowed down [knelt] before him and said, “Lord, you can ·heal me [L make me clean; C such skin disorders rendered the victim ceremonially unclean] if you ·will [choose; are willing].”
3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man and said, “I ·will [do choose; am willing]. Be ·healed [L cleansed]!” And immediately the man was ·healed [L cleansed] from his disease. 4 Then Jesus said to him, “Don’t tell anyone about this. But go and show yourself to the priest and offer the ·gift [offering; sacrifice] Moses commanded for people who are made well [Lev. 14:1–32]. This will ·show the people [be a public testimony to; be evidence for] what I have done.”
Jesus Heals a Soldier’s Servant(B)
5 When Jesus entered the city of Capernaum, an ·army officer [L centurion] came to him, ·begging [pleading] for help. 6 The officer said, “Lord, my servant is at home in bed. He ·can’t move his body [is paralyzed] and ·is in much pain [suffering terribly].”
7 Jesus said to the officer, “·I will go and heal him. [or Shall I go and heal him?]”
8 The officer answered, “Lord [or Sir], I ·am not worthy [do not deserve] for you to come into my house. You only need to ·command it [L say the word], and my servant will be healed. 9 [L For] I, too, am a man ·under the authority of others [L under authority], and I have soldiers under my command. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes. I tell another soldier, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my ·servant [slave], ‘Do this,’ and my ·servant [slave] does it.”
10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. He said to those who were following him, “I tell you the truth, ·this is the greatest faith I have found [L I haven’t found such faith], ·even in Israel [or in all Israel]. 11 Many people will come from the east and from the west and will ·sit and eat [L recline; C the posture for a banquet or dinner party] with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven [C the messianic banquet, a metaphor for God’s restoration of creation; Is. 25:6–8]. 12 But ·those people who should be in [the heirs of; or the subjects of; L the sons of] the kingdom will be thrown ·outside into the darkness [into the outer darkness], where ·people will cry and grind their teeth with pain [L there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth; C metaphors for agony and torment].”
13 Then Jesus said to the ·officer [L centurion], “Go home. ·Your servant will be healed just as you believed he would [L Let it be done for you just as you have believed].” And his servant was healed that ·same hour [exact time].
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