Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 19[a]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
19 The heavens declare the glory of God;[b]
the sky displays his handiwork.[c]
2 Day after day it speaks out;[d]
night after night it reveals his greatness.[e]
3 There is no actual speech or word,
nor is its[f] voice literally heard.
4 Yet its voice[g] echoes[h] throughout the earth;
its[i] words carry[j] to the distant horizon.[k]
In the sky[l] he has pitched a tent for the sun.[m]
5 Like a bridegroom it emerges[n] from its chamber;[o]
like a strong man it enjoys[p] running its course.[q]
6 It emerges from the distant horizon,[r]
and goes from one end of the sky to the other;[s]
nothing can escape[t] its heat.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect
and preserves one’s life.[u]
The rules set down by the Lord[v] are reliable[w]
and impart wisdom to the inexperienced.[x]
8 The Lord’s precepts are fair[y]
and make one joyful.[z]
The Lord’s commands[aa] are pure[ab]
and give insight for life.[ac]
9 The commands to fear the Lord are right[ad]
and endure forever.[ae]
The judgments given by the Lord are trustworthy
and absolutely just.[af]
10 They are of greater value[ag] than gold,
than even a great amount of pure gold;
they bring greater delight[ah] than honey,
than even the sweetest honey from a honeycomb.
11 Yes, your servant finds moral guidance there;[ai]
those who obey them receive a rich reward.[aj]
12 Who can know all his errors?[ak]
Please do not punish me for sins I am unaware of.[al]
13 Moreover, keep me from committing flagrant sins;[am]
do not allow such sins to control me.[an]
Then I will be blameless,
and innocent of blatant[ao] rebellion.
14 May my words and my thoughts
be acceptable in your sight,[ap]
O Lord, my sheltering rock[aq] and my redeemer.[ar]
Justice
23 [a] “You must not give[b] a false report.[c] Do not make common cause[d] with the wicked[e] to be a malicious[f] witness.
2 “You must not follow a crowd[g] in doing evil things;[h] in a lawsuit you must not offer testimony that agrees with a crowd so as to pervert justice,[i] 3 and you must not show partiality[j] to a poor man in his lawsuit.
4 “If you encounter[k] your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering off, you must by all means return[l] it to him. 5 If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen under its load, you must not ignore him,[m] but be sure to help[n] him with it.[o]
6 “You must not turn away justice for your poor people in their lawsuits. 7 Keep your distance[p] from a false charge[q]—do not kill the innocent and the righteous,[r] for I will not justify the wicked.[s]
8 “You must not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see[t] and subverts the words of the righteous.
9 “You must not oppress[u] a resident foreigner, since you know the life[v] of a foreigner, for you were foreigners[w] in the land of Egypt.
16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days— 17 these are only[a] the shadow of the things to come, but the reality[b] is Christ![c] 18 Let no one who delights in false humility[d] and the worship of angels pass judgment on you. That person goes on at great lengths[e] about what he has supposedly seen, but he is puffed up with empty notions by his fleshly mind.[f] 19 He has not held fast[g] to the head from whom the whole body, supported[h] and knit together through its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God.[i]
20 If you have died with Christ to the elemental spirits[j] of the world, why do you submit to them as though you lived in the world? 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” 22 These are all destined to perish with use, founded as they are[k] on human commands and teachings.[l] 23 Even though they have the appearance of wisdom[m] with their self-imposed worship and humility achieved by an[n] unsparing treatment of the body—a wisdom with no true value—they in reality result in fleshly indulgence.[o]
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