Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 63
Praise God Who Satisfies
A psalm of David. When he was in the Wilderness of Judah.(A)
1 God, you are my God; I eagerly seek you.
I thirst for you;
my body faints for you
in a land that is dry, desolate, and without water.(B)
2 So I gaze on you in the sanctuary
to see your strength and your glory.(C)
Scouting Out Canaan
13 The Lord spoke to Moses: 2 “Send men to scout out the land of Canaan(A) I am giving to the Israelites. Send one man who is a leader among them from each of their ancestral tribes.”
17 When Moses sent them to scout out the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up this way to the Negev, then go up into the hill country. 18 See what the land is like, and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many. 19 Is the land they live in good(A) or bad? Are the cities they live in encampments or fortifications?(B) 20 Is the land fertile or unproductive?(C) Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous. Bring back some fruit from the land.” It was the season for the first ripe grapes.(D)
21 So they went up and scouted out the land from the Wilderness of Zin[a] as far as Rehob near the entrance to Hamath.[b] 22 They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak,(E) were living. Hebron was built seven years before Zoan(F) in Egypt. 23 When they came to Eshcol(G) Valley, they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes, which was carried on a pole by two men. They also took some pomegranates and figs.(H) 24 That place was called Eshcol[c] Valley because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut there. 25 At the end of forty days(I) they returned from scouting out the land.
Report about Canaan
26 The men went back to Moses, Aaron, and the entire Israelite community in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for them and the whole community, and they showed them the fruit of the land.(J) 27 They reported to Moses, “We went into the land where you sent us. Indeed it is flowing with milk and honey,(K) and here is some of its fruit. 28 However, the people living in the land are strong, and the cities are large and fortified.(L) We also saw the descendants of Anak(M) there. 29 The Amalekites(N) are living in the land of the Negev; the Hethites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb(O) quieted the people in the presence of Moses and said, “Let’s go up now and take possession of the land because we can certainly conquer it!”
31 But the men who had gone up with him responded, “We can’t attack the people because they are stronger than we are!” 32 So they gave a negative report to the Israelites about the land they had scouted: “The land we passed through to explore is one that devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw in it are men of great size. 33 We even saw the Nephilim(P) there—the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim!(Q) To ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers, and we must have seemed the same to them.”
Israel’s Refusal to Enter Canaan
14 Then the whole community broke into loud cries, and the people wept that night. 2 All the Israelites complained about Moses and Aaron,(R) and the whole community told them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the Lord bringing us into this land to die by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder.(S) Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” (T) 4 So they said to one another, “Let’s appoint a leader and go back to Egypt.”
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole assembly of the Israelite community. 6 Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who scouted out the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to the entire Israelite community, “The land we passed through and explored is an extremely good land.(U) 8 If the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey,(V) and give it to us. 9 Only don’t rebel against the Lord, and don’t be afraid of the people of the land, for we will devour them.(W) Their protection(X) has been removed from them, and the Lord is with us. Don’t be afraid of them!”
The Second Prediction of His Death
22 As(A) they were gathering together[a] in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men. 23 They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised up.” And they were deeply distressed.
Paying the Temple Tax
24 When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the temple tax approached Peter and said, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?” (B)
25 “Yes,” he said.
When he went into the house, Jesus spoke to him first,[b] “What do you think, Simon? From whom do earthly kings collect tariffs or taxes? From their sons or from strangers?”[c](C)
26 “From strangers,” he said.[d]
“Then the sons are free,” Jesus told him. 27 “But, so we won’t offend them, go to the sea, cast in a fishhook, and take the first fish that you catch. When you open its mouth you’ll find a coin.[e] Take it and give it to them for me and you.”(D)
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