Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
BOOK FIVE
Psalms 107–150
Psalm 107
1 Oh, give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good,
for His mercy endures forever!
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord speak out,
whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
3 and gathered them from the lands,
from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.
4 They wandered in the wilderness on a deserted path;
they found no city to dwell in.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble,
and He delivered them out of their distresses.
7 He led them on a level road,
that they might go to a city to live in.
33 He turns rivers into a desert,
water springs into dry ground,
34 a fruitful land into salty wasteland,
because of the wickedness of those living there.
35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water,
a parched ground into springs of water.
36 There He makes the hungry dwell,
and they prepare a city to live in;
37 they sow fields and plant vineyards,
and yield a fruitful harvest.
The Lord Commissions Joshua
1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses: 2 “Moses My servant is dead, so now get up and cross over the Jordan—you and all this people—to the land that I am giving to the children of Israel. 3 I have given you every place that the sole of your foot shall tread, as I said to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Mediterranean Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory. 5 No man will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, I will be with you. I will not abandon you. I will not leave you.
6 “Be strong and courageous, for you shall provide the land that I swore to their fathers to give them as an inheritance for this people. 7 Be strong and very courageous, in order to act carefully in accordance with all the law that My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn aside from it to the right or the left, so that you may succeed wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth. Meditate on it day and night so that you may act carefully according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way successful, and you will be wise. 9 Have not I commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua Takes Command
10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare food, for in three days you will cross the Jordan to go to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’ ”
The Jews and the Law
17 Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest in the law, and make your boast in God. 18 You know His will and approve the things that are more excellent, because you are instructed in the law. 19 You are confident that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, and a teacher of babes, who have the full content of knowledge and truth in the law: 21 You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach not to steal, do you steal? 22 You who say not to commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? 24 As it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”[a]
25 Circumcision indeed has merit, if you keep the law, but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. 26 Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteousness of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? 27 Will the uncircumcised one who is righteous by nature, if he fulfills the law, not judge you who, by the letter of the law and circumcision, violate the law?
28 He is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is external in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly. And circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit, and not by the letter. His praise is not from men, but from God.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.