Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

The Lord Calls Samuel

3 ^(A)Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli. ^(B)And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.

² At that time Eli, ^(C)whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. ^3 (D)The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down ^(E)in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.

⁴ Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!” ⁵ and ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down.

⁶ And the Lord called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” ⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

⁸ And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. ⁹ Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

¹⁰ And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”

¹¹ Then the Lord said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel ^(A)at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. ¹² On that day I will fulfill against Eli ^(B)all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. ^13 (C)And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, ^(D)because his sons were blaspheming God,^{[a] (E)}and he did not restrain them. ¹⁴ Therefore I swear to the house of Eli ^(F)that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”

¹⁵ Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. ¹⁶ But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” ¹⁷ And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. ^(G)May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” ¹⁸ So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, ^(H)“It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”

^19 (I)And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him ^(J)and let none of his words fall to the ground. ²⁰ And all Israel ^(K)from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord.

Search Me, O God, and Know My Heart

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

⁵ For what ^(A)we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ^(B)ourselves as your servants^[a] for Jesus' sake. ⁶ For God, who said, ^(C)“Let light shine out of darkness,” ^(D)has shone in our hearts to give ^(E)the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Treasure in Jars of Clay

⁷ But we have this treasure in ^(F)jars of clay, ^(G)to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. ⁸ We are ^(H)afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; ⁹ persecuted, but ^(I)not forsaken; ^(J)struck down, but not destroyed; ^10 (K)always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, ^(L)so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. ¹¹ For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. ¹² So ^(M)death is at work in us, but life in you.

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

^23 (A)One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples ^(B)began to pluck heads of grain. ²⁴ And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, ^(C)why are they doing ^(D)what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” ²⁵ And he said to them, ^(E)“Have you never read ^(F)what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: ²⁶ how he entered the house of God, in the time of^{[a] (G)}Abiathar the high priest, and ate ^(H)the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” ²⁷ And he said to them, ^(I)“The Sabbath was made for man, ^(J)not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So ^(K)the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

3 ^(L)Again ^(M)he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. ² And ^(N)they watched Jesus,^[b] to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. ³ And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” ⁴ And he said to them, ^(O)“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. ⁵ And he ^(P)looked around at them with anger, grieved at ^(Q)their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” ^(R)He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ^6 (S)The Pharisees went out and immediately ^(T)held counsel with ^(U)the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.