Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

David Commits Adultery and Murder

11 Now it came to pass at the turn of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his officials with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the children of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed in Jerusalem. ² One evening David rose from his bed and strolled on the roof of the royal palace. Then from the roof he saw a woman washing—a very beautiful woman. ³ So David sent someone to inquire about the woman, and he reported, “Isn’t this Bath-sheba, daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

⁴ Then David sent messengers and took her when she came to him, and he lay with her. (She had purified herself from her uncleanness). Then she returned to her house. ⁵ The woman conceived and sent word to David saying, “I’m pregnant.”

⁶ So David sent a message to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” So Joab sent Uriah to David. ⁷ When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the troops fared, and how the war was going. ⁸ Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” When Uriah left the royal palace, a present from the king followed him. ⁹ But Uriah slept at the door of the royal palace with all his master’s servants, and did not go down to his house. ¹⁰ When they informed David saying, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Haven’t you come from a journey? Why didn’t you go down to your house?”

¹¹ But Uriah answered David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my lord Joab and the officers of my lord are camping in the open field. Should I then go to my house to eat and drink and lie with my wife? As you live and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.”

¹² Then David said to Uriah, “Stay here today also, and tomorrow I will send you off.” So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day. The next day, ¹³ David called him, and he ate and drank before him, and he made him drunk. But in the evening he went out to lie on his bed with his master’s servants, but did not go down to his house.

¹⁴ So in the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by Uriah’s hand. ¹⁵ In the letter he wrote, “Put Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle and withdraw from him so that he may be struck down and die.”

There Is No God?

Psalm 14

Prayer for Power and Understanding

¹⁴ For this reason I bow my knees before the Father^[a]— ¹⁵ from Him every family in heaven and on earth receives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that from His glorious riches He would grant you to be strengthened in your inner being with power through His Ruach, ¹⁷ so that Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸ may have strength to grasp with all the kedoshim what is the width and length and height and depth, ¹⁹ and to know the love of Messiah which surpasses knowledge, so you may be filled up with all the fullness of God.

²⁰ Now to Him who is able to do far beyond all that we ask or imagine, by means of His power that works in us, ²¹ to Him be the glory in the community of believers and in Messiah Yeshua throughout all generations^[b] forever and ever! Amen.

New Manna in the Wilderness

6 Afterwards, Yeshua went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias. ² A large crowd kept following Him, because they were watching the signs He was performing on the sick. ³ Then Yeshua went up the mountainside and sat down there with His disciples. ⁴ Passover, the Jewish feast, was near.

⁵ Lifting up His eyes and seeing a large crowd coming to Him, Yeshua said to Philip, “Where will we buy bread so these may eat?” ⁶ Now Yeshua was saying this to test him, for He knew what He was about to do.

⁷ Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii^[a] isn’t enough to buy bread for each to get a little bit!”

⁸ One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, ⁹ “There’s a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish—but what’s that for so many?”

¹⁰ Yeshua said, “Make the people recline.” There was much grass in the area. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. ¹¹ Then Yeshua picked up the loaves. And having given thanks, He distributed bread to everyone who was reclining. He did the same with the fish, as much as they wanted.

¹² When the people were full, Yeshua said to His disciples, “Gather up the leftovers, so nothing is wasted.” ¹³ So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces from the five barley loaves, which were left over by those who had finished eating.

¹⁴ When the people saw the sign that Yeshua performed, they began to say, “This is most certainly the Prophet who is to come into the world!” ^{[b] 15} Realizing that they were about to come and seize Him by force to make Him king, Yeshua withdrew again to the mountain, Himself alone.

The Savior on the Sea

¹⁶ Now when evening came, Yeshua’s disciples went down to the sea. ¹⁷ Getting into a boat, they set out to cross the sea toward Capernaum. By now it had become dark, and still Yeshua had not come to them. ¹⁸ A great wind began to blow, stirring up the sea.

¹⁹ After they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia,^[c] they catch sight of Yeshua walking on the sea, approaching the boat. They were terrified! ²⁰ But Yeshua says to them, “I am. Don’t be afraid.” ^{[d] 21} Then they wanted to take Him into the boat, and right away the boat reached the shore where they were headed.