Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

⁵ Then the king charged Joab, Abishai and Ittai saying, “Deal gently with the young man Absalom for my sake.” Now all the troops heard the king’s charge to all the commanders concerning Absalom.

⁶ Then the troops went out to the field to confront Israel but the battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. ⁷ The people of Israel were defeated there before the followers of David, and the slaughter that day was great—20,000 men. ⁸ For the battle there was spread over the face of the entire countryside and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.

⁹ Now Absalom encountered some of David’s servants. When Absalom was riding on his mule, the mule went under the thick branches of the great oak, and his head got caught in the oak, so that he was left hanging between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on.

¹⁵ Then ten young men who were Joab’s armor-bearers surrounded Absalom, struck and finished him off.

³¹ Then the Cushite arrived and said, “Let my lord the king receive good news for Adonai has vindicated you today against all who rose up against you.”

³² Then the king asked the Cushite, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?”

The Cushite answered, “Let the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you for evil be as that young man!”

Forgiveness and Full Redemption

Psalm 130

²⁵ So lay aside lying and “each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,”^[a] for we are members of one another. ²⁶ “Be angry, yet do not sin.”^[b] Do not let the sun go down on your anger, ^{[c] 27} nor give the devil a foothold. ²⁸ The one who steals must steal no longer—instead he must work, doing something useful with his own hands, so he may have something to share with the one who has need. ²⁹ Let no harmful word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for building others up according to the need, so that it gives grace to those who hear it. ³⁰ Do not grieve the Ruach ha-Kodesh of God,^[d] by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness and rage and anger and quarreling and slander, along with all malice. ³² Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving each other just as God in Messiah also forgave you.

Walk in the Light

5 Therefore be imitators of God, as dearly loved children; ² and walk in love, just as Messiah also loved us^[e] and gave Himself up for us as an offering and sacrifice to God for a fragrant aroma.

³⁵ Yeshua said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty.

⁴¹ Some of the Judeans^[a] started to grumble about Him, because He said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² They were saying, “Isn’t this Yeshua the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can He now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”

⁴³ Yeshua answered, “Stop grumbling among yourselves! ⁴⁴ No one can come to Me unless My Father who sent Me draws him—and I will raise him up on the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the Prophets, ‘They will all be taught by God.’^[b] Everyone who has listened and learned from the Father comes to Me. ⁴⁶ Not that anyone has seen the Father except the One who is from God—He has seen the Father.

⁴⁷ “Amen, amen I tell you, he who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your fathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. ⁵⁰ This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread, which came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. This bread is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”