Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

The Lord, a Refuge and Defense.

For the music director. A Psalm of David.

Conscription of Laborers

¹³ Now ^(A)King Solomon ^[a]conscripted forced laborers from all Israel; and the forced laborers numbered thirty thousand men. ¹⁴ Then he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month in shifts; they were in Lebanon for a month, and two months at home. And ^(B)Adoniram was in charge of the forced laborers. ¹⁵ Now ^(C)Solomon had seventy thousand porters, and eighty thousand stonemasons in the mountains, ^16 (D)besides Solomon’s 3,300 chief deputies who were in charge of the ^[b]project and ruled over the people who were doing the work. ¹⁷ Then ^(E)the king issued orders, and they quarried large stones, valuable stones, to lay the foundation of the house with cut stones. ¹⁸ So Solomon’s builders and ^[c]Hiram’s builders and ^(F)the Gebalites ^[d]cut the stones, and they prepared the timbers and the stones to build the house.

^21 [a](A)and subject yourselves to one another in the ^[b](B)fear of Christ.

Marriage like Christ and the Church

^22 (C)Wives, ^(D)subject yourselves to your own husbands, ^(E)as to the Lord. ²³ For ^(F)the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the ^(G)head of the church, He Himself ^(H)being the Savior of the body. ²⁴ But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

^25 (I)Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and ^(J)gave Himself up for her, ^26 (K)so that He might sanctify her, having ^(L)cleansed her by the ^(M)washing of water with ^(N)the word, ²⁷ that He might ^(O)present to Himself the church ^[c]in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be ^(P)holy and blameless. ²⁸ So husbands also ought to ^(Q)love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; ²⁹ for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, ³⁰ because we are ^(R)parts of His ^(S)body. ^31 (T)For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. ³² This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. ³³ Nevertheless, as for you individually, each husband is to ^(U)love his own wife the same as himself, and the wife must see to it that she ^(V)respects her husband.

Children and Parents

6 ^(W)Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ^2 (X)Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), ³ so that it may turn out well for you, and that you may live long on the earth.

^4 (Y)Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but ^(Z)bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Slaves and Masters

^5 (AA)Slaves, be obedient to those who are your ^[d]masters according to the flesh, with ^(AB)fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, ^(AC)as to Christ; ^6 (AD)not ^[e]by way of ^[f]eye-service, as ^(AE)people-pleasers, but as ^(AF)slaves of Christ, ^(AG)doing the will of God from the ^[g]heart. ⁷ With goodwill ^[h]render service, ^(AH)as to the Lord, and not to people, ^8 (AI)knowing that ^(AJ)whatever good thing each one does, he will receive this back from the Lord, ^(AK)whether slave or free.

⁹ And masters, do the same things to them, and ^(AL)give up threatening, knowing that ^(AM)both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is ^(AN)no partiality with Him.