Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
9 God, I will sing a (A)new song to You;
On a (B)harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,
10 Who (C)gives salvation to kings,
Who (D)rescues His servant David from the evil sword.
11 Rescue me and save me from the hand of (E)foreigners,
Whose mouth (F)speaks deceit
And whose (G)right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
12 When our sons in their youth are like (H)growing plants,
And our daughters like (I)corner pillars [a]fashioned for a palace,
13 Our (J)granaries are full, providing every kind of produce,
And our flocks deliver thousands and ten thousands in our [b]fields;
14 May our (K)cattle [c]be bred
Without [d](L)mishap and without [e](M)loss,
May there be no (N)outcry in our streets!
15 Blessed are the people who are so situated;
(O)Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
The Chorus
5 “(A)Who is this coming up from the wilderness,
Leaning on her beloved?”
The Bride
“Beneath the (B)apple tree I awakened you;
There your mother went into labor with you,
There she was in labor and gave birth to you.
6 Put me like a seal over your heart,
Like a (C)seal on your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
[a](D)Jealousy is as severe as Sheol;
Its flames are flames of fire,
[b]The flame of the Lord.
7 Many waters cannot quench love,
Nor will rivers flood over it;
(E)If a man were to give all the riches of his house for love,
It would be utterly despised.”
9 He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your (A)tradition. 10 For Moses said, ‘(B)Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘(C)The one who speaks evil of father or mother, is [a]certainly to be put to death’; 11 but you say, ‘If a person says to his father or his mother, whatever I have that would help you is (D)Corban (that is, [b]given to God),’ 12 you no longer allow him to do anything for his father or his mother; 13 thereby invalidating the word of God by your (E)tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.”
The Heart of Mankind
14 After He called the crowd to Him again, He began saying to them, “Listen to Me, all of you, and understand: 15 there is nothing outside the person which can defile him if it goes into him; but the things which come out of the person are what defile the person[c].”
17 And when He later entered a house, away from the crowd, (F)His disciples asked Him about the parable. 18 And He *said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the person from outside cannot defile him, 19 because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and [d]is eliminated?” (Thereby He declared (G)all foods (H)clean.) 20 And He was saying, “(I)That which comes out of the person, that is what defiles the person. 21 For from within, out of the [e]hearts of people, come the evil thoughts, acts of sexual immorality, thefts, murders, acts of adultery, 22 deeds of greed, wickedness, deceit, indecent behavior, [f](J)envy, slander, [g]pride, and foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within and defile the person.”
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