Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Esther’s Petition to the King
7 Then the king and Haman came to drink wine with Esther the queen. 2 And the king said to Esther on the second day also [a]as they drank their wine at the feast, “(A)What is [b]your petition, Queen Esther? It shall be given you. And what is [c]your request? (B)Even to half of the kingdom it shall be done.” 3 Then Queen Esther answered and said, “(C)If I have found favor in your eyes, O king, and if it seems good to the king, let my life be given to me as [d]my petition, and my people as [e]my request; 4 for (D)we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, (E)to be killed, and to be caused to perish. Now if we had only been sold as slaves, men and women, I would have remained silent, for the [f]adversity would not be worth the [g]annoyance to the king.” 5 Then King Ahasuerus said—he said to Esther the Queen, “Who is this one, and where is this one, who fills his heart to do thus?” 6 So Esther said, “(F)An adversary and an enemy is this evil Haman!” Then Haman became terrified before the king and queen.
9 Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs who were before the king, said, “Behold indeed, (A)the gallows—which Haman made for Mordecai (B)who spoke good on behalf of the king—are standing at Haman’s house fifty cubits high!” And the king said, “Hang him on it.” 10 (C)So they hanged Haman on the [a]gallows which he had set up for Mordecai, (D)and the king’s wrath subsided.
The Feast of Purim Is Established
20 Then Mordecai wrote down these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, 21 to establish among them to celebrate the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day [a]of the same month, annually, 22 because on those days the Jews obtained rest for themselves from their enemies, and it was a month which was (A)turned around for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a [b]holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness and (B)sending portions of food to one another and gifts to the poor.
Yahweh Was on Our Side
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
124 “(A)Had it not been Yahweh who was on our side,”
(B)Let Israel now say,
2 “Had it not been Yahweh who was on our side
When men rose up against us,
3 Then they would have (C)swallowed us alive,
When their (D)anger was kindled against us;
4 Then the (E)waters would have flowed over us,
The stream would have [a]swept over our soul;
5 Then the (F)raging waters would have [b]swept over our soul.”
13 Is anyone among you (A)suffering? (B)Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to (C)sing praises. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for (D)the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, [a](E)anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the (F)prayer [b]offered in faith will (G)save the one who is sick, and the Lord will (H)raise him up, and if he has committed sins, [c]they will be forgiven him. 16 Therefore, (I)confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be (J)healed. (K)The effective [d]prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. 17 Elijah was (L)a man with a nature like ours, and (M)he prayed [e]earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for (N)three years and six months. 18 Then he (O)prayed again, and (P)the [f]sky gave rain and the earth produced its fruit.
19 My brothers, (Q)if any among you strays from (R)the truth and one turns him back, 20 let him know that [g]he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will (S)save his soul from death and will (T)cover a multitude of sins.
Warnings About Discipleship
38 (A)John said to Him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and (B)we tried to hinder him because he was not following us.” 39 But Jesus said, “Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in My name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me. 40 (C)For he who is not against us is [a]for us. 41 For (D)whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name because you are of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward.
42 “(E)And whoever causes one of these [b]little ones who believe to stumble, it [c]would be better for him if, with a heavy millstone hung around his neck, he [d]had been cast into the sea. 43 (F)And if your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into [e](G)hell, into the (H)unquenchable fire, 44 [f][and where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 45 And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into [g](I)hell, 46 [h][and where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 47 (J)And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into [i](K)hell, 48 (L)where their worm does not die, and (M)the fire is not quenched.
49 “For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but (N)if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you [j]make it salty again? (O)Have salt in yourselves, and (P)be at peace with one another.”
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