Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A song of praise by David.
145 I will highly praise you, my God, the king.
I will bless your name forever and ever.
2 I will bless you every day.
I will praise your name forever and ever.
3 The Lord is great, and he should be highly praised.
His greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation will praise your deeds to the next.
Each generation will talk about your mighty acts.
5 I will think about the glorious honor of your majesty
and the miraculous things you have done.
6 People will talk about the power of your terrifying deeds,
and I will tell about your greatness.
7 They will announce what they remember of your great goodness,
and they will joyfully sing about your righteousness.
8 The Lord is merciful, compassionate, patient,
and always ready to forgive.
9 The Lord is good to everyone
and has compassion for everything that he has made.
10 Everything that you have made will give thanks to you, O Lord,
and your faithful ones will praise you.
11 Everyone will talk about the glory of your kingdom
and will tell the descendants of Adam about your might
12 in order to make known your mighty deeds
and the glorious honor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
Your empire endures throughout every generation.
14 The Lord supports everyone who falls.
He straightens ⌞the backs⌟ of those who are bent over.
15 The eyes of all creatures look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
16 You open your hand,
and you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is fair in all his ways
and faithful in everything he does.
18 The Lord is near to everyone who prays to him,
to every faithful person who prays to him.
19 He fills the needs of those who fear him.
He hears their cries for help and saves them.
20 The Lord protects everyone who loves him,
but he will destroy all wicked people.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
and all living creatures will praise his holy name
forever and ever.
9 My bride, my sister, you have charmed me.[a]
You have charmed me
with a single glance from your eyes,
with a single strand of your necklace.
10 How beautiful are your expressions of love, my bride, my sister!
How much better are your expressions of love than wine
and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice.
11 Your lips drip honey, my bride.
Honey and milk are under your tongue.
The fragrance of your clothing is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
12 My bride, my sister is a garden that is locked,
a garden that is locked,
a spring that is sealed.
13 You are paradise that produces
pomegranates and the best fruits,
henna flowers and nard,
14 nard and saffron,
calamus,[b] cinnamon, and all kinds of incense,[c]
myrrh, aloes, and all the best spices.
15 ⌞You are⌟ a spring for gardens,
a well of living water flowing from Lebanon.
[ BRIDE ]
16 Awake, north wind!
Come, south wind!
Blow on my garden!
Let its spices flow from it.
Let my beloved come to his garden,
and let him eat his own precious fruit.
[ GROOM ]
5 My bride, my sister, I will come to my garden.
I will gather my myrrh with my spice.
I will eat my honeycomb with my honey.
I will drink my wine with my milk.
Eat, my friends!
Drink and become intoxicated with expressions of love!
Jesus Is Questioned about Fasting(A)
33 They said to him, “John’s disciples frequently fast and say prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees. But your disciples eat and drink.”
34 Jesus asked them, “Can you force wedding guests to fast while the groom is still with them? 35 The time will come when the groom will be taken away from them. At that time they will fast.”
36 He also used these illustrations: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new coat to patch an old coat. Otherwise, the new cloth will tear the old. Besides, the patch from the new will not match the old. 37 People don’t pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the new wine will make the skins burst. The wine will run out, and the skins will be ruined. 38 Rather, new wine is to be poured into fresh skins.
39 “No one who has been drinking old wine wants new wine. He says, ‘The old wine is better!’ ”
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