Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Prayer of a Suffering Penitent.
A Psalm of David, for a memorial.
38 Lord, (A)do not rebuke me in Your wrath,
And do not punish me in Your burning anger.
2 For Your (B)arrows have sunk deep into me,
And (C)Your hand has pressed down on me.
3 There is (D)no healthy part in my flesh (E)because of Your indignation;
There is no health (F)in my bones because of my sin.
4 For my (G)guilty deeds have gone over my head;
Like a heavy burden they weigh too much for me.
5 My [a]wounds grow foul and fester
Because of (H)my foolishness.
6 I am bent over and (I)greatly bowed down;
I (J)go in mourning all day long.
7 For my [b]sides are filled with (K)burning,
And there is (L)no healthy part in my flesh.
8 I feel (M)faint and [c]badly crushed;
I [d](N)groan because of the [e]agitation of my heart.
9 Lord, all (O)my desire is [f]before You;
And my (P)sighing is not hidden from You.
10 My heart throbs, (Q)my strength fails me;
And the (R)light of my eyes, even [g]that [h]has gone from me.
11 My [i](S)loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague;
And my kinsmen (T)stand far away.
12 Those who (U)seek my life (V)lay snares for me;
And those who (W)seek to injure me have [j]threatened destruction,
And they (X)plot deception all day long.
13 But I, like a person who is deaf, do not hear;
And I am like a (Y)person who cannot speak, who does not open his mouth.
14 Yes, I am like a person who does not hear,
And in whose mouth are no arguments.
15 For (Z)I wait for You, Lord;
You (AA)will answer, Lord my God.
16 For I said, “May they not rejoice over me,
Who, when my foot slips, (AB)would exalt themselves over me.”
17 For I am (AC)ready to fall,
And (AD)my [k]sorrow is continually before me.
18 For I (AE)admit my guilt;
I am full of (AF)anxiety because of my sin.
19 But my (AG)enemies are vigorous and [l]strong,
And those who wrongfully (AH)hate me are many.
20 And those who (AI)repay evil for good,
They (AJ)become my enemies, because I follow what is good.
21 Do not abandon me, Lord;
My God, (AK)do not be far from me!
22 (AL)Hurry to help me,
Lord, (AM)my salvation!
The Law of Guilt Offerings
5 ‘Now if a person sins after he hears a [a]public (A)order to testify when he is a witness, whether he has seen or otherwise known, if he does not tell it, then he will bear his punishment. 2 Or if a person touches (B)any unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean animal, or the carcass of unclean cattle, or a carcass of unclean swarming things, though it is hidden from him and he is unclean, then he will be guilty. 3 Or if he touches human uncleanness, of whatever sort his uncleanness may be with which he becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, and then he comes to know it, he will be guilty. 4 Or if a person (C)swears thoughtlessly with his lips to do evil or to do good, in whatever matter people speak thoughtlessly with an oath, and it is hidden from him, and then he comes to know it, he will be guilty of one of these things. 5 So it shall be when he becomes guilty of one of these things, that he shall (D)confess that in which he has sinned. 6 He shall also bring his guilt offering to the Lord for his sin which he has [b]committed, (E)a female from the flock, a lamb or a [c]goat as a sin offering. So the priest shall make atonement on his behalf for his sin.
7 ‘But if [d]he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring to the Lord his guilt offering for that in which he has sinned, two turtledoves or two young doves, (F)one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. 8 He shall bring them to the priest, who shall first offer that which is for the sin offering, and shall pinch off its head at the front of its neck, but he (G)shall not sever it. 9 He shall also sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering (H)on the side of the altar, while the rest of the blood shall be drained out (I)at the base of the altar: it is a sin offering. 10 The second he shall then prepare as a burnt offering (J)according to the ordinance. (K)So the priest shall make atonement on his behalf for his sin which he has [e]committed, and it will be forgiven him.
11 ‘But (L)if his [f]means are insufficient for two turtledoves or two young doves, then for his offering for that which he has sinned, he shall bring the tenth of an [g]ephah of fine flour as a sin offering; (M)he shall not put oil on it or place incense on it, for it is a sin offering. 12 He shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it as its memorial portion and offer it up in smoke on the altar, [h]with the offerings of the Lord by fire: it is a sin offering. 13 So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin which he has [i]committed from (N)one of these, and it will be forgiven him; then (O)the rest shall become the priest’s, like the grain offering.’”
Instructions
17 Now He said to His disciples, “(A)It is inevitable that [a]stumbling blocks come, but woe to one through whom they come! 2 (B)It is better for him if a millstone is hung around his neck and he [b]is thrown into the sea, than that he may cause one of these little ones to [c]sin. 3 [d]Be on your guard! (C)If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you (D)seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
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