Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 38[a]
Prayer of a Sinner in Great Peril
1 A psalm of David. For remembrance.[b]
2 O Lord, do not punish me in your anger
or chastise me in your wrath.
3 For your arrows[c] have pierced me deeply,
and your hand has come down upon me.
4 No portion of my body[d] has been unscathed
as a result of your anger;
my bones have become weak
as a result of my sins.
5 My iniquities tower far above my head;[e]
they are a burden too heavy to bear.
6 My wounds are fetid and fester
because of my folly.
7 I am bowed down and bent over,
as I spend each day in sorrow.
8 My loins are filled with searing pain;
no part of my body[f] is unafflicted.
9 I am numb and completely crushed,
and I groan in anguish of heart.[g]
10 O Lord, all my longing is known to you,
and my sighs are not hidden from you.
11 My heart throbs, and my strength is spent;
even the light has faded from my eyes.
12 My friends and companions stay away from my affliction,
and my neighbors keep their distance.
13 Those who seek my life set traps;
those who wish me harm threaten violence
and plot treachery all day long.[h]
14 [i]But I am like a man who cannot hear,
like one who cannot open his mouth.
15 I am like one who hears nothing
and has no answer to offer.
16 I place my hope in you, O Lord;
you, O Lord, my God, will answer for me.
17 For I prayed, “Never let them gloat over me
or exult should my foot slip.”
18 I am at the point of exhaustion,
and my grief is with me constantly.
19 I acknowledge my iniquity,
and I sincerely grieve for my sin.
20 [j]Numerous and strong are my enemies without cause;
many are those who hate me without good reason.[k]
21 Those who repay my good deeds with evil
oppose me because I follow a path of righteousness.
22 Do not abandon me, O Lord;
my God, do not remain far from me.
23 Come quickly to my aid,
O Lord, my Savior.
Chapter 5
Other Ways to Atone. 1 “If anyone sins in that he heard a call to testify and he is a witness, having seen or heard of the matter, and he does not make it known, then he shall bear his guilt. 2 Or if anyone touches any unclean thing, whether it be the carcass of an unclean animal or the carcass of unclean cattle or the carcass of any unclean creeping thing, even if he did not know it, he shall be unclean and be held guilty. 3 Or if he touches human uncleanness,[a] of whatever type of uncleanness one might touch and become unclean, and he did not know it, when he comes to know of it he shall be guilty. 4 Or if someone rashly lets an oath slip from his lips, to do evil or to do good, in anything by which a person who swears a rash oath, and he does not realize it, when he comes to know it, he shall be guilty for any one of these thing s. 5 Therefore, when someone is guilty of any one of these things, he shall confess the sin he has committed. 6 He shall bring a guilt offering to the Lord for the sin that he has committed: a female goat or sheep from the flock as a sin offering. The priest shall make atonement for him and for his sin.
7 “If someone cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring as his guilt offering to the Lord two turtledoves or two pigeons for the sin that he has committed. One will be for a sin offering and the other will be a burnt offering. 8 He shall bring them to the priest who shall offer the first for the sin offering. He will wring its head from its neck, but he will not rip it apart. 9 He shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the sides of the altar, while the rest he shall pour out at the base of the altar. This is a sin offering. 10 The other bird will be offered as a burnt offering, following the normal procedure. Thus the priest shall make atonement for him, for the sin he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.
11 “But if he cannot afford two turtledoves or two young pigeons, let him bring a tenth of an ephah[b] of fine flour for his sin offering, as the offering for the sin he has committed. He shall not put any oil or incense upon it, for it is a sin offering. 12 He shall bring the flour to the priest who will take a handful of it as a memorial portion, burning it upon the altar, on the burnt offerings to the Lord. It is a sin offering. 13 Thus the priest shall make atonement for the sin he has committed in any one of these things and he shall be forgiven. The rest of the offering will be for the priest, as with the cereal offering.”
Various Episodes and Instructions
Chapter 17
Warning against Giving Scandal.[a] 1 Jesus said to his disciples, “Scandals are bound to occur, but woe to the man through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were fastened around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 Be on your guard!
The Need To Forgive.[b] “If your brother should sin, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4 Even if he wrongs you seven times a day, and comes back to you seven times to say, ‘I am sorry,’ you must forgive him.”
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