Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 105[a]
God’s Faithfulness to the Covenant
1 [b]Give thanks to the Lord, invoke his name;[c]
proclaim his deeds among the peoples.
2 Offer him honor with songs of praise;
recount all his marvelous deeds.
3 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts[d] of those who seek the Lord exult.
4 Reflect on the Lord and his strength;
seek his face continually.
5 Remember the marvels he has wrought,
his portents, and the judgments[e] he has set forth.
6 You are the offspring of his servant Abraham,
the children of Jacob, his chosen ones.[f]
7 He is the Lord, our God;
his judgments prevail all over the earth.
8 He is mindful of his covenant[g] forever,
the promise he laid down for a thousand generations,
9 the covenant he made with Abraham
and the oath he swore to Isaac.[h]
10 [i]He established it as a decree for Jacob,
and as an everlasting covenant for Israel,
11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion of your heritage.”
12 [j]When they were few in number,
an insignificant group of strangers in it,
13 they wandered from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another.
14 He permitted no one to oppress them,
and in their regard he warned kings:[k]
15 “Do not touch my anointed ones;
do no harm to my prophets.”[l]
16 Then he invoked a famine on the land
and destroyed their supply of bread.
17 But he had sent a man ahead of them,
Joseph, who had been sold as a slave.
18 They shackled his feet with fetters
and clamped an iron collar around his neck,
19 until what he had prophesied was fulfilled
and the word of the Lord proved him true.
20 The king ordered that he be released;
the ruler of the peoples set him free.
21 He appointed him as master of his household
and as ruler of all his possessions.
22 He was to instruct[a] his princes as he deemed fit
and to impart wisdom to his elders.
23 Then Israel went down into Egypt;
Jacob lived as an alien in the land of Ham.[b]
24 God greatly increased the number of his people
and made them too strong for their foes,
25 whose hearts he then turned[c] to hate his people
and to conspire against his servants.
26 He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron whom he had chosen.
27 They performed his signs among them
and worked wonders in the land of Ham.
28 [d]He sent darkness that enveloped the land,
but they rebelled against his warnings.
29 He turned their waters into blood,
and all their fish were destroyed.
30 Their land was saturated with frogs,
even in the royal chambers.
31 At his command there came hordes of flies
and gnats throughout their country.
32 He sent them hail instead of rain,
and flashes of lightning in all their land.
33 He struck down their vines and their fig trees
and demolished the trees of their country.
34 At his word the locusts came,
as well as grasshoppers beyond all count.
35 They gobbled up every green plant in the land
and devoured the produce of the soil.
36 He struck down all the firstborn of the land,
the firstfruits of their manhood.
37 Then he led out his people with silver and gold,
and there was not one among their tribes who stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad when they departed,
for dread of Israel had overwhelmed them.
39 He spread a cloud over his people as a cover[e]
and a fire to give light by night.
40 At their request he supplied them with quail,
and he filled them with bread from heaven.[f]
41 He split open a rock and water gushed forth,
flowing through the wilderness like a river.[g]
42 For he remembered the sacred promise
that he had made to Abraham, his servant.
Chapter 20
War against Edom. 1 A short time afterward, the Moabites and the Ammonites, along with some of the Meunites,[a] came to engage Jehoshaphat in battle. 2 The following communiqué was sent to Jehoshaphat: “A great multitude is coming forth against you from Edom, from beyond the sea.[b] They are already at Hazazon-tamar, that is, En-gedi.” 3 Jehoshaphat was alarmed, and he hastened to seek the guidance of the Lord, while proclaiming a fast throughout all Judah. 4 The people of Judah assembled, to seek help from the Lord, as they came from all the towns of Judah to consult the Lord.
Prayer of Jehoshaphat. 5 Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the house of the Lord before the new court 6 and said: “O Lord, God of our fathers, are you not the God in heaven, and do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? In your hands are power and might, and there is no one who can withstand you. 7 Was it not you, our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land for your people Israel and gave it forever to the descendants of Abraham? 8 They have lived in it and have built you a sanctuary there to honor your name, saying: 9 ‘Should any disaster befall us, whether the sword of judgment or war or blood or pestilence or famine, we shall stand before this temple that bears your name and call out to you in our distress, and you will hear our cries and save us.’
10 “But now, behold the Ammonites, the Moabites, and the people of Mount Seir, whom you would not permit the Israelites to invade when they came from the land of Egypt and whom they avoided and made no attempt to destroy them. 11 See how these people repay us by coming forth to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. 12 O God will you not pass judgment against them? For we are powerless against this vast horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are turned toward you.”
13 Prophecy of Victory. All the men of Judah were standing before the Lord, with their infants, their wives, and their children. 14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly.
15 Jahaziel said: “Listen attentively, all Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. Thus says the Lord to you: ‘Do not fear or lose heart at the sight of this vast horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s. 16 March down against them tomorrow. They will be coming up by the ascent of Ziz, and you will encounter them at the end of the gorge near the Desert of Jeruel. 17 You will have no need to fight in this battle. Take your position, stand firm, and behold the victory of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem! Do not fear or be dismayed. Go forth against them tomorrow, for the Lord will be with you.’ ”
18 Then Jehoshaphat knelt down with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord to worship him. 19 After that, the Levites from among the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and sang the praises of the Lord, the God of Israel, with a powerful voice.
20 Overcoming the Invaders. Early the next morning they rose and hastened to set out for the wilderness of Tekoa. As they departed, Jehoshaphat stood up and said: “Listen to me, Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem. Hold firmly to your faith in the Lord, your God, and you will be secure. Believe in his prophets and you will be successful.”
21 After conferring with the people, Jehoshaphat appointed some to sing to the Lord and praise the splendor of his holiness as they marched forth at the head of the army:
“Give thanks to the Lord,
for his love endures forever.”
22 At the moment they began their hymn of praise, the Lord set an ambush against the Ammonites, the Moabites, and the people from Mount Seir who were invading Judah. As a result, they were routed.
The Destiny of Israel
22 Who Will Enter into the Kingdom of God?[a] Jesus continued journeying through towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23 Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?” He answered, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will try to enter but will not succeed in doing so.
25 “When once the master of the house has gotten up and shut the door, you may find yourself standing outside knocking on the door and begging, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ He will say in reply, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will protest, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you evildoers!’
28 “There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the Prophets in the kingdom of God as you yourselves are being thrown out. 29 Then from the east and the west, and from the north and the south, people will come and take their places at the banquet in the kingdom of God. 30 Indeed some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
31 Herod’s Desire To Kill Jesus.[b] At that time, some Pharisees came and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else, for Herod wants to kill you.”
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