Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Passover
12 While Moses and Aaron were still in Egypt, the Lord spoke to them. He said, 2 “This month[a] will be the first month of the year for you. 3 This command is for the whole community of Israel: On the tenth day of this month each man must get one lamb for the people in his house. 4 If there are not enough people in his house to eat a whole lamb, then he should invite some of his neighbors to share the meal. There must be enough lamb for everyone to eat.
5 The lamb must be a one-year-old male, and it must be completely healthy. This animal can be either a young sheep or a young goat. 6 You should watch over the animal until the 14th day of the month. On that day all the people of the community of Israel must kill these animals just before dark. 7 You must collect the blood from these animals and put it on the top and sides of the doorframe of every house where the people eat this meal.
8 “On this night you must roast the lamb and eat all the meat. You must also eat bitter herbs and bread made without yeast. 9 You must not eat the lamb raw or boiled in water. You must roast the whole lamb over a fire. The lamb must still have its head, legs, and inner parts. 10 You must eat all the meat that night. If any of the meat is left until morning, you must burn it in the fire.
11 “When you eat the meal, you must be fully dressed and ready to travel. You must have your sandals on your feet and your walking stick in your hand. You must eat in a hurry, because this is the Lord’s Passover.
12 “Tonight I will go through Egypt and kill every firstborn man and animal in Egypt. In this way I will judge all the gods of Egypt and show that I am the Lord. 13 But the blood on your houses will be a special sign. When I see the blood, I will pass over[a] your house. I will cause bad things to happen to the people of Egypt. But none of these bad diseases will hurt you.
14 “You will always remember tonight—it will be a special festival for you. Your descendants will honor the Lord with this festival forever.
116 I love the Lord for hearing me,
for listening to my prayers.
2 Yes, he paid attention to me,
so I will always call to him whenever I need help.
12 What can I give the Lord
for all that he has done for me?
13 He saved me,
so I will give him a drink offering,
and I will call on the Lord’s name.
14 I will give the Lord what I promised.
I will go in front of all his people now.
15 Very dear to the Lord are the lives of his followers.
He cares when they face death.
16 Lord, I am your servant!
Yes, I am your slave, as my mother was.
You set me free from the chains of death.
17 I will give you a thank offering.
I will call on the Lord’s name.
18 I will stand before the gathering of his people
and give the Lord what I promised.
19 I will do this in Jerusalem,
in the courtyards of the Lord’s Temple.
Praise the Lord!
23 The teaching I gave you is the same that I received from the Lord: On the night when the Lord Jesus was handed over to be killed, he took bread 24 and gave thanks for it. Then he divided the bread and said, “This is my body; it is for you. Eat this to remember me.” 25 In the same way, after they ate, Jesus took the cup of wine. He said, “This cup represents the new agreement from God, which begins with my blood sacrifice. When you drink this, do it to remember me.” 26 This means that every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are telling others about the Lord’s death until he comes again.
Jesus Washes His Followers’ Feet
13 It was almost time for the Jewish Passover festival. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go back to the Father. Jesus had always loved the people in the world who were his. Now was the time he showed them his love the most.
2 Jesus and his followers were at the evening meal. The devil had already persuaded Judas Iscariot to hand Jesus over to his enemies. (Judas was the son of Simon.) 3 The Father had given Jesus power over everything. Jesus knew this. He also knew that he had come from God. And he knew that he was going back to God. 4 So while they were eating, Jesus stood up and took off his robe. He got a towel and wrapped it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a bowl and began to wash the followers’ feet.[a] He dried their feet with the towel that was wrapped around his waist.
6 He came to Simon Peter. But Peter said to him, “Lord, you should not wash my feet.”
7 Jesus answered, “You don’t know what I am doing now. But later you will understand.”
8 Peter said, “No! You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “If I don’t wash your feet, you are not one of my people.”
9 Simon Peter said, “Lord, after you wash my feet, wash my hands and my head too!”
10 Jesus said, “After a person has a bath, his whole body is clean. He needs only to wash his feet. And you are clean, but not all of you.” 11 Jesus knew who would hand him over to his enemies. That is why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
12 When Jesus finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and went back to the table. He asked, “Do you understand what I did for you? 13 You call me ‘Teacher.’ And you call me ‘Lord.’ And this is right, because that is what I am. 14 I am your Lord and Teacher. But I washed your feet. So you also should wash each other’s feet. 15 I did this as an example for you. So you should serve each other just as I served you. 16 Believe me, servants are not greater than their master. Those who are sent to do something are not greater than the one who sent them. 17 If you know these things, great blessings will be yours if you do them.
Jesus Talks About His Death
31 When Judas was gone, Jesus said, “Now is the time for the Son of Man to receive his glory. And God will receive glory through him. 32 If God receives glory through him, he will give glory to the Son through himself. And that will happen very soon.”
33 Jesus said, “My children, I will be with you only a short time more. You will look for me, but I tell you now what I told the Jewish leaders: Where I am going you cannot come.
34 “I give you a new command: Love each other. You must love each other just as I loved you. 35 All people will know that you are my followers if you love each other.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International