Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 148[a]
148 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord from the sky.
Praise him in the heavens.
2 Praise him, all his angels.[b]
Praise him, all his heavenly assembly.[c]
3 Praise him, O sun and moon.
Praise him, all you shiny stars.[d]
4 Praise him, O highest heaven,
and you waters above the sky.[e]
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he gave the command and they came into existence.
6 He established them so they would endure;[f]
he issued a decree that will not be revoked.[g]
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea creatures and all you ocean depths,
8 O fire and hail, snow and clouds,[h]
O stormy wind that carries out his orders,[i]
9 you mountains and all you hills,
you fruit trees and all you cedars,
10 you animals and all you cattle,
you creeping things and birds,
11 you kings of the earth and all you nations,
you princes and all you leaders[j] on the earth,
12 you young men and young women,
you elderly, along with you children.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty extends over the earth and sky.
14 He has made his people victorious,[k]
and given all his loyal followers reason to praise—
the Israelites, the people who are close to him.[l]
Praise the Lord!
5 So now the Lord says,
the one who formed me from birth[a] to be his servant—
he did this[b] to restore Jacob to himself,
so that Israel might be gathered to him;
and I will be honored[c] in the Lord’s sight,
for my God is my source of strength[d]—
6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,
to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,
and restore the remnant[e] of Israel?[f]
I will make you a light to the nations,[g]
so you can bring[h] my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”
7 This is what the Lord,
the Protector[i] of Israel, their Holy One,[j] says
to the one who is despised[k] and rejected[l] by nations,[m]
a servant of rulers:
“Kings will see and rise in respect,[n]
princes will bow down,
because of the faithful Lord,
the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.”
8 This is what the Lord says:
“At the time I decide to show my favor, I will respond to you;
in the day of deliverance I will help you;
I will protect you[o] and make you a covenant mediator for people,[p]
to rebuild[q] the land[r]
and to reassign the desolate property.
9 You will say[s] to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’
and to those who are in dark dungeons,[t] ‘Emerge.’[u]
They will graze beside the roads;
on all the slopes they will find pasture.
10 They will not be hungry or thirsty;
the sun’s oppressive heat will not beat down on them,[v]
for one who has compassion on them will guide them;
he will lead them to springs of water.
11 I will make all my mountains into a road;
I will construct my roadways.”
12 Look, they come from far away!
Look, some come from the north and west,
and others from the land of Sinim.[w]
13 Shout for joy, O sky![x]
Rejoice, O earth!
Let the mountains give a joyful shout!
For the Lord consoles his people
and shows compassion to the[y] oppressed.
The Lord Remembers Zion
Jesus’ True Family
46 While Jesus[a] was still speaking to the crowds,[b] his mother and brothers[c] came and stood outside, asking[d] to speak to him. 47 [e] Someone[f] told him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside wanting[g] to speak to you.” 48 To the one who had said this, Jesus[h] replied,[i] “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?” 49 And pointing[j] toward his disciples he said, “Here[k] are my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is[l] my brother and sister and mother.”
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