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 One night in Gibeon the Lord appeared[a] to Solomon in a dream. God said, “Tell[b] me what I should give you.” 6 Solomon replied, “You demonstrated[c] great loyalty to your servant, my father David, as he served[d] you faithfully, properly, and sincerely.[e] You have maintained this great loyalty to this day by allowing his son to sit on his throne.[f] 7 Now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in my father David’s place, even though I am only a young man and am inexperienced.[g] 8 Your servant stands[h] among your chosen people;[i] they are a great nation that is too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning mind[j] so he can make judicial decisions for[k] your people and distinguish right from wrong.[l] Otherwise[m] no one is able[n] to make judicial decisions for[o] this great nation of yours.”[p] 10 The Lord[q] was pleased that Solomon made this request.[r] 11 God said to him, “Because you asked for the ability to make wise judicial decisions, and not for long life, or riches, or vengeance on your enemies,[s] 12 I[t] grant your request[u] and give[v] you a wise and discerning mind[w] superior to that of anyone who has preceded or will succeed you.[x] 13 Furthermore, I am giving[y] you what you did not request—riches and honor so that you will be the greatest king of your generation.[z] 14 If you follow my instructions[aa] by obeying[ab] my rules and regulations, just as your father David did,[ac] then I will grant you long life.”[ad]
Jesus as the Light of the World
12 Then Jesus spoke out again,[a] “I am the light of the world![b] The one who follows me will never[c] walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 13 So the Pharisees[d] objected,[e] “You testify about yourself; your testimony is not true!”[f] 14 Jesus answered,[g] “Even if I testify about myself, my testimony is true, because I know where I came from and where I am going. But you people[h] do not know where I came from or where I am going.[i] 15 You people[j] judge by outward appearances;[k] I do not judge anyone.[l] 16 But if I judge, my evaluation is accurate,[m] because I am not alone when I judge,[n] but I and the Father who sent me do so together.[o] 17 It is written in your law that the testimony of two men is true.[p] 18 I testify about myself[q] and the Father who sent me testifies about me.”
19 Then they began asking[r] him, “Who is your father?” Jesus answered, “You do not know either me or my Father. If you knew me you would know my Father too.”[s]
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