Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
ז (Zayin)
49 Remember your word to your servant,
for you have given me hope.
50 This[a] is what comforts me in my trouble,
for your promise revives me.[b]
51 Arrogant people do nothing but scoff at me.[c]
Yet I do not turn aside from your law.
52 I remember your ancient regulations,[d]
O Lord, and console myself.[e]
53 Rage takes hold of me because of the wicked,
those who reject your law.
54 Your statutes have been my songs[f]
in the house where I live.[g]
55 I remember your name during the night, O Lord,
and I will keep[h] your law.
56 This[i] has been my practice,
for I observe your precepts.
Exhortation to Worship the Lord Exclusively
10 Then when the Lord your God brings you to the land he promised your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you—a land with large, fine cities you did not build, 11 houses filled with choice things you did not accumulate, hewn-out cisterns you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—and you eat your fill, 12 be careful not to forget the Lord who brought you out of Egypt, that place of slavery.[a] 13 You must revere the Lord your God, serve him, and take oaths using only his name. 14 You must not go after other gods, those[b] of the surrounding peoples, 15 for the Lord your God, who is present among you, is a jealous God—his anger will erupt against you and remove you from the land.[c]
Exhortation to Obey the Lord Exclusively
16 You must not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah.[d] 17 Keep his[e] commandments very carefully,[f] as well as the stipulations and statutes he commanded you to observe. 18 Do whatever is proper[g] and good before the Lord so that it may go well with you and that you may enter and occupy the good land that he[h] promised your ancestors, 19 and that you may drive out all your enemies just as the Lord said.
Exhortation to Remember the Past
20 When your children[i] ask you later on, “What are the stipulations, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God commanded you?” 21 you must say to them,[j] “We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt in a powerful way.[k] 22 And he[l] brought signs and great, devastating wonders on Egypt, on Pharaoh, and on his whole family[m] before our very eyes. 23 He delivered us from there so that he could give us the land he had promised our ancestors. 24 The Lord commanded us to obey all these statutes and to revere him[n] so that it may always go well for us and he may preserve us, as he has to this day. 25 We will be innocent if we carefully keep all these commandments[o] before the Lord our God, just as he demands.”[p]
The Response of the Jewish Leaders
45 Then many of the people,[a] who had come with Mary and had seen the things Jesus[b] did, believed in him. 46 But some of them went to the Pharisees[c] and reported to them[d] what Jesus had done. 47 So the chief priests and the Pharisees[e] called the council[f] together and said, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many miraculous signs. 48 If we allow him to go on in this way,[g] everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away our sanctuary[h] and our nation.”
49 Then one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said,[i] “You know nothing at all! 50 You do not realize[j] that it is more to your advantage to have one man[k] die for the people than for the whole nation to perish.”[l] 51 (Now he did not say this on his own,[m] but because he was high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the Jewish nation,[n] 52 and not for the Jewish nation[o] only,[p] but to gather together[q] into one the children of God who are scattered.)[r] 53 So from that day they planned together to kill him.
54 Thus Jesus no longer went[s] around publicly[t] among the Judeans,[u] but went away from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim,[v] and stayed there with his disciples. 55 Now the Jewish Feast of Passover[w] was near, and many people went up to Jerusalem from the rural areas before the Passover to cleanse themselves ritually.[x] 56 Thus they were looking for Jesus,[y] and saying to one another as they stood in the temple courts,[z] “What do you think? That he won’t come to the feast?” 57 (Now the chief priests and the Pharisees[aa] had given orders that anyone who knew where Jesus[ab] was should report it, so that they could arrest[ac] him.)[ad]
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