Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 105[a]
105 Give thanks to the Lord.
Call on his name.
Make known his accomplishments among the nations.
2 Sing to him.
Make music to him.
Tell about all his miraculous deeds.
3 Boast about his holy name.
Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4 Seek the Lord and the strength he gives.
Seek his presence continually.
5 Recall the miraculous deeds he performed,
his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed,[b]
6 O children[c] of Abraham,[d] God’s[e] servant,
you descendants[f] of Jacob, God’s[g] chosen ones.
7 He is the Lord our God;
he carries out judgment throughout the earth.[h]
8 He always remembers his covenantal decree,
the promise he made[i] to a thousand generations—
9 the promise[j] he made to Abraham,
the promise he made by oath to Isaac.
10 He gave it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as a lasting promise,[k]
11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion of your inheritance.”
12 When they were few in number,
just a very few, and resident foreigners within it,
13 they wandered from nation to nation,
and from one kingdom to another.[l]
14 He let no one oppress them;
he disciplined kings for their sake,
15 saying,[m] “Don’t touch my chosen ones.[n]
Don’t harm my prophets.”
16 He called down a famine upon the earth;
he cut off all the food supply.[a]
17 He sent a man ahead of them[b]—
Joseph was sold as a servant.
18 The shackles hurt his feet;[c]
his neck was placed in an iron collar,[d]
19 until the time when his prediction[e] came true.
The Lord’s word[f] proved him right.[g]
20 The king authorized his release;[h]
the ruler of nations set him free.
21 He put him in charge of his palace,[i]
and made him manager of all his property,
22 giving him authority to imprison his officials[j]
and to teach his advisers.[k]
23 Israel moved to[l] Egypt;
Jacob lived for a time[m] in the land of Ham.
24 The Lord[n] made his people very fruitful,
and made them[o] more numerous than their[p] enemies.
25 He caused the Egyptians[q] to hate his people,
and to mistreat[r] his servants.
26 He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They executed his miraculous signs among them,[s]
and his amazing deeds in the land of Ham.
28 He made it dark;[t]
Moses and Aaron did not disobey his orders.[u]
29 He turned the Egyptians’ water into blood,
and killed their fish.
30 Their land was overrun by frogs,
which even got into the rooms of their kings.
31 He ordered flies to come;[v]
gnats invaded their whole territory.
32 He sent hail along with the rain;[w]
there was lightning in their land.[x]
33 He destroyed their vines and fig trees,
and broke the trees throughout their territory.
34 He ordered locusts to come,[y]
innumerable grasshoppers.
35 They ate all the vegetation in their land,
and devoured the crops of their fields.[z]
36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power.[aa]
37 He brought his people[ab] out enriched[ac] with silver and gold;
none of his tribes stumbled.
38 Egypt was happy when they left,
for they were afraid of them.[ad]
39 He spread out a cloud for a cover,[ae]
and provided a fire to light up the night.
40 They asked for food,[af] and he sent quail;
he satisfied them with food from the sky.[ag]
41 He opened up a rock and water flowed out;
a river ran through dry regions.
The Lord Gives Jehoshaphat Military Success
20 Later the Moabites and Ammonites, along with some of the Meunites,[a] attacked Jehoshaphat. 2 Messengers[b] arrived and reported to Jehoshaphat, “A huge army is attacking you from the other side of the Dead Sea,[c] from the direction of Edom.[d] Look, they are in Hazazon Tamar (that is, En Gedi).” 3 Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the Lord’s advice.[e] He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast. 4 The people of Judah[f] assembled to ask for the Lord’s help;[g] they came from all the cities of Judah to ask for the Lord’s help.[h]
5 Jehoshaphat stood before the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the Lord’s temple, in front of the new courtyard. 6 He prayed: “O Lord God of our ancestors,[i] you are the God who lives in heaven[j] and rules over all the kingdoms of the nations. You possess strength and power; no one can stand against you. 7 Our God, you drove out[k] the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and gave it as a permanent possession[l] to the descendants of your friend[m] Abraham. 8 They settled down in it and built in it a temple[n] to honor you,[o] saying, 9 ‘If disaster comes on us in the form of military attack,[p] judgment, plague, or famine, we will stand in front of this temple before you, for you are present in this temple.[q] We will cry out to you for help in our distress, so that you will[r] hear and deliver us.’ 10 Now the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir are coming![s] When Israel came from the land of Egypt, you did not allow them to invade these lands.[t] They bypassed them and did not destroy them. 11 Look how they are repaying us! They come to drive us out of our allotted land which you assigned to us! 12 Our God, will you not judge them? For we are powerless against this huge army that attacks us. We don’t know what we should do; we look to you for help.”[u]
13 All the men of Judah[v] were standing before the Lord, along with their infants, wives, and children. 14 Then in the midst of the assembly, the Lord’s Spirit came upon Jachaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph. 15 He said: “Pay attention, all you people of Judah,[w] residents of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Don’t be afraid and don’t panic[x] because of this huge army! For the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 Tomorrow march down against them as[y] they come up the Ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the ravine in front of the wilderness of Jeruel. 17 You will not fight in this battle. Take your positions, stand, and watch the Lord deliver you,[z] O Judah and Jerusalem. Don’t be afraid and don’t panic![aa] Tomorrow march out toward them; the Lord is with you!’”
18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face toward the ground, and all the people of Judah[ab] and the residents of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord and worshiped him.[ac] 19 Then some Levites, from the Kohathites and Korahites, got up and loudly praised the Lord God of Israel.[ad]
20 Early the next morning they marched out to the wilderness of Tekoa. When they were ready to march, Jehoshaphat stood up and said: “Listen to me, you people of Judah[ae] and residents of Jerusalem! Trust in the Lord your God and you will be safe![af] Trust in the message of his prophets and you will win.” 21 He met[ag] with the people and appointed musicians to play before the Lord and praise his majestic splendor. As they marched ahead of the warriors they said: “Give thanks to the Lord, for his loyal love endures.”[ah]
22 When they began to shout and praise, the Lord suddenly attacked[ai] the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir[aj] who were invading Judah, and they were defeated.
The Narrow Door
22 Then[a] Jesus[b] traveled throughout[c] towns[d] and villages, teaching and making his way toward[e] Jerusalem. 23 Someone[f] asked[g] him, “Lord, will only a few[h] be saved?” So[i] he said to them, 24 “Exert every effort[j] to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once[k] the head of the house[l] gets up[m] and shuts the door, then you will stand outside and start to knock on the door and beg him, ‘Lord,[n] let us in!’[o] But he will answer you,[p] ‘I don’t know where you come from.’[q] 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’[r] 27 But[s] he will reply,[t] ‘I don’t know where you come from![u] Go away from me, all you evildoers!’[v] 28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth[w] when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,[x] and all the prophets in the kingdom of God[y] but you yourselves thrown out.[z] 29 Then[aa] people[ab] will come from east and west, and from north and south, and take their places at the banquet table[ac] in the kingdom of God.[ad] 30 But[ae] indeed,[af] some are last[ag] who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
Going to Jerusalem
31 At that time,[ah] some Pharisees[ai] came up and said to Jesus,[aj] “Get away from here,[ak] because Herod[al] wants to kill you.”
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