Monday 30 April 2007 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Monday 30 April 2007 
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Wisdom 1:16-2:11,21-24

But the ungodly by their words and deeds summoned death;
considering him a friend, they pined away
and made a covenant with him,
because they are fit to belong to his company.

For they reasoned unsoundly, saying to themselves,
‘Short and sorrowful is our life,
and there is no remedy when a life comes to its end,
and no one has been known to return from Hades. 
For we were born by mere chance,
and hereafter we shall be as though we had never been,
for the breath in our nostrils is smoke,
and reason is a spark kindled by the beating of our hearts; 
when it is extinguished, the body will turn to ashes,
and the spirit will dissolve like empty air. 
Our name will be forgotten in time,
and no one will remember our works;
our life will pass away like the traces of a cloud,
and be scattered like mist
that is chased by the rays of the sun
and overcome by its heat. 
For our allotted time is the passing of a shadow,
and there is no return from our death,
because it is sealed up and no one turns back. 


‘Come, therefore, let us enjoy the good things that exist,
and make use of the creation to the full as in youth. 
Let us take our fill of costly wine and perfumes,
and let no flower of spring pass us by. 
Let us crown ourselves with rosebuds before they wither. 
Let none of us fail to share in our revelry;
everywhere let us leave signs of enjoyment,
because this is our portion, and this our lot. 
Let us oppress the righteous poor man;
let us not spare the widow
or regard the grey hairs of the aged. 
But let our might be our law of right,
for what is weak proves itself to be useless. 


Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray,
for their wickedness blinded them, 
and they did not know the secret purposes of God,
nor hoped for the wages of holiness,
nor discerned the prize for blameless souls; 
for God created us for incorruption,
and made us in the image of his own eternity, 
but through the devil’s envy death entered the world,
and those who belong to his company experience it.
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Colossians 1:1-14

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our
brother,

To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father. 


In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love
that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you
in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth,
the gospel that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing
in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from
the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God. This you
learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow-servant. He is a faithful
minister of Christ on your behalf, and he has made known to us your
love in the Spirit.

For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying
for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s
will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead
lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in
every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. May you be
made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power,
and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while
joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in
the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the
power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved
Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
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Luke 6:1-11

One sabbath while Jesus was going through the cornfields, his disciples
plucked some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate them.
But some of the Pharisees said, ‘Why are you doing what is not lawful
on the sabbath?’ Jesus answered, ‘Have you not read what David did when
he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God and took
and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but
the priests to eat, and gave some to his companions?’ Then he said to
them, ‘The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.’

On another sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught, and there was a
man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees
watched him to see whether he would cure on the sabbath, so that they
might find an accusation against him. Even though he knew what they
were thinking, he said to the man who had the withered hand, ‘Come and
stand here.’ He got up and stood there. Then Jesus said to them, ‘I ask
you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life
or to destroy it?’ After looking around at all of them, he said to him,
‘Stretch out your hand.’ He did so, and his hand was restored. But they
were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do
to Jesus.
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Morning Psalms:  Psalm 41, 52

Psalm 41

Happy are those who consider the poor;
   the Lord delivers them in the day of trouble. 
The Lord protects them and keeps them alive;
   they are called happy in the land.
   You do not give them up to the will of their enemies. 
The Lord sustains them on their sickbed;
   in their illness you heal all their infirmities. 


As for me, I said, ‘O Lord, be gracious to me;
   heal me, for I have sinned against you.’ 
My enemies wonder in malice
   when I will die, and my name perish. 
And when they come to see me, they utter empty words,
   while their hearts gather mischief;
   when they go out, they tell it abroad. 
All who hate me whisper together about me;
   they imagine the worst for me. 


They think that a deadly thing has fastened on me,
   that I will not rise again from where I lie. 
Even my bosom friend in whom I trusted,
   who ate of my bread, has lifted the heel against me. 
But you, O Lord, be gracious to me,
   and raise me up, that I may repay them. 


By this I know that you are pleased with me;
   because my enemy has not triumphed over me. 
But you have upheld me because of my integrity,
   and set me in your presence for ever. 


Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
   from everlasting to everlasting.Amen and Amen.



Psalm 52

Why do you boast, O mighty one,
   of mischief done against the godly?
   All day long you are plotting destruction.
Your tongue is like a sharp razor,
   you worker of treachery. 
You love evil more than good,
   and lying more than speaking the truth.
          Selah 
You love all words that devour,
   O deceitful tongue. 


But God will break you down for ever;
   he will snatch and tear you from your tent;
   he will uproot you from the land of the living.
          Selah 
The righteous will see, and fear,
   and will laugh at the evildoer, saying, 
‘See the one who would not take
   refuge in God,
but trusted in abundant riches,
   and sought refuge in wealth!’ 


But I am like a green olive tree
   in the house of God.
I trust in the steadfast love of God
   for ever and ever. 
I will thank you for ever,
   because of what you have done.
In the presence of the faithful
   I will proclaim your name, for it is good.
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Evening Psalms: Psalm 44

Psalm 44

We have heard with our ears, O God,
   our ancestors have told us,
what deeds you performed in their days,
   in the days of old: 
you with your own hand drove out the nations,
   but them you planted;
you afflicted the peoples,
   but them you set free; 
for not by their own sword did they win the land,
   nor did their own arm give them victory;
but your right hand, and your arm,
   and the light of your countenance,
   for you delighted in them. 


You are my King and my God;
   you command victories for Jacob. 
Through you we push down our foes;
   through your name we tread down our assailants. 
For not in my bow do I trust,
   nor can my sword save me. 
But you have saved us from our foes,
   and have put to confusion those who hate us. 
In God we have boasted continually,
   and we will give thanks to your name for ever.
          Selah 


Yet you have rejected us and abased us,
   and have not gone out with our armies. 
You made us turn back from the foe,
   and our enemies have taken spoil for themselves. 
You have made us like sheep for slaughter,
   and have scattered us among the nations. 
You have sold your people for a trifle,
   demanding no high price for them. 


You have made us the taunt of our neighbours,
   the derision and scorn of those around us. 
You have made us a byword among the nations,
   a laughing-stock among the peoples. 
All day long my disgrace is before me,
   and shame has covered my face 
at the words of the taunters and revilers,
   at the sight of the enemy and the avenger. 


All this has come upon us,
   yet we have not forgotten you,
   or been false to your covenant. 
Our heart has not turned back,
   nor have our steps departed from your way, 
yet you have broken us in the haunt of jackals,
   and covered us with deep darkness. 


If we had forgotten the name of our God,
   or spread out our hands to a strange god, 
would not God discover this?
   For he knows the secrets of the heart. 
Because of you we are being killed all day long,
   and accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 


Rouse yourself! Why do you sleep, O Lord?
   Awake, do not cast us off for ever! 
Why do you hide your face?
   Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? 
For we sink down to the dust;
   our bodies cling to the ground. 
Rise up, come to our help.
   Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love.
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