Tuesday 15 January 2008 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Tuesday 15 January 2008 
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Genesis 3:1-24

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord
God had made. He said to the woman, 'Did God say, "You shall not eat
from any tree in the garden"?' 2The woman said to the serpent, 'We may
eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; 3but God said, "You shall
not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden,
nor shall you touch it, or you shall die." ' 4But the serpent said to
the woman, 'You will not die; 5for God knows that when you eat of it
your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,* knowing good and
evil.' 6So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that
it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to
make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to
her husband, who was with her, and he ate. 7Then the eyes of both were
opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves
together and made loincloths for themselves. 
8 They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time
of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the
presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9But the Lord
God called to the man, and said to him, 'Where are you?' 10He said, 'I
heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was
naked; and I hid myself.' 11He said, 'Who told you that you were naked?
Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?' 12The
man said, 'The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from
the tree, and I ate.' 13Then the Lord God said to the woman, 'What is
this that you have done?' The woman said, 'The serpent tricked me, and I
ate.' 14The Lord God said to the serpent,
'Because you have done this,
   cursed are you among all animals
   and among all wild creatures;
upon your belly you shall go,
   and dust you shall eat
   all the days of your life. 
15I will put enmity between you and the woman,
   and between your offspring and hers;
he will strike your head,
   and you will strike his heel.' 
16To the woman he said,
'I will greatly increase your pangs in childbearing;
   in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband,
   and he shall rule over you.' 
17And to the man* he said,
'Because you have listened to the voice of your wife,
   and have eaten of the tree
about which I commanded you,
   "You shall not eat of it",
cursed is the ground because of you;
   in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 
18thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
   and you shall eat the plants of the field. 
19By the sweat of your face
   you shall eat bread
until you return to the ground,
   for out of it you were taken;
you are dust,
   and to dust you shall return.' 
20 The man named his wife Eve,* because she was the mother of all who
live. 21And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man* and for his
wife, and clothed them. 
22 Then the Lord God said, 'See, the man has become like one of us,
knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take
also from the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever'- 23therefore the
Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from
which he was taken. 24He drove out the man; and at the east of the
garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning
to guard the way to the tree of life.
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Hebrews 2:1-10

Therefore we must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that
we do not drift away from it. 2For if the message declared through
angels was valid, and every transgression or disobedience received a
just penalty, 3how can we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? It
was declared at first through the Lord, and it was attested to us by
those who heard him, 4while God added his testimony by signs and wonders
and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, distributed
according to his will.  
Exaltation through Abasement5 Now God* did not subject the coming world,
about which we are speaking, to angels. 6But someone has testified
somewhere,
'What are human beings that you are mindful of them,*
   or mortals, that you care for them?* 
7You have made them for a little while lower* than the angels;
   you have crowned them with glory and honour,* 
8   subjecting all things under their feet.'
Now in subjecting all things to them, God* left nothing outside their
control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them,
9but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower* than the
angels, now crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of
death, so that by the grace of God* he might taste death for everyone. 
10 It was fitting that God,* for whom and through whom all things exist,
in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their
salvation perfect through sufferings.
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John 1:19-28

This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and
Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, 'Who are you?' 20He confessed and did
not deny it, but confessed, 'I am not the Messiah.'* 21And they asked
him, 'What then? Are you Elijah?' He said, 'I am not.' 'Are you the
prophet?' He answered, 'No.' 22Then they said to him, 'Who are you? Let
us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about
yourself?' 23He said,
'I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
"Make straight the way of the Lord" ',
as the prophet Isaiah said. 
24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25They asked him, 'Why
then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah,* nor Elijah, nor
the prophet?' 26John answered them, 'I baptize with water. Among you
stands one whom you do not know, 27the one who is coming after me; I am
not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.' 28This took place in
Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.
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Morning Psalms:  Psalm 5, 6

Psalm 5

Give ear to my words, O Lord;
   give heed to my sighing. 
2Listen to the sound of my cry,
   my King and my God,
   for to you I pray. 
3O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
   in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch. 


4For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
   evil will not sojourn with you. 
5The boastful will not stand before your eyes;
   you hate all evildoers. 
6You destroy those who speak lies;
   the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful. 


7But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
   will enter your house,
I will bow down towards your holy temple
   in awe of you. 
8Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
   because of my enemies;
   make your way straight before me. 


9For there is no truth in their mouths;
   their hearts are destruction;
their throats are open graves;
   they flatter with their tongues. 
10Make them bear their guilt, O God;
   let them fall by their own counsels;
because of their many transgressions cast them out,
   for they have rebelled against you. 


11But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
   let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
   so that those who love your name may exult in you. 
12For you bless the righteous, O Lord;
   you cover them with favour as with a shield.


Psalm 6

O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger,
   or discipline me in your wrath. 
2Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;
   O Lord, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror. 
3My soul also is struck with terror,
   while you, O Lord-how long? 


4Turn, O Lord, save my life;
   deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love. 
5For in death there is no remembrance of you;
   in Sheol who can give you praise? 


6I am weary with my moaning;
   every night I flood my bed with tears;
   I drench my couch with my weeping. 
7My eyes waste away because of grief;
   they grow weak because of all my foes. 


8Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
   for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. 
9The Lord has heard my supplication;
   the Lord accepts my prayer. 
10All my enemies shall be ashamed and struck with terror;
   they shall turn back, and in a moment be put to shame.
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Evening Psalms:  Psalm 10, 11

Psalm 10

Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
   Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? 
2In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor-
   let them be caught in the schemes they have devised. 


3For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart,
   those greedy for gain curse and renounce the Lord. 
4In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, 'God will not seek it
out';
   all their thoughts are, 'There is no God.' 


5Their ways prosper at all times;
   your judgements are on high, out of their sight;
   as for their foes, they scoff at them. 
6They think in their heart, 'We shall not be moved;
   throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.' 


7Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
   under their tongues are mischief and iniquity. 
8They sit in ambush in the villages;
   in hiding-places they murder the innocent. 


Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless; 
9   they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert;
they lurk that they may seize the poor;
   they seize the poor and drag them off in their net. 


10They stoop, they crouch,
   and the helpless fall by their might. 
11They think in their heart, 'God has forgotten,
   he has hidden his face, he will never see it.' 


12Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
   do not forget the oppressed. 
13Why do the wicked renounce God,
   and say in their hearts, 'You will not call us to account'? 


14But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief,
   that you may take it into your hands;
the helpless commit themselves to you;
   you have been the helper of the orphan. 


15Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers;
   seek out their wickedness until you find none. 
16The Lord is king for ever and ever;
   the nations shall perish from his land. 


17O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek;
   you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear 
18to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed,
   so that those from earth may strike terror no more.*


Psalm 11

In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me,
   'Flee like a bird to the mountains;* 
2for look, the wicked bend the bow,
   they have fitted their arrow to the string,
   to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart. 
3If the foundations are destroyed,
   what can the righteous do?' 


4The Lord is in his holy temple;
   the Lord's throne is in heaven.
   His eyes behold, his gaze examines humankind. 
5The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,
   and his soul hates the lover of violence. 
6On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulphur;
   a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. 
7For the Lord is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
   the upright shall behold his face.
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