Wednesday 26 March 2008 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Wednesday 26 March 2008  
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Exodus 12:40-51

The time that the Israelites had lived in Egypt was four hundred and
thirty years. At the end of four hundred and thirty years, on that very
day, all the companies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. That
was for the Lord a night of vigil, to bring them out of the land of
Egypt. That same night is a vigil to be kept for the Lord by all the
Israelites throughout their generations.
 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: This is the ordinance for the
passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, but any slave who has been
purchased may eat of it after he has been circumcised; no bound or hired
servant may eat of it. It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not
take any of the animal outside the house, and you shall not break any of
its bones. The whole congregation of Israel shall celebrate it. If an
alien who resides with you wants to celebrate the passover to the Lord,
all his males shall be circumcised; then he may draw near to celebrate
it; he shall be regarded as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised
person shall eat of it; there shall be one law for the native and for
the alien who resides among you.

 All the Israelites did just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.
That very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt,
company by company.
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1 Corinthians 15:29-41

Otherwise, what will those people do who receive baptism on behalf of
the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on
their behalf?

 And why are we putting ourselves in danger every hour? I die every day!
That is as certain, brothers and sisters,* as my boasting of you-a boast
that I make in Christ Jesus our Lord. If with merely human hopes I
fought with wild animals at Ephesus, what would I have gained by it? If
the dead are not raised,
'Let us eat and drink,
   for tomorrow we die.' 
Do not be deceived:
'Bad company ruins good morals.' 
Come to a sober and right mind, and sin no more; for some people have no
knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
 But someone will ask, 'How are the dead raised? With what kind of body
do they come?' Fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
And as for what you sow, you do not sow the body that is to be, but a
bare seed, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. But God gives it a
body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. Not all
flesh is alike, but there is one flesh for human beings, another for
animals, another for birds, and another for fish. There are both
heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one
thing, and that of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the
sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars;
indeed, star differs from star in glory.
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Matthew 28:1-16

After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary
Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there
was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from
heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was
like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the
guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women,
'Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was
crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see
the place where he* lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, "He has
been raised from the dead,* and indeed he is going ahead of you to
Galilee; there you will see him." This is my message for you.' So they
left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his
disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, 'Greetings!' And they came
to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to
them, 'Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there
they will see me.'
 While they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told
the chief priests everything that had happened. After the priests* had
assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of
money to the soldiers, telling them, 'You must say, "His disciples came
by night and stole him away while we were asleep." If this comes to the
governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.' So
they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is
still told among the Jews to this day.
 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which
Jesus had directed them.
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Morning Psalms:  Psalm 97, 99

Psalm 97

The Lord is king! Let the earth rejoice;
   let the many coastlands be glad! 
Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
   righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. 
Fire goes before him,
   and consumes his adversaries on every side. 
His lightnings light up the world;
   the earth sees and trembles. 
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
   before the Lord of all the earth. 


The heavens proclaim his righteousness;
   and all the peoples behold his glory. 
All worshippers of images are put to shame,
   those who make their boast in worthless idols;
   all gods bow down before him. 
Zion hears and is glad,
   and the towns* of Judah rejoice,
   because of your judgements, O God. 
For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
   you are exalted far above all gods. 


The Lord loves those who hate* evil;
   he guards the lives of his faithful;
   he rescues them from the hand of the wicked. 
Light dawns* for the righteous,
   and joy for the upright in heart. 
Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
   and give thanks to his holy name!


Psalm 99

The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble!
   He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! 
The Lord is great in Zion;
   he is exalted over all the peoples. 
Let them praise your great and awesome name.
   Holy is he! 
Mighty King,* lover of justice,
   you have established equity;
you have executed justice
   and righteousness in Jacob. 
Extol the Lord our God;
   worship at his footstool.
   Holy is he! 


Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
   Samuel also was among those who called on his name.
   They cried to the Lord, and he answered them. 
He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
   they kept his decrees,
   and the statutes that he gave them. 


O Lord our God, you answered them;
   you were a forgiving God to them,
   but an avenger of their wrongdoings. 
Extol the Lord our God,
   and worship at his holy mountain;
   for the Lord our God is holy.
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Evening Psalms:  Psalm 115

Psalm 115

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,
   for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness. 
Why should the nations say,
   'Where is their God?' 


Our God is in the heavens;
   he does whatever he pleases. 
Their idols are silver and gold,
   the work of human hands. 
They have mouths, but do not speak;
   eyes, but do not see. 
They have ears, but do not hear;
   noses, but do not smell. 
They have hands, but do not feel;
   feet, but do not walk;
   they make no sound in their throats. 
Those who make them are like them;
   so are all who trust in them. 


O Israel, trust in the Lord!
   He is their help and their shield. 
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
   He is their help and their shield. 
You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
   He is their help and their shield. 


The Lord has been mindful of us; he will bless us;
   he will bless the house of Israel;
   he will bless the house of Aaron; 
he will bless those who fear the Lord,
   both small and great. 


May the Lord give you increase,
   both you and your children. 
May you be blessed by the Lord,
   who made heaven and earth. 


The heavens are the Lord's heavens,
   but the earth he has given to human beings. 
The dead do not praise the Lord,
   nor do any that go down into silence. 
But we will bless the Lord
   from this time on and for evermore.
Praise the Lord!
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