Tuesday 29 May 2012 DAILY LECTIONARY

Tue May 29 01:00:04 EDT 2012

Tuesday 29 May 2012 
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Proverbs 15:16-33

Better is a little with the fear of the Lord
   than great treasure and trouble with it. 
Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is
   than a fatted ox and hatred with it. 
Those who are hot-tempered stir up strife,
   but those who are slow to anger calm contention. 
The way of the lazy is overgrown with thorns,
   but the path of the upright is a level highway. 
A wise child makes a glad father,
   but the foolish despise their mothers. 
Folly is a joy to one who has no sense,
   but a person of understanding walks straight ahead. 
Without counsel, plans go wrong,
   but with many advisers they succeed. 
To make an apt answer is a joy to anyone,
   and a word in season, how good it is! 
For the wise the path of life leads upwards,
   in order to avoid Sheol below. 
The Lord tears down the house of the proud,
   but maintains the widow’s boundaries. 
Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord,
   but gracious words are pure. 
Those who are greedy for unjust gain make trouble for their households,
   but those who hate bribes will live. 
The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer,
   but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil. 
The Lord is far from the wicked,
   but he hears the prayer of the righteous. 
The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,
   and good news refreshes the body. 
The ear that heeds wholesome admonition
   will lodge among the wise. 
Those who ignore instruction despise themselves,
   but those who heed admonition gain understanding. 
The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom,
   and humility goes before honour.
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1 Timothy 1:18-2:8

I am giving you these instructions, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies made earlier about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, having faith and a good conscience. By rejecting conscience, certain persons have suffered shipwreck in the faith; among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have turned over to Satan, so that they may learn not to blaspheme. 

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings should be made for everyone, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For
there is one God;
   there is also one mediator between God and humankind,
Christ Jesus, himself human, 
   who gave himself a ransom for all
—this was attested at the right time. For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth,* I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

 I desire, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or argument;
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Matthew 12:33-42

‘Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure. I tell you, on the day of judgement you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.’
 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, ‘Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.’ But he answered them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was for three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth. The people of Nineveh will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of Jonah, and see, something greater than Jonah is here! The queen of the South will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and see, something greater than Solomon is here!
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Morning Psalms: Psalm 26, 28

Psalm 26

Vindicate me, O Lord,
   for I have walked in my integrity,
   and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. 
Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
   test my heart and mind. 
For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
   and I walk in faithfulness to you.* 

I do not sit with the worthless,
   nor do I consort with hypocrites; 
I hate the company of evildoers,
   and will not sit with the wicked. 

I wash my hands in innocence,
   and go around your altar, O Lord, 
singing aloud a song of thanksgiving,
   and telling all your wondrous deeds. 

O Lord, I love the house in which you dwell,
   and the place where your glory abides. 
Do not sweep me away with sinners,
   nor my life with the bloodthirsty, 
those in whose hands are evil devices,
   and whose right hands are full of bribes. 

But as for me, I walk in my integrity;
   redeem me, and be gracious to me. 
My foot stands on level ground;
   in the great congregation I will bless the Lord.

Psalm 28

To you, O Lord, I call;
   my rock, do not refuse to hear me,
for if you are silent to me,
   I shall be like those who go down to the Pit. 
Hear the voice of my supplication,
   as I cry to you for help,
as I lift up my hands
   towards your most holy sanctuary.* 

Do not drag me away with the wicked,
   with those who are workers of evil,
who speak peace with their neighbours,
   while mischief is in their hearts. 
Repay them according to their work,
   and according to the evil of their deeds;
repay them according to the work of their hands;
   render them their due reward. 
Because they do not regard the works of the Lord,
   or the work of his hands,
he will break them down and build them up no more. 

Blessed be the Lord,
   for he has heard the sound of my pleadings. 
The Lord is my strength and my shield;
   in him my heart trusts;
so I am helped, and my heart exults,
   and with my song I give thanks to him. 

The Lord is the strength of his people;
   he is the saving refuge of his anointed. 
O save your people, and bless your heritage;
   be their shepherd, and carry them for ever.
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Evening Psalms: Psalm 36, 39

Psalm 36

Transgression speaks to the wicked
   deep in their hearts;
there is no fear of God
   before their eyes. 
For they flatter themselves in their own eyes
   that their iniquity cannot be found out and hated. 
The words of their mouths are mischief and deceit;
   they have ceased to act wisely and do good. 
They plot mischief while on their beds;
   they are set on a way that is not good;
   they do not reject evil. 

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
   your faithfulness to the clouds. 
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
   your judgements are like the great deep;
   you save humans and animals alike, O Lord. 

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
   All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings. 
They feast on the abundance of your house,
   and you give them drink from the river of your delights. 
For with you is the fountain of life;
   in your light we see light. 

O continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
   and your salvation to the upright of heart! 
Do not let the foot of the arrogant tread on me,
   or the hand of the wicked drive me away. 
There the evildoers lie prostrate;
   they are thrust down, unable to rise.

Psalm 39

I said, ‘I will guard my ways
   that I may not sin with my tongue;
I will keep a muzzle on my mouth
   as long as the wicked are in my presence.’ 
I was silent and still;
   I held my peace to no avail;
my distress grew worse, 
   my heart became hot within me.
While I mused, the fire burned;
   then I spoke with my tongue: 

‘Lord, let me know my end,
   and what is the measure of my days;
   let me know how fleeting my life is. 
You have made my days a few handbreadths,
   and my lifetime is as nothing in your sight.
Surely everyone stands as a mere breath. 
          Selah 
   Surely everyone goes about like a shadow.
Surely for nothing they are in turmoil;
   they heap up, and do not know who will gather. 

‘And now, O Lord, what do I wait for?
   My hope is in you. 
Deliver me from all my transgressions.
   Do not make me the scorn of the fool. 
I am silent; I do not open my mouth,
   for it is you who have done it. 
Remove your stroke from me;
   I am worn down by the blows* of your hand. 

‘You chastise mortals
   in punishment for sin,
consuming like a moth what is dear to them;
   surely everyone is a mere breath. 
          Selah

‘Hear my prayer, O Lord,
   and give ear to my cry;
   do not hold your peace at my tears.
For I am your passing guest,
   an alien, like all my forebears. 
Turn your gaze away from me, that I may smile again,
   before I depart and am no more.’
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