Saturday 23 May 2015 DAILY LECTIONARY

[Daily Lectionary]

Saturday 23 May 2015
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Ezekiel 43:1-12

Then he brought me to the gate, the gate facing east. And there, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east; the sound was like the sound of mighty waters; and the earth shone with his glory. The* vision I saw was like the vision that I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and* like the vision that I had seen by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face. As the glory of the Lord entered the temple by the gate facing east, the spirit lifted me up, and brought me into the inner court; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

 While the man was standing beside me, I heard someone speaking to me out of the temple. He said to me: Mortal, this is the place of my throne and the place for the soles of my feet, where I will reside among the people of Israel for ever. The house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they nor their kings, by their whoring, and by the corpses of their kings at their death.* When they placed their threshold by my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them, they were defiling my holy name by their abominations that they committed; therefore I have consumed them in my anger. Now let them put away their idolatry and the corpses of their kings far from me, and I will reside among them for ever.

 As for you, mortal, describe the temple to the house of Israel, and let them measure the pattern; and let them be ashamed of their iniquities. When they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the plan of the temple, its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, and its whole form—all its ordinances and its entire plan and all its laws; and write it down in their sight, so that they may observe and follow the entire plan and all its ordinances. This is the law of the temple: the whole territory on the top of the mountain all around shall be most holy. This is the law of the temple.
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Hebrews 9:1-14

Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly sanctuary. For a tent* was constructed, the first one, in which were the lampstand, the table, and the bread of the Presence;* this is called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain was a tent* called the Holy of Holies. In it stood the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which there were a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy-seat.* Of these things we cannot speak now in detail.

 Such preparations having been made, the priests go continually into the first tent* to carry out their ritual duties; but only the high priest goes into the second, and he but once a year, and not without taking the blood that he offers for himself and for the sins committed unintentionally by the people. By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the sanctuary has not yet been disclosed as long as the first tent* is still standing. This is a symbol* of the present time, during which gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshipper, but deal only with food and drink and various baptisms, regulations for the body imposed until the time comes to set things right.

 But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come,* then through the greater and perfect* tent* (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit* offered himself without blemish to God, purify our* conscience from dead works to worship the living God!
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Luke 11:14-23
 
Now he was casting out a demon that was mute; when the demon had gone out, the one who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were amazed. But some of them said, ‘He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.’ Others, to test him, kept demanding from him a sign from heaven. But he knew what they were thinking and said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself becomes a desert, and house falls on house. If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? —for you say that I cast out the demons by Beelzebul. Now if I cast out the demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your exorcists* cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. When a strong man, fully armed, guards his castle, his property is safe. But when one stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away his armour in which he trusted and divides his plunder. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
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Morning Psalms: Psalm 107:33-43, 108:1-13

Psalm 107:33-43

He turns rivers into a desert,
   springs of water into thirsty ground, 
a fruitful land into a salty waste,
   because of the wickedness of its inhabitants. 
He turns a desert into pools of water,
   a parched land into springs of water. 
And there he lets the hungry live,
   and they establish a town to live in; 
they sow fields, and plant vineyards,
   and get a fruitful yield. 
By his blessing they multiply greatly,
   and he does not let their cattle decrease. 


When they are diminished and brought low
   through oppression, trouble, and sorrow, 
he pours contempt on princes
   and makes them wander in trackless wastes; 
but he raises up the needy out of distress,
   and makes their families like flocks. 
The upright see it and are glad;
   and all wickedness stops its mouth. 
Let those who are wise give heed to these things,
   and consider the steadfast love of the Lord.



Psalm 108:1-13

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;*
   I will sing and make melody.
   Awake, my soul!* 
Awake, O harp and lyre!
   I will awake the dawn. 
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples,
   and I will sing praises to you among the nations. 
For your steadfast love is higher than the heavens,
   and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. 


Be exalted, O God, above the heavens,
   and let your glory be over all the earth. 
Give victory with your right hand, and answer me,
   so that those whom you love may be rescued. 


God has promised in his sanctuary:*
   ‘With exultation I will divide up Shechem,
   and portion out the Vale of Succoth. 
Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;
   Ephraim is my helmet;
   Judah is my sceptre. 
Moab is my wash-basin;
   on Edom I hurl my shoe;
   over Philistia I shout in triumph.’ 


Who will bring me to the fortified city?
   Who will lead me to Edom? 
Have you not rejected us, O God?
   You do not go out, O God, with our armies. 
O grant us help against the foe,
   for human help is worthless. 
With God we shall do valiantly;
   it is he who will tread down our foes.
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Eve of Pentecost Readings

Exodus 19:3-8a

Then Moses went up to God; the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, ‘Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the Israelites: You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples. Indeed, the whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the Israelites.’

 So Moses came, summoned the elders of the people, and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. The people all answered as one: ‘Everything that the Lord has spoken we will do.’ Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.

 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, as well as a thick cloud on the mountain, and a blast of a trumpet so loud that all the people who were in the camp trembled. Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God. They took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the Lord had descended upon it in fire; the smoke went up like the smoke of a kiln, while the whole mountain shook violently. As the blast of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses would speak and God would answer him in thunder. When the Lord descended upon Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain, the Lord summoned Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
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1 Peter 2:4-10

Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built* into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in scripture:
‘See, I am laying in Zion a stone,
   a cornerstone chosen and precious;
and whoever believes in him* will not be put to shame.’ 
To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe,
‘The stone that the builders rejected
   has become the very head of the corner’, 
and
‘A stone that makes them stumble,
   and a rock that makes them fall.’
They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people,* in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. 
Once you were not a people,
   but now you are God’s people;
once you had not received mercy,
   but now you have received mercy.
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Psalm 33

Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous.
   Praise befits the upright. 
Praise the Lord with the lyre;
   make melody to him with the harp of ten strings. 
Sing to him a new song;
   play skilfully on the strings, with loud shouts. 


For the word of the Lord is upright,
   and all his work is done in faithfulness. 
He loves righteousness and justice;
   the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. 


By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
   and all their host by the breath of his mouth. 
He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle;
   he put the deeps in storehouses. 


Let all the earth fear the Lord;
   let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. 
For he spoke, and it came to be;
   he commanded, and it stood firm. 


The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
   he frustrates the plans of the peoples. 
The counsel of the Lord stands for ever,
   the thoughts of his heart to all generations. 
Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord,
   the people whom he has chosen as his heritage. 


The Lord looks down from heaven;
   he sees all humankind. 
From where he sits enthroned he watches
   all the inhabitants of the earth— 
he who fashions the hearts of them all,
   and observes all their deeds. 
A king is not saved by his great army;
   a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. 
The war horse is a vain hope for victory,
   and by its great might it cannot save. 


Truly the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
   on those who hope in his steadfast love, 
to deliver their soul from death,
   and to keep them alive in famine. 


Our soul waits for the Lord;
   he is our help and shield. 
Our heart is glad in him,
   because we trust in his holy name. 
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
   even as we hope in you.
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