Scripture Readings
The Season After Pentecost
Proper 27 (32) in Year A
For the Sunday during 6 through 12 November
Scripture readings are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® NIV® ©1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society, used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. All rights reserved.
The Scripture quotations labeled NRSV are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright ©1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.
Alternate One:
Old Testament
Psalm
Alternate Two:
Old Testament
Psalm
Epistle Reading
Gospel Reading
Old Testament (Alternate One)
Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel
at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel,
and they presented themselves before God.
Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the
LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your forefathers, including Terah the
father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the River and worshiped other gods.
But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the River and led him throughout
Canaan and gave him many descendants.
“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness.
Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt,
and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose
for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers
served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.
But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
Then the people answered, “Far be it from us to
forsake the LORD to serve other gods! It was the LORD our God himself who brought
us and our fathers up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed
those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and
among all the nations through which we traveled. And the LORD drove out before
us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will
serve the LORD, because he is our God.”
Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to
serve the LORD. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your
rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will
turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good
to you.”
But the people said to Joshua, “No! We will serve
the LORD.”
Then Joshua said, “You are witnesses against yourselves
that you have chosen to serve the LORD.”
“Yes, we are witnesses,” they replied.
“Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign
gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.”
And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the
LORD our God and obey him.”
On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people,
and there at Shechem he drew up for them decrees and laws.
—Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25, NIV
Go
to the top of this pagePsalm (Alternate One)
O my people, hear my teaching;
listen to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter hidden things, things from of old—
what we have heard and known,
what our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children;
we will tell the next generation
the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD,
his power, and the wonders he has done.
He decreed statutes for Jacob
and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our forefathers
to teach their children,
so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,
and they in turn would tell their children.
Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget his deeds
but would keep his commands.
—Psalm 78:1-7, NIV
—OR—
Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her,
and is found by those who seek her.
She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.
One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.
To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,
and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,
because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths,
and meets them in every thought.
—Wisdom of Solomon 6:12-16, NRSV
Old Testament (Alternate Two)
Woe to you who long
for the day of the LORD!
Why do you long for the day of the LORD?
That day will be darkness, not light.
It will be as though a man fled from a lion
only to meet a bear,
as though he entered his house
and rested his hand on the wall
only to have a snake bite him.
Will not the day of the LORD be darkness, not light—
pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
“I hate, I despise your religious feasts;
I cannot stand your assemblies.
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.
Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!
—Amos 5:18-24, NIV
Psalm (Alternate Two)
The beginning of wisdom is the most sincere desire for instruction,
and concern for instruction is love of her,
and love of her is the keeping of her laws,
and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,
and immortality brings one near to God;
so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.
—Wisdom of Solomon 6:17-20, NRSV
—OR—
Be pleased, O God, to deliver me.
O LORD, make haste to help me!
Let those be put to shame and confusion
who seek my life.
Let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
who desire to hurt me.
Let those who say, “Aha, Aha!”
turn back because of their shame.
Let all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you.
Let those who love your salvation
say evermore, “God is great!”
But I am poor and needy;
hasten to me, O God!
You are my help and my deliverer;
O LORD, do not delay!
—Psalm 70, NIV
Epistle
But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers
and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others
do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even
so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. For this we
declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left
until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died.
For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and
with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in
Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught
up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we
will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.
—1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, NIV
Gospel
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this.
Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them
were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took
no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the
bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight
there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then
all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the
wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise
replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go
to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it,
the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding
banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying,
‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know
you.’ Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
—Matthew 25:1-13, NIV
Starting Page > Lectionary > After Pentecost > Top of this Page
