Reflecting on the Twentieth
Sunday after Pentecost
Year B

Daily Readings for Tuesday
October 8, 2024

Prayer

Mighty and powerful God, 

through Jesus Christ our Savior 

you come to save people in all times and places, 

offering them new life in your presence. 

Give us open hearts to receive your Chosen One, 

that through him we may dwell with you 

as faithful and committed disciples. Amen.

 

Psalm 55:1-15

It is not enemies who taunt me

 

Give ear to my prayer, O God;

do not hide yourself from my supplication.

Attend to me, and answer me;

I am troubled in my complaint.

I am distraught by the noise of the enemy,

because of the clamor of the wicked.

For they bring trouble upon me,

and in anger they cherish enmity against me.

My heart is in anguish within me,

the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

Fear and trembling come upon me,

and horror overwhelms me.

And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove!

I would fly away and be at rest;

truly, I would flee far away;

I would lodge in the wilderness;    Selah

I would hurry to find a shelter for myself

from the raging wind and tempest.”

Confuse, O Lord, confound their speech;

for I see violence and strife in the city.

Day and night they go around it

on its walls,

and iniquity and trouble are within it;

ruin is in its midst;

oppression and fraud

do not depart from its marketplace.

It is not enemies who taunt me—

I could bear that;

it is not adversaries who deal insolently with me—

I could hide from them.

But it is you, my equal,

my companion, my familiar friend,

with whom I kept pleasant company;

we walked in the house of God with the throng.

Let death come upon them;

let them go down alive to Sheol;

for evil is in their homes and in their hearts.

 

Job 11:1-20

Zophar’s first speech

 

Then Zophar the Naamathite answered:

 

“Should a multitude of words go unanswered,

and should one full of talk be vindicated?

Should your babble put others to silence,

and when you mock, shall no one shame you?

For you say, ‘My conduct is pure,

and I am clean in God’s sight.’

But O that God would speak,

and open his lips to you,

and that he would tell you the secrets of wisdom!

For wisdom is many-sided.

Know then that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves.

“Can you find out the deep things of God?

Can you find out the limit of the Almighty?

It is higher than heaven—what can you do?

Deeper than Sheol—what can you know?

Its measure is longer than the earth,

and broader than the sea.

If he passes through, and imprisons,

and assembles for judgment, who can hinder him?

For he knows those who are worthless;

when he sees iniquity, will he not consider it?

But a stupid person will get understanding,

when a wild ass is born human.

“If you direct your heart rightly,

you will stretch out your hands toward him.

If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,

and do not let wickedness reside in your tents.

Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish;

you will be secure, and will not fear.

You will forget your misery;

you will remember it as waters that have passed away.

And your life will be brighter than the noonday;

its darkness will be like the morning.

And you will have confidence, because there is hope;

you will be protected and take your rest in safety.

You will lie down, and no one will make you afraid;

many will entreat your favor.

But the eyes of the wicked will fail;

all way of escape will be lost to them,

and their hope is to breathe their last.”

 

1 Corinthians 7:10-16

Divorce discouraged

 

To the married I give this command—not I but the Lord—that the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does separate, let her remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not divorce his wife.

 

To the rest I say—I and not the Lord—that if any believer has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. And if any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is made holy through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy through her husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so; in such a case the brother or sister is not bound. It is to peace that God has called you. Wife, for all you know, you might save your husband. Husband, for all you know, you might save your wife.

 

 

Prayer

Sovereign God, 

you make us for each other, 

to live in loving community 

as friends, sons and daughters, 

sisters and brothers, wives and husbands, 

partners and companions. 

Teach us to choose love 

that is committed and devoted; 

teach us like little children 

to wonder and to trust, 

that our loving may reflect the image of Christ. Amen.

 

Psalm 112

Happy are those who fear God

 

Praise the Lord!

Happy are those who fear the Lord,

who greatly delight in his commandments.

Their descendants will be mighty in the land;

the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are in their houses,

and their righteousness endures forever.

They rise in the darkness as a light for the upright;

they are gracious, merciful, and righteous.

It is well with those who deal generously and lend,

who conduct their affairs with justice.

For the righteous will never be moved;

they will be remembered forever.

They are not afraid of evil tidings;

their hearts are firm, secure in the Lord.

Their hearts are steady, they will not be afraid;

in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.

They have distributed freely, they have given to the poor;

their righteousness endures forever;

their horn is exalted in honor.

The wicked see it and are angry;

they gnash their teeth and melt away;

the desire of the wicked comes to nothing.

 

Deuteronomy 24:1-5

Laws about divorce

 

Suppose a man enters into marriage with a woman, but she does not please him because he finds something objectionable about her, and so he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house; she then leaves his house and goes off to become another man’s wife. Then suppose the second man dislikes her, writes her a bill of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house (or the second man who married her dies); her first husband, who sent her away, is not permitted to take her again to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that would be abhorrent to the Lord, and you shall not bring guilt on the land that the Lord your God is giving you as a possession.

 

When a man is newly married, he shall not go out with the army or be charged with any related duty. He shall be free at home one year, to be happy with the wife whom he has married.

 

1 Corinthians 7:10-16

Divorce discouraged

 

To the married I give this command—not I but the Lord—that the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does separate, let her remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not divorce his wife.

 

To the rest I say—I and not the Lord—that if any believer has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. And if any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is made holy through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy through her husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so; in such a case the brother or sister is not bound. It is to peace that God has called you. Wife, for all you know, you might save your husband. Husband, for all you know, you might save your wife.

 

 

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Prayer reprinted from Revised Common Lectionary Prayers, © 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. Reproduced by permission.

Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings copyright © 2005 Consultation on Common Texts admin. Augsburg Fortress. Reproduced by permission. No further reproduction allowed without the written permission of Augsburg Fortress.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.


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