Sunday, July 23, 2017
Liturgical Season: 
V The Season of Pentecost
Special Significance: 
VII Sunday after Pentecost
Prophet Ezekiel

Mt 12:30-37

30* p Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31q Therefore, I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit* will not be forgiven. 32And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

A Tree and Its Fruits. 33r “Either declare* the tree good and its fruit is good, or declare the tree rotten and its fruit is rotten, for a tree is known by its fruit. 34* s You brood of vipers, how can you say good things when you are evil? For from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks. 35A good person brings forth good out of a store of goodness, but an evil person brings forth evil out of a store of evil. 36* t I tell you, on the day of judgment people will render an account for every careless word they speak. 37By your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Lv 16:29-34

The Fast. 29l This shall be an everlasting statute for you: on the tenth day of the seventh month every one of you, whether a native or a resident alien, shall humble yourselves* and shall do no work. 30For on this day atonement is made for you to make you clean; of all your sins you will be cleansed before the LORD. 31It shall be a sabbath of complete rest for you, on which you must humble yourselves—an everlasting statute.

32This atonement is to be made by the priest who has been anointed and ordained to the priesthood in succession to his father. He shall wear the linen garments, the sacred vestments, 33and purge the most sacred part of the sanctuary, as well as the tent of meeting, and the altar. He shall also make atonement for the priests and all the people of the assembly. 34This, then, shall be an everlasting statute for you: once a year atonement shall be made on behalf of the Israelites for all their sins. And Moses did as the LORD had commanded him.

1 Sm 4:18-22

18At this mention of the ark of God, Eli fell backward from his chair into the gateway; he died of a broken neck since he was an old man and heavy. He had judged Israel for forty years.

19His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and about to give birth. When she heard the news about the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband, she crouched down in labor, and gave birth. 20She was about to die when the women standing around her said to her, “Do not be afraid, you have given birth to a son.” Yet she neither answered nor paid any attention.e 21She named the child Ichabod, saying, “Gone is the glory from Israel,” referring to the capture of the ark of God and to her father-in-law and her husband. 22She said, “Gone is the glory from Israel,” because the ark of God had been captured.f

Ez 16:1-14

A Parable of Infidelity. 1The word of the LORD came to me: 2Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations.a 3You shall say, Thus says the Lord GOD to Jerusalem: By origin and birth you belong to the land of the Canaanites; your father was an Amorite, your mother a Hittite.* b 4* As for your birth, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut; you were not washed with water or anointed; you were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in swaddling clothes.c 5No eye looked on you with pity or compassion to do any of these things for you. Rather, on the day you were born you were left out in the field, rejected.

6Then I passed by and saw you struggling in your blood, and I said to you in your blood, “Live!” 7I helped you grow up like a field plant, so that you grew, maturing into a woman with breasts developed and hair grown; but still you were stark naked. 8I passed by you again and saw that you were now old enough for love. So I spread the corner of my cloak* over you to cover your nakedness; I swore an oath to you and entered into covenant with you—oracle of the Lord GOD—and you became mine.d 9Then I bathed you with water, washed away your blood, and anointed you with oil.e 10I clothed you with an embroidered gown, put leather sandals on your feet; I gave you a fine linen sash and silk robes to wear.f 11I adorned you with jewelry, putting bracelets on your arms, a necklace about your neck,g 12a ring in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. 13Thus you were adorned with gold and silver; your garments made of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. Fine flour, honey, and olive oil were your food. You were very, very beautiful, fit for royalty.h 14You were renowned among the nations for your beauty, perfected by the splendor I showered on you—oracle of the Lord GOD.

Is 57:15-19

15* For thus says the high and lofty One,

the One who dwells forever, whose name is holy:

I dwell in a high and holy place,

but also with the contrite and lowly of spirit,

To revive the spirit of the lowly,

to revive the heart of the crushed.

16For I will not accuse forever,

nor always be angry;

For without me their spirit fails,

the life breath that I have given.e

17Because of their wicked avarice I grew angry;

I struck them, hiding myself from them in wrath.

But they turned back, following the way

of their own heart.f

18I saw their ways,

but I will heal them.

I will lead them and restore full comfort to them

and to those who mourn for them,g

19creating words of comfort.*

Peace! Peace to those who are far and near,

says the LORD; and I will heal them.

Acts 4:32-37

Life in the Christian Community.* 32The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common. 33With great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great favor was accorded them all. 34j There was no needy person among them, for those who owned property or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, 35and put them at the feet of the apostles, and they were distributed to each according to need.

36k Thus Joseph, also named by the apostles Barnabas (which is translated “son of encouragement”), a Levite, a Cypriot by birth, 37sold a piece of property that he owned, then brought the money and put it at the feet of the apostles.

Col 2:12-15

12You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.i 13j And even when you were dead [in] transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions; 14* obliterating the bond against us, with its legal claims, which was opposed to us, he also removed it from our midst, nailing it to the cross;k 15despoiling the principalities and the powers, he made a public spectacle of them,l leading them away in triumph by it.*

Mk 3:20-30

Blasphemy of the Scribes. 20* He came home.* Again [the] crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat.i 21When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”j 22The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,”* and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons.”k

Jesus and Beelzebul. 23Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand; that is the end of him. 27But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house. 28Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them.l 29But whoever blasphemes against the holy Spirit* will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.” 30For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”