Open Word

Semicontinuous (Track 1)

FIRST READING

Deuteronomy 31:14-22

Verse 14. Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, the time of your death is near. Call Joshua and present yourselves at the Tent of Meeting, so that I may commission him.” So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the Tent of Meeting. Verse 15. Then the LORD appeared at the tent in a pillar of cloud, and the cloud stood over the entrance to the tent. Verse 16. And the LORD said to Moses, “You will soon rest with your fathers, and these people will rise up and prostitute themselves with the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake Me and break the covenant I have made with them. Verse 17. On that day My anger will burn against them, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, so that they will be consumed, and many troubles and afflictions will befall them. On that day they will say, ‘Have not these disasters come upon us because our God is no longer with us?’ Verse 18. And on that day I will surely hide My face because of all the evil they have done by turning to other gods. Verse 19. Now therefore, write down for yourselves this song and teach it to the Israelites; have them recite it, so that it may be a witness for Me against them. Verse 20. When I have brought them into the land that I swore to give their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey, they will eat their fill and prosper. Then they will turn to other gods and worship them, and they will reject Me and break My covenant. Verse 21. And when many troubles and afflictions have come upon them, this song will testify against them, because it will not be forgotten from the lips of their descendants. For I know their inclination, even before I bring them into the land that I swore to give them.” Verse 22. So that very day Moses wrote down this song and taught it to the Israelites.

PSALM

Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17

A prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, You have been our dwelling place through all generations.

Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.

You return man to dust, saying, “Return, O sons of mortals.”

For in Your sight a thousand years are but a day that passes, or a watch of the night.

You sweep them away in their sleep; they are like the new grass of the morning—

in the morning it springs up new, but by evening it fades and withers.

Return, O LORD! How long will it be? Have compassion on Your servants.

Satisfy us in the morning with Your loving devotion, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

Make us glad for as many days as You have afflicted us, for as many years as we have seen evil.

May Your work be shown to Your servants, and Your splendor to their children.

May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish for us the work of our hands— yes, establish the work of our hands!

Complementary (Track 2)

FIRST READING

Numbers 5:5-10

Verse 5. And the LORD said to Moses, Verse 6. “Tell the Israelites that when a man or woman acts unfaithfully against the LORD by committing any sin against another, that person is guilty Verse 7. and must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution, add a fifth to its value, and give all this to the one he has wronged. Verse 8. But if the man has no relative to whom restitution can be made for the wrong, the restitution belongs to the LORD and must be given to the priest along with the ram of atonement, by which the atonement is made for him. Verse 9. Every sacred contribution the Israelites bring to the priest shall belong to him. Verse 10. Each man’s sacred gifts are his own, but whatever he gives to the priest will belong to the priest.”

PSALM

Psalm 1

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers.

But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.

Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

SECOND READING

Titus 1:5-16

Verse 5. The reason I left you in Crete was that you would set in order what was unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you. Verse 6. An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, having children who are believers and who are not open to accusation of indiscretion or insubordination. Verse 7. As God’s steward, an overseer must be above reproach — not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not greedy for money. Verse 8. Instead, he must be hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. Verse 9. He must hold firmly to the faithful word as it was taught, so that he can encourage others by sound teaching and refute those who contradict it. Verse 10. For many are rebellious and full of empty talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision, Verse 11. who must be silenced. For the sake of dishonorable gain, they undermine entire households and teach things they should not. Verse 12. As one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” Verse 13. This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sternly, so that they will be sound in the faith Verse 14. and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of men who have rejected the truth. Verse 15. To the pure, all things are pure; but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure. Indeed, both their minds and their consciences are defiled. Verse 16. They profess to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed.