Open Word

Semicontinuous (Track 1)

FIRST READING

1 Chronicles 15:1-2, 16:4-13

Verse 1. David constructed buildings for himself in the City of David, and he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it. Verse 2. Then David said, “No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the LORD has chosen them to carry the ark of the LORD and to minister before Him forever.”

PSALM

Psalm 89:20-37

I have found My servant David; with My sacred oil I have anointed him.

My hand will sustain him; surely My arm will strengthen him.

No enemy will exact tribute; no wicked man will oppress him.

I will crush his foes before him and strike down those who hate him.

My faithfulness and loving devotion will be with him, and through My name his horn will be exalted.

I will set his hand over the sea, and his right hand upon the rivers.

He will call to Me, ‘You are my Father, my God, the Rock of my salvation.’

I will indeed appoint him as My firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.

I will forever preserve My loving devotion for him, and My covenant with him will stand fast.

I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure.

If his sons forsake My law and do not walk in My judgments,

if they violate My statutes and fail to keep My commandments,

I will attend to their transgression with the rod, and to their iniquity with stripes.

But I will not withdraw My loving devotion from him, nor ever betray My faithfulness.

I will not violate My covenant or alter the utterance of My lips.

Once and for all I have sworn by My holiness — I will not lie to David —

his offspring shall endure forever, and his throne before Me like the sun,

like the moon, established forever, a faithful witness in the sky.”

Complementary (Track 2)

FIRST READING

Jeremiah 12:1-13

Verse 1. Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead before You. Yet about Your judgments I wish to contend with You: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease? Verse 2. You planted them, and they have taken root. They have grown and produced fruit. You are ever on their lips, but far from their hearts. Verse 3. But You know me, O LORD; You see me and test my heart toward You. Drag away the wicked like sheep to the slaughter and set them apart for the day of carnage. Verse 4. How long will the land mourn and the grass of every field be withered? Because of the evil of its residents, the animals and birds have been swept away, for the people have said, “He cannot see what our end will be.” Verse 5. “If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in a peaceful land, how will you do in the thickets of the Jordan? Verse 6. Even your brothers— your own father’s household— even they have betrayed you; even they have cried aloud against you. Do not trust them, though they speak well of you. Verse 7. I have forsaken My house; I have abandoned My inheritance. I have given the beloved of My soul into the hands of her enemies. Verse 8. My inheritance has become to Me like a lion in the forest. She has roared against Me; therefore I hate her. Verse 9. Is not My inheritance to Me like a speckled bird of prey with other birds of prey circling against her? Go, gather all the beasts of the field; bring them to devour her. Verse 10. Many shepherds have destroyed My vineyard; they have trampled My plot of ground. They have turned My pleasant field into a desolate wasteland. Verse 11. They have made it a desolation; desolate before Me, it mourns. All the land is laid waste, but no man takes it to heart. Verse 12. Over all the barren heights in the wilderness the destroyers have come, for the sword of the LORD devours from one end of the earth to the other. No flesh has peace. Verse 13. They have sown wheat but harvested thorns. They have exhausted themselves to no avail. Bear the shame of your harvest because of the fierce anger of the LORD.”

PSALM

Psalm 23

A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for the sake of His name.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

SECOND READING

Luke 18:35-43

Verse 35. As Jesus drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting beside the road, begging. Verse 36. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. Verse 37. “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by,” they told him. Verse 38. So he called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Verse 39. Those who led the way admonished him to be silent, but he cried out all the louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Verse 40. Jesus stopped and directed that the man be brought to Him. When he had come near, Jesus asked him, Verse 41. “What do you want Me to do for you?” “Lord,” he said, “let me see again.” Verse 42. “Receive your sight!” Jesus replied. “Your faith has healed you.” Verse 43. Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.