Open Word

Semicontinuous (Track 1)

FIRST READING

Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17

Text not available in the Berean Standard Bible.

PSALM

Psalm 127

A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.

In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for bread to eat — for He gives sleep to His beloved.

Children are indeed a heritage from the LORD, and the fruit of the womb is His reward.

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are children born in one’s youth.

Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. He will not be put to shame when he confronts the enemies at the gate.

Complementary (Track 2)

FIRST READING

1 Kings 17:8-16

Verse 8. Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah: Verse 9. “Get up and go to Zarephath of Sidon, and stay there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” Verse 10. So Elijah got up and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the city gate, there was a widow gathering sticks. Elijah called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, so that I may drink.” Verse 11. And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread.” Verse 12. But she replied, “As surely as the LORD your God lives, I have no bread— only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. Look, I am gathering a couple of sticks to take home and prepare a meal for myself and my son, so that we may eat it and die.” Verse 13. “Do not be afraid,” Elijah said to her. “Go and do as you have said. But first make me a small cake of bread from what you have, and bring it out to me. Afterward, make some for yourself and your son, Verse 14. for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be exhausted and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain upon the face of the earth.’” Verse 15. So she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and there was food every day for Elijah and the woman and her household. Verse 16. The jar of flour was not exhausted and the jug of oil did not run dry, according to the word that the LORD had spoken through Elijah.

PSALM

Psalm 146

Hallelujah! Praise the LORD, O my soul.

I will praise the LORD all my life; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save.

When his spirit departs, he returns to the ground; on that very day his plans perish.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,

the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He remains faithful forever.

He executes justice for the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free,

the LORD opens the eyes of the blind, the LORD lifts those who are weighed down, the LORD loves the righteous.

The LORD protects foreigners; He sustains the fatherless and the widow, but the ways of the wicked He frustrates.

The LORD reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Hallelujah!

SECOND READING

Hebrews 9:24-28

Verse 24. For Christ did not enter a man-made copy of the true sanctuary, but He entered heaven itself, now to appear on our behalf in the presence of God. Verse 25. Nor did He enter heaven to offer Himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Verse 26. Otherwise, Christ would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Verse 27. Just as man is appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment, Verse 28. so also Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him.

GOSPEL

Mark 12:38-44

Verse 38. In His teaching Jesus also said, “Watch out for the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, to receive greetings in the marketplaces, Verse 39. and to have the chief seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. Verse 40. They defraud widows of their houses, and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will receive greater condemnation.” Verse 41. As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. Verse 42. Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius. Verse 43. Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury. Verse 44. For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”