Open Word

Semicontinuous (Track 1)

FIRST READING

Jeremiah 23:23-32

Verse 23. “Am I only a God nearby,” declares the LORD, “and not a God far away?” Verse 24. “Can a man hide in secret places where I cannot see him?” declares the LORD. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the LORD. Verse 25. “I have heard the sayings of the prophets who prophesy lies in My name: ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’ Verse 26. How long will this continue in the hearts of these prophets who prophesy falsehood, these prophets of the delusion of their own minds? Verse 27. They suppose the dreams that they tell one another will make My people forget My name, just as their fathers forgot My name through the worship of Baal. Verse 28. Let the prophet who has a dream retell it, but let him who has My word speak it truthfully. For what is straw compared to grain?” declares the LORD. Verse 29. “Is not My word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that smashes a rock?” Verse 30. “Therefore behold,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words they attribute to Me.” Verse 31. “Yes,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and proclaim, ‘The LORD declares it.’” Verse 32. “Indeed,” declares the LORD, “I am against those who prophesy false dreams and retell them to lead My people astray with their reckless lies. It was not I who sent them or commanded them, and they are of no benefit at all to these people,” declares the LORD.

PSALM

Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say to the LORD, “You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly plague.

He will cover you with His feathers; under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and rampart.

You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day,

nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the calamity that destroys at noon.

“Because he loves Me, I will deliver him; because he knows My name, I will protect him.

When he calls out to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.”

Complementary (Track 2)

FIRST READING

Proverbs 28:3-10

Verse 3. A destitute leader who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no food. Verse 4. Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law resist them. Verse 5. Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD comprehend fully. Verse 6. Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a rich man whose ways are perverse. Verse 7. A discerning son keeps the law, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father. Verse 8. He who increases his wealth by interest and usury lays it up for one who is kind to the poor. Verse 9. Whoever turns his ear away from hearing the law, even his prayer is detestable. Verse 10. He who leads the upright along the path of evil will fall into his own pit, but the blameless will inherit what is good.

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

Ephesians 2:1-10

Verse 1. And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, Verse 2. in which you used to walk when you conformed to the ways of this world and of the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit who is now at work in the sons of disobedience. Verse 3. All of us also lived among them at one time, fulfilling the cravings of our flesh and indulging its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature children of wrath. Verse 4. But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, Verse 5. made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved! Verse 6. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, Verse 7. in order that in the coming ages He might display the surpassing riches of His grace, demonstrated by His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. Verse 8. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, Verse 9. not by works, so that no one can boast. Verse 10. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.