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Daily Readings For August 1

Please note that two distinct lectionaries are provided on this page: the two-year Daily Lectionary from the Book of Common Worship and the three-year Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) for Sundays and festivals; be sure you select the appropriate one.

Daily Readings Sunday/Festival Readings

Daily Readings for Tuesday, August 1, 2023


Morning Psalm 54

1   Save me, O God, by your name,
          and vindicate me by your might.
2   Hear my prayer, O God;
          give ear to the words of my mouth.


3   For the insolent have risen against me,
          the ruthless seek my life;
          they do not set God before them.                              Selah


4   But surely, God is my helper;
          the Lord is the upholder of my life.
5   He will repay my enemies for their evil.
          In your faithfulness, put an end to them.


6   With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
          I will give thanks to your name, O LORD, for it is good.
7   For he has delivered me from every trouble,
          and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.

Morning Psalm 146

1   Praise the LORD!
     Praise the LORD, O my soul!
2   I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
          I will sing praises to my God all my life long.


3   Do not put your trust in princes,
          in mortals, in whom there is no help.
4   When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
          on that very day their plans perish.


5   Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
          whose hope is in the LORD their God,
6   who made heaven and earth,
          the sea, and all that is in them;
     who keeps faith forever;
7        who executes justice for the oppressed;
          who gives food to the hungry.


     The LORD sets the prisoners free;
8        the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
     The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
          the LORD loves the righteous.
9   The LORD watches over the strangers;
          he upholds the orphan and the widow,
          but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.


10  The LORD will reign forever,
          your God, O Zion, for all generations.
     Praise the LORD!

First Reading 2 Samuel 3:6-21

6While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul. 7Now Saul had a concubine whose name was Rizpah daughter of Aiah. And Ishbaal said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?” 8The words of Ishbaal made Abner very angry; he said, “Am I a dog’s head for Judah? Today I keep showing loyalty to the house of your father Saul, to his brothers, and to his friends, and have not given you into the hand of David; and yet you charge me now with a crime concerning this woman. 9So may God do to Abner and so may he add to it! For just what the LORD has sworn to David, that will I accomplish for him, 10to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul, and set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan to Beer-sheba.” 11And Ishbaal could not answer Abner another word, because he feared him.

12Abner sent messengers to David at Hebron, saying, “To whom does the land belong? Make your covenant with me, and I will give you my support to bring all Israel over to you.” 13He said, “Good; I will make a covenant with you. But one thing I require of you: you shall never appear in my presence unless you bring Saul’s daughter Michal when you come to see me.” 14Then David sent messengers to Saul’s son Ishbaal, saying, “Give me my wife Michal, to whom I became engaged at the price of one hundred foreskins of the Philistines.” 15Ishbaal sent and took her from her husband Paltiel the son of Laish. 16But her husband went with her, weeping as he walked behind her all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go back home!” So he went back.

17Abner sent word to the elders of Israel, saying, “For some time past you have been seeking David as king over you. 18Now then bring it about; for the LORD has promised David: Through my servant David I will save my people Israel from the hand of the Philistines, and from all their enemies.” 19Abner also spoke directly to the Benjaminites; then Abner went to tell David at Hebron all that Israel and the whole house of Benjamin were ready to do.

20When Abner came with twenty men to David at Hebron, David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him. 21Abner said to David, “Let me go and rally all Israel to my lord the king, in order that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all that your heart desires.” So David dismissed Abner, and he went away in peace.

Second Reading Acts 16:6-15

6They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7When they had come opposite Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; 8so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

11We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, 12and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. 13On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. 14A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. 15When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us.

Gospel Reading Mark 6:30-46

30The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. 31He said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. 33Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. 34As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 35When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late; 36send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.” 37But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?” 38And he said to them, “How many loaves have you? Go and see.” When they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39Then he ordered them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass. 40So they sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties. 41Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. 42And all ate and were filled; 43and they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.

45Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.

Evening Psalm 28

1   To you, O LORD, I call;
          my rock, do not refuse to hear me,
     for if you are silent to me,
          I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
2   Hear the voice of my supplication,
          as I cry to you for help,
     as I lift up my hands
          toward your most holy sanctuary.


3   Do not drag me away with the wicked,
          with those who are workers of evil,
     who speak peace with their neighbors,
          while mischief is in their hearts.
4   Repay them according to their work,
          and according to the evil of their deeds;
     repay them according to the work of their hands;
          render them their due reward.
5   Because they do not regard the works of the LORD,
          or the work of his hands,
     he will break them down and build them up no more.


6   Blessed be the LORD,
          for he has heard the sound of my pleadings.
7   The LORD is my strength and my shield;
          in him my heart trusts;
     so I am helped, and my heart exults,
          and with my song I give thanks to him.


8   The LORD is the strength of his people;
          he is the saving refuge of his anointed.
9   O save your people, and bless your heritage;
          be their shepherd, and carry them forever.

Evening Psalm 99

1   The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble!
          He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2   The LORD is great in Zion;
          he is exalted over all the peoples.
3   Let them praise your great and awesome name.
          Holy is he!
4   Mighty King, lover of justice,
          you have established equity;
     you have executed justice
          and righteousness in Jacob.
5   Extol the LORD our God;
          worship at his footstool.
          Holy is he!

6   Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
          Samuel also was among those who called on his name.
          They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
7   He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
          they kept his decrees,
          and the statutes that he gave them.


8   O LORD our God, you answered them;
          you were a forgiving God to them,
          but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9   Extol the LORD our God,
          and worship at his holy mountain;
          for the LORD our God is holy.