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Daily Readings For May 18

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 Saturday, May 18, 2024


Morning Psalm 92

1   It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
          to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2   to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
          and your faithfulness by night,
3   to the music of the lute and the harp,
          to the melody of the lyre.
4   For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your work;
          at the works of your hands I sing for joy.

5   How great are your works, O LORD!
          Your thoughts are very deep!
6   The dullard cannot know,
          the stupid cannot understand this:
7   though the wicked sprout like grass
          and all evildoers flourish,
     they are doomed to destruction forever,
8        but you, O LORD, are on high forever.
9   For your enemies, O LORD,
          for your enemies shall perish;
          all evildoers shall be scattered.

10  But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
          you have poured over me fresh oil.
11  My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
          my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.

12  The righteous flourish like the palm tree,
          and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13  They are planted in the house of the LORD;
          they flourish in the courts of our God.
14  In old age they still produce fruit;
          they are always green and full of sap,
15  showing that the LORD is upright;
          he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

Morning Psalm 149

1   Praise the Lord!
     Sing to the Lord a new song,
          his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
2   Let Israel be glad in its Maker;
          let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
3   Let them praise his name with dancing,
          making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.
4   For the Lord takes pleasure in his people;
          he adorns the humble with victory.
5   Let the faithful exult in glory;
          let them sing for joy on their couches.
6   Let the high praises of God be in their throats
          and two-edged swords in their hands,
7   to execute vengeance on the nations
          and punishment on the peoples,
8   to bind their kings with fetters
          and their nobles with chains of iron,
9   to execute on them the judgment decreed.
          This is glory for all his faithful ones.
     Praise the Lord!

First Reading Ezekiel 36:22-27

22Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. 23I will sanctify my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD, says the Lord GOD, when through you I display my holiness before their eyes. 24I will take you from the nations, and gather you from all the countries, and bring you into your own land. 25I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27I will put my spirit within you, and make you follow my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances.

Second Reading Ephesians 6:1-24

1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2"Honor your father and mother" - this is the first commandment with a promise: 3"so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."

4And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ; 6not only while being watched, and in order to please them, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. 7Render service with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not to men and women, 8knowing that whatever good we do, we will receive the same again from the Lord, whether we are slaves or free.

9And, masters, do the same to them. Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Master in heaven, and with him there is no partiality.

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. 15As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. 16With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. 19Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.

21So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus will tell you everything. He is a dear brother and a faithful minister in the Lord. 22I am sending him to you for this very purpose, to let you know how we are, and to encourage your hearts.

23Peace be to the whole community, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24Grace be with all who have an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ.

Gospel Reading Matthew 9:18-26

18While he was saying these things to them, suddenly a leader of the synagogue came in and knelt before him, saying, "My daughter has just died; but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live." 19And Jesus got up and followed him, with his disciples. 20Then suddenly a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak, 21for she said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well." 22Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, "Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well." And instantly the woman was made well. 23When Jesus came to the leader's house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, 24he said, "Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping." And they laughed at him. 25But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. 26And the report of this spread throughout that district.

Evening Psalm 23

1   The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
2        He makes me lie down in green pastures;
     he leads me beside still waters;
3        he restores my soul.
     He leads me in right paths
          for his name’s sake.

4   Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
          I fear no evil;
     for you are with me;
          your rod and your staff —
          they comfort me.


5   You prepare a table before me
          in the presence of my enemies;
     you anoint my head with oil;
          my cup overflows.
6   Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
          all the days of my life,
     and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
          my whole life long.

Evening Psalm 114

1   When Israel went out from Egypt,
          the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,
2   Judah became God’s sanctuary,
          Israel his dominion.


3   The sea looked and fled;
          Jordan turned back.
4   The mountains skipped like rams,
          the hills like lambs.


5   Why is it, O sea, that you flee?
          O Jordan, that you turn back?
6   O mountains, that you skip like rams?
          O hills, like lambs?


7   Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the LORD,
          at the presence of the God of Jacob,
8   who turns the rock into a pool of water,
          the flint into a spring of water.