Bible Readings - July 20, 2024

Reading 1

Micah 2:1-5

Woe to those who plan iniquity,

and work out evil on their couches;

In the morning light they accomplish it

when it lies within their power.

They covet fields, and seize them;

houses, and they take them;

They cheat an owner of his house,

a man of his inheritance.

Therefore thus says the LORD:

Behold, I am planning against this race an evil

from which you shall not withdraw your necks;

Nor shall you walk with head high,

for it will be a time of evil.

On that day a satire shall be sung over you,

and there shall be a plaintive chant:

"Our ruin is complete,

our fields are portioned out among our captors,

The fields of my people are measured out,

and no one can get them back!"

Thus you shall have no one

to mark out boundaries by lot

in the assembly of the LORD.

Psalm 10:1-4, 7-8, 12-14

Why, LORD, do you stand afar

and pay no heed in times of trouble?

Arrogant scoundrels pursue the poor;

they trap them by their cunning schemes.

The wicked even boast of their greed;

these robbers curse and scorn the LORD.

In their insolence the wicked boast:

“God does not care; there is no God.”

Their mouths are full of oaths, violence, and lies;

discord and evil are under their tongues.

They wait in ambush near towns;

their eyes watch for the helpless

to murder the innocent in secret.

Rise up, LORD! God, lift up your hand!

Do not forget the poor!

Why should the wicked scorn God,

say in their hearts, “God does not care”?

But you do see;

you take note of misery and sorrow;

you take the matter in hand.

To you the helpless can entrust their cause;

you are the defender of orphans.

see 2 Corinthians 5:19

God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,

and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

Gospel

Matthew 12:14-21

The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus

to put him to death.

When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place.

Many people followed him, and he cured them all,

but he warned them not to make him known.

This was to fulfill what had been spoken through Isaiah the prophet:

Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,

my beloved in whom I delight;

I shall place my Spirit upon him,

and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.

He will not contend or cry out,

nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.

A bruised reed he will not break,

a smoldering wick he will not quench,

until he brings justice to victory.

And in his name the Gentiles will hope.

see 2 Corinthians 5:19

God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,

and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.