Sunday Lectionary Readings

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The Collect

Third Sunday of Easter
O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: Open the eyes of our faith, that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Preface of Easter

Old Testament Reading

Acts 9:1-19
¹Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest ²and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. ³As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. ⁴Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" ⁵And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" Then the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads." ⁶So he, trembling and astonished, said, "Lord, what do You want me to do?" Then the Lord said to him, "Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." ⁷And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. ⁸Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. ⁹And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. ¹⁰Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and to him the Lord said in a vision, "Ananias." And he said, "Here I am, Lord." ¹¹So the Lord said to him, "Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. ¹²And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight." ¹³Then Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. ¹⁴And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name." ¹⁵But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. ¹⁶For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake." ¹⁷And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit." ¹⁸Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized. ¹⁹So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. -- NKJV

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Jeremiah 32:36-41
³⁶"Now therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, 'It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: ³⁷Behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in My anger, in My fury, and in great wrath; I will bring them back to this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely. ³⁸They shall be My people, and I will be their God; ³⁹then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them and their children after them. ⁴⁰And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me. ⁴¹Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will assuredly plant them in this land, with all My heart and with all My soul.' -- NKJV

Psalm

Psalm 33
¹Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous!
For praise from the upright is beautiful.

²Praise the LORD with the harp;
Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.

³Sing to Him a new song;
Play skillfully with a shout of joy.

⁴For the word of the LORD is right,
And all His work is done in truth.

⁵He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.

⁶By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.

⁷He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.

⁸Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

⁹For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

¹⁰The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.

¹¹The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.

¹²Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.

¹³The LORD looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of men.

¹⁴From the place of His dwelling He looks
On all the inhabitants of the earth;

¹⁵He fashions their hearts individually;
He considers all their works.

¹⁶No king is saved by the multitude of an army;
A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.

¹⁷A horse is a vain hope for safety;
Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.

¹⁸Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,
On those who hope in His mercy,

¹⁹To deliver their soul from death,
And to keep them alive in famine.

²⁰Our soul waits for the LORD;
He is our help and our shield.

²¹For our heart shall rejoice in Him,
Because we have trusted in His holy name.

²²Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us,
Just as we hope in You.
-- NKJV

- OR -

Psalm 33:1-11
¹Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous!
For praise from the upright is beautiful.

²Praise the LORD with the harp;
Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.

³Sing to Him a new song;
Play skillfully with a shout of joy.

⁴For the word of the LORD is right,
And all His work is done in truth.

⁵He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.

⁶By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.

⁷He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.

⁸Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

⁹For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

¹⁰The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.

¹¹The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.

-- NKJV

New Testament Reading

Revelation 5:6-14
⁶And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. ⁸Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. ⁹And they sang a new song, saying: " You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, ¹⁰And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth." ¹¹Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, ¹²saying with a loud voice: " Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!" ¹³And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: " Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!" ¹⁴Then the four living creatures said, "Amen!" And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever. -- NKJV

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Gospel Reading

John 21:1-14
¹After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: ²Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. ³Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing." They said to him, "We are going with you also." They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing. ⁴But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. ⁵Then Jesus said to them, "Children, have you any food?" They answered Him, "No." ⁶And He said to them, "Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some." So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. ⁷Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea. ⁸But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish. ⁹Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. ¹⁰Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish which you have just caught." ¹¹Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken. ¹²Jesus said to them, "Come and eat breakfast." Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, "Who are You?"-knowing that it was the Lord. ¹³Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. ¹⁴This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead. -- NKJV

The Preface

Preface of Easter
But chiefly are we bound to praise you for the glorious resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; for he is the true Paschal Lamb, who was sacrificed for us, and has taken away the sin of the world. By his death he has destroyed death, and by his rising to life again he has won for us everlasting life.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version.
(Unless otherwise noted.)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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