Daily Reading for Sunday, June 30th, 2013

Reading 1, First Kings 19:16-21

¹⁶ You must anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat, of Abel-Meholah, as prophet to succeed you.

¹⁷ Anyone who escapes the sword of Hazael will be put to death by Jehu; and anyone who escapes the sword of Jehu will be put to death by Elisha.

¹⁸ But I shall spare seven thousand in Israel; all the knees that have not bent before Baal, all the mouths that have not kissed him.'

¹⁹ Leaving there, he came on Elisha son of Shaphat as he was ploughing behind twelve yoke of oxen, he himself being with the twelfth. Elijah passed near to him and threw his cloak over him.

²⁰ Elisha left his oxen and ran after Elijah. 'Let me kiss my father and mother, then I will follow you,' he said. Elijah answered, 'Go, go back; for have I done anything to you?'

²¹ Elisha turned away, took a yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He used the oxen's tackle for cooking the meat, which he gave the people to eat. He then rose and, following Elijah, became his servant.

Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11

¹ [In a quiet voice Of David] Protect me, O God, in you is my refuge.

² To Yahweh I say, 'You are my Lord, my happiness is in none

⁵ My birthright, my cup is Yahweh; you, you alone, hold my lot secure.

⁷ I bless Yahweh who is my counsellor, even at night my heart instructs me.

⁸ I keep Yahweh before me always, for with him at my right hand, nothing can shake me.

⁹ So my heart rejoices, my soul delights, my body too will rest secure,

¹⁰ for you will not abandon me to Sheol, you cannot allow your faithful servant to see the abyss.

¹¹ You will teach me the path of life, unbounded joy in your presence, at your right hand delight for ever.

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Gospel, Luke 9:51-62

⁵¹ Now it happened that as the time drew near for him to be taken up, he resolutely turned his face towards Jerusalem

⁵² and sent messengers ahead of him. These set out, and they went into a Samaritan village to make preparations for him,

⁵³ but the people would not receive him because he was making for Jerusalem.

⁵⁴ Seeing this, the disciples James and John said, 'Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to burn them up?'

⁵⁵ But he turned and rebuked them,

⁵⁶ and they went on to another village.

⁵⁷ As they travelled along they met a man on the road who said to him, 'I will follow you wherever you go.'

⁵⁸ Jesus answered, 'Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.'

⁵⁹ Another to whom he said, 'Follow me,' replied, 'Let me go and bury my father first.'

⁶⁰ But he answered, 'Leave the dead to bury their dead; your duty is to go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.'

⁶¹ Another said, 'I will follow you, sir, but first let me go and say good -- bye to my people at home.'

⁶² Jesus said to him, 'Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.'

Reading 2, Galatians 5:1, 13-18

¹ Christ set us free, so that we should remain free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be fastened again to the yoke of slavery.

¹³ After all, brothers, you were called to be free; do not use your freedom as an opening for self-indulgence, but be servants to one another in love,

¹⁴ since the whole of the Law is summarised in the one commandment: You must love your neighbour as yourself.

¹⁵ If you go snapping at one another and tearing one another to pieces, take care: you will be eaten up by one another.

¹⁶ Instead, I tell you, be guided by the Spirit, and you will no longer yield to self-indulgence.

¹⁷ The desires of self-indulgence are always in opposition to the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are in opposition to self-indulgence: they are opposites, one against the other; that is how you are prevented from doing the things that you want to.

¹⁸ But when you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.

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