SUNDAY 24^th August  Trinity 10

FIRST READING Isaiah 58.9–14

A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

You shall call, and the LORD will answer;

you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.

If you remove the yoke from among you,

the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,

if you offer your food to the hungry

and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,

then your light shall rise in the darkness

and your gloom be like the noonday.

The LORD will guide you continually,

and satisfy your needs in parched places,

and make your bones strong;

and you shall be like a watered garden,

like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.

Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;

you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;

you shall be called the repairer of the breach,

the restorer of streets to live in.

If you refrain from trampling the sabbath,

from pursuing your own interests on my holy day;

if you call the sabbath a delight

and the holy day of the LORD honourable;

if you honour it, not going your own ways,

serving your own interests, or pursuing your own affairs;

then you shall take delight in the LORD,

and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth;

I will feed you with the heritage of your ancestor Jacob,

for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

PSALM Psalm 103.1–8

R Bless the Lord, O my soul!

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits. R

3 He forgives all your sins

and heals all your infirmities;

4 He redeems your life from the grave

and crowns you with mercy and loving-kindness; R

5 He satisfies you with good things,

and your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.

6 The Lord executes righteousness

and judgement for all who are oppressed. R

7 He made his ways known to Moses

and his works to the children of Israel.

8 The Lord is full of compassion and mercy,

slow to anger and of great kindness. R

SECOND READING Hebrews 12.18–29

A reading from the letter to the Hebrews.

You have not come to something that can be touched,

a blazing fire, and darkness, and gloom,

and a tempest, and the sound of a trumpet,

and a voice whose words made the hearers beg

that not another word be spoken to them.

(For they could not endure the order that was given,

‘If even an animal touches the mountain,

it shall be stoned to death.’

Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said,

‘I tremble with fear.’)

But you have come to Mount Zion

and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,

and to innumerable angels in festal gathering,

and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven,

and to God the judge of all,

and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,

and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant,

and to the sprinkled blood

that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking;

for if they did not escape

when they refused the one who warned them on earth,

how much less will we escape

if we reject the one who warns from heaven!

At that time his voice shook the earth;

but now he has promised,

‘Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heaven.’

This phrase, ‘Yet once more,’

indicates the removal of what is shaken –

that is, created things –

so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us give thanks,

by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe; for indeed our God is a consuming fire.

GOSPEL Luke 13.10–17

Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.

Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.

And just then there appeared

a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years.

She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight.

When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said,

‘Woman, you are set free from your ailment.’

When he laid his hands on her,

immediately she stood up straight and began praising God.

But the leader of the synagogue,

indignant because Jesus had cured on the sabbath,

kept saying to the crowd,

‘There are six days on which work ought to be done;

come on those days and be cured, and not on the sabbath day.’

But the Lord answered him and said,

‘You hypocrites!

Does not each of you on the sabbath

untie his ox or his donkey from the manger,

and lead it away to give it water?

And ought not this woman,

a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years,

be set free from this bondage on the sabbath day?’

When he said this,

all his opponents were put to shame;

and the entire crowd

was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.

SUNDAY 31 August 2025- 11^th Sunday after Trinity

FIRST READING (Alternative readings)

Either Ecclesiasticus 10.12–18

A reading from the book of Ecclesiasticus.

The beginning of human pride is to forsake the Lord;

the heart has withdrawn from its Maker.

For the beginning of pride is sin,

and the one who clings to it pours out abominations.

Therefore the Lord brings upon them unheard-of calamities,

and destroys them completely.

The Lord overthrows the thrones of rulers,

and enthrones the lowly in their place.

The Lord plucks up the roots of the nations,

and plants the humble in their place.

The Lord lays waste the lands of the nations,

and destroys them to the foundations of the earth.

He removes some of them and destroys them,

and erases the memory of them from the earth.

Pride was not created for human beings,

or violent anger for those born of women.

Or Proverbs 25.6–7

A reading from the book of Proverbs.

Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence

or stand in the place of the great;

for it is better to be told, ‘Come up here,’

than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.

PSALM Psalm 112

R Light shines in the darkness for the upright.

1 Alleluia!

Happy are they who fear the Lord

and have great delight in his commandments!

2 Their descendants will be mighty in the land;

the generation of the upright will be blessed.

3 Wealth and riches will be in their house,

and their righteousness will last for ever. R

4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright;

the righteous are merciful and full of compassion.

5 It is good for them to be generous in lending

and to manage their affairs with justice.

6 For they will never be shaken;

the righteous will be kept in everlasting remembrance. R

7 They will not be afraid of any evil rumours;

their heart is right;

they put their trust in the Lord.

8 Their heart is established and will not shrink,

until they see their desire upon their enemies. R

9 They have given freely to the poor,

and their righteousness stands fast for ever;

they will hold up their head with honour.

10 The wicked will see it and be angry;

they will gnash their teeth and pine away;

the desires of the wicked will perish. R

SECOND READING Hebrews 13.1–8, 15–16

A reading from the letter to the Hebrews.

Let mutual love continue.

Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers,

for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.

Remember those who are in prison,

as though you were in prison with them;

those who are being tortured,

as though you yourselves were being tortured.

Let marriage be held in honour by all,

and let the marriage bed be kept undefiled;

for God will judge fornicators and adulterers.

Keep your lives free from the love of money,

and be content with what you have;

for he has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’

So we can say with confidence,

‘The Lord is my helper;

I will not be afraid.

What can anyone do to me?’

Remember your leaders,

those who spoke the word of God to you;

consider the outcome of their way of life,

and imitate their faith.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever.

Through him, then, let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God,

that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name.

Do not neglect to do good

and to share what you have,

for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

GOSPEL Luke 14.1, 7–14

Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.

On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath,

they were watching him closely.

When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honour,

he told them a parable.

‘When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet,

do not sit down at the place of honour,

in case someone more distinguished than you

has been invited by your host;

and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you,

“Give this person your place,”

and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place.

But when you are invited,

go and sit down at the lowest place,

so that when your host comes,

he may say to you, “Friend, move up higher”;

then you will be honoured in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.

For all who exalt themselves will be humbled,

and those who humble themselves will be exalted.’

He said also to the one who had invited him,

‘When you give a luncheon or a dinner,

do not invite your friends or your brothers

or your relatives or rich neighbours,

in case they may invite you in return,

and you would be repaid.

But when you give a banquet,

invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.

And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you,

for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.’