Tuesday 8 August 2023

1Miriam and Aaron spoke against Mosesbecause of the Cushite woman whom he had married;for he had married a Cushite woman.2They said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only with Moses?Hasn’t he spoken also with us?”And the Lord heard it.

3Now the man Moses was very humble,more than all the menwho were on the surface of the earth.4The Lord spoke suddenly to Moses,to Aaron, and to Miriam,“You three come out to the Tent of Meeting!”

The three of them came out.5The Lord came down in a pillar of cloud,and stood at the door of the Tent,and called Aaron and Miriam;and they both came forward.6He said, “Now hear my words.If there is a prophet among you,I, the Lord, will make myself known to him in a vision.I will speak with him in a dream.7My servant Moses is not so.He is faithful in all my house.8With him, I will speak mouth to mouth,even plainly, and not in riddles;and he shall see the Lord’s form.Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?”9The Lord’s anger burned against them;and he departed.

10The cloud departed from over the Tent;and behold, Miriam was leprous, as white as snow.Aaron looked at Miriam, and behold, she was leprous.

11Aaron said to Moses,“Oh, my lord, please don’t count this sin against us,in which we have done foolishly,and in which we have sinned.12Let her not, I pray,be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumedwhen he comes out of his mother’s womb.”

13Moses cried to the Lord,saying, “Heal her, God, I beg you!”

3Have mercy on me, God, according to your loving kindness.According to the multitude of your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions.4Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity.Cleanse me from my sin.

5For I know my transgressions.My sin is constantly before me.6Against you, and you only, I have sinned,and done that which is evil in your sight,

6so you may be proved right when you speak,and justified when you judge.7Behold, I was born in iniquity.My mother conceived me in sin.

12Create in me a clean heart, O God.Renew a right spirit within me.13Don’t throw me from your presence,and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.

1Then Phariseesand scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying,2“Why do your disciples disobey the tradition of the elders?For they don’t wash their hands when they eat bread.”

· · · verses 3–9 are not read10He summoned the multitude,and said to them, “Hear, and understand.11That which enters into the mouth doesn’t defile the man;but that which proceeds out of the mouth,this defiles the man.”

12Then the disciples came and said to him,“Do you know that the Pharisees were offendedwhen they heard this saying?”

13But he answered, “Every plantwhich my heavenly Father didn’t plant will be uprooted.14Leave them alone.They are blind guides of the blind.If the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”