The people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem said,
“Come, let us contrive a plot against Jeremiah.
It will not mean the loss of instruction from the priests,
nor of counsel from the wise, nor of messages from the prophets.
And so, let us destroy him by his own tongue;
let us carefully note his every word.”

Heed me, O LORD,
            and listen to what my adversaries say.
Must good be repaid with evil
            that they should dig a pit to take my life?
Remember that I stood before you
            to speak in their behalf,
            to turn away your wrath from them.

R.        (17b)  Save me, O Lord, in your kindness.
You will free me from the snare they set for me,
            for you are my refuge.
Into your hands I commend my spirit;
            you will redeem me, O LORD, O faithful God.
R.        Save me, O Lord, in your kindness.
I hear the whispers of the crowd, that frighten me from every side,
            as they consult together against me, plotting to take my life.
R.        Save me, O Lord, in your kindness.
But my trust is in you, O LORD;
            I say, “You are my God.”
In your hands is my destiny; rescue me
            from the clutches of my enemies and my persecutors.
R.        Save me, O Lord, in your kindness.

I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
whoever follows me will have the light of life.

As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem,
he took the Twelve disciples aside by themselves,
and said to them on the way,
“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem,
and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests
and the scribes,
and they will condemn him to death,
and hand him over to the Gentiles
to be mocked and scourged and crucified,
and he will be raised on the third day.”

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons
and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.
He said to her, “What do you wish?”
She answered him,
“Command that these two sons of mine sit,
one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.”
Jesus said in reply,
“You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He replied,
“My chalice you will indeed drink,
but to sit at my right and at my left,
this is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this,
they became indignant at the two brothers.
But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Hear the word of the LORD,
            princes of Sodom!
Listen to the instruction of our God,
            people of Gomorrah!

            Wash yourselves clean!
Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
            cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
            hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow.

Come now, let us set things right,
            says the LORD:
Though your sins be like scarlet,
            they may become white as snow;
Though they be crimson red,
            they may become white as wool.
If you are willing, and obey,
            you shall eat the good things of the land;
But if you refuse and resist,
            the sword shall consume you:
            for the mouth of the LORD has spoken!

R.        (23b) To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
“Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
            for your burnt offerings are before me always.
I take from your house no bullock,
            no goats out of your fold.”
R.        To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
“Why do you recite my statutes,
            and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
            and cast my words behind you?”
R.        To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
“When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
            Or do you think that I am like yourself?
            I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes.
He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me;
            and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God.”
R.        To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, says the LORD,
and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.

Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying,
“The scribes and the Pharisees
have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you,
but do not follow their example.
For they preach but they do not practice.
They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry
and lay them on people’s shoulders,
but they will not lift a finger to move them.
All their works are performed to be seen.
They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation ‘Rabbi.’
As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.
Do not be called ‘Master’;
you have but one master, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

“Lord, great and awesome God,
you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you
and observe your commandments!
We have sinned, been wicked and done evil;
we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws.
We have not obeyed your servants the prophets,
who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes,
our fathers, and all the people of the land.
Justice, O Lord, is on your side;
we are shamefaced even to this day:
we, the men of Judah, the residents of Jerusalem,
and all Israel, near and far,
in all the countries to which you have scattered them
because of their treachery toward you.
O LORD, we are shamefaced, like our kings, our princes, and our fathers,
for having sinned against you.
But yours, O Lord, our God, are compassion and forgiveness!
Yet we rebelled against you
and paid no heed to your command, O LORD, our God,
to live by the law you gave us through your servants the prophets.”

R.        (see 103:10a)  Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
            may your compassion quickly come to us,
            for we are brought very low.
R.        Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.
Help us, O God our savior,
            because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
            for your name’s sake.
R.        Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.
Let the prisoners’ sighing come before you;
            with your great power free those doomed to death.
Then we, your people and the sheep of your pasture,
            will give thanks to you forever;
            through all generations we will declare your praise.
R.        Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.

Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”