Year A – Proper 18
Full-text of the Appointed Lessons (RSV and NRSV), with instructions for lectors
September 6 – 15 Pentecost – RCL
ILLUMINATION for the First Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Exodus 12:1-14
As the Hebrew people prepare to flee Egypt, following God to freedom in the Promised Land, they pause to give thanks and offer their devotion through a sacred meal.
A reading (lesson) from the Book of Exodus:
(Lead in with) RSV and NRSV: The Lord said to Moses…
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc.
Revised Standard Version:
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall be for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they shall take every man a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household; and if the household is too small for a lamb, then a man and his neighbor next to his house shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old; you shall take it from the sheep or from the goats; and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs in the evening. Then they shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat them. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled with water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning, anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you, upon the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall fall upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations you shall observe it as an ordinance for ever.”
New Revised Standard Version:
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the LORD. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.
ILLUMINATION for the Alternate First Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Ezekiel 33:7-11
God pleads with his people that they would admit and renounce their evil ways, allowing him to lead them into righteousness and joy.
A reading (lesson) from the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel:
(Lead in with) RSV: The word of the Lord came…; NRSV: “You, mortal…”
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc.
Revised Standard Version:
The word of the LORD came to me: “So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way; he shall die in his iniquity, but you will have saved your life. And you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, Thus have you said: ‘Our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?’ Say to them, As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?”
New Revised Standard Version:
You, mortal, I have made a sentinel for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, “O wicked ones, you shall surely die,” and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but their blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from their ways, and they do not turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but you will have saved your life. Now you, mortal, say to the house of Israel, Thus you have said: “Our transgressions and our sins weigh upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?” Say to them, As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from their ways and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?
ILLUMINATION for the Second Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Romans 13:8-14
The law of love has no loopholes; indeed, its purpose is to blanket all situations and thereby to transform us as vessels of God’s great love.
A reading (lesson) from the Letter of Paul to the Romans:
(Lead in with) RSV and NRSV: Owe no one anything…
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc.
Revised Standard Version:
Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this sentence, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. Besides this you know what hour it is, how it is full time now for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed; the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
New Revised Standard Version:
Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet”; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law. Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
ILLUMINATION for the Gospel Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Matthew 18:15-20
God’s kingdom is based on grace and truth; brothers and sisters in Christ must in love and honesty guide one another in a virtuous life, as we together submit to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
A reading (lesson) from the Gospel according to Matthew:
(Lead in with) RSV: Jesus said, “If your brother…”; NRSV: Jesus said to his disciples…
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc. If read by an ordained person as the eucharistic gospel, conclude with The gospel of the Lord.
Revised Standard Version:
Jesus said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
New Revised Standard Version:
Jesus said, “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”
September 6 – 15 Pentecost – BCP
ILLUMINATION for the First Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Ezekiel 33:(1-6 optional) 7-11
God pleads with his people that they would admit and renounce their evil ways, allowing him to lead them into righteousness and joy.
A reading (lesson) from the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel:
(Lead in with) RSV: The word of the Lord came…; NRSV: “You, mortal…”
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc.
Revised Standard Version:
[The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, speak to your people and say to them, If I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from among them, and make him their watchman; and if he sees the sword coming upon the land and blows the trumpet and warns the people; then if any one who hears the sound of the trumpet does not take warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But if he had taken warning, he would have saved his life. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes, and takes any one of them; that man is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.] “So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way; he shall die in his iniquity, but you will have saved your life. And you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, Thus have you said: ‘Our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?’ Say to them, As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?”
New Revised Standard Version:
[You mortal, speak to your people and say to them, If I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take one of their number as their sentinel; and if the sentinel sees the sword coming upon the land and blows the trumpet and warns the people; then if any who hear the sound of the trumpet do not take warning, and the sword comes and takes them away, their blood shall be upon their own heads. They heard the sound of the trumpet and did not take warning; their blood shall be upon themselves. But if they had taken warning, they would have saved their lives. But if the sentinel sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any of them, they are taken away in their iniquity, but their blood I will require at the sentinel’s hand.] You, mortal, I have made a sentinel for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, “O wicked ones, you shall surely die,” and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but their blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from their ways, and they do not turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but you will have saved your life. Now you, mortal, say to the house of Israel, Thus you have said: “Our transgressions and our sins weigh upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?” Say to them, As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from their ways and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?
ILLUMINATION for the Second Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Romans 12:9-21
How Christians ought to treat one another in the church, and indeed treat all people, is simple but not easy.
A reading (lesson) from the Letter of Paul to the Romans:
(Lead in with) RSV and NRSV: Let love be genuine…
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc.
Revised Standard Version:
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; never be conceited. Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends upon you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” No, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
New Revised Standard Version:
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” No, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
ILLUMINATION for the Gospel Lesson
15 Pentecost (Proper 18), Year A, September 6, 2026
Matthew 18:15-20
God’s kingdom is based on grace and truth; brothers and sisters in Christ must in love and honesty guide one another in a virtuous life, as we together submit to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
A reading (lesson) from the Gospel according to Matthew:
(Lead in with) RSV: Jesus said, “If your brother…”; NRSV: Jesus said …
Conclude with The word of the Lord or Here endeth, etc. If read by an ordained person as the eucharistic gospel, conclude with The gospel of the Lord.
Revised Standard Version:
Jesus said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
New Revised Standard Version:
Jesus said, “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”
Scripture quotations labeled NRSV are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.
The Living Word | Lectionary Preaching Aids
Exploring the Texts
“The day of salvation is nearer than when we first believed, the night far spent, the day at hand. Initial conversion is the beginning of a great crisis, a moment when the future breaks open and floods the present. Christ would be our vestment, our armor, our light. He seeks our total transformation in grace.”
“Most clergy do not relish the thought of trying to mediate their parishioners’ disputes. But since the body of Christ is wounded by discord among its members, one of the ministries to which the clergy have been ordained is that of reconciliation. When any two people in the parish are at odds with each other, it is the clergy’s business.”
Preaching Today
Zac Koons: People Who Eat Together
“Put yourselves in the shoes of a city official, an insurance adjuster, or a member of the clean-up crew who has never before heard of Christianity or the Episcopal Church, and who has just arrived at St. Richard’s in ruins. What does the rubble tell you?”
Cathleen Bascom: The Chapter Room
“It is a view clear about its organizing principle: ‘Owe no one anything, except to love one another.’ In such a world, power and money take a back seat to love. Obviously, there are leaders in that chapter, yet the seats in the circle are equal, because all have the power to love.”
Steve Schlossburg: Who Shall Prevail?
“There is a concern for the weak and vulnerable in the Church: children, and those who are similarly powerless and defenseless, who are easily preyed upon and victimized. And if they’re being injured or exploited, then their exploiters must be confronted and they must be stopped. And if they won’t stop, then they need to be fenced off from the vulnerable and fenced out of the flock.”
Classic Texts
Dorotheus of Gaza: Tenderness
“Let us acquire tenderness toward our neighbor so that we may guard ourselves from speaking evil of our neighbor, and from judging and despising them. Let us help one another, for we are indeed members one of another.”
Gregory the Great: The Dawn
“Since [Paul] argues that after the night is past, the day has not yet fully come but is rather at hand, he shows that the period before full daylight and after darkness is without doubt the period of dawn and that he sees himself as living in that period.”
John Wesley: A Sure Method
“But how can we avoid giving offense to some, and being offended at others? Especially, suppose they are quite in the wrong, and we see it with our own eyes? Our Lord here teaches us how: he lays down a sure method of avoiding offenses and evil-speaking together.”
Articles on Passover
Charlie Clauss: Remembrance — God’s Promises
“It is not long before voices are heard complaining that all this talk of sacrifice and blood, is ‘barbaric,’ that God would not do such a thing. The cross stands at the center of the view that Jesus is a new Passover lamb, and if you reject his sacrifice, if you reject his Passover, you are rejecting the core idea that God is at work in this to free us. How much of this is because we cannot see ourselves as an oppressed people?”
Michael Cover: The Sound and the Spirit
“Passover/Ascension and Pentecost represent two movements — the upward and the downward — of Luke’s ‘new Sinai,’ the initiation and ratification of Christ’s new covenant. Without the Ascension, Pentecost makes no sense.”
Jay Mills: There and Back Again: Historical-Criticism and Renewed Faith
“One can trace the rise and fall of ‘the assured results of biblical scholarship’ again and again since the Enlightenment. I finally decided that I wanted off the bus. I have returned to my evangelical roots, with the proviso that I learned a thing or two along the way.”
Articles on the Church
Mark Michael: A Classic Anglican Case for Public Worship
“Here, in this holy worship, we find our human dignity, enacted in the person of the Son, who is strong to save. Placing us within the perfect communion of his body the Church, he spans all social distance and removes every screen that would separate.”
Esau McCaulley: A Church t\That Loves the Prophets
“Put differently, the prophets do not only inspire our social action. They challenge us to place that social action in the context of a lively faith in the God of Israel finally fully made known in the person and work of his Son.”
Wes Hill: Five Theses on Church Discipline
“I want the Church to tell me the truth about my sin and to speak to me straightforwardly about the spiritual harm that results when I clutch at sins I’m unwilling to give up. But I also want this message to be delivered to me, as Winner describes in the case of her priest, ‘gently.’”
Articles on the Commandments
Gene Schlesinger: Timeless, Just Not the Way You Think
“As St. Paul makes clear, Gentile Christians are inheritors, but not supplanters, of the covenant made with Abraham (Rom. 11; Gal. 3). Invited by Christ Jesus to a new covenant with God, we can indeed claim the Ten Commandments as our own, but not in such a way as to wrest them away from their original setting and purpose.”
Matt Boulter: What’s in a Name?
“An unbreakable corollary to this absolute commitment to God’s reputation is that God must never be used as a means to some other end. We don’t appeal to God in order to get something else. Not riches, not health, not eternal life.”
Abigail Woolley Cutter: The Sabbath: Fulfilled but Not Obsolete
“It taught Israel that God was the Creator, and that his people were mere creatures. God was ultimately their provider, and they undertook feverish activity for profit and self-preservation in vain. It also reminded Israel that God had rescued them out of slavery, and that they must in turn be merciful to their economic dependents.”
