Scripture Reading for the
Common Calendar Year
(beginning January 1st)

March 11

Text taken from the
Third Millennium Bible^® (TMB^®)
(New Authorized Version^TM NAV^TM)

The Lectionary According to the Common Calendar

Psalm 65

1 Praise waiteth for Thee, O God, in Zion;
and unto Thee shall the vow be performed.
2 O Thou that hearest prayer,
unto Thee shall all flesh come.
3 Iniquities prevail against me;
as for our transgressions, Thou shalt purge them away.
4 Blessed is the man whom Thou choosest and causest to approach unto Thee,
that he may dwell in Thy courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house,
even of Thy holy temple.

5 By fearsome deeds of righteousness wilt Thou answer us, O God of our salvation,
who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth and of them that are afar off upon the sea,
6 who by His strength setteth fast the mountains, being girded with power,
7 who stilleth the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves and the tumult of the people.
8 They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at Thy signs;
Thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice.

9 Thou visitest the earth and waterest it; Thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God, which is full of water;
Thou preparest them corn when Thou hast so provided it.
10 Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly, Thou settlest the furrows thereof;
Thou makest it soft with showers, Thou blessest the sprouting thereof.
11 Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness,
and Thy paths drip with fatness.
12 They drip upon the pastures of the wilderness,
and the little hills rejoice on every side.
13 The pastures are clothed with flocks,
the valleys also are covered over with corn.
They shout for joy,
they also sing.

Matthew 21:18-22

18 Now in the morning as He returned into the city, He hungered. 19 And when He saw a fig tree by the wayside, He came to it and found nothing thereon, but leaves only. And He said unto it,

"Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever."

And immediately the fig tree withered away. 20 And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How soon has the fig tree withered away!" 21 Jesus answered and said unto them,

"Verily I say unto you, if ye have faith and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, `Be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea,' it shall be done. 22 And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."

Romans 6:12-23

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid! 16 Know ye not that to whomever ye yield yourselves as servants to obey, his servants ye become whom ye obey, whether of sin which leads unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though ye were the servants of sin, now ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

19 I speak in the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh. For as ye have yielded your members as servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity, even so now yield your members as servants to righteousness unto holiness. 20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now, being made free from sin and having become servants of God, ye have your fruit unto holiness and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Numbers 21:4-9

4 And they journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea to compass the land of Edom, and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses: "Why have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread." 6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many people of Israel died. 7 Therefore the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against thee. Pray unto the LORD, that He take away the serpents from us." And Moses prayed for the people. 8 And the LORD said unto Moses, "Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole. And it shall come to pass that every one who is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live." 9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole; and it came to pass that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass he lived.

Numbers 22:1-20

1 And the children of Israel went forward, and pitched camp in the plains of Moab on this side of the Jordan by Jericho. 2 And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. 3 And Moab was sore afraid of the people because they were many, and Moab was distressed because of the children of Israel. 4 And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, "Now shall this company lick up all that are round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field." And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. 5 He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, "Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt. Behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me. 6 Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse for me this people; for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land; for I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed."

7 And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand, and they came unto Balaam and spoke unto him the words of Balak. 8 And he said unto them, "Lodge here this night, and I will bring you word back, as the LORD shall speak unto me." And the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam. 9 And God came unto Balaam and said, "What men are these with thee?" 10 And Balaam said unto God, "Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me, saying, 11 `Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt, who covereth the face of the earth. Come now, curse them for me. Perhaps I shall be able to overcome them and drive them out.'" 12 And God said unto Balaam, "Thou shalt not go with them. Thou shalt not curse the people, for they are blessed." 13 And Balaam rose up in the morning and said unto the princes of Balak, "Get you into your land, for the LORD refuseth to give me leave to go with you." 14 And the princes of Moab rose up, and they went unto Balak and said, "Balaam refuseth to come with us."

15 And Balak sent yet again princes, more, and more honorable than they. 16 And they came to Balaam and said to him, "Thus saith Balak the son of Zippor: 'Let nothing, I pray thee, hinder thee from coming unto me; 17 for I will promote thee unto very great honor, and I will do whatsoever thou sayest unto me. Come therefore, I pray thee, curse for me this people.'" 18 And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, "If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the LORD my God to do less or more. 19 Now therefore, I pray you, tarry ye also here this night, that I may know what more the LORD will say unto me." 20 And God came unto Balaam at night and said unto him, "If the men come to call thee, rise up and go with them; but yet the word which I shall say unto thee, that shalt thou do."

Words of Wisdom - Proverbs 10:27 

The fear of the LORD prolongeth days, 
but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.