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Psalm 127

1  Unless the Lord builds the house, ♦︎
   those who build it labour in vain.
2  Unless the Lord keeps the city, ♦︎
   the guard keeps watch in vain.
3  It is in vain that you hasten to rise up early
      and go so late to rest, eating the bread of toil, ♦︎
   for he gives his beloved sleep.
4  Children are a heritage from the Lord ♦︎
   and the fruit of the womb is his gift.
5  Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, ♦︎
   so are the children of one’s youth.
6  Happy are those who have their quiver full of them: ♦︎
   they shall not be put to shame
      when they dispute with their enemies in the gate.

Haggai

The Command to Rebuild the Temple

1In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest: ²Thus says the Lord of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the Lord’s house. ³Then the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai, saying: ⁴Is it a time for you yourselves to live in your panelled houses, while this house lies in ruins? ⁵Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider how you have fared. ⁶You have sown much, and harvested little; you eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and you that earn wages earn wages to put them into a bag with holes.

7 Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider how you have fared. ⁸Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honoured, says the Lord. ⁹You have looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? says the Lord of hosts. Because my house lies in ruins, while all of you hurry off to your own houses. ¹⁰Therefore the heavens above you have withheld the dew, and the earth has withheld its produce. ¹¹And I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the soil produces, on human beings and animals, and on all their labours.

The Demand for a Sign

11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, asking him for a sign from heaven, to test him. ¹²And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, ‘Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation.’ ¹³And he left them, and getting into the boat again, he went across to the other side.

The Yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod

14 Now the disciples^* had forgotten to bring any bread; and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵And he cautioned them, saying, ‘Watch out—beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.’^{* 16}They said to one another, ‘It is because we have no bread.’ ¹⁷And becoming aware of it, Jesus said to them, ‘Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? ¹⁸Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear? And do you not remember? ¹⁹When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?’ They said to him, ‘Twelve.’ ²⁰‘And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?’ And they said to him, ‘Seven.’ ²¹Then he said to them, ‘Do you not yet understand?’