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Raphael’s Wages

12When the wedding celebration was ended, Tobit called his son Tobias and said to him, ‘My child, see to paying the wages of the man who went with you, and give him a bonus as well.’ ⁵So Tobias^* called him and said, ‘Take for your wages half of all that you brought back, and farewell.’

Raphael’s Exhortation

6 Then Raphael^* called the two of them privately and said to them, ‘Bless God and acknowledge him in the presence of all the living for the good things he has done for you. Bless and sing praise to his name. With fitting honour declare to all people the deeds^* of God. Do not be slow to acknowledge him. ⁷It is good to conceal the secret of a king, but to acknowledge and reveal the works of God, and with fitting honour to acknowledge him. Do good, and evil will not overtake you. ⁸Prayer with fasting^* is good, but better than both is almsgiving with righteousness. A little with righteousness is better than wealth with wrongdoing.^* It is better to give alms than to lay up gold. ⁹For almsgiving saves from death and purges away every sin. Those who give alms will enjoy a full life, ¹⁰but those who commit sin and do wrong are their own worst enemies.

Raphael Discloses His Identity

11 ‘I will now declare the whole truth to you and will conceal nothing from you. Already I have declared it to you when I said, “It is good to conceal the secret of a king, but to reveal with due honour the works of God.” ¹²So now, when you and Sarah prayed, it was I who brought and read^* the record of your prayer before the glory of the Lord, and likewise whenever you buried the dead. ¹³And that time when you did not hesitate to get up and leave your dinner to go and bury the dead, ¹⁴I was sent to you to test you. And at the same time God sent me to heal you and Sarah your daughter-in-law. ¹⁵I am Raphael, one of the seven angels who stand ready and enter before the glory of the Lord.’ ²⁰So now get up from the ground,^* and acknowledge God. See, I am ascending to him who sent me. Write down all these things that have happened to you.’ And he ascended.

Warnings and Exhortations

17 But you, beloved, must remember the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; ²⁰But you, beloved, build yourselves up on your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; ²¹keep yourselves in the love of God; look forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to^* eternal life. ²²And have mercy on some who are wavering; ²³save others by snatching them out of the fire; and have mercy on still others with fear, hating even the tunic defiled by their bodies.^*

Benediction

24 Now to him who is able to keep you from falling, and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory with rejoicing, ²⁵to the only God our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time and now and for ever. Amen.

Psalm 103

1  Bless the Lord, O my soul, ♦︎
   and all that is within me bless his holy name.
8  The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, ♦︎
   slow to anger and of great kindness.
9  He will not always accuse us, ♦︎
   neither will he keep his anger for ever.
10  He has not dealt with us according to our sins, ♦︎
   nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
11  For as the heavens are high above the earth, ♦︎
   so great is his mercy upon those who fear him.
12  As far as the east is from the west, ♦︎
   so far has he set our sins from us.
13  As a father has compassion on his children, ♦︎
   so is the Lord merciful towards those who fear him.

Psalm 63

Comfort and Assurance in God’s Presence

A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.
¹ O God, you are my God, I seek you,
   my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
   as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
² So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
   beholding your power and glory.
³ Because your steadfast love is better than life,
   my lips will praise you.
⁴ So I will bless you as long as I live;
   I will lift up my hands and call on your name.

⁵ My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast,^*
   and my mouth praises you with joyful lips
⁶ when I think of you on my bed,
   and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

Jesus Denounces the Scribes

38 As he taught, he said, ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the market-places, ³⁹and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honour at banquets! ⁴⁰They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.’

The Widow’s Offering

41 He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. ⁴²A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. ⁴³Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. ⁴⁴For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.’