Sunday between 11 and 17 February
(if before Ash Wednesday)
Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
First Reading - Exodus 20.2-17
A reading from the book of Exodus.
I am the Lord your God.
I brought you out of the land of Egypt, out
of the house of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make for yourself any idol,
in the form of anything
that is in the sky above,
or the earth below,
or the waters under the earth.
You shall not bow down to them,
or worship them,
for I am the Lord your God, and I grieve
at the rebellion
of those who reject me,
to the third and fourth generation;
but I show steadfast love
to a thousand generations
of those who honour me
and keep my commandments.
You shall not take
the name
of the Lord your God
in vain.
You shall remember the sabbath day,
and keep it holy.
Six days
you shall labour, and do all your work,
but the seventh day
is a sabbath to the Lord your God.
On the sabbath day, you shall do no work.
All shall rest
on the sabbath day: you,
your sons and daughters, your servants;
the foreigners living in your towns;
even your livestock;
for in six days, the Lord made
the heavens, the earth, the sea,
and all that is in them,
but rested on the seventh day;
therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day,
and made it holy.
You shall honour your father and mother,
that your days may be long
in the land
that the Lord, your God, is giving you.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness
against your neighbour.
You shall not envy
your neighbour’s spouse.
You shall not envy
your neighbour’s household, or home,
or anything that belongs to your neighbour.
This is the word of the Lord.
Second Reading - 1 Corinthians 3.3-6,10-11,16-17
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
My brothers and sisters,
let there be no jealousy or quarrelling amongst you,
with one saying ‘I follow Paul’,
and another saying ‘I follow Apollos’.
For Paul and Apollos are only servants
within the work of the Lord.
I may have planted, and Apollos may have watered,
but God
gave the growth.
I may have laid the foundation,
and Apollos may be building upon it,
but the foundation is Jesus Christ,
and you are being built together
on that foundation
into God’s temple;
so let no one harm
God’s temple,
for God’s temple is holy,
with God’s Spirit
dwelling within.
This is the word of the Lord.
Gospel - Matthew 5.20-22a,27-28,33-34a,37a
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
according to Matthew.
Jesus said,
‘I tell you,
your righteousness
must be greater than that
of the scribes and the Pharisees
if you are to enter
the kingdom of heaven.
You have heard it said,
“You shall not murder”;
and “whoever murders shall be liable to judgement.”
But I say to you
that if you are angry
with a brother or sister,
you will be liable to judgement.
You have heard it said,
“You shall not commit adultery.”
But I say to you
that any man who looks at a woman
improperly
has already
committed adultery
in his heart.
You have heard it said,
“You must fulfil your vow
when you swear an oath to the Lord.”
But I say to you,
do not swear
oaths or vows
at all,
but in your ordinary speaking,
let your “yes” mean “yes”,
and let your “no” mean “no”,
without the need
for any oath or vow.’
This is the Gospel of the Lord.