1I will exalt You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up and have not allowed my foes to rejoice over me. 2O LORD my God, I cried to You for help, and You healed me. 3O LORD, You pulled me up from Sheol; You spared me from descending into the Pit. 4Sing to the LORD, O you His saints, and praise His holy name. 5For His anger is fleeting, but His favor lasts a lifetime. Weeping may stay the night, but joy comes in the morning. 6In prosperity I said, “I will never be shaken.” 7O LORD, You favored me; You made my mountain stand strong. When You hid Your face, I was dismayed. 8To You, O LORD, I called, and I begged my Lord for mercy: 9“What gain is there in my bloodshed, in my descent to the Pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it proclaim Your faithfulness? 10Hear me, O LORD, and have mercy; O LORD, be my helper.” 11You turned my mourning into dancing; You peeled off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, 12that my heart may sing Your praises and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks forever.
New Testament·Matthew 25:32–46
32All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will place the sheep on His right and the goats on His left. 34Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, 36I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’ 37Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? 38When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39When did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?’ 40And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’ 41Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, I was naked and you did not clothe Me, I was sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ 44And they too will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45Then the King will answer, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me.’ 46And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Old Testament·Exodus 26
1“You are to construct the tabernacle itself with ten curtains of finely spun linen, each with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and cherubim skillfully worked into them. 2Each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits long and four cubits wide —all curtains the same size. 3Five of the curtains are to be joined together, and the other five joined as well. 4Make loops of blue material on the edge of the end curtain in the first set, and do the same for the end curtain in the second set. 5Make fifty loops on one curtain and fifty loops on the end curtain of the second set, so that the loops line up opposite one another. 6Make fifty gold clasps as well, and join the curtains together with the clasps, so that the tabernacle will be a unit. 7You are to make curtains of goat hair for the tent over the tabernacle—eleven curtains in all. 8Each of the eleven curtains is to be the same size—thirty cubits long and four cubits wide. 9Join five of the curtains into one set and the other six into another. Then fold the sixth curtain over double at the front of the tent. 10Make fifty loops along the edge of the end curtain in the first set, and fifty loops along the edge of the corresponding curtain in the second set. 11Make fifty bronze clasps and put them through the loops to join the tent together as a unit. 12As for the overlap that remains of the tent curtains, the half curtain that is left over shall hang down over the back of the tabernacle. 13And the tent curtains will be a cubit longer on either side, and the excess will hang over the sides of the tabernacle to cover it. 14Also make a covering for the tent out of ram skins dyed red, and over that a covering of fine leather. 15You are to construct upright frames of acacia wood for the tabernacle. 16Each frame is to be ten cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. 17Two tenons must be connected to each other for each frame. Make all the frames of the tabernacle in this way. 18Construct twenty frames for the south side of the tabernacle, 19with forty silver bases under the twenty frames—two bases for each frame, one under each tenon. 20For the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, make twenty frames 21and forty silver bases—two bases under each frame. 22Make six frames for the rear of the tabernacle, the west side, 23and two frames for the two back corners of the tabernacle, 24coupled together from bottom to top and fitted into a single ring. These will serve as the two corners. 25So there are to be eight frames and sixteen silver bases—two under each frame. 26You are also to make five crossbars of acacia wood for the frames on one side of the tabernacle, 27five for those on the other side, and five for those on the rear side of the tabernacle, to the west. 28The central crossbar in the middle of the frames shall extend from one end to the other. 29Overlay the frames with gold and make gold rings to hold the crossbars. Also overlay the crossbars with gold. 30So you are to set up the tabernacle according to the pattern shown you on the mountain. 31Make a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen, with cherubim skillfully worked into it. 32Hang it with gold hooks on four posts of acacia wood, overlaid with gold and standing on four silver bases. 33And hang the veil from the clasps and place the ark of the Testimony behind the veil. So the veil will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. 34Put the mercy seat on the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy Place. 35And place the table outside the veil on the north side of the tabernacle, and put the lampstand opposite the table, on the south side. 36For the entrance to the tent, you are to make a curtain embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen. 37Make five posts of acacia wood for the curtain, overlay them with gold hooks, and cast five bronze bases for them.
Reflect
What would it look like to love your neighbor the way this passage describes?