First Reading

Reading from the book of Genesis 

Genesis 17:3-9

When God appeared to him, Abram prostrated himself face down on the ground, and God said to him:

“Here I am. This is the covenant I am making with you: You will be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.

I will make you very fruitful; nations will come from you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants. And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants after you as a permanent possession; and I will be their God.”

Then God said to Abraham, “You must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.”

Gospel

Reading from the holy Gospel according to Saint John 

John 8:51-59

At that time, Jesus said to the Jews: “Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.”

The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that whoever obeys your word will never taste death. Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?”

Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Although you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.”

“You are not yet fifty years old,” they said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, before Abraham was born, I am!”

At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.