Readings for Lent and Easter
4
Those who hate me without cause are more than the hairs of my head;
Those who would destroy me are powerful, being my enemies wrongfully;
I am forced to restore what I did not steal.(A)
5
O God, You know my folly;
My wrongs are not hidden from You.
6
Do not let those who wait [confidently] for You be [a]ashamed through me, O Lord [b]God of hosts;
Do not let those who seek You [as necessary for life itself] be dishonored through me, O God of Israel,
7
Because for Your sake I have borne reproach;
Confusion and dishonor have covered my face.
8
I have become estranged from my brothers
And an alien to my mother’s sons.(B)
9
For zeal for Your house has consumed me,
And the [mocking] insults of those who insult You have fallen on me.(C)
10
When I wept and humbled myself with fasting,
It became my reproach.
11
When I made sackcloth my clothing [as one in mourning],
I became a byword [a mere object of scorn] to them.
12
They who sit in the [city’s] gate talk about me and mock me,
And I am the song of the drunkards.
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