Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Yodh.
73 (A)Your hands made me and [a]fashioned me;
(B)Give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.
74 May those who [b]fear You (C)see me and be glad,
Because I [c](D)wait for Your word.
75 I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are (E)righteous,
And that (F)in faithfulness You have afflicted me.
76 O may Your lovingkindness [d]comfort me,
According to Your [e]word to Your servant.
77 May (G)Your compassion come to me that I may live,
For Your law is my (H)delight.
78 May (I)the arrogant be ashamed, for they subvert me (J)with a lie;
But I shall (K)meditate on Your precepts.
79 May those who [f]fear You turn to me,
Even those who know Your testimonies.
80 May my heart be [g](L)blameless in Your statutes,
So that I will not (M)be ashamed.
4 “You shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord,
“Do men (A)fall and not get up again?
Does one turn away and not [a]repent?
5 “Why then has this people, Jerusalem,
(B)Turned away in continual apostasy?
They (C)hold fast to deceit,
They (D)refuse to return.
6 “I (E)have listened and heard,
They have spoken what is not right;
(F)No man repented of his wickedness,
Saying, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone turned to his course,
Like a (G)horse charging into the battle.
7 “Even the stork in the sky
(H)Knows her seasons;
And the (I)turtledove and the swift and the thrush
Observe the time of their [b]migration;
But (J)My people do not know
The ordinance of the Lord.
8 “(K)How can you say, ‘We are wise,
And the law of the Lord is with us’?
But behold, the lying pen of the scribes
Has made it into a lie.
9 “The wise men are (L)put to shame,
They are dismayed and caught;
Behold, they have (M)rejected the word of the Lord,
And what kind of wisdom do they have?
10 “Therefore I will (N)give their wives to others,
Their fields to [c]new owners;
Because from the least even to the greatest
Everyone is (O)greedy for gain;
From the prophet even to the priest
Everyone practices deceit.
11 “They (P)heal the brokenness of the daughter of My people superficially,
Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
But there is no peace.
12 “Were they (Q)ashamed because of the abomination they had done?
They certainly were not ashamed,
And they did not know how to blush;
Therefore they shall (R)fall among those who fall;
At the (S)time of their punishment they shall be brought down,”
Says the Lord.
28 When they heard this and were filled with rage, they began crying out, saying, “Great is [a]Artemis of the (A)Ephesians!” 29 The city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed [b]with one accord into the theater, dragging along (B)Gaius and (C)Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling (D)companions from (E)Macedonia. 30 And when Paul wanted to go into the [c]assembly, (F)the disciples would not let him. 31 Also some of the [d]Asiarchs who were friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to [e]venture into the theater. 32 (G)So then, some were shouting one thing and some another, for the [f]assembly was in confusion and the majority did not know [g]for what reason they had come together. 33 Some of the crowd [h]concluded it was Alexander, since the Jews had put him forward; and having (H)motioned with his hand, Alexander was intending to make a defense to the [i]assembly. 34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew, a single outcry arose from them all as they shouted for about two hours, “Great is [j]Artemis of the Ephesians!” 35 After quieting the crowd, the town clerk *said, “Men of (I)Ephesus, what man is there after all who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is guardian of the temple of the great [k]Artemis and of the image which fell down from [l]heaven? 36 So, since these are undeniable facts, you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash. 37 For you have brought these men here who are neither (J)robbers of temples nor blasphemers of our goddess. 38 So then, if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against any man, the courts are in session and [m](K)proconsuls are available; let them bring charges against one another. 39 But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the [n]lawful [o]assembly. 40 For indeed we are in danger of being accused of a riot in connection with today’s events, since there is no real cause for it, and in this connection we will be unable to account for this disorderly gathering.” 41 After saying this he dismissed the [p]assembly.
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