Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

A Safe Place for Those Who Trust in the Lord

37 Do not trouble yourself because of sinful men. Do not want to be like those who do wrong. ² For they will soon dry up like the grass. Like the green plant they will soon die. ³ Trust in the Lord, and do good. So you will live in the land and will be fed. ⁴ Be happy in the Lord. And He will give you the desires of your heart. ⁵ Give your way over to the Lord. Trust in Him also. And He will do it. ⁶ He will make your being right and good show as the light, and your wise actions as the noon day.

⁷ Rest in the Lord and be willing to wait for Him. Do not trouble yourself when all goes well with the one who carries out his sinful plans. ⁸ Stop being angry. Turn away from fighting. Do not trouble yourself. It leads only to wrong-doing. ⁹ For those who do wrong will be cut off. But those who wait for the Lord will be given the earth.

Hezekiah Rules Judah

18 In the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to rule. ² He was twenty-five years old when he became king. And he ruled for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. ³ Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done. ⁴ He took away the high places. He broke down the holy pillars used in worship and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the brass snake that Moses had made. For until those days the people of Israel burned special perfume to it. It was called Nehushtan. ⁵ Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah before him or after him. ⁶ For he held to the Lord and did not stop following Him. He kept His Laws which the Lord had given Moses. ⁷ And the Lord was with him. Hezekiah did well in every place he went. He turned against the king of Assyria and did not work for him. ⁸ He destroyed the Philistines as far as Gaza and its land, from the smallest town to the strongest city.

²⁸ Then Rabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in the language of Judah, saying, “Hear the word of the great king of Assyria. ²⁹ The king says, ‘Do not let Hezekiah lie to you. For he will not be able to save you from my power. ³⁰ Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, “The Lord will save us for sure. And this city will not be given to the king of Assyria.” ³¹ Do not listen to Hezekiah. For the king of Assyria says, “Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then every one of you will eat of his own vine and fig tree. And every one of you will drink the water of his own well. ³² Then I will come and take you away to a land like your own land. It is a land of grain and new wine. It is a land of bread and grape-fields and olive trees and honey. There you will live and not die.” But do not listen to Hezekiah when he lies to you, saying, “The Lord will save us.” ³³ Has any one of the gods of the nations saved his land from the power of the king of Assyria? ³⁴ Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivvah? Have they saved Samaria from my power? ³⁵ Who among all the gods of the lands have saved their land from my power? So how should the Lord save Jerusalem from my power?’” ³⁶ But the people were quiet. They did not answer him a word. For Hezekiah had told them, “Do not answer him.”

Words to the Church in Smyrna

⁸ “Write this to the angel of the church in the city of Smyrna: ‘The One Who is First and Last, the One Who died and came to life again, says this: ⁹ I know of your troubles. I know you are poor. But still you are rich! I know the bad things spoken against you by those who say they are Jews. But they are not Jews. They belong to the devil. ¹⁰ Do not be afraid of what you will suffer. Listen! The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will be in trouble for ten days. Be faithful even to death. Then I will give you the crown of life. ¹¹ You have ears! Then listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. The person who has power and wins will not be hurt by the second death!’