Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
50 (0) A psalm of Asaf:
(1) The Mighty One, God, Adonai, is speaking,
summoning the world from east to west.
2 Out of Tziyon, the perfection of beauty,
God is shining forth.
3 Our God is coming and not staying silent.
With a fire devouring ahead of him
and a great storm raging around him,
4 he calls to the heavens above and to earth,
in order to judge his people.
5 “Gather to me my faithful,
those who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
for God himself is judge. (Selah)
7 “Listen, my people, I am speaking:
Isra’el, I am testifying against you,
I, God, your God.
8 I am not rebuking you for your sacrifices;
your burnt offerings are always before me.
9 I have no need for a bull from your farm
or for male goats from your pens;
10 for all forest creatures are mine already,
as are the animals on a thousand hills;
11 I know all the birds in the mountains;
whatever moves in the fields is mine.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
for the world is mine, and everything in it.
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
14 Offer thanksgiving as your sacrifice to God,
pay your vows to the Most High,
15 and call on me when you are in trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”
16 But to the wicked God says:
“What right do you have to proclaim my laws
or take my covenant on your lips,
17 when you so hate to receive instruction
and fling my words behind you?
18 When you see a thief, you join up with him,
you throw in your lot with adulterers,
19 you give your mouth free rein for evil
and harness your tongue to deceit;
20 you sit and speak against your kinsman,
you slander your own mother’s son.
21 When you do such things, should I stay silent?
You may have thought I was just like you;
but I will rebuke and indict you to your face.
22 Consider this, you who forget God,
or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to save you.
23 “Whoever offers thanksgiving
as his sacrifice honors me;
and to him who goes the right way
I will show the salvation of God.”
12 For I know how numerous are your crimes
and how outrageous your sins —
bullying the innocent, extorting ransoms
pushing the poor aside at the gate.
13 At times like these a prudent person stays silent,
for it is an evil time.
14 Seek good and not evil, so that you will survive.
Then Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot will be with you,
as you say he is.
15 Hate evil, love good, and uphold justice at the gate.
Maybe Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot
will take pity on the survivors of Yosef.
16 Therefore thus says Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot, Adonai:
“In all public squares there will be lamentation,
in all the streets they will cry, ‘Oh, no!’
They will summon farmers to mourn
and professional mourners to wail.
17 There will be wailing in every vineyard,
for I will pass through among you,” says Adonai.
18 Woe to you who want the Day of Adonai!
Why do you want it, this Day of Adonai?
It is darkness, not light;
19 as if someone were to run from a lion,
just to be met by a bear;
as if he entered a house, put his hand on the wall,
just to be bitten by a snake.
20 Won’t the Day of Adonai be darkness, not light,
completely dark, with no brightness at all?
21 “I hate, I utterly loathe your festivals;
I take no pleasure in your solemn assemblies.
22 If you offer me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them;
nor will I consider the peace offerings
of your stall-fed cattle.
23 Spare me the noise of your songs!
I don’t want to hear the strumming of your lutes!
24 Instead, let justice well up like water,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
11 While they were listening to this, Yeshua went on to tell a parable, because he was near Yerushalayim, and the people supposed that the Kingdom of God was about to appear at any moment. 12 Therefore he said, “A nobleman went to a country far away to have himself crowned king and then return. 13 Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten manim [a maneh is about three months’ wages] and said to them, ‘Do business with this while I’m away.’ 14 But his countrymen hated him, and they sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to rule over us.’
15 “However, he returned, having been made king, and sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, to find out what each one had earned in his business dealings. 16 The first one came in and said, ‘Sir, your maneh has earned ten more manim.’ 17 ‘Excellent!’ he said to him. ‘You are a good servant. Because you have been trustworthy in a small matter, I am putting you in charge of ten towns.’ 18 The second one came and said, ‘Sir, your maneh has earned five more manim; 19 and to this one he said, ‘You be in charge of five towns.’
20 “Then another one came and said, ‘Sir, here is your maneh. I kept it hidden in a piece of cloth, 21 because I was afraid of you — you take out what you didn’t put in, and you harvest what you didn’t plant.’ 22 To him the master said, ‘You wicked servant! I will judge you by your own words! So you knew, did you, that I was a severe man, taking out what I didn’t put in and harvesting what I didn’t plant? 23 Then why didn’t you put my money in the bank? Then, when I returned, I would have gotten it back with interest!’ 24 To those standing by, he said, ‘Take the maneh from him and give it to the one with ten manim.’ 25 They said to him, ‘Sir, he already has ten manim!’ 26 But the master answered, ‘I tell you, everyone who has something will be given more; but from anyone who has nothing, even what he does have will be taken away. 27 However, as for these enemies of mine who did not want me to be their king, bring them here and execute them in my presence!’”
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.