Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Song of Ascents
A Prayer for Relief
123 To you, who sit enthroned in heaven,
I lift up my eyes.
2 Consider this: as the eyes of a servant focus
on what his master provides,[a]
and as the eyes of a female servant focus[b]
on what her mistress provides,[c]
so our eyes focus on the Lord our God,
until he has mercy on us.
3 Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy,
for we have had more than enough of contempt.
4 Our lives overflow
with scorn from those who live at ease,
with contempt from those who are proud.
Job Reasons with Zophar
21 In response, Job said:
God will Punish the Wicked
17 “How often do the wicked have their lights put out?
Does calamity ever fall on them?
Will God[a] in his anger ever apportion their destruction?
18 May they become like a straw,
blown away before the wind;
like a chaff that’s swept off by a storm.
19 God stores up their iniquity to repay their children;
making them[b] repay so that they may be aware.
20 Their own eyes will see their destruction;
and they’ll drink the wrath of the Almighty.
21 What will they care for their household after them,
when the number of his months comes to an end?”
Death Levels Everyone
22 “Can God learn anything?
After all, he will judge even the exalted ones.
23 Such persons will die in their full vigor,
completely prosperous and secure.
24 His buckets are filled with milk,
his bone marrow is healthy.[c]
25 Others die with a bitter soul,
never having tasted the good life.[d]
26 They both lie down in the dust;
and worms[e] cover them.”
Job Suspects His Friends of Treachery
27 “Look! I know your thoughts,
your plans[f] are going to harm me.
28 You ask, ‘Where is the noble person’s house?’
and ‘Where are the tents where the wicked live?’
29 Haven’t you asked travelers on the highway?
Don’t you accept their word
30 that the wicked person is spared from times of calamity,
that he is rescued on the day of wrath?
31 Who will expose his conduct to his face?
Who will repay him for what he has done
32 when he is carried away to the cemetery
and guardians are placed to watch his tomb?
33 The runoff from the streams will seem sweet to him;
everyone will follow after him;
countless crows march ahead of him.
34 How then, can you console me so worthlessly?
What is left of your answers is treachery.”
Greetings from John
1 From:[a] The Elder
To: The chosen lady and her children, whom I genuinely love, and not only I but also all who know the truth, 2 that is present in us and will be with us forever.
3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus[b] the Messiah,[c] the Father’s Son, in truth and love.
Living in the Truth
4 I was overjoyed to find some of your[d] children living truthfully, just as the Father has commanded us. 5 Dear lady, I am now requesting of you[e] that we all continue to love one another. It is not as though I am writing to give you[f] a new commandment, but one that we have had from the beginning. 6 And this is what demonstrates[g] love: that we live according to God’s[h] commandments. Just as you[i] have heard from the beginning what he commanded, you[j] must live by it.
Reject False Teachers
7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world. They refuse to acknowledge Jesus the Messiah[k] as having become human. Any such person is a deceiver and an antichrist. 8 See[l] to it that you[m] don’t destroy what we have[n] worked for, but that you[o] receive your[p] full reward. 9 Everyone who does not remain true to the teaching of the Messiah,[q] but goes beyond it, does not have God. The person who remains true to the teaching of the Messiah[r] has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you[s] but does not present his teachings,[t] do not receive[u] him into your house or even welcome[v] him, 11 because the one who welcomes him shares in his evil deeds.
Final Greeting
12 Although I have a great deal to write to you,[w] I would prefer not to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete. 13 The children of your[x] chosen sister greet you.[y]
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