Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
7 For you, I carry this shame,
and my face is covered with disgrace.
8 I am like a stranger to my closest relatives
and a foreigner to my mother’s children.
9 My strong love for your Temple completely controls me.
When people insult you, it hurts me.
10 When I cry and fast,
they make fun of me.
11 When I wear clothes of sadness,
they joke about me.
12 They make fun of me in public places,
and the drunkards make up songs about me.
13 But I pray to you, Lord, for favor.
God, because of your great love, answer me.
You are truly able to save.
14 Pull me from the mud,
and do not let me sink.
Save me from those who hate me
and from the deep water.
15 Do not let the flood drown me
or the deep water swallow me
or the grave close its mouth over me.
16 Lord, answer me because your love is so good.
Because of your great kindness, turn to me.
17 Do not hide from me, your servant.
I am in trouble. Hurry to help me!
18 Come near and save me;
rescue me from my enemies.
Jeremiah’s Fourth Complaint
18 Then the people said, “Come, let’s make plans against Jeremiah. Surely the teaching of the law by the priest will not be lost. We will still have the advice from the wise teachers and the words of the prophets. So let’s ruin him by telling lies about him. We won’t pay attention to anything he says.”
19 Lord, listen to me.
Listen to what my accusers are saying!
20 Good should not be paid back with evil,
but they have dug a pit in order to kill me.
Remember that I stood before you
and asked you to do good things for these people
and to turn your anger away from them.
21 So now, let their children starve,
and let their enemies kill them with swords.
Let their wives lose their children and husbands.
Let the men from Judah be put to death
and the young men be killed with swords in battle.
22 Let them cry out in their houses
when you bring an enemy against them suddenly.
Let all this happen, because my enemies have dug
a pit to capture me and have hidden traps for my feet.
23 Lord, you know
about all their plans to kill me.
Don’t forgive their crimes
or erase their sins from your mind.
Make them fall from their places;
punish them while you are angry.
Leaders Try to Stop the Apostles
17 The high priest and all his friends (a group called the Sadducees) became very jealous. 18 They took the apostles and put them in jail. 19 But during the night, an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and led the apostles outside. The angel said, 20 “Go stand in the Temple and tell the people everything about this new life.” 21 When the apostles heard this, they obeyed and went into the Temple early in the morning and continued teaching.
When the high priest and his friends arrived, they called a meeting of the leaders and all the important elders. They sent some men to the jail to bring the apostles to them. 22 But, upon arriving, the officers could not find the apostles. So they went back and reported to the leaders. 23 They said, “The jail was closed and locked, and the guards were standing at the doors. But when we opened the doors, the jail was empty!” 24 Hearing this, the captain of the Temple guards and the leading priests were confused and wondered what was happening.
25 Then someone came and told them, “Listen! The men you put in jail are standing in the Temple teaching the people.” 26 Then the captain and his men went out and brought the apostles back. But the soldiers did not use force, because they were afraid the people would stone them to death.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.