Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
8 Gracious and merciful is the Lord,
slow to become angry,
and overflowing with gracious love.
9 The Lord is good to everyone
and his mercies extend to everything he does.
14 The Lord supports everyone who falls
and raises up those who are bowed down.
15 Everyone’s eyes are on you,
as you give them their food in due time.
16 You[a] open your hand
and keep on satisfying the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all of his ways
and graciously loving in all of his activities.
18 The Lord remains near to all who call out to him,
to everyone who calls out to him sincerely.[b]
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him,
hearing their cry and saving them.
20 The Lord preserves everyone who loves him,
but he will destroy all of the wicked.
21 My mouth will praise the Lord,
and all creatures will bless his holy name forever and ever.
17 “Awake, Awake!
Stand up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the Lord’s hand
from the cup that is[a] his anger.
You have drunk to the dregs
the cup that makes you stagger,[b]
and have drained it.
18 There is no one to guide you[c]
out of all the children she bore,
no one to take her by the hand
out of all the children she brought up.
19 “These twin things have come upon you
(who can feel sorry for you?):
ruin and destruction,
famine and the sword—
who can console you?
20 Your children have fainted.
They lie at the head of every street,
like antelope caught in a trap,
filled with the anger of the Lord
and the rebuke of your God.
21 Now listen to this, you afflicted one,
made drunk, but not with wine:
22 This is what your Lord, the Lord,[d] says,
your[e] God, who defends his people’s cause:
“See, I have taken from your hand the cup that made you stagger.[f]
And you will never again drink to the dregs the cup that is my anger.
23 But I will put it into the hands of those who tormented and oppressed you,[g]
those who said to you,
‘Lie down,[h] so we can step over you,’
so that you had to make your back like the ground,
and like a street for them to walk over.”
6 Now it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all Israelis truly belong to Israel, 7 and not all of Abraham’s descendants are his true descendants. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that descendants will be named for you.”[a] 8 That is, it is not merely the children born through natural descent who were regarded as God’s children, but it is the children born through the promise who were regarded as descendants. 9 For this is the language of the promise: “At this time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.”[b] 10 Not only that, but Rebecca became pregnant by our ancestor Isaac. 11 Yet before their children[c] had been born or had done anything good or bad (so that God’s plan of election might continue to operate 12 according to his calling and not by actions), Rebecca[d] was told, “The older child will serve the younger one.”[e] 13 So it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”[f]
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