Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A psalm by David when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
63 O God, you are my God.
At dawn I search for you.
My soul thirsts for you.
My body longs for you
in a dry, parched land where there is no water.
2 So I look for you in the holy place
to see your power and your glory.
3 My lips will praise you
because your mercy is better than life ⌞itself⌟.
4 So I will thank you as long as I live.
I will lift up my hands ⌞to pray⌟ in your name.
5 You satisfy my soul with the richest foods.
My mouth will sing ⌞your⌟ praise with joyful lips.
6 As I lie on my bed, I remember you.
Through the long hours of the night, I think about you.
7 You have been my help.
In the shadow of your wings, I sing joyfully.
8 My soul clings to you.
Your right hand supports me.
9 But those who try to destroy my life
will go into the depths of the earth.
10 They will be cut down by swords.
Their dead bodies will be left as food for jackals.
11 But the king will find joy in God.
Everyone who takes an oath by God will brag,
but the mouths of liars will be shut.
The Prophet Joel
1 This is what the Lord said to Joel, son of Pethuel.
Judah Is Plagued with Locusts and Famine
2 Listen to this, you leaders!
Open your ears, all inhabitants of this land!
Nothing like this has ever happened in your lifetime
or in your ancestors’ lifetime.
3 Tell your children about it.
Have your children tell their children.
Have your grandchildren tell their children.
4 What young locusts leave, mature locusts will eat.
What mature locusts leave, adult locusts will eat.
What adult locusts leave, grasshoppers will eat.
5 Wake up and cry, you drunks!
Cry loudly, you wine drinkers!
New wine has been taken away from you.
6 A strong nation attacked my land.
It has too many soldiers to count.
They have teeth like lions.
They have fangs like grown lions.
7 They destroyed my grapevines.
They ruined my fig trees.
They stripped off what they could eat,
threw the rest away, and left the branches bare.
8 Cry loudly like a young woman who is dressed in sackcloth,
mourning for the man she was going to marry.
9 Grain offerings and wine offerings
are no longer brought to the Lord’s temple.
The priests, the Lord’s servants, mourn.
10 Israel’s fields are ruined, and the ground is dried up.
The grain has been destroyed.
The new wine has dried up.
The olive oil has run out.
11 Be sad, you farmers!
Cry loudly, you grape growers!
Mourn for the wheat and the barley.
The harvest is destroyed in the field.
12 The grapevines are dried up.
The fig trees are withered.
The pomegranate, palm, and apricot trees,
as well as all the trees in the orchards, have died.
Yes, the joy of these people has died too.
13 Put on your sackcloth and mourn, you priests.
Cry loudly, you servants of the altar.
Spend the night in sackcloth, you servants of my God.
Grain offerings and wine offerings
are withheld from your God’s temple.
14 Schedule a time to fast!
Call for an assembly!
Gather the leaders and everyone who lives in the land.
Bring them to the temple of the Lord your God,
and cry to the Lord for help.
6 But Timothy has just now come back to us from you and has told us the good news about your faith and love. He also told us that you always have fond memories of us and want to see us, as we want to see you. 7 So brothers and sisters, your faith has encouraged us in all our distress and trouble. 8 Now we can go on living as long as you keep your relationship with the Lord firm.
9 We can never thank God enough for all the joy you give us as we rejoice in God’s presence. 10 We pray very hard night and day that we may see you again so that we can supply whatever you still need for your faith. 11 We pray that God our Father and the Lord Jesus will guide us to you. 12 We also pray that the Lord will greatly increase your love for each other and for everyone else, just as we love you. 13 Then he will strengthen you to be holy. Then you will be blameless in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all God’s holy people.
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