Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
7 Keep quiet now! You are standing before the Eternal Lord
because the day of the Eternal One is near;
His judgment is coming. He has prepared the sacrifice,
and He has chosen His guests with care.
12 On that day, I will personally search and illumine every dark corner of Jerusalem.
I will wipe out everyone who has numbed his senses with the dregs of his own wine
And says, “The Eternal will do nothing in our lives,
neither helping us nor hurting us.”
13 But they are wrong. Everything they value will be taken away.
Their houses will be destroyed.
They will build new houses and never have a chance to move in.
They will plant vineyards and never enjoy a sip of their own wine.
14 I’m warning you, this day of judgment is right around the corner.
The great and terrible day of the Eternal One is coming on you very quickly.
Listen, here it comes, the day of the Eternal One, and it will be very bitter!
Even your strongest and bravest will break down and cry out.[a]
15 On that day, you will see what happens when God is furious.
You will be overwhelmed with all the trouble and pain—total destruction.
You will watch the sky fill with the thick clouds and gloomy darkness.
16 You will hear the trumpet blast and battle cry
as He moves against the city that day.
You were so sure it was fortified against attack with its thick walls and high towers,
yet they will surely fall.
17 Eternal One: I will bring distress on all humanity,
and they will stumble around like the blind.
Why? Because they have sinned time and again against the Eternal.
Their lifeblood will be poured out like ash of a burnt offering.
Their bodies will be discarded like excrement.
18 Don’t think any amount of money can save them
from the terrible anger of the Eternal when that day arrives.
He will consume the whole earth in His fiery jealousy,
for He is going to expedite the annihilation of every living thing on the earth.
Book Four
There are endless reasons to praise God, and many of them are included in the Book of Psalms. Book Four (Psalms 90–106) is made up of songs that praise and celebrate God for His creation, strength, work in history, and kingship. Although these songs are written to honor God, many require something from us. Throughout these psalms is the Hebrew word hallelujah, translated “Praise the Eternal!” That’s not just a passive verb, as in, “Praise be to the Eternal”; it’s an active imperative! We are commanded to praise Him. We are commanded to join angels above, people below, and all creatures in praising Him!
Psalm 90
A prayer of Moses, a man of God.
1 Lord, You have always been our refuge.
Our ancestors made You their home long ago.
2 Before mountains were born,
before You fashioned the earth and filled it with life,
from ages past to distant futures,
You are truly God.
3 You turn people back to dust,
saying, “Go back to the dust, children of Adam.”
4 For You a thousand years is like a day when it is over,
a watch during the night;
there is no difference to You.
5-6 You release the waters of death to sweep mankind away in his slumber.
In the morning, we are blades of grass,
Growing rapidly under the sun but withering quickly;
yet in the evening, we fade and die, soon to be cut down.
7 For Your anger has consumed us.
Your wrath has shaken us to the core
and left us deeply troubled.
8 You have written our offenses before You—
the light of Your presence shines brightly on our secret sins,
and we can’t run or hide.
9 For all our days are spent beneath Your wrath;
our youth gives way to old age, and then
one day our years come to an end with a sigh.
10 We may journey through life for 70 years;
some may live and breathe 80 years—if we are strong.
Yet our time here is only toil and trouble;
soon our days are gone, and we fly away.
11 Who can truly comprehend the power unleashed by Your anger?
Your wrath matches the fear that is due to You.
12 Teach us to number our days
so that we may truly live and achieve wisdom.
Many people fear death; perhaps it’s the idea of the unknown that stirs the imagination. Death is the great enemy that stands before believers; but through Jesus’ own death and resurrection, the power of death is broken. Paul uses the gentle image of the faithful being asleep as a new perspective on the finality of death. One minute you close your eyes to this world; the next you are celebrating with Jesus and experiencing the resurrection of the body. Those sleeping will not even miss a moment; it will all happen in the blink of an eye.
5 Now, brothers and sisters, you don’t need further instruction from us or anyone else for that matter regarding how the seasons and times will play out. 2 That’s because you know the truth well enough. The day of the Lord will race onto the scene and surprise us like a thief in the night. 3 People will be going about their business chanting, “All is well! All is at peace!” and in the next moment, ruin and destruction will suddenly seize them as labor pains grip a woman about to give birth; for them there will be no escape. 4 My brothers and sisters, it will be different for you. You do not dwell in the darkness, so that day will not surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light. You are sons and daughters of the day. We are not created of night, nor are we owned by darkness. 6 So then let’s not give in to sleep or wander around in a stupor as some do, but let’s stay awake and in control. 7 You see, sleepers sleep through the night, and drunkards drink the night away; 8 but since we belong to the day, we should stay sober and in control, covered with a breastplate of faith and love and a helmet of the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us, His chosen, to face His wrath but to be the heirs of salvation through our Lord Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, 10 who died for us. So regardless of whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him. 11 So support one another. Keep building each other up as you have been doing.
Jesus provides a picture of the coming reality of the kingdom of heaven. As they approach the time of His sacrifice, Jesus makes sure the disciples know that soon it will be too late; the door of opportunity will close, and for many the door will remain shut. He gives them another image of the same reality to bring the picture into focus. Once they were bridesmaids waiting for their bridegroom; now they are slaves waiting for their Master. This time they are given responsibilities that will be rewarded. The blessings of the Kingdom bring risks along with the benefits.
Jesus: 14 This is how it will be. It will be like a landowner who is going on a trip. He instructed his slaves about caring for his property. 15 He gave five talents to one slave, two to the next, and then one talent to the last slave—each according to his ability. Then the man left.
16 Promptly the man who had been given five talents went out and bartered and sold and turned his five talents into ten. 17 And the one who had received two talents went to the market and turned his two into four. 18 And the slave who had received just one talent? He dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money there.
19 Eventually the master came back from his travels, found his slaves, and settled up with them. 20 The slave who had been given five talents came forward and told his master how he’d turned five into ten; then he handed the whole lot over to his master.
Master: 21 Excellent. You’ve proved yourself not only clever but loyal. You’ve executed a rather small task masterfully, so now I am going to put you in charge of something larger. But before you go back to work, come join my great feast and celebration.
22 Then the slave who had been given two talents came forward and told his master how he’d turned two into four, and he handed all four talents to his master.
Master: 23 Excellent. You’ve proved yourself not only clever but loyal. You’ve executed a rather small task masterfully, so now I am going to put you in charge of something larger. But before you go back to work, come join my great feast and celebration.
24 Finally the man who had been given one talent came forward.
Servant: Master, I know you are a hard man, difficult in every way. You can make a healthy sum when others would fail. You profit when other people are doing the work. You grow rich on the backs of others. 25 So I was afraid, dug a hole, and hid the talent in the ground. Here it is. You can have it.
26 The master was furious.
Master: You are a pathetic excuse for a servant! You have disproved my trust in you and squandered my generosity. You know I always make a profit! 27 You could have at least put this talent in the bank; then I could have earned a little interest on it! 28 Take that one talent away, and give it to the servant who doubled my money from five to ten.
29 You see, everything was taken away from the man who had nothing, but the man who had something got even more. 30 And as for the slave who made no profit but buried his talent in the ground? His master ordered his slaves to tie him up and throw him outside into the utter darkness where there is miserable mourning and great fear.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.