Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 95
1 O come, let us sing unto the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise unto Him with psalms!
3 For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
4 In His hand are the deep places of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are also His.
5 The sea is His, for He made it,
and His hands formed the dry land.
6 O come, let us worship and bow down;
let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker.
7 For He is our God,
and we are the people of His pasture
and the sheep of His hand.
Today if you hear His voice,
13 The servant who had gone to get Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “See here, the words of the prophets unanimously declare success for the king. Please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak that which is good.”
14 Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, I will speak whatever the Lord says to me.”
15 So he came to the king. And the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall we wait?”
And he answered him, “Go and prosper, for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king.”
16 The king said to him, “How many times must I admonish you to tell me only the truth in the name of the Lord?”
17 And he said, “I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep without a shepherd, and the Lord said, ‘These have no master. Let every man return to his own house in peace.’ ”
18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”
19 And he said, “Hear, therefore, the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside Him on His right hand and on His left. 20 The Lord said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab so that he will go up and die at Ramoth Gilead?’
“And one said this, and another said that. 21 Then a spirit came forth and stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will persuade him.’
22 “The Lord said to him, ‘How?’
“And he said, ‘I will go and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’
“And He said, ‘You will be successful and persuade him. Go forth, and do so.’
23 “Now therefore, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all your prophets here, and He has spoken evil concerning you!”
The Lamb and the 144,000
14 Then I looked. The Lamb was standing on Mount Zion and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand having His Father’s name written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a sound from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of a great thunder. I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. 3 They sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn that song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. 4 These are those who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are those who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths, for they are without fault before the throne of God.
The Messages of the Three Angels
6 Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the eternal gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth, to every nation and tribe and tongue and people. 7 He said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, for the hour of His judgment has come. Worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
8 Another angel followed, saying, “ ‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon, that Great City,’[a] because she made all the nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her sexual immorality.”
9 A third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he also shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out in full strength into the cup of His anger. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 The smoke of their torment will ascend forever and ever. They have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image and whoever receives the mark of his name.”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.