Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Israel Will Return to God

3 Then the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by a ^(A)lover^[a] and is committing adultery, just like the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods and love the raisin cakes of the pagans.”

² So I bought her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver, and one and one-half homers of barley. ³ And I said to her, “You shall ^(B)stay with me many days; you shall not play the harlot, nor shall you have a man—so, too, will I be toward you.”

⁴ For the children of Israel shall abide many days ^(C)without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, without ^(D)ephod or ^(E)teraphim. ⁵ Afterward the children of Israel shall return and ^(F)seek the Lord their God and ^(G)David their king. They shall fear the Lord and His goodness in the ^(H)latter days.

²³ Moreover ^(A)I call God as witness against my soul, ^(B)that to spare you I came no more to Corinth. ²⁴ Not ^(C)that we ^[a]have dominion over your faith, but are fellow workers for your joy; for ^(D)by faith you stand.

Paul Urges Forgiveness

2 But I determined this within myself, ^(E)that I would not come again to you in sorrow. ² For if I make you ^(F)sorrowful, then who is he who makes me glad but the one who is made sorrowful by me?

Forgive the Offender

³ And I wrote this very thing to you, lest, when I came, ^(G)I should have sorrow over those from whom I ought to have joy, ^(H)having confidence in you all that my joy is the joy of you all. ⁴ For out of much ^[b]affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you, with many tears, ^(I)not that you should be grieved, but that you might know the love which I have so abundantly for you.

⁵ But ^(J)if anyone has caused grief, he has not ^(K)grieved me, but all of you to some extent—not to be too severe. ⁶ This punishment which was inflicted ^(L)by the majority is sufficient for such a man, ^7 (M)so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow. ⁸ Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him. ⁹ For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are ^(N)obedient in all things. ¹⁰ Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For ^[c]if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, ¹¹ lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.