Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Lord Implored to Avenge His People.
94 O Lord, God of [a](A)vengeance,
God of [b]vengeance, [c](B)shine forth!
2 (C)Rise up, O (D)Judge of the earth,
Render recompense (E)to the proud.
3 How long shall the wicked, O Lord,
How long shall the (F)wicked exult?
4 They pour forth words, they (G)speak arrogantly;
All who do wickedness (H)vaunt themselves.
5 They (I)crush Your people, O Lord,
And (J)afflict Your heritage.
6 They (K)slay the widow and the [d]stranger
And murder the orphans.
7 (L)They have said, “[e]The Lord does not see,
Nor does the God of Jacob pay heed.”
8 Pay heed, you (M)senseless among the people;
And when will you understand, (N)stupid ones?
9 He who (O)planted the ear, [f]does He not hear?
He who formed the eye, [g]does He not see?
10 He who [h](P)chastens the nations, will He not rebuke,
Even He who (Q)teaches man knowledge?
11 The Lord (R)knows the thoughts of man,
[i]That they are a mere breath.
12 Blessed is the man whom (S)You chasten, O [j]Lord,
And (T)whom You teach out of Your law;
13 That You may grant him (U)relief from the (V)days of adversity,
Until (W)a pit is dug for the wicked.
14 For (X)the Lord will not abandon His people,
Nor will He (Y)forsake His inheritance.
15 For [k](Z)judgment [l]will again be righteous,
And all the upright in heart [m]will follow it.
16 Who will (AA)stand up for me against evildoers?
Who will take his stand for me (AB)against those who do wickedness?
17 If (AC)the Lord had not been my help,
My soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.
18 If I should say, “(AD)My foot has slipped,”
Your lovingkindness, O Lord, will hold me up.
19 When my anxious thoughts [n]multiply within me,
Your (AE)consolations delight my soul.
20 Can a [o](AF)throne of destruction be allied with You,
One (AG)which devises [p]mischief by decree?
21 They (AH)band themselves together against the [q]life of the righteous
And (AI)condemn [r]the innocent to death.
22 But the Lord has been my (AJ)stronghold,
And my God the (AK)rock of my refuge.
23 He has (AL)brought back their wickedness upon them
And will [s](AM)destroy them in their evil;
The Lord our God will [t]destroy them.
Naomi Widowed
1 Now it came about in the days (A)when the judges [a]governed, that there was (B)a famine in the land. And a certain man (C)of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the land of Moab [b]with his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. Now they (D)entered the land of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. 4 They took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. And they lived there about ten years. 5 Then [c]both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband.
6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the land of Moab, for she had heard in the land of Moab that the Lord had (E)visited His people in (F)giving them food. 7 So she departed from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. (G)May the Lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 May the Lord grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, “No, but we will surely return with you to your people.” 11 But Naomi said, “Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb, that (H)they may be your husbands? 12 Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight and also bear sons, 13 would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is [d]harder for me than for you, for (I)the hand of the Lord has gone forth against me.”
Ruth’s Loyalty
14 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her (J)gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may (K)the Lord do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” 18 When (L)she saw that she was determined to go with her, she [e]said no more to her.
19 So they both went until they came to Bethlehem. And when they had come to Bethlehem, (M)all the city was stirred because of them, and [f]the women said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 She said to them, “Do not call me [g]Naomi; call me [h]Mara, for [i](N)the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, but (O)the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has witnessed against me and [j]the Almighty has afflicted me?”
22 So Naomi returned, and with her Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, who returned from the land of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at (P)the beginning of barley harvest.
Honor Widows
5 (A)Do not sharply rebuke an (B)older man, but rather appeal to him as a father, to (C)the younger men as brothers, 2 the older women as mothers, and the younger women as sisters, in all purity.
3 Honor widows who are (D)widows indeed; 4 but if any widow has children or grandchildren, (E)they must first learn to practice piety in regard to their own family and to [a]make some return to their parents; for this is (F)acceptable in the sight of God. 5 Now she who is a (G)widow indeed and who has been left alone, (H)has fixed her hope on God and continues in (I)entreaties and prayers night and day. 6 But she who (J)gives herself to wanton pleasure is (K)dead even while she lives. 7 [b](L)Prescribe these things as well, so that they may be above reproach. 8 But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has (M)denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
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