Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
23 “It will be very bad for the shepherds of the people of Judah. They are destroying the sheep. They are making the sheep run from my pasture in all directions.” This message is from the Lord.
2 They are responsible for my people. And this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to them: “You shepherds have made my sheep run away in all directions. You have forced them to go away, and you have not taken care of them. But I will take care of you—I will punish you for the evil things you did.” This message is from the Lord: 3 “I sent my sheep to other countries. But I will gather together my sheep that are left, and I will bring them back to their pasture. When my sheep are back in their pasture, they will have many children and grow in number. 4 I will place new shepherds over my sheep. They will take care of my sheep, and my sheep will never again feel afraid. None of my sheep will be lost.” This message is from the Lord.
The Good “Branch”
5 This message is from the Lord:
“The time is coming,
when I will raise up a good ‘branch’ from David’s family.
He will be a king who will rule in a wise way.
He will do what is fair and right in the land.
6 When he rules, Judah will be saved,
and Israel will live in safety.
This will be his name:
The Lord Makes Things Right for Us.[a]
To the director: A song from the Korah family. Use the alamoth.[a] A song.
46 God is our protection and source of strength.
He is always ready to help us in times of trouble.
2 So we are not afraid when the earth quakes
and the mountains fall into the sea.
3 We are not afraid when the seas become rough and dark
and the mountains tremble. Selah
4 There is a river whose streams bring happiness to God’s city,
to the holy city of God Most High.
5 God is in that city, so it will never be destroyed.
He is there to help even before sunrise.
6 Nations will shake with fear and kingdoms will fall
when God shouts and makes the earth move.
7 The Lord All-Powerful is with us.
The God of Jacob is our place of safety. Selah
8 Look at the powerful things the Lord has done.
See the awesome things he has done on earth.
9 He stops wars all over the world.
He breaks the soldiers’ bows, shatters their spears, and burns their shields.[b]
10 God says, “Stop fighting and know that I am God!
I am the one who defeats the nations;
I am the one who controls the world.”
11 The Lord All-Powerful is with us.
The God of Jacob is our place of safety. Selah
11 that God will strengthen you with his own great power, so that you will be patient and not give up when troubles come.
Then you will be happy 12 and give thanks to the Father. He has made you able to have what he has promised to give all his holy people, who live in the light. 13 God made us free from the power of darkness. And he brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son. 14 The Son paid the price to make us free. In him we have forgiveness of our sins.
The Son of God Is the Same as God
15 No one can see God,
but the Son is exactly like God.
He rules over everything that has been made.[a]
16 Through his power all things were made:
things in heaven and on earth, seen and not seen—
all spiritual rulers, lords, powers, and authorities.
Everything was made through him and for him.
17 The Son was there before anything was made.
And all things continue because of him.
18 He is the head of the body, which is the church.
He is the beginning of everything else.
And he is the first among all who will be raised from death.[b]
So in everything he is most important.
19 God was pleased for all of himself to live in the Son.
20 And through him, God was happy to bring all things back to himself again—
things on earth and things in heaven.
God made peace by using the blood sacrifice of his Son on the cross.
33 They were led to a place called “The Skull.” There the soldiers nailed Jesus to the cross. They also nailed the criminals to crosses beside Jesus—one on the right and the other on the left.
34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing.”[a]
The soldiers threw dice to divide Jesus’ clothes between them. 35 The people stood there watching everything. The Jewish leaders laughed at Jesus. They said, “If he is God’s Chosen One, the Messiah, then let him save himself. He saved others, didn’t he?”
36 Even the soldiers laughed at Jesus and made fun of him. They came and offered him some sour wine. 37 They said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself!” 38 (At the top of the cross these words were written: “ this is the king of the jews.”)
39 One of the criminals hanging there began to shout insults at Jesus: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Then save yourself, and save us too!”
40 But the other criminal stopped him. He said, “You should fear God. All of us will die soon. 41 You and I are guilty. We deserve to die because we did wrong. But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you begin ruling as king!”
43 Then Jesus said to him, “I promise you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International