Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Jeremiah’s Unpopular Ministry
7 O Lord, You [a]induced me, and I was persuaded;
(A)You are stronger than I, and have prevailed.
(B)I am [b]in derision daily;
Everyone mocks me.
8 For when I spoke, I cried out;
(C)I shouted, “Violence and plunder!”
Because the word of the Lord was made to me
A reproach and a derision daily.
9 Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him,
Nor speak anymore in His name.”
But His word was in my heart like a (D)burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
I was weary of holding it back,
And (E)I could not.
10 (F)For I heard many [c]mocking:
“Fear on every side!”
“Report,” they say, “and we will report it!”
(G)All my acquaintances watched for my stumbling, saying,
“Perhaps he can be induced;
Then we will prevail against him,
And we will take our revenge on him.”
11 But the Lord is (H)with me as a mighty, awesome One.
Therefore my persecutors will stumble, and will not (I)prevail.
They will be greatly ashamed, for they will not prosper.
Their (J)everlasting confusion will never be forgotten.
12 But, O Lord of hosts,
You who (K)test the righteous,
And see the [d]mind and heart,
(L)Let me see Your vengeance on them;
For I have pleaded my cause before You.
13 Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord!
For (M)He has delivered the life of the poor
From the hand of evildoers.
7 Because for Your sake I have borne reproach;
Shame has covered my face.
8 (A)I have become a stranger to my brothers,
And an alien to my mother’s children;
9 (B)Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up,
(C)And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
10 When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting,
That became my reproach.
11 I also [a]made sackcloth my garment;
I became a byword to them.
12 Those who [b]sit in the gate speak against me,
And I am the song of the (A)drunkards.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to You,
O Lord, in the acceptable time;
O God, in the multitude of Your mercy,
Hear me in the truth of Your salvation.
14 Deliver me out of the mire,
And let me not sink;
Let me be delivered from those who hate me,
And out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the floodwater overflow me,
Nor let the deep swallow me up;
And let not the pit shut its mouth on me.
16 Hear me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is good;
Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies.
17 And do not hide Your face from Your servant,
For I am in trouble;
Hear me speedily.
18 Draw near to my soul, and redeem it;
Deliver me because of my enemies.
Dead to Sin, Alive to God
6 What shall we say then? (A)Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who (B)died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that (C)as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus (D)were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were (E)buried with Him through baptism into death, that (F)just as Christ was raised from the dead by (G)the glory of the Father, (H)even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 (I)For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that (J)our old man was crucified with Him, that (K)the body of sin might be [a]done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For (L)he who has died has been [b]freed from sin. 8 Now (M)if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that (N)Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, (O)He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, (P)He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, [c]reckon yourselves to be (Q)dead indeed to sin, but (R)alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
24 (A)“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If (B)they have called the master of the house [a]Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household! 26 Therefore do not fear them. (C)For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.
Jesus Teaches the Fear of God(D)
27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, (E)speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. 28 (F)And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather (G)fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in [b]hell. 29 Are not two (H)sparrows sold for a [c]copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 (I)But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Confess Christ Before Men(J)
32 (K)“Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, (L)him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 (M)But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
Christ Brings Division(N)
34 (O)“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 35 For I have come to (P)‘set[d] a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; 36 and (Q)‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ 37 (R)He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 (S)And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 (T)He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.