Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

⁷ God of virtues, turn thou us (again); and show thy face, and we shall be safe. (God of hosts, bring us back; and shine thy face upon us, and we shall be saved.)

⁸ Thou translatedest a vine from Egypt; thou castedest out heathen men, and plantedest it. (Thou broughtest up a vine out of Egypt; thou threwest out the heathen, and then thou plantedest that vine, that is, us.)

⁹ Thou were leader of the way in the sight thereof; and thou plantedest the roots thereof, and it filled the land. (Thou madest a place for it on the way; and it planted its roots, and it filled the land.)

¹⁰ The shadow thereof covered hills; and the branches thereof filled the cedars of God. (Its shadow covered the hills; and its branches were thick, like the cedars of God.)

¹¹ It stretched forth his scions till to the sea, and the generations thereof till to the flood. (It stretched out its branches unto the Mediterranean Sea, and as far as the Euphrates River.)

¹² Why hast thou destroyed the wall thereof; and all men that go forth by the way, gather away the grapes thereof? (But why hast thou destroyed the wall around it? so that now all those who go forth by the way, can gather up, or take away, all of its grapes?)

¹³ A boar (out) of the wood destroyed it; and a singular wild beast devoured it.

¹⁴ God of virtues, be thou turned (again to us); behold from heaven, and see, and visit this vine. (God of hosts, turn thou again to us; look down from heaven, and see us in dire straits, and help us/and care for this vine.)

¹⁵ And make thou it perfect, which thy right hand planted; and behold thou on the son of man, which thou hast confirmed to thee. (And make thou perfect what thy right hand hath planted; yea, look thou upon the son of man, whom thou hast made strong for thyself/yea, look thou upon the branch, that thou hast made strong for thyself.)

6 Sons of Benjamin, be ye comforted in the middle of Jerusalem, and make ye noise with a clarion in Tekoa, and raise ye a banner on Bethhaccerem; for why evil and great sorrow is seen from the north. (Sons of Benjamin, escape ye from the midst of Jerusalem, and make ye a sound with a trumpet in Tekoa, and raise ye up a banner over Bethhaccerem; for evil and great sorrow is seen coming from the north.)

² I have likened the daughter of Zion to a fair woman and delicate. (I have likened, or compared, the daughter of Zion to a beautiful and delicate woman.)

³ Shepherds and their flocks shall come to it; they have pitched tents in it in compass; each man shall feed them, that be under his hand. (Shepherds and their flocks shall come to her; they shall pitch their tents all around her; each one shall feed his beasts there, that be under his hand.)

⁴ Hallow ye battle on it. Rise ye together, and ascend we in midday (Prepare ye battle against her. Rise ye up together, and go we up at midday). Woe to us, for the day hath bowed down, for shadows be made longer in the eventide.

⁵ Rise ye, and ascend we in the night, and destroy we the houses thereof. (Rise ye, and go we up in the night, and let us destroy its houses.)

⁶ For the Lord of hosts saith these things, Cut ye down the tree(s) thereof, and shed ye earth about Jerusalem; this is the city of visitation; all false challenge is in the midst thereof. (For the Lord of hosts saith these things, Cut ye down its trees, and heap ye earth all around Jerusalem; this is the city to be punished; for oppression is widespread in its midst.)

⁷ As a cistern maketh his water cold, so it made his malice cold; wickedness and destroying shall ever be heard therein before me, sickness and wound. (Like a cistern maketh its water cold, so Jerusalem made its malice cold; wickedness and destruction be heard there, sickness and wounds be ever before me.)

⁸ Jerusalem, be thou taught, lest peradventure my soul go away from thee; lest peradventure I set thee forsaken, a land unhabitable. (Jerusalem, make thyself able to be taught, lest perhaps my soul go away from thee; lest perhaps I make thee deserted, yea, a land uninhabited/yea, an uninhabitable land.)

⁹ The Lord of hosts saith these things, They shall gather till to a raisin, they shall gather the remnants of Israel as in a vinery (they shall gather the remnants of Israel like in a vineyard); turn thine hand, as a gatherer of grapes to the basket.

¹⁰ To whom shall I speak, and to whom shall I say witnessing, that he hear? Lo! the ears of them be uncircumcised, and they be not able to hear; lo! the word of the Lord is made to them into despite, and they shall not receive it (lo! the word of the Lord is taken as a rebuke to them, and they shall not accept it).

⁴⁰ Therefore of that company, when they had heard these words of him, they said, This is verily a prophet.

⁴¹ Others said, This is Christ. But some said, Whether Christ cometh from Galilee?

⁴² Whether the scripture saith not, that of the seed of David, and of the castle of Bethlehem, where David was, Christ cometh?

⁴³ Therefore dissension was made among the people for him. [And so dissension is made in the company for him.]

⁴⁴ And some of them would have taken him, but no man set hands on him.

⁴⁵ Therefore the ministers came to the bishops and Pharisees, and they said to them, Why brought ye not him?

⁴⁶ The ministers answered, Never man spake so, as this man speaketh.

⁴⁷ Therefore the Pharisees answered to them, Whether ye be deceived also?

⁴⁸ whether any of the princes or of the Pharisees believed in him?

⁴⁹ But this people, that knoweth not the law, be cursed.

⁵⁰ Nicodemus saith to them, he that came to him by night, that was one of them,

⁵¹ Whether our law deemeth a man, but it have first heard of him [no but first it hear of him], and know what he doeth?

⁵² They answered, and said to him, Whether thou art a man of Galilee also [Whether and thou art a man of Galilee]? Seek thou scriptures, and see thou, that a prophet riseth not of Galilee [for a prophet riseth not of Galilee].