Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
To the Director: A Psalm by the descendants of Korah.
Restore Us, God
85 Lord you have favored your land
and restored the fortunes of Jacob.
2 You took away the iniquity of your people,
forgiving all their sins.
8 Let me listen to what God, the Lord, says;
for the Lord will promise peace
to his people, to his holy ones;
may they not return to foolishness.
9 Surely, he will soon deliver those who fear him,
for his glory will live in our land.
10 Gracious love and truth meet;
righteousness and peace kiss.
11 Truth sprouts up from the ground,
while righteousness looks down from the sky.
12 The Lord will also provide what is good,
and our land will yield its produce.
13 Righteousness will go before him
to prepare a path for his steps.
A Call for Israel to Repent
6 “Come, let us return to the Lord;
even though he has torn us,[a]
he will heal us.
Even though he has wounded us,
he will bind our wounds.[b]
2 After two days, he will restore us to life,
on the third day he will raise us up,
and we will live in his presence.
3 Let us know,
let us pursue knowledge of the Lord;
his coming is as certain as the dawn.
He will come to us like the rain,
like the autumn and spring rains come on the earth.
4 “What am I to do with you, Ephraim?
What am I to do with you, Judah?
Your love is like a morning rain cloud—
it passes away like the morning dew.
5 Therefore I cut them[c] to pieces by the prophets,
killing them by the words from my mouth.
The verdict against you shines like a beacon.
6 For it is love that I seek,
and not sacrifice;
knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
Paul’s Prayer for the Thessalonians
2 We always thank God for all of you when we mention you in our prayers. 3 In the presence of our God and Father, we constantly remember how your faith is active,[a] your love is hard at work,[b] and your hope in our Lord Jesus the Messiah[c] is enduring.[d] 4 Brothers whom God loves, we know that he has chosen you, 5 for the gospel we brought[e] did not come to you in words only, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction. Indeed,[f] you know what kind of people we proved to be while we were with you, acting on your behalf.
6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord. In spite of a great deal of suffering, you welcomed the word with the joy that the Holy Spirit produces.[g] 7 As a result, you became a model for all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. 8 From you the word of the Lord has spread out not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place where your faith in God has become known. As a result, we do not need to say anything about it.
9 For people[h] keep telling us what kind of welcome you gave us and how you turned away from idols to serve a living and true God 10 and to wait for his Son whom he raised from the dead to come back[i] from heaven. This Jesus is the one who rescues us from the coming wrath.
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