Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹² Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, whose people he has chosen as his own. ^13-15 The Lord gazes down upon mankind from heaven where he lives. He has made their hearts and closely watches everything they do.

^16-17 The best-equipped army cannot save a king—for great strength is not enough to save anyone. A war horse is a poor risk for winning victories—it is strong, but it cannot save.

^18-19 But the eyes of the Lord are watching over those who fear him, who rely upon his steady love. He will keep them from death even in times of famine! ²⁰ We depend upon the Lord alone to save us. Only he can help us; he protects us like a shield. ²¹ No wonder we are happy in the Lord! For we are trusting him. We trust his holy name. ²² Yes, Lord, let your constant love surround us, for our hopes are in you alone.

37 “My heart trembles at this. ² Listen, listen to the thunder of his voice. ³ It rolls across the heavens and his lightning flashes out in every direction. ⁴ Afterwards comes the roaring of the thunder—the tremendous voice of his majesty. ⁵ His voice is glorious in the thunder. We cannot comprehend the greatness of his power. ⁶ For he directs the snow, the showers, and storm to fall upon the earth. ⁷ Man’s work stops at such a time so that all men everywhere may recognize his power. ⁸ The wild animals hide in the rocks or in their dens.

⁹ “From the south comes the rain; from the north, the cold. ¹⁰ God blows upon the rivers, and even the widest torrents freeze. ¹¹ He loads the clouds with moisture, and they send forth his lightning. ¹² The lightning bolts are directed by his hand and do whatever he commands throughout the earth. ¹³ He sends the storms^[a] as punishment or, in his loving-kindness, to encourage.

⁵⁰ I tell you this, my brothers: an earthly body made of flesh and blood cannot get into God’s Kingdom. These perishable bodies of ours are not the right kind to live forever.

⁵¹ But I am telling you this strange and wonderful secret: we shall not all die, but we shall all be given new bodies! ⁵² It will all happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For there will be a trumpet blast from the sky,^[a] and all the Christians who have died will suddenly become alive, with new bodies that will never, never die; and then we who are still alive shall suddenly have new bodies too. ⁵³ For our earthly bodies, the ones we have now that can die, must be transformed into heavenly bodies that cannot perish but will live forever.

⁵⁴ When this happens, then at last this Scripture will come true—“Death is swallowed up in victory.” ^55-56 O death, where then your victory? Where then your sting? For sin—the sting that causes death—will all be gone; and the law, which reveals our sins, will no longer be our judge. ⁵⁷ How we thank God for all of this! It is he who makes us victorious through Jesus Christ our Lord!