Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
(A special psalm by Ethan the Ezrahite.)
The Lord's Agreement with David
1 (A) Our Lord, I will sing
of your love forever.
Everyone yet to be born
will hear me praise
your faithfulness.
2 I will tell them, “God's love
can always be trusted,
and his faithfulness lasts
as long as the heavens.”
3 You said, “David, my servant,
is my chosen one,
and this is the agreement
I made with him:
4 (B) David, one of your descendants
will always be king.”
15 Our Lord, you bless those
who join in the festival
and walk in the brightness
of your presence.
16 We are happy all day
because of you,
and your saving power
brings honor to us.
17 Your own glorious power
makes us strong,
and because of your kindness,
our strength increases.
18 Our Lord and our King,
the Holy One of Israel,
you are truly our shield.
Jeremiah Accuses Hananiah of Being a False Prophet
28 (A) Later that same year, in the fifth month of the fourth year that Zedekiah[a] was king,[b] the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur from Gibeon came up to me in the temple. And while the priests and others in the temple were listening, 2 he told me that the Lord had said:
I am the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, and I will smash the yoke[c] that Nebuchadnezzar[d] put on the necks of the nations to make them his slaves. 3 And within two years, I will bring back to Jerusalem everything that he took from my temple and carried off to Babylonia. 4 King Jehoiachin[e] and the other people who were taken from Judah to Babylonia will be allowed to come back here as well. All this will happen because I will smash the power of the king of Babylonia!
Faith and Service
(Matthew 18.6,7,21,22; Mark 9.42)
17 Jesus said to his disciples:
There will always be something that causes people to sin. But anyone who causes them to sin is in for trouble. A person who causes even one of my little followers to sin 2 would be better off thrown into the ocean with a heavy stone tied around their neck. 3 (A) So be careful what you do.
Correct any followers[a] of mine who sin, and forgive the ones who say they are sorry. 4 Even if one of them mistreats you seven times in one day and says, “I am sorry,” you should still forgive that person.
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