Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
7 O God of Heaven’s Armies,[a] restore us.
Smile on us.[b] Then we will be delivered.[c]
8 You uprooted a vine[d] from Egypt;
you drove out nations and transplanted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it;[e]
it took root,[f]
and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered by its shadow,
the highest cedars[g] by its branches.
11 Its branches reached the Mediterranean Sea,[h]
and its shoots the Euphrates River.[i]
12 Why did you break down its walls,[j]
so that all who pass by pluck its fruit?[k]
13 The wild boars of the forest ruin it;[l]
the insects[m] of the field feed on it.
14 O God of Heaven’s Armies,[n] come back.
Look down from heaven and take notice.
Take care of this vine,
15 the root[o] your right hand planted,
the shoot you made to grow.[p]
Israel’s Reliance on Foreign Alliances (not on God)
14 “Israel is not a slave, is he?
He was not born into slavery, was he?[a]
If not, why then is he being carried off?
15 Like lions his enemies roar victoriously over him;
they raise their voices in triumph.[b]
They have laid his land waste;
his cities have been burned down and deserted.[c]
16 Even the soldiers[d] from Memphis and Tahpanhes
have cracked your skulls, people of Israel.[e]
17 You have brought all this on yourself, Israel,[f]
by deserting the Lord your God when he was leading you along the right path.[g]
18 What good will it do you[h] then[i] to go down to Egypt
to seek help from the Egyptians?[j]
What good will it do you[k] to go over to Assyria
to seek help from the Assyrians?[l]
19 Your own wickedness will bring about your punishment.
Your unfaithful acts will bring down discipline on you.[m]
Know, then, and realize how utterly harmful[n]
it was for you to reject me, the Lord your God,[o]
to show no respect for me,”[p]
says the Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies.[q]
The Lord Expresses His Exasperation at Judah’s Persistent Idolatry
20 “Indeed,[r] long ago you threw off my authority
and refused to be subject to me.[s]
You said, ‘I will not serve you.’[t]
Instead, you gave yourself to other gods on every high hill
and under every green tree,
like a prostitute sprawls out before her lovers.[u]
21 I planted you in the land
like a special vine of the very best stock.
Why in the world have you turned into something like a wild vine
that produces rotten, foul-smelling grapes?[v]
22 You can try to wash away your guilt with a strong detergent.
You can use as much soap as you want.
But the stain of your guilt is still there for me to see,”[w]
says the Sovereign Lord.[x]
16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days— 17 these are only[a] the shadow of the things to come, but the reality[b] is Christ![c] 18 Let no one who delights in false humility[d] and the worship of angels pass judgment on you. That person goes on at great lengths[e] about what he has supposedly seen, but he is puffed up with empty notions by his fleshly mind.[f] 19 He has not held fast[g] to the head from whom the whole body, supported[h] and knit together through its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God.[i]
20 If you have died with Christ to the elemental spirits[j] of the world, why do you submit to them as though you lived in the world? 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” 22 These are all destined to perish with use, founded as they are[k] on human commands and teachings.[l] 23 Even though they have the appearance of wisdom[m] with their self-imposed worship and humility achieved by an[n] unsparing treatment of the body—a wisdom with no true value—they in reality result in fleshly indulgence.[o]
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