Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
8 [a]I will hear what God the Lord will say;
For He will (A)speak peace to His people, to His godly ones;
And may they not (B)turn back to [b]foolishness.
9 Certainly (C)His salvation is near to those who [c]fear Him,
That (D)glory may dwell in our land.
10 (E)Graciousness and [d]truth have met together;
(F)Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
11 [e]Truth (G)sprouts from the earth,
And righteousness looks down from heaven.
12 Indeed, (H)the Lord will give what is good,
And our (I)land will yield its produce.
13 (J)Righteousness will go before Him
And will make His footsteps into a way.
Judgment on Israel
6 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (A)Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (B)sell the righteous for [a]money,
And the needy for a pair of sandals.
7 These who [b]trample the head of the (C)helpless to the dust of the earth
Also (D)divert the way of the humble;
And a (E)man and his father [c]resort to the same [d]girl
So as to profane My holy name.
8 And on garments (F)seized as pledges they stretch out beside (G)every altar,
And in the house of their God they (H)drink the wine of those who have been fined.
9 “Yet it was I who destroyed the (I)Amorite before them,
[e]Though his (J)height was like the height of cedars
And he was as strong as the oaks;
I also destroyed his (K)fruit above and his roots below.
10 And it was I who (L)brought you up from the land of Egypt,
And led you in the wilderness for (M)forty years
So that you might take possession of the land of the (N)Amorite.
11 Then I (O)raised up some of your sons to be prophets,
And some of your young men to be (P)Nazirites.
Is this not so, you sons of Israel?” declares the Lord.
12 “But you made the Nazirites drink wine,
And you commanded the prophets, saying, ‘You (Q)shall not prophesy!’
13 Behold, I am (R)making a rut in the ground beneath you,
Just as a wagon makes a rut when filled with sheaves.
14 (S)Refuge will be lost from the swift,
And the strong will not strengthen his power,
Nor the (T)warrior save his [f]life.
15 The one who (U)grasps the bow will not stand his ground,
The swift of foot will not escape,
Nor will the one who rides the (V)horse save his [g]life.
16 Even the [h]bravest among the warriors will (W)flee naked on that day,” declares the Lord.
You Are Built Up in Christ
2 For I want you to know how great a (A)struggle I have in your behalf and for those who are at (B)Laodicea, and for all those who have not [a]personally seen my face, 2 that their (C)hearts may be encouraged, having been (D)knit together in love, and that they would attain to all (E)the wealth [b]that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a (F)true knowledge of (G)God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all (H)the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 (I)I say this so that no one will deceive you with (J)persuasive arguments. 5 For even though I am (K)absent in body, I am nevertheless with you in spirit, rejoicing [c]to see [d]your (L)orderly manner and the (M)stability of your faith in Christ.
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