Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

How Long, O Lord?

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

The Lord Will Give Salvation

12 ^(A)The oracle of the word of the Lord concerning Israel: Thus declares the Lord, ^(B)who stretched out the heavens and ^(C)founded the earth and ^(D)formed the spirit of man within him: ² “Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem ^(E)a cup of staggering to ^(F)all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem ^(G)will also be against Judah. ^3 (H)On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. ^(I)All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And ^(J)all the nations of the earth will gather against it. ^4 (K)On that day, declares the Lord, ^(L)I will strike every horse ^(M)with panic, and its rider ^(N)with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples ^(O)with blindness. ⁵ Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the Lord of hosts, their God.’

^6 (P)“On that day I will make the clans of Judah ^(Q)like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves. And ^(R)they shall devour to the right and to the left all the surrounding peoples, while ^(S)Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.

⁷ “And the Lord will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah. ^8 (T)On that day ^(U)the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that ^(V)the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, ^(W)like the angel of the Lord, going before them. ^9 (X)And on that day ^(Y)I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Him Whom They Have Pierced

¹⁰ “And ^(Z)I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and ^(AA)pleas for mercy, so that, ^(AB)when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, ^(AC)they shall mourn for him, ^(AD)as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. ^11 (AE)On that day ^(AF)the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great ^(AG)as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. ¹² The land shall mourn, ^(AH)each family^[a] by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of ^(AI)Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; ¹³ the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of ^(AJ)the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; ¹⁴ and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.

13 ^(AK)“On that day there shall be ^(AL)a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.

^9 (A)“But ^(B)be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten ^(C)in synagogues, and you will stand before ^(D)governors and ^(E)kings for my sake, ^(F)to bear witness before them. ¹⁰ And the gospel must first be proclaimed ^(G)to all nations. ¹¹ And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, ^(H)do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say ^(I)whatever is given you in that hour, ^(J)for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. ^12 (K)And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death. ^13 (L)And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. ^(M)But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

The Abomination of Desolation

¹⁴ “But when you see ^(N)the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (^(O)let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ^15 (P)Let the one who is on ^(Q)the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out, ¹⁶ and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. ¹⁷ And ^(R)alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! ¹⁸ Pray that it may not happen in winter. ¹⁹ For in those days there will be ^(S)such ^(T)tribulation as has not been ^(U)from the beginning of the creation that ^(V)God created until now, and never will be. ²⁰ And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for ^(W)the sake of the elect, whom ^(X)he chose, he shortened the days. ²¹ And ^(Y)then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. ^22 (Z)For false christs and false prophets will arise and ^(AA)perform signs and wonders, ^(AB)to lead astray, if possible, ^(AC)the elect. ²³ But ^(AD)be on guard; ^(AE)I have told you all things beforehand.