Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
He: That You May Be Feared
33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes.
Then I will guard it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, and I will guard your law.
I will keep it with all my heart.
35 Make me walk on the path of your commandments,
for I take pleasure in it.
36 Direct my heart toward your testimonies
and not toward material gain.
37 Keep my eyes from looking at worthless things.
Give me life according to your ways.[a]
38 Confirm your sayings to your servant,
so that you may be feared.
39 Take away my disgrace which I dread,
for your judgments are good.
40 How I long for your precepts!
Give me life in your righteousness.
The Death of Ezekiel’s Wife
15 The word of the Lord came to me.
16 Son of man, be warned! With one blow I am taking away from you what your eyes desire. You must not mourn or cry. Your tears must not flow. 17 Groan silently. Perform no mourning rites for the dead. Bind your turban on your head. Put your sandals on your feet. Do not cover your upper lip. Do not eat the food people bring to mourners.
18 So I spoke to the people that morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded. 19 Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things that you are doing mean for us?”
20 I answered them, “This is the word of the Lord that came to me.”
21 Say to the house of Israel that this is what the Lord God says.
I am about to desecrate my sanctuary, the stronghold of which you are so proud, the sight your eyes desire, the place your soul yearns for. Your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind will fall by the sword. 22 You will do as I have done. You will not cover your upper lip. You will not eat the food people bring to mourners. 23 Your turbans will remain on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or cry, but you will waste away in your guilt, and you will groan to one another. 24 In this way, Ezekiel will be a sign to you. You will do everything the same way as he has done it. When it happens, you will know that I am the Lord God.
25 But you, son of man, be aware that on that day when I take away from them their stronghold, their joy and glory, what their eyes desire, and that on which they set their hearts—their sons and their daughters as well— 26 on that day a survivor will come to you to let you hear it with your own ears. 27 On that day, your mouth will be opened when the survivor comes. Then you will speak and be speechless no longer. You will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the Lord.
15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news of peace,[a] who preach the gospel of good things!”[b]
16 But not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who believed our message?”[c] 17 So then, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message comes through the word of Christ.[d]
18 But I ask, did they not hear? Of course, they certainly did.
The sound of their voice went out to all the earth,
and their words to the farthest parts of the world.[e]
19 Yet I ask, did Israel not understand? First, Moses says:
I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation;
I will make you angry with a nation that does not understand.[f]
20 And Isaiah also boldly says:
I was found by those who were not looking for me;
I became well known to those who were not asking for me.[g]
21 But about Israel he says:
All day long I stretched out my hands
to a people who disobey and oppose me.[h]
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.