Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A song to sing as we climb.
The Lord has done great things for us![a]
126 When the Lord turned us round,
so that we enjoyed a good life in Zion again,
we thought that we were dreaming!
2 At that time, we laughed a lot.
We shouted because we were so happy!
People in other countries said to each other,
‘The Lord has done great things for them!’
3 Yes, the Lord has done great things for us.
So we are very happy.
4 Lord, please bless us like before.
That will be like streams of water that return to the desert.[b]
5 When people went out to plant their seeds,
they were crying.
But they will be happy when they bring in the harvest!
6 People were weeping when they took their bags of seeds to plant.[c]
But when they carry their crops back home,
they will shout because they are so happy![d]
A message about the false prophets
9 I am very upset about what the prophets are doing.
My body is shaking.
I move like a man who has become drunk,
someone who has drunk too much wine.
I am afraid because of the Lord
and the holy message that he has spoken.
10 The land is full of people who are not faithful to God.
The prophets live wicked lives.
They use their power in a bad way.
Because of that, God has cursed the land.
The land is as dry as a desert,
and the fields have no grass.
11 The Lord says,
‘The prophets and the priests are all wicked.
I see the evil things that they do,
even in my temple.
12 Because of that, the paths that they travel on will be dark.
They will easily slip and fall to the ground.
I will cause terrible trouble to happen to them.
I will decide the time when I will punish them.’
That is what the Lord says.
13 ‘I saw the disgusting thing that the prophets in Samaria did.[a]
They used the name of Baal to prophesy.
Their messages deceived my people, Israel.
14 But now some prophets in Jerusalem do even worse things!
They are not faithful to their wives.[b]
They always deceive people.
They encourage people to do evil things.
They do not try to stop them.
They are as bad as the people of Sodom long ago.
The people of Jerusalem are as bad as the people of Gomorrah.[c]
15 So I, the Lord Almighty,
say this about these prophets:
I will cause them to have much pain and trouble.
They will eat bitter food.
They will drink water that is poison.
It is because of Jerusalem's prophets
that people do wicked things everywhere in the land.’
About Melchizedek
7 Melchizedek was the king of a city called Salem. He was also a priest of God who rules over all. Melchizedek met Abraham when Abraham was returning from a war.[a] Abraham's men had just won a battle against four kings with their armies. At that time, Melchizedek asked God to bless Abraham. 2 Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth part of everything that he had won in the fight. The name ‘Melchizedek’ means ‘king of everything that is right’. His other name, ‘king of Salem’, means ‘king of peace’. 3 Nobody wrote down that Melchizedek had a father or a mother. Nobody wrote down that he had any ancestors. Nobody wrote about when he was born or when he died. In that way, it seems like Melchizedek was a priest for ever. He is like the Son of God who continues to be a priest for all time.
4 So think about how great this man, Melchizedek, was! Even Abraham, the ancestor of all Israel's people, gave gifts to Melchizedek. Abraham gave him a tenth part of everything that he had won in the fight. 5 Men from Levi's family group who become priests receive gifts from their own people. God's Law says that the people must give the Levite priests a tenth part of what they have. But the priests and the other people are all Israelites. They all come from Abraham's family. 6 As for Melchizedek, he did not come from Levi's family. But he still received a tenth part of what Abraham had. He also asked God to bless Abraham. But Abraham was the one who had already received God's promises.
7 It is always the more important person who asks God to bless a less important person. We certainly know that! 8 The Levite priests receive gifts, and they are people who one day will die. Melchizedek also received gifts, but we are told that he continues to live. 9-10 The Levite priests receive their gifts from the people. But we could say that Levi himself gave a tenth part of what he had to Melchizedek. When Abraham gave his tenth part to Melchizedek, it was like Levi was there inside him. At that time, Levi was not yet born, but Abraham was his ancestor.[b]
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