Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

The Lord Will Destroy Jerusalem’s Enemies

12 This is a prophecy. It is the Lord’s message about Israel.

The Lord spreads out the heavens. He lays the foundation of the earth. He creates the human spirit within a person. He says, ² “Jerusalem will be like a cup in my hand. It will make all the surrounding nations drunk from the wine of my anger. Judah will be attacked by its enemies. So will Jerusalem. ³ At that time all the nations on earth will gather together against Jerusalem. Then it will become like a rock that can’t be moved. All the nations that try to move it will only hurt themselves. ⁴ On that day I will fill every horse with panic. I will make every rider crazy,” announces the Lord. “I will watch over the people of Judah. But I will make all the horses of the nations blind. ⁵ Then the family groups of Judah will say in their hearts, ‘The people of Jerusalem are strong. That’s because the Lord who rules over all is their God.’

⁶ “At that time Judah’s family groups will be like a fire pot in a pile of wood. They will be like a burning torch among bundles of grain. They will destroy all the surrounding nations on every side. But Jerusalem will remain unharmed in its place.

⁷ “I will save the houses in Judah first. The honor of David’s family line is great. So is the honor of those who live in Jerusalem. But their honor will not be greater than the honor of the rest of Judah. ⁸ At that time I will be like a shield to those who live in Jerusalem. Then even the weakest among them will be great warriors like David. And David’s family line will be like the angel of the Lord who leads them. ⁹ On that day I will begin to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.

Israel’s People Will Mourn Over the One They Pierced

¹⁰ “I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on David’s family line. I will also send it on those who live in Jerusalem. They will look to me. I am the one they have pierced. They will mourn over me as someone mourns over an only child who has died. They will be full of sorrow over me. Their sorrow will be just like someone’s sorrow over an oldest son. ¹¹ At that time there will be a lot of weeping in Jerusalem. It will be as great as the weeping of the people at Hadad Rimmon. Hadad Rimmon is in the valley of Megiddo. They were weeping over Josiah’s death. ¹² Everyone in the land will mourn. Each family will mourn by themselves and their wives by themselves. That will include the family lines of David, Nathan, ¹³ Levi, Shimei and ¹⁴ all the others.

The Lord Makes Israel Pure and “Clean”

13 “At that time a fountain will be opened for the benefit of David’s family line. It will also bless the others who live in Jerusalem. It will wash away their sins. It will make them pure and ‘clean.’

⁹ “Watch out! You will be handed over to the local courts. You will be whipped in the synagogues. You will stand in front of governors and kings because of me. In that way you will be witnesses to them. ¹⁰ The good news has to be preached to all nations before the end comes. ¹¹ You will be arrested and brought to trial. But don’t worry ahead of time about what you will say. Just say what God brings to your mind at the time. It is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

¹² “Brothers will hand over brothers to be killed. Fathers will hand over their children. Children will rise up against their parents and have them put to death. ¹³ Everyone will hate you because of me. But the one who remains strong in the faith will be saved.

¹⁴ “You will see ‘the hated thing that destroys.’ (Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11) It will stand where it does not belong. The reader should understand this. Then those who are in Judea should escape to the mountains. ¹⁵ No one on the roof should go down into the house to take anything out. ¹⁶ No one in the field should go back to get their coat. ¹⁷ How awful it will be in those days for pregnant women! How awful for nursing mothers! ¹⁸ Pray that this will not happen in winter. ¹⁹ Those days will be worse than any others from the time God created the world until now. And there will never be any like them again.

²⁰ “If the Lord had not cut the time short, no one would live. But because of God’s chosen people, he has shortened it. ²¹ At that time someone may say to you, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ Or, ‘Look! There he is!’ Do not believe it. ²² False messiahs and false prophets will appear. They will do signs and miracles. They will try to fool God’s chosen people if possible. ²³ Keep watch! I have told you everything ahead of time.