Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
73 You made me and formed me with your hands.
Give me understanding so I can learn your commands.
74 Let those who respect you rejoice when they see me,
because I put my hope in your word.
75 Lord, I know that your laws are right
and that it was right for you to punish me.
76 Comfort me with your love,
as you promised me, your servant.
77 Have mercy on me so that I may live.
I love your teachings.
78 Make proud people ashamed because they lied about me.
But I will think about your orders.
79 Let those who respect you return to me,
those who know your rules.
80 Let me obey your demands perfectly
so I will not be ashamed.
Sin and Punishment
4 “Say to the people of Judah: ‘This is what the Lord says:
When people fall down, don’t they get up again?
And when someone goes the wrong way, doesn’t he turn back?
5 Why, then, have the people of Jerusalem gone the wrong way
and not turned back?
They believe their own lies
and refuse to turn around and come back.
6 I have listened to them very carefully,
but they do not say what is right.
They do not feel sorry about their wicked ways,
saying, “What have I done?”
Each person goes his own way,
like a horse charging into a battle.
7 Even the birds in the sky
know the right times to do things.
The storks, doves, swifts, and thrushes
know when it is time to migrate.
But my people don’t know
what the Lord wants them to do.
8 “‘You keep saying, “We are wise,
because we have the teachings of the Lord.”
But actually, those who explain the Scriptures
have written lies with their pens.
9 These wise teachers refused to listen to the word of the Lord,
so they are not really wise at all.
They will be ashamed.
They will be shocked and trapped.
10 So I will give their wives to other men
and their fields to new owners.
Everyone, from the least important to the greatest,
is greedy for money.
Even the prophets and priests
all tell lies.
11 They tried to heal my people’s serious injuries
as if they were small wounds.
They said, “It’s all right, it’s all right.”
But really, it is not all right.
12 They should be ashamed of the terrible way they act,
but they are not ashamed at all.
They don’t even know how to blush about their sins.
So they will fall, along with everyone else.
They will be thrown to the ground when I punish them, says the Lord.
13 “‘I will take away their crops, says the Lord.
There will be no grapes on the vine
and no figs on the fig tree.
Even the leaves will dry up and die.
I will take away what I gave them.’”
28 When the others heard this, they became very angry and shouted, “Artemis, the goddess of Ephesus, is great!” 29 The whole city became confused. The people grabbed Gaius and Aristarchus, who were from Macedonia and were traveling with Paul, and ran to the theater. 30 Paul wanted to go in and talk to the crowd, but the followers did not let him. 31 Also, some leaders of Asia who were friends of Paul sent him a message, begging him not to go into the theater. 32 Some people were shouting one thing, and some were shouting another. The meeting was completely confused; most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 They put a man named Alexander in front of the people, and some of them told him what to do. Alexander waved his hand so he could explain things to the people. 34 But when they saw that Alexander was a Jew, they all shouted the same thing for two hours: “Great is Artemis of Ephesus!”
35 Then the city clerk made the crowd be quiet. He said, “People of Ephesus, everyone knows that Ephesus is the city that keeps the temple of the great goddess Artemis and her holy stone[a] that fell from heaven. 36 Since no one can say this is not true, you should be quiet. Stop and think before you do anything. 37 You brought these men here, but they have not said anything evil against our goddess or stolen anything from her temple. 38 If Demetrius and those who work with him have a charge against anyone they should go to the courts and judges where they can argue with each other. 39 If there is something else you want to talk about, it can be decided at the regular town meeting of the people. 40 I say this because some people might see this trouble today and say that we are rioting. We could not explain this, because there is no real reason for this meeting.” 41 After the city clerk said these things, he told the people to go home.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.