Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
5 ·Happy [Blessed] are those who are helped by the God of Jacob [C another name for Israel].
Their hope is in the Lord their God.
6 He made heaven and earth,
the sea and everything in it [Gen. 1].
He ·remains [keeps; observes; guards] ·loyal [faithfulness; truth] forever.
7 He does ·what is fair [justice] for those who have been ·wronged [oppressed; exploited].
He gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free.
8 The Lord ·gives sight to [opens the eyes of] the blind.
The Lord lifts up people who are ·in trouble [bowed down; 145:14].
The Lord loves ·those who do right [the righteous].
9 The Lord ·protects [guards] the ·foreigners [sojourners].
He ·defends [supports] the orphans and widows [C the socially vulnerable],
but he ·blocks [frustrates] the way of the wicked.
10 The Lord will ·be King [reign] forever [47:2; 93:1; 96:10; 97:1; 98:6; 99:1; Rev. 19:6].
·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple], your God is everlasting.
Praise the Lord!
Hannah Gives Thanks
2 Hannah prayed [L and said; C Hannah’s prayer is similar to Psalm 113 and Mary’s song in Luke 1:46–55]:
“·The Lord has filled my heart with joy [L My heart rejoices/exults in the Lord];
·I feel very strong in the Lord [My strength/L horn is exalted/lifted up in the Lord; C a lifted horn symbolizes strength, based on an animal lifting its head triumphantly]
·I can laugh at [L My mouth mocks/derides] my enemies;
I ·am glad [rejoice/delight] because you have ·helped [saved; rescued; delivered] me!
2 “There is no one ·holy [set apart] like the Lord.
There is no ·God but [one besides] you;
there is no Rock like our God.
3 “·Don’t continue bragging [Talk/Boast no more so proudly/haughtily],
·don’t speak proud words [don’t let such arrogance come out of your mouth].
The Lord is a God who ·knows everything [is wise],
and he ·judges [weighs] what people do.
4 “The bows of ·warriors [the mighty] ·break [are shattered],
but ·weak people [L those who stumbled/tottered] ·become strong [L gird on strength].
5 Those who ·once had plenty of food [were well fed] now ·must work [hire themselves out] for ·food [bread],
but people who were hungry ·are hungry no more [grow fat].
The woman who ·could not have children [was barren] now ·has [L gives birth to] seven,
but the woman who had many children now ·is sad [L wastes away; languishes].
6 “The Lord ·sends death [kills],
and he ·brings to [gives] life.
He ·sends people to the grave [brings down to Sheol; C the grave or the place of the dead],
and he raises ·them to life again [L up].
7 The Lord makes some people poor,
and others he makes rich.
He ·makes some people humble [brings low/down],
and others he ·makes great [lifts up; exalts].
8 The Lord ·raises [lifts] the poor up from the dust,
and he lifts the needy from the ·ashes [garbage heap].
He ·lets the poor sit [sets/seats the poor] with princes
and ·receive [L they inherit] a throne of honor.
“The ·foundations [pillars] of the earth belong to the Lord,
and the Lord ·set [poised] the world upon them.
The Preaching of John(A)
3 It was the fifteenth year of the rule of Tiberius Caesar [C the Roman emperor, ad 14–37]. ·These men were under Caesar: Pontius Pilate, [L …when Pontius Pilate was] the ·ruler [or governor; C his official title was “prefect”; Pilate governed from ad 26–36] of Judea; Herod [C Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great], the ·ruler [L tetrarch; C the title meant “ruler of a fourth,” but came to be used of any minor ruler] of Galilee; Philip [C another son of Herod the Great], the ·ruler [L tetrarch] of Iturea and Traconitis; and Lysanias, the ·ruler [L tetrarch] of Abilene. 2 Annas and Caiaphas were the high priests [C Annas was the former high priest and father-in-law of Caiaphas, the official high priest]. At this time, ·the word of [a message from] God came to John son of Zechariah in the ·desert [wilderness]. 3 He went all over the ·area [country; region] around the Jordan River preaching a baptism of ·changed hearts and lives [repentance] for the forgiveness of sins. 4 As it is written in the ·book of [L book of the words/oracles of] Isaiah the prophet:
“This is a voice of one
who ·calls out [shouts; cries out] in the ·desert [wilderness]:
‘Prepare the way for the Lord.
Make ·the road straight [a clear path] for him.
5 Every ·valley [ravine; wadi] should be filled in,
and every mountain and hill should be made ·flat [level; low].
·Roads with turns [L Curved/T Crooked places] should be made straight,
and rough ·roads [paths; ways] should be made smooth.
6 And all ·people [humanity; T flesh] will ·know about [L see] the salvation of God [Is. 40:3–5]!’”
7 [L So; Therefore] To the crowds of people who came to be baptized by John, he said, “You ·are all snakes [T brood/offspring of vipers]! Who warned you to ·run [slither; L flee] away from God’s coming ·punishment [wrath; retribution]? 8 ·Do the things [L Produce the fruit] ·that show you really have changed your hearts and lives [that prove your repentance; L of repentance]. Don’t begin to say to yourselves, ‘Abraham is our father [C a claim to be God’s special people, since their ancestor Abraham was chosen and blessed by God; Gen. 12:1–3].’ [L For] I tell you that God could ·make [L raise up] children for Abraham from these rocks. 9 The ax ·is now ready to cut down [L already lies at the root of] the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire [C a metaphor for judgment against those who disobey God].”
10 The ·people [crowd] asked John, “Then what should we do?”
11 John answered, “If you have two ·shirts [tunics], share with the person who does not have one. If you have food, share that also [Is. 58:7].”
12 Even tax collectors came to John to be baptized [C tax collectors were despised because they worked for the Roman rulers and were notorious for corruption and extortion]. They said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?”
13 John said to them, “Don’t take more taxes from people than ·you have been ordered to take [is prescribed/authorized].”
14 The soldiers asked John, “What about us? What should we do?”
John said to them, “Don’t ·force people to give you [extort] money, and don’t ·lie about them [make false accusations]. Be satisfied with the pay you get.”
15 Since the people were ·hoping [waiting expectantly] for the ·Christ [Messiah] to come, they [L all] wondered if John might be the ·one [L Christ; Messiah].
16 John answered everyone, “I baptize you with water, but there is one coming who is ·greater [more powerful; mightier] than I am. I am not ·good enough [fit; qualified] to untie [L the thong/strap of] his sandals [C a task of a servant or slave]. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 ·He will come ready [L The winnowing fork is in his hand] to ·clean the grain, separating the good grain from the chaff [L clear his threshing floor]. He will put ·the good part of the grain [L the grain/wheat] into his ·barn [storehouse], but he will burn the chaff with ·a fire that cannot be put out [never-ending/unquenchable fire; C a metaphor for judgment, when Jesus will separate the righteous from the wicked].” 18 And John continued to preach the ·Good News [Gospel], saying many other things to ·encourage [exhort] the people.
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