Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
8 The Lord is ·kind [gracious] and ·shows mercy [compassionate].
He ·does not become angry quickly [is slow to anger] but ·is full of love [has great loyalty].
9 The Lord is good to everyone;
he is ·merciful [compassionate] to all he has made [86:15; 103:8; Ex. 34:6–7; Neh. 9:17, 31; Joel 2:13; Jon. 4:2].
10 Lord, everything you have made will ·praise [bless] you;
·those who belong to you [your saints/loyal ones] will bless you.
11 They will tell about the glory of your kingdom
and will speak about your ·power [strength].
12 Then everyone will know the mighty things you do
and the glory and ·majesty [splendor] of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom ·will go on and on [L is an eternal kingdom],
and you will rule ·forever [L from generation to generation; Dan. 4:3].
The Lord ·will keep all his promises [L is faithful/true in all his words];
he is loyal to all he has made.[a]
14 The Lord ·helps [supports] those who have ·been defeated [L fallen]
and ·takes care of [L lifts up] those who are ·in trouble [bowed down].
The Vision of the Lampstand
4 Then the ·angel [messenger] who was talking with me returned and woke me up as if I had been asleep. 2 He asked me, “What do you see?”
I said, “I see a solid gold ·lampstand [menorah] with a bowl at the top. And there are seven lamps and also seven ·places [pipes; spouts] for wicks. 3 There are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on the left.”
4 I asked the ·angel [messenger] who talked with me, “·Sir [My lord], what are these?”
5 ·The angel [L He] said, “Don’t you know what they are?”
“No, sir,” I said.
6 Then he told me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘·You will not succeed by your own strength or by your own power [T Not by might, nor by power], but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts].
7 “Who are you, ·big [mighty; great] mountain? ·In front of [Compared with] Zerubbabel you will become ·flat land [a level plain], and he will bring out the ·topmost stone [capstone], ·shouting [or amid shouting], ‘·It’s beautiful! It’s beautiful [or Blessings, Blessings upon it; L Grace, Grace to it]!’”
Jesus Prays to the Father(A)
21 ·Then [At that time; L In the same hour] Jesus ·rejoiced [was full of joy] in the Holy Spirit and said, “I ·praise [bless; thank; acknowledge] you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the people who are wise and ·smart [learned; intelligent]. But you have ·shown [revealed] them to ·those who are like little children [L little children; infants; C those with a childlike faith]. Yes, Father, [L because] this is what ·you really wanted [pleased you].
22 “My Father has ·given [entrusted/committed to] me all things. No one knows who the Son is, except the Father. And no one knows who the Father is, except the Son and those whom the Son ·chooses [desires; intends] to ·tell [L reveal it to].”
23 Then Jesus turned to his ·followers [disciples] and said privately, “·You are blessed to [L Blessed are the eyes that] see what you now see. 24 [L For] I tell you, many prophets and kings wanted to see what you now see, but they did not, and they wanted to hear what you now hear, but they did not.”
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.