Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
12 At that time I will search through Jerusalem with lamps.
I will punish the people who are entrenched in their sin,[a]
those who think to themselves,[b]
‘The Lord neither rewards nor punishes.’[c]
13 Their wealth will be stolen
and their houses ruined!
They will not live in the houses they have built,
nor will they drink the wine from the vineyards they have planted.
14 The Lord’s great day of judgment[d] is almost here;
it is approaching very rapidly!
There will be a bitter sound on the Lord’s day of judgment;
at that time warriors will cry out in battle.[e]
15 That day will be a day of God’s anger,[f]
a day of distress and hardship,
a day of devastation and ruin,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and dark skies,
16 a day of trumpet blasts[g] and battle cries.[h]
Judgment will fall on[i] the fortified cities and the high corner towers.
17 I will bring distress on the people[j]
and they will stumble[k] like blind men,
for they have sinned against the Lord.
Their blood will be poured out like dirt;
their flesh[l] will be scattered[m] like manure.
18 Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them
in the day of the Lord’s angry judgment.
The whole earth[n] will be consumed by his fiery wrath.[o]
Indeed,[p] he will bring terrifying destruction[q] on all who live on the earth.”[r]
Book 4 (Psalms 90-106)
Psalm 90[a]
A prayer of Moses, the man of God.
90 O Lord, you have been our protector[b] through all generations.
2 Even before the mountains came into existence,[c]
or you brought the world into being,[d]
you were the eternal God.[e]
3 You make mankind return[f] to the dust,[g]
and say, “Return, O people.”
4 Yes,[h] in your eyes a thousand years
are like yesterday that quickly passes,
or like one of the divisions of the nighttime.[i]
5 You bring their lives to an end and they “fall asleep.”[j]
In the morning they are like the grass that sprouts up:
6 In the morning it glistens[k] and sprouts up;
at evening time it withers[l] and dries up.
7 Yes,[m] we are consumed by your anger;
we are terrified by your wrath.
8 You are aware of our sins;[n]
you even know about our hidden sins.[o]
9 Yes,[a] throughout all our days we experience your raging fury;[b]
the years of our lives pass quickly, like a sigh.[c]
10 The days of our lives add up to seventy years,[d]
or eighty, if one is especially strong.[e]
But even one’s best years are marred by trouble and oppression.[f]
Yes,[g] they pass quickly[h] and we fly away.[i]
11 Who can really fathom the intensity of your anger?[j]
Your raging fury causes people to fear you.[k]
The Day of the Lord
5 Now on the topic of times and seasons,[a] brothers and sisters,[b] you have no need for anything to be written to you. 2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord[c] will come in the same way as a thief in the night.[d] 3 Now when[e] they are saying, “There is peace and security,”[f] then sudden destruction comes on them, like labor pains[g] on a pregnant woman, and they will surely not escape. 4 But you, brothers and sisters,[h] are not in the darkness for the day to overtake you like a thief would. 5 For you all are sons of the light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of the darkness. 6 So then we must not sleep as the rest, but must stay alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night and those who get drunk are drunk at night. 8 But since we are of the day, we must stay sober by putting on the breastplate[i] of faith and love and as a helmet our hope for salvation.[j] 9 For God did not destine us for wrath[k] but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 He died[l] for us so that whether we are alert or asleep[m] we will come to life together with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, just as you are in fact doing.
The Parable of the Talents
14 “For it is like a man going on a journey, who summoned his slaves[a] and entrusted his property to them. 15 To[b] one he gave five talents,[c] to another two, and to another one, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The one who had received five talents went off right away and put his money to work[d] and gained five more. 17 In the same way, the one who had two gained two more. 18 But the one who had received one talent went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money in it. 19 After[e] a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled his accounts with them. 20 The[f] one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, ‘Sir,[g] you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 His master answered,[h] ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 The[i] one with the two talents also came and said, ‘Sir, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.’ 23 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, 25 so[j] I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered,[k] ‘Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers,[l] and on my return I would have received my money back with interest![m] 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten.[n] 29 For the one who has will be given more,[o] and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.[p] 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness,[q] where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
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