Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.
A Psalm of David. A skillful [a]song, or a didactic or reflective poem.
32 Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, favored by God] is he whose transgression is forgiven,
And whose sin is covered.
2
Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute wickedness,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit.(A)
3
When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all the day long.
4
For day and night Your hand [of displeasure] was heavy upon me;
My [b]energy (vitality, strength) was drained away as with the burning heat of summer. Selah.
5
I acknowledged my sin to You,
And I did not hide my wickedness;
I said, “I will confess [all] my transgressions to the Lord”;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.
6
Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [for forgiveness] in a time when You [are near and] may be found;
Surely when the great waters [of trial and distressing times] overflow they will not reach [the spirit in] him.
7
You are my hiding place; You, Lord, protect me from trouble;
You surround me with songs and shouts of deliverance. Selah.
8
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you [who are willing to learn] with My eye upon you.
9
Do not be like the horse or like the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bridle and rein to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.
10
Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
But he who trusts in and relies on the Lord shall be surrounded with compassion and lovingkindness.
11
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous [who actively seek right standing with Him];
Shout for joy, all you upright in heart.
15 For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to me, “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from My hand and cause all the nations to whom I send you to drink it. 16 They will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.”
17 Then I (Jeremiah) took the cup from the Lord’s hand and made all the nations to whom the Lord had sent me drink it: 18 Jerusalem and the cities of Judah [being most guilty because their privileges were greatest], its kings and princes, to make them a horror, a ruin, a hissing and a curse, as it is to this day;(A) 19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his princes, all his people, 20 and all the foreign (mixed) population, all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines (and [their cities of] Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod); 21 Edom, Moab, and the children of Ammon; 22 all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the islands and the coastlands across the [Mediterranean] Sea; 23 Dedan, Tema, Buz [the neighboring tribes north of Arabia], and all who clip off the side-growth of their hair;(B) 24 all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the foreign population who live in the desert; 25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam (Persia), and all the kings of Media; 26 all the kings of the north, far and near, one after another—and all the kingdoms of the world which are on the face of the earth. And the king of Sheshach (Babylon) shall drink after them.
27 “Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Drink, be drunk, vomit, and fall to rise no more because of the sword which I will send among you.”’ 28 And if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink, then you will say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “You shall surely drink! 29 For behold, I am beginning to work disaster in the city which is called by My Name, and shall you go unpunished? You will not be exempt from punishment, for I am calling for a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,” says the Lord of hosts.’(C)
44 “Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as God directed Moses to make it according to the pattern which he had seen.(A) 45 Our fathers also brought it in [with them into the land] with Joshua when they dispossessed the [a]nations whom God drove out before our fathers, [and so it remained here] until the time of David,(B) 46 who found favor (grace, spiritual blessing) in the sight of God and asked that he might [be allowed to] find a dwelling place for the [b]God of Jacob.(C) 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.(D) 48 However, the Most High [the One infinitely exalted above humanity] does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet [Isaiah] says,(E)
49
‘Heaven is My throne,
And the earth is the footstool for My feet;
What kind of house will you build for Me?’ says the Lord,
‘Or what place is there for My rest?
50
‘Was it not My hand that made all these things?’(F)
51 “You stiff-necked and stubborn people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you are always actively resisting the Holy Spirit. You are doing just as your fathers did.(G) 52 Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who proclaimed beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; 53 you who received the law as ordained and delivered to you by angels, and yet you did not obey it!”
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