Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Book Three
The End of the Wicked Contrasted with That of the Righteous.
A Psalm of Asaph.
73 Truly God is good to Israel,
To those who are pure in heart.
2
But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling,
My steps had almost slipped.
3
For I was envious of the arrogant
As I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4
For there are no pains in their death,
Their body is fat and pampered.
5
They are not in trouble as other men,
Nor are they plagued like mankind.
6
Therefore pride is their necklace;
Violence covers them like a garment [like a long, luxurious robe].
7
Their eye bulges from fatness [they have more than the heart desires];
The imaginations of their mind run riot [with foolishness].
8
They mock and wickedly speak of oppression;
They speak loftily [with malice].
9
They set their mouth against the heavens,
And their tongue swaggers through the earth.(A)
10
Therefore his people return to this place,
And waters of abundance [offered by the irreverent] are [blindly] drunk by them.
11
They say, “How does God know?
Is there knowledge [of us] with the Most High?”
12
Behold, these are the ungodly,
Who always prosper and are at ease [in the world]; they have increased in wealth.
13
Surely then in vain I have cleansed my heart
And washed my hands in innocence.(B)
14
For all the day long have I been stricken,
And punished every morning.
15
If I had said, “I will say this,” [and expressed my feelings],
I would have betrayed the generation of Your children.
16
When I considered how to understand this,
It was too great an effort for me and too painful
17
Until I came into the sanctuary of God;
Then I understood [for I considered] their end.
18
Surely You set the wicked-minded and immoral on slippery places;
You cast them down to destruction.
19
How they are destroyed in a moment!
They are completely swept away by sudden terrors!
20
Like a dream [which seems real] until one awakens,
O Lord, when stirred, [You observe the wicked], You will despise their image.
21
When my heart was embittered
And I was pierced within [as with the fang of an adder],
22
Then I was senseless and ignorant;
I was like a beast before You.
23
Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You have taken hold of my right hand.
24
You will guide me with Your counsel,
And afterward receive me to honor and glory.
25
Whom have I in heaven [but You]?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
26
My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the rock and strength of my heart and my portion forever.
27
For behold, those who are far from You will perish;
You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful and have abandoned You.
28
But as for me, it is good for me to draw near to God;
I have made the Lord God my refuge and placed my trust in Him,
That I may tell of all Your works.
Warning Through Visions
7 Thus the Lord God showed me [a vision], and behold, He was forming a swarm of locusts when the spring crop began to sprout. And behold, the spring crop was after the king’s mowing. 2 And when the locusts had finished eating the plants of the land, then I said,
“O Lord God, please forgive!
How can Jacob stand,
For he is so small [that he cannot endure this]?”
3
The Lord revoked this sentence.
“It shall not take place,” said the Lord.
4 Thus the Lord God showed me, and behold, the Lord God called for punishment with fire, and it devoured the great deep [underground sources of water] and began to consume the land. 5 Then I said,
“O Lord God, please stop!
How can Jacob stand,
For he is so small [that he cannot endure this]?”
6
The Lord revoked this sentence.
“This also shall not be,” said the Lord God.
18 This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, so that [inspired and aided] by them you may fight the good fight [in contending with false teachers], 19 keeping your faith [leaning completely on God with absolute trust and confidence in His guidance] and having a good conscience; for some [people] have rejected [their moral compass] and have made a shipwreck of their faith. 20 Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have [a]handed over to Satan, so that they will be disciplined and taught not to blaspheme.
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