Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
6 Your throne,(A) God, is[a] forever and ever;
the scepter of Your[b] kingdom is a scepter of justice.(B)
7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness;(C)
therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of joy
more than your companions.
8 Myrrh, aloes, and cassia perfume all your garments;
from ivory palaces harps bring you joy.(D)
9 Kings’ daughters are among your honored women;(E)
the queen, adorned with gold from Ophir,
stands at your right hand.(F)
10 Listen, daughter, pay attention and consider:
forget your people and your father’s house,(G)
11 and the king will desire your beauty.
Bow down to him, for he is your lord.(H)
12 The daughter of Tyre, the wealthy people,
will seek your favor with gifts.(I)
Waiting for Restoration
3 Then the Lord said to me, “Go again; show love to a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress,(A) just as the Lord loves the Israelites though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes.”(B)
2 So I bought her for 15 shekels of silver and five bushels of barley.[a][b](C) 3 I said to her, “You must live with me many days. Don’t be promiscuous or belong to any man, and I will act the same way toward you.”
4 For the Israelites must live many days without king or prince,(D) without sacrifice(E) or sacred pillar,(F) and without ephod(G) or household idols.(H) 5 Afterward, the people of Israel will return(I) and seek the Lord their God and David their king.(J) They will come with awe to the Lord(K) and to His goodness in the last days.
23 I call on God as a witness,(A) on my life, that it was to spare you that I did not come to Corinth.(B) 24 I do not mean that we have control of[a] your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy, because you stand(C) by faith. 2 1 In fact, I made up my mind about this:[b] I would not come to you on another painful visit.[c] 2 For if I cause you pain, then who will cheer me other than the one being hurt by me?[d] 3 I wrote this very thing so that when I came I wouldn’t have pain from those who ought to give me joy, because I am confident(D) about all of you that my joy will also be yours. 4 For I wrote to you with many tears out of an extremely troubled and anguished heart—not that you should be hurt, but that you should know the abundant love I have for you.
A Sinner Forgiven
5 If anyone has caused pain, he has caused pain not so much to me but to some degree—not to exaggerate(E)—to all of you. 6 The punishment inflicted by the majority is sufficient for that person. 7 As a result, you should instead forgive(F) and comfort him. Otherwise, this one may be overwhelmed by excessive grief. 8 Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him. 9 I wrote for this purpose: to test your character(G) to see if you are obedient(H) in everything. 10 If you forgive anyone, I do too. For what I have forgiven—if I have forgiven anything—it is for you in the presence of Christ. 11 I have done this so that we may not be taken advantage(I) of by Satan. For we are not ignorant of his schemes.
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