Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Lord is Holy
99 The Lord reigns—
let people tremble;
he is seated above the cherubim—
let the earth quake.
2 The Lord is great in Zion
and is exalted above all peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name.
He is holy!
4 A mighty king who loves justice,
you have established fairness.
You have exercised justice
and righteousness over Jacob.
5 Exalt the Lord our God;
worship and bow down at his footstool;
He is holy!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests;
Samuel also was among those who invoked his name.
When they called on the Lord,
he answered them.
7 In a pillar of cloud he spoke to them;
they obeyed his decrees
and the Law that he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered them;
you were their God who forgave[a] them,
but also avenged their evil deeds.
9 Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain,
for the Lord our God is holy!
11 Then Elkanah went to his house at Ramah, while the boy was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli the priest.
Eli’s Wicked Sons
12 Now the sons of Eli were worthless men who did not know the Lord. 13 The custom of the priests with the people was that whenever a person offered a sacrifice, a servant[a] of the priest would come with a three pronged fork in his hand while the meat was boiling, and[b] 14 he would stick it into the boiler or pot,[c] and take everything[d] the fork brought up—that is, the priest would take it for himself. This is what they were supposed to do with all the Israelis who came there to Shiloh. 15 But even before they burned the fat, the servant of the priest would come and say to the person offering the sacrifice, “Give me meat to roast for the priest. He won’t accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.”
16 If the man told him[e], “They must surely[f] burn up the fat first, and then take for yourself whatever[g] you desire,” the servant would say, “No,[h] give it now, and if you don’t,[i] I’ll take it by force!”[j] 17 By doing this, the sin of the young men was very serious in the Lord’s sight because the men[k] despised the Lord’s offering.
God Chose People who are Not Jewish
19 You may ask me, “Then why does God[a] still find fault with anybody?[b] For who can resist his will?” 20 On the contrary, who are you—mere man that you are—to talk back to God? Can an object that was molded say to the one who molded it, “Why did you make me like this?” 21 A potter has the right to do what he wants to with his clay, doesn’t he? He can make something for a special occasion or something for ordinary use from the same lump of clay.
22 Now if God wants to demonstrate his wrath and reveal his power, can’t he be extremely patient with the objects of his wrath that are made for destruction? 23 Can’t he also reveal his glorious riches to the objects of his mercy that he has prepared ahead of time for glory— 24 including us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but from the gentiles as well? 25 As the Scripture[c] says in Hosea,
“Those who are not my people
I will call my people,
and the one who was not loved
I will call my loved one.[d]
26 In the very place where it was told them,
‘You are not my people,’
they will be called children of the living God.”[e]
27 Isaiah also calls out concerning Israel,
“Although the descendants of Israel
are as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore,
only a few will be saved.
28 For the Lord[f] will carry out his plan decisively,
bringing it to completion on the earth.”[g]
29 It is just as Isaiah predicted:
“If the Lord of the Heavenly Armies
had not left us some descendants,
we would have become like Sodom
and would have been compared to Gomorrah.”[h]
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