Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Prayer to Bring Israel Back
For the director of music. To the tune of “Lilies of the Agreement.” A song of Asaph.
80 Shepherd of Israel, listen to us.
You lead the people of Joseph like a flock.
You sit on your throne between the gold creatures with wings.
Show your greatness 2 to the people of Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Use your strength.
Come and save us.
8 You brought us out of Egypt as if we were a vine.
You forced out other nations and planted us in the land.
9 You cleared the land for us.
Like a vine, we took root and filled the land.
10 We covered the mountains with our shade.
We had limbs like the mighty cedar tree.
11 Our branches reached the Mediterranean Sea.
And our shoots went to the Euphrates River.
12 So why did you pull down our walls?
Now everyone who passes by steals from us.
13 Like wild pigs they walk over us.
Like wild animals they feed on us.
14 God of heaven’s armies, come back.
Look down from heaven and see.
Take care of us, your vine.
15 You planted this shoot with your own hands.
You raised and strengthened this child.
16 Now it is cut down and burned with fire.
You destroyed us by your angry looks.
17 Help the man you have chosen.
Make this human being strong for your service.
18 Then we will not turn away from you.
Give us life again, and we will call to you for help.
19 Lord God of heaven’s armies, take us back.
Show us your kindness so we can be saved.
18 At that time the Lord will take away everything that makes them proud. He will take away their beautiful ankle bracelets, their headbands and their necklaces shaped like the moon. 19 He will take away their earrings, bracelets and veils. 20 He will take away their scarves, ankle chains, the cloth belts worn around their waists, their bottles of perfume and charms. 21 He will take away their signet rings, nose rings, 22 their fine robes, capes, shawls and purses. 23 And he will take away their mirrors, linen dresses, turbans and long shawls.
24 Instead of having sweet-smelling perfume, they will stink.
Instead of fine cloth belts, they will have ropes of captives to wear.
Instead of having their hair fixed in fancy ways, they will be bald.
Instead of fine clothes, they will have rough clothes of sadness.
Instead of having beauty, they will have the brand of a captive.
25 At that time your men will be killed with swords.
Your heroes will die in war.
26 There will be crying and sadness in the meeting places near the city gates.
Jerusalem will be like a woman who has lost everything and sits on the ground.
4 At that time seven women
will grab one man.
They will say, “We will make our own bread.
And we will make our own clothes.
But please marry us!
Please, take away our shame.”
The Branch of the Lord
2 At that time the Lord’s branch will be very beautiful and great. The people still living in Israel will be proud of what the land grows. 3 All the people who are still living in Jerusalem will be called holy. This will be all the people whose names are recorded among the living in Jerusalem. 4 The Lord will wash away the filth from the women of Jerusalem. He will wash the bloodstains out of Jerusalem. He will clean Jerusalem with the spirit of fairness and the spirit of fire. 5 As he did when Israel left Egypt, the Lord will cover them with a cloud of smoke during the day. And he will cover them with a bright, flaming fire at night. These proofs will be over Mount Zion. They will be over every meeting of the people there. There will be a covering over every person. 6 This covering will be a place of safety. It will protect the people from the heat of the sun. It will be a safe place to hide from the storm and rain.
15 “Daniel the prophet spoke about ‘the horrible thing that destroys.’[a] You will see this terrible thing standing in the holy place.” (You who read this should understand what it means.) 16 “At that time, the people in Judea should run away to the mountains. 17 If a person is on the roof[b] of his house, he must not go down to get anything out of his house. 18 If a person is in the field, he must not go back to get his coat. 19 At that time, it will be hard for women who are pregnant or have nursing babies! 20 Pray that it will not be winter or a Sabbath day when these things happen and you have to run away. 21 This is because at that time there will be much trouble. There will be more trouble than has ever happened since the beginning of the world. And nothing as bad as that will ever happen again. 22 God has decided to make that terrible time short. If that time were not made short, then no one would go on living. But God will make that time short to help the people he has chosen. 23 At that time, someone might say to you, ‘Look, there is the Christ!’ Or another person might say, ‘There he is!’ But don’t believe them. 24 False Christs and false prophets will come and perform great things and miracles. They will do these things to the people God has chosen. They will fool them, if that is possible. 25 Now I have warned you about this before it happens.
26 “If people tell you, ‘The Christ is in the desert’—don’t go there. If they say, ‘The Christ is in the inner room’—don’t believe it. 27 When the Son of Man comes, he will be seen by everyone. It will be like lightning flashing in the sky that can be seen everywhere.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.