Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Book 1

(Psalms 1-41)

The Good Figs and the Bad Figs

24 The Lord showed me these things: I saw two baskets of figs arranged in front of the Temple of the Lord. (I saw this vision after King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took Jehoiachin^[a] as a prisoner. Jehoiachin, the son of King Jehoiakim, and all his important officials were taken away from Jerusalem. They were taken to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar also took away all the carpenters and metalworkers of Judah.) ² One basket had very good figs in it, the kind that ripen early in the season. But the other basket had rotten figs. They were too rotten to eat.

³ The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

I answered, “I see figs. The good figs are very good, and the rotten figs are very rotten. They are too rotten to eat.”

⁴ Then the message from the Lord came to me. ⁵ The Lord, the God of Israel, said, “The people of Judah were taken from their country. Their enemy brought them to Babylon. Those people will be like these good figs. I will be kind to them. ⁶ I will protect them. I will bring them back to the land of Judah. I will not tear them down—I will build them up. I will not pull them up—I will plant them so that they can grow. ⁷ I will make them want to know me. They will know that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I will do this because the prisoners in Babylon will turn to me with their whole hearts.”

⁸ But the Lord also says, “I will treat King Zedekiah of Judah like those figs that are too rotten to eat. Zedekiah, his high officials, all those who are left in Jerusalem, and those people of Judah who are living in Egypt will be like those rotten figs. ⁹ I will punish them. Their punishment will shock all the people on earth. People will make fun of those people from Judah. People will tell jokes about them and curse them in all the places where I scatter them. ¹⁰ I will bring war, famine, and disease against them. I will attack them until they have all been killed. Then they will no longer be on the land that I gave to them and to their ancestors.”

The Collection for Believers in Judea

16 Now, about the collection of money for God’s people: Do the same as I told the Galatian churches to do. ² On the first day of every week, each of you should take some of your money and put it in a special place. Save up as much as you can from what you are blessed with. Then you will not have to gather it all after I come. ³ When I arrive, I will send some men to take your gift to Jerusalem. These will be the ones you all agree should go. I will send them with letters of introduction. ⁴ If it seems good for me to go too, we can all travel together.

Paul’s Plans

⁵ I plan to go through Macedonia, so I will come to you after that. ⁶ Maybe I will stay with you for a time. I might even stay all winter. Then you can help me on my trip, wherever I go. ⁷ I don’t want to come see you now, because I would have to leave to go to other places. I hope to stay a longer time with you, if the Lord allows it. ⁸ But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost. ⁹ I will stay here, because a good opportunity for a great and growing work has been given to me now. And there are many people working against it.

¹⁰ Timothy might come to you. Try to make him feel comfortable with you. He is working for the Lord the same as I am. ¹¹ So none of you should refuse to accept Timothy. Help him continue on his trip in peace so that he can come back to me. I am expecting him to come back with the other brothers.

¹² Now about our brother Apollos: I strongly encouraged him to visit you with the other brothers. He prefers not to come now, but he will come when he has the opportunity.