Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Reign of the Lord’s Anointed.
2 Why are (A)the [a]nations in an uproar
And the peoples (B)devising a vain thing?
2 The (C)kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers take counsel together
(D)Against the Lord and against His [b](E)Anointed, saying,
3 “Let us (F)tear their fetters apart
And cast away their cords from us!”
4 He who [c]sits in the heavens (G)laughs,
The Lord (H)scoffs at them.
5 Then He will speak to them in His (I)anger
And (J)terrify them in His fury, saying,
6 “But as for Me, I have [d]installed (K)My King
Upon Zion, (L)My holy mountain.”
7 “I will surely tell of the [e]decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are (M)My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 ‘Ask of Me, and (N)I will surely give (O)the [f]nations as Your inheritance,
And the very (P)ends of the earth as Your possession.
9 ‘You shall [g](Q)break them with a [h]rod of iron,
You shall (R)shatter them like [i]earthenware.’”
10 Now therefore, O kings, (S)show discernment;
Take warning, O [j]judges of the earth.
11 [k]Worship the Lord with [l](T)reverence
And rejoice with (U)trembling.
12 [m]Do homage to (V)the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For (W)His wrath may [n]soon be kindled.
How blessed are all who (X)take refuge in Him!
12 But (A)they will say, ‘It’s hopeless! For we are going to follow our own plans, and each of us will act according to the (B)stubbornness of his evil heart.’
13 “Therefore thus says the Lord,
‘(C)Ask now among the nations,
Who ever heard the like of [a]this?
The (D)virgin of Israel
Has done a most (E)appalling thing.
14 ‘Does the snow of Lebanon forsake the rock of the open country?
Or is the cold flowing water from a foreign land ever snatched away?
15 ‘For (F)My people have forgotten Me,
(G)They burn incense [b]to worthless gods
And they [c]have stumbled [d]from their ways,
[e]From the (H)ancient paths,
To walk in bypaths,
Not on a (I)highway,
16 To make their land a (J)desolation,
An object of perpetual (K)hissing;
Everyone who passes by it will be astonished
And (L)shake his head.
17 ‘Like an (M)east wind I will (N)scatter them
Before the enemy;
I will [f]show them (O)My back and not My face
(P)In the day of their calamity.’”
18 Then they said, “Come and let us (Q)devise plans against Jeremiah. Surely the (R)law is not going to be lost to the priest, nor (S)counsel to the sage, nor the divine (T)word to the prophet! Come on and let us (U)strike at him with our tongue, and let us (V)give no heed to any of his words.”
19 Do give heed to me, O Lord,
And listen to [g]what my opponents are saying!
20 (W)Should good be repaid with evil?
For they have (X)dug a pit for [h]me.
Remember how I (Y)stood before You
To speak good on their behalf,
So as to turn away Your wrath from them.
21 Therefore, (Z)give their children over to famine
And deliver them up to the [i]power of the sword;
And let their wives become (AA)childless and (AB)widowed.
Let their men also be smitten to death,
Their (AC)young men struck down by the sword in battle.
22 May an (AD)outcry be heard from their houses,
When You suddenly bring raiders upon them;
(AE)For they have dug a pit to capture me
And (AF)hidden snares for my feet.
23 Yet You, O Lord, know
All their [j]deadly designs against me;
(AG)Do not [k]forgive their iniquity
Or blot out their sin from Your sight.
But may they be [l](AH)overthrown before You;
Deal with them in the (AI)time of Your anger!
14 I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; 15 but [a]in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how [b]one ought to conduct himself in (A)the household of God, which is the (B)church of (C)the living God, the (D)pillar and support of the truth. 16 By common confession, great is (E)the mystery of godliness:
He who was (F)revealed in the flesh,
Was [c](G)vindicated [d]in the Spirit,
(H)Seen by angels,
(I)Proclaimed among the nations,
(J)Believed on in the world,
(K)Taken up in glory.
Apostasy
4 But (L)the Spirit explicitly says that (M)in later times some will [e]fall away from the faith, paying attention to (N)deceitful spirits and (O)doctrines of demons, 2 by means of the hypocrisy of liars (P)seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, 3 men who (Q)forbid marriage and advocate (R)abstaining from foods which (S)God has created to be (T)gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For (U)everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is (V)received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified by means of (W)the word of God and prayer.
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