Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Habakkuk’s Oracle
1 The pronouncement[a] that the prophet Habakkuk[b] perceived.
The Prophet’s First Complaint
2 “How long, Lord, must I cry out for help,
but you won’t listen?
I’m crying out to you, ‘Violence!’
but you aren’t providing deliverance.
3 Why are you forcing me to look at iniquity
and to stare at wickedness?
Social havoc and oppression are all around me;
there are legal conflicts, and disputes abound.
4 Therefore, the Law has become paralyzed,
and justice never comes about.
Because criminals outnumber[c] the righteous,
whenever judgments are issued, they come out crooked.”
Habakkuk Waits for God’s Answer
2 “I will stand at my guard post
and station myself on a tower.
I will wait and see what the Lord[a] will say about me
and what I[b] will answer when he reprimands me.[c]”
God’s Reply to the Prophet’s Complaint
2 When he answered, the Lord told me:
Tsade
God’s Righteous Decrees
137 Lord, you are righteous,
and your judgments are right.
138 You have ordered your decrees to us rightly,
and they are very faithful.
139 My zeal consumes me
because my enemies forget your words.
140 Your word is very pure,
and your servant loves it.
141 Though I may be small and despised,
I do not neglect your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is an eternal righteousness,
and your instruction[a] is true.
143 Though trouble and anguish overwhelm me,
your commands remain my delight.
144 Your righteous decrees are eternal;
give me understanding, and I will live.
Greetings
1 From:[a] Paul, Silvanus,[b] and Timothy.
To: The church of the Thessalonians in union with God our Father and the Lord Jesus, the Messiah.[c]
2 May grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[d] be yours!
Endurance in Affliction
3 Brothers, at all times we are obligated to thank God for you. It is right to do this[e] because your faith is growing all the time and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. 4 As a result, we rejoice about you among God’s churches—about your endurance and faith through all the persecutions and afflictions you are experiencing.
11 With this in mind, we always pray for you, asking[a] that our God might make you worthy of his calling and that through his power he might help you accomplish every good desire and faithful action. 12 That way the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified by you, and you by him, according to the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus, the Messiah.[b]
Jesus and Zacchaeus
19 As Jesus[a] entered Jericho and was passing through it, 2 a man named Zacchaeus appeared. He was a leading tax collector, and a rich one at that! 3 He was trying to see who Jesus was, but he couldn’t do so due to the crowd, since he was a short man. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus,[b] who was going to pass that way.
5 When Jesus came to the tree,[c] he looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today.” 6 Zacchaeus[d] came down quickly and was glad to welcome him into his home.[e]
7 But all the people who saw this began to complain: “Jesus[f] is going to be the guest of a notorious[g] sinner!”
8 Later, Zacchaeus stood up and announced to the Lord, “Look! I’m giving half of my possessions to the destitute, and if I have accused anyone falsely, I’m repaying four times as much as I owe.”[h]
9 Then Jesus told him, “Today salvation has come to this home, because this man[i] is also a descendant of Abraham, 10 and the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”
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