Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 98
Praise the King
A psalm.
1 Sing a new song to the Lord,(A)
for He has performed wonders;
His right hand and holy arm
have won Him victory.(B)
2 The Lord has made His victory known;
He has revealed His righteousness
in the sight of the nations.(C)
3 He has remembered His love
and faithfulness to the house of Israel;
all the ends of the earth
have seen our God’s victory.(D)
From Deprivation to Blessing
10 On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Haggai the prophet: 11 “This is what the Lord of Hosts says: Ask the priests for a ruling.(A) 12 If a man is carrying consecrated meat in the fold of his garment, and it touches bread, stew, wine, oil, or any other food, does it become holy?”(B)
The priests answered, “No.”
13 Then Haggai asked, “If someone defiled by contact with a corpse touches any of these, does it become defiled?”(C)
The priests answered, “It becomes defiled.”
14 Then Haggai replied, “So is this people, and so is this nation before Me”—this is the Lord’s declaration. “And so is every work of their hands; even what they offer there is defiled.
15 “Now, reflect back from this day: Before one stone was placed on another in the Lord’s temple, 16 what state were you in?[a] When someone came to a grain heap of 20 measures, it only amounted to 10; when one came to the winepress to dip 50 measures from the vat, it only amounted to 20. 17 I struck you—all the work of your hands—with blight, mildew,(D) and hail,(E) but you didn’t turn to Me”—this is the Lord’s declaration. 18 “Consider carefully(F) from this day forward; from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, from the day the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid; consider it carefully. 19 Is there still seed left in the granary? The vine, the fig, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have not yet produced. But from this day on I will bless you.”(G)
The Trustworthy Prophetic Word
16 For we did not follow cleverly contrived myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ;(A) instead, we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.(B) 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, a voice came to Him from the Majestic Glory:
18 And we heard this voice when it came from heaven while we were with Him on the holy mountain.(D) 19 So we have the prophetic word strongly confirmed. You will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dismal place,(E) until the day dawns(F) and the morning star(G) rises in your hearts. 20 First of all, you should know this: No prophecy of Scripture comes from one’s own interpretation, 21 because no prophecy ever came by the will of man;(H) instead, men spoke from God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.(I)
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