Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
To the Director: With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.
The Awesome God
76 God is known in Judah;
in Israel his reputation is great.
2 His abode is in Salem,[a]
his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he shattered sharp arrows,
shields, swords, and weapons of[b] war.
4 You are enveloped by light;
more majestic than mountains filled with game.
5 Brave men were plundered
while they slumbered in their sleep.
All the men of the army were immobilized.
6 At the sound of your battle cry, God of Jacob,
both horse and chariot rider fell into deep sleep.
7 You are awesome!
who can stand in your presence when you’re angry?
8 From heaven you declared judgment.
The earth stands in awe and is quiet
9 when God arose to execute justice
and to deliver all the afflicted of the earth.
10 Even human anger praises you;
you will wear the survivors of your wrath as an ornament.[c]
14 And when you look, your hearts will rejoice
and your bodies will flourish like grass;
and it will be made known
that the Lord’s hand is with his servants,
but his fury is with his enemies.
15 “Take notice! The Lord will come with fire,
and his chariot[a] will be[b] like a whirlwind,
to pay back his anger—yes, his anger!—[c] in fury,
and his menacing rebukes[d] in flames of fire.
16 For with fire and with his sword the Lord will proceed to judgment[e] on all humanity,[f]
and those slain by the Lord will be many.”
17 “Those who consecrate and purify themselves to enter the groves,[g] following the one at the center of those who eat the meat of pigs, disgusting things,[h] and rats, are all alike,”[i] says[j] the Lord. 18 “But as for me, I know their actions and their thoughts. Come[k] and gather all nations and languages, and they will come and see my glory.
19 “I will put up signs[l] among them, and from them I will send survivors to the nations—to Tarshish, Libya,[m] and Lydia,[n] (who draw the bow),[o] to Tubal and Greece,[p] to the far off coastlands that have not heard of my fame or seen my glory. Then they will proclaim my glory among the nations. 20 They will bring all—yes, all!—[q] of your kindred from all the nations to[r] my holy mountain Jerusalem as an offering to the Lord—on horses, in chariots, in wagons, and on mules—yes, even on mules!—[s] and on camels,” says the Lord, “just as the Israelis bring a grain offering in a clean vessel to the Lord’s house. 21 Then I will also select some of them for myself[t] as priests and as Levites,”[u] says the Lord.
22 “For as the new heavens and the new earth
that I am about to make
will endure before me,” says the Lord,
“so will your descendants and your name endure.
23 And from New Moon to New Moon,
and from Sabbath to Sabbath,[v]
all[w] humanity will come to worship before me,”
says the Lord.
24 “Then they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of the people who rebelled against me. For their worm will not die, nor will their fire be extinguished, and they will remain an object of revulsion to all[x] humanity.”
Jesus Rebukes Jerusalem(A)
37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones to death those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling! 38 Look! Your house is left abandoned! 39 I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘How blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”[a]
Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple(B)
24 After Jesus had left the Temple and was walking away, his disciples came up to him to point out to him the Temple buildings. 2 But in reply he responded to them, “You see all these things, don’t you? I tell all of you[b] with certainty, not even a single stone here will be left standing on top of another that won’t be completely demolished.”
Cults, Revolutions, Famines, and Earthquakes(C)
3 Now while Jesus[c] was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 In reply, Jesus told them, “See to it that no one deceives you, 5 because many will come in my name, proclaiming, ‘I’m the Messiah,’[d] and they will deceive many people. 6 You’ll begin to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See to it that you don’t panic. These things must take place, but the end won’t have come yet, 7 because nation will rise up in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 But all these things are only a beginning of agonies.”
Future Persecution, Apostasy, and Evangelism(D)
9 “Then they’ll hand you over to suffer[e] and will kill you, and you’ll be hated by all the nations[f] on account of my name. 10 Then many people will fall away, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people, 12 and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many people will grow cold. 13 But the person who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the inhabited world as a testimony to all nations,[g] and then the end will come.”
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