Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Lament over the Destruction of Jerusalem, and Prayer for Help.
A Psalm of Asaph.
79 O God, the (A)nations have [a]invaded (B)Your inheritance;
They have defiled Your (C)holy temple;
They have (D)laid Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They have given the (E)dead bodies of Your servants for food to the birds of the heavens,
The flesh of Your godly ones to the beasts of the earth.
3 They have poured out their blood like water round about Jerusalem;
And there was (F)no one to bury them.
4 We have become a (G)reproach to our neighbors,
A scoffing and derision to those around us.
5 (H)How long, O Lord? Will You be angry forever?
Will Your (I)jealousy (J)burn like fire?
6 (K)Pour out Your wrath upon the nations which (L)do not know You,
And upon the kingdoms which (M)do not call upon Your name.
7 For they have (N)devoured Jacob
And (O)laid waste his [b]habitation.
8 (P)Do not remember [c]the iniquities of our forefathers against us;
Let Your compassion come quickly to (Q)meet us,
For we are (R)brought very low.
9 (S)Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of (T)Your name;
And deliver us and [d](U)forgive our sins (V)for Your name’s sake.
10 (W)Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Let there be known among the nations in our sight,
(X)Vengeance for the blood of Your servants which has been shed.
11 Let (Y)the groaning of the prisoner come before You;
According to the greatness of Your [e]power preserve [f]those who are (Z)doomed to die.
12 And return to our neighbors (AA)sevenfold (AB)into their bosom
[g]The (AC)reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord.
13 So we Your people and the (AD)sheep of Your [h]pasture
Will (AE)give thanks to You forever;
To all generations we will (AF)tell of Your praise.
Peaceful Latter Days
4 And it will come about in the (A)last days
That the (B)mountain of the house of the Lord
Will be established [a]as the chief of the mountains.
It will be raised above the hills,
And the (C)peoples will stream to it.
2 (D)Many nations will come and say,
“(E)Come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord
And to the house of the God of Jacob,
That (F)He may teach us about His ways
And that we may walk in His paths.”
For (G)from Zion will go forth the law,
Even the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
3 And He will (H)judge between many peoples
And render decisions for mighty, [b]distant nations.
Then they will hammer their swords (I)into plowshares
And their spears into pruning hooks;
Nation will not lift up sword against nation,
And never again will they [c]train for war.
4 Each of them will (J)sit under his vine
And under his fig tree,
With (K)no one to make them afraid,
For the (L)mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.
5 Though all the peoples walk
Each in the (M)name of his god,
As for us, (N)we will walk
In the name of the (O)Lord our God forever and ever.
A Scene of Heaven
15 Then I saw (A)another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, (B)seven angels who had (C)seven plagues, which are (D)the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished.
2 And I saw something like a (E)sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had (F)been victorious [a]over the (G)beast and (H)his image and the (I)number of his name, standing on the (J)sea of glass, holding (K)harps of God. 3 And they *sang the (L)song of Moses, (M)the bond-servant of God, and the (N)song of the Lamb, saying,
“(O)Great and marvelous are Your works,
(P)O Lord God, the Almighty;
Righteous and true are Your ways,
(Q)King of the [b]nations!
4 “(R)Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy;
For (S)all the nations will come and worship before You,
For Your [c](T)righteous acts have been revealed.”
5 After these things I looked, and (U)the [d]temple of the (V)tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened, 6 and the (W)seven angels who had the seven plagues (X)came out of the [e]temple, clothed in [f]linen, clean and bright, and (Y)girded around their chests with golden sashes. 7 Then one of the (Z)four living creatures gave to the (AA)seven angels seven (AB)golden bowls full of the (AC)wrath of God, who (AD)lives forever and ever. 8 And the [g]temple was filled with (AE)smoke from the glory of God and from His power; and no one was able to enter the [h]temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
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