Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 148
1 Praise the Eternal!
All you in the heavens, praise the Eternal;
praise Him from the highest places!
2 All you, His messengers and His armies in heaven:
praise Him!
3 Sun, moon, and all you brilliant stars above:
praise Him!
4 Highest heavens and all you waters above the heavens:
praise Him!
5 Let all things join together in a concert of praise to the name of the Eternal,
for He gave the command and they were created.
6 He put them in their places to stay forever—
He declared it so, and it is final.
7 Everything on earth, join in and praise the Eternal;
sea monsters and creatures of the deep,
8 Lightning and hail, snow and foggy mists,
violent winds all respond to His command.
9 Mountains and hills,
fruit trees and cedar forests,
10 All you animals both wild and tame,
reptiles and birds who take flight:
praise the Lord.
11 All kings and all nations,
princes and all judges of the earth,
12 All people, young men and women,
old men and children alike,
praise the Lord.
13 Let them all praise the name of the Eternal!
For His name stands alone above all others.
His glory shines greater than anything above or below.
14 He has made His people strong;
He is the praise of all who are godly,
the praise of the children of Israel, those whom He holds close.
Praise the Eternal!
5 And now the Eternal who watched, shaped, and made me His own servant
from the womb has determined to restore Jacob’s family;
Israel will be made right with the Eternal again.
For God has counted me worthy and He has been my strength right along.
6 Eternal One: As My servant you will do even more than this,
even more than restoring Jacob’s family to Me
And making Israel right with Me again.
I will make you a light for the nations,
And You will illumine them until My salvation reaches to the ends of the earth.[a]
7 This is what the Eternal One, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel,
told to the one who is despised and loathed by the nation,
To the servant of national leaders.
Eternal One: At the sight of you, kings will rise and princes will bow down,
for I, the Eternal, faithful and true, the Holy One of Israel, have chosen you.
The Eternal has this to say:
8 Eternal One: When the time was right, I answered you;
on the day you were delivered, I was your help.[b]
I will watch over you, and give you
as a promise, a binding covenant to the people.
Through you, My gift to the people, the land of promise will recover.
Ancestral ground, once deserted, will be entrusted to them.
9 Through you, My gift to the people, I will declare to the prisoners,
“Come out. Now you are free”;
To those who are held in darkness, “Come out into the light.”
They will find sustenance wherever they are—
Along the roads or in the open hills—
with peace of mind, in comfort and security.
10 Wherever they are, they will be fine, never hungry nor thirsty.
They will be protected from oppressive heat and the burning sun
Because the One who loves them—as a mother loves her child—will be their guide.
God will lead them to restful places, rejuvenating springs of water.
11 I will make their going easy, level the mountain road
and smooth the path that leads them home.
12 Look! Even now, they are coming from lands far away,
some from the north, others from the west, these from the land of Sinim.[c]
13 Oh joy! Be glad—sky! Take joy—earth! Burst into song—mountains!
For the Eternal, moved to compassion, has comforted and consoled His people.
There are many kinds of love—and not enough words to tell the differences. Hebrew has a word for “love” that is related to its word for a woman’s womb. English has no such word. It is too bad, for it is difficult to describe womb-love, the bearing-and-birthing love of a mother, the kind of love that the Lord has for the people of God’s promise, Jacob’s children. God shaped this people as His own and bound them with no ordinary promise. God loves them in the same way a mother loves the child growing in her womb. It can’t be said so neatly and completely with one “love” word, but that is the idea that threads its way through this text.
14 Zion: The Eternal One has abandoned me. God has walked out the door;
my Lord left me alone. He has forgotten all about me.
15 Eternal One: Is it possible for a mother, however disappointed,
however hurt, to forget her nursing child?
Can she feel nothing for the baby she carried and birthed?
Even if she could, I, God, will never forget you.
46 While Jesus was speaking to the crowd, His mother and brothers came up and wanted to speak to Him.
Someone in the Crowd: 47 Your mother and brothers are waiting outside to speak to You.
Jesus: 48 Who is My mother? And who are My brothers? 49 (pointing to His disciples) These are My mother and brothers. 50 Anyone who does the will of My Father in heaven is My mother and brother and sister.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.