Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
5 My soul quietly waits for the True God alone
because I hope only in Him.
6 He alone is my rock and deliverance,
my citadel high on a hill;
I will not be shaken.
7 My salvation and my significance depend ultimately on God;
the core of my strength, my shelter, is in the True God.
8 Have faith in Him in all circumstances, dear people.
Open up your heart to Him;
the True God shelters us in His arms.
[pause]
9 Human beings disappear like a breath;
even people of rank live artificial lives.
Their weight is that of a breath in a balance—nothing.
Added together, they’re still lighter than air.
10 Do not resort to oppression;
resist the temptation of ill-gotten gain.
If you achieve wealth, don’t let your heart get attached.
11 The True God spoke this once,
and twice I’ve heard:
That You, the True God, hold all power;
12 Your love never fails, O Lord,
for You pay every person back
according to his deeds.
7 O Eternal, You deceived me into being Your prophet,
and I went along and allowed it to happen!
Your strength is too much for me,
and so You win; I speak Your words.
Just look at what I have become: a laughingstock;
all day long people mock me.
8 The only words coming out of my mouth
are loud cries of “Violence and destruction!”
It is the Eternal’s words—Your words—
that bring me insults and jokes all day long.
9 But when I tell myself, I’ll never mention Your name
or speak for You again, it’s no use.
The word of God burns in my heart; it is like fire in my bones.
I try to hold it all in, but I cannot.
10 I hear the crowds whispering behind my back and mocking my prophecies:
“‘Terror is everywhere we turn,’ he says. Let’s report him for breaking some law.”
Even my trusted friends are waiting for me to make a mistake:
“Maybe he will be deceived,
and then we’ll win, take control, and have our revenge on him.”
11 But I am not alone. The Eternal is here with me.
He stands beside me, as a dreaded warrior.
That is why my tormentors will fail so miserably. They cannot win.
Their humiliation and permanent dishonor will be remembered for all time.
12 Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, You test the righteous;
You see my deepest thoughts; You know my heart.
Let me see Your vengeance exacted against these people.
for I am trusting my cause, my future to You.
13 Sing to the Eternal God!
Praise the Eternal now for what He will soon do.
For a troubled soul is snatched from the hands of the wicked.
3 This is now, my dear friends, my second letter to you. In both of them, I have tried to inspire you to a sincere and pure way of thinking by reminding you of what you already know. 2 Remember the words spoken earlier by God’s holy prophets and the commandment that our Lord and Savior gave to you through your emissaries.[a] 3 Above all, be sure to remember that in the last days mockers will come, following their own desires and taunting you, 4 saying, “So what happened to the promised second coming of Jesus? For everything keeps going just the way it has since our ancestors fell asleep in death; since the beginning of creation, nothing’s changed.”
These believers face persecution every day and eagerly await the day when Jesus will return and judge their enemies. But what is taking so long?
5 When they make fun of you, it’s as if the scoffers are deliberately forgetting that long ago when God spoke the word, the heavens came into existence and the earth formed from water and by water. 6 The waters later flooded and destroyed that world. 7 By that same word, the heavens and earth we see now are being reserved for destruction by fire, preserved until the time comes for the godless on the day of judgment.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.