Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

49 Hearken, O isles, unto me, And attend, O peoples, from afar, Jehovah from the womb hath called me, From the bowels of my mother He hath made mention of my name.

² And he maketh my mouth as a sharp sword, In the shadow of His hand He hath hid me, And He maketh me for a clear arrow, In His quiver He hath hid me.

³ And He saith to me, `My servant Thou art, O Israel, In whom I beautify Myself.'

⁴ And I said, `For a vain thing I laboured, For emptiness and vanity my power I consumed, But my judgment [is] with Jehovah, And my wage with my God.

⁵ And now, said Jehovah, who is forming me from the belly for a servant to Him, To bring back Jacob unto Him, (Though Israel is not gathered, Yet I am honoured in the eyes of Jehovah, And my God hath been my strength.)

⁶ And He saith, `It hath been a light thing That thou art to Me for a servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob, And the preserved of Israel to bring back, And I have given thee for a light of nations, To be My salvation unto the end of the earth.'

⁷ Thus said Jehovah, Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One, To the despised in soul, To the abominated of a nation, To the servant of rulers: `Kings see, and have risen, princes, and worship, For the sake of Jehovah, who is faithful, The Holy of Israel, and He chooseth thee.'

71 In Thee, O Jehovah, I have trusted, Let me not be ashamed to the age.

² In Thy righteousness Thou dost deliver me, And dost cause me to escape, Incline unto me Thine ear, and save me.

³ Be to me for a rock -- a habitation, To go in continually, Thou hast given command to save me, For my rock and my bulwark [art] Thou.

⁴ O my God, cause me to escape From the hand of the wicked, From the hand of the perverse and violent.

⁵ For Thou [art] my hope, O Lord Jehovah, My trust from my youth.

⁶ By Thee I have been supported from the womb, From my mother's bowels Thou dost cut me out, In Thee [is] my praise continually.

⁷ As a wonder I have been to many, And Thou [art] my strong refuge.

⁸ Filled is my mouth [with] Thy praise, All the day [with] Thy beauty.

⁹ Cast me not off at the time of old age, According to the consumption of my power forsake me not.

¹⁰ For mine enemies have spoken against me, And those watching my soul have taken counsel together,

¹¹ Saying, `God hath forsaken him, Pursue and catch him, for there is no deliverer.'

¹² O God, be not far from me, O my God, for my help make haste.

¹³ They are ashamed, they are consumed, Who are opposing my soul, They are covered [with] reproach and blushing, Who are seeking my evil,

¹⁴ And I continually do wait with hope, And have added unto all Thy praise.

¹⁸ for the word of the cross to those indeed perishing is foolishness, and to us -- those being saved -- it is the power of God,

¹⁹ for it hath been written, `I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the intelligence of the intelligent I will bring to nought;'

²⁰ where [is] the wise? where the scribe? where a disputer of this age? did not God make foolish the wisdom of this world?

²¹ for, seeing in the wisdom of God the world through the wisdom knew not God, it did please God through the foolishness of the preaching to save those believing.

²² Since also Jews ask a sign, and Greeks seek wisdom,

²³ also we -- we preach Christ crucified, to Jews, indeed, a stumbling-block, and to Greeks foolishness,

²⁴ and to those called -- both Jews and Greeks -- Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God,

²⁵ because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men;

²⁶ for see your calling, brethren, that not many [are] wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble;

²⁷ but the foolish things of the world did God choose, that the wise He may put to shame; and the weak things of the world did God choose that He may put to shame the strong;

²⁸ and the base things of the world, and the things despised did God choose, and the things that are not, that the things that are He may make useless --

²⁹ that no flesh may glory before Him;

³⁰ and of Him ye -- ye are in Christ Jesus, who became to us from God wisdom, righteousness also, and sanctification, and redemption,

³¹ that, according as it hath been written, `He who is glorying -- in the Lord let him glory.'

²⁰ And there were certain Greeks out of those coming up that they may worship in the feast,

²¹ these then came near to Philip, who [is] from Bethsaida of Galilee, and were asking him, saying, `Sir, we wish to see Jesus;'

²² Philip cometh and telleth Andrew, and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus.

²³ And Jesus responded to them, saying, `The hour hath come that the Son of Man may be glorified;

²⁴ verily, verily, I say to you, if the grain of the wheat, having fallen to the earth, may not die, itself remaineth alone; and if it may die, it doth bear much fruit;

²⁵ he who is loving his life shall lose it, and he who is hating his life in this world -- to life age-during shall keep it;

²⁶ if any one may minister to me, let him follow me, and where I am, there also my ministrant shall be; and if any one may minister to me -- honour him will the Father.

²⁷ `Now hath my soul been troubled, and what? shall I say -- Father, save me from this hour? -- but because of this I came to this hour;

²⁸ Father, glorify Thy name.' There came, therefore, a voice out of the heaven, `I both glorified, and again I will glorify [it];'

²⁹ the multitude, therefore, having stood and heard, were saying that there hath been thunder; others said, `A messenger hath spoken to him.'

³⁰ Jesus answered and said, `Not because of me hath this voice come, but because of you;

³¹ now is a judgment of this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast forth;

³² and I, if I may be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto myself.'

³³ And this he said signifying by what death he was about to die;

³⁴ the multitude answered him, `We heard out of the law that the Christ doth remain -- to the age; and how dost thou say, That it behoveth the Son of Man to be lifted up? who is this -- the Son of Man?'

³⁵ Jesus, therefore, said to them, `Yet a little time is the light with you; walk while ye have the light, that darkness may not overtake you; and he who is walking in the darkness hath not known where he goeth;

³⁶ while ye have the light, believe in the light, that sons of light ye may become.' These things spake Jesus, and having gone away, he was hid from them,