Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

80 O Shepherd of Israel who leads Israel like a flock; O God enthroned above the Guardian Angels, bend down your ear and listen as I plead. Display your power and radiant glory. ² Let Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh see you rouse yourself and use your mighty power to rescue us.

³ Turn us again to yourself, O God. Look down on us in joy and love;^[a] only then shall we be saved.

⁴ O Jehovah, God of heaven’s armies, how long will you be angry and reject our prayers? ⁵ You have fed us with sorrow and tears ⁶ and have made us the scorn of the neighboring nations. They laugh among themselves.

⁷ Turn us again to yourself, O God of Hosts. Look down on us in joy and love;^[b] only then shall we be saved. ⁸ You brought us from Egypt as though we were a tender vine and drove away the heathen from your land and planted us. ⁹ You cleared the ground and tilled the soil, and we took root and filled the land. ¹⁰ The mountains were covered with our shadow; we were like the mighty cedar trees,^{[c] 11} covering the entire land from the Mediterranean Sea to the Euphrates River. ¹² But now you have broken down our walls, leaving us without protection. ¹³ The boar from the forest roots around us, and the wild animals feed on us.

¹⁴ Come back, we beg of you, O God of the armies of heaven, and bless us. Look down from heaven and see our plight and care for this your vine! ¹⁵ Protect what you yourself have planted, this son you have raised for yourself. ¹⁶ For we are chopped and burned by our enemies. May they perish at your frown. ¹⁷ Strengthen the man you love,^[d] the son of your choice, ¹⁸ and we will never forsake you again. Revive us to trust in you.

¹⁹ Turn us again to yourself, O God of the armies of heaven. Look down on us, your face aglow with joy and love—only then shall we be saved.

⁹ Listen, you women who loll around in lazy ease; listen to me and I will tell you your reward: ¹⁰ In a short time—in just a little more than a year—suddenly you’ll care, O careless ones. For the crops of fruit will fail; the harvest will not take place. ¹¹ Tremble, O women of ease; throw off your unconcern. Strip off your pretty clothes—wear sackcloth for your grief. ¹² Beat your breasts in sorrow for those bountiful farms of yours that will soon be gone, and for those fruitful vines of other years. ¹³ For your lands will thrive with thorns and briars; your joyous homes and happy cities will be gone. ¹⁴ Palaces and mansions will all be deserted, the crowded cities empty. Wild herds of donkeys and goats will graze upon the mountains where the watchtowers are, ¹⁵ until at last the Spirit is poured down on us from heaven. Then once again enormous crops will come. ¹⁶ Then justice will rule through all the land, ¹⁷ and out of justice, peace. Quietness and confidence will reign forever more.

¹⁸ My people will live in safety, quietly at home, ¹⁹ but the Assyrians^[a] will be destroyed and their cities laid low. ²⁰ And God will greatly bless his people. Wherever they plant, bountiful crops will spring up, and their flocks and herds will graze in green pastures.

¹⁷ But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure and full of quiet gentleness. Then it is peace-loving and courteous. It allows discussion and is willing to yield to others; it is full of mercy and good deeds. It is wholehearted and straightforward and sincere. ¹⁸ And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness.