Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Vanity of Life.
To the Chief Musician; for Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will guard my ways
That I may not sin with my tongue;
I will muzzle my mouth
While the wicked are in my presence.”
2
I was mute and silent [before my enemies],
I refrained even from good,
And my [a]distress grew worse.
3
My heart was hot within me.
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4
“Lord, let me know my [life’s] end
And [to appreciate] the extent of my days;
Let me know how frail I am [how transient is my stay here].
5
“Behold, You have made my days as [short as] hand widths,
And my lifetime is as nothing in Your sight.
Surely every man at his best is a mere breath [a wisp of smoke, a vapor that vanishes]!(A) Selah.
6
“Surely every man walks around like a shadow [in a charade];
Surely they make an uproar for nothing;
Each one builds up riches, not knowing who will receive them.(B)
7
“And now, Lord, for what do I expectantly wait?
My hope [my confident expectation] is in You.
8
“Save me from all my transgressions;
Do not make me the scorn and reproach of the [self-righteous, arrogant] fool.
9
“I am mute, I do not open my mouth,
Because it is You who has done it.
10
“Remove Your plague from me;
I am wasting away because of the conflict and opposition of Your hand.
11
“With rebukes You discipline man for sin;
You consume like a moth what is precious to him;
Surely every man is a mere breath [a wisp of smoke, a vapor that vanishes]. Selah.
12
“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and listen to my cry;
Do not be silent at my tears;
For I am Your temporary guest,
A sojourner like all my fathers.
13
“O look away from me, that I may smile and again know joy
Before I depart and am no more.”
Job Rebukes Bildad
26 But Job answered and said,
2
“What a help you are to the weak (powerless)!
How you have saved the arm that is without strength!
3
“How you have counseled the one who has no wisdom!
And how abundantly you have provided sound wisdom and helpful insight!
4
“To whom have you uttered [these] words?
And whose spirit [inspired what] came forth from you?
The Greatness of God
5
“The spirits of the dead tremble
Underneath the waters and their inhabitants.
6
“Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) is naked before God,
And Abaddon (the place of destruction) has no covering [from His eyes].
7
“It is He who spreads out the north over emptiness
And [a]hangs the earth on nothing.
8
“He wraps the waters in His clouds [which otherwise would spill on earth all at once],
And the cloud does not burst under them.
9
“He covers the face of the [b]full moon
And spreads His cloud over it.
10
“He has inscribed a circular limit (the horizon) on the face of the waters
At the boundary between light and darkness.
11
“The pillars of the heavens tremble
And are terrified at His rebuke.
12
“He stirred up the sea by His power,
And by His understanding He smashed [proud] [c]Rahab.
13
“By His breath the heavens are cleared;
His hand has pierced the [swiftly] fleeing serpent.(A)
14
“Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power],
The faintest whisper of His voice!
Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?”
A Multitude from the Tribulation
9 After these things I looked, and this is what I saw: a vast multitude which no one could count, [gathered] from every nation and from all the tribes and peoples and languages [of the earth], standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Christ), dressed in white robes, with [a]palm branches in their hands; 10 and in a loud voice they cried out, saying,
“Salvation [belongs] to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb [our salvation is the Trinity’s to give, and to God the Trinity we owe our deliverance].” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the [twenty-four] elders and the four living creatures; and they fell to their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying,
“Amen! Blessing and glory and majesty and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might belong to our God forever and ever. Amen.”
13 Then one of the elders responded, saying to me, “These who are dressed in the long white robes—who are they, and from where did they come?” 14 I said to him, “My lord, you know [the answer].” And he said to me, “These are the people who come out of the great tribulation (persecution), and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb [because of His atoning sacrifice].(A) 15 For this reason, they are [standing] before the throne of God; and they serve Him [in worship] day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will [b]spread His tabernacle over them and shelter and protect them [with His presence].(B) 16 They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun [c]beat down on them, nor any [scorching] heat;(C) 17 for the Lamb who is in the center of the throne will be their Shepherd, and He will guide them to springs of the waters of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes [giving them eternal comfort].”(D)
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