Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Lord Calls Jeremiah
4 The Lord spoke his word to me, saying:
5 “Before I ·made [formed] you in your mother’s womb, I ·chose [L knew] you.
Before you ·were born [L came out of the womb], I ·set you apart for a special work [consecrated you].
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
6 Then I said, “But Lord God, I don’t know how to speak. I am only a ·boy [child; youth].”
7 But the Lord said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I am only a ·boy [child; youth].’ You must go everywhere I send you, and you must say everything I ·tell you to say [L command you]. 8 Don’t be afraid of anyone, because I am with you to protect you,” says the Lord.
9 Then the Lord ·reached [L sent] out his hand and touched my mouth [C to consecrate it; Is. 6:7]. He said to me, “See, I am putting my words in your mouth. 10 Today I have ·put you in charge of [L appointed you over] nations and kingdoms. You will ·pull [pluck] up and ·tear [pull] down, destroy and overthrow, build up and plant [C he will announce judgment and salvation].”
An Old Person’s Prayer
71 In you, Lord, ·is my protection [L I find refuge].
Never let me be ashamed.
2 Because you ·do what is right [are righteous], ·save [protect] and rescue me;
·listen [L extend your ear] to me and ·save me [give me victory].
3 Be my ·place of safety [L rock of refuge]
where I can always come.
Give the command to ·save me [give me victory],
because you are my rock and my ·strong, walled city [fortress].
4 My God, ·save [rescue] me from the ·power [L hand] of the wicked
and from the ·hold [grasp; L palm] of evil and cruel people.
5 Lord, you are my hope.
Lord, I have ·trusted [had confidence in] you since I was young.
6 I have ·depended [L leaned] on you ·since I was born [L from the belly; C the womb];
you ·helped me even on the day of my birth [brought me forth/cut off my umbilical cord from my mother’s innards].
I will always praise you.
Love Is the Greatest Gift
13 I may speak in ·different languages [L tongues; 12:10, 29, 30] of people or even angels. But if I do not have love, I am only a ·noisy [resounding] ·bell [gong] or a ·crashing [clanging] cymbal. 2 I may have the gift of prophecy. I may understand all ·the secret things of God [L mysteries] and have all knowledge, and I may have faith so great I can move mountains. But even with all these things, if I do not have love, then I am nothing. 3 I may give away everything I have, and I may even give my body ·as an offering to be burned [L to be burned].[a] But I gain nothing if I do not have love.
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not ·jealous [envious], it does not brag, and it is not ·proud [arrogant; conceited; puffed up]. 5 Love is not ·rude [disrespectful], is not ·selfish [self-serving], and ·does not get upset with others [is not easily provoked/angered]. Love does not ·count up [keep a record of] wrongs that have been done. 6 Love ·takes no pleasure [does not rejoice] in ·evil [wrongdoing; injustice] but rejoices over the truth. 7 Love ·patiently accepts all things [T bears all things; or always protects], ·always trusts [T believes all things], ·always hopes [T hopes all things], and ·always endures [T endures all things].
8 Love never ·ends [fails; falls short]. There are gifts of prophecy, but they will ·be ended [cease; pass away]. There are gifts of ·speaking in different languages [or ecstatic utterance; L tongues], but those gifts will ·stop [cease; fall silent]. There is the gift of knowledge, but it will ·come to an end [pass away; be set aside]. 9 ·The reason is that [For] ·our knowledge and our ability to prophesy are not perfect [L we know in part/imperfectly and we prophesy in part/incompletely]. 10 But when ·perfection [the perfect; completeness; wholeness] comes, the ·things that are not perfect [partial] will ·end [pass away; be set aside]. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I ·stopped [set aside] those childish ways. 12 ·It is the same with us [L For…]. Now we see ·a dim reflection [obscurely; or indirectly], ·as if we were looking into a mirror [T through a glass darkly], but then we shall see ·clearly [L face to face]. Now I know only a part, but then I will know fully, as ·God has known me [L I am fully known]. 13 So these three things ·continue forever [endure; remain]: faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these is love.
21 He began to say to them, “·While you heard these words just now, they were coming true [L Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your ears]!”
22 All the people spoke well of Jesus and were amazed at the ·words of grace [or gracious words] he spoke. They asked, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
23 Jesus said to them, “·I know that [No doubt; Surely] you will ·tell [quote] me ·the old saying [this proverb]: ‘·Doctor [T Physician], heal yourself.’ You want to say, ‘We heard about the things you did in Capernaum [C a town in Galilee where Jesus lived and ministered]. Do those things here in your own town!’” 24 Then Jesus said, “·I tell you the truth [L Truly/Amen I say to you], a prophet is not ·accepted [welcomed] in his hometown. 25 But I tell you ·the truth [truly], there were many widows in Israel during the time of Elijah. ·It did not rain [L The sky/heavens were shut] in Israel for three and one-half years, and there was ·no food anywhere [L a great famine] in the whole country [1 Kin. 17]. 26 But Elijah was sent to none of those widows, only to a widow in Zarephath, a town in Sidon [C a Gentile city on the coast north of Israel]. 27 And there were many ·with skin diseases [T lepers] living in Israel during the time of the prophet Elisha. But none of them were ·healed [cured; cleansed], only Naaman, ·who was from the country of Syria [L the Syrian; 2 Kin. 5].”
28 When all the people in the synagogue heard these things, they ·became very angry [were furious; L were filled with wrath]. 29 They got up, ·forced [drove] Jesus out of town, and took him to the ·edge [brow] of the ·cliff [hill] on which the town was built. They planned to throw him off the ·edge [cliff], 30 but Jesus ·walked [passed] through the crowd and went on his way.
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