Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Davidic Prayer.
A Cry for Justice
17 Lord, hear my just plea!
Pay attention to my cry!
Listen to my prayer,
since it does not come from lying lips.
2 Justice for me will come from your presence;
your eyes see what is right.
3 When you probe my heart,
and examine me at night;
when you refine me,
you will find nothing wrong,[a]
for I have determined that I will not transgress with my mouth.
4 As for the ways of mankind,
I have, according to the words of your lips,
avoided the ways of the violent.
5 Because my steps have held fast to your paths,
my footsteps have not faltered.
6 I call upon you, for you will answer me, God.
Listen closely to me
and hear my prayer.
7 Show forth your gracious love,
save those who take refuge in you
from those who rebel against your sovereign power.[b]
8 Protect me as the most precious part of the eye;[c]
hide me under the shadow of your wings
9 from the wicked[d] who have afflicted me,
from my enemies who have surrounded me.
10 They are imprisoned by their own prosperity,[e]
they have boasted proudly with their mouth.
11 Now they have encircled our paths[f]
and are determined[g] to cast us down to the ground.
12 Like a lion they desire to rip us to pieces,
like a young lion waiting in ambush.
13 Arise, Lord,
confront them,
bring them to their knees!
Deliver me from the wicked by your sword—
14 from men, Lord, by your hand—
from men who belong to this world,
whose reward is only[h] in this[i] life.
But as for your treasured ones,
may their stomachs be full,
may their children have an abundance,
and may they leave wealth to their offspring.
15 But as for me, justified, I will behold your face;
when I awake, your presence[j] will satisfy me.
The Vision of the High Priest
3 Then I saw Joshua the High Priest standing in the presence of the angel of the Lord, with Satan[a] standing at his right to oppose him.
2 The Lord told Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan—in fact, may the Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! This man is a burning brand plucked from the fire, is he not?”
3 Now Joshua was wearing filthy clothes as he stood in the presence of the angel.
4 So the angel[b] continued to tell those who were standing in his presence, “Remove his filthy clothes.”
And he told Joshua,[c] “Look how I’ve removed your iniquity. Now I’m clothing you with fine garments.”
5 Then I said, “Let them place a pure diadem[d] on his head.”
So they placed the pure diadem[e] on his head and clothed him with fine garments while the angel of the Lord was standing beside them.[f]
The Lord’s Charge to Joshua
6 Then the angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua: 7 “This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘If you will live according to my ways, and if you will keep what I have entrusted to you,[g] then you will also administer my Temple, and you will also guard my courtyards. And I will give you access to these who serve[h] here.
8 “‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and those companions of yours who sit with you,[i] for these men are a sign that I am presenting my servant, the Branch.[j] 9 Look, the stone that I put in place in Joshua’s presence—on that one stone are seven eyes.[k] And look, I will do the engraving myself,’ declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, ‘and I will remove the perversity of that land in a single day. 10 At that time,’[l] declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, ‘you will invite each of your neighbors to join you[m] under the vine and fig tree.’”
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but threw them into the lowest hell[a] and imprisoned them in chains[b] of deepest darkness, holding them for judgment; 5 and if he did not spare the ancient world but protected Noah, a righteous preacher, along with seven others when he brought the flood on the world of ungodly people; 6 and if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and destroyed them by burning them to ashes, making them an example to ungodly people of what is going to happen to them; 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man who was greatly distressed by the immoral conduct of lawless people— 8 for as long as that righteous man lived among them, day after day he was being tortured in his righteous soul by what he saw and heard in their lawless actions— 9 then the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials and to hold unrighteous people for punishment on the day of judgment, 10 especially those who satisfy their flesh by indulging in its passions and who despise authority.
Being bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to slander glorious beings. 11 Yet even angels, although they are greater in strength and power, do not bring a slanderous accusation against them from the Lord. 12 These people, like irrational animals, are mere creatures of instinct that are born to be caught and killed. They insult what they don’t understand, and like animals they, too, will be destroyed, 13 suffering harm as punishment for their wrongdoing. They take pleasure in wild parties in broad daylight. They are stains and blemishes, reveling in their deceitful pleasures[c] while they eat with you. 14 With eyes full of adultery, they cannot get enough of sin. They seduce unsteady souls and have had their hearts expertly trained in greed. They are doomed to a curse.[d] 15 They have left the straight path and wandered off to follow the path of Bosor’s[e] son Balaam, who loved the reward he got for doing wrong. 16 But he was rebuked for his offense. A donkey that normally cannot talk spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s insanity.
17 These men are dried-up springs, mere clouds driven by a storm. Gloomy darkness is reserved for them. 18 By talking high-sounding nonsense and using sinful cravings of the flesh, they entice people who have just escaped from those who live in error. 19 Promising them freedom, they themselves are slaves to depravity, for a person is a slave to whatever conquers him.
20 For if, after escaping the world’s corruptions through a full knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus, the Messiah,[f] they are again entangled and conquered by those corruptions,[g] then their last condition is worse than their former one. 21 It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to know it and turn their backs on the holy commandment that was committed to them.
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