Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 82[a]
A psalm of Asaph.
82 God stands in[b] the assembly of El;[c]
in the midst of the gods[d] he renders judgment.[e]
2 He says,[f] “How long will you make unjust legal decisions
and show favoritism to the wicked?[g] (Selah)
3 Defend the cause of the poor and the fatherless.[h]
Vindicate the oppressed and suffering.
4 Rescue the poor and needy.
Deliver them from the power[i] of the wicked.
5 They[j] neither know nor understand.
They stumble around[k] in the dark,
while all the foundations of the earth crumble.[l]
6 I thought,[m] ‘You are gods;
all of you are sons of the Most High.’[n]
7 Yet you will die like mortals;[o]
you will fall like all the other rulers.”[p]
8 Rise up, O God, and execute judgment on the earth!
For you own[q] all the nations.
Introduction
1 The following is a record of what Amos prophesied.[a] He[b] was one of the herdsmen from Tekoa. These prophecies about Israel were revealed to him[c] during the time of[d] King Uzziah of Judah and[e] King Jeroboam son of Joash of Israel, two years before the earthquake.[f]
God Will Judge the Surrounding Nations
2 Amos[g] said:
“The Lord comes roaring[h] out of Zion;
from Jerusalem he comes bellowing![i]
The shepherds’ pastures wilt;[j]
the summit of Carmel[k] withers.”[l]
3 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Damascus has committed three crimes[m]—
make that four![n]—I will not revoke my
decree of judgment.[o]
They ripped through Gilead like threshing sledges with iron teeth.[p]
4 So I will set Hazael’s house[q] on fire;
fire[r] will consume Ben Hadad’s[s] fortresses.
5 I will break the bar on the gate[t] of Damascus.
I will remove[u] the ruler[v] from Wicked Valley,[w]
the one who holds the royal scepter from Beth Eden.[x]
The people of Aram will be deported to Kir.”[y]
The Lord has spoken!
6 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Gaza[z] has committed three crimes[aa]—
make that four![ab]—I will not revoke my decree of judgment.[ac]
They deported a whole community[ad] and sold them[ae] to Edom.
7 So I will set Gaza’s city wall[af] on fire;
fire[ag] will consume her fortresses.
8 I will remove[ah] the ruler[ai] from Ashdod,[aj]
the one who holds the royal scepter from Ashkelon.[ak]
I will strike Ekron[al] with my hand;[am]
the rest of the Philistines will also die.”[an]
The Sovereign Lord has spoken!
9 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Tyre has committed three crimes[ao]—
make that four[ap]—I will not revoke my decree of judgment.[aq]
They sold[ar] a whole community[as] to Edom;
they failed to observe[at] a treaty of brotherhood.[au]
10 So I will set fire to Tyre’s city wall;[av]
fire[aw] will consume her fortresses.”
11 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Edom has committed three crimes[ax]—
make that four[ay]—I will not revoke my decree of judgment.[az]
He chased his brother[ba] with a sword;
he wiped out his allies.[bb]
In his anger he tore them apart without stopping to rest;[bc]
in his fury he relentlessly attacked them.[bd]
12 So I will set Teman[be] on fire;
fire[bf] will consume Bozrah’s[bg] fortresses.”
13 This is what the Lord says:
“Because the Ammonites have committed three crimes[bh]—
make that four[bi]—I will not revoke my decree of judgment.[bj]
They ripped open Gilead’s pregnant women[bk]
so they could expand their territory.
14 So I will set fire to Rabbah’s[bl] city wall;[bm]
fire[bn] will consume her fortresses.
War cries will be heard on the day of battle;[bo]
a strong gale will blow on the day of the windstorm.[bp]
15 Ammon’s[bq] king will be deported;[br]
he and his officials[bs] will be carried off[bt] together.”
The Lord has spoken
2 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Moab has committed three crimes[bu]—
make that four[bv]—I will not revoke my decree of judgment.[bw]
They burned the bones of Edom’s king into lime.[bx]
2 So I will set Moab on fire,[by]
and it will consume Kerioth’s[bz] fortresses.
Moab will perish[ca] in the heat of battle[cb]
amid war cries and the blaring[cc] of the ram’s horn.[cd]
3 I will remove[ce] Moab’s leader;[cf]
I will kill all Moab’s[cg] officials[ch] with him.”
The Lord has spoken!
Faith and Works Together
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters,[a] if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith[b] save him?[c] 15 If a brother or sister[d] is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs,[e] what good is it? 17 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.”[f] Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by[g] my works. 19 You believe that God is one; well and good.[h] Even the demons believe that—and tremble with fear.[i]
20 But would you like evidence,[j] you empty fellow,[k] that faith without works is useless?[l] 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 22 You see that his faith was working together with his works and his faith was perfected by works. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Now Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness,”[m] and he was called God’s friend.[n] 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And similarly, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.