Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
BOOK FIVE
(Psalms 107–150)
Psalm 107
1 Give thanks to Yahweh because he is good,
because his mercy endures forever.
2 Let the people Yahweh defended repeat these words.
They are the people he defended from the power of their enemies
3 and gathered from other countries,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
4 They wandered around the desert on a deserted road
without finding an inhabited city.
5 They were hungry and thirsty.
They began to lose hope.
6 In their distress they cried out to Yahweh.
He rescued them from their troubles.
7 He led them on a road that went straight to an inhabited city.
8 Let them give thanks to Yahweh because of his mercy.
He performed his miracles for Adam’s descendants.
9 He gave plenty to drink to those who were thirsty.
He filled those who were hungry with good food.
43 Let those who think they are wise
pay attention to these things
so that they may understand Yahweh’s blessings.
The Lord Will Punish Israel for Its Rebellion
8 “Sound the alarm on the ram’s horn.
The enemy swoops down on Yahweh’s temple like an eagle.
The people of Israel have rejected my promise
and rebelled against my teachings.
2 They cry out to me, ‘We acknowledge you as our Elohim.’
3 However, they have rejected what is good.
The enemy will persecute them.
4 “They chose their own kings, kings I didn’t approve.
They chose their own princes, princes I didn’t know.
They chose to make idols with their own silver and gold.
Because of this, they will be destroyed.
5 Get rid of your calf-shaped idol, Samaria.
My anger burns against these people.
How long will they remain unclean?[a]
6 Samaria’s calf-shaped idol was made in Israel.
Skilled workers made it.
It is not a god.
It will be smashed to pieces.
7 “The people of Israel plant the wind, but they harvest a storm.
A field of grain that doesn’t ripen will never produce any grain.
Even if it did produce grain, foreigners would eat it all.
8 Israel will be swallowed up.
It has already mixed in with the other nations.
It has become worthless.
9 “The people of Israel went to Assyria.
They were like wild donkeys wandering off alone.
The people of Ephraim sold themselves to their lovers.
10 Even though they sold themselves among the nations,
I will gather them now.
They will suffer for a while under the burdens of kings and princes.
11 “The more altars that the people of Ephraim build
to make offerings to pay for their sins,
the more places they have for sinning.
12 I have written many things for them in my teachings,
but they consider these things strange and foreign.
13 They offer sacrifices to me and eat the meat of sacrifices,
but I, Yahweh, do not accept these sacrifices.
Now I will remember their wickedness
and punish them because of their sins.
They will go back to Egypt.
14 The people of Israel have built palaces,
and they have forgotten their maker.
The people of Judah have built many fortified cities.
I will send a fire on their cities and burn down their palaces.”
33 God’s riches, wisdom, and knowledge are so deep
that it is impossible to explain his decisions
or to understand his ways.
34 “Who knows how the Lord thinks?
Who can become his adviser?”
35 Who gave the Lord something
which the Lord must pay back?
36 Everything is from him and by him and for him.
Glory belongs to him forever! Amen!
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.