Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 80
For the choir director; according to shoshannim eduth; by Asaph; a psalm.
1 Open your ears, O Roeh of Israel,
the one who leads the descendants of Joseph like sheep,
the one who is enthroned over the angels.[a]
2 Appear in front of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Wake up your power, and come to save us.
8 You brought a vine from Egypt.
You forced out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it
so that it took root and filled the land.
10 Its shade covered the mountains.
Its branches covered the mighty cedars.
11 It reached out with its branches to the Mediterranean Sea.
Its shoots reached the Euphrates River.
12 Why did you break down the stone fences around this vine?
All who pass by are picking its fruit.
13 Wild boars from the forest graze on it.
Wild animals devour it.
14 O Elohim Tsebaoth, come back!
Look from heaven and see!
Come to help this vine.
15 Take care of what your right hand planted,
the son you strengthened for yourself.
16 The vine has been cut down and burned.
Let them be destroyed by the threatening look on your face.
17 Let your power rest on the man you have chosen,
the son of man you strengthened for yourself.
18 Then we will never turn away from you.
Give us life again, and we will call on you.
19 O Yahweh Elohim Tsebaoth, restore us, and smile on us
so that we may be saved.
The Lord’s Judgment on Sinners in Zion
3 See now, Adonay, Yahweh Tsebaoth,
is going to take from Jerusalem and Judah
every kind of support
and their entire supply of food and water.
2 He will take their heroes and soldiers,
judges and prophets,
fortunetellers and statesmen,
3 military leaders and civilian leaders,
counselors, skilled workers, and experts in magic.
4 “I will make boys their leaders.
Children will govern them.”
5 People will oppress each other,
and everyone will oppress his neighbor.
The young will make fun of the old,
and common people will make fun of their superiors.
6 A person will grab one of his relatives
from his father’s family and say,
“You have a coat.
You’ll be our leader.
This pile of ruins will be under your control.”
7 When that day comes the relative will cry out,
“I’m not a doctor!
I don’t have any food or a coat in my home.
Don’t make me a leader of our family.”
8 Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen,
because what they say and what they do is against Yahweh.
They are defiant in his honored presence.
9 The look on their faces will be held against them.
They boast about their sins,
which are like those of the people of Sodom.
They don’t even bother to hide them.
How horrible it will be for these people,
because they have brought disaster on themselves.
10 Tell the righteous that blessings will come to them.
They will taste the fruit of their labor.
11 How horrible it will be for the wicked! Disaster will strike them.
What they have done will be done to them.
12 “Children will oppress my people.
Women will rule them.
My people, your guides mislead you,
and you don’t know which way to go.”
13 Yahweh takes his place in the courtroom.
He stands to judge his people.
14 Yahweh presents his case to the respected leaders
and the officials of his people:
“You have burned down the vineyard!
Your houses are filled with goods stolen from the poor.”
15 Adonay Yahweh Tsebaoth asks,
“How can you crush my people
and grind the faces of the poor into the ground?”
16 Yahweh adds,
“The women of Zion are arrogant.
They walk with their noses in the air,
making seductive glances,
taking short little steps,
jingling the ankle bracelets on their feet.”
17 Adonay will cause sores to appear
on the heads of the women of Zion,
and Yahweh will make their foreheads bare.
32 Remember the past, when you first learned the truth. You endured a lot of hardship and pain. 33 At times you were publicly insulted and mistreated. At times you associated with people who were treated this way. 34 You suffered with prisoners. You were cheerful even though your possessions were stolen, since you know that you have a better and more permanent possession.[a]
35 So don’t lose your confidence. It will bring you a great reward. 36 You need endurance so that after you have done what God wants you to do, you can receive what he has promised.
37 “Yet, the one who is coming will come soon. He will not delay.
38 The person who has God’s approval will live by faith.
But if he turns back, I will not be pleased with him.”
39 We don’t belong with those who turn back and are destroyed. Instead, we belong with those who have faith and are saved.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.