Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
71 I have taken refuge in you, O Lord.
Never let me be put to shame.
2 Rescue me and free me because of your righteousness.
Turn your ear toward me, and save me.
3 Be a rock on which I may live,
a place where I may always go.
You gave the order to save me!
Indeed, you are my rock and my fortress.
4 My God, free me from the hands of a wicked person,
from the grasp of one who is cruel and unjust.
5 You are my hope, O Almighty Lord.
You have been my confidence ever since I was young.
6 I depended on you before I was born.
You took me from my mother’s womb.
My songs of praise constantly speak about you.
20 Incense that comes from Sheba is no good to me.
Sugar cane that comes from a distant land is no good to me.
I won’t accept your burnt offerings.
I’m not pleased with your sacrifices.
21 This is what the Lord says:
I’m going to lay stumbling blocks in front of these people.
Parents and children will stumble over them.
Neighbors and their friends will die.
22 This is what the Lord says:
An army is going to come from the north.
A great nation is preparing itself in the distant parts of the earth.
23 Its people take hold of bows and spears.
They are cruel and have no compassion.
They sound like the roaring sea.
They ride on horses.
They march like soldiers ready for battle
against my people Zion.
24 We have heard the news about them.
Our hands hang limp.
We are gripped by anguish and pain
like a woman giving birth to a child.
25 Don’t go into the field or walk on the road.
The enemy has a sword.
Terror is all around.
26 Wear sackcloth, and roll around in ashes, my people.
Mourn as if you have lost your only child, and cry bitterly.
The destroyer will suddenly attack us.
27 “Jeremiah, I have put you in charge of testing and refining my people.
You will know how to test their ways.
28 They are all vicious rebels.
They go around slandering.
They are all like bronze and iron.
They corrupt themselves.
29 The bellows of the blast furnace blow fiercely
to make the fire melt away the lead.
It is useless to go on refining
because the impurities can’t be removed.
30 ⌞People⌟ will call them useless silver
because the Lord has rejected them.”
Paul and Silas in Thessalonica
17 Paul and Silas traveled through the cities of Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to the city of Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue. 2 As usual, Paul went into the synagogue. On three consecutive days of rest—holy days, he had discussions about Scripture with the synagogue members. 3 He explained and showed them that the Messiah had to suffer, die, and come back to life, and that Jesus, the person he talked about, was this Messiah.
4 Some of the Jews were persuaded to join Paul and Silas, especially a large group of Greeks who had converted to Judaism and the wives of many prominent men.
5 Then the Jews became jealous. They took some low-class characters who hung around the public square, formed a mob, and started a riot in the city. They attacked Jason’s home and searched it for Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6 When they didn’t find Paul and Silas, they dragged Jason and some other believers in front of the city officials. They shouted, “Those men who have made trouble all over the world are now here in Thessalonica, 7 and Jason has welcomed them as his guests. All of them oppose the emperor’s decrees by saying that there is another king, whose name is Jesus.”
8 The crowd and the officials were upset when they heard this. 9 But after they had made Jason and the others post bond, they let them go.
Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.