Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Song of Confidence in God’s Triumph over Evil
10 Why do You stand afar off, O Lord?
Why do You hide in times of trouble?
2 The wicked in his pride [a]persecutes the poor;
(A)Let them be caught in the plots which they have devised.
3 For the wicked (B)boasts of his heart’s desire;
[b]He (C)blesses the greedy and renounces the Lord.
4 The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God;
[c]God is in none of his (D)thoughts.
5 His ways [d]are always prospering;
Your judgments are far above, out of his sight;
As for all his enemies, he sneers at them.
6 (E)He has said in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
(F)I shall never be in adversity.”
7 (G)His mouth is full of cursing and (H)deceit and oppression;
Under his tongue is trouble and iniquity.
8 He sits in the lurking places of the villages;
In the secret places he murders the innocent;
His eyes are secretly fixed on the helpless.
9 He lies in wait secretly, as a lion in his den;
He lies in wait to catch the poor;
He catches the poor when he draws him into his net.
10 So [e]he crouches, he lies low,
That the helpless may fall by his [f]strength.
11 He has said in his heart,
“God has forgotten;
He hides His face;
He will never see.”
12 Arise, O Lord!
O God, (I)lift up Your hand!
Do not forget the (J)humble.
13 Why do the wicked renounce God?
He has said in his heart,
“You will not require an account.”
16 “Therefore (A)do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; (B)for I will not hear you. 17 Do you not see what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 (C)The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and they (D)pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke Me to anger. 19 (E)Do they provoke Me to anger?” says the Lord. “Do they not provoke themselves, to the shame of their own faces?”
20 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, My anger and My fury will be poured out on this place—on man and on beast, on the trees of the field and on the fruit of the ground. And it will burn and not be quenched.”
21 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: (F)“Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat meat. 22 (G)For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices. 23 But this is what I commanded them, saying, (H)‘Obey My voice, and (I)I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’ 24 (J)Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but (K)followed[a] the counsels and the [b]dictates of their evil hearts, and (L)went[c] backward and not forward. 25 Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have even (M)sent to you all My servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them. 26 (N)Yet they did not obey Me or incline their ear, but (O)stiffened their neck. (P)They did worse than their fathers.
The Faithful Church
7 “And to the [a]angel of the church in Philadelphia write,
‘These things says (A)He who is holy, (B)He who is true, (C)“He who has the key of David, (D)He who opens and no one shuts, and (E)shuts and no one opens”: 8 (F)“I know your works. See, I have set before you (G)an open door, [b]and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. 9 Indeed I will make (H)those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie—indeed (I)I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept [c]My command to persevere, (J)I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon (K)the whole world, to test those who dwell (L)on the earth. 11 [d]Behold, (M)I am coming quickly! (N)Hold fast what you have, that no one may take (O)your crown. 12 He who overcomes, I will make him (P)a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall (Q)go out no more. (R)I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the (S)New Jerusalem, which (T)comes down out of heaven from My God. (U)And I will write on him My new name.
13 (V)“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.