Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
For the choir director; on the gittith; [a] by Asaph.
81 Sing joyfully to God, our strength.
Shout happily to the God of Jacob.
10 I am the Lord your God, the one who brought you out of Egypt.
Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
11 “But my people did not listen to me.
Israel wanted nothing to do with me.
12 So I let them go their own stubborn ways
and follow their own advice.
13 If only my people would listen to me!
If only Israel would follow me!
14 I would quickly defeat their enemies.
I would turn my power against their foes.
15 Those who hate the Lord would cringe in front of him,
and their time ⌞for punishment⌟ would last forever.
16 But I would feed Israel with the finest wheat
and satisfy them with honey from a rock.”
The People Continue to Reject the Lord’s Love for Them
2 The Lord spoke his word to me,
2 “Go and announce to Jerusalem,
‘This is what the Lord says:
I remember the unfailing loyalty of your youth,
the love you had for me as a bride.
I remember how you followed me into the desert,
into a land that couldn’t be farmed.
3 Israel was set apart for the Lord.
It was the best part of the harvest.
All who devoured it became guilty,
and disaster struck them,’ ” declares the Lord.
14 “Are the people of Israel slaves?
Were they born into slavery?
Why, then, have they become someone’s property?
15 Young lions have roared very loudly at them.
Young lions have turned the land into a wasteland.
The cities have been burned down, and everyone has left.
16 People from Noph and Tahpanhes have cracked your skulls, Israel.
17 You have brought this on yourself
by abandoning the Lord your God
when he led you on his way.
18 You won’t gain anything by going to Egypt
to drink water from the Nile River.
You won’t gain anything by going to Assyria
to drink water from the Euphrates River.
19 Your own wickedness will correct you,
and your unfaithful ways will punish you.
You should know and see how evil and bitter it is for you
if you abandon the Lord your God and do not fear me,”
declares the Almighty Lord of Armies.
20 “Long ago you broke off your yoke,[a] tore off your chains,
and said that you wouldn’t be a slave.
You lay down and acted like a prostitute
on every high hill and under every large tree.
21 I planted you like a choice grapevine from the very best seed.
Now you have turned against me and have become a wild vine.
22 Even if you wash with detergent and use a lot of soap,
I would still see the stains from your wickedness,”
declares the Almighty Lord.
A Mother Makes a Request(A)
20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her two sons. She bowed down in front of him to ask him for a favor.
21 “What do you want?” he asked her.
She said to him, “Promise that one of my sons will sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”
22 Jesus replied, “You don’t realize what you’re asking. Can you drink the cup that I’m going to drink?”
“We can,” they told him.
23 Jesus said to them, “You will drink my cup. But I don’t have the authority to grant you a seat at my right or left. My Father has already prepared these positions for certain people.”
24 When the other ten apostles heard about this, they were irritated with the two brothers. 25 Jesus called the apostles and said, “You know that the rulers of nations have absolute power over people and their officials have absolute authority over people. 26 But that’s not the way it’s going to be among you. Whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant. 27 Whoever wants to be most important among you will be your slave. 28 It’s the same way with the Son of Man. He didn’t come so that others could serve him. He came to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people.”
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