Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
4 Hear the word of the Lord, you descendants of Jacob,
all you clans of Israel.
5 This is what the Lord says:
“What fault did your ancestors find in me,
that they strayed so far from me?
They followed worthless idols(A)
and became worthless(B) themselves.
6 They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord,
who brought us up out of Egypt(C)
and led us through the barren wilderness,
through a land of deserts(D) and ravines,(E)
a land of drought and utter darkness,
a land where no one travels(F) and no one lives?’
7 I brought you into a fertile land
to eat its fruit and rich produce.(G)
But you came and defiled my land
and made my inheritance detestable.(H)
8 The priests did not ask,
‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who deal with the law did not know me;(I)
the leaders(J) rebelled against me.
The prophets prophesied by Baal,(K)
following worthless idols.(L)
9 “Therefore I bring charges(M) against you again,”
declares the Lord.
“And I will bring charges against your children’s children.
10 Cross over to the coasts of Cyprus(N) and look,
send to Kedar[a](O) and observe closely;
see if there has ever been anything like this:
11 Has a nation ever changed its gods?
(Yet they are not gods(P) at all.)
But my people have exchanged their glorious(Q) God
for worthless idols.
12 Be appalled at this, you heavens,
and shudder with great horror,”
declares the Lord.
13 “My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken(R) me,
the spring of living water,(S)
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
10 I am the Lord your God,
who brought you up out of Egypt.(A)
Open(B) wide your mouth and I will fill(C) it.
11 “But my people would not listen to me;
Israel would not submit to me.(D)
12 So I gave them over(E) to their stubborn hearts
to follow their own devices.
13 “If my people would only listen to me,(F)
if Israel would only follow my ways,
14 how quickly I would subdue(G) their enemies
and turn my hand against(H) their foes!
15 Those who hate the Lord would cringe(I) before him,
and their punishment would last forever.
16 But you would be fed with the finest of wheat;(J)
with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
Concluding Exhortations
13 Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters.(A) 2 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers,(B) for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.(C) 3 Continue to remember those in prison(D) as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.
4 Marriage should be honored by all,(E) and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.(F) 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money(G) and be content with what you have,(H) because God has said,
6 So we say with confidence,
7 Remember your leaders,(K) who spoke the word of God(L) to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate(M) their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.(N)
7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table,(A) he told them this parable: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. 11 For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”(B)
12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,(C) 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”(D)
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