Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
For the choir director; al tashcheth; a miktam by David.
58 Do you rulers really give fair verdicts?
Do you judge Adam’s descendants fairly?
2 No, you invent new crimes on earth,
and your hands spread violence.
3 ⌞Even⌟ inside the womb wicked people are strangers ⌞to God⌟.
From their birth liars go astray.
4 They have poisonous venom like snakes.
They are like a deaf cobra that shuts its ears
5 so that it cannot hear the voice of a snake charmer
or of anyone trained to cast spells.
6 O God, knock the teeth out of their mouths.
Break the young lions’ teeth, O Lord.
7 Let them disappear like water that drains away.
When they aim their bows, let their arrows miss the target.
8 Let them become like a snail that leaves behind a slimy trail
or like a stillborn child who never sees the sun.
9 Let ⌞God⌟ sweep them away
faster than a cooking pot is heated by burning twigs.
10 Righteous people will rejoice when they see ⌞God⌟ take revenge.
They will wash their feet in the blood of wicked people.
11 Then people will say,
“Righteous people certainly have a reward.
There is a God who judges on earth.”
23 “How can you say that you haven’t dishonored yourselves
and haven’t followed other gods—the Baals?
Look how you’ve behaved in the valley.
Acknowledge what you’ve done.
You are like a young camel that swiftly runs here and there.
24 You are like a wild donkey that is used to the desert,
sniffing the wind while in heat.
All who look for you won’t get tired.
They will find you during your monthly period.
25 Don’t run until your feet are bare and your throats are dry.
But you say that it’s useless.
You love foreign gods and follow them.
26 “As a thief feels ashamed when he’s caught,
so the nation of Israel will feel ashamed.
Their kings, princes, priests,
and prophets will also feel ashamed.
27 You call wood your father.
You call stone your mother.
You’ve turned your backs, not your faces, to me.
But when you’re in trouble, you ask me to come and rescue you.
28 Where are the gods that you made for yourselves?
Let them come and rescue you when you’re in trouble.
You have as many gods as you have cities, Judah!
29 “Why do you complain about me?
All of you have rebelled against me,” declares the Lord.
30 “I have punished your children without results.
They didn’t respond to correction.
You killed my prophets like a raging lion.
31 “Consider the Lord’s word, people of this generation.
Haven’t I been a desert, a land of thick darkness, for Israel?
Why do my people say that they are free to wander around
and no longer come to me?
32 A young woman can’t forget her jewelry or a bride her veils.
Yet, my people have forgotten me for countless days.
33 You carefully planned ways to look for love.
You taught your ways to wicked women.
34 You have the blood from poor and innocent people
on your clothes.
You didn’t kill them for breaking into your home.
35 In spite of all this you say, ‘I’m innocent.
God will turn his anger from me,
because I haven’t sinned.’
36 You change your mind so easily.
You will be put to shame by Egypt
as you were put to shame by Assyria.
37 You will also leave this place with your hands over your head,
because the Lord has rejected those you trust.
You will not be helped by them.”
7 Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. Think about how their lives turned out, and imitate their faith.
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
9 Don’t get carried away by all kinds of unfamiliar teachings. Gaining inner strength from God’s kindness [a] is good for us. This strength does not come from following rules about food, rules that don’t help those who follow them. 10 Those who serve at the tent have no right to eat what is sacrificed at our altar.
11 The chief priest brings the blood of animals into the holy place as an offering for sin. But the bodies of those animals were burned outside the Israelite camp. 12 That is why Jesus suffered outside the gates of Jerusalem. He suffered to make the people holy with his own blood. 13 So we must go to him outside the camp and endure the insults he endured. 14 We don’t have a permanent city here on earth, but we are looking for the city that we will have in the future. 15 Through Jesus we should always bring God a sacrifice of praise, that is, words that acknowledge him. 16 Don’t forget to do good things for others and to share what you have with them. These are the kinds of sacrifices that please God.
17 Obey your leaders, and accept their authority. They take care of you because they are responsible for you. Obey them so that they may do this work joyfully and not complain about you. (Causing them to complain would not be to your advantage.)
18 Pray for us. We are sure that our consciences are clear because we want to live honorably in every way. 19 I especially ask for your prayers so that I may come back to you soon.
20 The God of peace brought the great shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, back to life through the blood of an eternal promise.[b] 21 May this God of peace prepare you to do every good thing he wants. May he work in us through Jesus Christ to do what is pleasing to him. Glory belongs to Jesus Christ forever. Amen.
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