Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Davidic Psalm[a]
God is My Refuge
91 The one who lives in the shelter of the Most High,
who rests in the shadow of the Almighty,
2 will say to the Lord,
“You are my refuge, my fortress,
and my God in whom I trust!”
3 He will surely deliver you from the hunter’s snare
and from the destructive plague.
4 With his feathers he will cover you,
under his wings you will find safety.
His truth is your shield and armor.
5 You need not fear terror that stalks[b] in the night,
the arrow that flies in the day,
6 plague that strikes in the darkness,
or calamity that destroys at noon.
The Lord Speaks
14 Because he has focused his love on me,
I will deliver him.
I will protect him[a]
because he knows my name.
15 When he calls out to me,
I will answer him.
I will be with him in his[b] distress.
I will deliver him,
and I will honor him.
16 I will satisfy him with long life;
I will show him my deliverance.
An Oracle about False Prophets
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart is broken within me,
and all my bones shake.
I’m like a drunk man,
like a person overcome with wine,
because of the Lord,
and because of his holy words.
10 Indeed, the land is full of adulterers.
Indeed, the land mourns because of the curse;
the pastures of the wilderness have dried up.
The adulterers’[a] lifestyles are evil,
and they use[b] their strength for what[c] is not right.
11 Indeed, both priest and prophet are ungodly.
Even in my house I find evil,” declares the Lord.
12 Therefore their way will be slippery.
They’ll be driven out into the darkness,
where they’ll fall.
For I’ll bring disaster on them,
the year of their judgment,”
declares the Lord.
13 “Among the prophets of Samaria I saw a disgusting thing,
for they prophesied by Baal
and led my people Israel astray.
14 Among the prophets of Jerusalem I saw a horrible thing,
for they commit adultery and live a lie.
They strengthen the hands of those who do evil,
so that no one repents of his evil.
All of them are like Sodom to me,
and her[d] residents like Gomorrah.”
15 Therefore, this is what the Lord God of the Heavenly Armies says about the prophets,
“I’m about to make them eat wormwood[e]
and drink poisoned water,
because godlessness has spread from the
prophets of Jerusalem throughout the land.”
16 This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says:
“Don’t listen to the words of the prophets
who are prophesying to you;
they’re giving you false hopes.
They declare visions from their own minds—
they don’t come from the Lord![f]
17 They keep on saying to those who despise me,
‘The Lord has said, “You will have peace.”’
To all who stubbornly follow their own desires[g] they say,
‘Disaster won’t come upon you.’
18 But who has stood in the Lord’s council
to see and hear his message?
Who has paid attention to his message and obeyed it?[h]
19 Look, the storm of the Lord’s wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest,
and it will swirl down
around the head of the wicked.
20 The Lord’s anger won’t turn back
until he has accomplished
what he intended to do.
In the future
you will clearly understand it.
21 I didn’t send these prophets,[i]
but they ran anyway.
I didn’t speak to them,
but they prophesied.
22 If they had stood in my council
and had delivered my words to my people,
then they would have turned them back
from their evil way,
from their evil deeds.”
8 I am not commanding you but testing the genuineness of your love by the enthusiasm of others. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.[a] Although he was rich, for your sakes he became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich.
10 I am giving you my opinion on this matter because it will be helpful to you. Last year you were not only willing to do something, but had already started to do it. 11 Now finish what you began, so that your eagerness to do so may be matched by your eagerness[b] to complete it. 12 For if the eagerness is there, the gift[c] is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you do not have.
13 Not that others should have relief while you have hardship. Rather, it is a question of fairness. 14 At the present time, your surplus fills their need, so that their surplus may fill your need. In this way things are fair. 15 As it is written,
“The person who had much did not have too much,
and the person who had little did not have too little.”[d]
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