Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Jeremiah Buys a Field

32 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord ^(A)in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. ² For then the king of Babylon’s army besieged Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up ^(B)in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah’s house. ³ For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, “Why do you ^(C)prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^(D)“Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it;

⁶ And Jeremiah said, “The word of the Lord came to me, saying, ⁷ ‘Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle will come to you, saying, “Buy my field which is in Anathoth, for the ^(A)right of redemption is yours to buy it.” ’ ⁸ Then Hanamel my uncle’s son came to me in the court of the prison according to the word of the Lord, and said to me, ‘Please buy my field that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin; for the right of inheritance is yours, and the redemption yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord. ⁹ So I bought the field from Hanamel, the son of my uncle who was in Anathoth, and ^(B)weighed out to him the money—seventeen shekels of silver. ¹⁰ And I signed the ^[a]deed and sealed it, took witnesses, and weighed the money on the scales. ¹¹ So I took the purchase deed, both that which was sealed according to the law and custom, and that which was open; ¹² and I gave the purchase deed to ^(C)Baruch the son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel my uncle’s son, and in the presence of the ^(D)witnesses who signed the purchase deed, before all the Jews who sat in the court of the prison.

¹³ “Then I charged ^(E)Baruch before them, saying, ¹⁴ ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Take these deeds, both this purchase deed which is sealed and this deed which is open, and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may last many days.” ¹⁵ For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Houses and fields and vineyards shall be ^(F)possessed again in this land.” ’

Safety of Abiding in the Presence of God

⁶ Now godliness with ^(A)contentment is great gain. ⁷ For we brought nothing into this world, ^[a]and it is ^(B)certain we can carry nothing out. ⁸ And having food and clothing, with these we shall be ^(C)content. ⁹ But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. ¹⁰ For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

The Good Confession

¹¹ But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. ¹² Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. ¹³ I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus ^(D)who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, ¹⁴ that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing, ¹⁵ which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only ^[b]Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, ¹⁶ who alone has immortality, dwelling in ^(E)unapproachable light, ^(F)whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen.

Instructions to the Rich

¹⁷ Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain ^(G)riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things ^(H)to enjoy. ¹⁸ Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, ^19 (I)storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

The Rich Man and Lazarus

¹⁹ “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and ^[a]fared sumptuously every day. ²⁰ But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, ²¹ desiring to be fed with ^[b]the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to ^(A)Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

²⁴ “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and ^(B)cool my tongue; for I ^(C)am tormented in this flame.’ ²⁵ But Abraham said, ‘Son, ^(D)remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. ²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’

²⁷ “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, ²⁸ for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ ²⁹ Abraham said to him, ^(E)‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ ³⁰ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ ³¹ But he said to him, ^(F)‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, ^(G)neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”