Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Lament over Jerusalem
א Alef
1 How[a] she sits alone,(A)
the city(B) once crowded with people!
She who was great among the nations
has become like a widow.(C)
The princess among the provinces
has been put to forced labor.
ב Bet
2 She weeps aloud during the night,(D)
with tears on her cheeks.
There is no one to offer her comfort,
not one from all her lovers.[b](E)
All her friends have betrayed her;
they have become her enemies.
ג Gimel
3 Judah has gone into exile
following[c] affliction and harsh slavery;
she lives among the nations
but finds no place to rest.(F)
All her pursuers have overtaken her
in narrow places.
ד Dalet
4 The roads to Zion(G) mourn,
for no one comes to the appointed festivals.(H)
All her gates are deserted;
her priests groan,
her young women grieve,
and she herself is bitter.
ה He
5 Her adversaries have become her masters;(I)
her enemies are at ease,(J)
for the Lord has made her suffer
because of her many transgressions.
Her children have gone away
as captives before the adversary.
ו Vav
ז Zayin
19 Remember[a] my affliction and my homelessness,(A)
the wormwood and the poison.(B)
20 I continually remember them
and have become depressed.[b](C)
21 Yet I call this to mind,
and therefore I have hope:(D)
ח Khet
22 Because of the Lord’s faithful love(E)
we do not perish,[c]
for His mercies never end.
23 They are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness!(F)
24 I say: The Lord is my portion,(G)
therefore I will put my hope in Him.
ט Tet
Psalm 137
Lament of the Exiles
1 By the rivers of Babylon—
there we sat down and wept
when we remembered Zion.(A)
2 There we hung up our lyres
on the poplar trees,(B)
3 for our captors there asked us for songs,
and our tormentors, for rejoicing:
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”(C)
Greeting
1 Paul,(A) an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will,(B) for the promise of life(C) in Christ Jesus:
2 To Timothy, my dearly loved son.
Grace, mercy, and peace(D) from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Thanksgiving
3 I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience(E) as my ancestors did, when I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day.(F) 4 Remembering your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy, 5 clearly recalling your sincere faith(G) that first lived in your grandmother Lois, then in your mother Eunice,(H) and that I am convinced is in you also.
6 Therefore, I remind you to keep ablaze[a] the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands.(I) 7 For God has not given us a spirit[b] of fearfulness,(J) but one of power,(K) love,(L) and sound judgment.
Not Ashamed of the Gospel
8 So don’t be ashamed(M) of the testimony about our Lord,(N) or of me His prisoner.(O) Instead, share in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power(P) of God.
9 He has saved us and called us
with a holy calling,(Q)
not according to our works,(R)
but according to His own purpose(S) and grace,
which was given to us in Christ Jesus
before time began.
10 This has now been made evident
through the appearing(T) of our Savior Christ Jesus,
who has abolished death(U)
and has brought life(V) and immortality to light
through the gospel.
11 For this gospel I was appointed(W) a herald, apostle, and teacher,[c] 12 and that is why I suffer(X) these things. But I am not ashamed, because I know the One I have believed in and am persuaded that He is able to guard what has been entrusted to me[d](Y) until that day.(Z)
Be Loyal to the Faith
13 Hold on to the pattern of sound teaching(AA) that you have heard from me,(AB) in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 14 Guard, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us, that good thing entrusted to you.
Faith and Duty
5 The(A) apostles(B) said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”(C)
6 “If you have faith the size of[a] a mustard seed,”(D) the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
7 “Which one of you having a slave tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready,[b] and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’?(E) 9 Does he thank that slave because he did what was commanded?[c] 10 In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are good-for-nothing(F) slaves; we’ve only done our duty.’”
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