Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

1 How doth HaIr (the city, Yerushalayim) sit solitary, that was full of people! How is she become like an almanah (widow)! She that was great among the Goyim, and sarah (princess) among the provinces, how is she become a forced laborer!

² She weepeth bitterly in the lailah (night), and her tears are on her cheeks; among all her lovers she hath no Menachem (comforter); all her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they have become her enemies.

³ Yehudah is gone into the Golus (Exile) under affliction, and under great avodah (servitude); she dwelleth among the Goyim; she findeth no manoach (rest); all her rodefim (persecutors) overtook her in dire straits.

⁴ The darkhei Tziyon (approaches to Tziyon) do mourn, because none come to mo’ed (set feasts); all her she’arim (gates) are desolate; her kohanim sigh, her betulot (virgins) are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.

⁵ Her adversaries are now the rosh (supreme, master); her enemies prosper; for Hashem hath afflicted her because of the multitude of her peysha’im (transgressions); her olalim (little children) are gone into captivity before the enemy.

⁶ And from Bat Tziyon all her beauty has departed; her sarim (princes) are become like deer that find no pasture, and they are gone without strength before the rodef (persecutor, pursuer).

¹⁹ Remember mine oni (affliction) and my misery, the sorrow and the trouble.

²⁰ My nefesh hath them still in remembrance, and is downcast in me.

²¹ This I recall to my lev, therefore have I hope:

²² Because of the chasdei Hashem we are not consumed, for His rachamim fail not.

²³ They are chadashim every boker; great is Thy faithfulness.

²⁴ Hashem is my chelek, saith my nefesh; therefore in hope will I wait for Him.

²⁵ Hashem is tov unto them that wait for Him, to the nefesh that seeketh Him.

²⁶ It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the Teshu’at Hashem.

137 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yes, we wept, when we remembered Tziyon.

² We hung up our kinnorot (lyres) upon the willows in the midst thereof.

³ For there they that carried us away captive required of us a shir (song); and they that tormented us required of us simchah, saying, Sing us one of the Shir Tziyon.

⁴ How shall we sing Shir Hashem in an admat nekhar (foreign land).

⁵ If I forget thee, O Yerushalayim, let my yamin (right hand) forget [i.e., have paralysis].

⁶ If I do not remember thee, let my leshon cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Yerushalayim above my rosh simchah (chief joy).

⁷ Remember, Hashem, the Bnei Edom in the Yom Yerushalayim; who said, Raze it, raze it, even to the yesod (foundation) thereof.

⁸ O Bat Bavel, who art to be destroyed, ashrei shall he be, that repayeth thee the gemul thou hast done to us.

⁹ Ashrei shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy olalim against the sela.

1 Sha’ul, a Shliach of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua birtzon Hashem (by the will of G-d), according to the havtachah haChayyim (promise of Life) in Moshiach Yehoshua.

² To Timotiyos, beni haahuv (my beloved son). Chesed Hashem, Rachamim Hashem and Shalom Hashem from Elohim Avinu and Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua Adoneinu.

³ Modeh Ani (I give thanks) to Hashem whom I offer avodas hakodesh service with a clear matzpun—as did the Avot of me—when I remember you constantly in my tefillos.

⁴ As I remember your weeping, I want to see you, that I may be filled with simcha.

⁵ I remember your genuine emunah [in Moshiach], which dwelt first in Lois your savtah (grandmother, bobe) and in your Em, Eunice, and I have been persuaded dwells also in you.

⁶ For which reason I remind you to meorer (rekindle) the matnat Elohim, (the gift of Hashem) which is in you through my conferring of s’michah (ordination). [1Ti 4:14]

⁷ For Hashem did not bestow upon us a ruach of pachad (terror), but of gevurah (miraculous power) and of ahavah (love) and of sound havchanah (judgment).

⁸ Do not, therefore, be ashamed of the eidus of Adoneinu nor of me, his asir (prisoner), but suffer together with me for the Besuras HaGeulah in the ko’ach of Hashem,

⁹ The one having granted us Yeshu’at Eloheinu and having called us with a kri’ah kedoshah (holy calling), not according to the ma’asim mitzvot of us but according to his own tachlis (purpose) and chesed having been given to us in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua before Yamim HaOlam,

¹⁰ But having been manifested now through the appearing of Moshieynu Moshiach Yehoshua, who nullified death [i.e., his own histalkus and Mavet itself] and also brought Chayyim and al-killayon (incorruptibility) to light through the Besuras HaGeulah,

¹¹ For which I was appointed a karoz (herald), a maggid (darshan, preacher), a Shliach and a rabbi (teacher).

¹² It is because of these things also that I suffer. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and I have been persuaded that He is able to stand shomer, guarding [preserving] until HaYom HaHu the [orthodox Jewish, see 1Ti 6:20] pikkadon (deposit) entrusted to Him by me.

¹³ Follow the pattern of sound orthodox Jewish devarim which you heard from me, in emunah and ahavah in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua.

¹⁴ Stand shomer over the orthodox Jewish pikkadon entrusted to you through the Ruach Hakodesh dwelling in us.

⁵ And the Shlichim said to Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, Adoneinu, increase our emunah.

⁶ And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Adoneinu said, If you have emunah like a mustard seed, you would have said to this mulberry etz, be uprooted and be planted in the sea, and it would have given you mishma’at.

⁷ But who among you, having an eved plowing or tending kevesim, when the eved comes in from the sadeh, will say to him, Here, come ofen ort (immediately) and recline at tish.

⁸ Rather, would he not say, Prepare something that I may have okhel; gird up your tunic and serve me until I am satisfied, and, after that, you may have okhel?

⁹ There is no obligatory effusive todah, when the eved only did his chiyuv (duty).

¹⁰ So also you, when you do all these things which are given you as mitzvot, say, We are useless avadim, we only did our chiyuv.