Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

1 How sitteth alone the city (that once was so) full of people? the lady of folks is made as a widow; the princess of provinces is made under tribute. (How the city now sitteth alone, or empty, that once was so full of people! the lady of nations is made like a widow; the princess of provinces is put under tribute/is made to suffer forced labour.)

² It^[a]1 weeping wept in the night, and the tears thereof be in the cheeks thereof (and its tears be on its cheeks); there is none of all the dearworthy thereof, that comforteth it; all the friends thereof forsook it, and be made enemies to it.

³ Judah passed from torment and multitude of servage, it dwelled among heathen men, and found no rest; all the pursuers thereof took it among anguishes. (Judah went into the torment of captivity and a multitude of servitude, or of slavery, it lived among the heathen, and found no rest; all of its pursuers brought it much anguish.)

⁴ The ways of Zion mourn, for no men come to the solemnity; all the gates thereof be destroyed, the priests thereof wail; the virgins thereof be defouled, and it is oppressed with bitterness. (The ways of Zion mourn, for no people come to its solemn feasts; all its gates be destroyed, its priests wail; its virgins be defiled, and it is oppressed with bitterness.)

⁵ The enemies thereof be made in the head, and the enemies thereof be made rich, for the Lord spake on it. For the multitude of wickednesses thereof the little children thereof be led into captivity, before the face of the troubler. (Its enemies be put at its head, that is, they rule over it, and they be made rich, for the Lord spoke against it. For the multitude of its wickednesses its little children be led into captivity, by the enemy.)

⁶ And all the fairness of the daughter of Zion went out from the daughter of Zion; the princes thereof be made as rams not finding pastures; and went forth without strength before the face of the follower. (And all the beauty of the daughter of Zion went away from the daughter of Zion; its princes be made like rams not finding pasture; and they went forth without strength before their pursuer.)

¹⁹ Have thou mind on my poverty, and going over, and on wormwood and gall. (Remember my poverty, and my goings about, yea, the wormwood and the gall.)

²⁰ By mind I shall be mindful; and my soul shall fail in me. (Remember, O remember; even though my soul shall fail in me.)

²¹ I bethink these things in mine heart, I shall hope in God.

²² The mercies of the Lord be many, for we be not wasted; for why his merciful doings failed not.

²³ I knew in the morrowtide; thy faith is much [much is thy faith]. (They be new in the morning; great is thy faithfulness.)

²⁴ My soul said, The Lord is my part; therefore I shall abide him. (My soul said, The Lord is my portion; and so I shall wait for him.)

²⁵ The Lord is good to them that hope into him, to a soul seeking him. (The Lord is good to those who hope in him, to someone seeking him.)

²⁶ It is good to abide with stillness the health of God. (It is good to silently wait for the salvation of God./It is good to patiently wait for the deliverance of God.)

137 On the floods of Babylon, there we sat, and wept; while we bethought on Zion. (By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, and wept; when we thought about Zion.)

² In sallows in the midst thereof; we hanged up our organs. (On the willows nearby; we hung up our harps.)

³ For they that led us prisoners; asked us there the words of songs. And they that led away us said; Sing ye to us an hymn of the songs of Zion. (For they who led us away as prisoners; told us to sing there. Yea, they who led us away said, Sing ye for us a hymn of the songs of Zion.)

⁴ How shall we sing a song of the Lord; in an alien land? (But how can we sing a song to the Lord, in a foreign, or a strange, land?)

⁵ If I forget thee, Jerusalem; my right hand be given to forgetting. (Yea, if I forget thee, Jerusalem; may my right hand forget how to play my harp/may my right hand wither away.)

⁶ My tongue cleave to my cheeks; if I bethink not on thee. If I purposed not of thee, Jerusalem; in the beginning of my gladness. (And may my tongue cleave to my cheeks; if I do not remember thee, Jerusalem. Yea, if I do not think of thee, as my greatest joy.)

⁷ Lord, have thou mind on the sons of Edom; for the day of Jerusalem. Which say, Extinguish ye, extinguish ye; till to the foundament therein. (Lord, remember what the Edomites did; on that day that Jerusalem fell. They said, Destroy ye it! destroy ye it! unto its foundations!)

⁸ Thou wretched daughter of Babylon; he is blessed, that yieldeth to thee thy yielding, which thou yieldest to us. (O wretched daughter of Babylon; happy is he, who doeth to thee, what thou hast done to us/happy be those, who repay thee, for all that thou hast done to us.)

⁹ He is blessed, that shall hold; and hurtle down his little children at the stone. (Happy is he/Happy be they, who shall take hold of thy little children; and hurtle them against a stone.)

1 Paul, [the] apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God, by the promise of life [after the promise of life] that is in Christ Jesus,

² to Timothy, his most dear-worthy son, grace, mercy, and peace of God the Father, and of Jesus Christ, our Lord [and Jesus Christ, our Lord].

³ I do thankings to my God, to whom I serve from my progenitors [from my progenitors, either ancestors,] in clean conscience, that without ceasing I have mind of thee in my prayers, night and day,

⁴ desiring to see thee; having mind of thy tears [mindful of thy tears], that I be filled with joy.

⁵ And I bethink of that faith [And I take recording, or mind, of that faith], that is in thee not feigned, which also dwelled first in thine aunt Lois, and in thy mother Eunice. And I am certain, that also in thee.

⁶ For which cause I admonish thee, that thou raise again the grace of God, that is in thee by the setting on of mine hands [by the on-putting of mine hands].

⁷ For why [Soothly] God gave not to us the spirit of dread, but of virtue, and of love, and of soberness.

⁸ Therefore do not thou shame the witnessing of our Lord Jesus Christ, neither me, his prisoner; but travail thou together in the gospel by the virtue of God [after the virtue of God];

⁹ that delivered us, and called with his holy calling, not after our works, but by his purpose and grace [that delivered us, and called with this holy calling, not after our works, but after his purpose and grace], that is given [to us] in Christ Jesus before worldly times;

¹⁰ but now it is open by the lightening of our Saviour Jesus Christ, which destroyed death, and lightened life and uncorruption by the gospel. [now forsooth it is open by the lighting of our Saviour Jesus Christ, the which soothly destroyed death, forsooth lighted life and uncorruption by the gospel.]

¹¹ In which I am set a preacher and apostle, and master of heathen men.

¹² For which cause also I suffer these things; but I am not confounded. For I know to whom I have believed, and I am certain that he is mighty to keep that (which) is taken to my keeping into that day.

¹³ Have thou the form of wholesome words [Have thou the form of whole words], which thou heardest of me in faith and love in Christ Jesus.

¹⁴ Keep thou the good [thing] taken to thy keeping by the Holy Ghost [Keep thou a good deposit, or thing taken to thy keeping, by the Holy Ghost], that dwelleth in us.

⁵ And the apostles said to the Lord, Increase to us faith [Increase faith to us].

⁶ And the Lord said, If ye have faith as the corn of mustard seed [If ye had faith as a corn of mustard seed], ye shall say to this (syca)more tree, Be thou drawn up by the root, and be over-planted into the sea [and be thou planted over into the sea], and it shall obey to you.

⁷ But who of you hath a servant plowing, or pasturing oxen, which saith to him, when he turneth again from the field, At once go, and sit to meat;^[a]

⁸ and saith not to him, Make ready, that I sup, and gird thee, and serve me, while I eat and drink, and after this thou shalt eat and drink; [and not saith to him, Make ready, that I sup, and gird thee before, and minister to me, till that I eat and drink, and after these things thou shalt eat and drink;]

⁹ whether he hath grace to that servant, for he did that that he commanded him? Nay, I guess.

¹⁰ So [also] ye, when ye have done all things that be commanded to you, say ye [say], We be unprofitable servants, we have done that that we ought to do.