Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Longing for Zion in a Foreign Land
137 By the rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down, yea, we wept
When we remembered Zion.
2 We hung our harps
Upon the willows in the midst of it.
3 For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song,
And those who (A)plundered us requested mirth,
Saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget its skill!
6 If I do not remember you,
Let my (B)tongue cling to the roof of my mouth—
If I do not exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.
Prayer for Restoration
5 Remember, (A)O Lord, what has come upon us;
Look, and behold (B)our reproach!
2 (C)Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens,
And our houses to foreigners.
3 We have become orphans and waifs,
Our mothers are like (D)widows.
4 We pay for the water we drink,
And our wood comes at a price.
5 (E)They pursue at our [a]heels;
We labor and have no rest.
6 (F)We have given our hand (G)to the Egyptians
And the (H)Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread.
7 (I)Our fathers sinned and are no more,
But we bear their iniquities.
8 Servants rule over us;
There is none to deliver us from their hand.
9 We get our bread at the risk of our lives,
Because of the sword in the wilderness.
10 Our skin is hot as an oven,
Because of the fever of famine.
11 They (J)ravished the women in Zion,
The maidens in the cities of Judah.
12 Princes were hung up by their hands,
And elders were not respected.
13 Young men (K)ground at the millstones;
Boys staggered under loads of wood.
14 The elders have ceased gathering at the gate,
And the young men from their (L)music.
15 The joy of our heart has ceased;
Our dance has turned into (M)mourning.
16 (N)The crown has fallen from our head.
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
17 Because of this our heart is faint;
(O)Because of these things our eyes grow dim;
18 Because of Mount Zion which is (P)desolate,
With foxes walking about on it.
19 You, O Lord, (Q)remain forever;
(R)Your throne from generation to generation.
20 (S)Why do You forget us forever,
And forsake us for so long a time?
21 (T)Turn us back to You, O Lord, and we will be [b]restored;
Renew our days as of old,
22 Unless You have utterly rejected us,
And are very angry with us!
The Fig Tree Withered(A)
12 (B)Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry. 13 (C)And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 In response Jesus said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.”
And His disciples heard it.
The Lesson of the Withered Fig Tree(A)
20 (B)Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.”
22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For (C)assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24 Therefore I say to you, (D)whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.