Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

129 (Shir HaMa’alot) Many a time have they afflicted me from my ne’ur, may Yisroel now say;

² Many a time have they afflicted me from my ne’ur (youth); yet they have not prevailed against me.

³ The choreshim (plowers) plowed upon my back; they made long their furrows.

⁴ Hashem is tzaddik; He hath cut asunder the cords of the resha’im.

⁵ Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Tziyon [i.e, all anti-Semites].

⁶ Let them be as the khatzir (grass) upon the housetops, which withereth before it groweth up;

⁷ With it the kotzer (reaper) filleth not his yad; nor he that gathereth sheaves, his bosom.

⁸ Neither do they which go by say, Birkat Hashem be upon you; we bless you b’Shem Hashem.

39 In the ninth year of Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah, in the tenth month, came Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel and all his army against Yerushalayim, and they besieged her.

² And in the eleventh year of Tzidkiyah, in the fourth month, the ninth yom of the month, the wall was broken through.

³ And all the sarim (princes) of Melech Bavel came in, and sat in the Middle Gate, even Nergal Sar-Etzer, Samgar-Nevo, Sar-Sechim, Rav Saris, Nergal Sar-Etzer, Rav-Mag, with all the remaining of the sarim of Melech Bavel.

⁴ And it came to pass, that when Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah saw them, and all the anshei hamilchamah, then they fled, and went forth out of the Ir by lailah, by the derech of the Gan HaMelech, by the sha’ar between the two walls; and he headed toward the Aravah.

⁵ But the army of the Kasdim pursued after them, and overtook Tzidkiyah in the plains of Yericho; and when they had captured him, they brought him up to Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel to Rivlah in Eretz Chamat, where he pronounced mishpatim upon him.

⁶ Then Melech Bavel slaughtered the Bnei Tzidkiyah in Rivlah before his eyes; also Melech Bavel slaughtered all the nobles of Yehudah.

⁷ Moreover he put out Tzidkiyah’s eyes, and bound him with bronze chains, to carry him to Babylon.

⁸ And the Kasdim burned the Bais HaMelech, and the bais haAm, with eish, and broke down the chomot Yerushalayim.

⁹ Then Nevuzar-Adan the captain of the imperial guard carried away into the Golus of Babylon the remnant of the people that remained in the city, and those that defected, that went over to him, with the rest of the people that remained.

¹⁰ But Nevuzaradan the captain of the imperial guard left of the poor of the people, which had nothing, in Eretz Yehudah, and gave them kramim (vineyards) and fields at the same time.

¹¹ Now Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel gave charge concerning Yirmeyah to Nevuzar-Adan the captain of the imperial guard, saying,

¹² Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee.

¹³ So Nevuzar-Adan the captain of the imperial guard sent, and Nebushazban, Rav-Saris, and Nergal Sar-Etzer, Rav-Mag, and all the officers of Melech Bavel;

¹⁴ Even they sent, and took Yirmeyah out of the Khatzer (courtyard) of the Guard, and committed him unto Gedalyah ben Achikam ben Shaphan, that he should carry him home; so he remained and dwelt among the people.

¹⁵ Now the Devar Hashem came unto Yirmeyah, while he was confined in the Khatzer (court) of the Guard, saying,

¹⁶ Go and tell Eved-Melech the Ethiopian (the one from Kush), saying, Thus saith Hashem Tzva’os Elohei Yisroel: Hineni, I am bringing My words upon this city for ra’ah, and not for tovah; and they shall be accomplished in yom hahu before thee.

¹⁷ But I will deliver thee in yom hahu, saith Hashem; and thou shalt not be given into the yad of the anashim of whom thou art afraid.

¹⁸ For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the cherev, but thy nefesh shall be unto thee for plunder; because thou hast put thy trust in Me, saith Hashem.

⁷ Have zitzfleisch (patience), therefore, Achim b’Moshiach, until the Bias HaMoshiach, the Coming of Moshiach Adoneinu. Hinei, the ikar (farmer) awaits the precious p’ri haAdamah (fruit of the earth), having zitzfleisch (patience) for it until it receives the Yoreh (first autumn rain) and the Malkosh (spring rain). [Dt 11:14; Jer 5:24; Joel 2:23]

⁸ You must also have zitzfleisch. Strengthen your levavot, because the Bias HaMoshiach, the Coming of Moshiach Adoneinu, has drawn near.

⁹ Do not murmur, Achim b’Moshiach, against one another, lest you be judged. Hinei, haShofet is standing before the delet! [SHEMOT 15:24; 16:2; 17:3; BAMIDBAR 14:2,29; 16:41; TEHILLIM 94:2]

¹⁰ Achim b’Moshiach, take as an example, of yissurim (suffering) and of zitzfleisch (patience) the Nevi’im who spoke b’Shem Adonoi.

¹¹ Hinei, we call me’ashirim the ones having endured: the enduring orech ru’ach (patience) of Iyov you heard of, and the toitzaa (outcome) from Hashem you saw, that Eloheinu is full of rachamim and channun Hashem. [Job 1:21,22; 2:10; 42:10,12-17; Ex 34:6; Num 14:18; Ps 103:8]

¹² But, above all, my Achim b’Moshiach, do not swear shevuot (oaths) neither by Shomayim nor by ha’aretz nor any other shevu’ah, but let your "ken" be "ken," and your "lo" be "lo," for fear that you fall under HaDin (the Judgment).