Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

⁵ You leave us breathless when Your awesome works answer us by putting everything right.
    God of our liberation—
You are the hope of all creation, from the far corners of the earth
    to distant life-giving oceans.
⁶ With immense power, You erected mountains.
    Wrapped in strength, You compelled
⁷ Choppy seas,
    crashing waves,
    and crowds of people
To sit in astonished silence.
⁸ Those who inhabit the boundaries of the earth are awed by Your signs,
    strong and subtle hints of Your indelible presence.
Even the dawn and dusk respond to You with joy.

⁹ You spend time on the good earth,
    watering and nourishing the networks of the living.
God’s river is full of water!
    By preparing the land,
    You have provided us grain for nourishment.
¹⁰ You are the gentle equalizer: soaking the furrows,
    smoothing soil’s ridges,
Softening sun-baked earth with generous showers,
    blessing the fruit of the ground.
¹¹ You crown the year with a fruitful harvest;
    the paths are worn down by carts overflowing with unstoppable growth.
¹² Barren desert pastures yield fruit;
    craggy hills are now dressed for celebration.
¹³ Meadows are clothed with frolicking flocks of lambs;
    valleys are covered with a carpet of autumn-harvest grain;
    the land shouts and sings in joyous celebration.

2 Eternal One: Blow the trumpet in Zion;
        signal the alarm from My holy mountain!
    It is almost here. Let all who live in the land tremble
        because the day of the Eternal One is coming.

²     Judgment will come on a black and fearful day;
        a thick cloud of darkness will loom over everything.
    A great and mighty army advances
        like dawn spreading across the mountains.
    Never has the world seen anything like it before,
        nor will future generations ever see anything like it again.

³ The army is like a fire, consuming everything in its path—
    a scorching flame burning everything behind them.
The land before them is sweet like the garden of Eden.
    The land following—only a lonely desert; nothing is spared in judgment.
⁴ They look like horses arrayed for battle;
    they charge ahead like warhorses.
⁵ They sound like clattering chariots racing over mountaintops,
    like a crackling fire engulfing stubble,
Like a mighty army maneuvering for battle.
⁶ Seeing the result of God’s judgment looming, the nations writhe in anguish;
    each face grows as pale as a ghost.
⁷ They run like champions into the fight.
    Like skilled soldiers, they scale city walls;
Every man marches in formation, never leaving his rank.
⁸ Organized—no soldier crowds another.
    Independent—each man marches straight ahead.
Together—they are unstoppable as they break through the defenses
    and do not break off the attack.
⁹ They charge the city, scurry along its wall.
    They swarm through windows into houses, like common thieves.
¹⁰ Before them the earth trembles and the heavens shake.
The sun and the moon become a void of darkness.
    The stars lose their radiance too.
¹¹ The Eternal One shouts commands from the front line of His army;
    His forces are vast—uncountable mighty soldiers obey His command.
The day of the Eternal One is great, fearsome indeed.
    Who can survive?