Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

¹⁴ “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will keep the promise that I made to Israel and Judah. ¹⁵ In those days and at that time, I will cause a righteous branch to spring up for David. He will do what is fair and right in the land. ¹⁶ In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live securely. Jerusalem will be called The Lord Our Righteousness.

¹⁷ “This what the Lord says: David will never fail to have a descendant sitting on the throne of Israel. ¹⁸ The Levitical priests will never fail to have a descendant in my presence to sacrifice burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to prepare daily sacrifices.”

¹⁹ The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah. He said, ²⁰ “This is what the Lord says: Suppose you could break my arrangement ^[a] with day and night so that they wouldn’t come at their proper time. ²¹ Then my arrangement with my servant David could be broken, and he would not have a descendant to rule on his throne. The arrangement with my servants the Levitical priests could also be broken. ²² I will multiply the descendants of my servant David and the Levites who serve me like the stars of heaven that cannot be counted and the sand on the seashore that cannot be measured.”

²³ Then the Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah. He said, ²⁴ “Haven’t you noticed what these people have said? They have said that the Lord has rejected the two families he has chosen. They despise my people, and they no longer consider them a nation.

²⁵ “This is what the Lord says: Suppose I hadn’t made an arrangement with day and night or made laws for heaven and earth. ²⁶ Then I would reject the descendants of Jacob and of my servant David. I would not let any of David’s descendants rule the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. However, I will restore their fortunes and love them.”

Greeting

1 From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and from Timothy our brother.

To God’s church in the city of Corinth and to all God’s holy people everywhere in Greece.

² Good will ^[a] and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are yours!

God Comforts Paul and the Corinthians

³ Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! He is the Father who is compassionate and the God who gives comfort. ⁴ He comforts us whenever we suffer. That is why whenever other people suffer, we are able to comfort them by using the same comfort we have received from God. ⁵ Because Christ suffered so much for us, we can receive so much comfort from him. ⁶ Besides, if we suffer, it brings you comfort and salvation. If we are comforted, we can effectively comfort you when you endure the same sufferings that we endure. ⁷ We have confidence in you. We know that as you share our sufferings, you also share our comfort.

God Rescued Paul When He Was Suffering

⁸ Brothers and sisters, we don’t want you to be ignorant about the suffering we experienced in the province of Asia. It was so extreme that it was beyond our ability to endure. We even wondered if we could go on living. ⁹ In fact, we still feel as if we’re under a death sentence. But we suffered so that we would stop trusting ourselves and learn to trust God, who brings the dead back to life. ¹⁰ He has rescued us from a terrible death, and he will rescue us in the future. We are confident that he will continue to rescue us, ¹¹ since you are also joining to help us when you pray for us. Then many people will thank God for the favor he will show us because many people prayed for us.