Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

I will give you thanks, O Lord.
    Even though you were angry with me,
your anger has abated
    and you have consoled me.
² God truly is my salvation;
    I will trust in him and be unafraid.
For the Lord is my strength and my source of courage;
    he has been my salvation.
³ With joy you will draw water
    from the fountain of salvation,
⁴     and you will say on that day:
Give thanks to the Lord,
    invoke his name;
make known his deeds among the nations;
    proclaim that his name is exalted.
⁵ Sing praise to the Lord for his mighty deeds;
    let this be known throughout the entire world.
⁶ Cry out and shout for joy,
    all of you who dwell on Zion,
for great in your midst
    is the Holy One of Israel.

¹ Truly the arm of the Lord is not too short to save,
    nor is his ear too dull to hear.
² Rather, it is your iniquities that have been barriers
    between you and your God.
Your sins have caused him to hide his face
    so that he does not hear you.
³ For your hands are stained with blood
    and your fingers with guilt.
Your lips utter lies
    and your tongue mutters wicked things.
⁴ No one brings a suit justly
    or pleads honestly in court.
They all rely on empty words and utter lies;
    they conceive mischief and bring forth evil.
⁵ They hatch adders’ eggs
    and weave the spider’s web;
whoever eats their eggs will die;
    crush one and a viper emerges.
⁶ Their webs are useless for clothing;
    what they make cannot serve to cover them.
Their works are deeds of evil,
    and acts of violence flow from their hands.
⁷ Their feet rush headlong to do evil,
    and they do not hesitate to shed innocent blood.
Their thoughts are those of iniquity;
    their paths are marked by havoc and ruin.
⁸ They do not know the way of peace,
    and justice is not seen along their paths.
The roads they follow are crooked,
    and no one who travels on them knows any peace.
⁹ Therefore, justice is far removed from us,
    and righteousness is far beyond our reach.
We look for light but behold only darkness,
    for brightness but we walk in gloom.
¹⁰ Like blind men we grope along a wall,
    feeling our way like those bereft of eyes.
We stumble at noon as if it were twilight;
    in the midst of the strong we are like the dead.
¹¹ All of us growl like bears;
    like doves we continue to moan mournfully.
We wait for justice but receive none,
    for deliverance but it is far from us.
¹² For our transgressions against you are numerous,
    and our sins bear witness against us.
We are unable to forget our offenses,
    and we are well aware of our iniquities:
¹³ our rebellion and our denial of the Lord
    and our turning away from following him,
threatening acts of oppression and revolt,
    and uttering lies conceived in our hearts.
¹⁴ Justice has been rebuffed
    and righteousness stands at a distance.
For truth stumbles in the public square
    and uprightness cannot enter.
¹⁵ Truth has disappeared,
    and those who turn from evil are terrorized.

When the Lord witnessed this, he was displeased
    that justice had ceased to exist.