Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Two Songs of Praise
12 In days to come, the people of Israel will sing,
“Lord, we will praise you.
You were angry with us.
But now your anger has turned away from us.
And you have brought us comfort.
2 God, you are the one who saves us.
We will trust in you.
Then we won’t be afraid.
Lord, you are the one who gives us strength.
You are the one who keeps us safe.
Lord, you have saved us.”
3 People of Israel, he will save you.
That will bring you joy like water brought up from wells.
4 In days to come, the people of Israel will sing,
“Give praise to the Lord. Make his name known.
Tell the nations what he has done.
Announce how honored he is.
5 Sing to the Lord. He has done glorious things.
Let it be known all over the world.
6 People of Zion, give a loud shout!
Sing for joy!
The Holy One of Israel is among you.
And he is great.”
15 In fact, truth can’t be found anywhere.
Those who refuse to do evil are attacked.
The Lord sees that people aren’t treating others fairly.
That makes him unhappy.
16 He sees that there is no one who helps his people.
He is shocked that no one stands up for them.
So he will use his own powerful arm to save them.
He has the strength to do it because he is holy.
17 He will put the armor of holiness on his chest.
He’ll put the helmet of salvation on his head.
He’ll pay people back for the wrong things they do.
He’ll wrap himself in anger as if it were a coat.
18 He will pay his enemies back for what they have done.
He’ll pour his anger out on them.
He’ll punish those who attack him.
He’ll give the people in the islands what they have coming to them.
19 People in the west will show respect for the Lord’s name.
People in the east will worship him because of his glory.
The Lord will come like a rushing river that was held back.
His breath will drive it along.
20 “I set my people free. I will come to Mount Zion.
I will come to those in Jacob’s family who turn away from their sins,”
announces the Lord.
21 “Here is the covenant I will make with them,” says the Lord. “My Spirit is on you and will not leave you. I have put my words in your mouth. They will never leave your mouth. And they will never leave the mouths of your children or their children after them. That will be true for all time to come,” says the Lord.
The Coming of God’s Kingdom
20 Once the Pharisees asked Jesus when God’s kingdom would come. He replied, “The coming of God’s kingdom is not something you can see. 21 People will not say, ‘Here it is.’ Or, ‘There it is.’ That’s because God’s kingdom is among you.”
22 Then Jesus spoke to his disciples. “The time is coming,” he said, “when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man. But you won’t see it. 23 People will tell you, ‘There he is!’ Or, ‘Here he is!’ Don’t go running off after them. 24 When the Son of Man comes, he will be like the lightning. It flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. 25 But first the Son of Man must suffer many things. He will not be accepted by the people of today.
26 “Remember how it was in the days of Noah. It will be the same when the Son of Man comes. 27 People were eating and drinking. They were getting married. They were giving their daughters to be married. They did all those things right up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.
28 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking. They were buying and selling. They were planting and building. 29 But on the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven. And all the people were destroyed.
30 “It will be just like that on the day the Son of Man is shown to the world. 31 Suppose someone is on the housetop on that day. And suppose what they own is inside the house. They should not go down to get what they own. No one in the field should go back for anything either. 32 Remember Lot’s wife! 33 Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it. Whoever loses their life will keep it. 34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed. One person will be taken and the other left. 35-36 Two women will be grinding grain together. One will be taken and the other left.”
37 “Where, Lord?” his disciples asked.
He replied, “The vultures will gather where there is a dead body.”
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