Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
76 God’s reputation is very great in Judah and in Israel. 2 His home is in Jerusalem. He lives upon Mount Zion. 3 There he breaks the weapons of our enemies.
4 The everlasting mountains cannot compare with you in glory! 5 The mightiest of our enemies are conquered. They lie before us in the sleep of death; not one can lift a hand against us. 6 When you rebuked them, God of Jacob, steeds and riders fell. 7 No wonder you are greatly feared! Who can stand before an angry God? 8 You pronounce sentence on them from heaven; the earth trembles and stands silently before you. 9 You stand up to punish the evildoers and to defend the meek of the earth. 10 Man’s futile wrath will bring you glory. You will use it as an ornament!
11 Fulfill all your vows that you have made to Jehovah your God. Let everyone bring him presents. He should be reverenced and feared, 12 for he cuts down princes and does awesome things to the kings of the earth.
14 When you see Jerusalem, your heart will rejoice; vigorous health will be yours. All the world will see the good hand of God upon his people and his wrath upon his enemies. 15 For see, the Lord will come with fire and with swift chariots of doom to pour out the fury of his anger and his hot rebuke with flames of fire. 16 For the Lord will punish the world by fire and by his sword, and the slain of the Lord shall be many!
17 Those who worship idols that are hidden behind a tree in the garden, feasting there on pork and mouse and all forbidden meat—they will come to an evil end, says Jehovah. 18 I see full well what they are doing; I know what they are thinking, so I will gather together all nations and people against Jerusalem, where they shall see my glory. 19 I will perform a mighty miracle against them, and I will send those who escape,[a] as missionaries to the nations—to Tarshish, Put, Lud, Meshech, Rosh, Tubal, Javan, and to the lands beyond the sea that have not heard my fame nor seen my glory. There they shall declare my glory to the Gentiles. 20 And they shall bring back all your brethren from every nation as a gift to the Lord, transporting them gently[b] on horses and in chariots, and in litters, and on mules and camels, to my holy mountain, to Jerusalem, says the Lord. It will be like offerings flowing into the Temple of the Lord at harvesttime, carried in vessels consecrated to the Lord. 21 And I will appoint some of those returning to be my priests and Levites, says the Lord.
22 As surely as my new heavens and earth shall remain, so surely shall you always be my people, with a name that shall never disappear. 23 All mankind shall come to worship me from week to week and month to month. 24 And they shall go out and look at the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me, for their worm shall never die; their fire shall not be quenched; and they shall be a disgusting sight to all mankind.
37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones all those God sends to her! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. 38 And now your house is left to you, desolate. 39 For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you are ready to welcome the one sent to you from God.”[a]
24 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples came along and wanted to take him on a tour of the various Temple buildings.
2 But he told them, “All these buildings will be knocked down, with not one stone left on top of another!”
3 “When will this happen?” the disciples asked him later, as he sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives. “What events will signal your return and the end of the world?”[b]
4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone fool you. 5 For many will come claiming to be the Messiah and will lead many astray. 6 When you hear of wars beginning, this does not signal my return; these must come, but the end is not yet. 7 The nations and kingdoms of the earth will rise against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in many places. 8 But all this will be only the beginning of the horrors to come.
9 “Then you will be tortured and killed and hated all over the world because you are mine, 10 and many of you shall fall back into sin and betray and hate each other. 11 And many false prophets will appear and lead many astray. 12 Sin will be rampant everywhere and will cool the love of many. 13 But those enduring to the end shall be saved.
14 “And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it, and then, finally, the end will come.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.