Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

79 The psalm of Asaph. God, heathen men came into thine heritage; they defouled thine holy temple, they setted Jerusalem into the keeping of apples. (The song of Asaph. God, the heathen came to thy inheritance; they defiled thy holy Temple, and they laid Jerusalem in ruins.)

² They setted the slain bodies of thy servants to be meats to the volatiles of heavens; the fleshes of thy saints to the beasts of the earth. (They left the dead bodies of thy servants to be food for the birds of the air; yea, the flesh of thy saints for the beasts of the earth.)

³ They shedded out the blood of them, as water in the compass of Jerusalem; and none there was that buried (them). (They poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem; and there was no one left to bury them.)

⁴ We be made (a) shame to our neighbours; mocking and scorning to them, that be in our compass. (We were made a reproach to our neighbours; mocked and scorned by those who be all around us.)

⁵ Lord, how long shalt thou be wroth into the end? shall thy vengeance be kindled as fire? (Lord, how long shalt thou be angry, forever? shall thy anger burn like fire?)

⁶ Pour out thine ire into heathen men, that know not thee; and into realms, that called not thy name. (Pour out thy anger upon the heathen, who know thee not; and upon the kingdoms, that have not called upon thy name.)

⁷ For they ate Jacob; and made desolate his place. (For they have devoured, or destroyed, the people of Jacob; and made their place desolate.)

⁸ Have thou not mind on our eld wickednesses; thy mercies before take us soon, for we be made poor greatly. (Remember not our past wickednesses; let thy constant love come soon to us, for we be made so very low.)

⁹ God, our health, help thou us, and, Lord, for the glory of thy name, deliver thou us; and be thou merciful to our sins, for thy name. (God, our salvation/God, our deliverance, help thou us, and, Lord, for the glory of thy name, save thou us; and have thou mercy on our sins, for the sake of thy name.)

¹⁰ Lest peradventure they say among heathen men, Where is the God of them? and be he known among nations before our eyes. The vengeance of the blood of thy servants, which is shed out; (Lest perhaps they say among the heathen, Where is their God? Let thyself be known among the nations around us, by the vengeance which is poured out upon them; for the blood of thy servants.)

¹¹ the wailing of fettered men enter into thy sight. After the greatness of thine arm; wield thou the sons of slain men. (Let the wailing of the fettered come before thee. And by the greatness of thy power, free thou those who be condemned to die.)

¹² And yield thou to our neighbours sevenfold in(to) the bosom of them; the shame of them (the same rebuke), which they did shamefully to thee, thou Lord.

¹³ But we that be thy people, and the sheep of thy pasture; shall acknowledge to thee into the world. In generation and into generation, we shall tell thy praising. (Then we who be thy people, and the sheep of thy pasture, shall give thanks to thee forever. Yea, in all generations, we shall tell out thy praises.)

⁶ In that day, saith the Lord, I shall gather the halting, and I shall gather her that I casted away, and whom I tormented I shall strengthen. (On that day, saith the Lord, I shall gather together the halt, or the lame, and those whom I have cast away, and I shall strengthen those whom I tormented.)

⁷ And I shall put the halting into remnants, and her that travailed in[to] a strong folk. And the Lord shall reign (up)on them in the hill of Zion, from this time now and till into without end. (And I shall make the halt into a remnant, and those who laboured, or who struggled, into a strong nation. And the Lord shall reign over them on Mount Zion, from this time now until forever.)

⁸ And thou, dark tower of the flock of the daughter of Zion, unto thee he shall come, and the first power shall come, the realm of the daughter of Jerusalem. (And O dark tower of the flock of the daughter of Zion, it shall come unto thee, yea, the former power shall come unto the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.)

⁹ Now why art thou drawn together with mourning? whether a king is not to thee, either thy counsellor perished? for sorrow hath taken thee as a woman travailing of child. (Now why art thou altogether drawn with mourning? is there not a king for thee, or hath thy counsellor perished? hath sorrow taken thee like a woman with child in labour, or giving birth?)

¹⁰ Thou daughter of Zion, make sorrow, and haste, as a woman travailing of child; for now thou shalt go out of the city, and shalt dwell in the country, and shalt come unto Babylon; there thou shalt be delivered, there the Lord shall again-buy thee, from the hand of thine enemies. (O daughter of Zion, make sorrow, and make haste, like a woman with child in labour; for now thou shalt go out of the city, and shalt live in the open country, and shalt come to Babylon; there thou shalt be saved, there the Lord shall rescue thee, from the hands of thy enemies.)

¹¹ And now many folks be gathered on thee, which say, Be it stoned, and our eye behold into Zion. (And now many nations be gathered against thee, who say, Let it be stoned, and brought down unto ruins, and then we shall look upon Zion.)

¹² Forsooth they knew not the thoughts of the Lord, and understood not the counsel of him, for he gathered them as the hay of the field. (But they did not know the Lord’s thoughts, and did not understand his counsel, or his advice, for he gathered them like the hay of the field.)

¹³ Rise thou, and thresh, daughter of Zion, for I shall put thine horn of iron, and I shall put thy nails brazen; and thou shalt lose, either waste, many peoples, and shalt slay to the Lord (for an offering) the ravens of them, and the strength of them to the Lord of all earth. (Rise thou, and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I shall make thy horns out of iron, and thy hooves out of bronze; and thou shalt destroy, or shalt waste, many peoples, or many nations, and shalt offer their stolen goods, or their spoils, to the Lord, yea, their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.)

18 And after these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened of his glory.

² And he cried with a strong voice, saying, Great Babylon felled down, felled down [Great Babylon fell down, fell down], and is made the habitation of devils, and the keeping of each unclean spirit, and the keeping of each unclean fowl, and hateful.

³ For all folks drunk of the wrath of the fornication of her, and kings of the earth, and merchants of the earth, did fornication with her; and they be made rich of the virtue of [the] delights of her.

⁴ And I heard another voice of heaven, saying, My people, go ye out of it, and be ye not partners of the trespasses of it, and ye shall not receive of the wounds of it [and ye shall not receive of the plagues of it].

⁵ For the sins of it came unto heaven, and the Lord had mind of the wickedness [of the wickednesses] of it.

⁶ Yield ye to it, as [and] she yielded to you; and double ye double things, after her works; in the drink that she mixed to you, mix ye double to her [in the drink that she meddled to you, mingle ye double to her].

⁷ As much as she glorified herself, and was in delights, so much torment give to her, and wailing; for in her heart she saith, I sit a queen, and I am not a widow, and I shall not see wailing. [How much she glorified herself, and was in delights, so much torment give ye to her, and weeping, or mourning; for in her heart she saith, I sit a queen, and I am not a widow, and I shall not see weeping, or mourning.]

⁸ And therefore in one day her wounds shall come [And therefore in one day her plagues shall come], death, and mourning, and hunger; and she shall be burnt in fire, for God is strong, that shall deem her.

⁹ And the kings of the earth shall beweep, and bewail themselves on her, which did fornication with her, and lived in delights, when they shall see the smoke of the burning of it [when they shall see the smoke of burning of her];

¹⁰ standing afar, for dread of the torments of it [standing far for dread of torments of her], saying, Woe! woe! that great city Babylon, and that strong city; for in one hour thy doom cometh.