Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Psalm of Praise.
150 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!
Praise God in His (A)sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty [c](B)expanse.
2 Praise Him for His (C)mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His excellent (D)greatness.
3 Praise Him with (E)trumpet sound;
Praise Him with (F)harp and lyre.
4 Praise Him with (G)timbrel and dancing;
Praise Him with (H)stringed instruments and (I)pipe.
5 Praise Him with loud (J)cymbals;
Praise Him with resounding cymbals.
6 Let (K)everything that has breath praise [d]the Lord.
[e]Praise [f]the Lord!
Deliverance from Captivity Promised
30 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘(A)Write all the words which I have spoken to you in a book. 3 For behold, (B)days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will (C)restore the [a]fortunes of My people (D)Israel and Judah.’ The Lord says, ‘I will also (E)bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers and they shall possess it.’”
4 Now these are the words which the Lord spoke concerning Israel and concerning Judah:
5 “For thus says the Lord,
‘[b]I have heard a sound of (F)terror,
Of dread, and there is no peace.
6 ‘Ask now, and see
If a male can give birth.
Why do I see every man
With his hands on his loins, (G)as a woman in childbirth?
And why have all faces turned pale?
7 ‘Alas! for that (H)day is great,
There is (I)none like it;
And it is the time of Jacob’s (J)distress,
But he will be (K)saved from it.
8 ‘It shall come about on that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘that I will (L)break his yoke from off [c]their neck and will tear off [d]their (M)bonds; and strangers will no longer (N)make [e]them their slaves. 9 But they shall serve the Lord their God and (O)David their king, whom I will raise up for them.
10 ‘(P)Fear not, O Jacob My servant,’ declares the Lord,
‘And do not be dismayed, O Israel;
For behold, I will save you (Q)from afar
And your [f]offspring from the land of their captivity.
And Jacob will return and will be (R)quiet and at ease,
And (S)no one will make him afraid.
11 ‘For (T)I am with you,’ declares the Lord, ‘to save you;
For I will (U)destroy completely all the nations where I have scattered you,
Only I will (V)not destroy you completely.
But I will (W)chasten you justly
And will by no means leave you unpunished.’
10 By this the (A)children of God and the (B)children of the devil are obvious: [a]anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who (C)does not love his (D)brother.
11 (E)For this is the message (F)which you have heard from the beginning, (G)that we should love one another; 12 not as (H)Cain, who was of (I)the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because (J)his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.
13 Do not be surprised, brethren, if (K)the world hates you. 14 We know that we have (L)passed out of death into life, (M)because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who (N)hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that (O)no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 We know love by this, that (P)He laid down His life for us; and (Q)we ought to lay down our lives for the (R)brethren.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.