Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
25 Lord, ·I praise you [L from you comes my praise] in the great ·meeting of your people [assembly];
these ·worshipers [L who fear him] will see me ·do what I promised [L fulfill my vows].
26 ·Poor [or Afflicted] people will eat ·until they are full [and be satisfied];
those who ·look to the Lord [L seek him] will praise him.
May your hearts live forever!
27 ·People everywhere [L All the ends of the earth] will remember
and will turn to the Lord.
All the families of the nations
will worship him
28 because ·the Lord is King [rule belongs to the Lord],
and he rules the nations.
29 All the ·powerful people [L fat ones] on earth will eat and worship.
Everyone will ·bow down to [kneel before] him,
all who will ·one day die [L go down to the dust and cannot keep themselves alive].
30 The ·people in the future [posterity; seed] will serve him;
they will always be told about the Lord.
31 They will ·tell that he does what is right [recount his righteousness].
People who are not yet born
will hear what God has done.
7 The Lord says,
“Israel, you are no different to me than the people of Cush [C Ethiopia].
·I brought [L Did I not bring…?] Israel out of the land of Egypt,
and the Philistines from ·Crete [L Caphtor],
and the Arameans [C Syrians] from Kir.
8 [L Look; T Behold] I, the Lord God, am watching the sinful kingdom [C Israel].
I will destroy it
from ·off [L the face of] the earth,
but I will not completely destroy
·Jacob’s descendants [L the house of Jacob],” says the Lord.
9 “[L For look/T behold] I am giving the command
to ·scatter [L shake] the nation of Israel among all nations.
It will be like someone shaking grain through a ·strainer [sieve],
but not even a ·tiny stone [pebble; or kernel of grain] falls ·through [L to the ground].
10 All the sinners among my people
will die by the sword—
those who say,
‘·Nothing bad will happen to us [L Disaster will not approach and meet us].’
The Lord Promises to Restore Israel
11 In that day I will ·restore [rebuild; raise up] the ·tent [hut; shack; C referring to the weakened state of the Davidic dynasty] of David that has fallen,
and ·mend [repair] its broken places.
I will ·rebuild [restore; raise up] its ruins
as it was ·before [in days long ago/of antiquity].
12 Then Israel ·will take over [possess; conquer] ·what is left [the remnant] of Edom
and the other nations that ·belong to me [L are called by my name],”
says the Lord,
who will make it happen.
13 The Lord says, “The time is coming when there will be all kinds of food.
·People will still be harvesting crops
when it’s time to plow again [L The plowman will overtake the reaper].
·People will still be taking the juice from grapes
when it’s time to plant again [L …and the treader of grapes (will overtake) the one who sows the seed].
Wine will drip from the mountains
and pour from the hills [C symbols of great prosperity].
14 I will bring my people Israel back from ·captivity [exile];
they will build the ruined cities again,
and they will live in them.
They will plant vineyards and drink the wine from them;
they will plant ·gardens [or orchards] and eat their fruit.
15 I will plant my people on their land,
and they will not be ·pulled out again [uprooted]
from the land which I have given them,”
says the Lord your God.
A Story About Mustard Seed(A)
30 Then Jesus said, “How can I show you what the kingdom of God is like? What ·story [parable; see 3:23] can I use to explain it? 31 The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, the smallest seed you plant in the ground. [C The mustard seed was the smallest seed known to Jesus’ hearers.] 32 But when planted, this seed grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants. It produces large branches, and the wild birds can make nests in its shade.”
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