Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 104[a]
104 Praise the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, you are magnificent.[b]
You are robed in splendor and majesty.
2 He covers himself with light as if it were a garment.
He stretches out the skies like a tent curtain,
3 and lays the beams of the upper rooms of his palace on the rain clouds.[c]
He makes the clouds his chariot,
and travels on the wings of the wind.[d]
4 He makes the winds his messengers,
and the flaming fire his attendant.[e]
5 He established the earth on its foundations;
it will never be moved.
6 The watery deep covered it[f] like a garment;
the waters reached[g] above the mountains.[h]
7 Your shout made the waters retreat;
at the sound of your thunderous voice they hurried off—
8 as the mountains rose up,
and the valleys went down—
to the place you appointed for them.[i]
9 You set up a boundary for them that they could not cross,
so that they would not cover the earth again.[j]
35 May sinners disappear[a] from the earth,
and the wicked vanish.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord.
37 At this also my heart pounds
and leaps from its place.
2 Listen carefully[a] to the thunder of his voice,
to the rumbling[b] that proceeds from his mouth.
3 Under the whole heaven he lets it go,
even his lightning to the far corners[c] of the earth.
4 After that a voice roars;
he thunders with an exalted voice,
and he does not hold back his lightning bolts[d]
when his voice is heard.
5 God thunders with his voice in marvelous ways;[e]
he does great things beyond our understanding.[f]
6 For to the snow he says, ‘Fall[g] to earth,’
and to the torrential rains,[h] ‘Pour down.’[i]
7 He causes everyone to stop working,[j]
so that all people[k] may know[l] his work.
8 The wild animals go to their lairs,
and in their dens they remain.
9 A tempest blows out from its chamber,
icy cold from the driving winds.[m]
10 The breath of God produces ice,
and the breadth of the waters freeze solid.
11 He loads the clouds with moisture;[n]
he scatters his lightning through the clouds.
12 The clouds[o] go round in circles,
wheeling about according to his plans,
to carry out[p] all that he commands them
over the face of the whole inhabited world.
13 Whether it is for punishment,[q]
or for his land,
or for mercy,
he causes it to find its mark.[r]
14 “Pay attention to this, Job!
Stand still and consider the wonders God works.
15 Do you know how God commands them,[s]
how he makes lightning flash in his storm cloud?[t]
16 Do you know about the balancing[u] of the clouds,
that wondrous activity of him who is perfect in knowledge?
17 You, whose garments are hot
when the earth is still because of the south wind,
18 will you, with him, spread out[v] the clouds,
solid as a mirror of molten metal?
19 Tell us what we should[w] say to him.
We cannot prepare a case[x]
because of the darkness.
20 Should he be informed that I want[y] to speak?
If a man speaks, surely he will be swallowed up!
21 But now, the sun[z] cannot be looked at[aa]—
it is bright in the skies—
after a wind passed and swept the clouds away.[ab]
22 From the north he comes in golden splendor;[ac]
around God is awesome majesty.
23 As for the Almighty,[ad] we cannot attain to him!
He is great in power,
but justice[ae] and abundant righteousness he does not oppress.
24 Therefore people fear him,
for he does not regard all the wise in heart.”[af]
The Great Prostitute and the Beast
17 Then[a] one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke to me.[b] “Come,” he said, “I will show you the condemnation and punishment[c] of the great prostitute who sits on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality and the earth’s inhabitants got drunk with the wine of her immorality.”[d] 3 So[e] he carried me away in the Spirit[f] to a wilderness,[g] and there[h] I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. 4 Now[i] the woman was dressed in purple and scarlet clothing,[j] and adorned with gold,[k] precious stones, and pearls. She held[l] in her hand a golden cup filled with detestable things and unclean things from her sexual immorality.[m] 5 On[n] her forehead was written a name, a mystery:[o] “Babylon the Great, the Mother of prostitutes and of the detestable things of the earth.” 6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of those who testified to Jesus.[p] I[q] was greatly astounded[r] when I saw her. 7 But[s] the angel said to me, “Why are you astounded? I will interpret[t] for you the mystery of the woman and of the beast with the seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 8 The beast you saw was, and is not, but is about to come up from the abyss[u] and then go to destruction. The[v] inhabitants of the earth—all those whose names have not been written in the book of life since the foundation of the world—will be astounded when they see that[w] the beast was, and is not, but is to come. 9 (This requires[x] a mind that has wisdom.) The seven heads are seven mountains[y] the woman sits on. They are also seven kings: 10 five have fallen; one is,[z] and the other has not yet come, but whenever he does come, he must remain for only a brief time. 11 The[aa] beast that was, and is not, is himself an eighth king and yet is one of the seven, and is going to destruction. 12 The[ab] ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but will receive ruling authority[ac] as kings with the beast for one hour. 13 These kings[ad] have a single intent, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will make war with the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those accompanying[ae] the Lamb are the called, chosen, and faithful.”
15 Then[af] the angel[ag] said to me, “The waters you saw (where the prostitute is seated) are peoples, multitudes,[ah] nations, and languages. 16 The[ai] ten horns that you saw, and the beast—these will hate the prostitute and make her desolate and naked. They[aj] will consume her flesh and burn her up with fire.[ak] 17 For God has put into their minds[al] to carry out his purpose[am] by making[an] a decision[ao] to give their royal power[ap] to the beast until the words of God are fulfilled.[aq] 18 As for[ar] the woman you saw, she is the great city that has sovereignty over the kings of the earth.”
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