Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

² See, God saves me. I will trust and not be afraid. For the Lord God is my strength and song. And He has become the One Who saves me.” ³ As water from a well brings joy to the thirsty, so people have joy when He saves them. ⁴ In that day you will say, “Give thanks to the Lord. Call on His name. Make known His works among the people. Help them remember that His name is honored.” ⁵ Sing praises to the Lord, for He has done great things. Let this be known in all the earth. ⁶ Call out and sing for joy, O people of Zion. For the Holy One of Israel is great among you.

⁴ Hear this, you who crush under foot those who are in need, to put an end to the poor of the land. ⁵ You say, “When will the New Moon be over, so that we may buy grain? When will the Day of Rest be over, so that we may open the store and sell grain? Then we will make the basket smaller and the weight bigger, and we will lie about the weight. ⁶ We will buy the poor for money, and those in need for shoes. And we will sell the part of the grain that is of no worth.”

⁷ The Lord has promised by the pride of Jacob, “For sure I will never forget anything they have done. ⁸ Will not the land shake because of this? Will not everyone who lives in it be filled with sorrow? All of it will rise up like the Nile. It will be troubled, and will fall like the Nile River of Egypt. ⁹ On that day,” says the Lord God, “I will make the sun go down at noon. I will make the earth dark in the daytime. ¹⁰ I will turn your special suppers into times of sorrow, and all your songs into songs of sorrow. I will make all of you wear cloth made from hair, and cut all the hair from your heads. I will fill that time with sorrow, as if an only son had died. And the end of it will be like a bitter day.

¹¹ “The days are coming,” says the Lord God, “when I will send a time upon the land when the people will be very hungry. They will not be hungry for bread or thirsty for water, but they will be hungry to hear the Words of the Lord. ¹² People will go from sea to sea, and from the north to the east. They will go from place to place to look for the Word of the Lord, but they will not find it.

Giving to Help Other Christians

9 I do not need to write to you about helping those who belong to Christ. ² I know you want to do it. I have told the people in the country of Macedonia that you were ready to send money last year. Your desire has started most of them to give. ³ I am sending these Christian brothers so the words I said about you will prove to be true and you will be ready to help. ⁴ What if some of the people of Macedonia came with me and found you were not ready to send your gift of money? We would all be ashamed since we have talked of you so much. ⁵ That is why I asked these men to go ahead of me. They can see that the gift you promised is ready. In that way, it will be a true gift and not something you were made to do.

⁶ Remember, the man who plants only a few seeds will not have much grain to gather. The man who plants many seeds will have much grain to gather. ⁷ Each man should give as he has decided in his heart. He should not give, wishing he could keep it. Or he should not give if he feels he has to give. God loves a man who gives because he wants to give. ⁸ God can give you all you need. He will give you more than enough. You will have everything you need for yourselves. And you will have enough left over to give when there is a need. ⁹ The Holy Writings say, “He has given much to the poor. His right-standing with God lasts forever.” ^{(A) 10} It is God Who gives seed to the man to plant. He also gives the bread to eat. Then we know He will give you more seed to plant and make it grow so you will have more to give away. ¹¹ God will give you enough so you can always give to others. Then many will give thanks to God for sending gifts through us. ¹² This gift you give not only helps Christians who are in need, but it also helps them give thanks to God. ¹³ You are proving by this act of love what you are. They will give thanks to God for your gift to them and to others. This proves you obey the Good News of Christ. ¹⁴ They will pray for you with great love because God has given you His loving-favor. ¹⁵ Thank God for His great Gift.