Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
I Am for Shalom
Psalm 120
1 A Song of Ascents.
In my trouble I cried out to Adonai,
and He answered me.
2 Adonai, deliver my soul from lying lips,
from a deceitful tongue.
3 What can be given to you,
and what more can be done to you, O deceitful tongue?—
4 sharp arrows of the mighty,
with burning coals of a broom tree!
5 Woe to me, for I sojourn in Meshech,
for I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
6 My soul has too long dwelt
with those who hate shalom.
7 I am for shalom and thus I speak,
but they are for war!
Cyrus Decrees: Rebuild the Temple
1 Now in the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to accomplish the word of Adonai from the mouth of Jeremiah, Adonai stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his entire kingdom, announcing in a written edict, saying:
2 “Thus says King Cyrus of Persia: Adonai, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build a House for Him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Whoever is among you from all His people—may his God be with him—may go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the House of Adonai, the God of Israel—He is the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 As for anyone who remains, wherever they may be living, let the people of those places supply him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the House of God in Jerusalem.”
5 So the patriarchal leaders of Judah and Benjamin, along with the kohanim and the Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred up—arose to go up to build the House of Adonai in Jerusalem. 6 All those around them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, gold, goods, cattle and valuable gifts, besides all that was willingly offered.
7 Then King Cyrus brought out the vessels from the House of Adonai that Nebuchadnezzar had brought from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. 8 King Cyrus of Persia had them brought out by Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out for Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. 9 And this was the inventory of them:
gold basins—30
silver basins—1,000
silver utensils—29
10 gold bowls—30
other silver bowls—410
other vessels—1,000
11 In all there were 5,400 vessels of gold and silver. Sheshbatzar brought them all along when the exiles were brought up from Babylon to Jerusalem.
12 For our reason for boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world, and most especially toward you, with simplicity and godly sincerity—not by human wisdom but by the grace of God. 13 For we write nothing to you other than what you can read and understand—and I hope you will understand in full 14 just as you understood us in part, so that we are your reason for boasting just as you also are ours in the Day of our Lord Yeshua.
Paul’s Change of Plans
15 Because of this confidence, I was planning to come to you first, so that you might have a second benefit— 16 to pass by you on my way to Macedonia and again from Macedonia to come back to you, and to be helped by you on my journey to Judea. 17 So when I was planning to do this, I didn’t do so lightly, did I? Or the things I plan, do I plan according to the flesh—so it might be with me “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? 18 But as God is faithful, our message to you is not both “Yes” and “No.” [a] 19 For Ben-Elohim—Yeshua the Messiah, who was proclaimed among you by us, by myself and Silvanus[b] and Timothy—was not “Yes” and “No.” Rather, in Him it has always been “Yes.”
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.