Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
118 Give thanks to the Lord, because he is good.
His faithful love continues forever.
2 Let the people of Israel say,
“His faithful love continues forever.”
14 The Lord gives me strength and makes me secure.
He has saved me.
15 Shouts of joy ring out in the tents of godly people.
They praise him for his help in battle.
They shout, “The Lord’s powerful right hand has done mighty things!
16 The Lord’s powerful right hand has won the battle!
The Lord’s powerful right hand has done mighty things!”
17 I will not die but live.
I will talk about what the Lord has done.
18 The Lord has really punished me.
But he didn’t let me die.
19 Open for me the gates where the godly can go in.
I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.
20 This is the gate of the Lord.
Only those who do what is right can go through it.
21 Lord, I will give thanks to you, because you answered me.
You have saved me.
22 The stone the builders didn’t accept
has become the most important stone of all.
23 The Lord has done it.
It is wonderful in our eyes.
24 The Lord has done it on this day.
Let us be joyful today and be glad.
17 But Sisera ran away on foot. He ran to the tent of Jael. She was the wife of Heber, the Kenite. Sisera ran there because there was a treaty between Heber’s family and Jabin, the king of Hazor.
18 Jael went out to meet Sisera. “Come in, sir,” she said. “Come right in. Don’t be afraid.” So he entered her tent. Then she covered him with a blanket.
19 “I’m thirsty,” he said. “Please give me some water.” So Jael opened a bottle of milk. The bottle was made out of animal skin. She gave him a drink of milk. Then she covered him up again.
20 “Stand in the doorway of the tent,” he told her. “Someone might come by and ask you, ‘Is anyone in there?’ If that happens, say ‘No.’ ”
21 But Heber’s wife Jael picked up a tent stake and a hammer. She went quietly over to Sisera. He was lying there, fast asleep. He was very tired. She drove the stake through his head right into the ground. So he died.
22 Just then Barak came by because he was chasing Sisera. Jael went out to meet him. “Come right in,” she said. “I’ll show you the man you are looking for.” So he went in with her. Sisera was lying there with the stake through his head. He was dead.
23 On that day God brought Jabin under Israel’s control. He was a king in Canaan.
24 “May Jael be the most blessed woman of all.
May the wife of Heber, the Kenite, be blessed.
May she be the most blessed woman of all those who live in tents.
25 Sisera asked for water. She gave him milk.
In a bowl fit for nobles she brought him buttermilk.
26 Her hand reached out for a tent stake.
Her right hand reached for a hammer.
She hit Sisera. She crushed his head.
She drove the stake right through his head.
27 He sank down. He fell at her feet.
He was lying there.
At her feet he sank down. He fell.
He fell where he sank down.
That’s where he died.
28 “Sisera’s mother looked out through the window.
From behind the wooden screen she cried out.
‘Why is his chariot taking so long to get here?’ she said.
‘Why can’t I hear the noise of his chariots yet?’
29 Her wisest ladies answer her.
And here’s what she keeps saying to herself.
30 She says, ‘They must be finding riches to bring back.
They must be dividing them up.
Each man is getting a woman or two.
They are giving colorful clothes to Sisera.
The clothes are very beautiful.
He will bring some for me to wear.
The men must be finding many things to bring home.’
31 “Lord, may all your enemies be destroyed.
But may all who love you be like the morning sun.
May they be like the sun when it shines the brightest.”
So the land was at peace for 40 years.
The Woman and the Dragon
12 A great sign appeared in heaven. It was a woman wearing the sun like clothes. The moon was under her feet. On her head she wore a crown of 12 stars. 2 She was pregnant. She cried out in pain because she was about to have a baby. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven. It was a huge red dragon. It had seven heads and ten horns. On its seven heads it wore seven crowns. 4 The dragon’s tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky. It threw the stars down to earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to have a baby. The dragon wanted to eat her child the moment he was born. 5 She gave birth to a son. He “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” (Psalm 2:9) And her child was taken up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman escaped into the desert where God had a place prepared for her. There she would be taken care of for 1,260 days.
7 Then a war began in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But the dragon wasn’t strong enough. Both he and his angels lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was thrown down to the earth, and his angels with him. The dragon is that old serpent called the devil, or Satan. He leads the whole world astray.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven. It said,
“Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God have come.
The authority of his Messiah has come.
Satan, who brings charges against our brothers and sisters,
has been thrown down.
He brings charges against them in front of our God day and night.
11 They had victory over him
by the blood the Lamb spilled for them.
They had victory over him
by speaking the truth about Jesus to others.
They were willing to risk their lives,
even if it led to death.
12 So be joyful, you heavens!
Be glad, all you who live there!
But how terrible it will be for the earth and the sea!
The devil has come down to you.
He is very angry.
He knows his time is short.”
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