Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Prayer of Thanks
118 Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever. 2 Let Israel say, “His loving-kindness lasts forever.”
14 The Lord is my strength and my song. He is the One Who saves me.
15 The joy of being saved is being heard in the tents of those who are right and good. The right hand of the Lord does powerful things. 16 The Lord’s right hand is lifted high. The right hand of the Lord does powerful things. 17 I will not die but live. And I will tell of what the Lord has done. 18 The Lord has punished me but He has not given me over to death.
19 Open to me the gates of what is right and good. I will go through them and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord. Those who are right with God will pass through it. 21 I will give thanks to You, for You have answered me. And You are the One Who saves me.
22 The stone that was put aside by the workmen has become the most important stone in the building. 23 The Lord has done this. We think it is great! 24 This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us be full of joy and be glad in it.
17 Sisera ran away on foot to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite. For there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the family of Heber the Kenite. 18 Jael went out to meet Sisera, saying, “Come in, my lord. Come in to me. Do not be afraid.” So he went into her tent, and she put a cover over him. 19 He said to her, “Give me a little water to drink. For I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin bag of milk and gave him a drink. Then she covered him. 20 He said to her, “Stand in the door of the tent. If anyone comes and asks you, ‘Is there anyone here?’ you say, ‘No.’” 21 But Heber’s wife Jael took a big tent nail in her hand and a tool to hit it with. Because Sisera was very tired, he went into a deep sleep. She went to him in secret and hit the big nail into the side of his head. It went through and into the ground. So he died. 22 As Barak came after Sisera, Jael came out to meet him. She said to him, “Come. I will show you the man you are looking for.” So Barak went in with her, and he saw Sisera lying dead with the big tent nail in his head.
23 God put Jabin the king of Canaan under the power of the people of Israel on that day.
24 “The most respected of women is Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite. She is the most respected of women in the tent. 25 Sisera asked for water and she gave him milk. She brought him milk in a fine pot. 26 She put out her hand to the big tent nail. And she put out her right hand for the servant’s heavy object. Then she hit Sisera. She crushed his head. She broke and cut through the side of his head. 27 He went down. He fell and lay without moving at her feet. He fell dead where he went down.
28 “The mother of Sisera looked out of the window. She looked through the window and cried in sorrow, ‘Why is his war-wagon so long in coming? Why do the steps of his horses wait?’ 29 Her wise ladies answered her. But she asked herself again and again, 30 ’Are they not finding and dividing the riches? Is there not a girl or two for every man? Is there not colored cloth for Sisera to take? Is there not colored cloth with beautiful sewing on it? Are there not two pieces of colored cloth with beautiful sewing on them for the neck of the one who takes them?’ 31 So let all those who hate You die, O Lord. But let those who love Him be like the sun as he rises in his power.” And the land had peace for forty years.
The Woman and the Dragon
12 Something very special was seen in heaven. A woman was there dressed with the sun. The moon was under her feet. A crown with twelve stars in it was on her head. 2 She was about to become a mother. She cried out with pain waiting for the child to be born. 3 Something else special was seen in heaven. A large dragon was there. It was red and had seven heads and ten horns. There was a crown on each head. 4 With his tail he pulled one-third part of the stars out of heaven. He threw them down to the earth. This dragon stood in front of the woman as she was about to give birth to her child. He was waiting to eat her child as soon as it was born. 5 Then the woman gave birth to a son. He is to be the leader of the world using a piece of iron. But this child was taken away to God and His throne. 6 The woman ran away into the desert. God had made the place ready for her. He will care for her there 1,260 days.
War in Heaven
7 Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against this dragon. This animal and his angels fought back. 8 But the dragon was not strong enough to win. There was no more room in heaven for them. 9 The dragon was thrown down to earth from heaven. This animal is the old snake. He is also called the Devil or Satan. He is the one who has fooled the whole world. He was thrown down to earth and his angels were thrown down with him.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, “Now God has saved from the punishment of sin! God’s power as King has come! God’s holy nation has come! God’s Christ is here with power! The one who spoke against our Christian brothers has been thrown down to earth. He stood before God speaking against them day and night. 11 They had power over him and won because of the blood of the Lamb and by telling what He had done for them. They did not love their lives but were willing to die. 12 For this reason, O heavens and you who are there, be full of joy. It is bad for you, O earth and sea. For the devil has come down to you. He is very angry because he knows he has only a short time.”
Copyright © 1969, 2003 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.