Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
(A psalm of praise.)
The Lord Is God
1 Shout praises to the Lord,
everyone on this earth.
2 Be joyful and sing
as you come in
to worship the Lord!
3 You know the Lord is God!
He created us,
and we belong to him;
we are his people,
the sheep in his pasture.
4 Be thankful and praise the Lord
as you enter his temple.
5 (A) The Lord is good!
His love and faithfulness
will last forever.
Judah and Israel Together Again
15 The Lord said:
16 Ezekiel, son of man, get a stick and write on it, “The kingdom of Judah.” Then get another stick and write on it, “The kingdom of Israel.”[a] 17 Hold these two sticks end to end, so they look like one stick. 18 And when your people ask you what this means, 19 tell them that I, the Lord, will join together the stick of Israel and the stick of Judah. I will hold them in my hand, and they will become one.
20 Hold these two sticks where they can be seen by everyone 21 and then say:
I, the Lord God, will gather the people of Israel and bring them home from the foreign nations where they now live. 22 I will make them into one nation and let them once again live in the land of Israel. Only one king will rule them, and they will never again be divided into two nations. 23 They will no longer worship idols and do things that make them unacceptable to me. I will wash away their sin and make them clean, and I will protect them from everything that makes them unclean. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
24-25 (A) Their king will always come from the family of my servant King David and will care for them like a shepherd. The people of Israel will faithfully obey my laws. They and their descendants will live in the land I gave my servant Jacob, just as their ancestors did. 26 I solemnly promise to bless the people of Israel with unending peace. I will protect them and let them become a powerful nation. My temple will stand in Israel for all time, 27 (B) and I will live among my people and be their God. 28 Every nation on earth will know that my temple is in Israel and that I have chosen the Israelites to be my people.
The Last of the Terrible Troubles
15 After this, I looked at the sky and saw something else that was strange and important. Seven angels were bringing the seven last terrible troubles. When these are ended, God will no longer be angry.
2 Then I saw something that looked like a glass sea mixed with fire, and people were standing on it. They were the ones who had defeated the beast and the idol and the number that tells the name of the beast. God had given them harps, 3 (A) and they were singing the song his servant Moses and the Lamb had sung. They were singing,
“Lord God All-Powerful,
you have done great
and marvelous things.
You are the ruler
of all nations,
and you do what is
right and fair.
4 (B) Lord, who doesn't honor
and praise your name?
You alone are holy,
and all nations will come
and worship you,
because you have shown
that you judge
with fairness.”
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