Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 82[a]
Judgment on Abuse of Authority
1 A psalm of Asaph.[b]
God takes his place in the divine council;[c]
in the midst of the gods he pronounces judgment:
2 “How long will you issue unfair judgments
and rule in favor of those who are wicked?[d] Selah
3 [e]“Grant justice to the weak and the orphan;
defend the rights of the lowly and the poor.
4 Rescue the wretched and the needy;
free them from the hand of the wicked.
5 “They neither know nor understand;
they wander around in darkness
while all the foundations of the earth[f] are crumbling.
6 [g]I declare, ‘Although you are gods,
all of you sons of the Most High,
7 you will die as all men do;
like any ruler you will fall.’ ”[h]
8 Rise up, O God, and judge the earth,
for all the nations belong to you.[i]
12 But you forced the Nazirites to drink wine
and commanded the prophets, “Do not prophesy!”
13 Therefore, I will crush you
just as a cart crushes when it is fully laden.
14 The swift will be unable to take flight;
the strong man will not retain his strength,
and the warrior will be unable to save his life.
15 The archer will not stand his ground;
the swift of foot will not escape,
nor will the horseman save his life.
16 Even the bravest of warriors
will flee away naked on that day,
says the Lord.
Charges against Israel
Chapter 3
The First Word. 1 O men of Israel, hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2 Of all the families of the earth,
you alone have I favored.
That is why I will punish you
for all your iniquities.
The Lord Speaks: Who Would Not Prophesy?
3 Do two people travel together
unless they have first agreed to do so?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest
when it has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from its den
unless it has caught something?
5 Does a bird fall into a snare on the earth
unless a trap has been set for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground
unless something has been caught in it?
6 Are people not alarmed
if a trumpet sounds in the city?
If disaster strikes a city,
can that occur without the approval of the Lord?[a]
7 Indeed, the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his plan
to his servants, the prophets.
8 The lion roars;
who will not be frightened?
The Lord God has spoken;
who will not prophesy?
16 “For God so loved the world
that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him
may not perish
but may attain eternal life.
17 “For God did not send his Son into the world
to condemn the world
but in order that the world might be saved through him.
18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned,
but whoever does not believe in him
already stands condemned,
because he has not believed in the name
of the only-begotten Son of God.
19 “And the judgment is this:
the light has come into the world,
but people preferred darkness to light
because their deeds were evil.
20 Everyone who does evil hates the light
and avoids coming near the light
so that his misdeeds may not be exposed.
21 However, whoever lives by the truth
comes to the light
so that it may be clearly seen
that his deeds have been done
in God.”
Copyright © 2019 by Catholic Book Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.