Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 85[a]
Prayer for Divine Favor
1 For the leader. A psalm of the Korahites.
I
2 You once favored, Lord, your land,
restored the captives of Jacob.(A)
3 You forgave the guilt of your people,
pardoned all their sins.
Selah
4 You withdrew all your wrath,
turned back from your burning anger.(B)
II
5 Restore us, God of our salvation;
let go of your displeasure with us.(C)
6 Will you be angry with us forever,
prolong your anger for all generations?(D)
7 Certainly you will again restore our life,
that your people may rejoice in you.
8 Show us, Lord, your mercy;
grant us your salvation.
III
9 [b]I will listen for what God, the Lord, has to say;
surely he will speak of peace
To his people and to his faithful.
May they not turn to foolishness!
10 Near indeed is his salvation for those who fear him;
glory will dwell in our land.
11 [c]Love and truth will meet;
justice and peace will kiss.(E)
12 Truth will spring from the earth;
justice will look down from heaven.(F)
13 Yes, the Lord will grant his bounty;
our land will yield its produce.(G)
14 Justice will march before him,
and make a way for his footsteps.
II. Israel’s Guilt, Punishment, and Restoration
Chapter 4
Indictment of Israel[a]
1 Hear the word of the Lord, Israelites,
for the Lord has a dispute
with the inhabitants of the land:(A)
There is no fidelity, no loyalty,
no knowledge of God in the land.
2 Swearing, lying, murder,
stealing and adultery break out;[b]
bloodshed follows bloodshed.(B)
3 Therefore the land dries up,
and everything that dwells in it languishes:
The beasts of the field,
the birds of the air,
and even the fish of the sea perish.(C)
Guilt of Priest and of People
4 But let no one accuse, let no one rebuke;
with you is my dispute, priest![c]
5 You will stumble in the day,
and the prophet will stumble with you at night;
I will make an end of your mother.[d]
6 My people are ruined for lack of knowledge!
Since you have rejected knowledge,
I will reject you from serving as my priest;
Since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I will also forget your children.
7 The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against me,
I will change their glory[e] into shame.(D)
8 They feed on the sin of my people,
and are greedy for their iniquity.[f]
9 Like people, like priest:(E)
I will punish them for their ways,
and repay them for their deeds.
10 They will eat but not be satisfied,(F)
they will promote prostitution[g] but not increase,
Because they have abandoned the Lord,
devoting themselves
11 to prostitution.
Aged wine and new wine
take away understanding.(G)
12 My people consult their piece of wood,[h]
and their wand makes pronouncements for them,
For the spirit of prostitution has led them astray;
they prostitute themselves, forsaking their God.
13 On the mountaintops they offer sacrifice
and on the hills they burn incense,
Beneath oak and poplar and terebinth,
because of their pleasant shade.[i]
Therefore your daughters prostitute themselves,
and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.
14 I will not punish your daughters for their prostitution,
nor your daughters-in-law for their adultery,
Because the men themselves consort with prostitutes,
and with temple women[j] they offer sacrifice!
Thus a people without understanding comes to ruin.
15 Though you prostitute yourself, Israel,
do not let Judah become guilty!
Do not come to Gilgal,[k]
do not go up to Beth-aven,(H)
do not swear, “As the Lord lives!”(I)
16 For like a stubborn cow,
Israel is stubborn;
Will the Lord now pasture them,
like lambs in a broad meadow?
17 Ephraim[l] is bound to idols,
let him alone!
18 [m]When their drinking is over,
they give themselves to prostitution;(J)
they love shame more than their honor.
19 A wind[n] has bound them up in its wings;(K)
they shall be ashamed because of their altars.(L)
The Choice of Judas’s Successor. 15 During those days Peter stood up in the midst of the brothers (there was a group of about one hundred and twenty persons in the one place). He said, 16 “My brothers, the scripture had to be fulfilled which the holy Spirit spoke beforehand through the mouth of David, concerning Judas, who was the guide for those who arrested Jesus.(A) 17 He was numbered among us and was allotted a share in this ministry. 18 (B)He bought a parcel of land with the wages of his iniquity, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle, and all his insides spilled out.[a] 19 This became known to everyone who lived in Jerusalem, so that the parcel of land was called in their language ‘Akeldama,’ that is, Field of Blood. 20 For it is written in the Book of Psalms:
‘Let his encampment become desolate,
and may no one dwell in it.’
And:
‘May another take his office.’(C)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.