Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Prayer because of Troubles
44 O God, we have heard with our ears. Our fathers have told us what work You did in their days, in the days long ago. 2 With Your own hand You made the nations leave, and put our fathers in the land. You brought trouble upon the nations, and You spread them out. 3 It was not by their sword that they took the land. Their own arm did not save them. But it was Your right hand, and Your arm, and the light of Your face, for You favored them.
4 You are my King, O God. Jacob wins because You say it must be so. 5 Through You we will push away those who hate us. Through Your name we will walk over those who rise up against us. 6 For I will not trust my bow, and my sword will not save me. 7 But You have saved us from those who fight against us. You have put to shame those who hate us. 8 In God we have had our pride all day long. And we will give thanks to Your name forever.
9 But now You have turned from us and have put us to shame. You do not go out with our armies. 10 You made us turn away from those who fight against us. And those who hate us have robbed us. 11 You give us up to be eaten like sheep. You have spread us out among the nations. 12 You sell Your people for nothing, and become no richer from their price. 13 You have made us a shame to our neighbors. Those around us laugh and make fun of us. 14 You have made us hated among the nations. The people laugh at us. 15 All day long my shame is with me and has become too much for me. 16 Those who talk against me, and who hate me are around me and want to punish me.
17 All this has come upon us, but we have not forgotten You. We have not been false to Your agreement. 18 Our heart has not turned away. And our steps have not turned from Your way. 19 But You have crushed us in a place of wild dogs, and covered us with the shadow of death.
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God, or put out our hands to a strange god, 21 would not God find this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart. 22 But we are killed all day long because of You. We are thought of as sheep that are ready to be killed. 23 Awake, O Lord! Why do You sleep? Rise up! Do not turn away from us forever. 24 Why do You hide Your face? Why do You forget our troubles and our suffering? 25 For our soul is brought down to the dust. Our body holds on to the earth. 26 Rise up and help us! Save us because of Your loving-kindness.
God’s Loving-Kindness for His People
14 “So I will lead her into the desert and speak words of comfort to her. 15 I will give her grape-fields there, and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. And she will sing there as she did when she was young, as in the day she came out of the land of Egypt. 16 In that day” says the Lord, “you will call Me, ‘My Husband.’ And you will no longer call Me, ‘My Baal.’ 17 For I will take the names of the Baals from her mouth. The names of these false gods will never be spoken again. 18 In that day I will make an agreement for them with the wild animals of the field, the birds of the sky, and the things which move upon the ground. I will put an end to the bow, the sword, and war in all the land. And I will let My people lie down in peace and be safe. 19 I will promise to make you Mine forever. Yes, I will take you as My bride in what is right and good and fair, and in loving-kindness and in loving-pity. 20 I will keep My promise and make you Mine. Then you will know the Lord.
21 “In that day” says the Lord, “I will give an answer to the heavens, and they will give an answer to the earth. 22 The earth will give an answer to the grain, the new wine, and the oil. And they will give an answer to Jezreel. 23 I will plant her for Myself in the land. Those who were not loved, I will call, ‘My loved ones.’ Those who were not My people, I will call, ‘My people.’ And they will say, ‘You are my God!’”
Israel Will Return to the Lord Their God
3 Then the Lord said to me, “Go again and love your wife, even when she is loved by another and is not faithful. Love her as the Lord loves the people of Israel, even when they turn to other gods and love cakes of dried grapes.” 2 So I bought her for fifteen pieces of silver money and ten baskets of barley. 3 Then I said to her, “You must stay with me for many days, and be faithful to me. Do not have another man, and I will also be faithful to you.” 4 For the sons of Israel will live many days without a king or leader, without holy gifts or holy stone pillars, and without linen vests or false gods. 5 After this the sons of Israel will return and look for the Lord their God and for David their king. And they will come shaking before the Lord and receive His goodness in the last days.
Watch for Those Who Want to Keep the Law
16 Do not let anyone tell you what you should or should not eat or drink. They have no right to say if it is right or wrong to eat certain foods or if you are to go to religious suppers. They have no right to say what you are to do at the time of the new moon or on the Day of Rest. 17 These things are a picture of what is coming. The important thing is Christ Himself. 18 Do not let anyone rob you of your crown. They will try to get you to bow down in worship of angels. They think this shows you are not proud. They say they were told to do this in a dream. These people are proud because of their sinful minds. 19 Such people are not a part of Christ. Christ is the Head. We Christians make up His body. We are joined together as a body is held together. Our strength to grow comes from Christ.
20 You have died with Christ and become dead to those old ways. Then why do you follow the old ways of worship? Why do you obey man-made rules? 21 These rules say, “You must not put your hand on this.” “Do not put this into your mouth.” “You must not put your finger on that.” 22 All these things come to an end when they are used. You are following only man-made rules. 23 It looks as if it is wise to follow these rules in an act of worship, because they are hard on the body. It looks as if they are done without pride, but they are worth nothing. They do not take away a man’s desire to sin.
The New Life Lived by the Power of Christ
3 If then you have been raised with Christ, keep looking for the good things of heaven. This is where Christ is seated on the right side of God.
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