Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Nation in Trouble Prays
A ·maskil [skillful psalm; meditation] of Asaph [C a Levitical musician, a descendant of Gershon, at the time of David; 1 Chr. 6:39; 15:17; 2 Chr. 5:12].
74 God, why have you rejected us ·for so long [forever]?
Why ·are you angry with us, [L does your anger smoke against] the sheep of your pasture [100:3]?
2 Remember the ·people [assembly; congregation] you ·bought [acquired] long ago.
You ·saved [redeemed] us, and we are ·your very own [L the tribe of your inheritance].
After all, you live on Mount Zion.
3 ·Make your way [Direct your steps] through ·these old [or the utter] ruins;
the enemy ·wrecked [destroyed] everything in the ·Temple [sanctuary; Holy Place; C perhaps a reference to the Babylonian destruction of the Temple; 2 Kin. 25:8–21; 2 Chr. 36:17–21; Lam. 2:6].
4 Those who were against you ·shouted [roared] in your meeting place
and ·raised their flags [L set their signs as signs] there.
5 ·They came with axes raised [or They hacked at the upper entrances]
as if to cut down a forest of trees.
6 They ·smashed [beat to pieces] the ·carved [engraved] panels
with their axes and ·hatchets [crowbars].
7 They ·burned your Temple to the ground [L set your sanctuary/Holy Place on fire];
they have made the ·place where you live [L residence of your name] ·unclean [profane].
8 They ·thought [L said in their hearts], “We will completely crush them!”
They burned ·every place where God was worshiped [L all the meeting places of God] in the land.
9 We do not see any signs.
There are no more prophets [C who can tell them what will happen],
and no one knows how long this will last.
10 God, how much longer will the enemy ·make fun of [scorn] you?
Will they ·insult [revile] ·you [L your name] forever?
11 Why do you ·hold back your power [L return your hand]?
·Bring your power out in the open [L Take your right hand out of your bosom] and ·destroy [annihilate] them!
12 God, you have been our king ·for a long time [of old; Ex. 15:18].
You bring ·salvation [victory] to the earth.
13 You split open the sea by your power
and broke the heads of the sea monster [C an ancient Near Eastern symbol of chaos].
14 You ·smashed [crushed in pieces] the heads of the monster Leviathan [C a sea monster and symbol of chaos; 104:26; Job 3:8; 41:1; Is. 27:1]
and gave it to the ·desert [wilderness] creatures as food.
15 You ·opened up [split] the springs and ·streams [wadis]
and made the flowing rivers run dry.
16 Both the day and the night are yours;
you made the sun and the moon [Gen. 1:14–18].
17 You set all the ·limits [borders] on the earth;
you ·created [formed] summer and winter [104:19–23; Gen. 8:22].
18 Lord, remember how the enemy ·insulted [scorned] you.
Remember how those foolish people ·made fun of you [L reviled your name].
19 Do not give us, your doves, to those wild animals.
Never forget your poor people.
20 ·Remember [Regard] the ·agreement [covenant] you made with us,
because violence fills every dark corner of this land.
21 Do not let your ·suffering [crushed] people be ·disgraced [humiliated].
Let the poor and ·helpless [needy] praise ·you [L your name].
22 God, arise and ·defend [contend for] yourself.
Remember the ·insults [scorn] that come from those foolish people all day long.
23 Don’t forget what your enemies said;
don’t forget their roar as they rise against you always.
27 ·At that time [L In that day] the Lord will punish Leviathan [C a sea creature in ancient Near Eastern texts that represents chaos; Job 3:8; 41:1, 12; Ps. 74:14; 104:26], the ·gliding [or swift-moving; or fleeing] ·snake [serpent].
He will punish Leviathan, the ·coiled [writhing; twisting] ·snake [serpent],
with his great and hard and powerful sword.
He will kill the ·monster [dragon] in the sea.
2 ·At that time [L In that day]
sing about the ·pleasant [beautiful; or fruitful] vineyard [C God’s people; 5:1–7].
3 “I, the Lord, will ·care for [watch over] that vineyard;
I will water it ·at the right time [regularly; continually].
No one will hurt it,
because I will guard it day and night.
4 I am not ·angry [wrathful].
If ·anyone builds a wall of thornbushes in war [or only there were briers and thorns against me!],
I will march ·to it [against it in battle] and burn it.
5 But if anyone comes to me for ·safety [refuge; protection]
and wants to make peace with me,
·he should come and [let him] make peace with me.”
6 In the days to come, ·the people of Jacob [L Jacob] will ·be like a plant with good roots [take root];
Israel will ·grow like a plant beginning to bloom [L blossom and bud].
·Then the world will be filled with their children [L …and fill all the world with fruit].
The Lord Will Send Israel Away
7 ·The Lord has not hurt [L Has the Lord struck down…?] his people as he ·hurt their enemies [L struck down those who struck them];
·his people have not [L have they…?] been killed like those who tried to kill them.
8 He will ·settle his argument with Israel [or oppose her; contend with her] by sending her far away.
·Like a hot desert wind [L With his fierce breath in the day of the east wind; C the east wind came from the desert], he will drive her away.
9 This is how ·Israel’s [L Jacob’s] guilt will be forgiven;
this is how its sins will be taken away:
·Israel [L He] will crush the rocks of the altar [C pagan altars] to dust,
and no ·Asherah idols [L Asherahs; C sacred trees or poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah] or ·altars [incense altars] will be left standing.
10 ·At that time [L In that day] the ·strong, walled [fortified] city will be ·empty [desolate]
an abandoned settlement, empty like a ·desert [wilderness; 17:9; 32:14, 19].
Calves will eat grass there.
They will lie down there
and ·eat leaves from [strip bare] the branches.
11 The limbs will become dry and break off,
so women will use them for firewood.
The people ·refuse to understand [lack understanding/discernment],
so ·their Creator [the one who made them] will not comfort them;
·their Maker [the one who formed them] will not ·be kind [show favor] to them.
12 ·At that time [L In that day] the Lord will begin gathering ·his people [L you, sons/children of Israel] one by one from the ·Euphrates River [L flowing River] to the brook of Egypt. He will ·separate them from others as grain is separated from chaff [thresh/L beat them out]. 13 ·At that time [In that day] a great trumpet will be blown. Then those who are ·lost [or perishing] in Assyria and those who ·have run away [were exiled/driven out] to Egypt will come and worship the Lord on that holy mountain in Jerusalem.
Jesus Goes to the Temple(A)
45 Jesus went into the Temple and began to ·throw [drive] out the people who were selling things there. 46 He said, “It is written in the Scriptures, ‘My ·Temple [L House] will be a house for prayer [Is. 56:7].’ But you have ·changed [made] it into a ‘·hideout for robbers’ [T den of thieves; Jer. 7:11]!”
47 Jesus ·taught [was teaching] in the Temple every day. The ·leading [T chief] priests, the ·experts on the law [scribes], and some of the leaders of the people ·wanted [were looking for a way] to ·kill [destroy] Jesus. 48 But they ·did not know how they could [could not find a way to] do it, because all the people were ·listening closely to him [hanging on his every word].
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