Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 71
1 I have found shelter in You, Eternal One;
I count on You to shield me always from humiliation and disgrace.
2 Rescue and save me in Your justice.
Turn Your ear to me, and hurry to deliver me from my enemies.
3 Be my rock of refuge where I can always hide.
You have given the order to keep me safe;
You are my solid ground—my rock and my fortress.
4 Save me from the power of sinful people, O my God,
from the grip of unjust and cruel men.
5 For You are my hope, Eternal One;
You, Lord, have been the source of my confidence since I was young.
6 I have leaned upon You since I came into this world;
I have relied on You since You took me safely from my mother’s body,
So I will ever praise You.
God, through His prophet, speaks about the ills of a greedy people who have forgotten how much the poor and orphaned matter to Him. The stench of injustice has become unbearable. For God, it is time to act.
As the swirling clouds gather to form a storm only Jeremiah sees on the horizon, the destruction of Jerusalem seems at hand. This ancient city, this storied place, is on the brink of a disaster beyond imagination. God is raising up an army from an ancient nation, known for its power and cruelty. For the prophet of God, the minutes are blurring into seconds. There seems to be little time to run and hide as the city will soon fall into the hands of those who mean her harm.
6 Eternal One (to His people): Run away, people of Benjamin,
and take refuge anywhere but Jerusalem.
You’re not safe inside those walls.
From the village of Tekoa, blow the trumpet, sound the alarm.
Light the warning fires above Beth-haccerem across the land.
For evil peers down; a dark army of destruction is gathering in the north.
2 I will destroy Jerusalem,
beautiful and delicate daughter of Zion.
3 As shepherds come and surround her with flocks of hungry sheep,
so their enemies will gather their troops around you, set up camp,
And feed off your land as they see fit.
4 “Get ready for the battle,” they cry.
“Come on, let’s attack. It’s already noon!
But look, the day is half over—
the shadows are growing longer.
5 So arise, let us launch our attack at night.
The palaces will fall in the darkness!”
6 This is what the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, decrees.
Eternal One: Cut down her trees—make battering rams and siege ramps—
for Jerusalem will soon be under attack.
Swarm over those walls, you invading hoards,
and punish My Jerusalem, the city of oppression.
7 Like fresh water from a well,
fresh wickedness flows from deep inside of her.
Sounds of cruelty and destruction rumble through this city;
her wounds are always before Me.
8 Take Me seriously, O Jerusalem; this warning is for you!
Listen to My words and turn away from evil
Or I will turn away from you in disgust.
I will turn you into a land so barren that no one would dare to live there.
9 This is what the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, decrees:
Eternal One: The enemy will pass over the remnant of Israel again and glean what is left,
like the worker who checks the vine again for any missed grapes.
10 To whom should I speak and give this warning?
Who will listen to what I say?
Their ears are closed; they cannot hear. They’re deaf to anything about God.
The Eternal’s word is offensive to them. They take no delight in it.
11 But I am welling up with His anger.
I’m too tired to try to hold it in any longer.
Eternal One: Pour it out on children playing in the streets,
on young men meeting together.
Husbands and wives, old and even the very old—
let each of them know they will be taken.
12 Their homes will be seized and lived in by others;
so, too, will their fields and wives be taken from them and given to others when I reach out against the people of this land.
13 Greed has corrupted this culture, from the least to the greatest:
all are tainted with this lust for what they don’t deserve.
The prophets and priests are no better.
Their lives reek with deceit.
14 To heal the brokenness of My people,
they offer superficial words.
They say, “Peace, peace,” as if all is well.
But there is no peace.
15 Do they feel any shame for their disgraceful deeds?
Absolutely not. My very own have forgotten how to blush.
And so it is that they will fall among the fallen and be defeated;
when the time comes, they will stumble beneath the weight of My punishment;
They will know soon enough what they have done.
This is what the Eternal decrees:
16 Eternal One (to the people): Stand at the crossing, and consider the ancient path,
for it is good and it leads to Me.
Walk on this path, and you will find rest for your souls.
But they have said, “We will not walk upon this road.”
17 Even then I sent watchmen to warn you of what is to come.
“Listen for the blaring of the trumpet,” I warned.
But the people did not listen.
They said, “We will not pay attention.”
18 Now listen to Me, nations of the earth.
Learn, O congregation, what is about to happen to My people.
19 Listen, O Earth, for I am bringing this disaster upon Judah.
This is the fruit of their own scheming.
For My people would not listen to My instructions;
They have rejected My guidance—My law—to go their own way.
3 Consider the life of the One who endured such personal attacks and hostility from sinners so that you will not grow weary or lose heart. 4 Among you, in your striving against sin, none has resisted the pressure to the point of death, as He did.
God “disciplines” His “disciples.” God is training us not just to live here and now, but to have life in the age to come, to share His life and holiness.
5 Indeed, you seem to have forgotten the proverb directed to you as children:
My child, do not ignore the instruction that comes from the Lord,
or lose heart when He steps in to correct you;
6 For the Lord disciplines those He loves,
and He corrects each one He takes as His own.[a]
7 Endure hardship as God’s discipline and rejoice that He is treating you as His children, for what child doesn’t experience discipline from a parent? 8 But if you are not experiencing the correction that all true children receive, then it may be that you are not His children after all. 9 Remember, when our human parents disciplined us, we respected them. If that was true, shouldn’t we respect and live under the correction of the Father of all spirits even more? 10 Our parents corrected us for a time as seemed good to them, but God only corrects us to our good so that we may share in His holiness.
11 When punishment is happening, it never seems pleasant, only painful. Later, though, it yields the peaceful fruit called righteousness to everyone who has been trained by it. 12 So lift up your hands that are dangling and brace your weakened knees. 13 Make straight paths for your feet so that what is lame in you won’t be put out of joint, but will heal.
14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, since no one will see God without it. 15 Watch carefully that no one falls short of God’s favor, that no well of bitterness springs up to trouble you and throw many others off the path. 16 Watch that no one becomes wicked and vile like Esau, the son of Isaac, who for a single meal sold his invaluable birthright. 17 You know from the stories of the patriarchs that later, when he wished to claim his blessing, he was turned away. He could not reverse his action even though he shed bitter tears over it.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.