Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
10 Lord, why are you so far away?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 An evil person is proud and hunts down those who are weak.
He catches weak people by making clever plans.
3 He brags about what his heart desires.
He speaks well of those who always want more.
He attacks the Lord with his words.
4 Because he is proud, that evil person doesn’t turn to the Lord.
There is no room for God in any of his thoughts.
5 Everything always goes well for him.
So he is proud.
He doesn’t want to have anything to do with God’s laws.
He makes fun of all his enemies.
6 He says to himself, “I will always be secure.”
He promises himself, “No one will ever harm me.”
7 His mouth is full of lies and warnings.
With his tongue he speaks evil and makes trouble.
8 Sinful people hide and wait near the villages.
From their hiding places they murder people who aren’t guilty.
They watch in secret for those they want to attack.
9 They hide and wait like a lion in the bushes.
From their hiding places they wait to catch those who are helpless.
They catch them and drag them off in their nets.
10 Those they have attacked are beaten up. They fall to the ground.
They fall because their attackers are too strong for them.
11 Sinful people say to themselves, “God will never notice.
He covers his face. He never sees us.”
12 Lord, rise up! God, show your power!
Don’t forget those who are helpless.
13 Why do sinful people attack you with their words?
Why do they say to themselves,
“He won’t hold us accountable”?
14 God, you see the problems of people in trouble.
You take note of their pain. You do something about it.
So those who are attacked place themselves in your care.
You help children whose fathers have died.
15 Take away the power of sinful people.
Hold them accountable for the evil things they do.
Uncover all the evil they have done.
16 The Lord is King for ever and ever.
The nations will disappear from his land.
17 Lord, you hear the desires of those who are hurting.
You cheer them up and give them hope.
You listen to their cries.
18 You stand up for those whose fathers have died
and for those who have been treated badly.
You do it so that mere human beings made of dust
may not terrify others anymore.
Worshiping Other Gods Is Worthless
7 A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. The Lord said, 2 “Stand at the gate of my house. Announce my message to the people there. Say,
“ ‘Listen to the Lord’s message, all you people of Judah. You always come through these gates to worship the Lord. 3 The God of Israel is speaking to you. He is the Lord who rules over all. He says, “Change the way you live and act. Then I will let you live in this place. 4 Do not trust in lies. Do not say, ‘This is the temple of the Lord! This is the temple of the Lord! This is the temple of the Lord!’ 5 You must really change the way you live and act. Treat one another fairly. 6 Do not treat outsiders or widows badly in this place. Do not take advantage of children whose fathers have died. Do not kill those who are not guilty of doing anything wrong. Do not worship other gods. That will only bring harm to you. 7 If you obey me, I will let you live in this place. It is the land I gave your people of long ago. It was promised to them for ever and ever. 8 But look! You are trusting in worthless lies.
9 “ ‘ “You continue to steal and commit murder. You commit adultery. You tell lies in court. You burn incense to Baal. You worship other gods you didn’t know before. 10 Then you come and stand in front of me. You keep coming to this house where I have put my Name. You say, ‘We are safe.’ You think you are safe when you do so many things I hate. 11 My Name is in this house. But you have made it a den for robbers! I have been watching you!” announces the Lord.
12 “ ‘ “Go now to the town of Shiloh. Go to the place where I first made a home for my Name. See what I did to it because of the evil things my people Israel were doing. 13 I spoke to you again and again,” announces the Lord. “I warned you while you were doing all these things. But you did not listen. I called out to you. But you did not answer. 14 So what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house where my Name is. It is the temple you trust in. It is the place I gave to you and your people of long ago. 15 But I will throw you out of my land. That is exactly what I did to the people of Ephraim. And they are your relatives.” ’
A Warning Against Unbelief
7 The Holy Spirit says,
“Listen to his voice today.
8 If you hear it, don’t be stubborn.
You were stubborn when you opposed me.
You did that when you were tested in the desert.
9 There your people of long ago tested me.
Yet for 40 years they saw what I did.
10 That is why I was angry with them.
I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray.
They have not known my ways.’
11 So when I was angry, I made a promise.
I said, ‘They will never enjoy the rest I planned for them.’ ” (Psalm 95:7–11)
12 Brothers and sisters, make sure that none of you has a sinful heart. Do not let an unbelieving heart turn you away from the living God. 13 But build one another up every day. Do it as long as there is still time. Then none of you will become stubborn. You won’t be fooled by sin’s tricks. 14 We belong to Christ if we hold tightly to the faith we had at first. But we must hold it tightly until the end. 15 It has just been said,
“Listen to his voice today.
If you hear it, don’t be stubborn.
You were stubborn when you opposed me.” (Psalm 95:7,8)
16 Who were those who heard and refused to obey? Weren’t they all the people Moses led out of Egypt? 17 Who was God angry with for 40 years? Wasn’t it with those who sinned? They died in the desert. 18 God promised that those people would never enjoy the rest he planned for them. God gave his word when he made that promise. Didn’t he make that promise to those who didn’t obey? 19 So we see that they weren’t able to enter. That’s because they didn’t believe.
God’s People Enter His Sabbath Rest
4 God’s promise of enjoying his rest still stands. So be careful that none of you fails to receive it. 2 The good news was announced to our people of long ago. It has also been preached to us. The message they heard didn’t have any value for them. That’s because they didn’t share the faith of those who obeyed. 3 Now we who have believed enjoy that rest. God said,
“When I was angry, I made a promise.
I said, ‘They will never enjoy the rest I planned for them.’ ” (Psalm 95:11)
Ever since God created the world, his works have been finished. 4 Somewhere he spoke about the seventh day. He said, “On the seventh day God rested from all his works.” (Genesis 2:2) 5 In the part of Scripture I talked about earlier God spoke. He said, “They will never enjoy the rest I planned for them.” (Psalm 95:11)
6 It is still true that some people will enjoy this rest. But those who had the good news announced to them earlier didn’t go in. That’s because they didn’t obey. 7 So God again chose a certain day. He named it Today. He did this when he spoke through David a long time later. Here is what was written in the Scripture already given.
“Listen to his voice today.
If you hear it, don’t be stubborn.” (Psalm 95:7,8)
8 Suppose Joshua had given them rest. If he had, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 So there is still a Sabbath rest for God’s people. 10 God rested from his work. Those who enjoy God’s rest also rest from their works. 11 So let us make every effort to enjoy that rest. Then no one will die by disobeying as they did.
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