Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Unfair Judges
For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” A miktam [C perhaps “inscription”] of David.
58 Do you ·rulers [or silent ones; or gods; C sometimes spiritual beings such as angels are called “gods” in the OT; 82:1] really say what is ·right [righteous]?
Do you judge people ·fairly [with integrity]?
2 No, in your heart you plan evil;
you ·think up [dispense] ·violent crimes [violence] in the land.
3 From ·birth [L the womb], evil people ·turn away [go astray] from God;
they wander off and tell lies ·as soon as they are born [L from the belly; C another word for the womb; 51:5].
4 They ·are [L have poison/venom] like ·poisonous [venomous] snakes,
like deaf cobras that ·stop [plug] up their ears
5 so they cannot hear the music of the snake charmer
no matter how ·well he plays [wisely/skillfully he enchants].
6 God, break the teeth in their mouths!
·Tear out [Uproot] the fangs of those lions, Lord!
7 Let them ·disappear [vanish] like water that flows away.
Let them ·be cut short like a broken arrow [L draw their arrows like they are cut off].
8 Let them be like ·snails [slugs] that ·melt [dissolve] as they move [C snails leave a slime as they move].
Let them be like a ·child born dead [stillborn] who never saw the sun.
9 His anger will blow them away alive
faster than burning thorns can heat a pot [C likely a reference to quick retribution].
10 ·Good [Righteous] people will be glad when they see ·him get even [vengeance].
They will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked [Is. 63:1–6; Rev. 14:19–20; 19:13–14].
11 Then people will say,
“There really are ·rewards [fruits] for ·doing what is right [the righteous].
There really is a God who judges the ·world [earth; land].”
15 Then I will give you ·new rulers [L shepherds] ·who will be faithful to me [L according to my heart], who will ·lead [shepherd] you with knowledge and ·understanding [insight]. 16 In those days ·there will be many of you [L you will multiply and be fruitful] in the land,” says the Lord. “At that time people will no longer say, ‘The Ark of the ·Agreement [L Covenant; Testimony; Treaty; Ex. 25:10].’ They won’t remember it or miss it or make another one. 17 At that time people will call Jerusalem The Throne of the Lord [C due to God’s presence], and all nations will ·come together [gather] in Jerusalem to ·show respect to [L the name of] the Lord [12:15–16; 16:19; Is. 2:2–4; 56:6–7; Mic. 4:1–3; Zech. 2:11; 8:2–23; 14:16–17]. They will not ·follow [L go after] their stubborn, evil hearts anymore. 18 In those days the ·family [L house] of Judah will join the ·family [L house] of Israel. They will come together from a land in the north to the land I ·gave their ancestors [L caused their ancestors/fathers to inherit; C the future return from exile].
19 “I, the Lord, said,
‘How ·happy I would be to treat you as [L I would set you among] my own children
and give you a ·pleasant [favored; coveted; desired] land,
a ·land [inheritance] more beautiful than that of any other nation [Ex. 3:8, 17; Lam. 2:15; Ezek. 20:6; Dan. 11:16, 41].’
I thought you would call me ‘My Father’
and not turn away from me.
20 But like a woman who is ·unfaithful [a traitor; treacherous] to her husband,
·family [L house] of Israel, you have been unfaithful [a traitor; treacherous] to me,” says the Lord.
21 You can hear ·crying [L a voice] on the bare hilltops [3:2].
It is the people of Israel crying and ·praying for mercy [supplicating].
They have ·become very evil [L wandered off their path]
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 “Come back to me, you ·unfaithful [apostate] children,
and I will ·forgive [L heal] you for being ·unfaithful [apostate].”
“Yes, we will come to you,
because you are the Lord our God.
23 ·It was foolish to worship idols on [L Deception/Illusions come from] the hills
and ·orgies [L a tumult] on the mountains.
Surely the salvation of Israel
comes from the Lord our God.
24 Since our youth, shameful things [C false gods] have eaten up
everything our ·ancestors [fathers] worked for—
their flocks and herds,
their sons and daughters.
25 Let us lie down in our ·shame [humiliation],
and let our disgrace cover us.
We have sinned against the Lord our God,
both we and our ·ancestors [fathers].
From our youth until now,
we have not ·obeyed [L listened to the voice of] the Lord our God.”
A Story About a Big Banquet(A)
15 One of those ·at the table [L reclining; see 5:29] with Jesus heard these things and said to him, “·Blessed [Happy] are the people who will ·share in the meal [L eat bread] in God’s kingdom [C an allusion to the messianic banquet at the end of time; see 13:29; Is. 25:6–8].”
16 Jesus said to him, “A man gave a ·big [great] banquet and invited many people. 17 When it was time to eat, the man sent his ·servant [slave] to tell the guests [C who had accepted the invitation], ‘Come. Everything is ready.’
18 “But all the guests [one after another; or in a similar manner] began to make excuses [C a great offense in that culture]. The first one said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go look at it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five ·pairs [L yoke] of oxen; I must go and try them. Please excuse me.’ 20 A third person said, ‘I just got married; I can’t come [C while newly married men were exempt from certain duties (Deut. 24:5), that is not a valid excuse for offending the host].’ 21 So the ·servant [slave] returned and told his master what had happened. Then the master [L of the household] became angry and said, ‘Go at once into the ·streets [squares] and ·alleys [lanes] of the town, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ 22 ·Later [L And] the ·servant [slave] said to him, ‘Master, I did what you commanded, but we still have room.’ 23 The master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the roads and ·country lanes [hedgerows], and ·urge [compel] the people there to come so my house will be full [C those outside the city may refer to the Gentiles, who will come into the kingdom (see Acts 10—11)]. 24 [L For] I tell you, none of ·those [L those men; C referring to the three who refused] whom I invited first will ·eat with me [L taste my banquet/dinner].’”
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