Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 58[a]
For the music director, according to the al-tashcheth style;[b] a prayer[c] of David.
58 Do you rulers really pronounce just decisions?[d]
Do you judge people[e] fairly?
2 No![f] You plan how to do what is unjust;[g]
you deal out violence in the earth.[h]
3 The wicked turn aside from birth;[i]
liars go astray as soon as they are born.[j]
4 Their venom is like that of a snake,[k]
like a deaf serpent[l] that does not hear,[m]
5 that does not respond to[n] the magicians,
or to a skilled snake charmer.
6 O God, break the teeth in their mouths!
Smash the jawbones of the lions, O Lord.
7 Let them disappear[o] like water that flows away.[p]
Let them wither like grass.[q]
8 Let them be[r] like a snail that melts away as it moves along.[s]
Let them be like[t] stillborn babies[u] that never see the sun.
9 Before the kindling is even placed under your pots,[v]
he[w] will sweep it away along with both the raw and cooked meat.[x]
10 The godly[y] will rejoice when they see vengeance carried out;
they will bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Then[z] observers[aa] will say,
“Yes indeed, the godly are rewarded.[ab]
Yes indeed, there is a God who judges[ac] in the earth.”
15 I will give you leaders[a] who will be faithful to me.[b] They will lead you with knowledge and insight. 16 In those days, your population will greatly increase[c] in the land. At that time,” says the Lord, “people will no longer talk about having the ark[d] that contains the Lord’s covenant with us.[e] They will not call it to mind, remember it, or miss it. No, that will not be done anymore![f] 17 At that time the city of Jerusalem will be called the Lord’s throne. All nations will gather there in Jerusalem to honor the Lord’s name.[g] They will no longer follow the stubborn inclinations of their own evil hearts.[h] 18 At that time[i] the nation of Judah and the nation of Israel will be reunited.[j] Together they will come back from a land in the north to the land that I gave to your ancestors as a permanent possession.
19 “I thought to myself,[k]
‘Oh what a joy it would be for me to treat you like a son![l]
What a joy it would be for me to give[m] you a pleasant land,
the most beautiful piece of property there is in all the world!’[n]
I thought you would call me ‘Father’[o]
and would never cease being loyal to me.[p]
20 But, you have been unfaithful to me, nation of Israel,[q]
like an unfaithful wife who has left her husband,”[r]
says the Lord.
21 “A noise is heard on the hilltops.
It is the sound of the people of Israel crying and pleading to their gods.
Indeed they have followed sinful ways;[s]
they have forgotten to be true to the Lord their God.[t]
22 Come back to me, you wayward people.
I want to cure your waywardness.[u]
Say,[v] ‘Here we are. We come to you
because you are the Lord our God.
23 We know our noisy worship of false gods
on the hills and mountains did not help us.[w]
We know that the Lord our God
is the only one who can deliver Israel.[x]
24 From earliest times our worship of that shameful god, Baal,
has taken away[y] all that our ancestors[z] worked for.
It has taken away our flocks and our herds
and even our sons and daughters.
25 Let us acknowledge[aa] our shame.
Let us bear the disgrace that we deserve.[ab]
For we have sinned against the Lord our God,
both we and our ancestors.
From earliest times to this very day
we have not obeyed the Lord our God.’
The Parable of the Great Banquet
15 When[a] one of those at the meal with Jesus[b] heard this, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone[c] who will feast[d] in the kingdom of God!”[e] 16 But Jesus[f] said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet[g] and invited[h] many guests.[i] 17 At[j] the time for the banquet[k] he sent his slave[l] to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is now ready.’ 18 But one after another they all[m] began to make excuses.[n] The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field,[o] and I must go out and see it. Please excuse me.’[p] 19 Another[q] said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen,[r] and I am going out[s] to examine them. Please excuse me.’ 20 Another[t] said, ‘I just got married, and I cannot come.’[u] 21 So[v] the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the master of the household was furious[w] and said to his slave, ‘Go out quickly[x] to the streets and alleys of the city,[y] and bring in the poor,[z] the crippled,[aa] the blind, and the lame.’ 22 Then[ab] the slave said, ‘Sir, what you instructed has been done, and there is still room.’[ac] 23 So[ad] the master said to his[ae] slave, ‘Go out to the highways[af] and country roads[ag] and urge[ah] people[ai] to come in, so that my house will be filled.[aj] 24 For I tell you, not one of those individuals[ak] who were invited[al] will taste my banquet!’”[am]
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