Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
This is for the music leader, and he should use special music.
David wrote this prayer.
God will judge all people[a]
58 Do you rulers really say what is right?
Do you judge people in a fair way?
2 No! You do not!
You like to think of evil things to do.
You make cruel things happen
everywhere in the land.
3 Wicked people do wrong things from their birth.
As soon as they are born,
they start telling lies.
4 Their words hurt people
like a snake's poison.
They listen to nobody,
like a deaf cobra.
5 It does not obey the voice of the magician,
even if he sings very well![b]
6 God, break the teeth of my enemies!
Yes, Lord, break into pieces
the teeth of those lions!
7 Cause them to run away like water and disappear.
Cause them to die like dry grass in hot weather.
8 Cause them to be like a worm that melts as it moves along.
Cause them to be like a child that is born dead
and never sees the light of day.
9 Remove them quickly,
more quickly than pots become hot over a fire of thorn bushes.[c]
10 When God punishes those wicked people,
righteous people will be very happy.
They will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked people!
11 People who see it will say,
‘It is true! God helps good people!
There is a God who judges people on earth in a fair way.’
15 I will give you leaders who will serve me faithfully. They will take care of you like shepherds. They will be wise and they will lead you well. 16 Then the number of your people who live in your land will increase. You will no longer need to talk about the Lord's Covenant Box. You will not think that it is important any more. You will forget all about it. You will not want to make another one. 17 Instead, you will call the city of Jerusalem “The Lord's throne”. At that time, people from all nations will come to Jerusalem. They will meet there to give honour to the Lord's name. They will no longer do the wicked things that they enjoy. 18 At that time, the nations of Judah and Israel will join together as one kingdom. They will leave their exile in a country in the north. They will come back to this land that I gave to your ancestors to be their home for ever.
19 I thought this:
“I want you people of Israel to be my children.
That would make me very happy.
I want to give you a good land as your home.
It is a more beautiful land than any other nation enjoys.”
I thought that you would call me “Father”.
I thought that you would always be faithful to me.
20 But you, Israel, have gone away from me,
like a woman who leaves her husband.
You have not been faithful to me.’
That is what the Lord says.
21 ‘I can hear a noise on the tops of the hills.
Israel's people are weeping.
They are calling out for help.
Yes, they have turned to bad ways.
They have forgotten to serve the Lord their God.
22 Return to me, all of you have turned away.
I will help you to be faithful to me.
Now you should say,
“Yes, we will return to you,
because you are the Lord our God.
23 The false gods that we worship on the hills have deceived us.
Our wild parties on the mountains have not helped us.
Only the Lord our God can really save Israel.
24 Since we were a young nation,
we have seen all our good things disappear.
The useless gods that we worshipped have taken them.
They took away the things that our ancestors worked to get.
They took away our sheep and our cows.
They even took away our sons and our daughters.
25 We are ashamed to agree that this is true.
We must accept the shame that we deserve.
We and our ancestors have done bad things
against the Lord our God.
Since long ago, we have not obeyed him,
and even today, we still do not listen to him.” ’
A story about a big meal
15 The people who were sitting at the meal heard what Jesus said. One of them said to Jesus, ‘One day, there will be a big meal in the kingdom of God. How happy are those people who will eat together at that big meal.’
16 Jesus told this story to him: ‘One day an important man prepared a big meal.[a] He asked many people to come to eat in his house. 17 When the meal was ready, he sent his servant out to tell those people, “Come now, the meal is ready for you.” 18 But then each person gave a reason why he could not come to the meal. The first man said, “I have bought a field, so I must go out and see it. Please say that I am sorry. Tell your master that I cannot come to his meal.” 19 The next man said, “I have bought five pairs of oxen. So I am just going out to see if they work well together. Please say that I am sorry. Tell your master that I cannot come to his meal.” 20 The third man said, “I have just married a wife. That is why I cannot come to the meal.”
21 The servant went back to his master. He told him what everyone had said. Then the master of the house was very angry. “Go out quickly to every street in the town,” he said to his servant. “Bring the poor people here. Bring those that have lost an arm or a leg. And bring those that cannot walk well, and those that cannot see.” 22 The servant did that. Then he came back to his master. “Sir,” he said, “I have asked all those people to come to your meal. But there are still some places at the table.” 23 The master spoke to his servant again. “Go to the roads and fields outside the town, and look for people there. Command them all to come here, so that my house will be full. 24 But I tell you this. None of the people that I asked at the beginning will eat any of my food.” ’
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