Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
40 Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against His people,
and He abhorred His own inheritance.
41 He gave them into the hand of the nations,
and those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies also oppressed them,
and Israel was brought into subjection under their powerful hand.
43 Many times He delivered them,
but they were rebellious against Him with their counsel,
and were afflicted for their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless, He regarded their affliction,
when He heard their cry:
45 and He remembered on their behalf His covenant
and relented according to the greatness of His mercies.
46 He made them pitied
among all those who held them captive.
47 Save us, O Lord our God,
and gather us from among the nations,
to give thanks unto Your holy name
and to boast in Your praise.
48 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting,
and let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise the Lord!
The True God and Idols(A)
10 Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. 2 Thus says the Lord:
Do not learn the way of the nations;
do not be terrified at the signs of heaven,
although the nations are terrified at them.
3 For the customs of the people are vain;
for with the axe one cuts a tree out of the forest,
the work of the hands of the workman.
4 They deck it with silver and with gold;
they fasten it with nails and with hammers
so that it may not move.
5 They are as a scarecrow in a cucumber field,
but do not speak;
they must be carried,
because they cannot walk.
Do not be afraid of them,
for they cannot do evil,
nor can they do good.
6 There is no one like You, O Lord.
You are great,
and Your name is great in might.
7 Who would not fear You,
O King of the nations?
Indeed, it is Your due.
For among all the wise men of the nations,
and in all their kingdoms,
there is no one like You.
8 But they are altogether unthinking and foolish;
the tree is a doctrine of vanities.
9 Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish,
and gold from Uphaz,
the work of the workman and of the hands of the founder;
blue and purple are their clothing;
they all are the work of skilled men.
10 But the Lord is the true God;
He is the living God and an everlasting King.
At His wrath the earth trembles,
and the nations cannot endure His indignation.
11 Thus you shall say to them: The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth and from under these heavens.
12 He has made the earth by His power.
He has established the world by His wisdom
and has stretched out the heavens by His discretion.
13 When He utters His voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens,
and He causes the vapors to ascend from the remote parts of the earth;
He makes lightning with rain,
and brings out the wind from His storehouses.
14 Every man is stupid, without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by an idol;
for his molded image is false,
and there is no breath in them.
15 They are vain and a work of mockery;
in the time of their punishment they shall perish.
16 The portion of Jacob is not like them,
for He is the Maker of all things,
and Israel is the rod of His inheritance.
The Lord of Hosts is His name.
19 For though I am free from all men, I have made myself servant to all, that I might win even more. 20 To the Jews, I became as a Jew, that I might win the Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; 21 to those who are outside the law, as outside the law (being not without God’s law, but under Christ’s law) that I might win those who are outside the law. 22 To the weak, I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23 This I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might partake of it with you.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.