Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Jeremiah Buys a Field

32 ^(A) The Lord spoke to me in the tenth year that Zedekiah^[a] was king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year that Nebuchadnezzar^[b] was king of Babylonia. ² At that time, the Babylonian army had surrounded Jerusalem, and I was in the prison at the courtyard of the palace guards. ³ Zedekiah had ordered me to be held there because I told everyone that the Lord had said:

I am the Lord, and I am about to let the king of Babylonia conquer Jerusalem.

⁶ Later, when I was in prison, the Lord said:

⁷ Jeremiah, your cousin Hanamel, the son of your uncle Shallum, will visit you. He must sell his field near the town of Anathoth, and because you are his nearest relative, you have the right and the responsibility to buy it and keep it in the family.^[a]

⁸ Hanamel came, just as the Lord had promised. And he said, “Please buy my field near Anathoth in the territory of the Benjamin tribe. You have the right to buy it, and if you do, it will stay in our family.”

The Lord had told me to buy it ⁹ from Hanamel, and so I did. The price was 17 pieces of silver, and I weighed out the full amount on a scale. ^10-11 I had two copies of the bill of sale written out: an official copy containing the details of our agreement and another copy, without the details. Some witnesses and I signed the official copy, which was folded and tied, before being sealed shut with hot wax.^[b] Then I gave Hanamel the silver. ¹² And while he, the witnesses, and all the other Jews sitting in the courtyard were still watching, I gave both copies to Baruch son of Neriah.^[c]

^13-14 I told Baruch that the Lord had said:

Take both copies of this bill of sale, one sealed shut and the other open, and put them in a clay jar so they will last a long time. ¹⁵ I am the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, and I promise you that people will once again buy and sell houses, farms, and vineyards in this country.

The Lord Is My Fortress

⁶ And religion does make your life rich, by making you content with what you have. ⁷ We didn't bring anything into this world, and we won't^[a] take anything with us when we leave. ⁸ So we should be satisfied just to have food and clothes. ⁹ People who want to be rich fall into all sorts of temptations and traps. They are caught by foolish and harmful desires that drag them down and destroy them. ¹⁰ The love of money causes all kinds of trouble. Some people want money so much they have given up their faith and caused themselves a lot of pain.

Fighting a Good Fight for the Faith

¹¹ Timothy, you belong to God, so keep away from all these evil things. Try your best to please God and to be like him. Be faithful, loving, dependable, and gentle. ¹² Fight a good fight for the faith and claim eternal life. God offered it to you when you clearly told about your faith, while so many people listened. ^13 (A) Now I ask you to make a promise. Make it in the presence of God, who gives life to all, and in the presence of Christ Jesus, who openly told Pontius Pilate about his faith. ¹⁴ Promise to obey completely and fully all that you have been told until our Lord Jesus Christ returns.

¹⁷ Warn the rich people of this world not to be proud or to trust in wealth that is easily lost. Tell them to have faith in God, who is rich and blesses us with everything we need to enjoy life. ¹⁸ Instruct them to do as many good deeds as they can and to help everyone. Remind the rich to be generous and share what they have. ¹⁹ This will lay a solid foundation for the future, so they will know what true life is like.

Lazarus and the Rich Man

¹⁹ There was once a rich man who wore expensive clothes and every day ate the best food. ²⁰ But a poor beggar named Lazarus was brought to the gate of the rich man's house. ²¹ He was happy just to eat the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. His body was covered with sores, and dogs kept coming up to lick them. ^22 (A) The poor man died, and angels took him to the place of honor next to Abraham.^[a]

The rich man also died and was buried. ^23 (B) He went to hell^[b] and was suffering terribly. When he looked up and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side, ²⁴ he said to Abraham, “Have pity on me! Send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and touch my tongue. I'm suffering terribly in this fire.”

²⁵ Abraham answered, “My friend, remember that while you lived, you had everything good, and Lazarus had everything bad. Now he is happy, and you are in pain. ²⁶ And besides, there is a deep ditch between us, and no one from either side can cross over.”

²⁷ But the rich man said, “Abraham, then please send Lazarus to my father's home. ²⁸ Let him warn my five brothers, so they won't come to this horrible place.”

²⁹ Abraham answered, “Your brothers can read what Moses and the prophets^[c] wrote. They should pay attention to that.”

³⁰ Then the rich man said, “No, that's not enough! If only someone from the dead would go to them, they would listen and turn to God.”

³¹ So Abraham said, “If they won't pay attention to Moses and the prophets, they won't listen even to someone who comes back from the dead.”