Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Jeremiah (to Zedekiah): ⁶ The message of the Eternal came to me through my cousin: ⁷ “Look! Hanamel (son of Shallum, your uncle), is going to come to you and say, ‘Buy my field at Anathoth; as my nearest relative, it is your right to buy it before I offer it to anyone else.^[a] It is also your duty to keep it in the family.’” ⁸ And just as He had predicted, my cousin Hanamel came to me while I was being held in the court of the guard. He said, “Jeremiah, buy my field in your hometown of Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin. It’s your right to buy and redeem it so that it stays in our family.” Then I realized this message was from the Eternal.

⁹ So I bought the field in Anathoth from Hanamel my cousin for seven ounces of silver. ¹⁰ I signed and sealed the deed in front of witnesses; after weighing out the silver on the scales, I paid Hanamel. ¹¹ Two copies of the deed were made. I took the sealed copy along with the terms and conditions of the purchase and the unsealed copy and ¹² handed them to my trusted friend and confidant, Baruch (son of Neriah and grandson of Mahseiah). I did all of this in the presence of my cousin Hanamel, the witnesses who had signed the deed, and all of the people of Judea who were there that day in the court of the guard. ¹³ In the presence of all those people, I directed Baruch: ¹⁴ “The Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies and God of Israel, says: ‘Take both the sealed deed and the unsealed deed and place them in a clay jar to preserve them. I want this deed of sale to last for a long time.’ ¹⁵ For this is what the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies and the God of Israel, promises: ‘The day will come when My people will buy houses and vineyards and fields again in this land.’”

¹⁹ There was this rich man who had everything—purple clothing of fine quality and high fashion, gourmet meals every day, and a large house. ²⁰ Just outside his front gate lay this poor homeless fellow named Lazarus. Lazarus was covered in ugly skin lesions. ²¹ He was so hungry he wished he could scavenge scraps from the rich man’s trash. Dogs would come and lick the sores on his skin. ²² The poor fellow died and was carried on the arms of the heavenly messengers to the embrace of Abraham. Then the rich fellow died and was buried ²³ and found himself in the place of the dead. In his torment, he looked up, and off in the distance he saw Abraham, with Lazarus in his embrace.

²⁴ He shouted out, “Father Abraham! Please show me mercy! Would you send that beggar Lazarus to dip his fingertip in water and cool my tongue? These flames are hot, and I’m in agony!”

²⁵ But Abraham said, “Son, you seem to be forgetting something: your life was full to overflowing with comforts and pleasures, and the life of Lazarus was just as full with suffering and pain. So now is his time of comfort, and now is your time of agony. ²⁶ Besides, a great canyon separates you and us. Nobody can cross over from our side to yours, or from your side to ours.”

²⁷ “Please, Father Abraham, I beg you,” the formerly rich man continued, “send Lazarus to my father’s house. ²⁸ I have five brothers there, and they’re on the same path I was on. If Lazarus warns them, they’ll choose another path and won’t end up here in torment.”

²⁹ But Abraham said, “Why send Lazarus? They already have the law of Moses and the writings of the prophets to instruct them. Let your brothers hear them.”

³⁰ “No, Father Abraham,” he said, “they’re already ignoring the law and the prophets. But if someone came back from the dead, then they’d listen for sure; then they’d change their way of life.”

³¹ Abraham answered, “If they’re not listening to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be convinced even if someone comes back from the dead.”