Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
49 Remember your promise to me, your servant;
it gives me hope.
50 When I suffer, this comforts me:
Your promise gives me life.
51 ·Proud [Arrogant] people always ·make fun of [mock] me,
but I do not ·reject [stray from] your ·teachings [instructions; laws].
52 I remember your ·laws [judgments] from long ago,
and they comfort me, Lord.
53 ·I become angry with wicked people [L Indignation seizes me because of the wicked]
who ·do not keep [abandon; forsake] your ·teachings [instructions; laws].
54 I sing about your ·demands [statutes; ordinances; requirements]
·wherever I live [L in the house of my dwelling].
55 Lord, I remember ·you [L your name] at night,
and I will ·obey [keep; guard] your ·teachings [instructions; laws].
56 This is what I do:
I ·follow [protect] your ·orders [precepts].
36 “You are saying, ‘Because of ·war [L sword], ·hunger [famine], and ·terrible diseases [plague; pestilence], the city will be handed over to the king of Babylon.’ But the Lord, the God of Israel, says about this city [C Jerusalem]: 37 I ·forced them [drove them out] from their land, because I was furious and very angry with them. But soon I will gather them from all the lands where I ·forced them to go [drove them out], and I will ·bring them back [restore them] to this place, where they may live in ·safety [confidence]. 38 They [C people of Israel and Judah] will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 I will ·make them truly want to be one people with one goal [L give them one heart and one way/path]. They will truly want to ·worship [L fear] me all their ·lives [L days], for their own good and for the good of their children after them.
40 “I will ·make [L cut] an ·agreement with them that will last forever [L eternal covenant with them; 31:31–34; Is. 55:3; 61:8; Ezek. 16:60; 37:27]. I will never turn away from them; I will always do good to them. I will ·make them want to respect me [L place my fear in their hearts] so they will never ·turn away [depart] from me. 41 I will enjoy doing good to them. And with ·my whole being [L all my heart and all my soul] I will ·surely [L in faithfulness] plant them in this land.”
42 This is what the Lord says: “I have brought this great ·disaster [harm; trouble] to this people [C the people of Israel and Judah]. In the same way I will bring the good things that I promise to do for them. 43 You are saying, ‘This land is an ·empty desert [desolation], without people or animals. It has been handed over to the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans].’ But in the future, people will again buy fields in this land. 44 They will use their ·money [silver] to buy fields. They will ·sign [L write] and seal their ·agreements [scrolls] and call in witnesses. They will again buy fields in the land of Benjamin, in the area around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the mountains, in the ·western hills [L Shephelah], and in ·southern Judah [L the Negev]. I will ·make everything as good for them as it once was [restore their fortunes],” says the Lord.
A Warning to the Rich
5 You rich people, ·listen [L Come now; 4:13]! Cry [Weep] and be very sad because of the ·troubles [miseries] that are coming to you. 2 Your riches have rotted, and your clothes have been eaten by moths. 3 Your gold and silver have ·rusted [corroded], and that ·rust [corrosion] will be a ·proof that you were wrong [L witness/testimony/evidence against you]. It will eat your ·bodies [flesh] like fire. You ·saved [hoarded; stored up] your treasure ·for [or in] the last days [C just before judgment day, when such treasures will be useless]. 4 [L Listen; T Behold] The ·pay [wages] you ·did not give [defrauded from] the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you [Lev. 19:13; Deut. 24:14–15], and the cries of the ·workers [L harvesters] have ·been heard by [L reached the ears of] the Lord ·All-Powerful [of Hosts/Armies; L Sabaoth; C God’s warrior name referring to the angelic army]. 5 Your life on earth was full of ·rich living [luxury] and ·pleasing yourselves with everything you wanted [pleasure; self-indulgence]. You made ·yourselves [L your hearts] fat, ·like an animal ready to be killed [in/for a day of slaughter; C a farm animal gorging itself, unaware it is being fattened for slaughter]. 6 You have ·judged guilty [condemned] and then murdered innocent people, who ·were not against [did not resist/oppose] you.
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