Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

¹³⁷ You are right and good, O Lord, and Your Law is right. ¹³⁸ The Law You have made is right and good and very faithful. ¹³⁹ I feel weak because those who hate me have forgotten Your Word. ¹⁴⁰ Your Word is very pure and Your servant loves it. ¹⁴¹ I am not important and I am hated but I do not forget Your Law. ¹⁴² You are right forever, and Your Law is truth. ¹⁴³ Trouble and suffering have come upon me, yet Your Word is my joy. ¹⁴⁴ Your Law is right forever. Give me understanding and I will live.

¹⁴ ‘See, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘when I will do what I promised to the people of Israel and the people of Judah. ¹⁵ In those days and at that time I will cause a right and good Branch of David to rise up. And He will do what is fair and right and good on the earth. ¹⁶ In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will be safe. And this is the name it will be called: The Lord makes us right and good.’ ¹⁷ For the Lord says, ‘David will never be without a man to sit on the throne of the people of Israel. ¹⁸ And the Levite religious leaders will never be without a man before Me to give burnt gifts, to burn grain gifts, and to make gifts ready on the altar all the time.’”

¹⁹ The Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁰ “This is what the Lord says: ‘If you can break My agreement with the day and night, so that day and night will not come at their set time, ²¹ then My agreement may also be broken with David My servant, that he will not have a son to rule on his throne. And then My agreement may be broken with My servants, the Levite religious leaders. ²² The stars of heaven cannot be numbered, and the sand of the sea cannot be weighed. In the same way I will make the children of David My servant many, as well as the Levites who serve Me.’”

²³ The Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁴ “Have you not heard what these people are saying? They say, ‘The Lord has turned away from the two families He had chosen.’ So they hate My people. They are no longer a nation in their eyes. ²⁵ This is what the Lord says: ‘If I do not keep My agreement with day and night and the laws of heaven and earth, ²⁶ then I will turn away from the children of Jacob and David My servant. Then I will not choose one of his children to rule over the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will bring them back to their land and will have loving-pity on them.’”

1 This letter is from Paul. I have been chosen by God to be a missionary for Jesus Christ. Timothy is here with me and is writing to you also. We are writing to God’s church in the city of Corinth and to all of God’s people in the country of Greece. ² May you have loving-favor and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

³ We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is our Father Who shows us loving-kindness and our God Who gives us comfort. ⁴ He gives us comfort in all our troubles. Then we can comfort other people who have the same troubles. We give the same kind of comfort God gives us. ⁵ As we have suffered much for Christ and have shared in His pain, we also share His great comfort.

⁶ But if we are in trouble, it is for your good. And it is so you will be saved from the punishment of sin. If God comforts us, it is for your good also. You too will be given strength not to give up when you have the same kind of trouble we have. ⁷ Our hope for you is the same all the time. We know you are sharing our troubles. And so you will share the comfort we receive.

⁸ We want you to know, Christian brothers, of the trouble we had in the countries of Asia. The load was so heavy we did not have the strength to keep going. At times we did not think we could live. ⁹ We thought we would die. This happened so we would not put our trust in ourselves, but in God Who raises the dead. ¹⁰ Yes, God kept us from what looked like sure death and He is keeping us. As we trust Him, He will keep us in the future. ¹¹ You also help us by praying for us. Many people thank God for His favor to us. This is an answer to the prayers of many people.