Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Hymn of Praise
117 All you nations, praise the Lord.
All you people, ·praise [extol] him
2 because ·the Lord loves us very much [L great is his loyalty/love toward us],
and his ·truth [faithfulness] is everlasting.
Praise the Lord!
Promises of Hope
30 These are the words that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah. 2 The Lord, the God of Israel, said: “Jeremiah, write in a ·book [scroll] all the words I have spoken to you. 3 The days will come when I will ·bring Israel and Judah back from captivity [restore the fortunes of my people of Israel and Judah],” says the Lord. “I will ·return [restore] them to the land I gave their ancestors, and they will ·own [possess] it!” says the Lord.
4 The Lord spoke this message about the people of Israel and Judah: 5 This is what the Lord said:
“We hear ·people crying from [L the voice/sound of] fear.
·They are afraid; there [L …and of dread, and there] is no peace.
6 Ask this question, and ·consider it [L see]:
·A man cannot [L Can a man…?] have a baby.
So why do I see every strong man
·holding his stomach in pain [L with his hands on his side/loins] like a woman ·having a baby [in labor; 13:21; 22:23; 49:24; 50:43; Is. 21:2–3; 26:16–21; 66:7–14]?
Why is everyone’s face turning white [C like a dead or frightened person’s face]?
7 This will be a ·terrible [L great] day!
There will never be another time like this.
This is a time of ·great trouble [distress] for the people of Jacob,
but they will be ·saved [rescued] from it.”
8 The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says, “·At that time [L In that day]
I will break the yoke from ·their [or your] necks
and ·tear [snap] off the ropes that hold ·them [or you].
·Foreign people [L Strangers] will never again make my people slaves.
9 They will serve the Lord their God
and David their king,
whom I will ·send to [L raise up for] them.
10 “So people of Jacob, my servants, don’t be afraid.
Israel, don’t be ·frightened [terrified],” says the Lord.
“I will soon ·save [rescue] you from that faraway place.
I will ·save [rescue] your ·family [L seed] from that land of your captivity.
The people of Jacob will be at rest again;
no one will frighten them.
11 I am with you and will ·save [rescue] you,”
says the Lord.
“I will ·completely destroy [bring to an end] all those nations
where I scattered you,
but I will not ·completely destroy you [bring you to an end].
I will ·punish [discipline] you ·fairly [with justice],
but I will ·still punish you [L not leave you unpunished; 46:27–28].”
12 This is what the Lord said:
“Your wound cannot be cured;
your injury will not heal [8:22; 10:19; Mic. 1:9; Nah. 3:19].
13 There is no one to ·argue your case [uphold your cause]
and no ·cure [medicine] for your sores.
So you will not be healed.
14 All your lovers [C allied nations] have forgotten you.
They don’t ·care about [L seek] you.
I have ·hurt you [struck you a blow] as an enemy would.
I ·punished [disciplined] you ·very hard [harshly],
because your ·guilt [iniquity] was so great
and your sins were so many.
15 Why are you crying out about your injury?
There is no cure for your pain.
I did these things to you because of your great ·guilt [iniquity],
because of your many sins.
16 But all those ·nations that destroyed you will now be destroyed [L who consumed/devoured you will be consumed/devoured].
All your ·enemies [foes] will become ·captives in other lands [exiles].
Those who ·stole from [L plunder] you will ·have their own things stolen [L be plundered].
Those who took things from you in war will have their own things taken.
17 I will bring back your health
and heal your injuries,” says the Lord,
“because ·other people forced you away [L they called you ‘driven out’/‘an outcast’].
They said about you, ‘No one ·cares about [L seeks] ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple]!’”
5 The One who was sitting on the throne [C Jesus] said, “Look! I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this, because these words are ·true and can be trusted [L faithful/reliable and true].”
6 The One on the throne said to me, “It is ·finished [done; accomplished]. I am the Alpha and the Omega [C the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet; 1:8], the Beginning and the End. I will give ·free water [L freely] from the spring of the water of life to anyone who is thirsty [Is. 55:1; John 7:37]. 7 Those who ·win the victory [conquer] will ·receive [inherit] ·this [L these things; C God’s promise], and I will be their God, and they will be my children [21:3; 2 Sam. 7:14]. 8 But cowards, those ·who refuse to believe [without faith], who do ·evil [vile; detestable] things, who kill, who sin sexually, who do ·evil magic [sorcery], who worship idols, and who tell lies—all these will have ·a place [L their part] in the lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death [20:6].”
9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last ·troubles [plagues] came to me, saying, “·Come with me [L Come], and I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb [C the church; Eph. 5:27–29].” 10 And the angel carried me away ·by the Spirit [or in the spirit] to a very large and high mountain. He showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. 11 It ·was shining with [possessed; L had] the glory of God and was ·bright [radiant; brilliant] like a ·very expensive jewel [precious stone], like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 The city had a great high wall with twelve gates with twelve angels at the gates, and on each gate was written the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. 13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south, and three on the west [Ezek. 48:30–35]. 14 The walls of the city were built on twelve foundation stones, and on the stones were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod made of gold to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 16 The city ·was built in a square [L lies foursquare], and its length was equal to its width. The angel measured the city with the rod. The city was ·1,500 miles long, 1,500 miles wide, and 1,500 miles high [L 1,200 stadia—its length and width and height are equal; C the unit of measure called a stadium was approximately 600 feet]. 17 The angel also measured the wall. It was ·216 feet [L 144 cubits] ·high [or thick; C the Greek is ambiguous], by human measurements, which the angel was using. 18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city was made of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundation stones of the city walls were ·decorated [ornamented] with every kind of ·jewel [precious stone; Ex. 28:15–21; Is. 54:11–12]. The first foundation was jasper, the second was sapphire, the third was ·chalcedony [agate], the fourth was emerald, 20 the fifth was ·onyx [sardonyx], the sixth was carnelian, the seventh was ·chrysolite [yellow quartz], the eighth was beryl, the ninth was topaz, the tenth was ·chrysoprase [turquoise], the eleventh was jacinth, and the twelfth was amethyst [C the specific identity of some of these jewels is uncertain]. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate having been made from a single pearl. And the ·street [main street; square] of the city was made of pure gold as clear as glass.
22 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God ·Almighty [All-powerful] and the Lamb are the city’s temple [C a temple representing the presence of God is not needed because God’s presence is throughout the city]. 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God ·is its [gives it] light, and the Lamb is the city’s lamp [Is. 60:19]. 24 By its light the ·people of the world [nations] will walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it [Is. 60:1–3]. 25 The city’s gates will never be shut on any day [Is. 60:11], because there is no night there. 26 The glory and the honor of the nations will be brought into it [C as gifts to God]. 27 Nothing ·unclean [impure; profane; common] and no one who does ·shameful [detestable; abominable] things or tells lies will ever go into it. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s ·book [scroll] of life [3:5] will enter the city.
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