Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Call to Praise the Lord
A psalm of thanks.
100 Shout to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Serve the Lord with joy;
come before him with singing.
3 Know that the Lord is God.
He made us [Gen. 1–2], and ·we belong to him [or not ourselves];
we are his people, the sheep ·he tends [L of his pasture; 74:1; 79:13; John 10:11–14].
4 Come into his ·city [L gates] with songs of thanksgiving
and into his courtyards with songs of praise.
·Thank [Praise] him and ·praise [bless] his name.
5 The Lord is good. His ·love [loyalty] is forever,
and his ·loyalty [faithfulness] ·goes on and on [L for all generations].
17 “‘This is what the Lord God says: As for you, my flock, I will judge between one sheep and another, between the ·male sheep [rams] and the male goats [Matt. 25:32–33]. 18 Is it not enough for you to eat grass in the good ·land [pasture]? Must you ·crush [trample] the rest of the grass with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you make the rest of the water muddy with your feet? 19 Must my flock eat what you ·crush [trample], and must they drink what you make muddy with your feet?
20 “‘So this is what the Lord God says to them: [L Look; T Behold] I, myself, will judge between the fat sheep and the thin sheep. 21 You push with your side and with your shoulder, and you ·knock down [butt; thrust at] all the weak sheep with your horns until you have ·forced them away [or scattered them abroad]. 22 So I will save my flock; they will ·not be hurt anymore [L no longer be prey]. I will judge between one sheep and another. 23 Then I will put over them one shepherd, my servant David [Is. 11:1; Jer. 30:9; Hos. 3:5; Mic. 5:2; C the Messiah envisioned as a new David]. He will feed them and tend them and be their shepherd.
The Flock of God
5 ·Now [L Therefore] I ·have something to say to [exhort; appeal to] the elders in your group. I also am an elder. I ·have seen [was a witness to] ·Christ’s [or the Messiah’s] sufferings [Matt. 16:13–23; Mark 8:27–33; Luke 9:18–22], and I will share in the glory that will be ·shown [revealed] to us. I ·beg [exhort; urge] you to 2 ·shepherd [tend] God’s flock [John 21:15–19], ·for whom you are responsible [which is under your care]. ·Watch over [Oversee] them because you want to, not because you are forced. That is how God wants it. Do it because you are ·happy [eager] to serve, not because ·you want money [of greed]. 3 Do not ·be like a ruler over people [T lord it over those; dominate those; Matt. 20:25–27; Mark 10:42–45; Luke 22:25–27] ·you are responsible for [under your care; L those allotted (to you)], but be good examples to ·them [L the flock]. 4 Then when the Chief Shepherd [C Christ] ·comes [L appears], you will get a glorious crown that will never ·lose its beauty [fade away; C crowns for athletic success made from flowers wilted quickly; 1 Cor. 9:25].
5 In the same way, younger people should be willing to ·be under [submit/be subject to] ·older people [or the elders]. And all of you should ·be very humble with each other [L clothe yourselves with humility toward one another]. [L Because:]
“God ·is against [resists; opposes] the proud,
but he gives grace to the humble [Prov. 3:34].”
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.