Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
This is a special song that David wrote.
He prayed this when he was in the cave.[a]
Please help me, Lord!
142 I am calling to the Lord to help me.
I ask him to be kind to me.
2 I tell him about all my problems.
I tell him about all my troubles.
3 When I do not feel brave,
you are still my guide, Lord.
In the path where I walk,
my enemies have prepared a trap to catch me.
4 Look at me!
I have no friend to help me.
There is no safe place where I can go.
Nobody thinks about me.
5 Yes Lord, I am calling to you to help me.
You are my safe place where I can hide.
You are all that I need in this world where I live.
6 Please listen to me as I cry to you.
I am very upset!
My enemies are trying to catch me.
Save me from their power!
They are stronger than I am.
7 Please take me out of this prison.[b]
Then I will praise your name.
Your own good people will see how you have helped me.
They will meet round me to praise you.
The day of the Lord
15 The day of the Lord will come soon for all the world's people.[a]
God will do to you what you did to other people.
God will be angry with you because you did those things to them.
16 You drank on my special hill.[b]
In the same way, people from all countries will drink and they will not stop.
They will drink until God has killed them.[c]
17 But on Mount Zion, people will be free.
It will be special to me.
Jacob's descendants will have the country that belongs to them.
I will give it to them.
18 The people in Jacob's and Joseph's family will kill all the people that belong to Esau's family.’
This is what the Lord said.
19 People will come from the Negev. They will come to live in the mountains of Edom.
People will come from the low hills in the west, and they will take the Philistines' country for themselves.
They will live in the fields in Ephraim and Samaria.[d]
Benjamin's people will take Gilead.
20 Some people lived in Israel,
but they now have to live with the Canaanites.
They will get the country as far as Zarephath.
Some people lived in Jerusalem, but now they have to be in Sepharad.
They will get the towns in the Negev.
21 Men will come to make Jerusalem free,
and they will rule over Edom.
And that country will belong to the Lord.[e]
Jesus explains to his disciples why he teaches with stories
10 Then Jesus' disciples came to him. They asked him, ‘Why do you use stories to speak to the crowd?’
11 Jesus replied, ‘God has let you know what these stories mean. You understand how God rules in the lives of his people. But these other people do not understand what the stories mean. 12 A person who has received some things will receive even more. He will have lots of good things. Some other people have nothing. Those people will lose even the little bit that they do have. 13 The reason I use stories to talk to other people is this:
These people look. But they do not really see clearly.
They hear the words. But they do not really understand.[a]
14 Long ago, the prophet Isaiah spoke a message from God about those people.[b] Now it has become true. God said:
“You will listen and listen. But you will not understand.
You will look and look. But you will not see anything.
15 These people do not really want to understand.
They are like people who have shut their ears.
They are like people who have shut their eyes.
If they did want to look, then they would really see.
If they did want to listen, then they would really hear.
They would understand my message.
They would turn back to obey me.
Then I would forgive them and I would make them well.” ’
16 Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘But as for you, be happy because God has helped you to see. He has helped you to hear and understand his message. 17 I tell you this: Many prophets and good people from a long time ago wanted to see these things. But they did not see the things that you are seeing. They wanted to hear the message that you are hearing. But they did not hear it.’
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