Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Prayer to Bring Israel Back
For the director of music. To the tune of “Lilies of the Agreement.” A psalm of Asaph.
80 Shepherd of Israel, listen to us.
You lead the people of Joseph like a flock.
You sit on your throne between the gold creatures with wings.
Show your greatness 2 to the people of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Use your strength,
and come to save us.
3 God, take us back.
Show us your kindness so we can be saved.
4 Lord God All-Powerful,
how long will you be angry
at the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed your people with tears;
you have made them drink many tears.
6 You made those around us fight over us,
and our enemies make fun of us.
7 God All-Powerful, take us back.
Show us your kindness so we can be saved.
8 You brought us out of Egypt as if we were a vine.
You forced out other nations and planted us in the land.
9 You cleared the ground for us.
Like a vine, we took root and filled the land.
10 We covered the mountains with our shade.
We had limbs like the mighty cedar tree.
11 Our branches reached the Mediterranean Sea,
and our shoots went to the Euphrates River.
12 So why did you pull down our walls?
Now everyone who passes by steals from us.
13 Like wild pigs they walk over us;
like wild animals they feed on us.
14 God All-Powerful, come back.
Look down from heaven and see.
Take care of us, your vine.
15 You planted this shoot with your own hands
and strengthened this child.
16 Now it is cut down and burned with fire;
you destroyed us by your angry looks.
17 With your hand,
strengthen the one you have chosen for yourself.
18 Then we will not turn away from you.
Give us life again, and we will call to you for help.
19 Lord God All-Powerful, take us back.
Show us your kindness so we can be saved.
Hard Times Are Coming
9 You women who are calm now,
stand up and listen to me.
You women who feel safe now,
hear what I say.
10 You women feel safe now,
but after one year you will be afraid.
There will be no grape harvest
and no summer fruit to gather.
11 Women, you are calm now, but you should shake with fear.
Women, you feel safe now, but you should tremble.
Take off your nice clothes
and put rough cloth around your waist to show your sadness.
12 Beat your breasts in grief, because the fields that were pleasant are now empty.
Cry, because the vines that once had fruit now have no more grapes.
13 Cry for the land of my people,
in which only thorns and weeds now grow.
Cry for the city that once was happy
and for all the houses that once were filled with joy.
14 The palace will be empty;
people will leave the noisy city.
Strong cities and towers will be empty.
Wild donkeys will love to live there, and sheep will go there to eat.
Things Will Get Better
15 This will continue until God pours his Spirit from above upon us.
Then the desert will be like a fertile field
and the fertile field like a forest.
16 Justice will be found even in the desert,
and fairness will be found in the fertile fields.
17 That fairness will bring peace,
and it will bring calm and safety forever.
18 My people will live in peaceful places
and in safe homes
and in calm places of rest.
19 Hail will destroy the forest,
and the city will be completely destroyed.
20 But you will be happy as you plant seeds near every stream
and as you let your cattle and donkeys wander freely.
17 But the wisdom that comes from God is first of all pure, then peaceful, gentle, and easy to please. This wisdom is always ready to help those who are troubled and to do good for others. It is always fair and honest. 18 People who work for peace in a peaceful way plant a good crop of right-living.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.