Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
In Praise of the Temple
A song ·for going up to worship [of ascents; C perhaps sung while traveling to Jerusalem to celebrate an annual religious festival like Passover].
132 Lord, remember David
and all his ·suffering [afflictions].
2 He ·made an oath [swore] to the Lord,
a ·promise [vow] to the Mighty God of Jacob [Gen. 49:24].
3 He said, “I will not ·go home to my house [L enter into the tent of my house],
or ·lie down on my bed [L go up to the couch of my bed],
4 or ·close [L give sleep to] my eyes,
or ·let myself sleep [L slumber to my pupils]
5 until I find a place for the Lord.
I want to provide a home for the Mighty God of Jacob [Gen. 49:24].”
6 We heard about it [C the Ark] in ·Bethlehem [L Ephrathah].
We found it in the fields of Jearim [C Kiriath Jearim; 1 Sam 6:21—7:2].
7 Let’s go to ·the Lord’s house [L his dwelling].
Let’s worship at his footstool [C the Ark].
8 Rise, Lord, and come to your resting place;
come with the Ark that shows your strength.
9 May your priests ·do what is right [L be clothed with righteousness].
May your ·people [saints; loyal ones] sing for joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David,
do not ·reject [L turn from the face of] your ·appointed [anointed] king.
11 The Lord ·made a promise [swore] to David,
a sure promise that he will not take back [2 Sam. 7:12–16, 28].
He promised, “I will ·make one of your descendants
rule as king after you [L set on your throne from the fruit of your womb; Acts 2:30].
12 If your sons ·keep [observe; guard] my ·agreement [covenant; treaty]
and the ·rules [decrees; testimonies] that I teach them,
then their sons after them will ·rule [L sit]
on your throne forever and ever.”
13 The Lord has chosen ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple];
he ·wants [desires] it for his home.
14 He says, “This is my resting place forever.
Here is where I ·want to stay [L will sit/reside because I desire it].
15 I will bless her with ·plenty [provisions];
I will ·fill [satisfy] her poor with ·food [bread].
16 I will ·cover [L clothe] her priests with ·salvation [victory],
and ·those who worship me [L her saints/loyal ones] will really sing for joy.
17 “I will ·make a king come from the family of [L cause a horn to sprout up for; C an animal’s horn symbolizes strength] David [Luke 1:69–70].
I will ·provide my appointed one descendants to rule after him [L prepare a lamp for my anointed king; 2 Sam. 21:17].
18 I will ·cover [L clothe] his enemies with shame,
but his crown will shine.”
The People Hear the Agreement(A)
23 Then the king ·gathered [summoned] all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem together. 2 He went up to the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord, and all the people from Judah and Jerusalem went with him. The priests, prophets, and all the people—·from the least important to the most important [both small/low and great/high]—went with him. He read to them all the words of the Book of the ·Agreement [Treaty; Covenant] that was found in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. 3 The king stood by the pillar and made an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] ·in the presence of [before] the Lord to follow the Lord and obey his commands, rules, and laws with his whole being, and to obey the words of the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] written in this ·book [scroll]. Then all the people ·promised to obey [pledged themselves to; entered into] the ·agreement [covenant; treaty].
Josiah Destroys the Places for Idol Worship
4 The king commanded Hilkiah the high priest and the priests of the ·next rank [second order] and the ·gatekeepers [doorkeepers] to bring out of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord ·everything [all the vessels/articles] made for Baal, Asherah, and all the ·stars of the sky [powers/hosts of heaven]. Then Josiah burned them outside Jerusalem in the ·open country [fields; terraces] of the Kidron Valley and carried their ashes to Bethel. 5 The kings of Judah had ·chosen [appointed] priests for these gods. These priests burned incense in the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3] in the cities of Judah and the ·towns [area] around Jerusalem. They burned incense to Baal, the sun, the moon, the ·planets [constellations], and all the ·stars of the sky [hosts/powers of heaven]. But Josiah ·took those priests away [did away with/or exterminated those priests]. 6 He removed the Asherah ·idol [pole; C a sacred tree or pole dedicated to the goddess Asherah; 13:6] from the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord and took it outside Jerusalem to the Kidron Valley, where he burned it and ·beat [ground] it into dust. Then he threw the dust on the graves of the common people. 7 He also tore down the houses of the male prostitutes [1 Kin. 14:24] who were in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord, where the women ·did weaving [wove hangings/coverings/veils] for Asherah.
8 King Josiah brought all the false priests from the cities of Judah. He ·ruined [desecrated; defiled] the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3], where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba. He destroyed the ·places of worship [L high places; 12:3] at the entrance to the Gate of Joshua, the ·ruler [governor] of the city, on the left side of the city gate. 9 The priests at the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3] were not allowed to ·serve [officiate; L go up] at the Lord’s altar in Jerusalem. But they could eat ·bread made without yeast [unleaven bread] with their ·brothers [fellow priests].
10 Josiah ·ruined [desecrated; defiled] Topheth, in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, so no one could ·sacrifice [L pass through the fire] his son or daughter to Molech. 11 Judah’s kings had ·placed [dedicated] horses to the sun at the front door of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord in the courtyard near the room of Nathan-Melech, an ·officer [official]. Josiah removed them and burned the chariots that were ·for sun worship also [dedicated to the sun].
12 The kings of Judah had built altars on the ·roof [C roofs were flat and served as an extra room] of the ·upstairs [upper] room of Ahaz. Josiah ·broke down [destroyed] these altars and the altars Manasseh had made in the two courtyards of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. Josiah smashed them to pieces and threw their ·dust [rubble] into the Kidron Valley. 13 King Josiah ·ruined [desecrated; defiled] the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3] east of Jerusalem, south of the Mount of ·Olives [or Corruption; or Destruction; C so called because of the pagan sites]. Solomon king of Israel had built these places. One was for Ashtoreth, the ·hated goddess [detestable thing; T abomination] of the Sidonians. One was for Chemosh, the ·hated god [detestable thing; T abomination] of Moab. And one was for Molech, the ·hated god [detestable thing; T abomination] of the Ammonites. 14 Josiah smashed to pieces the ·stone [sacred] pillars they worshiped, and he cut down the Asherah ·idols [poles; C a sacred tree or pole dedicated to the goddess Asherah; 13:6]. Then he covered the places with human bones.
The One Who Comes from Heaven
31 “The One [C Jesus] who comes from above is ·greater than [L above] all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and talks about ·things on the earth [earthly matters]. But the One who comes from heaven is ·greater than [L above] all. 32 He ·tells [testifies to; bears witness to] what he has seen and heard, but no one ·accepts [receives] ·what he says [his testimony; 3:11]. 33 Whoever ·accepts what he says [receives his testimony] has ·proven [certified; affirmed; L set his seal] that God is true. 34 [L For] The One whom God sent speaks the words of God, because God gives him the Spirit ·fully [L without measure/limit]. 35 The Father loves the Son and has given ·him power over everything [him authority over all; L all things into his hand]. 36 Those who believe in the Son have eternal life, but those who ·do not obey [reject] the Son will ·never have [L not see] life. God’s ·anger [wrath] ·stays [remains] on them.”
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