Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Lord Exalted for His Goodness.
A Psalm of Praise, of David.
145 I will (A)exalt You, (B)my God, the King,
And I will (C)bless Your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless You,
And I will (D)praise Your name forever and ever.
3 (E)Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised;
And His (F)greatness is unsearchable.
4 One (G)generation will praise Your works to another,
And will declare Your mighty acts.
5 On the (H)glorious [a]splendor of Your majesty
And (I)on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.
6 People will speak of the [b]power of Your (J)awesome acts,
And I will (K)tell of Your greatness.
7 They will burst forth [c]in speaking of Your (L)abundant goodness,
And will (M)shout joyfully of Your righteousness.
8 The Lord is (N)gracious and compassionate;
Slow to anger and great in mercy.
9 The Lord is (O)good to all,
And His (P)mercies are over all His works.
10 (Q)All Your works will give thanks to You, Lord,
And Your (R)godly ones will bless You.
11 They will speak of the (S)glory of Your kingdom,
And talk of Your might,
12 To (T)make known to the sons of mankind [d]Your mighty acts,
And the (U)glory of the majesty of [e]Your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is [f]an (V)everlasting kingdom,
And Your dominion endures throughout all generations.
[g]The Lord is faithful in His words,
And holy in all His works.
14 The Lord (W)supports all who fall,
And (X)raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all [h]look to You,
And You (Y)give them their food in due time.
16 You (Z)open Your hand
And satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is (AA)righteous in all His ways,
And kind in all His works.
18 The Lord is (AB)near to all who call on Him,
To all who call on Him (AC)in truth.
19 He will (AD)fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He will also (AE)hear their cry for help and save them.
20 The Lord (AF)watches over all who love Him,
But He will destroy all the (AG)wicked.
21 My (AH)mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
And (AI)all flesh will (AJ)bless His holy name forever and ever.
The Fertility of Zion
54 “(A)Shout for joy, infertile one, you who have not given birth to any child;
Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor;
For the sons of the (B)desolate one will be (C)more numerous
Than the sons of the married woman,” says the Lord.
2 “(D)Enlarge the place of your tent;
[a]Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, do not spare them;
Lengthen your (E)ropes
And strengthen your (F)pegs.
3 For you will (G)spread out to the right and to the left.
And your [b]descendants will (H)possess nations
And will (I)resettle the desolate cities.
4 “Fear not, for you will (J)not be put to shame;
And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced;
But you will forget the (K)shame of your youth,
And no longer remember the (L)disgrace of your widowhood.
5 For your (M)husband is your Maker,
Whose name is the Lord of armies;
And your (N)Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
Who is called the (O)God of all the earth.
6 For the Lord has called you,
Like a wife (P)forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,”
Says your God.
7 “[c]For a (Q)brief moment I abandoned you,
But with great compassion I will (R)gather you.
8 In an [d](S)outburst of anger
I hid My face from you for a moment,
But with everlasting (T)favor I will (U)have compassion on you,”
Says the Lord your (V)Redeemer.
9 [a](A)Love must be free of hypocrisy. (B)Detest what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be (C)devoted to one another in brotherly love; [b]give preference to one another (D)in honor, 11 not lagging behind in diligence, (E)fervent in spirit, (F)serving the Lord; 12 (G)rejoicing in hope, (H)persevering in tribulation, (I)devoted to prayer, 13 (J)contributing to the needs of the [c]saints, [d](K)practicing hospitality.
14 (L)Bless those who persecute [e]you; bless and do not curse. 15 (M)Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 (N)Be of the same mind toward one another; (O)do not be [f]haughty in mind, but [g]associate with the lowly. (P)Do not be wise in your own estimation. 17 (Q)Never repay evil for evil to anyone. [h](R)Respect what is right in the sight of all people. 18 If possible, (S)so far as it depends on you, (T)be at peace with all people. 19 (U)Never take your own revenge, beloved, but [i]leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written: “(V)Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 “(W)But if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
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