Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Prayer for deliverance from the treacherous.

A Song of Ascents.

¹⁸ Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was ^[a]Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. ¹⁹ And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. ²⁰ For through the anger of Jehovah did it come to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence.

And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 25 ¹ And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it; and they built forts against it round about. ² So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. ³ On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land. ⁴ Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king’s garden (now the Chaldeans were against the city round about); and the king went by the way of the Arabah. ⁵ But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. ⁶ Then they took the king, and carried him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they ^[b]gave judgment upon him. ⁷ And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon.

⁸ Now in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem. ⁹ And he burnt the house of Jehovah, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, burnt he with fire. ¹⁰ And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about. ¹¹ And the residue of the people that were left in the city, and those that fell away, that fell to the king of Babylon, and the residue of the multitude, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carry away captive. ¹² But the captain of the guard left of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen.

¹³ And the pillars of brass that were in the house of Jehovah, and the bases and the brazen sea that were in the house of Jehovah, did the Chaldeans break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon. ¹⁴ And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away. ¹⁵ And the firepans, and the basins, that which was of gold, in gold, and that which was of silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away. ¹⁶ The two pillars, the one sea, and the bases, which Solomon had made for the house of Jehovah, the brass of all these vessels was without weight. ¹⁷ The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and a capital of brass was upon it; and the height of the capital was three cubits, with network and pomegranates upon the capital round about, all of brass: and like unto these had the second pillar with network.

¹⁸ And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the threshold: ¹⁹ and out of the city he took an ^[c]officer that was set over the men of war; and five men of them that saw the king’s face, who were found in the city; and the ^[d]scribe, the captain of the host, who mustered the people of the land; and threescore men of the people of the land, that were found in the city. ²⁰ And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah. ²¹ And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away captive out of his land.

²⁰ But now hath Christ been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of them that are asleep. ²¹ For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. ²² For as in Adam all die, so also in ^[a]Christ shall all be made alive. ²³ But each in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; then they that are Christ’s, at his ^[b]coming. ²⁴ Then cometh the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to ^[c]God, even the Father; when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power. ²⁵ For he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet. ²⁶ The last enemy that shall be abolished is death. ²⁷ For, He put all things in subjection under his feet. ^[d]But when he saith, ^[e]All things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is excepted who did subject all things unto him. ²⁸ And when all things have been subjected unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subjected to him that did subject all things unto him, that God may be all in all.

²⁹ Else what shall they do that are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them? ³⁰ why do we also stand in jeopardy every hour? ³¹ I protest by ^[f]that glorying in you, brethren, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. ³² If after the manner of men I fought with beasts at Ephesus, ^[g]what doth it profit me? If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die. ³³ Be not deceived: Evil companionships corrupt good morals. ³⁴ Awake to soberness righteously, and sin not; for some have no knowledge of God: I speak this to move you to shame.