Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Let All Creation Praise Yahweh

⁸ And you, son of man,^[a] hear what I am speaking to you: you must not be rebellious like the house of rebellion. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving to you.” ⁹ And I looked,^[b] and look! There was a hand stretched out to me, and look! In it was a scroll with writing.^{[c] 10} And he rolled it out^[d] before me,^[e] and it was written on the front and back, and there were written on it laments and mourning and wailing.^[f]

3 And he said to me, “Son of man,^[g] what you find, eat! Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” ² And I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat, ³ and he said to me, “Son of man,^[h] you must give your stomach this to eat, and you must fill your belly with this scroll that I am giving to you.” And I ate, and it became like sweet honey^[i] in my mouth. ⁴ And he said to me, “Son of man,^[j] come! Go to the house of Israel, and you must speak to them with my words. ⁵ For you are sent to the house of Israel, not to a people of obscure speech^[k] and of a difficult language,^{[l] 6} and not to many nations of obscure speech^[m] and a difficult language^[n] whose words^[o] you do not understand, for if I had sent you to them they would have listened to you. ⁷ And the house of Israel, they are not willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me, for all of the house of Israel is hard of forehead, and they are hard of heart. ⁸ But look, I have made^[p] your face hard against^[q] their faces and your forehead hard against^[r] their forehead. ⁹ Like a diamond harder than flint^[s] I have made your forehead; you must not fear them, and you must not be dismayed on account of them,^[t] for they are a rebellious house.^{[u] 10} And he said to me, “Son of man,^[v] all of my words that I shall speak to you, receive into^[w] your heart and hear with your ears. ¹¹ And come, go to the exiles,^[x] to the children^[y] of your people, and you must speak to them, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh!’ whether they listen or whether they fail to listen.”

The Angel and the Little Scroll

10 And I saw another powerful angel descending from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, and a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire,^{[a] 2} and holding in his hand a little scroll that was opened. And he put his right foot on the sea and his^[b] left on the land. ³ And he cried out with a loud voice like a lion roars, and when he cried out, the seven thunders sounded^[c] their own voices. ⁴ And when the seven thunders spoke,^[d] I was about to write, and I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up the things which the seven thunders spoke, and do not write them!”

⁵ And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven ⁶ and swore by the one who lives forever and ever^[e], who created heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, “There will be no more delay! ⁷ But in the days of the sound of the seventh angel, whenever he is about to blow the trumpet, then^[f] the mystery of God is completed, as he announced to his own slaves the prophets.”

⁸ And the voice that I had heard from heaven was speaking with me again and saying, “Go, take the opened scroll in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” ⁹ And I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll, and he said to me, “Take and eat it up, and it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” ¹⁰ And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it up, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth, and when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. ¹¹ And they said to me, “It is necessary for you to prophesy again about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”