Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Former Deliverances and Present Troubles.
For the choir director. A [a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.
44 O God, we have heard with our ears,
Our (A)fathers have told us
The (B)work that You did in their days,
In the (C)days of old.
2 You with Your own hand (D)drove out the nations;
Then You (E)planted them;
You (F)afflicted the peoples,
Then You (G)spread them abroad.
3 For by their own sword they (H)did not possess the land,
And their own arm did not save them,
But Your right hand and Your (I)arm and the (J)light of Your presence,
For You (K)favored them.
4 You are (L)my King, O God;
(M)Command [b]victories for Jacob.
5 Through You we will (N)push back our adversaries;
Through Your name we will (O)trample down those who rise up against us.
6 For I will (P)not trust in my bow,
Nor will my sword save me.
7 But You (Q)have saved us from our adversaries,
And You have (R)put to shame those who hate us.
8 In God we have (S)boasted all day long,
And we will (T)give thanks to Your name forever. [c]Selah.
9 Yet You (U)have rejected us and brought us to (V)dishonor,
And (W)do not go out with our armies.
10 You cause us to (X)turn back from the adversary;
And those who hate us (Y)have taken spoil for themselves.
11 You give us as (Z)sheep [d]to be eaten
And have (AA)scattered us among the nations.
12 You (AB)sell Your people [e]cheaply,
And have not [f]profited by their sale.
13 You make us a (AC)reproach to our neighbors,
A scoffing and a (AD)derision to those around us.
14 You make us (AE)a byword among the nations,
A [g](AF)laughingstock among the peoples.
15 All day long my dishonor is before me
And [h]my (AG)humiliation has overwhelmed me,
16 Because of the voice of him who (AH)reproaches and reviles,
Because of the presence of the (AI)enemy and the avenger.
17 All this has come upon us, but we have (AJ)not forgotten You,
And we have not (AK)dealt falsely with Your covenant.
18 Our heart has not (AL)turned back,
And our steps (AM)have not deviated from Your way,
19 Yet You have (AN)crushed us in a place of (AO)jackals
And covered us with (AP)the shadow of death.
20 If we had (AQ)forgotten the name of our God
Or extended our [i]hands to (AR)a strange god,
21 Would not God (AS)find this out?
For He knows the secrets of the heart.
22 But (AT)for Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are considered as (AU)sheep to be slaughtered.
23 (AV)Arouse Yourself, why (AW)do You sleep, O Lord?
Awake, (AX)do not reject us forever.
24 Why do You (AY)hide Your face
And (AZ)forget our affliction and our oppression?
25 For our (BA)soul has sunk down into the dust;
Our body cleaves to the earth.
26 (BB)Rise up, be our help,
And (BC)redeem us for the sake of Your lovingkindness.
11 Also, O Judah, there is a (A)harvest appointed for you,
When I (B)restore the fortunes of My people.
Ephraim’s Iniquity
7 When I (C)would heal Israel,
The iniquity of Ephraim is uncovered,
And the evil deeds of Samaria,
For they deal (D)falsely;
The thief enters in,
(E)Bandits raid outside,
2 And they do not [a]consider in their hearts
That I (F)remember all their wickedness.
Now their (G)deeds are all around them;
They are before My face.
3 (H)With their wickedness they make the (I)king glad,
And the princes with their (J)lies.
4 They are (K)all adulterers,
Like an oven heated by the baker
Who ceases to stir up the fire
From the kneading of the dough until it is leavened.
5 On the [b]day of our king, the princes (L)became sick with the heat of wine;
He stretched out his hand with (M)scoffers,
6 For their hearts are like an (N)oven
As they approach their [c]plotting;
Their [d]anger [e]smolders all night,
In the morning it burns like a flaming fire.
7 All of them are hot like an oven,
And they consume their (O)rulers;
All their kings have fallen.
(P)None of them calls on Me.
8 Ephraim (Q)mixes himself with the [f]nations;
Ephraim has become a cake not turned.
9 (R)Strangers devour his strength,
Yet he (S)does not know it;
Gray hairs also are sprinkled on him,
Yet he does not know it.
10 Though the (T)pride of Israel testifies against him,
Yet (U)they have not returned to the Lord their God,
Nor have they sought Him, for all this.
11 So (V)Ephraim has become like a silly dove, (W)without [g]sense;
They call to (X)Egypt, they go to (Y)Assyria.
12 When they go, I will (Z)spread My net over them;
I will bring them down like the birds of the sky.
I will (AA)chastise them in accordance with the [h]proclamation to their assembly.
13 (AB)Woe to them, for they have (AC)strayed from Me!
Destruction is theirs, for they have rebelled against Me!
I (AD)would redeem them, but they speak lies against Me.
14 And (AE)they do not cry to Me from their heart
When they wail on their beds;
For the sake of grain and new wine they [i](AF)assemble themselves,
They (AG)turn away from Me.
15 Although I trained and strengthened their arms,
Yet they (AH)devise evil against Me.
16 They turn, but not [j]upward,
They are like a (AI)deceitful bow;
Their princes will fall by the sword
Because of the [k](AJ)insolence of their tongue.
This will be their (AK)derision in the land of Egypt.
43 “(A)You have heard that it was said, ‘(B)You shall love your neighbor (C)and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, (D)love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may [a]be (E)sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 For (F)if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 Therefore [b](G)you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
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