Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
God’s Perfect Knowledge of Man
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
139 O Lord, (A)You have searched me and known me.
2 (B)You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You (C)understand my thought afar off.
3 (D)You [a]comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, (E)You know it altogether.
5 You have [b]hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 (F)Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.
13 For You formed my inward parts;
You [a]covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for [b]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
15 (A)My [c]frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.
17 (B)How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.
God Will Restore Israel(A)
14 “Therefore behold, the (B)days are coming,” says the Lord, “that it shall no more be said, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ 15 but, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the (C)north and from all the lands where He had driven them.’ For (D)I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.
16 “Behold, I will send for many (E)fishermen,” says the Lord, “and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. 17 For My (F)eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity hidden from My eyes. 18 And first I will repay (G)double for their iniquity and their sin, because (H)they have defiled My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable and abominable idols.”
19 O Lord, (I)my strength and my fortress,
(J)My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and (K)unprofitable things.”
20 Will a man make gods for himself,
(L)Which are not gods?
21 “Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know,
I will cause them to know
My hand and My might;
And they shall know that (M)My name is the Lord.
Judah’s Sin and Punishment
17 “The sin of Judah is (N)written with a (O)pen of iron;
With the point of a diamond it is (P)engraved
On the tablet of their heart,
And on the horns of your altars,
2 While their children remember
Their altars and their (Q)wooden[a] images
By the green trees on the high hills.
3 O My mountain in the field,
I will give as plunder your wealth, all your treasures,
And your high places of sin within all your borders.
4 And you, even yourself,
Shall let go of your heritage which I gave you;
And I will cause you to serve your enemies
In (R)the land which you do not know;
For (S)you have kindled a fire in My anger which shall burn forever.”
Final Greetings(A)
7 (B)Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me. 8 (C)I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that [a]he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts, 9 with (D)Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you all things which are happening here.
10 (E)Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, with (F)Mark the cousin of Barnabas (about whom you received instructions: if he comes to you, welcome him), 11 and Jesus who is called Justus. These are my only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are of the circumcision; they have proved to be a comfort to me.
12 (G)Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always (H)laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand (I)perfect and [b]complete in all the will of God. 13 For I bear him witness that he has a great [c]zeal for you, and those who are in Laodicea, and those in Hierapolis. 14 (J)Luke the beloved physician and (K)Demas greet you. 15 Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and [d]Nymphas and (L)the church that is in [e]his house.
Closing Exhortations and Blessing
16 Now when (M)this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea. 17 And say to (N)Archippus, “Take heed to (O)the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.