Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Hymn of Thanksgiving
For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song.
65 God, you will be praised in Jerusalem.
We will keep our promises to you.
2 You hear our prayers.
All people will come to you.
3 Our guilt overwhelms us,
but you forgive our sins.
4 Happy are the people you choose
and invite to stay in your court.
We are filled with good things in your house,
your holy Temple.
5 You answer us in amazing ways,
God our Savior.
People everywhere on the earth
and beyond the sea trust you.
6 You made the mountains by your strength;
you are dressed in power.
7 You stopped the roaring seas,
the roaring waves,
and the uproar of the nations.
8 Even those people at the ends of the earth fear your miracles.
You are praised from where the sun rises to where it sets.
9 You take care of the land and water it;
you make it very fertile.
The rivers of God are full of water.
Grain grows because you make it grow.
10 You send rain to the plowed fields;
you fill the rows with water.
You soften the ground with rain,
and then you bless it with crops.
11 You give the year a good harvest,
and you load the wagons with many crops.
12 The desert is covered with grass
and the hills with happiness.
13 The pastures are full of flocks,
and the valleys are covered with grain.
Everything shouts and sings for joy.
The Coming Day of Judgment
2 Blow the trumpet in Jerusalem;
shout a warning on my holy mountain.
Let all the people who live in the land shake with fear,
because the Lord’s day of judging is coming;
it is near.
2 It will be a dark, gloomy day,
cloudy and black.
Like the light at sunrise,
a great and powerful army will spread over the mountains.
There has never been anything like it before,
and there will never be anything like it again.
3 In front of them a fire destroys;
in back of them a flame burns.
The land in front of them is like the garden of Eden;
the land behind them is like an empty desert.
Nothing will escape from them.
4 They look like horses,
and they run like war horses.
5 It is like the noise of chariots
rumbling over the tops of the mountains,
like the noise of a roaring fire
burning dry stalks.
They are like a powerful army lined up for battle.
6 When they see them, nations shake with fear,
and everyone’s face becomes pale.
7 They charge like soldiers;
they climb over the wall like warriors.
They all march straight ahead
and do not move off their path.
8 They do not run into each other,
because each walks in line.
They break through all efforts to stop them
and keep coming.
9 They run into the city.
They run at the wall
and climb into the houses,
entering through windows like thieves.
10 Before them, earth and sky shake.
The sun and the moon become dark,
and the stars stop shining.
11 The Lord shouts out orders
to his army.
His army is very large!
Those who obey him are very strong!
The Lord’s day of judging
is an overwhelming and terrible day.
No one can stand up against it!
Obey the Teachings
10 But you have followed what I teach, the way I live, my goal, faith, patience, and love. You know I never give up. 11 You know how I have been hurt and have suffered, as in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. I have suffered, but the Lord saved me from all those troubles. 12 Everyone who wants to live as God desires, in Christ Jesus, will be persecuted. 13 But people who are evil and cheat others will go from bad to worse. They will fool others, but they will also be fooling themselves.
14 But you should continue following the teachings you learned. You know they are true, because you trust those who taught you. 15 Since you were a child you have known the Holy Scriptures which are able to make you wise. And that wisdom leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.