Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
23 So rejoice, O (A)sons of Zion,
And (B)be glad in the Lord your God;
For He has (C)given you [a]the early rain for your vindication.
And He has poured down for you the rain,
The [b]early and [c](D)latter rain [d]as before.
24 The threshing floors will be full of grain,
And the vats will (E)overflow with the new wine and oil.
25 “Then I will make up to you for the years
That the swarming (F)locust has eaten,
The creeping locust, the stripping locust and the gnawing locust,
My great army which I sent among you.
26 “You will have plenty to (G)eat and be satisfied
And (H)praise the name of the Lord your God,
Who has (I)dealt wondrously with you;
Then My people will (J)never be put to shame.
27 “Thus you will (K)know that I am in the midst of Israel,
And that I am the Lord your God,
And there is (L)no other;
And My people will never be (M)put to shame.
The Promise of the Spirit
28 “[e](N)It will come about after this
That I will (O)pour out My Spirit on all [f](P)mankind;
And your sons and daughters will prophesy,
Your old men will dream dreams,
Your young men will see visions.
29 “Even on the (Q)male and female servants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
The Day of the Lord
30 “I will (R)display wonders in the sky and on the earth,
Blood, fire and columns of smoke.
31 “The (S)sun will be turned into darkness
And the moon into blood
Before the (T)great and awesome day of the Lord comes.
32 “And it will come about that (U)whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Will be delivered;
For (V)on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
There will be those who (W)escape,
As the Lord has said,
Even among the (X)survivors whom the Lord calls.
God’s Abundant Favor to Earth and Man.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David. A Song.
65 There will be silence [a]before You, and praise in Zion, O God,
And to You the (A)vow will be performed.
2 O You who hear prayer,
To You (B)all [b]men come.
3 [c](C)Iniquities prevail against me;
As for our transgressions, You [d](D)forgive them.
4 How (E)blessed is the one whom You (F)choose and bring near to You
To dwell in Your courts.
We will be (G)satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.
5 By (H)awesome deeds You answer us in righteousness, O (I)God of our salvation,
You who are the trust of all the (J)ends of the earth and of the farthest [e](K)sea;
6 Who (L)establishes the mountains by His strength,
Being (M)girded with might;
7 Who (N)stills the roaring of the seas,
The roaring of their waves,
And the (O)tumult of the peoples.
8 They who dwell in the (P)ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs;
You make the [f]dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
9 You visit the earth and (Q)cause it to overflow;
You greatly (R)enrich it;
The [g](S)stream of God is full of water;
You prepare their (T)grain, for thus You prepare [h]the earth.
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
You [i]settle its ridges,
You soften it (U)with showers,
You bless its growth.
11 You have crowned the year [j]with Your [k](V)bounty,
And Your [l]paths (W)drip with fatness.
12 (X)The pastures of the wilderness drip,
And the (Y)hills gird themselves with rejoicing.
13 The meadows are (Z)clothed with flocks
And the valleys are (AA)covered with grain;
They (AB)shout for joy, yes, they sing.
6 For I am already being (A)poured out as a drink offering, and the time of (B)my departure has come. 7 (C)I have fought the good fight, I have finished (D)the course, I have kept (E)the faith; 8 in the future there (F)is laid up for me (G)the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on (H)that day; and not only to me, but also to (I)all who have loved His (J)appearing.
16 At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; (A)may it not be counted against them. 17 But the Lord stood with me and (B)strengthened me, so that through me (C)the proclamation might [a]be (D)fully accomplished, and that all (E)the Gentiles might hear; and I was (F)rescued out of (G)the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will [b](H)bring me safely to His (I)heavenly kingdom; (J)to [c]Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
The Pharisee and the Publican
9 And He also told this parable to some people who (A)trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and (B)viewed others with contempt: 10 “Two men (C)went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee (D)stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I (E)fast twice a week; I (F)pay tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, (G)standing some distance away, (H)was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but (I)was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be [a]merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; (J)for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.