Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
15 on the [a]twenty-fourth day of the sixth month (Sept 21, 520 b.c.) in the second year of Darius the king.
The Builders Encouraged
2 On the twenty-first day of the [b]seventh month (Oct 17, 520 b.c., the second year of Darius king of Persia), the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai, saying, 2 “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, saying, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this [c]house (temple) in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison? 4 But now be courageous, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord, ‘be courageous also, Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and be courageous, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ declares the Lord of hosts. 5 ‘As for the promise which I made with you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit stands [firm and immovable] and continues with you; do not fear!’ 6 For thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Once more, in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.(A) 7 I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the desirable and precious things of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory and splendor,’ says the Lord of hosts.(B) 8 ‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the Lord of hosts. 9 ‘The latter [d]glory of this house will be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and in this place I shall give [the ultimate] peace and prosperity,’ declares the Lord of hosts.”
The Lord Extolled for His Goodness.
A Psalm of praise. Of David.
145 I will exalt You, my God, O King,
And [with gratitude and submissive wonder] I will bless Your name forever and ever.
2
Every day I will bless You and lovingly praise You;
Yes, [with awe-inspired reverence] I will praise Your name forever and ever.
3
Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
And His greatness is [so vast and profound as to be] unsearchable [incomprehensible to man].(A)
4
One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty and remarkable acts.
5
On the glorious splendor of Your majesty
And on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.
17
The Lord is [unwaveringly] righteous in all His ways
And gracious and kind in all His works.
18
The Lord is near to all who call on Him,
To all who call on Him in truth (without guile).
19
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear and worship Him [with awe-inspired reverence and obedience];
He also will hear their cry and will save them.
20
The Lord keeps all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.
21
My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
And all flesh will bless and gratefully praise His holy name forever and ever.
A Call to Praise the Lord for His Righteousness.
A [a]Psalm.
98 O sing to the Lord a new song,
For He has done marvelous and wonderful things;
His right hand and His holy arm have [b]gained the victory for Him.
2
The Lord has made known His salvation;
He has [openly] revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.(A)
3
He has [graciously] remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
All the ends of the earth have witnessed the salvation of our God.(B)
4
Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;
Shout [in jubilation] and sing for joy and sing praises.
5
Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
With the lyre and the sound of melody.
6
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
Shout with joy before the King, the Lord.
7
Let the sea thunder and roar, and all the things it contains,
The world and those who dwell in it.
8
Let the rivers clap their hands;
Let the mountains sing together for joy and delight
9
Before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth;
He will judge the world with righteousness
And the peoples with fairness.
Man of Lawlessness
2 Now in regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our [a]gathering together to meet Him, we ask you, [b]brothers and sisters,(A) 2 not to be quickly unsettled or alarmed either by a [so-called prophetic revelation of a] spirit or a message or a letter [alleged to be] from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has [already] come. 3 Let no one in any way deceive or entrap you, for that day will not come unless the [c]apostasy comes first [that is, the great rebellion, the abandonment of the faith by professed Christians], and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction [the Antichrist, the one who is destined to be destroyed],(B) 4 who opposes and exalts himself [so proudly and so insolently] above [d]every so-called god or object of worship, so that he [actually enters and] takes his seat in the temple of God, publicly proclaiming that he himself is God.(C) 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you, I was telling you these things?
13 But we should and are [morally] obligated [as debtors] always to give thanks to God for you, believers beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through the [a]sanctifying work of the Spirit [that sets you apart for God’s purpose] and by your faith in the truth [of God’s word that leads you to spiritual maturity]. 14 It was to this end that He called you through our gospel [the good news of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection], so that you may obtain and share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So then, [b]brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold [tightly] to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us.
16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting comfort and encouragement and the good [well-founded] hope [of salvation] by His grace, 17 comfort and encourage and strengthen your hearts [keeping them steadfast and on course] in every good work and word.
Is There a Resurrection?
27 Now some of the Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) came to Him(A) 28 and they questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us [a law that] if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife and no children, his brother should [a]marry the wife and raise children for his brother.(B) 29 Now there were seven brothers; and the first took a wife and died childless. 30 And the second, 31 and the third married her, and in the same way all seven died, leaving no children. 32 Finally the woman also died. 33 So in the [life after] resurrection, whose wife does she become? For all seven had married her.”
34 Jesus said to them, “The sons of this [world and present] age marry and [the women] are given in marriage; 35 but those who are considered worthy to gain that [other world and that future] age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; 36 and they cannot die again, because they are [immortal] like the angels (equal to, angel-like). And they are [b]children of God, being [c]participants in the resurrection. 37 But [as for the fact] that the dead are raised [from death], even Moses showed, in the passage about the burning bush, when he calls the Lord the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.(C) 38 Now He is not the God of the dead, but of the living [so these forefathers will be among the resurrected]; for all live [in a definite relationship] to Him.”
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