Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
23 Woe to the shepherds (the civil leaders) who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasturing! says the Lord.
2 Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for and feed My people: You have scattered My flock and driven them away and have not visited and attended to them; behold, I will visit and attend to you for the evil of your doings, says the Lord.
3 And I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all the countries to which I have driven them and will bring them again to their folds and pastures; and they will be fruitful and multiply.
4 And I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them. And they will fear no more nor be dismayed, neither will any be missing or lost, says the Lord.
5 Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch (Sprout), and He will reign as King and do wisely and will execute justice and righteousness in the land.
6 In His days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His name by which He shall be called: The Lord Our Righteousness.(A)
68 Blessed (praised and extolled and thanked) be the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has come and brought deliverance and redemption to His people!
69 And He has raised up a Horn of salvation [a mighty and valiant Helper, the Author of salvation] for us in the house of David His servant—
70 This is as He promised by the mouth of His holy prophets from the most ancient times [in the memory of man]—
71 That we should have deliverance and be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who detest and pursue us with hatred;
72 To make true and show the mercy and compassion and kindness [promised] to our forefathers and to remember and carry out His holy covenant [to bless, which is [a]all the more sacred because it is made by God Himself],
73 That covenant He sealed by oath to our forefather Abraham:
74 To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our foes, might serve Him fearlessly
75 In holiness (divine consecration) and righteousness [in accordance with the everlasting principles of right] within His presence all the days of our lives.
76 And you, little one, shall be called a prophet of the Most High; for you shall go on before the face of the Lord to make ready His ways,(A)
77 To bring and give the knowledge of salvation to His people in the forgiveness and remission of their sins.
78 Because of and through the heart of tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God, a Light from on high will dawn upon us and visit [us](B)
79 To shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to direct and guide our feet in a straight line into the way of peace.(C)
11 [We pray] that you may be invigorated and strengthened with all power according to the might of His glory, [to exercise] every kind of endurance and patience (perseverance and forbearance) with joy,
12 Giving thanks to the Father, Who has qualified and made us fit to share the [a]portion which is the inheritance of the saints (God’s holy people) in the Light.
13 [The Father] has delivered and [b]drawn us to Himself out of the control and the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son [c]of His love,
14 In Whom we have our redemption through His blood, [which means] the forgiveness of our sins.
15 [Now] He is the [d]exact likeness of the unseen God [the visible representation of the invisible]; He is the Firstborn of all creation.
16 For it was in Him that all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [by His service, intervention] and in and for Him.
17 And He Himself existed before all things, and in Him all things consist (cohere, are held together).(A)
18 He also is the Head of [His] body, the church; seeing He is the Beginning, the Firstborn from among the dead, so that He alone in everything and in every respect might occupy the chief place [stand first and be preeminent].
19 For it has pleased [the Father] that all the divine fullness (the sum total of the divine perfection, powers, and attributes) should dwell in Him [e]permanently.
20 And God purposed that through ([f]by the service, the intervention of) Him [the Son] all things should be completely reconciled [g]back to Himself, whether on earth or in heaven, as through Him, [the Father] made peace by means of the blood of His cross.
33 And when they came to the place which is called The Skull [Latin: Calvary; Hebrew: Golgotha], there they crucified Him, and [along with] the criminals, one on the right and one on the left.
34 And Jesus prayed, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. And they divided His garments and distributed them by casting lots for them.(A)
35 Now the people stood by [[a]calmly and leisurely] watching; but the rulers scoffed and sneered ([b]turned up their noses) at Him, saying, He rescued others [[c]from death]; let Him now rescue Himself, if He is the Christ (the Messiah) of God, His Chosen One!
36 The soldiers also ridiculed and made sport of Him, coming up and offering Him vinegar (a sour wine mixed with water)(B)
37 And saying, If you are the King of the Jews, save (rescue) Yourself [[d]from death].
38 For there was also an inscription above Him [e]in letters of Greek and Latin and Hebrew: This is the King of the Jews.
39 One of the criminals who was suspended kept up a railing at Him, saying, Are You not the Christ (the Messiah)? Rescue Yourself and us [[f]from death]!
40 But the other one reproved him, saying, Do you not even fear God, seeing you yourself are under the same sentence of condemnation and suffering the same penalty?
41 And we indeed suffer it justly, receiving the due reward of our actions; but this Man has done nothing out of the way [nothing [g]strange or eccentric or perverse or unreasonable].
42 Then he said to Jesus, Lord, remember me when You come [h]in Your kingly glory!
43 And He answered him, Truly I tell you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.
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