Open Word

Semicontinuous (Track 1)

FIRST READING

Isaiah 5:24-30

Verse 24. Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes the straw, and as dry grass shrivels in the flame, so their roots will decay and their blossoms will blow away like dust; for they have rejected the instruction of the LORD of Hosts and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. Verse 25. Therefore the anger of the LORD burns against His people; His hand is raised against them to strike them down. The mountains quake, and the corpses lie like refuse in the streets. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised. Verse 26. He lifts a banner for the distant nations and whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Behold— how speedily and swiftly they come! Verse 27. None of them grows weary or stumbles; no one slumbers or sleeps. No belt is loose and no sandal strap is broken. Verse 28. Their arrows are sharpened, and all their bows are strung. The hooves of their horses are like flint; their chariot wheels are like a whirlwind. Verse 29. Their roaring is like that of a lion; they roar like young lions. They growl and seize their prey; they carry it away, and no one can rescue it. Verse 30. In that day they will roar over it, like the roaring of the sea. If one looks over the land, he will see darkness and distress; even the light will be obscured by clouds.

PSALM

Psalm 74

A Maskil of Asaph. Why have You rejected us forever, O God? Why does Your anger smolder against the sheep of Your pasture?

Remember Your congregation, which You purchased long ago and redeemed as the tribe of Your inheritance — Mount Zion, where You dwell.

Turn Your steps to the everlasting ruins, to everything in the sanctuary the enemy has destroyed.

Your foes have roared within Your meeting place; they have unfurled their banners as signs,

like men wielding axes in a thicket of trees

and smashing all the carvings with hatchets and picks.

They have burned Your sanctuary to the ground; they have defiled the dwelling place of Your Name.

They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely.” They burned down every place where God met us in the land.

There are no signs for us to see. There is no longer any prophet. And none of us knows how long this will last.

How long, O God, will the enemy taunt You? Will the foe revile Your name forever?

Why do You withdraw Your strong right hand? Stretch it out to destroy them!

Yet God is my King from ancient times, working salvation on the earth.

You divided the sea by Your strength; You smashed the heads of the dragons of the sea;

You crushed the heads of Leviathan; You fed him to the creatures of the desert.

You broke open the fountain and the flood; You dried up the ever-flowing rivers.

The day is Yours, and also the night; You established the moon and the sun.

You set all the boundaries of the earth; You made the summer and winter.

Remember how the enemy has mocked You, O LORD, how a foolish people has spurned Your name.

Do not deliver the soul of Your dove to beasts; do not forget the lives of Your afflicted forever.

Consider Your covenant, for haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.

Do not let the oppressed retreat in shame; may the poor and needy praise Your name.

Rise up, O God; defend Your cause! Remember how the fool mocks You all day long.

Do not disregard the clamor of Your adversaries, the uproar of Your enemies that ascends continually.

Complementary (Track 2)

FIRST READING

Jeremiah 25:15-29

Verse 15. This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from My hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink from it. Verse 16. And they will drink and stagger and go out of their minds, because of the sword that I will send among them.” Verse 17. So I took the cup from the LORD’s hand and made all the nations drink from it, each one to whom the LORD had sent me, Verse 18. to make them a ruin, an object of horror and contempt and cursing, as they are to this day — Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, its kings and officials; Verse 19. Pharaoh king of Egypt, his officials, his leaders, and all his people; Verse 20. all the mixed tribes; all the kings of Uz; all the kings of the Philistines: Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod; Verse 21. Edom, Moab, and the Ammonites; Verse 22. all the kings of Tyre and Sidon; the kings of the coastlands across the sea; Verse 23. Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all who cut the corners of their hair; Verse 24. all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the mixed tribes who dwell in the desert; Verse 25. all the kings of Zimri, Elam, and Media; Verse 26. all the kings of the north, both near and far, one after another — all the kingdoms on the face of the earth. And after all of them, the king of Sheshach will drink it too. Verse 27. “Then you are to tell them that this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Drink, get drunk, and vomit. Fall down and never get up again, because of the sword I will send among you.’ Verse 28. If they refuse to take the cup from your hand and drink it, you are to tell them that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘You most certainly must drink it! Verse 29. For behold, I am beginning to bring disaster on the city that bears My Name, so how could you possibly go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, for I am calling down a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, declares the LORD of Hosts.’

PSALM

Psalm 32

Of David. A Maskil. Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

Blessed is the man whose iniquity the LORD does not count against him, in whose spirit there is no deceit.

When I kept silent, my bones became brittle from my groaning all day long.

For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was drained as in the summer heat.

Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not hide my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and You forgave the guilt of my sin.

Therefore let all the godly pray to You while You may be found. Surely when great waters rise, they will not come near.

You are my hiding place. You protect me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance.

I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will give you counsel and watch over you.

Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding; they must be controlled with bit and bridle to make them come to you.

Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but loving devotion surrounds him who trusts in the LORD.

Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, O righteous ones; shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

SECOND READING

Acts 7:44-53

Verse 44. Our fathers had the tabernacle of the Testimony with them in the wilderness. It was constructed exactly as God had directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. Verse 45. And our fathers who received it brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations God drove out before them. It remained until the time of David, Verse 46. who found favor in the sight of God and asked to provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. Verse 47. But it was Solomon who built the house for Him. Verse 48. However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says: Verse 49. ‘Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. What kind of house will you build for Me, says the Lord, or where will My place of repose be? Verse 50. Has not My hand made all these things?’ Verse 51. You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did. Verse 52. Which of the prophets did your fathers fail to persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One. And now you are His betrayers and murderers — Verse 53. you who received the law ordained by angels, yet have not kept it.”