Jer. 49:34–39

49:34 This was the Lord’s message to the prophet Jeremiah about Elam, which came early in the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah.

35The Lord of Heaven’s Armies said:

“I will kill all the archers of Elam,

who are the chief source of her military might.

36I will cause enemies to blow through Elam from every direction

like the winds blowing in from the four quarters of heaven.

I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds.

There will not be any nation where the refugees of Elam will not go.

37I will make the people of Elam terrified of their enemies,

who are seeking to kill them.

I will vent my fierce anger

and bring disaster upon them,” says the Lord.

“I will send armies chasing after them

until I have completely destroyed them.

38I will establish my sovereignty over Elam.

I will destroy their king and their leaders,” says the Lord.

39 “Yet in future days

I will reverse Elam’s ill fortune,”

says the Lord.

Ps. 35

35:1 By David.

O Lord, fight those who fight with me.

Attack those who attack me.

2Grab your small shield and large shield,

and rise up to help me.

3Use your spear and lance against those who chase me.

Assure me with these words: “I am your deliverer.”

4May those who seek my life be embarrassed and humiliated.

May those who plan to harm me be turned back and ashamed.

5May they be like wind-driven chaff,

as the angel of the Lord attacks them.

6May their path be dark and slippery,

as the angel of the Lord chases them.

7I did not harm them, but they hid a net to catch me

and dug a pit to trap me.

8Let destruction take them by surprise.

Let the net they hid catch them.

Let them fall into destruction.

9Then I will rejoice in the Lord

and be happy because of his deliverance.

10With all my strength I will say,

“O Lord, who can compare to you?

You rescue the oppressed from those who try to overpower them,

the oppressed and needy from those who try to rob them.”

11Violent men perjure themselves,

and falsely accuse me.

12They repay me evil for the good I have done;

I am overwhelmed with sorrow.

13When they were sick, I wore sackcloth,

and refrained from eating food.

(If I am lying, may my prayers go unanswered.)

14I mourned for them as I would for a friend or my brother.

I bowed down in sorrow as if I were mourning for my mother.

15But when I stumbled, they rejoiced and gathered together;

they gathered together to ambush me.

They tore at me without stopping to rest.

16When I tripped, they taunted me relentlessly,

and tried to bite me.

17O Lord, how long are you going to watch this?

Rescue me from their destructive attacks;

guard my life from the young lions.

18Then I will give you thanks in the great assembly;

I will praise you before a large crowd of people.

19Do not let those who are my enemies for no reason gloat over me.

Do not let those who hate me without cause carry out their wicked schemes.

20For they do not try to make peace with others,

but plan ways to deceive those who live peacefully in the land.

21They are ready to devour me;

they say, “Aha! Aha! We’ve got you!”

22But you take notice, Lord; do not be silent!

O Lord, do not remain far away from me.

23Rouse yourself, wake up and vindicate me.

My God and Lord, defend my just cause.

24Vindicate me by your justice, O Lord my God.

Do not let them gloat over me.

25Do not let them say to themselves, “Aha! We have what we wanted!”

Do not let them say, “We have devoured him.”

26May those who rejoice in my troubles be totally embarrassed and ashamed.

May those who arrogantly taunt me be covered with shame and humiliation.

27May those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice.

May they continually say, “May the Lord be praised, for he wants his servant to be secure.”

28Then I will tell others about your justice,

and praise you all day long.

Eph. 3:1–13

3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles 2if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3that by revelation the mystery was made known to me, as I wrote before briefly. 4When reading this, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ 5(which was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit), 6namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus. 7I became a servant of this gospel according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the exercise of his power. 8To me—less than the least of all the saints—this grace was given, to proclaim to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ 9and to enlighten everyone about God’s secret plan—the mystery that has been hidden for ages in God who has created all things. 10The purpose of this enlightenment is that through the church the multifaceted wisdom of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms. 11This was according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12in whom we have boldness and confident access to God by way of Christ’s faithfulness. 13For this reason I ask you not to lose heart because of what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.