1 Samuel 7:3-4

English Standard Version

Samuel Judges Israel

³And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, ^(A)“If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then ^(B)put away the foreign gods and the ^(C)Ashtaroth from among you and ^(D)direct your heart to the Lord ^(E)and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” ⁴So the people of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and they served the Lord only.

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Psalm 72

English Standard Version

Give the King Your Justice

Of ^(A)Solomon.

72 Give the king your ^(B)justice, O God,
    and your righteousness to the royal son!
²May he ^(C)judge your people with righteousness,
    and your poor with justice!
³Let the mountains bear ^(D)prosperity for the people,
    and the hills, in righteousness!
⁴May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
    give deliverance to the children of the needy,
    and crush the oppressor!

⁵May they fear you^[a] while ^(E)the sun endures,
    and as long as the moon, ^(F)throughout all generations!
⁶May he be like ^(G)rain that falls on ^(H)the mown grass,
    like ^(I)showers that water the earth!
⁷In his days may ^(J)the righteous flourish,
    and ^(K)peace abound, till the moon be no more!

⁸May he have dominion from ^(L)sea to sea,
    and from ^(M)the River^[b] to the ^(N)ends of the earth!
⁹May desert tribes ^(O)bow down before him,
    and his enemies ^(P)lick the dust!
¹⁰May the kings of ^(Q)Tarshish and of ^(R)the coastlands
    render him ^(S)tribute;
may the kings of ^(T)Sheba and ^(U)Seba
    bring gifts!
¹¹May all kings ^(V)fall down before him,
    all nations serve him!

¹²For he delivers ^(W)the needy when he calls,
    the poor and him who has no helper.
¹³He has pity on the weak and the needy,
    and saves the lives of the needy.
¹⁴From oppression and violence he redeems their life,
    and ^(X)precious is their blood in his sight.

¹⁵Long may he live;
    may ^(Y)gold of Sheba be given to him!
May prayer be made ^(Z)for him continually,
    and blessings invoked for him all the day!
¹⁶May there be abundance of grain in the land;
    on the tops of the mountains may it wave;
    may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may people ^(AA)blossom in the cities
    like the ^(AB)grass of the field!
¹⁷^(AC)May his name endure forever,
    his fame continue as long as the sun!
^(AD)May people be blessed in him,
    ^(AE)all nations call him blessed!

¹⁸^(AF)Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
who alone does ^(AG)wondrous things.
¹⁹Blessed be his ^(AH)glorious name forever;
may ^(AI)the whole earth be filled with his glory!
^(AJ)Amen and Amen!

²⁰^(AK)The prayers of ^(AL)David, the son of Jesse, are ended.

Footnotes

Psalm 72:5 Septuagint He shall endure
Psalm 72:8 That is, the Euphrates

2 Corinthians 9

English Standard Version

The Collection for Christians in Jerusalem

9 Now ^(A)it is superfluous for me to write to you about ^(B)the ministry for the saints, ²for I know your readiness, ^(C)of which I boast about you to the people of Macedonia, saying that Achaia has been ready ^(D)since last year. And your zeal has stirred up most of them. ³But ^(E)I am sending^[a] the brothers so that our boasting about you may not prove empty in this matter, so that you may be ready, ^(F)as I said you would be. ⁴Otherwise, if some Macedonians ^(G)come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident. ⁵So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the ^(H)gift^[b] you have promised, so that it may be ready ^(I)as a willing gift, ^(J)not as an exaction.^[c]

The Cheerful Giver

⁶The point is this: ^(K)whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully^[d] will also reap bountifully. ⁷Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, ^(L)not reluctantly or under compulsion, for ^(M)God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And ^(N)God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency^[e] in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. ⁹As it is written,

^(O)“He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.”

¹⁰He who supplies ^(P)seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and ^(Q)increase the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹^(R)You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which ^(S)through us will produce thanksgiving to God. ¹²For the ministry of this service is not only supplying ^(T)the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. ¹³By their approval of this service, ^(U)they^[f] will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your ^(V)confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, ¹⁴while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. ¹⁵^(W)Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!