Psalm 19

The Voice

Psalm 19

For the worship leader. A song of David.

¹The celestial realms announce God’s glory;
    the skies testify of His hands’ great work.
²Each day pours out more of their sayings;
    each night, more to hear and more to learn.
³Inaudible words are their manner of speech,
    and silence, their means to convey.
⁴Yet from here to the ends of the earth, their voices^[a] have gone out;
    the whole world can hear what they say.^[b]

God stretched out in these heavens a tent for the sun,
⁵And the sun is like a groom
    who, after leaving his room, arrives at the wedding in splendor;
He is the strong runner
    who, favored to win in his race, is eager to face his challenge.
⁶He rises at one end of the skies
    and runs in an arc overhead;
    nothing can hide from his heat, from the swelter of his daily tread.

⁷The Eternal’s law is perfect,
    turning lives around.
His words are reliable and true,
    instilling wisdom to open minds.
⁸The Eternal’s directions are correct,
    giving satisfaction to the heart.
God’s commandments are clear,
    lending clarity to the eyes.
⁹The awe of the Eternal is clean,
    sustaining for all of eternity.
The Eternal’s decisions are sound;
    they are right through and through.
¹⁰They are worth more than gold—
    even more than abundant, pure gold.
They are sweeter to the tongue than honey
    or the drippings of the honeycomb.

¹¹In addition to all that has been said,
    Your servant will find, hidden in Your commandments, both a strong warning
    and a great reward for keeping them.
¹²Who could possibly know all that he has done wrong?
    Forgive my hidden and unknown faults.
¹³As I am Your servant, protect me from my bent toward pride,
    and keep sin from ruling my life.
If You do this, I will be without blame,
    innocent of the great breach.

¹⁴May the words that come out of my mouth and the musings of my heart
    meet with Your gracious approval,
    O Eternal, my Rock,
    O Eternal, my Redeemer.

Notas al pie

19:4 Hebrew manuscripts read, “line.”
19:4 Romans 10:18

Nehemiah 2:1-10

The Voice

Nehemiah’s job is to taste the king’s wine and food, checking for poison. Because of these duties, Nehemiah is constantly needed, so he must seek God’s favor so that Artaxerxes I will allow him to travel to Jerusalem.

2 Four months later, in the spring month of Nisan at the start of our New Year, Artaxerxes had been king 20 years. At a feast, wine was brought to him, and when it had passed my examinations, I gave it to him. Now, you must understand that in the presence of the king it is not my custom to openly express emotion, especially sadness.

Artaxerxes (to Nehemiah): ²You look disturbed. I know you are not ill. The sadness I see in you is the sadness of the heart. What is wrong?

As I stood there before the king I was very afraid.

Nehemiah: ³May your life and reign extend forever, King!

Why should my face look anything but sad? My homeland is destroyed; my city is a heap of rubble; its once-mighty gates are nothing more than charred tinder. This is the place where my ancestors are supposed to be at rest, but the very ground where they lie is ruined!

Artaxerxes: ⁴What is it you want?

All at once, I prayed to the God of heaven ⁵and made my request to the king.

Nehemiah (to God and Artaxerxes): If I have won your favor, my king, and if it is your pleasure, send me to the city where my ancestors are buried. Let me rebuild the city in Judah.

⁶With his queen sitting beside him, the king continued to probe.

Artaxerxes: How long will your journey take, and when may I look for your return?

Then I knew: I had received his blessing. He was sending me. In response to his question, I set a time.

Nehemiah (to the king): ⁷If it continues to please you, send me with letters bearing your name. Send me to those men you have appointed to govern the lands beyond the Euphrates River. Then I can be assured I will be safe, escorted to the borders of Judah by your armies. ⁸And may I also ask you for a letter to the warden of your forests, Asaph; he will supply timber to me so that I can build gates into the fortress around the temple mount, gates and watchtowers in the walls around the city, and a house for myself.

My True God had heard my prayers and rested His hand of favor and love upon me. The king gave me everything I asked for!

⁹And so I left, journeying to see the governors of the lands beyond the Euphrates River. I gave them the letters the king sent with me. Moreover, I traveled in the company of the king’s army, surrounded by the officers and cavalry. ¹⁰In fact, when Sanballat (the Horonite who governed Samaria) and Tobiah (the Ammonite official under him there) heard about what was happening, they were unnerved, distressed that someone was seeking the good of the Israelites left in the land.

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Romans 12:1-8

The Voice

12 Brothers and sisters, in light of all I have shared with you about God’s mercies, I urge you to offer your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice to God, a sacred offering that brings Him pleasure; this is your reasonable, essential worship. ²Do not allow this world to mold you in its own image. Instead, be transformed from the inside out by renewing your mind. As a result, you will be able to discern what God wills and whatever God finds good, pleasing, and complete.

Paul urges those who read and hear his letter to respond to the good news by offering their bodies—eyes, ears, mouths, hands, feet—to God as a “living sacrifice.” Paul knows well enough that sacrifices end in death, not life. But the sacrifice of Jesus changes everything. His resurrection steals life from death and makes it possible for those who trust in Him to become a sacrifice and yet live. But how do we live? We do not live as before, wrapping ourselves in the world and its bankrupt values. We live in constant renewal and transformation of our minds.

³Because of the grace allotted to me, I can respectfully tell you not to think of yourselves as being more important than you are; devote your minds to sound judgment since God has assigned to each of us a measure of faith. ⁴For in the same way that one body has so many different parts, each with different functions; ⁵we, too—the many—are different parts that form one body in the Anointed One. Each one of us is joined with one another, and we become together what we could not be alone. ⁶Since our gifts vary depending on the grace poured out on each of us, it is important that we exercise the gifts we have been given. If prophecy is your gift, then speak as a prophet according to your proportion of faith. ⁷If service is your gift, then serve well. If teaching is your gift, then teach well. ⁸If you have been given a voice of encouragement, then use it often. If giving is your gift, then be generous. If leading, then be eager to get started. If sharing God’s mercy, then be cheerful in sharing it.