Psalm 40

English Standard Version

My Help and My Deliverer

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

40 I ^(A)waited patiently for the Lord;
    he inclined to me and ^(B)heard my cry.
²He drew me up from ^(C)the pit of destruction,
    out of ^(D)the miry bog,
and ^(E)set my feet upon a rock,
    ^(F)making my steps secure.
³He put ^(G)a new song in my mouth,
    a song of praise to our God.
Many will ^(H)see and fear,
    and put their trust in the Lord.

⁴Blessed is the man who ^(I)makes
    the Lord his trust,
who does not turn to the proud,
    to those who ^(J)go astray after a lie!
⁵You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
    your ^(K)wondrous deeds and your ^(L)thoughts toward us;
    none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
    yet they are ^(M)more than can be told.

⁶^(N)In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
    but you have given me an open ^(O)ear.^[a]
Burnt offering and sin offering
    you have not required.
⁷Then I said, “Behold, I have come;
    in the scroll of the book it is written ^(P)of me:
⁸^(Q)I delight to do your will, O my God;
    your law is ^(R)within my heart.”

⁹I have told the glad news of deliverance^[b]
    in ^(S)the great congregation;
behold, I have not ^(T)restrained my lips,
    ^(U)as you know, O Lord.
¹⁰I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;
    I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    from the great congregation.

¹¹As for you, O Lord, you will not restrain
    your mercy from me;
your ^(V)steadfast love and your faithfulness will
    ever preserve me!
¹²For evils have ^(W)encompassed me
    beyond number;
my ^(X)iniquities have overtaken me,
    and I cannot ^(Y)see;
they are ^(Z)more than the hairs of my head;
    my heart ^(AA)fails me.

¹³^(AB)Be pleased, O Lord, to ^(AC)deliver me!
    O Lord, ^(AD)make haste to help me!
¹⁴^(AE)Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether
    who seek to snatch away my life;
let those be ^(AF)turned back and brought to dishonor
    who delight in my hurt!
¹⁵Let those be appalled because of their shame
    who ^(AG)say to me, “Aha, Aha!”

¹⁶But may all who seek you
    rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation
    ^(AH)say continually, “Great is the Lord!”
¹⁷As for me, I am ^(AI)poor and needy,
    but ^(AJ)the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
    do not delay, O my God!

Footnotes

Psalm 40:6 Hebrew ears you have dug for me
Psalm 40:9 Hebrew righteousness; also verse 10

Psalm 54

English Standard Version

The Lord Upholds My Life

To the choirmaster: with ^(A)stringed instruments. A Maskil^[a] of David, ^(B)when the Ziphites went and told Saul, “Is not David hiding among us?”

54 O God, save me by your ^(C)name,
and vindicate me by your might.
²O God, ^(D)hear my prayer;
give ear to the words of my mouth.

³^(E)For ^(F)strangers^[b] have risen against me;
ruthless men ^(G)seek my life;
they do not set God before themselves. Selah

⁴Behold, ^(H)God is my helper;
the Lord is the upholder of my life.
⁵He will return the evil to my enemies;
in your ^(I)faithfulness ^(J)put an end to them.

⁶With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, ^(K)for it is good.
⁷For he has delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has ^(L)looked in triumph on my enemies.

Footnotes

Psalm 54:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term
Psalm 54:3 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Targum insolent men (compare Psalm 86:14)

Deuteronomy 10:12-22

English Standard Version

Circumcise Your Heart

¹²“And now, Israel, ^(A)what does the Lord your God require of you, but ^(B)to fear the Lord your God, ^(C)to walk in all his ways, ^(D)to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, ¹³and ^(E)to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today ^(F)for your good? ¹⁴Behold, ^(G)to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, ^(H)the earth with all that is in it. ¹⁵Yet ^(I)the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. ¹⁶Circumcise therefore ^(J)the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer ^(K)stubborn. ¹⁷For the Lord your God is ^(L)God of gods and ^(M)Lord of lords, ^(N)the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is ^(O)not partial and takes no bribe. ¹⁸^(P)He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. ¹⁹^(Q)Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. ²⁰^(R)You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and ^(S)hold fast to him, and ^(T)by his name you shall swear. ²¹^(U)He is your praise. He is your God, ^(V)who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. ²²Your fathers went down to Egypt ^(W)seventy persons, and now the Lord your God has made you ^(X)as numerous as the stars of heaven.

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Hebrews 4:11-16

English Standard Version

¹¹Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so ^(A)that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. ¹²For ^(B)the word of God is living and ^(C)active, ^(D)sharper than any ^(E)two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and ^(F)discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. ¹³And ^(G)no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are ^(H)naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Jesus the Great High Priest

¹⁴Since then we have ^(I)a great high priest ^(J)who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, ^(K)let us hold fast our confession. ¹⁵For we do not have a high priest ^(L)who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been ^(M)tempted as we are, ^(N)yet without sin. ¹⁶^(O)Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

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John 3:22-36

English Standard Version

John the Baptist Exalts Christ

²²After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and ^(A)was baptizing. ²³John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized ²⁴(for ^(B)John had not yet been put in prison).

²⁵Now a discussion arose between some of John's disciples and a Jew over ^(C)purification. ²⁶And they came to John and said to him, ^(D)“Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, ^(E)to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and ^(F)all are going to him.” ²⁷John answered, ^(G)“A person cannot receive even one thing ^(H)unless it is given him ^(I)from heaven. ²⁸You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ^(J)‘I am not the Christ, but ^(K)I have been sent before him.’ ²⁹^(L)The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. ^(M)The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, ^(N)rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. ³⁰^(O)He must increase, but I must decrease.”^[a]

³¹^(P)He who comes from above ^(Q)is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and ^(R)speaks in an earthly way. ^(S)He who comes from heaven ^(T)is above all. ³²^(U)He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, ^(V)yet no one receives his testimony. ³³Whoever receives his testimony ^(W)sets his seal to this, ^(X)that God is true. ³⁴For he whom ^(Y)God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit ^(Z)without measure. ³⁵^(AA)The Father loves the Son and ^(AB)has given all things into his hand. ³⁶^(AC)Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; ^(AD)whoever does not obey the Son shall not ^(AE)see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.