Psalm 44

New International Version

Psalm 44^[a]

For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A maskil.^[b]

¹We have heard it with our ears,^(A) O God;
    our ancestors have told us^(B)
what you did in their days,
    in days long ago.^(C)
²With your hand you drove out^(D) the nations
    and planted^(E) our ancestors;
you crushed^(F) the peoples
    and made our ancestors flourish.^(G)
³It was not by their sword^(H) that they won the land,
    nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand,^(I) your arm,^(J)
    and the light^(K) of your face, for you loved^(L) them.

⁴You are my King^(M) and my God,^(N)
    who decrees^[c] victories^(O) for Jacob.
⁵Through you we push back^(P) our enemies;
    through your name we trample^(Q) our foes.
⁶I put no trust in my bow,^(R)
    my sword does not bring me victory;
⁷but you give us victory^(S) over our enemies,
    you put our adversaries to shame.^(T)
⁸In God we make our boast^(U) all day long,^(V)
    and we will praise your name forever.^[d]^(W)

⁹But now you have rejected^(X) and humbled us;^(Y)
    you no longer go out with our armies.^(Z)
¹⁰You made us retreat^(AA) before the enemy,
    and our adversaries have plundered^(AB) us.
¹¹You gave us up to be devoured like sheep^(AC)
    and have scattered us among the nations.^(AD)
¹²You sold your people for a pittance,^(AE)
    gaining nothing from their sale.

¹³You have made us a reproach^(AF) to our neighbors,^(AG)
    the scorn^(AH) and derision^(AI) of those around us.
¹⁴You have made us a byword^(AJ) among the nations;
    the peoples shake their heads^(AK) at us.
¹⁵I live in disgrace^(AL) all day long,
    and my face is covered with shame^(AM)
¹⁶at the taunts^(AN) of those who reproach and revile^(AO) me,
    because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.^(AP)

¹⁷All this came upon us,
    though we had not forgotten^(AQ) you;
    we had not been false to your covenant.
¹⁸Our hearts had not turned^(AR) back;
    our feet had not strayed from your path.
¹⁹But you crushed^(AS) us and made us a haunt for jackals;^(AT)
    you covered us over with deep darkness.^(AU)

²⁰If we had forgotten^(AV) the name of our God
    or spread out our hands to a foreign god,^(AW)
²¹would not God have discovered it,
    since he knows the secrets of the heart?^(AX)
²²Yet for your sake we face death all day long;
    we are considered as sheep^(AY) to be slaughtered.^(AZ)

²³Awake,^(BA) Lord! Why do you sleep?^(BB)
Rouse yourself!^(BC) Do not reject us forever.^(BD)
²⁴Why do you hide your face^(BE)
and forget^(BF) our misery and oppression?^(BG)

²⁵We are brought down to the dust;^(BH)
our bodies cling to the ground.
²⁶Rise up^(BI) and help us;
rescue^(BJ) us because of your unfailing love.^(BK)

Footnotes

Psalm 44:1 In Hebrew texts 44:1-26 is numbered 44:2-27.
Psalm 44:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
Psalm 44:4 Septuagint, Aquila and Syriac; Hebrew King, O God; / command
Psalm 44:8 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here.

Isaiah 2:1-5

New International Version

The Mountain of the Lord^(A)

2 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:^(B)

²In the last days^(C)

the mountain^(D) of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;^(E)
it will be exalted^(F) above the hills,
and all nations will stream to it.^(G)

³Many peoples^(H) will come and say,

“Come, let us go^(I) up to the mountain^(J) of the Lord,
    to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
    so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law^(K) will go out from Zion,
    the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.^(L)
⁴He will judge^(M) between the nations
    and will settle disputes^(N) for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
    and their spears into pruning hooks.^(O)
Nation will not take up sword against nation,^(P)
    nor will they train for war anymore.

⁵Come, descendants of Jacob,^(Q)
let us walk in the light^(R) of the Lord.

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Luke 12:35-48

New International Version

Watchfulness^(A)^(B)

³⁵“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. ³⁷It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes.^(C) Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.^(D) ³⁸It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. ³⁹But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief^(E) was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰You also must be ready,^(F) because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

⁴¹Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”

⁴²The Lord^(G) answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? ⁴³It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. ⁴⁴Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁵But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. ⁴⁶The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.^(H) He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

⁴⁷“The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows.^(I) ⁴⁸But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.^(J) From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

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