Psalm 51
Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 51
A Prayer for Restoration
For the choir director. A psalm of David, when the prophet Nathan came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba.(A)
1 Be gracious to me, God,
according to your faithful love;
according to your abundant compassion,
blot out my rebellion.(B)
2 Completely wash away my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.(C)
3 For I am conscious of my rebellion,
and my sin is always before me.(D)
4 Against you—you alone—I have sinned
and done this evil in your sight.(E)
So you are right when you pass sentence;
you are blameless when you judge.(F)
5 Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;
I was sinful when my mother conceived me.(G)
6 Surely you desire integrity in the inner self,
and you teach me wisdom deep within.(H)
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.(I)
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.(J)
9 Turn your face away[a] from my sins
and blot out all my guilt.(K)
10 God, create a clean heart for me
and renew a steadfast[b] spirit within me.(L)
11 Do not banish me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.(M)
12 Restore the joy of your salvation to me,
and sustain me by giving me a willing spirit.(N)
13 Then I will teach the rebellious your ways,
and sinners will return to you.(O)
14 Save me from the guilt of bloodshed, God(P)—
God of my salvation—
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.(Q)
15 Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.(R)
16 You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
you are not pleased with a burnt offering.(S)
17 The sacrifice pleasing to God is[c] a broken spirit.
You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God.(T)
Proverbs 30:21-23
Christian Standard Bible
21 The earth trembles under three things;
it cannot bear up under four:
22 a servant when he becomes king,(A)
a fool when he is stuffed with food,
23 an unloved woman when she marries,(B)
and a servant girl when she ousts her queen.
Nehemiah 6:1-7:4
Christian Standard Bible
Attempts to Discourage the Builders
6 When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies(A) heard that I had rebuilt the wall and that no gap was left in it(B)—though at that time I had not installed the doors in the city gates(C)— 2 Sanballat and Geshem(D) sent me a message: “Come, let’s meet together in the villages of[a] the Ono Valley.”(E) They were planning to harm me.
3 So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing important work and cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?” 4 Four times they sent me the same proposal, and I gave them the same reply.
5 Sanballat(F) sent me this same message a fifth time by his aide, who had an open letter in his hand. 6 In it was written:
It is reported among the nations—and Geshem[b](G) agrees—that you and the Jews plan to rebel. This is the reason you are building the wall. According to these reports, you are to become their king 7 and have even set up the prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim on your behalf, “There is a king in Judah.”(H) These rumors will be heard by the king. So come, let’s confer together.
8 Then I replied to him, “There is nothing to these rumors you are spreading; you are inventing them in your own mind.”(I) 9 For they were all trying to intimidate(J) us, saying, “They will drop their hands from[c] the work,(K) and it will never be finished.”
But now, my God, strengthen my hands.(L)
Attempts to Intimidate Nehemiah
10 I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was restricted to his house. He said:
Let’s meet at the house of God,
inside the temple.
Let’s shut the temple doors
because they’re coming to kill you.
They’re coming to kill you tonight![d]
11 But I said, “Should a man like me run away? How can someone like me enter the temple and live?(M) I will not go.” 12 I realized that God had not sent him, because of the prophecy he spoke against me. Tobiah and Sanballat(N) had hired him. 13 He was hired, so that I would be intimidated,(O) do as he suggested, sin, and get a bad reputation, in order that they could discredit me.
14 My God, remember(P) Tobiah and Sanballat for what they have done, and also the prophetess Noadiah(Q) and the other prophets who wanted to intimidate me.
The Wall Completed
15 The wall was completed(R) in fifty-two days, on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul.(S) 16 When all our enemies(T) heard this, all the surrounding nations were intimidated(U) and lost their confidence,[e] for they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God.(V)
17 During those days, the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah,(W) and Tobiah’s letters came to them. 18 For many in Judah were bound by oath(X) to him, since he was a son-in-law of Shecaniah son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam(Y) son of Berechiah. 19 These nobles kept mentioning Tobiah’s good deeds to me, and they reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to intimidate(Z) me.
The Exiles Return
7 When the wall had been rebuilt and I had the doors installed,(AA) the gatekeepers,(AB) singers, and Levites were appointed. 2 Then I put my brother Hanani(AC) in charge of Jerusalem,(AD) along with Hananiah,(AE) commander of the fortress,(AF) because he was a faithful man who feared God(AG) more than most. 3 I said to them, “Do not open the gates of Jerusalem until the sun is hot, and let the doors be shut and securely fastened while the guards are on duty. Station the citizens of Jerusalem as guards, some at their posts and some at their homes.”(AH)
4 The city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it, and no houses had been built yet.(AI)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
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