Psalm 123-125

English Standard Version

Our Eyes Look to the Lord Our God

A Song of ^(A)Ascents.

123 To you I ^(B)lift up my eyes,
    O you who are ^(C)enthroned in the heavens!
²Behold, as the eyes of servants
    look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
    to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    till he has mercy upon us.

³^(D)Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
    for we have had more than enough of ^(E)contempt.
⁴Our soul has had more than enough
    of ^(F)the scorn of ^(G)those who are at ease,
    of the contempt of ^(H)the proud.

Our Help Is in the Name of the Lord

A Song of ^(I)Ascents. Of David.

124 ^(J)If it had not been the Lord who was on our side—
    ^(K)let Israel now say—
²if it had not been the Lord who was on our side
    when people rose up against us,
³then they would have ^(L)swallowed us up alive,
    when their anger was kindled against us;
⁴then ^(M)the flood would have ^(N)swept us away,
    the torrent would have gone ^(O)over us;
⁵then over us would have gone
    the raging waters.

⁶Blessed be the Lord,
    who has not given us
    as prey to their teeth!
⁷We have escaped like a bird
    from ^(P)the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
    and we have escaped!

⁸^(Q)Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

The Lord Surrounds His People

A Song of ^(R)Ascents.

125 Those who ^(S)trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
    which ^(T)cannot be moved, but abides forever.
²As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
    so ^(U)the Lord surrounds his people,
    from this time forth and forevermore.
³For ^(V)the scepter of wickedness shall not ^(W)rest
    on ^(X)the land allotted to the righteous,
lest the righteous ^(Y)stretch out
    their hands to do wrong.
⁴^(Z)Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
    and to those who are ^(AA)upright in their hearts!
⁵But those who ^(AB)turn aside to their ^(AC)crooked ways
    the Lord will lead away with ^(AD)evildoers!
    ^(AE)Peace be upon Israel!

2 Corinthians 7

English Standard Version

7 Since we have these promises, beloved, ^(A)let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body^[a] and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

Paul's Joy

²^(B)Make room in your hearts^[b] for us. ^(C)We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one. ³I do not say this to condemn you, for I said before that ^(D)you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together. ⁴I am acting with ^(E)great boldness toward you; ^(F)I have great pride in you; ^(G)I am filled with comfort. In all our affliction, I am overflowing with joy.

⁵For even ^(H)when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were afflicted at every turn—^(I)fighting without and fear within. ⁶But ^(J)God, who comforts the downcast, ^(K)comforted us by the coming of Titus, ⁷and not only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still more. ⁸For ^(L)even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it—though ^(M)I did regret it, for I see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. ⁹As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but ^(N)because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.

¹⁰For ^(O)godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas ^(P)worldly grief produces death. ¹¹For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, ^(Q)what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter. ¹²So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one ^(R)who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong, but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God. ¹³Therefore ^(S)we are comforted.

And besides our own comfort, we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit ^(T)has been refreshed by you all. ¹⁴For ^(U)whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as everything we said to you ^(V)was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true. ¹⁵And his affection for you is even greater, as he remembers ^(W)the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. ¹⁶I rejoice, because I have complete ^(X)confidence in you.