Book of Common Prayer
A Song of Victory
For the director of music. By the Lord’s servant, David. David sang this song to the Lord ·when [L on the day] the Lord had ·saved [rescued; T delivered] him from Saul and all his other enemies [C the occasion is unknown; 2 Sam. 22 parallels this psalm]. He said:
18 I love you, Lord. You are my strength.
2 The Lord is my rock, my ·protection [L fortress], my ·Savior [rescuer; T deliverer].
My God is my rock.
·I can run to him for safety [L …in whom I find protection/take refuge].
He is my shield and ·my saving strength [L the horn of my salvation; C symbolizing strength based on an animal lifting its head triumphantly], my ·defender [stronghold].
3 I ·will call to [call upon] the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
and I ·will be [or am] saved from my enemies.
4 The ·ropes [cords] of death ·came around [swirled about; encompassed] me;
the ·deadly rivers [floods/torrents of destruction] overwhelmed me.
5 The ·ropes [cords] of death ·wrapped around [entangled; coiled around] me.
The ·traps [snares] of death ·were before [confronted; lay ahead of] me.
6 In my ·trouble [distress; anguish] I ·called [cried out] to the Lord.
I ·cried out [called] to my God for help.
From his ·Temple [sanctuary] he heard my voice;
my ·call for help [cry] reached his ears.
7 The earth ·trembled [reeled; quaked] and ·shook [rocked].
The foundations of the mountains began to ·shake [shudder].
They ·trembled [reeled; quaked] because the Lord was angry.
8 Smoke ·came out of his nose [poured/rose from his nostrils],
and ·burning [devouring] fire came out of his mouth.
Burning coals ·went before [blazed/flamed out from] him.
9 He ·tore open [parted] the ·sky [heavens] and came down
with ·dark clouds [storm clouds; thick darkness] under his feet.
10 He rode a ·creature with wings [L cherub; C a mighty spiritual being/angel; Ezek. 1] and flew.
·He raced […soaring] on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his ·shelter [canopy; shroud] around him,
surrounded by ·fog [thick rain] and clouds.
12 Out of the brightness ·of his presence [before him] came clouds
with hail and ·lightning [L fiery coals].
13 The Lord thundered from heaven;
the ·Most High raised his voice [voice of the Most High resounded],
and there was hail and ·lightning [L fiery coals].
14 He shot his arrows and scattered his enemies.
His many bolts of lightning ·confused them with fear [routed them].
15 ·Lord, you spoke strongly [L At your rebuke, O Lord…].
·The wind blew from your nose [L …at the blast of breath from your nostrils…].
Then the ·valleys [floor; channels] of the sea ·appeared [were exposed],
and the foundations of the earth were ·seen [laid bare].
16 The Lord reached down from ·above [heaven; on high] and ·took [rescued] me;
he ·pulled me from the deep water [drew me out of mighty waters].
17 He ·saved [rescued; T delivered] me from my powerful enemies,
from those who hated me, because they were too strong for me.
18 They ·attacked [confronted] me ·at my time of trouble [L in the day of my distress/calamity/disaster],
but the Lord ·supported me [was my stay].
19 He took me to a ·safe [spacious; open; L broad] place.
Because he delights in me, he ·saved [rescued; T delivered] me.
20 The Lord ·spared [rewarded] me ·because I did what was right [L according to my righteousness].
Because ·I have not done evil [of my innocence; L of the cleanness of my hands], he has ·rewarded [restored] me.
21 I have ·followed [obeyed; kept; L guarded] the ways of the Lord;
I have not done evil by turning away from my God.
22 I ·remember [follow; L have before me] all his ·laws [regulations]
and have not ·broken [abandoned; L turned aside from] his ·rules [statutes; ordinances; requirements].
23 I am ·innocent [blameless] before him;
I have kept myself from ·doing evil [sin; guilt; iniquity].
24 The Lord ·rewarded [repaid] me ·because I did what was right [L according to my righteousness],
·because I did what the Lord said was right [L according to my cleanness/purity in his sight].
25 Lord, you ·are [show yourself] ·loyal [faithful; kind] to those who are ·loyal [faithful; kind],
and you are good to those who are good.
26 You ·are [show yourself] ·pure [sincere] to those who are ·pure [sincere],
but you ·are [show yourself] ·against [hostile/shrewd/cunning/perverse to] those who are ·bad [perverse; devious; crooked].
27 You ·save [rescue; T deliver] the ·humble [afflicted],
but you ·bring down [watch and humiliate] ·those who are proud [the haughty].
28 Lord, you give light to my lamp.
My God ·brightens the darkness around me [lights up/illuminates my darkness].
29 With your help I can ·attack [crush] an army.
With God’s help I can ·jump over [scale] a wall.
30 The ·ways [way; path] of God are ·without fault [blameless; perfect].
The Lord’s ·words [promises] are ·pure [tested; flawless; proven true].
He is a shield to those who ·trust [seek protection/take refuge in] him.
31 Who is God? Only the Lord.
Who is the Rock? Only our God.
32 God ·is my protection [is my strong fortress; or girds me with strength].
He makes my way ·free from fault [perfect; secure; a wide path].
33 He makes ·me [L my feet] like a deer that does not stumble [C sure-footed];
he ·helps me stand [sets me] on the ·steep mountains [heights].
34 He trains my hands for battle
so my arms can bend a bronze bow.
35 You ·protect me with your saving shield [L have given me the shield of your salvation/victory].
You support me with your right hand.
·You have stooped to make [Your help makes] me great.
36 You ·give me a better way to live [broaden my path; L widen my steps beneath me],
so ·I live as you want me to [my feet do not slip; L my ankles do not weaken].
37 I ·chased [pursued] my enemies and ·caught [exterminated] them.
I did not ·quit [turn back] until they were ·destroyed [annihilated; consumed].
38 I ·crushed them [shattered them; struck them down] so they couldn’t ·rise [get] up again.
They fell beneath my feet.
39 You ·gave me [L armed/girded me with] strength ·in [for] battle.
You ·made my enemies bow [humbled/subdued my enemies] ·before me [or under my feet].
40 You made my enemies ·turn back [turn their backs; retreat],
and I destroyed ·those who hated me [my foes].
41 They ·called for help [looked around],
but no one came to ·save [rescue; T deliver] them.
They ·called [looked] to the Lord,
but he did not answer them.
42 I ·beat my enemies into pieces [ground/pulverized them], like dust in the wind.
I poured them out like ·mud [mire] in the streets.
43 You ·saved [rescued; T delivered] me when the people ·attacked me [quarreled; fought].
You made me the ·leader [ruler; head] of nations.
People I never knew serve me.
44 As soon as they hear ·me [or of me], they obey me.
Foreigners ·obey [cower/cringe before] me.
45 They all ·become afraid [lose heart/their courage]
and ·tremble in [come trembling from] their ·hiding places [fortresses; strongholds].
46 The Lord lives!
May my Rock be ·praised [blessed].
Praise the God ·who saves me […of my salvation]!
47 God gives me ·victory [revenge; vengeance] over my enemies
and brings ·people [nations] under ·my rule [me].
48 He ·saves [rescues; T delivers] me from my enemies.
You ·set me over those who hate me [exalt/lift me above my enemies].
You ·saved [rescued; T delivered] me from violent people.
49 So I will ·praise [extol] you, Lord, among the nations.
I will sing praises to your name.
50 The Lord ·gives great victories [is a tower of salvation] to his king.
He ·is loyal [shows kindness/faithful love] to his ·appointed king [anointed],
to David and his descendants forever.
6 “I ·did not give you any food [L gave you cleanness of teeth; C an idiom meaning “empty stomachs” and indicating starvation] in your cities,
and there was not enough to eat in any of your towns,
but you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
7 “I held back the rain from you
three months before harvest time.
Then I let it rain on one city
but not on another.
Rain fell on one field,
but another field got none and dried up.
8 ·People weak from thirst went from town to town [L Two or three cities wandered to one] for water,
but they could not get enough to drink.
Still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
9 “I ·made your crops die from [L struck you with] ·disease [blight] and mildew.
When your gardens and your vineyards got larger,
locusts ·ate [devoured] your fig and olive trees.
But still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
10 “I sent ·disasters [a plague/pestilence] against you,
as I did to Egypt.
I killed your young men with swords,
and your horses were taken from you.
I made ·you smell the stink from all the dead bodies [L the stench of your camp rise into your nostrils],
but still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
11 “I ·destroyed [overthrew] some of you
as I destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah [Gen. 19].
You were like a burning stick pulled from a fire,
but still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
12 “So this is what I will do to you, Israel;
because I will do this to you,
get ready to meet your God, Israel.”
13 [L For look/T behold] He is the one who ·makes [forms] the mountains
and creates the wind
and makes his thoughts known to people.
He changes the dawn into darkness
and ·walks [treads; marches] ·over the mountains [on the heights] of the earth.
His name is the Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts].
11 In that way everything will be ·destroyed [or dissolved]. So what kind of people should you be? You should live holy lives and ·serve God [be godly/pious], 12 as you wait for and ·look forward to [strive for; or hurry; hasten] the coming of the day of God. When that day comes, the ·skies [or heavens] will be ·destroyed [or dissolved] with fire, and ·everything in them [the elements; 3:10] will melt with ·heat [fire; burning]. 13 But God made a promise to us [Is. 65:17; 66:22], and we are waiting for a new heaven and a new earth where ·goodness [righteousness] ·lives [makes its home].
14 [L Therefore] ·Dear friends [L Beloved], ·since [or while] you are waiting for this to happen, ·do your best [make every effort; strive] to be [L found] without ·sin [L spot] and without ·fault [L blemish; C the characteristics of the false teachers in 2:13]. ·Try [Make every effort; Strive] to be at peace with God. 15 ·Remember [Consider; Bear in mind] that ·we are saved because our Lord is patient [L our Lord’s patience is our salvation; C his delay in coming allows more to be saved]. Our ·dear [L beloved] brother Paul told you the same thing when he wrote to you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16 He writes about ·this [L these things] in all his letters. Some things in Paul’s letters are hard to understand, and people who are ·ignorant [untaught] and ·weak in faith [unstable] ·explain these things falsely [L twist/distort them]. They also ·falsely explain [L twist; distort] the other Scriptures, ·but they are destroying themselves by doing this [or which will lead to their destruction].
17 [L Therefore] ·Dear friends [L Beloved], since you already ·know [are forewarned] about this, be ·careful [on guard]. Do not let those ·evil [lawless; unprincipled] people lead you away ·by the wrong they do [or by their deception; or into error]. Be ·careful [on guard] so you will not fall from your own ·strong faith [stability; firm position]. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Glory be to him now and ·forever [L to the day of eternity]! ·Amen [So be it].
The Story of the Evil Farmers(A)
33 “Listen to ·this story [another parable]: There was a ·man who owned [landowner who planted] a vineyard. He put a wall around it and dug a ·hole [vat; pit] for a winepress and built a tower [C to protect against thieves; see Is. 5:1–7 for the background to this parable]. Then he leased the land to some [C tenant] farmers and left for a trip [C the owner represents God, the farmers are Israel’s religious leaders]. 34 When it was time for the grapes to be picked, he sent his ·servants [slaves] to the farmers to get his share of the grapes. 35 But the farmers grabbed the ·servants [slaves], beat one, killed another, and then ·killed a third servant with stones [L stoned a third]. 36 So the man sent some other ·servants [slaves] to the farmers, even more than he sent the first time. But the farmers did the same thing to them that they had done before [C the servants represent the prophets God sent to Israel]. 37 ·So [L Finally; Last of all] the man sent his son to the farmers [C the son represents Jesus]. He said, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the farmers saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This son will inherit the vineyard. Let’s kill him, and we will get his inheritance!’ 39 Then the farmers grabbed the son, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 So what will the ·owner [lord] of the vineyard do to these farmers when he comes?”
41 ·The priests and leaders [L They] said, “He will ·surely kill those evil men [bring those wretches/evil men to a wretched/evil end]. Then he will lease the vineyard to some other farmers who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time [C referring to the sinners who were responding to Jesus’ call for repentance, and eventually to the Gentiles who would be saved].”
42 Jesus said to them, “·Surely you have read [L Haven’t you ever read…?] this in the Scriptures:
‘The stone that the builders rejected
became the cornerstone [capstone; keystone; L head of the corner; C the meaning is uncertain, but clearly refers to the most important stone in the building; Jesus is the rejected stone].
The Lord did this,
and it is ·wonderful [amazing; marvelous] ·to us [for us to see; L in our eyes; Ps. 118:22–23].’
43 “·So [For this reason; Therefore] I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to ·people [a nation] who ·do the things God wants in his kingdom [L will produce its fruit]. 44 The person who ·falls on [stumbles over] this stone will be ·broken [shattered], and on whomever that stone falls, that person will be crushed.”[a]
45 When the ·leading [T chief] priests and the Pharisees heard these ·stories [parables], they knew Jesus was talking about them. 46 They ·wanted [were seeking/trying] to arrest him, but they were afraid of the ·people [crowds], because the people believed that Jesus was a prophet.
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