Book of Common Prayer

The Majesty of the Lord.

A Call to Worship the Lord the Righteous Judge.

The Lord, a Provider and the One Who Rescues Me.

A Psalm of David; when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him out, and he went away.

Israel Oppressed by Midian

6 Then the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian for seven years. ² The [powerful] hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of Midian the sons of Israel made for themselves the dens (hideouts) which were in the mountains, and the caves and the [mountain] strongholds. ³ For it was whenever Israel had sown [their seed] that the Midianites would come up with the Amalekites and the people of the east and go up against them. ⁴ So they would camp against them and destroy the crops of the land as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel as well as no sheep, ox, or donkey. ⁵ For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, and they would come in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were innumerable. So they came into the land to devastate it. ⁶ So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the Israelites cried out to the Lord [for help].

⁷ Now it came about when they cried out to the Lord because of Midian, ⁸ that the Lord sent a prophet to the Israelites, and he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of slavery. ⁹ And I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land, ¹⁰ and I said to you, “I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live.” But you have not listened to and obeyed My voice.’”

Gideon Is Visited

¹¹ Now the ^[a]Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, and his son Gideon was beating wheat in the wine press [instead of the threshing floor] to [hide it and] save it from the Midianites. ¹² And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O brave man.” ¹³ But Gideon said to him, “Please my lord, if the Lord is with us, then why has all this happened to us? And where are all His wondrous works which our fathers told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian.” ¹⁴ The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this strength of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?” ¹⁵ But Gideon said to Him, “Please Lord, how am I to rescue Israel? Behold, my family is the least [significant] in Manasseh, and I am the youngest (smallest) in my father’s house.” ¹⁶ The Lord answered him, “I will certainly be with you, and you will strike down the Midianites as [if they were only] one man.” ¹⁷ Gideon replied to Him, “If I have found any favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who speaks with me. ¹⁸ Please do not depart from here until I come back to You, and bring my offering and place it before You.” And He said, “I will wait until you return.”

¹⁹ Then Gideon went and prepared a young goat and unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket and the broth in a pot, and he brought the food to Him under the oak (terebinth) and presented it. ²⁰ The Angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and unleavened bread and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth [over them].” And he did so. ²¹ Then the Angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in His hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and fire flared up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the Angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. ²² When Gideon realized [without any doubt] that He was the Angel of the Lord, he declared, “^[b]Oh no, Lord God! For now I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face [and I am doomed]!” ²³ The Lord said to him, “Peace to you, do not be afraid; you shall not die.” ²⁴ Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and named it The Lord is Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah, of the Abiezrites.

⁶ Now [remember] this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows ^[a]generously [that blessings may come to others] will also reap ^[b]generously [and be blessed]. ⁷ Let each one give [thoughtfully and with purpose] just as he has decided in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver [and delights in the one whose heart is in his gift].^{(A) 8} And God is able to make all grace [every favor and earthly blessing] come in abundance to you, so that you may always [under all circumstances, regardless of the need] have complete sufficiency in everything [being completely self-sufficient in Him], and have an abundance for every good work and act of charity. ⁹ As it is written and forever remains written,

¹⁰ Now He who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide and multiply your seed for sowing [that is, your resources] and increase the harvest of your righteousness [which shows itself in active goodness, kindness, and love].^{(C) 11} You will be enriched in every way so that you may be generous, and this [generosity, administered] through us is producing thanksgiving to God [from those who benefit]. ¹² For the ministry of this service (offering) is not only supplying the needs of the saints (God’s people), but is also overflowing through many expressions of thanksgiving to God. ¹³ Because of this act of ministry, ^[c]they will glorify God for your obedience to the gospel of Christ which you confess, as well as for your generous participation [in this gift] for them and for all [the other believers in need], ¹⁴ and they also long for you while they pray on your behalf, because of the surpassing measure of God’s grace [His undeserved favor, mercy, and blessing which is revealed] in you. ¹⁵ Now thanks be to God for His indescribable gift [which is precious beyond words]!

²⁰ Then He came to a ^[a]house [in Capernaum], and a crowd formed again, so [many people] that Jesus and His disciples could not even eat a meal [together]. ²¹ When His own family heard this they went to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He is out of His mind.” ²² The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by ^[b]Beelzebul (Satan),” and “He is driving out the demons by the [power of the] ruler of the demons.”^{(A) 23} So He called them to Himself and spoke to them in ^[c]parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided [split into factions and rebelling] against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. ²⁶ And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. ²⁷ But no one can go into a strong man’s house and steal his property unless he first overpowers and ties up the strong man, and then he will ransack and rob his house.^(B)

²⁸ “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and all the abusive and blasphemous things they say; ²⁹ but whoever ^[d]blasphemes against the Holy Spirit and His power [by attributing the miracles done by Me to Satan] never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin [a sin which is unforgivable in this present age as well as in the age to come]”—^{(C) 30} [Jesus said this] because the scribes and Pharisees were [attributing His miracles to Satan by] saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”