Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
All Good Things Come from God
A song for going up to worship. Of Solomon.
127 If the Lord doesn’t build the house,
the builders are working for nothing.
If the Lord doesn’t guard the city,
the guards are watching for nothing.
2 It is no use for you to get up early
and stay up late,
working for a living.
The Lord gives sleep to those he loves.
3 Children are a gift from the Lord;
babies are a reward.
4 Children who are born to a young man
are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.
5 Happy is the man
who has his bag full of arrows.
They will not be defeated
when they fight their enemies at the city gate.
Unfairness on Earth
16 I also saw this here on earth:
Where there should have been justice, there was evil;
where there should have been right, there was wrong.
17 I said to myself,
God has planned a time for every thing and every action,
so he will judge both good people and bad.
18 I decided that God leaves it the way it is to test people and to show them they are just like animals. 19 The same thing happens to animals and to people; they both have the same breath, so they both die. People are no better off than the animals, because everything is useless. 20 Both end up the same way; both came from dust and both will go back to dust. 21 Who can be sure that the human spirit goes up to God and that the spirit of an animal goes down into the ground? 22 So I saw that the best thing people can do is to enjoy their work, because that is all they have. No one can help another person see what will happen in the future.
Is It Better to Be Dead?
4 Again I saw all the people who were mistreated here on earth.
I saw their tears
and that they had no one to comfort them.
Cruel people had all the power,
and there was no one to comfort those they hurt.
2 I decided that the dead
are better off than the living.
3 But those who have never been born
are better off still;
they have not seen the evil
that is done here on earth.
Why Work So Hard?
4 I realized the reason people work hard and try to succeed: They are jealous of each other. This, too, is useless, like chasing the wind.
5 Some say it is foolish to fold your hands and do nothing,
because you will starve to death.
6 Maybe so, but I say it is better to be content
with what little you have.
Otherwise, you will always be struggling for more,
and that is like chasing the wind.
7 Again I saw something here on earth that was useless:
8 I saw a man who had no family,
no son or brother.
He always worked hard
but was never satisfied with what he had.
He never asked himself, “For whom am I working so hard?
Why don’t I let myself enjoy life?”
This also is very sad and useless.
What the Christians Are to Do
2 Continue praying, keeping alert, and always thanking God. 3 Also pray for us that God will give us an opportunity to tell people his message. Pray that we can preach the secret that God has made known about Christ. This is why I am in prison. 4 Pray that I can speak in a way that will make it clear, as I should.
5 Be wise in the way you act with people who are not believers, making the most of every opportunity. 6 When you talk, you should always be kind and pleasant so you will be able to answer everyone in the way you should.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.