Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Prayer for Protection
A prayer of David.
17 Lord, hear me begging for fairness.
Listen to my cry for help.
Pay attention to my prayer.
I speak the truth.
2 You will judge that I am right.
Your eyes can see what is true.
3 You have examined my heart.
You have tested me all night.
You questioned me without finding anything wrong.
I did not plan any evil.
4 I have obeyed your commands.
I have not done what evil people do.
5 I have done what you told me to do.
I have not failed.
6 I call to you, God,
and you answer me.
Listen to me now.
Hear what I say.
7 Your love is wonderful.
By your power you save
from their enemies those who trust you.
8 Protect me as you would protect your own eye.
Protect me as a bird hides her young under her wings.
9 Keep me from the wicked who attack me.
Protect me from my enemies who surround me.
10 They are selfish.
They brag about themselves.
11 They have chased me.
Now they surround me.
They plan to throw me to the ground.
12 They are like lions ready to kill.
Like lions, they sit in hiding.
13 Lord, rise up and face the enemy.
Throw them down.
Save me from the wicked
with your sword.
14 Lord, save me from them by your power.
Their reward is in this life.
They have plenty of food.
They have many sons.
They leave money to their children.
15 Because I have lived right, I will see your face.
When I wake up, I will see your likeness and be satisfied.
Trusting in Man or God
5 This is what the Lord says:
“A curse will be placed on those who trust other people.
It will happen to those who depend on people for strength.
Those are the ones who have stopped trusting the Lord.
6 They are like a bush in a desert.
It grows in a land where no one lives.
It is in a hot and dry land with bad soil.
They don’t know about the good things that God can give.
7 “But the person who trusts in the Lord will be blessed.
The Lord will show him that he can be trusted.
8 He will be strong, like a tree planted near water.
That tree has large roots that find the water.
It is not afraid when the days are hot.
Its leaves are always green.
It does not worry in a year when no rain comes.
That tree always produces fruit.”
9 “More than anything else, a person’s mind is evil.
It cannot be healed.
Who can understand it?
10 But I am the Lord, and I can look into a person’s heart.
I can test a person’s mind.
So I can decide what each one deserves.
I can give each one the right payment for what he does.”
11 Sometimes a bird will hatch an egg that it did not lay.
That bird is like the man who gets rich by cheating.
When that man’s life is half finished, he will lose his riches.
At the end of his life, it will be clear he was a fool.
12 From the beginning, our Temple has been honored
as a glorious throne for God.
13 Lord, you are the hope of Israel.
Those who leave you will be shamed.
A person who quits following the Lord will be like a name written in the dust.
That is because he has left the Lord.
The Lord is the spring of living water.
Jeremiah’s Third Complaint
14 Lord, heal me, and I will truly be healed.
Save me, and I will truly be saved.
Lord, you are the one I praise.
15 The people of Judah keep asking me,
“Where is the word from the Lord?
Let’s see that message come true!”
16 Lord, I didn’t run away from being the shepherd you wanted.
I didn’t want the terrible day to come.
You know everything I have said.
You see all that is happening.
17 Lord, don’t bring terror to me.
I run to you for safety in times of trouble.
18 Make those who are hurting me be ashamed.
But don’t bring shame to me.
Let them be terrified,
but keep me from terror.
Bring the day of disaster on my enemies.
Destroy them, and destroy them again.
Jesus’ Power Is from God
22 Then some people brought a man to Jesus. This man was blind and could not talk, because he had a demon. Jesus healed the man, and the man could talk and see. 23 All the people were amazed. They said, “Perhaps this man is the Son of David!”
24 The Pharisees heard the people saying this. The Pharisees said, “Jesus uses the power of Beelzebul to force demons out of people. Beelzebul is the ruler of demons.”
25 Jesus knew what the Pharisees were thinking. So he said to them, “Every kingdom that is fighting against itself will be destroyed. And every city that is divided will fall. And every family that is divided cannot succeed. 26 So if Satan forces out his own demons, then Satan is divided, and his kingdom will not continue. 27 You say that I use the power of Satan when I force out demons. If that is true, then what power do your people use when they force out demons? So your own people prove that you are wrong. 28 But if I use the power of God’s Spirit to force out demons, this shows that the kingdom of God has come to you.
29 “If anyone wants to enter a strong man’s house and steal his things, first he must tie up the strong man. Then he can steal the things from the strong man’s house.
30 “If anyone is not with me, then he is against me. He who does not work with me is working against me. 31 So I tell you, people can be forgiven for every sin they do. And people can be forgiven for every bad thing they say. But if anyone speaks against the Holy Spirit, then he will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who says things against the Son of Man can be forgiven. But anyone who says things against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. He will not be forgiven now or in the future.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.