Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

A Psalm of David.

¹ ¶ Blessed be the LORD my strength, who trains my hands for the battle and my fingers for the war:

² My mercy and my fortress; my high tower and my deliverer; my shield and he in whom I trust, who subdues my people under me.

³ LORD, what is man that thou knowest him? or the son of man, that thou esteemeth him?

⁴ Man is like unto vanity; his days are as a shadow that passes away.

⁵ Bow thy heavens, O LORD, and come down; touch the mountains, and they shall smoke.

⁶ Cast forth lightning and scatter them; shoot out thine arrows and destroy them.

⁷ Send thine hand from above; redeem me and deliver me out of many waters, from the hand of the strange sons,

⁸ whose mouth speaks vanity, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

⁹ ¶ I will sing a new song unto thee, O God; upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings I will sing praises unto thee.

¹⁰ Thou, he who gives salvation unto kings, who redeems David his slave from the evil sword.

¹¹ Redeem me, and save me from the hand of strange sons, whose mouth speaks vanity, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood:

¹² That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace;

¹³ that our garners may be full, affording all manner of store; that our sheep may bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our streets;

¹⁴ that our oxen may be strong to labour; that there be no breaking in nor going out; that there be no shout of alarm in our streets.

¹⁵ Blessed is that people, that is in such a case; yea, blessed is that people, whose God is the LORD.

¹⁰ ¶ Thy mother was like a vine in thy blood, planted by the waters, bearing fruit and spreading forth branches by reason of the many waters.

¹¹ And she had strong rods for the sceptres of those that bore rule, and her stature was exalted among the thick branches, and she appeared in her height and with the multitude of her branches.

¹² But she was plucked up in fury, she was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up her fruit; her branches were broken, and she withered; fire consumed the rod of her strength.

¹³ And now she is planted in the wilderness in a dry and thirsty ground.

¹⁴ And fire is gone out of the rod from her branches, which has devoured her fruit, so that no strong rod to be a sceptre to rule has remained in her. This is a lamentation and shall be for a lamentation.

⁴ ¶ coming unto whom (is the living Stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious),

⁵ ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, well pleasing to God by Jesus, the Christ.

⁶ Therefore, also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion the chief corner stone, chosen, precious; and he that believes on him shall not be confounded.

⁷ Unto you, therefore, who believe he is precious; but unto those who are disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,

⁸ and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, even to those who stumble at the word, not obeying in that for which they were ordained.

⁹ But ye are the chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, an acquired people, that ye should show forth the virtues of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.

¹⁰ Ye who in the time past were not a people, but are now the people of God, who in the time past had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.