Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Praise God Who Judges and Saves
David’s song from the time he acted crazy so Abimelech would send him away. And David did leave.
34 I will praise the Lord at all times.
His praise is always on my lips.
2 My whole being praises the Lord.
The poor will hear and be glad.
3 Tell the greatness of the Lord with me.
Let us praise his name together.
4 I asked the Lord for help, and he answered me.
He saved me from all that I feared.
5 Those who go to him for help are happy.
They are never disgraced.
6 This poor man called, and the Lord heard him.
The Lord saved him from all his troubles.
7 The Lord saves those who fear him.
His angel camps around them.
8 Examine and see how good the Lord is.
Happy is the person who trusts the Lord.
9 People who belong to the Lord, fear him!
Those who fear him will have everything they need.
10 Even lions may become weak and hungry.
But those people who go to the Lord for help will have every good thing.
11 Children, come and listen to me.
I will teach you to worship the Lord.
12 You must do these things
to enjoy life and have many happy days.
13 You must not say evil things.
You must not tell lies.
14 Stop doing evil and do good.
Look for peace and work for it.
15 The Lord sees the good people.
He listens to their prayers.
16 But the Lord is against those who do evil.
He makes the world forget them.
17 The Lord hears good people when they cry out to him.
He saves them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
He saves those whose spirits have been crushed.
19 People who do what is right may have many problems.
But the Lord will solve them all.
20 He will protect their very bones.
Not one of them will be broken.
21 Evil will kill the wicked people.
Those who hate good people will be judged guilty.
22 But the Lord saves his servants’ lives.
No one who trusts him will be judged guilty.
5 The Master, the Lord of heaven’s armies, will touch the land.
And the land will shake.
Then everyone who lives in the land will cry for the dead.
The whole land will rise like the Nile River.
It will fall like the river of Egypt.
6 The Lord built his upper rooms above the skies.
He sets their foundations on the earth.
He calls for the waters of the sea.
He pours them out on the land.
The Lord is his name.
7 The Lord says this:
“Israel, you are no different to me than the people of Cush.
I brought Israel out of the land of Egypt.
I also brought the Philistines from Crete
and the Arameans from Kir.
8 I, the Lord God, am watching the sinful kingdom Israel.
I will destroy Israel
from the earth’s surface.
But I will not completely destroy
Jacob’s descendants,” says the Lord.
9 “I am giving the command
to scatter the nation of Israel among all nations.
It will be like someone sifting flour.
A person shakes flour through a sifter.
The good flour falls through, but not the bad clumps.
10 Sinners among my people
will die by the sword.
All of them say,
‘Nothing bad will happen to us.’
The Lord Promises to Restore Israel
11 “The kingdom of David is like a fallen tent.
But in that day I will set it up again
and mend its broken places.
I will rebuild its ruins.
I will rebuild it as it was before.
12 Then Israel will take over what is left of Edom
and the other nations that belong to me,”
says the Lord.
And he will make it happen.
13 The Lord says, “The time is coming when there will be plenty of food.
A person will still be harvesting his crops
when it’s time to plow again.
A person will still be taking the juice from his grapes
when it’s time to plant again.
Sweet wine will drip from the mountains.
And it will pour from the hills.
14 I will bring my people Israel back from captivity.
They will build the ruined cities again.
And they will live in them.
They will plant vineyards and drink the wine from them.
They will plant gardens and eat their fruit.
15 I will plant my people on their land.
And they will not be pulled out again
from the land which I have given them,”
says the Lord your God.
13 Brothers, I know that I have not yet reached that goal. But there is one thing I always do: I forget the things that are past. I try as hard as I can to reach the goal that is before me. 14 I keep trying to reach the goal and get the prize. That prize is mine because God called me through Christ to the life above.
15 All of us who have grown spiritually to be mature should think this way, too. And if there are things you do not agree with, God will make them clear to you. 16 But we should continue following the truth we already have.
17 Brothers, all of you should try to follow my example and to copy those who live the way we showed you. 18 Many people live like enemies of the cross of Christ. I have often told you about them, and it makes me cry to tell you about them now. 19 The way they live is leading them to destruction. Instead of serving God, they do whatever their bodies want. They do shameful things, and they are proud of it. They think only about earthly things. 20 But our homeland is in heaven, and we are waiting for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to come from heaven. 21 He will change our humble bodies and make them like his own glorious body. Christ can do this by his power. With that power he is able to rule all things.
What the Christians Are to Do
4 My dear brothers, I love you and want to see you. You bring me joy and make me proud of you. Continue following the Lord as I have told you.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.