Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Maschil of Asaph.

¹ ¶ O God, why hast thou cast us off for ever? Why does thine anger smoke against the sheep of thy pasture?

² Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed, this Mount Zion, in which thou hast dwelt.

³ Lift up thy feet unto the eternal desolations, unto every enemy who has done wickedly in the sanctuary.

⁴ Thine enemies have roared in the midst of thy assemblies; they set up their own banners for signs.

⁵ Renowned, as one on the way to heaven, he who lifted up axes upon the thick trees for the work of the sanctuary.

⁶ But now they break down all the carved work thereof with axes and hammers.

⁷ They have set fire to thy sanctuaries; they have defiled the tabernacle of thy name in the earth.

⁸ They said in their hearts, Let us destroy them at once; they have burned up all the meeting places of the people of God in the earth.

⁹ We no longer see our own banners; there is no longer any prophet: neither is there among us any that knows. How long shall this be?

¹⁰ O God, how long shall the adversary reproach? Shall the enemy blaspheme thy name for ever?

¹¹ Why dost thou withdraw thy hand, even thy right hand? Why dost thou hide it in thy bosom.

¹² ¶ For God is my King from of old, he who works saving health in the midst of the earth.

¹³ Thou didst divide the sea by thy strength; thou didst break the heads of the dragons in the waters.

¹⁴ Thou didst break the heads of leviathan in pieces and didst give him to be food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.

¹⁵ Thou didst cleave the fountain and the river; thou didst dry up mighty rivers.

¹⁶ The day is thine, the night also is thine; thou hast prepared the light and the sun.

¹⁷ Thou hast set all the borders of the earth; thou hast made summer and winter.

¹⁸ ¶ Remember this, that the enemy has spoken against the LORD and that the foolish people have blasphemed thy name.

¹⁹ O deliver not the soul of thy turtledove unto the beasts; forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever.

²⁰ Have respect unto the covenant; for the dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of violence.

²¹ O let not the oppressed return ashamed; the poor and destitute shall praise thy name.

²² Arise, O God, plead thine own cause; remember how the foolish man reproaches thee daily.

²³ Forget not the voices of thine enemies; the tumult of those that rise up against thee increases continually.

¹⁴ ¶ But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.

¹⁵ And Saul’s slaves said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubles thee.

¹⁶ Let our lord now command thy slaves, which are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning player on a harp, and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand and thou shalt have relief.

¹⁷ And Saul said unto his slaves, Provide me now a man that can play well and bring him to me.

¹⁸ Then one of the servants answered and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem, that is cunning in playing and a mighty valiant man and a man of war and prudent in speech and handsome, and the LORD is with him.

¹⁹ Therefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse and said, Send me David, thy son, who is with the sheep.

²⁰ And Jesse took an ass laden with bread and a bottle of wine and a kid and sent them by David, his son, unto Saul.

²¹ And David came to Saul and stood before him; and he loved him greatly, and he became his armourbearer.

²² And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he has found favour in my sight.

²³ And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took a harp and played with his hand; so Saul was refreshed and was better, and the evil spirit departed from him.

20 ¶ And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

² And he laid hold on the dragon, the serpent of old, which is the Devil and Satan and bound him a thousand years

³ and cast him into the bottomless pit and shut him up and set a seal upon it, that he should deceive the Gentiles no more, until the thousand years should be fulfilled; and after it is necessary that he be loosed a little while.

⁴ And I saw thrones, and those who sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them; and I saw the souls of those that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God and who had not worshipped the beast neither its image neither had received its mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; and they shall live and reign with Christ the thousand years.

⁵ But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

⁶ Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection; on such the second death has no authority, but they shall be priests of God and of the Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years.