Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
10 Hezekiah: I thought for sure in the prime of my life
that I’d been brought to the gates of death,
that I’d miss out on the rest of my years.
11 I thought: That’s it. I will never again see the Eternal in the land of the living.
I will never again enjoy the company of those alive in this world.
12 My time on earth is folded up and packed away like a shepherd’s tent.
It’s as if a weaver has snipped me off from the loom and rolled me up.
From day to night You bring my life to an end.
13 I stay calm until morning arrives,
then like a lion He breaks all my bones.
From day to night You bring my life to an end.
14 Oh, how I argue and mourn for my passing life!
Like a swallow or a crane I twitter;
like a lonesome dove I moan.
My eyes become bleary from looking up to the heavens for help.
I cry, “O Lord, way up high, I am oppressed; come and help me!”
15 But what can I say? God has spoken to me.
Things are as He made them.
So I am determined to go slowly, make the most of my years,
even though I am bitter to the core.
16 But I so wanted to live! So I prayed, “Lord, by these things, people live
and my spirit is grounded in the same.
So heal me, let me live!”
17 Paradoxically, my bitter experience was pushing me toward wholeness.
For You, God, have put behind all my shortcomings and wrongdoings.
You have rescued me from death.
You pulled me from a black hole of nothingness and held me close to You.
18 And so I join the living in giving thanks to You.
After all, thankful voices never rise from the land of the dead.
After all, the songs of praise never soar from death’s dark realm.
Those who go down into the pit—that great black nothingness—
Hezekiah becomes confident that God will restore his health and bring him back from the edge of death. Ironically, many years earlier his father Ahaz refused to ask for a sign even though God insisted that he do so. The son, it seems, has learned a valuable lesson; so he asks for a sign because he wants to know when he will be well enough to return to God’s house and offer thanks to Him among the rest of his citizens. Unfortunately, with some people, it is only in the bitterness of disease and in death’s dark shadow that a person learns to embrace life and live it to the fullest. Hezekiah’s near-death experience embitters his soul, but it also moves him toward wholeness. What Hezekiah does not know is that the Babylonians have their eyes set on dominating the rest of the world. For years, the Assyrians and Babylonians have coexisted, but the Babylonians are not content to remain a regional power. As they build their empire—annexing lands, conquering peoples, gaining strength—they begin to take an interest in little Judah. Hezekiah doesn’t account for how his actions might affect his nation. He simply isn’t that shrewd.
They can’t even begin to hope for Your faithfulness.
19 But ah, the living! And I am among them today,
giving praise and thanks to You for life,
The old telling the young about the loyalty of Your love.
20 The Eternal will rescue me,
and we will break out the stringed instruments.
We will sing and make music for the rest of our lives,
right here in the house of the Eternal.
9 A company of Philistines went up then and camped in Judah, where they made a raid against Lehi.
Men of Judah (to the company of Philistines): 10 Why are you doing this?
Philistines: We’ve come up to capture Samson, to make him suffer the way he has made us suffer.
Then 3,000 men of Judah went to the rock of Etam to talk to Samson.
Men of Judah (to Samson): 11 Are you crazy? The Philistines are our masters! They have the upper hand. Don’t you know what you’re doing to us?
Samson: I’m only paying them back for what they have done to me.
Men of Judah: 12 We’ve come to capture you and take you to the Philistines.
Samson: Will you swear not to kill me yourselves?
Men of Judah: 13 We agree not to kill you, but we will tie you up and hand you over to them.
So they tied him with two new ropes and led him away from the cave near the rock of Etam. 14 When the Philistines at Lehi saw them coming, they raised a mighty shout and ran to seize Samson. At that moment, the Spirit of the Eternal came upon Samson, and he immediately had great strength. He broke free of the ropes on his arms, as if they were no more than string burned with fire, and the bonds fell from his hands. 15 Grabbing up a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he began fighting them. That day he killed 1,000 Philistines.
16 Samson (singing): With the jawbone of a donkey,
I have piled them high.
With the jawbone of a donkey,
I have killed 1,000 men.
17 When he finished his triumphant song, he threw away the jawbone, and he called that place Ramath-lehi, “the high place of the jawbone.” 18 He was now very thirsty from his exertion, and he cried to the Eternal.
Samson: You have given this great victory into my hands. But am I going to die of thirst now and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised Philistines?
19 Then God split open a place in the rock at Lehi so that water gushed out. When Samson drank, he found his strength returned and his spirit revived. So that place was called En-hakkore, “the spring of the one who called,” and it is still in Lehi to this day.
20 Samson judged and delivered Israel during the days of the Philistines for 20 years.
14 They had come down from the mountain, and as they headed toward town, they came to a crowd. As they approached the crowd, a man rushed up to Jesus and knelt before Him.
Man from the Crowd: 15 Lord, have mercy on my son. He has seizures. Sometimes when they come on, my son falls into the fire or into a pond. We are very concerned for him. 16 I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not heal him.
Jesus: 17 This generation is no better than the generation who wandered in the desert, who lost faith and bowed down to golden idols as soon as Moses disappeared upon Mount Sinai! How long will I have to shepherd these unbelieving sheep? (turning to the man) Bring the boy to Me.
18 The man did, and Jesus castigated the demon who had taken up residence in the boy. And the demon fled the boy’s body at the sound of Jesus’ voice, and the boy was healed from that moment on. No more shaking. No more falling into fires.
19 Later, when they were away from the crowds, the disciples asked Jesus why they hadn’t been able to drive out the demon themselves.
Jesus: 20 Because you have so little faith. I tell you this: if you had even a faint spark of faith, even faith as tiny as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and because of your faith, the mountain would move. If you had just a sliver of faith, you would find nothing impossible. [21 But this kind is not realized except through much prayer and fasting.][a]
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.