Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Prayer for defence against enemies.
For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. Maschil of David; when the Ziphites came and said to Saul, Doth not David hide himself with us?
54 Save me, O God, by thy name,
And judge me in thy might.
2 Hear my prayer, O God;
Give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For strangers are risen up against me,
And violent men have sought after my soul:
They have not set God before them. Selah
4 Behold, God is my helper:
The Lord is [a]of them that uphold my soul.
5 [b]He will requite the evil unto [c]mine enemies:
Destroy thou them in thy truth.
6 With a freewill-offering will I sacrifice unto thee:
I will give thanks unto thy name, O Jehovah, for it is good.
7 For he hath delivered me out of all trouble;
And mine eye hath seen my desire upon mine enemies.
6 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah: and Jehovah delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. 2 And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel; and because of Midian the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and the caves, and the strongholds. 3 And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east; they came up against them; 4 and they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance in Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. 5 For they came up with their cattle and their tents; they came in as locusts for multitude; both they and their camels were without number: and they came into the land to destroy it. 6 And Israel was brought very low because of Midian; and the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah.
7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah because of Midian, 8 that Jehovah sent a prophet unto the children of Israel: and he said unto them, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; 9 and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land; 10 and I said unto you, I am Jehovah your God; ye shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell. But ye have not hearkened unto my voice.
2 And I, brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of [a]speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the [b]testimony of God. 2 For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. 4 And my [c]speech and my [d]preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: 5 that your faith should not [e]stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
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