Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Prayer for Help
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A ·maskil [skillful psalm; meditation] of David when the Ziphites went to Saul and said, “·We think David is [L Is not David…?] hiding among ·our people [L us; 1 Sam. 23:13–29; 26:1].”
54 God, ·save [give victory to] me ·because of who you are [L by your name].
By your ·strength [L name] ·show that I am innocent [contend for me].
2 Hear my prayer, God;
·listen [L give ear] to ·what I say [L the speech of my mouth].
3 Strangers ·turn [L rise up] against me,
and ·cruel people want to kill me [L violent people seek my life].
They do not ·care about God [think about God; L set God before them]. ·
4 ·See [T Behold], God ·will help me [L is my helper];
the Lord ·will support me [L is with/or among those who uphold me].
5 Let ·my enemies be punished with their own evil [L evil return to my enemies].
·Destroy [Put an end to] them because ·you are loyal to me [L of your faithfulness].
6 I will ·offer a sacrifice as a special gift [sacrifice a freewill offering] to you.
I will ·thank [praise] ·you [L your name], Lord, because you are good.
7 You have ·saved [rescued] me from all my ·troubles [distress],
and ·I have seen my enemies defeated [L my eyes have looked on my enemies].
The Midianites Attack Israel
6 Again the ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel] did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. So for seven years the Lord ·handed them over to [L gave them into the hand of] Midian. 2 Because the ·Midianites were very powerful and were cruel to [L hand of Midian was so strong/oppressive against] Israel, the Israelites made ·hiding places [shelters; dens] in the mountains, in caves, and in ·safe places [strongholds]. 3 Whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and other ·peoples [L sons] from the east would come and attack them. 4 They ·camped in the land [L encamped against them] and destroyed the crops that the Israelites had planted as far away as Gaza. They left ·nothing [no sustenance/living thing] for Israel to eat, and no sheep, cattle, or donkeys. 5 The Midianites came with their tents and their ·animals [livestock] ·like swarms of [as numerous as] locusts to ·ruin [ravage; lay waste] the land. There were so many people and camels they could not be counted. 6 Israel ·became very poor [or was weakened; L was brought low] because of the Midianites, so they cried out to the Lord.
7 When the ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel] cried out to the Lord ·against [or because of] the Midianites, 8 the Lord sent a prophet to them. He said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought you out of Egypt, the ·land [L house] of slavery. 9 I ·saved [rescued; T delivered] you from the [L hand of the] Egyptians and from all those who ·were against [oppressed] you. I ·forced [drove] ·the Canaanites [L them] out of their land and gave it to you. 10 Then I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God. Do not ·worship [fear; reverence] the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you now live.’ But you did not ·obey me [L listen to my voice].”
The Message of Christ’s Death
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when I came to you, I did not come preaching God’s ·secret[a] [mystery; C something God had not previously disclosed; Eph. 1:9] with ·fancy [superior; eloquent] words or a show of human wisdom. 2 [L For] I ·decided [resolved] that while I was with you I would ·forget about everything [L not know anything] except Jesus Christ and his death on the cross. 3 So when I came to you, I was weak and fearful and trembling. 4 My ·teaching [message; speech] and preaching were not with words of human wisdom that ·persuade [or entice] people but with ·proof of the power that the Spirit gives [or proof powerfully revealed by the Spirit; or demonstrations of the Spirit and of power]. 5 This was so that your faith would be in God’s power and not in human wisdom.
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