Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
23 If you are right with God, He strengthens you for the journey;
the Eternal will be pleased with your life.
24 And even though you trip up, you will not fall on your face
because He holds you by the hand.
25 Through my whole life (young and old),
I have never witnessed God forsaking those who do right,
nor have I seen their children begging for crumbs,
26 Because they are always giving and sharing;
truly, their children are a joyful blessing.
27 Walk away from evil. Do good
so you, too, will enjoy never-ending life
28 Because the Eternal cherishes justice
and will not abandon those loyal to Him.
He will guard and care for them forever,
but any child born of evil will be rooted out, cut down, and destroyed.
29 Those leading God-pleasing lives will inherit His land
and settle there forever.
30 Wisdom fills the mouth of the right-living;
justice and truth roll from their tongues.
31 The True God’s law is imprinted upon their hearts,
and they do not stumble.
32 The wicked stalk God’s good ones,
looking to kill them,
33 But the Eternal will never leave them to the dogs of evil,
nor will they be found guilty when the verdict is read.
34 Wait for the Eternal. Keep to His path. Mind His will.
He will come for you, exalt you; you will inherit the land.
Before your very eyes you will see the end of the wicked.
35 I passed by a wicked man with a cold-blooded nature;
I looked, and he seemed as large as a cedar of Lebanon.
36 But then again, I passed that same way and there was nothing left of him.
I went out looking for him, but he was nowhere to be found.
37 Keep your eye on the innocent. Model your life after the blameless.
Everyone who loves peace has a future.
38 But sinners will be doomed.
The forecast for the wicked: utter destruction.
There will be none left, not one child of darkness.
39 The Eternal saves His faithful;
He lends His strength in hard times;
40 The Eternal comes and frees them—
frees them from evildoers and saves them for eternity—
simply because they seek shelter in Him.
8 When Samuel was old, he named his sons judges of Israel to rule over the people and be their deliverers. 2 His first son, Joel, and his second son, Abijah, were judges in Beersheba, 3 but they were not like Samuel. They profited from dishonesty, took bribes, and fostered injustice. 4 So the elders of Israel gathered and came to Ramah to tell Samuel.
Elders: 5 You have grown old, Samuel, and your sons do not administer justice the way that you did. Before things worsen, appoint a king to rule us, as other nations have.
6 This request—“appoint a king to rule us”—bothered Samuel, so he prayed to the Eternal One 7 and received an answer.
Eternal One (to Samuel): Listen to what the people are asking you to do. It is not a rejection of you—it is a rejection of My rule over them. 8 It is what they have always done, from the day I brought them out of Egypt until today, rejecting Me and serving other gods. Now they are just doing it to you. 9 So listen to what they are asking you to do, but make it plain to them what they are asking. Warn them about what will happen if a king is appointed to rule them.
10 So Samuel told the people who were asking for a king what the Eternal One had said.
Samuel: 11 If a king rules over you, things will be different from now on. He will make your sons drive his chariots, be his horsemen, and go into battle ahead of his chariots. 12 Your king will select commanders over 1,000 and commanders over 50. He will make some of you to plow his fields and collect his harvest; some of you will be the blacksmiths forging his shields and swords for battle and outfitting his chariots. 13 He will force your daughters to make perfumes, to cook his meals, and to bake his bread. 14 He will seize the choicest of your fields, vineyards, and olive orchards to give to his courtiers, 15 and a tenth of your grain and your vineyards to give to his court eunuchs and servants. 16 This king you ask for will take your slaves, male and female, as his own and put the choicest of your donkeys and your young men to do his work. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks. You will essentially become his slaves. 18 One day you will cry for mercy from the Eternal One to save you from this king you have chosen for yourselves, but be assured, He will not hear you on that day.
6 So let’s push on toward a more perfect understanding and move beyond just the basic teachings of the Anointed One. There’s no reason to rehash the fundamentals: repenting from what you loved in your old dead lives, believing in God as our Creator and Redeemer, 2 teaching about baptism,[a] setting aside those called to service through the ritual laying on of hands, the coming resurrection of those who have died, and God’s final judgment of all people for all time. 3 No, we will move on toward perfection, if God wills it.
It’s clear that Jesus wanted His people to grow and mature in faith. Those who don’t move beyond the basics—tasting the gifts and powers of the new creation, partaking in the Spirit and the word of God—and then fall away bring shame to Jesus and produce nothing but briars and brambles. There is no stagnant life in the Kingdom. Either you grow and produce a blessing or you languish and descend into a curse. Be warned.
4-6 It is impossible to restore the changed heart of the one who has fallen from faith—who has already been enlightened, has tasted the gift of new life from God, has shared in the power of the Holy Spirit, and has known the goodness of God’s revelation and the powers of the coming age. If such a person falls away, it’s as though that one were crucifying the Son of God all over again and holding Him up to ridicule. 7 You see, God blesses the ground that drinks of the rain and then produces a bountiful crop for those who cultivate it. 8 But land that produces nothing but thorns and brambles? That land is worthless and in danger of being cursed, burned to the bare earth.
9 But listen, my friends—we don’t mean to discourage you completely with such talk. We are convinced that you are made for better things, the things of salvation, 10 because God is not unjust or unfair. He won’t overlook the work you have done or the love you have carried to each other in His name while doing His work, as you are still doing. 11 We want you all to continue working until the end so that you’ll realize the certainty that comes with hope 12 and not grow lazy. We want you to walk in the footsteps of the faithful who came before you, from whom you can learn to be steadfast in pursuing the promises of God.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.