Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 51
A Prayer for Restoration
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm, when Nathan the prophet came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba.(A)
1 Be gracious to me, God,
according to Your faithful love;
according to Your abundant compassion,
blot out my rebellion.(B)
2 Wash away my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.(C)
3 For I am conscious of my rebellion,
and my sin is always before me.(D)
4 Against You—You alone—I have sinned
and done this evil in Your sight.(E)
So You are right when You pass sentence;
You are blameless when You judge.(F)
5 Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;
I was sinful when my mother conceived me.(G)
6 Surely You desire integrity in the inner self,
and You teach me wisdom deep within.(H)
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.(I)
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones You have crushed rejoice.(J)
9 Turn Your face away[a] from my sins
and blot out all my guilt.(K)
10 God, create a clean heart for me
and renew a steadfast[b] spirit within me.(L)
11 Do not banish me from Your presence
or take Your Holy Spirit from me.(M)
12 Restore the joy of Your salvation to me,
and give me a willing spirit.[c](N)
13 Then I will teach the rebellious Your ways,
and sinners will return to You.(O)
14 Save me from the guilt of bloodshed, God,(P)
the God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness.(Q)
15 Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare Your praise.(R)
16 You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
You are not pleased with a burnt offering.(S)
17 The sacrifice pleasing to God is[d] a broken spirit.
God, You will not despise a broken and humbled heart.(T)
Remembering God through Obedience
10 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land He swore to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that He would give you—a land with large and beautiful cities that you did not build, 11 houses full of every good thing that you did not fill them with, wells dug that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant(A)—and when you eat and are satisfied,(B) 12 be careful not to forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.(C) 13 Fear Yahweh your God, worship Him, and take your oaths in His name.(D) 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you, 15 for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God.(E) Otherwise, the Lord your God will become angry with you and wipe you off the face of the earth. 16 Do not test(F) the Lord your God as you tested Him at Massah.(G) 17 Carefully observe the commands of the Lord your God, the decrees and statutes He has commanded you. 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that you may prosper and so that you may enter and possess the good land(H) the Lord your God swore to give your fathers,(I) 19 by driving out all your enemies before you, as the Lord has said.(J)
20 “When your son asks you in the future, ‘What is the meaning of the decrees, statutes, and ordinances, which the Lord our God has commanded you?’ 21 tell him, ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand. 22 Before our eyes the Lord inflicted great and devastating signs and wonders on Egypt, on Pharaoh, and on all his household, 23 but He brought us from there in order to lead us in and give us the land that He swore to our fathers. 24 The Lord commanded us to follow all these statutes and to fear the Lord our God for our prosperity always and for our preservation, as it is today. 25 Righteousness will be ours if we are careful to follow every one of these commands before the Lord our God, as He has commanded us.’
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil.(A) Try to do what is honorable(B) in everyone’s eyes. 18 If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone.(C) 19 Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for His[a] wrath. For it is written: Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay,(D)[b] says the Lord. 20 But
If your enemy is hungry, feed him.(E)
If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
For in so doing
you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.(F)[c]
21 Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.
Love, Our Primary Duty
8 Do not owe anyone anything,[a] except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.(A) 9 The commandments:
and whatever other commandment—all are summed up by this: Love your neighbor as yourself.(C)[d]
10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love, therefore, is the fulfillment of the law.
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