Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
19 But You, Lord, don’t be far away.(A)
My strength, come quickly to help me.(B)
20 Deliver my life from the sword,(C)
my only life[a] from the power of these dogs.
21 Save me from the mouth of the lion!(D)
You have rescued[b] me
from the horns of the wild oxen.
22 I will proclaim Your name to my brothers;
I will praise You in the congregation.(E)
23 You who fear Yahweh, praise Him!(F)
All you descendants of Jacob, honor Him!
All you descendants of Israel, revere Him!(G)
24 For He has not despised or detested
the torment of the afflicted.(H)
He did not hide His face from him(I)
but listened when he cried to Him for help.(J)
Unrighteous Leaders Condemned
9 All you animals of the field and forest,
come and eat!
10 Israel’s[a] watchmen are blind, all of them,
they know nothing;
all of them are mute dogs,
they cannot bark;
they dream, lie down,
and love to sleep.
11 These dogs have fierce appetites;
they never have enough.
And they are shepherds
who have no discernment;
all of them turn to their own way,
every last one for his own gain.(A)
12 “Come, let me get some wine,
let’s guzzle some beer;
and tomorrow will be like today,
only far better!”(B)
Jewish Violation of the Law
17 Now if[a] you call yourself a Jew, and rest in the law,(A) boast in God, 18 know His will, and approve the things that are superior,(B) being instructed from the law, 19 and if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light to those in darkness, 20 an instructor of the ignorant, a teacher of the immature, having the full expression[b] of knowledge and truth(C) in the law— 21 you then, who teach another,(D) don’t you teach yourself? You who preach, “You must not steal”—do you steal? 22 You who say, “You must not commit adultery”—do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob their temples?(E) 23 You who boast in the law,(F) do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 For, as it is written: The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.(G)[c]
Circumcision of the Heart
25 For circumcision benefits you if you observe the law, but if you are a lawbreaker, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.(H) 26 Therefore if an uncircumcised(I) man keeps the law’s requirements,(J) will his uncircumcision not be counted as circumcision? 27 A man who is physically uncircumcised, but who fulfills the law, will judge you(K) who are a lawbreaker in spite of having the letter of the law and circumcision. 28 For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly,(L) and true circumcision is not something visible in the flesh. 29 On the contrary, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly,(M) and circumcision is of the heart—by the Spirit, not the letter.[d](N) That man’s praise[e] is not from men but from God.(O)
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