Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Prayer Against Enemies
For the director of music. A song of David.
64 God, listen to my complaint.
I am afraid of my enemies.
Protect my life from them.
2 Hide me from those wicked people,
from that gang who does evil.
3 They sharpen their tongues like swords.
They shoot bitter words like arrows.
4 They hide and shoot at innocent people.
They shoot suddenly and are not afraid.
5 They encourage each other to do wrong.
They talk about setting traps.
They think no one will see them.
6 They plan wicked things and say,
“We have a perfect plan.”
The mind of man is hard to understand.
7 But God will shoot them with arrows.
They will suddenly be struck down.
8 Their own words will be used against them.
All who see them will shake their heads.
9 Then everyone will fear God.
They will tell what God has done.
They will learn from what he has done.
10 Good people will be happy in the Lord.
They will find protection in him.
Let everyone who is honest praise the Lord.
Job Answers Bildad
19 Then Job answered:
2 “How long will you hurt me
and crush me with your words?
3 You have insulted me ten times now.
You attack me without shame.
4 If I have sinned,
it is my worry alone.
5 Maybe you want to make yourselves look better than I do
so you can blame me for my suffering.
6 Then know that God has wronged me.
He has pulled his net around me.
7 “I shout, ‘I have been wronged!’
But I get no answer.
I call loudly for help,
but I receive no justice.
8 God has blocked my way so I cannot pass.
He has covered my paths with darkness.
9 He has taken away my honor.
He has removed the crown from my head.
10 He beats me down on every side until I am gone.
He pulls up my hope as a tree is pulled up by its roots.
11 His anger burns against me.
And he treats me as one of his enemies.
12 His armies gather.
They prepare a way to attack me.
They camp around my tent.
13 “God has made my brothers my enemies.
My friends have become complete strangers.
14 My relatives have gone away.
My friends have forgotten me.
15 My guests and my women servants think of me as a stranger.
They look at me as if I were a foreigner.
16 I call for my servant, but he does not answer.
I even beg him with my own mouth.
17 My wife hates my breath.
My own family hates me.
18 Even the little boys hate me.
When I leave, they talk about me.
19 All my close friends hate me.
Even those I love have turned against me.
20 I am nothing but skin and bones.
I have escaped with only the skin of my teeth.
21 Pity me, my friends. Pity me!
The hand of God has hit me.
22 Why do you chase me as God does?
Haven’t you had enough of hurting my body?
One in Christ
11 You were born non-Jews. You are the people the Jews call “uncircumcised.”[a] Those who call you “uncircumcised” call themselves “circumcised.” (Their circumcision is only something they themselves do on their bodies.) 12 Remember that in the past you were without Christ. You were not citizens of Israel. And you had no part in the agreements[b] with the promise that God made to his people. You had no hope, and you did not know God. 13 Yes, at one time you were far away from God. But now in Christ Jesus you are brought near to God through the blood of Christ’s death. 14 Because of Christ we now have peace. Christ made both Jews and non-Jews one people. They were separated as if there were a wall between them. But Christ broke down that wall of hate by giving his own body. 15 The Jewish law had many commands and rules. But Christ ended that law. Christ’s purpose was to make the two groups of people become one new people in him. By doing this Christ would make peace. 16 Through the cross Christ ended the hatred between the two groups. And after Christ made the two groups to be one body, he wanted to bring them back to God. Christ did this with his death on the cross. 17 Christ came and preached peace to you non-Jews who were far away from God. And he preached peace to those Jews who were near to God. 18 Yes, through Christ we all have the right to come to the Father in one Spirit.
19 So now you non-Jews are not visitors or strangers. Now you are citizens together with God’s holy people. You belong to God’s family. 20 You believers are like a building that God owns. That building was built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Christ Jesus himself is the most important stone[c] in that building. 21 That whole building is joined together in Christ. And Christ makes it grow and become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in Christ you, too, are being built together with the Jews. You are being built into a place where God lives through the Spirit.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.