Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Prayer for Protection against the Wicked.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
140 (A)Rescue me, O Lord, from evil men;
Preserve me from (B)violent men
2 Who (C)devise evil things in their hearts;
They (D)continually stir up wars.
3 They (E)sharpen their tongues as a serpent;
(F)Poison of a viper is under their lips. [a]Selah.
4 (G)Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
(H)Preserve me from violent men
Who have [b]purposed to [c](I)trip up my feet.
5 The proud have (J)hidden a trap for me, and cords;
They have spread a (K)net by the [d]wayside;
They have set (L)snares for me. Selah.
6 I (M)said to the Lord, “You are my God;
(N)Give ear, O Lord, to the (O)voice of my supplications.
7 “O [e]God the Lord, (P)the strength of my salvation,
You have (Q)covered my head in the day of [f]battle.
8 “Do not grant, O Lord, the (R)desires of the wicked;
Do not promote (S)his evil device, that they not be exalted. Selah.
9 “As for the head of those who surround me,
May the (T)mischief of their lips cover them.
10 “May (U)burning coals fall upon them;
May they be (V)cast into the fire,
Into [g]deep pits from which they (W)cannot rise.
11 “May a [h]slanderer not be established in the earth;
(X)May evil hunt the violent man [i]speedily.”
16 Thus says the Lord of hosts,
“(A)Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you.
They are (B)leading you into futility;
They speak a (C)vision of their own [a]imagination,
Not (D)from the mouth of the Lord.
17 “They keep saying to those who (E)despise Me,
‘The Lord has said, “(F)You will have peace”’;
And as for everyone who walks in the (G)stubbornness of his own heart,
They say, ‘(H)Calamity will not come upon you.’
18 “But (I)who has stood in the council of the Lord,
That he should see and hear His word?
Who has given (J)heed to [b]His word and listened?
19 “Behold, the (K)storm of the Lord has gone forth in wrath,
Even a whirling tempest;
It will swirl down on the head of the wicked.
20 “The (L)anger of the Lord will not turn back
Until He has (M)performed and carried out the purposes of His heart;
(N)In the last days you will clearly understand it.
21 “(O)I did not send these prophets,
But they ran.
I did not speak to them,
But they prophesied.
22 “But if they had (P)stood in My council,
Then they would have (Q)announced My words to My people,
And would have turned them back from their evil way
And from the evil of their deeds.
A Hard Road before Them
16 “(A)Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so [a]be (B)shrewd as serpents and (C)innocent as doves. 17 But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the (D)courts and scourge you (E)in their synagogues; 18 and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. 19 (F)But when they hand you over, (G)do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. 20 For (H)it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.
21 “(I)Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and (J)children will rise up against parents and [b]cause them to be put to death. 22 (K)You will be hated by all because of My name, but (L)it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.
23 “But whenever they (M)persecute you in [c]one city, flee to [d]the next; for truly I say to you, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel (N)until the Son of Man comes.
The Meaning of Discipleship
24 “(O)A [e]disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. (P)If they have called the head of the house [f](Q)Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household!
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