Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
12 Who is the man who (C)fears the Lord?
He will (D)instruct him in the way he should choose.
13 His soul will (E)abide in [a]prosperity,
And his [b]descendants will (F)inherit the [c]land.
14 The [d](G)secret of the Lord is for those who fear Him,
[e]And He will (H)make them know His covenant.
15 My (I)eyes are continually toward the Lord,
For He will [f](J)pluck my feet out of the net.
16 (K)Turn to me and be gracious to me,
For I am (L)lonely and afflicted.
17 [g]The (M)troubles of my heart are enlarged;
Bring me (N)out of my distresses.
18 (O)Look upon my affliction and my [h]trouble,
And (P)forgive all my sins.
19 Look upon my enemies, for they (Q)are many,
And they (R)hate me with violent hatred.
20 (S)Guard my soul and deliver me;
Do not let me (T)be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.
On Life and Conduct
19 (A)Better is a poor man who (B)walks in his integrity
Than he who is perverse in [a]speech and is a fool.
2 Also it is not good for a person to be without knowledge,
And he who hurries [b](C)his footsteps [c]errs.
3 The (D)foolishness of man ruins his way,
And his heart (E)rages against the Lord.
4 (F)Wealth adds many friends,
But a poor man is separated from his friend.
5 A (G)false witness will not go unpunished,
And he who [d](H)tells lies will not escape.
6 (I)Many will seek the favor of a [e]generous man,
And every man is a friend to him who (J)gives gifts.
7 All the brothers of a poor man hate him;
How much more do his (K)friends abandon him!
He (L)pursues them with words, but they are [f]gone.
8 He who gets [g]wisdom loves his own soul;
He who keeps understanding will (M)find good.
9 A (N)false witness will not go unpunished,
And he who [h]tells lies will perish.
10 Luxury is (O)not fitting for a fool;
Much less for a (P)slave to rule over princes.
11 A man’s (Q)discretion makes him slow to anger,
And it is his glory (R)to overlook a transgression.
12 The (S)king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion,
But his favor is like (T)dew on the grass.
13 A (U)foolish son is destruction to his father,
And the (V)contentions of a wife are a constant dripping.
14 House and wealth are an (W)inheritance from fathers,
But a prudent wife is from the Lord.
15 (X)Laziness casts into a deep sleep,
And an idle [i]man will suffer hunger.
16 He who (Y)keeps the commandment keeps his soul,
But he who [j]is careless of [k]conduct will die.
17 One who (Z)is gracious to a poor man lends to the Lord,
And He will repay him for his [l](AA)good deed.
11 (A)For this is the message (B)which you have heard from the beginning, (C)that we should love one another; 12 not as (D)Cain, who was of (E)the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because (F)his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.
13 Do not be surprised, brethren, if (G)the world hates you. 14 We know that we have (H)passed out of death into life, (I)because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who (J)hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that (K)no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 We know love by this, that (L)He laid down His life for us; and (M)we ought to lay down our lives for the (N)brethren. 17 But (O)whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and (P)closes his [a]heart [b]against him, (Q)how does the love of God abide in him?
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.