Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 101^[a]

Norm of Life for a Good Ruler

¹ A psalm of David.

^9 [a]In the fourth year of the reign of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of the reign of Hoshea, the son of Elah, the king of Israel, Shalmaneser, the king of Assyria, attacked Samaria and besieged it. ¹⁰ At the end of three years he captured it. It was in the sixth year of the reign of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of the reign of Hoshea, the king of Israel, that Samaria was captured.

¹¹ The king of Assyria deported Israel to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. ¹² This happened because they did not listen to the voice of the Lord, their God. They transgressed his covenant, everything that Moses, the servant of the Lord, had commanded. They would not listen nor would they obey.

¹³ Invasion of Sennacherib. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, came up against all of the fortified cities of Judah, and he captured them during the fourteenth year of the reign of King Hezekiah. ¹⁴ Hezekiah, the king of Judah, sent a message to the king of Assyria at Lachish saying, “I am guilty; withdraw from me and I will pay any penalty you decide.” The king of Assyria required Hezekiah, the king of Judah, to pay three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. ¹⁵ Hezekiah gave him all of the silver that was to be found in the temple of the Lord and the treasury of the royal palace.

¹⁶ It was at this time that Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors to the temple of the Lord and from the doorposts that Hezekiah, the king of Judah, had overlaid. He gave it to the king of Assyria.

¹⁷ The king of Assyria sent the general, the lord chamberlain, and the commander along with a large army from Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem. When they arrived, they stood by the conduit of the upper pool that is on the highway in the Fuller’s Field. ¹⁸ They called out for the king, and Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, the major-domo, Shebna, the scribe, Joah, the son of Asaph, who kept the archives, came out to them.

The Benefits of Godliness. ⁶ If you offer these instructions to the brethren, you will prove to be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. ⁷ Have nothing to do with profane myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself in godliness.

⁸ While physical training has some value, the benefits of godliness are unlimited, since it holds out promise not only for this life but also for the life to come. ⁹ This saying can be trusted and merits complete acceptance. ¹⁰ For this is why we toil and struggle, because we have placed our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all, especially of all those who believe.

¹¹ Pastoral Duties. These are the things you must insist upon in your teaching. ¹² Let no one regard you with contempt because of your youth, but serve as an example to the believers in your speech and conduct, in your love, your faith, and your purity.

¹³ Until I arrive, devote yourself to reading,^[a] to exhortation, and to teaching. ¹⁴ Do not neglect the gift that was bestowed upon you when, as a result of prophecy, the elders laid their hands on you.^[b]

¹⁵ Meditate on these things and put them into practice so that your progress may be evident to everyone. ¹⁶ Be conscientious about your life and your teaching. Persevere in both of these tasks, for by doing so you will save both yourself and your listeners.