Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 57[a]
Trust in God amid Suffering
1 For the director.[b] According to “Do not destroy.” A miktam of David. When he fled from Saul into the cave.
2 Have mercy on me, O God,
have mercy on me,
for in you my soul[c] takes refuge.
I will seek shelter in the shadow of your wings
until the time of danger has passed.
3 I call out to God Most High,
to God who takes care of me.[d]
4 May he send his help from heaven to deliver me
and put to shame those who trample upon me; Selah
may God send his kindness[e] and his faithfulness.
5 I lie prostrate in the midst of lions
who are hungrily seeking human prey.
Their teeth are spears and arrows,
and their tongues are razor-sharp swords.
6 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory shine over all the earth.[f]
7 They set a trap for my feet,
and I was overcome with distress.
They dug a pit in my path,
but they themselves fell into it. Selah
8 [g]My heart[h] is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and chant your praise;
9 awake, my soul!
Awake, lyre and harp!
I will awaken the dawn.[i]
10 [j]I will give thanks to you among the peoples, O Lord;
I will sing your praises among the nations.
11 For your kindness extends to the heavens;
your faithfulness, to the skies.
12 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory radiate over all the earth.
36 Nabal’s Death. When Abigail returned to Nabal, he was in his house feasting as if he were at a king’s banquet. Nabal was in high spirits, for he was very drunk. She, therefore, did not tell him a thing until daybreak. 37 In the morning, when Nabal was no longer under the influence of the wine, his wife told him these things. His heart failed him, and he became like a stone. 38 About ten days later, the Lord struck Nabal down and he died.
39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “Blessed be the Lord who has upheld my cause against Nabal for having treated me with scorn. He has kept his servant from wrongdoing, and the Lord has repaid Nabal’s wrongdoing upon his own head.”
David’s Marriage to Abigail. David sent word to Abigail, asking her to be his wife. 40 David’s servants came to Abigail in Carmel and they said to her, “David has sent us to you so that he could take you as his wife.” 41 She bowed down with her face to the ground, and she said, “Behold your handmaid, a servant to wash the feet of my lord’s servants.”
42 Abigail quickly got up and rode on a donkey, accompanied by five of her women. She followed David’s messengers, and she became David’s wife.
The Passion
39 The Agony in the Garden.[a] Jesus then went forth and made his way, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. 40 When he reached the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 After withdrawing from them about a stone’s throw, he knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me. Yet not my will but yours be done.”
43 [b]Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength. 44 In his anguish, he prayed so fervently that his sweat became like great drops of blood falling on the ground.
45 When he rose from prayer and returned to the disciples, he found them sleeping, exhausted by grief. 46 He said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
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