Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.
A Psalm of David. A [a]Maskil.
32 (A)How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!
2 How blessed is the man to whom the Lord (B)does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is (C)no deceit!
3 When (D)I kept silent about my sin, (E)my [b]body wasted away
Through my [c](F)groaning all day long.
4 For day and night (G)Your hand was heavy upon me;
My [d](H)vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. [e]Selah.
5 I (I)acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I (J)did not hide;
I said, “(K)I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”;
And You (L)forgave the [f]guilt of my sin. Selah.
6 Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [g](M)in a time when You may be found;
Surely (N)in a flood of great waters they will not reach him.
7 You are (O)my hiding place; You (P)preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with [h](Q)songs of deliverance. Selah.
21 “[a](A)Yield now and be at peace with Him;
Thereby good will come to you.
22 “Please receive [b](B)instruction from His mouth
And establish His words in your heart.
23 “If you (C)return to [c]the Almighty, you will be [d]restored;
If you (D)remove unrighteousness far from your tent,
24 And (E)place your [e]gold in the dust,
And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks,
25 Then [f]the Almighty will be your [g]gold
And choice silver to you.
26 “For then you will (F)delight in [h]the Almighty
And lift up your face to God.
27 “You will (G)pray to Him, and (H)He will hear you;
And you will pay your vows.
28 “You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you;
And (I)light will shine on your ways.
29 “When [i]you are cast down, you will speak with [j]confidence,
And the [k](J)humble person He will save.
30 “He will deliver one who is not innocent,
And he will be (K)delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”
Job Says He Longs for God
23 Then Job [l]replied,
2 “Even today my (L)complaint is rebellion;
[m]His hand is (M)heavy despite my groaning.
3 “Oh that I knew where I might find Him,
That I might come to His seat!
4 “I would (N)present my case before Him
And fill my mouth with arguments.
5 “I would learn the words which He would [n]answer,
And perceive what He would say to me.
6 “Would He contend with me by (O)the greatness of His power?
No, surely He would pay attention to me.
7 “There the upright would (P)reason with Him;
And I [o]would be (Q)delivered forever from my Judge.
8 “Behold, I go forward but He is not there,
And backward, but I (R)cannot perceive Him;
9 When He acts on the left, I cannot behold Him;
He turns on the right, I cannot see Him.
10 “But He knows the [p]way I take;
When He has (S)tried me, I shall come forth as gold.
11 “My foot has (T)held fast to His path;
I have kept His way and not turned aside.
12 “I have not departed from the command of His lips;
I have treasured the (U)words of His mouth [q]more than my [r]necessary food.
13 “But He is unique and who can turn Him?
And what His soul desires, that He does.
14 “For He performs what is appointed for me,
And many such decrees are with Him.
15 “Therefore, I would be dismayed at His presence;
When I consider, I am terrified of Him.
16 “It is God who has made my (V)heart faint,
And the Almighty who has dismayed me,
17 But I (W)am not silenced by the darkness,
Nor (X)deep gloom which covers me.
Growth in Christian Virtue
1 [a]Simon Peter, a (A)bond-servant and (B)apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received (C)a faith of the same [b]kind as ours, [c]by (D)the righteousness of (E)our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: 2 (F)Grace and peace be multiplied to you in (G)the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His (H)divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true (I)knowledge of Him who (J)called us [d]by His own glory and [e]excellence. 4 [f]For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent (K)promises, so that by them you may become (L)partakers of the divine nature, having (M)escaped the (N)corruption that is in (O)the world by lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith (P)supply (Q)moral [g]excellence, and in your moral excellence, (R)knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, (S)self-control, and in your self-control, (T)perseverance, and in your perseverance, (U)godliness, 7 and in your godliness, (V)brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor (W)unfruitful in the true (X)knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these qualities is (Y)blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his (Z)purification from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His (AA)calling and (AB)choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never (AC)stumble; 11 for in this way the entrance into (AD)the eternal kingdom of our (AE)Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be (AF)abundantly (AG)supplied to you.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.