Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Prayer for Protection against Oppressors.
A Prayer of David.
17 Hear a (A)just cause, O Lord, (B)give heed to my cry;
(C)Give ear to my prayer, which is not from (D)deceitful lips.
2 Let (E)my [a]judgment come forth from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look with (F)equity.
3 You have (G)tried my heart;
You have visited me by night;
You have (H)tested me and (I)You find [b]nothing;
I have (J)purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
4 As for the deeds of men, (K)by the word of Your lips
I have kept from the (L)paths of the violent.
5 My (M)steps have held fast to Your [c]paths.
My (N)feet have not slipped.
6 I have (O)called upon You, for You will answer me, O God;
(P)Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.
7 (Q)Wondrously show Your lovingkindness,
O (R)Savior of those who take refuge [d]at Your right hand
From those who rise up against them.
8 Keep me as [e]the (S)apple of the eye;
Hide me (T)in the shadow of Your wings
9 From the (U)wicked who despoil me,
My (V)deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They have (W)closed their [f]unfeeling heart,
With their mouth they (X)speak proudly.
11 They have now (Y)surrounded us in our steps;
They set their eyes (Z)to cast us down to the ground.
12 He is (AA)like a lion that is eager to tear,
And as a young lion (AB)lurking in hiding places.
13 (AC)Arise, O Lord, confront him, (AD)bring him low;
(AE)Deliver my soul from the wicked with (AF)Your sword,
14 From men with (AG)Your hand, O Lord,
From men [g]of the world, (AH)whose portion is in this life,
And whose belly You (AI)fill with Your treasure;
They are satisfied with children,
And leave their abundance to their babes.
15 As for me, I shall (AJ)behold Your face in righteousness;
(AK)I will be satisfied [h]with Your (AL)likeness when I awake.
5 Thus says the Lord,
“(A)Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind
And makes (B)flesh his [a]strength,
And whose heart turns away from the Lord.
6 “For he will be like a (C)bush in the desert
And will not see when prosperity comes,
But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness,
A (D)land of salt [b]without inhabitant.
7 “(E)Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord
And whose (F)trust is the Lord.
8 “For he will be like a (G)tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of (H)drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.
9 “The (I)heart is more (J)deceitful than all else
And is desperately (K)sick;
Who can understand it?
10 “I, the Lord, (L)search the heart,
I test the [c]mind,
Even (M)to give to each man according to his ways,
According to the [d]results of his deeds.
11 “As a partridge that hatches eggs which it has not laid,
So is he who (N)makes a fortune, but unjustly;
In the midst of his days it will forsake him,
And in [e]the end he will be a (O)fool.”
12 (P)A glorious throne on high from the beginning
Is the place of our sanctuary.
13 O Lord, the (Q)hope of Israel,
All who (R)forsake You will be put to shame.
Those who turn [f]away on earth will be (S)written down,
Because they have forsaken the fountain of living water, even the Lord.
14 (T)Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed;
(U)Save me and I will be saved,
For You are my (V)praise.
15 Look, they keep (W)saying to me,
“Where is the word of the Lord?
Let it come now!”
16 But as for me, I have not hurried away from being a shepherd after You,
Nor have I longed for the woeful day;
(X)You Yourself know that the utterance of my lips
Was in Your presence.
17 Do not be a (Y)terror to me;
You are my (Z)refuge in the day of disaster.
18 Let those who persecute me be (AA)put to shame, but as for me, (AB)let me not be put to shame;
Let them be dismayed, but let me not be dismayed.
(AC)Bring on them a day of disaster,
And crush them with twofold destruction!
The Pharisees Rebuked
22 (A)Then a (B)demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to [a]Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23 All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the (C)Son of David, can he?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man (D)casts out demons only by [b]Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”
25 (E)And (F)knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “[c]Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and [d]any city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26 If (G)Satan casts out Satan, he [e]is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27 If I (H)by [f]Beelzebul cast out demons, (I)by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. 28 But (J)if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
The Unpardonable Sin
30 (K)He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
31 “(L)Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. 32 (M)Whoever [g]speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever [h]speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in (N)this age or in the age to come.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.