Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Lord Implored to Defend the Psalmist against the Wicked.
A [a]Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord [b]concerning Cush, a Benjamite.
7 O Lord my God, (A)in You I have taken refuge;
Save me from all those who pursue me, and (B)deliver me,
2 Or he will tear [c]my soul (C)like a lion,
[d]Dragging me away, while there is none to deliver.
3 O Lord my God, if I have done this,
If there is (D)injustice in my hands,
4 If I have (E)rewarded evil to [e]my friend,
Or have (F)plundered [f]him who without cause was my adversary,
5 Let the enemy pursue [g]my soul and overtake [h]it;
And let him trample my life down to the ground
And lay my glory in the dust. [i]Selah.
6 (G)Arise, O Lord, in Your anger;
(H)Lift up Yourself against (I)the rage of my adversaries,
And (J)arouse Yourself [j]for me; You have appointed judgment.
7 Let the assembly of the (K)peoples encompass You,
And over [k]them return on high.
8 The Lord (L)judges the peoples;
[l](M)Vindicate me, O Lord, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me.
9 O let (N)the evil of the wicked come to an end, but (O)establish the righteous;
For the righteous God (P)tries the hearts and [m]minds.
10 My (Q)shield is [n]with God,
Who (R)saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a (S)righteous judge,
And a God who has (T)indignation every day.
12 If [o]a man (U)does not repent, He will (V)sharpen His sword;
He has (W)bent His bow and [p]made it ready.
13 He has also prepared [q]for Himself deadly weapons;
He makes His (X)arrows fiery shafts.
14 Behold, he travails with wickedness,
And he (Y)conceives mischief and brings forth falsehood.
15 He has dug a pit and hollowed it out,
And has (Z)fallen into the hole which he made.
16 His (AA)mischief will return upon his own head,
And his (AB)violence will descend upon [r]his own pate.
3 Then Esther spoke again to the king, fell at his feet, wept and implored him to avert the evil scheme of Haman the Agagite and his plot which he had devised against the Jews. 4 (A)The king extended the golden scepter to Esther. So Esther arose and stood before the king. 5 Then she said, “(B)If it pleases the king and if I have found favor before him and the matter seems proper to the king and I am pleasing in his sight, let it be written to revoke the (C)letters devised by Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the king’s provinces. 6 For (D)how can I endure to see the calamity which will befall my people, and how can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred?” 7 So King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Behold, (E)I have given the house of Haman to Esther, and him they have hanged on the gallows because he had stretched out his hands against the Jews.
The King’s Decree Avenges the Jews
8 Now you write to the Jews [a]as you see fit, in the king’s name, and (F)seal it with the king’s signet ring; for a decree which is written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s signet ring (G)may not be revoked.”
9 (H)So the king’s scribes were called at that time in the third month (that is, the month Sivan), on the twenty-third [b]day; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded to the Jews, the satraps, the governors and the princes of the provinces which extended (I)from India to [c]Ethiopia, 127 provinces, to (J)every province according to its script, and to every people according to their language as well as to the Jews according to their script and their language. 10 He wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus, and sealed it with the king’s signet ring, and sent letters by couriers on (K)horses, riding on steeds sired by the royal stud. 11 [d]In them the king granted the Jews who were in each and every city the right (L)to assemble and to defend their lives, (M)to destroy, to kill and to annihilate the entire army of any people or province which might attack them, including children and women, and (N)to plunder their spoil, 12 on (O)one day in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar). 13 (P)A copy of the edict to be [e]issued as law in each and every province was published to all the peoples, so that the Jews would be ready for this day to avenge themselves on their enemies. 14 The couriers, hastened and impelled by the king’s command, went out, riding on the royal steeds; and the decree was given out at the citadel in Susa.
15 Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king (Q)in royal robes of [f]blue and white, with a large crown of gold and (R)a garment of fine linen and purple; and (S)the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. 16 For the Jews there was (T)light and gladness and joy and honor. 17 In each and every province and in each and every city, wherever the king’s commandment and his decree arrived, there was gladness and joy for the Jews, a feast and a [g](U)holiday. And (V)many among the peoples of the land became Jews, for the dread of the Jews had fallen on them.
The Fourfold Hallelujah
19 After these things I heard something like a (A)loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,
“(B)Hallelujah! (C)Salvation and (D)glory and power belong to our God; 2 (E)because His (F)judgments are (G)true and righteous; for He has judged the (H)great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and He has (I)avenged the blood of His bond-servants [a]on her.” 3 And a second time they said, “(J)Hallelujah! (K)Her smoke rises up forever and ever.” 4 And the (L)twenty-four elders and the (M)four living creatures (N)fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “(O)Amen. (P)Hallelujah!” 5 And a voice came from the throne, saying,
“(Q)Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, (R)you who fear Him, the small and the great.” 6 Then I heard something like (S)the voice of a great multitude and like (T)the sound of many waters and like the (U)sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying,
“(V)Hallelujah! For the (W)Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
Marriage of the Lamb
7 Let us rejoice and be glad and (X)give the glory to Him, for (Y)the marriage of the Lamb has come and His [b](Z)bride has made herself ready.” 8 It was given to her to clothe herself in (AA)fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the (AB)righteous acts of the [c]saints.
9 Then (AC)he *said to me, “(AD)Write, ‘(AE)Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he *said to me, “(AF)These are true words of God.”
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.