Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Reign of the Righteous King.
A Psalm of Solomon.
72 Give the king [knowledge of] Your judgments, O God,
And [the spirit of] Your righteousness to the king’s son [to guide all his ways].
2
May he judge Your people with righteousness,
And Your afflicted with justice.(A)
3
The mountains will bring peace and prosperity to the people,
And the hills, in [the establishment of] righteousness.
4
May he bring justice to the poor among the people,
Save the children of the needy
And crush the oppressor,
5
Let them fear You [with awe-inspired reverence and worship You with obedience] while the sun endures,
And as long as the moon [reflects light], throughout all generations.
6
May he come down like rain on the mown grass,
Like showers that water the earth.
7
In his days may the righteous flourish,
And peace abound until the moon is no more.(B)
8
May he also rule from sea to sea
And from the River [Euphrates] to the ends of the earth.(C)
9
The nomads of the desert will bow before him,
And his enemies will [a]lick the dust.
10
The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring offerings;
The kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts.
11
Yes, all kings will bow down before him,
All nations will serve him.(D)
12
For he will rescue the needy when he cries for help,
The afflicted and abused also, and him who has no helper.
13
He will have compassion on the poor and needy,
And he will save the lives of the needy.
14
He will redeem their life from oppression and fraud and violence,
And their blood will be precious in His sight.
15
So may he live, and may the gold of Sheba be given to him;
And let them pray for him continually;
Let them bless and praise him all day long.
16
There will be an abundance of grain in the soil on the top of the [b]mountains;
Its fruit will wave like [the cedars of] Lebanon,
And those of the city will flourish like grass of the earth.
17
May his name endure forever;
May his name continue as long as the sun;
And let men bless themselves by him;
Let all nations call him blessed.
18
Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone does wonderful things.
19
Blessed be His glorious name forever;
And may the whole earth be filled with His glory.
Amen and Amen.
20
The prayers of David son of Jesse are ended.
2
“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Too little to be among the clans of Judah;
From you One shall come forth for Me [who is] to be Ruler in Israel,
His goings forth (appearances) are from long ago,
From [a]ancient days.”(A)
3
Therefore, He will give them up until the time
When she who is in labor has given birth to a child.
Then what is left of His kinsmen
Shall return to the children of Israel.
4
And He shall stand and shepherd and guide His flock
In the strength of the Lord,
In the majesty of the name of the Lord His God;
And they shall dwell [secure in undisturbed peace],
Because at that time He shall be great [extending His authority]
[Even] to the ends of the earth.(B)
5
This One [the Messiah] shall be our peace.
When the Assyrian invades our land
And tramples on our citadels and in our palaces,
Then shall we raise against him
Seven shepherds and eight princes [an overpowering force] among men.(C)
6
They shall devastate the land of Assyria with the sword and
The land of Nimrod within her [own] gates.
And He (the Messiah) shall rescue us from the Assyrian (all enemy nations)
When he attacks our land
And when he tramples our territory.
7
Then the remnant of Jacob
Shall be among many peoples
Like dew from the Lord,
Like showers on the grass [a source of blessing]
Which [come suddenly and] do not wait for man
Nor delay for the sons of men.(D)
8
The remnant of Jacob
Shall be among the nations,
In the midst of many peoples
Like a lion among the beasts of the forest,
Like a young lion [suddenly appearing] among the flocks of sheep
Which, if he passes through,
Tramples down and tears into pieces [the nations in judgment],
And there is no one to rescue.
9
Your hand will be lifted up against your adversaries,
And all your enemies shall be cut off and destroyed.
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came up and said to Him, “Leave and go away from here, because Herod [Antipas] wants to kill You.” 32 And He said to them, “Go and tell that fox [that sly, cowardly man], ‘Listen carefully: I cast out demons and perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I reach My goal.’ 33 Nevertheless I must travel on today and tomorrow and the day after that—for it cannot be that a prophet would die outside of Jerusalem. 34 [a]O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones [to death] those [messengers] who are sent to her [by God]! How often I have wanted to gather your children together [around Me], just as a hen gathers her young under her wings, but you were not willing!(A) 35 Listen carefully: your house is left to you desolate [abandoned by God and destitute of His protection]; and I say to you, you will not see Me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed [to be celebrated with praise] is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”(B)
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.